Historic Downtown Ventura on the IKEA site

I don't know how long this will remain active (I saved this screen shot, just in case) but IKEA had a contest for small businesses to win furniture by making videos about their town.This little video is a nice summary of the flavor of Downtown Ventura. Click on this posting title to see if the link is still active. To see all the entries (Old Town Lansing, Michigan, was the winner with 6727 votes) go to http://ikea.shycast.com/contest/1/. Kudos to Greg of Dexters Camera for this entry - with a 4th Place voting finish, it just missed being in the winner's circle!

Edison Lake and Mono Creek

Tom, Scott, Mike, and Don went on their annual Brotherhood of the Trout fishing trip from August 13-19. Since Tom had to go back to work by the 22nd, they made the trip just in time. As they have for a few years, they fished and hiked Mono Creek, getting themselves and their gear across Edison lake via a ferry. This year, however, the lake level was much lower than normal because it had been used to fill the lower lakes. (The tree stumps in this picture are normally under water.)Since the ferry couldn't take them as far as they have gone in the past, they weren't able to setup camp where they had planned and actually camped on the lakebed. In spite of that, they had a great time and hiked up to some beautiful fishing spots - as Tom's picture of Scott proves!Tom has finally gotten used to digital photography so didn't hold back to save film or experiment with exposures and angles. Click on this posting's title to see more of his photos from that trip.

A Harry Potter Weekend Vacation

Due to bad scheduling coordination, I managed to make this past weekend the only time Tom and I could take a vacation together this summer. Luckily, I was able to take my scheduled Saturday off and we headed up to Big Bear for three days at the cabin. Even though it was short, we managed to do most of the things we do on a regular vacation - hike, eat out, take pictures, read, and relax. Speaking of reading, we stayed up most of both nights to read Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows. We also made time for a short canoe trip on the lake (my first ever). Too bad Tom wasn't able to drop a line in the water nor was I able to take pictures from the canoe because it was too windy and choppy. After bringing the canoe to shore and enjoying the mild weather and watching the clouds, jet skiers, and ducks, we went to the theater and saw Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix. We concluded Saturday by picking up Chinese food and getting to experience a microburst of rain at the airport. After dinner, drinks, and champagne, we read Harry Potter for the rest of the night. (Tom finished first and I finished a little after sunrise.)Okay, so April's probably right - we're geeks ;-)

Billie Boy Isn't the Smallest Anymore

Not only is Billie Boy no longer the youngest and smallest fish in the pond, but El Negro is no longer the only black fish!Here he is with the other kindergarten goldfish - the big one moved into the pond after the school year last year. (Billie Bob came home in June and was named by Tom's former Kindergarteners who were graduating 5th graders.)

Happy Fourth of July!

The weather was perfect - warmer than usual but so apropos for this summer holiday. Tom drove down to Costa Mesa to get Dad yesterday, and Jane and her friend, Don, came up this morning. There was time to weed and water (me), sightsee (Tom with Jane & Don), nap (Dad), go to the street fair, and visit. Tom barbequed steaks and we had a huge dinner before Jane, Don, and Dad went home and H and I went looking for fireworks.