Bo's Loop

Today we left our (my!) comfort zone at Fantasy Island and rode a loop that is new to us. I wouldn't call it fun yet. The section of trail that leads down to the loop was full of loose round rocks, which is a surface that still gives me the willies.
This is the license plate tree on the way to Bo's Loop.

An art installation on Bo's Loop. That's a Super Tramp album cover tied to the stake.

This is a wash on Lone Cactus. Jim can ride all of it now, I still flake out climbing out of this one. There's a section of loose round rocks (and we know how I feel about those) that just stops me in my tracks.

The sign as you exit to the picnic table at Irvington. It's good to see the sign, it means the hard part is over.

We're watching the news while I type this. The devastation caused by the flood waters in Brazil and Australia is just gut wrenching to see. I think we'll send the Red Cross money, it's about all a person can do.
Today was Christina Green's funeral. More sadness. At least those people from that fundamentalist church did not picket. Apparently hundreds of people lined the road to stop them if they did come. That was good.
The F16s are out tonight en masse - those planes are noisy.
So, that's everything I have to report.

Where's Waldo

This was taken out at Fantasy Island, which is full of mountain bike riders. What do you see in this picture? Cows. There are three of them. Jim and I are such city people, we rode away from them. They probably aren't dangerous, but why take a chance?

I saw this bird sitting on a cholla. If I were to touch it, thorns would leap into my flesh, imbedding themselves for all time. Yet, there he sits, untroubled by the cholla stickers.

Here is Jim, repositioning the cow bones along side of the trail. They had been moved, and their symmetry disturbed.

Today was a day of aggravation. We came home yesterday to find the internet down. We called it in, Qwest told us the tech would be out between 10 and 2. So, no riding for us! The tech came out and fixed the problem. There is a panel in the main building that has wiring for telephone and internet service. The last phone guy that was out apparently didn't recognize the function of the internet wire, so he unplugged it and took it away. The internet guy came out today and put the wire back, and labeled it with a note that says not to unplug it. Somebody needs a process improvement.

Interesting Cactus

This is a saguaro in the RV park. Look at how interesting the rows of spines are becoming. He has split into 2 major sections at the top. The right side is bifurcating.

It's a pretty cool specimen.

Look - my sous chef is chopping! His knife skills are improving. He's making a rosemary infused marinade for the chicken. I love my sous chef.

As you can tell, we have nothing of import to report. On a happy note, our neighbor returned from the hospital and appears to be doing very well.

A Shooting in Tucson

Yesterday our neighbor had to be transported to St. Mary's hospital. His wife could not go in the hospital because it was in lock-down. It was locked down because a deranged individual shot Congresswoman Giffords in the head and killed 6 other people. They were on high alert until details of the shooting were available.
Congresswoman Giffords was having a meet and greet in a Safeway in the affluent end of Tucson. The gun man walked up to her with a semi-automatic and started firing.
One of the justifications for Arizona's very liberal policy on who can own and carry guns is that if everyone is armed, things like this won't happen, because all of the good people carrying guns will stop it. In this case, two brave unarmed citizens tackled the gun man and sat on him. I've fired a handgun, it's really hard to hit anything, I'm grateful that he was subdued with a tackle and not another gun.
It's just hard to fathom how this can happen. We are profoundly sad for everyone touched by this incident.

Heart Attacks in Women

What does it feel like to have a heart attack if you're a woman? It's different than if you're a man. This is an amazing article describing what it feels like for a woman. Read and remember.
Live long and prosper.

A New Year's Rant and Ride

Welcome to my first rant of the new year. In November we signed up for Qwest DSL. They said there would be a one time charge of $9.99 for something called the Support Squad; they were there to help with the install. I didn't need to talk to them, but ok. Today I was looking at the Visa bill online and there is a second $9.99 charge from the Support Squad. I called, asked them what it was, and they said I should have been told I was signed up to pay them $9.99 per month forever. I was good, I did not yell. Told the guy I didn't want it, and to credit me the money for December. He tried to tell me I was insuring all the electronics in the house (I don't own a house), then he tried to tell me they'd give me PC speedup software worth $79.99. I kept repeating I don't want it. So, he canceled the "membership" and then tried to get off the phone without giving me back the December charge to my account. Since WHEN did it become open season on people's credit cards? This is like the scam ProFlowers used to run. How many people don't notice this charge and how much money is being stolen from the public? Grrrrrrrr.

Later we drove out to the Sarasota trail head into the Tucson Mountain Park. It's next to a 55 plus mobile home community. They like to golf cart down to the trail head with their dogs.

This is an area heavily used by equestrians, bicyclists and hikers. Does it seem like a good idea to throw people with bows and arrows shooting at wildlife in to the mix? I don't think so. I'll be glad when the season ends.

Tucson Mountain Park riding is different than Fantasy Island. It's rockier and there's a lot of up and down. We rode a major up to the intersection of Rock Wren Trail and the Yetman trail. I was very surprised that we were there, since that's one of the trails we didn't think we would ever ride. There was hike-a-bike but we rode the majority of it. Going down was way more fun.

The camera is sitting on a platform whose purpose is unknown - but it's a good place to put it for taking our picture. That's the brown band across the bottom of the photo. If you're looking at Jim's legs and wondering, no those are not thigh high stockings. Those are his knee pads.

I really want to see someone ride through this. It won't be me anytime soon.

It's harder riding out there, but there's skill building to be had. I think we'll add it to the repertoire of rides, with the exception of the trail out to the 36th Street Trail head, we still hate that section.

So - that's what we've been doing.