Slice of Life / Traveling

Thinking About Where to Travel Next

"Heading West" Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: SONY NEX-6, 50mm, f/7.1, 1/125 sec, ISO100
 “Heading West” Cedar Park, 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

This morning I saw this amazing contrail from a plane zooming across the sky, and since it is heading west, I am imagining that the passengers are traveling to the west coast of the US, and perhaps connecting to a flight to Asia.

Speaking of traveling, my next trip that is planned is a cruise with my immediate and extended family in July. I’m really looking forward to it, but I am also thinking about a solo trip somewhere. Mariko went on a solo trip to Europe last year, and she is going to Japan next month as well. She said I should go traveling solo sometime, but I’m not sure where I would like to go. I love exploring new places solo, and I would like to take my sketchbook and iPad with me to do some on-location sketching. It seems so fun! So a bit more thinking and research will be needed to figure out a nice destination for that activity.

I’d love to travel to Vietnam, Thailand, or Singapore, so those destinations are high on my list. Honestly, I’m not too interested in other regions at this point in my life, but I know that can change, so we’ll see. But just thinking about the possibilities for solo travel gets me excited!

"Morning Light" Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: SONY NEX-6, 16mm, f/9, 1/200 sec, ISO100
 “Morning Light” Cedar Park, 2019

I hope you had a nice day!

またね～

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Slice of Life

Running Shoes and Manhole Covers

"Running Shoes in Kobe" Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/125 sec, ISO1250
 “Running Shoes in Kobe” Cedar Park, 2019

こんばんは。Today I was watching my favorite program “10km Run” and I noticed that the host took a photo of her shoe with the cool manhole cover. I smiled because I did the same thing when I ran in Osaka a few years ago. It’s so fun to run and sightsee/take photos.

Osaka Castle Manhole Cover
Osaka Castle Manhole Cover

By the way, here’s a site all about manhole covers. If you are interested… 🤗

The Ultimate Manhole Covers Site

I hope you had a nice day!

またね～

Running on Vacation

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Slice of Life / Traveling / Well-being

Vacation’s Over – Carry On

"Palos Verdes" 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/9, 1/450 sec, ISO200
 “Palos Verdes” 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

We’re back home in Texas after a wonderful holiday vacation in California. While I enjoyed myself quite a bit, I let my daily habits fall by the wayside, but that’s okay. I was on vacation after all. Nothing to beat myself up over.

While I did post on my blog, play some ukulele (my dad has a cool Kamaka ukulele), exercise/stretch, and take a daily photo, I didn’t study my Japanese vocabulary nor do a daily drawing. And of course, I didn’t do a daily decluttering. But now that I’m back home, I’ll pick those back up. It’s a new year which is kind of cool. No new year’s resolutions for me. I’m just going to continue what I’m doing. Little by little, every day, ought to be enough. 😊

またね～

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Food / Slice of Life / Traveling

Spending Time at the Ocean

"Sunset Light" Redondo Beach, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/11, 1/70 sec, ISO3200
 “Sunset Light” Redondo Beach, 2019

こんばんは。And Happy New Year!

This afternoon we went to the Redondo Beach Pier to walk around, have some snacks, and enjoy the outdoors. Even though it was chilly out, the kids got ice cream and funnel cakes, and Mariko and I enjoyed some oysters on the half-shell. As the sun went down, we got sat down for a cocktail and then took photos of the sunset. It was a good day! Please enjoy the photos.

またね～

"Sunset Silhouette" Redondo Beach, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/100 sec, ISO400
 “Sunset Silhouette” Redondo Beach, 2019
"Oysters" Redondo Beach, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/100 sec, ISO640
 “Oysters” Redondo Beach, 2019
"Seafood Snacks" Redondo Beach, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/90 sec, ISO3200
 “Seafood Snacks” Redondo Beach, 2019
"All Signs" Redondo Beach, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/100 sec, ISO400
 “All Signs” Redondo Beach, 2019
"Tony's" Redondo Beach, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/100 sec, ISO400
 “Tony’s” Redondo Beach, 2019
"The Horseshoe" Redondo Beach, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4.5, 1/160 sec, ISO200
 “The Horseshoe” Redondo Beach, 2019
"Black and White Pacific" Redondo Beach, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/16, 1/220 sec, ISO200
 “Black and White Pacific” Redondo Beach, 2019
"Bye-bye Sun" Redondo Beach, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/16, 1/100 sec, ISO1250
 “Bye-bye Sun” Redondo Beach, 2019
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Food / Slice of Life / Traveling

A Day Trip to Ojai, California

"Lunch at Nest" Ojai, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/45 sec, ISO800
 “Lunch at Nest” Ojai, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Today we took a day-trip up to the town of Ojai, California. It was about a two-hour drive, and when we arrived it was time for lunch so we headed straight for our first destination, The Nest. The food was a delicious mix of vegan and non-vegan foods, and the coffee was also yummy. We shared cauliflower tacos, brisket sandwiches, and sangria.

After lunch, we visited The Ojai Olive Oil Company, where we took a short tour and learned a lot about their olive oil operation, and olive oil in general. Very enlightening and educational! I didn’t know that the time from picking the olives to producing the actual oil happens within the span of only a few hours to retain the most flavor.

"Olive Oil Tour" Ojai, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/60 sec, ISO200
 “Olive Oil Tour” Ojai, 2018
"Olive Trees" Ojai, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/16, 1/60 sec, ISO400
 “Olive Trees” Ojai, 2018
"Olive Oil Processing" Ojai, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/10 sec, ISO800
 “Olive Oil Processing” Ojai, 2018
"Heart Cactus" Ojai, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/900 sec, ISO200
 “Heart Cactus” Ojai, 2018
"Friendly Dog" Ojai, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/120 sec, ISO200
 “Friendly Dog” Ojai, 2018
"Topa Mountain Winery" Ojai, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/8, 1/320 sec, ISO200
 “Topa Mountain Winery” Ojai, 2018

Next we made a stop at Topa Mountain Winery for a wine tasting, and then it was onto a really cool bookstore, Bart’s Books. What’s special about Bart’s is that it is the largest independently owned outdoor bookstore in the U.S.! There are so many cool books to browse through, and I found myself exploring a lot of the books from the early 1900s. How cool to read from a book that is over 100 years old!

"Bart's Books" Ojai, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/8, 1/220 sec, ISO200
 “Bart’s Books” Ojai, 2018

Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/8, 1/60 sec, ISO500

After a bit more shopping, it was time to head back to my parents’ house, but it was a fun day up in Ojai, California!

またね～

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