Tag: hobbies

Fun photos from Deck the Cars!

Cars lovers gathered early this morning for Deck the Cars in Balboa Park.

The San Diego Automotive Museum every third Sunday has a Cars and Coffee event in the nearby parking lot, but it’s the Holiday Season, so the event was renamed Deck the Cars this month.

As I wandered about, I found decorated hot rods, classic cars, lowriders . . . and smiles and Christmas garb . . . and Santa going ho-ho-ho, too!

That crazy wonderful car in the second-to-last photo is the Christmas Imaginarium Carriage. I posted photos of it a few minutes ago here!

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Dismasted whaling ship undergoes repairs!

The historic 1841 whaling ship Charles W. Morgan has undergone major repairs at the Maritime Museum of San Diego. The model ship, that is!

I learned from Tom Hairston, of the San Diego Ship Modelers Guild, that the ship became partially dismasted after “running aground” in a crashing gravitational accident! He effected repairs over the course of a month. He even rebuilt the shattered display case. Now the ship in its new “berth” appears immaculate!

This beautiful model of the tall ship Charles W. Morgan is one of many detailed model ships that visitors to the Maritime Museum can admire.

Tom told me he’d discovered several inaccuracies in the original model. Even those with absolutely no nautical knowledge can spot one glaring historical error.

Do you see it?

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

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!

Making spheres and cabochons in Balboa Park!

If you ever visit Spanish Village Art Center in Balboa Park, make sure to step into the San Diego Mineral and Gem Society building. Inside you’ll discover walls lined with displays. Arranged in glass cases are crystals, fossils, jade carvings, handmade jewelry and a whole lot more.

You might not view, however, what goes on behind the scenes.

During this weekend’s December Nights event, the public was invited into several rooms where students were transforming minerals and gems into works of art!

I confess that as a boy I had a rock tumbler. Promising stones found on the beach would be rounded and polished in the simple tumbler until they seemed like bright bits of treasure. I also had an uncle who enjoyed lapidary as a hobby–he gave me a tiny fire opal cabochon as a present one year.

Have you considered working with metals, gems and minerals? I’m sure it would be a lot of fun!

I see the San Diego Mineral and Gem Society offers many very affordable classes. You can learn faceting, metal fabrication, casting, carving…

During my behind-the-scenes look yesterday, I spoke to one friendly teacher and watched students grinding and polishing minerals using specialized machines. And I took these photographs in the “cab room” where spheres and cabochons are created!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

It’s easy to explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag. There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

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!

Tiny books exhibit at Central Library!

You can fit a whole lot of tiny books, each less than two inches tall, in a display case! That what you’ll notice when you visit the Hervey Family Rare Book Room at San Diego’s Central Library.

One handy thing about a tiny book is you can easily carry it in your pocket.

On the other hand, a tiny book’s content must be very slight, or with print so small you’ll need superhuman eyesight. In fact, some of these very tiny books have been sold with a magnifying glass!

Looking at these amazing little creations, I wonder if a microscope would actually be necessary. According to one sign, a record set for the smallest book is the 3/16 inch by 7/32 inch The Rose Garden of Omar Khayyam.

Many of these unique books are created by bibliophiles and printing enthusiasts. Tiny books are also in demand as collectibles.

I must admit, before the advent of smartphones, The Midget Webster Dictionary (with 18,000 words) in my upcoming photo might have been useful. And tiny Tom Thumb might enjoy that book concerning his history!

The Central Library in downtown San Diego is home to more than 500 miniature books, all part of the Wangenheim Rare Book Collection.

Many of these books must be witty. Because, you know, brevity is the soul of…

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Thank you for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often, so you might want to bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and check back from time to time.

You can explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

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!

Orchids in the Park returns to San Diego!

The San Diego County Orchid Society is hosting their summer Orchids in the Park show and sale in Balboa Park this weekend!

I was drawn to Room 101 in the Casa del Prado once I saw a sign pointing to the popular free event.

The show’s many tables were overflowing with orchids in many shapes, sizes and colors. Every flower was like a perfect jewel.

I found so many examples of nature’s beauty (tended by the caring hands of society members), that I had to capture a little bit of it with my camera…

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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!

Cool cars on a Thursday in La Mesa!

It’s summer. It’s a Thursday.

That, of course, means the weekly La Mesa Classic Car Show was held this evening in the Village of La Mesa!

A large crowd was sitting along La Mesa Boulevard east of Spring Street, on sidewalk benches, on lawn chairs, or at tables outside restaurants, looking at cars as families passed by.

There were classic cars, lowriders, hot rods . . . cars that were perfectly restored or partially restored–it didn’t matter. And there were trucks, and vans, and uniquely modified vehicles that were one-of-a-kind. All were admired as works of art.

What an awesome event!

A community drawn together. Generations sharing one passion.

Voices sharing stories. . . the smell of food . . . the sound of a band playing nearby . . .

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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 look inside Escondido’s Blacksmith & Wheelwright Shop.

Should you find yourself at Escondido’s Grape Day Park on a Saturday afternoon, be sure to walk over to that green corrugated metal building near the old train depot museum. You’ll be able to enjoy a look inside the Bandy Blacksmith & Wheelwright Shop and see instructors, students and Bandy Blacksmith Guild members at work!

I happened to be walking by a couple Saturdays ago, so I took these photographs.

Students were learning the basics of blacksmithing near one of the forges, and several friendly gentlemen were busy inside the woodworking shop building a dray wagon that will eventually hold a portable blacksmith shop for public demonstration.

You can learn much more about the Bandy Blacksmith Guild by clicking here. Perhaps sign up for a class!

The history of the Tom Bandy Blacksmith is complex and interesting. You can read about that history and learn how the present structure ended up in Grape Day Park by clicking here.

When I read the page concerning past projects of the Bandy Blacksmith Guild, I was surprised that guild members produced most of the metalwork for the Maritime Museum of San Diego’s replica Spanish galleon San Salvador. (Yes, the same ship that took part in Comic-Con last week! If you’d like to see photos of San Salvador being built, click here.)

Another past project of the Bandy Blacksmith Guild was the restoration of the San Diego Centennial Cannon, which I once photographed inside the Whaley House Museum. You can view a photograph of that historic cannon here!

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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!

Cars and Coffee outside the Automotive Museum!

Today is the third Sunday of the month. What makes that special in Balboa Park? This morning the San Diego Automotive Museum hosted their monthly Cars and Coffee event!

Dozens of cool cars, of every sort, pulled into the museum’s front parking lot by 7:30 am. Auto enthusiasts socialized, shared stories and looked at rows and rows of polished beauties.

I walked about and was amazed by the popularity of this event!

Check it out!

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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!

San Diego County Orchid Society’s amazing Fall Show.

The San Diego County Orchid Society had one of their flower shows in Balboa Park today. As I walked near the Casa del Prado, I noticed the Fall Show event sign, and my feet turned toward amazing natural beauty.

I love the many different gardening, art and craft shows that are held nearly every weekend in Balboa Park. But the Orchid Society‘s shows might be my favorite.

Want to know why?

Simply look at these photos from the 2021 “Orchids in the Park” Fall Show!

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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!

How to create a wildlife-friendly backyard!

I saw this great information on how to create a wildlife-friendly backyard and thought I’d share it! These four ideas were posted in a trailhead kiosk at Mission Trail Regional Park.

  1. Grow plants that provide wildlife with a natural food source such as nuts, berries or nectar, or add backyard feeders.
  2. Provide water for wildlife with a birdbath, small pond or shallow dish.
  3. Offer protective cover for wildlife by providing ground cover, a hollow log or rock piles, dense shrubs or a roosting box.
  4. Provide places for wildlife to raise their young, such as a water garden, pond or nesting box.

If you’d like to watch the birds and animals without them being spooked, or perhaps take close-up photographs, consider building a blind from which you can watch your wild visitors!

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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!