Cloudy With A Chance For Joy

I've recently been introduced to the awesomeness that is TEDTalks, and so, when I'm bored, or feeling a need for inspiration, I wander around the site looking for interesting talks. They're all excellent, but of course, some will resonate with me more than others.

I watched this one, "Cloudy With a Chance For Joy" last week, and again this weekend, and I really love it. Gavin Pretor-Pinney is the founder of The Cloud Appreciation Society, which sounds ludicrous, but if you listen to his talk, you realize he makes an excellent point. "We live in the sky, not under it," he says, and his talk isn't so much about appreciating pretty clouds (though he maintains that this is an enjoyable and easy way of calming stress and being present in our world) as it is about being truly in a moment and appreciating life.

It's worth a watch--Pretor-Pinney is an engaging speaker. And it has inspired me to share some of my own cloud pictures, because, no matter where you go, you'll find them, and they're not necessarily a "grey sky" phenomenon.

Clouds emerging as San Francisco's famous fog lifts.

I took this standing outside my classroom in Stockton, California. I love
when you can see the sun peeking from behind a storm cloud.

Over Lake Tahoe.

Storm coming in over South Lake Tahoe.

Wispy Van Gogh-like clouds over the Napa Valley.

Clouds add to the spartan drama of Nevada.

Nevada's landscape is boring as all get-out, but look at that sky!

Nevada, again.

Over Southern Idaho.

The edge of the storm--Southern Idaho.

Either Southern Idaho or Northern Nevada.

My own back yard. : )