The Life in My Years

Cover photo: A tree reflects through debris and points of sunlight in a park puddle.

Here in Northern California we’ve been having some prodigious rainstorms. According to the weather guy on TV (who is quickly becoming one of my least favorite people not living in Washington DC) we’ve been hydrologically pulverized by an atmospheric river and the pineapple express. My dear old dad would’ve stated it in plain English – “It’s raining like a bastard.” Thanks dad.

Yesterday we got a brief respite, the clouds parted, a strange bright orb appeared in the sky and things dried off a bit. It was the perfect opportunity to celebrate a little drying with a little photography.

A friend on Facebook exclaimed with glee “I love the rain!” Tell that to our neighbor who woke up to this yesterday morning.

Lexi, who spends most of the day at the back patio door looking sadly out at the rain was out of her mind with boredom so I took her for a ride in the car as I ran errands. We briefly walked around the city park so she could do her doggy business and as we toured the pathway I saw some of the backwash from the week of storms.

Above and below. “God willing and the creek don’t rise.” Refugio Creek is usually a little trickle, really a poor excuse for a creek that dribbles around the trees. It’s most notable attribute is its ability to attract trash from the fast food joints. This week the creek got angry, flushed away the burger wrappers and roared through the trees surrounding the creek bed. 

Concrete benches front a small section of the little man made lake at Refugio Valley Park. On a normal day grandma and grandpa sit on the benches as their small grandchildren throw bread to the ducks, geese and gulls that inhabit the park. Below a gull perches on the railing that normally separates lake from land and surveys a nearly submerged bench. 

As the day wore on the clouds started to break; puffy mounds of white and gray broken by patches of blue. A great local photo venue is a waterfront park in nearby Pinole. The park, fronting San Pablo Bay is also home to a sewage treatment plant which I try to stay upwind of.

The sun broke through the storm, presenting an ever changing panorama captured below in color and monochrome (with a little editing license).

 

Meanwhile back at the park some residual puddles put on a show of reflection and light. 

 

Above and below: The welcome sun creates points of light that dance on the reflecting puddles. 

 

As I write this it’s raining again and will be through the weekend. Ugh.

Rain rain go away,
Come again another day.
Little Johnny wants to play;
Rain, rain, go to Spain,
Never show your face again!