Hmmm. I got the monkey off my back. I have been going to the Huntington Library for the past three years, it had become a regular pilgrimage for me every few months. But lately, the gardens have lost their enticement for me. I don't want to go, even for this one which is in a league of its own. But I go out of duty, just to remain active and not forget the rituals that helped me to survive the Covid years when we could not gather in large event and we were all trying to find internal peace.
I went to this event in mid May, shortly before my hernia operation. I said, I have to make my days special, I need to generate memories and just try to do things of worth. There are always astounding visual displays here, even if I have seen them over and over, in all kinds of weather, in different seasons. I told myself, let's hope I recover from my operation, then, I will return. But I held off my return even after I recovered, but the thought nagged in my brain. I have to go back. I have to show the place that I survived.
And, in September, I returned. I took along film cameras, as I usually do. I used my Holgapan, the one that produces 6x12 negatives. For a plastic camera, the negatives are of surprising quality. The center frame is sharp, the edges taper off to blurriness. But these are panoramas, and the effect can enhance the photo.
I don't recall how much time I spent here but I remember that it went by quickly. I didn't want to spend too much time, anyway. I would leave in two hours, short and sweet, because I had to get on the freeways before the afternoon rush hour really kicked in. Also, I wanted to go to a specific restaurant that sells a type of Mexican/Arab fusion food. Well, it wasn't all that. The food was bad. But the Huntington Garden was beautiful, as usual.
Here are a few scans.
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