Driftwood Beach State Park, Oregon

Living here in the mountains, distance and scale are understandable to me. My mind can grasp that mountains off in the distance can be 40 or 50 miles or more away. There are enough features between me and those distant mountains to give it a sense of scale.

Not so on the ocean though. Where we were you could stand on the beach, and if you stretched yours arms straight out to your sides, there was nothing in that 180 degree arc other than a strip of sand, a lot of water, and a huge expanse of sky. My mind couldn’t wrap itself around the immensity of it. It was simply too overwhelming for me to grasp.

The only way I could begin to comprehend the sheer size and power of the ocean was to look for familiar objects on the beach that would add some perspective to what was in front of me. Things like this driftwood log helped establish a sense of scale I was much more familiar with.

I don’t know… is it just a peculiarity of mine, or does everyone who hasn’t spent much time near the ocean feel that way?

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Sand and Shell #2

When you go to the coast and walk along the beach, it doesn’t take long to realize that there is a whole world of subject matter right at your feet, and it’s constantly changing.

Here’s another shell in the sand taken at Driftwood Beach State Park on the Oregon coast.

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pond abstract #5

It’s been awhile since I’ve added to my series of abstract photographs from the duck pond across the street. Here’s the fifth one in an ongoing series.

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rock abstract #2

pj

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Pizza Orgasmica -- San Francisco

I saw this pizza place in downtown San Francisco a couple of weeks ago. One can’t help but wonder if the food lives up to it’s name.

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Sand and Shell -- Driftwood Beach State Park, Oregon

I’m writing this from my stepson’s studio apartment in San Francisco. This is the first time I’ve been in this city since 1987, and then it was only for a few hours. I almost feel like I’ve gone blind — I can see the hustle and bustle all around me, but I can’t see the photographs in it yet other than the obvious San Francisco shots that you take home as memories. I’ll be here for a couple of days yet, so we’ll see what comes of it.

My daughter and I spent a day along the Oregon coast Friday, and it was much the same there. We were right on the beach with our feet in the ocean, and I felt about as big as a gnat. The open ocean pounding in right at our feet was one of the most spectacular things I’ve ever seen, but my mind couldn’t wrap itself around the sheer size and power and scale of what was right in front of me. I found myself looking right down by my feet for photographs that I could get a handle on. To my notion this one worked, but I need to take a closer look at the rest. That may have to wait until I get back home.

More later.

pj

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the river's edge

Along the banks of the Bitterroot River this afternoon shortly before a thunderstorm.

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cloud #2

I’m pondering several changes in my life these days, and I often reflect on the ancient Taoist teachings to be like water. Water is always moving. It may look still, but it’s always changing. It can’t be contained, it will find it’s way over or around or through any obstacle in it’s path. Even water trapped in a closed container will eventually break free.

I think about this too when I’m watching clouds. After all, what are clouds but water in the sky?

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rock abstract #1

Here’s an abstract pattern in rock that caught my eye on a walk through a local park last weekend.

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