Statues and birds: hard to keep them apart. This one especially, since a man came along and put bird seed in the hands of the statue. Jardin du Tullaries, Paris, France; September, 2011.

Cathedrale Notre Dame du Paris at sunset. Taken from the Left Bank, of course. Paris, France; September, 2011.

Regular readers of the Grind might remember that the Whimpy Kid kept prodding me to take him somewhere. Since he used the Eiffel Tower as the prod, it was only fitting that last week I took him to Paris for 7 days. While there, I was plodding across the grounds of the Louvre and snagged this shot. More from this walk later…(Click on the photo for a better sense of perspective) Paris, France; September, 2011.

A light-rail stop on a light traffic day in downtown. (Click on the photo to find out which district it's in, and whether it's headed East or West) Portland, Oregon; September, 2011.

A sunny morning on the docks along the Yonne River, and the boat we used to float the Canal du Nivernais. Joigny, France; September, 2009.

The Rasta-colored leaf: proof Autumn is on its way. Iree, mon; truly dred. Portland, Oregon; August, 2011.

A quiet, serene hideaway on the grounds of The Empress Hotel. (Click on the photo for deeper serenity) Victoria, BC, Canada; April, 2009.

A Saturday street scene. For those of you who really like your Crab Louie (or Shrimp Louie), see that awning on the left that says Oyster Bar? Go ahead, click on the photo so you can see it better. That's the restaurant in which it was invented many, many, many decades ago. And up around the corner there is the legendary Voodoo Doughnuts shop. Not to be missed! Portland, Oregon; August, 2011.

The Toxic Stew of GOP Beliefs

Click on the title of this post to get the story. Or not.

We have a folk festival in our region and the past few years we've heard some pretty good music. This year was no exception. This is a photo of the leader of the act we caught that I thought was musically the best during our time at the festival: the Tony Furtado Band. If you really enjoy blues with slide guitar or slide banjo, I heartily suggest you catch them. Like the Grateful Dead, the live offerings of the band far outshine the studio recordings, in our humble estimation. But live, he is not to be missed. Sisters, Oregon; September, 2011.

An ancient Burmese Buddha, slightly larger than life-size, in an underhand Vitarka (discussion) mudra. British Royal Museum, London, UK; September, 2009.

Using my iPad, I guess this is the Whimpy Kid's way of telling me it's time to take him somewhere. I suppose I should make that happen sometime soon….Madras, Oregon; September, 2011.

This use to be a room in what use to be a hotel in what was once deemed the 'Most Sinful City in the US.' Jerome, Arizona; September, 2006.

They just don't make cool bridges like this anymore. Somewhere in the Columbia River Gorge Scenic Area, Oregon side; April, 2010.

Another in my occasional series of Lines, Light, Textures, and Colors. Portland, Oregon; September, 2011.

I don't know about you, but when I saw this plane the first thing I thought of was Sky King, the old TV show from the 50s. Madras, Oregon; August, 2011.

Self portrait in a propeller cap. (Click on the photo to better see me). Madras, Oregon; August, 2011.