Of course, you know what was for dinner . . .
Click on the image to enlarge.
March 2013
The Time Has Come
I got a call from my sister in California yesterday morning. She called to advise me that it was just about time to place our nonagenarian Mom in an assisted living facility. Mom had an episode this morning where she fell out of her chair at home and was unable to get up. She called the Fire Department, who had to break into her house, for help.
Mom lives in her house about a block away from my sister’s house. My sister looks in on her once a day, but wasn’t present for the incident.
So, after much discussion between Mom, my sister and I, we decided that it would be best to have her in a place where she can be cared for 24/7. That’s the down side of it. The positive side is that I think we can move Mom to Wickenburg, close to us.
I visited an assisted care facility a mere 1/2 mile from here. We often pass by the retirement ranch going to town. I liked what I saw, what they told me and the people there.
Mom’s a bit bummed about the whole thing, but I’m confident that when she gets here she will love it as much as we do. I sent her a brochure from the ranch along with a letter that states what’s to like about being here:
The little town of Wickenburg is a very good environment. We have clean air, a very low crime rate, it is quiet, has a mild climate and plenty of Western character. The only thing it lacks is YOU!
We hope to have her here for her 93rd birthday, Mother’s Day and many other happy days.
A Gelato Rose
I bought a dozen of these “Gelato” roses at the supermarket yesterday. They have the same name as the Italian ice cream. I believe we saw a shade of gelato similar to the color of these roses when we were in Rome. Click on the image to enlarge.
Record High Temperatures
Today and tomorrow are supposed to be at or near record setting for these dates. I took the image above of the clock/temperature readout on our patio at about 3:30 this afternoon.
The following discussion is from the National Weather Service:
NEAR RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL CONTINUE FRIDAY. A MODEST COOLING TREND WILL BEGIN DURING THE WEEKEND...THOUGH TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN ABOVE AVERAGE THROUGH AT LEAST THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. SKIES WILL REMAIN MOSTLY CLEAR...WITH PERIODS OF PASSING HIGH CLOUDS.DISCUSSION...
REST OF THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH SUNDAY...TEMPS HAVE REACHED WELL INTO THE 90S THIS AFTERNOON AT MOST LOW ELEVATION LOCATIONS. PHOENIX BROKE THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 91...REACHED 93 SO FAR AS OF THIS WRITING. YUMA WILL AT LEAST TIE THEIR RECORD FOR THE DATE...95. ANTICIPATE VERY SIMILAR HIGH TEMPERATURES FRIDAY. HOWEVER...THE UPPER RIDGE WILL BE WEAKENING. ON SATURDAY...THE RIDGE WILL HAVE BEEN FLATTENED AND SHORT WAVE PASSES BY BRINGING HIGH CLOUDS. THUS MAX TEMPS DROP A LITTLE BIT. ON SUNDAY A STRONGER SHORT WAVE PASSES BY...ALTHOUGH CENTERED FURTHER NORTH...FOR SOME SLIGHT ADDITIONAL COOLING. BUT OVERALL...WEEKEND TEMPS WILL STILL BE WELL ABOVE NORMAL.
First Plum Flower of Spring
Technically, spring isn’t supposed to be here until late next week. In spite of that, this little flower opened up on the flowering plum tree in the courtyard. The tree is starting to get its leaves back, and there are many more flower buds getting ready to open. The temperature today was about 83° with the forecast for tomorrow and Friday calling for even warmer temperatures. Click on the image to enlarge.
A New Ham Radio
I haven’t been active on amateur(ham) radio for several years. But when I found out I could buy this little VHF/UHF hand held transceiver for only about $40, I ordered it from Amazon. I futzed with it today and got it programmed for a few of the local repeater channels and actually got a couple of contacts on it.
The radio is smaller than a dollar bill (excluding the antenna) and seems to work very well. It fits in the cell phone pocket of my cargo shorts! Click on the image to enlarge.
