Out of my SLUMP w/ a big photo DUMP!! :D
Even when I'm aggravated, I try to keep a sense of humour. So, despite being aggro at myself for falling SO BEHIND in my journalling, I made a rhyme, which in turn made me smile. :) And now, without any rambling prelude, here are some photo essays that serve as a game of catch-up on my life and recent happy events.
On Friday, Jan. 30 I went up to Redwood City to see Shawn. On the way there, on Interstate 280, I saw a Mercedes with a unique personalized licensed plate. I am not a pot-smoker (I would never smoke anything, due to my asthma!) but I still thought this was an amusing plate. Can you see it?
When we went out for lunch, we went to Tacone Flavor Grill, which combines good food with a good concept! (Visit their website; it rocks!) Shawn had coupons for a free side item with the purchase of any wrap or sandwich, so we each chose something to go with our wraps, which were already accompanied by chips! Shawn chose cole slaw; I chose salad. Here's my yummy lunch; I don't know why I didn't photograph his. :\
Shawn & I both like 3-D movies, and he also likes scary movies (I sometimes like them *nervous laugh*) so we went to see My Bloody Valentine 3D the 2009 remake of the 1981 Canadian slasher of the same name (well, minus the "3D"). It definitely had the requisite suspense and gore, BUT also had an interesting storyline and a clever/weird plot twist that left us guessing for a while! In the spirit of scary movies, we had a little fun posing with this promotional cut-out poster for the latest Friday the 13th movie, which I guess is coming out any day now. Here's Shawn pretending to scream!
Here is a very over-exposed Scary Shari, pretending to be scared! LOL
Then I decided to act cool as a cucumber, just for fun!
At Shawn's home. We thought we both looked very nerdy and sort of googlie-eyed with the 3-D glasses on, so thanks to my camera's handy self-timer, we have photographic proof! %-) teehee
Shawn had been telling me for weeks how tasty kabocha squash was, and how easy it was to prepare in the microwave. On this night, I finally got to taste it -- and I liked it! :) Kabocha is a hard-walled winter squash, so it looks kind of like a cross between a pumpkin and a gourd. (Sorry I blurred the pic).
Here's what the "guts" look like!
And here is our unpretentious but delicious dinner! :) We each had half a kabocha to scoop out, plus Shawn made "chili mac" that was excellent comfort food! (High in protein too!)
The next morning I was delighted to see the bright sunshine on the snowflakes (Leucojum spp.) of Shawn's neighbors J & S. :) So of course I dropped to the ground and took a bunch of pix of these beautiful, early-blooming bulbs!! Here's my #1 fave of the bunch! BTW, snowflakes are sometimes confused with their close relatives, snowdrops (Galanthus spp.)
This one snowflake flower was interesting because it was all spread open.
J & S have an adorable family of rabbits, and I enjoy photographing them. This is Squirt, whom I sometimes call "Squirtums" and they sometimes call "Squirtle". He is THE MOST outgoing rabbit I've ever met!! :D He loves being picked up, held, cuddled & petted, and he loves to be where the action is, whatever's going on. Of course, he is also friends with ALL of the other bunnies in the group! :)
Here is Squirt visiting with some of his friends, including Grouchy (the black & white one). I think one of the brown ones is Allie, a very friendly & pretty girl.
Another pic of Squirtums and company! :) BTW, yes, all of the bunnies are fixed!
On Saturday, Feb. 7, Shawn came down here to San Jose to see me. We decided to take a long walk off a short pier along the Guadalupe River Trail. We found a tree in bloom but weren't sure if it was an almond or a plum. I thought almond, because the flowers didn't smell as sweet as what I've smelled on plum trees. Shawn, however, thought it was a plum -- or maybe even a wild cherry!
Here are the beautiful blossoms again. Any ideas?
We also found some Fremontias in bloom. Many folks call them "flannel bush" due to the fuzzy leaves, but they can also grow into trees, so I don't like using "bush" in the name. I use the genus name instead. (This pic was very dark/contrasty originally, which is why it looks washed out now. Oops!)
I was just enchanted to see up-close the neat way the California buckeye unfurls its palmate leaves. They look like long, pointed, graceful hands. I also loved how the leaf "bud" at the bottom rolls back and resembles a tied bow on a gift! :) I'm embarrassed I don't recall the botanical term for this part that the leaves emerge from. *blush*
Another pic of new buckeye foliage, but not as nice as the above pic!
This very tall, craggy, old California sycamore (Platanus racemosa) displays the multiple trunks these trees are known for. Sycamores tend to be happiest growing near waterways, and this one is no exception.
I'm not sure what species of egret this is, but hopefully you can see it in the middle of the pic! I zoomed in on the bird in the next pic, but I also wanted to show the whole pic, because I think the whole scene is beautiful and peacful.
I cropped and enlarged the egret from the above pic. Sorry it's so grainy, but at least you can see the egret more clearly! heh The bird had actually been relaxing under a little pier-type thing until Shawn & I startled it. It gave a loud, low-pitched squawk/croak and flew to where you see it now. It sounded grumpy! *giggle*
I don't know what type of willow this is, but it was blooming very prettily! (Sorry I blurred it, darnit!)
A group of coots on the lawn area near the "beach" at Almaden Lake Park, which is a stop along the Guadalupe River Trail..
I like this scene because it includes 3 types of birds: geese (closest to me), coots (to the left) and a GIGANTIC flock of seagulls sitting out on the lake!
As Shawn & I were walking around the lake, we ran into my neighbor Vince (husband of Lisa M., who plays in the Bingo Belles). Vince was nice enough to take this "touristy" shot of us.
The next 3 pix I forgot to "smallen" on Photoshop, and then ran out of time. So I uploaded them to my LJ Scrapbook. PLEASE click on the small versions below to see them full-size! :) This is me on a climbing structure that looks like it's made of ropes, but it's actually strong metal cables covered in white & blue plastic twine-like fibers.
I was higher up in the "rope gym" than it looks like in this pic! heh Shawn snapped this shot while we were BOTH inside the structure.
Shawn made it all the way to the TOP!
Shawn & I decided to celebrate Valentine's Day predominantly on Friday the 13th, because I'd heard/seen a weather report predicting a severe storm by the end of the day on Saturday the 14th. So, I drove up to Redwood City on Friday, and was happily surprised with a bouquet of flowers, a box of chocolates and a romantic card! :))) Thank you Shawn! And I'm glad you liked your coooookies and card too!
Anyhoo, I was very hungry when I arrived, so we went for lunch at Chili's, due to the fact that I had an unused gift card! :) Shawn ordered this delicious lunch salad:
And I ordered this delicious lunch. I also ordered a "refreshing adult beverage" because Shawn was driving. ;) It was some froo-froo fruity cocktail and I loved it!
Then we went bowling! It was Shawn's idea; he remembered I'd said (at some time in the past) that I hadn't been bowling for a long time and wanted to do it again. Very cool of him. :) I forgot the name of the lanes in Redwood City, but they were an AMF facility. Here's our bowling balls, which I think look like scared faces! (Shawn took this & the following pix with his Treo, which is why they have a squareish-ish shape). You can guess which ball is mine!!
Shawn happened to catch the ONLY strike I bowled in two complete games! LOL (I'm a bad bowler, but I had fun!)
An inadvertantly pensive shot of me watching my ball roll down the lane. Shawn has good timing with his pic-taking!
I, on the other hand, did NOT have good timing when I took this pic, but oh well.
However, I *did* have good timing here! :)
I was nerdy enough to suggest we take a shot of our bowling shoes together. *giggle* Both of our jeans are blue: Shawn's lighter and mine darker, but for some reason they look gray and black in thsi pic!
Oddly enough (well, oddly for shutterbug me) I didn't take any pix on Friday or Saturday, so that's it for this entry. I *did* take a pic, once I got home, of Shawn's beautiful bouquet, which I put in a vase. However, I forgot to upload the pic! OOPS! I'll do it soon!
P.S. For what it's worth, I'm soooo sorry for how long it’s been since I’ve made comments on friends' journals. *BLUSH* As usual, I feel the need to apologize, and to make sure that no one takes it personally. I value all of my LJ friends, and I’m interested in what everyone has to write. :) I’ve just been extra-busy with “real life” preoccupations - including the good (my blossoming relationship), the bad (the deterioration of my dad’s physical & cognitive health), and the neutral (work-related stuff). And of course my ADHD tendencies make everything more challenging. *sigh* So, again, I hope you won’t take it personally that I’ve been an “absent friend” for a while, and I hope you’ll forgive me. :) :”> Thanks and hugs!
On Friday, Jan. 30 I went up to Redwood City to see Shawn. On the way there, on Interstate 280, I saw a Mercedes with a unique personalized licensed plate. I am not a pot-smoker (I would never smoke anything, due to my asthma!) but I still thought this was an amusing plate. Can you see it?
When we went out for lunch, we went to Tacone Flavor Grill, which combines good food with a good concept! (Visit their website; it rocks!) Shawn had coupons for a free side item with the purchase of any wrap or sandwich, so we each chose something to go with our wraps, which were already accompanied by chips! Shawn chose cole slaw; I chose salad. Here's my yummy lunch; I don't know why I didn't photograph his. :\
Shawn & I both like 3-D movies, and he also likes scary movies (I sometimes like them *nervous laugh*) so we went to see My Bloody Valentine 3D the 2009 remake of the 1981 Canadian slasher of the same name (well, minus the "3D"). It definitely had the requisite suspense and gore, BUT also had an interesting storyline and a clever/weird plot twist that left us guessing for a while! In the spirit of scary movies, we had a little fun posing with this promotional cut-out poster for the latest Friday the 13th movie, which I guess is coming out any day now. Here's Shawn pretending to scream!
Here is a very over-exposed Scary Shari, pretending to be scared! LOL
Then I decided to act cool as a cucumber, just for fun!
At Shawn's home. We thought we both looked very nerdy and sort of googlie-eyed with the 3-D glasses on, so thanks to my camera's handy self-timer, we have photographic proof! %-) teehee
Shawn had been telling me for weeks how tasty kabocha squash was, and how easy it was to prepare in the microwave. On this night, I finally got to taste it -- and I liked it! :) Kabocha is a hard-walled winter squash, so it looks kind of like a cross between a pumpkin and a gourd. (Sorry I blurred the pic).
Here's what the "guts" look like!
And here is our unpretentious but delicious dinner! :) We each had half a kabocha to scoop out, plus Shawn made "chili mac" that was excellent comfort food! (High in protein too!)
The next morning I was delighted to see the bright sunshine on the snowflakes (Leucojum spp.) of Shawn's neighbors J & S. :) So of course I dropped to the ground and took a bunch of pix of these beautiful, early-blooming bulbs!! Here's my #1 fave of the bunch! BTW, snowflakes are sometimes confused with their close relatives, snowdrops (Galanthus spp.)
This one snowflake flower was interesting because it was all spread open.
J & S have an adorable family of rabbits, and I enjoy photographing them. This is Squirt, whom I sometimes call "Squirtums" and they sometimes call "Squirtle". He is THE MOST outgoing rabbit I've ever met!! :D He loves being picked up, held, cuddled & petted, and he loves to be where the action is, whatever's going on. Of course, he is also friends with ALL of the other bunnies in the group! :)
Here is Squirt visiting with some of his friends, including Grouchy (the black & white one). I think one of the brown ones is Allie, a very friendly & pretty girl.
Another pic of Squirtums and company! :) BTW, yes, all of the bunnies are fixed!
On Saturday, Feb. 7, Shawn came down here to San Jose to see me. We decided to take a long walk off a short pier along the Guadalupe River Trail. We found a tree in bloom but weren't sure if it was an almond or a plum. I thought almond, because the flowers didn't smell as sweet as what I've smelled on plum trees. Shawn, however, thought it was a plum -- or maybe even a wild cherry!
Here are the beautiful blossoms again. Any ideas?
We also found some Fremontias in bloom. Many folks call them "flannel bush" due to the fuzzy leaves, but they can also grow into trees, so I don't like using "bush" in the name. I use the genus name instead. (This pic was very dark/contrasty originally, which is why it looks washed out now. Oops!)
I was just enchanted to see up-close the neat way the California buckeye unfurls its palmate leaves. They look like long, pointed, graceful hands. I also loved how the leaf "bud" at the bottom rolls back and resembles a tied bow on a gift! :) I'm embarrassed I don't recall the botanical term for this part that the leaves emerge from. *blush*
Another pic of new buckeye foliage, but not as nice as the above pic!
This very tall, craggy, old California sycamore (Platanus racemosa) displays the multiple trunks these trees are known for. Sycamores tend to be happiest growing near waterways, and this one is no exception.
I'm not sure what species of egret this is, but hopefully you can see it in the middle of the pic! I zoomed in on the bird in the next pic, but I also wanted to show the whole pic, because I think the whole scene is beautiful and peacful.
I cropped and enlarged the egret from the above pic. Sorry it's so grainy, but at least you can see the egret more clearly! heh The bird had actually been relaxing under a little pier-type thing until Shawn & I startled it. It gave a loud, low-pitched squawk/croak and flew to where you see it now. It sounded grumpy! *giggle*
I don't know what type of willow this is, but it was blooming very prettily! (Sorry I blurred it, darnit!)
A group of coots on the lawn area near the "beach" at Almaden Lake Park, which is a stop along the Guadalupe River Trail..
I like this scene because it includes 3 types of birds: geese (closest to me), coots (to the left) and a GIGANTIC flock of seagulls sitting out on the lake!
As Shawn & I were walking around the lake, we ran into my neighbor Vince (husband of Lisa M., who plays in the Bingo Belles). Vince was nice enough to take this "touristy" shot of us.
The next 3 pix I forgot to "smallen" on Photoshop, and then ran out of time. So I uploaded them to my LJ Scrapbook. PLEASE click on the small versions below to see them full-size! :) This is me on a climbing structure that looks like it's made of ropes, but it's actually strong metal cables covered in white & blue plastic twine-like fibers.
I was higher up in the "rope gym" than it looks like in this pic! heh Shawn snapped this shot while we were BOTH inside the structure.
Shawn made it all the way to the TOP!
Shawn & I decided to celebrate Valentine's Day predominantly on Friday the 13th, because I'd heard/seen a weather report predicting a severe storm by the end of the day on Saturday the 14th. So, I drove up to Redwood City on Friday, and was happily surprised with a bouquet of flowers, a box of chocolates and a romantic card! :))) Thank you Shawn! And I'm glad you liked your coooookies and card too!
Anyhoo, I was very hungry when I arrived, so we went for lunch at Chili's, due to the fact that I had an unused gift card! :) Shawn ordered this delicious lunch salad:
And I ordered this delicious lunch. I also ordered a "refreshing adult beverage" because Shawn was driving. ;) It was some froo-froo fruity cocktail and I loved it!
Then we went bowling! It was Shawn's idea; he remembered I'd said (at some time in the past) that I hadn't been bowling for a long time and wanted to do it again. Very cool of him. :) I forgot the name of the lanes in Redwood City, but they were an AMF facility. Here's our bowling balls, which I think look like scared faces! (Shawn took this & the following pix with his Treo, which is why they have a squareish-ish shape). You can guess which ball is mine!!
Shawn happened to catch the ONLY strike I bowled in two complete games! LOL (I'm a bad bowler, but I had fun!)
An inadvertantly pensive shot of me watching my ball roll down the lane. Shawn has good timing with his pic-taking!
I, on the other hand, did NOT have good timing when I took this pic, but oh well.
However, I *did* have good timing here! :)
I was nerdy enough to suggest we take a shot of our bowling shoes together. *giggle* Both of our jeans are blue: Shawn's lighter and mine darker, but for some reason they look gray and black in thsi pic!
Oddly enough (well, oddly for shutterbug me) I didn't take any pix on Friday or Saturday, so that's it for this entry. I *did* take a pic, once I got home, of Shawn's beautiful bouquet, which I put in a vase. However, I forgot to upload the pic! OOPS! I'll do it soon!
P.S. For what it's worth, I'm soooo sorry for how long it’s been since I’ve made comments on friends' journals. *BLUSH* As usual, I feel the need to apologize, and to make sure that no one takes it personally. I value all of my LJ friends, and I’m interested in what everyone has to write. :) I’ve just been extra-busy with “real life” preoccupations - including the good (my blossoming relationship), the bad (the deterioration of my dad’s physical & cognitive health), and the neutral (work-related stuff). And of course my ADHD tendencies make everything more challenging. *sigh* So, again, I hope you won’t take it personally that I’ve been an “absent friend” for a while, and I hope you’ll forgive me. :) :”> Thanks and hugs!