Union station in Washington DC is one of the most beautiful train stations in the United States. One afternoon, I had a great time wandering about and shooting photos. The station is fun for people watching, although some people appear frozen in stone.

Danilo Peréz’s Global Messengers I’ve always been a huge fan of Wayne Shorter’s quartet with Danilo Peréz, John Pattituci and Brian Blade. And I enjoy each of the artists individually. So I leaped at a chance go hear the pianist, Danilo Peréz lead his own group. The setting could not be more beautiful. The 6th and I Synagogue is a historic building in downtown Washington DC, and its a Sephardic-style building. Rather than a long vault ending in an alter, the building is basically square, with a dome above four huge arches. The dome is pained a lovely sky blue. And the colors throughout the space are warm and inviting. I had been looking for an opportunity to show Audrey the space and it was a special bonus that Sarah was visiting us. ...

DC was rocking from its porches Saturday, as we strolled through “porchfest” in the nearby neighborhood of Petworth. It was great to catch with college friends John and Sue Lang and their clan. Every kind of music was featured, most of it original. And the streets were overflowing with a relaxed audience, taking in the perfect weather and looking for the next great sound on a porch somewhere nearby. Samba School One highlight was DC’s only Samba School, which got the whole audience involved in their joyous dances. ...

On a beautiful morning, we decided to visit the National Zoo. Alas the only panda we saw was a statue at the entrance! Mom tried to play with the seals, but they were more interested in the 5 and 6 year old kids running about. My favorite photo is the goat in a bucket! We got to the zoo by Lyft. As you may know, the National Zoo is on a hill. You start at the top and see all the animals while strolling downhill – which usually means that you have to walk uphill all the way back. But we had the realization that we could call a Lyft at the bottom, which made the visit magically easy. ...

About a year ago, the dogs and I enjoyed a beautiful day on a California beach. Lola loves fetching a ball along the waterline. Ollie loves playing keep away with the ball. Both can run and run and run at the beach. I was looking for some photos to print and found these three shots. I really enjoyed looking back on them. I hope you do, too. ...