...here's some virtual warmth for all of you (I know it has been raining in Berkeley, Texas and Durham GB, and frosting in New Jersey). I took this picture one afternoon when my brother and I drove down to Ho'okipa Beach to check out that day's pumping surf, the thick white lines of which we could see from way upcountry and 3,000 feet above sea level, where we live. And indeed, when we got to Ho'okipa the waves were of a considerable size... the dots you see in the water are surfers. Click on the pic to get a larger view, suitable for putting on one's virtual desktop...:

Ho'okipa is a world-famous venue for windsurfers and as it turns out, there was a competition going on there, that afternoon. This is the windy side of the island, and the beaches are mostly coral reefs and rocks (I guess most of the sand erodes and blows away). The color values of the image are harsh and contrasty because I was pointing the camera almost directly at the setting sun -- it was about 5:30 when I took this picture.

Near this cove was a nice little lagoon (the inner part of a coral reef shelf) where I went for a swim a little later, to give my new prescription goggles a baptism by seawater. Here in Hawaii, the water remains a constant warm temperature (mid- to upper 70s perhaps?), even on "winter" nights. At night, the ocean is even warmer than the night air, and I find it very pleasant to swim in the dark... which I used to do when we lived on Oahu, and had a job as a printer's apprentice with work hours during the graveyard shift, at the big pink hotel in Waikiki. The beach being nearby, I'd take breaks by going for a swim in the dark. Sometimes, it was easy to confuse the sparkling, luminous dots of tiny sea creatures, with the stars way up above.

I'll reacquaint myself with the nighttime ocean soon, when we'll be living down Lahaina way...

(Added a Trev-generated text list just this morning to yesterday's weblog, which was otherwise devoid of content...)

In answer to Chris' intriguing question: What devices do other bloggers use to begin making something?

As far as weblogging goes (and admittedly, writing on my weblog is about all the creative writing I'm doing these days -- used to write e-postcards, and the occasional poem), I often begin writing an entry by thinking up of a title or subject line. Sure, the idea for the weblog subject is there first, but the actual crafting of the piece begins with the "proper" or correct title. Often, the title itself becomes part of the first sentence on the weblog's first paragraph. Out of a seemingly innocuous act as writing a title, the rest of the weblog flows.

Sometimes, the priming device consists of a photograph I took at some point, which has some relevance (more or less) to the weblog subject at hand. I may only have that certain image in my mind's eye at first, but it does become the starting point for that day's weblog, and I write around it (both literally and otherwise). On rarer occasions, it is THE photograph that is the starting point for the weblog, that provides the day's topic. Today's photo above is a good example. I was actually only looking for an image placeholder, but then found myself writing more, as I went along.

The Daily Irony:
a weblog that proudly proclaims "text rules" contains 8.8 Mb worth of images. *chuckle*

{ net.casting }
^