I bought a dozen bright “Hot Princess” roses when we shopped today. I put them in the vase with the yellow “Isabel” roses from last week and the colors compliment each other perfectly. Click on the image to enlarge.

We interrupt the party to act concerned about unemployment . . .

Via The Patriot Post.

In addition to it’s old western town charm, Wickenburg has another feature which we enjoy - it’s a railroad town. The trains no longer stop in Wickenburg - they stopped operations back in 1969 but the track that runs through town is still active with trains coming through several times a day.

The old Santa Fe railroad station has been restored and currently houses the town’s visitor center and Chamber of Commerce. Behind the station is this nice old coal-burner on a siding with a tender and a caboose.

Image courtesy Damsel - Click to enlarge.

Our California residence is a quarter mile from the tracks and we rather like to hear the trains as they pass through the nearby railroad crossings. I come by my affection for trains it honestly. Both my Dad and maternal Grandfather worked for the Pacific Electric railroad in Southern California - Dad worked in the powerhouse and Granddad was a motorman for the famous Red Car.

Our new home will be about a half-mile from the track that runs through town. There is a switch northwest of town about three miles where the trains can be routed west toward California or north toward Kingman and Las Vegas.

The first (I hope not only) Golden Torch cactus flower opened up last night. I took this photo of it this morning. I say I hope not only because last year there were a half dozen of the little flower-pods by July and this year I only see the one. Click on the image to enlarge.

Just wait for all the Chicken Little types to try and blame this obviously solar-related phenomenon on Anthropogenic CO² production. From NASA Science:

A Puzzling Collapse of Earth’s Upper Atmosphere

July 15, 2010: NASA-funded researchers are monitoring a big event in our planet’s atmosphere. High above Earth’s surface where the atmosphere meets space, a rarefied layer of gas called “the thermosphere” recently collapsed and now is rebounding again.

“This is the biggest contraction of the thermosphere in at least 43 years,” says John Emmert of the Naval Research Lab, lead author of a paper announcing the finding in the June 19th issue of the Geophysical Research Letters (GRL). “It’s a Space Age record.”

Image: Atmospheric Density over time.

The collapse happened during the deep solar minimum of 2008-2009—a fact which comes as little surprise to researchers. The thermosphere always cools and contracts when solar activity is low. In this case, however, the magnitude of the collapse was two to three times greater than low solar activity could explain.

“Something is going on that we do not understand,” says Emmert.

Gee . . . Ya think?

The now nearly ubiquitous sign proclaiming “Putting America to Work” keeps the taggers busy in East Los Angeles. Despite the grand plans of the Administration and the Democratic Congress to put Americans back in the workforce, the unemployment numbers remain high, especially in urban areas like this depressed area of L.A. County.

It appears that the graffiti- mongers still have time enough to deface this $12,400 sign along Interstate 710 (along with most other signs, bridges, K-rail walls and a lot of private property in the area. I wonder what plans the Administration has to end this defacing?

Oh, yes - suing Arizona ought to clear this right up . . .

Ramírez illustrates the only way to cap the leak . . .

We went to the Desert Caballeros Western Museum today. The museum is currently showing their “Best of the West” exhibition, featuring the finest western collection of saddles and saddlebags, spurs and chaps, western memorabilia and plenty of western history. We actually saw a .45 caliber single action Colt Revolver that was used by Wyatt Earp.

The current exhibit isn’t the only show, however, since there are dioramas of the local history of Wickenburg, Arizona, including artifacts from the mining days and a mineral display. There were plenty of samples of exotic and rare crystals with a black light display of fluorescent minerals, all beautiful.

My favorite part, was the western art section where this colorful rendition of a Native American woman tending the flocks of goats and sheep. There were so many beautiful paintings and sculptures, many by very well known artists. Click on the image to enlarge.

If you happen to come to Wickenburg, don’t miss this great opportunity to take in the many beautiful art works and history of the region. You won’t regret it.

We had some spare time today, so we decided to take a drive out to Lake Pleasant in North Maricopa County, Arizona. It was really too hot to have a picnic like we originally intended, so we drove up to the visitors center and took some pictures. I made this panoramic image that shows only a portion of the lake from Bass Bay on the left to the New Waddell Dam on the right. Click on the thumbnail image for the full panorama - remember to use the scroll bars to pan the image left and right.

We decided to take the scenic route down to Buckeye, Arizona from Wickenburg to shop at Wal-Mart and Lowes. We’re looking for furnishings for the new house - ranges, ovens, refrigerators, laundry appliances etc. plus we needed to pick up a few supplies for our stay here in Arizona this week.

On the way down Vulture Mine Road, we passed through a very scenic area with saguaro cactus, ocotillo, cholla, creosote and palo verde dominated by rugged and imposing Vulture Peak. I believe there is a hiking trail leading to this interesting volcanic mountain peak.

Image - Vulture Peak - click image to enlarge.