Mount Wilson: Solar Telescope

The Solar Telescope at Mount Wilson is still used for studying sunspots. 

Great strides have been made in this science here.

The telescope is tall. And look what a beautiful day it was! I didn't alter this photo one bit.

The wooden frame. The screws. The old courier typeface. I wonder how long ago this sign was hung.

Craig Woods, our guide, has been up in the elevator. We were forbidden to go. I'm sure that was for the best.

This door is an entry beneath the Solar Telescope. I remembered it the moment I saw it.

Boz visited there on his Mount Wilson tour in 2011.

More Mount Wilson insider photos to come!

Christmas Wishes

Peace, serenity, tolerance, beauty, prosperity for all...just a wish list. Much like yours, I imagine. May Christmas day and every day hold all of these for you and yours.

Zen Monday: #213

It's Zen Monday all over again, the day you tell us what the photo's about rather than me telling you. Experience it, tell it, that's Monday Zen.

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The Camelot Where You Are photo contest starts tomorrow and I've already received entries from around the world! I'm so excited I almost time-traveled. I hope you're planning to enter, because each week I'll be giving away a free copy of my new novel, Camelot & Vine. Details are here. Go find some Camelot Where You Are, take a picture of it and send it in!

Door, 6

One the way to an event in a new building. Late day shadows darken a side door in an old building. I know my preference.

I wonder what it is about older architecture that makes me like it so much? Surely not every old building is worthy, and surely not every new one is soulless. Yet it seems that way. The histories that inhabit old buildings are part of what make the structures attractive, but even without those stories it's the architecture I love. To me, older architecture is simply more beautiful than most modern stuff.

Even the rooms are more comfortable. The wood and plaster used in walls and floors, the old window glass, the softer lighting (one hopes no one has added fluorescents) and the inferior air conditioning--all these things make a building more comfortable. I even like old radiators.

I'm not exactly scientific about this, am I? I haven't made a study and I'm not going to. Architecture is an emotional issue for me.

Serene Sunday

I was going to say I hope you have a serene Sunday planned. But that's presumptuous of me, isn't it? Maybe that's not what you want. Maybe you're heading out to the NASCAR races or off to fly a jet. Perhaps you're participating in a rodeo today or you'll be entering your first boxing match, and serenity is the last thing you need.

Have at it, I say. I'll be sitting it out.

Please do come back tomorrow, if you survive. To commemorate Zen Monday #200, there will be prizes. For whatever.

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?

Change is Work

The work must be done. Changes must be made. Things were falling to ruin and it's time to reverse the entropy. Get rid of what doesn't work and replace it with something that does. Chop-chop. The deadline looms.

Even so, there's room for beauty if you make it.

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CDP bloggers: if you're concerned about theme day because the portal's not working, check out Julie's link. 

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More emails coming in today from people unable to comment on Blogger. Thank you all, and wish me luck! This weekend I attempt the move to Wordpress so we can get back to normal around here. I'm not a software genius so there are no guarantees, and I will need that luck.

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

Zen Monday: #170

Zen Monday's the day you experience the photo and give us your thoughts rather than me telling you what I think the photo's about. There's no competition, no right or wrong. Just have fun.

I look for a photo worth contemplating or, failing that, something odd or silly. Or all of those things, if I'm lucky.


And, plus, in addition, also: I have a new piece on Patch today.

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.

This Oldest House

About a year ago I posted a picture of the front porch of this house. I did so because I loved the scruffy old door.

Scruffy no more. Same door, shined up nicely, with new old hardware from one of my favorite stores, Gayle's Pasadena Architectural Salvage.

The whole place looks a bit more dapper, doesn't it? What a difference a year makes.

I met the homeowners and they gave me a tour. They may not realize how much progress they've made in a year, but I hope they can see it here. There's much work still to be done yet much worth to be had in this house. It's one of Pasadena's oldest homes, circa 1896, though no one's exactly sure what year it was built.

Over the next few days I'll tell you more, with pictures.

Zen Monday: #157

photo by John Sandel

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. This is because on Mondays I post the photos I don't comprehend.

Please share your thoughts in the comments as they come to you. Thanks.

This photo was taken by John Sandel, PDP's resident Zen-spotter, without whom Zen Monday would probably occur about once a month.

Zen Monday: #132

Students of Zen are taught through experience. Or so I'm told.

Please experience the photo and tell us, in the comments, what you have learned.

(Your first Zen Monday? Just have fun.)

Door, 4

While you're out enjoying Art Weekend it seems fitting to post another door, especially one that's padlocked, as I'm shut in with a cold.

I'm not feeling sorry for myself. Oh, no no no no no. I'm feeling all benevolent and everything because I'm not going out and spreading my germs among the multitudes, unlike whoever spread this germ to me.

This provocative portal can be found at the Hahamongna Annex north of Oak Grove Park. At least it was there when I visited last spring, and I don't believe anything's been torn down. I hope not. I love rusty old sheds with creaking doors, and I'm feeling a particular affinity with this one today.

I'll get over it and, as I said, I don't feel sorry for myself. John's taking good care of me. And there's something luscious about being forced to rest for a few days. It's an excuse to putter around the house, to write, to read, and to appreciate the days when I feel human. I promise you, those are the norm.

Door, 3

This door is a bit of a flirt. With her screen slightly ajar, she says, "come hither." Yet just inside her petticoat screen there's a giant lock on her full underskirt. I guess that makes her a tease. (Door is feminine in French--la porte.)

You might say she's plain, even simple. It's true, if you judge by exteriors alone. But what delights await behind her skirts?

She's for sale, or she was when I took the photo a few weeks ago. Therefore I'll cease with the metaphor. I wouldn't want to sully la porte's reputation. Besides, that changes the whole idea. A tease is exercising power.

Door, 2

Many Pasadena doors are difficult to photograph because they're shaded by awnings, pergolas or little roofs. It's a necessary evil to protect the doors and people from summer's heat, which is fine for the selfish inhabitants but unfortunate for photographers trying to do a series about doors.

I have a fondness for this crazy door. Boz and I often pass it on our walks. I once spoke with the homeowners, a young couple fixing up a huge old house. I told them how much I like their door and the woman said it was just another thing on her list of tasks. Paint it, refinish it, replace it? She hadn't decided. When you have a big old house, you have a long list of tasks.

When John and I fixed up our first house we had a long list, too. I asked a friend, "What should we do first?" Her wise answer was, "You'll do the thing that bugs you the most."

I'm glad this door isn't bugging the young woman enough to make her get to it right away. I've photographed it many times but it's usually hidden in shadow. Recently I went by and the shadows were working with the door's patterns instead of against them. There. I have my shot.

Door, 1

I suppose what lures me to doors is the possibility of what's behind them, but maybe that's too simple. A door puts a face on a place, gives it expression, says something about who lives there. I love a reclusive door at the end of an alleyway, a bright red front door declaring itself or a neglected garden gate overgrown with roses--or better yet, weeds.

My front door is a massive thing that needs either refinishing or replacing, whenever I get around to it. I'd rather have a door that lets in lots of light but that's the one I have for now. At least it doesn't let in mice or bugs. I'd love a screen door, but I notice people don't have those around here. Not on the front door, anyway. We had them on all the doors in the house I grew up in.

This door was irresistible and now I'm on a kick. I call this post "Door, 1" because there might be more to come.

P.S. Locals may want to take a look at Pasadena, 91105 and Beyond today. It looks like a local landmark may be threatened. Do you know anything about it? photo courtesy of Kat Likkel

Thank you, Kat.

Rusty Hinge

It's been gloomy here lately in the early part of the day. Ben called it May Gray. I've also heard it referred to as June Gloom. Guess it depends on the date. Usually the gloom burns off in the afternoon but it didn't yesterday. We had actual rain. Well, not actual rain by some peoples' standards. Not rain if you live in, say, Illinois. But rain by southern California standards.

I enjoy a cozy day to stay in and do housework and write. But I think Boz suffers from Seasonal Affective Disorder. When he can't go out and lie in the sun he's seriously bummed.

I took this photo across the street from this one, on Locust just west of Allen on the south side of the street. I didn't take it yesterday.

California Entrance

When I have time between errands I like to park the car and take a walk with my camera. It doesn't matter where I am; a walk around any block guarantees a discovery. Usually it's something I've passed many times. Maybe I've seen it before and not taken notice.

I'm always seeing things I want to photograph, but in the car I'm in a hurry, plus I've got a few tons of machinery to manage and I can't be snapping photos and steering at the same time (well, I shouldn't, anyway). On foot even the most nondescript neighborhood comes to life. Little details beg to be photographed. Interest is everywhere.

This one doesn't count as nondescript. It counts as one of those things I've passed a million times and meant to photograph. It's the side entrance of West World Imports at the corner of California Blvd. and Arroyo Parkway. I admit I've never dared to venture inside, but I have dared to dream while perusing their website. There's a pretty courtyard on the other side of the building but it was locked when I was there the other day. I'll go back and try again. By the way, long ago a PDP commenter asked me to get a shot of that courtyard. It may take me a while (okay, it may take me forever) but I do get to your suggestions. Eventually.

Was it me complaining of the cold a couple of weeks ago? It's been unseasonably hot for the last two days.

I'm off on a tangent. What I started to say is that West World Imports is such an attractive shop even the side door is pretty. The front door is on California Blvd. and this sign in the parking lot says "Please Use California Entrance." But this looks like a California entrance to me.

Update: In today's comments Pascal Jim says: "This beautiful structure, designed by Wallace Neff, where he had offices, was duplicated across the street, now destroyed, now a gas station. Please, enter the building, its patio has a most calming effect..."

The Teacher from Kansas

This is a first for this blog. This photo wasn't take in Pasadena. It was taken in Coolidge, Kansas in 1932.

Today's my father's 92nd birthday - would have been, had he stuck around. I miss him.

Fathers are different now than they were when I was growing up. Or maybe they're different in southern California than they are in Illinois. Or maybe life is different. Or all of the above. My father, and the fathers I remember from the 50's and 60's, had to support families on their own. That's how it was done. Now society's limits are less stringent.

My father grew up in western Kansas. He was already the teacher in the one-room schoolhouse by the time he was 16. (He's pictured there above with three - yes, three - of his pupils.) He moved on to be a ranch hand and a bus driver for a while before he became a U.S. Marine. After WWII he married my mother, then went to school with a passion: got his BA, Master's and PhD in rapid succession. Soon he was a teacher again.

He worked. He must have done other things, but what I remember is that Daddy went to work early in the morning and came home late. Time with him was precious and rare.

Now I see fathers with their kids all the time. They enjoy the parks together or the farmer's market. They walk in the neighborhoods of Pasadena, holding hands and teaching things to each other. It seems men have more freedom now to be not just providers but good fathers, too.

The best moments I remember with my father are when we were riding horses or playing guitars or telling corny jokes - when he was being the ranch hand from western Kansas.

To make this a true Pasadena photo post, here's a shot (below) that reminds me of my father. I'm not sure why. Maybe because it's a lonely picture. I think it must be lonely to go through life striving to provide and only rarely letting your softer side show. Perhaps that's not how he felt. My father died so long ago my memory is clouded. Perhaps I'm just missing him, and wishing that if we could, we'd walk together in the neighborhoods of my childhood, holding hands and teaching things to each other.