We’re enjoying an indoor day here since the weather is a bit inclement. Not much to blog about when you’re just being lazy, so I’ll post this interesting picture from the local garden emporium’s succulent section. Interesting colors and textures – a change from the usual.
Crocus is a genus of perennial flowering plants that grows from a corm (a tuber or root), which is native from the Aegean, across Central Asia. Often referred to as “Dutch” Crocus, these were only seen in Europe after the 16th century. The spice saffron is obtained from the stamens of Crocus sativus, a fall-blooming species. The name of the genus is derived from the Latin adjective crocatus, meaning saffron yellow.
I photographed this little beauty where it lives in a whiskey barrel planter in the backyard yesterday.
By the way, saffron and rosemary in rice is an elegant side dish, but that’s another blog.
What a difference 117 years made to this serene little cove on Santa Catalina Island. This is a shot taken circa 1889 from a hill west of the bay looking toward the old Hotel Metropole. Photo credit COLA Public Library Website
And this is a shot of the bay we took last September from about the same place:
This next shot was taken from the bay looking toward the location of the old Hotel Metropole seen in the top picture (the old Metropole burned down years ago). The new Hotel Metropole hotel is located amongst the clutter just behind the tall palm trees in the center of the photo.
I found out an interesting fact: Icelandic Poppies are native to the U.S.A. So why do they call it an Icelandic Poppy? Maybe it’s because it tolerates the colder weather so well. Although this has not been a particularly cold winter here in California, these thrive nonetheless in our garden. I snapped this shot today under cloudy skies to show the subtle beauty of this bloom in subdued light.
For more information on “Papaver nudicaule” see this page at Dave’s Garden:
PlantFiles: Detailed information on Iceland poppy, Arctic Poppy (Papaver nudicaule)
Family: Papaveraceae (puh-pav-er-AY-see-ee) (Info)
Genus: Papaver (puh-PAY-ver) (Info)
Species: nudicaule (new-dee-KAW-lee) (Info)[more]
Every once in a while, I read something in the blogosphere that is worth giving special mention here, even though it’s on other blogs. Today, while surfing around the ‘sphere I ran across an interesting and inspiring piece from Rick Roberts, a conservative radio personality. You can read it in it’s entirety on Rick’s blog on the KFMB website at I Want My Country Back.
This is an excerpt from Rick’s article:
“I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK!â€- By Rick Roberts
And I want America to be America. All of those opportunities, all of those things that made her great, I want those returned to the forefront. If you want to come to this country we welcome you with open arms. We simply ask that you abide by our laws. I don’t want you to snub your nose at our laws, then take advantage of our opportunities, and then cling to the constitution most of which you can’t even read because you don’t speak the language.
Picture credit: KFMB/Rick Roberts
Via Big Dog’s Weblog
California Attorney General candidates Former Governor and current Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown and Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo duke it out over a non-issue like Wal-Mart (who incidentally is willing to bring business to California in spite of Democrats driving business away), while Pierre-Richard Prosper is hands-down the best candidate for California Attorney General.
A week ago, Delgadillo called Wal-Mart a “predator” on the middle class. His campaign also chastised Brown for bringing a Wal-Mart store to Oakland and accepting $10,600 in campaign contributions from Wal-Mart heir John Walton and his wife, Christy.
Brown, in response, resurrected a speech in which Delgadillo’s former boss praised him for helping recruit Wal-Mart.
Delgadillo said Thursday that he was carrying out the wishes of his boss at the time, former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan.
“What’s changed is the name on the door is different,” Delgadillo said. “I was working for Mayor Riordan, and now I am working for me.”
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So am I to assume that Mr. Delgadillo’s allegiances are for sale?
And, we already know that Brown is a far-left political figure and has little to offer California as the state’s top law and order officer.
Our choice for Attorney General is Republican Pierre-Richard Prosper. Prosper has held many positions in government at local and national levels. He is far and away the best choice for the job of California Attorney General.
From Prosper’s Web Site:
Justice Begins At Home… The California Attorney General is on the frontlines of Justice. Justice on the streets from Los Angeles to Oakland. Justice for families broken by lost opportunities and gang warfare. Justice for child victims of sexual predators. Justice for victims of violence. Justice for legal immigrants seeking a better life. Justice for the institution of marriage. Justice for all Californians.
Image credit: Pierre Prosper for California Attorney General.
UPDATE: Unfortunately, Pierre Prosper has withdrawn from the campaign. His website has a statement explaining his reasons.
In a poll conducted during the time the Michael Morales sentence confusion was taking place, people in the state remain strongly in favor of capital punishment.
From the Sacramento Bee:
Poll finds steady support for death penalty
Support for the death penalty remains high among Californians, with those favoring capital punishment outnumbering opponents by a 2-1 margin, according to a Field Poll scheduled for release today.
In the wake of two recent executions, support neither rose nor fell much from levels reported by the polling organization since 2000.
The latest poll showed support to be appreciably lower, however, than it was during the mid-1980s, when crime spiked nationally and became the dominant political issue.
Opinions also appear to have softened on issues such as executing minors, which the state hasn’t permitted in modern times and the U.S. Supreme Court abolished a year ago, as well as on questions such as whether the death penalty is fairly carried out.
As recently as two years ago, Californians were strongly convinced that the death sentencing process was fair and error-free. Today, they think so by a narrower margin of 48 percent to 39 percent.
The polling organization claims a sampling error rate of plus or minus 4.5 points for all adults polled and plus or minus 5.5 points for registered voters polled.
“Opinions on the death penalty are solidly in support, same thing as abortion,” said Field Poll director Mark DiCamillo, who said no reversal appears imminent on either issue.
Nevertheless, he said, public opinion leaves room for changes in the way both procedures are carried out.
The poll of 500 California adults was conducted Feb. 12-26, soon after the state’s executions of Stanley Tookie Williams and Clarence Ray Allen. The polling coincided with on-again, off-again preparations to execute Michael Angelo Morales on Feb. 21.
Public reaction pinpointed on the aborted Morales execution was charted by a separate Field Poll, conducted Feb. 22-26. The response was not strong on either side of the Morales debate.
Although 46 percent of poll respondents said the state should have administered the lethal injection to Morales despite its inability to comply with a judge’s orders, 41 percent said a postponement was the correct decision. The execution has been put on hold until the results of a May court hearing on the injection procedure.
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