Rose Bowl Whirlwind

These seems like a most excellent and apropos post with which to end 2014 and usher in 2015. This was the scene just a little over an hour ago in the Arroyo Seco in Pasadena within sight of the Rose Bowl. A powerful whirlwind tore through temporary structures being erected for tomorrow's Rose Bowl Game. There were four injuries requiring medical care as a result of this atmospheric outburst which occurred while the area was under high wind advisories.

44

Today I realized (3) forty-fours: at age 44 I'm 44 pounds overweight and am back up to a Size 44 waist. This holiday season as well as the stretch run of the fall quarter at Cal Poly took their toll on my weight which had gotten down to 240 lbs last September or October. This weight yo-yo-ing is not a good thing.

Boycott Al Sharpton Now... Says Nobody at MSNBC

I have been intending to share this gem here but forgot about it. I don't want this Ferguson racial crap to carry over into 2015 in this space so here it is... we're getting it over with now. Michele Conry says pretty much what most decent folks are thinking right here inside a minute. Well done, Michele!

Graphic of the Day ~ Missing Planes

The currently and newly missing Indonesia AirAsia Flight8501 which went missing earlier today prompted this interesting graphic.

Which Reminds Me Of... Lawyers In Love

As I composed the previous post HERE I encountered "Lawyers In Love", another Jackson Browne classic hit which until I realized "Somebody's Baby" was one of his, too, this one was my fave without peer. I have fond memories of watching this music video on MTV at my childhood friend Jon Marsh's house back when MTV was an accurate acronym for "Music Television. This is classic MTV-era whimsical music video rock pop from 1983.

Some Guys Get All The Luck w/ Somebody's Baby

Today I overheard Jackson Browne's 1982 hit "Somebody's Baby." This timeless gem of romantically and sexually unfulfilled angst and yearning has long haunted me. It is the anthem of my mostly solitary existence, devoid of any enduring or satiating or fully healthy love yet frequented by fleeting encounters with the tantalizingly unattainable. To be quite honest it never occurred to me during previous encounters with this early '80's pop classic that it was Browne who performed it (and co-wrote it).

Thinking of this song reminded me of the other anthem of my life-long love-life frustrations stoked in part by my more recent (in the past decade) propinquity with quite desirable yet unattainable women. That other anthem is Rod Stewart's 1984 hit "Some Guys Get All The Luck," another great '80's pop track.

The most pathetic thing about my association with these songs is the fact that back in the '80's both of them elicited in me the same sort of primal angst as now. The more things change the more they don't. The women I desire I cannot acquire. The women expressing interest in me I'm not interested in them. I often feel this is my fate for life. I sometimes lament that I may very well spend the rest of my days alone in perpetual singleness all the while in plain view of those who have successfully acquired The One.  However, I am learning to let go and just give this to God which is yet another area of my life drawing me closer to God.

I am fully determined to never again force matters in regards to women as I have done on two occasions in the past eight years. Being with the wrong woman feels worse than being alone. In solitary aloneness at least one can at times feel empowered in emotional self-sufficiency.

End of pity-potty party! But, hey, it's my pity-potty party and I can cry if I want to...

Overheard ~ What Turns 62 This Year?

A wry joke making the rounds in geopolitical circles earlier this year was the question "What turns 62 this year?" Answer: oil (price of a barrel of oil), the Russian ruble (to one U.S. dollar), and Vladimir Putin (on October 7). All of those things ended up happening, too.

Picture of the Day - Grandma Martha at 95

I took this image of my paternal grandmother Martha tonight before I left her apartment in Fremont, CA, and headed home with my mother after dark. We enjoyed another amicable Christmas this day after a string of bad ones for most of my life. How my relationship with her has evolved is something I never anticipated or even fantasized about. I am truly blessed. I also see in her some decline even since only last Thanksgiving, one month ago. I hope to spend another Christmas with her but I don't know if that shall happen.
Merry Christmas, Grandma! Photo by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).

Cal Tech Kim-Day

Today I did a "Kim Day." A "Kim Day", for those of you who don't know, is a day in which I pretty much ignore my phone, do not attend to any of my regular responsibilities, and I take a day trip somewhere to do something cool... cool to me anyway. My 1990's into much of the 2000's was one giant "Kim Day" so I don't do them much anymore having pretty much expended a lifetime's worth. In fact, nowadays, I do this less frequently than a blue or a blood moon.

I was born in Pasadena, CA. Pasadena is home. Pasadena has changed. I have changed. You can't go home again. I don't want to live in Pasadena again. However, I can visit Pasadena. I enjoy visiting Pasadena and reflecting. Then I find myself happy to leave and head back home to the Central Coast. While growing up I either lived in Pasadena-Altadena, lived in a nearby city (Monrovia or Temple City), or visited Pasadena-Altadena from the Central Coast where I have lived since 1982 when I was age 11 turning 12. While growing up on the Central Coast my family commuted to Pasadena almost every weekend after my dad died in 1985.

Earthquakes have been an integral part of my entire life... a recurring theme and a common thread connecting so much of it. Also part of my reality has been the California Institute of Technology a.k.a. Cal Tech. Being in Pasadena, living or visiting, it has been a regular presence in my life, just like earthquakes. Added to that propinquity with Cal Tech, earthquakes in Southern California made Cal Tech a regular part of my earthquake experience as it has been for all Southern Californians since the days of Dr. Charles F. Richter. The public face of Cal Tech, earthquake-wise, has been Dr. Kate Hutton for 37 years. Whenever there has been a significant earthquake, she walked us through it emotionally more than anything else, by answering our questions. She was and is not just our seismologist, but also our quake mommy whom we run to for comfort after a scary earthquake. I feel like I grew up with her even though I never met her until more recently. I first encountered Kate online on California's Earthquake Forum and a bit later on California Disasters. She is good people and, despite her celebrity, remained a regular person which is more than can be said for many people who become famous. I later met Kate in person in 2009 at the Los Angeles County Arboretum when I did the Monrovia Rockhound's 46th annual rock show. 

For some time I have been wanting to take a tour of the seismo-lab at Cal Tech. In 2006 I did the USGS Menlo Park tour on the 100th anniversary of the 1906 "San Francisco" Earthquake. Heading into the holidays this year I felt it was time to take a Cal Tech tour. This year thematically for me as been a year of not holding back and trying new things and when necessary, stepping outside of my comfort zone. I mentioned to Kate my desire to drop in on Cal Tech and she graciously agreed to indulge me. Despite my car's mechanical integrity in question I decided to "damn the torpedoes" and go down to Pasadena today and trust God to keep me safe and my car roadworthy... which He did. Initially I hoped my mother would share the experience, but she was unable to attend.  Therefore, today turned into a "Kim Day."

The cherry on top for me was the fact a Santa Ana Wind event was setting up across Southern California today. On this day, I first encountered them on the south side of the Cuesta Grade where I was buffeted by down-slope winds at about 5 a.m. When I broke out onto Gaviota Coast on Highway 101 at about 6 a.m. I was greeted by about the most magical scene I have ever witnessed. The first light of dawn was turning the waters of the Santa Barbara Channel a dark blue to almost black upon which mysterious-looking but beautiful lights on oil platforms and ships twinkled. The sky was starting to low-glow in the east and illuminate just enough of the landscape of the Channel Islands beyond and on the Santa Ynez Mountains onshore to create a spectacularly beautiful sight. I did not feel like stopping to take photos (except one) and I'm not sure many a photo taken from the 101 Freeway corridor would have done the sight due justice. At the Ventura River I encountered the first current of strong Santa Ana Winds since the Cuesta Grade earlier. I could see its footprint on the sea-surface which was rippled by the winds where just north of there the sea-surface was smooth as glass. By the time I reached the Los Angeles Basin the winds were still in the process of clearing out the haze but the north wind could be seen pushing it ocean-ward. Below are some images of the highlights of my day.

Dawn over the Santa Barbara Channel.

This the the following images were taken from the top of Lake Avenue in Altadena, CA.

Verdugo Hills and Crescenta Valley

Downtown Pasadena, CA.

Downtown Los Angeles, CA with Palos Verdes Peninsula at left in distance.

Crescenta Valley with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's campus visible at center in middle distance.

Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Canada-Flintridge.

Lake Avenue headed down the hill towards downtown Pasadena, CA.

Downtown Pasadena, CA.

Downtown Los Angeles, CA, with the Rose Bowl superstructure at right in the foreground.

Where you see hills, think earthquakes because that is how these hills were built up over geologic time.

Santa Catalina Island is in the distance, then Palos Verdes Peninsula in middle distance.

Whittier Hills and Orange County beyond.

Santa Ana Mountains in the distance.

Whittier Hills and Puente Hills

I saw this CERT class advertisement on a sign on Lake Avenue.

Dr. and Mrs. McGee's old house at 1285 Woodbury Drive in Altadena, CA.
To me it always was and remains "The Folk's House."

The new owners have really fixed it up nice.

The charming but destructive ivy is all gone in front but the wonderful trees are still there.

The late Dr. Lois Groth's old home now stands abandoned and looks like a haunted house across the street from "The Folk's House." This used to be the tidiest and neatest property on all of Woodbury Drive from east to west.

A beautiful Santa Ana Windy day in Pasadena... these are the most beautiful days of the year at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains. To me this is a quintessential Santa Ana Wind scene in this neighborhood that conjures many fond memories from my childhood.

I love this campus... I'm just not smart enough to attend school there.

Perhaps the most interesting map on the wall this day at Cal Tech's seismo-lab.

The media room at the seismo-lab at Cal Tech.

Kate firing up the big screen.

This was a simulation of the earthquake early warning system.

Each media outlet has its own feed connection.

Interesting paleo-seismological exhibit.

The Cal Tech Earthquake Exhibit
All photos by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).

Picture of the Day - Atmospheric Atmosphere

I captured this scene late this afternoon while working a wedding at Robert Hall on the east side of Paso Robles. This image was captured through my telephoto lens looking to my southwest as a line of storm clouds trained by northwest to southeast.
Photo by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).

I'm Afraid of Franco and Rogan Naked

This is quite definitely the funniest thing I have seen in longer than I can remember. For those of you who are not hip to pop culture this is James Franco and Seth Rogan in a tongue-in-cheek episode of the television show Naked and Afraid.

Thought of the Day - Horseshoe Theory

Several years ago I encountered a rather remarkable observation and associated name on a Yahoo Group for historical reenactors. In a conversation thread about something political which I immediately forgot there was mention of an explanation for a universal truth which I never forgot. The Horseshoe Theory explains everything I have seen of the arcs of variation of opinion on any subject. It's basic premise is that in any ideological arc the two extreme ends have more in common with each other than they do with the center or even more moderate elements of their own side. When I looked up this theory on Google perhaps as recently as a few years ago I could not find any mention of it. In recent days I felt the desire to finally share it with you here based upon my own interpretation and memory of how it was used in that original context. However, to my surprise and delight, tonight I noticed that there are actually now several pages devoted to it not the least of which are Wikipedia and RationalWiki. Apparently, this theory was first set forth by French philosopher Jean-Pierre Faye in 2008. However, Josef Joffe gives an excellent explanation of it in an essay:

"Left and right together illustrated once more the "horseshoe" theory of modern politics: As the iron is bent backward, the two extremes almost touch."

Come Home

Since I recently purchased my first ever speakers with a separate woofer unit (yeah, I know, pretty pathetic, ain't it?) I have been going back through and listening to a great many tracks and sets to see how they sound now with a better sound system. Some songs have suddenly vaulted into a higher level with me now that I can hear their full range of aural beauty, power and complexity. Tonight I rediscovered "Come Home" by Alpha 9 (a.k.a. Arty) and was blown away by how great it sounds on even merely decent speakers (my new set-up cost me a mere $25 at K-Mart). Crank this up and enjoy!
 *Note: my boycott of all things Russian does not extend to trance music.

Random Musings of a Ramblin' Fool L

Almost half a year (5-1/2 months) has transpired since I last posted one of these columns. For those of you who don't know it, the L in the title above is the Roman numeral for the number 50. This blog has picked up over 70,000 more visits and added 209 additional posts since last June 30th's Random Musings. During that time my monthly productivity never dropped below 30 posts per month whereas there were four months in the first half of this year which saw monthly post totals in the teens. July to August saw individual visits to this blog exceed 13,000 each month. This edition of Random Musings will be more Kim-centric than I'd like but I must get you all caught up on things with me since last I opined upon such things here.

Fall 2014 Cal Poly Quarter Synopsis

Last week was finals week at Cal Poly. This is my first week of Christmas vacation which I am thoroughly enjoying. So what happened this just-ended quarter at Cal Poly? I took 15 units which is considered a bit heavy a course load for the first quarter of a transfer from a community college. What courses did I take?

I took a 2-unit History 100 (Introduction to the Study (and Practice) of History) with Dr. Kathleen Murphy. This class is a prerequisite for taking any additional history classes at Cal Poly as it teaches one the basics of how to study history.  In this class I started my research on the Cal Poly Plane Crash which I intend to pursue further in my senior project and Master's thesis. In this class I earned an A-.

I took a 4-unit Spanish 103 (Elementary Spanish III) with Dr. Anthony Rector. I could have taken this course at Cuesta College but it would have required I go to the SLO campus four or five days a week which was a non-starter for me. Consequently, I had to take it at Cal Poly. It is a prerequisite for taking Spanish 201 which I am signed up for next quarter and is a terminal level Spanish class for me (meaning it is as high as I have to go to get a bachelor's degree). I struggled in this class as I do not have an aptitude for learning new languages and my 44 year-old mind is not at the stage of life where it is most apt to learn a new language. Also, I did not work as hard in this class as I could have or should have in hind-sight. In this class I earned a C.

I took a 5-unit History 303 (Research and Writing Seminar in History) with Dr. Christina Firpo. There were two versions of this course offered this past quarter. I took the one which sounded less interesting, to wit, "Race, Sex, and Orientalism in Colonial Southeast Asia." It was the one with available openings although the other version of the class with Dr. Trice sounded more interesting subject matter-wise, but was full. Dr. Firpo's class was the hardest class I have ever experienced and any grade in it (I feel) is equivalent to the next letter grade up if all other factors are considered equal. I also learned more in that class than in any other class I have ever experienced. Dr. Firpo forced me to become a better writer and added multiple additional facets to my writing ability for which I am forever indebted to her. That is true despite the fact I was miserable at times during the class as I was forced out of my comfort zone which was what I needed in order to get better. She also taught me some neat-o research tricks which will be useful to me. In this class I earned a B which feels like an A and I am proud of that B.

I took a 4-unit Geography 308 (Global Geography) with Dr. Peter Osterroth initially and down the stretch with Dr. Meg Streiff. This class started out slow and a bit weird as an over-the-hill and long-in-the-tooth German language instructor who happened to be a geography PhD from way back when filled in for the instructor who usually taught the class as she went on sabbatical. He also taught some sociology classes. As the quarter progressed he got more erratic and began to conflate the curriculae of his geography and sociology classes. Enough complaints filtered in that they shit-canned him mid-quarter and brought back the instructor who went on sabbatical. She rocked and geography clicked so much with me I have decided to make it my minor instead of political science. In this class I earned an easy A.

I ended the Fall 2014 quarter with a 3.093 GPA.

Things I Didn't Do At Cal Poly

I had planned on joining the team of volunteers for the Rose Bowl Float this fall, but due to my time constraints with school and with work for Vino Vice, Inc. I could not make it work. I hope that next fall it will work out for me to volunteer for that project. I also did not make it to a single meeting of the on-campus Christian club this past quarter which met on the Dexter Lawn each Thursday morning at 11 a.m. I fully intend to start making these meetings when my schedule allows sometime next year. Winter 2015 quarter does not look promising, unfortunately, given my schedule. I did not date a Poly Dolly. Perhaps I'm too old for that sort of thing and given I am limiting myself to Christian ladies that may thoroughly eliminate any such possibility... which is fine with me if that is God's will.... but there's nothing wrong with wishing.

I SOARed But Didn't WOW

Last August I attended SOAR (Student Orientation And Registration) voluntarily, but did not attend WOW (Week of Welcome) last September. However, I just discovered via Twitter that starting next fall it will be mandatory for all incoming students to attend both. SOAR is an absolute must for any incoming student which makes this pronouncement a wise thing. However, I'm less certain about WOW. As a 44 year-old single guy I felt that my presence there might have held a creepy factor. I am old enough to be these nascent Polly Dolly's daddy and hanging out with new students and their parents didn't seem appetizing to a guy already slightly self-conscious of his age going back to school and for whom being a multi-decadal local made orientation less useful.

What's Next For Me At Cal Poly

I have signed up for four classes worth 16 units in Winter 2015 quarter. I am enrolled in a 4-unit Spanish 201 (Intermediate Spanish I). I am on the waiting list for a 4-unit History 214 (Political Economy of Latin America and the Middle East). I am enrolled in a 4-unit History 304 (Historiography) which is the next and final history prerequisite for me. It will study historical writing including historical theory such as those of Marx and Foucualt. I am also enrolled in a 4-unit History 322 (History of Modern America). If I don't get into History 214 I will still be doing 12 units in three challenging classes and a slight break might not be a bad thing for me.

Big Changes at Vino Vice

Vino Vice changed hands as the founding owner Jim Davis sold it to my friend Geoff Auslen. This change will allow for continued growth of the business as is already being manifested. Before the change I seemed on track to become a supervisor and that seems to still be the case. Work for this company has been a convenient and invaluable augmentation to my student loans and grants and has offset the loss of my job with Rocks & Relics early last year.

El Niño Or Not, It's Raining Bunches

Climatologists still haven't officially declared an El Niño as the atmosphere does not seem to yet agree with what the Pacific Ocean itself is suggesting about current state of ENSO. However, we are in a wet pattern the likes we have not seen since at least 2005, the last time we got a good El Niño soaking... although that was a weak El Niño like the current one if it even officially becomes one. Just to confuse things it is worth noting that 2009-2010 was a moderate El Niño rainy season, the last previous season for El Niño. No memorable rain patterns or singular storms occurred then such as we have been experiencing in recent weeks in California. Cleary, if we get a lot of rain or not is much more complex a dynamic than merely to El Niño, or not to El Niño.

*Note: I have many more things to discuss in this space but not the time to do it tonight. Hopefully I will post another Random Musings before the New Year.

Half Of You Are In Blue

Using census data, Business Insider has determined that half of the population of these United States live in the blue-shaded counties on the map above. They are shaded blue not by coincidence but because they are counties which vote Democrat and lean Left politically and culturally. Only 15 of California's 58 counties vote Dem and lean Left. Geographically-speaking, California is a Red State while culturally and thus politically it is a Blue State.

A Real Traffic-Stopper

Last night this 8-ton boulder came tumbling down a hillside near the bottom of the Cuesta Grade just north of Reservoir Canyon Road and onto Highway 101 during yet another Pacific storm. It caused the freeway to be shut down in both directions for awhile as a semi truck stuck it and overturned shutting down the freeway. A small automobile was also involved trapping and injuring the driver. Photo by CAL FIRE (all rights reserved).

From Russia With Lava

My friend Roxxfoxx shared this tonight on Twitter and Yahoo Groups. It is so good I'm passing it along here.

Picture of the Day - Cyclist Down Tonite

This was the scene less than an hour ago out in front of the house in front of my house (I live down an alley in back). I was next door at my buddy Mark's place watching old episodes of the original British TV series The Office (to which I have become addicted) when I heard an air brake engage outside on the street in front.  I immediately associated it with a fire apparatus and got up and stepped out the front door to look. I noticed Paso Robles Engine 8191 engaged in a medical aid on the side of the street along with a Paso Robles police officer and his car. Within a minute or two Medic 21 arrived and pulled up behind the engine. On the radio in route to Twin Cities Hospital the medics reported this as a 55 year-old cyclist who had fallen off his bike as opposed to a car versus cyclist. Photo by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).

My Favorite Force of Nature

I first encountered Force of Nature's wine at Hotel Cheval earlier this year in a Zinfandel. Later, my buddy Mark shared with me their Tempranillo. Both wines were memorably great... so much so that at Hotel Cheval I asked to see the bottle and it was when I saw the label artwork the love affair was then complete.

I proceeded to forget all about this wine after my first quarter at Cal Poly began in late September. That quarter having just ended last week and now being on vacation I strode into the Albertson's in Atascadero yesterday. There I found that same Zinfandel again and purchased a bottle for dinner with mom last night. If anything it seemed even better that time around... or it paired better with Thai food than as a stand-alone glass of wine.

What I love about the labels themselves are they have relief as opposed to being flat like most labels, utilize higher-quality paper, and stylistically imitate the medieval European woodcut and even the quote in the caption below is very much in the medieval European chronicle style. 

This is my current favorite wine with the Zinfandel being my favorite varietal although the Tempranillo is great. There are three others under this label: Pinot Gris, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay, all of which I intend to experience. Fortunately for me, owner Rob Murray has opened up shop at the castle winery on Highway 46 West so I don't have to drive far to experience all the Forces of Nature.

Inscribed vertically at left out of view is "This FORCE OF NATURE appeared in the tenth month of the year 2012."

Photos by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).

Netherworld Is Heaven On Earth

This is an awe-inspiring example of what was so right with trance music when it was still its heyday albeit towards the end. As we all know it has since become too commercial and pop with some notable exceptions. I first encountered it on In Search of Sunrise 4 (which some might argue was a manifestation of that creeping commercialism and popularization). This late old-school trance track from 2005 is Oliver Prime's remix of Oliver Lieb's side project LSG's "Netherworld." Lieb originally cut it on vinyl in 1996 which you can listen to HERE. That was from a time when trance was nascently coming into its own largely within the underground rave scene. I prefer the more polished sound of this later version which is on the player below.

A Tale Of Two T-Storm Pics

I visited the 911 Supply House in Paso Robles this afternoon. I did some Christmas shopping there AND talked to the co-owner Jim Fritsche who founded and directs the North San Luis Obispo County CERT of which I am a member. We talked about a great many things and by the time I left to head home the weather had dramatically changed outside. This dying storm cell on the backside of the huge Pacific storm which passed through last night was incredible in both storm structure and color. Combined with the perfect angle of setting sun through a rain-washed atmosphere it was like nothing I remember seeing heretofor in the North County.

I usually take my camera with me everywhere I go but neglected to do so on this outing which undoubtedly was the reason this scene unfolded when and where it did. Jim captured the scene in the top-most image below and shared it with us. I captured the image below it on my cell phone a short time later on my walk home as I rushed (too late) to get back to my house (and camera). The glow-glare from this cloud complex turned everything a surreal peach color which dramatically greeted me when I stepped out the door to leave.

Photo by Jim Fritsche (all rights reserved).

Photo by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved)

Three Types of Tags

These are three types of post-disaster tag options that fire department or building department inspectors leave behind after an inspection prompted by a safety concern. In this case, these are three examples of the different levels as posted on three different structures in the Camarillo area by the Ventura County Fire Department earlier today following the big Pacific storm that just passed through.

"Green-tagged"

"Yellow-tagged"

"Red-tagged"
All photos by Ventura County Captain Mike Lindbery (all rights reserved).

Picture of the Day - Storm-Damaged Billboard

At midday I captured this image through the front passenger window of my friend Blake's car as he, his girlfriend Krystal, and I made our way from San Luis Obispo. We were there this morning as we sold back some textbooks at Cal Poly. Last night's storm's high winds damaged this billboard on the northbound side of US101 of the south base of the Cuesta Grade. In north Atascadero it completely knocked over another billboard along US101 at Santa Rita Creek bridge.
Photo by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).

Squall Line Looming

This is an unusual sight here on the Central Coast that was captured on radar a short time ago. This squall line will reach Paso Robles within an hour or two. Three years of drought has deprived us of any Pacific storms of this magnitude. Additionally, the ongoing negative phase of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation has caused us to have fewer and weaker El Niños than otherwise. The net effect is that we have not seen weather like this in quite some time which makes for an exciting night here on the Central Coast. With El Niño-like conditions being felt locally this is but the latest in an ongoing series of Pacific storms.
Image courtesy of NOAA's NWS (all rights reserved)

Picture of the Day - Pacific Storm Approach

This was the view from atop Building Five (Architecture & Environmental Design) on the Cal Poly Campus right before my last final of the just-ending quarter this afternoon. This is the massive Pacific Storm of 12/11/14 approaching the Central Coast of California. Locally-iconic Bishop Peak is visible at right.
Photo by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).

2014 Vine St. Victorian Showcase Preview

Tonight I realized I will miss this year's Vine Street Victorian Showcase event here in Paso Robles this Saturday evening as I will be working a wedding during that time. I also realized that with the coming monster Pacific storm I won't be able to take any good photos of the Christmas lights tomorrow night. Add to that I don't know to what degree, if any, the storm will tear up people's light displays given the wind forecast so Friday night might be too late. Therefore, after getting back into town after my Spanish 103 final this evening and the birthday party I attended afterwards, I went out with my dog Tequila and shot the following images, in descending order below. Unfortunately, by the time I got out to do this some light displays were already shut down for the night while others were lit when I started but were shuttered by the time I got to their location. Nonetheless, this is a nice sampler of this year's offerings. Some displays are identical to past years and some have added some twists. Note: lucky me has been living in this neighborhood for the last five years. 

All photos by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).