Dog Days

There is this really cool empty lot at the end of my street. I think it is slated to be the grounds for a new church or something like that, but in the two years I've lived up here, nothing has happened. The lot leads to a preserve, the home of the Temecula River (I think). But anyone who grew up in Santee and knows what the area behind Big Rock Park looks like, knows what I'm talking about. (Although I've never checked for crawdads back there.) For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, it's a place where mostly teenagers go when they don't want to be caught doing something. There are some trails, a lot of brush, broken glass and grafitti. Yesterday, I found a shopping cart and a full-sized hide-a-bed, with the bed extended. Although who would even lie down on it fully clothed is beyond me.

Anyway, I took the camera out with the initial intent to photograph this really cool naked tree. Unfortunately, I'm no Ansel Adams and get bored with the run of the mill nature photography, despite all my good intentions. I quickly focused on photographing my dogs who were loving the vast expanse of uncharted territory. Although they were loathe to sit still, I got a few good ones from the afternoon. Despite the fact that I forgot to check my camera settings and shot the whole thing at 1600 ISO. Ugh. Always something like that to remind me I'm an amateur.

To see the rest of the set, go here.