Happy New Year

Sunrise January 2015

Sunrise 30 Dec 2016

Happy New Year Everyone!

Cathy

Good Morning From Arizona!

It`s not summer till next week. Yeah right! Phoenix will be 120 this weekend.  In this part of Northwestern Arizona it should be somewhere around 110.  I`m watering trees and plants more often this past month. What hasn`t turned brown the rabbits have eaten. The baby quail have arrived. They look like peanuts now.  No pictures because I don`t want to frighten them. I killed my first rattlesnake this season two months ago.  There are lots of snakes this year..  

The picture above is beautiful Indian Paintbrush.

My eye surgeries are complete.  Long distance vision is great. I need glasses for close up work, but that may change in the next month.  It`s nice to blog again, drive and sew.

The picture below is my friend from Iowa setting up his trommel so he can run the dirt he brought home from the  desert. The gold and small gravels drop thru the mesh into the sluice underneath. The  water running through the sluice washes the lighter gravels into a tub you can`t see and the gold being heavier than the dirt stays in the sluice box. This is a simplistic explanation.

My husband and I recirculated water in our clean up systems.  If there`s clay in the soil your water gets slick and slimy real fast and the clay dries your hands. After your clean-up (the equipment), you need a really good hand moisturizer so your fingers don`t crack.  Corn Huskers Lotion works  real well.  Make sure your hands are free of potions and lotions before you pan or whatever method you chose to use to clean up. Oils, as on greasy hands will float the gold out of your pan. We  dredged in Colorado, metal detected in Utah and here in Arizona. No matter how you find your gold it is hard work. I loved it!  I got used to scorpions dropping into my lap while sitting in holes. Sitting was more comfortable than standing. I was never stung. 

This wide bush is Mormon Tea or Ephedra. The small bush to the left is Sticky Buckwheat .

Last but not least. I `ve had 20 star blocks sitting in my room for two years. My favorite is the butterfly block below. All the blocks are sewn with different scrap fabrics.  Hopefully this is a quilt I will finish this summer!

 A few more blocks.

Thank you for visiting!  Sam the dog, Mr Cat (the cat of course) and I are happy. I wake up everyday to fresh air,  a sleepy cat on my pillow, beautiful views and the sounds of cactus wrens and quail.  

Cathy

A Houseplant Question

Sunday Morning! Beautiful day and beautiful moon last night. I`m starting today`s post with a houseplant identity question.

It`s just been re-potted and as you can see looked a bit sad yesterday. Today it looks a lot better. I`m hoping my readers can tell me what it is and how to take care of it.  I thought it was a vine, but not so sure now.

Wonderful things are happening in blogland. Madame Samm has a new blog hop coming the end of July. I am so happy to be participating! This Hop Is Full.

                              

Summer will be getting hotter, 115 in Phoenix next week. The fire danger is extreme in much of our state and across the west. I pray for those suffering with fires elsewhere.  Quail, rabbits, birds, snakes and lizards visit every day for water. The coyote are here first thing in the morning, late afternoon and evenings. This is typical for summer. I`m hoping the monsoons bring us rain.

Thank you for visiting. I appreciate it.

Cathy

My New Vintage Tupperware

Hello! It`s been windy and cold and I`ve had an earache and sinus congestion the last couple of days. So I`ve been slowed down a bit. However I had a nice surprise this morning. The husband went to the neighbor`s and brought back many, many pieces of vintage Tupperware. Now that was enough to get me out of bed! The picture shows everything still in boxes. When I get it sorted and clean I will take more pictures. There is also a quilt made from knit fabrics, first one of those I`ve had. It is sturdy and nicely done. And please notice the tan and red box laying on top. It is a nearly full box of Tite Locker Wrap, as in freezer wrap, with the International Harvester logo. It looks to be about 50 years old. They call it Glassine Kraft Laminated. It`s in great shape.

Vintage Tupperware and Quilt

The fog creeping across Garnet Mountain at yesterday`s dawn.

The crest of Pearce Ferry Road as the fog glided towards Lake Mead. This is the road to the Skywalk turn-off.

Thank you for visiting. I appreciate it. Going to make homemade pizza crust and homemade sauce now.
Cathy