Start of the new year

After our impromptu holiday getaway, we've been content to stick around home and just "be" for awhile.....until our next summer adventure.     

We went to the Annual Wickenburg Fly-in and Car Show mid-January.    It's a well-attended event held at our local airport and drew many interesting planes and classic cars to check out.    Of course, Steve brought his lovingly restored TAM and it was one of the nicest cars there!

As wonderful as TAM is, this car was my favorite.....as was its little owner.    He spent much time cleaning and polishing his car.

Steve's friend, Rod, flew his beautiful Cessna 400 Corvalis TT in for the show and spent time letting interested children sit inside and pretend to fly!

a Coastguard PB4Y-2 Privateer

beautiful blue sky

We've gone to this show many times in the past, so I didn't really take a lot of photos.    It was a beautiful and sunny day, so we just walked around and enjoyed the beautiful machines!     Afterward we shared a very expensive and memorable dinner at the new "19" restaurant at Rancho de los Caballeros.   Memorable in this case means "not good".     

Later in the week Dave and Steve drove into Scottsdale's Westworld facility to attend the famous Barrett-Jackson classic car auction.....no they didn't buy anything, but they had a great time looking!

The weather has been on and off this month.   One day it's sunny and warm enough for second cup or happy hour outside, and the next it's hailing!    I guess that's winter in the desert.

do you see Hootie in the tree?

One afternoon our old friend Hootie joined us!   She's quite the conversationalist!   

But then, things changed....yes, I know the desert can use all the moisture it can get but I prefer it to be in the liquid form instead of the solid.

beautiful sky but.....

signs of things to come

hail!

ice in the bird's water dish

On February 1st Steve invited us to the Del Webb Performing Arts Center here in Wickenburg to see and hear one of his favorite performers, Jesse Cook.     Mona Liza was off on a girl's junket to Mexico with her family so the three of us and Betty, their neighbor, had a wonderful time with Mr. Cook et al!

He is a fabulous, award-winning Flamenco guitarist and, together with the rest of his ensemble, he treated us to a most memorable experience.    The young man playing the violin was from Algieres (Fethi Nadjem) and the sounds coming from his instrument were like nothing I've ever heard before.     He never put it to his chin, in the traditional position, once, but played it upright on his knee or...upside down!    WOW    I was so busy listening that I didn't catch it in a photo.

 The next week, Hans and Lisa stopped at the Lowes house for a couple day's visit on their way to the Tucson area.     We were invited to have dinner with them all at Nichol's West.    No pictures.....  but it was great to see them again!

 

Last week, Dave and I prepared for the imminent visit of Pam and John by heading into the desert to search for several crested Saguaros that I had "directions" to.    People are very secretive and vague about the whereabouts of these oddities, and it often takes several tries and a bit of exploration and imagination to use them with any success.     We wanted to narrow down the routes a bit before taking the Wrights out for a tour.

Taos scans the hillside

can't go that way, for sure!

Nope, not there either

guys, guys, I think I see one!

Is that one?

Success!    After three days of searching, we managed to locate four new ones.   Two are easy to drive to, two will require a bit of creativity to access.   No trail, but we know where they are!

Pam and John arrived Friday night, bearing many containers of food from our favorite China Bistro (in Boulder City).     We (the Lowes, the Banks and the Wrights) all enjoyed their generosity!    No pictures.    I wish someone would remind me!       

This weekend was Wickenburg's Gold Rush Days celebration with a big parade, an arts and crafts show with carnival rides and food trucks, a car show, and a huge pro rodeo.      We thought it would be another good experience for Taos and might be fun to stroll around the tents and rides for a while on Saturday before our late afternoon adult beverage visit with Janna and Mike.   

borrowed photo of the midway

  

she'd never win an equitation class!
(borrowed rodeo picture)

We drove around and around town and couldn't find a parking spot, so we headed out into the desert to show Pam one of the crested Saguaro's we'd found last week instead.

once again, they're solving the problems of the world while Pam and I search

Number 1

I continue searching with binoculars

Tuesday, we packed a lunch and set off to show the rest of our discoveries to our appreciative audience.  (Not everyone is keen on bouncing around down multiple desert roads, straining their eyes against the sun to try and spot a mutant cactus shape, then doing what's necessary to get up close!) 

Number 2

tailgate lunch while we wait for P and J to locate #3

no luck for us

they're heading in the right direction!

Gorgeous and complicated #3

I have no pictures of # 4.   Pam and John hiked to it but pronounced it "boring" so she didn't take a picture. 

Before heading back to Wickenburg to meet Steve and MonaLiza for dinner (and again...no pictures) we decided to check out an old friend.    Pam had pictures of it as its shape changed through the years.   Here they are. 

yesterday

same cactus, a few years ago

Here it is when she first discovered it.  I don't know how many years ago this was, neither does she.

Not only did the crest grow and change, but the arms did as well.   These guys are just fascinating to us.

this morning's view from the Wright's motorhome

 This morning, Pam and John pulled out of the Bank RV Park and pointed their sweet little Motorhome towards Boulder City.     We all had a lovely time and thank them for coming!

you know who

DHS/Palm Springs

 Catalina Spa and RV Resort in Desert Hot Springs is our stop of choice in that area.  It allows us to enjoy the desert and mountains quietly and is still close enough to Palm Springs for us to continue our "eat out every night" regime.     This time my favorite site was taken....but the site next door was available, so we took it.

A long story short, the people in "my" site turned out to be a big surprise.....It turned out that Julian is the son of our back home veterinarian!    We never knew him when there, he was just a kid,  but it was a fun coincidence to meet such a long way from our old homes.   He and his wife-to-be travel full time (work from their MH) and have spent most of the recent winters in site 356!    Needless to say, we had several interesting conversations and shared a glass of wine at New Years.   

We were both bundled up in this photo, while Julian sported shorts and tee shirt.  The reason for that is that his MH shaded our sitting area - the reason we always liked his spot better than the one we had!

After a few days, we decided that we'd add an extra week onto our original reservation.   We had our decorations up, lots of places to eat and explore and no plans for New Years at home, and also.... why not?

Jesse and Erin adapted quickly to our last-minute decision (no doubt rolling their eyes) and were able to get an on-time delivery of birthday flowers!     Thanks guys, they were so beautiful, and I was impressed with your effort!

One day we drove, off road, to a beautiful overlook on Eureka Peak.   Part of the drive took us through Joshua Tree National Park.

It was windy below so there was a haze of dust over the valley.    Beautiful, nonetheless.

beauty even when dead!

Taos wonders where we are....

colorful minerals in the stream

The weather was beautiful during the day, interesting clouds in the blue sky, with chilly evenings.    Typical desert weather.

yes, I know....out of focus through the window!

We walked the busy downtown streets and enjoyed people watching.   Lots for Taos to take in!

interesting offerings at McCormicks

We revisited the Palm Springs Air Museum.   It's one of the places that Dave always enjoys, and it was Taos' first visit.

We drove up behind the ever-present Mt. San Jacinto on the Palms to Pines highway, through the cute tourist town of Idyllwild, into Banning and back home.  It was a long, twisting, turning route up through the barren desert mountains into pretty pine covered meadows, past Lake Hemet and down to the desert again.    Next time we'll stop in Idyllwild for a bit.     This trip it was quite chilly up there and we were in pretty heavy clouds - even a little spitting rain!   Not conducive to strolling the streets or taking many pictures.

Mt. San Jacinto is in those clouds, see it?

Lunch and a short stroll by the lake and we were ready to get back in the Jeep and turn the heat on!

As we reached the final stretch coming down to Banning, we popped out of the clouds, but we could see it's fingers still reaching for us......

We enjoyed many dinners/Linners/lunches in Palm Springs.    At one of our favorites, The Farm, we met a young couple who run an artisanal cheese shop in Canada, near Vancouver.     We "met" them because Taos' hugeness was beginning to encroach on their nearby space.    I apologized and we began talking.

Croque Madame and Croque Monsieur 
 at The Farm

Since we'll be in Vancouver for a bit this summer, we made plans to stop and visit her Golden Ears Cheesecrafters shop in Maple Ridge, BC.   She takes part in Harvest Hosts if anyone is interested!

Some of the restaurants we visited were favorites, some new to us.   We opted to skip a favorite Mexican Restaurant, the Blue Coyote, and instead, eat at TacQuila, just down the street (up the street?)    While it sounded and looked fabulous, it was, as Jesse often says, meh....

Lobster Taco and Mexican Street Corn

 We celebrated my birthday at a lovely, romantic, new place, and it's now on our "list" of favorites - Vallauris.

Another "new" one was the all-white Eight4Nine.   We enjoyed New Years Eve Linner there.     Wonderful food and a very welcoming staff.

We spent New Years Eve at Beluga, with wine and shrimp and the silhouette of Mt. San Jacinto filling our windshield.

Here's what Annie has been doing.....

the birth of a new snowboarder?