Bob

Flashback – Cabela’s Squeaky Toy

Here is a flashback to three years ago today just after we moved into the new Arizona House which includes a story by, and a video of, Cabela.

Hi – this is Cabela. I am at the new house with my hoomins and Bear. We don’t have a lot of furniture yet but I do have my squeaky toy and a lot of other toys. I just love to play with my toys and I especially like to play with the squeaky toy. I like to make it go squeak and I like to chew on it.

You can watch me squeaking my toy. The Daddy took this movie of me in the new house while I was playing.

January 28, 2014 by Bob Arizona Critters Family

Early Spring Cholla Buds

For most of January, we have enjoyed warmer daytime temperatures, like in the high 60’s and low 70’s. It is still quite possible for winter to hit here again, but we’re enjoying “faux spring” in the meantime. Some of the cacti on the lot also seem to be responding to the warm trend.

I was up on the hill behind the RV drive hanging the bird feeders that Verna refilled this afternoon. I walked over to inspect some of the buckhorn cholla cacti because I saw some cactus wrens and a couple of curve billed thrashers hanging around them. I thought I might see evidence of a nest or two being built, but all I saw was some new buds starting to appear on the cholla. Verna reminded me later that the cholla on the hill always seem to get flowers sooner than the ones down on the front of the lot. Click on the image to enlarge.

January 27, 2014 by Bob Arizona Climate Home & Garden Photography

Light Show in the Sky

As I was taking out the trash bin this afternoon, I noticed some very bright solar rainbows in the western sky. I snapped a photo of the clouds with the sun behind the saguaro cactus out front. On the left side of the sun was a second sundog, so I photographed that one framed by the neighbor’s mesquite tree. Click on the image to enlarge.

January 26, 2014 by Bob Arizona Photography Something Shiny

The Granddaughters

The other day, I blogged about looking for my lost granddaughters. Since then, I have been in touch with two of the three. I found a recent photo of the three girls (young women, actually) on one’s book of face page. The oldest is in the middle and the youngest is on the right.

The younger of the three, with whom I have not spoken to lately, will probably be in touch soon. Click on the image to enlarge.

January 23, 2014 by Bob Family

Sky Bow

When I took the dogs out for their first run this morning, I thought I heard an airplane going over. I didn’t see a plane, but I was astonished at the sight of a rainbow in the clouds overhead. The sun is out of the bottom frame in the image above. I can’t remember seeing a rainbow arc away from the sun until today. Click on the image to enlarge.

Update: I uploaded the image to SpaceWeather.com and found out that this is a circumzenithal arc:

The circumzenithal arc, CZA, is the most beautiful of all the halos. The first sighting is always a surprise, an ethereal rainbow fled from its watery origins and wrapped improbably about the zenith. It is often described as an “upside down rainbow” by first timers. Someone also charmingly likened it to “a grin in the sky”.

Look straight up near to the zenith when the sun is fairly low and especially if sundogs are visible. The center of the bow always sunwards and red is on the outside.

January 21, 2014 by Bob Arizona Climate Photography Something Shiny