Drying off

While I was at the Japanese Friendship Garden last Friday, I saw two cormorants perched around the lake.  While I was watching them, this one started his drying ritual making a perfect opportunity for me to snap a few pictures.  He was very obliging.

Lot's of Excitement at the Sun's Game Friday

I went to the Phoenix Sun's game Friday night with my friend Janet and boy was it ever a fun time!  First, see that guy down there in the purple shirt with the team and the cameras pointed at him?  He just won $77,777.00 in the Casino Arizona Lucky 7 shootout.  It's a contest they have at every game where the participant gets to choose if they want to go for $777.00, $7,777.00 or the big jackpot of $77,777.00.  They get only one shot to do it.  This guy went for the big one which is a shot from half court and he sunk it with every bit as much finesse as the big money players!  The crowd went wild and the Sun's team came running out to congratulate him.  If you'd like to see him take the shot, you can watch this short little video of the event.  It will put a smile on your face.

It was also the Birthday of the Sun's mascot "The Gorilla" so all the mascots from all our local teams were on hand to wish him a Happy Birthday.

They are always a fun bunch to watch as they roam around the arena stirring things up.

Oh yes, and the Suns beat the New York Knicks 112-88.

What a fun night.

Baby Ducks!

I took a walk at the Japanese Friendship Garden yesterday and caught site of some baby ducks following their mother around.

It was nap time so momma duck hearded them all together and tried to coax them into sleeping.  

Looks like her coaxing worked!

Rose Garden

I've shown Roses from the rose garden at Steele Indian School Park but, I don't think I've ever shown the fountain that runs down the middle of the park with the rose bushes on each side.

This time of year, the bushes are bursting with all colors of roses.  This section was all red.

I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns today and the photo to the left is a little teaser for that post.  I didn't have to travel far to find this unique spot.

Blooms everywhere

A visit to the Japanese Friendship Garden yielded an array of trees blooming in every corner of the garden.  Above are blooms on a Bradford tree.

To the left are blooms on the Purple Leaf Plum tree.

Lots of color in the garden right now.

Southwestern Gate

I've shown pictures from the Hermosa Inn before but, now that so many things are blooming, I thought it would be nice to show another view from this gorgeous resort.  These are the gates you enter from the parking area when you are going to indulge in lunch or dinner at the resort.  The entrance really enhances the spirit of the southwest and those blooming palo verde trees in the background have put on their finest for this shot.

I can't leave the resort without showing one more of the many Allan Houser sculptures that have found a home on the resort's grounds.  This one is called The Corngrinder.

Stary Wars?

I was at the Phoenix Art Museum a last week and I found an interesting display in the the children's gallery room.  The idea was to encourage young people to write a story.  The museum provided some opening lines and several vignettes to inspire the young mind.  The guy pictured above was in one of those vignettes.  The whole scene is below.  Maybe a budding writer entered that room and was inspired to write a science fiction story to rival the Star Wars series.  When he or she sells the movie rights, I hope he makes a sizable contribution to the museum as a thank you.

New Downtown Building

I watched this strange looking building being built and had no idea what it was until it was finished and the signs went up.  It's the brand new Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.

When I saw it being built, it was from the view point on the left and it looked like a giant basket sitting on top of a pedestal.  It still looks that way but, it's harder to get that image now that it's done.

Taking a photo from the street here isn't the best vantage point because of the wires and fences in the way.

The horse station at the front is a beautiful addition.

Young Flowers

It's not just wildflowers that I photographed last Thursday at the Desert Botanical Garden.  While I was enjoying an iced tea at the garden cafe, Tabitha came over to talk to me.  She told me how she found a piece of sharp glass on the ground and she picked it up before someone could step on it and threw it away.  I told her that was a smart and very thoughtful gesture

Then her sister Audrey came over to show me how her umbrella opened automatically when she pressed the button on the handle.  I told her that was genius and I wished I had one like it.

I'd say these are two friendly and smart 'budding' beauties.

I have a new post today on Sharon's Sojourns.  I'm doing a food comparison, London vs. Scottsdale.

Wildflowers

Lots of wildflowers were blooming at the Desert Botanical Garden when I was there on Thursday.

There were many of these fabulous Arroyo Lupine blooming all over the wildflower loop.

Mixed in with the other wildflowers, they made a carpet of color.

The really bright ones stood out from the crowd.

I know, I know…..

……I shouldn't be taking photos while I'm driving.  

I was leaving the Desert Botanical Garden last night after my walk and as I climbed up over the Papago Buttes, I noticed the gorgeous sunset we were having.  My camera was right next to me and the traffic was light so I just pointed and clicked and didn't even look at the camera.  I really thought it wouldn't turn out but wow, I was surprised, it did!

Overgrown Garden

I drive past this gate into an apartment complex often and I always chuckle a bit at the overgrown look of this garden area.  Last week I decided to stop an check out just how overgrown it is.

The overgrown area is right up against the fence and the gate but, once you get inside it's a little like a shady oasis.  I bet it feels good to relax here especially during the brutal Arizona summers.

Geometry

Geometry:  The branch of mathematics concerned with shape, size, relative position of figures, and the properties of space.  

That happens to be the word that popped into my head when I saw the way the stairs and rails crossed each other making all kinds of lines and angles.  The stairs are located inside the Heard Museum and I don't think I noticed the symmetry of them before two weeks ago when I was there.

Spring time sneezes

The Acacia trees are blooming right now along with a few other flowering trees.  I wonder if that is what is making me sneeze so much.  Even if it is, I still like their scent.

Butterfly Wonderland

I made another trip to Butterfly Wonderland on Friday.  That is were I found Nemo (see yesterday's post).  It was a very busy place this time with bus loads of school children on field trips.  I managed to get a few new pictures to share.  The Paper Kite butterfly pictured above and a small glass-winged butterfly pictured below.

The GREEN here is my way of saying Happy St. Patrick's Day!

NEMO

I found Nemo!

Tomorrow I'll show you where I found him.  

I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns today.  It's about what you can find when you walk the streets of Paris.

Colorful

A group of rather colorful bicycles parked in front of a downtown restaurant.

Prickly Pear for dinner

I took this photo back in December and I almost deleted it because of the blur but, then I thought this little guy is just too cute to wipe away.  He was determined to get this broken prickly pear pad and he ran out to grab it a couple of times and then saw movement and ran back.  Finally I was very careful and stood still long enough for him to attempt another try.  He must have spotted me lift the camera higher because he put on some speed heading backwards under a big cactus dragging the prickly pear with him.  This the only shot I could get.  I was glad he got the "dinner" he was after.

In Flight

Ever since I posted a photo of a jet flying overhead back in December of 2012, I've bee trying to get another one that good or better.  I think I finally did it.  This one has zoomed in on the jet better than the last one.  I spotted this one passing last Sunday when I was out walking.

Expensive Designer Accessories

Christian Louboutin shoes and a Louis Vuitton bag, that lady has brought some very pricey accessories to the Phoenix Suns game.  What do you mean you don't see those luxury items??

Thought I'd throw in a little humor for Wednesday!

Farming in the city

Before I went to the museum event I posted about yesterday, I stopped at The Farm at South Mountain, an organic farming complex located within the city limits on the far south side of town.  In addition to farming, there are restaurants that serve fabulous meals.  In fact, I posted about one of the restaurants way back in January of 2009.  Between the rows of vegetables growing were row after row of these gorgeous flowers called Zulu Prince Daisies.

Here is a patch of lettuce growing quite beautifully and a little further on are green onion and garlic plants.

The farm also has some rather fancy chickens.  To the left is a close up of the rooster who was prancing around in his pen full of hens and letting out an occasional crow or two.

Ancient Technology

Saturday was Ancient Technology Day at Pueblo Grande Museum.  There were all kinds of demonstrations such as basket weaving, stone tool making, jewelry making and other ancient technologies.  Above is the "chuck wagon" and the gentleman here was demonstrating a baking technique making cinnamon rolls inside dutch oven.  He's just lifted the lid that is filled with hot charcoal to see how they are cooking.

 I loved how he kept is gloves and other things in the back of his boots.

The back of the chuck wagon was filled with all the essentials to whip up a tasty meal on the road.  

Water Attraction

We humans do have a strong attraction to water, don't we?  When we are young, that attraction seems to be even stronger.  I saw this young fellow simply enthralled by the water in this fountain at Biltmore Fashion Park on Friday.  His mother was sitting nearby keeping an eye on him but, he was determined to get at least his hand and arms wet!  If his mother hadn't been so vigilant, I think he might have found a way to take a dip.

I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns today.  I'm visiting an enchanting place in Wales.

What a game!

I went to the Phoenix Suns game Thursday night with my friend Janet and what a game it was.  We played the Oklahoma City Thunder, the western conference leader in a game that came right down to the last minute.  With 3:45 minutes left in the third quarter, OC was ahead 96 to 80.  But, the Sun's came alive suddenly gave us a real on-your-feet show down.    They came within one three-point shot of meeting the franchise record for 3-pointers.  In fact, the the three-point scoreboard shown above, was completely filled.  I've never seen that before.

As usual, the Sun's brought out the T-shirt launching gatling gun during one of the time outs.  That kept the crowd on their feet.

And, three of the Sun's dancers were sitting on the sidelines shaking their pom-pons and enjoying all the excitement.

Dumpster Diving

For many, many years I've tried to get a decent photo of a cardinal, those ever elusive scarlet beauties.  They tend to be very skittish around people so by the time I'd spot one, off it flew because it spotted me.  On Wednesday afternoon I was enjoying an iced tea at an outdoor table when one flew right by my table.  I grabbed my camera in time to see it land on, of all things, the trash bin.  I snapped the shot just before it actually disappeared into the trash-filled depths.  A minute later it flew out with a piece of bread in it's mouth and flew away and out of sight.  So, my dumpster photo will have to do….for now.

Indian Fair & Market, part 4

On my way out of the Indian Fair & Market, I caught sight of singer Radmilla Cody performing on the Pavilion Stage near the exit.  She writes her own songs and explained how each one developed before she sang it.  What a lovely voice she has.

This woman was making a Native American treat called Piki bread.  It's from the Hopi cuisine, made of blue cornmeal and ash.  The batter is spread out by hand on a hot grilling platform.  It cooks quickly and is then rolled up (again by hand from the hot grill) and served.  I bet she has developed some serious calluses on her finger tips.

These last two photos are of some of the artworks I viewed.  Masks are a popular wall hanging sculptures in many southwestern homes.

There were two or three places selling handmade drums.

But these two things just touch the tip of the iceberg when I comes to what I saw there.  So many extremely talented people all in one place.  It was a treat for the eyes.