A little bit of color tonight.
Warming weather coming to SoCal for a day or two, then rain.
Again, we always need the rain.
But when it’s completely overcast, grey, and raining, we do miss the colorful sunsets.
It’s all a tradeoff.
Monthly Archives: February 2023
Sticking Out Like A…
There’s a reason that phrase sticks around.
A stupid, tiny little nick from cutting my thumbnail too close on my right hand. I’m so right handed that if I broke my right arm I would starve to death before I learned to feed myself with my left hand only. So now, nearly a week after my horrific thumbnail clipping incident, I still am extremely aware of my sore thumb every single time I try to type (and I’m typing all day long), or use my computer trackball, or try to get my phone or wallet or keys out of my pocket, or try to use a pen, or eat with a fork or spoon, or…
You get the picture.
How can one itsy-bitsy little nick cause so much grief and trouble even a week later?!
I swear, next time I go to a manicurist and let them do it professionally. I’m not sure how that makes sense, but this is ridiculous.
(Yes, I’m a whiny woosie boy. This isn’t news.)
Filed under Health, Paul, Photography
Leftovers
Following the party on Sunday, there were leftovers. Salads for the next week, soft drinks, BBQ, beer, desserts…
…and enough red & yellow M&Ms (plain AND peanut) to feed a battalion.
To get the monocolor M&Ms you have to buy them in one pound or two bound bags. Most folks at the party were snacking on the other appetizers and the Crumbl cookies and the M&Ms were pretty and admired but not eaten.
So much for my diet!
Filed under Castle Willett, KC Chiefs
Random Old Photos – February 15th
With the NFL season over and my beloved Chiefs having won their second Super Bowl in four years and their parade through downtown Kansas City held today…
With the NHL season about 2/3 done and my beloved Kings hanging onto 2nd place in their division and in a good position to make the playoffs and make a run at what would be their third Stanley Cup…
…it’s getting time to think about Angels baseball! Pitchers and catchers reported to spring training yesterday, position players report on Monday, and we’re about ten days out from the first spring training game, about forty days out from the first regular season game.
This photo I found from ten years ago, March of 2013, when my son and I were in Arizona for a couple of spring training games. The rest of February, and March, and already into April is looking busy, busy, busy, but it’s not THAT far to drive for a long weekend, right?
Filed under KC Chiefs, LA Angels, LA Kings, Photography, Sports
A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Sitting At Home On Valentine’s Day Night
We NEVER go out for Valentine’s Day. (Long story.) Except yesterday a good friend & coworker let me know that she had tickets for a play for tonight and something had come up so they couldn’t go…
SURE! We would love to go!
It’s my first visit to the Pasadena Playhouse, and we’re seeing Sondheim’s “Sunday In The Park With George.”
It’s going to be great!
Filed under Uncategorized
Skyscapes – February 13th
Happy Monday!
Another winter storm moving in.
The high is only going to be in the mid 40’s for the next few days.
We might get some showers, but it won’t be much.
Snow is predicted on the Grapevine, but we won’t be going up there.
Instead I’ll just look at the clouds.
Filed under Photography, Weather
Super Bowl Champions Again
It was a GREAT game, very evenly matched, very tight, comebacks by both theams, could easily have gone either way. In the end, my beloved Chiefs prevailed for their second Super Bowl win in the three Super Bowl appearances in the last four years, and the franchise’s third Super Bowl win overall.
(From The Kansas City Chiefs)
The party here was a ton of fun, a good time was had by all! Tons of snacks, both ours and those brought by friends and guests.
There was much to eat and drink, desserts, all highlighted by BBQ up the ying-yang from world-famous Joe’s BBQ in Kansas City.
In the end, I was grateful to once again pop the champagne.
And now? Sleep. Much needed sleep…
It was a great day!
Filed under Castle Willett, KC Chiefs, Photography, Sports
The Stage Is Set
If you’ve read this site for very long, you know that I’m a passionate fan of the Kansas City Chiefs football team. (Kansas City is one of the places I grew up, the grade school years.) If you’e American and haven’t been under a rock for the past two weeks, you know that the Chiefs are in the Super Bowl tomorrow against the Philadelphia Eagles. It’s their third trip to the Super Bowl in four years, having won three years ago and lost two years ago.
Tomorrow we’ll be throwing our “traditional” Super Bowl party for family, friends, and coworkers. We’re ready to rock & roll!
We’ve played Tetris with the fridge to get everything in.
The “spare” fridge out on the back porch is responsible for holding all of the cold beer, water, and soft drinks.
The champagne is ready for cooling, the margaritas for mixing, and the red wine for those who swing that way. (We don’t have a ton of the “proper” glassware, but we’re not going to lose a single second of sleep over that. If push comes to shove, we have an industrial sized package of “Chiefs’ Red” Solo cups.
We ordered in an emergency package from Joe’s Kansas City BBQ, a legendary hallmark BBQ site from a city legendary for its BBQ.
Of course we have desserts – I’ve heard a lot about this new cookie place taking the world by storm and they opened one nearby… Why not?!
While I’m obviously hoping for and expecting a Chiefs win, I’m also expecting a legendary Super Bowl between two great teams that are very evenly matched.
We should have invited a cardiologist!
Enjoy the game, y’all!
Filed under Castle Willett, KC Chiefs, Photography, Sports
Barren Bush
In addition to the big tree in the back yard that’s lost about 99% of its leaves (and in my possibly flawed memory is usually like maybe 70% to 75%), there’s a bougainvillea bush there that’s also lost about 99% of its leaves this year, when I don’t remember that happening in any of the four previous winters we’ve been here.
My first concern was that there might be some sort of disease in common or contaminant in the soil that might be killing both, but after a moment’s thought I think that a much better explanation might be the lack of water this year as we went through significant watering restrictions due to the drought.
That’s the BIG change between the previous four years and this one. While we had a significant amount of rain in December and January, the six months prior to that were hot and very dry, with only about a third of the irrigation watering allowed. I can see how that would leave these plants suffering and showing the effects now that they’re having trouble hanging onto their leaves when it gets cooler and windy and stormy. Let’s hope the recent rain lets them come back now that the days are getting longer again.
At least if it dies, the bougainvillea is unlikely to tip over in a Santa Ana wind event and crush the house!
Filed under Climate Change, Photography, Weather
Barren Tree
There’s a big, huge tree that’s the central element of our back yard landscaping.
Unlike most deciduous trees in less arid & desert-like environs, this one never has truly lost all of its leaves in the fall and winter.
Some leaves, maybe some years even most of its leaves, even 3/4 of its leaves – no nowhere near all.
Until this year. It was hanging on as normal until the last two or three weeks of rains and strong, almost constant winds. Now, it’s barren.
Probably 98%+ of its leaves are gone and it’s a stark contrast to previous years’ behavior.
I’m hoping that there’s nothing wrong with it, that statistically this is just an outlier of a year. This tree is home to squirrels and a LOT of birds. More importantly, it’s near the house, the winds continue to blow like a demon, and if the tree is diseased or weakened it could easily topple over onto the house. Then we would have to find another place to live and deal with moving, which would no doubt piss me off something fierce.
In the meantime, there’s a certain stark, winter beauty to it outlined against a deep, blue sky on a cloudless day.
At least it’s still 50ºF instead of 15ºF! Otherwise I could be in Ohio or Michigan!
Filed under Photography
We Love The Stars Too Fondly 