Category: Tech

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 19, 20218:51 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Spalding

Could San Diego’s housing market be slowing down? Countywide, the median home price dropped by $19,250 to (cough, cough) $730,500 month-on-month in July. Oh, I just quake with excitement. In context of this information, I was curious to look at a property, located where Georgia Street and Spalding Place meet, discovered on Zillow yesterday. On Aug. 7, 2021, the sellers lopped off $50,000 from the asking price. Whip out your checkbook! The residence now lists for $1.149 million. That’s not a location where I would expect to see something selling for so much; hence, my nosiness.

The three-bedroom, three-bathroom, 1,630-foot Craftsman sits on Georgia but I approached from cross-street Spalding, which explains my nickname given to the handsome black seen there. I used Leica Q2 to capture the Featured Image and companion, today. Vitals, aperture manually set for both: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/320 sec, 28mm; 9:56 a.m. PDT. The other: f/8, ISO 100, 1/160 sec, 28mm; 9:58 a.m.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 18, 20218:58 pm

They’re Ready for Picking

Perhaps you remember the green grapes from early July that had started ripening red and violet two weeks ago. On Aug. 16, 2021, they had turned deep purple, suggesting to my uniformed eye that they are of the Concord variety and ready to pick. I assume a neighbor planted the vine and that the many clusters won’t be wasted.

Three-quarters of the way through a 6.5-kilometer (4-mile) round-trip walk on an errand to nearby Hillcrest, and carrying Leica Q2 Monochrom, I decided to shoot with street settings rather than go Macro mode. Vitals for the Featured Image: f/5.6, ISO 200, 1/500 sec, 28mm; 3:52 p.m. PDT. I would have preferred color but black and white works, with the berries’ dark hue that also emphasizes dusty particles on the skin.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 17, 20218:20 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Rick

The seventieth Alabama kitty comes from the alley behind that street and Florida, somewhere between Meade and Madison. My wife and I spotted the black drinking water outside a cottage where another feline looks out from a window (think future feline profile should better photo opportunity present). Our thirsty putty-tat earns nickname Boxer for what the bowl sits on.

As usual, I used Leica Q2 to capture the Featured Image, which is cropped 100 percent. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/320 sec, 28mm; 8:39 a.m. PDT, July 28, 2021.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 16, 20219:04 pm

Why the Maine Coons Lost Their Home

To see where was the golf cart accident that led to yesterday morning’s dramatic chase and capture, my wife and I walked along Florida to Adams, where I shot additional photos. We returned the same way, passing by a man leaning on the porch railing of the house where feral felines Mimi and Sweet Pea lived for about eight years in the spacious backyard. I profiled both animals in my “Cats of University Heights” series in May 2018.

I asked the gentleman about clearcutting the property, which he confirmed started on Aug. 10, 2021. The action was taken at the behest of the broker, who believes there is a 98-percent chance an investor will buy the place, rather than a resident; removing the lush greenery and trees emphasizes the lot’s large size for the neighborhood and increases likelihood of higher bidding during the September 11 auction.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 15, 202110:22 pm

The Incident in University Heights

When working with other journalists, I always advise: “Write what you know to be true”—or, lifting Star Trek lingo, obey the “Prime Directive“. That brief introduction frames what follows based on what I directly heard, observed, and photographed.

Our story starts some minutes around 11 a.m. PDT today, when emergency vehicles roar down the street where we live and others nearby. A police helicopter begins circling overhead, announcing search for a suspect, with his description, and instruction to call 911 if seen. I look out my window, to see police officers standing over someone handcuffed and facedown on the pavement—the Featured Image, captured at 11:06 a.m. Vitals: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/500 sec, 28mm; all photos aperture manually set, from Leica Q2. Interesting aside: The takedown happens where once stood the block’s majestic palm tree, before being cut down nearly four weeks ago.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 14, 20218:49 pm

‘Run for Your Life!’

I don’t often get a chance to shoot the sign in Hillcrest—dangers of standing in traffic being one reason, when trying to get good vantage point. But coincidental opportunity presented on July 18, 2021 during the San Diego Half Marathon. We needed something from the pet store located on Washington Street; my wife dropped me there, and I walked over to University Ave. for a lively jaunt home. Timing with the event was happenstance.

On the other side of Fifth, I used Leica Q2 to capture four shots in fairly rapid succession. I chose and cropped the Featured Image for the juxtaposition of bicycle pusher, runners, and walkers—and to remind that the camera can produce super-sharp photos. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/400 sec, 28mm; 9:51 a.m. PDT.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 13, 202111:16 pm

Mimi and Sweet Pea are Homeless

If only SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2)/COVID-19 eviction moratoriums applied to feral felines, the habitat of Mimi and Sweet Pea would not have been utterly destroyed. The luscious, and humungous, yard they shared was intact a few days ago—my wife and I can’t recall if Tuesday or Wednesday (today is the only Friday the 13th of the year). This morning, we peaked in—shocked to see nearly complete clearcutting.

The saga starts as we walked along the alley separating Alabama and Florida. As we moved down the block between Monroe and Madison, I saw a kitty beyond the cross street going towards Adams. From the coloration, and our recently seeing Pace (pronounced paw-chay, according to his owner) in the vicinity, I assumed it must be the aged Norwegian Forest Cat. Oddly, though, the animal disappeared and reappeared, as if going into and out of different backyards along the alley.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 12, 20219:10 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Snuggles

For reasons only guessed, I don’t see many putty-tats along Mission Avenue (in this instance near Florida). Among them: Calm, Carl, Digger, Domino, Joy, Luna, Rebel, and Serenity. On Aug. 6, 2021, I spotted another for the first time; he (or she) joins the series as the seventy-fourth feline seen behind door or window.

It’s nickname time: Snuggles, for cozying up to the late-day sun. I used Leica Q2 to capture the Featured Image, at 5:41 p.m. PDT. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/500 sec, 28mm.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 10, 20218:16 pm

A Splendid Spectacle

Along Georgia, my wife and I walked on the opposite side of the street from where we would normally go when looking for Reddy or Zero—both of which are profiled in my “Cats of University Heights” series. A canopy of green greeted us; one of our neighbors is growing grapes and extended the vines over the sidewalk. What a treat.

The Featured Image shows the vantage as we first saw the splendid spectacle of San Diego gardening. Vitals, aperture manually set for this one and its companion: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/250 sec, 28mm; 4:02 p.m. PDT, today.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 8, 202110:00 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Silver

We celebrate International Cat Day with a shorthair sighted in the same yard where was the fourth feline profiled (Skull) in October 2016. Black-colored Monarch appeared on the same property two years later. I can’t say that either belonged there but express confidence about the newcomer: The home’s front door was open for the kitty to come and go; kids could be heard playing inside.

Silver seems so appropriate nickname—for gradients in the fur. Leica Q2 produced the Featured Image, which underwent unusual amount of post-production tweaking—and nothing to my satisfaction. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 250, 1/125 sec, 28mm; 10:43 a.m. PDT, Aug. 1, 2021.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 7, 20218:27 pm

Little Houses of Hope

This morning, as my wife and I walked up Meade from Florida to Georgia, we came upon a row of little houses that reminds of the collection set outside a home on the same block […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 6, 20219:32 pm

Lettuce Grow for You

Perhaps you remember “Carport Lettuce” from July 2020. The grower, located in my San Diego neighborhood of University Heights, is preparing to take his hydroponic garden to one of the area’s farmers markets—and possibly to several. My wife chatted with him yesterday, and we returned to his mobile grower today.

The Featured Image and companions come from Leica Q2, and I scold myself for not rushing to get the shots. When Annie and I ventured out on a late-morning walk, the sky was overcast. By the time I remembered the lettuce cart, the sun had come out, casting hard shadows. Diffuse light would have made for better photos. First of the set is cropped to remove, from down the street, two cars with visible license plates. Vitals, aperture preset for all: f/8, ISO 100, 1/200 sec, 28mm; 12:34 p.m. PDT.