Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Fire and Ice
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
It's all image
Monday, January 11, 2010
Lucky Number 13!
The Cardinals quarterback, 38 year old Kurt Warner, put on an amazing display as did his counterpart, the Packers' Aaron Rodgers. But it was the veteran who came out on top after Rodgers was sacked on the first series of plays in the overtime session and Karlos Dansby recovered the fumble and ran it 17 yards into the end zone for the winning touchdown.
There was talk yesterday about Warner retiring after this season but he told everyone to relax after the game and said that decision would wait until the team has finished this year. Warner has another year left on a contract extension he signed last year but a concussion he suffered this year has put the retirement question up for discussion.
So the Cardinals move on to New Orleans Saturday to take on the Saints. Who have lost their last three games.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Cold!
Reminds me of that old pirate line: shiver my timbers!
Back where I grew up, in North Dakota, the wind chill this week was 50 degrees below zero! Now I can remember going out to ice skate when the real temperature was 20 below but that was 60 years ago and now I'm feeling cold at 43 degrees. I just have to try to remember last summer when the temperature was in the 90's and I was wishing for the cooler weather to arrive.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Movies and more
Speaking of film, look what I found:
Looks like paradise, doesn't it. And I only live a half-dozen miles away. Meantime, just up over Mingus Mountain, maybe 15 miles away in the opposite direction is one of my favorite towns: Jerome.
As noted, Sedona and the Red Rocks are only 25 to 30 miles beyond that. Not a bad place to live, here in the heart of Arizona.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Birthday Day
But the big marker is for Elvis Presley. Were he still alive, he'd be 75 today. If you want to celebrate that milestone, you might go no further than The New York Times Dining Blog. Click on the link for a truly Elvis recipe.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Do cats have memories?
The neighbor has an un-neutered small black male cat. While he comes into our garage and apparently sleeps there from time to time and generally seems to get along all right with Smoke, there have been a couple of instances where apparently the hormones are raging and the two of them get into a spat. A cat spat. I'll hear the howling and when I go out, they are nose to nose. Smoke, as I have often said, is a very placid cat but in these instances he seems to become the alpha cat and in a very short time chases Blackie (as I call him) out of the yard.
I'm sure neither cat relishes these encounters. At least they don't appear to enjoy them. So why, I wondered this morning, does Smoke go over into Blackie's yard as if looking for him? Is it because he has no memory of the bad encounters?
Well. I am a man of the 21st Century so I did what all good modernists do - I went to the Internets in search of an answer. And on a site called "Pawprints and Purrs, Inc." here's what I found:
Monday, January 4, 2010
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Happy Birthday, Alaska!
And you can see Russia from there.
Well, not from Anchorage. Or Wasilla. Or especially not from the state capitol in Juneau. But as you can see from this map (if you expand it by clicking on it) on a clear day you can probably see Russia from the island of Little Diomede. A little bit of it anyway.
Happy birthday, Alaska. Keep your eyes on the skies.
Saturday, January 2, 2010
01-02-2010
Can you believe there are people who sit around thinking these things up?
Friday, January 1, 2010
It's a new year!
Thursday, December 31, 2009
So long, 2009 - Greetings 2010!
There is a tradition in New Orleans to have a funeral parade accompanying the casket to the graveyard. A dixieland band accompanies with a slow, sad song. But once the body is in the ground and the cortege heads back to town, the music changes. To give you an idea of how it goes, here is a famous Dixieland Band from Hungary, of all places - the Benko Dixieland Band. Say goodbye to 2009 and hello to 2010!
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Run-up to New Year's Eve
Friday, December 25, 2009
Christmas Eve 2009
Beautifully decorated, as usual. And dinner was superb. Mussels in garlic butter sauce, lobster tails, twice-baked potatoes, asparagus, mini-beef Wellingtons, artisanal bread, Creme Brulee. And lots of good wine.
We came home with full tummies.
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Sun Day
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
The second shortest day of the year
Some of the houses lend themselves to Christmas card photos when the snow is falling.
Monday, December 21, 2009
The first day of Winter
Oh, good grief. Friend Reed has pointed out that the first day of winter is not the longest day of the year - it's the SHORTEST! I may be getting too old for this.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Progeny
Monday, December 14, 2009
A foggy morning
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Chilll-l-l-l-l-l-y!
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
An inch or snow of snow
I notice the neighbors garbage dumpster has blown over into their front yard. That probably happened last night when the wind was blowing at 50+ miles per hour. There was one wind gust clocked at 70 miles per hour just before 11 o'clock and it sounded like the roof was going to come loose.
Here's the view, with a blaze of sunlight, out the rear door.
As you can see, we were just low enough to avoid most of the snow. Higher elevations around the state, particularly up around Flagstaff, got up to 30 inches of snow and several highways are closed.
Monday, December 7, 2009
Snow day in Arizona
68 years ago
After her sinking, she remained (and does to this day) on the floor of the sea. While the superstructure and turrets were removed, the body of the ship lies silently underwater, now part of the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial.
Friday, December 4, 2009
Here comes winter!
Other than staying in the house with the furnace blasting warmth throughout what can one do? Ah, there's the Internets with their wealth of photographs of places warmer, balmier, sunnier than here.