Desert Color

April is the most beautiful month in the desert.  Everything is in bloom.  The colors are all so bright and vivid.  It’s hard to imagine that plants can actually thrive in the desert climate.  It amazes me every year when I see all the blooms along the roadways.  The desert is full of wildlife too.  I always feel so sorry for them having to endure such miserable conditions all the time.  I think the desert would be a nice place to visit in April.  I’m not sure why anyone would want to live here full time.  Of course, the poor critters have no choice.  But people do and yet I’ve been here almost thirteen years.  What’s wrong with me?

 Paloverde tree in my yard

 

Cactus and other desert shrubs all thrive in this arid climate that can be below freezing during the winter months and hot as a firecracker in the summer.  Usually we go from summer to winter and vice versa, but if we’re lucky, we actually get a short spring and fall that lasts long enough to enjoy some days with the windows open.

 Lady Bank's Rose in my front yard (a bit out of focus)

Some winters we get a couple of skiffs of snow, but this year we’ve had a lot of rain and because of that everything is so green.  This little bit of water is enough for the desert landscape to put on its magnificent display for us to see. 

The trail behind my house 

By May the flowers will dwindle and the first of the hot, dry weather will be here.  But we do have a few bloomers all year, such as the sage bushes and the chaste trees that bloom in intervals and usually about four times a year.  Those along with the cactus are hardy enough to withstand 115 degrees and strong, gusty winds, as well as the teens and twenties in the winter.

 Cactus blooming on the parkway and behind us in the desert

More desert blooms along the parkway

 

The winds can be brutal blowing away anything in their path.  All my water pans have rocks in them to keep them anchored in place during the wind storms, which also kick up a lot of dust.  It’s impossible to keep the house clean because the red sand seeps in every crack and under the windowsills.  Despite this dusty mess, sometimes the breeze feels so good that I want to open the windows.  The stiff breezes can happen all year long, but in summer and fall they’re a great reprieve from the scorching heat.  I always know when it’s over 105, without looking at the thermometer, because going outdoors is like stepping into a blast furnace.  I always feel it burning my skin.  However, this is still preferable to me instead of the cold.  I don’t do well at all if it’s 40 degrees or below.  Heck, even 40 is too cold for me. 

 One of our spectacular sunsets

 

Somehow we always get the most beautiful sunsets here too.  I’m not sure why this is the only place I’ve ever lived that has breathtaking colors at sunset.  Maybe it’s just the desert conditions.  I could ponder that a while and probably still not know the answer.

I have thousands of pictures.  I hope you’ve enjoyed the few I wanted to share.

The Story of a Lizard

Lizard - Sunni's Photo's



We have many lizards here in the desert. I’m not sure what kind this is, but they are plentiful around my house. The colors range from a light brownish-red to a dark brown color. Most of them have black bands around their neck. I got on Google, but  I’m still not able to decipher which kind of lizard this is. My best guess is a Great Basin Fence Lizard.

Lizard's Back - Sunni's Photo's

My husband was mowing the grass a few days ago and he almost ran over this guy. He stopped short and the lizard was by the wheel of the mower. Stunned, he didn’t move and my husband was able to touch him and said his skin was very rough. In about a minute or two, the lizard took off as fast as his legs would carry him. However, he didn’t go far and got under the honeysuckle bush we have on the fence. A lizard liked to stay around there, so I’m thinking this was this one.

Lizard's Belly - Sunni's Photos

Sadly, the next morning he was still there and dead, so I went out and buried him under this bush. I looked at him closely then and he was gorgeous with beautiful fluorescent colors on his belly that we humans would never see. I took pictures to share with all of you. The male lizard is the more colorful one, which seems to be the way it is with all animals and birds. We are thinking he died of old age since most lizards this size live 3-4 years, if that. Or perhaps he had a heart attack, scared to death by the motor of the lawn mower and his narrow escape. I don’t know if lizards have heart attacks.