Yesterday On Colorado Blvd.

photo by Terry Griest

Sometimes, if we're lucky, Terry Griest checks the blog when I've posted a photo taken in Old Town Pasadena. You may remember Terry: she did an in-depth study of our historic, once-scary (now up-scale) shopping district at the beginning of its dramatic upheaval/restoration. What she created is a rare treasure, and I'm so grateful when she shares it with us.

Compare today's photo to yesterday's.

Terry says:
"I didn't have much in my little 1984 report and no oldy-old photos, just this one from '84 when you could buy 'meat for home freezers,' and 'select your own' 'beef bundles' (yum) from the Beef Baron where you can now buy leather goods. Hmm.

"Here's the only info I have:

"...we come to 33-45 West Colorado, another Spanish Colonial relating well to others on the block. This facade is actually a 1929 [the year they widened Colorado] unification of several small structures built in 1895. Typical Spanish elements are the central arched entrance, red tile roof, and wrought iron grille work which was, until recently, covered by signs. Once the first Pasadena telephone company in 1901, Bennett and Haskell once again offered their own baroque version of the Spanish colonial style."

This is a lot of information! And now, thanks to Terry Griest, it's available on the web.

Parlez Vous?

My friend Linda invited a few of us over yesterday to speak French.

Well. I mean, alors.

There was stumbling, mumbling, and...how do you say...? Rust. Rusty tongues, rusty minds, rusty French. But that was just me.

But it was fun. J'ai m'amuse bien. I hope that's right, or at least close to it.

The photo above is of an alley in Old Town Pasadena where you'll find the entrance to the Alliance Française de Pasadena. Step south off of Union Street or north from Exchange Alley into Kendall Alley, just west of Raymond Avenue, and you'll see the blue sign.

Pasadena's alleys are pretty tame. In fact, I may have just proven they're downright classy.

More from OldPasadena.org.

The Fish Building

This is one of those photos I took ages ago, then lost, then found. Then I didn't post it because I didn't have a picture of the building, then I didn't get to Old Town Pasadena to take a picture, then I did get to Old Town but forgot to take a picture. Then I came across this post about the building, and decided that I. MUST. GET. INSIDE.

Just read the first three paragraphs. Doesn't it sound marvelous? Pasadena is packed with these treasures, many of which are not available to just wander around in. Mmm. Secrets. History. Seamed nylon stockings and fedoras.

26 East Colorado Blvd. is east of Fair Oaks, on the south side of the street. Lots of lovely architecture around there. It makes you wonder what's inside all those buildings, upstairs, in the back rooms?

Where Am I?

I mean it. Really, I have no clue.

I've been so wrapped up in Camelot & Vine that I haven't looked up from the computer screen, and honestly, I'm tired of myself. I haven't been getting out to take pictures lately, so this one's from the archives. I know I took it in Old Town Pasadena, on the south side of Holly Street, just east of Fair Oaks. But I can't remember the name of the store, and it's showing up as an empty building on Google Maps. So either I took this picture a long time ago and the building is now empty, or Google took their picture a long time ago and the building is now full. One is as likely as the other.

We have a guest author tomorrow, I'm excited about that! We'll have at least one more in November and maybe two.

How are you? What's new? Have you been getting out of the house? What have you been doing out there?

And if you know what store I photographed, please tell us in the comments.

Creative Reuse

You might want to bookmark this just for the color palette. If it doesn't work for you as a building, perhaps you'd like it in a purse. Or as food.

I like it as a building. If you want to have a look, it's at the corner of Valley Street and DeLacey Avenue, a block or two south of Old Town Pasadena.

I love this kind of architecture. The shape of that facade says "old west frontier" to me. Except the old west is wearing a new outfit, and I just adore that handbag.

Downstairs Downtown

I went out the other night!

After dark and everything!

I know!

Old Town Pasadena has nooks and crannies, too many to count. I like to wander there any time, to peek into places that appear to be secrets. But after dark an intrigue is added, perhaps imagined, perhaps real. Alleys, stairwells, doorways--everything looks different in artificial light and the shadows it throws. At night, I notice things I've never seen during the day. And they become stories in my head, or thoughts I shouldn't be thinking.

Door, 5

You'll find this doorway on/in Electric Drive/Alley, just north of Holly Street in Old Town/Old Pasadena. I took the photo a while ago so it might have been painted since then, but Google maps has it looking the same.

Electric Alley was named for the Pacific Electric Railway Company. "The now-vanished Pacific Alley intersected Electric Alley at mid-block," says the historical marker. "Owned by Henry E. Huntington, the Pacific Electric System was the largest electric railway in the world, covering southern California with over 1,100 miles of track. By 1906, Pasadena was served by three interurban routes of the Pacific Electric."

The building just north of this door looks like a private home. It might well be and if it is, its location is unique, to say the least.

A couple of commenters have emailed to tell me the proper term for Old Town is Old Pasadena. It certainly is the proper term, but until I got those emails I had never heard the area referred to that way in day-to-day conversation. What do you think? Long-time Pasadena residents know this one better than I do. Set me straight, will ya? What do locals really say? I mean really?

Old Towne Pub

I had a super birthday yesterday. Thanks for your good wishes here, in email and on Facebook. John and I took the day off. We had planned to go to Clocker's Corner for breakfast, however I'm not one to sit outside when it's even slightly cool, so we went to Old Town instead. We loved--I mean loved--the food at the Market on Holly, but oh, those ultra-hip stools! (Note to MoH: ultra can be hard on the hips.)

We caught this scene while strolling on Holly Street. At last I know the location of the Old Towne Pub. The place has a mystique about it and it's not easy to find. Even though the Old Towne Pub has a Fair Oaks Avenue address the entrance is actually down the alley next to Cafe Linda's on Holly (speaker warning: music on that link). Surely this alley has a name because all Old Town alleys have names, don't they? But I couldn't find said name on the map. Obscurity is part of the Old Towne Pub's charm. And, if I'm not mistaken, history is, too.

I believe there's been a drinking establishment hidden deep down this nameless alley since Old Town was plain old town, if you know what I mean. It's had more than one name over the years. I'm not a Pasadena old-timer; I've been here just over six years. Do you know the stories? Let's hear them.

Building Materialize

It's amazing how often I can pass a place and not notice it. I have no idea how many times I've driven down Raymond Avenue in Old Town, how many times I've walked there, how many times I've passed 182 South Raymond.

Yesterday I noticed this building, plopped charmingly between Fishbeck's and Del Mar Station, directly across the street from Central Park. I've never seen it before. (Yesterday was a beautiful day to be at the park; I was there to attend a meeting of the volunteers who'll be helping out at LitFest Pasadena on Saturday, March 17th. We're ready! Come on down!)

I was able to discover the current inhabitants of 182: Hamlett Benefits Group (no website) and J. Bullock and Associates, an Architectural Presentation firm (new term for me, but they have a website so now I get it).

In a sales blurb the structure is described as "historical" but that history itself isn't mentioned. The place looks historical, but one of the things the blurb doesn't say is when the building was built. It says the building has been called the Wilkinson Building as well as the Casablanca Building. I had no luck finding them on the web either.

If you've got info, please share! Otherwise, I'm happy to believe that I never saw 182 before yesterday because it just now materialized.

Update, 3/12/12:
Brilliant (and diligent) reader Betsy found information linking designer Bernarr Judson Garnett to the Wilkinson Building and the Wilkinson Building to the Pasadena Public Library. 182 S. Raymond was built in 1931 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Thank you, Betsy!

Another update, 3/12:
Another brilliant reader, Diana, sends this information from the National Register of Historic Places, the records of which differ from those of Pasadena Public Library where Betsy got her info: 

The National Register nomination (http://pasadena.cfwebtools.com/search.cfm?res_id=3963&display=resource) says this is a vernacular masonry building built by William T. Loesch. The descriptive paragraph, which is pretty terse, reads:
"Known historically as the Wilkinson Building, this one-story brick building with a stuccoed façade sits well back from the street. Brick trim enhances the building by outlining the edges of the façade, doorways, and windows as well as by creating a frieze-like panel across the front. The rear entrance fronts on the railroad tracks."

The record also says the building was built in 1922, not 1931. It's a "contributing building" to the Old Pasadena historic district, but there's no further description of it in the National Register nomination for the historic district\ other than the one quoted above.

By the way, if you're experiencing difficulty commenting as Diana did, I'm sorry and I've notified Blogger. I'm not the only one with this problem. Many who use Blogger are complaining about this ongoing difficulty but we've received no response. I welcome your suggestions. My immediate thought is, "Wordpress."

Tête-à-Tête

Goorin Bros. Hat Shop on Colorado Blvd. in Old Town

"What do you think of the Homburg?"

"It makes you look old. Try the Porkpie."

"And?"

"Tip it back. That's nice. Very you. Okay, take a look at this. Can I get away with a Gaucho?"

"No you cannot. Here."

"I'm not wearing a top hat!"

"Okay, here."

"I'm not wearing a beret, either! What's that?"

"That, my friend, is called a Fedora."

"I thought it was called a 'dad hat.'"

"In some circles."

"Sold."

What to Wear to the Ball

I shot this photo out of the car window last night, just before the light changed from red to green. If there hadn't been any cars behind me I'd have lingered to gaze into all the windows at Mary Linn's Bridal shop at the corner of Fair Oaks and Green Street. The whole place is a Cinderella fantasy right now (complete with glass slippers in the lower left corner of the photo). The windows at Mary Linn's are always beautiful but right now they're especially spectacular.

Maybe it's because Valentine's Day is coming up (or looming, as some people might say) but I'm primed for a fairy tale. I don't expect I'll ever wear one of Mary Linn's amazing dresses, but it doesn't hurt to fantasize.

Learning to See

I want to show you a couple more pictures I took during Ibarionex Perello's workshop. (I'm proud of this one.)

When you arrive at the workshop, which begins at Memorial Park and takes you trekking through Old Town, you'll be greeted by Ibarionex, his wife Cynthia, and probably a few of their friends. With smiles. And hot coffee. It sets the tone.

Then, like ducklings following your leader, you head out into Old Town in search of challenge, texture and, most of all, light. Ibarionex will give you some basics about using your digital SLR camera, then you're going to start chasing the light and learning to see in new ways.

For my first couple of years of blogging I worked with an Olympus SP350, a nice, purse-sized point-and-shoot that had some manual settings I never used. I still shoot with it sometimes (with the automatic settings) but not as much. I learned a lot and I was ready to move on to a better instrument.

I met Ibarionex at a local blogger event about two and a half years ago. We had already met online. Some time after that first meeting I bought a Canon 20D from him. It might have some of his mojo, but I'll never know unless I learn how to use it. I've been trying to teach myself and I've made progress, but I'm lazy about reading manuals. So when the chance came along to take a workshop with the man himself, I jumped at it. I'm going to jump again this Saturday. It's his last workshop of the year that isn't full yet.

(I'm proud of this one, too.)

I can recommend the class because I've taken it and I already see results. If you want to make the leap, go to the Candid Frame Workshops sign-up page, ignore the other discount codes and get the workshop for $50 by entering this code: perellovip.

I was out shooting today and got a few good pictures, although I admit several were overexposed. It's not like this stuff comes easy. With practice, though, it comes. I could set everything on automatic and let the camera make all the decisions, but in that case I might as well use a point-and-shoot.

Dorothea Lange said "A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera." I love wrapping my mind around the meaning of that statement.

Chasing the Light

As I write I'm very sleepy, so just this:

Saturday I took the Digital Camera Bootcamp I told you about with Ibarionex Perello, pro photographer and gifted teacher.

I'll tell you more Tuesday but I couldn't wait to say at least this much: there's one more workshop this year that isn't already full and it's next Saturday. To sign up and pay only $50 for the class, which is worth three times as much, will make you as tired as I am now and will also make you a better photographer in a single day, go here, ignore the other codes and enter this code: perellovip.

Chasing the Light is Ibarionex's most recent book about photography. Boz managed to get his picture in it.


6:58 pm, An Electricity Update and Warning from Ann Erdman, Pasadena's Public Information Officer:

CAUTION STRONGLY URGED REGARDING HIGH-VOLTAGE ELECTRICITY

There are been reports of some residents opening pole boxes at the base of street lights and stringing wire from the boxes to their homes.

The voltage in most boxes is much too high for individual homes. This practice is illegal as well as extremely hazardous to people and structures.

Pasadena Water and Power officials have been contacting households without electricity with updates on restoration of services.  Power was restored to several homes today and PWP crews will continue working throughout the night and for as long as it takes to ensure power to all homes is restored as quickly as possible.

Robinson Park Center, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., will open at 7 p.m. tonight to provide a warm place for residents without power.


We have a WINDSTORM UPDATE from Ann Erdman, Pasadena's Public Information Officer Extraordinaire:


today, 5:30pm

The City of Pasadena has been working around the clock on recovery efforts in the wake of the fierce windstorms that struck overnight Nov. 30 to Dec. 1. In response to the disaster, the city declared a local emergency, a proactive protective measure consistent with other neighboring cities that have sustained significant damage. It occurs when a disaster has progressed or is anticipated to extend beyond the capability of regular municipal personnel and resources, assisted by personnel and resources from contiguous municipalities, to maintain order and control and confine the incident.

The following is an update on services and infrastructure as of 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011.

Shelter

Robinson Park Center, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., returned to regular recreation programming yesterday.
The center will open at 7 p.m. tonight to provide a warm place for residents without power.

Streets, Trees and Parks

All primary and secondary arterial roadways were passable as of Saturday afternoon.  As of Sunday afternoon 85 percent of all residential streets are passable.

Removal of debris still along the side of roads will be trucked to two county facilities near Eaton Canyon – the L.A. County Public Works Eaton Yard and the Hastings Spreading Basin.  There it will be chipped and used for mulch citywide.  The removal is expected to take two to four weeks and the chipping could take four to six months depending on the volume of material.  

The removal and clearing of trees that are not in the public right of way is the responsibility of private property owners.  Those who suffered damage to vehicles, homes or other property caused by fallen city trees or tree limbs should contact their private insurers for proper handling of claims.

An assessment of city parks has been completed.  Approximately 100 trees have fallen and approximately 30 have sustained structural damage and may need to be removed for safety reasons.  A number of park improvements at various sites, including play equipment, backstops, pathway lighting and playground surfaces, have been damaged as well as the scoreboard at the historic Jackie Robinson Stadium at Brookside Park.


Refuse (trash, yard waste and recycling) Service

Regular refuse service resumed on Friday, with weekend service provided to those whose regular service was missed on Thursday.  The city’s bulky and abandoned item collection crew has been combing the city to remove large items ahead of the workweek.

Electricity

Utility Crews, including those from Anaheim Water and Power and Burbank Water and Power as well as private contractors, continue to work around the clock to restore service.  As of late Friday 99 percent of customers had service.  Efforts are being made to contact remaining customers without power to advise of the status of repairs.  In some cases it may take days to restore service, as most remaining issues involve problems on private property. Priority has been given to customers with life-safety concerns and where further structural or electric-system damage is a risk.
Customers may experience intermittent interruptions as Pasadena Water and Power (PWP) disconnects  service momentarily to allow crews to reconnect portions of circuits they repaired or rebuilt.
Some properties in a small section of Northwest Pasadena are served by Southern California Edison and should call (800) 661-1191 to report outages.

Water
All water customers have water.  There are about 150 customers with temporary connections where permanent repairs were not possible due to lack of access caused by fallen trees.  Permanent repairs will be made over the next two weeks as access is made available.

Approximately 25 customers in Northwest Pasadena are experiencing low water pressure due to pumps that are offline at two pumping stations in Edison’s territory where power outages remain.  Edison has restored power to one of the stations.  In the meantime PWP has provided bottle water to residents.

Safety

Everyone should stay clear of compromised, overhead electric, cable and telephone lines. Do not attempt to remove trees that are touching any utility line. A list of tree-care professionals with expertise in electrical safety and tree health is available under the FYI section at www.cityofpasadena.net.

Athletic Fields

Athletic fields in city parks are currently being cleared of debris and assessed for playing conditions.  It is anticipated that most, if not all, will reopen Monday, Dec. 5.


Parking Restrictions

Enforcement of all normal parking restrictions is back in effect.  Those needing to park on the street due to the presence of storm debris should obtain a temporary overnight parking exemption (TOPEX) which may be purchased at www.cityofpasadena.net/Transportation/Temporary_Overnight_Parking_Exemptions.

Scams

Verify all credentials of anyone offering to perform inspection or repair work. Call the Pasadena Police Department at (626) 744-4241 if you suspect a scam.

More Information

To report fallen public trees and hazardous tree conditions, call (626) 744-4321.

To report downed power lines, call (626) 564-0199 or (626) 564-0299.

Customer service representatives are on duty around the clock, documenting all call details and forwarding to appropriate staff for resolution. Reports can also be made at the online Citizens Service Center at www.cityofpasadena.net/csc.

Pasadena residents and others who want to sign up for local alerts can go to www.cityofpasadena.net/fire/PLEAS or www.nixle.com.

Update by the Numbers Begins on the Next Page.

PASADENA WINDSTORM UPDATE – BY THE NUMBERS
Updated Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011
• 1,382 incidents have been logged in by the Public Works Department since Wednesday.

• 3 of 5 public art pieces at Walnut Street and Foothill Boulevard were damaged. 2 have been stabilized and 1 remains down.

• 3 areas of the San Pasqual pedestrian bridge in the Arroyo Seco were damaged by a fallen tree. The damage will be assessed fully after the tree has been removed.

• A 12-inch diameter concrete drainage pipe that outlets to the street through 4 curb drains was exposed due to a fallen tree at 1824-1826 El Sereno Ave. Public Works engineers will conduct an evaluation next week.

• 325 miles of streets were impacted by storm debris – falling trees, tree limbs, utility poles and/or wires. The primary goal has been to move debris to the side of the road so at least one lane in each direction is open. Debris will be removed over the coming weeks.
   * 100 percent of arterial streets are accessible
   * 100 percent of secondary streets are accessible
   * 85 percent of residential streets are accessible

• 34 traffic signals reported for repair
     * 8 were not Pasadena and were referred to Caltrans and the county of Los Angeles
     * Of the remaining 26, all will be back to normal operations by Monday morning.

• 25 street lights have been evaluated with 19 immediate repairs completed and 6 pending.

• 99 percent of power customers are operational and all water customers have service.  Crews continue to work on restoring service to remaining power customers.

• 37 people were transported by Pasadena ARTs buses to a temporary shelter at Robinson Park Center and there was one walk-in.  All have since been relocated.

• Only 4 known injuries

• Trees
   * More than 600 street trees fell and an unknown number of street trees were severely damaged
   * Approximately 100 trees fell in City parks and 30 are several damaged
   * 67 trees fell at Brookside Golf Course and 120 more were severely damaged

• 5 building inspectors have inspected approximately 200 homes with varying levels of damage
   * 46 housing units have been red-tagged, 40 in the same apartment building
   * 13 structures have been yellow-tagged.

• Street clearing
   * 160 Public Works Department field employees were on duty Thursday and Friday.  93 were on staff Saturday and 65 were on duty Sunday. 
   * 29 workers from Los Angeles County Department of Public Works were on duty Thursday, 32 on Friday, 15 on Saturday and Sunday. 
   * 122 field employees from contractors were on duty Thursday and Friday and 51 Saturday and Sunday.

• Fire Calls - Fire service has returned to normal activity level
     * From 8 p.m. on Nov. 20 to 9 p.m. on Dec. 2, the Fire Department was dispatched to the following:
          - 57 fire calls
          -  42 medical calls
          -  109 service calls
          -  163 wires or other electrical system-related calls
          -  15 natural gas-related calls
          -  Total = 386 (roughly 8 times the normal call volume)
     * 11 other agencies assisted us on 94 calls. At our peak, we had 27 units from other agencies handling calls in our city.
     * Pasadena Fire Department regularly has 7 engines, 2 trucks and 5 ambulances available in the city and added 4 engines and 1 patrol to supplement capacity on Thursday.

• Police Calls – Police service has returned to normal activity level
     * From 10 p.m. on Nov. 30 to 1 p.m. on Dec. 2, the Pasadena Police Department Communication Center processed 4,650 calls for service including 9-1-1 and non-emergency requests.
     * During the same operational period the Police Department called back or extended the shift of on-duty personnel, including:
          -  13 police officers
          -  11 Police Volunteers
     * 248 pending incidents to be investigated were reported on Dec. 1

Accompanied

On the sidewalk outside of Tiffany on a Friday night in Old Town, these guys sang a capella harmonies. Song after song, they sounded great and I wasn't the only one who thought so.

The crowd loved them. People put money in their bucket. And this kid could not stop dancing. The more he danced, the more money landed in the bucket.

The kid was with his family. He wasn't a shill.

He'd make a good one, though.

Wackarons

When out-of-town bloggers visit--especially Francophile bloggers--the search is on for macarons. (You know better than to ask me about macaroons, right?) This time we tried Lette on Fair Oaks. Pretty! And lots of flavors. I figure you're supposed to eat them.

Apparently no, not if you're a photo-blogger.

(Pictured: Virginia of Birmingham, Alabama Daily Photo and Paris Through My Lens, and Kathy, aka "the Chieftess," of Mammoth Lakes Daily Photo. Here's Kathy's take on the event.)

Zen Monday: #166

Welcome to Zen Monday! Is this your first? Here's what we do on Mondays:

Because the Zen pupil learns from experience rather than from lectures or books, Zen Monday is the day you experience the photo and give us your thoughts rather than me telling you what I think the photo's about.

That's it. Have at it.

Update:
Oops! Almost forgot to tell you I have a new piece on Altadena Patch.

Thursdays in Old Town

One week from today it'll be September. It will also be Thursday. These are two good things because Old Pasadena Locals Only Thursdays are back.

The program must have been a success last year because it's been extended to two months this year. On Thursdays during September and October, Old Pasadena merchants will offer discounts to people who live and work in Pasadena. Click on the link above to get details of which stores, what they're offering, and how to prove you work or live here.

The list of participants is heavy on restaurants, which is fine. But this has been a long recession and Petrea needs some new clothes! There are not enough clothing stores on the list! Come on, merchants!

Oh well, it's a start. Some Thursday within the next couple of months, I'll be shopping at the participating clothing stores that offer a discount worthy of the trouble of parking (there's at least one that's not), and I'm sure I'll spend some of my poor, dilapidated dollars.

For those of you who can't justify a trip to Pasadena to shop even on a weekend, I'm sorry. You really are missing out. Yes, Old Town has a few chain stores, but what makes it worthy of your leisure time and legal tender are the many singular boutiques and specialty restaurants you can't find anywhere else. Some of them are even on the Locals Only Thursdays list. Next year I hope there will be more.

A Pattern to Follow

I used to make my own clothes. Except pants. I was deft with darts and pleats and a total klutz with pants.

But I made dresses, shirts, blouses and skirts--not just dirndls, though I started there--I even made jackets with pockets and lapels.

I moved to Los Angeles in a 1985 Ford Tempo. Only what fit in the car came with me. My sewing machine was too big for my new life as a Hollywood actor. The sewing skill was gone.

Cynthia Harvey could give it back to me. At The Sewing Studio at 107 South Fair Oaks in Pasadena, Cynthia teaches children, teenagers and adults to design and make their own fashions, and she doesn't just whip this up out of whole cloth. She trained at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles, she's created clothing for big names and she's the kind of teacher you'd polish a bright, red apple for.

I might be able to buy clothes for less than it costs to make them, but then I'd have to live with the fact that some woman in Asia took home 30 cents for making that cute top I got so cheap. I'd get to wear it maybe twice before it shrank or fell apart, and when I wore it I'd look exactly like everyone else.

I don't know if I'm going to start sewing again, but if I decide to go ahead with a project, Cynthia has options for me. I can take a class or, if I want to mess up on my own, I can rent a machine by the hour. I wonder if she'll make me sign a waiver in case I stitch my finger to a pair of pants.

jb

Ordinarily I wouldn't post a blurry photo, but I don't want you to miss meeting jb from Mainz Daily Photo.

Being part of the San Gabriel Valley blogging community has brought me myriad blessings. Being part of the City Daily Photo community expands those blessings around the globe. I've made virtual friendships with bloggers worldwide. Meeting them in person is the grandest blessing of all.

jb recently spent two weeks in France where he and Mrs. jb met Nathalie from Avignon in Photos. He had a couple of busy days back in Germany, then he flew to Los Angeles. A 10-hour lay-over gave him time for a drive to Pasadena. I am not amazed that he and Mrs. jb have visited the Huntington Library and Gardens and the Norton Simon Museum, or that they have a friend who works at the local J. Crew.

We had coffee at Intelligentsia (his suggestion--he knows Pasadena pretty well). Then we walked a bit in Old Town and I took the photo for yesterday's post. (jb claims to have assisted and indeed, he gave moral support.) When we parted I headed home to work. jb was off to get a meal then back to LAX and a flight to New Zealand. In a later email he said last Thursday "will be forever missing" from his autobiography.

I'd trade a day of my autobiography for world travel. But I'm getting wistful.

I feel bad about giving you a blurry photo of this smart, funny, interesting, international man. (At his blog you will find examples of his wry sense of humor.) But I believe he shines through my bad photography and you can see who he is in spite of me.

jb and I have a deal. I'm posting my photo of him today and he's posting his photo of me. He took his picture with an iPhone. I took mine with a Canon 20D. I haven't seen his photo on the computer screen yet, but I believe it'll prove good photography is more about the photographer than the camera.

Here's an Old Town photo of a superfluous detail. Not blurry. Just to redeem myself.

Zen Monday: #149

Zen Monday is the day you experience the photo and give us your thoughts rather than me telling you what the photo's about.

You might want to click on this one to enlarge it. Then make a comment. Say what comes to mind.

For further Monday Zen, feel free to read and comment on my new short-short fiction, Rooms, at the Rose City Sisters Flash Fiction blog.