Catching up

This site is experiencing technical difficulties. If you are having problems viewing photos, please be patient, I'm working on it. Thanks!I can't believe how fast this year is going. We are already a week away from midterms. The Barrett-Jackson car show, the Phoenix Open, and the Arabian Horse Show have come and gone. It's getting ready to be spring, and we've only just had our first rain of the year. Probably one of the more perfect times in our corner of the desert, and what people fall in love with when they come for a visit. Especially with the kind of winter everyone has been suffering through this year! Polar vortex indeed.It makes me glad to be here, but at the same time the snowbirds glory in our 80° February, what they don't realize is that even for us, it's unseasonably warm - and dry. It harkens to a tough year ahead for fire season, drought, habitat loss, and stress on wildlife. Not to mention a scorching May - September. I'm trying not to think of that now, and just revel in the glory of living someplace snow-and-windchill free.I feel a blog re-vamp coming on (again), so look for some changes coming up. While I have loved using Wordpress.org, and having the customization freedom it offers, I am frustrated by the fact that when I read through some of my posts, half the time the pictures don't show up (WTF?). And the whole hosting situation is a pain in the rear. So I'm looking to move the whole operation over to another web hosting site, hopefully with lots of improvements.I'm taking Austin Kleon's advice from STEAL LIKE AN ARTIST, and stealing ideas for how to make this site better. Austin sends out occasional newsletters with a quick update on his projects, along with links to interesting things he's found on the internet recently. Alex Yeske from Dreams + Jeans blogs beautiful pictures and product recommendations. I really like how both of these bloggers give a succinct post, paired with images, and suggestions from around the web, and hope to implement their best practices here. I'd also like to make to make this site better for YOU, my readers. Any comments? Suggestions on improvements? I'd love to hear them in the comments section below.Here are some recent photos: 

Foggy morning, December

We finally had a good soaking rain. It has been over 3 months since we had any precipitation, and the whole place - the house, the yard, the whole city for that matter, had been covered in layers of dry gritty dust. There was a lifeless pallor over everything, keeping the color and vitality of the desert hidden from view.While everyone in the rest of the country gets hammered by storms, here's us:

Not that I'm asking for a hurricane (my heart goes out to everyone affected by Sandy), but a few drops here and there would be nice. Below is a lovely photo of what we Phoenicians call "the brown cloud," caused by ozone: "Ozone is an invisible gas created when other pollutants in the air - such as those created by combustion- are heated by the sun." Just another day for us:

And then I'm sure this doesn't help the dust situation - summer dust storms known as Haboobs. (Yes that really is what they are called, and yes, they really do look this big and freaky)

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrcVqtmugj8]

So when we hear we are getting rain after almost 4 months, we kinda freak out. All the weather people have their sleeves rolled up, the maps are flashing all over the place, and weather is the LEAD STORY.

What is just an average storm in any other part of the country is an event for us. I mean, it didn't just rain...it rained for two whole days!! 

I loved it.

Sat in my jammies drinking coffee all Saturday morning, then actually got my rain jacket out of the closet (yes, it had DUST on it!), and went out Christmas shopping.

In the rain!

It was kind of exciting. Everyone had jackets and/or hats, and some even had this fancy type of nylon water shield that they would hold over head. You see them a lot in British shows.

But the cool this was, everyone was in a good mood. And mellow. No grumpiness, obnoxious yapping or complaining...just cool, you know? The rainy day vibe.

The horses loved it, too. They stood out there, just soaking it in, and getting good and muddy.

And then I woke up Sunday morning, to

FOG.

Let's see what else we can find around the ol' place...

Thanks for hanging out with me on my foggy desert morning! I hope you are enjoying some crisp fresh air, wherever you are.

Online Art Gallery

This Labor Day, I was lucky enough to be invited up to my BFF's family cabin for the weekend. It's in a small mountain town, just far enough away from the heat and congestion of the city. AND host to an annual craft & artisan fair.I love these fairs. There are so many beautiful things to see, and you have a chance to get to know the people who made them. My problem is, I can never afford anything there! So I figured if I can't directly purchase some of the artwork I saw, the least I can do is help support local artists by telling everyone else about them. That whole "word of mouth blog" idea. :)If I had my own art gallery, I'd be happy to have these pieces in my shop! Keep reading til the end to see my top picks of the weekend.

Heidi's Online Art Gallery

If you love browsing through home decor magazines like me, you may have seen chairs like these adorning some high-end Aspen getaway:Anita Cordes Willis makes them by hand and sells them here: http://riverbottomfurniture.com/If Jewelry is more your speed, you might like these kiln-formed glass pieces handcrafted by Ray Balda:Check out Ray's Facebook page: Kokopelli Art Glass (and click "Like!" - when I asked Ray if I could feature him on my blog, he said only if your readers Like my Facebook page!).  Thanks, Ray.Judy Brooks brooks6@juno.com makes these gorgeous pottery colanders, as useful as they are beautiful:Jo Burke joburke@commspeed.net knits cute handbags and felts the wool in hot water to make them sturdy and long lasting:Want more jewelry? Here's some by Vickie "Bead" Smith:Right next to the fair is a REAL art gallery, Myra's Art Gallery & Studio. It has been a landmark of the Pine, Arizona main drag for many years. Myra is a lovely woman—an artist herself—and was kind enough to show us around her gallery. She is host to some of the most well known artists in the state, and can tell you all about each of them. She allowed me to photograph some to share with you:Please visit Myra's page to see more from these amazing artists and visit their own websites.We went back to the fair and I got my mom some earrings for her birthday:

Here are my top three artists from the craft fair:

Nancy Koski:Nancy is a potter and an artist. She makes original pieces of pottery, then paints beautiful pictures on them by hand. Nora E. Graf:Nora's art is truly one-of-a-kind. She carves and paints dried gourd vases. Simply amazing. I would love to have a few of her pieces in my home.Raymond Judge:Raymond is a navajo artist who makes these tiny watercolors:And he makes jewelry:And he sculpts. Check out this Pronghorn:Please support these amazing artists by visiting their sites, telling your friends about them - and, hey, maybe buy a piece or two!We had such a great time on our weekend away. We even got to load up a bag of used books at the library for 2 bucks!We had a great weekend. And this pretty Coues deer doe said goodbye to us as we left:Thanks for reading! What original artwork have you seen lately?

Desert Rain - a picture post

We have FINALLY gotten some much needed rain down here in the desert. It is making for some very humid don't-even-bother-straightening-your-hair days, but things have cooled off ever so slightly and the dust has been kept to a minimum.There is a certain smell that springs from newly damp desert ground, but I suppose it smells just as good as any other place when long overdue rains arrive. I actually put it into the first chapter of my book. Here's a peek:

The western sky was the kind of blue that comes after a cleansing summer rain, and the breeze still smelled of damp sage and pine. Leather reins lay slack in her fingers, resting on the saddlehorn in front of her. Closing her eyes, Ruby breathed in the beautiful day.

You'll have to wait to read more, but I'll try to pop in a few tidbits here and there. Until then, enjoy some recent photos of the girls (click images to enlarge):

For some more AMAZING Arizona photography, check out this local photographer's page.Thanks for reading,Heidi

Back to the Mountains - a picture post

If you've been reading my blog for awhile, first of all, THANK YOU!! :) and second of all, you'll be glad to hear about a place familiar to us; our favorite spot in the beautiful White Mountains of eastern Arizona. This is where you first heard of it. Here's the follow-up from last year where you see our lovely tree burned to the ground.In celebration of quitting my job, the last hurrah before school started, and my husband having 3 days off, we headed back to the our favorite spot for a cool break from the 115° heat. Here are some AAaaaahhhh moments:

 ...and then my battery died.

The nice thing to know is that the area is bouncing back nicely. Fire kills forests, but in the ashes come new life. Grass is growing thick, and our camp spot had the biggest surge of baby Aspens that we've seen since we've been coming here. The wildlife will feed on the fresh new growth, and the whole cycle will begin again.

Thanks for coming along with us, and I hope each of you has a chance to get out and enjoy a nice weekend with your family.

Take care!

Heidi

Alternative Fashion Society

Last night I attended an event in downtown Phoenix. The Alternative Fashion Society showcased 15 up-and-coming Phoenix designers in a show called Madame Trapeze, and I was fortunate enough to have been invited. We were there to support my BFF's nephew and daughter who were involved in the show, and hey, when your kids actually want you to show up to something, you go. Let me just say it's been a loooong time since I've done anything this late, loud, and downtown.

Promoter Jen Deveroux along with Alekzander Shaw and Nelson Hawks produced a feast for the eyes, and DJ tricky t had the place thumping with a non-stop mix of fresh and vintage dance and alt tracks. The venue was well managed, clean and the crowd, cool. Onstage before and during the show, a handful of local artists worked on canvases, and an array of fine art stood as a backdrop. I was very impressed with all of the art exhibited, almost as impressed as seeing the works-in-progress develop right before my eyes, throughout the show.

Banding Hendrix, progressive artist and muralist.

Nyla the High Pimptress (a.k.a. Myryka, my amazing former bellydance teacher) entertained the crowd pre- and during the show with sultry twists on the circular trapeze.

As for the fashion, what can I say - it's definitely alternative. Most of it is some sort of bedroom wear/lingerie, and very sexy if you have the body to pull it off, which most of these girls (and guys) did. Though alternative boudoir and costume lines like Dolls R'nt Dead,  Missconstrued, and Hell on Heels definitely took center stage, there were a few exceptions. Notably, a street/skate line called Noble Savage, custom couture line Looks Good Anya, Robot Rowboat, HausofStardust, the much-talked-about Kelly Calabrese, and a line of latex fashion that I could see Katy Perry and Nikki Minaj (or maybe that girl in 50 Shades of Gray) fighting over, Vital Vein.

Here are some photos, click on one to see a slideshow.

HausofStardust

HausofStardust

vital vein

vital vein

vital vein

vital vein

hell on heels couture

hell on heels couture

this model (above) flipped me off with a flourish, which I thought was pretty cool,and seemed in character for her since the back of her legs are tattooed"Fuck" and "You"I say stick to your guns,consistency is admirable.

kelly calabrese

dolls r'nt dead

dolls r'nt dead

Robot Rowboat (model: Tiffany Brown)

looks good an-ya

looks good an-ya

noble savage

noble savage

noble savage

noble savage

noble savage, the designer

There were many more, 15 designers in all, which is way too much for a little suburban horse blogger like me to keep track of (although I did feel pretty badass in the press pit with my notebook and auto-focus camera). All I can say is, if you are looking for fun in Phoenix, don't mind being out late, and are open-minded, check out an Alternative Fashion Society show. The last thing you will be is bored.

And how about these posters? Shout out to the graphic designer.

If you were a part of this event and would like me to add credits to any of the above photos, please comment below, I will be glad to accommodate.

Live an artful life.

The End

kelly calabrese

Desert in bloom

Living in the desert can be great...sometimes. We have absolutely beautiful winters here. While the rest of the country is freezing and shoveling snow, we* are playing golf and drinking freshly squeezed orange juice.

But summer.

ugh.

Summer is creeping up on us. Last weekend we had our first round of 100+ temperatures. Like a little teaser, it only lasted a few days. Then we got the very welcome and much needed blessing of a brief rain shower.

In the desert you find yourself yearning for rain like a castaway scans the sea for ships on the horizon. It is a sign of life, sent from faraway.

We haven't had nearly enough rain lately. Arizona's yearly average for rain is about 7 inches. Last year, the Phoenix area totaled a little over four inches - for the whole year. This year so far we have not even reached .75 inches of rain.

Is a drought in the desert redundant?

All I know is, it's dry. Too dry. And when it does rain, this is how I feel:

Tim Robbins in The Shawshank Redemption, one of the best movies ever.

But in between winter and summer, we do get a little nibble of spring. It's that sliver of time before all the non-native plants start turning brown from the heat.You can tell it's spring when the Palo Verde trees bloom.

The Palo Verde ("green stick") is Arizona's state tree, and gets its name from the green bark it wears.

In the spring, these trees burst into color, covered in yellow flowers, and virtually hum with the presence of bees, busily drinking the nectar and pollinating away.

When the blooms expire, they carpet the ground.

This yucca is about 25 feet tall.

sage

oleanders (non-native), a hedge.

And since I am a midwesterner at heart, I have to have little bits of annual color on my front porch.

I wanted to get a picture of a Saguaro Blossom. Saguaros (pronounced sah-WAH-ro) are those huge cactuses (cacti) that you see in the stereotypical desert panorama:

The state flower of Arizona, the Saguaro blossom forms in clusters at the top of each arm of the cactus. They bloom April-June, and since they open at night, the main pollinators are nectar-drinking bats.

Did you ever wonder about the pleated structure of a cactus? Cacti are pleated to allow for the expansion that occurs when the plant is able to soak up large amounts of water, as it does in monsoon season. When the cactus dries out, the pleats deepen and become more pronounced. This has the added effect of being able to provide shade for itself from the heat of the sun.

Since you pretty much need a ladder to get a picture of the saguaro blossom, I thought I would just search for a good shot for you on the net. I have no idea how I'd get a ladder into my Civic.

Here you go:

And just for kicks, here are some new horse pictures:

As always, thanks for stopping by.

* and by "we," I mean everyone else in Arizona. I don't golf.

**But I do drink freshly squeezed orange juice...

mmmmmmmm it's yummy.

Just Pictures

Well we are on the road again, this time to the north rim of the grand canyon. I'm playing with my new iPhone and blogging while my husband drives.It's unbelievable to me what we can do with technology these days. Video calling and all the stuff we used to see on the Jetsons is here. Now all we need are floating cars and jet packs.I really want a jet pack.But until then I have to say I am pretty thrilled with my new iPhone. It's awesome. And now I will be able to take more video! As soon as I can figure out how to get the video from the phone to blogger, you'll see more of that.For today, I'm posting some random pictures of dirty horses :) and all weekend I'll tweet pics of our trip. (twitter link on the right).Have a great weekend!Heidi

Wildfire

If you've been reading my blog for over a year (thank you!), you may remember a trip I took you along to one of our favorite places to get away, Arizona's White Mountains.

(click photos to enlarge)

It's simply amazing to us that we can leave our door in the hot, dry, dusty desert at temperatures in the 110s and up, drive for a few hours and be in one of the most pristine wilderness areas you'd ever want to see, surrounded by greenery and wildlife, a new rainstorm blowing over every afternoon, and temps in the fresh, cool 60s.And you may remember the lone Ponderosa Pine in the photo above, also here:

And you may or may not be aware that a huge, devastating wildfire ripped through eastern Arizona earlier this year.

Along with being worried for our friends in the small mountain towns, we wondered: what would happen to our special place? For a while after the fire, we thought about going up, just to check things out, but were afraid of what we'd find.

A couple of weeks ago, we decided to go for it. It was a combo birthday weekend for my eldest son and I, and none of us had the energy for a big birthday bash, so we decided to celebrate with a relaxing family trip to our favorite spot. We crossed our fingers and hoped that it wouldn't be just a pile of charcoal.

We saw plenty of evidence of the fire as we made our way up the mountain.

Between the blue sky and the green grass stood dead, dead forest.

We were so relieved as we pulled into our camp spot that most of it had remained unharmed.

We set up camp, the dogs luxuriated in the cool grass and we went off to explore.

And soon found evidence that the fire had come through our area, biting off big hunks here, and leaving things untouched there.

I have no idea how one tree can burn to the ground, and the one right next to it, survive.

And what of our Lonesome Pine, you ask?

This huge tree, I don't know, maybe 5ft. in diameter, and over 100 ft. tall,

is now a relic:

before

after

This fire, to completely burn out the entire core of such a massive tree, must have been so hot, so intense...I can't even imagine it.

But...the grass is green. That means things are growing, right?

Yes.

One thing about fire is that it feeds the earth to nourish new growth. And the cycle of life begins again.

But the best thing that could have happened on this trip, besides the one fish we caught

Was the most unbelievably bright, huge and beautiful double rainbow* I've ever seen:

It was so close we wanted to look for the pot of gold.

And couldn't even fit the entire arc into the camera shot.

It was an awesome birthday.

On the wildfire:

The Wallow fire, the largest in Arizona history, burned Over 530,000 acres and 32 homes and cost more than $79 million to fight.

The two hikers responsible for the accidental start of the fire are Arizona residents, cousins both in their 20s. They could face up to six months in prison and fines up to $5,000 each. While I agree that people should be made responsible for their actions, I do not agree with "hanging" these two young men for an accident that quickly ran out of control, due to natural forces beyond their or 2,347 fire personnel's ability to contain.

While we use extreme care with our fires while we are camping, we understand that this mistake could have happened to us, or anyone else. The two cousins claim that they believed their fire was extinguished, but obviously a spark remained.

Instead of severe punishment, maybe the two could be used in a public-service ad campaign.

I mean, whatever happened to Smokey the Bear?

Only YOU can prevent forest fires.

Maybe having that mantra firmly re-planted in the American psyche could help prevent a tragedy such as this.

But if it's one thing I've learned from this weekend, it's that certain quotes ring true:

"Without the rain, there would be no rainbow."

Gilbert K. Chesterton

and that when you have a title for a blog post that reminds you of a song,

that song will be running in your head for days.

Enjoy:

"Wildfire" by Michael Martin Murphey

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gl4Y4FWWkn0]

*and because I can't even say "double rainbow" with out thinking of this guy, here's the link:

Yosemite Mountain Bear Double Rainbow

Arizona Haboob

Have you ever seen a Haboob?

If you've watched the movie Hidalgo, you've seen a Haboob. There's a scene where they have to outrun a huge dust storm. I mean HUGE. You may have been thinking, "Wow,  great special effects - that can't be real."

While the special effects were spectacular, I can guarantee you, storms like that are real. I saw it happen last week.

This is what it looked like:

This storm was over 60 miles wide, and reached a height of 3,000 feet. It engulfed the entire Phoenix metropolitan area, otherwise known as The Valley of the Sun. My oldest son and I were out running errands at the time it hit, and as it approached us, the cloud looked like something out of a sci-fi movie, a huge black monster eating everything in its path.

While haboobs are not uncommon for this part of the world, they aren't frequent, and as many Valley dwellers have remarked, never this huge. Most people I've spoken to said that they've never seen a dust storm of this magnitude before. The other strange thing about this one was the behavior of the storm.

Usually when you see an enormous wall of dust move across the desert, it is accompanied by fierce, gusty winds that make you feel as if you will blow over. First the wind, then the dust, blowing hard. Then there will be a strong downpour, dumping several inches of rain in a rather short period of time. And the before you know it the clouds are gone, the desert has been scrubbed clean, and everything has this wonderful damp woodsy-deserty smell.

And there will be a puddle in front of our house about the size of Lake Michigan. This is all normal behavior for Arizona monsoons.

But this storm had the creepy, eerie factor of just...hanging there. The wind stopped, and with minimal rain, the dust didn't have anywhere to go. It was like fog, only dry and gritty, and for days afterward, everything was coated in a fine powder.

The haboob reminded me of a movie I once saw about the dust bowl days, and in the film, this woman literally goes crazy because everything in her house is covered in dust; she opens the cupboard to get the dishes, and dust just pours out; there's dust piled up in the corners of the room, drifts of it.

And while our house didn't look quite that bad, it sure wasn't pretty. Especially when you throw in dog hair dust bunnies big enough to build a new dog...Am I the only one who hates doing housework? I didn't think so.

And sometimes during weather like this I look out at my poor little British equines.

Gypsy horses certainly weren't made for the dry, dusty, dirty desert. One of these days when I win the lottery :) I'll have a summer place with lush green pastures for them to frolic and skip in, with daisies in their hair. Until then, they'll just have to suffer through it like the rest of us.

I mean, a few months of unbearable heat is better than snow, windchill and below freezing temperatures, right?

Right?

December, Dandelions.

This morning I looked out my kitchen window, and this was the view that greeted me:

There is something about seeing a Gypsy Horse in your back yard that just puts you in a good mood.

Days are short. I go out to the barn in my pajamas, work clogs, and my husband's hunting jacket. The air is crisp and cool and my feet are cold. I'm grateful for the chill in the air. It's a welcome relief from the long hot summer. It gets so dry and dusty here that sometimes you feel coated in grime, like the layer of dust on everything in the garage has settled onto you, too. On those searing August days, I long for a place where things are damp and green and growing wild.But now that winter is near, the air conditioning is off and we drape ourselves in too-dormant sweaters, thankful for the nip in the air, however slight, and wait for the tourists to show up in their shorts and tank tops, reveling in the "warm" winter.

Chroicoragh and Keira's hair is growing in thick and shaggy. It gives them a nice wooly plump appearance, especially Chroi, in her eighth month of gestation. I talk to her belly when I'm out in the stall, and try to get the baby to kick my hand. Not super fat yet, she is in the stage of the healthy pregnancy glow. And hungry! She chases Keira into her own stall at feeding time so they won't have to share.Most people think that an animal's coat gets thicker in winter due to the change in weather. It actually has to do with the hours of daylight. As the days get shorter, even when the weather is still warm, the winter coat starts to grow in. The length of the day is the biological sign to the horse (bear, caribou, whatever) that winter is nearing, and since it takes a while to grow all that hair, they get a jump start after the summer solstice. That's the longest day of the year. The days following get progressively shorter and shorter in hours of daylight until the winter solstice (which is the shortest day of the year).This phenomenon also effects when an animal will come into estrous. After the winter solstice, when the days start getting longer again, the mare will realize that spring is on the way (even though it's is still cold), and that the coming weather will permit the safe care of her foal -- warm air and plenty of fresh forage, packed with nutrients. So she will start to cycle, producing eggs and just waiting around for some stud to show her a good time...But back to the daylight.

Awww. New babies are so much fun!

A practice that is well known among horse breeders and trainers, but probably unknown to most others, is the use of artificial light to manipulate the onset of estrous. The first time I planned to breed my horses, the vet said to make sure I put the mares "under lights" starting in mid-January. Keeping the horse in a stall at night with the lights on, tricks her body into thinking that the days are getting longer,  and she will start her cycle. The reason for this, in our case anyway, is that a horse's natural time of year to get pregnant and have babies is in the spring, and they will be very young in the nice calm summer months.Well that's all fine and good if your summer months are mild and balmy, but in the desert our summer months are more like the inside of a kiln. We don't like our babies baked, so we tweak our breeding season to the earlier months. Putting a mare under lights in January will prompt her into becoming fertile earlier, thus foaling earlier in the year so the baby will be good and strong by the time the heat hits in June. The gestation cycle for horses is eleven months, so breeding in April gets you a foal by the next March. March is Arizona is gorgeous. (So if you are planning a trip here, and are tempted by the lower "off-season" rates in June-September, skip it. Go to Alaska in the summer. Come to AZ in the winter; you will be so glad you did.)Another reason people put their horse under lights is to keep their coat short and glossy for showing. Show horses don't want to be shaggy, so they spend the nights under lights to get fooled into thinking it's summer, and get to wear jackets to keep warm.

But if the sight of bright yellow dandelions in my yard in December is any kind of a clue, we won't have to worry too much about that. :)I think I felt a kick today.