Even when it’s gloomy, things can be nice

Boy could this sentence be used for a lot of situations.  But today, instead of getting into more of the ugly stories from work, I’m going to share some nice sunsets with you.  It’s been raining a lot this winter but with that comes some great sunsets for a few minutes, if we’re lucky enough for some of the clouds to lift before dark.

The first two pics are taken from the back of the house, which faces northeast, but sometimes the sky is pink and orange all around.  The last photo is looking west.  The sun looks like a blaze under the dark storm clouds.

I hate all the gloom but this is much better than being snowed in any day.  Until next time, I’m ticking off those days until spring.  Only two days of January left.  Hurray!

The beauty and the fury of Mother Nature

We’ve seen it all in the desert, or so it seems.  The other night we had strong winds that rattled the windows and battered the house all evening and through the night. I laid in bed listening to all the noises and wondering what was going to disappear into the desert (chair cushions, barbecue cover, plant pots, etc) and also what would be broken the next morning.

I figured we wouldn’t go totally unscathed because that rarely happens no matter how you try to prepare for acts of nature.  The biggest tree in the yard lost a huge branch.  This branch is probably about eight inches in diameter.  But at least we didn’t lose the whole tree, which has happened in the past.

When I came out of work about three days ago there was the most awesome sunset.  I really wished I had the camera but I knew it would be gone once I drove home…and it was.  Then yesterday (Saturday) I got to snap a pic of this, almost as awesome as the other day.  I could look at these sunsets forever, but if you don’t act fast they’re gone.  There’s about a five minute window to get some nice photos.

I was off Saturday so I had to go and get more black shoes for work.  The soles are coming off my black sneakers.  I dearly love them so will take them to be fixed at the little shoe repair about ten miles away.  But I can’t do this now because of winter and working in the coolers and outside the dairy door, which is freezing even on a summer day.  Those shoes were the only ones I have that I can get my foot into along with insulated socks.  I put the thinking cap on a couple of weeks ago and decided to use my black gorilla tape and tape the soles on.  So far this has worked pretty well, but I’m still unsure how long I can get away with that, so it was time for new shoes. 

Naturally this is what happened once I got home and took the shoes out of the bag.

Raven will play with anything

Everything in this house is a cat toy.

And to bring you up to date, we have started the ham demos.  So far my name isn’t at the top of the list.  Hurray!

R is for Rust

We went on a hiking outing a few years ago with some friends that were part of a camera class we were taking.  The whole idea was to photograph the wildflowers blooming in the desert, but we ended up taking pictures of rust too once we arrived at our destination and found several rusted out buses along the route.

The drive itself was about 75-miles of dirt road full of ruts and rocks, some of which were big ones.  We were glad we didn’t drive our own vehicle.  There were several times I thought we’d be stuck out in the middle of nowhere in the Nevada desert, but somehow we continued.

Flower side of hill

 

 Barren side of hill

 

The flowers were a reward on a hot dry day.  I have to post a couple of those too even though this post is about rust.  What was very strange was that one side of the hill was a carpet of flowers and the other side across the dirt road was barren.

Okay, let’s get back to my topic, rust.  Have you ever noticed how pretty rust can be when it’s on things like this?  It’s very interesting.  What makes things rust in such a manner?  There are definitely many colors here.

After this trip, I started notice things around town with rust on them.

Do adventures like this raise your awareness?

Take notice of the beauty around you

Photo borrowed from the web

I have to say that I had the roughest time at work the other day and although I only work part-time, I stand on my feet all day.  That’s enough but on top of that everything I did was a disaster, or so I thought, and I was so wishing the day would fly by and be over.

When I thought about it later, my demo reminded me of the episode of I Love Lucy when she worked in the chocolate factory and she couldn’t keep up as the chocolates came down the conveyor belt.  I don’t know if any of you saw that episode, but I’m sure she must have felt the same way I did, as I tried to keep up.  I love my job but boiling water, cooking spaghetti, and serving it from a stainless steel cart in a store full of people is very difficult.  Of course, next time I’ll be better prepared and more organized I hope. All the people I work with are great so, I’m sure it’s just my lack of experience in this type of environment.  Most days working are fantastic and lots of fun.

Anyway, this post really isn’t about work.  It’s about how even the most difficult day can end in such beauty.  We should always relish in that and take notice that we have eyes to see it.  Let me explain.  When all the work things were put away for the day and I stepped outside, the entire sky was a gorgeous shade of pink.  It was pink in every direction and was so amazing.  I breathed in the wonder of that moment wishing I had my camera to capture it.  That beauty instantly eased my tension and I was so glad to be there at that place to see that gorgeous sunset.

This also reminds me the days are getting longer and there will be many more sunsets ahead.  I’m so happy I’ve survived another winter, although it wasn’t near as bad as the winter two years ago.  But I hate any kind of cold weather.  It’s been seventy or a bit above lately and I could jump up and down with joy.

How about you?  Has the beauty of nature made a terrible day better?

Something of Interest to Hikers out There



Zion National Park - Subway

 

And you don’t necessarily have to be a hiker to enjoy these beautiful nature pictures.  Sometimes the displays of Mother Nature blow me away with their beauty.



                                             Zion National Park - Subway

 

I have a neighbor who is an avid hiker.  She rock climbs, rappels down cliffs, and rides rapids among other adventures.  One of her favorite places to go is to Zion National Park.  The Subway is a favored spot for hikers, but I must warn you this is not for the novice hiker.  This beautiful spot requires strength and endurance.  Not only is repelling down several cliffs involved, but it also requires swimming through two 40-degree pools.  (Year round, it is this temperature.)

Zion National Park - Subway

 There is such a waiting list to hike this canyon.  They only give out permits for 80 hikers a day and it is always booked up, despite it being somewhat dangerous.

Zion National Park - Subway

 So if you’re a hiker and are ever in southern Utah, you may want to try this adventure.  Most of us will never attempt his trip, so I wanted to post pictures of the beauty in this slot canyon.  Enjoy!

 

Zion National Park - Subway

 

 

 

Zion National Park - Subway

 

 



Wind, a Double-edged Sword - Sculpting Beauty or a Force of Destruction

Kayenta - Sunni's Photo's

Snow Canyon State Park - Sunni's Photo's

Living in the desert, we are subject to windstorms, but without those brutal winds, we wouldn’t have all the carved, red rocks around us. The sweeping beauty of the canyons and sheer cliffs of rock walls rise up out of the desert plain, sagebrush, and cactus keeping them company. It took thousands of years to carve the beauty all around us. Without the wind, we would only have lumps of red, black, and cream-colored mountains to look at, all smooth and not near as intriguing as they are now. Amazing places like the Grand Canyon wouldn’t exist without the help of the wind. Therefore, looking from this angle, the wind is a good thing.

Grand Canyon National Park - Sunni's Photo's

Bryce Canyon National Park - Sunni's Photo's

Bryce Canyon National Park - Sunni's Photo's

However, I don’t relish it blowing 60 MPH in the dead of winter, when I have to go out and recover the poor plants I’m trying to protect, without freezing to death while doing it.

Free Clipart

It can also cause quite a mess when it brings blowing sand to clean up later. However, even this has its own beauty as I can look out my window and see it rippling across the desert in red-colored sheets.

In its milder version, wind becomes a breeze that can cool us on a hot summer day when a gentle puff of air is a relief. This can be as welcome as a tall glass of icy lemonade.

Free Clipart

Free Clipart

Without the wind we could never fly a kite or drift around in a hot balloon, once we got over our fright of floating around up there in a basket that only comes up to your thigh. Someday I will post that story.

Bushes would have to stay wherever they sprang up because nothing would be around to uproot them and carry them away to a different location.

Wind can also be a destructive force when it takes the form of a hurricane or tornado, ripping across the land leveling infrastructures, destroying homes, and taking human lives. Every year certain parts of the country fall victim to this destructive force of nature.

Flooding from Hurricane Damage

As people going about our daily lives, we probably never give much thought to the wind, unless it directly affects us in some way. The wind always draws my attention to it all the time because it’s a part of living in the desert.

We have had the barbecue almost blown off the patio a few times. It has blown over heavy medal chairs that have fallen and broken things and has blown with such gusto as to move a cargo trailer we have parked on the side of the house. One time it even took the trashcans and beat over $300 worth of damage into my husband’s truck. We now keep a chain around those cans at all times. Everyone in our neighborhood has lost things to the wind, blown away into the desert and probably miles away.

On one occasion, a dust storm came up while I was at the grocery store. By the time I loaded the car and got in, my mouth was full of gritty sand.

Maybe this post will be a reminder to some of just how much things in nature can affect us everyday.