MUSIC FOR A LAZY SUNDAY AFTERNOON

By Debbie Bulloch



Today, after a two weeks hiatus I went back to my favorite bike ride down PCH through Emma Wood Beach and to the city of Ventura. Along the way I paused to look at a sailboat anchored by the Ventura Pier.

Looking back at the photographs that I took this morning reminded me of Christopher Cross’s “Sailing” – the perfect song for a lazy Sunday afternoon.

Enjoy. (You can click on the photos to see a more detailed, full screen version.)







SAILING

It's not far down to paradise
At least it's not for me
And if the wind is right you can sail away
And find tranquility
The canvas can do miracles
Just you wait and see
Believe me

It's not far to never never land
No reason to pretend
And if the wind is right you can find the joy
Of innocence again
The canvas can do miracles
Just you wait and see
Believe me



Sailing
Takes me away
To where I've always heard it could be
Just a dream and the wind to carry me
And soon I will be free

Fantasy
It gets the best of me
When I'm sailing
All caught up in the reverie
Every word is a symphony
Won't you believe me



It's not far back to sanity
At least it's not for me
And when the wind is right you can sail away
And find serenity
The canvas can do miracles
Just you wait and see
Believe me

THE DAY AFTER THE STORM

By Debbie Bulloch


This past Sunday night, and into Monday, we had one of those rare Southern California occurrences - a winter storm!

But almost as soon as the storm rolled it, it was gone. Before leaving, however, the storm left us with a good soaking and some nice iamges.











Heavily overcast skies were a reminder of the storm briefly lived fury.



If you look closely at the horizon, you will see one of the five islands that, collectively, make up the Channel Islands. Right off the coast of Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, the Channel Islands National Park encompasses five remarkable islands (Anacapa, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, San Miguel, and Santa Barbara) and their ocean environment.

The Chumash Indians, who once populated the area, believed that the first people were created from the seeds planted on Limuw (Santa Cruz Island) by Hutash, the Earth Goddess. Hutash was married to the Sky Snake (The Milky Way), who made lightning with his tongue and gave the people their first fire. The people kept the fire burning to stay warm and cook their food. Since the people were getting more comfortable, their population grew until the Island became too crowded.

The people made so much noise that Hutash could not get any sleep, so she decided it was time to allow some of the people to cross over to the mainland. Hutash made Wishtoyo, a Rainbow Bridge which extended from the tallest peak of the Island to the tallest inland mountain near Carpinteria (between present day Ventura and Santa Barbara counties). Hutash told the people to cross carefully, and to never look down, but some did, and fell off the Rainbow Bridge and into the ocean, where they were turned into dolphins by Hutash to prevent them from drowning. This is why the Chumash Indians consider the dolphins to be their brothers.

After the storm the waves were flat, but that did not keep these two surfers away from the (very cold) waters.


And, of course, every storm brings its own rainbow.


Enjoy!