A nice day at San Francisco bay....

[Adsos Letter]

We do have them, at times...

























Once again, all old stuff...just found my camera this morning. I was missing it for several weeks, and thought it had been either stolen or lost.

My wife plunked it down on my chest this morning at around 5:00 a.m., and suggested the camera had been hiding because I was giving photography a bad name... :)

[Blue_In_AK]

1. Ah, my second favorite place in the world. :-)

We'll probably be down there later this fall. I'll let you know when so you can order up some good weather for us.

[Adsos Letter]

2. Hey Blue!

Your weather should be good in the Fall; as you know, it's one of the best seasons around here. :hi:

[SpookyCat]

3. It's always beautiful here!

But I may be a tad biased, plus I love the fog!

Thanks for these, they're lovely!

I love that there pretty red bridge so much I decided to put it by our living room window! :-)

[Adsos Letter]

4. What a beautiful shot ...and what a pleasure for the shooter to live in that location...

One of the things I really enjoy about this photo: for some reason the angle and framing makes mentally "erasing" the GG Bridge very easy, and allows me to "see" the Golden Gate as it would have looked before the bridge was built. Very interesting... :D

And i can see Ft. Point!!!...barely... :)

[SpookyCat]

5. Oh, I never looked at it like that. That's a great idea!

I love the shots before either bridge was built. SF must have felt so different then.

[TahitiNut]

6. (sigh) I sure do miss my beloved Bay Area.

I love those photos of your daughter(?).

[Adsos Letter]

7. Thanks TahitiNut!

How long ago did you live here, and what part? I'm due to get out for a photo expedition; let me know what areas have special meaning for you and I will try to get some shots to post.

Yes, that is my younger daughter, taken a couple of years ago when she was 16 and going through an "Enya" phase... :D

[Eurobabe]

8. Those are gorgeous shots

I hope you have them framed and up on the walls. :hi:

[Adsos Letter]

10. Thanks 48percenter!

No...the only photo I have put into a frame is this one:





Mainly because of inertia, if nothing else... :D

:hi:

.

[TahitiNut]

9. I lived in Silicon Valley for 15 years (1983-2003) with 5 years 'time-out' in E. Washington.

The number of places (and images) dear to me are far to numerous to list.

I loved how the coastal fog crept over the Santa Cruz mountains up around Burlingame ... like cat's paws crawling over. I loved the apricot sunsets, even when the sun was in my eyes while driving 101 or 280. I loved getting up early on a Saturday or Sunday morning, driving up to the city, parking SoMa, grabbing one of the first Hyde cable cars over the hill to the wharf and having breakfast at the Buena Vista looking out at the flowers at the cable car stop. I loved Japantown(!!). I loved a Sunday service at Glide Memorial and getting a hug from Cecil Williams while exiting after the end of the service. I loved watching the Pebble Beach Pro-Am in person in FEBRUARY(!!). I loved the Breakwater in Monterey - and scuba-diving or just watching the divers. I LOVED the Monterey Bay Aquarium. I loved Monastery Beach south of Carmel for diving. I loved Lover's Point in Pacific Grove - for diving, for walking, for people-watching, or just for sitting and sunning and meditating. I loved Alice's Restaurant on Saturday morning for breakfast on Skyline Drive. I loved cruising Highway 9 through the redwoods on my motorcycle or in my pervertible. I loved Rancho San Antonio Open Space, the hiking and the 4H farm. I loved Jamba Juice!! I loved Fresh Choice and Sweet Tomatoes. I loved lunch or dinner at the Pruneyard. I loved the Art & Wine Festivals - in Mountain View, in Los Altos, in Sunnyvale, wherever - people-watching and mugging at the small kids and noshing and sunning and strolling. I loved the fountain in San Jose's Cesar Chavez park and watching the kids play in the water on a hot day. I loved marching in protest on Market Street with Proud Patriot, Tinoire, noiretblu, and other terrific DUers. I loved Saturday brunch at the Carlton(?) in Berzerkley with the view of the Bay. I loved sitting on the hill at the National Recreation Area above the north end of the Golden Gate and munching on sourdough and sipping wine while gazing at the Bay, the bridge, and the city. I loved LOVING where I lived and loved LOVING the people in all their shapes and sizes and colors and attitudes and everything. I loved Golden Gate Park and playing catch with a frisbee in the sun. I loved the DeYoung. I loved the 'neighborhoods' ... each unique and each with 'tude. I loved weekend dinner at Double D's in Los Gatos ... and strolling the main streets of Los Gatos with an ice cream cone. I loved eating lunch or dinner on the deck at one of the restaurants in Capitola, and then wander the streets and browsing the shops and people-watching. I loved the Vietnamese family that ran "Classic Burger" on Bascom in Los Gatos ... and the good burgers. I loved Stevens Canyon. I loved Vasona Park and reservior. I loved the occasional trip to Napa or Sonoma and poking around in the wineries - but the BEST was Ridge Winery (a Late Harvest Zinfandel to DIE for!) on Montebello Road above Stevens Canyon and Cupertino. I loved Toshi's Sushiya in Menlo Park on El Camino just over the line from Palo Alto. I love an uncountable number of great restaurants - all causal and good.

... and that's ONLY scratching the surface of when "life was good" and I didn't fail to appreciate a single minute of it. Thank Goddess!

[Adsos Letter]

11. What wonderful prose! One long stream of memory!!!

I see I have quite a bit of subject matter to work with... :D

There really is so much to enjoy in the Bay Area. People are friendly, the seasons (such as they are) have their own charms, the region is very photogenic, and eclectic in all manner of things.

Too bad it has become so freakin' expensive to live here...but we bought our house 18 years ago, the eldest daughter is married and in her third year of Medical School back in Philly, and the younger one works and goes to college. I'm retired, returned last year to university to complete a Master's in History, and my wife has been in a good career for almost 30 years, so...we do alright. It can be tough on the youngsters, though.

I grew up, went to school, and worked in the Napa Valley for 45 years (minus 3 years active duty Army, when I was stationed in 48percenter's neck of the woods). I'll pull up some shots from the "files" and see if I can make 'em presentable for public viewing; the quality of stuff posted here makes me a bit self-conscious, but what-the-heck...

We are going to the NEW DeYoung, and then the MOMA this weekend; I'll see what I can do. ;)

Hey, and that's a great webpage you have!

:hi:

.

[TahitiNut]

12. (blush) Thank you, sir.

I've lived lots of places in this country ... and the Bay Area earned my heart. I'm glad I never wasted a moment not appreciating it. I treasured each day of those 15 years. Everything I saw and loved is etched in my permanent memory banks. I often go on a "mental flyover" and let the panorama of images play before my mind's eye like Cinerama. It's like knowing every contour of the face of a woman I've loved ... mapped in my mind's eye for eternity.

Yes... it's true. It's understatement, not hyperbole, when I say I love it there. The people, the climate, the geography, the incredible diversity ... wow.