Summer is Here...

...and it's particularly fun to spend it at Orange Grove Park.

So Many Parks, So Little Summer...

Kicking it at South Pasadena parks...

When Jon and I moved to South Pas 8 1/2 years ago, our daughter -- who many longtime readers still think of as Little Bit -- was only 2.  That meant many, many, MANY sunkissed afternoons spent in local parks.  

Of all the choices in South Pas -- from the newish playscapes at Lower Arroyo to the vast, green goodness of Garfield -- I was partial to Eddie Park.  Little Bit is 11 now,  and totally over "the park with the outdoor fireplace and the good slide," but occasionally she will still appease her mom and go there to kick around a soccer ball.  (Before wanting to head home to play Minecraft.  Tweens!)

Eddie Park is a quaint, quiet Marengo neighborhood park with a stretch of grass just right for tossing the frisbee or having a picnic.  It rests on the lawn of an elegant, moody old house that looks like it should be inhabited by the ghosts of Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald.  Go there for a charming little hideaway picnic or, if you have a 2 year old, a good slide.

For a peek at all the other parks in South Pasadena, check out my video above.

Want to leave a comment? Head on over to the new Glimpses of South Pasadena Forum and start a conversation.

Parked

It may be cold outside for Southern California, but it's still pretty nice to hang out in the sunshine at one of our parks. And, hey, while we're on the subject of hanging out at local parks... check out my latest column at South Pasadena Patch.

UPDATE: Thanks, LAist, for the lovely nod to this column today.

The Play's the Thing

Arroyo Seco Park is one of South Pasadena's tucked-away treasures. It spans 19.9 acres of parkland and includes soccer fields, baseball diamonds, horse and hiking trails, picnic tables, barbecues, undeveloped wooded areas and a flood channel. It's a quiet, breezy getaway curving along the Arroyo Seco with the skate park, racquet center and wonderfully retro golf course on one end and San Pascual Stables on the other. You'll even find a tiny, underused river rock amphitheater behind one of the baseball diamonds. (Why underused, you ask? Well, although the stone stage begs for a Hamlet soliloquy, the poison oak warning signs behind it are a bit of a buzz kill...) All in all, this is a beautiful oasis ideal for taking a jog, kicking a ball or just stretching out under one of those heritage maple trees.

But seriously, what's up with the playground equipment?!

Garfield Park and Orange Grove Park have lovely, well-maintained playscapes that are not only safe for little exploring hands but challenging for little developing minds. By contrast, Arroyo Seco Park has a few tired swings, a jungle gym that makes you hope your tetanus shots are up to date and a slide that is to playground equipment what Charlie Brown's Christmas tree was to holiday decorations. Come on, South Pas! Who do I have to bug to make this playground fun for the preschoolers and worthy of the magnificent surroundings?

Pass the Benadryl

Wondering why you can't seem to stop sneezing in South Pasadena?

It's that white tree. I'm convinced.

Stars in the Dugout

The other day I took a walk around the baseball feild at Orange Grove Park right after the rain. I had just rounded the corner behind the third base foul line when the sun made a surprising blast from the outfield, across home plate and right into the stars painted on the dugout pavement.

Baseball is so elegant. Even when the park is empty.

Eddie Park after dark...

I originally posted about the lovely and magical Eddie Park here. I couldn't resist stopping and grabbing my tripod the other night when I drove past it and saw the old house lit up and glittering. (I know the logical explanation is that it was the setting for a meeting of some sort. But I like to think the ghosts were having a party.)

Night Puddles

It rained yesterday. I just had to go slogging through the soaked grass at Garfield Park last night to capture those wet sidewalks. As usual, the resulting image makes me think of a poem -- this one by Langston Hughes:

Let the rain kiss you
Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops
Let the rain sing you a lullaby
The rain makes still pools on the sidewalk
The rain makes running pools in the gutter
The rain plays a little sleep song on our roof at night
And I love the rain.

(I also thought of this great one by Bukowski...)

Orange Park

This delightful little Mission District neighborhood park is called Orange Park because you'll find it on Orange Grove Avenue. (But the playground equipment makes sure it lives up to its colorful name.)

Garfield Park at Dusk

Filmmakers call it magic hour; poets call it twilight … that transient period right after sunset where light and darkness can’t quite decide which one is leading the dance. I think I snatched a fragment of the moment here. The only things missing are fireflies. Or maybe fairies.

Eddie Park

Eddie Park is tucked away in a sleepy residential corner of South Pas. I found it a few months ago when I was driving around trying to get my cranky daughter to fall asleep in her car seat. Instead, we skipped naptime and played in this unusual playground.

The historic Eddie House and grounds were donated to the City of South Pasadena by the Eddie family. And what a donation! Remember when you were a kid and you would walk past that really big house in your neighborhood? The one with the great spreading lawn you were just dying to kick a ball around? Maybe the house was a little run down, a romantic old beauty in need of a new coat of paint, the kind of spooky but marvelous place where ghosts like Marion and George Kerby might host flapper parties on nights with a full moon…

That’s this place.

Spending time at Eddie Park feels almost like trespassing. The .75 acre lawn is perfect for playing fetch with your pooch or reading a book under one of the huge shade trees. A group barbeque area is staged around a large open brick fireplace. A Japanese style wooden arched bridge connects part of a long forgotten garden to the edge of the now abandoned driveway. Of course, there are swings and a slide. The Transitional Craftsman house has suffered a few unfortunate alterations – some rather inelegant louvered windows upstairs and virtually all of the original trim painted over – but it retains much of its charm including some spectacular leaded glass. If you peek into the downstairs windows, you’ll see lovely original woodwork and a gorgeous fireplace. Apparently this level is used for Scout meetings and an Alcoholics Anonymous group. The locked sun porch, to my daughter’s consternation, is filled floor to ceiling with toys, art supplies and puzzles. It is used by Pasadena City College for early childhood development classes. Upstairs, we can only wonder. (Maybe that’s where the Kerbys hang out.)