Verna and Bob's Weblog

Something Shiny

Arizona Flag Sunrays

Arizona Flag Sunrays

I’m certain that Arizona sunrises and sunsets like this were the inspiration for the Arizona State Flag. We fly the state banner below the Stars and Stripes on our flagpole (when the monsoons aren’t here) and the similarities between the design on the flag and the setting sun last evening are quite clearly evident.

I am so glad to be repatriated to my birth state and Bob is glad to be an expatriate from California in favor of this beautiful place. God blessed the desert with beauty and tranquility (most of the time). Click on the image to enlarge.

September 4, 2015 by Arizona Climate Photography Something Shiny

Wickenburg Poster

Wickenburg PosterLast February, we bought a colorful poster from the town Chamber of Commerce for twenty bucks. We intended to get it mounted and framed, but as life events dictate (read procrastination), we put it off until last week when we took the poster to the shop in town that framed our bathroom mirrors; we asked them to mount it and frame it suitable for hanging.

We got the call from the framers today on our way back from grocery shopping, so we stopped in the shop and picked up the masterpiece. We both think it looks great and it is now proudly hanging on the south wall in the guest bedroom.

Click on the image to enlarge.

September 3, 2015 by Arizona Home & Garden Something Shiny

Four F16 Jets and the Moon

F16 Jets and the Moon

After we dropped the trailer off for service today, we saw these four F-16 Air Force Jet training aircraft forming up for landings at Luke AFB near US60 in Surprise, AZ. It just so happened that when I took this photo through the windshield of Bob’s truck, the Moon was in the frame.

These weren’t the only Air Force jets we saw today; there were a couple of low flying jets over the RV service facility in Surprise and another overflight of two while we were in the parking lot at Walmart.

Here is an overview of Luke AFB from Wikipedia:

Luke AFB is a major training base of the Air Education and Training Command (AETC), training pilots in the F-16 Fighting Falcon. On 31 March 2011 it was announced that the F-35 Lightning II would replace the F-16 as the primary training aircraft at Luke, although the date of deployment of the new aircraft to Luke and reorganization plans were not announced. On 16 July 2013, the Air Force announced that Luke AFB will house a total of 144 F-35A Lightning IIs.

July 10, 2015 by Aerospace Photography Something Shiny

Verna’s Unbirthday

Indian Jewelry

Since her birthday is in another six months and conflicts with the Christmas Holiday, we celebrate the calender antipodal date of June 24th as her Unbirthday. We went shopping for some nice hand-made Native American jewelry that included Zuni earrings, a Navajo bracelet and matching earrings.

June 24, 2015 by Arizona Family Photography Something Shiny

A New Flagpole

Eagle atop the StaffAs part of the construction and upgrades around the house, we asked for a flagpole. The flagpole was one of several items we had on our ‘wish list.’

Yesterday, the concrete crew poured a three-foot pad around a sleeve as a base for the staff. Today, the flagpole crew brought the new staff, complete with an eagle at the top.

I brought out the two flags we planned to fly and the guys installed the metallic hooks on the pulley rope. They had just recently painted the pole silver and since the paint was still drying, we had to postpone flying the flags for a couple of days.

So, on Friday or thereabouts, we will hoist Old Glory and the Arizona State Banner. Verna also wants to get some other flags to fly, like the Arizona Diamondbacks and Arizona Cardinals team flags which she will hoist for special events as they arise.

April 22, 2015 by Arizona Home & Garden Something Shiny

Sunspot 2297

Sunspot 2297

I read that a large sunspot was transiting the solar globe, so I went out to the courtyard and shot a few images of the sun with the Canon SL1 and my cheapie Rainbow Symphony Solar Filter. While I can’t match the resolution of fancier equipment or space-borne solar observation platforms, I did manage to resolve the spot well enough to perceive the shadowy smaller parts of the group.

The camera settings were as follows: F8.0, focal length 300mm, 1/2500 sec., ISO 6400, Manual Program. Photo taken 2015-03-10 09:27:42 MST. The image has been derotated to an angle where ecliptic north is approximately up. Click on the image to enlarge.

March 11, 2015 by Nerdliness Photography Something Shiny

Avalon 1998

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