The Lawlyes Log

Tucson, Tombstone & Bisbee

2008-03-05T14:21:00.000-08:00

At the end of February, Carolyn and I made our annual pilgrimage to Tucson. We had a great visit to the Saguaro National Park where we spent the day hiking. The park features miles of trails from which you can see more than 50 species of cactus as well as a wide variety of other desert inhabitants.

If you ever get lost in the desert, the Barrel Cactus will help you get your bearings. It always leans to the south as it orients toward the sun.

Can you see the jack rabbit? (If not, click on the image to enlarge it.) This guy was bigger than either of my two dogs.

Here you can see a cactus condo. Woodpeckers have made homes in the top of this saguaro. A woodpecker will live in the home he built only one year then will abandon it. Other species of bird will use it in subsequent years. (The woodpecker chooses a new mate each season. Apparently the new wife refuses to live in the old house.)

The life cycle of the saguaro is fascinating. They can live to be 200 years old. They grow very slowly and take 50 or more years before they grow their first arm. To preserve precious water, they sleep during the day and wake up at night to engage their metabolic functions. This saguaro has an arm that has drooped and twisted. This is the result experiencing a very cold night. The cellular structure broke down. You can see at the tip that it is just beginning to arc upward again.

There are so many saguaros in the park that you would think that the cactus easily reproduces. That is not the case. In its lifetime a saguaro will produce a million seeds. Due to the difficult conditions a saguaro is lucky if one seed survives to create a successor plant.

While we were there, desert plants were just beginning to flower. One of the first do to so each year is the Fairy Duster seen here.

This cactus has produced its fruit for the year. Native American harvest the fruit and produce a drink and other edibles from it.

We also took a day trip down to Tombstone, the "town to tough to die." Tombstone was laid out in 1879 after Edward Schieffelin, a miner, staked a claim for a silver in the area. At the time there were 40 cabins and 100 people living there. Two years later the population grew to more than 7,000.

With the influx came a building boom including a theater, a court house and a host of saloons.

One saloon was supposedly run by Big Nose Kate, the common law wife of Doc Holliday. Kate was the well educated daughter of a Hungarian aristocrat. She is buried here is Prescott under the name Mary K. Cummings. (She married after Doc's death.)

In the early 1880's Tombstone was home to desperate men on both sides of the law. Cattle rustling, stage coach robbery, and murder were common occurrences. Sometimes the lawmen were as shady as the bad guys.
The OK Corral, site of the most famous shootout in western history. On Oct. 26, 1881, Virgil Earp learned the Clanton Gang was gathering and looking to fight with the Earps. Virgil, Morgan and Wyatt Earp joined by their friend, Doc Holliday, headed out to meet them. The fight lasted 30 seconds at point blank range. When it was over, Billy Clanton, Tom and Frank McLaury were dead. (All shot by Holliday.) Virgil was shot in the leg, Morgan in both shoulders and Doc was grazed across the hip. Only Wyatt was unscathed.

The outlaws were buried at Boothill Cemetery. From the sign on the right you can see, not all agreed with the law. In fact a trial was held before the Earps were exonerated. Many contended the fight was for political control of Cochise County. Three months after the OK Corral, Virgil Earp was shot and wounded. Months later Morgan was murdered by an unknown assassin. Wyatt killed three men he suspected were involved then left Tombstone forever.

Finally we went to Bisbee which reveals another chapter in Arizona history. Bisbee was a mining town. In its heyday it produced tons of copper and as a by product, turquoise.

Unlike other mining towns, however, Bisbee made itself over. Now the European-like town is a tourist attraction with quaint shops and restaurants. Situated at higher elevation than Tombstone, it enjoys a mild year around climate.

Sara Runs The 2007 Long Beach Marathon

2007-10-17T20:39:00.000-07:00

Oct. 14, Sara ran the Long Beach Marathon which she trained for over the last six months. She had a beautiful day and gorgeous scenery to test her mettle. We left Redondo Beach early for a 7:30am start. 18,000 people signed up for the marathon, half marathon, walk, and bike ride that made up the day's events. An early start and Sara's knowledge of the back roads of Long Beach helped us beat the traffic.

We knew we were close when Bob and Sara saw half of those 18,000 people lined up at the porta potties.
First item of business for most runners -get the Ipod going. Sara used a Nike sensor in her shoe connected to her Ipod to track her course, pace, and distance.

Bob gave her a few final words of encouragement. He has participated in Iron Man competitions in the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and Brazil.

With that, she was good to go.
Seven and a half minutes after the starter's gun, Sara crossed the starting line to begin her race.

The 26.2 mile course runs largely along the harbor of Long Beach.

Runners first head toward the downtown area.

They then loop back ...

run by the Queen Mary ...

around the Lighthouse at Rainbow Harbor ...

(Here's Sara feeling pumped up at the six mile marker.)

(Sara's friend, Sheila, graciously came along to lend moral support and encouragment. It really helped.)

and then out onto the beach.

Then they wound through Belmont Shore before looping back to the starting line. (See the woman running in the pink tutu?)

Here Carolyn is cheering on a participant running in her grass skirt. Carolyn rang her cowbell

throughout the race prompting several runners to say, "We need more cowbell!"

At the 23 mile marker Sara is still looking strong! Just 3.2 miles to go.

At the finish line! Subtracting the time it took Sara to get to the starting line to begin the race gives Sara an official time of 5:10:42. A terrific first marathon.

A hand raised in triumph.

Sara receives her medal.

A proud pop.

In her first effort, Sara outran 25% of the men who entered the race.

She's already talking about her next one.

"Gardening" Arizona Style

2007-08-30T23:06:00.000-07:00

You know how one thing leads to another?
Carolyn and I won a gift certificate from a local nursery at this summer's Meals On Wheels picnic. We chose two red Autumn Sage bushes to plant in our yard. What would have been a thirty minute job in the rich loam of Illinois turned into a three hour project in Arizona's granite.

Nonetheless, enthused about our "gardening," we decided we also needed a cactus. This project would be even more challenging. You need a spade to plant in Illinois, in Arizona the primary gardening tool is a hammer.
A few hours and a couple of muscle spasms later we had a nice Indian Fig cactus adorning our front "lawn." Now on a roll, we decided to build a Desert Garden of native, low water, full sun plants.

We chose a spot in our side yard and marked it off with small stones.

Then I gathered our tools. (Based on our previous experiences I upgraded to a pick and crowbar.)

I removed the existing landscape rock and cut out the weed barrier.

Digging the bed was the next order of business.

The first break came at ten minutes into the dig. It was time to don the gloves.

By dark, I had amassed quite a pile of "Arizona topsoil."

The next day I got a little behind in my work and began stacking the stones for the garden border.
The biggest challenge turned out to be wrestling the largest stones in place. A crow bar, brute effort and an assist from Carolyn and the minivan resolved the problem.

By afternoon of the second day, our mini Stonehedge was nearly complete.

Next it was time to shovel and rake three tons of fill dirt and super soil to make the plant bed.
The final stage - plant and cover the top soil with decomposed granite for a protective layer. (By the way, I was told it was OK to wear white since it was before Labor Day.)
This is the nearly finished product. We will add a few more plants in the spring and possibly some solar lighting to accent it at night.
Almost all of the plants in the garden do well in high desert conditions. Once well established they will not require a lot of water. Here are some we have chosen:

The “Arizona Sun” Gaillardia, also known as "Indian Blanket" blooms for weeks in the summer and attracts butterflies.
The Polka Dot Prickly Pear Cactus (also called the Bunny Ears Cactus) can grow to be three feet tall. It has lemon yellow flowers in spring. It is covered in very fine hair-like stickers. I wore gloves and a long sleeved shirt to work with it.

The Red Hot Poker is originally from South Africa. It attracts hummingbirds which are abundant here.

The Santa Barbara Salvia will have velvety purple spikes, summer through winter. It too attracts hummingbirds and hummingbirds.

Goodwin Creek Lavender will have spikey blue flowers and a wonderful fragrance.

Plumbago is a ground cover with small blue flowers that attract hummingbirds.

Coreopsis is a member of the sunflower family. They are prolific bloomers.

Stonecrop Sedum is a great ground cover for this area. It loves a sunny dry climate and is resistant to both deer and rabbits.

Moonshine Yarrow is a great rock garden flower. It loves the heat and needs little water. It has a long growing season.

Yet another plant that is drought tolerant and attractive to hummingbirds is the Purple Salvia.

Cotoneaster is an evergreen shrub that originated in Asia. We are using it as a centerpiece in our garden. It will grow tall if allowed or can be shaped as a small tree or bush.
To add color in the fall, we planted a fusia mum. It will need a little extra care to see that it survives. Rabbits, in particular, like them.

A Tragedy in Prescott Valley

2007-08-27T20:47:00.000-07:00

Highway 69 is a busy highway that runs between Prescott and Prescott Valley. Anyone who has driven it in recent years has seen a young woman jogging along it.

Jessica Martin ran everyday before or after work from her job at New Frontier grocery to her home in Prescott Valley six or seven miles away. After the local paper did a feature on her, Jessica became well known to many. Her running style, arms bent at the elbows and hands extended in the air, was unique. When you saw her, you knew it was Jessica.

She ran to battle bi-polar disorder. Her goal was the Boston Marathon.

While running early in the morning on August 15th, Jessica was struck by a pickup truck on Highway 69. She was helicoptered to a Phoenix hospital but did not survive her injuries.

The outpouring of grief has been incredible. A roadside cross was set up at the accident site. People have left flowers, stuffed animals and other remembrances.

There has been a constant stream of visitors. It continues nearly two weeks after the accident.

Her jogging shoes hang there.

Handwritten notes have been posted by strangers attesting to the meaning that Jessica's life had for others.

Jessica celebrated her 29th birthday just three days before her death.

Seeing her run was inspiring and gave me great joy. She touched more people then she will ever know.

Of This and That

2007-07-19T14:11:00.000-07:00

Smoke Tree Lane winds through our neighborhood in Prescott for about three miles. Along it you find rocks with petroglyphic images.

Images, produced by prehistoric people, are found throughout the world. There are more than 30,000 of them in the Southwest US alone (with the greatest concentration being in Utah). This complex geometric design has been associated with the Sinaqua culture.
This rock shows a deer. The Yavapai Indians native to this area often copied the designs of more ancient petrogylphs they found when they moved into the area.
The signifigance of the petroglyphic imagery is not well understood. Some had religious meaning, some recorded important events. Certainly some were just a manifestation of man's need for an artistic outlet.

Early white visitors to the area saw the petroglyphs and felt the same impulse to record their presence. Click on the picture to see the eagle and flag carved on this rock by J. L. Kimball in 1869.
Even older than the petroglyphs are some of the critters that inhabit Arizona. Carolyn and I encountered this fellow one morning during our walk. (You can tell he's a fellow by the bright markings. Females are less colorful.)

This is an Eastern Collared Lizard. (See two black bands around his neck.) This Southwest native lives in a range from Canada to Mexico. They eat insects, other lizards and even small snakes. This fellow was not frightened by me and let me get quite close to take pictures. When frightened, however, he will rear up on his hind legs and run in bipedal fashion.
A favorite of ours is the road runner. This one lives near our house and is seen frequently in the early evenings. He never fails to come home without a lizard in his mouth - bringing carry-out to the kids.

Stars At Rest

2007-07-17T19:59:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, Carolyn and I went to LA to visit Sara. Not having done any "touristy" things on recent visits, we decided that this trip we would find the final resting place of some of Hollywood's biggest stars. A bit of research revealed that there are many cemeteries of the stars in the LA area.

One of the most famous is Forest Lawn. As it turns out, however, there are three Forest Lawns. The largest, Forest Lawn Glendale is "home" to hundreds of Hollywood stars among the 250,000 people buried there. The smaller Forest Lawn of Hollywood Hills with acre upon acre of lush rolling hills, has dozens of notables from America's entertainment world. The size of these memorial parks in daunting. Finding someone there can be a challenge.

We settled instead on a small out of the way park situated in a forest of commercial high rises and residential property near the campus of UCLA in Westwood. The Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park just off of Wilshire Blvd can be easily missed.

We chose this spot because it is very small and intimate yet many famous stars are buried there.

Immediately upon walking into the park we saw the grave of Don Knotts who died just last year. Surprisingly it was a very simple unadorned site.

Just a few feet away was the significantly more ornate burial site of singer, Mel Torme.

The most famous resident is Marilyn Monroe. Joe Dimaggio shocked Hollywood in 1962 when he chose this small cemetery to be Marilyn's final resting place instead of a larger and more prestigious site.

Since then it has become the eternal home of many of our most famous illuminaries.
Dean Martin is just a few yards away from Marilyn Monroe.

Rodney Dangerfield was buried here in 2004. He still makes passers-by laugh today. (Click on the picture to read the inscription.)

Nearby are the plots of other famous entertainers: Billy Wilder (writer and director), Carroll O'Connor (Archie Bunker) and Jack Lemmon.

Wilder's film career lasted more than 50 years. He won 6 Academy Awards. His classics include: Double Indemnity (1944), The Lost Weekend (1945), Sunset Blvd. (1950), Sabrina (1954), Some Like It Hot (1959) and The Apartment (1960).

Jack Lemmon's "Odd Couple" partner, Walter Matthau is just a few feet away.

In addition to Marilyn Monroe, there are other tragic figures in Westwood. Natalie Wood was buried here after she drowned in 1981.

Bob Crane (Hogan's Heroes) lies here. His murder has never been solved.

Dominque Dunne, daughter of writer Dominick Dunne, too, was murdered and now rests in Westwood.

Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys, who died too early of cancer, is here. His mother, Audrey, is nearby.

Strangely, singer Roy Orbison is buried in the park but the grave is unmarked. The family planned to add a marker but has not yet done so 19 years after his death.

Some stars who lived long successful lives are also here. Eddie Albert ("Green Acres") nearly made it to 100.

Songwriter, Sammy Cahn ("All the Way" - Academy Award, 1957, "Three Coins in the Fountain" - Academy Award, 1954, "Love and Marriage" Emmy Award, 1955, "High Hopes" Academy Award, 1959, "Call Me Irresponsible" Academy Award, 1963), was 80 when he died.

Ray Coniff Jr, musician and arranger ("Somewhere My Love" from Dr. Zhivago) was 82.

Mr. Magoo, Jim Backus ("Gilligan's Island) was 76.

Author, Truman Capote ("Breakfast At Tiffany's", "In Cold Blood.") rests here.

Writer, Ray Bradbury ("Farenheit 451," "Dandelion Wine," "The Martian Chronicles") is still very much alive but he has arranged to be buried next to his wife.

Benjamin At Play

2007-07-17T19:18:00.000-07:00

In May, Carolyn and I went back to Springfield to see Benjamin. He's 2 1/2 now and plays non stop from dawn to dusk.

On our first day there, Ben took us to the zoo.

On the second day he took us to Washngton Park.

Grandpa showd him how to use the new fishin' pole that Grandma bought him.

The next day we went to Rotary Park and played on the playground equipment.

Ben really likes the swings.

At home Ben likes to play with Dad's remote controlled motorcycle. Thank goodness we had a battery charger!

Everday Ben helped Grandma with the dishes while Dottie watched. He's very clean. He washed everything three times.

Sometimes Walter helped too.

Canyon de Chelly

2007-04-20T20:46:00.000-07:00

Northeastern Arizona is Navajo Land, home to 174,000 Native Americans. The Navajo Nation, a sovereign territory, encompassing 27,000 square miles across Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah, is larger than 10 states. It has some of the most beautiful landscape in the Southwest.

Much of the reservation is open range land. You need to drive carefully.

It is common to see cattle and horses roaming freely and crossing the highway.

Carolyn and I traveled there recently to see Canyon de Chelly (d'Shay) an area sacred to the culture of the Navajo.

Canyon de Chelly is really three canyons, de Chelly, del Muerto, and Monument, cut by streams from mountains to the east. It has been home to Native Americans for 5,000 years.

The canyon is unique in the National Park Service. It is the only site wholly within tribal lands. The park was established in 1931 to preserve the ruins there.

The most famous geological feature of the canyon is Spider Rock, an 800 foot sandstone spire rising above the canyon floor.

The Navajo (they call themselves the Dineh) say the monolith is home to Spider Woman, an important deity in their culture. Spider Woman saved them from monsters when the Dineh emerged in this world.

Elders warn their children that Spider Woman will drop down her web and take them to the top and devour them if they are bad. They say the top is white from the sun bleached bones of naughty children.

To see the canyon, you can drive its north or south rim. To go into it requires a permit and a Navajo guide or you can use the one public access trail.

Carolyn and I hiked into Canyon de Chelly on the White House Trail.

The 2.5 mile trail descends a 500 feet to the canyon floor. (Other parts of the canyon are 1,000 feet deep.)

At the bottom, the canyon floor opens on a plain with a stream, small farmed fields, and grazing land for sheep, cattle, and horses.

On the south facing cliff are ruins of the White House, a cliff dwelling built 1,000 years ago by Puebloans. The white washed walls gave the structure its name.

For unknown reasons, the Puebloans abandoned Canyon de Chelly around 1300. In succeeding centuries the Hopi then the Navajos came to the canyon.

The Petrified Forest & The Painted Desert

2007-04-17T20:47:00.000-07:00

250,000 years ago Arizona lay near the Equator in a tropical environment. Tall conifer trees grew along rivers. Small dinosaurs lived there with crocodile-like creatures and giant amphipians. Trees fell and were carried away by rivers and buried in silt and volcanic ash. Mud cut off the oxygen and slowed their decay. Silica seeped into the wood and replaced the tissue. It crystallized into quartz petrifying the trees.

Arizona's climate changed. Over the eons, weather wore away the rock strata and exposed fossilized trees and animals.

Today over 200,000 acres in northeast Arizona are designated as The Petrified Forest National Park showcasing this geological phenomena. The park road is 28 miles long.

The park contains one the world's largest and most colorful collections of petrified wood.

Here a petrified log has been cut and polished. Because visitors are keen on having pieces of petrified wood, there are heavy fines for removing them. Many places sell them legally outside the park.
The Agate Bridge. Centuries of erosion of softer surrounding sandstone left this petrified tree a natural bridge. In 1906 conservationists built a support under it. Today's philosophy would leave it as it was and allow nature to takes its course.

Hey, just wanted everyone to know the new diet plan is working great!

Actually this is Placerias, a large plant-eating Triassic Era critter, who roamed Arizona back when these trees were alive and well. His skeleton was found in the Park.

This formation is called The Tepees. These cone shapes get their color from iron, carbon, manganese and other minerals.

Wouldn't it be interesting to know what the first Native Americans thought of the area? We know they used the materials to build houses here 800 years ago. This is the Agate House.
Another indication of habitation of the area is the many petroglyphs. Hundreds are etched in the stone known as Newspaper Rock. (For a closer view, click on the picture.)

At the north end of the Park you arrive at the Painted Desert. It is an expanse of arid and eroded land 160 miles long which extends from the Grand Canyon to the Petrified Forest.

The rainbow colors come from exposed sedimentary layers that contain various mineral deposits. It is a gorgeous austere landscape.

Meteor Crater

2007-04-17T19:31:00.000-07:00

50,000 years ago when Northen Arizona was inhabited by wooly mammoths, a meteor about 150 feet across and weighing 165,000 tons slammed into the cool wet grasslands 35 miles east of Flagstaff at more than 28,000 miles per hour. It left an impact crater that today is 4,000 feet across and 570 feet deep.
50,000 years later, Carolyn and I visited Meteor Crater and were quite impressed. Driving across the flat land leading up to it you have no sense of what is to come.

The impact created a rim 150 feet high that hides the crater. (Carolyn is standing on the north rim.)

Only after climbing the rim do you see the immensity below. The energy released by the collision was 150 times more powerful than the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Life within 3 miles of the hit was killed instantly. 1200 mph winds were sent out flattening everything for 13 miles in all directions. Life didn't return to the vicinity of the crater for a century.
In 1903, engineer Daniel Barringer first suggested the crater was a meteor impact site. His theory was confirmed in 1960 by Gene Shoemaker. Meteor Crater, the first proven impact crater on Earth, is also the best preserved.

Vegas

2007-04-05T08:30:00.000-07:00

Carolyn had never been to Las Vegas. We made a trip to fill this cultural void. Sara joined us from LA. We saw the Cubs last spring game, visited Hoover Dam and toured the Strip.

I can't tell you everything that happened in Vegas but here is the public version.
I was last in Vegas 25 years ago. What I now saw was nearly all new. Here is the Wynn Hotel, designed by Steve Wynn who also designed the Mirage, Treaure Island and The Bellagio. It was built on the sight of the old Desert Inn.

Here's the Paris Hotel and Casino. The Eiffel Tower is built to 1/2 scale of the original. Notice the Arc de Triomphe next to it.

Italy is also represented. This is the Venetian Hotel complete with ...

Gondolas and singing boatwomen on the Grand Canal! The Venetian Hotel took the place of the legendary Sands Hotel.

You can see the New York skyline without leaving Vegas. Here's the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, the Brooklyn Bridge and a Coney Island roller coaster thrown in.

We watched the pirate ship battle at Treasure Island.

Probably our favorite, however, was The Bellagio with its ...

Incredible fountain show

and its beautiful indoor gardens.

After a 25 year gap, the only landmark I remember from my earlier trips to Vegas was the venerable old Caesar's Palace.

Hoover Dam

2007-04-04T19:35:00.000-07:00

The best part of our trip to Las Vegas was the Hoover Dam. I was surprised to be so impressed. The dam is 726 feet high and 1244 feet wide at the top. It was built 1931 - 1935.

I was glad to get to drive across it. In a few years a bridge to bypass it will be complete and traffic will no longer be allowed on the dam itself.

The bypass is being built to save wear on the dam and for security reasons. Homeland Security now conducts vehicle inspections on the Arizona and Nevada sides before they cross over the dam.

Hoover Dam blocks the Colorado River to form Lake Meade.

It controls water flow for states throughout the Southwest.

It generates power for millions in this desert clime.

Lake Meade creates a wonderful recreation area. It draws thousands of new people to the Southwest. In the last 5 years, Meade has dropped 20 feet. How long can the limited water source support unbridled growth?

This sculpture, "The High Scaler" commemorates the thousands of men who worked on the project in the depths of the Depression, often for as little as 50 cents an hour.

Also honored are the many who died during the construction.

IEA Friends Visit

2007-04-03T22:29:00.000-07:00

Deana Welch, Alice Vandersteen and Ken Rinehart were back for a visit in March. (True photographer that he is, Ken is not in the picture.) Hiking Thumb Butte.

After site seeing in Skull Valley, we passed a home west of town that created a Jurassic Park-like habitat for sculpted dinosaurs. We stopped for a few pictures. Is this a triceratops?

Does this brontosaurus have his eye on that antelope? I thought they were herbivores.

I guess it doesn't matter. T-Rex lurks in the trees.

The annual rites of Spring include a few Cub games. Here the Cubs played the Angels in Tempe.

After her first visit, Alice came back to Arizona and brought her grandson, Zack. Carolyn and I joined them in Mesa to see the Cubs play KC. We picniced in left field on a beautiful day.

Montezuma's Castle

2007-04-03T20:45:00.000-07:00

In early March, Carolyn and I trekked to Camp Verde 35 miles east of Prescott to see Montezuma's Castle. This cliff dwelling was mistakenly named for the Aztec leader. It was thought at one time that Aztec refugees occupied the area and named the community after their leader. Although it is now known not to be true, the name has stuck.

Little is known about prehistoric Indian farmers who came to northern Arizona, settled along Beaver Creek and built this abode in a south facing cliff. It was a good choice offering protection, access to water, solar heating, and a fantastic view as it did.

The structure was built around 1200 A.D. and was occupied for more than 300 years. It housed up to 35 people at any given time. It was was mysteriously abandoned after 1450.

Catching Up

2007-01-31T04:43:00.000-08:00

A lot of friends have noted that I haven't been keeping the blog up to date. Well, it has not been due to a lack of interest or because there has been nothing to report. I just have been having so many technical difficulties with Blogger that it wasn't worth the hassle. Supposedly, Blogger is now "new and improved." So, I will give it another try and let you know what we have been up since my last post in October.

Yesterday, Carolyn and I returned from camping in Tucson. We went south for a little warmer weather.

We spent as much time outdoors as possible. We hiked in the Sonoran desert one day and on the Pima Canyon Trail the next.

As you can see, Carolyn loves saguaros. We don't have them in Prescott. Our altitude is too high and the saguaros' nothern boundary is about 20 miles south of where we live.

We spent a day at the Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum . It's a world-renowned zoo, natural history museum and botanical garden. Exhibits re-create the natural landscape of the Sonoran Desert and display 300+ animal species and 1,200 kinds of plants on 21 acres of desert.

Just a week earlier the museum was blanketed by a very rare snowfall in Tucson.

By the time we arrived, however, the temperature was in the low 70's.

One of our favorite experiences was seeing the Harris's Hawk. This hawk is native to the area. Unlike other hawks, it lives in a family of 4-6 members. They hunt together and shows signs of genuine affections for one another.

Here three of them share a common roost (unusual for birds of prey).

We watched as the family of five hunted in coordination with each other and saw them allow the alpha female to take over the catch found by a junior member of the family.

We also enjoyed the hummingbird aviary, an enclosure where you can walk among different species of hummingbirds displaying little wariness of humans. We watched a female Costa's Hummingbird build her nest by snatching fiber from the sweater of a lady sitting nearby. Here you can see the hummingbird taking fiber directly from the woman's hand. Hummingbirds typically use spider webs.

I enjoy the endless variety of cacti, the desert has to offer. Here are just a few we saw.

This is the Organ Pipe cactus.

The Totem Pole cactus.

The Thurber Cholla.

The Devil's Club Cholla.

The Santa Rita Prickly Pear

The Teddy Bear Cholla.

Hecha

This Chollo provided a safe haven for an inventive and adventurous bird.

Prescott Opens New Senior Center

2007-01-30T12:23:00.000-08:00

Since coming to Prescott, Carolyn and I have been active in the Meals On Wheels program that provides food to senior citizens throughout the community.

This month, our new Senior Center was dedicated. It houses the Meals On Wheels program as well as other services for the citizens of Prescott.

This is the dining room where seniors came come to the Center for lunch if they prefer.

Everyday at 7am, dining room volunteers begin packaging several hundred meals for the drivers who deliver them to homebound folks throughout the Prescott area.

The meals are prepared by the chef and his staff and are quite good.

While the drivers are on their routes, the volunteers prepare to serve meals in the dining room for anywhere from 150 to 300 people who come into eat each day.

The new Center hosts a number of programs for seniors.

There are meeting rooms where a variety of activities are offered from dance classes to arts and crafts.

There is a pool room.

There is a fitness room with state of the art exercise equipment.

Meals On Wheels is a wonderful program. Here in Prescott it is staffed by a lot of fantastic individuals. The new Center is icing on the cake.

Winter Hiking In Prescott

2007-01-08T16:05:00.000-08:00

Long-timers in Prescott tell us this winter has been one of the coldest 30 years. That may be true, but a typical winter day here is like a late winter day in central Illinois when you can feel spring is on the way. We have some grey weather but usually the sun shines at least a portion of the day. When it does, it is comfortable to be outdoors. A few weeks ago, Carolyn and I hiked north of Thumb Butte.

Pine Lakes trail #316 slopes gently upward through scrub land and winds through pine forests.

We started out in light jackets but soon were down to our shirt sleeves.

We discovered a branch of Willow Creek. It was completely frozen because of the cold nights we have.

It afforded a great place to sit and have a picnic lunch in the sun before heading back home. All in all, another great winter's day here in Prescott.

Another Christmas In SoCal

2006-12-25T19:20:00.000-08:00

Again this year, Carolyn and I went to Southern California to spend the Christmas holidays with Sara. Even with the experience of last year, it was hard to get in the Christmas spirit with flowers in December, palm trees and people in shorts.

Sara's neighborhood is a case in point. These folks worked very hard to create a winter wonderland atmoshpere. But somehow it didn't work for me.

Pointsettias often put me in the holiday frame of mine. But I tend to think of the potted variety not those that are 10 feet tall.

Most people spend Christmas day in front of a roaring fire. We went to the beach near Sara's. We walked out on this long rock jetty.

Along the way we saw pelicans and seals.

There were seabirds galore.

There were people fishing along the jetty. This man had just caught a starfish.

When you think of Christmas, you think of vistas of evergreen forests in snow. In Long Beach you can see Catalina Island. (Over Sara's shoulder, 24 miles away.)

I spent too many years in the midwest. I can't get use to Christmas on the beach. I guess I'll just have to keep working at it.

Ben Turns Two!

2006-12-06T19:43:00.000-08:00

On December 6th, grandson Ben, turned two. Carolyn and I went back to Springfield for the birthday party.

There was, of course, cake and balloons ...

... and presents and all the usual stuff.

Here cousin, Jack, stands ready to lend Ben a helping hand.

Favorite presents this year included Thomas The Train, color books, markers, ...

backpacks, ...

and bright red shirts.

(When you have a new red shirt, no one notices a bad hair day.)

One good thing about a December birthday is you don't have to wait long for more presents. Ben took Grandma and Grandpa to the Mall to look for possible Christmas gifts.

He got to ride the rides.

He also got to see Santa.

Mom and Ben. (Ben is trying out for the role of Ralphie in a remake of "A Christmas Story."

It may have been the Christmas season, but Spring Training is just around the corner.

Zack and Liza Join The Family

2006-10-14T23:53:00.000-07:00

Just to prove that it's never too late, Carolyn and I have added two new members to our family. In the last couple of months, we have become parents to Zack and Liza, Havanese puppies.

Zack, 9 months, came to us in August. He's a whirlwind of joy and excitement. You can't be in the same room with him without smiling.
(Can you see the devilment in his eyes?)

Zack got a playmate when Liza joined the family earlier this month. Liza is two. She is a sweet little girl who has her hands (paws?) full just coping with all the energy Zack posseses. She's a good companion for Zack and for us.

Havanese, the national dog of Cuba, descend from the Bichon and were recognized by the AKC in 1995. They came to this country in the 1950's with Cuban immigrants fleeing Castro. All Havanese in America today descend from 11 dogs that were brought into the country at that time.

We have Clay Marquardt and Alice Vandersteen to thank for introducing us to the Havanese. Clay first acquired Bella and then talked Alice into getting Gracie. Alice then encouraged us to consider a Havanese. We're glad she did.

Zack and Liza join our three cats who aren't sure getting them was such a good idea.

Kasey ("Baby K") was rescued and brought home by our son, Matt, about eight years ago. She much prefers being an only child.

Olivia, a short-haired tortoise shell, was rescued by our daughter, Sara, in Long Beach, CA. She likes to be high above the action so she can keep an eye on everything and everybody.

Our newest kitty is Thomas, a Maine Coon cat. Carolyn has always wanted one so she rescued him from a shelter here in Prescott. He was abandoned by his family when they moved to California. Thomas is a 20 pound bundle of love. He's just glad to be wanted and fed. (Second breakfast is his favorite meal.)

Jerry and Karen - Out West

2006-10-07T09:30:00.000-07:00

My cousin, Jerry Gardner and his wife, Karen, came for a visit last week. Carolyn and I promised to show them a good time in the land of sunshine. Well, needless to say, it was cloudy and rained. But we did have a good time anyway.

When a bad forecast at the Grand Canyon forced a change of plans, we went to Jerome and Sedona to sightsee and shop.

Two guys with big hats and no cattle! (Who obviously didn't read the sign.)

Now there's a cowgirl who knows how to wear a hat!

We got right in to Slide Rock Park. There were no lines or crowds at all!

That's Sara on the left. She drove from Long Beach for the weekend.

We didn't let the weather get us down. It was hijinks and frivolity every minute.

Fortunately, there was enough sun to allows us to see the beautiful scenery of Sedona

and its wildlife.

The next day, the weather improved and allowed us to go to the Grand Canyon. We had a fantastic day hiking there.

On the Bright Angel Trail we saw Big Horn Sheep soaking up the sunshine.

After a long and tiring hike, it took every bit of energy we had to haul ourselves out of the Canyon. It was a close call but we made it.

Sara too!!!

The next day we visited Watson Lake

and Lynx Lake in Prescott.
And before you know it, it was time for Jerry and Karen to head home. We had a great time and enjoyed their visit. We miss them already.

Brie's Wedding

2006-09-25T09:46:00.000-07:00

On September 9th, Brieanne Gardner married Jason Best. Brie was a beautiful bride on a beautiful day.

Emily, Brie's sister, was the Maid of Honor.

It was a proud day for Mom and Dad.

The wedding party.

The reception was held at the Springfield Hilton.

Our Visit To Ben's House

2006-09-21T22:49:00.000-07:00

In September, Carolyn and I returned to Springfield to attend Brieanne Gardner's wedding and to visit with Matt, Becky and Benjamin. We had a great trip.

Matt and Becky had just moved in to their new house. We helped them get settled in.

It is a very nice house with comfortable living space.

There's a cozy fireplace and plenty of room for Ben to play with his cars and Legos.

The kitchen is large, bright, and cheery.

It has an adjoining dining room where Ben likes to park his John Deere.

Ben's room has plenty of space not only for his bed, and (of course) more toys, but also for his growing collection of ...

art ...

and bear skin rugs.

This is the guest bedroom where Ben and I like to curl up in bed with a good book. A current favorite of his is Thomas The Train.

Each page keeps you on the edge of your seat!

We visited Carolyn's Aunt Fran. She continues to do fairly well at Heritage Manor. Although she suffers from alzheimers, she maintains a pleasant disposition. She is happy and well-liked there. We appreciate all the staff who take such good care of her.

We had a wonderful trip. We enjoyed seeing old friends and family. But it is always so hard to leave Benjamin and his mom and dad behind!

Big Ben Hits Town

2006-08-26T20:08:00.000-07:00

Prescott is still reeling from the whirlwind that hit last week when Benji Lawlyes came to town. This continual motion machine brought joy and sunshine to the desert at the height of the monsoon season. It was non-stop action the whole time he was here.

There were trees to be climbed ...

Helicopters to be flown ...

Cars to be driven ...

Kayaks to be paddled ...

Girls to be flirted with in Japanese restaurants ...

Friendships to be made in the town square ...

Hikes to be taken ...

Rocks to be thrown in lakes ...

Pools to be splashed in ...

Gravity to overcome ...

and naps to be taken after busy days.

Remembering Lucky

2006-08-04T18:49:00.000-07:00

Today was a sad day. We had to put Lucky, our German Shepherd - Collie mix, down. He was a part of our family for nearly six years.

Lucky was rescued by our son, Matt. In that sense, he was very lucky. He must have been abused at some point in his life. He was never able to get over his dislike of being touched around his head. I think he equated that with being mistreated. But ever since Matt brought him home we tried to give him a good home and make up what had been done to him earlier.

In this last year he got to the point that he liked to "wrestle" with me. He would put his head under my arm like he was in a headlock. It was his way of getting his ears rubbed. So we made progress.

He really was a gentle soul despite those problems. He did like to be near us. He followed Carolyn and me throughout the house to keep an eye on what we were doing. He was very patient around the cats and never tried to bother them.

Lucky-Boy will be remembered warmly and missed always.

Taking Up The Arts

2006-07-25T12:08:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Carolyn and I were in the Mountain Arts Guild gallery in Prescott. We spoke to three ladies who work there, all of whom paint in watercolors and teach classes.

One, Dixie, was working on a painting which will become the jacket for a book a friend of hers wrote. The book tells the story of several generations of women living in the west. Her painting depicts these women standing in a wheat field. Dixie is marvelously talented.

I told the ladies I had promised myself two things when I retired. First I was going to work on developing some artistic talents since I had never done so in my life. Second, I was going to encourage Carolyn to get back to painting because she has talent for it. A few days later, one of them, Barbara Kimmell-Palmer, called and invited Carolyn and me to her house for a lesson.

Barbara was a gracious host and a wonderful teacher. She guided us through our first watercolor paintings and has encouraged us to continue.

Carolyn painted a child's pair of tennis shoes. They made her think of Benjamin. She did a great job with the shading and painting in negative space.

Here is my picture of Ben. Barbara was very helpful in showing me how to give definition to the hat and jacket.

We framed the pictures and will give them to Ben to hang in his room.

Bluegrass and Dogs On The Square

2006-07-23T07:23:00.000-07:00

Every weekend, Prescott has something going on in the courthouse square. This year there have been car shows, art fairs, antiques, concerts, Native American arts and crafts. The two-day bluegrass festival is one of the most popular events. Carolyn and I went and thoroughly enjoyed it. The music of The Bluegrass F-150's, from LA was our favorite.

As interesting as the bands on stage are the many small impromptu groups of local musicians that gather in all quarters of the square to jam and play their own music.

There are a lot of outstanding musicians around this area.

As we walked around listening to the small groups, we saw many people had brought their dogs. We ended up spending two days talking with folks about their pets and asking if we could take their picture. Everyone was willing and loved talking about their dogs. Here's a small sample of the ones we met.

This is Brie. She helped her owner get signatures on a petition for one of Arizona's many citizen initiatives on the ballot this fall. With a face like that who wouldn't sign?

This fellow loved his Great Dane and shared alot of information about them. Did you know they typically only live for 6 to 8 years?

Cute, huh?
(The pup ain't bad either.)

This little lap dog was enjoying the concert. (I hope this picture doesn't blow Junior Soprano's cover in the Witness Protection program.)

This King Charles Spaniel was a beauty and so obedient. (Notice there is no lead.)

This is Lexie, a gorgeous standard poodle.

The latest in convenience items ... Puppy-in-a-bag.

Someone told us there were another 100 Dalmations on the grounds but we didn't see them.

Here's Hootie, the Basset Hound. (The Blowfish had a previous engagement.)

This is a Shiba Inu, a Japanese breed noted for being very smart, very loyal and very difficult.

A kid and a yellow lab puppy, a perfect combination.

A handsome German Shepherd sunning himself.

I voted this little munchkin as the sweetest face on the square.

Twin Yorkies.

Pride in a pet is not limited to dog owners. This fellow can often been seen on the square with his pet Red-Tailed Boa Constrictor. (Has anyone seen the Yorkies?)

Walking Dogs

2006-07-22T16:14:00.000-07:00

One of our newest activities is working with the Yavapai County Humane Society. A couple of days a week, Carolyn and I walk and groom the dogs there. We underwent five hours of training (Not just anybody can walk a dog, you know!) and are now fully certified dog walkers.
The Humane Society, just a few miles from our home, is next to one of our favorite hiking and bike trails. We take each dog out for a two mile walk. It's good exercise for us and the animals love it.

Here's Carolyn with Luna and Buck on the Peavine Trail. They have both since been successfully adopted!

After their walk, we take each dog into the "Bark Park," an enclosed playground, where they can run free for a while and play with the toys.

Here I am with Murphy, an exceptionally smart golden retriever mix. He's teaching me to give the signal for sitting down. It wasn't long before Murphy found a home.

Here's Sampson, my current challenge! He's a great dog and very loving. But he is high energy and pulls your arm out of its socket when he walks on a lead.

I am working to teach him to heel. Being well-behaved will increase his chances of being adopted and of not being returned. We're making progress (slowly).

Sampson loves the water. After a long walk, he loves to go to the park and jump in the pool for a cool down.

Sampson and I had a great adventure recently. We encountered our first rattlesnake. It crossed right in front of us. We were on top of it before we saw it. It rattled. We stopped. It sauntered off into the brush beside the road. We gave it wide birth and it rattled again as we passed. (Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera!)

One of Carolyn's favorite dogs is Gracie, an Australian Shepherd mix. She's a wonderful dog, loving and gentle. She was adopted but came back after only a week because she scaled an 8 foot concrete wall and got away from her new owner. It breaks your heart to see a dog come back after being saved. Some people don't want to invest the time to train an animal and give it time to adjust to new surroundings.

Here's Carolyn with Dolly, a sweet black lab puppy. She was adopted today. Someone got a super dog!

These two sweeties, Trixie and Maggie, were kennel mates. We hoped one family would adopt them but they had to go separate ways.

Reno is no weiner dog ... he's more of a kielbasa!

At the Rodeo

2006-07-22T15:22:00.000-07:00

Summer is a busy time in Prescott. Carolyn and I have been on the go and I haven't kept up the blog this month. So, I thought I'd show you what we've been up to.

A few weeks ago, Sara and Bob visited us from LA. Bob wanted to take us to see the Prescott rodeo, the world's oldest, so they came for the weekend.

Prescott has been hosting the rodeo every year since 1888.

Contestants from across the country participate in all the traditional events including calf roping...

bronc riding,

barrel racing, and

bull riding.

There were also exhibitions in trick roping and

and horsemanship.

We had a great day experiencing a bit of Prescott's history and seeing Sara and Bob.

Antique Car Show

2006-06-04T23:31:00.000-07:00

The weekend of June 4th featured three major shows in downtown Prescott. On Saturday there was an antique car show. One of our Meals On Wheels customers, an organizer of the event, recommended it to us, so Carolyn and I decided to attend. We had a great time.

There were cars that had been fabulously restored like this 1939 Plymouth ...

... and this 1932 Ford Coupe.

This car had been so customized I don't have a clue what it is ...

... but I think you have to take your shoes off to get in it.

Here are a couple of beauties from 1948.

I kicked the tires on this 1964 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud. Unfortunately it only gets 9 miles per gallon and doesn't handle off-roading very well.

Check out the paint job and detail on this 1940 Ford Coupe Deluxe. It may have been the "hottest" car in the show.

This 1937 Ford Coupe was a work of art.

This 1931 Ford Coupe was ahead of its time ...

... it had a GPS Navigational System.

I didn't remember this color in the 1970 Chevy Nova, but I won't forget it again.

This 1927 Ford was for sale with its original title for under $16,000. (No rebate, however.)

Three 1932 Roadsters in colors Henry Ford never offered.

The finish on this 1969 Chevy Camaro was a show highlight. It cost more than my car.

A 1960 Chevy Impala is not fully accessorized until it has fuzzy dice!

Here's a 1932 Ford street rod.

Surf's up! Throw your board on top of this old "Woody" and head to the beach.

I believe this is a 1923 Ford Model A.

This was the last car produced by the British sports car company, Lea Francis, in 1959. It had only 140 HP, but recorded 123 mph during its racing life.

My favorite car, a 1957 BMW Isetta 300. With gas at $3.00 a gallon, BMW would sell millions of this car for city driving if they produced it today.

Iris Show in Prescott

2006-06-04T22:23:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, Carolyn and I attended an Iris show here in Prescott at a local nursery.

Although neither of us know much about Irises, we enjoyed seeing the displays.

There was a competition for the best arrangement.

This was the one we voted for. Carolyn says it has a "minimalist Oriental flair." I just like purple.

There was also a competition for favorite variety. I liked the Witch's Wand Iris. (Hmmmm purple!)

Carolyn had other favorites including this Iris --Victoria Rosa ...

... and this Bargudo Batik Iris.

I never knew there were so many varieties and this was only a small sampling.

Visiting Ben-Boy in Illinois

2006-05-28T22:45:00.000-07:00

Benjamin will soon be 18 months old. We had not seen him since March, so we went to Illinois last week for a visit. He had changed so much in just two months. He is no longer a baby. He is growing tall. His face has lost its chubbiness.

He's full of energy and curiosity. There is nothing he loves more than being outside.

You can almost hear him saying, "Hey, Mr. Wilson!"

From 18 months to 16 in 5.9 seconds!

He likes to "color." Sometimes he does it on paper.

He's getting into sports. His dad is working with him on his basketball form. See, he's got the fingers spread and elbows up.

Huckleberry and Grandpa ...

had fun working on summersaults.

Grandma prefered walks in the morning with Ben

to get a newspaper.

Here's Ben hanging out with Mom and Dad.

At the end of a hard day, he looks forward to his bed and lullabies.

Arizona Skies

2006-05-09T22:50:00.000-07:00

Capturing the light of the skies is a challenge here in Arizona where nearly every day and evening brings another opportunity.

Many times I have tried to record a beautiful cloud pattern or a sunset with my camera. The result never lives up to the real thing. Here are a few attempts I have made in recent months.

When I saw the early stages of this sunset, I grabbed my camera knowing it was a special evening.

Changes in colors occurred so rapidly. In seconds the colors changed from azure to apricot.

Then, in an instant, the flames ignited.

They lasted only for a moment, then ...

... they burned down to ...

... embers and flickered out.

One evening while returning home from Scottsdale, Carolyn and I saw this moonrise coming over the hills near Mayer, AZ.

Prescott's Mt. Vernon Street

2006-05-09T00:15:00.000-07:00

We are enjoying our first spring in Prescott. We've been exploring parts of town we haven't before. East of downtown is a tree lined historic district on Mt. Vernon St.

A first glance of its steep-roofed frame houses might make you think you were in a Midwestern town of the 1920's.

Or with the turreted Victorians, maybe New England.

There are homes with white picket fences

and ginger bread siding.

There are houses with wide front and side porches for engaging neighbors on Sunday afternoon.

Green lawns create an oasis in the desert for the eye and spirit.

Flags fly.

Flowers abound.

What is this neighborhood doing in Arizona? Where is the adobe? The cacti?

The Prescott area has always drawn people. Over 9,000 years ago, a up to 100,000 people inhabited the area. (Possibly ancestors of the Yavapai whose reservation now borders the city.)

The discovery of gold in 1838 brought national attention to Prescott. Further discoveries in 1861 drew the attention of Abraham Lincoln. The President, looking for sources of funding for the North during the Civil War, created the Arizona Territory in 1864. Prescott was established as the first territorial capital. (Not Tucson whose population was more supportive of the Confederacy.)

Prescott developed rapidly as northerners were encouraged to settle here. In 1865 it was described as being built exclusively of wood and inhabited almost entirely by Americans. Both made it unique among early communities in Arizona.

Prescott eventually lost its title as the Capital of Arizona to Tucson and finally Phoenix in 1889. In 1900, a devastating fire burned Prescott to the ground; but it was rebuilt, and many of the buildings today are reminders of its past. Prescott has many homes and businesses on the National Register of Historic Places and its white granite courthouse, set among green lawns and spreading trees, reflects the Midwestern and New England background of Prescott’s pioneers.

Prescott today (Thumb Butte in the background).

Springtime In Long Beach

2006-04-28T20:28:00.000-07:00

Last week Carolyn and I visited Sara in Long Beach. Each day I walked from Sara's house to the beach, about a mile away, for a walk along the ocean. Passing through the neighborhoods, I was struck by how varied the houses and vegetation are. On Sunday morning I took my camera with me to record some of the scenes of a Spring morning in Long Beach.

This is Sara's apartment. (The one with arched window on the lower right.) The street is lined with parrot-studded palm trees.

Yards are all well maintained and nearly everyone plants flowers.

The climate is perfect for most plants with moderate temperatures and an adequate rainfall year round.

Long Beach is lush with colors.

Flowers range from the familiar, like these roses,

pansies,

calla lily,

and nasturtiums,

... to the slightly more exotic, like the Bird of Paradise ...

... or this bush with ...

... these spiky red plumes ....

... or the bougainvillea ... (Did you know it was named after the French admiral who discovered it in the Amazon rainforest in 1768? Me neither.)

... giant jade plants or cacti of all varieties,

... or dozens of others

beautiful specimens

I admire, but ...

... can't identify.

Rose moss?

(If anyone knows, please tell me.)

Another interesting aspect of Long Beach is the variety of houses. Architectural styles and colors are as abundant as the flowers. Every block is a rainbow.

There are tropical overtones.

Midwestern influences.

Touches of New England.

American gothic

Neoclassical.

Spanish stylings ...

... of all configuations,

including with Buddhists accents,

and the truly funky. (It may have been close to Easter, but this rabbit is a year round fixture at this house.)

Long Beach is a beautiful and fascinating place to take a walk.

Sara Sails The Seas

2006-04-10T22:29:00.000-07:00

Sara and some colleagues at Los Angeles Air Force Base recently were invited by the Navy to tour and cruise on the USS Bunker Hill in San Diego. A Ticonderoga class guided missile cruiser, Bunker Hill, commissioned in 1986, is 567 feet long, speed in excess of 30 knots, and has nearly 400 crew.

Her mission is to conduct sustained combat operations at sea. Here she is firing missiles during Operation Desert Storm near Iraq in 1991.

Bunker Hill also fired the first Tomahawk missile in Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.

Sara's brief tour of duty was a bit less eventful. Bunker Hill sailed from San Diego to Los Angeles. Here she passes under Coronado Bay Bridge off San Diego.

The San Diego skyline can be seen from the harbor.

The navigator plots the course to LA.

Bob, Sara and Brian looking forward to the day's cruise.

Sara looks on while Bob checks his GPS device for the ship's course and speed.

The Bunker Hill crew prepared a great barbecue lunch for their guests on deck.

Bunker Hill employs state of the art technology. She has a phased array radar. Unlike conventional systems which track objects once every 360 degree sweep of the radar, this ship sends electromagnetic energy in all directions, to detect and track hundreds of air and surface contacts while maintaining continuous surveillance from wave top to zenith.

At the end of the afternoon, the guests were to disembark and be ferried to shore. The waves were so high, however, they could not make the transfers.

Sara and all of her collegaues were forced to spend another six hours aboard before they were able to get to shore. Still and all, it was a valuable and enjoyable experience.

(Thanks to James Lee for sharing his pictures of the USS Bunker Hill.)

Alice & Deana Bring Rain (and Bob & Ken) To The Desert

2006-04-04T20:07:00.000-07:00

With visions of sun, warmth and Cubs spring baseball, Alice Vandersteen, Deana Welch, Bob Jensen and Ken Reinhardt headed west to Arizona on March 16th (actually Deana headed east -- coming from Hawaii, but that's another story).

The next day (sunny and warm) they took in a Cubs - Giants game in Scottsdale (the Giants' park) where they cheered the Cubs on to victory.

On Saturday, they headed up Interstate 17 to visit Carolyn and me in Prescott. We were anxious to see everyone again. We gave thought on how to use the time to show everyone our new hometown. We considered hikes in the mountains or forests, kayaking in one of the lakes or site-seeing geologic landmarks in Yavapai County.

It hadn't rained in 149 days. In fact, we are in year 11 of a prolonged drought. Nearly all winter had been short sleeve weather. So guess what happened when everyone arrived? ... Well, that was a good guess but actually it snowed.

As Alice and crew drove up from Phoenix, clouds were rolling in from California bringing precipitation that on any other day would have been gratefully welcomed.

Despite the clouds, falling temperature and a complete change of plans, we had a great visit. It was good to see IEA friends again. We spent the day taking an abbreviated tour of Prescott and surrounding areas. We walked around the downtown area and visited a few of the art galleries.

(Alice bought a painting from our favorite local artist, Charles Huckeba.)

Ken was able to photograph a hummingbird feeding at a feeder on our deck in the snow!

That evening we capped the day with dinner at one of my favorite haunts, the Iron Springs Cafe. (We spent most of the evening extolling the virtues of retirement for Ken.)

The next day we all met up at Hohokam once again to see the Cubs play the Texas Rangers.

The rain followed us to Mesa and the Cubs lost but we followed Harry Caray's advice and had "fun at the ol' ballpark" anyway.

Ken took some great shots, getting pictures of Ron Santo and ...

... and Pat Hughes who were broadcasting the game that day.

As soon as the game was over, of course, the sun broke out and it was a beautiful late afternoon.

As were were taking the picture above, Ronnie Woo Woo walked by and was gracious enough to take a picture with us.

Cub fans need no explanation of who Ronnie is but for everyone else, he is the unoffical mascot of the Cubs, often heard yelling during games, "Cubs woo! Cubs woo! Cubs woo!"

The picture above has actually been doctored. This is the original. The guy on the right (who we didn't even know) jumped into the picture when he saw Ronnie. So, I took him out.

(I took another person out of the picture too. Can you find her?)

In this version, I put myself in so I could say I had my picture taken with Ronnie Woo Woo.

The visit with Alice, Deana, Bob and Ken was all too brief. We had a great time seeing them. We loved showing them a bit of our newly adopted state. We look forward to seeing them again and all of our other IEA friends.

A Camping We Will Go

2006-03-30T22:01:00.000-08:00

Carolyn and I have learned in the few months we've lived in Arizona that we could spend the rest of our lives discovering the wonders of this and the adjoining states. So, we have purchased a new RV to explore the Southwest.

After an Internet search, we settled on Chalet, a pop up camper with hard walls. We checked dealers in Arizona, New Mexico and California and chose Custom RV in Annaheim, CA.

Yesterday, we drove to Kingman, AZ, met two dealer reps, had a quick briefing on the trailer, then drove it home. The drive was a concentrated seminar on pulling a camper. We drove in the mountains through bright sunshine, rain, sleet, and hail before we made it home.

Today we played with the Chalet to become familiar enough to take it out for our first camping trip. Here I am raising the roof with the electronic lift.

The next step is manually raising the side walls.
Aside from levelling the camper, that's about all there is to setting it up.

Inside, the Chalet has a dining/sitting area that converts into a queen size bed.

To the left is a countertop that becomes the toilet and shower when set up.

The cabinet opens and expands into a serviceable bathroom.

To the right is the kitchen galley with a sink and two burner propane stove.

Under the counter is a three-way refrigerator and freezer.

At the other end is sofa that folds out into a double bed giving the unit the capacity to sleep four.

With a heater and air conditioner, we can camp year round. Our first venture will probably be the Verde Valley east of us, Flagstaff, or the Grand Canyon.

Then off to Mexico, Sante Fe, Monument Valley, Lake Tahoe, Sonoma Valley, Lake Powell, ...

So many places so little time.

To tow the Chalet we recently got a Jeep Commander to get us up and over the mountains here.

Our biggest challenge? Getting both in our garage. The Chalet is easy to maneuver by hand on a flat surface. We can squeeze both in with just enough room to spare.

Ben Comes To Arizona

2006-03-29T06:57:00.000-08:00

Ben came for a visit to see Grandma and Grandpa in March. (He brought Mom and Dad too.) He grew and changed so much since December. He is so outgoing, active, and verbal. He is a very happy boy!

Aunt Sara made a long drive over from Long Beach just to see him. Ben liked to stack blocks on her nose!

He had fun at the lake!

His favorite thing was to throw rocks in the water. (He's a right-hander.)

It won't be too long before he'll be big enough to go in the kayak with Mom and Dad!

Ben also liked to draw pictures and play blocks with Grandma. Soon Grandma will introduce him to watercolors.

One of his favorite toys is the lawn mower that Grandma bought him. (Sadly we don't have grass and he has to mow the driveway!)

A recent word in Ben's vocabulary is "helicopter," so we had to take a ride while we were at the mall.

He also took his first pony ride. It won't be long until he's ready for the real thing.

Early mornings were my favorite time to spend with Ben. He loved to get up and go bounce with Tigger.

He's also very adept at pushing buttons. He loves to play with stereo equipment in particular. He discovered settings Grandpa didn't know he had.

Ben is a veteran at the Grand Canyon but this is the first time he saw it in the snow.

He didn't get to go hiking with Mom and Dad but he did get to try on Grandma's shoes.

After the Grand Canyon, it was time to hit the road for warmer climes and go see the Cubbies in Mesa.

Here's Mom and Ben at Hohokam Park to see his first Cub game!

You can't beat fun at the ol' ballpark!

It was a sure a lot warmer here than at the Canyon.

Ben made friends everywhere he went.

He explored every nook and cranny of the park.

Goodbye everybody! See you at Wrigley Field.

On The Bright Angel Trail

2006-03-16T20:04:00.000-08:00

A year ago March, Carolyn and Sara hiked the Grand Canyon. They brought back pictures of a lush Grand Canyon, recounted the joy of seeing the Canyon from the inside, and shared their sense of accomplishment in achieving a challenging goal. Matt, Becky and I knew we had to do it too. Last week we kept up the new Lawlyes family tradition.

It was 29 degrees just before 7:00 am when we reached the trailhead of the Bright Angel Trail.

We saw a beautiful sunrise at the Grand Canyon.

Ahead of us we had a 12.2 mile trek.

Bright Angel is one of two superhighways into the Canyon. Originally an Indian trail used by the Havasupai to commute between the rim and Indian Garden, it was improved by prospectors in the late 1800's. One miner, Ralph Cameron, realizing that tourism was more profitable than mining, bought out his partners and took control of the trail. He extended it to the river and charged $1 for its use. The Park Service built the South Kaibab Trail thereafter to provide free access. In 1928, after a long battle with Cameron, ownership of the Trail was transferred to the National Park Service.

Our goal was to go to Plateau Point and return. It was 6.1 miles down to the Point, 3200 feet below the South Rim of the Canyon. From there you can overlook the Colorado River another 1400 feet below.

We descended into the Canyon and into the morning shadows. Although it was chilly, walking down the steep grade warmed us up quickly.

We stopped occasionally to take in the views, snap some pictures and to get acclimated.

The upper section of trail looks easy enough on the way down. It is fairly wide in most places. This year it was much drier than when Carolyn and Sara hiked it a year ago because of this winter's drought.

The top section of the trail has long switchbacks. This part can be a killer on the way back up, depending on how far you went down. If you're hiking up from the river, or anywhere from Indian Garden or beyond, it seems to take forever to get from one switch back to the next and it feels like you'll never get back to the top.

Down in the Canyon, it is always remarkable to look back and see how far down you have come down.

As you approach Indian Gardens you begin to see greener vegetation and the trees leafing out because of the moisture available from the small stream that runs through there.

Indian Gardens is 4.5 miles from the rim. It is a good place to take a break or have a picnic lunch. The trees provide shade.

Despite the aridness, the desert has wonderful varieties of plant and animal life. Here Becky is standing next to a dried up Century Plant. They are so named because it was once believed that it took the plant 100 years to get grow this tall.
Beyond Indian Gardens our next destination was Plateau Point one and a half miles further on. As the name suggests this section of the trail is relatively flat and easy to traverse in the winter or spring before the summer sun becomes an issue out here.

Reaching the Point was a highlight of the trip. We were all feeling pretty good at this stage. From here we got a good view of the Colorado River and took our first (and only) extended break of the day.

From Plateau Point you can look directly down upon the Colorado River. It is a remarkable sight. Notice how green the water is. Because of the drought the river does not have much sediment in it from the run off of the many streams that feed it throughout the Canyon.

Compare how it looks to a picture Sara took a year ago this month when Arizona had record spring rains. (Notice too the helicopter that Sara captured on film. It had landed near the river's edge. Click on the picture to enlarge it.)

We stopped for lunch on the Point and recharged our batteries before starting the most difficult part of the hike, 6.1 miles up hill. We had guests join us. Here is a little squirrel who tried to get in Becky's backpack to get her apple. He later grabbed my bag of trail mix and drug it off before I caught him in the act.

These two ravens were also undaunted by people and got up close in hopes of snagging a morsel.

When the mules arrived with a group of tourists, it was time for us to head back up. We wanted to try to beat the mule team out of the Canyon.

You don't want to spend four hours hiking behind a pack up mules on a narrow trail. (It is not a pretty sight to see or smell.)

The scenes were gorgeous as we headed back up. It was harder to appreciate them, however. The hike out of the Canyon took us a little over four hours. (About the same time it took to get down to Plateau Point.)

On the way down we stopped to look and take pictures. On the hike out our attention was much more focused on the physical effort it took to climb. Becky and I did well until the last mile and a half. At that point it became a serious struggle. For Becky it was the challenge to her cardiovascular system. For me it was combatting fatigue in my legs. Matt surprised us both by getting a second wind. He beat us out by 15 minutes and met us at the rim with hot chocolate, a very welcome sight.

We were all pretty well spent that evening. After a quiet dinner it was time to crash and to find comfort with those who are most important to us.

Hiking the Canyon is very much like going through childbirth (so Becky tells me). You look forward to it beforehand. The early stages are exciting and you are filled with anticipation. The last moments are excruciating and you wonder why you ever thought it was such a good idea. When it's over and a little time has passed, the memory of the pain subsides and you are filled with a wonder, appreciation, and a sense of accomplishment. And then slowly you begin to think -- I'd like to do it again.

That night it began to snow ending a drought of more than four months. By morning, when we awoke there was nearly six inches of heavy snow on the ground. We went back to the Canyon to see it in another light.

It was a beautiful sight. The rim was covered in snow but the lower reaches being much warmer were untouched.

We felt very lucky to have the good fortune to hike the Canyon in ideal weather and then to see it in snow-covered all in the same trip.

Happy (Chinese) New Year

2006-02-17T07:24:00.000-08:00

January 29, the first day of Chinese year4703, Year of the Dog, is the most celebrated holiday of the year for 1.5 million of Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese descent in So. California.

Carolyn, Sara and I attended the 2006 Golden Dragon Parade in LA on February 4th, along with 110,000 others and saw a colorful celebration of SoCal's Asian-American community.

Marshall for the parade was LA Mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa. (You may have seen him in the news recently expressing surprise that President Bush was discussing two year old terrorist threats on LA without telling him.)

One of the things we learned was the belief that Chinese people are short is a myth.

Of all the parade components, the clear crowd favorite is the Chinese dragons.

Dragons are important in Chinese mythology, showing up in art, literature, poetry, architecture, and songs. Their origin is unknown and pre-date written history.

New Year's Day parade dragons are believed to repel evil spirits that would spoil the new year.

It was working for me until ...

... this guy gave it all away!

The Chinese version of Father Time was there.

There were sports stars...

... acrobats, ...

... and fierce martial artists.

But no parade is complete with out floats, flowers, and beauty queens.

People born in the Year of the Dog (1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006 ) are honest and faithful to those they love but tend to be worrywarts and faultfinders. Dogs are strong believers in justice, and are fiercely loyal. They are man’s best friends, who never let you down. They are honest and generous to those they love, almost to a fault for they can sacrifice their own needs for the sake of others. Dogs can be non-materialistic crusaders; born with a strong sense of decency. Injustice and wrongdoing gets their fur up. Get in a Dog’s way and they will bark at you, although their tempers are normally short lived. Dogs can also be dogged, guarded, arrogant and defensive. A Dog finds it difficult to adapt to change, and never really relaxes. His is stubborn, and his heart and mind are always jumping, always chasing his tail. Dogs make an excellent businessman, activists, union leaders, priests, teachers, or secret agents. They are great team players, and can make excellent soldiers.

Art In The Desert

2006-01-22T21:21:00.000-08:00

What is it about the Southwest that attracts artists -- the mountains, desert landscapes, the light, the accomodating weather? Whatever it is, there is a thriving art community throughout Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah and California. It is one of the things that drew Carolyn and me here.

Scottsdale and Sedona are well known Meccas, but Prescott also has a thriving art scene and a number of galleries.

Recently we had the pleasure of meeting Charles Huckeba, a local artist, who has a gallery in town. Charles and his wife, Jill, travel the Southwest studying ancient petroglyphs left by native populations. This prehistoric rock art infuses his contemporary abstract and representational work.

We purchased two of his works. It was hard to choose from the many wonderful works in his studio. This is "Miro's Magic," an abstract inspired by petroglyphic and pictographic images as well as by the Spanish surrealist painter, Joan Miro. Typical of Charles' style, this painting has many layers. Under the surface is another other abstract work. By etching through the top layers, colors and shadings show through from below.

The second piece is "Hunter's Rain," a more representational work inspired by rock art Charles saw in Horse Canyon, Utah. Surrounding the petroglyph is an abstract border suggesting rain, a sacred element in desert life.

Charles was kind enough to spend time showing us his studio and talking about his art and the process he uses to produce it.

On Friday, Carolyn and I went down to Scottsdale to see the Arizona Fine Art Expo.

115 artists participate in the event which lasts 10 weeks!

Many not only display and sell their works but also work in a studio-like environment.

We enjoyed talking with so many artists in an unhurried atmosphere. They were all enthusiastic to share their art and experience.

The talent was incredible. There were so many whose work we loved. Here are just a few we met:

Robert Burt from Santa Fe, NM paints warm vibrant works with acryllic.

Dwight Bennett, from Phoenix, sculpts with Ironwood and other woods then inlays silver in his pieces.

Lance Headlee, from nearby Anthem, AZ, paints cowboys usually with yellow slickers.

His work is always big and bold and sometimes whimsical as here with "The Long Ride West."

It was a treat for Carolyn and I to meet Bob Coonts from Ft. Collins, CO. a wonderful man and artist. We first saw his work on display in Charles Huckeba's gallery in Prescott.

Bob does landscape and animal pictures that mix realism and abstract art.

We are now saving our money for one of his paintings which we will pass on to Ben someday.

We had a lunch in the statuary garden where many of the scultors display their work. We soaked in the strong sun of a January day on the desert floor.

There were so many other artists we had the opportunity to meet and enjoy their creativity. We will undoubtedly go back several more times before the Expo closes in March.

On Sunday, we headed south again to go to the Carefee Art Fair and Wine Festival. Leaving our neighborhood, we could see snow on the San Francisco Peaks in Flagstaff 90 miles away.

In Carefree, which is just north of Scottsdale, it was a warm sunny day in the low 70's.

There were artists from throughout the Southwest as well as from the Phoenix area.

Nearly every media was represented from watercolor to concrete.

We even met an artist named Sara Lawless.

The hit of the day, however, was the Great Dane. Big crowds gathered wherever he was.

We had another great day and were reluctant to head home.

But the most beautiful picture of the day was the sky on the way back to Prescott.

Meals On Wheels

2006-01-12T16:13:00.000-08:00

Like many, I have always harbored a secret ambition to own a restaurant. I guess only good fortune has kept that dream from coming true. Since coming to Prescott however, an outlet for that passion was found when Carolyn volunteered us to work for Meals On Wheels.

Every Thursday morning we drive the Orange Route for Prescott's MOW program, delivering meals to about 20 people on the south side of town. Our route takes us over hill and dale and through the woods. Often to some pretty remote locations.

A couple of the homes we go to are entirely outside Prescott in the surrounding national forest.

The program delivers meals to folks who need some level of assistance. It also provides an opportunity to check daily on people who live alone or who are in poor health. It's a good day when everyone is home and able to get around.

We have really enjoyed getting to know the people on our route. One of our favorites is Frances. She is 91 year old sweetie who lives alone in her trailer. Each week she proudly tells us that she is "still here" and brings us up to date on the health of her son who is 67 and lives out of state.

Another person we enjoying visiting with is Evelyn. Evelyn was a Meals On Wheels volunteer for a number of years. Her health no longer permits that but she likes to catch up on the news each time we come by. She shared a bit of her life with us today. Her husband was a Canadian who obtained US citizenship so he could join the military here.

Another benefit of driving around the area for Meals On Wheels is that we get to do some sightseeing. You never know what you're going to encounter. Today as we were approaching Evelyn's house, Carolyn spotted some javelinas in the front yard of one of her neighbors. There were six of them just sunning themselves on this beautiful day.

Later we saw this tassel-eared squirrel. I'm intriqued by them because they look so different from what we were used to in the Midwest. They are grey with white bellies and have tufts of hair on their ears. They only live in isolated mountainous areas of Arizona, New Mexico, southeast Utah, and Colorado.

Last week we had a deer stop in the road in front of us until he had satisified his curiosity with us and ambled off into the woods. We didn't see him today but we did see Comet here still relaxing after the Christmas holidays.

We also get to meet all of the dogs. We always deliver doggie treats with our meals. Dobey has become a steadfast friend. He loves all the attention we can give him.

Roger, on the otherhand, only comes out when we are in the car. When we get out he runs for the pet door; when we leave he comes out to bark at us. We've given him a box and a half of Milk Bones to this point but so far he's not showing any love.

Twenty miles and twenty friends later, we're done. It's time to return the hot food and cold food containers, complete the paperwork, then call it a day.

Next Thursday we'll be back. We hope everyone's well and anxious to see us coming down the road.

A Day At Lake Pleasant

2006-01-09T21:58:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Carolyn and I took our kayak down to Lake Pleasant about 35 miles northwest of Phoenix.

The recreational area has a lake of 10,000 acres and another 16,000 for hiking and camping.

The lake is set in a rocky desert terrain with sparse vegetation. Saguaro cacti dominate the landscape.

We took the kayak for a "spin" on the lake, enjoyed a picnic on the water and soaked up the sun on a 75 degree day.

(Don't tell Carolyn she's doing all the paddling. She hasn't figured that out yet that I'm not doing my share.)

This buoy captures perfectly how Carolyn and I get around in our little craft.

Afterwards we took a hike on the Pipeline Canyon Trail near the lake. It turned out to be the highlight of our day.

In Prescott we don't have the Saguaro cactus because of our altitude. But here they flourish in Saguaro forests. Its range is limited to southern Arizona, southeastern California, western New Mexico, and northen Mexico.

It is the largest cactus in the US. Although it can grow as high as 40 feet, it grows very slowly, only an inch a year. It takes nearly 65 years before it begins to grow its first arm.

This one here with the six arms is certainly more than 200 years old.

This one, on the otherhand, is probably 30 years old or so.

The ribs of the stem are heavily spined.

The two inch long downward pointing spines serve a variety of purposes: protecting the cactus, directing rain into its depressions, cooling the outer skin, providing insulation, and redirecting the wind.

We learned a lot along the way. Perhaps most important of all ... NEVER kiss a cactus!

The Saguaro is protected by the US government because it was beginning to disappear from the landscape.

We had a great day. We hated to see it come to an end.

Tuzigoot

2006-01-09T20:26:00.000-08:00

To close out 2005, Carolyn and I took a trip over the Mingus Mountains, through the ghost town of Jerome to Tuzigoot, the site of an ancient Indian village built between 1125 to 1400 A.D.

It was a beautiful day, warm, with bright sun and gorgeous Arizona skies. For kids from central Illinois, it was hard to believe it was New Year's Eve.

We saw the remains of a pueblo that rises 120 feet above the Verde Valley. The structure, built over a 300 year period, was five stories high and contained 86 ground floor rooms. Once, more than 225 people lived there at one time.

It looked out over the Verde Valley which has a flowing river with fertile land along its banks. The abundance of game and the ability to farm using irrigation canals made the location a viable place to live for centuries.

The site started with a few rooms on the hilltop that were family residences and work locations.

As the population grew over the years, rooms were added, including upper stories.

There were few exterior doors. Entry was made by way of ladders through openings in the roof. Walls were made of limestone and sandstone while beams and roof supports were pine, juniper and cottonwood.

Tuzigoot (Apache for "crooked water") was built by the Southern Sinaqua (Spanish for "without water") people. For unknown reasons, they abandoned the area in the early 1400's. There is no separate Sinaqua tribe today.

Christmas In Southern California

2005-12-27T19:32:00.000-08:00

Carolyn and I spent Christmas with Sara, our first in Southern California. Friday, we drove down Rodeo Drive to get in the spirit of the season LA-style. Santa crossed the street right in front of us.

We later saw him dodging palm trees to deliver presents.

We saw folks who had the difficult task of finding just the right gift for someone who already had it all.

We visted the Alamitos Bay area of Long Beach to take in the Christmas decorations. A quaint neighborhood there, Naples Island, is actually three islands separated by canals to look like Venice, Italy.

With 70 degree weather and parrots squawking in the trees, it takes a lot of decorations to make it look like Christmas.

The day before Christmas, Carolyn, Sara, her friend, Bob, and I went hiking in Topanga Canyon. The canyon in the Santa Monica Mountains is the world's largest wildlife area in a major city. It is totally within the city limits of LA.

On a clear day, in the distance you should be able to see the ocean in the center of this picture. On this day, however, cloud cover hovered over the beaches. From our vantage point all you could see was the tops of clouds down below. Weather conditions caused record surf all along the coast. Surfers were out in droves, despite the foggy conditions, to try the waves which often crested over 3o feet.

Here the Santa Ynez trail descends into the canyon. Bob and Sara can be seen to the right, Carolyn on the left is getting ready to round the bend, and, as usual, I am bringing up the rear.

At the bottom of the canyon, the trail winds across a creek bed and under a thick canopy of trees.

While Carolyn and I stopped for a lunch break, Sara and Bob explored further on the trail to find a waterfall. They got off the trail, over shot the waterfall and ended up have to climb down a series of ropes to the waterfall before working their way back to the trailhead.

We spent Christmas Day at Sara's. She had her apartment beautifully decorated with a huge tree and lots of presents.

Stockings were hung with great hopes.

The fireplace was well lit with lights and candles for Saint Nick.

The Christmas Spirit was felt by man and the animals.

"Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night."

Ben's Birthday Bash

2005-12-15T19:22:00.000-08:00

December 6th, Ben celebrated his first birthday.

Mom and Dad threw a great party!

There were balloons and decoration.

Grandma Linda baked a cake.

Cousins Jack and Riley came to show "Baby Ben" how to open presents.

And there were lots of those.

Ben got a cell phone, bath toys, and puzzles.

He got clothes, and trucks, and drums,

and a bus with "wheels that go 'round and 'round,"

a hat,

very cool sunglasses,

and his first commando outfit from Aunt Sara.

It was so much fun,

we're going to do it again next year.

Hiking In Red Rock Country

2005-11-29T07:33:00.000-08:00

Saturday, Carolyn, Sara and I went hiking in Sedona, AZ. Though close to Prescott (65 miles), the geography is vastly different. It is known as Red Rock Country because of the incredible limestone and sandstone formations there stained red by iron oxide.
Arizona was once a shallow sea on the edge of Pangea near the equator. Over the millenia rising and receding seas deposited residue which created the land now found in Sedona. Over millions of years, erosion formed beautiful red spires. As it continues, eons hence, Sedona will become part of the Grand Canyon.

There are hundreds of miles of trails in the area. We began by going up Schnebly Hill Road, a very rough unpaved road that climbs above Sedona and affords wonderful views. (Mr. Schnebly was one of the early settlers in the area. His wife's name was Sedona.)

Carolyn and Sara checking out the vistas before we begin.

The day began with overcast skies and cool temperatures.

The vegetation in this high desert climate is amazing. This exposed Juniper has survived under difficult conditions.

Native Americans stripped bark off the Junipers, soaked it in warm water and molded it to make diapers to line the cradles for their babies.

Life works with what it has.

We chose the Huckaby Trail for our hike. The trailhead begins at the lower level of Schnebly Hill. It is a moderate trail 2.9 miles long undulating through the Coconino National Forest, across Bear Wallow Canyon, overlooking Sedona, and down to Oak Creek. It's up and down but changes only 260 feet in elevation.

The trail passes dry creek beds at various points. Dry most of the year, these creeks will get alot of water during the spring melt off of snows on the mountains in Flagstaff just 30 miles north.

The trail affords beautiful views of Red Rock formations. Blue skies broke out and the sun warmed the air.

Carolyn peels off a layer as she sets a quick pace.

It must have been the heat ...

Swordplay breaks out on the trail before Carolyn restores order.

The scenery changes quickly on the Huckaby Trail. You can be in the open one minute, then the forest, next a canyon, and eventually on a cliff face overlooking a creek below.

Near the end, the Huckaby Trail descends into Oak Creek Canyon. Oak Creek can be seen behind Sara. Midgely Bridge is just upstream.

As the trail winds down to Oak Creek, you pass some interesting rock formations formed by water erosion.

Along Oak Creek, the vegetation is protected by the canyon walls. Many of the trees retain their fall colors even to the end of November.

In the fore and backgrounds, small black boulders can be seen. These black rocks are not native to the Sedona area. They have been carried more than 30 miles from the mountain tops in Flagstaff by torrential waters in spring melt offs.

We stopped by creekside for rest and some lunch before heading back for the 2.5 mile hike to the trailhead where we started.

It was a great day. We look forward to many others in Red Rock Country.

Sara Passes The Bar

2005-11-21T19:42:00.000-08:00

After more than three months of nervous anticipation, great news arrived on Sunday. Sara received word that she had passed the California Bar Exam!!

(She's seen here celebrating with Mary and Slick.)

After her graduating from Washington University Law School in May, Sara headed out to Arizona where she barracaded herself in our house in Prescott (before we moved in ourselves) and began preparing for the California bar. Rather than take a bar exam prep class, she chose to do it on her own. (Those who know her best were not surprised.) She developed an aggressive schedule of 12 - 14 hours of study per day and for the next two and a half months lived a monastic life and studied California and Federal law night and day. (Well, except for the daily visits to Starbucks .)

Surprisingly, particularly to those of us not a part of the legal profession, law school does not prepare you for the bar exam. That you have to do after law school. (Interesting system, huh?)

In August, Sara went to Oakland, CA to take the exam, a mind (and butt) numbing three day experience. Along with nearly a thousand other people, she sat for the test. Security for it was something that Homeland Security and the Arizona Border Patrol can only dream about.

At the end of the first day, Sara was certain that she was going to fail. The exam covered topics she had time to study only cursorily while other topics she had poured over were virtually ignored. Though the exam went on for hours, there was not always enough time to complete the tasks presented.

She didn't know anyone else in the room submitting to the rigors with her but she did make the acquaintance of an attorney licensed in two other states who was taking the California exam to expand his practice. He told her the California bar was the hardest he had ever taken. That, along with her experience over the final two days and the knowledge that approximately 50% of all who take the bar in California fail it, convinced Sara that she wasn't going to succeed.

Sara tried to prepare for bad news. She told us not to get our hopes up. Carolyn and I, however, were optimistic. We have a lot of faith in Sara. When we moved to Arizona, we got to see the final weeks of her studies. We saw how hard she was working and the commitment she was making to accomplish yet another tough assignment.

So, it was joyous news when Sara got the word last Sunday that she passed. She might have been surprised but we were not. (She's such a drama queen!)

Way to go, Sara. We are very proud of you. All of your years of hard work have paid off.

Ben Update - November 2005

2005-11-20T21:36:00.000-08:00

Ben is enjoying his first football season. It turns out that he is a great Bears fan. (Amazingly, so is his daddy!)

This Bears-Ben connections seems to be working. The Bears are in 1st place and Ben's a league leader too.

He is beginning to walk. Give him a push toy, wind him up, and he motors across the room.

He does better with his Urlacher jersey on.

Ben can do a lot of things now that he couldn't just a month ago. That's something to clap about.

Ben is enjoying a post game drink, celebrating another victorious day. (He has a lot of those.)

Ben is a very happy boy.

He's a joy to his mom, dad, and grandmas and grandpas.

Hiking In the Granite Mountain Wilderness

2005-11-20T18:43:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, Carolyn and I hiked into the Granite Mountain Wilderness Area, a 9700 acre preserve in the Prescott National Forest. It was a beautiful November day with temperatures in the mid 60's. The wind was cool and the sun was strong, a typical Fall day for Northern Arizona.

Trail 261 begins near Granite Basin Lake. It starts as a flat winding path through ponderosa pines and alligator juniper before it begins to climb.

Along the way there are open spaces with brush, Manzanita bushes, cacti, and boulders. As you climb, the trail narrows and is rock strewn with granite and quartz.

Always on your right we could see the upper reaches of Granite Mountain towering nearly 1600 feet above us.

The 3.4 mile trail will take you to the top. A short rest every now and then is welcome.

Carolyn and I didn't start in time on Sunday to make it all the way to the top. It gets dark early in Arizona this time of year. You need to allow enough time to get back while it is still light.

We did get fairly close to the top and saw some beautiful views. Distant ridges 50 miles or more away can be seen.

We enjoyed a nice picnic lunch while sitting on a boulder as big as our garage at over 6500 feet before starting back down. We left the summit for another day.

At twilight, we came upon two deer in the woods. They wondered off keeping an eye on us as I fumbled for my camera. Look close, you can see one of them in the center of the picture just to the right of the skinny tree trunk.

Zippy Finds Her Home

2005-10-19T08:04:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday afternoon, Carolyn and I were driving home from downtown. As we came down Willow Creek Blvd, we saw on-coming traffic was backed up for several blocks. At first glance we didn't notice the dog running right down the middle of the street holding up the long line of cars. A small black dog in the center of the right hand lane never swerved but held the center course like it was leading a parade.

On-coming cars were slowing down. Those immediately following the dog were honking trying to get it to get out of the way. It looked like a very short of time before something bad happened.

We pulled into a gas station at the corner of Smoke Tree Lane and got out to see if there was anything we could do to get the dog out of harm's way. As we did, the dog turned on to Smoke Tree Lane, ran past us and headed up the mile long hill that leads to our house. A number of cars heading that way followed right behind, honking.

We got back in our car deciding to give chase and see if we could catch the animal who we could now see was frightened by the cars, the noise, and the confusion of the situation. Going up Smoke Tree Lane, a number of on-coming cars nearly hit it as it swerved back and forth between lanes.

Near the top of the hill, the dog turned again on to Golden Hawk Road. Now only we and another car ahead of us were behind the dog. With some effort the other car was able to get in front of the dog. When the driver did, she got out of her car and headed the dog off. We pulled in behind and did the same thing. The dog examined its options and ran onto the porch of a nearby house atempting to hide from us.

When we got there, the dog was exhausted and scared to death. We approached with some caution not knowing what it's reaction to being cornered might be. Amazingly, it just collapsed.

The dog was a speckled brown, grey, and black short haired variety. It looked a bit like an Australian Shepherd. It made no attempt to be aggressive but it also did little to respond to our entreaties. It refused food that was offered. It did take a little water. It would not come to us.

The dog had no collar or identification. So Carolyn got a rope from our car, made a lead and put it on her. I encouraged it to come with me but it would not. By that time the homeowner saw us on the porch and came to find out what was going on. We asked him to called Animal Control. We waited a good while but no one showed up. I then decided to get the dog in my car and take it to Animal Control.

When we got there, it was closed. I called the police at that point. They said a squad car would come out. We sat there for nearly an hour no one came. It was Friday night, a busy night for the police and the dog was low priority. So Carolyn and I took her home with us.

The lady who helped us catch the dog told us where she first saw her running in traffic. It was about three miles from our house. The next morning, I took her in my car and we went back to the closest neighborhood. I parked in a lot near some apartment buildings. When I opened the car door, the dog jumped out wanting to take off. For the next two hours we walked through neighborhood after neighborhood, the dog leading the way. I stopped everyone saw and asked if they recognized the dog. No one did.

I stood with the dog at an intersection in the neighborhood to see if anyone would drive by and recognize her. No one stopped.

Finally, we walked into an adjoining neighborhood which had another large apartment complex. I let the dog lead me wherever she wanted to go. I spoke with everyone I saw. We walked a big loop through the complex and came back to where we started. No one knew the dog.

I started to leave to try another area. The dog, for the first time, resisted me and pulled me back into the complex. So, I told her OK we'll go around one more time. We did and still she didn't go up to any building and no one I saw knew her. So again, I tried to leave. She wouldn't let me. She dug her heels in, pulled on the rope and pulled me back in. I told her we would try it again.

The third time around, I ran into a woman who initally said she did not know the dog, but then remembered that there was a new family to the area who had a dog. She pointed out the apartment a few doors down. I walked over to it. As I approached a young boy ran out of a sliding glass door yelling, "Zippy! You're home." His mother followed him out and identified Zippy as their dog who had jumped out of the back of her husband's pick up truck the day before.

Zippy turned out to be a Queensland Heeler, a kind of the Australian shepherding dog. She had lived at this location for only a couple of weeks so, she knew the neighborhood but not the exact apartment. Thank goodness she was insistent and didn't let me lead her away. Her persistence got her home.

When I got home I looked Queensland Heelers up on the Internet. They are called Heelers because of their penchant for herding and knipping at the heels of sheep or cattle to corral them. They are intellignet hardy animals with great loyalty to their owners. They came from England and Scotland to Australia where they were crossed with native dingoes.

Have a good life Zippy. Stay out of the traffic.

Ben Update - October 2005

2005-10-13T18:03:00.000-07:00

Ben is 10 months old. The development he's going through is incredible. Carolyn and I hadn't seen him for a month and we saw changes in his looks, abilities, and personality.

In just one month he has become so much more mobile. He is in constant motion. He crawls with ease and speed!

He hasn't taken many steps yet, but it is clear that walking is in his near future. He pulls himself up on the furniture whenever he can.

He has become very verbal. His vocabulary is increasing by the day. First it was "da-da," then "ma-ma." He then added "hi" and "bird." Can "grandpa" be far away?

He'll probably be be in third grade before he can say, "Grandpa Steinkamp or Grandpa Lawlyes."

Ben is a very happy boy. He's easy to smile and giggle. He enjoys the company of lots of people. But we saw for the first time a little shyness that we hadn't seen before.

The future is a wonderful thing. We have a lot to discover about this beautiful boy. We all look forward to it.

World Junior Surfing Championships

2005-10-11T17:20:00.000-07:00

On Saturday and Sunday, October 8-9, Carolyn, Sara and I attended the 2005 World Junior Surfing Championships in Huntington Beach, California.

Young men and women, 18 and under from 27 countries participated in the competition. The games began with an Olympic-like procession of nations.

More than 300 competitors participated from Australia, Tahiti, Jamaica, Venezuela, Mexico, Japan, New Zealand and other known surfing locales. Surprisingly, they also came from Germany, Ireland, Canada, Italy, France, the UK and other unexpected places.

Hawaii entered a separate team from the US. Here the coach gives some of the younger girls words of encouragement before the competition starts.

Huntington Beach, "Surf City USA," boasts of 340 days of excellent surfing a year. On Sunday, the waves were gnarly, dude.

Competitors were divided into three groups: Boys 18 and under, Boys 16 and under, and Girls 18 and under.

Surfers are sent out in heats of 3 or 4. They have 20 minutes to catch as many waves as possible.

Points are awarded for the difficulty of the wave and the maneuvers and success in riding the wave. A score in the 7 or 8 range is considered excellent.

The totals of each surfer's three best rides are added together.

Whether boys or girls, 10 or 18, they were fantastic surfers. The competiton ends Oct 16. See the competition or final results at www.Quicksilver.com.

Biking The Peavine & Iron King Trails

2005-09-29T23:13:00.000-07:00

Bike trails are numerous in and around Prescott. Carolyn and I recently rode on the Peavine and Iron King Trails both developed as a part of the Rails To Trails program in which old railroad beds are converted to recreational trails.

The Peavine Trail, 4.15 miles borders Willow and Watson Lakes to the east and runs through the Granite Dells. It was made from a part of the old Santa Fe, Prescott and Phoenix Railroad bed. The Iron King Trail branches off the Peavine Trail and runs east to Prescott Valley is longer.

The Peavine Trail, so named because it winds in and out and around like a pea vine, begins about 3 miles east of our home. Here it passes the shoreline of Willow Lake.

It winds through the Granite Dells.

The Dells owe their distinctive look to the weathering of this very hard rock over millions of years. Geologists estimate the rocks are about 1.4 billion years old.

Here the trails goes by Watson Lake. In the distance Granite Mountain can be seen on the right. The granite there is different from that of the Dells. It is even older.

The formations are amazing. They are totally unlike the geology just a few miles away.

Many of the boulders are cube-shaped due to the nature of right angle fissures of granite.

The balancing rocks have withstood earthquakes over the millenia but eventually erosion will bring them down.

The Iron King Trail branches off from the Peavine and turns east toward Prescott Valley. Here it winds through pine forests.

Carolyn saw her first Road Runner. (Wiley Coyote was nowhere to be seen.) The road runner is to the immediate right of the two trees in the distance. (Look close, he's hard to see.)

As the Iron King Trail approaches Prescott Valley the view is a panaoramic of wild flowers.

When it's time to turn around and head home the only bad thing about the whole day is the uphill climb getting back to the Dells.

The Lakes of Prescott

2005-09-27T14:17:00.000-07:00

Prescott is situated in the high desert of northern Arizona. It was a surprise to me, therefore, that there are several lakes in the area. Carolyn and I have had a chance to visit five of them so far: Willow Lake, Watson Lake, Goldwater Lake, Lynx Lake, and Granite Basin Lake. Each one is very different from the others.

Watson Lake is one of two lakes a few minutes from our house on the north side of the city. It is uniquely situated in the Granite Dells, an area of giant boulders that have weathered over time and taken on irregular and attractive shapes. Ruins and artifacts indicate Native Americans lived here in the early 1800s. Legends abound of lost gold treasures hidden in the rock outcroppings. Early Hollywood cowboy, Tom Mix filmed many movies here.

Watson Lake is open year round for kayaking, canoeing, and sailing.

It also offers rock climbing for both the casual and the serious climber.

Willow Lake adjoins Watson Lake. It is shallower with marshy areas great for water fowl and aquatic plants.

It shares, in part, the boulder formations found at Watson Lake.

Willow Lake is also bordered by hiking trails and picnic areas.

Goldwater Lake is just a couple of miles south of the downtown area. It too is a small lake. It is nestled in among ponderosa pines and surrounded by hiking trails.

It's a nice place to fish or picnic.

There is a beach area for launching small boats, canoes and kayaks. In the summer there are boat rentals.

Carolyn and I have enjoyed sitting by the lake watching the waters, having a late lunch as the sun sets, and enjoying a good book by the shores.

There are endless amusements at Goldwater Lake. We have seen kids having naval battles on paddle boats in the lake, watched the adventurous practice roll-overs in their kayaks, and chuckled as young dogs tried to catch crayfish in the shallows.

The other day, I found this tiny boat that someone had made with a piece of bark for the deck, a twig for a mast and an aspen leaf for a sail. With a bit of ballast, it caught the wind and sailed steadily.

Lynx Lake is also located south of town. It is a manmade lake of 55 acres surrounded by woods and trails.

During parts of the year sections of the trails are closed to prvide sanctuary for bald eagles which nest nearby.

Granite Basin Lake sits at the foot of Granite Mountain about 8 miles west of our home. It is a small lake that affords fishing and picnicing facilities.

Ben Update

2005-09-17T20:04:00.000-07:00

Ben is in one of those developmental spurts where the changes are noticeable by the day. New teeth are popping out all at once. Although we thought for a while that he might skip crawling and go right to walking, he suddenly is doing an "army crawl" all through the house, keeping mom and dad busy "Ben-proofing" the place. He was discovered very recently sitting up in his bed playing with toys when he was supposed to be napping. Days later he was found standing up in bed. In the last week, Matt and Becky report that he has become very vocal. Reports are that he is working on saying, "Da-da."

He's a very busy boy.

Something has attracted his attention and he's heading toward his room.

"Hey dad, look what I can do! Now if I can just figure out how to get my leg over the rail."

"I love cats, but I can't eat a whole one."

He's got two front (upper) teeth and it isn't even Christmas yet.

Two teeth can be seen emerging on the bottom. These can't be fun times.

Mom and dad took Ben to the park for the first time.

He loved to swing. Just wait until next summer!

"Wheeee ..." Ben comes flying down the slide.

(Actually mom said he was sitting still. But it looks good doesn't it?)

You know, swings and slides are fun but nothing beats playing in the grass with mom.

Seeking Higher Ground

2005-09-14T22:07:00.000-07:00

Today Carolyn and I took our first hike into the Granite Basin Recreation Area. This area is about 8 miles from our house. It is at the foot of Granite Mountain which we see from our back deck.

We took Balancing Rock Trail (#349) and West Lake Trail (#351) to make a 4.2 mile circuit contouring around a hillside just south of Granite Basin. The trek provided great views of Granite Mountain, huge boulders strewn across its south face, an open pine forest of evergreen oaks, manzanita, scrub oaks, and a variety of wildflowers. The weather was a perfect 74 degrees with a light breeze and sunny skies.

We also took a side excursion to Granite Basin Lake.

Here are some pictures from our day:

Granite Mountain is seen here from our back deck (about 8 miles away). The peak is over 7600 feet. It is not the highest mountain in our region but it looks so because of its isolation from other peaks.

The Balancing Rock Trail is a relatively easy 4.2 mile trail. It changes elevation only by 220 feet, topping just under 6000 feet.

There are stretches, however, that get your attention. At that altitude, a long uphill section can get your heart pumping.

Carolyn set a brisk pace.

Most of the day we had the trail to ourselves. We met a couple on horseback and later a couple on mountain bikes.

Boulders crop up here and there on the trail.

The trail varies from deep forrest to open areas with long range vistas. (Granite Mountain is on my right.)

You can see on the distant horizon the San Francisco Peaks. They are more than 90 miles away near Flagstaff, AZ.

They are a part of the southern Colorado Plateau. Some geologists believe they are the remains of a large strato-volcano (similar to Mt. St. Helens). They rise over 12,000 feet.

Further along the trail we saw ...

cactus in bloom,

towering pines,

and gorgeous wildflowers.

Although not on the trail, we took a side excursion to Granite Basin Lake, a small lake at the base of the mountain.

We had a great day. But it gets dark early in Arizona. (We're not on daylight savings time.)

As the sun tipped toward the west, it was time to head home, so we didn't get lost in the woods.

Carolyn Yearns For Open Water

2005-09-12T23:47:00.000-07:00

Since our recent trip to Long Beach (with side trips to Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, San Clemente, and San Juan Capistrano), Carolyn has been thinking about kayaks. We visited a couple of shops that sell them. I have been researching them on the Internet.

We decided on Sunday afternoon to go out to Watson Lake here in Prescott. You can rent kayaks there. We tried out a tandem "sit on top" kayak. We got the hang of it fairly quickly and , although it was a windy sunny day, our interest in kayaks was seriously "wetted."

Next week we want to try out single kayaks with cabins to compare to the tandem.

There are five lakes within minutes of our house. Having kayaks would give us a great way to enjoy them. With the mild weather we have here it's possible to boat year 'round.

Here are some pictures of our afternoon on Watson Lake:

The following week we went back to Watson Lake and tried the single kayaks. If was a different experience than the tandem. They moved quicker through the water with less effort. The Swift 9.5 that Carolyn had was stable but didn't track as well as the tandem or a longer single would. Nonetheless, they were alot of fun.

Sara Settles In Long Beach

2005-09-12T22:32:00.000-07:00

On September 2nd, Sara moved to Long Beach, CA. She settled into a nice apartment just a 15 minute walk from the ocean.

A week later she started her job as a civilian contractor with the U. S. Air Force at El Segundo Air Force Base near Los Angeles. She will be working in the Air Force's Global Positioning Systems which manages satellite and ground-based GPS programs.

It's the beginning of a new adventure.

A few weeks earlier, Matt, Becky, Ben, Carolyn and I went for a visit to see Long Beach. We all had great fun getting to know the area.

Ben had a good time at the beach. (He and grandma like to wear silly hats.)

Aunt Sara took him to lunch.

He saw the boats (including the Queen Mary.)

He went to the aquarium for the first time. (Sea lions were his favorites.)

He got to see the harbor with mom and dad. (And stay up late.)

It was a pretty full day. At the end, Ben and Bear were really tired.

Ben's Shoes

2005-09-11T00:01:00.000-07:00

Ben just turned 9 months old. He has 5 new teeth. He has begun to crawl and sit up and stand up in his bed. But what he is most proud of are his new shoes!

Walking in Prescott

2005-09-08T22:26:00.000-07:00

Two things I love most about Prescott are its climate and terrain. I find my self wanting to be outdoors, enjoying the skies and the vistas, feeling the warm sun and the cool breeze, as much as possible, especially early in the morning. I try to get in a five mile run/walk each day. The hills and the altitude are a challenge. But I can feel my self acclimating more each day. To give you a sense of what it's like I took some pictures this morning to share with you here.

I left home at 7:30 am.

There are lots of streets in our neighborhood and choices of where to go. One of my favorite routes is to head east on Smoke Tree Lane. (Maybe because it starts out mostly downhill!)

Smoke Tree Lane has a nice wide sidewalk and beautiful landscaping along the way. In addition, it has some great views and offers the chance to see a critter or two. Just the other day a coyote shared a part of my walk down Smoke Tree. I wish I'd had my camera.

One of the joys of moving to a new place is learning the local flora and fauna. One of the plants common to the area is the Russian Sage. It has beautiful purple flowers that contrast wonderfully with the green foliage. (Although the one seen here is beginning to fade as Fall comes on.) The bees love this plant. Early in the morning you can hear each Russian Sage you pass hum with their electricity.

Along the route you pass the Prescott Lakes on the golf course of the local country club. The lake in the picture is the largest in a series of lakes that cascades down the hillside. It's a pretty site in this semi-arid climate.

Continuing on, you can see some of the golf course in the distance as well as a glimpse of the Mingus Mountains. On the other side of the mountains is the old mining town/ghost town, now tourist attraction, Jerome. Further east and north is Sedona, AZ.

On the walk down Smoke Tree you can see rocks with petroglyphs on them. These are prehistorics markings left by ancient peoples who populated this area. These people long pre-date the Yavapai and other Native Americans who later populated this part of Arizona.

Here is the Smoke Tree from which this street gets its name.

After two miles, Smoke Tree Lane ends at the intersection with the Prescott Lakes Parkway. I turn south on the Parkway. In this picture, the Parkway can be seen winding in the distance toward the Bradshaw Mountains which form a southern perimeter around Prescott.

After a short distance turn to the west and head into a neighboring subdivision off of Petroglyphs Dr. This section is all up hill. You can see houses going up all over the hillsides in this part of town.

Most people landscape their yards with native plants that do not require much water to survive. Most yards are decorated with rocks rather than planted in grass which requires so much water to maintain. You do see, though, numbers of beautiful flowers which add beautiful color to the landscape.

Here is a view of the Prescott Lakes from above. These are the series of small ponds (i.e. lakes if you are in the desert) that cascades down to the main lake along Smoke Tree Lane.

The greenery is a welcome sight but it does raise questions regarding the most appropriate use of water, a precious commodity in this part of the country. The water used to here and on the golf course is reclaimed water that has not be treated for human consumption.

About 8 miles northwest of Prescott is Granite Mountain, a 7,626 foot stack of ragged boulders, some bigger than houses, stacked on top of each other. Its vertical cliffs offers world class rock climbing to visitors from all over the world.
Since I can see the mountain from the deck in back of my house, it's a guidepost for finding my way home.