Even under cloudy skies, this Sunny Gerbera is still bright and beautiful. This is the second flower produced by the two-tone potted annual daisy. Click on the image to enlarge.
July 2009
Water Waster
Why is it that I have to take a seven minute shower, water for only 15 minutes after 4PM, turn off the faucet while I brush my teeth and overload the dishwasher to maximize efficiency? The city has this dude come out and flush the hydrant system and flood both sides of the street while thousands and thousands of gallons of water wash, literally, out to sea.
An unfortunate by-product of hydrant flushing is that it turns tap water a deep brown color for hours afterwards. It’s disgusting to wash anything in it, let alone drink that crap.
I’m filing a complaint in the morning.
Three Peanut Flowers
Well, peanut cactus flowers, that is. The little potted succulent whose flowers are seen here is called ‘Peanut Cactus’ – we got this one at the garden shop a while back and the display of the bright red flowers has been just spectacular since that time. Click on the image for full-size.
Happy Fourth of July
The neighbors two doors down got a permit to close part of the street to hold a block party. While that was in progress, this beautiful Torrance Fire Department Unit showed up in front of our house. I took two images from the front balcony and stitched this image together. Click to enlarge.
A Bear for All Seasons
We took Bear to the vet today. The vet diagnosed her with skin allergies and seborrhea. The recommendation – give her a summer trim and medicated bath.
She looks like an entirely different dog. Images below: Winter Bear in the snow and Summer Bear on our driveway just after getting home from the groomer. Click to enlarge.
Verna’s DVD Library
Everyone in the family knows how much Dad loved watching videos. When he wasn’t tuned into old western movies, he would have a DVD or VHS in the player.
Dad had several sources of videos – all of his kids shared their DVDs and tapes with him. One source he had was Verna’s DVD Collection. He would drop by the house and pick out several to take home with him. He would dutifully write the titles down as a way to keep track of which video belonged to whom. I took this image about five years ago when Dad had a handful of DVDs to log out (click image to enlarge).
Since then, I developed an on-line DVD database tool which has the feature of keeping track of videos loaned out. It keeps track of titles, genres, remarks and other details including our ratings for the video. When you click on this link and scroll to the bottom of the page, you will see every DVD title, genre and our ratings. Those that are marked RETIRED have been given to charity.
