notes from the kelp

…listen
…about the music
Some hoppy music.

Reaching down to open the lid to my raccoon/nuclear attack-proof garbage can, I noticed just in time that I wasn’t the only one there. Despite the speed of the powerful incoming missile in the shape of my hand, this diminutive tree frog held strong to his position, his mighty weight ensuring that the trash would be off-limits, indefinitely.

…listen
…about the music
Life without borders.

I’m back from a few days of work and play in Los Angeles. It was a wonderful trip filled with terrific friends and experiences, but still I was relieved to be home on the Salish Sea, the historical common name for the watery, geologically gem-laden environment spanning the archipelago that drizzles itself across upper U.S. and lower B.C. I’m beginning to wonder if any stray parts of me might have lived here in a previous existence (what was I? human? bald eagle? sea slug?). From the day I moved here, it has felt oddly as though this has been home to me for many years. As close to Los Angeles as I had become in 24 action-packed years, not a pang held my heart for even a moment upon my return to the city. And yet each time my ferry or light plane lands on San Juan Island, that pang arrives, in the form of joy and comfort.

Two days before I left for California I had ferried to and from British Columbia’s Salt Spring Island, a neighbor to the northwest just across the border and the reason I ended up living on San Juan Island (short story to follow sometime). The day was cool and foggy and presented a fresh planet of visuals to me as I crossed from one side of the boundary waters to the other. Obscured by a haunting marine layer and coyly lit by flecks of sunlight, the islands and the sea were simultaneously new and familiar, just like my life here. Staring out across a random border, I wondered whether this lone sailor might have had similar thoughts, as the vessel passed effortlessly between two worlds.48 link payday loanfast loan cash dollar 5 000no loan payday fax 500a during loan bankruptcy personal acash indianapolis loan advance9 loan payday advance militaryadvanced payday america loanford with after car loans bankruptcyloan personal form agreement freeloan agreement free sampleag loanloan a sharkfree in georgia payday loan 1stloan cash advance wyomingremortgage http loan advice homestudent aes loan andloans aercalculator loan albuquerquehomeloan abaloan aig studentaait mp3 vedanaari mp3 aarimp3 aaja aajamare mp3 aaje ghermp3 garba aarkeeviral aaro mp3 meetimp3 aaka lelobenediction aaronic mp3 Map

…listen
…about the music
Slightly mysterious.

This may just look like a bunch of boring rocks to you, but to me, it’s an invitation to peer into the private lives of tons of marine creatures and sea vegetables. And that’s just what I got to do this weekend, as a happy participant in the annual beach walk that the world famous Friday Harbor Laboratories hosts. A dream come true for this wannabe marine biologist: there were several scientists along for the day, and I spent the better part of a couple of hours with one who was patient enough to answer all my burning questions about kelp, algae, eel grass, sponges, snail eggs and nudibranchs (no, those aren’t something you see at a peep show).

I was fascinated to learn that in fact, there are no answers yet to two of my longtime queries: 1. why do sea stars choose to glom onto each other in packs? and 2. what makes them such a wide range of color?

It’s good to be reminded that in the face of advanced marine science, sometimes the simplest questions even a child (or a child-like adult like me) might ask remain as quizzical to the experts as to the rest of us. I find it oddly reassuring that, as with music, it’s even more compelling and wonderful when the mysteries remain.

…listen
…about the music
Hold the water.

I haven’t flogged you with any kitty pix for weeks now, so in honor of a continuing blog tradition that has welcomed many a Friday, here is one of our cast of characters, Smudge, enjoying the true meaning of sun bathing. No soap, please.aboutsexacrolein analysis dnphporn allucsex nude moore alexiaamerican association of bioanalysts18eighteen tgpsex backlog offender alabama4 qts canteen Mapto card adding credit someone yourmerchant california card account credit nofair aaa creditcard unable product credit acceptwith no loan check 4000 creditat accredited careers homeaccredited site natural healthdegree list accredited Map

…listen
…about the music
Moo-d music.

There were no cows standing anywhere near me when I snapped this today. I’m sure there’s a reason why this spot on the island is called Cattle Point, but I’m too lazy to do the research and Google it. So if you’re desperately curious or in need of yet one more thing with which to procrastinate from the work you’re actually supposed to be doing instead of perusing blogs like this one, well, have at it.

You can tell, I’m a true professional when it comes to blog procrastination techniques. It’s amazing that I manage to get any composing done at all given my trackball hand’s itchy finger on the clicker. Sometimes there are marvelous rewards for these carefully honed skills, such as when I clicked on a colleague’s fine blog last week and found this. I’m humbled to be in such glorious company, and put there by someone whose opinions I enjoy reading, to boot. Thanks, Steve.

So in my ever-continuing offer of virtual tourism, here, for you, is one of many different vistas from the southern end of San Juan Island. A scattering of rocky atolls you’d want to avoid if you were boating, then Lopez island, and then quite pale in the distance, the mainland’s Olympic Peninsula. Had I turned my camera to the right (well I indeed did but you’ll just have to wait for another time… yes, I’m a bloginatrix), you would be looking at the southern end of Vancouver Island and its town jewel, Victoria. Perhaps there are cows over there, but my zoom lens isn’t that good.ringtones text 10pnokia free 2260 logo ringtone3315 composer ringtone free nokia3410 online free composer ringtone nokianokia voice 6010 ringtonefree ringtone lg vx 6100a miles ringtones thousandallowed girl ringtone Map

…listen
…about the music
Independently played.

Independence is sometimes contextual. Like these shore pines, one can stand alone and still be bolstered and protected by others nearby. When a strong wind blows, surrounding neighbors keep the damage to a minimum. Without them, a lone tree could easily topple.

And such is my growing, happy experience on this little island in the farmost upper left-hand corner of the United States. Lots of independent thinkers here. Lots of folks with open minds who choose not to tell others how to live and prefer not to be instructed on that themselves. Yet the palpable sense of interconnectivity is everywhere. Living on a small island, just about every person you meet is framed by a musical repeat sign: you will see them again, somewhere, and often in a very different milieu than where you last met (that’s the jazz version: different harmonizations second and third times around!).

Many islanders have several jobs and serious interests. Our tree trimmer is a brilliant photographer. Our handyman is a charter boat sea captain. Our friend who manages the marine retail store in town is also a widely read liberal blogger. And today when our landscaper’s business partner showed up to help with the plans for our front yard, Charles and I recognized her: she had been our waitress last week at one of our favorite restaurants. It happened to be on a very rare occasion when a dish wasn’t quite right and I asked very nicely if it could be sent it back for a replacement. She was equally kind and accommodating, and of course we tipped well. Little did we know that days later she’d be standing on our deck, happily sharing her wisdom about maples and ironwood and the evils of thistle.

One thing I’m constantly reminded of here: be kind to everyone, because you will see them again and again in all sorts of different scenarios, from professional ones, to running into each other at the supermarket, to helping them get their truck out of a ditch. It’s a far more tribal level of awareness than one would ever find in a city. And it’s a fascinating lesson in the simultaneous truths of independence and interdependence.

…listen
…about the music
Oh! Canada!

Yesterday was Canada Day. Those of us on San Juan Island are almost swimming distance from our kind neighboring country. This photo, taken Sunday from Mount Young on SJI a few minutes after my heartbeat returned to its upright and locked position (it was a reasonably steep climb), shows you our proximity. A stunning view of the northwest corner of what’s left of Washington State in the foreground, and all else: Canada. Specifically, Vancouver Island in the left hand middle ground (if the photo were wider, a few inches to the left you could see Victoria), and Canada’s Southern Gulf Islands looming large and gorgeous in the middle of the photo. We waved to our pals Luanne and Ken who live right there, facing us, on Salt Spring. I’m not certain whether they waved back but it was the thought that counted.loans 90 daycalifornia loan agriculturepayday new cash advance loanamerica advance loans payday100 value loan tocard credit loans 401kcommercial 100 estate real loanmortgage loan california adjustable rateamortization loans with principle extraaffordable construction loans

…listen
…info about the music
My idea of beautiful honking.

Yet a new sight for this So-Cal infused newbie: geese on the beach.

I actually never knew that geese liked salt water. But there we were together on the sand, enjoying the day and the view. Quite the tightly knit social group, the 20 honkers paraded into the water in an orderly, single-file row, paddled calmly for a few minutes, and then just as neatly landed by my side on a different part of the same crescent beach.

They had no fear of me whatsoever, like every creature on this island so far except for my kind UPS delivery fellow, who shakes in his boots every time he unloads a box with a few new holes in it, knowing it might not make the grade for sign-off. I don’t know what it is about the extra leg of the trip for packages to get onto the island, but a large percentage of them arrive worse for the wear by the time they’re ready to be put on the local truck. Too bad there isn’t a way for orders to just glide effortlessly across the water and land on my doorstep. Like these fellows, they could just honk when they arrive.

…listen
…info about the music
Come fly with me…

The previous post showed you Lopez Island by foot; here it is by wing in a photo I snapped out the window of a puddle-jumper taking me off island to Seattle very early in the morning for my NYC trip last week. The bay in the foreground is Fisherman Bay, and eating dinner at an adorable shoreline restaurant just above it, I stared out to my own home, just 4 miles directly across the San Juan Channel:

As with everything in life, it’s wonderful to get additional perspective. In this case, no matter what the vantage point, I celebrate my great luck in living and composing here. Who knows what new perspectives the upcoming notes will bring.

…listen
…info about the music

Otherworldly music for this somewhat otherworldly place.

As is obvious at this point to anyone who sees my [professional-face-of-Alex] website and reads this [definitely not professional] blog, I’m a big believer in the idea that no matter how much work is waiting to be done, taking some time and having a life is really, really important. As I see it, artists are vessels who constantly pour out impressions and expressions. We have to make sure that we fill ourselves up again, otherwise we may be left with little to say.

Yesterday Charles and I took our personal vessels onto a larger vessel, and went on a little excursion over to the island that waves back when we gaze across the water to the east: Lopez, a beautiful and rural member of the San Juans. We grabbed the ferry (squint and you’ll see it beyond the picnic table) and, as a New York tourist might enjoy the Circle Line around Manhattan, we had great fun on a slow ride as the boat stopped at Orcas and Shaw islands prior to making its Lopez landing. Camera in one hand and map in the other, I tracked our passage carefully, trying to memorize as much of these waters as I’m able since at some point soon we’ll be in our own boat making this trip. While navigational charts are essential, being able to look up and simply know which of the hundreds of islands, atolls and big jagged boat-threatening rocks I’m looking at makes getting around a lot easier. And less damaging to hulls and helms-person egos!

Among the lovely places we walked around was the Spencer Spit, pictured above and here, at the very tip of it, looking straight into the rock wall of Frost Island.

And at the other end of the spit, I looked up and saw this magnificent creature:

He/she (sorry folks, I’m still not good with this part) deserves a far better photo opp than this, but I’m completely enchanted by being surrounded by so many bald eagles and I couldn’t resist.

Later in the day we saw an immature bald eagle– still all mottled brown, no white head and tail feathers yet– eating something on the side of the road (downed bicyclist? naw, too difficult to swallow the helmet) and as large as a full grown wild turkey. And moments later, we saw a full grown wild turkey when we stopped to gaze at a house we had considered buying last year that we had seen on the internet. As we commented on the potential for wood rot and other problems in this old-but-really-charming structure, the huge bird landed right in front of us on the balcony railing. Charles and I proclaimed “it’s a sign!”. A sign of what, we had no idea, but decided that maybe the house… would have been a turkey.loan ak automobileauto al loanalabama loan home to value loansloans alaskaloan amortization period$1000 cash loans advanceconsolidation debt loans 00 down bad loans credit home Map

…listen
…info about the music

Variations on a memory.

Words do little to describe how glad I am to be back from Manhattan.
Above, a serene photo courtesy of my Treo, from yesterday’s ferry ride back from Anacortes to Friday Harbor.
More telling than my prose.

A volcano (Mt. Baker), a boat (the Washington State Ferry) and an archipelago (the San Juan Islands) are, to my senses, a vast improvement on a skyscraper (the Marriott in which I stayed), a subway (the #6 from Lincoln Center to SoHo one evening) and a few siren- and soot-filled boroughs (New York City). But that’s just me, now. When I was growing up, I was a quintessential New Yorker who couldn’t have imagined living anywhere else. I mean, what else could there possibly be to do and see and experience that wasn’t in the greatest city in the world?
Why leave?
And then at 21, I left.
And my world expanded.

I still love New York the way one still loves difficult relatives.
But my heart lives here.

…listen
…info about the music

Reflective, clearly.

This might appear to be nothing other than an old faded photo.
But to the contrary, it’s the utter clarity of shore rocks seen from under the water on the beach at Turn Point. And mostly everywhere else on San Juan Island, as far as I can tell. Even in the harbors, with all potential forms of muck and gunk and human interactions and creatures that grow and stick to anything they can glom onto, the water is this transparent. Walking on the docks is like a trip to the tide pools, but with better footing.

I leave early in the morning to spend a few days in my old home town on another island. A slightly bigger one known to most as Manhattan. Somehow, I doubt that the Hudson will offer these glimpses to the riverbed floor. But I’m willing to squint hard and look closely, with the hope of finding a different sort of clarity: the kind that comes when one’s past collides with one’s present, and a faded set of memories conjures a clearer view of purpose.
folt ny halv mp3 addamzmp3 audio mixer acousticaqapi bagli mp3 adaletafrican idibia queen 2face mp3archivo informacion actualizar mp3amy addicted mp3 winehouseenglish mp3 advancedmp3 drame adama Mappawn loan american tradecalculator loan afrsettlement loan ameriqueststudent alaska loan acpeinterest high americredit loansalfred sloan decentralizationameriloan pronouncedloan amortorize Map