Positive mural offers hope for at-risk youth.

I AM POSSIBLE. A motivational public mural in a neighborhood with at-risk youth.
I AM POSSIBLE. A public mural expresses hope for at-risk youth.

A large mural has been recently painted in a neighborhood that is home to a significant population of at-risk youth. The public mural offers hope, positive reinforcement and inspiration. It reads simply: I AM POSSIBLE.

You can find this powerful new artwork painted at the corner of University Avenue and Marlborough Avenue in City Heights. It’s the creation of @midcitycanyouthcouncil and @channinfulton for #schoolsnotprisons.

This public art is a great example that other communities might follow.

For youth who feel trapped, or hopeless, or tempted to go down a self-destructive path, these beautifully painted words provide a constant visual reminder of life’s better possibilities.

Striking views downtown, gazing skyward.

About a week ago–before or after a recent storm–I walked through downtown San Diego in the early morning.

At street level the city was shadowy. The rising sun tinted the clouds with pink. Bright light was reflecting from the windows of several buildings.

I got these striking photographs!

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

A hopeful New Year in the Gaslamp.

It’s New Year’s Eve. This morning and afternoon I walked through the Gaslamp Quarter to see what’s in store for the midnight celebrations.

Up and down Fifth Avenue the restaurants, bars and hotels were getting ready. Workers were sweeping sidewalks, putting up balloons.

I see the Gaslamp Quarter has big plans for the future. According to some information you can read in one photo, Fifth Avenue is to become the Gaslamp Promenade–a sprawling urban plaza. I’m sure it will be opulent and amazing.

Apart from one photo in particular, in the morning I didn’t point my camera at the numerous homeless, who sleep on the sidewalk and in doorways before being ushered along.

The Gaslamp Quarter contains some very stark contrasts. There is material self-indulgence, and there is despair.

Hopefully, in the New Year, there’s more heart.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

A short story about a mysterious artifact.

Have you ever visited a museum and viewed an historical object that seems timeless? An artifact that might still belong in the hands of the living?

I’ve written a short story based on my own strange experiences. It has a surprise ending. It’s titled The Recovered Artifact.

To read it, click here!

I would like to express gratitude to those teachers who’ve introduced my story One Thousand Likes to students recently using Google Classroom. I observe my website stats and am stunned. I never imagined such a small story would be read by so many. It’s a writer’s wildest dream come true!

Now it’s time to start brainstorming again!

There are many more places to walk in San Diego and many more photographs to take. Unexpected new adventures await! Thanks for coming along!

Wishing all my readers a Happy New Year!

Richard

Flowers, patterns, and a tangle of emotions.

The prolific artists of @ladieswhopaint have created even more murals on F Street in San Diego’s East Village! These three colorful murals can be seen just west of Park Boulevard. Here are several photos!

The third mural has a small sign painted next to it that reads:

Saudade

A TANGLE OF EMOTIONS
BOTH HAPPY AND SAD
ABOUT MISSING SOMEONE
OR SOMETHING.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

Mysterious musicians painted downtown!

Is a new live music venue, nightclub or restaurant coming to 640 C Street in downtown San Diego? It sure looks that way!

In the past few days musicians have been painted on the windows of the 1928 Hamilton Fine Foods Building at the corner of Seventh Avenue and C Street. I noticed today that the stylish artwork is nearly finished. There are images of musicians that seem be be performing jazz, blues and even some country.

(All I know about the Hamilton Building is that when I first moved downtown it was the home of the San Diego Computer Museum, which displayed some of the earliest computers and had a Computer Hall of Fame. I visited that museum once and it was awesome–but that was years before I started Cool San Diego Sights. The San Diego Computer Museum closed their doors in 2006.)

These painted musicians are a mystery to me!

UPDATE!

It occurred to me after I published this blog that I didn’t take photos of the historic building, with its striking “columns” and classical friezes.

I walked by at a later time with my old camera, and got a few quick shots.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Street art near San Ysidro border crossing!

Should you ever walk through San Ysidro, a short distance north of the border crossing between San Diego and Tijuana, you’ll notice lots of colorful street art! Much of of the artwork celebrates Mexican culture, depicting kids with piñatas, vaqueros, mariachis, baile folklórico dancers, Aztec and Día de los Muertos imagery, and a whole variety of festive scenes.

I enjoyed a long walk from the San Ysidro/Tijuana Transit Center over the long pedestrian bridge that overlooks the busy Port of Entry, and west down Camino de la Plaza near Las Americas Premium Outlets. I then retraced my steps and headed north up San Ysidro Boulevard.

I noticed that much of the street art on electrical boxes, which has become faded over time, was painted by Gerardo Meza. I also saw some street lamp banners sponsored by the Border Public Art Committee featuring images by the same artist.

And look at the funny mural that I spotted! A shopper with a clown nose has money flying out of her purse!

San Ysidro is always bustling with humanity. The gritty streets and sidewalks hum with activity, as tourists, shoppers, workers and commuters head north and south at all hours. The nearby San Ysidro Port of Entry is the busiest land border crossing in the Western Hemisphere!

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

Bayside Performance Park rises on San Diego Bay!

Look what I spotted this afternoon during my walk along San Diego Bay. I was approaching the Marriott Marina when my eyes were surprised by a monumental steel structure rising from Embarcadero Marina Park South.

It’s the enormous stage of the new Bayside Performance Park, now under construction!

This permanent concert venue is an amazing gift from the San Diego Symphony to all of San Diego. How appropriate it appeared in time for Christmas!

As I walked around the construction site on my way to the Embarcadero Marina Park South pier, I spoke to a crew member of the Silvergate, a Coronado ferry that docks nearby, and he informed me the steel structure you see in my photographs went up rapidly four or five days ago.

You can also see a banner on a fence that shows what Bayside Performance Park might look like when completed. The concert stage’s curving shell is not only visually attractive, but it’s designed to provide a high quality acoustic experience.

Bayside Performance Park is due to open in time for the 2020 season of San Diego Symphony’s Bayside Summer Nights.

I can’t wait to see how it looks (and sounds) when completed!

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

A smile and rainbow for Christmas.

Today is Christmas.

During my walk along the Embarcadero, I found a smile and a rainbow.

Merry Christmas!

Photos of Gaslamp history on Fifth Avenue.

Should you walk down Fifth Avenue through the Gaslamp Quarter, you might notice electrical boxes on street corners that feature photos from San Diego history. I believe these graphics debuted a few months ago.

The San Diego History Center and Gaslamp Quarter Historical Foundation have furnished old photos and bits of fascinating information for curious people passing down the sidewalk.

In 1885 Wyatt Earp came to San Diego, where he operated three gambling halls, organized gambling excursions in Mexico, and prospected copper and gold.
In 1885 Wyatt Earp came to San Diego, where he operated three gambling halls, organized gambling excursions in Mexico, and prospected copper and gold.

The Louis Bank of Commerce building was the location of Madam Cora's infamous Golden Poppy Hotel. It was also San Diego's first downtown ice cream shop.
The Louis Bank of Commerce building was the location of Madam Cora’s infamous Golden Poppy Hotel. It was also San Diego’s first downtown ice cream shop.

The Old City Hall building housed police headquarters. The Gaslamp during much of its early history was a red-light district known as the Stingaree.
The Old City Hall building housed police headquarters. The Gaslamp during much of its early history was a red-light district known as the Stingaree.

The Yuma Building was one of downtown San Diego's first brick structures. The bottom floor contains the only original interior from the 1880s in the Gaslamp Quarter.
The Yuma Building was one of downtown San Diego’s first brick structures. The bottom floor contains the only original interior from the 1880’s in the Gaslamp Quarter.

In the 1970s a redevelopment and preservation program began aimed at establishing the historic Gaslamp Quarter.
In the 1970’s a redevelopment and preservation program began aimed at establishing the historic Gaslamp Quarter.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!