These lovely roses are in the vase this weekend. We got them yesterday during our regular weekly trip to the supermarket. I love the orange color! Click on the image to enlarge.
Fuel Prices Up 15% Since Jan. 1st
I can remember Senator Charles Schumer (D -NY) standing in front of the pumps and blaming Bush for the high cost of fuel. Well, now that the same effects of not drilling (courtesy Congress and the Whitehouse) are showing up at the pumps, I doubt that any Democrats are going to decry this administration’s policies. Meanwhile, ANWR, Gulf Oil and domestic drilling lie fallow.
Cleveland Sage Flower
We were in the courtyard this afternoon and discovered our first Cleveland Sage Flower. Not only is it very pretty, but the fragrance is very sweet. We planted three bushes in the courtyard last June, and this is the first time a flower has appeared. The landscaper says that when there are many of these open at the same time that the fragrance can fill the whole courtyard. I can’t wait! Click on the image to enlarge.
A Tale of Two Mountains
Mount Rushmore’s faces took fourteen years to carve in the sandstone of the Black Hills of South Dakota. Mount Obama took less than three years to build (admittedly with a head start from previous administrations). Ramirez notes this in his cartoon today:
p.s. Happy (actual) Washington’s Birthday!
Flight of Four
We spotted this flight of four F-16s over Wal Mart in Surprise, AZ today. We enjoy seeing the training that takes place at the Surprise Auxiliary Field – a part of Luke AFB in Phoenix. This group appeared to be maneuvering for a landing at the base.
This is from the official Luke AFB Site:
Luke is the largest and only active-duty F-16 training base in the world with over 135 F-16s assigned. We trained more than 430 F-16 pilots last year many of whom are student pilots who came to this base straight from pilot school to receive intense training on the F-16. These pilots graduate from Luke and proceed to combat assignments throughout the world.
Luke airmen are also deployed around the world in support of several contingency operations protecting U.S. interests abroad. Luke AFB trains more than 50 percent of the USAF’s fighter force and 90 percent of its F-16 pilots. Nearly every F-16 pilot flying in Afghanistan and Iraq was trained at Luke AFB. The F-16 represents the most fundamental form of Air Superiority, Global Attack, Rapid Global Mobility, and Precision Engagement. The pilots trained at Luke formed the backbone of USAF’s fighter force for Operations NOBLE EAGLE, ENDURING FREEDOM, and IRAQI FREEDOM.
We often see and hear flights over Wickenburg on their way to/from the Gladden One Military Operational Area, just to the North and West of our home. When the jets fly over us there, they are often too high to see even though we hear them. That is why we like to see them near their base because we can see them. God bless our Military!
President’s Day
The Town of Wickenburg has a policy of displaying the Stars and Stripes on holidays. Presidents Day is no exception. These flags are on Wickenburg Way, just across the road from the auto repair shop where we had one of the vehicles serviced today. Click on the image to enlarge.
