87 - 30 - 40 thru 11 thousand years ago

Song - Say Goodbye to Hollywood by Billy Joel

Several birthday were celebrated in February.....

Mom turned 87 and still looks and acts 67!  We drove out to Tomales and had lunch outside on the deck at Nick's Cove. It was a glorious day!

The bartender there was making up some drinks and photographing them on the railing.  He was just going to dump it after the photo shoot so mom & I volunteered to be taste testers! The beautiful green rolling hills and farm animals were like my mom said "it's almost like going to Europe!".

 My middle son, Jon turned 30 on the 28th!  Yipes......just when did that happen! So Mr. B and I drove down to LA to spend a few days with him.

Almond trees blooming along Hwy. 5

Power lines that seemed to go on forever

The Grapevine at noon

Jon & Mr. B

 For his birthday we got tickets to see Eckhart Tolle and Deepak Chopra at the Shrine Auditorium on Saturday night.

Waiting at the Shrine

Jon and I were delighted but Mr. B wasn't too sure about all of that mombo-jumbo stuff.

It was amazing!  Both Eckhart & Deepak shared such great information that I thought my head would explode. I could tell that Jon was taking it all in and getting it too!  Believe me there was a lot to "get".  When we left, Mr. B said he was amazed as well and followed most of what they said.  He also looks forward to learning more about awakening to a higher consciousness.

The next day we went to the beach and while Mr. B and Jon took a long walk, I stayed behind to take some photo's of the surfers as it was a "high wave advisory" and a beautiful day! I didn't know it at the time but I was coming down with a cold so I was feeling low energy. I had also seen a whale at Manhattan Beach the day before and I was hoping to get another glimpse!

After the beach we headed into old town Torrance to one of our favorite breakfast places and dined on the sidewalk.

As we headed to north-central Hollywood, I realized that this was the night of the Academy Awards.  Streets were blocked off right and left but lucky for us Jon was driving and he had an app on his phone that told him the quickest route.....well actually it was Morgan Freeman's voice on Waze that told us with authority what the best route was!

The wild animals at La Brea Tar Pits that are being excavated are roughly 40 - 11 thousand years old - that would be the Pleistocene period and it really is surrounded by downtown!

Replica of a mamma getting sucked into the tar and daddy & baby watching helplessly

 There were big bubbles coming up in the above tar pond which I though was just a touch Disneyland-ish but then was told that they are real methane gas bubbles.

These are the real bones that they have uncovered.  An early form of Camel and an adult & baby American Mastodon.  I even got to touch a Saber Toothed Cat skull that a guy was bringing out for display.  Mr. B and Jon were not so anxious to touch it but I was dumbstruck and probably had a fever that was affecting my thought process.

We had a wonderful dinner at a favorite Indian restaurant near where Jon used to live.  Monday Jon had to work so after a tearful goodbye, Mr. B and I headed home.  We did pass some beautiful wildflowers.....

And after a few warm days, the Almond trees looked like they were snowing.....

"In the midst of movement and chaos, keep stillness inside of you." --Deepak Chopra

In the midst of movement and chaos, keep stillness inside of you. Deepak Chopra
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/d/deepak_chopra.html

In the midst of movement and chaos, keep stillness inside of you. Deepak Chopra
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/d/deepak_chopra.html

Road Trip To Southern California

Song - 26 Miles by The Four Preps

Over the weekend Mr. B and I drove down to Redondo Beach to visit our son Jon who's been living there for the last year and a half.  Lets just say that California is a very long state and Highway 5 is turning into a dust bowl with the current drought.  Uggh.

But once settled in town, we had a wonderful visit!

Saturday we went to the Getty Museum which sits on top of a hill.  You park below and a little transit system takes you up to the museum.  Jon is not a big museum person but he tolerated it for good-ol-mom! Thanks Jon!!!

I will write more about the Getty on my Painting site and show some of their beautiful paintings.  http://jeanettebaird.com/


Meanwhile, we had purchased tickets for a little trip on Sunday.  From the above song maybe you can guess where we went?

Our coach awaits us......

As the boat approached Santa Catalina Island, a school of dolphins happily greeted us.   They dove and played alongside the boat.  I was too busy enjoying them to snap a photo.

As we came off of the dock, Jon saw some orange things in the water.  We mistook them for Starfish but upon closer inspection, they were Huge Goldfish - well I thought they were goldfish but later we found out that they are the California State Marine Fish - Girabaldi.  Go ahead and look it up. You learn something new everyday!

We had a great lunch at a restaurant over the water. 

 Mr. B and Jon were enjoying their grilled artichoke.  They look very serious and maybe a little competitive as to who will get the last bite!

We then took a tour of the island that didn't have the greatest tour guide but it was fun to be driven around in a open trolley an enjoy the sights.

On our return voyage the boat stopped so we could watch a whale breaching.  Sorry folks, but by the time I got my camera set up all I got was a little spray......

But trust me, it was a whale....I saw it!

I'll have to be more prepared with my camera in the future.

Monday we took the long drive back home.  It was hard to say goodbye to Jon.  I cried half the way home - poor Mr. B.

Don't worry Jon, we will be back again soon!  Although next time, I think we will fly......

All morning while preparing for our little boating excursion, I kept humming this little tune.

 

"Just sit right back
And you'll hear a tale
A tale of a fateful trip,
That started from this tropic port,
Aboard this tiny ship.
The mate was a mighty sailin' man,
The Skipper brave and sure,
Five passengers set sail that day,
For a three hour tour,
A three hour tour.
The weather started getting rough,
The tiny ship was tossed.
If not for the courage of the fearless crew
The Minnow would be lost.
The Minnow would be lost.
The ship set ground on the shore
Of this uncharted desert isle
With Gilligan,
The Skipper too.
The millionaire
And his wife,
The movie star,
The professor and Mary Ann,
Here on Gilligan's Isle."

 - Theme song from Gilligan's Island

My Busted Halo

Song - Surfin' USA by The Beach Boys

I have been out of the "Blogging Community" loop for awhile as Mr. B and I went to visit our son, Jon in Redondo Beach for 6 days and I have been painting my little heart out trying to prepare for 3 new shows!  I even brought my painting supplies to Southern California so I could fit in an hour or two whenever it was possible.  We had great light and a view of the marina and a partial ocean view.

The weather was perfect and living by the ocean fit me just fine!   We had a good visit with Jon and spent some time walking on the beach.....

Newsflash - Mr. B without his shoes on!

Attending a car show across the street...

Watching the surfers in Manhattan Beach......

Enjoying the tropical flowers that don't grow in Northern California.....

And the beautiful sunsets......

We went to Art Galleries in Torrance and Laguna Beach.  The guys were not too keen on visiting galleries so I was pushing it at two!

We also visited Mission San Juan Capistrano which is beautiful and serene during the week but on Sunday (when we went) there were 4 weddings going on and groups of soccer kids running amuck.

Jon had some great recommendations for yummy dining from around the world!  

But mostly we just hung out and enjoyed our time with Jon.  Thanks Jon-E-B for sharing your little corner of the world!


"We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch - we are going back to whence we came." - John F. Kennedy

We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch - we are going back from whence we came.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/ocean.html#O1J4mxhJrB6aqrFC.99

We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch - we are going back from whence we came.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/ocean.html#O1J4mxhJrB6aqrFC.99

We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch - we are going back from whence we came.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/ocean.html#O1J4mxhJrB6aqrFC.99