My New Camera

Last year around tax return time, I bought myself a little gift I like to call the macbook pro. This year, I gifted myself an extravagance I could nary afford. I splurged on Nikon D40 and spent the day on Saturday exploring Oceanside and Island Park, taking a few photos. I learned a few things.

1. The Long Beach area is exactly as boring as I think it is.
2. A gorgeous camera does not automatically qualify one as a genius photographer.
3. Neighbors do not appreciate you traipsing across their lawn to take self-indulgent photos of the power plants that litter their backyards.

Here are a couple of my favorites. You can click on them to see them larger. I've been salivating over the Astro Steel Corps sign for months, and the birds were kind enough to fly into my shot, just before I slid down the windshield and collapsed on the hood of the car. Don't worry, both camera and car are in tact.

Here, this insane person has an actual missile decorating his lawn. It, and everything else on the lawn, was spray painted gold and emblazoned with American Flags except ironically, the flag on this side of the missile was backwards. And so we dub thee photo, Accidental Anarchy! (It's not an upside down flag, but it is backwards, so that's close.)

What's really funny is that the lawn ornament at the neighbor's house is one of those cheesy dolphins-coming-out-of-the-water sculpture. I wonder who's regarded as the eccentric....