Thursday, July 31, 2008

Duel over Slavery

DSC_0019

Another in my theme of historical markers.

David Broderick was a US Senator from California. David Terry was the former Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court.

In September 1859, Terry, who was pro-slavery and blamed Broderick and his anti-slavery faction for his re-election defeat, got into a war of words with Broderick. Eventually, this became so heated that a Terry challenged Broderick to a duel.

At the duel, Broderick's gun went off prematurely, so Terry got off what was basically an unchallenged shot. Broderick died 4 days later, and was made into a martyr for the anti-slavery movement. This act is considered by many to be the defining moment that kept Slavery out of California, which was one of the factors hastening us to the Civil War.

The site of the duel is marked with this plaque and a couple of granite markers where each man stood.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Portola Expedition Camp Marker

Portola Expedition Camp Marker

In keeping with yesterday's "historical marker" theme, I bring you the marker of the location of the first campsite of the Portola Expedition after they discovered the San Francisco Bay. The actual campsite has been covered by what is now lake San Andreas, but near this spot is where, in November of 1769, 64 men, lead by Gaspar de PortolĂ , laid their head after a busy day where they were the first Europeans to see the San Francisco Bay.

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Kanrin Maru Plaque

Kanrin Maru Plaque

This plaque commemorates the arrival of the first Japanese ship in San Francisco harbor, the Kanrin Maru, on March 17, 1860. The plaque can be seen by the Palace of the Legion of Honor in Lands End.

Monday, July 28, 2008

Sailboat race on the bay

Sailboat Race

Another shot from the Sunday walk at Crissy Field. These boats are about 1/5th of the total number that were participating in the race.

Sunday, July 27, 2008

Pelicans on the bay

Pelicans on the bay

Caught this flock of pelicans flying near BOB during our regular Sunday walk at Crissy Field.

Saturday, July 26, 2008

Friday, July 25, 2008

Bob in the trees

Bob in the trees

Caught this picture of a ship going under the Big Orange Bridge (aka The Golden Gate Bridge) from the side of the road near Lands End.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Flight 2

Flight 2

A second shot from yesterday's visit to Fort Funston. It's not often that you get the opportunity to snap a glider in flight from above. I'm blessed in that I was able to do so with the Pacific Ocean as my backdrop.

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Flight

flight2

Fort Funston is a big spot for hang gliders. There is a great spot where you can take your life in your hands and see the gliders take off, land, and make crazy, maniacal swings at the beach and cliff as they try to come in for a "soft" landing.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Ticket to ride

ticket to ride

Caryn and I went to see "The Drowsy Chaperone" at the Orpheum Theater in the city tonight. We rode BART to get there (clearly the way to do it -- no parking, go gas, a little extra exercise, ...).

Monday, July 21, 2008

Sees

Sees

A local landmark -- the Sees factory in South San Francisco.

Yummy candy!! I *love* (as in, they would be greatfully accepted for any kind of tribute/honorarium/token of appreciation) the lollypops -- any flavor!

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Friday, July 18, 2008

Lycée Français La Pérouse

Perouse - doorway

Lycée Français La Pérouse is a French language immersion high school in San Francisco. They recently moved into the building which formerly housed the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

The doorway (above) is very ornate. Below, you'll find some detail:

Perouse - Bas Relief

Perouse - closeup top

Perouse column detail

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Going green with a blue bag

chicobag

We've been trying to cut down on our use of plastic or paper bags at the store. To further this aim, we bought a number of these "Chicobags" -- they are recycled plastic and will hold about the same volume as the basic plastic grocery bag. They fold into their own little pouch and have a clip to make them easy to carry.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Ice Plant Flowers

Ice Plant Flowers

This time of year, there are large swaths of pink as the ice plant blooms.

Monday, July 14, 2008

BOA Tower

CIMG0923

The Bank of America tower on California downtown San Francisco.

Sunday, July 13, 2008

The homes over the Presidio

Homes above the Presidio

Nice view of some really nice homes that seem to float above the Presidio, as seen from the Crissy Field parking lot.

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Trever Swings...

Trever swings

Trever is an amazing young man who had his 11th birthday party today. The son of our friends Annie and Bob, Trever is one of those kids for whom we will all work some day. He already runs his own business (with staff).

Here he is taking the first smack at a piñata.

I like the total sense of abandon in the picture.

Friday, July 11, 2008

Chinatown

CIMG0921

The iconic building in San Francisco's Chinatown, this building is on California, at a popular cable car stop.

Thursday, July 10, 2008

St. Mary's

Went to a security seminar in the city today at the Ritz Carlton on California and Stockton. Across the street is St. Mary's

CIMG0922

A little closer view of the clock and verse:

CIMG0922 - closeup

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Substation in Daly City

Substation

We went out to dinner with friends at a restaurant on the Brisbane/Daly City border. The only parking for this place was along Bayshore Blvd, in front of an ENORMOUS power substation (one of, if not the largest I've ever seen). That's the Cow Palace (where Elvis, The Beatles, and thousands of others have played).

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Partners

Partners

For some reason, I look at this picture and think about a cop "buddy" show. Something like "Starsky and Hutch". You can kinda see these guys chasing bad guys, saying cheezy lines, then the camera freezes on them...

Sorry about doing 2 pictures of the same subject in a week, but it just hasn't been a big picture taking week. I'll try to do better.

Monday, July 7, 2008

Giant glowing head...

Exploratorium glowing head

Seen at the Exploratorium. The exhibit discusses the effect of color on mood. You stick your head in the globe and it rotates through a series of colors.

Sunday, July 6, 2008

Friday, July 4, 2008

Swing!!

Swing!

Caught at a July 4th/Graduation party that we went to in Pacifica.

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Bay area foggy summer

Foggy Bay Area Summer

Summer in the San Francisco Bay Area is known for its fog.

Nature abhors extremes. The summer sun heats up the central valley to temps of 100+ Fahrenheit. The fastest way for nature to mitigate this heat is for moisture from the ocean to rush in. The shortest and easiest (least mountainous) path to get that moisture there runs right over San Francisco and the peninsula. As that cold moisture slides by, the fog forms, which dramatically cools the air it is passing through, which encourages more moisture to condense.

The light bounces from droplet to droplet, creating the halos.

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Hats!

Hats

I'm struck by the wide variety of hats for sale in such a small space. You see Bowlers, 10-gallons, Gardening hats, Aussie range hats, even Koolies (rice paddy hats).

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

July 2008 Theme Day: "No . . ." signs

No label

I work for a biotech firm. Yes, these stickers are necessary.

The City Daily Photo Blog has 172 members who are participating in today's theme.

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

American Fork (UT), USA by Annie, Anderson (SC), USA by Lessie, Ararat, Australia by freefalling, Arradon, France by Alice, Ashton under Lyne, UK by Pennine, Aspen (CO), USA by IamMBB, Athens, Greece by Debbie, Auckland, New Zealand by Lachezar, Austin (TX), USA by LB, Avignon, France by Nathalie, Bandung, Indonesia by Harry Makertia, Barrow-in-Furness, UK by Enitharmon, Barton (VT), USA by Andree, Belgrade, Serbia by Bibi, Bellefonte (PA), USA by Barb-n-PA, Bicheno, Australia by Greg, Birmingham (AL), USA by VJ, Bogor, Indonesia by Gagah, Boston (MA), USA by Cluelessinboston, Brantford (ON), Canada by Nancy, Brighton, UK by Harvey, Brookville (OH), USA by Abraham, Bucaramanga, Colombia by Fernando, Bucharest, Romania by Malpraxis, Budapest, Hungary by agrajag, Budapest, Hungary by Zannnie and Zsolt, Canterbury, UK by Rose, Cavite, Philippines by Steven Que, Chandler (AZ), USA by Melindaduff, Château-Gontier, France by Laurent, Cheltenham, UK by Marley, Chennai, India by Shantaram, Chennai, India by Ram N, Chesapeake (VA), USA by ptowngirl, Christchurch, New Zealand by Michelle, Cincinnati, USA by Erik Laursen, Cleveland (OH), USA by iBlowfish, Coral Gables (FL), USA by Jnstropic, Corsicana (TX), USA by Lake Lady, Delta (CO), USA by Bill, Duluth (MN), USA by Sun Dog Press, Durban, South Africa by CrazyCow, East Gwillimbury, Canada by Your EG Tour Guide, Edinburgh, UK by Dido, Folkestone, UK by Piskie, Forks (WA), USA by Corinne, Fort Lauderdale (FL), USA by Gigi, Gaia, Portugal by m+p, Geneva (IL), USA by Kelly, Grenoble, France by Bleeding Orange, Gun Barrel City (TX), USA by Lake Lady, Hampton (VA), USA by ptowngirl, Haninge, Sweden by Steffe, Hanoi, Vietnam by JĂ©rĂ´me, Helsinki, Finland by Kaa, Hobart, Australia by Greg, Hyde, UK by Gerald, Jackson (MS), USA by Halcyon, Jefferson City (MO), USA by Chinamom2005, Jerusalem, Israel by Esther, Katonah (NY), USA by Inkster1, Knoxville (TN), USA by Knoxville Girl, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia by Edwin, Kyoto, Japan by Tadamine, Lakewood (OH), USA by mouse, Larchmont (NY), USA by Marie-Noyale, Las Vegas (NV), USA by Mo, Lisbon, Portugal by Maria JoĂŁo, London, UK by Mo, London, UK by Ham, Lynchburg (VA), USA by Timothy, Mainz, Germany by JB, Melbourne, Australia by John, Menton, France by Jilly, Mexico City, Mexico by Poly, Mexico City, Mexico by Carraol, Minneapolis (MN), USA by Mitch, Minneapolis (MN), USA by Greg, Misawa, Japan by misawa mama, Monroe (GA), USA by Tanya, Monrovia (CA), USA by Keith, Monte Carlo, Monaco by Jilly, Monterrey, Mexico by rafa, Mumbai, India by MumbaiiteAnu, Munich, Germany by Troy, Nashville (TN), USA by Chris, Nelson, New Zealand by Meg and Ben, New Delhi, India by Delhi Photo Diary, New Orleans (LA), USA by steve buser, New York City (NY), USA by • Eliane •, Newcastle, Australia by Julia, Newport News (VA), USA by ptowngirl, Norfolk (VA), USA by ptowngirl, Norwich, UK by Goddess888, Ocean Township (NJ), USA by Josy, Oklahoma City (OK), USA by ananda.tashie, Orlando (FL), USA by OrlFla, Palos Verdes (CA), USA by tash, Paris, France by Eric, Pasadena (CA), USA by Petrea, Pasadena (CA), USA by Can8ianben, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia by Murphy_jay, Petoskey (MI), USA by Christie, Phoenix (AZ), USA by Cheryl, Poplar Bluff (MO), USA by Tricia, Port Angeles (WA), USA by Jelvistar, Portland (ME), USA by Corey, Portsmouth (VA), USA by ptowngirl, Posadas, Argentina by Lega, Pretoria, South Africa by Sam Ruth, Quincy (MA), USA by Cluelessinboston, Ramsey, Isle of Man by babooshka, Reykjavik, Iceland by VĂ­rgĂ­ll, Riga, Latvia by Riga Photos, Rotterdam, Netherlands by Ineke, Rouen, France by Bbsato, SaarbrĂĽcken, Germany by LadyDemeter, Saigon, Vietnam by Simon, Saint Louis (MO), USA by Strangetastes, Salem (OR), USA by jill, Salt Lake City (UT), USA by atc, Salt Lake City (UT), USA by Eric, San Antonio (TX), USA by Kramer, San Diego (CA), USA by Felicia, San Francisco (CA), USA by PFranson, Santa Fe (NM), USA by Randem, Seattle (WA), USA by Chuck, Seattle (WA), USA by Kim, Selma (AL), USA by RamblingRound, Sequim (WA), USA by Norma, Sesimbra, Portugal by Aldeia, SetĂşbal, Portugal by Maria Elisa, Sharon (CT), USA by Jenny, Silver Spring (MD), USA by John, Singapore, Singapore by Keropok, Sofia, Bulgaria by Antonia, Springfield (IL), USA by Aubrey, Stanwood (WA), USA by MaryBeth, Stavanger, Norway by Tanty, Stayton (OR), USA by Celine, Stockholm, Sweden by Stromsjo, Stouffville, Canada by Ken, Stratford, Canada by Barb, Subang Jaya, Malaysia by JC, Suffolk (VA), USA by ptowngirl, Sunshine Coast, Australia by bitingmidge, Sydney, Australia by Ann, Sydney, Australia by Julie, SzĂ©kesfehĂ©rvár, Hungary by Teomo, Tamarindo, Costa Rica by David, Tel-Aviv, Israel by Olga, Tempe (AZ), USA by angie, Terrell (TX), USA by Bstexas, Terrell (TX), USA by Jim K, The Hague, Netherlands by Lezard, Tokyo, Japan by Tadamine, Torun, Poland by Glenn, Toulouse, France by Julia, Trujillo, Peru by Giulianna, Turin, Italy by Livio, Twin Cities (MN), USA by Slinger, Victoria, Canada by Benjamin Madison, Vienna, Austria by G_mirage2, Virginia Beach (VA), USA by ptowngirl, Wailea (HI), USA by Kuanyin, Washington (DC), USA by D.C. Confidential, Wellington, New Zealand by Jeremyb, West Paris (ME), USA by crittoria, West Sacramento (CA), USA by Barbara, Weston (FL), USA by WestonDailyPhoto, Williamsburg (VA), USA by ptowngirl, Willits (CA), USA by Elaine,

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