AFTER THE HOLIDAYS!!!

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 I'm sure each of you were able to appreciate the wonderful sights and sounds of this holiday season.  I am really fortunate to have a sister who loves to look at the beautiful lights strung in front of various homes, businesses and churches.  Christmas eve we left home, Jenny, Larry and I, to drive to the downtown area of Warren, Ohio.  There is a particular neighborhood that lines their streets with luminarias and we headed in that direction.

I wasn't able to get a very good picture of the luminarias, but I did get some shots of various houses decorated to the max. 
The one to the left was an amazing display of lights.  Not only was the front of the house decorated, but also the sides and the back.  Completely covered with lights!  So beautiful!!!

 

 This particular display was especially lovely.  The trunks were wrapped in green lights and the tops were covered in red lights.  I was so happy to see many houses decorated with lights.  We may be living in hard times, but you couldn't tell it by the number of people who put up something to make their Christmas brighter.

The holiday has now passed and we have settled into eating, watching television and scratching ourselves periodically. It's nice not to have to bake something, whip something up, or put something together for a fancy feast.  Life has resumed to simplicity and I, for one, am enjoying the ease and comfort of being in my sister's home.

Just like most of the country, we had a huge snowfall yesterday.  The wind blew, making it look like a blizzard outside.  It appears we might have gotten about 6-7 inches.  Everything is covered in white.  Today, all is calm, all is bright!  Sounds like a song doesn't it.   

I took this picture while the snows were falling and the wind was blowing.  Just the day before, the ground had turned into a slushy mess, and now, look how pristine it looks.

I'm not really a winter person, but I do love how the world looks after a snowfall.  Like everything is brand new, no mistakes, no hardness, only bright and beautiful.  So peaceful!!!

Even though I'm really enjoying being here with my sister, it's just about time for me to leave for Memphis.  I think I'll head back about the second week of January.  It all depends on the weather, but I'm ready to reconnect with friends and my book club women. 

It will soon be 2013.  For all of us I see a bright and prosperous New Year, filled with all our hopes and dreams coming true.  Feliz Navidad!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE!!!

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 I've been in Ohio for a month now.  I am so fortunate to have sisters I get along with really well.  Jenny and I have so enjoyed being together, at least she and Larry haven't kicked me out yet. 

A couple of times we've been out looking at Christmas lights.  Just a few nights ago, Jenny and I drove about 45 minutes to get to Chagrin Falls to see their display.  This little town is very artsy, with little shops and boutiques lining the town square.  In the middle of the square is a small park completely lit up with Christmas trees and lights decorating the fencing surrounding the park.  This picture of Jenny was taken on the main roadway coming into the center of town.  There's a median that divides the road so you can park in front of the stores and in that median is the gazebo you see lit up with red and white lights.  Just to the right of that was the beautiful tree you see with the blue and white lights.

Jenny and I got a chuckle out of the fact that we were both really glad Larry had decided to stay home.  Never in a million years would Larry have driven around the median several times looking for just the right shot.  Never would he have been thrilled to wait while I got out to take several pictures from various angles and with different lenses to see which one looked better.  There's just some things men don't understand, and taking pictures of Christmas lights is one of them.

Jenny and I have been very busy baking for the holidays.  I've made a list of all the different items we've put together thusfar, so her it is:  Hot sausage balls, Sage sausage balls, cornbread  balls (a new recipe we both like), yum yums (date balls), black walnut cookies, peanut butter/chocolate chip cookies, peanut blossoms, snicker doodles (love this one), Swedish creme cookies, pecan tarts, cheese snacks, lemon squares, lemon bars (actually threw this recipe in the garbage), olive relish, chipped beef dip, dill dip, cheese spread, and, last but not least, chocolate peppermint candy.  Keep in  mind this doesn't include any of the turkeys, hams, roasts, etc. that have also been cooked for the big dinners.

For Christmas, Jenny's son, Jody and his family, got her a Kenmore countertop mixer.  We are both thrilled to have it and are already trying to figure out what to make with it.

We have several inches of snow on the ground for our white Christmas.  For all of you I wish you hours of enjoyment in celebration of this holy-day and a year filled with all of your hearts' desires!!! May peace fill each of our lives and may we remember this simple truth: to love and be loved is the greatest gift of all!!!

GETTING IN THE SPIRIT OF THE SEASON!!!

 This morning I downloaded pictures from my sister's camera.  I found this picture of her, my brother-in-law and my nephew.  It was taken last July at her retirement celebration.  Naturally, you'd expect to see a big grin on her face.  What struck me as unusual is the big grin on Larry's face.  Now, I'm not saying he never smiles, but he rarely smiles for pictures.  So, imagine my amazement when I saw this picture and he actually appears to be grinning naturally, rather than the frozen, half-heated attempt we normally get.  This is the best picture I've seen of the three of them, taken in their back yard.

 Several days ago, Larry went into the attic and began the process of toting down the Christmas paraphenalia.  After 45 years of marriage, Jenny has quite the collection.  For the past three days we have been in the throes of getting them all up and in their respective places.  The tree in the living room; the Nativity scene, still waiting to go under the tree; the wooden reindeer in the hallway; the bells on the kitchen door; the small tree hanging on the front door; and multiple salt and pepper shakers, of various Christmas characters, on the dining room table.  We still have the garland to hang, but for the most part we are ready for the jolly old man to make his appearance.

 Having begun the process of getting into the spirit of the season, we decided to drive up to Alum Creek Park to view their "Fantasy of Lights".  Over the next few postings, I'll be subjecting you to various pictures of the lights we viewed.  It's truly amazing how much work they put into creating this dazzling display of lights.  It took about 30 minutes to drive the entire route, but, though it was short, it certainly didn't lack for delight.  Jenny and I struggled to get pictures, all the while encouraging Larry to stop the car for us to snap the pictures.  He, of course, was worried about being plowed into by the cars behind us.  Go figure!!! Guys really don't understand the fascination with having to get pictures of things we've already seen.

The really cool part of the display is how many of the pieces move in various ways.  From the boy and girl tossing a snow ball across to each other, to the reindeer pulling a fish out of a stream, to Santa giving instructions to Rudolph on how to land on a roof, and an elf running up a ladder to put the star on the top of the tree.  Sadly, you don't get to see the full effect of the lights in these non-moving pictures, but I hope you enjoy them just the same.

REJOICE!!! The season is upon us!!! Much love to all!!

ENJOYING OHIO!!!

 I arrived in Ohio the Sunday before Thanksgiving.  I figured it would be at least December before I had to deal with any snow...WRONG!!! The Friday after Thanksgiving, the weather turned really cold and by late that afternoon it had begun to snow.  Here's my truck and as you can see the snow has powdered the ground.  I have to say, even though I'm not fond of cold weather, it was beautiful watching the snow fall.

All night it snowed, not heavy, but enough to really cover the ground by the next morning.  The middle picture I took just as I got out of bed out my bedroom window.  It kind of reminds me of an Ansel Adams print, the beautiful white snow against the dark of the trees.  Unfortunately the snow didn't last through the weekend.  By Sunday night the ground was completely free of any of the white stuff.  Oh well!  I'm sure I will be experiencing plenty of the ghastly/beautiful effects of more snowfalls.

I've been to see several of the new releases the past 10 days or so.  Jenny, Larry and I went to see in 3d The Life of Pi yesterday.  Since I had read the book, I knew what was going to happen, however, when the Bengal tiger lunged out from beneath the canvas cover on the boat, it came right out of the screen at us.  Jenny and I both jumped out of our seats!  Pretty funny!!!

The movie was really good but, I must confess, my favorite of all the movies I've seen so far has been the remake of the Patrick Swayze movie, Red Dawn.  It's the story of a town in Michigan invaded by, in this case the North Koreans, the Russians in the original movie.

A group of teens, led by a recently returned from Afghanistan soldier, the brother of one of the teens.  He leads this motley crew into becoming some serious resistance fighters.  One of the interesting things about this movie is that Tom Cruise's adopted son, Connor, is one of the teens in the movie.  He actually does a really good job in his portrayal.

As we were driving home, I noticed the sun setting.  It looked as if the horizon was on fire.  Not a great picture, but you get the idea.

My days and nights flow one into the other.  We aren't real active, however we have played numerous games of Rummikub.  We've even gotten Larry to play several times.  You know me, any time I get a chance to play games, I'm all for that.

Signing of for now.  Remember to let yourself play every time you get a chance...keeps the mind sharp and the body young!!! Love to all!!!

ALLERGIC TO GOLD!!!

This was an interesting week for me.  I had an appointment to have a skin test done to see if there was anything I might be coming into contact with causing my "contact dermititis".  Yep, after 6 years of believing I had ezcema, I went to an allergist who looked at my biopsy and declared "you don't have ezcema, you have contact dermititis with an over-abundance of yeast in your body."
So, I go in on Monday, he attaches the patches, tapes me up real good and says "I'll see you on Wednesday."  Back I go on Wednesday and, come to find out, the only thing I'm allergic to is "gold".  Well, to be perfectly clear - "gold sodium thiosulfate".  I said "no wonder I'm not creating alot of prosperity in my life...I'm allergic to gold!"
"Look at it this way, now you can have platinum, it's even more expensive than gold!" he says.  We both laughed! I just love this man...Dr. Fahhoum.  You can believe it when I say, I got in my truck and started thinking about this reaction, my connection with the energy of money and my feeling a sense of lack recently.  For days I had conversations with God and myself.  I know the first level of manifestation is to "think it".  I was doing alot of that.
The second level of manifestation is "speak it".  Again, I was doing alot of that, through my conversations with God, my affirmations, and my prayers.
The final part of the co-creating process is "feel it".  When I get past the "crud" of my life, and tap in, tune in, and turn on to the Truth of my life, I begin to feel a sense of connectedness with the Divine and I know once again "God has my back". 
This morning, as I was driving with my friend, Shelia, to have breakfast and play Rummikub, she reached over, handed me several bills and said "this is my tithe for December and I want it to go to you!"  OMG!!! once again, from unexpected sources, prosperity came into my life.  (That's me with Shelia in the above picture).  It didn't stop there, however.  As I was getting out of town, I stopped for gas, and asked the clerk to check my lottery tickets and, guess what? Yep, another $14.00.  I'm rolling in the dough!!!!! Thanks God, thanks Shelia, thanks State of Tennessee!!!!! YAHOOOOOOOO!!!

VISITING NOLA!!!

 I arrived in New Orleans on Friday evening.  My plan was to get out of Memphis before noon, but, of course, the best laid plans often go awry. 

I had agreed to meet the furniture repair man for my friend, Carolyn, so she could have her brand new furniture looked at.  By the time he actually left, it was already noon and I still had dogs to feed and let outside before I could get on the road.

I arrived about 7pm, and my friend, Beverly, was out helping a young friend of hers buy a prom dress.  Beverly has, for many years, helped her yard man's children out with clothes and shoes for the school year.  Bev has a huge heart when it comes to children.

The stained glass pictured above is a gift from her friend, Douglas.  It sits in her dining room window, so every morning we have coffee and look out this window to the beautiful yard beyond.

This same morning, Joe Friday, had a new piece of rawhide he was chewing on.  Often when he gets something new to chew on, he tosses it around the room.  That's how I ended up with it on my head.  He had tossed it at me and I caught it and put it on my head.  He is intently watching it, hoping it will fall.  He's a really sweet dog, very hairy, but smart as he can be.

Beverly and I spent the day in our pajamas and played Rummikub for hours on end.  I was pretty wiped out driving the night before, so spending the day relaxing was right up my alley.

On Sunday morning, the weather turned off real cold.  We had decided to go to breakfast, however, the restaurant we went to was very crowded.  We decided to eat out on the patio, so we went back to Bev's and got our coats.  The one Beverly is wearing is one she gave me last year and I had brought it to wear this winter in Ohio.  Our friend, Brenda Sipes, calls it the "coat of many colors".

Today is Monday and Beverly is working.  She won't be home until about 9pm, so I have the day to myself.  I'm going to do a little cleaning for her, already have the dishes washing and clothes drying.  I enjoy doing housework periodically, but not every week, nor every day.  In my camper I have a magnet on my stove hood that says "my idea of housework is to sweep the room with a glance".  My thoughts exactly!!! Enjoy your week!!! Be sure to watch out for the witches and goblins!!!!

GOING TO THE DOGS!!!

 
 I just finished pet-sitting for a handful of dogs.  Five to be exact, although I only have pictures of four of them.  This big galootto the left is a Harlequin Great Dane named Cowgirl.  Wonder why!!!  If she could talk you'd probably hear something like "gallump, gallump!"  She moved with the speed of a snail, had no idea how big her feet really are, and whenever she was actually standing and you were anywhere around, she'd sidle over to you and put her head right down into your lap, or into your stomach.  I believe if she could have crawled into your skin, she would have.  You'd think because of her size she'd be the alpha dog, but not.  I think her position was somewhere close to the bottom.  Even the teacup poodle challenged her.

This little one to the left is a teacup poodle named Skeeter.  Of all the dogs, he was the most needy.  The first day I met him, he wanted nothing to do with me, mostly because his Mamma had him and he was content to be with her.  He did, on that initial meeting, lash out at Cowgirl and was literally clamped down on her ear.  It's a good thing Cowgirl has such a sweet personality, otherwise this little one would have been a snack a long time ago.  For the first day and a half, he would not eat.  Finally on the evening of the second day, I took him into the bathroom, where he ate with Angel (the one not shown) and put his food on his mat and sat down on the lid of the toilet.  From that moment on, we were buddies.  He ate as long as I was sitting on the toilet.  It worked out really well, especially since I'm retired and have all the time in the world to wait for little ones like this to eat.  It also gave me time to pet on Angel.  Angel was found in a puppy mill, and apparently had been kept in a kennel the whole of her life.  She was only comfortable being in a confined space, in this case the bathroom, with her back to the tub.  Not once, in the eight days I was there, did she come out of the bathroom.  She ate, slept, and used the puppy pads when she had to go to the bathroom.  Really a sweet baby though.  Skeeter was the only dog who slept in the bed with me.  He layed right next to me and snuggled.  Thank God it wasn't Cowgirl!!!

 Now, here's the little red-headed b****.  Her name is Scarlett, and she's a Redbone Coon Hound, and also a rescue dog.  She has a really sweet personality, but boy did I have to watch that she didn't get into anything.  At one point I looked up and she had gotten up on the stove and had grabbed the loaf of bread and was proceeding to her kennel.  Thankfully, she didn't try to bite me, or fight me, when I took it away.  She loved being outside and laying right by the back door, sunbathing.  Of all the dogs, she wanted to be outside the most, and was always the last to come in, no matter day or night.

The easiest one to care for was this one, Frisco.  He's a boxer and had decided the kennel in the living room was his personal domain.  Scarlett often tried to make it hers, but neither he nor I was having anything to do with that.  The only problem I had was about the third day he and Cowgirl got into it, over food.  Immediately I jumped up and yelled at both of them to stop.  Which they did.  Scared me to death.  I have no plans on jumping into the middle of a dog fight. 

Most of the time, Frisco would eat his food, and then would go into his kennel to lay down.  When it came time to go outside, he was the one I had to chase down and grab by his collar to get him to go out.  He really wanted to be in Angel's room, eating her food, rather than being outside.  But getting him to go into the kennel was easy.  Tell him, "kennel Frisco", and open the door, and in he would walk. 

I did come to the realization that if I had been working and needing to be at work by 5:30 am, this job would not have been something I could have done.  Definitely a job for a retired person, or at least for someone who has time to sit on the "pot" encouraging one little guy to eat.  Every one of them had such a sweet disposition!!! I would definitely be willing to go back!!!

GARDEN OF PRAYER!!!

 
Yesterday, Saturday morning, I awoke really early, at least early for me, 6:30 am.  My alarm was set for 7:15, so imagine my displeasure at waking up before the alarm.  However, I had a busy morning scheduled and I wanted to be able to take my time entering into the day.  So up I went, or is it up I got?  I was taking care of two dogs, so out they went... 
 About 7am I decided I wanted a good breakfast, some hot coffee and a place to sit and read my Kindle for a while.  Fortunately for me, one of my favorite breakfast places, Perkins Restaurant, was just a few blocks away.  Eggs, bacon and grits, mmmmmhmmmm!!!  By 8:30 am I was ready to head back to my pet-sitting home and get ready for the next part of my day.  I belong to a church called First Unity.  I've been in a book club for over 12 years, meeting every Wednesday afternoon.  This Saturday, the Church held the 2nd annual Garden of Prayer event.  The sanctuary was decorated with plants, trees, and flowers, along with angels and crystals.  It was so beautiful!  On the screen were images of beautiful streams, water falls, flowers swaying in the breeze, etc. 

The program started with a woman playing a crystal bowl for each of the seven chakras.  Amazing tones and vibrations to open the energy centers of the body.  Then the program started.   Singing the song "Sweet Hour of Prayer", a very unassuming woman took the stage.  Julianne, who works in the church office, sang with such beauty and grace, I was stunned. My heart opened and filled with such love for the witnessing and the reminder that God is so awesome. 
 She was followed by Joy, one of the women in my book club.  I had heard she sang opera, but, again, I was so pleasantly surprised by her rendition of "Trees", a poem by Joyce Kilmer.  Then came Memphis' own, Joyce Cobb, pictured above.  Anyone who lives in Memphis knows this remarkable woman and her wonderfully soulful voice.  She sang "In the Garden" and also sang a duet with Unity Church member, LaDon Jones, "The Rose" made famous by Bette Midler.  The biggest thrill and surprise came when the young man pictured to the left began a monologue called "The Creation" by James Weldon Johnson.  Historically, Johnson is credited with starting the Harlem Renaissance and is said to have been the mentor of Langston Hughes, a well known poet and playwright and is best known for his work in what is called "jazz poetry".
       This is a terrible picture of this young man, known as Darius.  I knew he had done some acting, but I was not prepared to hear this beautiful baritone voice reciting this piece about God's creation of the heavens, the earth, and his most wonderful creation "man".  Darius was spell-binding.  As I watched him move about the sanctuary, using his voice, his inflections and his gestures to assure each of us that "God was pleased"!  Darius literally got a standing ovation for his performance.  Even now I can move back into my seat in the sanctuary and hear his voice booming out and I get chill bumps all over again.  I wish each of you had been there, to hear this performance and all the others who offered us their talents.    It was a glorious day, filled with love and community.  After sharing lunch together, I traveled into midtown Memphis to play games with my friend, Shelia.  For the next three to four hours we played Rummikube.  I had a great day and a really great weekend.  When I arrived back at my pet-sitting home, I got a call from my friend, Elva.  Elva is one of the founding members of the book club, along with me, and I love her dearly.  She called to say a dear friend of hers, and a woman I had the pleasure of spending some time with in the early days of the book club, had passed that afternoon.  Elva and I both agreed she picked a beautiful, loving day to transition.  So, to Annie I say "rest in the arms of Love and enjoy your new found freedom!!! You will be missed!!!!"

3 DOG NIGHT!!!

I spent Labor Day weekend with my twin and we finished up the holiday by attending an Isotope game.  The Isotopes are the local farm club for the Dodgers.  Coley's friend, Tony, whose birthday it was that Monday, had gotten up tickets.  The game started about 1:30 in the afternoon and concluded with the Isotopes winning against the Omaha Stormchasers by about 4 to 3.  The Albuquerque team has taken their Pacific Coast League championship and are headed to the playoffs.    As Coley and I drove back to Georgia and Pete's house, this sunset caught us.  My last one in the southwest and it was beautiful.

 I drove to O'Fallon, Missouri on Tuesday, leaving Rio Rancho, NM at 4am and arriving at Jim and Elizabeth's at 8pm that evening.  It was a long, hard drive, but I made it without any mishaps.  Jim and Elizabeth took really good care of me and allowed me to do pajama day all day Wednesday.  My body is physically tired from all the driving and traveling.   Elizabeth made me a very cute pair of knitted slippers, pink in color, and as I write this they are keeping my feet cozy comfortable.  On Thursday I headed back to Memphis.  While enroute I selected two cards from the Osho Zen Tarot deck.  I drew the 8 of Fire, Traveling, no surprise there and also the Queen of Rainbows, Slowing Down.  Believe me, I heard that message. 

I arrived back in Memphis to spend a couple of days with my friends, Shelia and Chris.  Shelia is pet-sitting for the three dogs you see in the picture.  They are all schnauzers, with the largest of the three being called Cosmo (also known as Costco or Honey Booboo), the gray one is Baxter (also known as 50 shades of gray) and the littlest one is a female, just over a year old called Presley (or Princess or Queen).  Shelia is modeling her latest in camper-wear, a black designer tee with her shoulder strap night gown.  She's stylin'!!!

She and I have spent over a dozen hours in the last two days playing games.  Because we have so little time to play together, we really overdose when we get together.  I have been reintroduced to the game of Rummicube and Shelia and I played too many games to count.  It's such a great game for solving the problem of how to get rid of your tiles before your opponent.  Moving them around can get quite confusing sometimes, but loads of fun and challenging. 

The place we're staying at is one of the beautiful mansions in the center of the city in an area called Central Gardens.  We have a pool in the backyard, with huge rooms on the first level and multiple bedrooms on the second level. The picture to the left was taken in the living room. 

I'll be back at the lake by Wednesday of this week and I'm looking forward to some down time. 

Laters!!!! 

A DAY WITH BUDDHA!!!

Today is our last day in Sedona.  To say we are exhausted, really doesn't speak to just how tired we really are.  We've decided because the energy of this place is so high, most of our tiredness is due to  not being used to it.  We started out very slowly this morning.  Up by 7:30 a.m., but a leisurely cuppa, followed by cereal and taking my time getting my face on. 

Alpha, Brian and I got into the truck about 11:30 a.m. and headed to a shopping area where Alpha knew the local photographer.   Sadly, he was not there, but his wife was.  He displayed some dazzlingly beautiful prints of the area's vistas, along with some spectacular shots of such places as Bell Rock and Cathedral Rock.  Along with his work, they also had a separate room with some shots taken by their son, Adam.  He is going to have a wonderful future as a professional photographer.

 As we left the studio, we headed to a restaurant called Thai Paradise.  We had all agreed that we wanted something other than American and Mexican.  The picture of the Buddha, just above was taken on the patio where we had lunch.  Coley, in your honor, I ordered what was called "Angel wings".  Marinated in a sweet, chili sauce, they were really good.  Brought back memories of Z's lounge!!!

Our leisurely afternoon found us trying to locate the local stupa.  Brian had heard the Buddhists had built one and that it was close to our condos.  As you can see we found it.  The picture to the left is the Buddha just past the Amitabha Stupa and nestled into the area they call Peace Park.  Although you can't see the red rock mountain to the right of this, but it's called Thunderbird Mountain.

 This is the Buddha above the stupa.  The structure stands about two stories high.  As you come before the Buddha, it is beneficial to seek wisdom, or to ask for blessings as you walk clockwise around the stupa three times.  We enjoyed sitting on the deck just in front of the stupa for a while.  There was a young man who had rented a place to stay for the entire month and is leaving tomorrow for San Diego.  That's one of the neat things about being here, is talking to complete strangers and everyone has been so open to talking. Just as we headed back to the truck, we noticed the smaller stupa.  We also saw a red-headed bird, which I later found out was desert quail.  Below is the significance of the totem quail:

Quail - Group-work, team play, creator of harmony and group tolerance, protectiveness (especially toward children).

 

 Further down the trail was this statue of Quan Yin.  She's the Goddess of compassion and mercy.  There's no way for you to tell, but she is quite small sitting in front of a huge tree.  So, as you can tell has been about being in peaceful, harmonic, loving energy.  Good thing, too!  I'm way too tired to deal with anything that requires alot of energy.  We leave about 8:00 a.m. for Phoenix.  About 2.5 hours, and then I drop my friends off and head back to Albuquerque.  I'm looking forward to a relaxing weekend spent at Georgia and Pete's place. 

As I end this portion of my journey, I wanted to show you the number of our condo.  2012.  How interesting and easy to remember.  It's been a very full week, and it passed all too quickly.  But then our lives seem to be passing all too quickly as well.  In the blink of an eye, the moment is here and then it's gone.  So happy I have all my pictures to remind me.  Hope you enjoyed the trip as much as I did!!!

OH WHAT A BEAUTIFUL MORNING!!!

 I awoke this morning to the smell of coffee brewing.  I heard Alpha in the kitchen and asked "are you serving?"  "Yes, I am" and she quickly poured my coffee and added the cream and sugar for me.  So, this morning I had coffee in bed.  Life doesn't get any better than that.  We all got ready early, because out here you have to start early in order to be out of the worst heat of the day.  Our goal destination was what is bein called "uptown" but what is actually the original heart of Sedona.  We arrived in town and got a perfect spot and off we went to shop.  After about an hour and a half, we stopped into a restaurant called Oaxaca (pronounced O-wah-ka).  Again some excellent Mexican food.  From there we headed to the Chapel of the Holy Cross which sits very near Bell Rock. 

Here's Alpha at the walkway up to the Church.  As you can see the rocks are gynormous and when we stepped out of the truck it felt somewhat overpowering.  Just below the church is the huge mansion just to the left.  The word we heard was this was Madonna's house, but when we left the church and headed to the local gallery, we heard it belongs to the German man who has the patent for the Lasix eye surgery.  It's quite amazing, built, as you can see, on top of a red rock. 

Now,for some fun pictures.  Lest you think I don't have any "crazy" pictures of me, I asked Alpha to take this one.  Love my pointy chin.  The multi-colored one is of some Javelina pigs made out of ceramic which sit in front of the restaurant we ate in.  I loved the colors.  The picture that looks like an arrow was taken of a second story walkway and the bars are the part of the railing along the walkway.  Looks very Native American to me. 

The best part of my day came when we headed back to the condos.  Today, in the activity room, they were serving ice cream sundaes and root beer floats.  My preference was the root beer float.  Scrumptious!!! I can't remember the last time I had the pleasure of eating one.  So, let your inner child have a great day by getting your own!!!  Love to each of you!!!

CATHEDRAL ROCK!!!

This morning we woke early, about 7am, in order to get out to Cathedral Rock before the heat of the day set in.  Initially we drove to Red Rock State Park but soon learned this was not where we wanted to be.  Nice drive though.

We headed back the way we came and turned into Crescent Moon State Park where we disembarked from the truck and saw ahead of us Cathedral Rock.  At that time of the day there is still a haze over the mountains so you can't see how deeply red the rocks are, but the majesty of the form is always available.

As we walked one of the paths to take us to the river that passes through the canyon, we met up with this little guy.  Grasshopper is the Chinese symbol for good luck and abundance.  As a totem it gives the person the ability to take chances, or to leap forward.

 Me and Alpha.  This was the only place she wanted to come and to be able to sit on a rock in the river and view Cathedral Rock from that vantage point.  We walked along the river for some distance looking for a place to enter the water.  At one point, Alpha and I held onto a log that had fallen across a smaller tributary of the river and she and I waded across to see if there was any way to enter the river from this point.  There wasn't, so we crossed back.  The water was deliciously cool and felt wonderful as waded back and forth.

Another view of the "rock".  As you can see, the haze is beginning to lift and you can see a little more of the red rocks.







We finally found a place where we could wade out a little ways and sit with our feet in the water.  I took this picture as I was sitting facing Cathedral Rock.  Just ahead of us was a couple with their two dogs.  The dogs were having a marvelous time jumping into the water chasing sticks.  Alpha and I were the only ones with our feet dangling in the water.  Brian and BB decided not to get in.  Too bad, they really don't know how refreshing it was.  I loved it and didn't really want to get out.  We left this area and took a scenic drive up Hwy 89, towards Flagstaff.  It runs along Oak Creek Canyon and when we finally got to the top of the mountain we were at an elevation of about 6800 feet.  I so wish all of you were here with me!!! Sharing the sights and the beauty of this wonderful area!!!

MORE PICS FROM ARIZONA!!!

In my last post I mentioned we, Alpha, Brian, BB and I were sitting up high above Sedona waiting for the sun to set.  Here's one of the pictures I took of the event.  Amazingly, after the sun went down, we turned around to find a spectacular rainbow just forming.  As you can see by the picture the sky is beginning to turn into the hues following a sunset.  Beautiful blues, purples, and pinks.  Why does all of this appear to be so beautiful when you're hundreds of miles from home?

 Today, we decided to take a trip to Jerome which is located about 25 miles south of Sedona.  Formerly a copper mining town, it now is home to an eclectic group of artisans, restaurants and shops.  A new addition to the town is a shop called Zen Mountain Gallery.  Christopher Mull is the owner and he has one of the most beautiful shops with a wide assortment of art ranging from "direct fire" pottery, to paintings, to jewelry and the most awesome gourds I've ever seen.  In fact, I thought they were pottery.  One looked so much like metal, I couldn't believe it was actually a gourd.  Intricate designs and detailing.  Wish I had taken a picture, just so you could see how amazing they were.

We walked up and down the streets of Jerome.  At one point we saw this guy sitting in front of one of the restaurants.  His name is Tim Treister and he created this motorcycle.  Alpha says this is her new ride and her new fella.   I sat for quite a while talking to him.  He hails from Palm Beach, California and has been in Clarkdale, Arizona for 18 years.  He had been hired to oversee a construction job for Yavapai Indians and fell in love with the area, so he stayed.

 Just as we parked my truck, we stepped across the street to take a picture of the view looking down the valley to Cottonwood.  I'm not sure what the elevation of Jerome is, but as we were climbing the road to arrive in the center of town, my ears began to equalize, so I knew we were getting pretty high.

The owner of the Zen Mountain Gallery suggested a restaurant to us.  It's called Quince (pronounced "keen-say") which means 15 in Spanish.  The owner is also a master chef who comes from New York and based the name also on the I-Ching (a form of Chinese divination) hexagram number 15 which implies modesty.  We were told it was by far the best mexican food any where around, including any of the restaurants in Sedona.

Here's one of the pictures I took, again with my symmetricam feature.  Alpha ordered a half salad with quesadillas and they brought out this huge salad.  You can see a little bit of my black beans that came with my green rice and blue corn enchiladas.  Brian ordered soft flour tacos with ground elk and BB also had the same salad as Alpha.  I have to say it was well worth the visit and I would be happy to return for another meal.

That's all the pictures for now.   Hope you're enjoying them as much as I'm enjoying taking them.  Hasta la vista!!!

Just a few pictures for you to enjoy.  My friends Alpha and Brian and myself.  Not pictured, because he did not want his picture posted, is our friend, who I will simply call "BB".  These pictures were taken as we arrived at Bell Rock, the easiest of the four vortexes to get to, just 15 minutes from the center of town.  The lizard greeted Alpha and I the very first morning after we arrived.  The energy of lizard is about paying close attention to your dreams and calling on the lizard energy when you are in a situation that requires you to endure emotional or physical hardship.  Guess that ol' lizard knew I would be hiking up the side of Bell Rock and would need all the help I could get.  Hope you enjoy the view!!!