Awash With Wonder

After having a serious talk with my Doc about my health and the Oprah Winfrey weight fluctations, I felt the need for a power walk. During the summer I am locked up most of the day due to the heat from outside.  But lately our monsoon storms have brought us lots and lots of rain here....and cooler temps.

So I took a walk near our running washes that were flowing like a real river does everywhere else!!  It was like being back home in Wisconsin.  We have life giving water again!

Ceraunus Blue (Hemiargus ceraunus)

And it is sure reflected in the wildlife around the area. Of course so is the human trash.  Seriously, look at the pic below.  What in the world is a queen size mattress doing in this wash??!!!  Unbelievable.

But it was a gorgeous day to be outside and go for a hike.  Speaking of hikes, I'll be out of town this weekend on a major one.  If you don't hear from me during the next couple days, you'll know why.  I'm going on another major adventure to Portal, AZ.  I'm hoping it's as epic as birders claim:)

With all this water comes some major wildlife and garden revelations.  You are about to witness over the next several weeks some of my finds.  The animals, birds, bugs, plants etc will be showcased sometimes individually as they will be a first for this blog and I like to build a base on desert vocabulary:)

A river runs through the Old Pueblo and I challenged myself by only bringing my short lens which made me angry about the picture below.....

This is a new bird species below at the tip of this mini island in the wash.  It appears to be a Sandpiper of some kind but I'll never know:)

And the Desert Willow is outstanding this time of year putting forth its second round of flowers.  This tree or shrub prefer our washes and grows almost like a weed around them.  Of course there were plenty of Costa's Hummingbirds around them as they are a favorite for hummers.

And the Lesser Goldfinches!!!  There were so many flying around the area.  Again the short lens was used so that's as far as I could get:)

 Over the next couple days, I hope to wrap up my Chuparosa Challenge for the year and again, I do apologize if I'm not able to blog a couple days.  Doctor's orders:) I'll be putting on jeans and boots as I try and get some important shots.

 But I leave you for now with these happy wet desert images of our monsoon season. And of course, more tomorrow....

Waiting For The Night To Fall

I had "one of those days".  In my own kingdom, I am happy, but I do not enjoy fixing everyone's problems anymore.  The days of gossip and rumours are over. TV really doesn't even interest me! But unfortuneatly at work, there are students, parents, and teachers who bombard me with the turbulent drama of the working world.  I just don't have that energy.  It may seemed detached, cold, or indifferent.......but I have come to the conclusion in my life that things will happen as they happen and that I cannot control them. And sometimes the drama from their trouble makes me feel anxious inside....and from my perspective and others....it's not healthy.

After work, I took my camera and returned to a place that centers me and keeps me in check emotionally. And it was what I needed.  Do you ever walk quietly through a space and just listen?  I mean....really listen. I began my walk near 2 solitary American Coots and just watched them walk through the water with the sun on their backs.

Of course, the intense sounds from the thousands of blackbirds both Redwing and Yellow Headed were at times deafening!  These birds I've always glanced over on my way into the park, but today I just watched.

Slowly I made my way over to the areas inhabited by the Red Wing Blackbirds.  Loud and very Present.

There was one more still pond that had the one solitary Sandpiper.

It flew in a circle before landing.....creating silent ripples across the still water.

Yellow Headed Blackbirds covered the skies as they flew in their sunset patterns over and around my head to quickly descend and vanish into the reeds.

And there were birders. 3 to be exact.  One was a Southerner who hunted ducks and just discovered the Sweetwater Wetlands.  He was "the other" kind of birder....the one that shot ducks.  I think I understand, but I find it difficult to find beauty in killing a duck for the sport of it....and then watching them in a protected area thinking about how fun it would be to hunt them down.  I guess I use my camera to shoot pictures, but at least it doesn't kill.  He was a talkative birder who liked to say, "Amazing" a lot.  

A silent elderly couple whispered to me....wait for it:)....."There is a Phoebe over there." What is it with people and Phoebes? Is this the only place where they live?  They are a tiny(and fun to watch) little black and white bird.  It flies in small or wide circular patterns.  I tried to capture that with these pictures.

Watching this bird fly is interesting and maybe this is what draws the visitor's attention......but seriously, every birding expedition has people screaming up and down about this bird. I see them everywhere I go.  And I laugh to myself:)

Well, it is a good looking bird:)

Walking through the trees in the cool breeze, I glance Mt. Lemmon in the distance at full sunset.  The telephone poles remind me that I have to go home.  But I don't.  I listen to all the birds settle down into the reeds and the darkness take over.....and it is strangely calming.

And then the night falls and I feel better.......relaxed.

Cloudy Ambitions

The solitary Sandpiper....

Yesterday I went to the Sweetwater Wetlands to do some photography.  The intent was to go and try and film something in cloudy weather.  And it was dark.  The purpose was to try out my new lense for today's photoshoot in Willcox.  That post will be up and coming.  In the meantime, I have been working on a lot of cool stuff from the garden, outdoors, and oh so much more:)

But it was also kind of magical.  The city was busy and the traffic for some reason was terrible.  And it's always bizarre to hit this awesome patch of nature in the city that makes you forget you are surrounded by streets and homes. 

What was even better?  There was something very relaxing about watching people bird quietly in the rain.  I sat down in one spot and just let my mind wander.  The ducks were flying around all over the place and so were many other birds. 

How do birds know where this place is?  As I've been discovering, there is a lot of water throughout the desert in patches here and there.  Where there's water; there's life. For now, here are some quiet moments to reflect upon....

I finally got a shot of a hummingbird in the natural setting!  I have a million of them around my yard but we're friends and I give them handouts.  This guy doesn't know me and Mother Nature was providing the food:)

There's nothing like seeing a hummingbird in the wild. And to be honest, there's nothing like being outdoors!

Here's a not so great shot to prove that a thousand shots are taken for a few barely acceptable ones:)