Surf's Up . . .

As I stood at the edge of Crissy Field (Closed), watching the cleanup crews and apparatus, the sad, melancholy sounds of "Surf's Up" by the Beach Boys kept ringing in my head . . . what to make of the lyrics, what to make of this mess? Beaches closed, wildlife down, Angel Island State Park (one of our faves) closed. It's all about incredible ('cos it could have/should have been avoided) loss . . .


This "largest oil spill in San Francisco Bay in more than a decade" (a horrific, complacent statement on its own!) this tragedy for the Bay, its wildlife, and residents has sparked an outpouring of concern from citizens who want to know how they can help.

The best direction to turn seems to be Save the Bay - www.savesfbay.org - for immediate action, and they promise "to provide more information on how the community can help as it comes available." There is also the Marine Mammal Center in the Marin Headlands - at Rodeo Beach (now closed 'cos of the oil spill - see above image by Michael Macor)

("To a muted trumpeter swan / Columnated ruins domino")

Tales of Another Island Shipyard

This definitely relates to the previous post. As seen recently on Conscientious - Jörg Colberg's weblog about fine-art photography - we find this fascinating snapshot ("Topography of Titanic") of the work of German photographer Kai-Olaf Hesse: "an extensive photographic survey of Queen's Island sites related to the making of the Titanic; the historic marks, remaining buildings, and suggestive blanks left by rapid demolition and transformation." Sounds familiar, no?

The depth of this study - in to addition Hesse's images, there are articles, vintage photos, audio, education links - is amazing. Find out more at the "Belfast Exposed" source.

(Thanks to the ever-Conscientious Jörg Colberg)

Mare Island Regional Park Task Force Final Report

As you know, we continue to sponsor more events on Mare Island (recently holding our semi-annual AlumNight here - view work on Flickr, tag is "nocturnes071027"), so we thought this news items might be of interest to you all.
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From the Times-Herald, November 2, 2007:
"Interested parties are invited to attend a community briefing concerning the Mare Island Regional Park Task Force Final Report at 7pm on Thursday, Nov. 8 at the the Mare Island Conference Center, 375 "G" Street (at the West end of Causeway Bridge), Mare Island.

"A tour will be provided of the future regional Park, leaving from the Conference Center parking lot at 4pm the day of the meeting.

"Please RSVP for the tour to 707-557-9816."
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It would be nice to REALLY FILL the room for this important meeting - to show the interest in the project and the future of Open Space on Mare Island!

(from The Nocturnes NightNews feed)