A Very Late Cholla Flower

A Very Late Cholla Flower

We went out on the patio last evening and I saw something yellow on the cholla across the RV drive to the west. I thought it was a cholla flower, but it’s really late in the flowering season for new buds. But, there it was.

I looked for flowers on the other cholla on the property and could not see any. I also looked for more buds on this cholla and, likewise, found none. This one flower is very pretty, though. Click on the image to enlarge.

Diversionary Tactics of the Left

The latest meme in O-land is for Harry Reid to lie and Nancy Pelosi to swear to it. With the economy and jobs market still in shambles, the Administration has no choice but to create diversionary tactics. They certainly cannot run on their record on ANY topic.

OK so if Romney shows his tax records, will Obama show his university transcripts?

Diversionary Tactics of the left

Cartoon via The Patriot Post

Curiosity Lands Safely on Mars

Curiosity

Congratulations to NASA and JPL team for the safe landing of the Curiosity Mars Science Laboratory.

Mission Information courtesy JPL/NASA:

Mission name: Mars Science Laboratory

Rover name: Curiosity rover

Size: About the size of a small SUV — 10 feet long (not including the arm), 9 feet wide and 7 feet tall — (about 3 meters long (not including the arm), 2.7 meters wide, and 2.2 meters tall), or about the height of a basketball player.

Arm Reach: About 7 feet (2.2 meters)

Weight: 900 kilograms (2,000 pounds)

Features: Geology lab, rocker-bogie suspension, rock-vaporizing laser and lots of cameras

Mission: To search areas of Mars for past or present conditions favorable for life, and conditions capable of preserving a record of life

Launch:
7:02 a.m. PST, Nov. 26, 2011
(10:02 a.m. EST)

Landing:
10:31 p.m. PDT, Aug. 5, 2012
(1:31 a.m. EDT, Aug. 6, 2012)

Length of mission on Mars: The prime mission will last one Mars year or about 23 Earth months.

Image courtesy JPL/NASA. Click to enlarge

Cabela’s Fourth Birthday

cabela-four-years.jpg

Today is Cabela’s fourth birthday (according to the Humane Society’s estimate). She was recovered at the Everett Bowman Rodeo grounds here in Wickenburg in August of 2010 and we adopted her shortly after that.

She is in excellent health (we took her to the vet this week for vaccine boosters) and is a very active dog. We over fed her for about eight months before putting her on a diet and now she is at a perfect weight of thirteen pounds.

Click on the image to enlarge.

Courtyard – One Year Progress

A few days ago, Damsel posted a photo of the courtyard in bloom. I was looking through the archives from about a year ago and found a similar photo of the courtyard as it then appeared. I made a mini-slideshow using the two photos to compare then and now. Of particular note is the Cleveland sage growth in just a year. Click the image to alternate between the two.


Topaz and Vendela Roses

Topaz and Vendela Roses

Today was grocery shopping day and, as usual, we brought some flowers home. These are Topaz (left) and Vendela roses. They are looking gorgeous in the crystal vase on the sofa table in the great room. Click on the image to enlarge.