Hawks vs Pigeons, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2019

Tuesday morning, upon returning from my morning walk, I met the repairman for the gates for our condos.  He said he had just seen a hawk snatch a pigeon in flight and the hawk was now devouring the pigeon.  I checked the tree next to our south gate and the hawk was there for at least 30 minutes, tearing the pigeon apart piece by piece.  So I went inside the condo to get my things together to head to the airport.  Thirty minutes later, I came back out to catch my ride and the hawk was still at work.

Here is a short video I took of the hawk.

Final score, hawk one (won), pigeon zero.

October in Phoenix, Oct. 14 - 28, 2019

It was a busy second half of the month in Phoenix.  On the 14th, Howard Air came to troubleshoot our new air conditioning system that was making a strange noise - it turns out that the hole for our air return needs to be larger.  On the 15th, I had my regular Tuesday Docent day at the Desert Botanical Garden.  On the 16th, I attended a tax and retirement seminar at the Yucca branch of the Phoenix library.  On the 18th, I helped clean the office of the Carlyle Condo clubhouse.  On the 19th, I walked the Bridle Path with Jane and Anne, then we went to breakfast at the nearby Wildflower Cafe.  On the 21st, I attended the annual docent training at the Desert Botanical Garden.  On the 22nd, I did my regular docent day and at lunch we met the new Director of Education, Marie, and celebrated Karin's birthday.

Birthday girl Karin

Our new Education Director Marie

On the 24th and 25th, I was a mad botanist at the Halloween celebration at the Desert Botanical Garden.  Among other things for the young (and young at heart) we had unicorns.  I was at the grasshopper snacks station, where I encouraged people to eat some dehydrated grasshoppers (yes, I ate many of them to show it was okay).

On Sunday the 27th, Patty and I went to listen to a concert at the Botanical Garden given by "Travelers"- they played a fusion of music from all over the world.  Then we explored the garden after dark, and could see all of the Wild Rising from Cracking Art that is lit up at night.

 

As things looked more and more certain, we packed up things to move to our new home in Flagstaff.  On the 28th, we moved a truckload of things from our home in Phoenix to our new home in Flagstaff.

With the closing at noon on the 28th, we were officially owners of two homes and the next chapter of our lives our begins.

Members' Preview, Wild Rising by Cracking Art, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2019

Patty and I came to the members' preview.  After passing the frogs in the parking lot, the meerkats just outside of admissions and the penguins just after admissions, we wandered to the portal which starts the main discovery trail and were greeted by snails.  Also, each of the exhibits now has signs with some thoughts for visitors.

In Stardust Plaza and the Cactus Gallery, we encountered the wolves, with colorful wolves guarding the gallery where the grey wolves mixed with the cacti.

In the middle of Stardust Plaza, the rabbits have begun to multiply.

In the Succulent Gallery, the fish let us know there is too much plastic in the ocean.

The "Elephant in the Room" exhibit in Dorrance Hall gets us to think about how we treat the environment.

There is even a quote from Rachel Carson on the ceiling.

Back outside, there are bears on a side trail - does a bear sit in the woods?

An interesting thought about frogs.

 

Being green is the answer.

Watch out for those snails.

Many of the animals have interior lights, so I will need to visit at night to see the lights.  Also, as seen on Cracking Art's website, http://www.crackingart.com/en/ people like to have their pictures taken with the animals and even climb on them.  Already, some of the statues have been moved and fences have been added to keep people on the trails and from injuring plants or themselves as they try to get close to the animals.  It will be an interesting season volunteering with Cracking Art's "Wild Rising."

A Week at the Desert Botanical Garden, Oct. 1 - 8, 2019

The season for Docents and Guest Guides begins on Oct. 1 and runs through Mothers' Day the following May.  Oct. 1 was a Tuesday, so we Tuesday Docents were the first ones back.  And because our Tuesday co-captains were out (one in Europe and one teaching a class), I was one of two who volunteered to be in charge.  I was the first to arrive and it is a good thing I arrived early - much of our gear and props had not yet been put out at the various stations we monitor.  I ended up making several trips bringing carts full of gear to the various stations and moving the display cabinets and umbrellas into proper position at the stations (they had been delivered but every cabinet and every umbrella needed to be repositioned).  But it all led to a beautiful blue sky day with plenty of visitors.  When I was at the sajuaro station, I got to see the updated solar powered stop action cameras used by the BBC - as succulents absorb water, the pleats expand and as they use water, they contract.  My understanding is that they are taking one photo every 60 seconds so that we can see the expansion and contraction of the cacti.

Later, when I was staffing the cactus station on the main trail, I noticed these beautiful barrel cacti nearby.

Each year, the garden hosts a different artist's work in the garden.  This year it is the Cracking Art Cooperative from Milan, Italy, with their recyclable plastic sculptures - more than a thousand items for the Desert Botanical Garden.  Cracking Art has had displays in more than 400 locations around the world and this is their first in a desert garden.  I volunteered to help on two days, Thursday and
Saturday.  I started wirh bringing the wolves to Stardust Plaza, unwrapping them and saving the bags for when they will be shipped in the spring, either to another installation or back to Milan.  The adult ones are about five feet tall and the young ones are about three feet tall.

After unwrapping them and storing the bags, we then had to attach heavy metal bases to each one, and then carefully place them among the cacti in the cactus gallery and in Stardust Plaza.

After five hours, my shift ended.  As I was heading out, I got to see some starfish cacti that had blooms open.

My shift on Saturday involved installing large birds and eggs.

Other volunteers had installed penguins and meerkats at the entrance.

Large frogs were installed outside the gate.

A large crocodile was installed in the cardon garden.

I helped deliver, unpack (saving the plastic bags) and place a couple dozen bears on one trail.

 And I found more starfish flowers open.

Monday, Patty and I attended the monthly VIG meeting (Volunteers In the Garden) and learned more about the artwork.  I only had a minute to take a couple photos of the fish suspended in the succulent gallery.

And we saw these beautiful blooms, not sure what they are but I think they are related to Texas Sage.

The second Tuesday of the month is Community Day - the garden is open to all and it is free.  This year, all the public schools were on break so it was the busiest Community Day that anyone can remember seeing. -  long lines to get in, full parking lot, and just a lot of people to deal with.

Next up will be Members Only day for viewing the artwork after it is all in place!