A change of surroundings

It has been far too long since my last posting, even though there was one written and ready to go last Tuesday on Forgiveness, but I felt it was time for something less serious, especially now that the holidays have passed and there are only two more months of winter left. There was even a draft about the rough storms California faced for a number of days, as my first exit from the house in just as many days for a medical appointment, had allowed for a photo to be captured. It showed how one of our reservoirs, Briones, had managed to raise its water level after a three-year drought.

Briones Reservoir

Contra Costa County, California, January 22, 2010

As the previous weekend passed, it was time to take my daughter back to Santa Cruz. I was looking forward to our company and the trip back home along the coast on Cabrillo Highway. The weather looked good all morning but after dropping off Ariana, it took less than an hour for raindrops to appear, signaling what was about to come. Undaunted, I continued to my two favorite places, especially one, a little hideaway. Just above Aña Nuevo State Park, lies the Aña Nuevo Whitehouse Creek trail, whose entrance is nestled between groupings of large eucalyptus trees easily missed from the road unless one is looking for it.

A little into the trail, it splits in two different directions, one north into the open area and the other west, towards the coast where another split in the trail would lead one down to the shore or along the ridge. My aim was to head down towards to a little cove, which when entered made one feel like the pages of an adventure book I read as a boy about pirates and smugglers came to life.

Now the rains became heavier, they had brought on also stronger winds, causing the surf to plunge deeper into the coast, almost reversing the flow of the stream that I no longer was able to cross in order to enter the cove and reach the beach. Never the less, I was able to retrieve from along the stream a few pebbles for wrapping. Once back in the car, it was off to Bean Hollow.

Bean Hallow

Bean Hallow, San Mateo County, January 25, 2010

By the time I arrived at Bean Hollow the rain stopped but the winds had increased significantly to cause the waves to cress between fifteen to twenty feet with an additional five-six feet of ocean spray on top. At first I was the only person, but soon several more die-hards arrived to observe the oceans display of aggression as it seas swells forcible trusted itself against the few outcropping of steadfast rocks that rose above the waterline for a spectacular show. Almost one hour later, I felt as if I was frozen to the bone, signaling that it was time to go home.

Bean Hallow beach

Bean Hallow, San Mateo County, January 25, 2010

The next day I managed another escape from the walls that have been confining me these past weeks with a return for another medical visit in Berkeley and since the day lighting was better than before, I was able to document a number of telephone poles. One of my long term projects I have been working on these last four years, with an earlier posting to The Artist Within Us and how these telephone poles were turned into an artistic vision, a new direction that my paintings since have taken. I promise to share more of these in upcoming posts so that you can see what it is that that has me so fascinated with these mundane totems lining the streets at regular intervals.

Amidst the grey a dash of colour

 Berkeley, California, January 26, 2010

The next several days were spent like most of this year at building The DIRECTORY, my third blog. It is a collection of resources for artists and a list of the blogs I follow. There is still far more work ahead, but do have a look when you have a moment.

The brief outing along the coast lifted my spirits considerable; it has offered much needed rejuvenation and has permitted my focus to see challenges in another view. Circumstances have not changed, but a little strength has been mustered that will permit me to go on, for it appears winters brooding finds itself waning as spring approaches and days begin to be longer.

I wish to leave you know with a thought and your next excuse for when your spouse cannot understand the mess you are making, just tell them

Kreative Menschen machen keine Unordnung,

es sind alles Ideen, die da rumliegen!

Translation:

Creative people make no messes,

they are just ideas lying around!

They still might not understand, but at least you won’t have to stand there in silence and have that blank but questionable look about you.