Dreams, Moments, Travels
In six days spring will officially be here. Today it was more like summer and the weekend promises more record-breaking high temperatures. We almost hit 100 degrees here in Phoenix, 99 though was a surefire record – and it is still winter (smack my forehead). I, unlike the flowers, am wilting from the early bake. I do not look forward to the hell this summer is sure to deliver.
A local restaurateur of one of our favorite Mexican eating places is always in a fresh supply of no less than a dozen roses. The color changes weekly and sometimes there may be a couple dozen fresh roses adorning the counter, but you are always sure to find an eyeful of beautiful flowers in bloom at El Conquistador on 32nd street in Phoenix, Arizona.
Ah, it’s March 1st, our long winter is over and spring is in the air. Along our mountain trails, greenery is making its appearance. Phoenix seems to have had a fairly wet winter which should be great for us photographers who are tired of trying to differentiate shades of brown.
Today finds me doing a lot of nothing besides sleeping. After the long drive home from Santa Barbara yesterday and facing an almost equally long drive tomorrow as we travel to Death Valley, I took it easy and didn’t take a single photo here in Phoenix. And so it is that I am posting a photo from this past week’s visit to the Huntington Gardens in San Marino, California.
Yes, even Southern California has winter; that is the time the grass turns brown. But this year, winter was a week in early January when the citrus crop was frozen over and destroyed, and now, two weeks later, spring is here. Caroline has flown back to Phoenix while Jutta and I stayed on and have driven north to Santa Barbara to visit my aunt and uncle for a few days.
Another Los Angeles weekend has us taking in some history, nature, art, and culinary treats. This cactus photo is from The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens and was taken the next day as we failed to take one while driving out today.
With the Barrett-Jackson auto auction and the Friedman Billings Ramsey Open (the FBR Open, a.k.a. The Phoenix Open) just around the corner, Scottsdale and Phoenix are sprucing up the grounds of our fair cities. A mad influx of car enthusiasts and beer-drinking baseball cap and polo shirt-wearing doofods (er, duffers) is about to jam our roads, restaurants, and patience. So the crews are out picking up litter, erasing graffiti, killing flies, sharpening cactus needles, and dusting off the sidewalks.