Fun time strolling at the San Dieguito River Park in Del Mar today despite the heat and humidity in the San Diego area! Shorebirds are thriving there and the water was crystal blue. Two Great White Egrets were in a tizzy, I saw a flock of Kildeer hurrying above yapping away (who knows why), a European Starling (I think) and a few gulls too! Panoramic view of the lagoon, Del Mar Fairgrounds, Viewpoint Brewery , the #5, then West towards the ocean.
Here’s a short video. Enjoy !
Had a great afternoon bird watching with my husband at the mile long, double loop, ADA accessible San Elijo Nature Center Loop Trail (Located off of Interstate #5 a bit West on Manchester Blvd. in Cardiff-by-the-Sea, California). There are several benches along the route to sit back, reflect and ‘take it all in’.
Despite the dredging and restoration lately, we saw some incredible shorebirds : The Great White Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Black-Crowned Night Heron as well as Mallards.
There’s a bit of restoration and dredging (thus, disruption of the bird habitats) happening these days, complete with large cranes, so I didn’t spot as many species as usual.
Feel free to read more about the San Elijo Nature Center plus, some info about the San Elijo Lagoon Conservancy
Here’s a short video….
I am always amazed at the striking rock formations and cliffs at Torrey Pines State Reserve and Beach. They are fascinating, colorful, majestic, steep and very old!
I spent some time walking along the beach recently and was in awe of the rock formations…caves…geometric shapes and more…
Here’s a short video to show the magic in the rocks!
I strolled along the La Jolla coastline the other day (mostly on Coast Blvd.) I discovered really cool breathtaking views, caves, cliffs, the La Jolla Cove, the Children’s Pool, the back of the La Valencia Hotel, beach goers, sea lions and seals, cormorants, and even some beautiful flowers!
Here’s a short video which captured some of the sights!
My husband and I enjoyed a delightful afternoon enjoying the benefits of my Keepers Club Pass at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido, California. The advantages: I can always bring a guest, I can enjoy the free parking (usually $15), and there are new exhibits every once in awhile to take in and experience. (Oh, we also walked about 10,000 steps too)!
Here’s a short video recap of our day! Hope you enjoy it!
We had a lovely day at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park !
Here’s a video snippet…Enjoy!
(Feel free to make the video larger – click on the lower right corner)!
By Susan J. Farese, SJF Communications
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I continually marvel at hummingbirds…such tiny magnificent magical creatures!
Their stunning colorful beauty, their speed, their zest for the “hummingbird life”….
It beats watching the news these days. It inspires my creative spirit and hope!
by
Susan J. Farese, SJF Communications
Here is a short video from today. See these lovely hummingbirds in action as they fly continuously over to the feeders and enjoy nectar, hover, and then dance away!
And now…some photographic images!
Hopefully these hummingbird images will captivate you and yours too!
Enjoy!
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Hope you enjoyed the poem, video and photos from SJF Communications!
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Bring your umbrellas- Its going to rain in San Diego!
San Diego Musical Theatre – “The LOCAL way to see Broadway”
Presents
May 22- June 7, 2015
at the Spreckels Theatre!
You remember the plot. You love the characters. You know “the song.” It’s no less than the stage adaptation of one of the most celebrated and beloved films of all time. Each unforgettable scene, song and dance, is accounted for, including the show-stopping title number, complete with an onstage rainstorm! 1920′s Hollywood is the setting for this zany, light-hearted romantic comedy about the early days of sound film, when many a movie studio found itself scrambling to salvage the career of its chipmunk-voiced silent picture star.
SDMT joins the water conservation effort and will be using recycled water for the RAIN!
Director: Todd Nielsen: Choreographer Jill Gorrie: Musical Director: Don LeMaster
Lighting Design: Matt Novotny
Sound Design: Kevin Anthenill
Costume Coordinator: Janet Pitcher
Stage Manager: Amy Duffy*
Production Manager: Bret Young
(*Equity ; ** Stage Directors and Choreographers)
Brandon Davidson* as Don Lockwood
Brittany Rose Hammond* as Kathy Seldon
Cameron Lewis* as Cosmo Brown
Andi Davis as Lina Lamont
*Member of Actors Equity Association
ADDITIONAL CAST: Beverly Baker, Bryan Banville, Katie Whalley Banville, Amy Beth Batchelor , Bradley Behrmann, Jordi Bertran, Laura Bueno, Lance Carter, Jean Luc Cavnar, Deborah Fauerbach, Karla Franko, Kyle Hawk, Ed Hollingsworth, Keenon Hooks, Artur Ivanov, Katey Konderik, Andrew J. Koslow, Gabriel Navarro, Joy Newbegin, Janissa Saracino, Tara Shoemaker, Claire Sorlie, Matthew Thurmund, Michael Van Allen, and John Wescott.
Here are some video highlights from SDMT’s “Singin’ in the Rain”
Cast of SDMT’s “Singin’ in the Rain”
Here’s some rehearsal video footage of SDMT’s “Singin’ in the Rain”
YOU GIVE, WE GIVE: Throughout their 2015 season, San Diego Musical Theatre is partnering with a different local nonprofit organization for each individual production. The Production’s Partner will be featured in the lobby during the run of that show as a way to raise awareness for the great work being done by San Diego nonprofits. Ten percent of the funds raised for SDMT during the run of each production will be given to that specific production’s partner organization. SDMT announces “Voices for Children” as our “You Give, We Give” fundraising campaign partner during SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN. Here is the link for Voices for Children: http://www.speakupnow.org/
TICKET INFORMATION:
Single tickets for SDMT’s production of SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN are $35.00, $45.00, $55.00 and $65.00. Children 16 and under save $10. There are discounts for Seniors and Students. Equity and Actor’s Alliance may purchase up to 2 tickets at half price. Group discounts for parties of 12 or more are available by calling the Administrative Office at 858-560-5740. For individual tickets contact the Administrative Office at 858-560-5740 or visit SDMT online at http://www.sdmt.org.
SCHEDULE: SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN show times are Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday at 2:00 p.m.
LOCATION: The Spreckels Theatre, 121 Broadway, San Diego, CA 92101. There is parking in the Spreckels garage and the NBC Building. Both are accessed via Broadway Circle.
For more information and tickets call San Diego Musical Theatre’s Administrative Office at 858-560-5740. The San Diego Musical Theatre Administrative Office is located at 4652 Mercury Street, San Diego, CA 92111. Monday-Thursday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Friday 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.. Tickets purchased through the Spreckels Box Office are through Ticket Master.
2014 SDMT Sizzle Reel
“Like” SDMT on Facebook – San Diego Musical Theatre; https://www.facebook.com/pages/San-Diego-Musical-Theatre/112606775435990
“Follow” SDMT on Twitter @SDMTMusicals: https://twitter.com/SDMTmusicals
San Diego Musical Theatre: The Local Way to See Broadway!
SDMT 2015 SEASON at the historic SPRECKELS THEATRE on Broadway
Singin’ In The Rain – May 22-June 7; Director Todd Nielsen
La Cage Aux Folles – September 25-October 11; Director Larry Raben
White Christmas – November 27-December 6; Director Todd Nielsen
I first met Dr. Alyssa Goodman in Lexington, Massachusetts in 2008, when our daughters, now 16 & 17, were in the same 4th grade Girl Scout troop and then continued as fifth grade classmates. Besides being “Girl Scout and Classroom Moms”, our families spent time together socially.
Alyssa has always intrigued me. I admire her deep intelligence, humor and authenticity. She is easy to connect with and is truly “down to earth” vs. “up in the clouds”, considering she’s a tenured Astronomy Professor at Harvard! There’s no arrogance about her, she is not a diva, has a great sense of humor, and she does not intimidate others. She has a keen sense of awareness of her environment and the state of the world to include the skies, and loves making sense out of patterns of all kinds. As an aside, she also always wore the coolest colorful earrings!
Although my family and I moved to San Diego in 2010, we have kept in touch periodically. Dr. Goodman travels extensively and always lets me know when she is in my neck of the woods and vice versa. It’s my pleasure to interview Dr. Goodman as an “Extraordinary Person Sharing Her Story”
Alyssa Goodman is Professor of Astronomy at Harvard University and a Research Associate of the Smithsonian Institution. Goodman’s research and teaching interests span astronomy, data visualization, and online systems for research and education. Goodman received her undergraduate degree in Physics from MIT in 1984 and a Ph.D. in Physics from Harvard in 1989. She became full professor at Harvard in 1999, and was named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2009. Goodman recently served as Chair of the Astronomy Section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and on the National Academy’s Board on Research Data and Information, and she currently serves on the both the IAU and AAS Working Groups on Astroinformatics and Astrostatistics. Goodman’s personal research presently focuses primarily on new ways to visualize and analyze the tremendous data volumes created by large and/or diverse astronomical surveys, like COMPLETE. She is working closely with colleagues at Microsoft Research, helping to expand the use of the WorldWide Telescope program in both research and in education.
SJF: You are extremely intriguing to me! Tell us a bit about yourself…
AG: Sure. Wow, this goes back awhile! I was born in NYC grew up on Long Island. When I was 8 years old, I was captivated by and in awe of marine biologist oceanographer Jacques Cousteau. Oh how I really wanted to be a marine biologist at Woods Hole someday.
My eventual plan was to go to college first and study marine biology, but as time passed, I changed my mind. My new plan was to become a Physician, but a family member was very sick at the time and passed away. I soon decided that dealing with illness and death wasn’t for me either.
I was a good student and always had a love for science. I applied to the undergraduate program at Harvard (but ironically was not accepted)! About the same time, my younger sister discovered (while reading stack of college application material) that MIT only “early accepted” or “deferred” applicants but didn’t “reject” any. I was accepted into MIT and majored in physics.
My Dad helped me to find a summer Internship at an engineering company, where I subsequently interned for two summers, after high school graduation and after my freshman year at MIT. When it was time to plan an internship after my sophomore year at MIT there were two possibilities: An “underwater archeological dig” and NASA! I was one of 60 applicants for a scholarship to an underwater archeological “dig” that one had to pay for and missed out on the scholarship by one spot. I also boldly called NASA (no Google then…I merely looked the number up in the “yellow pages”) and accepted and was paid for a NASA internship.
After graduating from MIT in 1984, I was offered a job at the Bank of Boston, but said no and decided to delay working by going to Graduate School.
I was accepted to Harvard for graduate school and received my Ph.D. in Physics 1989. I did my post doctoral at University of California at Berkeley for three years. My first post-graduate assignment was teaching Astronomy in 1992, (which was ironic, since I had only taken one Undergraduate and one Graduate Astronomy course and didn’t believe that I had the “credentials”)!
Harvard Professor of Astronomy, Alyssa Goodman, speaks about the new capabilities of Microsoft WorldWide Telescope 5.0 at the 223rd meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Washington D.C. (Photo: Microsoft Corporation)
SJF: Very interesting that your awe of the ocean led you to your gazing at and studying the stars & galaxies! What have been your life hurdles? successes?
AG: While it wasn’t a “hurdle” I did have uncertainty as to when I would become a tenured professor at Harvard. In academia, all those years of education weren’t enough, even with a Ph.D. I was initially an Assistant Professor 1992-1995 and was considered Junior Faculty, then became an Associate Professor from 1995-1999. Normally Associate Professors are tenured, but that was not the case at Harvard. I taught for seven years and balanced an uncertain future, worrying that I would need to relocate, wondering if I could have a family, etc. before I was tenured as a full professor in 1999.
SJF: Your “uncertainly” has certainly led you to a highly valued tenured position at Harvard and many amazing opportunities to educate and inspire us! Which leads me to the next question: Who are three people that you admire?
AG: Jacques Cousteau, for his lifelong work as an exceptionally bright marine biologist, Albert Einstein for his views of Judaism as a ” philosophy” vs. a “religion” and Meryl Streep for her versatility as an actress.
SJF: What have been three significant/pivotal events in your life?
AG: My first memory of a pivotal event? Well, when I was in 9th school, I gave my National Honor Society speech. One of my friend’s moms was there and heard my speech. She told me way back then that I had a “natural talent” for public speaking. I didn’t realize what she meant at the time! Incidentally, that friend’s mom is actually now the mother of an undergraduate student studying violin at Harvard today! Another pivotal event was when I became tenured at Harvard. And of course, becoming a Mom to my daughter Abby was a very special pivotal event and remains so.
SJF: What are your fears?
AG: I fear that our beautiful planet Earth will be ruined due to climate change (as well as how some people treat it).
SJF: What are some of your strongest assets?
AG: I learn things well. I stop talking, listen and pay attention. As an observer, I see patterns and connections. I also remember things that don’t connect. I stay fit.
SJF: Those assets are definitely words of wisdom! What do you usually dream about?
AG: Some dreams are vivid and memorable, some that are bad, I instantly forget!
SJF: That’s brilliant and concise way of describing your dreams! Speaking of dreams, how do you support dreams of others? Do you “give back”? if so with which groups?
AG: I give back with my time, efforts and donations. I donate to several charities, including KIVA which gives out micro loans, Women for Women and Habitat for Humanity. I am a Worldwide Telescope Ambassador, I’ve participated as a science fair judge, and I do community outreach as well. I’m also a a former Girl Scout Mom volunteer.
SJF: Do you have any regrets in life?
AG: Not being fluent in another language. Although I have studied French, I feel I could have studied a bit more.
SJF: Who are your role models? Male or female, in or out of your profession?
AG: This is very interesting, because they are both serendipitous friendships. A female role model I admire is Astronomer Vera Rubin (Dark Matter) and a male role model would be Bob Kirshner , a Clowes Professor of Science at Harvard University who studied dark energy, and was a Wolf Medal Recipient.
SJF: What qualities should the younger generation aspire to have that you think are important in this day and age?
AG: There should be less emphasis on grades and more on actual curiosity and learning.
SJF: Agreed! How do you feel about the enourmous use of technology is being used today? Do you think we should connect more in person?
AG: I definitely use tech a lot, but have a love-hate relationship with it. I like it when it is associated with learning. I don’t like it as a time waster!
SJF: Any funny anecdotes about astronomy?
AG: I occasionally take a look at xkcd.com; It’s what I call “nerd humor” and it’s such a hoot!
SJF: I took a gander at it! Cool! What’s been happening lately and what is up next for you???
AG: I just taught a one day advanced workshop in San Francisco in February, 2015 called “See Think Design Produce” with Jonathan Corum, Mike Bostock and Edward Tufte: world-class design architectures for information, data, images, videos, diagrams, interfaces, presentations. We spoke about how to convey information graphically. In March I will be presenting at and attending “Tools for Astronomical Big Data” speaking about “Wide Data vs. Big Data” in Tucson, Arizona.
SJF: Those sounds like interesting workshops! Speaking of San Francisco, and Tucson, where have you traveled? Where is your favorite place in the world??
AG: My job has taken me many places in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres! My favorite place is Martha’s Vineyard.
SJF: Thank you so much, it’s been such a pleasure interviewing you and getting to know you even more!
AG: My pleasure too!
About the World Wide Telescope: http://www.worldwidetelescope.org/
Astronomer on a Mission (Scroll) : http://alumni.harvard.edu/stories/making-magic-happen
World Wide Telescope News: https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~agoodman/wwtnews.html
https://www.youtube.com/embed/WKYCdn_t1K8” target=”_blank”>
https://www.youtube.com/embed/aL9aOM74dmg” target=”_blank”>
Video: Visualizing the Universe – An interview with Prof. Alyssa Goodman:
Torrey Pines Golf Course is magnificently perched on the cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It is truly a gorgeous course. Just spectacular!
San Diego had a foggy start the morning of February 4, 2015, leading to a 2-plus hour delay (even for Tiger Woods’ tee time) for the prestigious PGA Tour Farmers Insurance Open Preview “Pro-Am” (Professional-Amateur) at Torrey Pines, which officially runs February 5-8.
I was invited to attend a Small Business Summit at the Hilton La Jolla Torrey Pines during the morning. As luck would have it, we received a comp ticket for the tournament, so I decided to venture out. It was a spectacular day! After walking nearly 10,000 steps I am hoping to return again this weekend for more!
I arrived a bit after noon and strolled a bit, had lunch at the concession stand and miraculously was just in time to catch Phil Mickelson finishing the 9th hole on the South course.
Phil Mickelson was kind enough to grace the crowd with his autographs after he finished playing for the day.
Oh…if you attend the Farmers Insurance Open, please heed my advice: WEAR COMFY SHOES! Hydrate! Be respectful of the players. Keep noise to a minimum. Finally, have fun!