Palm Street house

The nice old house that will hopefully become a coffee house. Note the famously steep section of Palm Street on right.

did someone lose a flosser?

Seen near the intersection of Poli and Palm.

shitake jerky

The last most unusual food I ever had. I liked it.

other interesting clouds

Some other interesting clouds seen and photographed by Mrs.

dog park destiny

I suppose the fate of many a dog park depends on the dog owners' habits of cleaning up or not cleaning up after their pets. For the dogs' sake, they really should.

Queensland kauri revisited

In an earlier blog I pondered whether this tree in Arroyo Verde Park was a Queensland kauri (Agathis robusta). It is almost certainly a Queensland kauri. I am 99% certain. 

Birkenstocks

The way they looked before I threw them out. The soles were arguably a bit worn down...

vultures drying their wings

The equivalent of a laundry line in the bird world?

rare asperitas clouds

Speaking of cloudage, the following day brought some of the most unusual clouds I've ever seen. These rare asperitas clouds are the newest clouds recognized by science - first proposed in 2009 by the Cloud Appreciation Society and made official in 2017. They sort of look like Van Gogh painted them. In this case they were part of the "atmospheric river" and soon brought rain. 

PCH sunset

 

The other best photos of the day. Note the interesting "cloudage".

PCH freight train

 

The post-Santa Barbara PCH freight train with the number "6263" on the locomotive made for one of the best photos of the day.

Dune Coffee

So in Santa Barbara you've got your Dune Coffee, Dart Coffee, and Dean: a coffee shop. It can be confusing, but this one is definitely Dune Coffee. It used to be called French Press, but I guess that's another story. The important thing is that this cappuccino was top notch. 

island view

This island view has nothing to do with gastroenterology.

post-veggie burger Lake Casitas

A couple of nice views of the lake from the shore.

 

post-kayak veggie burger

 ...and the view of Lake Casitas that went with it.

post-drought Lake Casitas

Great to kayak here again after a long hiatus. The lake is much fuller than before - the islands are islands again! The western grebes (and other birds) are still abundant.

island view

An evening walk in the foothills that sometimes provides glimpses of Santa Cruz Island aglow in the setting sun. Sometimes the Santa Barbara Channel resembles a huge lake (like Lake Tahoe) or a huge bay (like Monterey Bay, in which case Santa Cruz Island would be Santa Cruz).

the day of the cup

It allowed me to walk and sip coffee at the same time.

garden stroll part 2

From top to bottom: 1. the Fynbos (African) Garden 2. West Ventura 3. the hummingbird that turned his head away from me 4. Brakey Road 5. the view from Brakey Road.

garden stroll of 11-7-23

Love the way the sun behaves this time of year... Makes for a visually interesting walk.

Daylight and Moon Cafe

Another new Ventura coffee house. This one also serves toasts, which we have yet to try.

 

Canada Larga, part 3

Canada Larga, part 2

The California version of "fall foliage". Not as dazzling as some states, but it does exist... although as far as trees go, there seems to be as many evergreen (such as the pepper in the bottom photo) as deciduous.