Memorial Day

"In gratitude to those who served... in sorrow for those who lost their lives."

This morning I attended a Memorial Day ceremony at the Downey Cemetery. It was an incredibly moving experience. The ceremony  honored the memory of veterans past, and the lives of the veterans who were present.

The veterans stood as their war was listed and remained standing while the audience applauded. They were men (I didn't see any women today) who had served in wars ranging from World War II up through the current fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. It was humbling to stand among them.

The ceremony closed with a 21-gun salute and the solemn notes of Taps echoing across the graveyard.

I want some too!

This weekend I felt like summer has finally arrived. And today is my daughter's birthday. So she and I strolled around Downey Landing, stopping for a treat at Jamba Juice and then just window shopping.

I couldn't help but laugh at the intense interest this family showed in their ice cream!

Caught in the act!

We often have squirrels in our yard. They are a common sight in Downey. We even have a feeder for the squirrels. It is filled with unsalted, unshelled peanuts. Evidently we ran out and this squirrel was not okay with that. Here he is in a bird feeder, eating the bird seed. If you look closely, or enlarge, you can see a seed stuck on his nose!

It beats fighting traffic

Since we started this blog, I've become aware of all kinds of communities out there in the blogosphere. Of course, there are our fellow "city" bloggers. (Some of our favorites are listed in the sidebar to the right and bottom.) And there is the 100 Strangers community, who make a point of reaching out of their comfort zone by asking permission to photograph strangers. I've been inspired to start my own list of 100, by some of the city bloggers who also photograph strangers (Paris and Tucson, to name a couple). I started a couple of weeks ago, with Fabiana. Today, meet numbers 2, 3, and 4.

I met these people this afternoon while I was "commuter watching." The cars go by quickly, so what mostly caught my eye (and my camera) were the people taking advantage of slower means of transportation. Melvin Tyler, above, was riding his bike. The two guys to the right, who declined to give their names, were waiting for the bus to take them home to Los Angeles.

I think all three of them thought I was a little nuts.

Smile! You're on Downey Camera!

One of the great things about this city is the people. Ryan posed for me with no qualms.

The signs are clear

I know they say that red and yellow makes one hungry so restaurants try to incorporate that into the details of the design... or they could go all out and make everything red and yellow.

California adobe

I have always loved this building. It was once a house that was transformed into a business (as it was directly on Paramount Blvd.). It is a beautiful adobe style surrounded by enough plants and color to make it look appealing, very mission-style.

Take me out to the ball game...

I sometimes go to the park in the afternoon to walk my dog, Ivan. It's fun to see all the fields taken up with softball games. Of course, I can't resist taking a few shots. The kids look so serious and cute at the same time.