Entertainment

Arizona Desert Mining Town

Desert Mining Town

After we took the dogs to the groomer yesterday, we had a couple of hours to ourselves. We decided to head over to an old mining town (and tourist trap) about 25 miles west of Wickenburg.

Unfortunately, when we got there after driving 28 miles on pavement and another 2 miles on dirt, we found that the attraction was closed for the day having been reserved for a photo shoot by some unknown enterprise. We noted a large number of California license plates on the vehicles parked there.

The cowboy that ran things told us that they didn’t have time to notify the media of the closing. He was very apologetic and assured us that if we were to come back on a normal visiting day that he would waive the admission and guided tour fee. I guess we will take him up on that sometime in the near future, before the desert heat gets too out of hand.

The place is called Robson’s Ranch & Mining Camp. We will probably take a trip out there soon.

Another New Camera

Canon SL1As sort of a late Christmas present to myself, I acquired this Canon Rebel EOS SL1 SLR camera. I have used the little point-and-shoot cameras for years, but thought that this would be a good time to upgrade to some serious hardware.

The package I bought included a Canon 75-300mm telephoto lens in addition to the standard 18-55mm lens. One really good thing is that all the lenses are interchangeable with Damsel’s Canon EOS T2 camera.

The new camera has a lot of advanced features that I hope to learn as I transition away from point and shoot. I still will carry the pocket sized A1400 Power Shot when it is not convenient to carry the new camera since it is possible to get some good shots with the point and shoot.

I expect that I can use the new camera to supplement Damsel’s outstanding talents with her camera, perhaps as having the telephoto lens installed when she needs a long shot on one of our planned excursions into the scenic west. Having the second camera ready just may help us to document our travels just that much better.

65th Annual Gold Rush Days Parade


Some readers may recall that I missed the 64th Annual Parade due to falling on my head early the morning of the parade. Fortunately, that did not happen this morning. Damsel and I walked to the parade route (about a quarter mile from home) and thoroughly enjoyed the spectacle.

Billed as the fourth largest parade event in Arizona, we witnessed the passage of some of the usual and some of the most unusual entries in the event. The American Legion Color Guard (local chapter) led the parade with a herd of Watusi Longhorn Cattle in trail. Popular character actor Wilford Brimley rode in the stagecoach along with the Riders in the Sky western music ensemble and several other “Grand Marshalls.”

Many of the classic cars we saw yesterday rode in the parade along with some we had not seen. There were bands, dancers, cowboy poets and a bunch of the local merchants and businesses that passed by. A couple of unusual entries were the Watusi Bull in a Cadillac and the “Poodle Posse” toward the end. We had fun and although we could see traces of snow on the foothills, there was no rain on our parade.

Only in America

larry.jpgNo excuse for not posting anything here today. Busy with dentists, barbers and generally just retirement ‘business.’ We’ll be back with some more posts and pix real soon.

Meanwhile, somebody needs to suggest that Larry the Cable Guy do an episode of “Only in America” that includes “Boomershoot” or some other major firearms event for the redneck viewing pleasure of America.

Everyone have a real good day! See you tomorrow.

The New Entertainment Center

e-center.jpg

The cabinet makers delivered our entertainment center today. We asked them to match the knotted alder wood cabinets that they installed while the house was being built. I think they did an excellent job. We’re watching football this afternoon, so this will be a short post. Click on the image to enlarge.

Thanks For The Rain

thanks-rain.jpg

We played ‘tourist’ today and went to the Desert Caballeros Western Museum in the downtown area. We bought some books on the history of the museum, desert flora and fauna and one about Arizona railroad history. I took this photo of a sculpture of a cowboy kneeling by his horse. The bronze sculpture is called “Thanks for the Rain.” Click on the image to enlarge.

What a Load of Bull

Not talking about the left media but really a load of bull – or possibly steer. We saw this drive by during the Wickenburg Gold Rush Days parade this morning. We don’t know how the suspension in this highly modified Cadillac could take the tons of beast down the road without sagging. Click on the image to enlarge.

load-of-bull.jpg