Outings

We are beginning to get settled in our new home here in San Diego and we've recently found time to do a little exploring.  In previous visits, we have taken Pandora to the dog beach in Ocean Beach, where she has had endless amounts of fun.

But we heard there were a couple of other beaches where dogs could run and play, so we went to find the one in Del Mar, a little north of San Diego.  Unfortunately, when we found it, there was no parking whatsoever, so we ended up driving around the town, and then going for a walk along the top of the bluff.

The weather was perfect and the only downside was that we couldn't get to the beach.  But hey, there's always next weekend.

This past weekend, we went back to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, near Escondido.  We had heard about an exhibit of butterflies that was there and we wanted to check it out.  I also wanted to play with my brand-new lens, so off we went.

I had totally forgotten how heavy that sucker is!  I'll definitely have to play more often so I get used to it, hehe!

Hold on to your hats....

Yes, boys and girls, it's true.  This is a blog post!  We've been out of touch for the last two months because we've been busy packing and moving.  What, you say?  Didn't you just move?  Well, yes, we did, but that was six months ago and only two blocks.  This is a big one.  We have moved 500 miles south to sunny San Diego.  Yep, packed up the house, the cats, and moved to Southern California. 

We've settled in to a nice condo, in a condo complex, in a neighborhood of condo complexes.  As complexes go, this one is pretty nice and is very convenient to both of our jobs.  And there's a Starbucks right down the street.  What else could you want?!

I've also been busy buying things.  Things for the house, yes, but also photographic things.  Like a new printer, which I needed desperately and which I used to scan the images that appear in this post.  Why did you need to scan them, Karen?  Weren't they digital to start with?  Well, no, they weren't.  They were film!  Does anyone remember film?  That stuff that has to be developed by someone else? 

I think I mentioned in a previous blog post that even though I had a bunch of point-and-shoot cameras when I was a kid, I really learned the basics of the art of photography on a Canon AE-1 Program SLR camera.  On which sadly, the shutter died about 15 years ago.  Fast forward to last week, wherein in our heroine is browsing her local photo supply store and lo!  There in the antique display case!  A Canon AE-1 Program SLR camera!  With an auto-winder! And a 50mm f/1.8 lens!  For only $150!!  Can you tell I was more than a little excited?  Needless to say, minutes later, that baby was mine.  Hehe!!  So of course, I had to try it out to make sure it worked properly, right?  So, to make a long story even longer, here are some images I took of our new place, while I tried out my new/old camera.  Remember, these are film.  And even though they have been scanned into my computer, I have resisted the urge to re-touch them here and there, so these are completely SOOC (straight out of the camera, for the uninitiated amongst us).

Our new address:

The courtyard outside our apartment, including a designated pet relieving area:

Our apartment is right down that hallway, there.

From the street (can you see Crockett in the living room window?):

The pool, which is across the street:

And some of the landscaping:

I'm pretty pleased with myself that I remembered how to shoot with film, after all these years.  Not an under- or terribly over-exposed shot in the bunch.  Hehehe!  Let the games begin!