MIDWEEK ON THE COURTHOUSE SQUARE

Prescott, Arizona has a number of qualities that make it a desirable place to live.

Chief among them is the courthouse square in downtown which may be one of the reasons the city is known as "Everybody's Home Town".

On any nice day people can be seen walking the wide sidewalk that surrounds the county courthouse.

This fellow might have thought there were some deer hunters to be avoided.

It is quite definitely a dog-friendly area.

This fellow had a brace of poodles on leashes.

A young father had a different pet to corral.

Some of the tourists were doing what I was doing.

Though these two were focused on the buildings across the street . . . on Whiskey Row.

One of the visitors enjoying the shade under the trees favored the "off-the-shoulder" look.

Wait a minute!

Is that Bernie Sanders with her?

Oops, sorry, guess not.

Watching over all of this is what we used to call when I was a kid "the friendly gaze of the cop."

Kind of gives new meaning to the expression "I've got your back", doesn't it?

I'll end this tour with a gentleman with the best advice of all.

Now THAT'S a Kitty!

The picture that showed up on my daily calendar today is so beautiful I had to share it with you all, Gentle Readers.

A BRIEF SHOWER

What does it look like when the sky opens up?

Kind of like this.

The monsoon rains have definitely come to Arizona, as shown in the tragic story from this weekend when 9 people drowned in a flash flood that surprised them at a swimming hole where rain had not fallen.

The raging water, carrying trees and mud, came from where rain had fallen, miles away.

A 10th person is still missing.

Amazingly, this rainstorm I photographed earlier today, though headed right for us, never materialized in our area, though other parts of Prescott and Prescott Valley were drenched.

It's a good time of year to remind locals of the danger and to heed the advice: stay safe.

MO(U)RNING VISITOR

Judy has now passed the one-month mark since her accident.

She's reached the point now where she's frustrated at "how long" it's taking.

In spite of the fact that all the data says it takes 4 to 6 months.

We try to subtly remind her of that from time to time.

Meantime the back yard has been a busy spot with mockingbirds, the house finches, Say's phoebes, even a couple of huge pigeons paying visits to the bird bath.

And, of course, the mourning doves.

These (take your pick) bold or dopey birds will graze the gravel for bugs within a few feet of we seated humans.

I caught this one with his eyes closed about to take a dive into that inviting water.

They use their long tail feathers to balance themselves as they bend way over to get a drink.

In spite of their tenuous hold on the rim of the bowl and the level the water has evaporated down to, they never seem to fall into the water.

Except when they want to.

FRIDAY FUNNIES

As everyone (should) know(s), it is good to have good friends.

SWMBO received a package in the mail recently from our good friends Timmer and The Beaner to aid in her convalescence.

Inside was a live lucky bamboo plant.

But there was also something for me because I had missed her so much when she was having surgery and then healing in the rehabilitation hospital.

It was a (not live) panda!

I hadn't thought of a name until just now but with those dark eyes resembling a mask I think I'll call him "Bandit".

At any rate, my friends, thank you again.

Now let's get on to the Friday Funnies.

This week's theme is Signs of the Times.

And finally (or fahhhnnllyy . . .

Whew!  I don't know about you, Gentle Readers, but I'm just a wee bit more than worn out after all that hilarity.

So you can relax now and begin planning your exciting, fun-filled weekend.

Make it a good one.

And always remember to keep laughing!

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

ARIZONA MONSOON SKIES

No extra charge for power lines.

K-F International

Contrary to what some of you may believe, the K-F in the title of this post does not stand for Kentucky Fried.

So for those of you looking for a cuisine oriented blog post, you'll have to look elsewhere today.

No the K F in this post stands for Kaiser-Frazer, which was a U.S. automobile manufacturing company that produced cars in the 1940's and 50's.

They looked like this.

You can read the history of the company here.

A group of aficionados of the cars formed a group called the Kaiser Frazer Owners Club International in 1959.

And this week their 59th National Convention is being held in our area.

A number of cars from across the nation are on display for the convo.

Including the Darrin, which was a fiberglass sports car that beat the Chevrolet Corvette to market by one month.

Car lovers will have a great time in Central Arizona this week.

MONDAY, MONDAY

Well it's not quite Monday here in Arizona but we're less than 3 hours away from it so . . .

THE WONDERFUL SEASON

The monsoon has officially arrived in Arizona!

Oh, I know, it's not a real big thing for most of you to see rain falling from the sky.

But when you live in the land of scorched earth and "but it's a dry heat" and temperatures above 100 for days in a row . . . that first rain of the summer monsoon is a very big deal.

I can remember our first evening in Phoenix back in early July of 1972.

We were in a small convenience store when everyone ran outside to enjoy a monsoon rain shower.

We thought they were crazy until we heard that it had been over 100 days since the last rain.

Now, many years later, we're the ones who dance in the rain.  

(Figuratively speaking.)

And we can open the house and let the blessed cool breeze blow through.

'Swonderful!

FRIDAY FUNNIES

So it's Friday, glorious Friday once again.

SWMBO has been up for awhile and now into the living room recliner, all by herself with only the walker to assist her.

She's walking much better today than yesterday.

Maybe home care is better for her than even a very good rehabilitation hospital.

Meanwhile I, the caretaker and step-and-fetch-it, am exhausted.

But that too shall pass and after all, it's time for some humor here.

BTW, a big thank you to the BRD, who's been such a peach throughout this ordeal.

And the folks at the rehab hospital, who were/are a true delight.

O.K. boys and girls and Gentle Readers, that's it for this week.

Now here is my prescription: be up for anything that comes along as you enjoy the weekend thoroughly and always remember to keep laughing.

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

SWMBO (JUDY) IS HOME!

Just one day shy of three weeks since SWMBO fell on our rear patio and broke her femur, I am happy to report that today she came home.

As she reclined on her old familiar bed this afternoon I took her photograph to verify the event.

Well, as I have often said, she's a bit shy about having her picture taken, especially if she doesn't have her "face" (make-up) properly applied.

(I remember once reading a quote from television anchor lady Connie Chung that her husband, Maury Povich, was the only person who had ever seen her without her false eyelashes on.)

After a long wait and much paperwork she finally was released to the outer world this afternoon after a heartfelt goodbye from her case manager Doreen and one of her nurses Anita.

With the aid of a walker, a wheelchair, me and her eldest daughter, the BRD, she made it into our home and the loving greetings of her cats.

Speaking of the BRD she did a truly wonderful thing when she arrived at the hospital today.

She surprised a nurse with a "bouquet" for the staff, made up entirely of candy, and a lovely thank you card for treating SWMBO with such care.

She said flowers are nice but a sugar high is even better!

Thank you from all of us to the doctors, nurses, therapists, orderlies, cleaning staff, cooks and everyone at Mountain Valley Regional Rehabilitation Hospital in Prescott Valley, Arizona.

FROM BAD TO GOOD

Judy's day didn't start off well.

Sometime in the darkness hours early Monday morning she woke to a pain at the rear of her right knee joint.

It grew progressively worse until she finally got some pain medication and some ice on it.

But then this morning the pain persisted from the back of the calf, up through the knee joint and into the back of the thigh.

When she tried her physical therapy this morning she was unable to take even one step and, in addition, she'd been given a muscle relaxant that had her groggy.

When I visited her the second time this morning she was back in bed, feeling depressed, and dozing off.

But I just spoke to her on the telephone and she said the head PT guy had worked on her leg for a good five minutes and given her a lot of advice about how to avoid the contractions, what to do when they start, when to ask for pain medication and how to loosen up the muscles.

And then she walked 32 STEPS!

She also learned this afternoon that she will have her staples removed from her surgery today.

So what started out as a rotten day has turned into a much better one.

And on the Goodwin Fire the latest I heard was that it is 91 percent contained and should be totally contained by tomorrow night at the latest.

So today is a Glorious Fourth of July!

Incidentally the traditional fireworks displays have been canceled in Prescott and Chino Valley but will go off as scheduled in Prescott Valley, where I live!

SAINT LYNDON

Lyndon Baines Johnson was the 36th president of the United States of America.

His history, like that of most politicians, is replete with ups and downs, both in his electoral record and his appeal.

Some loved him.  Some hated him.

But he holds an honored place in our household, regardless of some of the things he did that we didn't like.

In 1965, he signed a bill creating Medicare.

Former President Harry S Truman and his wife, Bess, were the first recipients of the program.

At a time when a Republican Washington is trying as hard as they can to ruin healthcare in this country, we (Judy and I) are benefiting from the wealth of Medicare.

Since Judy took a fall on June 16th she has been in a hospital, had surgery for a broken femur, transferred several days later to a rehabilitation hospital and had absolutely excellent care.

All of it, or most of it, paid for by Medicare.

We have a supplemental policy which we pay for and we pay every month for our Medicare coverage also.

But without that wonderful government program, we would probably be hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt.

So thank you, Medicare.

And thank you, Lyndon.

We may not be in debt but we are in your debt.

And, by the way, Judy is doing better each day and will come home Thursday.