Incredible autumn palette...............

Enchanting colors of autumn on Bradford Pear leaves........a reminisce....

Do you think any artist can replicate this unique art? 

Bird: Pelicans flying pattern.........

Lazing on the Pacific shore, we often gaze the pelicans flying low, in sync, almost riding the surf.....
In Newport Beach, we were treated with this fabulous sight. A small group of brown pelicans flied above us in the familiar V pattern...Check their wing movements.....

And this group in Point Loma beach.........

And in Ocean beach..........

Observation: Tree monsters.....the spooky and gnarly shapes...

There are some coral trees in our neighborhood that look weird, what with their twisted, tangled, distorted, crooked branches, ghostly hollows, burls and exposed roots. Check the tree monsters.......

Gnarled, twisted branches of a tree creeping on the ground. This spooky tree standing by the marsh of Upper Newport Bay looked sinister, yet I could not resist penetrating into it through the rambles. The burrows, broken beer glasses and a tattered toy further heightened the eeriness.

Weird structure on old sycamore in Laguna coast wilderness park...

Two fig trees standing by the pool in Tewinkle Park arm-in-arm...

Wandering around the neighborhood, I happened to see a couple of trees with weird shape, tilt, row...I am sure, you will be as delighted as I was...Check them out.....

Muscular eucalyptus tree..........

What's the angle made by the sycamore?

How many date palms are there?

A remnant of the deadly Santiago Fire 2007...a  hardy chaparral plant in Whiting ranch wilderness park..

An oak trunk looks like a rhinoceros head...

An arch formed by sycamore...

Fauna: Rendezvous with the sea lions........

It was a sunny and moderately windy day in Newport Beach. Leaning against the fence atop the wooden pier I was enjoying the sparking, silvery, rippled waters of the Pacific. An unusual grunting and groaning noise startled me out of my spell. That is when, Surya showed me the pair of sea lions swimming below the pier, creating the grunts. I had seen a few of them in captivity, in LA and San Diego Zoo. But, getting to see them in the wild, in the Pacific Ocean was altogether a unique experience. The larger of the duo was emitting that funny sound and asking for food. It was sheer fun to watch the critter catching the food scraps thrown  at it and craving for more. Peeping the slick head with the big whiskers, it resembled a bald old man. Sharing the tremendous glee we had...........

The first glimpse of the pinniped.......

The pair discussing foraging strategies or may be sharing sweet nothings.........

I am hungry...got some food?...

The oldie face with the big moustache-like whiskers....

Close-up...

Swimming with the long foreflippers like a mermaid....

The spotting certainly made my day.....When nature decides  to entertain,  it's much more gratifying than human orchestrated amusements...

Since then,  have got to see many of them.........like this one....a couple of days before, we had been on a whale-watching trip to the Pacific. The boat was gliding past the pods of dolphins while the red floating buoy grabbed my attention. A passel of sea lions were lying on the pedestal, heaped on each other. Despite the constant ringing of the huge bell,they were in slumber, enjoying the mid-day sun...

and like this.........posing with them....of course from safe distance........

Picasa photo editing.....landscapes.........

Encouraged by the astounding photo imaging effects by Picasa software, I played with it a little more. This time meddled with some landscapes....Check the results...