Spring has Sprung in Flagstaff and Patty has a birthday, April 2 - 4, 2020

Thursday was a quiet day, sunny and warm, time to relax in the backyard.

Patty's bird feeder has guests.

I had a Zoom session with a couple of students in Vermont.  And Patty got this wonderful Love-Pop, a pop up card with an intricately made basket of flowers from Martha, Ben and Megan.

 

Friday, Patty and I hiked a part of the Sinclair Wash and a section of the Arizona trail.  We saw many pussy willows in bloom and knew we would need to come back to cut some for our house - spring has come.  Later in the day, we had a Zoom session with Helen and Phil in Massachusetts, their daughter Laura and friends in Virginia and Laura's friend Tammy in Pennsylvania.  Lots of laughter and good cheer.

Then we had Friday Fun via Zoom with Anne and Shawn in Prescott, and Jane, Meg, Lauren and Gardner in Phoenix.   More laughter and good cheer - a great way to end the week.

Saturday was Patty's birthday, so I got her a small chocolate cake.

A little before noon, we ventured out to hike on the Arizona Trail - this time with a razor blade knife to cut some of those pussy willows.  But first, we went to the Willowbend Environmental Center in the Sawmill Art and Nature County Park - this is where a large sawmill operated for many decades.  They have several small gardens.

Multiple warnings about covid-19 precautions.

They capture rainwater, store it and use it for watering the gardens.

They have educational signs on many of the plants.

They had multiple sculptures plus this area for artwork next to a playground.

Then it was through some of the dedicated open space back to the Arizona Trail.

We did get some pussy willow cuttings to bring home.  As we passed by the Flagstaff Boys and Girls Club, we stopped to take photos with one the last remaining snowbanks while holding a handful of the pussy willows.

Back home, we had a Zoom session with Martha, Ben and Megan to help Patty celebrate her birthday under stay at home orders for the state.  Later, when I walked the dog, I saw that our neighbor has daffodils starting to bloom.

Spring is in the air.

April Fools NOT, Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Wednesday morning, Paulie and I set out for our morning walk, and we covered about a mile and a half.  Wednesday is also trash day - one of our neighbors foolishly put the trash out and did not pack it down, leaving the top up.  When we came around the corner, there were a half dozen large crows picking the trash apart - by the time I got the camera out, only two were still there.

Paulie and I then went through Arroyo Park where the baseball field is named after Mark Grace - I will have to find out who he is or was.

The park includes a playground, picnic area and baseball field.

Since we bough the townhouse here in Flagstaff, I have been using half of the dining room table as my desk.  Today, I ordered a new desk that will fit in the 41 inch space at the top of our stairs.  I found this one but the only problem is that it will not come until April 22.  The chair will be here by Friday.

So since I wanted an office space, much to Patty's chagrin and amusement, I made a desk out of cardboard, styrofoam and tape - and now I have relocated from the dining room to the upstairs loft space with my desk (which is where I am sitting as I type this post).  It is not pretty, but with an old chair, it works just fine.

And this is NOT an April Fools joke, it is a temporary solution until the new desk comes.

More Days with Coronavirus, Monday and Tuesday, March 30 - 31, 2020

Monday, we continued with cleaning the grates and vents in the ceilings, only this time it was downstairs, starting with the two in the bathroom.

Then it was the two in the entrance hallway.

And then the laundry and kitchen, and the one that connects the two rooms.

Then Monday afternoon, we went for a hike.  We explored the large development on the other side of Pine Knoll Street and passed by these trees that had pussy willow like seed pods.

We came back on Arroyo Trail, and then out to Lone Tree Road.

We came back through a wooded section that took us through a nearby park.

Tuesday was sunny and warm, so at one point we again enjoyed sitting in the sun on the back patio.

Tuesday afternoon, we went to Picture Canyon Natural and Cultural Preserve.  It is on land that was logged for many years, then where they built the waste water treatment plant.  In fact, the first quarter of mile or so, you walk by and smell the treatment plant on one side and when leaving, you go by the neighboring natural gas plant.

The city has worked for the last 25 years to clean up the mess, restore things to their natural state and preserve the cultural things found here, like the petroglyphs below.  They have an educational area for an outside classroom.

The trails are easy to follow and once you get away from the water treatment and gas plants, are quite nice and easy walking.

Lots of logging done in the 1800s.

There are multiple entries to the park, so even where we came to an entrance that is only accessible by walking, they still had all the info and brochures for the well marked trails.

Like any forest, we saw many snags.

And then we came to the petroglyphs, with signs educating you about them placed just below the actual petroglyphs.

And we passed by the natural gas plant on the way out.

It was a pleasant four mile hike.