The Yearly Cycle

“Oh life is a glorious cycle of song,
A medley of extemporanea;
And love is a thing that can never go wrong;
And I am Marie of Romania.”
Dorothy Parker 1893-1967

Everything old is new again. Happy New Year.

Looking Up

“The longer you look at an object, the more abstract it becomes,
and, ironically, the more real.”
Lucian Freud 1922-

Post Christmas Post

“There has been only one Christmas -- the rest are anniversaries.”
W. J. Cameron

Now that the Christmas anniversary is over it’s time for a little peace on earth.
Everybody exhale!

Merry Snowmen

"This is the message of Christmas: We are never alone."
Taylor Caldwell 1900-1985

I hope you have a very merry crowded Christmas.

Lowering Santa's Carbon Footprint

“Let's be naughty and save Santa the trip.”
Gary Allen 1967-

Holy cow, it’s almost Christmas! Have you been naughty or nice?

Let People Think

“It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”
Mark Twain quotes 1835-1910

Sometimes I just don’t feel like opening up.

How about you?

Along the Border

“The love of one's country is a splendid thing. But why should love stop at the border?”
Pablo Casals 1876-1973

This is a view above the River Wye which forms part of the border between England and Wales.

Fascination

“Getting old is a fascination thing. The older you get, the older you want to get.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

I came across this colorful sign combo at the Santa Cruz beach boardwalk.

So what’s your fascination?

Making The Grade

“There are no grades of vanity, there are only grades of ability in concealing it.”
Mark Twain

If you owned a Rolls what would be on your vanity plate?

The Wild Bunch

"Riding a motorcycle on today's highways, you have to ride in a very defensive manner.
You have to be a good rider and you have to have both hands and both feet on the
controls at all times."
Evel Knievel

That didn’t prevent this guy flashing me the peace sign as he zoomed by with his buddies.

Hey, aren’t these guys on the wrong side of the road? Isn’t that dangerous?

Washing Buddha

The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls.
Pablo Picasso 1881-1973

These young student monks are cleaning up for a graduation ceremony in Chang Mai Thailand.

Have you washed your Buddha lately?

Meditation

“Meditation is the discovery that the point of life is always
arrived at in the immediate moment.”
Alan Watts 1915-1973

Do you meditate? If you do, how has it affected the way you live?

A Lack of Transparency

“Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in awhile, or the light won't come in.”
Alan Alda 1936-

This window is not very functional but the colors grabbed me.

What is it that you assume?

The Edge of America

“Power is so characteristically calm, that calmness in itself has the aspect of strength.”
Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton 1803-1873

A windless day on the California coast

Auto Shrine

"The car has become a secular sanctuary for the individual,
his shrine to the self, his mobile Walden Pond."
Edward McDonagh

Welcome to a straight ahead no nonsense grill.

Firefly

"People who fight fire with fire usually end up with ashes."
Abigail Van Buren 1918-

I came across this burnt out building in Tucson, Arizona. I think the bird was posing.