Alternate realities

The public washrooms at Blackie Spit, midwinter:

Another time, another place. Nowhere on the Lower Mainland.

And in this universe:

Here and now. Crescent Beach shoreline, from Blackie Spit.

It's colder. And greyer. And muddy, to boot. But I'd rather be here; with the gulls.

Another UFO

Alien space ship, parked and camouflaged. At least 8 alien faces, watching.
Along the Kamloops-Merritt highway, BC

Alternate Universe photos

Among my favourite photos are some real oddballs; indefinable, indescribable. Photos from odd angles, weird reflections, optical illusions, unforseen accidents and the effects of the general contrariness of things. Back when I kept them all in hard copy, I put them in an album that I called "Alternate Universes".

And they are just too good, sometimes, to keep to myself. So I'll post them here, periodically, under that same title: Alternate Universe Photos.

This first one was taken from the balcony during a snowstorm. Branches of a tree, sky, and distant evergreens, with snowflakes in front. The camera is on automatic focus, but the falling snow in the foreground threw it off, so it produced an impressionist painting instead, reminding me of a snippet of some half-forgotten painting, Monet perhaps, or Renoir.

It puzzles me, though. First off, I always thought snowflakes were supposed to look like snowflakes; separate hexagonal stars or clusters arranged loosely in a flattish formation, like the large ones I often see falling slowly in a heavy snowstorm. Not snowballs. But that's what showed up on the film. Round, heavy-looking balls.

Look at the second photo, taken in a previous snowfall. Same thing: snowballs.

Second; what I see in this top photo is the neck and shoulders of a woman in a brown dress and wearing a white necklace, seen through an etched glass jar with white polka dots on the top section.

Laurie doesn't see that at all. How about you? What do you see?