Pouring My Art Out

Okay, so there I was in San Francisco…

Posted on May 31, 2017 by pouringmyartout

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I was admiring the giant model of Alcatraz island and its famous prison, and I noticed that big canon you can see in the background above. Now, I am an amateur military historian by nature, and I knew what it was… but that isn’t the thing that struck me as funny.

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I knew this was a Civil War-era gun, and that it had likely been brought over either from Alcatraz Island, which was a Union Fort back in those days, or from Fort Point, which is located underneath the Golden Gate Bridge, believe it or not. No, the thing that struck me as funny is where the gun is pointing…

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I’m sure you guessed what’s coming. That gun is aimed right across the bay… at the hills just North of Berkeley… where my mom’s house is… which is where I was coming from. I think San Francisco has declared war on the East side of the bay.

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I decided to ignore this blatantly hostile and provocative gesture, and resume my wandering.

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But not before taking one last look at that model… because the detailing was phenomenal.

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One more gratuitous shot of Coit Tower, as I made my way along the bay.

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And I had to stop and take a few pictures of the boats.

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I love boats. Behind all those masts, you can almost make out the actual Island of Alcatraz.

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And then my friend, Big Johnny, picked me up, and we were driving to his house to pick up his wife… and his kid… who happens to be my godson.

Posted in My travels | Tagged Alcatraz, california, humor, photography, san francisco, san francisco bay area, travel | Leave a comment

Whoops… I totally lied to you…

Posted on May 31, 2017 by pouringmyartout

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I said that I was, for a change, going to post all the photos from my adventure in San Francisco yesterday in the order in which I took them… except for that very first picture of the human skull in a bunny costume that I took in front of a Catholic church… but then I remembered that I took some pictures with my phone, too.

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It’s just too hard to take selfies with my big camera. But, as you can see, these were taken right after I got off the Bart train, after traveling through the mud underneath the bay.

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Now, we can resume our adventure where we left off in the last post. And yes, that was indeed a Mississippi paddle boat, in the San Francisco bay.

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There is another icon of the city by the bay, Coit Tower, on Telegraph Hill.

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Anyway, by this point, my friends having been delayed, I was just wandering along the bay in the general direction of their house, which happens to be on the other side of Fisherman’s Wharf.

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I didn’t make it all the way to Fisherman’s Wharf… they picked me up right before I got there… but I have done lots of posts about that part of San Francisco, that is what the search bar thing is for. And if you want to know about Coit Tower…

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Well, that is what that ‘Google’ thing is for.

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I did happen to find something that I haven’t seen before. A really big, really awesome model of the federal prison on Alcatraz Island… which is funny… because the actual Alcatraz Island is like right there… in the bay.

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The detail was stunning. Now, unfortunately because I have determined that nine is the correct number of photos to put in each post, I have to leave it here… or there… for now.

Posted in My travels, Pictures of me | Tagged Alcatraz, art, california, humor, photography, san francisco, san francisco bay area, travel | 7 Comments

I told you I was going to be all up in San Francisco’s business… district…

Posted on May 31, 2017 by pouringmyartout

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Ironically, as much as I do like the joke in the title, I wasn’t actually supposed to end up in the Embarcadero portion of San Francisco at all. The original plan was to meet up with my friends somewhere else, but they got delayed. I just got off the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) near the water… which is easy in San Francisco… and started walking.

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I have decided, with all the pictures I have of my adventure yesterday, that, for once, I am just going to do them in order. No doing special sets of posts based on things like art or architecture or dogs or birds or boats or whatever. I am not even going to save all the best pictures for one last super-awesome post.

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Nope, I am going to post them in the same order in which I took them. So you can follow along with me on my adventure as it happened.

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I like the juxtaposition of old and new… I mean, not as old as, say Rome or London, but still.

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Looking back across the bay towards my mom’s house, you can see where the Oakland Bay bridge passes right through Treasure Island… where they filmed the Myth Busters TV series.

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I can’t believe some seagull pooped on Gandhi’s head!

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I know, not all of you will care about a lot of these pictures.

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There is the iconic Transamerica building, peering shyly at us from behind some other buildings. Like the Eiffel Tower in Paris, many locals did not take to the pyramid-shaped monstrosity at first. But it grew on them, and became beloved, and a symbol of the skyline of the city… even though it is now getting lost in taller buildings springing up around it.

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Wait… what is that, behind that old ferry boat… is that a paddle wheel steamer? I guess you will have to come back later to find out.

Posted in My travels | Tagged art, boats, california, humor, photography, san francisco, san francisco bay area, travel | 6 Comments

This photo pretty much sums up my adventure in San Francisco yesterday…

Posted on May 31, 2017 by pouringmyartout

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Because it makes no sense, and it is funny and confusing at the same time. I mean, what is it exactly? A skull in a bunny costume… in front of a Catholic church. I am a little hung over, and I have a lot of pictures to share with you, and it will take a while, so just settle back and enjoy the ride.

You will see pictures of San Francisco, and a bunch of other stuff. I might even do these pictures and stories in order, for a change… except for these ones. HA!

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Posted in Everything Else | Tagged art, humor, photography, travel | 4 Comments

Water + color = watercolor…

Posted on May 30, 2017 by pouringmyartout

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Believe it or not, between all the other stuff I have been doing while visiting my mom in the Bay Area, I actually did some watercolor painting. That is a picture I started about 10 or 12 years ago, on a family trip to Morro Bay, on the coast of California. I was trying to get my mom to take up watercolor painting as a hobby. I know, it isn’t anything to rave about, but I like it.

You may recall that I have done other posts about this very painting…

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There is what it looked like the last time I did a post about it. But then, I did a post about what I did with it… or to it…

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I put it in Photoshop, and started working on it there. So now, I have two versions. The top picture in this post, which has become decidedly darker, and this one, which is much less gloomy. It just goes to show you that art is never truly finished.

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As a side note, I got the watercolors out because I needed to make a sign. My mom, who is my biggest fan, sells a lot of my books, to church and choir friends, and whatnot. Admittedly, a lot of these people knew me when I was a kid, so they might be buying them out of guilt. The thing is… hey, another thing!… that my mom is in her nineties, and so are most of her friends… so…

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Sometimes they forget to pay… or my mom forgets to get the money… and my mom is having a big party this weekend, with 60 people. Hey, I can’t afford to give the books away. I have to pay for them too. They don’t give them to me for free. And I only make a few dollars from each copy I sell. This is the downside of self-publishing.

Posted in My art | Tagged art, books, humor, painting, photography, watercolor painting, watercolors | 2 Comments

In which I attempt to take that one, perfect picture of a dog, using nothing but my mad skillz as a photographer… and, you know, the fact that I have a good zoom lens, and because my camera is digital, I can take as many photos as I want and just delete the bad ones, oh, and also because of the huge size the photos are saved in, I can just crop them how I want, and remove the bad parts… the final chapter…

Posted on May 30, 2017 by pouringmyartout

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These are the last… and the best… of the photos I took the other day.

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I know, I am rushing these posts together, but I am falling behind…

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So I will probably do one more weird art post before I rush off to my San Francisco adventure.

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And that will take a long time, and I might be more than a little drunk when I get home, so I doubt I will post again tonight.

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Okay, that one is awesome. That dog is in the middle of shaking off water. One of these days, I will get a shot like that, where the dog is facing me, and his jowls are flopping around, and the sun hits all those little drops just right. But that isn’t bad.

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Oh yeah, I am heading that way soon.

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I am going to the city to see my godson, and drink some beers… no… not with him… he is a kid, for cryin’ out loud… with his dad… and I might even have to ride a bus! And not a touristy, double-decker London city bus, or even a cable car… a, good, old-fashioned, gritty, public transportation kind of a bus. Yeah, I don’t miss those days… but I have no designated driver… sigh

Posted in dogs and other animals | Tagged animals, art, dogs, humor, nature, photography, san francisco, travel | 4 Comments

Hey look, it’s a completely different sunset!

Posted on May 30, 2017 by pouringmyartout

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Well, obviously, all sunsets are completely different… that is what is so cool about them. But I did drive to a new spot to take that photo.

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It started, as so many things do, with a plan… and like most of my plans, it did not go off as planned. I had this idea of driving up to my old elementary school, to take photos of the sunset. And I brought my tripod, the one I found at a rummage sale for four dollars.

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My plan was to wait until after dark, and then take pictures of San Francisco using the tripod to hold the camera steady, so we didn’t end up with those bouncing light photos I tend to get, once it is dark, and the camera shutter takes longer to close.

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And I did get some good shots of the Golden Gate and the city.

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But the thing is… hello, thing, it’s been a while… that, no matter where I moved, there were trees in the way of the sunset. I know, I took good pictures of the sunset from the same place at Christmas. I guess the sun moved.

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I had to choose between getting my pictures of the lights in San Francisco, or taking some sunset pictures.

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But it looked like a nice sunset… what I could see of it… so… I panicked.

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And I drove over to where my junior high school used to be… and I pretty much missed most of the sunset anyway.

Posted in sunsets | Tagged art, california, golden gate, golden gate bridge, humor, photography, san francisco, san francisco bay area, sunsets, travel | Leave a comment

In which I attempt to take that one, perfect picture of a dog, using nothing but my mad skillz as a photographer… and, you know, the fact that I have a good zoom lens, and because my camera is digital, I can take as many photos as I want and just delete the bad ones, oh, and also because of the huge size the photos are saved in, I can just crop them how I want, and remove the bad parts… part 3…

Posted on May 29, 2017 by pouringmyartout

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Yup, still looking to capture that perfect moment in a dog’s day… like when my new friend Romeo suddenly realized that his human wasn’t holding on to the leash.

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They took the leash off, and he met some doggie friends… hey, that is exactly what I was doing!

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Not all dogs like water, but Romeo does. My dog, Shiloh, will only go in half way up her rib cage.

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I don’t know that dog’s name. I never got close enough to ask.

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Tomorrow, I am going over there… and I am going to be all up in San Francisco’s business… district… oh, yeah.

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If you look to the left of Alcatraz, you will see, among the trees, a big, beige dome. That is close to where I am going tomorrow, to see my godson, William, and his parents. We will have some adventures. And then, his dad, Big Johnny, and I, are going to go on an adventure of our own. Drinking might be involved. Just letting you know.

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Considering that I have spent so much of the time at my mom’s house since I got here helping with the oak tree and editing my newest novel, it is weird that I am falling behind on posting the photos, but I am.

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In fact, I have some new sunset pictures… taken from a new spot, just an hour ago… and some art stuff to share… and more dog pictures, but it is already the end of the day, and I doubt I will get to all this stuff before I have a bunch of new photos of tomorrow’s adventures.

Oh well.

Posted in dogs and other animals | Tagged animals, art, birds, california, dogs, golden gate bridge, humor, nature, pets, photography, san francisco, san francisco bay area, travel | 2 Comments

In which I attempt to take that one, perfect picture of a dog, using nothing but my mad skillz as a photographer… and, you know, the fact that I have a good zoom lens, and because my camera is digital, I can take as many photos as I want and just delete the bad ones, oh, and also because of the huge size the photos are saved in, I can just crop them how I want, and remove the bad parts… part 2…

Posted on May 29, 2017 by pouringmyartout

***WARNING*** This post is written partially from a dog’s point of view, and some of the words are supposed to represent what the dogs are thinking. I know, I have done ‘advice for new bloggers’ posts where I condemn this practice, calling it annoying. But, if you go back to one of those posts, you will see that I was merely suggesting that new bloggers do not try to make an entire blog that is all done as if their cat was typing the words, or their dog could actually post selfies. I still maintain that the world does not need any more blogs like that. Also, I am a trained, professional writer, and I once petted and made friends with more than 80 dogs in one day. On top of all that, I have crack squirrels in my head, so my followers give me a lot of leeway. Please, do not try this at home… ***WARNING***

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Throw the ball! Throw the ball! Throw the ball! Throw the ball! Throw the ball! Throw the ball! Throw the ball! Throw the ball! Throw the ball! Throw the ball! Throw the ball!

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Get the ball! Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!Get the ball!

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Where’s the ball? Where’s the ball? Where’s the ball? Where’s the ball? Where’s the ball? Where’s the ball? Where’s the ball? Where’s the ball? Where’s the ball?

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I am going to get that ball next time.

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Wait… wasn’t the ball red in the last picture? (Sorry, that wasn’t a dog, that was me, but I bet the dog was thinking it too… I really need to do these in order instead of mixing them all up for artistic reasons)…

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Run!

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RUN!!!!!

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I got the ball! I got the ball!I got the ball!I got the ball!I got the ball!I got the ball!I got the ball!I got the ball!I got the ball!I got the ball!I got the ball!I got the ball!I got the ball!

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Actually, as much as I enjoy chasing the ball, my favorite part is shaking the water off onto as many humans as possible. I love the looks on their faces. That always cracks me up.

Posted in dogs and other animals | Tagged animals, ball, dogs, get the ball, humor, I got the ball, photography, run! | 2 Comments

In which I attempt to take that one, perfect picture of a dog, using nothing but my mad skillz as a photographer… and, you know, the fact that I have a good zoom lens, and because my camera is digital, I can take as many photos as I want and just delete the bad ones, oh, and also because of the huge size the photos are saved in, I can just crop them how I want, and remove the bad parts… part 1…

Posted on May 29, 2017 by pouringmyartout

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Well, we all know that after a day or two of chopping wood and editing novels and whatever else I happen to be doing at my mom’s house in the Bay Area, I start to miss my dog, Shiloh.

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So I hop in the car and drive for five minutes, and end up at this cool dog park by the bay. That is my new buddy, Romeo, the puppy. I couldn’t help asking his owner if, when she lost sight of him, she ever found herself yelling: “Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?”

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I love Point Isabel for many reasons. It is near by, and it is full of dogs I can pet. And I love trying to capture the perfect pictures of dogs having fun. I like the action ones, especially in the water. I like the splashing.

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I also run into old friends, like this guy. I love Bernese Mountain dogs!!!

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And yes, you get to see San Francisco, over across the bay.

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And the good old Golden Gate bridge.

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But mostly it is just the dogs. Maybe, next time I am here on a holiday again, I will try to beat my record for ‘most dogs petted by me in a single day’ . I did a post about it, but I don’t remember the title of it. I do remember that it was more than 80 dogs. Somebody use the search bar and try typing in combinations of the words: pet, petted, dogs, record, and then tell me what that post was called, so I can repost it.

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