Monday, May 20, at home in Arizona
With all the wild and treacherous weather experienced by several readers across the U.S., let’s start off with something sunny, bright, and calm.
Yellow poppies and blue lupine spilling across a yard to the street
As a relatively new resident of southeastern Arizona, I’m fascinated with the way my neighbors create their own versions of paradise. I’m talking mainly about their yards.
One day a few weeks ago I take a different route into town and come upon this profusion of blooms in the yard of a neighbor up the street. (Difficulty moving photos from my old computer to the new one caused a delay in posting these pics.)
Slowing the Perfect Tow Vehicle . . . .
I notice an elderly lady coming down the porch steps of her modest mobile home. Her home is like a boat riding rolling waves of yellow and blue.
“Hello!” I call from my seat in the PTV. “Your yard is absolutely gorgeous! I’ve never seen anything like this!”
Yellow poppies and blue lupine all around her house
A conversation ensues.
“How did you create this?” I ask admiringly.
She responds, “Nature did it!”
I introduce myself and explain I bought the stucco house up the street about a year ago. She tells me she came here in the late 90s with her husband.
“He’s since passed. I decided to stay here because I love the neighborhood.”
On the way into town . . . .
That woman is proof you don’t need a lot of money to be surrounded by beauty.
~ ~ ~
This is Arizona!
From some of the comments that appeared in response to my question about whether to sell the Best Little Trailer, it seems there are readers who imagine the crew and I are living in the low elevation, hottest areas of the state. Not so! Southeastern Arizona is predominantly higher elevation and thus cooler than places like Yuma or Ajo.
To tell the truth . . .
I’m somewhat surprised by the cool weather at our house.
Reggie and Roger were chest-high in snow!
Not only did I not expect all the snow of last winter, I never thought we’d have a day in late May with a high of only 62 degrees. A chill wind is blowing today, after a morning with rain. The sky is overcast.
One thing that is very Arizona: Even on an overcast day, it doesn’t turn dark and dreary. I like that. Also sunny days return quickly. In a week, temperatures will be in the high 80s again.
Wherever you are, I hope you have calm, sunny days, too.
Oh, dear . . . . As I’m typing the above, a comment comes in from a faithful reader informing me of a freeze warning for the morning.
And my petunias just recently became luxuriant and the stubborn Mexican squash transplants finally got over their sulk!
“If you don’t quit sulking, I’m not going to water you any more!”
~ ~ ~
“You did it, Roger! You did it!”
A bigger hassock with a small rug on top did the trick!
Roger jumps up onto the bed with no hesitation or fear. He just didn’t like that dark brown hassock at all!
This wheeled hassock from the thrift store was $3. It’s handy for putting on shoes. The green, flowered rug, in new condition, was $15.
One of these days I might paint that brown dresser. It’s the only dark thing in the room. For now, a runner on top ($1) lightens it up a bit.
Roger is up and down off the bed several times every day. Reggie, too.
~ ~ ~
About thrifting . . . .
I have a new mission when I go to the thrift store: to find art by Arizona artists. This new quest began when I picked up a numbered and signed watercolor print by W.T. Zivic.
“Waiting for Juan” by W.T. Zivic ($10 for framed print) 8″ x 11″
The color in the photo isn’t quite right, but you get the idea. It’s nicely matted and framed and hangs near the back door entrance.
The interior of our house evolves.
Coming in the house from the back yard, through the patio sliding door, the décor is western. As you walk through the house to the other end, the décor changes, ending with the romantic traditional you see in the bedroom pics.
These two watercolor prints are by another Tucson watercolorist, Jerry Becker.
“Abandoned Adobe” by Jerry Becker (5″ x 7″)
“Taos Pueblo” by Jerry Becker (5″x 7″)
It pained me to see these prints in a cardboard box along with old, dusty, crappy pictures and dilapidated frames. The price for each print, matted and framed? One dollar.
They are worth way more than that to me. Sometimes I’ll walk by and then step back to enjoy a moment in the desert.
~ ~ ~
I cook with the griddle every day.
Turkey sausage, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, French green beans, Brussels sprouts, and squash grilled in olive oil with garlic powder.
~ ~ ~
For those who don’t read comments . . .
I’ve decided that The Best Little Trailer and Perfect Tow Vehicle will stay with us for a while longer. I’m still playing with the idea of fixing the PTV for camping.
I could get a metal bed frame down at the thrift store . . . . Find someone to remove the bench seat . . . . Might be kind of fun to take spontaneous trips, discover why folks love van camping.
“Whattayathink, little boondockers? Wanna’ give up that big bed to go camping?”
rvsue
P.S. Hassock or ottoman? Which is it? — Sue
THANK YOU FOR VISITING MY BLOG!
RVSue and her canine crew is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
Shop Amazon Devices – Fire 7 Tablet: Trade-In and Save
Shop Amazon – Best Selling Products – Updated Every Hour
As always, I appreciate you shopping Amazon from my blog. — Sue
~ ~ ~
