I am in the mountains. The Eastern Sierras, to be more exact. The view from this cabin is incredible. I spent parts of the day sitting on the deck just staring out across Owens Valley to the mountains beyond. (The White Mountains & the Inyo Mountains.) Or up at the sky & the clouds & the Sierras, which thrust straight up behind from where I am ( Read more... )

Our ValleyWe don’t see the ocean, not ever, but in July and August ( Read more... )

The largest island and the largest lake? The largest lake on an island? It gets sillier from there.

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Whoops! I forgot to credit my sources. Thanks, Jed!

Went on a lovely hike today. Did just shy of 5 miles up in Briones Regional Park, managing to hike a bit of trail I have not seen before. Which leaves a great many miles of trails left to explore, but I am also far behind my personal goal to have hiked every park around the SF Bay***. I wheezed a bit on the steepest bits, but didn't embarrass ( Read more... )

I am bemused, and sometimes baffled, at how foods from one part of the world get incorporated into cuisines in another part of the world ( Read more... )

It is too bad that, despite their geographical proximity to each other, Convict Lake is not fed by the Crooked Creek.
*****I hike around the lake. When I first arrive, the angle of the sun makes it a fascinating shade of blue - a deep blue with some teal in it. By the time I leave the lake is in the shadow of the mountains, and is an entirely ( Read more... )

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) -- A new volcanic island has risen from the South Pacific near Tonga, according to reports from two vessels that passed the area.The crew of the Maiken, a yacht that left the northern Tongan islands group of Vava'u in August, reported on their Web log on August 12 that they saw streaks of light, porous pumice stone ( Read more... )

What can I tell you about my weekend ( Read more... )

Somehow this marketing ploy leaves me uninspired. There's something a little too self-important in their tone, even if I do think they're wise to be so realistic about what's available.

The city of Crosby, on the other hand, appears to have a sense of humor about itself. I'm impressed, given their economy & climateNo, I'm not planning on ( Read more... )

Drove home tonight over the San Mateo Bridge. I love that bridge, with its long, low miles spanning the Bay. I think I like the sense of nothingness. Here is this bay, rimmed all the way around with crowds of cities jostling up against each other like people waiting for a parade, no empty space as long as you're within that ring, no gap from one ( Read more... )