Before
Hole in the Bedroom Wall to fix the cold water pinhole leak:
After
Same wall after “Handyman Jay” performed the mold/mildew abatement and treatment, installed new dry wall and paint. Like it never happened.
Amateur Radio Field Day
I took a break from our usual Saturday activities at home to visit with the Hassayampa Amateur Radio Klub at their Field Day site in the Garcia Schoolhouse near Old Downtown Wickenburg.
The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Field Day is an annual event in which amateur radio clubs and individual amateurs can participate to demonstrate their emergency communications capabilities.
I took my camera and got a few shots of the operation; there were three stations working in the schoolhouse. The first station seen in the (clickable) image below is the CW station, or communications via Morse Code. I am surprised that having been off the air for a while that I could still copy the Morse callsigns and text in my head as I listened.
The next station seen below is a digital modes station; there are several digital modes available and they all work to transmit text or possibly images via a computer interface.
The third and final station is a voice mode station that probably is using a popular voice mode called Single Sideband (SSB).
All of the stations had a computer on the side to perform the logging necessary for the contacts made. Logs are submitted to the ARRL which issues awards to contest winners in the various categories.
I have to admit that I thought about getting back on the air, but some matters related to home repair will have to take precedence. More on that situation at another time.
Ancestry Anomalies – Part 1
Several years ago, Damsel and I decided to join the Ancestry® Genealogy Service to start tracing our heritage back a few generations. Damsel’s sister, who is an ancestry enthusiast, got us interested in getting started in the whole genealogy thing.
We both did the DNA testing and each of us have found and have been in contact with cousins we never knew about. That is a subject for another post since this one will highlight the first in a series of anomalies in our family tree. We already posted about a Native American Ancestor a while back. Damsel’s tree will not be detailed here since her sister has most of that on a separate account.
Common logic dictates that a person has two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents and so forth up to a large theoretical number in eons gone by, most commonly on powers of two. We have traced only as far as to our 6th great grandparents, which, in theory, should be a total of 256 6th level ancestors. Of course, this is not the case in my tree as we shall discuss below.
Consider the image above; the lowest level couple would be my 2nd great-grandparents, i.e my Dad’s great-grandparents on his Dad’s side. The highest level couple are my 6th great grandparents (one of 128 possible couples). Looking at the left side of the diagram, you can see two generations between the top couple and my great-great-grandpa John. On the right side of the diagram, you can see three generations between the same top couple and my great-great-grandma, Rebecca. That would seem to make the top couple, John B and Dorcas D both my 5th and 6th level great grandparents. In the first generation below John B and Dorcas D, John B Jr. and Elizabeth are siblings, making the union between John M and Rebecca as first cousins twice removed.
Here is a 1895 photo of John and Rebecca who were related as shown in the diagram. None of their descendants, to my knowledge, had any symptoms of close inbreeding. This photo taken late in their lives at the hotel they managed in Pacolet Springs, South Carolina. Photo not clickable.
Red Bird of Paradise
Flowers Now Opening
Now that the 2023 Red Bird of Paradise Flowers are opening, the butterflies seem to know that they are available for nectar browsing. This little beauty visited this morning.
These flowers dominate the courtyard in the summertime. This is one of the first flowers to appear this year.
The “Red Bird of Paradise” a.k.a. “Pride of Barbados” shrubs are ready to “take over” in the courtyard now. More about these from Desert Tropicals:
The Red Bird of Paradise is a relatively frost sensitive Caesalpinia, and it is generally better to trim it close to ground in winter. This keeps it more compact without seeming to delay it in spring. The canes tend to freeze in all but the warmest areas, and even if they don’t, the new growth in April is somewhat ungainly. For this reason many gardeners cut the bush to the ground at the end of November, and it will grow back green and compact in mid spring.
Image information: Canon EOS Rebel J6i, Action Program, ISO 100, T=1/800 sec., A=F5, Lens EF-S18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM. Click on either image to enlarge.
Spring Flowerburst
We spent the early part of the Holiday yesterday in remembrance of those who were unable to return from the battles that kept America a Free and Sovereign Republic. We also recognize that all of our battles aren’t necessarily “out and out warfare” in the classical sense. We have plenty of troubles domestically with those wishing to disarm and enslave us. So, prepare accordingly.
Now, we will post some of the beautiful flowers that are opening daily in this late spring season in and around our Arizona home. Photo credits are both Damsel and CapnBob. Click on the images to enlarge.
Cherry Red Cactus Flower Cluster:
Cactus flower of unknown species – a gift from our sister, BB:
A Fish Hook Cactus Flower:
A Flower Trio from our Argentine Giant Cactus:
These are but a small fraction of the flowers we see here each spring. Some cacti are native and some are imported from elsewhere. We hope you enjoyed your Holiday and our flower photos. Come back soon.
Memorial Day 2023
We honor those who gave their 100% for the freedom we enjoy. We will be celebrating solemnly on this Memorial Day.
Flowering Paloverde Trees
This is the time of year when most of the paloverde trees get bright yellow flowers on them. In addition to the naturally occurring native paloverde trees in this part of the desert, we asked our landscape guys to provide some additional trees for us. In July of 2021, they planted a mesquite and a paloverde along the west side of our lot. The tree in the (clickable) image above is how the 2021 paloverde looks today, all decked out in little yellow flowers.
Last August, 2022, we had the landscape guys plant two more little paloverdes in front of the house along the road. Those trees are also showing off their flowers this week (pictured below).
In the preceding (clickable) image, you may notice a few native desert paloverdes also with yellow canopies on the hillside west of our abode (image left). As we took our afternoon stroll today, we enjoyed seeing not only all the desert paloverdes in bloom, but some of the saguaro flowers are starting to open up. Spring is a beautiful time in the desert. Cool too – only 97 today in the shade.