A Nice Little...

booger surprise awaited me a couple of weeks back when I when hiking at Madera Canyon. I went higher that day than I had previously making it to about 8,200 feet. It was one heck of a hike but still short of the top at just over 9,000 feet - and I only had about 1.7 miles to go at most. oh well, maybe next week - and I had better do it then because that will be my last full week here. But I digress since I wanted to talk about the surprise that awaited me at about 7,200 feet. As I hiked along I heard a rustling in the leaves near my feet. I looked down and their right next to me, almost under me, was this miniature dragon. Despite its tiny size it had horns on its head and sharp spiky spines all over its body much as a dragon of myth and legend would have. Of course I knew that this one was harmless and I took a few pictures of it while it sat there eyeing me, then shot a quick video (which did not come out) as it scampered about the forest floor searching for either a miniature castle to enflame or an ant to devour.

The critter in question is, of course, a Horned Lizard; but of what species I did not know. A quick check of my field guide revealed that it was a Mountain Short-horned lizard (Phrynosoma douglassi hernandesi). They can grow to a length of 5 7/8 inches and I wish I had measured this one because I think it may have been close to or surpassed that measurement (well maybe that was just the altitude affecting my senses because I am sure it was smaller than that). No big deal though, not like I'd win a trophy or fame because I found the biggest one. Well anyway, these lizards are pretty neat little creatures. They are found from from Canada down into Mexico (this one and its related subspecies) in all of the states west of Texas (Texas excluded) and in all of the states north of Texas. A distinguishing characteristic of this species is the wide notch in the rear of the skull where the horns are absent. Of course, they get the "horned" part of their name from the horns that adorn their heads. They are out and about during the day and enjoy basking in the warmth of the sun. Apparently this guy was no exception and probably had been right out either on the edge of the leaves or in the middle of the trail when I disturbed it sending it into the leaf litter. This was a pretty healthy looking specimen and I suppose it had been getting its fill of ant and other insects. Unlike some species of horned lizards this one has a varied diet that goes beyond just ants. Along with ants it has also been known to eat a variety of other insects, bugs, snails and so on. My field guide even said they have been know to eat small snakes and I suppose that is possible given the small size of some snake species in the area but my guess is that would be the exception to the rule since they seemed built more for tackling bugs and such.

This was the first live Horned Lizard, of any species, that I have seen in the wild in over 10 years as I recall. They are not as abundant as they once had been but I don't recall them ever being truly abundant at that. So I left this little booger right where it was on the forest floor enjoying the fresh mountain air and bright sunshine and I was on my way.

All the best,
Glenn B

Trout - Anyone?

Last weekend, Tuesday and Wednesday for me, I finally decided to drive up onto Mt. Lemon. I have heard so much about while here on this and other trips that I figured I had best finally take a look. I was not disappointed if only because the scenery was great, better than the shot at left but my camera was not at its best on the way down (operator error actually). The trip is well worth the 45 minute or hour's drive from various spots in northern Tucson to get there. You wind up driving from about 2,500 feet down in the city, up to just over 8,000 feet and you go from out and out desert to places like the lake and pine forests.. Getting there is all the fun what with some really great rock formations along the way, and some really great views of the valleys below on either side of the mountain. At one point you are actually riding along a ridge where you can see down to the bottom of the mountain at one spot on one side and then several feet away see down to the bottom on another side, that was pretty impressive.

When I drove up there I had two things in mind more so than the scenery. First of all I was about half ready to go on a hike. I had all my gear ready but as for myself, well I was pooped from poor sleep. I also had it in mind to do some trout fishing at Rose lake. As I drove up to the pay station/entrance I just drove around it because I had a parking permit for this national forest. I continued my drive to the top and a little beyond and stayed impressed with the scenery and with the newly rebuilt town of Summerhaven (burned down some years back). Nice quaint little village with high priced tourist trap shops as you would expect, but all those working in the shops were nice. After that I turned around and decided to try fishing at Rose Lake.

There were probably about 20 or so folks from very young to a fair bit older than me trying their luck. The quarry it seemed were stocked Rainbow Trout in what seemed to me to be no more than a 15 acre lake. I walked around the far side of the lake about 2/3 of the way to the small dam that formed it, and found a nice log on which to park my posterior. Then I got down to fishing. I set it all up with a bottom rig for a worm, then realized I had left the worms in the car. Oh well - it would be artificials for the day. I tried everything I had which was not much. I sure did not travel to AZ ready to go trout fishing (or any other type of fishing for that matter). What I had with me I had purchased since getting here, actually once Brendan had come out for his visit. Finally after about 2 hours or so of casting artificial salamanders, worms, spoons, crankbaits and spinners I latched onto a fish. I could tell right away it was bigger than the ones I had seen other catch. Yes that means other folks were catching them - some were reeling them in left and right - and of course, they were using trout worms as bait. Oh well, I finally had one and it was on a spinner bait I had bought when Brendan was here or just before he arrived. The feisty little booger trout was all of 12 inches, and looked like a whopper compared to some others I had seen float by belly up after people released fish that had swallowed too small hooks. Mine I would keep, I mean there was at least an appetizer.

Had some of those released trout that floated by me, and there were at least 3 or 4, still been flailing their gills and floundering about as they floated by I would have scooped em up to add to the larder. What a waste of a good fish. Not too small to keep legally, and an excellent size for the pan (which is why some fish are called panfish), and delicious at that. Of course, usually I throw small ones back to grow big, but not ones that I know will not survive. Some people think that such little fish are worthless and just throw em back and do not care that all they will do is foul up the water or become dinner for crayfish. The thing is that once you pull out their insides to dislodge a hook they are goners. Shame on the knuckleheads who released fish injured so badly they had no chance of survival. Better in the pan than being wasted like that.

By the way, if you think that fish looks pretty scraggly, well yes it does. I suppose that some crayfish went to work on it when I had it on the stringer in the lake. It really had a tail fin and looked a whole lot prettier when I caught it. pretty meant nothing though when compared to how it tasted when I ate it. As it turned out, I went back to my motel with just the one I had caught. I had it all cleaned up (just gutted is all) at the lake before I left, so when i got back to the ranch I put it in a plastic bag and popped it into the fridge. After a couple of days I remembered it was in there, gave it a whiff, and decided to throw it out into the microwave for a few minutes on each side. It was ever so scrumptious cooked with no additions at all - no spices, no sauce, no salt, nothing. It was great as it came out of the water except for gutting and cooking. Mmmmmmm-goooood.

All the best,

GB

No Entrants

Not one person sent in an entry for the contest I ran on June 24th. So I guess that is good for me because I don't have to purchase the rifle case and send it to anyone, bad for me in that it drew no interest. If you want to know the answer to the contest question - it was Jaws.

All the best,
GB

That Sunlight Can Be Beautiful, Tricky Too

Maybe the the nicest pic of the sunlight playing with the clouds not long before a sunset over the Sonoran Desert but yet an interesting one. Why interesting, well that takes a good look on your part to figure out. I am not one who believes in miracles or divine intervention yet I suppose some may enlarge this picture and think that such has come into play here. Me I think it a nice and curiously coincidental photograph, one in which I see a mans face on the right looking at something else - not as clear as the face- on the left maybe a ram's head with a flaming spearhead under it. Click to enlarge and maybe you will get my drift; or maybe my imagination is simply overactive lately. Too much time in the sun as some would say.



As for the second picture - what can I say. I was pretty near breathless watching the sunset last night. Those Monsoon rains with all the water filled clouds and moist skies sure do pretty things to the sunlight.



All the best,
Glenn B

Happy Independence Day

No I have not forgotten what day is today, nor have I forgotten to make sure to wish you my readers a happy one. Yes it comes a little late in the day, but I worked 11 hours plus today. Not moaning and groaning, just letting you know why this is tardy.

While I am at it, allow me to tell you something about the folks I wished happy Independence Day, or happy 4th of July to here in the Tucson area yesterday and today. Not one - except for my coworkers and a barmaid at my hotel - greeted me back likewise. In fact a young lady working at a burger joint in South Tucson looked at me quizzically then sneered at me after I wished her a Happy Independence day yesterday. Then this morning, at an overpriced snooty coffee shop that is in business nationwide, when I wished the counter clerk a happy independence day, his response was: "Ha-Hah"! I wish I could relay to you the sarcasm and nastiness that was in that simple little reply to me as he rolled his eyes in the true fashion of what I believe to be an ultra-liberal jerk-off. Other folks just looked at me as if I had two, maybe even three, heads when I wished them likewise.

I do not get it - I thought Tucson and Arizona in general were bastions of freedom loving Americans. now I am none to sure of that. To tell you the truth I was absolutely flabbergasted at the responses or lack of them I got when I wished folks a Happy Independence day or Happy 4th. Even in New York City I would have gotten more enthusiastic and patriotic replies than I did here - many more. As a matter of fact, besides the lack of reciprocal patriotic well wishes for this great day I noticed a few other differences between out here and the rotten apple. In NYC and the surrounding areas you likely would see lots of American Flags flying today, and you would likely hear a good amount of fireworks going off all throughout the day. There was absolutely none of that in area of Tucson, South Tucson or Phoenix that I visited today. Now I am sure there will be some fireworks tonight - those permitted by the government - but what about regular Joes and Janes celebrating the fourth as it has been for over 200 years - with a bang. Heck it is INDEPENDENCE DAY - you would think that if only on this day the citizens would be allowed to show some independence from the government control, wouldn't you! Just does not seem to happen out this way. What a shame - I miss it!

All the best,
Glenn B

How To Spend A Boring Day on Surveillance

Sometimes when a law enforcement officer is out on surveillance things can be just a little boring. I mean what with hours of sitting in a fixed location just waiting for something to happen. Other times, well they can be very boring indeed because nothing at all does happen. It is at times like these that the ever vigilant law enforcement officer may start watching things other than what he is supposed to be watching and thereby amuse himself. Sometimes he even gets a little squirrely from all the boredom and instigates some action to surveill - and that is when things get nutty. Take for instance the following photo essay on what I imagine is a common ground squirrel in the Tucson area:

Alert - Alert - Here comes trouble - head for the burrows fast...

Hey - wait a minute, what is it that that guy has in the bag; he's throwing some this way.

Wow, it looks like some sort of nut and sure smells pretty good but sure not like any nuts from around here. Should I take a bite?

I don't know if I can trust that guy - he looks like a New Yorker; then again pickings have been pretty slim around here lately. Oh what the heck - you only live once.

Wow - this is pretty good, what do you call these things?

Hey - where did all the nuts go?

Ah come on back Mister - we didn't mean nothin' by sayin you wuz frum NY.

**********

Now - of course - none of this really happened while any law enforcement officer was out on surveillance - these pictures were taken during my free time - but it is the kind of thing that could happen if one was driven to boredom on a nutty surveillance.

All the best,

Glenn B

A Miniature Rival Of Sunset...

...is not something I see every day but I did see just that two days ago while I was working, and I saw it in the middle of the day. I do not know what it is called, I am not a botanist, nor a florist, but I can tell you it was absolutely beautiful - a real eye catcher. Yet despite that, I have never seen one other person stop to look at them here in Tucson - I suppose they are a common sight whatever they are. For me though, I stopped right in an intersection and took a bunch of pics of these fantastic little flowers that were growing right out of the middle of a traffic circle. Amazing how no one seems to pay them any mind. Like I said in my last post, we all ought to take the time to smell the roses (or whatever these are) because they are one of life's little rewards. If anyone knows what type of flowers are these please let me know by way of the comments section. Thanks.

All the best,

Glenn B

Stopping to Enjoy Our Rewards Despite Our Trails and Travails

I am three years, almost four years older than was Bilbo Baggins when he started out There And Back Again. My first 50 years on this earth were not as comfortable as were those of that little hobbit, then again my trials and travails, while nowhere as adventurous as outsmarting dragons and fighting orcs, have been as adventurous, full of hardship, and rewarded with goodness as are those of any mortal or magical being on this earth. I try to remember that last part from time to time, that out trials and travails are rewarded so I sometimes stop to smell the roses, listen to the birds, and sip the cool water of a mountain spring along the trail that I have blazed for myself. If I had not stopped for something just like that I would probably not have appreciated the pictured sunset as much as I did appreciate it. I drove along a road in southern Arizona a few nights ago marveling at the wondrous colors and tones that the sun and its setting had painted the western skies. Every now and again, when I had the chance I pulled over and took some pics of it as it progressed. As I took the one above, and several others like it, two Border Patrol Agents watched me curiously from their stance at a checkpoint. Before I was done I noticed they had shifted their glances toward the fiery gem shining through the blood red sky that I had been looking at in wide eyed wonder. Here I share that with you. While you can click on the picture to enlarge it, you probably will not have your breath stolen from within your soul as did I when first glanced up and saw this spectacle of mother nature. Mother Nature, God, the heavens and earth, or whatever force to which you want to attribute such wonders had humbled me with my reward that evening.

Then, a couple of nights later, when I thought I had seen a sunset beyond compare I was gifted with another spectacle from on high. This one a bit earlier in the evening, but close to sunset indeed. It was as if the heavens had opened before me and the glory that was there was shining on through down onto we mere mortals. I am not a religious guy, but I can be spiritual, and i certainly can be floored by wondrous events no matter how trifling they seem to others. Most people did not stop to notice, but when I saw light coming on through I was thankful I had my camera, and I was thankful I had noticed despite having been in a rush to be somewhere else at that moment. The road goes forever on...and I suppose if that is all we are concerned about - well then we miss sights like this one because let me tell you it did not last all that long before it was gone.

Click on either of the above to view a larger size - nowhere as good as the original but bigger makes it look better.

Before the sun had set that second night, it gave one final farewell performance that I think some of my readers will enjoy. This time, besides the sky, the winds and the clouds, it had another partner, Old Glory, to accompany it during its finale for the night. Long may she wave at Twilight's Last Gleaming and may we all wake to see her By The Dawn's Early Light. You know when you think about it, one of those rewards I spoke about was living free. By the way that is not free living. We should never forget that and our trials and travails should make it stay that way, that we live free. It's not easy but the rewards, heck they are well worth it - aren't they! If I do not get another chance to blog before Independence Day allow me to say now - have a safe and happy 4th.

If you are always in a hurry you are going to miss things in life that were there to enjoy; things that were well worth taking a moment, or even a lifetime, to appreciate. Think about that as we approach the celebration of the birth of our nation, and think about all that it has taken to keep that flag flying and to preserve our freedoms - even those as simple as being able to stop and watch a sunset. Then ready yourself for whatever it takes to preserve them.

All the best,

Glenn B

Kissing A Sexy Woman or Being Peed on By A Toad...

...which would you choose. Well last night let's just say I made the wiser choice and got wet. I went out toad hunting in the first real Monsoon Rains of the season for southern Arizona. It happened like this:

Sometime in the late afternoon yesterday I was sitting where I sit now in the hotel business center; I was minding my own business and was downloading some pics from my camera to my thumb drive when a hotel manager stopped by to chat. She told me about a concert this weekend (Independence day already!) here in Tucson. When she left, she left the business center door ajar. A short while later another woman, this one in a black business suit (a business suit indeed as you will soon see) came over to the center door and knocked (it requires key card entry). I went to let her in as many guests forget their key card or the cards just don't work but before I could open the door she had it open because it had been left ajar by the manager. She came in and sat at the other computer back over my right shoulder.

This lady was probably about 40 to 45. She was wearing a black business suit that was short in the skirt and had quite the set of attractive legs. Soon after she sat down, a man in business attire entered the business center and asked for her signature on a piece of paper he had on a clipboard. She signed it. I figured she was a business lady of some importance if men in business attire were tracking her down for her signature. Soon after, she started to talk to me and two things became quickly apparent - she was hitting up on me, and she was doing it big time. It was kind of flatterring at first and there was some temptation indeed - I mean those legs were killers (probably in more ways than just looks too). Well - it was awhile longer but I figured out that while she was probably in business she was not a business lady as I had first imagined. She was probably in business though, a very old business at that - not that it really mattered either way. After a bit I left for my room. Sometime later I returned to work on the computer but she was still there. She saw me and I decided to make it plain I was not interested - just in case she had thought I had been or in case I thought I had been.

Later on, after I stopped by and enjoyed happy hour for a juice and a small snack (no frogs' legs available), I returned to my room and as doing so guess who I saw in the hallway. She was sort of lost from the looks of things. Something else now also became apparent - she was zonked on something. This should have been apparent earlier, I suppose I had thought she was high but never realized that she was soaring far, far, far out there beyond the clouds. As for me, this only meant that temptation was closer to home so to speak - so I went to my room, grabbed my gear, and went out. Where did I go, where else but to go for a drive in the rain and to look for some toads. I figured I would be better off catching some toads (and maybe getting pissed on in the doing) than I would be to catch some crabs or something worse Did I mention there had been legs involved? No not crab legs but there had been something to do with legs. No not frogs' legs either; yet, somehow and strangely enough, toad legs the uglier cousins of frogs' legs won out.

As it turned out, I went for a drive in the countryside south east and southwest of Tucson. I traveled the main highway south to the Madera Canyon area, and that is where I veered off onto some secondary roads. It was a bit different than previous rides out and about on this trip because the Monsoon rains had begun that same night. Earlier in the evening rains had fallen, but now it was a bit of drizzle here, none there, then more further on. There were small puddles and wet spots here and there and the desert air had an unusual dampness and fresh aroma to it. It was magnificent to me, and also apparently magnificent for my quarry as puddles meant breeding pools. In the span of just a mile or so I probably saw at least 25 live Sonora Desert Toads (aka: The Colorado River Toad - but there was no river nearby where I found them). While more rain probably would be needed to form suitable breeding puddles the toads were out nonetheless, and the ones in this area were mostly mature toads indeed. Bufo alvarius (their scientific name) is the largest toad in North America. Some of the ones I found had to easily be as large around as my hand and pretty fat at that, but remarkably they all had pretty scrawny legs - what a trade off but the better deal by far. I got some good pics and moved on.

The second area I hit was somewhat further south and was west of the Interstate. I was pretty amazed at the amount of toads I saw on the two roads I took after the one at the Madera Canyon area. In about 50 miles of driving (I drove a longer distance but actually only looked for toads in about the mentioned distance) I counted over 350 toads. Now you may not think that 350 was all that many for that far of a distance, but you need to realize that they are not everywhere along that route but rather in areas of suitable habitat such as where water pools after the summer rains. I will admit that on these last two roads the habitat was much more suitable than over near Madera Canyon and it seems the toads would agree with me on that judging by their numbers. of course it had also rained somewhat more in this area and the roads were still pretty wet in most areas when I got there, much wetter than the road near the aforementioned canyon.

So what did I see? Well mostly Sonora Desert Toads from the size of a half dollar around to ones as big as my hand around. Others that I spotted were possibly:

Western Spadefoot Toad (Scaphiopus hammondi), Southwestern Toad (Bufo woodhousei australis) [Note: this is not the Southwestern Toad with scientific name: Bufo microscaphus], Plains Spadefoot (Scaphiopus bombifrons) [I am not all to positive on my ID of one toad I saw as this species but think it was this one], Red Spotted Toad (Bufo punctatus)

I did not get good pics of all of them since the camera I was using does jot always focus so well at night on a rain slicked road in the beam of my flashlight or LED headlamp. I did get great pics of some of them though, and some of those pics appear here for your perusal. Please note, while it is obvious that I saw most of these toads on roadways it may not be so obvious that I take lots of precautions not to become a roadkill statistic or to make myself a hazard for other drivers while I am out and about looking for toads. I choose only very lightly traveled roads ( at least at the times I am there), I park my car well off on the shoulder or even beyond the shoulder of the road when I get out to take pics. I make sure to shut off the headlights on the car when I get out and place on the emergency flashers or appropriate side directional signal (I do not want other drivers who may come along to think that my car is on the road when it is actually parked on the shoulder so off go the headlights). I make sure to have a headlamp (the LED type that straps around your head) and a hand held flashlight, I want to be lit up and those lights go on before I leave the car and are shut off only after I climb back inside the car. I am alert for not only the sight of approaching cars, but also for the sound of approaching cars. i do not get out if I first see any cars approaching nearby (and by that I mean within a mile or more - better to wait and let them pass by). I do not pull over right where the toads are located in most instances because most of the time they are in low points such as washes, and I do not care to have my car washed away in a flash flood. If I walk through a low point such as a place where a wash crosses the road, I keep alert for the sound of approaching water and if I even think I hear it I run to high ground; along those lines I have been fooled a few times by the wind but better foolishly dry and alive than wet and just dead.

Another thing I do, not so much as a precaution, more as a legal thing is to make sure i have the proper license to do what I am doing. A fishing license is require din Arizona to collect hunt or amphibians. I have purchased an Arizona non-resident fishing license about 2 months or more ago. I got the one that is good for 4 months; it was a real bargain compared to the one good for only a few days. I like to keep it legal because I am an ethical hunter and fisherman. In addition I am pretty sure that the cost of a fine for poaching would be much higher than the cost of a license just as the cost of sexy legs as compared to that of scrawny toad legs (and toad pee - yes a few whizzed on me when I picked them up to check them out) would not have been worth the risk involved. Besides all that, my wife is kind of used to me playing with toads and other critters and she might even let me kiss a toad if I wanted to do so (which I do not) but when it comes to other women I do not think she would be as tolerant.

All the best,

Glenn B

Ballseye's Firearms Accessories Tournament - One More Time For A Great One Liner

Every now and then you hear something, either in real life, or maybe in a movie, that is just a great line about something in which you have an interest, or a line that is just so right that it would fit many a situation. I heard one recently, well actually I heard it a long time ago but it never quite hit me the way it did today what with the anti-gun sentiment that is out there. Hearing that line made me think I should resurrect the Ballseye's Firearms Accessories Tournament (at least for this one shot).

The line was this:

Somebody get a gun - shoot it - shoot it - does anybody have a gun!

or maybe it was this:

Somebody get a gun! Get a gun and shoot it! Does anybody have a gun?

Now while they may not be the exact quote, they are not off by more than a word or so at most. Have you ever heard those words before? Chances are you have heard them but you may not remember where or when. I'll give you a few hints, then see if you can guess without using any sort of search engine other than your own little gray cells and that is on the honor system on your part. If you guess correctly, using only your memory, and send me the correct answer in an email you may win a prize (I say may win because if more than one person guesses correctly only one will win the prize and he or she will be chosen by random drawing from among those with correct entries). Please keep it limited to one entry per person, and send it to me via my email link found under my profile (see over at right for a link to my profile). The contest will be open for a week, closing on June 29, 2009 at 2400 and the prize will be the gun case shown at this link (or something of similar make and cost if this one is unavailable at the time I try to purchase it). There will be one prize awarded in this contest - that is it. This contest is restricted to U.S. Citizens and legal resident aliens of the U.S. and you must also be to 18 years old or older to enter. You agree, by your entry into this contest, that should you be the winner you may be required to send me proof of age, and a statement that you can legally accept the prize, before I send out the prize. I reserve the right to be the sole person who makes determination as to acceptability of entries and eligibility of entrants; and I am the sole person who shall determine the winner. I reserve the right to change the rules as it suits me at any time without any prior notification to anyone (this is known as: The In Case An Asshole Trys To Screw This Contest Up Clause). If these rules do not suit you you are not eligible to enter this contest or to win the prize. By you entering the contest you consent to and agree to abide by the above rules. By the way, if not for assholes I would not even bother to have any rules, so blame them if you don't like to have to follow rules.

Oh, did you think I forgot the hints. Almost but not quite, here they are:

The line was spoken at "the pond" and "the pond" was not in the capital of Indiana.

They would have needed a bigger gun than most but any gun possibly could have been better than none.

It's a line from a movie; and while the movie is not one primarily associated with guns - a rifle made all the difference.

Farewell and adieu,
GB

ps: in case the link above did not work here is another that you can also cut and paste: http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/allen-green-endura-gun-case.aspx?a=60975

My Lack Of Blogging Over The past 3 Months...

...as most of my readers will be aware has been due to the fact that I am on temporary assignment to Tucson, Arizona. of course while out here I do have access to a computer as can be witnessed by the fact that I have been blogging albeit lightly so allow me to explain why it has been light even though I have access to a computer, and this is no bull!


First of all I am out here on a long term work assignment. I get up at about 0445 to 0500 each morning to get ready for work since I have been working 0600 to 1400. I am not an early bird, my wife and kids could tell you that,; i n fact I hate getting up early but I have had to do it. I usually get back to the hotel by about 1500 (3PM). By that time I am often hot, sweaty, tired, and grouchy. If I had my own computer, at my own desk, with my own bottle of Knappogue Castle Irish Whiskey - well then I would probably be happy to unwind by blogging. The thing is I either have to go to my office for a computer where they frown on employees blogging, or I have to use one of the two computers in the hotel business center (where I am right now as i type this). These computers suck and are sloth like to say the least about them. As it often winds up, when I do head over to the business center, both computers are often already in use and I either have to wait my turn or come back later. happy hour begins at 1730 (5:30 PM) each night and runs for 2 hours. You can bet that once they start serving free (as in no charge at all) booze you will not likely find me at the computer. granted it is not top shelf booze, except maybe for the Jim Beam but they do serve such things as Gordon's gin and vodka, Sauza tequila, and several other liquors in addition to Bud and Bud light on tap and three types of wine (red, white and blush). Oh the agony of not being able to blog while sipping that Irish whiskey or drinking a bottle of Ommegang but I tell you it is possible to overcome my grief at happy hour.


Of course there are even some other things that keep me away from happy hour, and also away from the business center, the computers and blogging. As I have blogged about a few times by now - I love to hike in the area in and around Tucson. My best estimate is that I have been on at least 25 hikes since arriving here in the last week of March and maybe as many as 35. Most have been short ones, a couple of miles, but I have gotten as far as nine miles on one hike and 8 on a couple of others. Yesterday after work, for instance, I hiked just over 6 miles. I did that one at Madera Canyon on the Super Trail. Now one of the reasons I love hiking out here is that there are lizards everywhere that I have hiked. I am a confirmed herp nut and seeing these little critters is my cup of tea. Yesterday I counted 36 lizards on the trail - 33 of them on my way up the trail. It got a lot cooler and cloudier on my way down and they beat feet for a crevice among the rocks to weather out the storm that seemed to be approaching. Lucky for me it only rained on me a little before I got back to my car but the temps dropped about 10 to 15 degrees in the last 1/2 hour of my hike down the mountain. and that was a nice bit of cooling off at that for a weary old hiker like me.

There are other reasons that I love to hike besides the chance to see a lot of herps. I love the outdoors, love to walk in the mountains, love the scenery, love to hear the birds singing, love to see the wildlife (I walked up within 25 feet of a mule deer yesterday out in the middle of nowhere off the trail - not the one pictured - that is one that Brendan spotted while he was out here - also at Madera Canyon) love the fresh air, and sort of like the exercise especially since I have lost about 16 to 18 pounds since I have gotten here. All those things are reasons good enough to just forget about blogging for awhile. Now if you don't believe me, well then just take a gander at the pics that accompany this blog. The sunset was yesterday - taken on the road on my way out of Madera Canyon. No, not the best pic of a sunset, but seeing it in person was awesome. It is not often that the sun peeks through a split in the clouds like that just at sunset. Then there were the cows. maybe you live in the country and see lots of cows or steers, but I live just outside of NYC where I see animals like pigeons, squirrels, and of course animals of another less noble sort on a daily basis (you figure what that means because I am not about to get myself riled up thinking about them). So I get a kick out of seeing cows strolling along the roadside as I am driving by - note I said on the roadside and not on the middle of the road. Yep that stuff makes it more than worthwhile to go on these hikes. Take a look and you will see what I mean.



If you don't think those things are worth missing out on blogging, well then you live in the virtual world of the Internet a bit too much for my liking - but to each his own. As for me, I figure I'll get out there whenever I can to enjoy it all, and if I find the time later on, well then I'll blog about it. The thing that makes it best of all though is lacking in my life right now, and that would be my son who is herping, hiking, hunting and fishing partner. He was here for a week and we had fun even though i was fighting off the swine flu as best I could while taking him around south eastern Arizona for a few adventures.

All the best,
Glenn B

Alone In Tucson Again...

...but while Brendan was here we had a few good times together despite the fact that I was under the weather.

The high point of his trip may have been when he looked down while in Pima Canyon. He looked down, exclaimed something to the effect of "Oh golly shit", prodded around with the end of my walking stick in the then dry sand of the wash, and came up with a Cold Steel brand machete still in its case. Granted it was pretty rusted being that he found it in the middle of the wash in an area that had water in it (not water in that exact spot but water only feet away from it and upstream at that, so the sand there was probably damp a lot) on each of my previous visits, but it was a pretty neat find. Of course he could not take it home with him on the plane since he only had a carry-on bag but I figure I'll find someplace for it in my checked luggage when I return home. Once home I think we will have to see if we can restore it some by getting the rust off of it. Strange thing is that even though badly rusted, even pitted in some places, it still held a very sharp edge and my guess would be that it would still have been effective used for its intended purpose despite the time, the ling time, it probably spent in the wash.

Of course we also found some other things on the Pima Canyon Trail and those included a lot of lizards and some good views. In the lizard department we were hoping to get to see a Gila Monster repeating my luck of a previous hike there. While we did not duplicate that bit of good fortune we did see something that neither of us had seen in the area before and we saw it quite possibly because of good trail manners we had just exercised. You see, we were hiking back down out of the canyon. At the same time as us, there was a group of three other guys hiking down who were behind us a bit. They were walking at a pace just above ours and after a while of hearing them chatting behind us it was time for us to move to the side and let them pass and they politely thanked us. Well after a short while we decided to take a break to drink some water and to give me a rest. I was pooped, shame on me for hiking while having the flu, but it was Brendan's last full day here and I was going to make sure he did something fun. As it turned out, the three guys we had let pass us only minutes before were up ahead all bent over looking at something on the ground. Brendan asked if i wanted to stop where we stood, a place I had actually had in mind to stop at, but when I saw those three so intensely peering at something I said 'let's move on a bit'. The three guys soon straightened up and continued their hike and we soon got to the spot where they had been peering at something. I sat down, as did Brendan, and almost no sooner than we sat he blurted out something like 'check it out'. There was a Collared Lizard, a male in full breeding colors, that had just run up the trail directly at us. It stopped only a few feet away, watched us a moment or two as I took some pics of it over Brendan's shoulder (all blurry at that), ran off the trail a few feet, stopped at a rock with an obvious hollow under it, peered into the hole and then disappeared into it. We decided to try to catch it. Brendan lifted the rock and before I could even think about making a grab the little guy ran back onto the trail. The thing is another collared lizard, apparently a female, also took off from under the same rock.

These lizards are normally very wary of their surroundings and any potential threats like hawks, roadrunners, coyotes and herpers (they would have been us). This guy was very bold indeed staying pretty close, and the reason he was staying close was obvious - he was horny! Typical guy I suppose, a pretty female nearby makes us all brazen. Brendan got a shot or two of the female (the one on the rocks at left), and he and I both got some shots of the male (the one in the pic above next to the backpack). While she ran under some bushes and was harder to photograph, he stayed out in the open for over 5 minutes, moving back and forth along the trail. He even posed next to my backpack. When you look at the pic of him, click on it to enlarge it then look at the yellow spots. While the pic may not do them justice you can get some sense of just how luminescent were those spots in the daylight (and it was light overcast). That was a great find made by my son's sharp eyes and in part at least based upon our good fortune due to us having had good trail manners earlier. If we hadn't had perfect timing we would never have seen it, and that perfect timing was due to our having moved aside on the trail. Coincidence? Maybe you think so but as for me I'll just take it as a rare instance of a good deed being rewarded for us instead of the typical "No good deed goes unpunished" sort of a thing.

It was a fine last day for his trip to Tucson, better than most that preceded it if not the best of all. As for me, I am here till the end of June, maybe even until the end of July since they asked me to extend. Sometimes it seems as if I just cannot get enough of this place.

All the best,

Glenn B

The Flu Sucks...

...really it does. It sucks the energy right out of you; and having it while you are away from home, while your son is visiting you - so you can keep up your tradition of the annual road trip - really sucks even more. I know because for the past few days I have felt like crap big time, and today I was diagnosed as most likely having Swine Flu (egad - did I not call it H1N1). I'll stick to calling it Swine Flu and just tell you it is not fun. No high fever, I am lucky in that regard, but I have all of the other symptoms and probably had a low grade fever the past three days (I felt downright chilly when it was 95 degrees outside in the shade and I was in the sun).

My biggest fear is that my son comes down with this due to his visit to see me. He just got over an upper respiratory infection and does not need another bout of anything. If he appears ill before his scheduled departure, I guess I'll be extending his stay with me - no reason to get on a plane and share this with more people all over the country or the world. The doc said he should start to show rapid onset of symptoms before Saturday if he caught it.

Did she say rapid? I coughed a rasping painful cough on late Monday afternoon and with an hour or two at the most had aches and pains throughout my body, felt chilled, had a sore throat, and felt just plain miserable. So far I guess only a mild case, I hope it stays tame.

All the best,
Glenn B

A Happy Day For Me...

...since Brendan will be arriving here in Tucson in about 3 hours. It will be nice to have him out here for the 10 days he will be spending here. I figure with him here I'll have a hiking buddy, a fishing buddy, a camping buddy, a herping buddy, a shooting buddy and most of all just him with whom I can hang out and enjoy Tucson and Arizona.

All the best,
Glenn B

Violent Revolution

Is now the time for violent revolution. I have to wonder about just how bad it was for our founding fathers when they decided that all hell needed to break loose. The principles upon which our nation was founded are being trashed one by one, by previous presidential administrations (Democrat & Republican) and apparently also by the current one, at least in my personal estimation. Our president seemingly wants to have a Supreme Court justice who empathises and who decides legal issues based upon emotion instead of upon our Constitution (the basis of all of our laws, the bedrock of our legal system, the foundation of our jurisprudence, the make up of our republic). Simply amazing. Of course, we are also rapidly becoming a socialist nation economically and politically, and we are facing a major fiscal collapse the likes of which we have not seen in decades and all the politicians seem to want to do is to raise taxes while the citizenry who actually work for a living will have no way to pay them. Our moral condition has become demoralized and abortion is considered ethical and in fact a preferred form of birth control by many, there are same sex marriages, and there are pedophiles who have raped children over and over again for years who then get minimal sentences. We are floundering on issues of national defense such as North Korea with the bomb, the two wars in which we are involved, our mission to wipe out terrorism, and securing our own borders to name a few. We are allowing our Constitutional rights to be whittled away such as the Right to keep and Bear Arms, the Right to Free Speech, and the Right to Worship as we please or not; but gosh darn it let's make sure that non-combatant prisoners of war, those terrorists at Gitmo, have more right than do U.S. Citizens while we decide to punish lawyers for giving a legal opinion that water boarding was not torture - all the while as we have a president who apparently was a personal friend of a terrorist and evidently who had a hate monger for a preacher! Doesn't this seem of kilter to you, it sure does to me - badly so!

So yes, I am wondering just what it is that will make people start to look at violent revolution as a viable form of saving our principles and a way of life that at one time in the not too distant past made the United States of America the greatest nation on the face of this earth. Does there need to be more fuel added to the fire, do we need more prodding by inept and corrupt politicians or is it that we who remember a better life are just too old and fat to care and our younger citizens do not have a clue about the likely consequences of the path we are currently taking. While I am not advocating it, I must say, I believe that violent revolution is drawing nearer and nearer if only because I cannot for the life of me fathom how our government will be able to keep the people pacified what with the potentially imminent destruction of all that for which our nation once stood. I think it is closer than any of us may imagine, maybe only a few or even only a couple of years off. I pray things get better before it comes to that. Yet, the pragmatic side of me just does not think that we will ever regain our freedoms, our integrity, our prosperity, our sense of justice and morality without a violent upheaval of some sort though I hope for those things to be regained peacefully. Am I off the mark or do you too see storm clouds on the horizon?

All the best,
Glenn B

On This memorial Day...

...let us not forget they who have fallen for our country nor the reason that they fell. They stood the line to fight for our freedoms, for our Constitution, for our way of life. Today is not Veteran's Day - it is not a day to celebrate those in the military or the Veterans who were in the muilitary, it is a day to memorialize the sacrifices made by those of our military forces who have lost life or limb in battle protecting our great Nation. Remember that, and remember them and their sacrifice, then pay them homage in a fitting manner.

All the best,
Glenn B

A Sad Commentary On Law Enforcement At Our Borders

There I was driving along a country road, near a very small town here in southern Arizona realizing, when the realization hit me that I had probably just made a wrong turn. Not so much that I was lost or anything, just that I was out on my day off and thought I would head in the other direction than that in which I had been traveling to see what was in that direction. So when I spotted a sign for a historical marker ahead I figured I'd pull over and get my bearings. As I approached I could not help but notice a white pickup truck parked therein with hood up and a Border Patrol Agent looking into the engine compartment. Another white pick up was just pulling up next to the first one. As I pulled into the cut out for the historical marker I saw the second BPA get out of his vehicle and greet the first. It was OBVIOUS that he was there to help check up on the other guy, and both started looking under the hood of the first pick up. They were at the near end as I pulled in, and I drove to the center next to the historical marker, maybe 20 or 25 yards from them and stopped to read the little bit of history written there. I then pulled to the far end of the small parking area, maybe 50 yards long, and took a look at my GPS to help me decide which way I wanted to go. I was thinking of heading to Sierra Vista but as it turned out I went to Parker Canyon Lake but like today while on the road I am straying again so allow me to get back to my point.

My point is that as I drove passed the two Border Patrol Agents it was obvious that neither was holding a long arm. Not the first guy who had been under the hood, nor the second guy who drove up to help him. Yet when I pulled to the far end of the parking area to check my GPS and looked back at them it was obvious that the second guy was holding a rifle and had it pointed in my direction as he looked over my vehicle. No it was not mounted on his shoulder ready to fire, but was slung in front of him and pointed in my general direction as he gawked at my car. A couple of things were immediately apparent: He had gotten the rifle out of his vehicle once I pulled over to the historical marker, and more importantly that he probably is/was paranoid. The truth be told, a lot of things have changed since I was in the Border Patrol and the current state of affairs what with Washington basically allowing an invasion of our nation to take place is not one of the bigger changes - yes it was virtually the same when I was in 25 plus years ago. Sure it is worse today, but the invasion began before even I was in the Patrol and the politicians have allowed it. Things that have changed are: the number of armed alien and drug smugglers, the increase in disrespect for the law, and the worsening conditions in Mexico with regard to drug czars in essence running the border of that country.

Does any of that justify this knucklehead grabbing a rifle out of his truck simply because I pulled into the same parking area, on a public highway, as he and his fellow agent were using. I think not, I know that back in the day I certainly would never have grabbed a rifle in similar circumstances, nor would I do so even now on my current job. I made no suspicious or threatening moves, I did not exhibit sort of behavior that should have heated this guy up, I had my windows open and could easily be observed (it was a wonderful 68 degrees at the time), I stopped to look at the historical marker as might anyone else who was passing buy, I had Arizona plates on the vehicle I was driving, I was just another guy. Yet for some reason, in some way, it seemed appropriate to this agent to retrieve his rifle and then point it in my direction. Fuck that shit! This is a different Border Patrol than the one I knew. With a mindset like that among some of the BPAs I would not work for the Border Patrol today even if you tripled my salary - and my salary is quite a bit more than even that of a supervisory Border Patrol Agent.

Don't get me wrong, I feel their pain. I can understand their being on edge all of the time. I know that we need to get tough on people and drugs illegally crossing our borders. Hell if you read any of my stuff on illegal aliens you know I am pro enforcement of our sovereignty and I support the U.S. Border Patrol 100%. Yet there was no need for such a display of force today although I can understand the underlying anxiety (or even the paranoia) that triggered it; and I know the agents are not at fault for creating that monster. We truly need to keep the pressure on the politicos in DC to get something done to correct the situation to secure our Borders and to keep our nation and our citizens (including Border patrol Agents) safe because as things are now life for an LEO on the border sucks. That my friends is my short commentary (based upon my personal opinion) on the conditions of LE at our borders.

All the best,
Glenn B

My First Chance To Attend An NRA Convention...

...and what happens but I had to work Friday, Saturday and today. Yep, here I am in Tucson, only a stones throw (so to speak) from Phoenix where the NRA convention was held this weekend and I missed it. If you want to read up on blogs by some of those who attended I know that The Anarchangel went, and that Cap'n Bob & The Damsel also attended. I suppose I will have to experience it through their blogs and I can only hope that if I am ever again that close to where one is held I will have the chance to make it. At least my upcoming schedule has me off for the upcoming gun show at the Pima County Fairgrounds on May 30th & 31st. Brendan should be here then for a visit too, so that should make it extra nice.

All the best,
Glenn B

Sometimes It Pays To Have A Sharp Eye In The Desert

For instance, if you take a look at the first picture I am posting in this blog, you will probably see what looks like a view off to the side of a mountain trail were run off has cleared the larger debris from around some boulders. If that is what you think you see, well click on the photo to enlarge it and look at it again. Do you see anything else?

What do you mean you don't see anything different? Look closer and focus on the center of the picture. Yes there is a good sized flat rock right about at the center, but don't look at the rock - look on it. You should just about be able to make it out, much as I did while I was passing by along the trail on which I was hiking. Have you spotted it yet. It is a Yarrow's Spiny Lizard - one of the most beautiful lizards in the USA. They have an amazing amount of blue/green in their scales and when the sun shines on an adult male it looks almost like some sort of exotic jewel. Still though, they are not all that easy to see at any distance, heck they are only about 6 inches long - and this was was not highlighted by the sun. I saw it though, and so can you if you peer long enough, or if you look at the next pic.

Yeah, I know, the picture kind of sucks; but the thing is at least now you can see it if you were not able to see it before. When you hike trails here in Arizona, whether they be up in the mountains - like where I took this photo at just above 7,000 feet - or at lower elevations in the desert. it pays to keep a sharp lookout as you walk along. because you can never be quite sure of what you might come upon. Same goes when you are driving.

For instance I was driving down a road out in the middle of nowhere, when I stopped to avoid crushing this creature. Yeah - you have to see yet another of my crappy photos to see what I mean. This time it is not as easy as seeing the lizard was in the first pic above is it! What do you mean you don't see anything but roadway. Yeah that's right it is tough to see, and I was driving at about 35 mph when I saw it, and it was not moving. Not that my eyes are any better than yours but I have sort of trained myself to keep at least one eye on the roadway for such critters. Click on the pic to enlarge it and look closely, you will see the little booger near the center of the pic (hopefully it will enlarge enough). That one is a Tucson Banded Gecko. It's a creature of the night, they come out and hang out on roads to warm up at night since the blacktop retains heat longer than the surrounding ground. Look at it again, then compare its size to the gravel in the blacktop and ask yourself if you would have seen it at that speed. It blends in pretty well when viewed from above like in this photo, but truth be told it kind of stands out when you know what to look for.

Of course there are some other creatures out there in the desert that you do not necessarily need to see first to know that they are there if only because they give you a warning of their presence, well sometimes anyhow. If one of them decides to remain quiet, well then you had best hope that you notice it by way of a sharp eye, otherwise you might feel something else sharp - as in a venom filled fang. This one is a Western Diamondback Rattlesnake. You definitely want to know that this guy is nearby before you get too close. While most of them will retreat at your approach, some will not, and you definitely do not want to get tagged by one of them. Their bite can be fatal to an adult human in excellent health let alone someone who has medical problems of any sort. Even if not fatal the bite causes extreme pain, terrible necrosis of the flesh in the bitten area, and can lead to amputation if envenomation occurs. I say IF because not all bites by rattlesnakes envenomate; they can control whether or not they release their venom and dry bites are not all that uncommon. Still though, I would rather keep my eyes open and avoid a bite in the first place. By the way, this one was abut 3 feet, and it did not rattle as I walked over to it to take the picture. It did rattle a little bit when I got closer and prodded it lightly with my walking stick. In fact it made the infamous S-curve with its fore body, rattling and retreating as it did so. Smart snake not wanting to waste venom on a defensive bite when such is much more useful to it to capture dinner.

I would have liked to have been able to have cropped these to better highlight the animals but as things would have it the computer at my hotel does not have photo editing software - neither does the one in my office out here (go figure). So much for not owning my own laptop for travel.

All the best,
Glenn B

The New Me...

...or is it the old me coming out of its shell. I mean after all this is the new me at 15 pounds lighter, 15 pounds of excess blob I had carried around for years. I still have a long way to go but I imagine that hikes like the one I took yesterday - 9 miles in all - will help me to keep shedding off the pounds. That and not snacking more than once a week on junk food snacks. Now some may think it Narcissistic of me to post pics of myself here as I lose weight, and maybe it is just that, at least a little bit, but I don't care what they think anyhow. Yes I am feeling good about myself, and yes I am sharing that sentiment, and so what do I care if some think it self centered. You see, it is self centered, and I am quite pleased with myself but no enough to think I am the end all - be all. I am just happy and feeling better about shedding some flab. I am also pretty happy about having hiked 9 miles yesterday with a 25 pound pack on my back, that and the several pounds added by my sidearm and extra ammo and my walking stick. I would love to live here in or near Tucson; I'd hike like that at least weekly on average. By the way, I hiked the Madera Canyon area on the Super Trail to Josephine Saddle, then took a side trip to McBeth Spring, then back to the parking lot - 9 miles in all.

All the best,

GB