Pelicans, whales & humans.....

A few weeks back I ventured out to the bay where whales were feeding. I figured it was a good excuse to head out to the pier for a fish taco. On the way I was stuck in a traffic jam, very rare around these parts. As I inched along the coast I realized that it was a whale-induced traffic jam. There was a large group of paparazzi with tripods & telephoto lenses hoping to catch a spectacular breaching. 

The pier was packed with people armed with iPhones. It was a beautiful late afternoon & the bay was full of wildlife. Oddly, people were complaining that whales weren’t breaching in front of them. They were disappointed that they weren’t able to capture the spectacular shot that they’d apparently seen on the news.

Normally people visiting the pier are excited when they see a few sea lions. That afternoon there were more sea lions & birds than I’ve ever seen there, but no one seemed to notice. 

I found myself fascinated with pelicans & deep in thought. I was glad that there were so many people interested in traveling out to the coast to see whales, but found it kind of sad that they didn’t seem to be interested in just watching whales & enjoying the afternoon.

  

It made me think about how we look at & experience the world around us. How our expectations can limit our vision & our openness to our surroundings & new experiences. About how humans assign value to things & sometimes feel the need to own them before they can be enjoyed.

All in all, an afternoon well spent. The light was crisp, the fish taco was great & I loved the way these pelicans were ignoring the scene on the pier & taking over in a pirate-like way.

Pelican prints available here.