Miriam's Squash

Just inside the entrance, on a chair, was a box of saran-wrapped pieces with a sign that read "FREE - ORGANIC SQUASH"

Always on the lookout for something different, this exceeded my criteria.

Who'd ever guess squash could make a man stand up and yell, "YYYYEEEEHAAWWWW!!" but this did it.  Inquiry led to the discovery it was from the garden of the proprietress of Mawmaw's Laundry in Cottonwood Arizona. She said it's an heirloom from the Native American seed-bank in Yuma. She kindly shared an end piece with seeds and I've been doling them out, a few at a time, to folks who I think'll do right by 'em.

To give the recipients an idea of what to expect, here's Miriam with this year's harvest.

Desert APocRYPHA - Zach Hively

It sounds cliched, but once in a great while a poet comes along who stands out. 

It's an honor to present...Zach Hively.

Setting Fire

All Souls Procession 2021

Happens November 7, 6-9pm 

in Tucson, Arizona, USA

Photo by Jody Greer Cummins

2019 Procession: Still images

2020 Video

https://vimeo.com/470881781

2019 Video -59 mins

https://vimeo.com/467619584

Rear-ending

Stopped at a red light in Flagstaff this afternoon, I was surprised by the WHAM! We shot forward about fifteen feet. Fortunately, I was first in line.

Phoebe seems to have taken it in stride. I've had a low-grade headache the rest of the day and lower back pain. Not what I had in mind as a distraction at this point. 

It could'uh been woise

Weds morn 8:35. Extra tired from it all but only -- so far -- minor stiffness; not enough to bother getting treatment for.

Thurs afternoon: Weds afternoon the back pain prompted me to call his insurance & file a claim. I was able to schedule a massage for tomorrow afternoon.

Fri: Pain continues to worsen. Chiropractic just makes it hurt more.

Anasazi Inn

For YEARS I worked at lowering my miles-traveled-in-a-day. Sometime back it was down to 12.

Crossing the Rez is about 150-200 miles. One time, several years ago, exhausted, I took a room at the Anasazi Inn. It was a quiet, comfortable night. A few years ago the rooms, all in a row, burned to the ground. There're still a few buildings standing.

Now...

BELIEVE

Mexican Hat Rock

 

Exploring

Awaiting the Bluff Arts Festival, I wandered the nearby environs and stumbled onto this...

The road less traveled

And then, out there among the sage, this...

Chip Thomas & The Bluff Arts Festival (BAF)

This post is to broaden awareness of the Festival and encourage support for Chip's mural.

Chip Thomas is one of those amazing people you rarely hear about.

But anyone's who's traveled the Navajo Reservation has probably seen his murals on the sides of abandoned buildings.

Chip's website

Image use permission pending 

Time/date of posting: 10:11 a.m. Nevada Time, 10, October, 2021

In 2019, along with a showing of a movie about his work, Chip gave a presentation at the Bluff Arts Festival. This year there's a Go Fund Me campaign to raise $1,750.00 for a mural on Cedar Hall, a project that is part of Design Build Utah @ Bluff. I gave $25.00.

Link to Go Fund Me Campaign.

Below  are links to Festival-related events.

List of films at the Film Festival Friday October 15th, 6:30 - 9:00pm

Workshope -- Three on Saturday, October 16 & Two on Sunday, October 17.

Artist Market -- Saturday, October 16th, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Google Map showing location of Bluff Community Center where Artist Market happens.

And for those who do Facebook....

See you there!

Barrels of Mesquite

 If I hadn't seen it wid me own eyes, I'd not have believed. 

I got off the freeway and stopped to think about things. It wuz then I noticed the overflowing barrels and piles of trash stacked round.

Rather than call, I emailed the Nevada Department of Transportation. Three days later, when I came back, I couldn't believe my eyes!

Its a miracle!

Nevada

Toward late afternoon it began to clear.

I discovered this place in 2016 or thereabouts and was last here in 2018.

The large, barrel cactuses coquettishly hide themselves amongst the creosote and Joshua trees.

Bear's Ears Restored

Below is a three-minute video of images of Bears Ears National Monument. It incudes photos by Josh Ewing, former Executive Director of Friends of Cedar Mesa.

https://vimeo.com/566354059

Here's a link to the Friends announcement of the restoration.

Slickrock near Bluff, Utah

(South side of Bears Ears)

A favored source of entertainment is button-holing folks and proselytizing on behalf of Western Watersheds Project and Advocates for the West. I've been pleasantly surprised at how many people are aware of the depratory (I also enjoy making up words) impact of livestock and are receptive to my litanies.

Franconia Rd Debacle

We were taking our time moving westward. After a two-day layover outside Flagstaff, we felt ready to ride, but by Kingman, Arizona we were tired. Garmin maps showed a road going north into the desert at the Franconia Rd exit. 

There's nothing to see in this image; it's simply a memento

(though the bidet thinks it adds a juanty spin)

After a high-speed traverse of deep sand, first one way, then coming back, I had to admit the road wasn't there. With no energy to explore further, we made camp between the freeway and the railroad tracks...a mistake. The trains ran every 20 minutes until midnight, then about once an hour. The freeway didn't get quiet until around 1:30 a.m.

It'd been hot in the afternoon and I'd parked across from her to take advantage of the shade from her camper. At 3:00 a.m. two pickups managed to squeeeeeze between our vehicles. They honked (warningly, annoyedly?) as they roared off.

Soon several other vehicles arrived and baaaarely managed to get through. Then came A REALLY BIG truck. I sat up and flashed my headlights to let 'em know I was there. I got out, pulled on muh pants, moved the water jugs and cooler out from behind Phoebe, threw the luggage from the hood inside and moved the box off the driver's seat. I then backed to the other side of the road and parked. We watched -- she'd gotten up to see what was going on -- as several LARGE rigs drove by. The string of lights grew as people accumulated near some heavy equipment we'd seen parked on and next to the tracks. Soon it was all going. 

We didn't get much sleep and in the morning dragged ourselves around, bemoaning the bizarreness of it all. An "inspector" stopped by and said he didn't know where the Main People were from but all the workers were local; they'd been told to be at the job-site at 3:00 a.m. It sounded just plain cruel.

Fortunately, around 11 p.m. the night before, I'd made a reservation at the Holiday Inn in Victorville. It took us 3.5 hours to travel the 130 miles. Our spliffoes were drooping so badly we could barely haul our stuff up to the room. Supper was delightful though as we emptied her refrigerator. She's heading into the city and will be well-fed from here on.

Spliffoes are the poochy parts on a (tabby) cat's face

where their whiskers come out

Drawings by MDC

For those unfamiliar, here's what spliffoes normally look like

The Melon

We stopped at Kayenta for gas. A short distance away a gentleman was selling some yellow round things. I went over to see.

"Canaries," he called 'em. Said they were from Utah and he'd nearly sold out the eight thousand pounds he'd brought down. The cheapest was five dollars, out of my budget these days. We chatted a bit about our heritages and he decided that since I was a foreigner, in the heart of Navajo Land, he'd gift me with one.

There's something about accepting a gift from someone whose family has suffered -- and is still subject to -- untold miseries at the hands of the dominant culture.

It was one of the sweetest, most delicious cantaloupes I've ever eaten.

Travel Pics

 

Keep It Wild (cap)

Time for Coffee!

(Imusa stove-top espresso maker)

According to this book I come by it genetically.

Whilst exploring near Mexican Hat, this (apparently) purposefully-placed specimen appeared. I've never seen green before. And the size is kinda small for coyote, my first guess.

What thinketh thou, Jozien?

Monocline

Two miles north of Mexican Hat Rock, at the junction of highways 163 and 261, if you look south, the eroded face of the monocline presents -- when the sun is further over than in this picture -- a beautiful pattern of waves and colors. (Worth stopping for.)

Mexican Hat

It was raining and EVERYONE ELSE was either -- depending on their vehicle -- taking advantage of the gravel-topped surface or heading for pavement. There was FAR too much traffic. We went looking for a quieter place....and found it just up the road.

In the morning the sky continued to clear and we enjoyed the solitude. Though this being in "the window" of when the temperatures are the best, the hordes are arriving.