It has been 20 years since we started our blog. We started it when we were still in California and now continuing (since 2010) in Arizona. We don’t get that many readers, but we enjoy posting things here as our Digital Diary.
I took these on my morning walk today. The weather mostly cloudy no rain (yet):
Curve Billed Thrasher:
Desert Cottontail Rabbit:
Click on either image to enlarge. Both taken in our back yard.
Chicken and Shrimp Louie Salad – image (C) Bob
I don’t often Cross-post here from our Food Website, but this was an exceptionally good Sunday treat for us. Shredded Chicken and Jumbo Shrimp in a green salad with Louie dressing. All home made and delicious.
This is a short post since I wanted to share the salad but have to get back to other matters. Click on the image to enlarge.
The Founding of the United States of America
On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, formally declaring the 13 American colonies free from British rule. Drafted primarily by Thomas Jefferson, the document proclaimed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and listed grievances against King George III. This bold act of separation led to the Revolutionary War, which ended with victory at Yorktown in 1781 and formal recognition in the 1783 Treaty of Paris. The foundation was solidified in 1787 with the drafting of the U.S. Constitution, creating a federal republic with a system of checks and balances. These events marked the birth of a new nation dedicated to freedom and limited government ideals that continues to shape the world today.
Happy 250th Anniversary, America!
The latest BUC-EE’S opening happened today in Goodyear, AZ, just off of I-10 at Bullard Road. We watched the video of all the activity at opening time, and it was insane. Enjoy the video below. Run Time under six minutes.
First day of summer – 06-21-2026 – Wickenburg, AZ.
I snapped this photo this morning in the little wash behind our lot. These are Gambel’s quail, a female adult and three juveniles running across the open area back there.
Taken with a Canon EOS R10 camera with a 55-210mm lens.
Gemini AI:
The birds captured in 20260621 quail and chicks.jpg are a family of Gambel’s Quail (Callipepla gambelii), a signature desert species native to the American Southwest.
Breakdown of the Group
- The Adult (Left): This is an adult female Gambel’s Quail. She features the characteristic blue-gray plumage, chestnut-and-white streaked flanks, and a prominent, dark, comma-shaped head plume (topknot). She lacks the stark black face mask and black belly patch of the adult male.
- The Chicks / Juveniles (Center and Right): These are older, semi-mature chicks (often called juveniles). By June, earlier spring hatches have grown quite large but retain their mottled, buffy-brown camouflage plumage. If you look closely at their heads, you can see their small, spiked topknots just beginning to develop.
Behavior in the Desert
Gambel’s Quail are famously ground-dwelling birds that prefer running over flying. They form tightly knit family groups during the summer breeding season. At this stage, the chicks are highly active, foraging alongside the adult for seeds, vegetation, and insects under the desert brush.
I asked SuperGrok to identify this bird:
This is a juvenile (first-year) Northern Cardinal, likely a young male.
- Age: The bill is dark/grayish, which is a key juvenile trait. Adults have bright orange-red bills. Juveniles also tend to have slightly looser plumage and less intense colors overall.
- Sex: Young males often show more red in the crest, wings, and tail than females at this stage, and they’re starting to develop the warmer reddish tones seen here. Females stay browner longer. The amount of red on the crest and body in your shots points toward male.
These birds molt into more adult-like plumage over their first fall/winter, so this one is probably in that transitional “formative” stage right now in mid-June. Cardinals at the feeder are always a treat in our Arizona garden!
If we spot this bird after the first of next year, he will probably look like his Dad (below), seen “hiding” in the nearby mesquite tree out back. Click on either image to enlarge.
