Mercedes Demonstrates Vehicle Stability With Chickens

... and it's about as amazing as you would expect it to be.

Ad is for the Mercedes-Benz CLA 250.

Surfing In Snow

Sometimes it's not the actual surfing that's the most beautiful part of the sport, sometimes it's the different surfing locations.  Different surfing locations inspire awe, evoke courage, and help to realize an inner peace..  Whether it's in ice or snow, the jungle, or the city, there are many different places where people surf.  Here are a few photos of different surfing locations.

###

Esmerelda

Mickey Smith is about as talented as directors come.  He created Dark Side of the Lens, and described the emotional connection surfers have to their sport.  This time, instead of describing it, Mickey showed it through a unique lens in Esmerelda, a music video for Ben Howard.  The world of surfing in reverse.

This artful depiction of waves and surfing encompasses the spiritual connection that surfers have to the ocean and to waves.  Plug in your headphones, tune out your surroundings and enjoy this beautiful video.

Here is another music video that Mickey Smith made for Ben Howard:
  ###

Exotic Creatures

I made a post about what to do when you're not surfing about the Long Beach Aquarium, but I had some extra photos.  At the Long Beach Aquarium, there are a huge host of creatures (yes, even some birds).  When I visited, I took photos of some of the most exotic species including the Saw Tooth Shark.  See the photos below (you'll recognize which is the Saw Tooth).  You don't want to run into one of these in the water.

We were also able to feed and hold tropical birds that live around the water where these exotic species of marine mammals are found.  When you're out surfing, try not to think too hard about what's lurking underneath.

###

Long Beach Aquarium

I promised a post about what to do when you're not surfing on Offshore Winds' Facebook Page.  What better to do when you're out of the water for a month than discover what's going on underneath the water.  I took a trip to the Long Beach Aquarium and decided to take a few snaps.  Enjoy the photos...

###

Dolphins at Dawn

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/echeng/303368934/

I drove up to the beach at dawn.  It was foggy, and light offshore winds gave the waves a majestic quality.  Smooth misty winds clipped off the top of a breaking wave, and the spray settled delicately back into the ocean.

I paddled out, nearly alone in the vast lineup.  I ducked under a wave and to my surprise, a dolphin was waiting to greet me.  He looked ahead and breathed, exhaling from his dorsal blowhole–  a deep, crisp woosh– as he dipped back under water.  He wasn't alone; more than a dozen dolphins surfaced unpredictably around me.  They came up close– close enough to nudge me.  Some were huge– up to 9 feet long.  They weren't the pristine specimens that you see on TV.  Instead they had tattered fins and deep-set eyes that suggested a hard life.  They showed each other great love.  They nuzzled each other with their long snouts, and tumbled over one another in an odd slow motion dance.  It looked like playing, though they were probably protecting each other from what lay in the depths below.  They dove underwater and flicked their tails, splashing their mates.  The pod was largely paired off, and it seemed that they had been together for a long time.

A swell lumbered towards me and the pod.  The dolphins instinctively snapped to attention, and glided into the wave.  I saw 6 dolphins flow naturally and gracefully through it.  I thought they were playing– surfing– as I have seen dolphins do many times before.  I paddled over the wave, turned my head and saw 50 fish shoot into the air.  The fish lashed this way and that, straining and gulping to get an extra inch into the air.  Some looked as if their eyes were bulging from their bodies from the effort.  Two dolphins arced out of the water.  Snap.  Each was rewarded with a meal, as 48 lucky fish rained back down into the sea.

I had often watched dolphins and other porpoises hunt in teams on BBC Life, but it was something else to experience it first-hand.  For 20 minutes, their fishing session proceeded.  I didn't want to disturb them nor add any more scars to their already weathered hides with my fins, so I didn't catch any waves.    Instead, I paddled towards the pod and just watch.  I was entangled in a moment that seemed to last an eternity.  When they had had their fill, the dolphins left and didn't look back.  I like to think that this is how my dolphins spend all of their time– jubilant, loving, hunting when necessary, undisturbed by the occasional human spectator.  I imagine their lives are harder than mine has ever been– fighting to survive everyday, trapped in a treacherous icy mass of water.  I may not know the truth, but I'm a dreamer, and I'll see my jubilant pod another day.

###

Wild Animals in Central Park

Believe it or not, New York is host to a number of wild animals.  Besides the tigers living in studio apartments in Brooklyn, we found a couple animals in Central Park.

Bird in Central Park 

Turtle in Central Park

###
Scroll all the way down and follow my blog to get more little bits of intrigue

Carmel Beach Sunset

John Lee and I decided to grab a fine beer from Whole Foods after our typical meal at Mi Tierra, a big burrito and a delicious taco (or two).  We plopped down on Carmel Point and watched the sun set...

###
Scroll all the way down and follow my blog to get more little bits of intrigue

Waves In Motion Carmel Beach

Capturing motion and capturing nature are two of my favorite things to do with a camera.  Doing both is even more satisfying.  Here are some photos of waves in motion at Carmel Beach...

Wave In Motion Carmel Beach

Wave In Motion Carmel Beach

Wave In Motion Carmel Beach

###
Scroll all the way down and follow my blog to get more little bits of intrigue

A Moment of Feeling Alive

It's strange that in a remote area, things feel most alive.  Having lived in Los Angeles and San Francisco, I know what it's like to be in the middle of the hustle and bustle of city life.  But the liveliness of these cities, though fun, falls flat in comparison to the vivacity of nature.

Deep in the preserve, miles into Carmel Valley, you get this feeling of being alive.  With no one around for miles except the people you came with, the beautiful tendrils of life root deeply into this place.  Even Bo the Rhodesian Ridgeback felt alive here.

Bo, the Rhodesian Ridgeback.  He's used to hunting lions.

John Lee, amateur photographer.  Nuts and bottle caps make for an interesting subject.

Mallery Maguire, blending into The Preserve as a native.

The Gateway to Life.  Entrance to The Preserve.

The lake, truly alive with creatures of the deep.

Feeling alive in the circle of life.  Mallery Maguire fishing.

###
to Follow my blog, scroll all the way down and click 'Follow'

Natural Beauty; Sobrantes, Big Sur

Natural beauty runs rampant in Sobrantes, Big Sur.  Here are a few shots I took, enjoy...

 

 Sobrantes, Big Sur

 

Sobrantes, Big Sur

 

Sobrantes, Big Sur

 

Sobrantes, Big Sur

 

Sobrantes, Big Sur

 

Sobrantes, Big Sur

 

Sobrantes, Big Sur

 

Sobrantes, Big Sur

 

Sobrantes, Big Sur

 

Sobrantes, Big Sur

###
*To Follow my blog, scroll all the way down and click 'Follow'
*Please note all opinions in this post are mine and mine alone. They in no way reflect those of any individual, group, or organization that may be in this post.
*Photos + Writing by Eli Kallison unless otherwise stated
*Click to stumble this post: