Plastic bags banned (mostly) in California effective 7-1-15

California Governor Jerry Brown signed legislation today that makes California the first state in the nation to ban plastic grocery bags. Interestingly, the news about the legislation says that it will prohibit “large stores” from using the sacks beginning in July 2015. I could find no definition of “large stores,” but the news article states, “The law applies to stores that sell groceries and pharmacies— think Safeway, Target, Walmart, Rite Aid— but not stores that don’t sell those items, like Macy’s.” Hmmm. I think Macy’s qualifies as a “large store.” I’m confused, but government often confuses me, so no big deal there.

Over 120 local California cities and counties currently ban plastic bags. I know the bags are dangerous to our wildlife, but so are the plastic rings that occupy the top of your six packs of canned beer and sodas…. and string…. and rubber bands…. and fishing line…. I don’t see anyone rushing to ban those. Oh, what a tangled web we weave….

Last night, Zoey the Cool Cat had an incident that frightened her, as well as Jim and me. I found a sack stuffed in a cupboard so I put it on the bed for Zoey the Cool Cat to enjoy:

Does she not look happy and satisfied, probably having pleasant dreams of finally catching the mourning doves outside our office window.

I mention the plastic bags because wildlife often get tangled up in them and die. Last night, Zoey the Cool Cat got tangled up in that sack. See the two handles? She got her head through one and couldn’t get out. She took off through the house, trying to get rid of the thing around her neck, frightened and howling. She finally got stuck in a corner where I was able to reach her and get the sack off her neck. It took about 30 minutes of me holding her and talking to her before she calmed down, though. Poor kitty….

I can only imagine what the wildlife outside goes through when they get their necks, feet, and wings caught up in plastic bags, plastic ring tops, fishing line, and string.

This post approved by

Need a unique gift?
Visit Photographic Art by Russel Ray Photos at Fine Art America.

The work of Ricardo Breceda of Borrego Springs CA

When I went to Palm Springs in mid-August, one of my goals was to see the statues of prehistoric wildlife in Borrego Springs (see A short visit to Galleta Meadows).

Little did I know then that the guy who created the statues, Ricardo Breceda, lives in Borrego Springs and sells much smaller statues to common people like me.

Following are some of the smaller statues that I found exhibited on properties throughout the area, and some for sale at a business.

Breceda’s work celebrates the history and culture of Southern California, the desert environment, and pure fantasy.

Breceda originally is from Durango, Mexico. One day he made a dinosaur statue for his daughter, and the rest, as they say, is history. Breceda eventually met Dennis Avery, owner of Galleta Meadows Estates in Borrego Springs.  Avery had the vision of using his land as an enormous outdoor art gallery, and it became home to Breceda’s artwork featuring prehistoric and fantasy creatures.

I now know that there are over 150 of the larger statues scattered throughout the Anza-Borrego desert. I only saw 27 of them. I am trying to find a complete list, and a map of their locations, and when I do…………. ROAD TRIP!

This post approved by

Do you have Bare Wall Syndrome? Need a unique gift?
Choose Photographic Art by Russel Ray Photos at Fine Art America.

It might be the most beautiful of all time

When I visited La Quinta back on August 12, it was my first time. I drove down two main thoroughfares for many miles, and all I saw were golf resorts, condominium resorts, and monster homes behind huge fences and gates.

They also had the most beautiful and immaculately maintained medians and road sides.

I would not mind being a homeless person over there, although come to think of it, I didn’t see a single homeless person on a street corner asking for food and money. Hmmm. Maybe being homeless is against the city code….

Well, anyway, this was the most beautiful gate I saw, and it might rank as the most beautiful gate I’ve ever seen in my life:

This post approved by

Suffering from Bare Wall Syndrome? Need a unique gift?
Choose Photographic Art by Russel Ray Photos at Fine Art America.

Not a roadside memorial

It’s common to see memorials along roadsides where someone has died, usually from an accident involving bicyclists, motorcycles, cars, and trucks.

When I was out in the Southern California high desert near Borrego Springs traipsing around looking at sculptures of prehistoric wildlife (see previous post), I found a memorial that was quite a distance from any road.

There was no name on the marker but the dates indicated that the person was just 21 years and 3 days old. RIP, whoever you are.

My thinking in that regard is that the person probably was coming from Mexico to try to make a better life in the United States. The area in the high desert near Borrego Springs and Palm Springs is known as an entry point for Mexican nationals attempting to make their way into the United States for work. Unfortunately, it can get extremely hot in the desert, and without water and appropriate protection, deaths from exposure, even at night, are way too common.

Added on March 27, 2017:

I love it when some person unknown to me finds a blog post and contacts me with additional information. Such happened today, and the person, Princess J., provided a link to findagrave.com which provided additional information about this roadside marker.

From findagrave.com:

“May 21 was a sad day for residents of the tiny desert town of Borrego Springs. Two young men, both graduates of Borrego Springs High, were involved in separate fatal accidents. Their deaths have friends, relatives and school children scrambling to raise money to help their families foot the funeral bills.

One victim, Sergio Sanson, had awakened early May 21 after a late night celebration of his 21st birthday. He was driving to meet friends for breakfast when he lost control of his car on a curve.

A few hours earlier Andrew Daniel, 28, had been critically injured in an off-road vehicle rollover accident in Ocotillo Wells. He was taken off life support the next day.

The deaths stunned the town of only 2,600 residents. The days since have seen car washes, bake sales, door-to-door soliciting and collection jars placed in local restaurants. San Diegan Nick Caldwell was even approached by girls selling cupcakes on the golf course of the Borrego Springs Resort.

“The community is truly coming together,” said René Navarro, manager of the resort golf shop and a friend of the victims. “They were both very friendly and very kind. They always got along with everybody,” added Navarro, who played high school football with Sergio.

A golf tournament fundraiser organized, in part, by Andrew’s former sister-in-law, resort Sales & Marketing Director Kimberly Daniel, will be held June 3. Entry fees ($25 per player) will be split between the two grieving families.

Andrew’s sister, Sonia, said townspeople are comforting them with hugs and love. She said Andrew, who regularly had cut his long hair to donate it to Locks of Love for ill children suffering hair loss, had insisted on being an organ donor ever since one of his friends died last year: “The night he died we found out there were four lives he was saving.”

This post approved by

Suffering from Bare Wall Syndrome? Need a unique gift?
Choose Photographic Art by Russel Ray Photos at Fine Art America.

A short visit to Galleta Meadows in Borrego Springs, California

On my 476-mile journey through Southern California on August 12, I had several goals. While seeing three friends in three cities distant from each other was high on the list, seeing the collection of life-size prehistoric creatures out in the desert was #1 on my list:

Those three mammoths are part of Galleta Meadows.

Millions of years ago the desert was a lush jungle and home to all sorts of strange animals: Mammoths; saber-toothed cats (often wrongly called saber-toothed tigers); huge birds; prehistoric horses, pigs, and dogs; sloths; camels….

Galleta Meadows was created by Dennis Avery (1940-2012), one of Southern California’s great philanthropists who lived in Borrego Springs and owned various parcels of land around the community. I’ll have more about Avery in an upcoming post because I just found out that a place I visited a couple of years ago was founded by Avery.

The steel-welded sculptures were created by Ricardo Breceda, creator of Perris Jurassic Park that rises alongside Interstate 215 in Perris, about 90 miles away. Breceda moved his sculpture and welding enterprise to Borrego Springs in December 2013.

Known as “The Sky Art Project,” it started in 2008, originally intending to feature species which once lived, or still live, in the area. After a while, other animals, some of them imaginary, joined the collection, as well as sculptures of people relevant to its history, such as a gold miner, a Spanish padre, and Native Americans.

I did not know the name of the collection before heading out to Borrego Springs, only that it existed. I came home with what I thought was a lot of pictures (27) and only now found out that there are about 150 sculptures scattered throughout the desert community surrounding Borrego Springs. This, of course, means that another trip is required….

It took me a couple of hours to explore the sculptures I found, and I was only able to do that because you’re allowed to drive from sculpture to sculpture. Trust me, you don’t want to walk in the sand in that heat.

In a few areas, though, driving means four wheel driving. I nearly got stuck in a couple of places and gave up when the going got tough….

Sculptures that I missed this first trip include prehistoric dogs, Gymphotheriums, dinosaurs, and a 350-foot long sea serpent—that’s longer than a football field!

Borrego Springs is a dark sky community, meaning that it is sufficiently clear of light pollution to allow for naked-eye astronomy. I have seen some pictures of these desert sculptures taken at dusk and at night—long exposures—and the effect is awesome. I might have to make an overnight trip to Borrego Springs.

See location on Google Maps

There are several routes to Borrego Springs. Take the route I’ve highlighted on the map above because it will take you through Cuyamaca State Park and by Lake Cuyamaca, as well as through Julian, home of the world’s best apple pies—my favorites are the apple/peach crumb and the apple/cherry crumb.

This post approved by

Do you have Bare Wall Syndrome? Need a unique gift?
Choose Photographic Art by Russel Ray Photos at Fine Art America.

Dust storm in the Southern California high desert

When I was growing up in South Texas, dust storms were as common as the heat, humidity, and hurricanes.

Here in San Diego, not so much.

However, over in the Southern California high desert one can catch dust storms if you’re lucky.

Here’s one near the Salton Sea:

The high desert is an important agricultural region in Southern California. With its Mediterranean climate and rich soils, all it needs is a steady source of water, and the many irrigation canals and reservoirs are usually able to supply it. The three-year drought that Southern California is suffering is, however, affecting the agriculture industry.

This post approved by

Suffering from Bare Wall Syndrome? Need a unique gift?
Choose Photographic Art by Russel Ray Photos at Fine Art America.

Who would want to trespass and what is there to hunt?

From out in the Southern California high desert near Borrego Springs:

I zoomed by that sign at…. well, let’s just say at a high rate of speed.

After I saw the signs, I slowed to a stop, did a U turn, and went back to take the picture.

As I gazed at the landscape I was thinking, “Who would want to trespass and what is there to hunt?”

This post approved by

Suffering from Bare Wall Syndrome? Need a unique gift?
Choose Photographic Art by Russel Ray Photos at Fine Art America.

Southern California, a train lover’s paradise

Southern California is a train lover’s paradise, especially if one loves riding trains and not just watching them pass by.

For riding pleasure, we have the San Diego Trolley with its ubiquitous red cars. The Trolley system has 53 stations, 54 miles of tracks, and three routes (Orange Line, Red Line, Blue Line). It will take one down to the Mexican border, out east to Santee, to downtown San Diego, and all around downtown. Its average of 122,400 riders on week days makes it the nation’s fourth most-ridden light rail system.

There also is a historic streetcar that runs circular routes downtown on the Silver Line. Looks like this:

There is the Coaster, which travels between downtown San Diego’s historic Santa Fe Depot and Oceanside, 38 miles north.

Once you get to Oceanside, you can hitch a ride on Metrolink all the way to the historic Union Station in downtown Los Angeles.

Or you can choose to ride Amtrak from downtown San Diego all the way to downtown Los Angeles, one of the most beautiful routes on the entire Amtrak system.

Once in Oceanside, you can take the Sprinter east to Escondido, about twenty miles and just a few miles from the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.

If your preference is for freight trains, BNSF serves the San Diego area.

BNSF doesn’t make it easy to watch their trains, though. Their tracks are in heavy industrial areas and usually behind high walls and fences.

To watch freight trains, I highly suggest taking a day trip to Los Angeles or Palm Springs and watching the Union Pacific trains build America.

You can often catch the historic ATSF 3751 steam engine making its way around California since it’s based in Los Angeles.

Every few years, the Union Pacific’s own historic steam engine, #844, cruises through Southern California pulling historic passenger cars.

If you’re in Los Angeles, where traffic is a horrible mess at all hours of the day, park the car somewhere and take Metrolink or Metro Rail. The trains are fast and clean, and the stations, especially those of the newer Metro Rail, are public works of art in and of themselves.

This post approved by

Do you have Bare Wall Syndrome? Need a unique gift?
Choose Photographic Art by Russel Ray Photos at Fine Art America.

La Quinta Resort & Club

I have only played one game of golf in my life. That was in 1994 when some friends from Texas came to visit me here in San Diego. I took them to San Diego’s best course, Torrey Pines, which is where Tiger Woods won his last major championship, the 2008 U.S. Open. Greens fees at the time were $35.

I shot a 154 while my friends all shot in high 90s. As I pointed out to them, though, since par was 72, I got two rounds of golf for $35. They only got one. They didn’t think that was funny. Oh, well….

On my 476-mile journey through Southern California on August 12, one of my goals was to go to La Quinta to see Kathy Schowe. Kathy played golf for Texas Tech University. She’s a Realtor in La Quinta (Schowe Properties), which is arguably California’s most golf-centric community. Her realty office is located behind a high wall and a gated entry with security by a real person.

The high wall surrounds a beautiful golf course, La Quinta Resort & Club. Looks like this:

Although I never played golf, I did hang out on golf courses in Texas with my golfing friends because they would let me caddy (great friends always let others do the work….).

Golf courses in Texas often have a diverse collection of flora, so much so that some of them could be considered arboretums or botanical gardens. The course on the campus of Texas A&M University comes immediately to mind. It was across from the Forestry Building where I had most of my classes, and we often would go to the golf course in our tree identification classes.

This post approved by

Do you have Bare Wall Syndrome? Need a unique gift?
Choose Photographic Art by Russel Ray Photos at Fine Art America.

Zoey the Cool Cat’s birthday presents

Zoey the Cool Cat has been celebrating her birthday today. We adopted her from the El Cajon Animal Shelter on September 21, 2007, and the vet said she was about a year old, so we use September 21, 2006, as her birthday.

We couldn’t celebrate September 21 because I was feeling really bad. When I can’t even listen to The Beatles, you know I’m sick….

For her birthday she got a new sack….

She was so happy, for an hour or so….

That was when she discovered that I also had a new box for her….

The little queen loves her sacks and boxes, especially if they are placed on the bed. Here are some pictures of past sacks and boxes:

 

Need a unique gift?
Visit Photographic Art by Russel Ray Photos at Fine Art America.