Cap'n Bob & the Damsel

Damsel

Rose Quartz & Cactus Rescue

Rose Quartz

We found a large, rather flat piece of rose quartz up in the back of the lot today. We have plenty of rose quartz rock laying around, but this almost looked as though it had been cut. Click on the image to enlarge.

Bob found the stone while up in back rescuing a queen-of-the-night cactus that a palo verde branch fell on in the microburst last summer. The queen cactus is in a pot (image) waiting for the cut to dry up so it will (hopefully) take root and can live closer to the house or maybe in the patio.

We also rescued several paddles (image) from a tree-like prickly pear (image) on the new lot that toppled onto its side, presumably in the same microburst that took down the palo verde branch. Those will be taking root in a pot for the time being before being transplanted to the west side of the property where our cactus garden grows.

08 Feb 2015 by Arizona Home & Garden

Water Dog

Water Dog

We took the dogs to the dog park today. It was a nice day with about a 76 degree high temperature. The dogs did their usual off-the-leash thing in the over-an-acre fenced-in compound, running, sniffing and making contact with the other dogs in the park.

Beethoven (Bay Bay) has a penchant for jumping in the small tub that is in the park. Today, however, the tub was dry when he first jumped in. He got out and splashed in a nearby puddle, seeming disappointed.

I filled the tub with water and after another run around the park, he was back for more. This time he had water. He jumped in, immersed himself (except for his snout) swam a few (very short) laps and jumped out as depicted above, having satisfied his waterlust. Click on the image to enlarge.

06 Feb 2015 by Arizona Critters Photography

Yellow and Orange Gerbera Daisies

Yellow and Orange Gerbera Daisies

I bought a bunch of orange and another bunch of yellow Gerbera Daisies to combine in the vase on the sofa table today. The colors are highly compatible together but look more like fall colors than winter or spring. Regardless, they are very pretty flowers. Click on the image to enlarge.

05 Feb 2015 by Arizona Flowers Home & Garden Photography

Hummingbird Feeder

Hummingbird Feeder

Just before opening the patio door to get a shot of the little hummers on the feeder, one of the two that were perched there flew off. This little guy, however, stayed to enjoy some more nectar sips while I took several pictures of him. It was drizzling at the time, but the hummingbirds don’t seem to mind. As a matter of fact, when it was snowing on New Years Eve, the little guys were still coming for the nectar. Click on the image to enlarge.

01 Feb 2015 by Arizona Critters Home & Garden Photography

Asparagus Sprout

Asparagus SproutOn Friday, I got out a bunch of asparagus that we put in water to keep it fresh in order to make some asparagus soup. When I got the bunch out, I noticed that one of the spears was much longer than the others and another was already showing signs of sprouting as well.

The largest spear had been growing in the measuring cup I use to hold the bunch while we’re getting ready to use them a few days after buying them in the produce department at the supermarket. I can’t recall seeing any other asparagus spears doing this well (if doing at all) in the shallow water in the cup.

The bottom line is that I chopped up all of the asparagus in the bunch, added some savory ingredients and some bread to thicken the mixture. I then put the mixture in the blender to render a nice aromatic mix. I topped it off at the serving table with some pancetta (Italian bacon) as a garnish. Needless to say, it was a very tasty and healthy late lunch soup that we enjoyed on last Friday.

Yes, I’m good. Click on the image to enlarge.

31 Jan 2015 by Arizona Food & Dining

Solar Corona and Sun Dogs

Solar Corona and Sun Dogs

This afternoon, I noticed a bright sun dog visible through the window in the living room. I grabbed my camera and took this photo of the sky with one of the front patio posts between the camera and the glare of the sun.

The original photo has been post-processed to achieve the effects of a slower film speed and shorter exposure time. It has further been processed to bring out the colors with a greater saturation setting. Click on the image to enlarge.

23 Jan 2015 by Arizona Environment Photography

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