New plants around the Mesa House

Don and I have been adding some more plants around the Mesa house.  

First we added camellia bushes along the east side of the house to separate us from the neighbours house and to have something green and colourful to see out our kitchen and side living room windows. These camellia bushes are somewhat like rise bushes but a bit hardier to the summer heat. Two of the bushes we bought have gorgeous pink flowers and one bush has white flowers. The flower reminds me a bit of a peony. 

We bought some pots at a greenhouse and I planted some annuals to decorate the backyard. Plus we planted the beautiful agave Waind and Vyra bought us as a housewarming gift. It will grow fairly large. It will become a beautiful centrepiece in the backyard cactus garden. 

Today Whitfield Greenhouse delivered and planted a pineapple palm in the front yard. It takes a bit of elbow grease to dig holes in the earth around here. Once the men got the hole dug, they put in fertilizer pucks, composted dirt and lots of water. The palm looks great and should grow quite tall with a very wide stalk that resembles a pineapple. 

Butcher Jones Trail

Albert, Joyce, Don and I hiked the Butcher Jones Trail near Saguaro Lake. It is rather odd to hike near a lake in the desert!  The trail was constructed for easier access to lakeshore locations where fishing habitats have been installed. 

The trail starts at the east side of Butcher Jones Beach and follows the contours of Saguaro Lake. After Peregrine Point the trail surface becomes more difficult. We followed the trail all the way to the end at Burro Cove and then returned by the same path. All in all, about 5 miles. 

First of Four Weaving Classes

I once again am taking classes at the Fiber Factory in downtown Mesa. Two years ago I learned to spin. This year I have enrolled in a weaving class with the owner, Susan. There are two of us in the class, myself and a Pueblo Indian woman named Hope.   

We began by learning how to wind a warp thread. We achieved this by running the yarn over and under a bunch of pegs on a board. This winding gives the yardage you need and keeps the threads separated for threading the loom. I am using burgundy and blue on my warp. 

Once we got 12 yards wound we chained a slip knot over those to keep them together. (Each 12 rows of yarn will create an inch width of fabric.). After making 12 bundles of 12 threads we were done winding and we secured it with slip knots and gently took it off the board and set it on the loom. 

Threading the loom is a tricky procedure. One in which you need at least three hands. Susan taught us ways to help hold parts of the loom so we could do this on our own, with just our two hands!

Once we got the thread bundles lined up on the loom then we had to thread each individual thread in the heddles (little wire slots). The threads can then be lifted by pushing a treadle with your foot, that lifts one of four bars that heddles are attached to. This action creates the gap where you weave your crosswise or weft thread through that ultimately makes the pattern. 

By the end of our first three hour class I still had two more bundles of threads to thread through heddles. I will do that next week. Then we will have to tie those all on the loom before we can begin weaving the sampler cloth with a variety of patterns. 

Celtic Thunder

A group of us (14 Canadians) attended a concert by Celtic Thunder at the Mesa Art Center. 

Celtic Thunder is the brainchild of producer Sharon Browne and since its inception in 2007 has released 11 albums, toured the US and Canada coast to coast 8 times and Australia three times. The five male soloists are backed up by the Celtic Thunder Band, consisting of three female strings players (harp, violin and cello), a guitar player, a drummer and one wood winds player (tin flutes, flute, and bagpipes).  

Their shows are known for the use of dramatic effects of lighting and choreography as well as a stage set resembling an ancient stone pathway suggestive of those referenced in Celtic lore. 

My favorite songs from the evening were:  Despirado by the Eagles, Halliluya by Lenard Cowen, Danny Boy and Ireland. 

The Mesa Art Center seems like an amazing complex and I will go back for sure to check out other amenities, such as the Store, the Art Gallery and other events at any of the four theaters. As the following panorama photo shows the main theatre, the Ikeda Theatre, is gorgeous!

Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum

What an amazing place the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum is. It is a combination of a conservatory and a zoo. 

Our first stop was the Hummingbird Aviary. This screened in building houses five different types of hummingbirds. We were able to see them flitting around, feeding on flowers and feeders, sitting on twigs and even nesting. 

The hummingbird makes a small nest were she lays one or two eggs, each the size of a TicTac mint. She incubates these for about 24 days until the baby bird hatches. The nest's primary building material is spiders web allowing it to stretch as the baby birds develop. Each nest is only used once, but the building materials from one nest may be recycled into another nest. 

The Life Underground exhibit displayed critters who nest underground. I enjoyed seeing a Spotted Skunk sleeping in one of the window sided burrows. 

A tour through the Ironwood Art Gallery showed some wonderful animal art work.  I also spied some wonderful classroom spaces where various art classes are taught. I would live to take a class in one of the rooms that have window walls, so the classroom can open up to a view of the Sonoran Desert. Spectacular!!

Three young women introduced us to a Fur Feathers and Fangs presentation in the Warden Oasis Theatre. They showed us a gopher snake, skunk,porcupine   and quail. Interesting to see these critters up close and learn interesting facts about them. 

As 2 pm approached we made our way the the Raptor Free Flight station. We were able to watch native birds of prey fly so close to us we could actually feel the rush of air as they whined past!!  This afternoon the presentation featured a barn owl, Peregrine Falcon and four Harris Hawks. The raptor handlers were able to entice these birds out of there cages and to do some spectacular aerobatics for us. Beautiful. 

During the last section of our visit we checked out the Riparian Corridor with Bighorn sheep, otter and beaver; the desert grasslands with a mountain lion, white tailed deer, wolf, prairie dogs and blue Herron; and Cat Canyon with an Ocelot, fox and bobcats. On the way out we stopped in the aquarium to see lots of interesting fish and then had an ice cream from the gift shop. A wonderful days adventure!!

Ramada Inn Tucson

Our hotel, the Ramada Inns and Suites Foothills Resort located on Tanque Verde Road, turned out to be a gem. It had an Adobe look exterior and an inner courtyard with a pool (that we didn't have time to use). We were able to attend happy hour with two free drinks and breakfast the next morning with omelettes and other breakfast foods. A great choice and a handy location on Tanque Verde Road.