Tag: Leica Q2

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 23, 202210:19 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Chicken

When the Wilcoxes moved to this neighborhood in mid-October 2007, we encountered two obvious demographics: Older couples (and some singles)—many of whom lived in the same house for decades; gay couples—women more than men (who were more commonly seen in adjacent community Hillcrest). But as the real estate market bottomed out in 2011-12, a slow change blossomed into a flash flood of families with kids of age to attend Alice Birney Elementary.

But during the SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2)/COVID-19 lockdowns, when many people started working from home and therefore no longer needed to live close to their jobs, University Heights began a rapid demographic flip. Ultra-high rents and landlords selling homes along with a massive influx of Googler-types has flushed out families and many of the oldsters. The professional Millennial makeover sweeps in and sweeps others out. Among those leaving: Owners of the kitty in the Featured Image.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 22, 20229:17 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Noire

Along the same apartment complex knoll where appears Bleu, I sometime see another feline—either alone or nearby. Since the nickname for one is translated from English to French, let’s do the same with the other; Noire, which is the feminine, for black.

I assume, and possibly wrongly, that Noire is not only female but mother to the Kittens discovered in the connecting property. Resemblance is unmistakable, which doesn’t make my presumption right.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 21, 202210:48 pm

What is Inflation?

Everywhere you look, there are reports about rising inflation, which is presented as increases in prices of goods. As a longtime journalist with a reputation for making complex concepts simple and straightforward to understand, I must correct the glaring mistake made by the majority of news reports: Inflation and rising prices are not the same, although there is an undeniable relationship between the two.

Inflation isn’t prices going up but the value of money going down. Spending power decreases. The classic case is late-1923 Germany, when, because of hyperinflation, “a loaf of bread cost 140 billion marks. Workers were paid twice a day, and given half-hour breaks to rush to the shops with their satchels, suitcases, or wheelbarrow, to buy something, anything, before their paper money halved in value yet again” (source: “Loads of Money“, Economist).

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 17, 20229:11 pm

The Luck of the Irish is Heart

Along the North Avenue alley, in San Diego’s University Heights neighborhood, someone put out a leather chair packing soon-to-be seasonal decorations. I came upon the giveaways late morning Feb. 4, 2022 while carrying Leica Q2. […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 14, 20229:07 pm

Something Strange for Pi Day

Last month, I shared with you the pizza face mural on the side of a restaurant soon to open at El Cajon Blvd and Louisiana in San Diego’s University Heights neighborhood. Day before yesterday, when returning from checking gas prices at two Texas Street stations, I caught cheesy boy’s reflection in the Postal Convenience Center across the way.

The 34-year-old business suddenly closed on July 6, 2021 after losing its lease. That whole corner block, including several houses on Louisiana, are slated for demolition and redevelopment, presumably as another ugly apartment or condominium complex. Oh joy.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 13, 202210:07 pm

I Wasn’t Prepared for This

On Valentine’s Day, we rushed to be among the people signing up for “The Prepper’s Roadmap”. Initial enrollment ended on February 18, and we paid $197 for the privilege. The course seeks to educate enrollees about how to prepare for calamities, whether they be natural disasters (like earthquakes or wildfires here in San Diego) or crisis of human instigation (like cyberattack that takes down banking systems or power grids), among others. I would recommend the educational series, if the first-round of registrations hadn’t closed. You can’t sign up today; in the future, though.

My wife and I aren’t so-called preppers—and we never expect be. Meaning: If you’re looking for a horde of food or supplies during an apocalypse, we won’t have it. Our apartment is small and we aren’t of the mindset. That said, we do recognize the increasingly dangerous times in which we live, when looking at advancing economic crisis or Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, for example. Not being naturally paranoid about catastrophes and preparation for them, Annie and I liked the idea of getting some no-nonsense advice from someone who is sensible rather than the typically fanatical.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 9, 20229:29 pm

When Summer is Every Day

San Diego may be a costly place to live, but the year-round summer, where lush growth and tweeting birds are constant, is big benefit—or so say I, the Maine boy. The Featured Image, roses growing alongside a house in an alley, demonstrates. The nearly 100-percent crop contrasts the blurred hanging flower pot behind.

Vitals, aperture manually set: f/2, ISO 100, 1/5000 sec, 28mm; 1:51 p.m. PST. I used Leica Q2 to make the moment on Jan. 1, 2022.

Leica by Joe WilcoxMar 8, 202211:07 pm

The Difference Between Today and Yesterday

Gasoline prices continue their relentless rise here in San Diego. Regular unleaded now is $1 or more per gallon than on Feb. 24, 2022—when started Russia’s Ukrainian invasion. The Featured Image and companion compare changes over one day. The Arco is located at El Cajon Blvd and Texas Street, where North Park and University Heights meet.

But 30 cents a gallon more than yesterday, or the day before, isn’t the bigger difference. I awoke this morning to news alerts that Joseph Biden banned importation of Russian oil. Price to pump fuel is least of the problems. This sanction, on top of the others, leads to one conclusion, and a single consequence: The United States and Russia are unofficially at war. All that remains is declaration by one side or the other.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 7, 202211:29 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Little Spunky

Heavy rains stormed through San Diego on the evening of Feb. 15, 2022, when a friendly but apparently stray tabby invited himself into the house where he had visited over several weeks. The family chose to keep him inside that evening, because of the ferocious weather. Next morning, the husband pulled over his car when seeing me to ask about the cat, which meowed from inside a carrier. The gent knew that I photographed local animals and wondered if I knew anything about this kitty. Damn, no.

Because the cat limped, my neighbor chose to take the feline for a microchip scan and maybe medical treatment. He was reluctant to leave a possible pet at the animal shelter. As we chatted, he decided to first go to a local veterinarian, see whether the tabby was chipped, and if so get it to the owner. What transpired next surprised and inspires, but there’s a postscript drama not directly related but possibly impacting shelter policy.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 3, 20228:49 pm

How About ‘U’ for Unaffordable

Hours following a routine visit to the ophthalmologist and dilation, my pupils are still huge and so my vision remains wonky. I can’t imagine what the Featured Image really looks like. Perhaps you can tell me. I stood in the middle of Park Blvd and used Leica Q2 to make the moment on Feb. 23, 2022. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/640 sec, 28mm; 9:30 a.m. PST.

The sign is situated between Adams and Madison, and viewpoint is towards the latter. Around the turn of the last century, Bentley Ostrich Farm relocated to the district—hence the birds on the poles. During the same era, street cars served the community, and some of them were housed and serviced in a facility that is long gone but became the public Old Trolley Barn Park.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 1, 20229:30 pm

Stump Sculpture

I vaguely remember when, a few years ago, one of my neighbors created this lawn art over the course of several days. Chainsaw comes to mind as main tool, but my recollection is sketchy. Until shooting the Featured Image, though, I didn’t understand that a massive, magnificent tree reached skyward several stories above the roof. Google Street View reveals what was.

The stump sculpture has aged quite nicely, baked in the San Diego sun.

Photo by Joe WilcoxFeb 26, 20229:32 pm

Amazing Grace

While walking along Oregon Street in North Park today, my wife and I unexpectedly came upon free food distribution outside Grace Church. Most of the gathered recipients were elderly, and they are a population often hiding in plain sight. There are many somewhat unkempt houses scattered about this San Diego neighborhood and those adjacent. Within may live someone older, or retired, who owns the property but lives on meager fixed-income in an area with rapidly rising cost of living.

Homeownership isn’t wealthiness if you are aged, attached to where you live (meaning not wanting to move), but barely able to manage ongoing expenses, which could include food. Tell you this: I saw no heavyweights waiting in line. This was a lean lot.