of San Diego

It was such a pleasure to spend a week with my sister.  Our time together is rare and always too short but she is one of my most favorite people in the world, one of those people that I feel comfortable with no matter what.  And being with my brother-in-law and my nephew is easy and enjoyable.

 

The reason for the visit was to offer some help and care to my sister during her recovery after surgery.  I don't know how much actual help I was but I felt like I was at least doing something, even if that was only keeping the dishes clean.

 

The San Diego area is like a foreign country to me.  The plant life, the animals, the weather, the scenery...it was all fascinating.  I asked a lot of questions to quell my curiosity and thankfully everyone was eager to answer as best they could.

 

This flower resides in a hanging basket on my sister's patio:

 

 

This was a bush in their yard:

 

 

My nephew, Sully, and I had a "date" at Barnes and Noble.  We each grabbed a good stack of books and magazines and a Starbucks drink and spent a good chunk of the afternoon thus engrossed.  Sully and I actually share quite a few interests so being able to spend time with him was a pleasure.

 

A few days later we, again, spent time together engrossed in books, this time at the San Diego Naval Hospital Library.  While my sis had an appointment we found our way to the library.  Expecting rows and rows of medical books, I was pleased to discover a normal library, minus some of the fluff of a public library.

The family took me sightseeing on a beautifully perfect afternoon.  This beach was in the Ocean Shores/Point Loma area.  It was neat to see so many surfers and even pelicans!  I was thrilled to see four pelicans flying in formation like bomber planes.  And surfers with hair bleached by the sun.

 

 

 

The houses were amazing.  The clouds, even more.

 

 

The view of San Diego from Shelter Island:

A pelican!!

 

The view from Harbor Island:

 

I'll confess, I LOVE flying!!  This trip was my first experience with flying since I was 16 (and that was a long time ago).  I cringed upon that first take off.  My stomach sank as we gained altitude.  But I was mesmerized by the power of the jet engines, by the shrinking landscape below me, by the variety in the topography.  The earth is fascinating and when you have occasion to see it from 30,000 feet in the air it becomes all that much more amazing.

 

Each flight (I had four), I was able to sit by the window and I promise I was pressed against that window the entire time save for one leg where the setting sun was shining right in my eyes and the view below was all gray clouds so I read instead.

 

The clouds are beautiful from above:

 

 

 

I don't know that I could ever tire of this beauty:

 

 

I understand why the term "cotton candy clouds" was created.  Please excuse the spots on this next picture, the window was a little dirty on the outside but the clouds are too pretty to not share.

 

While I was in sunny San Diego my home was hit with a huge storm that blew down trees and knocked out power.  The rain was heavy.  The wind gusts were recorded as high as 70 mph.  Thankfully we didn't have any trees fall but my garden suffered some casualties.  I wasn't sure what to expect when I got home but I was pleasantly surprised to be able to gather all these tomatoes.  The yellow ones are so sweet!

 

 

 

 And this flower, decorated with rain drops, was a beautiful sight.

 

 

 

 

It is life back to normal here at home.  Fall is in full swing with a twinge of chill in the air.  All the kids are back to school today.  My two walked out the door to begin their Freshman and Junior years.  Sigh.  It's ok, really it is.

 

Until next time San Diego.  And, I love you Beth!