Newport-Ensenada International Yacht Race

Our town had it's annual Newport-Ensenada International Yacht Race today.
Boats from around the world sail the 125-nautical-mile distance from Newport Beach to Ensenada, Mexico.
It is the largest international boat race in the world!
As usual it was a sight to behold with 460 boats participating. The race has been an annual event for some 40 years - one name you might recognize who raced many years ago was Clarke Gable :)

Click here for the news video of our Newport-Ensenada International Yacht Race

It was impossible to capture the array of vessels on the water. I took these photo's atop the bluffs at LookOut Point down the street from our cottage. A crowd of about 300 had gathered to watch the launch.

KCAL/CBS covered the race, with our Orange County reporter Michele Gile.

Monday, Monday.....

My granddaughter (we call her "Cooper") and I decided to spend Easter cleaning the garage- it was a religious experience for us - we felt reborn :) Actually it had to be done. I was tired of parking my Bug in the street and she was tired of having to look through a kazillion boxes to find something she wanted. My Dad stayed at my brother's for the weekend, so it was a good time to get some things done - we even set up a little work bench area for him - and he was happy. Dad was in the aircraft business most of his life (he turned down an offer to work with Howard Hughes!) - he can fix anything - but he hasn't had a place to work on stuff in the garage since moving here...now he does...and at 91 next month he needs to keep busy! :) So, today I had a couple hours to myself before Dad returned...and naturally I went out to shoot photos. I headed south to Laguna Beach (sounds like a ROAD TRIP, but it's only 5 minutes from our cottage!). I took a few photos and chilled out before coming back to reality...or..er...uh....back to our beach!

OK, so here's the BUZZ...(har har) look I got the bee in this photo!

Experimenting with black & white...I think I'm gonna like this...

Free as a bird...

Disclaimer: My laptop is still not working right. I have rebooted 3 times in the last 30 minutes to get this post uploaded. I think I might need a new Networking Card...which should ONLY set me back $100...argh!

Arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!

The mere fact that I stayed online long enough to upload this quick message is nothing short of a Good Friday miracle.

My laptop is freaking on me. I have cable service, and a wireless connection -- or, disconnection actually. Every few minutes I lose it..my connection and my mind.

If you are religious pray for a laptop resurrection.

Not THE Riveria...

(from left to right: Romeo, a.k.a. Romy - our neighbor's baby, "Cooper" - my granddaughter, Parker- Prince Dude Man of Heliotrope, Bell - Princess of Heliotrope, Kimberly)

No, perhaps not The Riveria but it is often referred to as The California Riveria. Maybe these McMansion's are why? Nice little shack eh? This is at LookOut Point down the street from us. Uh, our little blue cottage could fit in one of the closets I imagine :)

No Words Wednesday

What Do You Do On A Rainy Afternoon?

Already it has rained here on the coast since 9:30am - nonstop. And yes. I love it. So, what do you do on a rainy day?
I have spent the day cleaning my art table up, preparing for all my upcoming projects...and needing a break I started photographing the rain. Uh huh. Weird, I know..but I never said I wasn't weird :)

Looking out our French doors onto our deck as my Bug gets a free (and much needed) carwash!

I can't just look at rain, I have to touch it and smell it..so I like the doors open when it rains!

I love the colors outside our front door (which is actually a side-door)...

This is the view Jill and Cooper have from their part of cottage out back -- the stairs lead to a one-bedroom "apartment" above the garage...one that we wished we could rent as well...but..er...at $1600 a month..not right now :) Sure would make a great art studio though!

Rest and Relaxation...

I felt a lot like these kites flying over the ocean this weekend. Free, yet still anchored to the ground...my Dad went to spend the weekend with my brother who lives a few miles up the coast...and I was experiencing a weekend of no responsibility or schedules. Ahhh.


One thing I did was head back over to Crescent Bay Point Park to watch the whales :) I spent time getting to know Bob, "the whale guy" who will be documenting the whales, dolphins and sea lions for the next four years. Still no photos of the whales...but I see them everytime I am there....you will have to trust me on this :) Check out this "little bit of sunshine"...a cactus in bloom growing along the cliff at Crescent Bay.

So, now the weekend is over :( Gotta make like this bunny I spotted ...and HOP TO IT with my greeting cards and other artistic endeavors this week...