Some Sunday Thoughts!

I was like a boy playing on the sea-shore, and diverting myself now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me. Isaac Newton

I noticed these two little brothers on Isla Mujeres in December 2005 and couldn't resist taking a few photos of them on the dock. They were truly happy and content in the moment! Kind of like me! :)

A Classic Christmas Treat

I can't think of a better way to quick off the holiday season! Wish I had the recipe for these!

Well, not really!!! :)

Hey There Little Pilgrim!

The Little Pilgrim

This is one of those 'unhappy' pictures from my son's childhood. It was a little craft project made at pre-school to surprise the parents. It's actually in a popsicle stick frame. Anyway, Michael looked absolutely miserable. On the verge of tears. I remember when his teachers presented me with the gift, I was almost upset just seeing how miserable he looked. But after 26 years or so, it's one of those items I cherish. After all, he was probably only miserable for all of five minutes and I've had to cope with parenting for . . . oh, never mind! (That's a JOKE!)

But he certainly didn't enjoy being decked out in a construction paper hat and collar and made to stand up against that tree like he was in a perp walk. I think it's possible he may have been permanently warped by those five minutes! (I'm sure it's THEIR fault!) He still has a pilgrim complex to this day and has little affection for Thanksgiving. The boy doesn't even like pumpkin pie! It's practically un-American. Ha!

P.S. In a few weeks, I'll post a picture of him on Santa's lap -- another one of my favorites!

A Little Pre-Season Christmas Spirit

I can't believe it's almost Thanksgiving. Craig tagged along to the grocery store today because my back was really hurting and I didn't want to drive the Bug and lift groceries. The grocery store was packed with people shopping the Thanksgiving ads! I stocked up on everything but the turkey, and then we decided to hit Costco for a few items. We sampled all the cookies from the Christmas cookie tins (YUM!), and bought a pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving. I'll freeze it so I don't have to stand in that long line for pumpkin pie there next week! People were piling Christmas decorations and gifts into their shopping carts.

All those lights and ornaments at Costco reminded me of Isla Mujeres in December. The lights on Medina in front of the ferry look so retro!

And look at this decorated Christmas window from December 2005. I think the shop has changed hands and is now internet and gelato. But wasn't it something that Christmas!

And a shop door on Hidalgo decked out for the Christmas season.

I think the Grinch (that would be me) is starting to warm up with some holiday spirit!

Crop Circles?

Last year, I was more than slightly amused when I read an article in the local newspaper about crop circles in Chandler. Then I really hooted when I realized the supposed phenomena was right in my own backyard. He he he Scotty -- beam me up!

We get drenching rain storms around here combined with unbelievable wind, and one of those happened about the time this highly imaginative guy noticed this mysterious phenomena in the sorghum field over on the corner. I had noticed the field right after the storm and commented that the crop had been destroyed. But our local UFO devotee thought otherwise. Here's the quote from the article that I really like: The forces that created them (the supposed crop circles), "are hoping to make it to the UK (United Kingdom) one day, but until then, they're practicing in Chandler."

Here's the field in question and part of the article from the local newspaper.

Chandler Crop Circles

UFO buff explores Chandler 'crop circles', by Edythe Jensen - Mar. 19, 2008 01:12 PM

The Arizona Republic

A year after he stumbled on what he said were mysterious "crop circles" in a south Chandler field, resident Michael Polani said he's still trying to call attention to them. Eleven people showed up at the Basha Library Tuesday night to hear what Polani had to say about the damaged sorghum stalks and odd patterns he photographed at Gilbert and Ocotillo roads last March 25.

"We're seen by our family and friends as 'a little bit different,' " he told the audience, many who nodded their heads affirmatively. "But I've seen enough to say, yeah, we need to listen to this."Polani said he regrets not being able to photograph the Chandler phenomenon from the air; the crop was harvested hours after he spotted it. He was able to walk into the field and capture patterns of downed stalks pointing in different directions among clusters of stiff, erect plants. And he picked up a few of the damaged stalks which appeared to be burned and bent in different places. "Someone simply stomping on it couldn't do this . . . If the Chandler patterns appear a little crude, he had an explanation. The forces that created them, "are hoping to make it to the UK (United Kingdom) one day, but until then, they're practicing in Chandler," Polani said.

Ed Hermes, spokesman for the Arizona Department of Agriculture, said . . . a likely explanation for what Polani saw is a common occurrence in heavily fertilized grain crops, Hermes said. When they're exposed to wind, the top-heavy engorged stalks bend and fall.

Dorothy, we're not in Kansas anymore!!! And all of you thought I led a boring life. In fact, I'm busy right now in my kitchen fashioning an aluminum foil UFO attractant hat. The crop in the field's getting pretty tall again, so maybe I'll try my hand at getting beamed up! I'm thinking the design below is simple, yet will reflect enough of the spaceship's glow to signal my availability.

P.S. It's not that I would totally dismiss the possibility of UFO's and aliens, but believe me, if it WAS aliens trying to send a message, they really need to go back to the design board.

Boats Afloat

I love the boats on Isla -- especially the ferry boat that takes me there! All the boats are beautiful with the turquoise blue Caribe as a backdrop. But without all the rustic pangas, Isla Mujeres wouldn't be the same! Picture all the water and docks along Rueda Medina lined with sleek modern speed and sailboats. The island's ambience would definitely be altered. Here are some of my all time favorite boat pics.

The restaurant at Bally Hoo is my favorite place to watch the boats on Isla come and go. Not to mention I love their fish and chips!

I like to walk straight out Medina along the airstrip on the bayside. Lots of sailboats drop anchor there in the bay, and rustic pangas also dot the shoreline in that area. It's a great area to take photos!

And then there are the multitude of boats in town all up and down Medina along the docks.

Love this sailboat. It was on Isla one May for a regatta.


And the pirate boat!




Never ridden the car ferry, but I love photos of it passing in front of the Posada beach.




And then there are the ferries. I love the Ultramar, but I can't hack being cooped up inside the old Puerto Juarez ferry.

I call this ramshackle conglomeration of boats at Gran Puerto the graveyard. I snap pictures of the graveyard when I'm headed to the airport. You know the fun's over when you see the damn graveyard! :(

Vintage Southwest

Cactus

Courtyard Fountain

Mission Doors

Tortilla Factory

On the Trail

Southwest Adobe

Lofty Spires

Old Saguaro

Scorpion Gulch

Abandoned Tepee

Jerome Vista

Fairies at the Gate

Lonesome Cow

Desert View

Mission Flowers

Ornamental Iron

Elk Lodge

Model T Repair

Grand Canyon

Lookout House

Southwest Door