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I was at the water wise demonstration garden up on the mesa a few days ago, and although most of the plants were only starting to emerge from their winter slumber, the cactus were already in full bloom and putting on a nice show.

A Sight for Sore Eyes

It's nice to see a blanket of snow on the peak, even though it'll disappear soon. It's been an unnervingly warm and dry winter and we're definitely staring down the barrel at water restrictions in the coming months. The last several days brought us chilly, soggy and snowy weather, which will definitely help, but it's not enough. Send more please, Mother Nature.

Sunday Style!

I do have more Viva Las Vegas style snaps to show you, but I'll wait until next Sunday because I feel like this moment on the beach at Dana Point makes a nice coda to all the vacation pics I've been showing you the past few days. What a great little sundress for a seaside afternoon.

Things I Saw in SoCal (Part 4)

The final few images from my brief vacation in California last month. As promised, more surfers. In the last shot, the young woman has a happy grin on her face because she was obviously a beginner surfer (the board is a dead giveaway) and let out an audible "woo hoo!" as she managed to ride the wave all the way in without wiping out. Good for her! I imagine this is a pretty tough sport to master.

Things I Saw in SoCal (Part 3)

For the last two posts about my trip I'll just share some of the many surfers I saw. It wasn't really that warm out and the waves weren't very awesome, but surfers are going surf no matter what. I love watching them do their thing.

Things I Saw in SoCal (Part 2)

I got to hang out on the beach at Dana Point for a couple of hours during my visit to San Clemente last month. Here are a few random images.

Things I Saw in SoCal (Part 1)

April was a busy month for me. Only three days after returning from Las Vegas, Nevada, I was airborne again, bound for San Clemente, California. You may recall that Pat and I visited San Clemente in February. This time I went solo, to visit the same friends. I had a little beach time during my stay, plus a day of just driving around by myself while my friends were otherwise occupied.

Above, here's something so very California that I had to share it even though the shot's a little blurry: a foot powered "taxi" filled with giggling girls as a guy walks past with a surfboard balanced on his head! Below, a practical solution to the $6+ per gallon gas prices in Orange County: a cool vintage scooter. I'm sure it rarely needs a top up.

San Clemente is really just a little surf town. Much of the local culture and economy revolves around the sport. There's a beach nearby called Trestles that's known for its incredible waves -- so much so that the 2028 Olympic surfing competition will take place right here in San Clemente.

The thought of growing a banana tree right in your front yard boggles my mind! It never freezes in San Clemente (as I type this, it's 39° F in Colorado Springs, and we're expecting below freezing temperatures tonight). When I was a kid growing up in the Philippines, we had banana trees just like this in our yard.