Woke up to Cullen, then Isla, then
Ashlyn telling me to ‘Pick the phone up, Grandma!’ The ringtone that is so cool and fun can be
so annoying at times. Anyway, it was
time to get up…sun was up, birds were singing, and the mattress was a bit
saggy.
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| I am woman...hear my bike roar!! |
Yesterday we were at a restaurant, Kim
was facing the door and I had my back to it.
A young kid, maybe 9 or 10, was walking behind me toward the door and
said “Nice Harleys!” We both replied
thank you, me turning around to face him.
As I turned back around he said “So who drives the red one?” Without turning around I answered “He does”
at the same time Kim said “That’s mine”. Then the boy asked “Well, who drives
the blue one?” This time I turned around
as I said “That one’s mine” as Kim said “That’s her bike”. By turning around I got to see the quick look
of amazement flit across his face. As he
joined his friends outside I said to Kim, “I think I just busted a stereotype
for that young man.” J
Yep, that’s right, sonny…girls can drive bikes…not only that, girls can drive big bikes, too. (Not sure if I just thought that or I actually said it out loud.😏)
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I noticed something strange about our
cruise controls….we have a slinky effect happening. Kim sets his cruise, then I set mine. We’ll be steady for a while then I start
creeping up on him or maybe he slows down.
One of the bikes is changing and it’s impossible to tell which it is
because each speedometer holds steady. I
know mine doesn’t show an increase or decrease in speed but yet I gain on
him. And it’s something that I notice
because I’m in back. I can manage it with the up or down button, which I assume
increases or decreases my speed by mile increments. I just thought that if we
both set our cruises at 60 mph then we’d maintain an even distance from each
other….but that’s not the case.
Just one of the mysteries of life, I
guess.
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We found a couple of oranges on our
picnic table this morning. As Kim was
peeling one, he said he thought the neighbor (in lot #35) must have left them
because there were a mound of them on his picnic table, too. That orange slice was in and out of his mouth
very fast, followed by the exclamation ”That is not an orange!! That is a
grapefruit and not a very tasty one at that.
Horrible!” And I don’t know how
to write the sound that came after that statement.
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My son Levi is one of my go-to guys
when my own research is not bearing fruit.
I always think if he can’t find it, it’s not out there. He researched
the ‘piggie’ cookies and what he came up with just reinforced what I’d already
learned. (And the girl at the store had that final word on that subject.) This morning I got a message from him telling
me the name of my mystery bird. It’s a
Bendire’s Thrasher, which I didn’t find in my research last night. But in my defense, I was sitting outside in
the dark and a chill was in the air that was making it hard to stay the course
out there on that bench. And, yes, it
was an Arizona chill, not a Michigan chill, but it’s all relative. Anyway, another mystery solved! Thanks, Levi!
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Woke up to a message from Bryan Waller,
a cousin on the Walker side, who was going to be in Tucson for a couple of days
for work and wondered if we’d be free to meet up tonight. Sure, we could. So we restructured our day a little. Instead of going out for a day long ride, we decided
to hang around camp and do some boring stuff again. We strategized about how to clear up some
floor space. The answer? More shelves!
So Kim headed to the Ace Hardware in Eloy while I wandered to the
clubhouse to do the wash and take care of some paperwork and computer
stuff. Kim joined me up there to download
the update for his equipment that he couldn’t accomplish last night. As I was packing up my stuff to head back to
the trailer, a bunch of men were gathering for the weekly Texas Hold’em
game. They offered me a place at the
table but I politely declined knowing that I’d be a sitting duck or laughing
stock as I don’t know the first thing about that game. It seemed more prudent to go for a ride.
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It must be recorded that I saw a
roadrunner today. We were out for a ride;
I was riding lead. A bird flew over
quite close to me and I watched as it landed on the left side of the road and
there was no mistaking that crest, that tail and that run. I pointed in that direction to draw Kim’s
attention, hoping he’d see it running. I
pulled off the road, hoping for a second glimpse and Kim pulled up behind
asking what all the hand gestures were about. Totally forgot I had
communication at the push of a button.
Doh!! Anyway we sat there for a
bit….didn’t see the roadrunner but saw little ground squirrels flitting
around.
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Today’s ride was just about seeing
where Toltec Road in Eloy would lead us.
Don’t know how far we went but turned around when the road turned to
gravel. On our way, I noticed an
electrical pole with what looked to be a bird’s nest on the top. On the way back, we stopped to see what it
was….yes, indeed, it was a nest and standing guard in it was a bird. Looked to be a hawk but we were far enough
away that there was room for error on that guess. My camera has a good zoom, but a tripod is
really needed when it’s zoomed all the way.
Didn’t have a tripod so we walked closer hoping for a better picture and
view. It wasn’t until it flew off that
we were certain it was a hawk. Its mate
was close by and the two of them flew off and circled in the distance. Still circling when we left.
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Figured out today why the plowed up
fields look to have a fine layer or bits of white scattered about. Arizona grows cotton. Who knew, right?! It’s the birthplace of pima
cotton, named for the Pima Indians who helped cultivate it. Farmers use the no-till method practiced by
American Indian tribes since crop cultivation began and have gotten creative in
their battle with the boll weevil. There
is a wealth of information about the subject on arizonaexperience.org.
Stopped by the roadside where a
stray plant was growing and picked 4 big fluffy cotton bolls. Don’t know the growing season as the fields
are currently tilled and either just planted or soon to be planted but there
are ‘volunteer’ plants that look to be ready to harvest…well, except using the
word ‘harvest’ is overkill when there’s two or three plants.
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There are acres of green fields around
the area with no visible means of irrigation.
Today I saw a cement irrigation ditch snugged down beside the cotton fields. It blended so well that I wouldn’t have seen
it if we hadn’t stopped. Mentioned it to
Kim and he said that he had seen hoses in a field so he thinks seeper or soaker
hoses may be used instead of overhead sprinkler to lessen water evaporation. More effective use of water in an arid
region…
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We met Bryan for supper somewhere in
the outer area of Tucson….good food, good company, good fun!
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Rode about 50 miles today
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