Musings

I think this is the closest I got to seeing Mr. Sun today. This version is decorating a wall along a sidewalk a few blocks from here where I don’t usually walk, and I’d forgotten he was here. I may already have used a photo of this sun-art some years back.

Rain last night…enough to weigh down the blossom-branches of the crepe myrtles.

Speaking of sidewalk detritus, I was walking under a canopy tree and heard noise above me, too much for a squirrel, so I scooted along the sidewalk to not be under the noise, and turned around in time to see a 2-inch rotten branch fall to the sidewalk. Good thing the foot is making such good progress—I actually could accelerate!

Posted at 7:17 PM | Comments Off on Tales from the sidewalk

Title refers to our current weather pattern, of course. We’ve got moisture trapped around us, coming down from this afternoon on for a while…off and on.

This morning was clear and I got out. Never noticed this herb-planted driveway before. Note black cat lounging back near the garage; wouldn’t look at me.

Posted at 6:41 PM | Comments Off on Bermuda high

Here, the typical laundry routine is this: put clothes in washer and activate, take off to do errands, return in 30 minutes (or so) to put selected items (most of the loads) into the drier, chill for a while, remove and fold, then return home…to put damp/wet stuff out to dry and the rest away.

New wrinkle: during the items-in-drier phase, send Droney up. Here’s a high view of our lake from approximately above the laundromat. This is a totally different part of the lake than where our place is, and I’m glad to have this angle-visual to tuck into my geography-brain.

The sky is a strange overcast, just what we experienced; that kept it from getting as hot as it would have…but low 80s is darned hot around here, and it isn’t cooling much even now.

Posted at 6:48 PM | Comments Off on Laundry routine

We have been in the outer rain band zone of Alberto for quite a while. All day today, too. Here’s a rain phase. Windy, too.

And here’s a brilliant-sun phase of the dark-light cycle.

Posted at 8:52 PM | Comments Off on Weather cycling

I guess that the temp outdoors dropped about 12°F in an hour this evening shocked me so much I have a delayed post for today. I expect the humidity will continue to be high, but without the heat it loses just a bit of its punch.

Posted at 10:22 PM | Comments Off on Living in punchbowl

Darn. You can’t tell it’s snowing in the picture, even if you squint. But it was. Lazy drifting flakes. No accumulation. 😎

I nosed around outside after I finished my packing—first of suitcases and similar, and then of the car. I wanted to get pictures of the place, memory pictures we call them. I also found clear evidence that the plants have progressed into spring in this not-quite-a-week that we’ve been here. Poplar?

Our first stop was at Cerrillos, a boom town for a bit, and now a grid of unpaved streets. We walked from the visitor center a couple of blocks to this combination rock shop and natural history/history museum. The former was free and the latter $2. We just looked at the rocks.

Outside, we checked out the petting zoo, and this aggressive mama-to-be got plenty of happy pats from Nephew #2.

Returning to the car I found this just-opening lilac bush and happily shoved my nose into the bee-free blossoms.

Next stop was the Saturday packed-and-busy former ghost town of Madrid. Perhaps the best thing about the town was this bumper sticker. And that the main road was paved.

Our final sight-seeing stop was for us a return visit to Sandia Crest. Still ice on a few of the trees, but the wind wasn’t so stiff and the temp was much higher. We shared our watermelon (of course!) snack with other folk in the parking lot, then rebounded to descend to the city.

I think the nephews enjoyed the view. Down in ABQ, we said our goodbyes and they headed to the airport while we headed for first-class down time. Sigh. Such good times, with many laughs and a great week of getting reacquainted. Great weather, some fine food…. Lucky us.

Posted at 9:12 PM | Comments Off on Snow; yes, snow

Sorry, you people in the NE, for sending your way the brrrr weather that came through here. #jesssayin …plus, it’s still cold here.

How many of yesterday’s flowers will be zapped tonight? Predicted overnight low in this neighborhood is right at freezing (33°F). Brrrrrr.

Posted at 9:22 PM | Comments Off on Botanical endurance

I’m calling this fancy azalea; I probably messed with the photo levels and skewed the image too much….

So, last night we heard the weather was coming our way, and we got in the new and fancy car, with iPads and laptop, and went to a nearby parking garage just before 11:30pm. The predicted weather included winds over 60mph and hail 2 inches in diameter. Who wouldn’t want to be safe, no?

What happened in our neighborhood was wind and rain, but not as dramatic as the weather that was predicted and the tornadoes that hit elsewhere. We hid out for less than an hour, but the parking garage rounded up; we paid with minimum grumbling. Yawn. We were safely in bed by 12:30am or so.

I’m calling this regular azalea—the pink—and a yellow-blooming shrub I don’t know the name of.

Tonight’s weather story is that the lows are supposed to be below 40°F, but not down to freezing. In our neighborhood. Welcome spring!

Posted at 8:45 PM | Comments Off on Night weather: Twice

’Tis dogwood-blooming time. If I were naming the seasons or parts of the year by plant activity, I’d call this Heyday of the Dogwood-Blossoms…something along those lines.

Posted at 9:05 PM | Comments Off on Decent proposal?

We visited the turtles today. That is: we visited the foot surgeon, and the turtles are in the giant tank in the waiting room. I got the usual trio of X-rays, then saw the PA followed by the Doc. I got two excellents for my recovery so far…YAY!! I am at six months from surgery.

I got the “what you can tolerate” advice for level of activity, but I didn’t say that in my (limited) experience, if I do what I can tolerate, it may mean that I have negative repercussions a day or sometime later…and they may be with me for a while. Thus, I will temper the whole tolerance/activity thing…gingerly moving toward new levels of capability.

My next surgeon appointment is at one year from surgery…more YAY.

I ducked out for my daily walk, and as I headed up the block from the house I saw a bit of pallid sunlight. It lasted maybe three minutes, and then the overcast was back and trees dripped on me with accumulated droplets from the rain that started sometime during the lantern hours.

As I was angling along the last three blocks from the house, the rain began again, fortunately tentatively enough that I didn’t get very wet at all.

A day of victories!

Posted at 4:49 PM | 2 Comments »