Wild weather in Las Vegas last week.

Trying to do a little better this month.  We'll see how that turns out. Had a very quiet July 4th. A few people around us shot off some fireworks, but didn't set any thing on fire, thank goodness and were done by 10:30. Watched several 4th programs on TV. My gosh the cities back east really put on shows.

The Sphere, this was actually rotating and very pretty, but couldn't get the video to upload.

Last week there was another fire in The Wetlands, went outside to take this. It looks close but was on the far side of the park. Burned about 100 acres before they got it put out. Fourth fire there this year. Again, luckily, there was no wind blowing. 

Took this from the TV, really burning at this point. 

While outside I grabbed a couple pictures from our side yard. This is my favorite plant. It blooms all summer. 

The Lantanas fascinate me that one flower and one bush can have so many different colors in the flowers and the flowers themselves.

OMG!!! We actually got rain off and on for three days. Not a whole lot where we live on the south east side of town. But some is better than nothing. 

While it was raining Bill made bunuelos (Buñuelo is a type of doughnut or fritter made from flour, effs, milk with cheese, fruit or other ingredients, and fried in oil. It is a traditional snack or dessert in Spain, Latin America, and other regions with a Spanish heritage.)  He made these with apples and bananas. YUM. Always makes enough we can freeze some for another time. With sugar on top double YUM.

I made a dutch apple pie but ate it all before I thought to take a picture of it. Yes, I ate the WHOLE pie myself. Also have tried a couple new supper recipes. One with sliced zucchini, yellow squash, chopped tomato, canned black beans and corn. Mixed together with olive oil, taco seasoning and topped with cheese then baked. Really good. 

A few days ago we got rain, not much wind or dust or destruction. But other parts of Vegas really had damage.

Again pulled this from TV. It was taken from a car dashcam. You could hear the guy driving saying, NO NO NO! One after another came down. His car got hit by one of the poles. 

Same street after the storm. Several cars damaged or just stuck there between poles and wires. If you know Vegas it was on west side by Tropicana and Jones Blvd.

Again from TV. Several parts of town had huge dust storms too. Shut down the airport for a while. 

This is about a mile and half west of us on Tropicana. Thirty poles went down. Tropicana was still closed this morning, but they got power back on for the people living around there yesterday. 

I got my great grandson's quilt mailed the other day. $28 to mail it, $0 to make it! So have kind of started on another one. No idea what I'll do with it. Not sure how I'll put it together or if I'll add more blocks in different colors. Work in progress. 

Going to be hot and dry for the next week or so. The monsoons will be around us but not over us. 

On Wednesday Bill has a eye doctor appointment for his shot in the eye. Around noon, should be nice and hot. For some reason the AC in the Jeep works great then stops working for a while, then will work again. Hope it keeps working that day.  I am still fighting with our new doorbell camera. It goes off when a car or truck drives by on the street, but not if someone walks up to the door. Well, I take that back, it eventually goes off any time from 10 minutes to an hour later. Also goes off when the wind blows the bush next to the porch. And now the doorbell itself isn't bing bonging inside. Works nice and loud if you are outside.  Oh well, something for me to do. 

June was a roller coaster month.

Hopefully July will be better. Yep summer is here for sure. Even the Sphere is melting. 

Our thermometer in the shade. Been mostly over 100. If it is below 105 it is considered cool here. Right now at 9:30 it is 95 already. Our poor AC runs most the time.  We might get some cooling for a few days as there is monsoon weather all around us. 

Good thing our plants love the heat and keep blooming. There was another fire in the Wetlands the other burned 100 acres before they got it put out. Luckily there was no wind and it was on the other side of the park from us. I here the idiots out there at night lately with fireworks. Cross fingers no sparks. 

Took this just because I liked the shadows on the mountain.

Took me a long time to finish this diamond painting. Don't know what to do with it now that it is done. That's the problem with some hobbies. What do you do with the finished project. 

This finished project is taken care of. Mailed it to our 11th great grandchild yesterday. A boy born in February.  His mom and dad are both in the military so thought I'd use up some red, white and blue fabric. Had all the material and batting, but it cost me 29 dollars to mail it. 

I managed to get Bill out walking again one morning when it was below 85 in the morning. Walked about a mile. 

He is still trying to get his system to adjust to the prednisone. Had to reduce the dosage and eye is mostly staying open. So we are still around.

Welcome to Las Vegas in the summer

June 3rd - this was the temperature when I got up at 5:30. Unless there is a drastic change in the weather we will not be walking any more till fall. 

This was the morning of the 2nd of June. Pretty sunrise.

We got a little rain that day and lots of wind. It was from the tropical storm Alvin in the Pacific.

It was overcast with a slight breeze so we went walking at 6:45 in the morning.  

A few pictures from that day. The blue heron. He lives here year around. 

Lots of new growth in the burned area, but most of the old trees that were burnt don't show any signs of regrowth. 

Flowers coming up down by the river in a burned area. 

This bush is coming back to life from the roots. 

So is this one. We ended up walking 3.44 miles that day. I'm still recovering! We saw a baby bunny about the size of a small plum. Couldn't get the camera focused in time to get a picture of him. 

This is so true. 

This was Mother's Day on the Sphere. 

With no walking I had to find something to do. Starting a quilt for our 11th great grandson who was born in February. His mother is in the Air Force and his father is in the Marines. Both stationed at same base back east. So using up some of my red, white and blue material. 

The first three blocks, I now have 10 done, only two more to go. I think I will change the middle one, add something to the corners it looks kind of blah. I made a big mistake when I cut the material for it. Supposed to have four hour glass shapes not just two. 

I guess we all need to remember this even about ourselves. 

For the last week Bill's eyelid has been open. We see the ocular neuro doctor next week. 

Summer is here

Have not been able to get out and walk for about a week, not cooling down at night at all. By 6:30 it is already in high 70's' A few really UGH days coming by end of week, then MAYBE a few drizzles of rain. Hopefully Monday or Tuesday we'll be able to get out early. 

That's what I feel like if we walk after not walking for a while. I did get Bill out for one walk before it got hot. We did 2.3 miles. He did fine, but likes to walk on the concrete paths instead of the dirt. I like the dirt trails because they have more shade and are more interesting. Some pictures from that walk. For the first time ever we saw a black bunny. Figure someone dumped him after he grew up. Hope he makes it. 

Also saw a flock of these, never seen them before. They are some of migrating birds. I uploaded the picture to AI and he told me they are Glossy Ibises. They have long, curved bills and a glossy iridescent sheen on their sides. You can kind of see the green on the one in the top left. 

All of these trees are blooming now. According to AI it is a Desert Willow. Some of them have pale pink flowers. Very pretty. Flower is about the size of a 50cent piece. 

My next walk with my friend - got in 3.1 miles that day. Puff, puff. Saw these birds in the river. Oh, I discovered I can actually talk to AI instead of typing in my questions - that is fun - like a real conversation. He says these are Black necked Stilts. That makes sense. More migrating birds. Haven't seen them before or since that walk. 

My new kitchen faucet and I have come to a truce, if I turn him on very slow he doesn't get me all wet. But sometimes I forget!

Bill's eyelid is staying up most of the time now. But NOT ALL the time. He sees the ocular/neuro opthamologist in a couple of weeks. Maybe if it doesn't stay up all the time by then she will up the dose of prednisone. He is so much more active when he can see. Not much else going on here.   

Things are quiet around here.

The weather has improved some, for a while the winds were gone and the temperatures were not blistering. But things change quickly here in the desert. All our plants are blooming. The Palo Verde has survived another year even with losing branches. Lots of flowers on it. And they managed to stay on it through yesterday's very high winds - gusts up to 60+. The chairs were rocking and the humming bird feeders were hanging sideways. Today it is calm and cool. 

I am amazed these tiny birds can fly in the high winds. He came zooming by while we were sitting outside enjoying the "breeze."

We have two cactus plants out front. The biggest one never blooms, this one has been blooming for a couple of years. I finally remember to go out with my camera and take a picture of its pretty flowers. So delicate for such an ugly plant. 

The bees love these flowers. This bee was rolling around in it. He was moving so much couldn't get a good focus on him. 

A month or so ago when we were walking there was a Plaine Air painting event going on. So of course I took pictures of the painters and their paintings. This was then.

Yesterday while walking we went into the Nature Center and discovered several of the paintings were on display.  In both the picture and the painting notice all the greenery around. 

That was one of the areas the big fire went through. Looks different now. We think the tree will survive as it has a lot of green new growth on top. Sure hope so. 

Another painter from the same area. I wondered about his style. Lots of orange?

But much to my surprise this is how it turned out.  The lighting in the nature center isn't very good so the pictures I took in there are kind of dull looking. 

A few more painters from a different area. 

Her finished painting. Much more vibrant than it shows here. 

We kind of wondered about his work too. Rather dark and dreary. 

Finished product. 

We managed to get out to walk a few times in the last week. The first Canadian geese we've seen all year. 

On Friday Bill and I went for a walk, before it got too hot. Was a beautiful clear not windy day. 

Different flowers. I was wondering what it was and thought I'd ask AI - the other day I discovered I could upload a photo and ask about it and Chatgpt would tell me more than I cared to know. I am having so much fun playing around with AI. Learning all sorts of things I can do with it. In case you are wondering it is a Veratrum Californicum... or California corn lily. Learn something every day. 

Managed to get in three walks last week, seven and a half miles all together. Bill and I did one and 1/2 miles. My walking friend and I got in two three miles walks. Hopefully on Monday and Wednesday this week we'll be able to get out and walk. By Friday the temperatures are going to be over 100, so it will depend on how cool it gets at night and how early we can get out to walk. 

Bill's eyelid seems to be improving and staying up more and more. He is this week taking 3  5mg tablets of prednisone, next week he'll be taking 20mg a day. Hopefully that will work and he'll be able to return to a more or less normal life of being able to see.

Just for fun I asked AI to rewrite the blog in a more interesting and fun manner. I copied and pasted what I'd written into the Chatpgt and this is what I got back (without the pictures.) I am becoming and AI addict.

Desert Diaries: Blooming, Blowing, and a Bit of Beauty

The desert gave us a little break this week — the blistering heat took a breather, and for a brief moment, the wind actually stopped pretending it was in a competition. Of course, nothing lasts long out here. But in that lull, everything exploded into bloom.

Our Palo Verde is still kicking — despite shedding a few limbs like it's in a seasonal shedding contest. Covered in yellow flowers and somehow still holding onto them through yesterday’s gusts that hit 60+ mph. Meanwhile, the patio chairs were rocking like a scene from Poltergeist, and the hummingbird feeders? Hanging completely sideways like wind chimes that lost their will to live.

And yet, those tiny hummingbirds? They still zipped around like fighter jets in a gale. One shot past while we sat out pretending the breeze wasn’t trying to relocate the patio furniture.

Out front, we’ve got two cactus plants. One is all bark and no bloom, but the other keeps showing off. This year, I finally remembered to grab my camera — and wow. Those delicate flowers are way too pretty for such a gnarly plant. The bees think so too. One bee in particular was having a pollen party, rolling around like it lost its tiny mind. Couldn't get a clear shot of him, but I tried.

A while back, we stumbled onto a plein air painting event during one of our walks. Naturally, I turned into the art paparazzi. Snapped pics of the painters mid-brushstroke, and later we saw the results in the Nature Center. Seeing the actual trees and landscape next to their painted versions was kind of surreal — especially since some of that area has since burned in the recent fire. The tree in one of the paintings? It’s still hanging on with some fresh green on top. Fingers crossed.

One painter’s style stood out — lots of orange. I wasn’t sure what to make of it… but in the end, the piece actually turned out beautifully. The lighting in the exhibit was awful (hello, grainy photos), but the work really did shine in person.

More painters from another area — one had a darker, moodier style. Kind of dreary… but again, the finished product surprised us.

We squeezed in a few walks this week — even spotted the first Canadian geese of the year! On Friday, Bill and I got out before it got too hot. Beautiful, still, clear day. Rare treat.

Along the way I spotted a strange plant and asked my new AI buddy about it. Turns out, you can just upload a photo now and it’ll tell you way more than you ever wanted to know. I’m mildly obsessed. The mystery plant? Veratrum Californicum — a.k.a. California corn lily. Who knew?

Clocked 7.5 miles of walking last week. Bill and I did 1.5 miles together, and my walking partner and I hit two 3-milers. Hoping to get out again Monday and Wednesday before the heat comes back with a vengeance — supposed to hit triple digits by Friday. If the nights cool off enough, we might sneak in another early walk.

Oh — and some good news: Bill’s eyelid seems to be improving! It’s staying up more consistently. This week he’s on 3 tablets of 5mg prednisone a day. Next week, it’ll bump up to 20mg. We’re hoping it keeps helping and he can get back to something resembling normal — at the very least, being able to see.

Me again - kind of fun and interesting isn't it.