Camelback Mountain, Two Views

 

At the beginning of the week, we had lots of rain and much cooler temperatures.  I snapped the above photo on Monday looking at Camelback Mountain from where I live.  I liked how the top of the mountain had some sunshine on it while the darker clouds were still hovering around.

On Tuesday we had some more rain but later in the afternoon it started to clear.  I decided to take a walk at the Desert Botanical Garden so I headed that way around 3:30 in the afternoon.  I climbed up the steep trail where I could get a view of Camelback Mountain from the south and looking north.  An added bonus was all the big, puffy clouds in the sky.

I enjoyed all those clouds scattered across the sky.

Theme Day: Soft

 

A nice, soft pillow is always welcome when one is thinking about taking a nap.  If a pillow isn't available, we might look for the next best thing.  One of these two beautiful golden retrievers has found just the right soft spot to rest a weary head.  

I saw these two relaxing at an artist's booth at this year's Celebration of Fine Arts back in January.  They seemed perfectly content in their temporary accomodations.

The City Daily Photo Bloggers theme for October 1st is Soft.  To see other "soft" posts, click here.

'Tis the Season

 

I took these photos in mid-September so the season has been building for weeks now.  I saw the ghost above floating around someone's front garden. 

The skeletal lady to the left was found at the entrance to a store.  

Since the month of October is just one day away, I'm sure I will start seeing more scenes like this.  After all, 'tis the season of ghosts, goblins and pumpkins!  

"A (Gentle) Parody of Operatic Proportions"

 

Last Saturday evening I attended the season opening performance of the Arizona Opera's 55th season.  The opera presented was "Scalia/Ginsburg" and it told a story of the friendship between two Supreme Court Justices who were always on the opposite side of any decision.  They became great friends in spite of their differences on legal opinions and their friendship revolved around a love of opera.  It seems perfect that two of them would be remembered in a medium they both cherished. 

The opera is short by most operatic standards and full of humor and inspiration.  It emphasized the importance of building relationships across idealogical divides.  The photo above was taken when the cast was taking their bows at the end of the performance.  The opera is done with only three actors, Ben Werley playing Scalia, Rachel Policar playing Ginsburg and Jesus Vicente Murillo playing a Commentator.  They were all superb.  

Above is a photo of the stage that I took before the opera began.  Only three characters and simple staging combined with great music and lots inspiration softened with a bit of whimsy make this a perfect production for all to enjoy. 

The opera was written by Derrick Wang, a lawyer who specializes in music and the law.  He is a graduate of Harvard and Yale and he currently instructs STEM, humanities, and Peabody Conservatory students at the The John Hopkins University.

People of Note

 

I found this mural recently on the side of a small Mexican restaurant called El Pacifico.  It features some noted people with Mexican roots.  There is Jenni Rivera, Selena Quintanilla, Carlos Santana and Cesar Chavez.  The mural appears to be a bit faded so I think it's been there a long time.

Taking part in Monday Murals.

Passing Observations

 I have three observations I made while driving around a nearby neighborhood last week.  First I saw this three stump that looks like it has been fitted with a roof of its own.  Maybe this is a community center for the birds.  

Then I saw these very rustic doors being used at the entrance to one home.  They make an interesting addition to a modest bungalow.

This house has come up with a more elaborate entrance door.  It's just as rustic as the ones above but I like the addition of all that greenery surrounding the entrance.

Light Show

 

While Glenda and I were enjoying a truly brilliant light show Thursday evening, Dave was quietly snapping photos of the sky.  He captured some great shots and we didn't even know he was doing it.  Luckily he shared them with us so I can share them with you.  The lightening was lighting up the sky brilliantly for most of the evening but it was far enough away that we never heard any thunder and we could safely sit there and enjoy the show. (By the way, those two short light streaks in the upper right are a plane passing overhead.)

This one looks like a perfect Halloween moon shot.  

Dave got a little "arty" with this shot of his champagne glass ready to swallow up the moon.  

Thanks Dave for sharing these great photos.

Puffy Clouds

 

I noticed some big puffy clouds building up in the east behind Camelback Mountain one evening and I had my fingers crossed that we might get some rain later on.  However, no rain showed up.  

Usually a build up of clouds in the east is a good sign of rain on the horizon but lately we've been seeing the clouds but the rains seem to pass us by.  I guess that's just another sign of our changing weather patterns.  

Mid-Century Modern

 

When I was driving around last weekend, I spotted two nicely maintained mid-century modern homes that were practically next door to each other.  This one with its green and orange paint was especially nice.

This one has certainly maintained that 1950's look and style.  These two houses stood out because almost every other one on the street had been remodeled or modernized to hide that true mid-century look.

Beyond Comprehension

 

I was driving around a neighborhood close to home when I saw this rather unusual "thing" sitting in someone's front garden.  What is it?  Is it supposed to be a rooster skeleton? Why? 

So, I Googled "why a rooster skeleton" and apparently it's a popular Halloween decoration so you can "bring a spooky farmhouse-style twist" to the Halloween displays.  

I don't get it.  But, it does make for an interesting blog post!  😁

More About Power

 

I'm posting some of the other pieces from our recent Art Challenge Club meeting.  These are creations from other members of the group.  The one above is by Kim who created a very dramatic painting of the sun.

Diane created a beautiful multi-media piece called "The Power of Music".  It perfectly depicts how music lifts us up and makes us "move".  

Tim is the sculptor in our little group.  He makes amazing sculptures from discarded or found materials.  He found this piece in a thrift shop and when found it was all one color wood, the color of the bottom piece.  He thought its shape resembled an abstract bear so he gave it a Native American look depicting a bear.  What a great piece!

Dave's piece is called "Power of the People" and it's a very nice watercolor painting. 

This last one is another watercolor painting this time by my friend Glenda.  She created "Windmill Power".  

Our next challenge is "The Beach".  We haven't set a date for the next meeting yet but, I had better get busy thinking about what I will create this time.

The Subject Was "Power"

 

My Art Challenge Club met Saturday evening to review the latest challenge which was "Power".  

This is my piece and I call it "Solar Power".  My photo editing tools helped me to take an ordinary image of an electrical socket and turn it into something a bit magical.  

I also showed one extra piece.  This one I call "People Power".  I wanted to play around with drawing faces in a caricature style.  I didn't like it at first but after a while, I started to like my messy little faces.  

Tomorrow I'll show you some of the group's pieces.  It was a fun topic that could be interpreted in many ways.  

The Light Bloom at the Garden

 When I took that after-dark walk at the Desert Botanical Garden at the end of August, I took this photo of the Light Bloom sculpture that the garden has retained.  I posted a daytime photo of it back in August here.  

This is how it looks lit up at night.  It makes an impressive centerpiece.  

The garden has gotten to keep several sculptures from the various shows they've hosted.  I think this one is my favorite.  

Over the Wall

 

It was nice enough Thursday evening to have our champagne Thursday drinks on Glenda's back patio.  While sitting there looking up at the end of Camelback Mountain, I noticed how I could see some homes lined up in the canyon view. I used the telephoto on my cell phone to see if I could capture the scene. It did a pretty good job.

I also noticed that one of Glenda's desert rose plants has two blooms on it right now.  It's a blooming bonus!

Unique Way to Advertise

 

When I was in Chicago last week, I saw a very unique advertising technique taking place on the plaza just north of the Chicago River.  Giant sized household items were attracting attention.  Here we have a lamp.

I'd have trouble fitting this giant skillet onto my stove top but the price is right.

And this reusable water bottle is a bit too big to carry around.  

There were several young ladies standing around to answer any questions and to hand out shopping bags to anyone who wanted one.  

Of course then there were lots of people like me who just turned it into a photo-op.  

The Art of the Bouquet

 

My sister sent me another one of those pretty pop-up cards that turn into something that looks very real.  I have this one sitting on my desk where I can admire it every day.

I also did a little photo editing to see what interesting looks I could come up with.  I like this one that makes it very bright and artistic.

This one landed the whole bouquet in Paris.

This last one turned most of the flowers a pretty shade of blue but what I really like is how it gave the vase a rather sinister looking face.  

I enjoy creating these little diversions.  

More Birthday Celebrations

 

I've been posting photos from my fabulous birthday trip to Chicago all last week but the celebrations didn't end there.  Over the weekend I had another celebration at my friend Glenda's house.  She combined my birthday on the 9th with Julie's birthday which was on the 13th and we had this delicious chocolate cake to cover both events.

She also had this gorgeous plate of strawberries with a chocolate dipping sauce.  Cake and chocolate covered strawberries, what more could we want.  

I gave Julie a birthday card that I had purchased on one of my trips to London and when her husband Dave saw the card, he immediately found a photo in his vast photo files that pretty much mirrored the card.  

Birthday week is over.  Now it's time to get back to normal.

A Connection

 

Just outside of the Field Museum in Chicago is this statue of Jane Goodall created by Marla Friedman.  The dedication reads "In 1960 twenty-six year old Jane Goodall extended her hand to offer a palm nut to David Greybeard, one of chimpanzees she had been studying.  The chimp wasn't interested in the nut, but gently held on to her hand, signaling his understanding and acceptance of her gesture. This breakthrough moment marked a turning point in Goodall's work that would lead to unprecedented discoveries about our closest living relatives."

A wonderful tribute to an important scientist.

More Swimmers

 

Here are a few more of those "swimmer" sculptures that I mentioned early last week.  They are all done by Carole Feuerman and entire display was sponsored by the Magnificent Mile Association.  They were scattered all along Michigan Avenue.

This one is very acrobatic.

This one looks quite comfortable perched atop a golden ball.

This one is taking in some of that sunshine.  She looks very realistic like she just might stand up at any moment.

And here is another acrobat posing against a beautiful Chicago skyline.

This last one appears to have been captured doing some exercises.  

They were all very realistic sculptures.

Favorite Views

 

Before leaving Chicago, I had to make sure I stood on the bridge over the Chicago River and took in the city views that I love so much.  Looking east from the Michigan Avenue bridge, I can see the building I lived in all those years ago right in the center of the photo and I can admire all the towers that have sprung up east of it.  

Standing at the same intersection and looking west, I was struck by how a once favorite view has been blighted by just five malicious letters.  

So, I just stepped a few feet to the south to get a more appealing view.  It's missing the river but at least the blight is gone.