"My Town" shootout.... a little early this week!

Being a music teacher, and with school letting out for summer this week, time Friday will be scarce (gotta have the school band play at our promotion ceremony!), so here's the shootout on a Tuesday!

This week's theme was suggested by Shootout team member Sarah Lulu in Australia--anything and everything M in honor of her new granddaughter Matilda!

I was wracking my brain trying to think of things unique to Dublin that were "m". We have the usual MALLS and MEDICAL offices, not to forget the beautiful MOUNTAINS and quirky MALLARD ducks mentioned in previous posts. Then it hit me...

MURALS!

Under our two major freeway overpasses are these fantastic murals depicting Dublin life. The three artists have done a spectacular job incorporating images from Dublin's time of Indian habitation all the way up through modern times. Wonderful artwork with I wasn't too keen on the idea of running onto the median to get some really good shots (way too busy of a street!), so these will have to suffice.

(Be sure to click on the photos to see them in their large size! The detail is amazing!)

If you click on this one, you'll see the names of the artists!



These "medallions" are at the end of each support. They're all in various stages of "decay".



A shot from afar to give you the spectrum...

And some close-ups...


The stagecoach harkens back to Dublin's first days; people started settling here since Dublin (known as Doughtery Station at the time) was the mail outpost!



The Scotch/Irish influence in the area is evident. Besides the town name, our one and only high school in town has the Gael as the mascot!

And two more M things I don't have pictures of, but have to mention....

MOVIES
Every summer, Dublin hosts free Movie in the Park events. It's a great opportunity to see a film with the family out under the stars!

and

MUSIC!
Dublin's annual Summer Concert Series is about to start! Friday nights in our Civic Center Plaza will see acts ranging from R&B to zydeco! And it's FREE, so come on out!

"My Town" shootout.... open assignment!

This week's theme was open, so I headed back through the ol' archives to dig up some good ones.

First:

The most prominent landmark of our area, Mt. Diablo. It's also a fabulous state park. Unfortunately, with the state budget crisis, the Governor has proposed closing most of the state parks in an effort to save money. The San Francisco Bay Area is home to a large number of state parks, and it'd be a shame to see them shuttered. One neat thing about the mountain is that there's a strobe beacon on the top that's usually dark; however, annually on December 7th, it's lit from dusk to dawn to commemorate the Pearl Harbor attack. They have a ceremony at sunset with the few remaining survivors in the area.


Next I was experimenting with sunlight and shadows... this was on an afternoon hike on the Alamo Creek Trail.


The aforementioned state bird, the California Quail!

Had to share...

I was driving home tonight and saw a spectacular sunset. So, I grabbed my camera!

(if you click on the first photo and look at the distant mountains, you can see the fog rolling in over them!)

My town shootout... water, water everywhere!

This week's theme is water, and even though lovely Dublin is located in the San Francisco Bay Area, we have to drive about 30 minutes to see the ocean. So, why not take a stroll around Dublin's creeks and arroyos?

This is Alamo Creek, which has a charming and meandering paved bike path alongside that runs north-south through the entire town. On any given day you'll see Dubliners out with their dogs, or cycling through on their way. You'll also have a good chance to see various fowl, like our state bird the California Quail (easily identified by the little plume atop its head), numerous ducks and loons, as well as the occasional group of our wild turkeys!

My town shootout.... paint the town red!

For this week's shootout, the theme was "red", which is difficult when one lives in a city known for "green"! I had to get a bit experimental this week. And living in the San Francisco Bay Area, how could I NOT include the world's most famous RED landmark?!

San Francisco is about 45 minutes West of Dublin, easily traveled by car or our mass transit rail system, BART.

And now for the pictures... they speak for themselves.


If you look below the bridge there...

...you'll see Fort Point.


Some black and white...




A panorama shot... the Lincoln Park Golf Course (owned by the city of SF) is the proud owner of this view.

Now you know what Tony Bennett was singing about!

"My Town" shootout... getting around!

This week's theme was getting around town without a car. We have a fantastic train/subway system, the Bay Area Rapid Transit system (AKA BART), that has one line that originates in in town and can whisk you away all over the Bay Area. Matter of fact, if I ever venture over to San Francisco, BART is the preferred method of travel!

Here in Dublin, we're fortunate to be part of the Iron Horse Trail (click on the link for info and a map), a 25 mile trail spanning 12 cities in two counties. This trail follows the bed of the Southern Pacific Railroad, which was first run through the area in 1891; it was abandoned and torn down in 1977. The trail meanders through neighborhoods and passes schools, golf courses, and the like. On any given day you'll see walkers, bicyclists, even horseback riders!


It crosses many main thoroughfares, and there are signals at each (see the shadow?). If you were to take this leg, you'd end up at the Dublin library!



Imagine the wonderful sunsets this house sees on a daily basis...


Mile markers for each direction.... mile 1.5 heading north, mile 22.75 heading south!




All that's left of the railroad path...


On such a warm day, one of our local wild turkeys was taking refuge in the shade!


Here's the bed, and on the left you see the trail.


If you ever visit our wonderful town, take a hike on the Iron Horse!

Long time, no post....

I'm a school music teacher, and it's a busy time of year, so picture taking time has been scarce! But, as I was leaving my parents' house last night, this gorgeous full moon was hanging just above the horizon. What's really a shame is that the craters stood out in wonderful contrast, but I couldn't get them to show up in the photo. Drat!


(be sure to click for full size!)