A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day...11-14-03...California ~ The Golden State

Mama_Bear

[Diver Dave]

thanks for the link, Mayor. I share with you and many others the emotions you've expressed.

[Mama_Bear]

Hi Meg! Yes, I remember seeing the flower fields near Lompoc years ago. Just beautiful!

I found these pictures of the flower fields on google.....

Thank you for coming along on our Finest tour of CA, MEG. :-)

[Mama_Bear]

Okay, now your link works.

I just took the virtual tour. Very interesting. I wouldn't mind visiting there next time I am down in LA.

[MEG33]

Thank you for finding the pictures!It was happenstance that I was in the area and I loved all those flowers!Another one of the reasons to see California.

[MeekOneGOP]

Meekie....I FINALLY GOT MY PHOTO DELUX....I know you freepmailed me a link to your first lesson....Don't have time to see if it is still there...Any chance of re-freepmailing it?? Can't wait to catch up to you and Aqua!

You bet ! You have Freep mail !! ...

[Temple Owl]

I remember those Burpee seed gardens well. My late brother-in-law was the commanding officer of the military prison in Lompoc back in the '50s and I often think of the beautiful area in which it was located. We used to go fishing in the Pacific not far from there too. It is a really neat place.

[Mama_Bear]

We used to go fishing in the Pacific not far from there too. It is a really neat place.

Yes, it is. And I appreciate when people come to the thread and share their personal experiences and feelings about the states I do.

Thanks so much, Temple Owl. Have a pleasant evening.

[Mama_Bear]

Dinnertime here. I will be back later to say good night.

If you have someone you would like to add, please address a post to Billie; Dansangel; Dutchess; Mama_Bear; Aquamarine; FreeTheHostages, and we will add their name to this list. As we pray for them, we pray also for all our nation’s leaders, military personnel, and their families and friends.

[Mama_Bear]

Though you all might like a ping to the Tribute to California thread. :-)

PING!

[GailA]

LOL

[WVNan]

In all fairness MB, you should do two days for Calif. and Texas because of their size. There really is too much to present in one thread. Fine job you did on this one though.

[deadhead]

Good Night All

Hi Nan :-)

[WVNan]

Blow what whistle? Why? WhatdidIdothistime? Don't go blowing no whistles on me, cause I just got here. I ain't did nothin' to nobody.......yet.

[Calpernia]

CLICK!

[MEG33]

Funny!

[Calpernia]

CLICK!

California Quail Callipepla californica

Perched on a tree or a fence post, the male California Quail claims his territory by cackling and posturing. The entire family takes to trees for roosting as well as for safety. After the breeding season, these birds become gregarious, gathering in large coveys and often visiting city parks, gardens, and yards. This is the quail with the "topknot" featured in the animated films of Walt Disney.

Description 9-11" (23-28 cm). A stocky, mainly gray quail with a curved black head plume. Similar to Gambel's Quail, but crown brown, not chestnut; forehead buff, not black; and belly scaled, lacking black patch in center. Female less boldly marked than male.

Habitat Brushy chaparral foothills and live-oak canyons; also adjacent desert and suburbs.

Nesting 12-16 cream- or buff-colored eggs, blotched and dotted with brown, in a shallow depression lined with grass.

Range Originally resident from southern Oregon south to Baja California. Introduced to Pacific Northwest, Idaho, and other inland states.

[MEG33]

How beautiful,Calpernia!Thanks for posting this.

[Mama_Bear]

We have come to expect (and appreciate) your interesting bird song posts, but where do you find some of these other wonderful sound files, like the steam engine? Google, I suppose. Your links to these sound files add so much to the thread. Thank you.

((((((((Calpernia)))))))))

[Calpernia]

Hi Meg!!! {{{hug}}}!

Another place of Interest in California! I have been here!

In 1865, George Hearst, a wealthy miner, purchased 40,000-acres of ranchland that included the Mexican Ranchos of Piedras Blancas, San Simeon and Santa Rosa. In 1919, his only son, William Randolph Hearst, inherited the land from his mother, Phoebe Apperson Hearst. By then the ranch had grown to encompass 250,000 acres.

Originally known as "Camp Hill," its wilderness offered a place for family members and friends to "rough it" on camping trips. Despite elaborate arrangements with separate sleeping and dining tents, Hearst envisioned more comfortable accommodations. His simple instructions to famed San Francisco architect Julia Morgan in 1919: "Miss Morgan, we are tired of camping out in the open at the ranch in San Simeon and I would like to build a little something"

Hearst and Morgan's collaboration was destined to become one of the world's greatest showplaces. As they were planning and constructing his dream home, Hearst renamed the rocky perch from which it rose "La Cuesta Encantada" - The Enchanted Hill. By 1947, Hearst and Morgan had created an estate of 165 rooms and 127 acres of gardens, terraces, pools and walkways.

The estate's magnificent main house, "Casa Grande," and three guest houses are of Mediterranean Revival style, while the imposing towers of Casa Grande were inspired by a Spanish cathedral. The blending of the architectural style with the surrounding land, and Hearst's superb European and Mediterranean art collection, was so seamless that world-renowned architectural historian, Lord John Julius Norwich, was moved to say that "Hearst Castle is a palace in every sense of the word."

[Calpernia]

Gotta love Google! Matter of fact, I found a few things that bother me there too while researching an interesting tale on NJ.

I might freep mail you on it to see if I'm full of tin foil or not.