Friday Photo

Can You Hear Me Now?

 

I've been away from blogging for so long I don't think anyone can hear me anymore!  It's been such a crazy time for the past two or more months that I don't know if I'm coming or going! 

First....Mr. Fix It was here for a month and boy did that go fast.  I have so many great photos of mini-trips to share with you all if I can ever find time to blog!  Here is a sneek peak:

Prickly Pear cactus ice cream from Tortilla Flat!  Yummy!!!

Then just before Mr. Fix-it left, my brother flew in to stay for a month.

Kurt trying to nap with one of my day boarder dogs, Jessie.

Then......all you know what broke loose.  Dad was admitted to the hospital with another blood clot.  They don't want to put him on a blood thinner because he is a risk for falls and because he might not even remember to tell anyone if he did fall.   He was in ICU for about 5 days and he fell twice in the hospital but fortunately didn't hurt himself.  I don't know how he managed to escape hurting himself!!! 

In the middle of all this, Mr. Fix-It had to go home.  Sad.   But at least my brother was here to help.  Dad got so weak in the hospital that he had to go to a Rehab facility because he couldn't even walk.  He's been there almost two weeks now and has complained loudly about it nearly everyday.  To the point that I was so stressed, I almost gave up and brought him home last week.  But I didn't cave because he is getting stronger and can walk a very short way with a walker! 

They want him to stay for two more weeks but I think we will probably bring him home this weekend.  That way, Kurt can be here with me to help for a couple of days before he has to go back home.  Not much of a vacation for him but I am soooo grateful he was here!!

In the meantime....the desert is never boring.  We had a hail storm that made it look like the ground was covered with snow.

And believe me it was freezing!!

But just a few days later.......

Back in the 80's and cactus blooming! (oh and rattlesnakes out too!)

You just never know what life is going to send your way!  And with that....I'm off to see dad at rehab and find out what tribulations are brewing there today!!

A Superior Outing!

Dad will be 84 this coming June.  He is diabetic, has Parkinson's and had a 6-way heart by-pass several years ago.  It gets increasingly more difficult to get him to walk, move around, exercise and his short-term memory is fading.  He would rather eat, nap on the couch and watch westerns.   I'm sure he is doing exactly what he wants but it frustrates me because I see him slowly declining and he won't listen to me.  In other words.....he isn't doing exactly what I want!!!

We just finished with some physical and occupational therapy several weeks ago and already I see the improvements he made, slipping away because he won't do the exercises.  Walking is a challenge, he shuffles because of the Parkinson's and loss of feeling below the knees due to diabetes.  He can't use a cane, the logic part of the brain and the function of moving the cane at the right time don't work together.  He can push a grocery cart but doesn't like to go to the grocery.  Dad could use a walker, but his pride won't let him.  

I am constantly bugging him about getting off the couch, trying to encourage him to do something but he worked all his life and has no hobbies.  The arthritis in his hands make it difficult to hold onto utensils and tools so 'fixing' something is out of the question.  He used to be an avid reader but now tends to forget what he read or where he was in a book.  I try to buy magazines with short articles to keep him engaged but he is only interested in westerns and there aren't many magazines in that genre.  

So why did I bore you with all his medical issues?  Well, about the only thing dad wants to do that gets him off the couch and moving around is going out to eat.  So we do.   He HAS to walk from the car to the restaurant if he wants to eat, so we go out at least once a day.  And yes, eating out that much is heck on my weight!  And it can get boring too.  Dad won't eat chicken nor does he eat Chinese, Mexican or Italian food.  Lunchtime is a circuit of the local fast food places around here for hamburgers and fries but it's easy because I don't have to 'think' about what he will eat.  Suppertime is more of a challenge.  There are only about three different eating establishments that he likes and the menus are overwhelming to him and he never knows what to order.  

After being in Arizona for nearly 4 months, I'm getting pretty tired of going to the same old places.  Last weekend I remembered a tiny, out-of-the-way cafe that I had been to several years back but without dad....Hark the Herald.....Angels are singing!!  A new place to go and just the kind of place he likes!   

So...we tested his blood sugar, packed his insulin, piled into the car and off we went.  Destination.....20 minutes northeast, up in the mountains to the, blink-and-you-miss-it, sleepy little town of Superior, Arizona.  It was a beautiful day with a brilliant blue sky and a couple of puffy white clouds.  Superior is an old mining town established in 1902 built up near the Silver Queen Mine that had been successfully mining copper, silver and gold since 1875.  


So smug and proud of myself that I remembered the old Buckboard Cafe, I could hardly wait to get dad's approval!   That is.....until I pulled into the parking lot.  CLOSED......not one single car.  I didn't know that the cafe was closed on Mondays and Tuesdays and since it was Tuesday, well....we weren't going to eat there!  The only other place in town that I knew of was a Mexican Restaurant and that was out.  By now I was a bit nervous because I didn't want dad's sugar to drop since I had no food with me and it was another 20 minutes down the Mountain.  So I headed back but took the turn that leads  through main street Superior where most buildings are empty, some even falling down. We were just about out of the downtown area (only two cross streets I think!) when, lo and behold, I spotted a cafe on a corner!  Was it open?  YES!!!   Fa la, la, la, la....the Angels are singing again.  

Porter's Cafe

Well....it was a bar too but I like little 'hole in the wall' places like that even though they can be really good or really bad!  The question is, would dad like it?  In we went.   It was so cool....and old...and we were both fascinated with some of the antiques in the place!   

The bar itself was almost as long as the building and sported an old, hazy mirror behind it.

I love the Sepia tone of this photo.  

The food came....we ordered hamburgers.....and they were GREAT!!!

The most interesting and ironic thing in the place was this tattered and very yellowed newspaper laying on the bar for anyone to look at and touch.  Printed on April 12, 1945, the ironic thing about the paper was that it is from Fort Wayne, Indiana.  Fort Wayne is only a few hours north of where we live in Indiana!  And there it was in the middle of the desert.  If only that paper could talk, I would love to know how it got there. 

As we headed back home, we decided it was a successful trip, a beautiful day,  a great lunch and something different.  

All in all, it was truly a Superior outing!  

The Ghost of Thanksgiving Past

My post today is a bit overdue. I've gotten behind lately!

My baby brother came out to visit dad and I for ten days over the turkey day Holiday. 

 

 Here he is on a ladder....in shorts....with a beautiful blue Arizona sky in the background.  Wonder what he's up to......besides the roof!

AHAAA....he's hanging Christmas lights with dad supervising!  In six years of coming to Arizona for the winters, I've never had lights on the house, or inside for that matter!  He even hung cup hooks on the rafter so that I will be able to put up lights every Christmas now.  He is such a good brother and was determined that dad and I have some Christmas spirit since none of our family will be visiting then.

Have I mentioned how great I think my baby brother is?  I'm so proud of him because he lost 90lbs this year!  He is able to do things he's never done before.

Like climb Silly Mountain.  I had so much fun exploring this little foothill of the Superstition Mountains with him.  

 We hiked at least a mile or more up hill and down. He loved it!

Horseback riding is something else he hasn't been able to do in a long time.  He debated about going with me but decided that he should wait a few more months due to his back surgery this past summer.  

So.....he stayed with dad and a friend and I got to go!

Yippee Kaiyay!!

That's me in the big hat with my friend Lorraine doing one of our most favorite things....riding in the Mountains.  It just doesn't get much better than this.  I even got to ride one of my favorite horses at the stable, Mouse.  He is extremely sure-footed going up and down all those rocky climbs.

So maybe when baby brother comes back to visit in March, he will get to ride too! 

Happy Friday everyone and have a great weekend!

Karen

Thar She Blows!!

We had a dust storm warning today!

This is what the view normally looks like from the front yard.

You can see the Superstition Mountains in the background of this older photo.

And.....the same view today!

Hmmm.....just where did that mountain go!?!

Trim a Tree Time!

No I'm not decorating a tree for Christmas yet, though I've heard it's like 50 some days away!!  Yee Gads!  

But I was busy today trimming the trees in the back yard.

Those two trees at the back left hand side of the photo were my victims.

These trees are quite messy and grow very quickly.  Seems I've made an even bigger mess though.  


And tomorrow.....I get to clean it all up and haul it off!!   Yipee, lucky me!
 

A Friday Photo

I think this is an awesome photo of the Elvis Chapel at the Superstition Mountain Museum.

My brother captured them on his cell phone! 

Have a great weekend!
Karen

A Busy Week

This first full week back in Arizona has flown by.  Baby brother and his wife left last Sunday and I've been busy ever since settling in and unpacking.  

Of course, folks have figured out I'm back, maybe because of the vehicle in the driveway but whatever!  At any rate, I am back to grooming and boarding this week with a total of three groom jobs and one day boarder!  

Yes, I had to venture into the dog grooming shed where I knew that baby rattler could be hiding.  Thankfully, I've not seen hide nor skin of him since and that's fine with me.   Hoping it was too noisy around here for him and he has slithered on.  Trust me though.....I am VERY cautious and constantly looking around!  

I must say it is very, very nice to have my 'regulars' come back to see me and see them get so excited.  Well.....mostly excited.  Tigger hates grooming and he knew right where he was this morning when his hu'mom dropped him off!  Dogs DO remember things!  

 

This is Nellie.  She came to board for the day and was SOOOO excited to be here though she's looks pretty relaxed in this photo!  

When she came in the door she wiggled and groaned and carried on to get my attention.  Sure makes me feel good!

A Hint of Fall

My sister-in-law is like the energizer bunny times five.  She doesn't slow down and when she gets something in her head there's no stopping her.  

She was determined I have a touch of fall out here in the arid Arizona desert.  I acquiesced and bought a pumpkin, to her delight!  However, I told her we couldn't carve it because that would more readily attract the Javelina.  

Photo is of a mom and baby.  I have yet to see a Javelina in person though many residents of our community see them on a fairly regular basis. 

Sister-in-law was not about to be gotten the better of by a giant rodent/pig like animal.  

 That should scare anything off don't you think?

 

Anything but Uneventful!

Dad and I landed in Phoenix last Tuesday and things have been, crazy, unusual, scary, messy and stressful, ever since......almost from the time we took off!
 
I 'thought'  it was going well because when we left, Indianapolis was sunny, warm and the plane took off on time.  Clear skies till we got about half way to Phoenix.
 
The first sign of trouble was when dad decided he needed to go to the bathroom on the plane!  He never does that.  But guess what....it was my fault because I forgot to remind him before we boarded.  I knew this wasn't going to go well and it didn't.  After about 60 seconds or less in the bathroom he came out with the front of his pants wet down to the hem.  Can't say it was pleasant for the next two or three hours in a tightly packed and slightly warm plane!  (Before anyone suggests Depends, he already wears them.  However, with his diabetes and Parkinson's, he doesn't always know he has to go till it's almost too late.)

I missed another sign too......we always leave Indy with cold, and clouded over weather and arrive in warm, bright, sunny Phoenix.  I should have guessed something would be different this year, especially when we left beautiful weather behind.   Sure enough, about 200 miles from our destination, things got turbulent.  And we couldn't see the ground till we were nearly landed.  We had arrived in the middle of a dust storm!  Bad enough that any turbulence freaks me out but we circled and were buffeted round and round.  There was a young lady seated next to me who was five months pregnant and I glanced over at her to see her eyes squeezed shut and desperately fanning herself. It could have been worse, she didn't toss her cookies but, oh my, it was touch and go for awhile.  I felt so bad for her.  

My youngest brother and his wife had driven dad's vehicle out for us and they picked us up on time from the airport.   Life was now looking better....well....pretty good.  We arrived home to find the toilet in my bathroom not working.  How did that happen in only four months of being gone and it was fine when I left?  Not good when you have four people needing the bathroom and only one works.  My sister-in-law and I promptly headed for the nearest Wal-mart to buy groceries and a new TV for dad.  We were also pro-active and bought a new toilet flapper assembly so baby brother could fix it the next morning.  

Here is baby brother and SIL putting together a stand for the new TV.  Not sure he is paying as much attention to construction as his wife would like him to be!  

And there is the new TV and stand with, of course, a Western on!!  Have I mentioned, dad doesn't like to watch much else????

Baby brother managed to fix the toilet a few days later when SIL nagged him to do it.  It wasn't the flapper assembly, it was a corroded flange.  Then my utensils drawer in the kitchen fell apart when someone opened it.  Got that fixed and after that, the top of my curtain fell off the back door due to a broken plastic holder thingy.  But it's all good, these are small things and not worth sweating over.  

Unfortunately though, it got worse when baby brother went to take the trash out to the curb.  There it was, right underneath the trash receptacle.....an Arizona rattlesnake.  I've always been lucky and never found one in my yard though neighbors across the street have. 

 There it is in the center of the pictures kind of coiled up and really hard to see in the rocks. 

As if it knew, said snake decided to take off before the fire department could get here to take it away.  (See middle of photo)  It was a baby, only about 12"s long, but deadly.  They say the babies are the most dangerous as they don't know how to control their venom.  Really?  If any of them knew how to control their venom, nobody would get bit right??

I watched in horror as it slithered toward that pipe at the back of my shed assuming it was headed inside it.  Oh no.....nope, didn't happen.  Instead......it went directly for the wall and disappeared up under that lip at the bottom of the shed.  That's right, it went right up through the ledge into the wall inside my shed.  And that's where I groom dogs all winter!  

So now, the thing is in the wall of my grooming room.  The firemen got their after it disappeared and suggested we put out sticky glue traps like ones used for mice.   They didn't think we should silicone the ledge closed because that might force it to come out somewhere inside the shed!!!   Oh freakin great!!!


It's been five days now and no sign of the snake.  My monthly bug man came this morning and put down some 'Snake Away' pellets but where o where is the snake!  Someone else came and moved things inside the grooming room and pronounced it 'safe', however, I get really nervous everytime I go in there.  I have two grooming jobs this weekend so hoping for the best!

More soon!

Bella the Visitor

In Arizona I am busy all winter grooming and boarding dogs but not in the summer in Indiana.

Normally I return to Indiana and mow grass for a living but that changed last summer when dad had to live with me full-time.  I had to give up the lawn business to Mr. Fix-it and so this is my second summer without income. 

Now that dad has purchased a home in a subdivision I have met a few dogs (oh and neighbors too!) , and a few folks have heard about my winter job.  Now....I don't want to start grooming here, at least not this summer.  For one thing, I'm not set up to groom.  The only place I can groom is the garage and it's not insulated or cooled so maybe by next summer I could work toward that.  The other thing is, in Arizona, my customers are snowbirds like me.  They are not looking for a full-time groomer.  Here in Indiana, I don't want to set myself up to groom and only be available to people for four to six months.

I do admit though I am having 'fur withdrawals' this summer since I'm not living at home where Mr. Fix-it and I have two (very senior) dogs.  I can't bring them here, they are too old and it would probably upset them.  I have been looking for a dog to foster but the Greyhound group I contacted wanted someone who was going to be in town longer than me.  

So, when one of my new neighbors asked me to keep their dog overnight, I jumped at the chance.

 
This is Bella.  I wrote about her a couple of post's back.  She's an English Bulldog.  Dad and I had a great time with her.  She was a great boarder, very polite and neat and a personality too.


 
We played tug of war and I wore her out.  For a little thing, she is a powerhouse and all muscle.  She snores though!!!   

She's coming to stay with me again this weekend.  I wonder if they make 'Breathe Right' strips for dogs!?!?!?

Count Down

I have officially begun the count down to heading home.  Only nine days as of tomorrow left here in sunny Arizona.  We've had several 100 degree days but I really don't mind them.  On the other hand, I am not looking forward to the humidity in Indiana.  I would take the 100 degree days here to 80 and humid any day!!

And there is the broken bone in my leg/ankle.  I guess the bone is healed, I have to go back for a final xray but it feels great.  The sprained ankle part though, still gives me some trouble.  I couldn't do any dog grooming for three weeks.  Of course by now, most of the snowbirds are gone so I only have a grooming job once or twice a week now which is fine by me.  So things are slowing down here to say the least.  

I am trying to take advantage of these last several days to relax before dad and I head back.  There will be lots to do there now that dad has purchased a home and he has nothing to go in it.  And I do mean nothing!  No kitchen stuff, towels, furniture, nothing.

But I'm sure that will be fodder for my blogging life once I am dealing with it.   In the meantime, I thought I would show you pictures of what I am enjoying......for now!

This is the gorgeous pool and Community Center at our place.  There are a few people in the water on the other end but again, so many people are gone that often you might be the only one here. 

That is a huge Saguaro cactus.  They grow straight and tall for 70 years before they get their first 'arm', so this guy is pretty old.  

 And then.....there's me!  You can probably detect that my right ankle is still swollen.  Oh....and I painted my toenails to make me feel better when I was wearing that heavy black boot!!  


I hesitate to share these photos with you all.  Don't want you to think I'm bragging.  It's not usual for me to sit and relax like this and trust me, in the height of the winter season, I am rarely down here because there are so many dog grooming appointments.  


But I must say......I am enjoying it......for a few more days!

Packing it In

Won't be starting any rug hook projects until sometime after I get back to Indiana.  Have less than two weeks left in Arizona and I am starting to organize to leave which means packing up my hooked projects, wool, frame, cutter and all that good stuff. 

My latest project is not done but will finish it after I get back and settled in.  Not sure when that will be as I will have a lot to do getting dad and I settled into the house he has purchased back there.  Lot's of shopping to be done for all kinds of stuff so it may take me while to hook again.  Although, my sister-in-law is looking forward to coming over and having a 'hook-in' with me!  Dad's new place is about five minutes from her so that will really be fun to have someone to work with! 

Here are pictures of my latest project.

 

I haven't decided if I will finish this one as a pillow or a hanging mat.  Leaning towards a pillow but it might be too big.  The finished size is 16" x 20".   

Any thoughts? 

More Globe Hopping Photos

We stopped at Subway and ate at the ruins.  Judy E. in the green and Judy and Jan, on the right.  They are the two bandits that stole me away!!

Beautiful flora and fauna on the museum site.

 Snapdragons and Pansy's in the desert!

 

Love the shadows on this photo!

Even the desert Cholla and Prickly Pear cactus were beautiful.

And roses!!  Who would have thought to see roses in the desert!!

Globe Hopping

I went around the Globe in 80 days!  Well....not the world and....it was only for part of a day....but it was Globe non-the-less. 

My good friends Judy and Jan, got me out of the house, crutches and all, last week and we took a road trip up the mountains to sight see in Globe, Arizona. 

The drive has some spectacular mountain views and comes complete with a trip through the Queen Creek tunnel.  

Located in the middle of the Tonto National Forest, Globe is known for it's copper mining.  Copper is still actively mined there today.

Our destination was the Besh-Ba-Gowah Archaeological Park. Here you can walk through an ancient village inhabited from A.D 900 to A.D 1100 by the Hohokam tribe before they disappeared.   

Later, around 1225 A.D., the Salado Indian tribe moved in and constructed the Pueblo seen at the back of this photo.

 The ground level of the Pueblo was used for storage while the second story was living quarters.  Even the rooftop was used by the Salado's. 

I of course, nor did my companions, climb any of the ladders to the next levels!

 Maybe I'll come back and climb it when I'm no longer on crutches!!




 
There were many tiny rock 'room's outside the Pueblo.  Some were ceremonial rooms thought to have been used  as burial grounds for the 'ancients'.  Many of the tiny spaces remain un-excavated.

Oh, and yes, that's me on my constant companions, the crutches!  

Though I hate to have my picture taken, I decided I would allow myself to be immortalized, mostly to show my children they were right after all.  How in the world they knew that I didn't need either one of them to come out and help me in my time of need is beyond me!!  They are so smart!!  (Okay so maybe I did it thinking they might feel a bit guilty?)  

No matter!  My friends and I had a great day out while we traveled the Globe!!  Hope you enjoyed my trip as much as I did.