Kites and Color For Your Beach Bike Wedding This Summer!

Logged almost 16 more miles for the Clif 2MileChallenge this morning, and it’s clear on the bike path that summer is upon us!

You’ll see from the photos below that, true to form, we’re having our usual “June Gloom” at the beach, but L.A. County has taken it upon themselves to liven things up a bit with their Portraits of Hope “Summer of Color” program.  It’s the largest public art project in the U.S., spanning 31 miles of Southern California beaches; the panels were painted by over 6,000 kids  from schools, social service programs, and hospitals–some of the kids with disabilities using special telescoping paintbrushes or shoe-brushes to do their part.

The artwork will be on the beach until October, after which the panels will be donated to the various orgs that participated to beautify their workplaces; some will be shipped to shelters, hospitals, and senior homes in Haiti as a message of hope and continued inspiration.  Is that not total coolness???

I vote yes for my tax dollars going to public art like this!! You can make a donation through the Portraits of Hope website too, if you’d like to support future projects (**and don’t forget to vote on Tuesday, I know it’s only a primary but it matters, thanks.)

So check out these vibrant guard towers at Will Rogers State Beach and Santa Monica: they are so beautifully symbolic on so many levels, why not pick a favorite for your bike wedding site (I like the one with the daisies myself) and then you can take uber-cool photos afterwards, dude!

It's so "Baywatch," I can hardly stand it

Summer of Color, Yellow

Summer of Color, Green

Summer of Color, My Fave

But don’t stop there–add some more color with wedding kites!  Kites are an excellent distraction for young’uns who may be attending your beach nuptials, and they’re fascinating for adults too…and festive!

There Be Dragons in the skies of Santa Monica!....and flying koi too, apparently

Butterfly kite on the beach, with child attached

Annenberg Center, Santa Monica

Now it’s time for me to sit down on the couch–CAREFULLY, as the tailbone gets a wee sore after these longer cruises–and work on my wedding book.  Ride on, and see you on the bike path!