It's really happening.

Things just became a little more real. Michael had his last day of work at the resort Friday, and we met up with anyone who wanted to stop by to say good-bye at Wicked Six at Sunridge Canyon Golf Club. We started at 5, hoping to get in an hour of happy hour, but they've changed it from ending at 6pm to ending at 5pm. Hrmph - why bother? (How about updating your website Wicked Six?) Anyway, the weather was perfect, especially considering it had rained the prior two days. That said, there was rain off in the distance. A rainbow appeared just as the Friday night bagpiper came out do his thing. Bravo!



We had a surprisingly large crowd show up. Everyone had such different backgrounds, and we knew them from so many different (strange) situations, it made for a great party.



I even sold a few books!

From our Fearless Kitty Rescue group, Michael got a nice big bag of goodies. One item which gave us a good laugh was the adoption photo of me and two of our kitties. If he starts to miss me (or the furry kids), this should cure him - ha!

Perfect card too.

As the sun set, the sky turned orange and got rather ominous.

It just got more and more dramatic. I ended up using 3 different cameras just to be sure I captured some of the craziness.



...and then this happened.

Photo by: Steven Klein

Even if you weren't facing the storm, you knew when there was a strike because the whole crowd would go "oooooh!" Lightning shot across the sky sideways and would sometimes flicker for quite a few seconds. I love desert storms. Nothing but the best for Mikey - ha! And then the rain came. Luckily there's a large covered area, so we simply moved under it and kept on going. Once again, we were the last ones there (until 9:30pm).

We really couldn't have had a nicer time. Thanks everyone who came.

This weekend, we pack.

It's Hot - Yaay!

Well, we've been able to sleep with the windows open, and we turned the ceiling fan on today. Yahoo! We got a hike in Sunday, Michael's second to last. Of course, we'll get one in next weekend before he leaves too! We've been wanting to go to Balanced Rock in the McDowell/Sonoran Preserve for awhile, but the nearest trailhead is closed indefinitely. We found another way though, and off we went.

This was probably the flattest hike we've ever done. It was also well mapped and well marked, so for the first time, we actually meant to go everywhere we went. Scottsdale really knows how to do the beginning of trailheads. This was quite a structure.

It's a multi-use trail, from hikers to mountain bikers to horses, so we had to keep a lookout, but it was so hot, there really weren't many people on the trails.

We started out going to Balanced Rock. We took the Power Line Trail.  Yep, it's got power lines.

But it wasn't long before we were off that onto a more isolated trail (Chuck Wagon Trail).

I present Balanced Rock.

We actually brought food for the first time ever and sat in the shade while we munched. Until we got cold, and moved into the sun. It was so nice to be there by ourselves. I love the Tom Thumb hike, but so do a lot of other people.

Ready to hike some more, we headed to the "Amphitheater." Along the way, there were lots and lots of wildflowers. I really love this time of year. People whine about not having seasons here, but to me, they just don't notice the changes.

That in the midst of the deadness.

And the thorniness. Michael got a little too close to a jumping cholla....

Yes, it jumped from his finger and then empaled itself onto his stomach. Ouch! And then he did it again later, this time it lodged in his leg (which swelled). Sheesh. I guess Michael really wanted a souvenir. Or the Cholla wanted a free trip to the Caribbean.

The amphitheater was another bunch of rocks, basically.

And then we decided we were too close (less than a mile) to the "cathedral" not to go see what it was.

Pretty. And then we headed back on a different trail. It was nice to be able to take so many different routes and see new things. We saw these wispy spider webs sparkling in the sun. There were more than fit in the photo and were sort of like mist.

Spooky.

It was a fun trek. We hiked for about 3 1/ 2 hours, but you can do less, of course. It's easy and flat, but has no shade (other than in the shadow of the boulders). You could always bring an umbrella and saunter along in your man-made shade. I'm not sure how interesting it would be without the flowers, but you know what you're into.

Happy St. Patrick's day to anyone that's actually Irish out there.

One Down

You can always tell when it gets cold here. I disappear. I refuse to leave the house. I go into hibernation. That means no blog entries. Plus it took forever to get over my infection. The two months of illness did not do my body good. It's time to ramp up the exercise routine again. Luckily, the weather has gone back to awesome. We're looking at 90s during the day and 60s at night. Right where we want them. This weekend was the Aloha Festival. You'll recall we went last year and really liked the reggae band, Kush County. They were playing again, so we headed down to listen. Notice how everyone was under the tree or umbrellas?

Not us (or me in the photo)!

The sun felt awesome. I had wanted to get an Ice, and then caption it "The only ice you'll find in southern Arizona!" but the lines were ridiculous. You'll have to settle for a kid with a patient parent with an Ice/snow cone instead.



The next day wasn't spent in the sun, although we had wanted to attend the local music festival. I had other obligations with cute kittens. I'm still doing a lot for Fearless Kitty Rescue when I'm not working, but the perks make it worth it.

This week started off with a bang when we finally got this!

The work permit - wahoo!

We thought it would never come. Michael put his notice in last Friday. The company he worked for was just bought out, so he wasn't quite sure how the new guy was going to take it, but everyone was really excited for him. Very cool. I'm ramping up my work hours now since Michael's first paycheck won't be until May. Ouch. Michael leaves Tuesday, March 24th. It's nice to finally be moving forward with this. There are still a lot of procedural things to do and expenses to come, but with the work permit in hand, it's starting to feel more real, and therefore, worth it.

We've been getting our cats used to carriers. Here's been their take on it.

We're also getting them harness trained so they don't get loose in the airport - you're forced to take them out as you pass through security and they even bomb test them (stupidly, in my opinion). Jack & Zura have been through this before and were fine, but it doesn't hurt to be more cautious (and we don't trust the other 2 furballs). This process is going a little slower, and Jack has figured out how to get out of his, but we'll keep working on it.

Zura's getting a simple neck collar. We know her limits.

I'm going to have to find some hiking buddies for the next few months. Who's in?