Zoomed in, a few minutes later --
The color then disappeared -- and came back about 20 minutes later -- a rare "2-fer" --
And finally, just before the official sunrise --
Amazing -- once again (well, twice again). Even the post-sunrise clouds have their own, high-atmosphere beauty --
One of the perennial occupations in a rural area is weeding. "Industrial strength" weeding requires the weed whacker; today it was just the Fiskar's weed puller. It's a neat device where you place it over the weed to be pulled, push it into the ground with a lever where prongs underneath go around the weed, then you hold the lever down with your foot as you lift the weed up and out, usually with the root attached. I have these short yellow flowers growing near my outside heating unit; they're of a type that are called DYC plants, short for Damned Yellow Composites as they're a combination of flora (I looked it up on Wikipedia, where there's an actual entry for it). There are larg rocks near the weeds, in a "decorative" line around the heat pump, which weighs about 2 tons. Those rocks, with the DYCs for cover, are a good place for rattlesnakes to hang out in. So I was pulling up the weeds VERY carefully, and thank goodness the area was snake-free, and another section around Farauf was exposed to lessen the chance of a rattlesnake ensconcing itself next to the house. And the DYCs, pretty flowers, were outta there. Keeping the weeds under control is a constant battle here, and a good way to start a conversation ("Gonna do any weed-whacking with the Stihl today?" ) I'm lucky as I only have the small area around Faranuf to keep under control (the other 3 acres are pretty much lost to the mesquite); I know friends who have acres of invasive grass and other things that constantly need to be pulled, if only to lessen the possibility for "snake magnets". But it seems like the damned things come back up, and you begin all over again. Once I move the trailer onto my land and (hopefully) under a canopy, the open section underneath will be good place for snakes to escape the sun -- and pack mice to nibble on the undercarriage material. But I'll cross that particular bridge when I get to it...
After that, it was time to give blood. The donation center is set up at Portal Rescue, which is a volunteer organization made up of residents that are first responders to medical emergencies in the area, search and rescue, and fire suppression as calling, say, an actual fire station would mean a wait where the place on fire would burn down before they'd arrive. The Red Cross workers drawing the blood come from Tucson, nearly 200 miles to the west. I -- of course -- see residents I recognize, and as they're leaving Bud and Debb, two of them, point out 3 Orbweaver spiders outside near the building entrance. Though they're harmless and won't bite unless you pick them up (why you'd want to do that I don't know) I tell one of the young blood-drawers there that they'll jump at you and attach themselves to your face a la Alien. She looked alarmed, so I said I was just kidding. I answer all their questions (amazing how well screened blood donors are these days), give an armful of blood, then while waiting to recuperate enough to leave, enter into a conversation with a fellow who'd moved to the Rodeo area from a rural town in Northern California -- the fabled "state" of Jefferson, to be precise. Seems like everyone here originally comes from someplace else, and has a story...Next up is to go over to my friends Mark and Lori's house to check out possible costumes for the Halloween party being held at the Southwestern Research Station on Saturday evening. We decide on a Jason hockey mask, yellow wig, jeans with my hiking boots, and my snake guards. I'll look like either a weird rendition of the mass murderer Jason from the movies -- or a demented hockey goalie. It will be the first time I've EVER been to a Halloween party, and in a costume. But you do stuff out here that you'd think twice of doing in the big city -- or at least I would.
It's clouded up somewhat, so you get a feeling that there's going to be a good sunset. It starts out very promising --
then gets better --
gaining color --
It was definitely another WOW sunset, and another weather bookend to just another day in paradise filled with both chores and planning for social occasions...
Nice that you donate blood as I remember going the same while at Kaiser. Next year you can get a rocking costume since there will be another Halloween party to attend. Enjoyed the sunrise photos. Must be a cycle out there as each day is unique.
ReplyDeleteHi Wes -- Actually, I hear these sunrises and sunsets are a bit unusual; usually it's clear Arizona skies. I just looked out my kitchen window -- and it's completely black. No lights at all, except 2 planets in the sky. I like that... :o)
DeleteI would think that it almost becomes a responsibility to be a participant in "extra curricular" activities in a small town. You know there aren't many people and each one has a bigger impact on the whole. Have fun at the Halloween party!
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