Los Feliz Halloween

90 Degrees and Sunny

How does one shift gears when the whisper of autumn is still just a tease?

The year is dangerously close to coming to an end and, yet it feels like July,

east coast, sticky July.

My sweaters are still neatly folded in boxes on shelves in the closet.

As the sun sets I have no need to wrap my limbs in tightly woven knits.

Hard to believe since I run cold and almost every season in LA requires a sweater.

An October weekend at the beach,

feet from the water's edge,

and still I was sleeveless.

Deep in my belly I yearn for change,

for the seasons to get on with it,

for my life to move forward.
And yet, why force the advancement of the unknown?
Why not stay in the moment, enjoy the heat and endless summer?
These are the thoughts that toggle in my brain
as I hike into the October sunset.

Now

... the river is everywhere at once,

 at the source and at the mouth, at the waterfall,

 at the ferry, at the rapids, in the sea, in the mountains,

 everywhere at once,

 and that there is only the present time for it,

 not the shadow of the past, not the shadow of the future.

Herman Hesse 

 

Sunset From Bedroom Window

The Name of the Game

Patience is the master key to every situation.

One must have sympathy for everything,

surrender to everything,

but at the same time remain patient and forbearing.

kafka

The Lazy Photographer

I often see the best shots from the driver seat in my car,

and get frustrated when I can't pull over and shoot.

Thankfully traffic and stop lights are aplenty in LA, giving birth to the lazy photographer.

This is what I snapped on my way to dinner.

Birthday Cake

A Manual for Cleaning Women

So many books, so little time.

This is a stunning book of short stories by Lucia Berlin.

A Producer's Life

A producer's life is about countless hours spent reading.

In addition to scripts, there are books and more books.

The pile and search for source material is endless.

This is what I've read in the last few weeks.

Sunrise at the beach

Watching the sun rise over the mountains

and spill light onto the wide swath of sand. 

 Spectacular way to start the day.

 

October

Perhaps climate change is contributing

to the warped passage of time.

Persistent triple digit temperatures

make for the perfect beach weekend.

The calendar says Autumn,

but if feels like July, summer at its peak.

Conversations about Thanksgiving feel premature

and crates of pumpkins outside grocery stores seem out of place.

Our traditional seasons are morphing into something alarming,

the extremes are becoming the norm.

I escaped the city heat and headed to the beach with friends
for a glorious summer fall weekend.

October Sky

Smouldering October sky

blazing outside my window

calls me to my feet.

The warm night is still, but the moment momentous

as summer bleeds into autumn 

before my eyes. 

The Unlived Life

Our unlived lives

might become a protracted mourning for,

or an endless tantrum about,

the lives we were unable to live.

But the exemptions we suffer,

whether forced or chosen,

make us who we are.

Adam Phillips

 

Desert Love

What is it about the desert 

that brings me deep peace and joy?

The sky with its big puffy clouds?

The light that makes the mountains glow purple?

The warm sunlight on my back as I climb the trail above the city?

The pool water lapping after I swim a lap?

The night breeze that lulls me to sleep as the moon charts its path?