A MONDAY KIND OF TUESDAY

It was a strange day weather-wise today.

One minute it would be spitting rain, the next the sun would be shining.

The view over toward the city center was pretty bleak with very low clouds drifting around.

By sundown the sun was totally obscured and the view toward the west was dark and stormy.

The top of Glassford Hill was hidden much of the time today though it was at least temporarily in view this evening.

And the cattle didn't seem bothered by the weather at all, as they just kept grazing throughout the day.

SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed) said they have thick coats to keep themselves warm.

WAITA (Who Am I To Argue)?

SUPER BOWL MONDAY

SWMBO and I just dined at a gala luncheon celebrating last night's Super Bowl victory by the Los Angeles Rams.

Meantime fans of the Patriots had to put up with New England clam chowder and lobster rolls.

FOOD FUN

SWMBO was busy in the kitchen yesterday preparing repasts for the weekend, especially today since she knows I'll be transfixed by the television, watching the Super Bowl.

But even SWMBO outdid herself.

For example . . .

. . . the initial prep for a wonderful potato salad that we dived into last night.

And (prepare to drool) . . .

. . . a Dutch apple-cranberry pie.

You're right.

It's to die for.

STILL LIFE

Arizona Winter - February 1st

THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

The weekend looms.

And it's a celebration weekend!

Yes, it's Super Bowl Sunday, when men sit around the house staring at the television all day, occasionally erupting in loud cheers or sorrowful tears.

Meanwhile, the little woman goes out with "the girls" to a friendly, hidden-away, non-sports-bar for a bit of a tipple.

Okay, I heard the groans on that one, I'll stop now.

Find yourself a place to flop, don't be fickle, let your fanatical fantasies run wild, fire up your freewheeling feuds and ask yourself: are you ready for some FOOTBALL?

Have a great weekend, even you Saints fans, and always remember to keep laughing.

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

CATS - THE NON-MUSICAL

From time to time the neighbors' cat, Mattie, comes by for a visit.

When the weather was warmer . . .yeah, I know, you're gonna give me a lot of static about my 60 degree weather when the rest of you are freezing your bippies off in double digit subzero temperatures.

Incidentally, I saw a brief mention from my niece-in-law in Minneapolis yesterday that said, "Huh.  24 below zero.  That's what it was when we woke up in our tent while camping out in the Boundary Waters region last weekend."

Yes, they did, hauling a tent and a stove and food and presumably some potable to take the bite off the frigid weather, poling along on skis, so they could camp out in snowy weather far away from it all in northern Minnesota.

And she's GRINNING!

Arizona Bruce mutters, "these kids nowadays."

Now where was I.

Oh yeah, cats.

We've had a number of visitors to our back yard over the months.

But the other day as I was out in front chatting with my next door neighbor, Bill, somebody new showed up.

It was a young gray cat that neither of us had recalled seeing before.

It was skittish but was obviously attracted to Bill's area.

Probably because he's been known to put the occasional saucer of milk outside for Mattie.

Meantime, yesterday I got a shot of our Muggles curled up in her cat pedestal.

She had a look on her face that seemed to say, "Oh, no, you're not gonna bring another cat in here, are you?"

No, Muggles, I . . . don't . . . think . . . so.

YARD ART

Now that we've got the monk straightened out and I now know that it's correct name is La Monja, or The Nun, maybe I can explain why we moved her.

This past Christmas we were gifted a totem, designed, created and given to us by the BRD.

That's the beautiful rich daughter, or Gayle, in case you've forgotten.

We decided the perfect place for it was the corner of the yard where La Monja had been before.

So here, with a drum roll for the work of the Beautiful Rich ARTISTIC Daughter, is the totem.

It is a ceramic structure with each object resting on another nestled around a steel rod which goes up through the center.

I think it is perfectly sited at the top of the arc of rocks that Judy and I (mostly Judy) arranged out of a pile that was here when we arrived.

As the sun moves across the sky during the day the light and the shadow are constantly changing to provide a myriad of photo opportunities.

I'm anxious to see what it will look like at night under the light of a full moon.

(SWMBO advised me that I should explain we're aware that it is slightly tilted and a correction will be made in due time.)