The Marine Layer

We've got dense fog this morning.

Well, not quite fog for most of San Diego. But we have it. What I mean to say is the Marine Layer is providing us with a wet, windy and weird morning. Go to this National Weather Service page if you want the meteorological explanation. Or just look at the picture here:

We are located (relative to the water) at about the point of the 60 degree thermometer. As a result we have either Cloudy or Fog much of the time. The sunny mornings I've captured in the last few weeks are typical of our Winter weather, and not common in the Spring or early Summer.

It's evident in this morning's photo at my favorite weather mirror. Not sunny at all, as in previous days. Notice I am wearing a bright yellow shirt; hoping that it helps people to see me. I've noticed many don't even make a pretense of stopping at the stop signs in our neighborhood (the I'M GOING TO BE LATE TO WORK crowd) - they slide 10-20 feet into the intersection, look both ways, and charge on.

Not far from the mirror is a staircase that goes straight over the edge of the hill and down to some residences at the bottom. It's almost horrifying to walk down the first section of sidewalk, and would be fatal if you tried to ride or skateboard down. The city has installed two pipes at this end and three pipes at the bottom to deter any foolishness. You can see in the photo below - and notice there is no ocean visible - just grey skies marine layer.

At this point I am going to vent some frustration. As I have been looking all around me for unique or interesting cars at the curb each day, I've seen plenty. But I have a request - Mustang Convertible owners please listen up! "NO more red and white Mustang convertibles, ok?" Here's what I've captured within a 1/2 mile radius of my house:

I'm sure there are more hiding in garages, side parking slots, and back gardens. Give us a break, will you? I'll look for them for another week (just for statistical purposes) and then won't ever notice a Mustang again.

Here's the real (non-Mustang convertible) car of the day, a shabby old Datsun Roadster. What you can't see from this angle is the missing passenger seat, full roll cage, debris piled inside, and the general air of a fatigued old half-competitive warrior.

Which is exactly how I feel right now, after this morning's man-powered, marine-layer-explaining, Mustang-locating bicycle ride.

So I am heading home now for a rest and a shower, and maybe a cold beer.