For our last Wednesday of the month, we turn to Massimo Della Valle, who on Nov. 26, 2017 used Ricoh GR II to shoot self-titled “I Gabbiani di Sirmione“, which translates from the Italian as […]
Category: Living
‘It’s Official’
Today begins the end of the Donald J. Trump presidency. Emily Murphy, Administrator for the General Services Administration, sent a letter to Joseph R. Biden, Jr. informing him that resources would now be made available as dictated by the Presidential Transition Act of 1963. Her action essentially declares Biden the apparent winner of the Nov. 3, 2020 national election.
Uncertainty loomed over the outcome as states counted, or recounted, votes, and Team Trump unleashed a torrent of legal challenges. That said, the Associated Press waited only four days before declaring Biden and Kamala Harris the winners and designated them president- and vice-president elect, respectively. Other media-outlets followed; the two candidates gave victory speeches and started announcing immediate policy actions for when they assume office and announcing who will fill key forthcoming administration positions—all while operating before signage reading “Office of the President Elect” (hehe, boastfully with no hyphen).
The Cats of University Heights: Domino
Eight minutes before encountering Puss, on Oct. 30, 2020, my wife and I passed by a Tuxedo along the same Mission apartments where lives Rebel. The black and white shorthair is the fifty-fifth found looking […]
You’re a Mean One, Governor Grinch
One of my University Heights neighbors is ready for Christmas—and that with Thanksgiving still two weeks away. What immediately follows? Black Friday, which will be a bust for many, if not most, local retailers—and perhaps every other business—now that Governor Gavin “Grinch” Newsom has dumped San Diego County back into the most restrictive lockdown tier; aka Purple. The shutdown supposedly will curtail rising COVID-19 infections caused by SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2) and, thus, save lives. But at what cost to livelihoods?
Perhaps the holiday decor isn’t meant to be a commentary on the current state of affairs; either way, I make it one. I used Leica Q2 to capture the Featured Image yesterday. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/800 sec, 28mm; 9:12 a.m. PST. The Grinch is appropriate metaphor for the Gov, while the ravens feed on the economic dead that another shutdown murders. Bones picked clean of flesh by the carrion flock hang nearby. How funny! That is the same skeleton seen sitting in a car—on March 29.
The Cats of University Heights: Puss
How surprising: I am seeing some new kitties along North, where it intersects Madison, or in the alley between Campus. Four appeared today, but two vanished before I could close the distance for photos (you’ll see them soon). I encountered the series‘ newest addition, nicknamed Puss, for no particular reason, on Oct. 30, 2020. The Featured Image comes from iPhone XS. Vitals: f/2.4, ISO 40, 1/122 sec, 52mm (film equivalent); 9:16 a.m. PDT.
Somebody’s outdoor space is luxury. Look at the cat trees and surrounding plants. In perennially sunny San Diego, the cat can have indoor furniture outside for much of the year. What a habitat! My question: Does he (or she) spend time within the caretaker’s residence, too?
The Cats of University Heights: Sadie
Meet the fifty-fourth meow-meow looking out from behind window or door. Sadie is a sweetie, living a less lonely life than in her previous residence. Sickness took Sadie’s owner away, and she stayed alone inside the house for about a year—tended to and fed twice daily by kindly neighbors. Eventually, he passed away, which is how she came to be taken into a new home not long later by a friend of the cat’s caretaker.
A few days ago, I got the full story from the friendly woman with whom Sadie now lives. But the Featured Image, captured along Madison beyond the West side of Cleveland, is from Sept. 28, 2020. I used Leica Q2 to make the moment. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/8, ISO 100, 1/320 sec, 28mm; 8:37 a.m. PDT.
Halloween Horror
I can’t express which surprises me more: That I saw some trick-or-treaters last night, that there were any at all, or that local grocery stores sold bags of candy like this year’s holiday is like […]
The Cats of University Heights: Prowler
Like Spirit, this fine feline appeared in the alley between Cleveland and Maryland on one side of Meade—not far from our old apartment, actually. Our long, lost Maine Coon-mix Kuma hung out in the same area, favoring his ledge. Real name unknown, I dub the shorthair Prowler, for its cunning, slinky movements.
Unfortunately, I carried along iPhone XS and not trusty Leica Q2. The Featured Image, which is cropped a little more than 100-percent, is good enough from the smartphone but would be great from the camera. Vitals: f/2.4, ISO 16, 1/489 sec, 52mm (film equivalent); 9:15 a.m. PDT; Oct. 5, 2020.
Dead Men Don’t Swing
As I explained five days ago, San Diegans are fiendishly obsessed with Halloween. Outside the home where lives Carl, who was featured in my “Cats of University Heights” series in January 2018, is a fine […]
Flickr a Week 44a: ‘Devil’s Eye’
What could be more appropriate for Halloween than a black cat—and a frightening closeup? Dino Quinzani used Canon EOS 400D and Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO Macro lens to capture self-titled “Devil’s Eye” […]
The Cats of University Heights: Spirit
The main intersection on the neighborhood’s west side is a four-way with stop-signs at Cleveland and Meade. I meandered upon this kitty and the next one profiled on either side of Meade in the alley between Cleveland and Maryland—directions south and north, respectively.
I used iPhone XS to capture the Featured Image on Oct. 17, 2020. Vitals: f/2.4, ISO 16, 1/213 sec, 52mm (film equivalent); 10:21 a.m. PDT. Coincidentally, the day marked the series‘ fourth anniversary.
Flickr a Week 42a: ‘Style Icon’
There is “no cuter bird than a puffin”, says Rob Oo, who captured self-titled “Style Icon” in Vestur-Bardastrandarsysla, Iceland, on July 21, 2018, using Pentax K-S2. Vitals: f/8, ISO 1600, 1/350 sec, 250mm. The bird […]