For Want of Two Dollars

On Nov. 28, 2021, I pulled into the local gas station to fill up the tank. Because debit card-skimmers are frequent enough concerns around San Diego, I always pay with cash and usually even bills (e.g., tens or twenties). But uncharacteristically, I only had two fives and eight singles—or so I thought.

I counted in the car and then on the way to the Valero’s door. When handing the money to the cashier, I stated the amount and pump number. Outside, filling stopped at $16—and I thought: “How unusual to top off at an even number”. I walked inside for my change, but there was none.

Photo by Joe WilcoxDec 6, 202110:12 pm

Tiger Moth Caterpillars

While walking along Louisiana today, Annie and I came across two of our neighbors tending their flower garden. Gracie, one of the “Cats of University Heights“, belonged to them before she passed away at age 19. Seeing my camera, the wife turned my attention to three caterpillars munching leaves.

I immediately exclaimed “Woolly Bear caterpillars!”—for their colors and fuzziness. But the resemblance ended there. My memory is a larva with orange band in the middle and black at both ends. If I rightly recall, and please correct me if mistaken, that caterpillar eventually becomes the Isabella tiger moth.

Photo by Joe WilcoxDec 5, 20216:39 pm

When Warm Hearts Melt

For some, love really is dangerous.

The snow couple are among several Christmas-themed inflatables outside a home nearby the Madison Avenue overlook in San Diego’s University Heights neighborhood. My wife and I passed by them today.

Photo by Joe WilcoxDec 4, 20217:11 pm

Who Skewered Teddy?

Yesterday, as my wife and I approached the blue-and-white house where flew the American flag at half-mast in September 2021, a tiny teddy came into view—back-to. As we passed, I stopped, pulled out Leica Q2, adjusted the aperture, and snapped the sole shot that is the Featured Image. Vitals: f/2.8, ISO 100, 1/2000 sec, 28mm; 12:51 p.m. PST.

The front-view of the stuff bear looks across Lincoln near the corner at Alabama in San Diego’s North Park neighborhood. I want to know why the plushy is so unceremoniously placed. Is it meant to signal something? Was it found on the sidewalk or street and put up where more easily seen?

Photo by Joe WilcoxDec 3, 20217:45 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Meowy

Day before yesterday, in the alley separating Alabama and Mississippi, not far from cross-street Meade, a black-and-white kitten approached my wife and I—and, oh, what constant meowing; hence the nickname. From apparent age, colorization, and vocalization, I wondered if Squeaky had wandered over from Louisiana. But quick photo comparison unquestionably identifies two different kitties.

Today, we saw the youngster yet again, but on the front-side of the apartment building, facing Mississippi. But unlike the Featured Image and companion, where Meowy wears a collar, there was none today. The cat clearly wanted something; perhaps food, its human caretaker, or both. We couldn’t guess, even after the kitten settled down on a welcome mat outside an apartment door.

Photo by Joe WilcoxDec 2, 20218:42 pm

Big, Boastful Branding

I smile—and occasionally chuckle—when walking by this camper sticking out into the alley separating Cleveland and Maryland, not far from our old University Heights apartment. My Maine hometown is the same name, which I admit is part of the appeal. Brrr, in Caribou, its 3 degrees Celsius (37 F) and raining as I write from warmer San Diego, where the evening sky is partly overcast and the temperature is 13 C (56 F).

The camper’s vintage is unknown to me, and who could guess from the little visible from the alley? But the thing is loved—looking at the pristine wooden door—and source of the owner’s pride. Otherwise, why let the branded top front boastfully hang out in view?

Photo by Joe WilcoxDec 1, 20218:28 pm

Tick-Tock

What an unexpectedly appropriate Featured Image. Being the first day of the year’s last month, I am thinking about time and how to meaningfully fill the 31—okay, now thirty—days that remain. Expect my report in early 2022.

My wife and I passed by the wall clock along the alley separating Louisiana and Texas streets behind the liquor store and its parking lot located on Meade Ave. I often see Princess Leia in the vicinity, but not today. She joined my “Cats of University Heights” series in June 2018.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 30, 20218:59 pm

Abandoned

On Veterans Day, I passed by this pair of abandoned boots alongside the Monroe Avenue wall of LeStat’s on Park in the San Diego neighborhood of University Heights. Perhaps some street person lost them or they were left for one of the area’s homeless.

I stopped for the Featured Image, taken with Leica Q2, thinking to update illustration for a 16-year-old post. The footwear’s good-looking condition and odd location tweaked my interest. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/30 sec, 28mm; 10:33 a.m. PST.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 29, 20219:02 pm

‘Kiss Me on the Bus’

A few weeks ago, I spotted this green bus seen again today. Then, I was sheepish about photographing the thing. But with clearer line of site from my eyes, and no obstructions, out came Leica Q2 to take the Featured Image. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/400 sec, 28mm; 1:10 p.m. PST.

Converted school buses aren’t rare sightings, but they’re uncommon enough to rouse my attention—particularly when an air conditioner hangs out the back window. Now that’s something new. Someone clearly lives in the vehicle, which bears New York plates (I obliterated the numerals in post-production). Welcome to San Diego!

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 28, 20217:55 pm

A Berry Good Time

I am unable to definitively identify these berries, seen growing along the Meade Avenue side of Alice Birney Elementary School, which is located in the San Diego community of University Heights. The Featured Image, which […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 27, 20218:03 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Squeaky

For the first post-Thanksgiving Caturday, we present a kitten nicknamed Squeaky for its high-pitched mewing. I met the little squirt once, and not since, on Oct. 20, 2021, along the same stretch of Louisiana where lives Honcho.

The Featured Image and companion come from iPhone 13 Pro, captured in Apple ProRAW and converted to JPEG after being cropped 3:2 and modestly tweaked. Vitals: f/2.8, ISO 50, 1/122 sec, 77mm; 2:37 p.m. PDT. The other: f/2.8, ISO 32, 1/283 sec, 77mm; 2:38 p.m. Squeaky came close for a visit, but we never connected; a roaring vehicle scared back the kitten.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 26, 20218:23 pm

Homeless in Hillcrest

This gentleman is one of the many street dwellers seen today, when I walked from University Heights to neighboring Hillcrest on an errand. He caught my attention for what the Featured Image fails to reveal: The large load of belongings on the cart and spread somewhat down the sidewalk. He also was overdressed for the unseasonably warm day—25 degrees Celsius (77 Fahrenheit), when I used Leica Q2 Monochrom to take the street shot from the hip. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/8, ISO 200, 1/125 sec, 28mm; 2:20 p.m. PST.

While you might think otherwise from the profile and apparent skin color, he is a white guy. Anyone living long under the San Diego sun will become darker, with respect to skin tone; dirt and grime contribute to the change. This characteristic distinguishes the truly indigent from people begging for money; the grifter will often send off a benefactor with “God bless you”. The others offer thanks, with a sincerity of appreciation that is unmistakably authentic.