Tag: kids

I Love My Park Day fun in City Heights!

This afternoon lots of families came out to the City Heights Recreation Center to enjoy the big, free I Love My Park Day event! The festivities were organized by the San Diego Parks Foundation.

Not only was there yummy food, but there was a fun photo booth, kids games, a climbing wall, several art activities, and lots of smiling people working to help the City Heights community.

Entertainment was provided by the awesome hip hop Junkyard Dance Crew. I was told the dance group has been a San Diego fixture for fifteen years! Their positive energy up on the stage was nonstop and infectious!

It’s always great to see people come together at events such as this. It’s how new smiles are propagated, and how a valuable sense of community grows.

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Youth exhibition at San Diego Museum of Art.

Young Art 2023: Comfort and Calm is a free youth exhibition now on view at the San Diego Museum of Art until May 15, 2023.

I’m always amazed by the local talent that appears every two years at the museum’s longest running art program–almost a century now! Students from regional schools around San Diego and Tijuana have selected work displayed in SDMA’s Galleries 14 and 15.

This year the theme is Comfort and Calm. In an age of COVID-19, barbaric war, political hatred, talk of the world’s end, and addictive, omnipresent social media that provides a deluge of shallowness, nastiness, confusion and absurdity, I can definitely understand why young people would seek comfort and calm, and how artistic expression can provide that refuge.

The artworks you’ll see are not only very well done but inspiring. Thank goodness, the human spirit is resilient.

You can freely access Galleries 14 and 15 from a corner of the May S. Marcy Sculpture Court and its Panama 66 restaurant. Look for the following sign and head through the nearby doors that lead to museum restrooms.

Enjoy a few examples of this great youth art…

Sunset, Thrace Hollmann. Torrey Pines Elementary School, Grade 4.

Along the Border, Katelyn Wang. The Bishop’s School, Grade 12.

Spring Rain, Joana Jiang. Francis Parker School, Grade 11.

Look Around, Carley Chen. The Bishop’s School, Grade 10.

Sunset Fields, Ivory Rose Foley. Gillispie School, Grade 4.

My Nature, Olivia Dooda. Johnson Elementary, Grade 2.

Hilltop Home, Hadley Lischke. Gillispie School, Grade 1.

Warmth, Ava O’Connor. Westview High School, Grade 12.

Sleepy, Gabriella Hernandez. Chula Vista High and School for the Creative and Performing Arts, Grade 12.

Have you noticed electrical boxes around downtown San Diego that appear like special works of art? Many of these boxes were painted in 2021 for the San Diego Museum of Art’s previous Youth Art exhibition.

You can find those photographs by clicking here and scrolling down.

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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!

Good times at 25th Annual Rolando Street Fair!

Spring must be here, because community festivals have begun to “spring up” around San Diego!

The 25th Annual Rolando Street Fair was held today, and because I’ve never experienced this event, I had to check it out!

What a cool neighborhood street festival!

Lots of families were enjoying a huge kids play zone, plus there were many booths that focused on youth education. There was a stage with live music, tons of food, the expected rows of vendors, and artists were showing their work, too!

A good crowd had already gathered in the Rolando Street Fair’s first hour.
It’s Odi from the San Diego Public Library!
Crawford High School has many notable graduates. I was told half a dozen major league baseball catchers have come from this local school!
If you want music lessons, this is the man to see!
The youthful @kidTRIBUTES were covering classic rock hits.
There’s a College Area Community Garden near SDSU. I think I’ve seen these guys at another event.
Colorful artwork by Bianca Marcellous (@Blancbyrd).
The artist smiled for a photo!
This cool guy was displaying some wood art. He represented Old Fashioned Lumber, a San Diego custom design and fabrication shop.
This is a time traveling character, by @zander6comix.
And here’s the artist!
Lots to do along Rolando Boulevard during the street fair.
Lots to eat, too!
A bunch of jumpers ahead await fun-loving kids.
Yes, it’s the 25th Annual Rolando Street Fair!

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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!

Kids art at Algo Bueno in Chula Vista!

Check out all the fun art on a wall at Algo Bueno in Chula Vista! The artwork was painted by local kids!

I was walking around yesterday when I saw this colorful wall at 354 Church Avenue where Algo Bueno (Something Good), an outdoor eatery, is located. The area was fenced off, so I took zoom photos and sharpened them.

This great art was designed and created by students from Chula Vista Learning Community Charter Middle School.

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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!

Dwarf dinosaur “glarfs” restored in Bonita!

Two dwarf dinosaur glarfs have been restored in Bonita!

The glarfs, named Rumbi and Rangui, now stand behind construction fencing in front of Bonita Village Shopping Center. They appear just about ready to be set free!

According to a posted letter, Rumbi the Glarf (the yellow one) was badly hurt last year. But Rumbi’s human friend Kelly has been working to make everything all better.

Several loving messages on the fence express Get Well wishes.

A nearby plaque explains a bit of glarf history. Rangui is the blue one…

RANGUI THE GLARF

Original created in 1959 by Jerry Lee Gauss

Replication by Kelly Tracy in 2006

Rangui is the original Glarf dinosaur created by Bonita’s Jerry Lee Gauss. The story of Rangui and Rumbi was told in the 2000 Bonitafest Melodrama “When Dinosaurs Roamed the Valley” in The San Diego Union-Tribune and on Channel 7/39’s “About San Diego.” Cast and audience members raised funds to rebuild Rangui.

Unfortunately, there’s a terribly tragic aspect to this otherwise wonderful story. The 15-year-old creator of the glarfs, Jerry Lee Gauss perished four years later at the age of 19 in a car accident.

According to the RoadsideAmerica website, both glarfs were made as an anniversary present for Jerry’s parents. And here’s a little more of the history.

Fully restored, children will again be able to romp on the strong backs of Rumbi and Rangui. And so a young creator’s gift of love will live on and on.

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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!

Photos of San Diego Chinese New Year Fair!

The 40th Annual San Diego Chinese New Year Fair is being held this weekend in the Gaslamp Quarter. I swung by earlier today to take in all the excitement, culture and color!

It seems every year I go to this event it has grown larger. A big crowd had gathered today, Saturday, as the festivities began mid-morning. (It probably didn’t hurt that many Padres fans were walking through on their way to FanFest.)

I watched the joyful traditional Lion Dancing, then a couple of energetic dance performances by students from Riverview International Academy in Lakeside.

Wishes for health, peace and prosperity abounded. One of the speakers was Camille P. Dawson, the United States Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs. How impressive is that?

Enjoy some photos and imagine the atmosphere! This fun Chinese New Year event continues through the weekend!

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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!

Preview of Animation Academy at Comic-Con Museum!

The Animation Academy – from Pencils to Pixels officially opens tomorrow at the Comic-Con Museum in Balboa Park!

Members of the Comic-Con Museum got a preview of the incredible new exhibition today!

Who doesn’t love animated features and cartoons? We all have our favorites, right? Well, chances are some of your best-loved television shows and movies pop up in this delightful exhibition.

The Animation Academy, as its name suggests, is both educational and interactive. Every sort of technology that has produced animation is explored, from early magic lanterns and spinning thaumatropes and phenakistoscopes(!), to state-of-the-art non-photorealistic rendering and 3D printing.

Not only will you learn about the rich history of animation, and the artists and studios who’ve added to the popular culture, but there are several opportunities for visitors to create their own animated masterpieces!

Among the numerous displays are realistic recreations of work stations, puppets and miniature sets that demonstrate what it’s like to be a stop motion animator.

Fans of Gumby and Looney Tunes, in particular, will be excited to find themselves immersed in well done, interactive displays.

Do you love Bugs Bunny and his friends? You’ll have a chance to view all sorts of original sketches, drawings and animation cells. You’ll even see the typewriter used by legendary Chuck Jones. (Did you know Chuck Jones was inspired by Mark Twain? I didn’t!)

The exhibition encourages curiosity and creativity. Kids will surely enjoy it. Adults with imagination and a sense of fun absolutely will, too!

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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!

Images and Expressions of a better world.

Three signs at San Elijo Lagoon Ecological Reserve contain the wisdom of local school kids. I noticed the signs during a walk up the Pole Trail. They are a bit distant from the trail, but easily spotted.

On one sign you’ll see Images of a better world; on another, Expressions of a better world. More words from young people who care about the world they live in can be read on the third sign.

Images of a better world. Skyline Elementary School, Grade 5, Fall 2007.

A world with no endangered animals.

Expressions of a better world. Cardiff Elementary School, MAC Kids, Fall 2007.

…With help from humans, mixed with the right amount of respect, the lagoon becomes a big, beautiful habitat for animals and plants, and a place for people to enjoy too…

Field notes and quotes. Rancho Santa Fe Elementary School, Grades 5 and 6, Fall 2007.

It’s best for people to know that our wetlands are very important. The wetlands are home to many creatures and it would be sad for them to go away because of habitat loss…

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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!

One more day of Christmas in San Diego!

Christmas carols in early January? Christmas carols are what the audience heard and sang this afternoon at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion in Balboa Park!

Accomplished guest organist Alison Luedke, who has performed with the San Diego Symphony, explained today’s concert. The celebration of Epiphany is traditionally the last day for the performance of Christmas carols, especially those concerning the Three Wise Men.

Accompanying her for the two o’clock free organ concert were the voices of three young people, members of the Nativity Children’s Choir.

I was amazed at the poise of the very young people. And by their confident voices.

You will be hearing their voices well into the future.

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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!

More fun pops up at downtown’s Children’s Park!

Oh my goodness! What’s that white tower-like thing? Looks like a tower of fun!

I walked up 1st Avenue beside Children’s Park this morning and peered over the construction fence. Substantial progress has been made in the downtown park’s big redesign and renovation!

Last May I posted photos from Front Street of the wooden play structure under construction. Now every aspect of the new and improved Children’s Park, including its vendor and restroom building, is taking form!

I can’t wait until the project is completed and the fountain is turned back on!

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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!