Saturday, March 5, 2011

the coffee shop some milkweed bugs and a Grackle

Woke up a 5 and decided to go for a coffee.
Got out the bike and figured out the headlight. It was so easy I can't believe that I missed it last time.
got to the coffee shop around 545 and ordered my tea. The lady with the computer was there again and I sat at the table next to her. There are only two high tables, a counter by the window and a coffee table with some easy chairs.
I realized that I forgot my sugar so went to the condiment table and met Jim, retired fire fighter from Minnesota who joined me at my table and who knew Annie, the lady at the next table.
We chatted about dogs, hiking, snakes and the weather.
Cell phones, computers, technology and old time short cord, on the wall dial phones.
The renaissance fair just 5 miles down the road where Annie has a booth.
We were soon joined by Howard who gave me directions to the hiking trail for the back of Silly mountain. He also seems to know , quite correctly, about hawks and harriers.
A fellow from the golf course came in and sat at the easy chairs but they all knew him so talked across the aisle. it is a small coffee shop.
He has seen lots of owls and told me that road-runners hunt and eat baby quail like a tyrannosaurus.
When the gentlemen started talking guns I left with requests that I leave a Canadian flag on top of Silly mountain when I do the hike.
On the way back up the hill saw some bugs on a bush so stopped to get a few pictures.
they turned out to be large milkweed bugs very pretty but I guess they are poisonous. (there are hundreds of beetles and bugs but I persisted and found out what they were)
Checked out the directions of Howard and found the trailhead for the hike easily.
Checked with the guardhouse about leaving the bike with them when I do the hike and Jim, the guard who also rides a bike, said that it would be no problem, people do it all the time.
At the golf course bridge I saw a great tailed Grackle who sang me a song.


Uncle Ron is going out for lunch today

Aunt Mary and I are going to cook a maple glazed stuffed pork loin roast today.
Aunt Mary and I went for a walk in the morning before it got too hot . we met Sophie the Visla.

WE MET A ROADRUNNER!


we also met a ground squirrel

Friday, March 4, 2011

4th March - leaping lizards and owls in the belfry

woke at 6 am and did some domestic things.
Laundry,
Dishes,
bed linen changing.

tai chi with the new Tai chi for beginners
shower
movie of "Elizabeth the golden age"
breakfast of eggs and toast for me with Aunt Mary and Uncle Ron

a nice walk around the circle.

Took some pictures of
a fairy duster

a cardinal



desert milkweed

no monarchs

no larva just the milkweed






more flowers

chuparosa with a honey bee inside the
flowers


a great spider web


a sit outside in the sun

a drive into Mesa to eat at chiles

a drive to Costco

I got to drive back home.

the parking lot at costco was crazy.

nice drive.

music,

readers digest jokes,
and word power

with Aunt Mary

while uncle Ron was on the computer.

sitting outside in the patio Peter showed up and posed for a few snap shots.
he is such an actor.
supper of Bean burrito for me and veggie soup for them
Janet called
wrote blog.
got ready for a night watching movies and saw a bat outside the window catching bugs. tried for a picture but basically got a dark speck in the darkening sky.
about 715 heard the owl outside my window again and went to see if I could spot it in the tree. when I looked out and there it was on the roof right by my window.
I took 4 shots all of them out of focus and either under or over exposed before he flew away. how exciting.... a Great horned owl. My first. How can I sleep now.




Thursday, March 3, 2011

Thursday 3rd March - Wandering in the Wilderness

Woke up early even for me.
Watched some tai chi for beginners and then at 545 went out for a hike to the mountian.
It was very dark.
No moon.
No stars so there were clouds.
I walked along the golf path to the fence where we usually get out and realized that I did not have my little flashlight so using the flash on the camera found out that they had fixed it, the whole in the fence.
So using the flash from my camera I walked down the fence line till I came to an area where I could get over the fence with the use of my jacket. (barbed Wire) when finally on the other side, I walked to where I thought I remembered following a trail up tp the mountain last year.
After 15 minutes the trail ended at the fence and there was no gate. There should have been a gate. there was no gate so I turned and headed back.
once at the road again I headed off further down until I came to another trail but it looked like it met up with the one that I was just on so I continued past it.
then a very promising and familiar trail appeared before me. I followed it up and by that time the sun was rising and I could see far better.
Came to the first fence with its gate and sign.
After much labour managed to get it open and closed after me. a very well travelled trail but very windy and curvy and lots of times taking me in what appeared to be the wrong direction from where I actually wanted to go.
Lots of birds singing and moving around by now but no other wildlife. Since it was a pasture? land I thought maybe I might see some cows, but no.
Eventually there was another fence with gate and just before the fence a marker for another trail which seemed to go west but on the outside of the Superstition Wilderness park?
Which way to go? I went through the gate in the fence and into the Superstition Wilderness. The trail that I was following was not all that clear actually and eventually it petered out.
I went west thinking that the other trail would show up and since west was the original direction that I had wanted to go it seemed logical. Through washes, and clearings. over hills and around many cacti and mesquite trees. The mountain was getting closer but there was no sign of the trail. there were flowers. Like the wire lettuce and popcorn flower, or the mexican Gold poppy that hadn't even opened up yet,
At 800 am I stopped and had refreshments. Grape juice in a wine glass. Will from the coffee shop asked me to go into the desert and have a glass of wine and think of him so I did, just not fermented. I had a lot of fun placing the glass into a variety of cactus wine glass holders.
Once I had finished playing the wino in the wilderness I headed back and finally found the fence with the path that I was looking for on the other side. No way around so I crawled under but not before spilling some of that grape juice on my camera.
Horrors. I wiped it off very quickly with the kleenex that I had in my pockets and it seemed none the worse for wear.
it was now about 830 and I thought well I will just continue down the path until 9 and see how far I get.
I got pretty far actually and if I had not gone up the wrong path and then fooled around in the wilderness with wine , I could have actually gotten quite a bit further down the trail as it was a good trail. I would like to see where it ends up. maybe tomorrow.
At 9 I turned around and headed back. I passed the cave that I would really like to get to but it doesn't look as though there any trails that go up there. I passed my own footprints in the sand and decided that if I go on Man-tracker, I have to get shoes that don't leave such a clear and visible imprint.
I got to the main road about 10 am and met a jogger. Funny how we are so ritualized. We both said good morning and how are you at the exact same moment and gave our replies at the same time as well, so I think that she is great.
Got back to my fence and climbed over with aid of jacket again. of course this time I could see the little flowers that were growing right there and so I grabbed a couple of shots. very cute little Fiddlenecks. Although when I look at the photo there seems to also be some scorpion weed and a five pointed flower of some kind.
by now the temperature must have been 75 F. I saw a roadrunner across the course who was quite intent on something in the grass. I got home about 1030 am and was glad for it too. A big glass of water with ice and a nice sit down and chat with Aunt MAry and Uncle Ron.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Wednesday 2 March - Key Lime Pie

Last night I didn't get to sleep until later due to the owl. It actually scared me it was so close to my window. I heard it like it was right there but as it was night and black as black I could not see it.
Even so I woke up early and was out the door by 630 am.
Walked over to the lake along the golf path and as the sun came up got some lovely shots of the shoveler ducks and the white ring ducks.
The Geese were not there yet by the time I wandered on.
I also got a great shot of a black Phoebe just flying over the water with its very clear reflection and a song sparrow beside the water. I had never seen either of these bird before to my knowledge.
I am very pleased with them.
Came back via the off road course and found three golfballs to start the collection with.
Also got a shot of two doves and a bunny.
I got home and had breakfast of waffles with Aunt Mary and Uncle Ron. we popped down to the store to get a few things
and then Aunt Mary and I went for a walk around the circle. It was lovely warm.
When we got back and were having our water in the patio I saw Peter Lorrie skitter across the patio.
Later I got this great shot of a verdin. they are nesting close to the house somewhere so are here all the time.
Aunt Mary and I made a Keylime pie from scratch today. rolled the keylimes, cut them in half and squeesed the juice out of 12 of them. you need 1/2 cup of juice.
We had lunch thinking that the hard part of the job was over.
After lunch we zested the green off of the limes which is much more difficult than it sounds;
we beat the 4 egg yolks and added the sweetened condensed milk and 1/2 the juice; blended that and added the rest of the juice and the zest ;
mixed that and poured it into the prepared graham wafer crust and baked it at 350 for 12 minutes.
While we waited for it to bake Aunt Mary and I started a crossword.
The pie smelled very good and when we took it out.... it was perfect.
Uncle Ron had gone to Rotary and he came home just in time to taste our creation warm out of the oven. It was scrumptious!

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Tuesday - 1 March 2011 - Hawks, Ducks and a London fog

Woke up at 5 am and was cycling down the hill by 530. It was very dark and I could not figure out how to get the little headlight on the bike to work. I will check the batteries before I go riding in the dark again.
Luckily there was no one on the road at that time of the morning so the only thing I had to fear was running over a javelina.
I got to the Gecko cafe and ordered a London fog.
Charlie was great and signed me up for their card, which means that after so many coffees I get a free one.
There were two people already in the cafe when I got there. One lady was on her computer and one gentleman who was reading his newspaper.

He said good morning, she did not. As my tea was very hot I left it with Charlie and went to Bashaws to pick up a few things.

Fruit, veggies and postcards. I was the first customer there but by the time I left about five minutes later there were already 5 or six others wandering the aisles.

I went back to the coffee shop and picked up my fog and read the now available newspaper as the gentleman had left. at around 7 I departed the cafe and headed up the hill. It is a very long, slow, soft incline up so it was actually not too difficult. Having said that, It is a very long, slow, soft incline up. At one point I saw a cardinal so stopped and took a few photos.(any excuse to stop and rest) then I saw a Gila woodpecker doing a very nice sun salute.

I was home by 730 so decided to go for a little walk and see what would happen this morning.

I thought I heard geese so followed the golf path towards the sound and low and behold there were in fact Canada geese, Ring necked ducks, some Northern Shovelers and some mallards.

Pretty exciting. I think that I shall have to go there earlier in the morning to see what else I can find at that little lake.

On the way back I saw, across the golf course, a very large bird sitting in a tree.

I could not make out what it was but grabbed a few shots hoping that they would turn out well enough for me to figure out what it was.

I think that it was either a female or young Northern Harrier. SO Exciting!

I also got a shot of a Finch? Cassins maybe? don't know for sure.

Of course I did not know any of that until I got home and loaded the pictures on to the computer.

Very good morning thus far.

We are going out to lunch at the Red Sage restaurant so will see if I can get some of those postcards filled out and mailed.




Monday, February 28, 2011

28 Feb - Monday - I slept in... kind of shocking I know

I woke up at 330 am.... don't know why but am blaming the aliens.
this is a hot spot for UFOs.
The sky was very clear and there were thousands of stars shining brightly. Absolutely gorgeous.
Couldn't get back to sleep so I read a book until about 5 and then finally fell back to sleep
I woke at 6
I woke at 7
then I had this odd dream about collecting kittens. black and white ones mostly but I wanted a little calico like Patches.
It somehow very important to collect the kittens even though I have two cats already.
then I woke up and heard Uncle Ron calling me that there was an emergency call for me about my cats and how they needed to be fed.
It was eight am and I can't believe that it was that late.
Katherine was calling to find out where I kept the cat food. The Linen closet. I know an odd place to keep cat food.
She is having a great time with them and they, in turn, are loving her to pieces.
I then made myself a lovely omelet for breakfast.
Aunt Mary and Uncle Ron came out around 9 and I joined them for their breakfast.
the sun is shining and the snow is almost all gone from the top of the mountain. I give it till noon.
Uncle Ron went to the store while Aunt Mary and I did a crossword and made some lovely cheesy chicken and rice stuffed peppers for lunch.
We sat in the sun until I could not anymore.
It was too hot for me.
I am one of those people who cannot sit or lay in the sun.
I can hike forever but cannot just sit there. The sun bakes my brain.
Uncle Ron came back with lots of groceries. lets just say that we are going to be having advocado at every meal for awhile.
now we are going for a walk
I got some great shots today. a Crissal thrasher, a female black chinned hummingbird and a fence lizard we decided to call Lorrie after Perter Lorrie who wascute but also a little creepy at times .