MelAndrew Baby Party
3/22/2009
Melanie and Andrew had a co-ed baby party (shower?) at our house. We had fun. No babies were harmed. Here are some funny pics.
Labels: friends, orange county, party
Fullerton Youth Rugby
1/17/2009
There was a huge youth rugby tournament at the school across the street today. We went over to take a look. These kids really beat up on each other - no helmets!. It's awesome.
Labels: fullerton, orange county
Fullerton Squirrels
12/06/2008
Fullerton is being overrun by squirrels. There is a pair of them living in our oak tree. Every morning they like to taunt the dog and bury acorns all over our lawn. Here are some photos that I took today.
Labels: orange county, wildlife
Fir-ony
11/15/2008
So I'm trimming a big tree in my front yard today and a huge cloud of smoke from the Yorba Linda/Brea fire darkens the sky. My neighbor comes over and kindly warns me about the dangers of working outdoors in the smoke. That was really nice of her, but as she was telling me about smoke inhalation, she was puffing on a cigarette! I just thought that was kind of funny.
Dark sky at 2:00 PMLabels: orange county
Surfing Photos from Newport Beach
12/05/2007
There was a huge swell today, so I woke up before dawn and took some surfing photos down at Newport Beach. It was fun. Go here to see a few of them.
Labels: orange county, surfing
Photography
10/22/2007
This week I was inspired to take a second look through the tens of thousands of photographs that I have taken over the last few years. I picked out my favorites to create my own amateur photography portfolio.
Photography has been a hobby of mine since I took a class back in high school. Normally I am a very analytical person, so photography pushes me to work on my creative side. That is always a challenge for me.
My friends know that I love to combine photography with almost every other experience in my life, so it's always exciting and there's always something new to work on.
Enough of that, take a look...
Photography has been a hobby of mine since I took a class back in high school. Normally I am a very analytical person, so photography pushes me to work on my creative side. That is always a challenge for me.
My friends know that I love to combine photography with almost every other experience in my life, so it's always exciting and there's always something new to work on.
Enough of that, take a look...
Enter my photography galleryLabels: camping, family, friends, goldendoodle, off-road, orange county, vacation, wildlife
Baby Bologne
9/07/2007
If you're interested, they sell "Baby Bologne" at the Persian market in Irvine.But is it made from real babies? I say false advertising.
Labels: orange county, random
Bonfire at Balboa Beach
7/22/2007
Aimee threw a little party at the beach last tonight. Here are some weirdo pics.
The crew
Danger Joe
Weird flashLabels: friends, orange county
Off-Roading to Santiago Peak
Jessica wanted to test out the four-wheel drive on her new 4Runner, so we made a quick trip up to Santiago Peak via Bedford Road and then Main Divide Road. Here are some pics.
Labels: family, friends, off-road, orange county
Fishing on El Jefe
7/10/2007
My dad hooked us up with a trip on a private fishing boat. Here we are, catching a lot of Barracuda and bass near San Onofre State Beach. More pics here.
Labels: orange county, wildlife
The Fullerton Dog Park
Coda finished all of his shots, so now he's old enough for a trip to the new Fullerton Dog Park. He made some friends and found some bullies. Here are some pics.
Labels: goldendoodle, orange county
Crystal Cove State Park
4/09/2007
Last month Jessica and I went to Crystal Cove State Park. The beach was pretty nice. Here are a few pics.
Labels: orange county
Black Star Canyon and Trabuco Creek Road
4/08/2007
Jessica and I went for a hike up Black Star Canyon yesterday. There have been old rumors of strange things happening in this place, such as ghost sightings (blah) and armed land owners wrongly accusing people of trespassing and threatening them. We saw none of this wierdness, but the heavy cloudcover did make the trip kind of spooky.
Next we did a few minutes of off-roading up Trabuco Creek.
I declare Trabuco Creek to be the lamest off-road trail in Southern California.
Labels: off-road, orange county
High School Reunion
3/21/2007
You know you're getting old when your 10 year reunion rolls around...
Labels: friends, orange county
Phil's Bronco is Finally Unleashed
2/24/2007
Phil finally got his big orange Bronco working, and we made a quick shakedown run up Skyline Drive in the Cleveland National Forest. We had to make sure that everything was working before we hit the Mojave Road. Go here for some pics.
Labels: off-road, orange county
OC Register Off-Roads in Orange County
2/01/2007
Here is a video of some OC journalists who just discovered off-roading in Orange County. There is also an article on today's Outdoor section in the back of the Sports page. They talked about off-roading on Main Divide Road in Cleveland National Forest.They even mentioned Dirtopia.com in the print version :-)
Labels: off-road, orange county
More Parrots
1/21/2007
More parrots in Fullerton. They come back every night right at dusk. So loud!
Labels: orange county, wildlife
The Wild Parrots of Fullerton
1/16/2007
Here's the story - a long time ago, a local pet shop let some parrots loose near Fullerton. They multiplied and thrived, and now there is a flock of about 100 of them that fly around downtown Fullerton. When they come around, you can hear them a few blocks away.
I once watched a documentary about similar parrots in San Francisco - it was called The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill. Jessica and I watch plenty strange, obscure documentaries from Netflix.Labels: orange county, wildlife
Wahoo's Customer of the Month
1/04/2007
We finally made "Customer of the Month" at the Wahoo's in Fashion Island. It took us guys at the office 2 years of dedication and thousands of dollars in burrito consumption, but we finally made it onto the wall.Sorry for the crappy picture of a picture.
Labels: food, friends, orange county
Fullerton Squirrel
12/14/2006
There's a squirrel gathering nuts in our front yard. Strange.
Labels: orange county, wildlife
Gigantic Gay Deer at South Coast Plaza
12/08/2006
Who designed this year's giant decorations that surround South Coast Plaza?
Labels: orange county
Ford Exploder
11/16/2006
Snapped this pic along the 91 in Yorba Linda on Sunday. Sorry, didn't have time to adjust the camera settings. Nobody was inside the vehicle. Glad I don't own a Ford.
Labels: orange county
Good 'ol Shakey's
11/01/2006
I convinced the guys at work to eat at Shakey's Pizza today for lunch. When we got there, I realized that good food in 1987 is not really that good anymore.
Labels: food, orange county
Off-Roading in Orange County
10/29/2006
Jessica and I drove through the Santa Ana Mountains in Orange County last weekend. We started on Skyline Drive in Corona, drove Main Divide Road across the range, and then took Maple Springs Road back into the city. It took about 3 hours.
The view from the top of Skyline Drive
Tower near Beek's Place
Heading down Maple Springs Road.Labels: off-road, orange county
Paranoia
10/06/2006
I caught this story in the local section of the OC Register today. I can only imagine the frenzy that was whipped up in the Neighborhood Watch program when this poor guy went looking for his cat.It's just not safe to say "hi" to the neighborhood kids anymore. Oh well, that's fine with me.
Labels: orange county
60th Annual Marwood Block Party and Bike Parade
9/30/2006
Tonight we hung out at the annual block party, and it was a blast. There's a lot of kids on this street, and they came out in full force. I've been to alot of parties, but This party was out of control.
Labels: friends, orange county
Vote for Moby in the OC Register
9/01/2006
You need to go to the OC Register's "My Dog's Face" competition and vote for Moby. Personally, I'd give him a 10.If he gets in the top 100, Moby gets his pic in the newspaper. He's pretty fired up about it. So just do it. Go vote.
Labels: orange county
OC Secret Spot - Redwood Forest
8/02/2006
Believe it or not, there are a few secret spots in Orange County where you can get away from it all for a few minutes and pretend that you're somewhere else. The hidden redwood forest burried in a Yorba Linda canyon is one of those places.
It's hidden way in the back of Carbon Canyon park. Head towards the big dam and you'll find it. These Coast Redwoods were planted 30 years ago. You have to walk quite a ways to get here, so you're usually all alone. It gives off that dark, creepy vibe even in the middle of a sunny day.
Labels: orange county
Trip to the Orange County Fair
7/28/2006
Jessica and I went to the OC Fair today. Along with deep fried onion rights, they sell 18" sausage dogs. I just had to try it.
Labels: food, orange county
Saving gas
7/20/2006
Today I discovered that there is an express bus route from downtown Fullerton, where I live, directly to the University Research Park, which is the commercial complex at UC Irvine where I work. The bus had plenty of room, was air conditioned and took the carpool lane all the way down the 55 freeway. I got to work in about 45 minutes door-to-door, which is about the same as it would take me to drive... except I got to read the newspaper instead of pounding my fists in traffic.Cost: $1.25
This could be a new thing for me.
Labels: orange county, work
Dog Beach in Huntington
7/09/2006
We went to Dog Beach in Huntington today. Moby looks pretty scary when he's wet.
Labels: orange county
Get ready for the OC Fair
7/06/2006
It's hokey, cheesy and a complete ripoff. So why do I return to the Orange County Fair every summer?- Farm animals. I hate cows and pigs, but I still walk through the agriculture buildings every year. Don't know why. It stinks.
- The Glass blower. I've seen it done 20 times over the years. I still have to stop and watch the guy heat the glass and blow on it. Weird.
- Quilting competition. I walk through the exhibit just because I can't believe that people have fun making quilts. Whatever floats your boat.
- Deep fried crap. Every year the carneys manage to fry up something new. Deep fried Oreos, deep fried Twinkies... I can't wait to see what they'll fry this year.
- The random exhibit. One year my Dad made me walk through the Weird Al Yankovic tribute tent. It was very informative.
- The infomercial booth guys. These brave, energetic souls put on wireless mics and do endless live infomercials trying to sell us revolutionary knives, cutting-edge vacuum cleaners or timeshares in Florida. Nobody can resist a good infomercial, so people gather around - but do they buy?
Labels: orange county
Happy Fourth of July
7/04/2006
What ever happened to all of the good fireworks? Bottle rockets, sparklers, Black Cats... they've all been replaced with booring sparkle fountains and Piccolo Pete noisemakers. Then we wonder why some people resort to shooting guns into the air.
A fireworks stand in Costa Mesa, filled with some of the least exciting fireworks since the Han dynasty.Labels: orange county
Phone Cam Pic - OC Bratt
6/30/2006
This car is always parked at the office building where I work. Classy, right?
Labels: orange county
At the San Clemente Pier
6/10/2006
We met up with the family at San Clemente Pier to celebrate a bunch of birthdays. If you're ever in the area, try out the Fishermans Warf Restaurant & Bar right on the pier. Good stuff.
Labels: orange county
Medieval Times
In case you were wondering.... Yes, Midieval Times in Buena Park is still around. Alice and Craig took us there last night. The show is just as cheesy as it was when I was 12, but the special effects have improved. That was a fun flashback.
Labels: orange county
School trip to San Juan Capistrano
6/01/2006
Hi this is a guest post from Jessica. Today I took my 4th graders to Mission San Juan Capistrano. Aren't they precious? 
Labels: orange county