Saguaro National Park
I’m in the mood for some more warm sunny desert pictures. Then I have to start folding March invoices. Enjoy!
Date: February 28, 2010
Archives from month » February, 2010
Spring Creeps Northward
I will need to keep sharing vacation pictures to remind myself that it was worth it as I work a string of 10-hour days to catch up at work.
The second 12-hour day of the drive home was uneventful. We left Barstow at 5:30 a.m. in order to be home before dark. Another snow storm was predicted over the Siskiyous and we wanted to beat it.
As we drove north through California’s central valley we noted that the almonds trees that had been barren 2.5 weeks before are now in bloom. At one quick stop in the midst of orange groves, the scent filled the air and made me want to stay.
Wild mustard is dotting the fields.
Back at home, while the trees are still bare the daffodils are blooming. Spring will come.
I just have to remember that through the fog.
Phoebe is back on her favorite couch.
Alice is back on her favorite chair.
Huxley should be home today, delivered to the office by his grandma Louise. Hux wrote me this e-mail a couple of days ago:
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Dear Mom, had sex, love being at grandma’s house and my family here. When are you coming home? She says no more sex. Love and kisses Hux PS: They have sheep in the house here! |
I think this means that there will be little black Cardigan puppies in Dufur in a couple of months.
Date: February 25, 2010
Hopi Katsina Dolls
From the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona.
The exhibits were behind glass in a fairly dark room with no flash allowed, but I don’t think that the pictures came out too badly. I only have a small representative sampling from a huge collection.
Tom said that some of them were going to give him nighmares.
Some other clay figurines.
More from the museum to come.
Date: February 23, 2010
But it was supposed to be a desert vacation
Tom’s under the weather, so we are just heading home instead of stopping to visit more. Speaking of weather: I should have checked it before we ventured out today. Had I done so, we would have gone south and taken I-10 rather than 40.
We hit snow about 1/2 hour after leaving Albuquerque. Snow which got progressively worse. I stopped for gas about an hour into the trip and we debated turning around. But I didn’t want to chicken out, so forged on. As it turns out, we could have doubled back and not lost time. The traffic on the freeway was going about 20 mph, following semis breaking through and making ruts for the rest of us.
We had to pull off an exit one time and clean the ice off the windshield and wipers. Then we (and most everybody else) pulled off at a Pilot truck stop (above). That gave us a chance to pick up some de-icer.
Tom drove from the Pilot though Gallup, to Holbrook, Arizona. I snapped this picture just past the truck stop. We had seen a couple of other accidents (one an upside-down suv in the median) before the stop. Since I was driving, I couldn’t get those shots.
I took over the wheel again in Holbrook for the remainder of the drive. Climbing up from Winslow to Flagstaff things got interesting again. Above picture was taken while getting gas in Flagstaff. The next two were taken going down the hill after Flag. Note blowing snow.
Note also the “Closed” sign on the rest area. Every one of the rest areas on I-40 in Arizona was closed. Come to think of it almost every rest area on any road in Arizona was closed. And the Arizona roads are in horrible shape. Tom says it’s because all of the funds set aside for roads have been spent on buidling roads to new subdivisions in Phoenix which are either empty or full of unsold houses.
Out of the snow and back in California, we are in Barstow tonight. Another 12 hours of driving tomorrow (fingers crossed) to get home. In all we lost 2.5 hours of travel time today due to the weather.
Date: February 22, 2010
