October 31, 2009

exploring history in Sonoma


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photo by Donald Kinney

If you only have three dollars to spend and you're looking for the best California State Park value, I'd suggest stopping by Sonoma, California; to visit the mission, barracks, and General Vallejo's opulent home.

Text from an informational sign:   "Mariano Vallejo was born in Monterey, California, in 1807, a native son of Spanish citizenship.   His father was a Spanish soldier accompanying Father Junipero Serra on the famous 1769 expedition to establish the chain of Missions in California".

"In 1822 California changed to Mexican rule and the following year Vallejo beame an officer cadet with his father's presidial company.   For six years he trained as a professional soldier.   In June 1829 he received his first test of fire in two Indian battles".

"These victories brought recognition from the Mexican Governor and he sent Vallejo north to the frontier (Valley of the Moon--Fort Ross region).   He turned the mission lands around Sonoma into public use".

"Although Vallejo held the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in the Regular Army of Mexico, he served as Comandante-General of California from 1836 to 1844, then retired to manage his vast land holdings".




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photo by Donald Kinney

Oh, it's the same old story -- gain some political advantages and favors, become appointed to serve the common good, and then enslave the local native population into advancing your own wealth and ego.

Text from an informational sign:   "Governor Figueroa sent Mariano Vallejo into the valley of Sonoma in 1834 with the instructions to colonize the area and lay out a town, as a buffer against the Russians".

[ editor's note:   From 1812 to 1841 the Tsarist government gave a charter to the Russian-American Company, a commercial hunting and trading enterprise which claimed a large area on the coast, naming it Fort Ross.   Twenty-five Russians, along with 80 native Alaskans from Kodiak and the Aleutian Islands lived and worked at Fort Ross, growing food and hunting game to supply early Russian settlements in Alaska. ]

"The church at Sonoma had been established 11 years earlier with freedom to tade with any of the settlers on the coast.   Both Sonoma Mission and the chapel at Fort Ross enjoyed Catholic affiliation and as a result established a common tie".

"With the arrival of Vallejo and his small body of troops, the political climate changed and further trade with the Russians was discouraged. The Mexicans were fearful of further foreign expansion".

"This northernmost mission continued to minister to the needs of the small community under increasing problems of secularization and lack of funds until it was sold into private ownership".




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photo by Donald Kinney

Side of Mission San Francisco Solano from the courtyard.

Text from an informational sign:   "The Mission Trail marked three hundred years of Spanish-Mexican settlement.   It travelled as far south as Guatemala and taversed Mexico to advance through eleven of our present date United States.   In 1823 Mission San Francisco Solano was founded, marking the last and northernmost outpost on the historic Mission Trail".



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photo by Donald Kinney

Well, I didn't need an informational sign to tell me that the Mission and other old buildings were constructed of adobe bricks, which is simply nothing more than clay, sand, and water; mixed with straw, sticks, or dung; formed into bricks with a wooden mold; and then baked thoroughly in the hot sun.   Exposed surfaces were often plastered over to protect the adobe bricks from the effects of weathering.



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photo by Donald Kinney

This well-worn floor is upstairs in the barracks where General Vallejo's troops were quartered.   Now, (illustratively speaking) I've had walls talk to me before, but this is the first time I've had an old floor say a few words...


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October 30, 2009

miscellaneous leftovers


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photo by Donald Kinney

I thought this would be a good day to devour a few leftover photos.   Somehow these recent images have fallen through the cracks.

I probably don't have to tell you that's Alcatraz wrapped in fog.



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photo by Donald Kinney

I love this woman's socks...   Kind of a throwback to my generation -- oh you know, the days when we hoped for peace, love, and flowers.



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photo by Donald Kinney

It's probably just me, but I just can't get used to the concept of watermelon juice.   Seems like the subtle crunch is half the fun of eating watermelon.   The other half of the fun is spitting the seeds.



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photo by Donald Kinney

I've always loved arrows...   They are so directional.


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October 29, 2009

more spooking around in Chinatown


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photo by Donald Kinney

Oh, I suppose just it's the voyeur in me, but hey -- I'm the guy with the camera, and with apologies, I sometimes feel authorized to invade the private spaces of others.



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photo by Donald Kinney

All very mysterious and just a bit rough around the edges -- but my imagination was running wild with what might go on behind the gate.



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photo by Donald Kinney

It only takes one finger to count the number of my friends fluent in Mandarin, and I'd love to show this photo to Diana and ask her what it says -- but you know, there is a possibility that this scrawl says something terribly offensive.   One finger is better than no fingers, so unless you can help me out with a translation, this graffiti is going to remain a mystery.   ((( Diana, are you out there? )))



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photo by Donald Kinney

Like the Worst-Dressed award they give out for fashion, this blog is probably going to win a similar award some day -- it'll probably be the Lack-of-Information award.   My lack of knowledge is blatent.   I know next to nothing about dragons, and even less about dragons with feathers.



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photo by Donald Kinney

This sign is on the window of a restaurant and bar on Waverly Place.   And I don't know, but I'm just going to guess it says something simple like "Restaurant and Bar".


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October 28, 2009

spooking around Chinatown


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photo by Donald Kinney

It was rather early on Sunday when I was spooking around Portsmouth Square, but later in the day the place always becomes packed with people playing lively games of cards and a board-game that faintly resembles the game of checkers I used to play as a kid.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that Portsmouth Square is one of San Francisco's most historical places.   On July 9, 1846 Captain John Berrien Montgomery of the USS Portsmouth successfully seized undefended Yerba Buena (San Francisco's original name) from Mexico.



Yerba Buena as it looked in 1846.   (photo credit:  Wikipedia)



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photo by Donald Kinney

I can't speak a word of Chinese and have absolutely no experience making noodles or working in a bakery, but I'd rather not apply for the job as a porter working 54 hours a week for a dismal $7.40 an hour.



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photo by Donald Kinney

Most Chinese-Americans are fiercely loyal to our country and aren't afraid to show it.



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photo by Donald Kinney

Take it from me, you know you're getting old when you're two years older than the People's Republic of China.


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October 27, 2009

sea-lions at Pier 39


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photo by Donald Kinney

Oh those scrappy sea-lions -- get enough of them together in a confined space and you're going to have more squabbles than the Jerry Springer show.



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photo by Donald Kinney

"I bark, therfore I am"...   Quite the philosophers, those sea-lions.



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photo by Donald Kinney

I grew up in Pacific Grove right next to Monterey, and Monterey also has a large population of sea-lions.   They have claimed the end of the Coast-Guard pier as their own, and one of my favorite memories of living in Pacific Grove was being able to hear them in the distance at night barking and squabbling.   Some things never change...



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photo by Donald Kinney

You see, it can be one big happy family -- until someone wakes up.



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photo by Donald Kinney

And who can get any sleep with all that barking going on?


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October 26, 2009

clouds up on the Dixon Trail


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photo by Donald Kinney

One of my favorite places to stop by and shoot clouds is the Dixon Trail.   (((For you "locals", it's that steep fire-road up past Roy's Redwoods)))   Dixon Trail is considerably shorter than it used to be -- the part that passes through private property is now off limits to hikers so they can destroy the ridge with a few multi-million dollar houses.



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photo by Donald Kinney

Well, here is one version,



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photo by Donald Kinney

and here is another.



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photo by Donald Kinney

And if you look closely you might be able to see dew drops.


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October 25, 2009

up and down the coast


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photo by Donald Kinney

After I used this photo as yesterday's header I realized that I really didn't have any photos to go along with it -- the trip I took down to the Half Moon Bay area a week ago, aside from a few pumpkin shots, yielded precious-few photos.

Those are Brussels Sprouts and they do well in the cool coastal climate.   A veggie from from outer-space, 'fer sure...



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photo by Donald Kinney

On Friday I heard the radio advising everybody to be especially careful at the coast because of a high-surf advisory.   To a snapshooter, news like that is roughly equivalent to hearing a dinner-bell ringing, so I made my way up to a great wave viewing area at the little coastal hamlet of Carmet, about half way between Bodega Bay and the Russian River.   Oh, I've seen larger waves and splashes, but these weren't too shabby and I definitely had a good time.



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photo by Donald Kinney

How about a walk on the beach?   Better wear a hat.   Great danger of getting pooped-on.



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photo by Donald Kinney

That's Bolinas down there.   Some day I'm going to get real lucky and get some new shots of the hang-gliders and sail-planes that occasionally use this spot as a launch area.



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photo by Donald Kinney

Not much more than specks on the horizon, but those are the Farallon Islands, now a marine wildlife sanctuary, about 20 miles off the coast.


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October 24, 2009

pretty water, Lagunitas Creek


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photo by Donald Kinney

Most folks pass by on the road, and never notice the artistic side of Lagunitas Creek.



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photo by Donald Kinney

Blotchy and a bit gloomy -- but that will change when some of the surrounding vegetation becomes illuminated.   It's more or less a matter of timing.   Later, the show is over -- the colorful reflections pretty much cease once sunlight hits the water.



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photo by Donald Kinney

I find great fun in sleuthing-out all the various reflected colors on the giant canvas of rippled water.

These photos remind me of the "color-flow encaustic paintings" by Frank Dorland.   He would mix oil paints with a special encaustic wax medium of his own secret formulation (Dorland's Wax Medium), spread them thickly on a canvas or painting panel, and then melt and flow the colors using a heat lamp.   Different pigments would react slightly differently to being pushed around with heat -- the results could be quite unpredictable.



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photo by Donald Kinney

And who doesn't love bubbles?   I'm a space-case, but I could watch them for hours...



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photo by Donald Kinney

Ripples and reflections -- not to toot my horn, but I really think these are my specialty.

If you have time, CLICK for the set of Lagunitas Creek photos on what I call my "big" site.


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October 23, 2009

yum, yum, Chinatown


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photo by Donald Kinney

Usually I behave myself in Chinatown, but I know when I'm getting a little too close when the shopkeepers start giving me the evil eye.



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photo by Donald Kinney

Well, I think that'll be plenty of buns for me -- hope they made some for you...



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photo by Donald Kinney

No two ways about it -- these two chickens are dead, really dead...



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photo by Donald Kinney

"Here's looking at you, kid"...



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photo by Donald Kinney

The cure for what ails you, whatever it might be -- they've probably got it.


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October 22, 2009

vicinity of Broadway and Columbus


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photo by Donald Kinney

Yes ladies and gentlemen, fog can climb tall buildings -- it's just one of the many tricks fog has up it's sleeve.   This was shot from the Nothbeach section of Grant Street.



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photo by Donald Kinney

Here's a little play between the sun and the Transamerica Pyramid.   Shot from the upper part of Broadway.



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photo by Donald Kinney

I found this fellow with steam coming out of his ears at Stella's Pastries on Columbus.   I wanted to go inside and tell him that it was Sunday and he should be out enjoying himself someplace, somehow.



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photo by Donald Kinney

I'm guessing they aren't selling too many Sunday Chronicles these days -- I would be afraid to check the price.   This fellow's stand is on the corner of Green and Columbus.



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photo by Donald Kinney

This is the wonderful Bill Weber mural on the northwest corner of Broadway and Columbus.   Including the flying books, it's all going on...


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October 21, 2009

Rodeo Beach, surfing and songs


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photo by Donald Kinney

I'm told that Rodeo Beach, a bit northwest of the Golden Gate Bridge, isn't any sort of world-class surfing spot, but I like it because I can get fairly close to the surfers with my lens that isn't terribly long.



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photo by Donald Kinney

Oh, surfers say their wet-suits keep them warm, but wet-suit or not, I know that ocean is way too cold for me.



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photo by Donald Kinney

This dude is about one-half of a second away from a big wipe-out.



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photo by Donald Kinney

Sing me a song, surfer girl...



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photo by Donald Kinney

O.k., as you wish, I'll go stand over here.
Please don't let me disturb you.


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