I wish I was a Geek!

Gosh, trying to set up a new Journal is almost more than this poor brain can process. I don't know if I'll be able to transfer my old pictures from AOL Journals to this one. Living here in the boondocks as we do, we've got a really slow dial-up connection and I'm not sure if I've got the patience nor the motivation to go through the extremely lengthy process. I'm thinking it might be easier to just start anew with photos and forget about the old ones. Heck, at this point, I'm still not sure how to put photos on this Journal but I'm sure I'll figure it out eventually.


To those of you who follow our Journal, please bear with us...eventually we'll get it right

FR 97 to Jack Shoe Canyon

We took off early this morning to check out FR 97 to Jack Shoe Ranch and the canyon beyond. We'd heard the trail had been washed out and wasn't in passable condition, however, the road turned out to be just fine with some careful maneuvering. We didn't spot any critters much to our surprise, but there were a few more people on the trails so the critters probably made themselves scarce. Weekends bring people to the area with their ATVs and added noise, so usually we prefer to hit the trails on weekdays when we have the roads to ourselves. It warmed up once the sun came up but thankfully, there's still a hint of Fall in the air.

It's a beautiful clear day here, the desert air is wonderful and sweetly scented, I wish we could bottle it and share some with all of you.

Chili Omelets and Blacktail Rattlesnake

Neat trip! We headed out this morning with Larry & Jean to have some breakfast at Tortilla Flat on the scenic Apache Trail. The morning was clear and cool with a definite nip in the air. Along the way, we stopped to admire Roosevelt Dam, a nice place to take in the beautiful scenery.

Breakfast was great, although, it's the kind of eating that we'll probably pay for later in the day. "Killer Omelets" consists of a three egg omelet stuffed with Tortilla Flat's "Killer Chili", topped with cheddar cheese...GROAN....I must say, we did it justice, but I must offer a helpful hint, don't eat a heavy breakfast and then go bouncing along on an unpaved, washboard road.  Tortilla Flat Arizona 

On the way back along the trail, a Blacktail Rattlesnake posed for pictures. He didn't appreciate his morning bask in the sun being interrupted, so he coiled, rattled and buzzed angrily at us.  Blacktail Rattlesnake - American International Rattlesnake Museum

It's sure nice to get out and do some good Jeeping again, we've all missed it.

Check out the album to see some good snake pictures.

Tags:  Blacktail Rattlesnake, Roosevelt Dam, Tortilla Flat

Gila Monster in Gila County

The temperature stayed cooler for a nice change this morning, so we headed out for our first jaunt of the season. A-Cross Road is always good for spotting critters and today was no exception. We saw a rattler, but he didn't stick around long enough to smile for the camera.  This morning alongside the road, warming himself in the morning sun we came upon an adult, fairly large (about 16 inches) Gila Monster. Although venomous, they're non aggressive so we stopped and annoyed him long enough to take a few pictures.We'd seen a Gila Monster one other time, but he was off in the distance and we couldn't get a good look. The only other critters on today's trip were a Ground Squirrel and a Great Blue Heron. It was a nice ride, it's sure good to get out in the Jeep again. Gas prices and temperatures willing, we'll be doing lots more of it soon.

Biding Our Time

It's still plenty hot here, but the early mornings are showing some promise of cooler temperatures coming soon.

We're still doing piddle-projects around the house to keep busy and pass the time. Here are a few pictures of a 3-D folk art piece we did for over the mantel in the den. It's made of wood, I draw it, Ralph cuts the wood, then I glue and paint. It's sorta like homemade Lincoln Logs, cut pieces, hot glued together. It began as just a couple of trees, but as I sit and look at it, I think of things to add to it. It's modeled after some of the old abandoned ranches we've seen while Jeeping the back roads in our area. I guess you can call it old folks entertainment, hey, it keeps us out of trouble!

A guy and his power tools

It's simply too hot to be trekking out into the boondocks, so we've settled in for the summer to do a bit of redecorating and remodeling inside the house where it's nice and cool.

Ralph built a wall in the den where there wasn't one, he added a doorway, a door and then built a set of nice bookshelves. Finally we were able to unpack stuff we've had in boxes since we moved here three years ago. Before he built the wall, the downstairs room looked like a bowling alley. It's a long room, so we took one end of it to make ourselves a comfy den. The other end of the room is set aside for the computer and Bailey's (the Schnauzer) favorite chair. We're working on the computer end of the room as well. Ralph's going to build a couple of end tables to match the bookshelves, so his plate is full at least through the rest of the summer. He's enjoying playing with his power tools, I think it's a "guy thing"... he gets a very strange look in his eyes when he's holding a circular or jigsaw and a simple thing like a hammer makes him blissfully happy. If you listen closely, you can hear him making grunting, apelike sounds ... hmmmm what could THAT mean?

Anyway, there's still some work remaining to be done, but the room is taking shape and even more important, we're having a good time doing it.

Too hot for dog days...

104º in the shade!

Do Not Disturb, air conditioned dog at rest.

Ahhhh...what's the use of complaining, after all, this is Arizona and it's officially Summer. It's not fit for man nor beast out there, the birds are gasping for air. The dog needs to be coaxed to go outside, he'd much rather lay around and sleep in the nice cool air conditioning....smart critter.

Nope, we're not Jeeping. It would be foolhardy to venture out into the desert this time of year. We'd probably wind up becoming buzzard bait. Since my moaning and groaning doesn't seem to do much good, I've decided to take another approach and laugh at the soaring temperatures. We'll spend the majority of the summer catching up on some stuff here at home that we've been neglecting since we got the Jeep. Painting isn't nearly as much fun as running all over the mountains in a Jeep, but I suppose it's something that should be done. Time to fix up our fixer-upper and keep cool...very cool.

I looked up some Arizona jokes I thought I'd share with you all. I've got to admit, I got a chuckle out of them too.

These are from "About.com"  

 It's so hot in Arizona that...

• the birds have to use potholders to pull worms out of the ground.
• the potatoes cook underground, and all you have to do to have lunch is to pull one out and add butter, salt and pepper.
• farmers are feeding their chickens crushed ice to keep them from laying hard-boiled eggs.
• the cows are giving evaporated milk.
• the trees are whistling for the dogs.
• you no longer associate bridges (or rivers) with water.
• you can say 113 degrees without fainting.
• you eat hot chilies to cool your mouth off.
• you can make instant sun tea.
• you learn that a seat belt makes a pretty good branding iron.
• the temperature drops below 95, you feel a bit chilly.
• you've experienced condensation on your butt from the hot water in the toilet bowl.
• you would give anything to be able to splash cold water on your face.
• you can attend any function wearing shorts and a tank top.
• The 4 seasons are: tolerable, hot, really hot, and ARE YOU KIDDING ME??!!
• you discover that in July, it takes only 2 fingers to drive your car.
• you discover that you can get a sunburn through your car window.
• you notice the best parking place is determined by shade instead of distance.
• hot water now comes out of both taps.
• it's noon in July, kids are on summer vacation, and not one person is out on the streets.
• you actually burn your hand opening the car door.
• you break a sweat the instant you step outside at 7:30 a.m. before work.
• no one would dream of putting vinyl upholstery in a car or not having air conditioning.
• your biggest bicycle wreck fear is, "What if I get knocked out and end up lying on the pavement and cook to death?"
• you realize that asphalt has a liquid state.
• a sad Arizonan once prayed, "I wish it would rain - not so much for me, cuz I've seen it -- but for my 7-year-old."
• GASP!