SUNSET 2/9/08

Twin Peaks

Twin Peaks Convergence

I was heading home when I realized I could be at Twin Peaks for sunset. About 35 people stood on top of the highest hill above the parking lot. They were already silhouettes so I grabbed my bag of bells and ran as fast as I could up the hill.

Everyone there was waiting for the sun to go down and it was so beautiful today. Warm and clear and sunny. It was easy to ask people who are already watching the sunset to accompany the sight with bells. I walked around and offered people their choice of bells and said they could start whenever they wanted and to keep going until the sun was below the horizon.

A few people wanted to know why. Some didn’t. And before long, the top of the hill was quietly tinkling. Every once in a while, the man who had chosen the ship’s bell would clang it. If falling dust had a sound, that’s what the top of that hillside sounded like for a moment.

SUNRISE 2/9/08

Stare Down This Cat



What you see is an excerpt. This cat never moved from the fence and she stared at the camera most of the time. I rang little bells in my yard several doors down and she just sat an listened.

SUNSET 2/8/08

Sunset at Java Beach

Stray Thoughts

I can hardly remember this morning. Oh yeah. I set the camera up to look down at the backyard and brought out the new little Indian bells from Chinatown. I just walked around the yard a few times and rang the little bells. Clockwise. Once slowly. The second time, I ran. The grass was wet. When I finished running in circles, I went back into the house, shut off the camera and went back to bed.

Compared to this morning, the end of the day was rushed. Since it was sunny, I decided to run down to the beach and see who was hanging out at the coffee shop across the street. It seems that people who hang out in coffee shops are pretty amenable to ringing the bells at sunset. It’s very nice and friendly. Often, it’s so uncomfortable for me to ask people on the street to ring bells with me. So it’s a pleasant change to approach people who are on a relaxed agenda.

SUNRISE 2/8/08

Tiny Bells in the Yard



Joined by my morning crow buddies.

SUNSET 2/7/08

More Bells for the Rat



Ringing in the New Year with Kazimir's mom. She has a really beautiful bell. Happy New Year Everyone!

Scratch Out the Sounds

Chinese New Year today. Happy Year of the Earth Rat!

I watched my friend struggle to hold onto a pen today. She was drawing a line across a piece of paper. The pen was shaking because her hands shake and she was holding on with all of her fingers. Keeping the pen in contact with the page. Very quietly. Very calmly.

As long as she was in contact with the paper, she could scratch out the sounds of bells. Backwards. Forwards. Many little bells. One big bell. She was playing the same bells I play everyday.

SUNRISE 2/7/08

The New Bells



These are the new bells we got in Chinatown yesterday. Tiny little bells to ring in the new year.

SUNSET 2/6/08

North Beach Ringing with Léonie and a Passerby



A little hectic. We had just gone to the Clarion Music Store in Chinatown where I bought some new little bells. All made in India. I will ring them tomorrow. So pretty and tinkly.

SUNRISE 2/6/08

Hummingbird Feeder?



This object hangs from the clothesline in the backyard several doors down. Norman says it's a hummingbird feeder. I say it's to hold clothes pins. What do you think it's for? Anyway, I played a nice bell serenade for it this morning.

Fat Tuesday Sunset 2/5/08

Same place as this morning.



A few more people showed up to ring bells at the beach at sunset. The guys in the neighboring car had just come to watch the sun go down, but they joined in as long as they could remain in their car. It was cold and windy as usual. Thanks!

Primary SUNRISE/SUNSET

Vesta and her bells

Vesta was the only person who came this morning to ring with Norman and I.

It was such a clear morning but cold (for these parts). While we waited for the sun to come up, Vesta and I were talking about ringing the bell everyday and she showed me her two little bells. The ringing at sunrise by the ocean was nice, but cold. After we finished ringing with the sunrise, Vesta noticed that one of her bells was silent and that the little clapper was missing. We routed around in the parking lot and I was thinking how bad I felt when Vesta found what we were looking for. I couldn’t believe it. Those dingers are so small.

Anyway, that was it for the morning.

FAT TUESDAY SUNRISE 2/5/08

By the ocean in San Francisco.



There were only 3 of us that showed up there this morning. We made a lot of racket.

Sunrise in Cassis 2/5/08

Thank you Ione and Pauline.

SUNSET 2/4/08

How Fast Does The Earth Turn?



Berkeley is about 14 miles east of San Francisco. At this latitude the earth turns about 700 -- 900 miles per hour.

So. The sun sets a minute earlier in Berkeley than it does in San Francisco. From now on I will include the name of the city where we are observing the sun and ringing the bells.

Slower Than A Speeding Bullet

I hadn't realized that even a few miles make such a difference in terms of when the sun rises and sets. At this latitude the earth turns between 700 and 900 miles per hour.

While researching this little fact, I encountered some other interesting sites related to the rotation of the Earth and the speed of some other speedy things. Here are a number of FAQ's about the Earth's rotation answered by Dr. Sten Odenwald. If you want to know something not on that list, you can ask an astrophysicist another question. Find out what's "faster than a speeding bullet".

SUNRISE 2/4/08

Bag of Bells



I just thought I would bring out all of my quiet bells and ring them for my bird audience.

SUNSET 2/3/08

End of the Road

Chasing Rainbows

Windy. And rainy. I saw three rainbows today. One ended right by the side of the highway. I had always believed the end of the rainbow was a myth, an illusion that you could never reach. That was the beauty of the pot of gold. It was always safe and pure. A secure little nest egg for someone else’s future. A holy grail.

Until today, I had thought that nobody could actually stand at the end of the rainbow. Yet there I was.

SUNRISE 2/3/08

These wineglasses made perfect bells. They bounced off each other and played themselves. Try this at home!

Primary Reminder

Tuesday, February 5. First PUBLIC BELL RINGING EVENT
Come down to the parking lot on the Great Highway in San Francisco (across from the Beach Chalet) near the end of Fulton Street.
7:00 - 7:30 AM (sun rises at 7:11)
5:15 - 5:45 PM (sun sets at 5:36)
Bring bells if you have them.