Tangled Up In Blue
Hummingbird abstracts feel like little bursts of motion frozen in paint, all shimmering color and quick, darting energy. They hint at the bird’s delicate shape …
The Peach Leaves
There’s a quiet pleasure in noticing peach tree leaves, the kind that catches your attention when the light hits them just right. They’re not showy …
I’m Thinking About Printing Again
Making your own digital prints at home is a double edged sword. Sometimes it’s an exercise in futility and frustration. Other times it’s a very …
California Buckwheat
California buckwheat, Eriogonum fasciculatum, has long been woven into the fabric of California’s ecosystems and cultural history. Its usefulness begins with its role as a …
Breakfast Sausage, Toast & Jam
I woke up ready to be a “healthy breakfast” person. I had the yogurt. I had the berries. I had the motivation. Then I remembered …
Hummers at the Feeders
Female Anna’s hummingbirds don’t get the neon spotlight that the males do, but they’re the quiet backbone of the species—tough, precise, and endlessly impressive once …
Mirrored Pink
Pink ranunculus flowers feel like the overachievers of the spring garden—layers on layers of petals, all spun together so tightly they look almost unreal, like …
Sweetness for Breakfast
The feeder always seems to glow a little brighter when the hummingbirds arrive, as if their wings stir the light itself. There’s something almost dreamlike …
Middle Control Road
Middle Control Road has long played an important role in linking communities and recreation areas across the San Bernardino Mountains. Historically, it formed part of …
Spaghetti with Shrimp in Meat Sauce
This combines my wife’s rich, slow‑simmered tomato‑meat sauce with tender sautéed shrimp for a comforting surf‑and‑turf twist on classic pasta night. It’s easy enough for …
Parrot Tulip
Parrot tulips bring a kind of unruly magic to mixed flower bouquets. Their ruffled, feather‑edged petals and dramatic curves refuse to sit politely among more …
Closeup Filters
These entry‑level filters work well for casual macro shooting and are a cheaper “macro” option than buying a dedicated macro lens, but you’ll often see …
Bowl of Tomato Soup
The pleasure of tomato soup begins long before the first spoonful. It starts the moment you decide that today calls for something warm and deeply …
Up from Lucerne Valley
Lucerne Valley always feels like the prologue to a story — wide, open, and a little wild. A dusty ribbon of trail, a stubborn sun, …
Smoked Ribs for Dinner
Naked ribs just off the smoker – no rub, no sauce, only salt and pepper. A rack of ribs seasoned with nothing more than salt …
Extension Tubes
If you’ve ever tried to photograph something tiny—flowers, insects, the texture of everyday objects—you’ve probably hit that moment where your lens just won’t focus any …
Wandflowers #3
Wandflowers: Where the Garden Learns to Breathe Some flowers bloom. Wandflowers — those slender, shimmering stems of gaura — float. They rise from the earth …
Climbing The Old Woman
The first thing you notice in Joshua Tree is the silence—an almost physical stillness that settles over the desert as if the landscape is holding …
Japanese Maple #02
Japanese maple (Acer palmatum) flowers emerge quietly in early spring, appearing as small, delicate clusters that signal the tree’s shift from winter dormancy into a …
Ricoh WG-M1
The Ricoh WG-M1 is a rugged digital compact “action” camera. I bought this one over ten years ago to mount on the dash of my …
Coffee for the Keurig
Sometimes, after a late night, when I get out of bed in the morning not fully awake and stumble down the hall towards the kitchen …
Pomegranate Bloom
The pleasure of pomegranate blooms begins long before the fruit ever forms. It starts in that moment when the garden feels half-asleep, holding its breath, …
Navy Bean & Ham Soup
Navy bean and ham soup is comfort food with zero shame. It doesn’t pretend to be healthy. It doesn’t pretend to be trendy. It’s not …
Strings in the Corner
The pleasure of playing a musical instrument begins long before the first clean note rings out. It starts in that quiet moment when you pick …
At the Feeder
House Finch and two Lesser Goldfinches There’s something wonderfully unhurried about watching backyard birds gather around an open dish seed feeder. It turns an ordinary …
Pork Tenderloin in Mushroom Gravy
Mushroom gravy is one of those quiet pleasures in life that sneaks up on you. You don’t wake up thinking about it, you don’t brag …
Japanese Maple #01
Acer palmatum leaves in the morning sunshine. Morning light on Japanese maple leaves has a way of making you pause without even realizing you’ve stopped. …
Indian Hawthorn #01
Rhaphiolepis indica Part of an Indian hawthorn flower’s easygoing charm comes from the way their colors shift from one plant to the next. Some open …
