December 6-15
Written December 7+
Dear Friends, Family and Diary,
After a couple of weeks of suffering a bad cold and not having much interest in
anything else, it seemed like time to do something worth writing.
I had hoped for a few photo days in Yosemite, but that could not happen
due to impact from my cold and smoke from Northern California fires. I
did not want to breath the combination of sooty and high-altitude air.
Now I am well, and we will have a few things coming up, but first I
needed practice taking pictures and the most colorful scenes I can find
around Fresno winter were at the monthly ArtHop. I have
used this before as an excuse to take pictures and I still like
it. Here's where I went and what I saw:
![d181206_02_sorensensign.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_02_sorensensign.jpg) |
I think my favorite
hang-out gallery is Sorensen's. There are over a dozen
artists and craftsmen (and women) scattered around a huge and airy (=
drafty) space. It is possible to take a few hundred pictures, but I was
more selective this time.
![d181206_04_sorensen.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_04_sorensen.jpg) ![d181206_06_homage.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_06_homage.jpg)
Here is Chris Sorensen in action. At 90+ years old, he
still creates art from donated material, as he has for decades.
People bring him junk and he produces fun and whimsy.
![d181206_08_jim.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_08_jim.jpg)
I have already taken and posted pictures of much of the other art at
Sorensen's, but Jim??? stopped me as I passed and he insisted on
showing off his metal-craft San Francisco scenes. You know
what? They are pretty darn good.
|
![d181206_10_klizsign.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_10_klizsign.jpg) |
![d181206_11_bulbs.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_11_bulbs.jpg) ![d181206_12_colorful.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_12_colorful.jpg) Within the Sorensen complex, Bob Kliszewski's glass studio produces truly remarkable work, colorful and demanding of photos. I can never take enough.
I think these tea pots are new> I wonder if we need one? Maybe next visit.
![d181206_17_lecture.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_17_lecture.jpg) Bob goes out of his way to share his process with anyone who will
listen. On this ArtHop Thursday, a group of young international
students listened to every word.
|
![d181206_20_albert.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_20_albert.jpg) |
![d181206_24_potclose.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_24_potclose.jpg) Next
to Klissglass, I noticed a sign for "Edward Albert Design", a new
place for me. Ed's craft/art is thin and colorful concrete
planters. Since ArtHop was pretty slow, we chatted and he told about
the difficulty of making concrete both thin and tough. Another enthusiastic artist. Nice
|
![d181206_30_clayhands.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_30_clayhands.jpg) |
![d181206_34_decrations.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_34_decrations.jpg) ![d181206_36_closeup.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_36_closeup.jpg)
Clay
Hand Studios is a cooperative for ceramicists, again a place I have
photographed before. This time, I limited myself to shadowy
hangings.
|
![d181206_40_figtree.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_40_figtree.jpg) |
![d181206_42_redsquare.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_42_redsquare.jpg)
Fig Tree Gallery is next door to Clay Hand and rotates artists.
For this December ArtHop, "Red Square" by Bill Bruce struck me, so that's my
only shot.
|
![d181206_50_ogadasign.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_50_ogadasign.jpg) |
![d181206_52_ogadawrk.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_52_ogadawrk.jpg)
Robert Ogata's studio is across the street from Clay Hand and Fig Tree.
His art may be my favorite, although we will never own a wall
large enough !
|
![d181206_60_mstreetsign.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_60_mstreetsign.jpg) |
I was obliged to stop by
the M Street Arts Complex, but I was disappointed. This is the gallery
where Marianne has shown a couple of times so we would like to see it
prosper. Unfortunately, it seems to be struggling. This
month's ArtHop featured mostly school-sponsored work, but not much from
individual artists. Nothing against student work, and most of it
was pretty good, but nothing inspired me enough to click a picture.
|
![d181206_66_ambersand.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_66_ambersand.jpg) |
At the end of the ArtHop evening, I passed by Ampersand, the local ice cream store. Tempted though I was for a snack, I kept on program and stopped
at two nearby galleries instead. "A Sense of Place" (left) has very
nice works and we have even been known to buy things here.
![d181206_68_mahly.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_68_mahly.jpg)
Across the street is the Mah Ly Atelier, run by a painter we know
from M Street. He moved about six months ago and says he is
managing well enough. He has definitely improved the quality of the art
on offer and we wish him well.
|
![d181206_70marianneartsign.jpg](images/thumbs/d181206_70marianneartsign.jpg) |
The last artist I visited was, absolutely, my favorite. MarianneArt
was displaying Christmas cards, original-art Christmas cards, the
product of days of work and development. I am sure our family and
friends will recognize that, while others are giving up on annual
cards, Marianne most definitely is not.
|
Fancy
decorating for Christmas is not a given in years when we plan no
visitors - like this year. I mean, who will see it?
However, in the end, we did make the effort to crawl up in the
garage attic and retrieve MOST of the containers of Christmas
decorations, just like every year.
We did concede on a smallish tree this year. A big tree does look
good in our high-ceilinged living room, but small is much easier and I
am into easy. A real benefit is that we limited decorations to
just lights (modern LED, an improvement over the olden days!) and
dangles that have meaning. These gifts from family and friends
did a nice job of reminding us of all the folks out there.
![d181209_02_driveover.jpg](images/thumbs/d181209_02_driveover.jpg) On
Sunday, we left for our two-stop coastal visit. Stop one was at
Rita and Peter's house on the bluff above Santa Cruz's small boat
harbor. Wonderful friends and a wonderful location and our goal
was to add a bit of decoration to the place - a MarianneArt totem.
With input from daughter Alexis and the artist, Rita chose a site in
the back yard, next to a big Redwood. I worried that roots from
the tree would be too big and would block any chance of sinking the
three-foot spike the totem attaches to, but luck held and there was a
just-big-enough spot between roots. It looks good, don't
you think?
![d181209_16_celebrate.jpg](images/thumbs/d181209_16_celebrate.jpg) ![d181209_18_otherview.jpg](images/thumbs/d181209_18_otherview.jpg)
After all this hard work, Rita prepared lunch sandwiches and served
white wine. It was a good opportunity for the girls to catch up
and I enjoyed just looking out over the harbor. (That gap in the
redwood limbs had been specifically cut for the view!)
From Santa Cruz, it was a one-hour hop down to Monterey and dinner with
Klare and Jack. More nice family conversation, just like
Christmas Season should have.
On
Monday, Marianne and I started off with a nice, slow vacation
day. Breakfast at Starbucks took a couple of hours, while we
talked about current news, family, and us in general. We could do
that at home, but don't very often, so it is nice to be away.
After the slow start, we even shopped for hours together, something we
never do at home. No gym time. No chores. No
painting. No video editing. No elder care.
After hours of goofing off, it was time to join the Hidas clan for BBQ
dinner. It really was a remarkable gathering with more family in
one place than we have seen in years. Klare's brother Zsolt came
from Ohio, his son Eric from Colorado, Chris and Marianne's brother Tom
and wife Kate drove down from the San Francisco Bay Area and we, of
course, came from far-away Fresno. A happy dozen folks.
Chris worked hard cooking plenty of sausage and veggies. It was all tasty.
![d181210_02_lightfire.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_02_lightfire.jpg) ![d181210_04_mugging.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_04_mugging.jpg) ![d181210_06_chatting.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_06_chatting.jpg) ![d181210_08_done.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_08_done.jpg)
Inside, guests waited patiently, laughing and chatting and competing with phone pictures.
![d181210_10_laughing.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_10_laughing.jpg) ![d181210_12_photo.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_12_photo.jpg)
The kitchen staff held up their part of dinner preps.
![d181210_14_cutting.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_14_cutting.jpg) ![d181210_16_serving.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_16_serving.jpg) ![d181210_18_salad.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_18_salad.jpg)
The whole bunch crowded around the table, each with their matching chair. (Ask Chris about THAT story.)
![d181210_22_group.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_22_group.jpg) ![d181210_24_passsalad.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_24_passsalad.jpg)
![d181210_30_girlsrest.jpg](images/thumbs/d181210_30_girlsrest.jpg)
After the octogenarians left for bed, we young folks hung around
watching the Warriors game, finishing the open wine bottles, and
laughing. Lots of laughing.
|
Tuesday started without a complex plan, as vacation days should, but ended up very busy, as family gatherings sometimes are.
![d181211a_04_english.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_04_english.jpg) ![d181211a_06_german.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_06_german.jpg)
![d181211a_02_french.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_02_french.jpg) ![d181211a_08_chinese.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_08_chinese.jpg)
|
![d181211a_09_history.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_09_history.jpg)
For breakfast, Marianne and I walked from The Colton Inn down into
downtown Monterey. We followed the "Path of History", at least for a
little while and paused at the Larkin House. This building housed the
American Consulate in the 1840s, while this was still a Mexican
territory. See, California does have history, over 150 years of it!
Eventually, we made it to the Old Monterey Cafe - a good breakfast recommendation.
|
![d181211a_12_daliexplainer.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_12_daliexplainer.jpg) ![d181211a_14_expainer.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_14_expainer.jpg) Down the street, toward the bay, we ran across the Dali Expo in the Monterey Museum.
The "Dali17" exhibition there tells the story of Salvador Dali's time
in Monterey. The artist had moved to the US in the late 1930s during the
Spanish Civil War and did not return to Spain until 1948.
![d181211a_18_typical.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_18_typical.jpg) During
his time in America, Dali spent several extended periods working in
Monterey resorts, reportedly because it felt like his home on the
Spanish Mediterranean coast. The Expo features dozens of Dali
lithographs, mostly from the 1960s. We wandered past most of them
and were reminded of just how strange Dali's art can be. Years
ago, we had visited the Dali Museum in Spain and seen a full range of his art, much of it far more imaginative than two-dimensional prints.
Leaving Dali, we ran across "Crȇpes of Brittany!",
and dropped in to see how authentic it might be. We had spent a
week in Brittany in 2003 and had tired of these pancakes because it
seemed there was little else available. As soon as we came in,
Daniel, one of the owners, started selling us on their products.
He was successful, in part because of his own, interesting back
story. (Raised in Paris, Normandy, and Monterey.)
![d181211a_20_mma.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_20_mma.jpg) From
our second breakfast, we walked to our second museum, the Monterey
Museum of Art. The MMoA is one of our favorite art museums and
it changes displays at least as often as we visit. Currently, the
"Year of the Woman" featured the work of several local artists.
Just
inside the entrance, Chloe Wilson was showing several street
silhouettes. At first, I thought they were nice photos, but no,
they were wonderful paintings.
|
![d181211a_30_hooven.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_30_hooven.jpg) Local
ceramicist Coille Hooven had a display of "Shoes". These were
part of her theme of ordinary items done in a most extraordinary
manner. Nice.
|
Alyssa
M. Endo's woodcut art was extremely well-displayed, with both prints
and the carved blocks showing just how complex and detailed the process
is.
|
![d181211a_60_bullockfilm.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_60_bullockfilm.jpg) ![d181211a_62_metoo.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_62_metoo.jpg)
Work of photographer Edna Bullock covered the walls of three
rooms. I think she was given so much space because her
eighty-year career covered a wide her range of local subjects. I
was taken with her versatility and
dedication.
|
M.
Evelyn McCormack showed a pair of her colorful paintings of local work
life, at least as work was back in the day when Monterey was more
fishing village than tourist attraction.
|
![d181211a_72_single.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211a_72_single.jpg) |
![d181211b_04_zandk_teach.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211b_04_zandk_teach.jpg) ![d181211b_02_zsoltklarein.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211b_02_zsoltklarein.jpg)
While Marianne and I were enjoying crȇpes and art, the rest of the
family was busy too. Leisa had invited Zsolt and Klare to her
fourth-grade classroom for show-and-tell. Reportedly, Zsolt was
willing to talk for far longer than his sister would allow. Maybe
next time.
![d181211b_12_floppyears.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211b_12_floppyears.jpg)
Meanwhile, Chris and Eric had taken the dogs for a run on Carmel Beach.
After lunch, the most-senior seniors took naps while we
youngsters went for a hike in Del Monte Forest. As the
least-young of the group, Marianne and I may have struggled a bit, but
it was all fun.
![d181211b_28_resting.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211b_28_resting.jpg)
Nevertheless,
I think resting-on-a-log was my favorite part of the hike. By the
time we finished, my Fitbit told me we had added 7,000+ steps, almost
my entire day's goal, on top of our earlier walk to breakfast and
museums. Hopefully, this was enough to compensate for the BBQ of the
day before - or the upcoming dinner.
![d181211b_40_beachhouse.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211b_40_beachhouse.jpg) ![d181211b_44_firstin.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211b_44_firstin.jpg)
Chris had chosen the Beach House Restaurant
for our big-family-night-out. Good choice. Marianne and I
arrived first and, while she caught up on email and texts, I wandered
around "Lovers' Point" hoping for a great sunset. OK, it was not
great, but good enough.
![d181211b_48_group.jpg](images/thumbs/d181211b_48_group.jpg)
Dinner was fun. Lots of chit chat, even with the teenagers.
The noise level gradually increased, perhaps aided by Happy Hour wine
prices. Several of us felt bound to take advantage. I think
most of us took advantage of Happy Hour food prices as well and,
despite the bargain, it was all good. We may need to make this a
regular spot.
Most of us reassembled at the Colton Street homestead for just a little
more conversation. This was a good ending to the visit by Zsolt
and Eric and the reunion for most of the California family.
We are now all set for the Christmas season with other family and
friends.
![d181212_02_breakfast.jpg](images/thumbs/d181212_02_breakfast.jpg)
On Wednesday morning, Marianne and I checked out and returned to "Crȇpes of Brittany!" for savory buckwheat crȇpes. Plenty of calories for the three-hour return drive to Fresno.
That's it for a week or ten days. As far as I can tell.
John and Marianne
|