December 12 -- Snow, And The Portal/Rodeo Christmas Dinner

It was cold in the morning, and never got much warmer during the day -- perhaps 37 degrees at most. But I've never been in a place where there are 4 seasons; I'd always lived in San Pedro, aka the Port of Los Angeles, LaLaLand where there is only one season, with clear skies and temperatures in the 70s even during winter. (I remember one year where Christmas Day was near 90.) People who live in places where there are feet of snow, instead of inches here in Portal, may be jaded and wish they were living somewhere else -- like Los Angeles -- but it's a treat to live in an area where you get snow, but it's not to the point where it becomes a drag. So I smiled when I looked outside, and saw the peaks of Cave Creek Canyon with a thin layer of the white stuff --

Closeups of the peaks

Looking north along the Chiricahuas (stupid power lines!) 

Wonderful to this One-Season Guy! The clouds lifted around 9am, but were still pretty dramatic, drifting past the peaks; here's False Portal Peak obscured by a passing cloud --

Then, around noontime, the clouds came back down again-- and actual flakes were falling. It wasn't enough to stay on the ground, and it was actually wetter up in the higher elevations, causing the snow up there to melt -- 

But a lot of the peaks looked like something from "The Lord of the Rings" ' Mordor, home of the Dark Lord. The birds in the back yard were going crazy, and more numerous than when it's sunny and much warmer. Because they have to burn off more energy due to the cold, and thus need to keep feeding? That's as good of a reason as any...It finally cleared up around 3, which was good as I was due to be at my friends Lori and Mark's house at 4 in preparation for heading down to Rodeo for the Portal/Rodeo Christmas Dinner. At around 5 we drove down to Portal in Tundra Dos, listening to some of the most bizarre music I'd heard in awhile. It was one of Mark's CDs, and it was music by the "The King of Space Pop", the "Busby Berkeley of Cocktail Music" -- Juan Garcia Esquivel, simply known as "Esquivel!" I've never heard of him or his music before (being friends with Mark and Lori has certainly broadened what I thought were already broad horizons); Mark said he was a favorite of Johnny Carson. His music is quirky and perhaps slightly sinister, as Lori said music that The Jetsons might listen to. His music, in retrospect, became known as "Space Age Bachelor Music". I think I'll stick with the Chopin Nocturnes as played by Artur Rubinstein...I'd slaved over (not really) baking 2 plates of brownies, and we brought them with us. It was getting dark, and the clouds completely covered the Peloncillos and Chiricahuas, and there are no street lights -- and it was starting to get colder. Perfect weather for a Christmas party!  We opened the door -- and that's where the dinner line started. Packed!  There must've been about 200 people inside, probably most of the combined population of Portal and Rodeo, with perhaps some from Animas, about 20 miles to the east, too. I put my 2 plates of brownie on the dessert table that was already groaning with sweets of all kinds -- including at least 5 plates of brownies besides mine. Oh well... I gave a  brownie plate to a friend (I hope she remembered to take it home).  One of the great things -- and there are many great things -- about living in the Rodeo/Portal area is the sense of community. Everybody pretty much knows one  another -- though I'm not yet at the point where I remember each person's name. It's easier for a resident to remember my name, as opposed to me trying to recall over a hundred names. So for right now it's mostly a case of  "Hi, Steve!" To which I reply "Uh,.... ". Bob, who came buy Faranuf to help find the source of the well house water leak, said he remembers a person's vehicle better than their name -- and he's right, at least at the beginning. So after getting heapings of food, we sit down and socialize while eating. There are some "kids", perhaps around 15 or so, sitting across from me. One of the older ones is telling another "go on, tell Santa what you want!" though the younger kid was obviously too old to sit on Santa's lap. Then Santa came in, without a "ho ho ho", or at least one I didn't hear. He went up on stage, had some young kids come up to him, handed out a some presents -- then exited. He didn't stay very long. Well, there were mostly teenagers and adults in attendance... There was announcement asking for volunteers for the Rodeo fire department; most services in both Rodeo and Portal, like Portal Rescue, are staffed by volunteers; we're too small to have county, paid staff services. The tables are cleared off, and we sing Christmas songs from printed sheets so we'd know the lyrics. It's pretty fun, especially when your singing is drowned out by other people so no one can hear you (though I must admit I'm a pretty good singer). After the Christmas songs, the tables and chairs were folded up and put away, and everyone went out into the cold. But it wasn't snowing..."Now where did we park the truck?" It's dark, and remember there are no street lights. Lori puts on her "flashlight" on her phone (what will they think of next) and we find Tundra. On the way back we're entertained once again by the bizarre sounds of "Esquivel!" And thus ends another memorable day here..

Mr. Broad-billed two-timed me. He made an appearance at 2 other back yards after mine. He really doesn't deserve another photo from me, but what the hay ---