tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5812369659584147592011-11-27T16:53:24.702-07:00A slice of life as seen through my camera.midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.comBlogger681100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-76578514984699065742009-07-21T15:31:00.002-07:002009-07-21T15:35:05.006-07:00

Anyone who has lived in Tucson for a while is familiar with back yard lizards. Apparently, the Desert Spiny Lizard is the most common of the bunch. I've always called them "alligators" due to their relatively large size and fearlessness. They're also "push-up lizards" to me because they do a defensive pumping posture that looks just like a human doing push-ups. This one was on a friend's back

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-38301310251710002012009-07-20T14:53:00.003-07:002009-07-20T14:58:16.306-07:00

One of our assignments in photography class was to put together a series of panoramic images. The images had to have a minimum of 6 source photos, and there was no maximum. While at the 4th Avenue street fair this past spring, I snapped a series of shots of the Chocolate Iguana while waiting for my friend and her kids to wrap up inside. It turned out to be one of my favorite panoramas ever.My

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-87872071363434992962009-04-07T09:26:00.002-07:002009-04-07T09:31:17.174-07:00

I visited the Desert Botanical Garden (in Phoenix, AZ) this past weekend, and came away with almost 200 photos. There's an incredible exhibit there by glass artist Dale Chihuly. He has created amazing forms with colored glass and integrated them into the desert landscape. Some are huge pieces of sculpture and some are small forms which are easy to overlook. I had the good fortune to be there in

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-22540619161765280152009-03-25T09:53:00.002-07:002009-03-25T09:55:56.113-07:00

4th Avenue is known for being a haven of alternative lifestyles and funky shops. You'll always find people sporting dreadlocks, or exotic ethnic clothing, or something outside the norm. These drummers were in one of the first tents we came to - 4th Avenue in a nutshell.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-89669128671532978972009-03-14T21:59:00.002-07:002009-03-14T22:01:20.798-07:00

I spent most of the day at the Festival of Books, and caught this great balloon artist near the entrance to the children's area.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-59837403903550122432009-02-26T09:24:00.003-07:002009-02-26T09:27:58.425-07:00

I have a new camera, and I've been terribly lax in posting new images. It's amazing going from a point & shoot digital to a shiny, new DSLR, but there's a pretty steep learning curve in the beginning. Luckily, I have quite a few subjects on which to practice. This past weekend, I spent some time chasing the cats around my friend's house. I was focused on one cat when I felt a whisker tickle my

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-83133773770499129322009-01-21T11:52:00.003-07:002009-01-21T11:53:25.775-07:00

On Saturday, some friends and I visited the Pima Air & Space Museum. I'm not much of a gearhead, but I love museums, and I love the lore and pop culture surrounding aviation, so this was a great trip. Here's one of my favorite planes, an old TWA "Constellation".

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-14302982843210476542009-01-20T15:34:00.004-07:002009-01-20T15:38:27.704-07:00

Ah, it's good to be back. A friend came in from out of town, so we did the whirlwind tour of the major sites in Tucson. A trip to the Pima Air & Space Museum led us to A-Mountain (Sentinel Peak) at sunset. It was breezy, and tough to take clear shots even with a tripod, but a few came out pretty well. Here's downtown as seen from just below the "A" on the mountain. The big white tents near the

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-70008337518330652712008-11-25T15:25:00.003-07:002008-11-25T15:31:33.610-07:00

It's National Novel Writing Month and that means I'm both writing a (minimum) 50,000 word novel, and playing Municipal Liaison to over 250 Tucson writers. This is my 7th year doing NaNo and my 6th year as ML, and even though I know what I'm doing, it's still a new experience each year. I'm up to about 44,000 words today, and on-track to finish by Thanksgiving. Trips to Sabino Canyon and places

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-5215512876507277152008-11-07T09:16:00.004-07:002008-11-07T09:23:25.851-07:00

Tucson began as a walled fort. The wall was square of adobe that featured a lookout tower and military barracks for the soldiers stationed there. The wall was meant to keep out Apache raiders, and to protect the earliest settlers to the area. Most of the wall has been lost to time, but an archaeological excavation in the 1950s revealed one corner of the wall mere inches below the asphalt of a

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-2337594000789904552008-11-07T09:08:00.003-07:002008-11-07T09:12:42.806-07:00

I've been working in historic preservation for almost 8 years now, so I've amassed quite a library of pictures of historic places in and around Tucson. I finally got around to uploading a few to my flickr account, so I'll share some here. This first one is of the Cheyney House after the restoration was completed. This is a house that caught on fire sometime in the mid-1980s and was utterly gutted

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-55775393671140819892008-09-07T01:51:00.002-07:002008-09-07T01:55:13.230-07:00

We wanted to get out of town and into nature on Labor Day, so the bf proposed a picnic and we headed up the mountain. It was a stunningly gorgeous day, and the mountain was alive with chasing light and shadow. Heavy monsoon clouds started rolling in around the time we hit Geology Vista, and by the time we got to Ski Valley, the skies opened up and it started pouring rain. We ended up eating our

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-62534747350305194002008-08-03T00:25:00.004-07:002008-08-03T00:31:47.705-07:00

We had a day to kill in Charlotte, NC and since I'm not into NASCAR, the entertainment options were a bit limited. I was poking around on google and found a science center in uptown Charlotte called Discovery Place. As luck would have it, a touring exhibit of Pompeii artifacts was on display. I'm an archaeologist by training, so I couldn't pass up a chance to see a Pompeii show that wasn't likely

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-63793302672724922062008-07-24T09:46:00.002-07:002008-07-24T09:50:03.889-07:00

We had a very delayed fireworks show this year due to a thunderstorm that pounded the downtown area around 7pm. The A Mountain show was pushed back to 10pm, but that just gave us extra time to find the perfect vantage point. We ended up along Granada Avenue, right near El Minuto. Even though my camera's starting to show its age (and does not do well with low-light photography), I brought my

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-41303401743193476272008-07-24T09:41:00.002-07:002008-07-24T09:44:05.329-07:00

I spent the past weekend in Raleigh and Charlotte, NC. I was there to visit a friend and take in yet another Rush concert (woo!). We spent Monday at Charlotte's Discovery Place science center, and then wandered around uptown so I could search out interesting buildings. One of my favorites was the Hearst Tower. I'm not at all familiar with Charlotte, so I don't know anything about the building,

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-1586203132336882008-06-25T12:05:00.002-07:002008-06-25T12:07:11.064-07:00

I just got a new laptop, so I've been going through all my old photos and trying to get things organized. I found a small set that missed being uploaded to flickr with the rest of my 2006 trip pictures, and this is one of the missing. It was taken in the rotunda room at the Natural History Museum, looking out over Central Park around 5pm. The weather was pretty warm, but the trees were still

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-10195049350871237662008-06-25T12:01:00.003-07:002008-06-25T12:03:06.234-07:00

I've been taking care of a friend's cat, and we had a bit of excitement the other day. A javelina showed up on the porch, seeking refuge from the mid-day sun (and 106+ degree temps!) and the cat got very agitated. Finally, the javelina came over to the porch door to see what was making all the ruckus. Every time the cat thumped against the glass, the javelina's hackles went up. You can see a bit

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-79492275381682557512008-05-29T15:48:00.002-07:002008-05-29T15:50:50.775-07:00

What's more fun that going to the zoo as a kid? Going as an adult with kids along. Being able to experience everything through their eyes adds such a rich dimension to the day.The "kid" here is my friend's 5 year old daughter. We were in a subterranean viewing area to see the polar bears, and one large bear was swimming laps around the pool. She perched on the windowsill in rapt attention for

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-56190449260438096032008-05-22T15:49:00.003-07:002008-05-22T15:52:23.392-07:00

More from the zoo trip...We headed over to the giraffe exhibit in time for the 2pm feeding. For $2, you can buy a handful of lettuce and go out onto a special balcony that overlooks the giraffe pen. All three know when it's close to a feeding time and come right up to the balcony to snatch treats out of your hand. I took this shot before the feeding started, but after the giraffes had already

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-81632992056737094202008-05-22T15:42:00.003-07:002008-05-22T15:46:32.820-07:00

No, I'm not exaggerating :) Here's a resident of one of the Reid Park Zoo's aviarys:The first thing that struck me about this bird was the fluffy mess of fine feathers on top of its head. It was preening and kept shaking its head so fast that the feathers would blur into a kind of corona. It's about the size of a small turkey and, while shy, came right out onto the pavement when the zookeeper

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-3718597937002666782008-05-12T10:10:00.002-07:002008-05-12T10:13:15.968-07:00

On Saturday, my friend and I took her daughter to the zoo. It was pretty hot in the sun, so we took a break by the koi pond to cool off for a bit. After a while, the koi got interested in the handful of food pellets we were tossing into the water, and we got a good look at the wide variety of fish in the pond. This one was my favorite - it had long, fluttery fins and looked downright ghostly as

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-21807102787609613322008-05-08T08:55:00.003-07:002008-05-08T09:09:00.792-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I was housesitting in a place on the far east side of town. While I was there, every cactus on the property burst into bloom, and the desert was a riot of bees and color. I'm not sure what kind of cactus this is, but I think it's related to the cereus. It's a fat, ground crawling variety that puts out enormous, colorful blooms. These flowers are as big across as a large

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-51505339895810870602008-05-07T09:26:00.002-07:002008-05-07T09:34:29.053-07:00

Deviating from my standard photo form factor for a moment here...I snapped a series of shots with my little camera phone while at the Phoenix show. Due to the camera's, ahem, limitations, these are best viewed at a smaller size. They look great on a phone screen - not so hot on a computer :(The concert was AMAZING. One of the best Rush shows I've ever seen, and a great, engaged, audience to boot

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-70144527112029383222008-05-07T09:02:00.002-07:002008-05-07T09:06:00.543-07:00

Meant to post this last week, but things got hectic, and it slipped. In 2004, I met up with a bunch of folks from the rushtour.com message boards to catch Rush's two-night stay at Radio City Music Hall. On the day of the show, we met up in front of the theater, chatted up fellow fans, and took an insane amount of pictures. This is one of the early shots, while group members were still trickling

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-23093478877339838362008-05-07T08:58:00.003-07:002008-05-07T09:02:06.993-07:00

Ok...abandonning the daily numbering in titles for a while. I'm, obviously, not so good at updating daily, so numbers are going by the wayside. But, enough on that - you're here for photos, not explanations :)Today's photo is from January, 2008. I was hiking to the top of Wasson Peak with a friend and we were doing our best to reach the summit before the sun set. Parks of the trail were in deep

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-86592894736522864872008-04-17T14:38:00.002-07:002008-04-17T14:41:52.893-07:00

A friend of mine participates in a program that places desert tortoises with families willing to foster them. These are animals that have been raised in captivity, or injured, or otherwise unable to fend for themselves in the wild. Every couple of days, they get some leafy greens in addition to the grass and other plants the grow in their enclosures. This one is munching on a hunk of kale.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-84563627900805122132008-04-17T14:36:00.002-07:002008-04-17T14:37:54.126-07:00

I'm housesitting right now and this is my main charge - a bundle of feline energy. I snapped a quick picture while he was enthalled with a bird outside. That's about the only time he holds still.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-29963176108614168772008-04-15T08:54:00.003-07:002008-04-15T08:55:59.861-07:00

As my rampant allergies can attest, everything is blooming right now. The tree pollen is insane, but the stunningly vivid cactus blooms make it worth the suffering. This one is at a friend's house and is usually good for a few clusters of blossoms every year. They're about as big across as your hand, and the kind of wild red that makes you stop in your tracks and stare. When the desert blooms, it

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-64219923289622326832008-04-15T08:49:00.001-07:002008-04-15T08:50:59.099-07:00

Ok, last Valley of the Moon post for a while. This is a large mural underneath the Wizard's tower. I'm not sure how old it is, or how long it's been exposed to the elements, but it's obviously suffering some wear. Still, it's impressive to turn a corner and suddenly see a wall of Dragon before you.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-81345603589998181162008-04-15T08:46:00.001-07:002008-04-15T08:48:16.150-07:00

On the property, there's a small, old adobe house. It's currently being used for costume and prop storage, but seems to be mostly habited by spiders. There were some enormous webs strung up in the corners. I love the juxtaposition of webbing and costume fairy wings here.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-31912913243824385872008-04-15T08:44:00.003-07:002008-04-15T08:46:00.683-07:00

This was such a neat tour, so I'll post quite a few more pictures from it here. Next up, the "Hobbit house". There are several of these scattered about the property, in various shapes and sizes. All are concrete and pebble, but there's a lot of variation in the extra materials. This one had a lot of bottle glass in it.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-84187565428595912652008-04-11T10:56:00.002-07:002008-04-11T11:00:03.387-07:00

One of the perks of my job is behind the scenes access to historic sites, whether they're open to the public or not. On Wednesday, we got to take a short tour of the Valley of the Moon. The place has been mostly closed to the public for a while now due to safety issues. Some of the folks on the tour joked that we should have brought hard hats. It's a quirky slice of Tucson history, and a funky

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-5624080615333401312008-04-11T10:53:00.002-07:002008-04-11T10:55:47.980-07:00

I was housesitting on the far east side of town, and happened to be driving east as a big monsoon storm rolled in. The sun was setting in a blaze of color behind me, but it was nothing but grey swirling clouds to the east. Suddenly, this otherworldly spot of color flared behind the clouds. It lasted for a couple of minutes - a bizarre trick of reflection and refraction. I've never seen its like.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-59161515829016089592008-04-11T10:46:00.003-07:002008-04-11T10:51:51.191-07:00

I was off housesitting one morning when I heard a commotion from down the hall. The cat, normally silent, was mewling and fussing at something. I found him in the master bathroom, working himself into a snit over a group of squirrels hanging out underneath the window. The squirrels were absolutely fearless, and the cat was beside himself. This went on for an hour or so. Who needs TV when you've

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-56018452791259212062008-04-11T10:37:00.002-07:002008-04-11T10:45:56.074-07:00

I just realized that I'm less than a month from my next Rush show. Woohoo! I've caught them on every tour since Vapor Trails (yes, I know - late bloomer), and we always make a point of catching at least the "local" show in Phoenix. We always leave Tucson in the late afternoon, then stop and find dinner on the road - usually in Casa Grande. A few streets in from the highway, we stumbled upon this

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-51724939128113332652008-04-07T15:34:00.003-07:002008-04-07T15:36:19.749-07:00

In 2005, I got to take a tour of the renovations of the Fox Theatre. The place was pretty torn up, but a few parts were starting to come together. One of the most striking features in the theatre is a massive art deco (or "southwest deco") chandelier that hangs in the middle of a vividly painted ceiling mural. When we did the tour, the chandelier was lowered to ground level for repairs. It was a

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-19798685757288422912008-04-07T15:29:00.002-07:002008-04-07T15:31:33.154-07:00

Continuing the monsoon theme, here's a shot from 2004. I was visiting a friend and we were in the back yard with the dogs. When the monsoons are here, it's typical for the skies to be absolutely clear in the morning, then a bunch of clouds roll in by the mid-afternoon, then the rains come in the late afternoon, and things clear up until the next day. Summer skies tend to be diffuse and washed out

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-28805830719766200802008-04-07T15:23:00.002-07:002008-04-07T15:27:59.065-07:00

Ever seen a baby desert tortoise? I housesit for a woman who takes care of several desert tortoises, and this was one of her younger charges. The shadow lines are from a metal grate that was over his enclosure to keep an opportunistic raptor or racoon from stealing a tortoise snack. This little guy ended up crawling out of his enclosure about a year after this picture was taken, wandered around

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-8099902731100684092008-04-07T15:21:00.001-07:002008-04-07T15:22:36.012-07:00

One of the best parts of monsoon season is the incredible sunsets that result from all the moisture in the air. This one was taken from my old front yard (now, sadly, a vast parking lot for an LA Fitness).

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-49899139604754068462008-04-07T15:17:00.002-07:002008-04-07T15:20:52.975-07:00

I just uploaded a tremendous backlog of old photos to my flickr account, so I think I'll draw heavily from those for the next few days. This first one is a shot I took in August of 2004. I had just come home from work and the rain started pouring. We had a metal awning over the carport, and the rattle of raindrops was almost deafening. Wasn't fast enough to pull in the patio chair before it got

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-38357386407662688842008-04-02T13:09:00.004-07:002008-04-02T13:13:25.624-07:00

I just walked a few blocks downtown to drop a NetFlix DVD in a mail box and had at least 5 encounters with gorgeous blooming flowers, birds, butterflies, and quite a few examples of human, um...streetlife. Would have been a fabulous time to have my camera with me (alas), but you'll have to settle for this shot from the Botanical Gardens. Can't say as I've ever considered hanging out *on* a cactus

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-13543713243459173052008-04-01T11:00:00.002-07:002008-04-01T11:00:41.437-07:00

I'm not a fan of April Fool's Day, so you get the XD cake today...

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-31725451298853297902008-03-31T10:11:00.001-07:002008-03-31T10:12:39.373-07:00

Continuing the theme, here's another photo from almost the same spot as the previous. I was shooting into a very bright, cloudy sky, so the photo is much darker than it should be, but I love the way the blossoms pop while everything else is darkly shaded.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-72160530536816924012008-03-31T10:07:00.003-07:002008-03-31T10:09:40.124-07:00

Here in Tucson, almost everything blooms in yellow. Trees, flowers, bushes - it's a riot of sneeze-inducing yellow. One of my favorite things about being in the midwest was the vast variety of flowering trees in every shade imaginable. I didn't have a camera with me back then, but I did on my last trip to New York City. Here's a quick snap of a blooming tree in Central Park. This was right behind

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-69213885029182944922008-03-29T20:42:00.003-07:002008-03-29T20:48:28.633-07:00

We're doing the lights out for Earth Hour (http://www13.earthhourus.org/) thing right now - yay for computing by candlelight. In light of this (heh heh), today's picture is from this past December's Winterhaven Festival of Lights. Winterhaven is an historic neighborhood in Tucson that goes all out with the holiday decorations every December. Displays run the gamut from religious to silly, and

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-74508457850622533412008-03-28T08:53:00.002-07:002008-03-28T08:56:50.905-07:00

All that tromping around Northern AZ got me a little homesick for the sights and sounds around here. We're entering the long, hot, dry summer, but I'm dragging out winter a little longer through photos. This is from January. We were on the road to Bear Canyon and found our way blocked by rapidly rising floodwaters. The clouds were dropping fast onto the tips of the Catalinas and several stranded

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-34743547260668953272008-03-27T11:20:00.002-07:002008-03-27T11:22:01.598-07:00

On Monday, we visited the Meteor Crater site just west of Flagstaff, AZ. They've got a really nice visitor's center and some great museum exhibits. It's quite spectacular. Definitely one to avoid during the hot months!

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-41243270258288475752008-03-27T11:17:00.002-07:002008-03-27T11:19:16.635-07:00

I've got a huge soft spot for Route 66, and a particular fascination for both the preservation / revival and the decay you can find along the route. Twin Arrows is one of the most iconic Arizona Route 66 landmarks for me, so I had to hop out of the car and take a few pictures here. It's disheartening to see it in such disrepair, but I guess that's just the way of things these days.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-9592622925561205242008-03-27T11:15:00.001-07:002008-03-27T11:16:33.440-07:00

It doesn't matter how long I've been gone, or how far I've traveled - I always break into a huge grin when I see one of these signs.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-8878877639600038682008-03-27T11:12:00.001-07:002008-03-27T11:14:51.905-07:00

We drove for about 12 hours on Sunday. Started in Clinton, OK and finished in Flagstaff, AZ - stayed on the I-40 the entire way. As we were passing through New Mexico (east of Gallup), this hillside caught my eye. There's a large, whitewashed mission-style church on the hill, and a smattering of ramshackle adobe homes below. Very iconic, very southwestern. So good to be back on familiar turf!

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-77512443896644300122008-03-27T11:09:00.001-07:002008-03-27T11:11:41.865-07:00

If you've ever come across the Texas panhandle on the Interstate 40, you've probably seen the gigantic cross between the Oklahoma border and Amarillo, TX. It's enormous and sticks right up out of the prairie. At night, it's lit with garrish neon - I think it's green. It's...um...quite the landmark.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-23083463802324291772008-03-27T11:06:00.002-07:002008-03-27T11:08:50.950-07:00

As I mentioned, I flew up to Iowa to help my best friend move back to Tucson. We left the large pets with her dad (to be flown down later), but had 8 reptiles in the car with us. Saturday night, they all got a warm water soak in the hotel bathroom.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-88903642196359523772008-03-27T11:01:00.002-07:002008-03-27T11:05:47.824-07:00

Sorry for the absence here - I'm finally getting caught up on internet stuff after being a few days without a connection. Today will be a big picture dump to get things caught up here.A couple of weeks ago, I was cleaning out my closet and came across a shoebox that has all my Star Wars miniature toys. The bf was over and decided to taunt my cat with the toys.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-44120816839655189882008-03-20T14:57:00.003-07:002008-03-20T14:59:31.322-07:00

I've had a lot of hits on my Picacho Peak hike pictures - especially the wildflowers. Sadly, we got there just before they really started blooming. This picture shows a particularly dense patch of yellow. When things really get going, this is what the entire area looks like.I'm going to be playing airplane tag most of tomorrow, and then hitting the road for 4 days, so I may or may not get a

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-46835930009374614952008-03-19T09:41:00.002-07:002008-03-19T09:44:47.474-07:00

I think we're officially done with winter here. The last gasp was the freak snowstorm on Sunday - now we're slated to be in the 80s for the rest of the week. Sigh. Summer heat, here we come. I'm no fan of extreme cold, and I don't think you could pay me enough to move back to the midwest, but I do miss the changing of the seasons. There's something almost magical about trees blooming and green

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-2596872715077362702008-03-18T15:32:00.003-07:002008-03-18T15:37:08.461-07:00

One of the worst things about traveling by plane, for me, is that I almost always have to get up at some ridiculous "cow milking hour" and be at the airport before the sun breaks above the hills. In summer, the sun's up by 5:30am, so this gives you an idea of how early I mean. I am a night owl through and through - the only way I'm up for a sunrise is if I've been up all through the night...or if

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-47579153255009191652008-03-17T15:21:00.002-07:002008-03-17T15:23:45.905-07:00

On Friday, I'm flying up to the Quad Cities to help a friend pack and move back to Tucson. This will be the second time I've been back to IA since I graduated from college, but the first time I've been back during the cold months. (I know - when is it NOT cold in IA?). The trip got me nostalgic and looking through my old albums. Here's a shot from about this time of year, circa 1997. This is

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-47215094627327459652008-03-17T15:17:00.002-07:002008-03-17T15:19:40.062-07:00

Snow is no big deal to folks in most of the USA, but down here, it's big news. Went out to run some errands yesterday and found myself in the middle of a tiny little snowstorm. It lasted all of 5 minutes, but gave us plenty to talk about for the rest of the day. Unfortunately, I only had my cell phone camera with me, so the picture's only so-so. Still, it's SNOW!

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-66581571331466940492008-03-15T21:16:00.002-07:002008-03-15T21:21:30.900-07:00

A couple of months ago, we set out to hike to the top of Wasson Peak via the King Canyon trail. It was longer than expected, steeper than expected, colder than expected, and far more incredible than expected. We raced to the top in the waning daylight, and hiked down in twilight, then full dark. This shot is from the end of the King Canyon trail where it branches into the final ascent to the peak

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-82895372311807569642008-03-14T08:22:00.002-07:002008-03-14T08:28:57.175-07:00

The theme for this week's Photo Friday is "The Good Life". I poured over my picture files last night looking for one that might represent that, and rather than the exotic vacations or the expensive toys, I kept coming back to pictures that captured moments with friends. "The good life", for me, is time spent with friends. Moreso if we're doing something geeky or goofy. I didn't submit this image

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-45651243418570892362008-03-13T10:26:00.003-07:002008-03-13T10:29:59.686-07:00

In just over a week, I'm flying up to Iowa (Davenport) to help my best friend move back to Tucson. We'll be loading up the mini van with the kids and pets, two coolers of various snacks, and an almost never-ending stream of Veggie Tales sing-along opportunities.Flashback to 2002 - my first post-collegiate trip to IA to catch a Rush show. This shot is a November sunset from the I-80 somewhere near

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-53946453065550056702008-03-12T09:14:00.002-07:002008-03-12T09:18:54.854-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I hiked to the top of Picacho Peak. It's a tough hike with some very technical sections. There are stretches of metal cable bolted into the rock face and you have to pull yourself hand over hand in some sections. It's like climbing a flexible ladder without clear foot holds. As any Arizonan will attest, the real reason to go to Picacho is to see the wildflowers every spring

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-23937706529982603742008-03-11T09:36:00.004-07:002008-03-11T16:25:18.529-07:00

In a little over a week, I'm flying up to Iowa to help my friend drive the family back to Tucson. We're not going to have much time for sightseeing, but her son's excited to see some of the wacky sights along Route 66. This is from the moderately famous Stewart's rock/fossil shop near Holbrook, AZ. I'd love to go back and get more shots on a less gloomy day, but that stretch of I-40/Route 66 is

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-17848900453373423722008-03-10T10:42:00.003-07:002008-03-10T10:44:20.286-07:00

We skipped a long hike yesterday and decided to just wander around Sabino Canyon instead. The bridges still have water running over them, so instead of squelching around with wet feet, we did a couple of loops on the paved, dry sections. At the first bridge crossing, there are quite a few deep pools, and one had a couple of ducks paddling lazily around. I didn't have my camera with me, so this

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-70509298963759936832008-03-09T11:56:00.002-07:002008-03-09T12:02:39.029-07:00

In 2002, I attended the National Trust for Historic Preservation's "Preservation Leadership Training". It's a week-long boot camp for preservation professionals. We stayed at the Marconi Conference Center near Marshall, CA, and one of the properties our projects focused on was the historic Marconi Hotel. Over the years, the hotel has played host to various groups - most recently, a wacky cult.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-22655170018641345692008-03-08T18:26:00.002-07:002008-03-08T18:31:19.222-07:00

It's been a long, busy day, so it's nice to come home and be greeted at the door by my cat. She's old and arthritic, but never fails to provide fuzz therapy. This is an couple of years old - Cat "helping" me with some paperwork I had brought home from work.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-47526738203909852472008-03-07T14:13:00.002-07:002008-03-07T14:15:39.132-07:00

It's Friday, and that means it's my day to have El Minuto for lunch. I'm not quite sure how this morphed from a "hey, that sounds good today" thing into a weekly commitment, but that's what it's become. A week is not complete if I don't get my #5 lunch special on Friday.In honor of this, a picture from the Tucson Dead Runners Society conference in 2005.

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-581236965958414759.post-69756229868446666452008-03-06T15:09:00.002-07:002008-03-06T15:17:18.329-07:00

I've always been a bit of a shutterbug, but it's become an increasingly important part of my life lately. Inspired by some friends who have done the same, I've created this blog as a way to share the little bits of life I capture with my camera. You'll find everything from fuzzy phonecam pictures to artistic, quality images here - something new - and hopefully something interesting - every

midwinter-azhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08263016180400190416noreply@blogger.com0