Enoki

He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not

Old Garage

Phoenix, Arizona

Mums in Black and White

The Blue Bike

                                                                          Nacogdoches, Texas

Swirling Skies

A late afternoon monsoon in the desert ~ Phoenix, AZ, August 24, 2010

This photo is a little grainy but I think I like it that way.

Window in Del Norte Place

This is a stained glass window I saw on the side of a house one day while I was walking through Del Norte Place, one of Phoenix's historic districts.  Del Norte was established by Dr. James C. Norton, the territorial veterinarian of Arizona who later sold his home and half his property to the City of Phoenix while developing his remaining property into what is now one of our historic districts.  For a picture of Dr. Norton's home, built in 1912 and which still stands today, see Kathy Goes A Ramblin'.

For other blues of every genre, visit Rebecca's Midweek Blues.

13/100 Strangers ~ Felipe

Felipe delivered a Billy Goat to my house a couple weeks ago for the lawn.  Now before you start thinking I'm nuts, Billy Goat was the brand name of a machine used for aeration purposes!  Felipe works for an equipment rental company and has been there 13 years, although I didn't think he looked old enough to have worked anywhere for 13 years.  He gave Sam the handyman a quick lesson on how to make the Billy Goat do its job, but he had to come back later because a belt had slipped off.  Sam was within 15 minutes of finishing the whole thing so Felipe waited so he could take Billy Goat back home again.  He and I stood on the patio watching Sam's progress, and it was then I noticed how tall he was.  When asked, he responded that he is 6'5" and added, "I'll bet you've never seen a Mexican that tall!"  I had to agree I had not.

Thanks for giving me the opportunity to meet a really tall Mexican and for being my 13th Stranger, Felipe!

Mother's Day

I wish I could have waited another nine months to post this for Mother's Day, but I couldn't.  I've tried and tried to take pictures of horses here in Phoenix but my little point-and-shoot is just not meant for far-away photos.  Luckily for me while I was on vacation in Texas, one of my mother's neighbors just down the road has kids who are active in 4-H and they have goats and sheep and .......... yep, horses.  This mother and colt were so tame and standing right by the fence by Mother's gate leading to her bottom land that I was actually able to walk up and pet them ~ and get some wonderful photos.

Deep East Texas

Deep East Texas is a subregion of East Texas and much of it lies in what is often called the Piney Woods.  It is so deep it's sometimes like a jungle.   In fact, when the Columbia space shuttle disintegrated over this area in 2003 it was announced that much of the debris would likely never be found because of the dense forestation and bayou environment of this region.  Vines abound everywhere.  Much of this two-story building is no longer visible because of the thick growth of the vegetation.  In all likelihood the red brick structure will probably be completely absorbed in another few years.

Woodmen of the World

This old building is located near the little community of Arcadia (locally pronounced Ar-Kade-ee) in Shelby County, Texas.  It originally sat about a mile down the road but was later moved to its present spot.  The outhouse was moved with it but is about 50 yards from the building and is not shown here.  My mother recalls that at one time the ground floor was used as a church and the top floor was the meeting hall of the Woodmen of the World fraternal organization.  It has a weathered tin roof which was typical of construction in both Arizona and Texas around the turn of the century.  People are actually going back to metal roofs these days because other than possible wind damage they are practically indestructible. 

Golden Doorway

Many homes of Southwestern architecture have an exterior door in a wall surrounding the home that simply leads into a courtyard.  I discovered this one one day while on a walk near Central Avenue and Bethany Home Road.  I loved the richness of the brown wood, the golden tint of the sunshine coming from behind as well as the blue sky above.  I suppose the bell is to ring the announcement of someone's entry to step beyond the doors into a garden.

12/100 Strangers ~ Casey

I found Casey early one Saturday morning at the farmers market that I like to frequent.  He was manning a booth for Dr. Hummus.  He offered up several delightful samples of tahini-free hummus, meaning it has no sesame oil.  I was intrigued by his beautiful hazel eyes. 

Thanks, Casey, for the hummus samples and for being my No. 12 Stranger.

Rooster Standoff

I'm reaching out to all you clever bloggies out there to come up with a good caption for this picture.  The winner will be announced tomorrow.  The prize?  Being announced as the winner tomorrow!