100528 Phoenix Beauty

Phoenix has become my adopted home. I live here in the wintertime because of the fantastic winter weather. But I do not feel deprived. There is so much beauty in Phoenix. I love the beautiful mountain peaks in the distance (in the wintertime some of them are even snow-capped). A Phoenix friend described them as our "dragons", and I like that magical description.



I have found several parks and wetlands where I can go when I am craving some moisture and do that regularly. I've seen many types of herons and egrets, ducks, geese, and other water birds here (male ring-necked duck below and Great Blue Heron left). And even bald eagles.










The desert wildflowers this spring were the best we've had in 20 years, they said, and I certainly enjoyed driving through the desert when they were blooming (golden desert poppies, above). The mountains and desert were green from all the rain we'd had. I have found that it feels like Phoenix has flowers blooming all over, most of the time. This spring I was impressed with the bright yellow flowers on the palo verde trees everywhere (refers to their green bark). Now it's the gorgeous fuschia bouganvilla and the brilliant Red Bird of Paradise plants (below). I remember thinking that the wild flowers just kept coming in waves all spring in Austin, TX, (red Indian paintbrushes, then bluebonnets, then wild roses and wine cups, then golden coriopsis and Mexican hats), but I'm experiencing the same sense of waves of color here too. Phoenix folks sure do love color! and they sure do love flowers! And I so appreciate it.

And none of this even begins to describe all the beautiful places surrounding the city that are worth a day trip - Sedona, Oak Creek Canyon, Mount Lemmon and the Catalina Mountains, Tortilla Flat, Canyon Lake, the Salt River Canyons (both the upper and lower sections), the drive to Roosevelt Lake through the Tonto National Forest, Picacho Peak, the hike to the Needle, the ancient Casa Grande Great House ruins. And more. And, even more, if you are willing to spend an overnight (Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, San Diego, etc., etc.)

But, that's for another day, another discussion. Stay tuned.

100528 Natural Phenomena

28 May 2010 - Last Sunday I added to my list of natural phenomena that I've seen, when my friend Laura and I saw a small fire rainbow not far from Plymouth, Massachusetts. (No rain nor storm clouds anywhere around.)



I saw lenticular clouds surrounding the San Francisco Peaks near Flagstaff, Arizona, on Feb 22, 2009.



I saw anticrepuscular rays outside of Bismarck, North Dakota, on June 4, 2009.










I saw sun dogs years ago in Fargo, North Dakota, and, recently saw one in Phoenix (March 2010) that I was able to capture on film.

I also saw a rare red aurora borealis on March 13th, 1989, in Austin, TX, though I have no photos of it. There is a photo of a similar occurrence in
Texas on this page, if you are interested: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2000/ast25apr_1m/

100527 Back in Mesa Again

27 May 2010 - I flew back to Phoenix from Manchester, New Hampshire, on Monday, after six weeks working for FEMA in Massachusetts. I loved New England in the springtime and feel so fortunate that I got to make the trip. (See separate post on that for more details.)



It's summertime in Mesa. Too hot for me - highs in the 90s every day. I'm only going to be here a few days, then plan to head to cooler climes. I'm having some necessary minor repairs done on my RV (awning - again!, microwave door, bathroom door - again!, light fixture, windshield) before I head out of town.



I drove over to nearby Cottonwood Wetlands this morning for my morning walk. I'm trying to walk early each morning, before it gets too hot. I've driven by these wetlands many, many times on the highway (junction of Pima Hwy and Red Mountain Hwy), and today I finally stopped to see what was there. A Great Blue Heron, another heron (green heron, maybe?), some coots, some mallards, lots of red wing blackbirds (though they don't make the same sounds as the redwing blackbirds in North Dakota/Minnesota, so they must be a different kind), a few Gamble's Quail (the ones with the topknots), lots of turtle doves. As I was leaving, I even saw a pair of bald eagles fly overhead. Amazing! Loved the walk around the pond, the sounds of the birds, the vivid blues, greens, and yellows.



I've discovered the best way for me to beat the heat (I hate air conditioning) is to pop in and out of the pool all day. :-)

I'm eager to get on the road. I'll be spending some time with my brother Dean's family this weekend before I leave, though. It's Alicia's 12th birthday (a big one for her - she can sit in the front seat of the car now!), so there will be some celebrating. It's Leah's birthday too, but she is on a church trip to South America right now, so she'll be celebrating there. I saw my mom a couple times, but she left this morning on a three-week road trip to North Dakota, so she's not here now. I'm tentatively planning to hit the road on Tuesday myself, assuming my RV work is completed.