…flows, does not push, moves with grace to meet a goal
Rickleball … my computer wants to auto-correct it to pickleball … but the sign I noticed recently called this sport “rickleball”.
Please, if you have seen this sport played, let me know. I would love to check it out: variation of pickleball on racquetball court. … Not sure what a “raquetball” court is with their sign, except a misspelling …and again another place for auto-correct to drive me crazy.
Do you play rickleball? Please share.
Rarely do I see young birds, chicks. Parents usually do a great job protecting their chicks from predators, thus I too miss seeing chicks. Recently I was at Sweetwater Wetlands in Tucson, Arizona. I was shocked to see yellow-orange feathered chicks jumping out of their marshy nest to be near their black and white parent! I learned these chicks are known to follow their parents into water soon after hatching.
They are American Coot chicks … 6 of them followed the parent and eventually scurried closer to get food. The competition between them had already begun! As I looked closer, the chick’s heads were bare red and black and they had a stubby red and orange bill. Of course I did not have my camera with me on this day. That’s the way it is sometimes. Also, the birds were a distance away for any good phone photo, so opportunity missed. I returned the next morning with my camera and hoping for the chicks to be in sight. Yes!! Here are my photos; enjoy!
It is exciting to know Tucson’s Habitat for Humanity will have a new 30 home neighborhood with one major step forward. As they build sustainable, affordable homes, these will be the first ones built with solar power! This will be the new standard: installing solar panels on future builds. Thanks to the partnership of Tucson ElectricPower and Solar Gain working with Habitat for Humanity!
Arizona weather, especially in southern Arizona, does not provide many clues to what season we are in. Happily though we planted some pistache trees on our property. At times, these trees can provide some colorful leaves. Its deciduous leaves turn beautiful red and orange colors.
Being from northeastern USA though, I equate colorful tree leaves with the fall season. When living there, quite often we would take a road trip to visit areas with beautiful fall colors! Yet here I am in Arizona, in January and February, with these colorful tree leaves! The calendar indicates winter … we are currently after December 21. The weather though, and reality here … I’m enjoying fall! I don’t care what month it is; hope you enjoy the colors too!
I went for a walk to bird watch, stretch my legs, and see if any other interesting animals were at Agua Caliente Park this month. As I approached my usual walking path, I decided to change things up. Often walking the same direction, why not change it; I’ll walk in the reverse direction in the park.
My brain is wired in a particular way, no doubt reinforcing my habits. So I got thinking about myself as a right-handed person and how different it feels when I use my left hand for simple tasks. Now how would I feel to walk in the direction opposite from my usual path?
Walking in the opposite direction on the paths I have walked a hundred times at this park was at first strange. My brain prompted me to stop every so often and determine where exactly I was on the trail and to assess some of my usual birding opportunities from the different angle. It was an interesting time to realize how simply changing the direction of my walk offered me a different perspective on my outing. I enjoyed the walk and will continue to change things up as my walks continue here in the coming months.
Have you ever changed things up? Were there any advantages or disadvantages to the change up? Maybe you were forced to do things differently from your normal routine, share if you wish.
Climbing is one of those activities maybe you also did as a child, yet as years went by I did less of it. Thankfully these days I do not need to find a tree to climb, there are climbing gyms.
I decided was time for me to return to my indoor climbing experience! Ten years ago I enjoyed my time at a Flagstaff, Arizona climbing gym. I had a friend belay me on some attempts at the gym and a women’s climbing group cheer me on as we belayed each other’s climb. Then eight years ago I was at a Tucson, Arizona climbing gym. Unfortunately during a private climbing lesson, I had a shoulder injury and needed time off from climbing. Then Covid happened; I sort of let my climbing lapse.
Now eight years later, I am back on the climbing wall with an auto-belay. My body is surprised by these strange movements! My toes needed a slightly larger climbing shoe. My hands are getting new calluses. It seems strange to start all over again, but I will challenge myself and see how long I can hang on! (No pun intended!)
I have met supportive individuals as I relax in-between climbs. A guy encouraged me to take days off between climbing sessions. He’s a senior, as am I, and we talked about our bodies needing rest. It’s an all-body workout even when we put our body onto the easiest wall challenges. Quite honestly, the easy walls are not feeling easy to me quite yet.
Another individual spoke about the importance of our body moving and our brain figuring out a climbing route. I did ask for help to figure out a route on my second day at the gym. I simply could not see a route. I learned though, do not ask a tall person for a possible solution. Their arms and legs make a route look so easy to climb. Then when I, who is shorter, try to reach for some of the same hand and/or foot holds, it simply does not work! Lesson learned!
It was fun talking with one gray-haired, like myself, couple. They were comfortable climbing harder routes so I figured they must have been climbing for decades. Yes, and we talked about the crazy decades: 60’s and 70’s at Joshua Tree National Park. This area was a climbing mecca I had read about and they were part of it! Cool!
Each time I climb, at either climbing gym in town, I have met pleasant supportive climbers. It’s fascinating to watch how others will climb a route. Someday I hope to be on those routes too. The fun part right now is I can climb like a kid and work on a more efficient approach another day. For now I just want to reach the top and auto-belay down. It does not matter to me if it is not a pretty climb; I just want to reach the top!
That’s the question I ask myself often when I decide to take on a new activity or return to an activity I once did. It seems the secret for people who live long lives is to keep moving. Could I not simply walk and not indoor wall climb? Yes, but I’m a personality needing a variety of activities in my life. Walking outdoors is time to bird watch when I rarely get my heart rate to where it would be cardio-beneficial. Walking indoors is time to watch The Food Network, yet I can manipulate the resistance to get a better cardio result. But climbing, just like mountain biking, I must focus on what I am doing in the moment and it is a full-body exercise! I know this for sure when I wake up the next morning and feel every muscle in my body!
How many moments will I spend with my indoor climbing? Time will tell, but each will be fun. And when it is not, then time to move onto another activity! Nothing wrong with that; I’ll just keep moving another way!
Bicycle riding is great fun! I have been slow in getting going. In July I was watching the Tour de France on television. Unfortunately Peacock streaming service was needed to view each day’s ride. Cable television only had 4 of the 21 riding days broadcasted.
I love watching the Tour de France each year. It gets those cycling juices in me going and brings back memories of when I was in France. Was it 2007 or 2014, not sure, but been in France both those years. We were on a bicycle tour and happened to be near Mount Ventoux. Mount Ventoux has been ridden by cyclists in various Tour de France from each side.
We decided to bicycle up one side of Mount Ventoux … because it was there and just seemed like it was worth a try. Okay, we are not professionals. We pedaled uphill for about an hour, a fraction of the uphill distance, and flew down to our starting point in 10 minutes. The uphill journey was with some switch-backs we created on the road, but the downhill ride was STRAIGHT down! To this day, I am not a fan when I am over 33 mph on my bicycle. That experience has remained a memory every time, and especially when I watch the Tour de France each July.
Now many cyclists are readying for the El Tour de Tucson. Yup, that’s right here in Tucson Arizona and the neighboring towns! Maybe you are signed up for the November 22 tour. It’s a popular event. People must register ahead for either the 102 mile Century, or the 63 mile Metric Century, or the 32 mile Half Metric Century. Someday I should ride this tour. I think about it. Would be more impressive if I actually cycled it … to bicycle ride again … a tour here in my hometown.
If you are riding the El Tour de Tucson, I wish you a great ride!!
Three high school students were peering into the water’s edge and calling out to each other, “There’s long neck. Look how large he is. This is the second day seeing him.” I frequent this park and could not imagine what they were observing. And to name an animal, “long neck”? So I went to where they were standing and asked what they were looking at in the water.
It was a turtle with a long neck! Yup, good name! I mentioned I had never seen one in all the years frequenting this park. Many red-eared sliders were in the water too. They were the usual, and most numerous, turtles for us to see. This long-necked turtle was new to me!
I immediately used the Inaturalist app with a photo of the turtle to determine what it was we were looking at in this water. We discover it is a spiny softshell turtle. These students, who were visiting from New Hampshire, saw the turtle the previous day too. Yes, this was a new turtle for me too! The students also now aware of the Inaturalist app.
I enjoyed talking with the students. They would only be in Tucson another day but had hopes of seeing a javelina. Unfortunately they missed the parade of javelinas through our yard last month. And they will not see javelinas at the Grand Canyon where they will visit next. But they are having an educational Arizona visit in towns and parks around the state.
As I walked the park’s paths this month, I saw my first phainopepla. Of course the Gila woodpeckers were busy and noisy as usual. The vermilion flycatchers with their bright red color is easy to see, just as a northern cardinal that also tried to hide itself in some shrubs. Off in a distance on an electrical power pole I saw what first looked like a black vulture. I did not have my camera that day, but after talking with another birder, I decided it was a juvenile turkey vulture. Few wading ducks, only a couple of ring-necked ducks. About 17 different bird species are usually seen. Now I can keep my eyes open for the spiny softshell turtle too!
The harvest moon and hunter’s moon, the rain and rainbows, and migrating wildlife this month has been fascinating to observe. Here’s my October nature journal for Agua Caliente Park:
My camera was inside my home. Here was an hour I set aside to be tech-free and focused on pulling weeds from our front area! (Keeping my HOA happy!)
They are not really weeds, according to me; only wildflowers and grasses just wanting to sprout. And not many to be pulled. Suddenly my nose detects a rotten smell. I look up and see a good-sized, adult javelina looking at me. Could it really smell that bad? No time to think as I notice other javelinas behind him!
I know javelinas have poor eyesight so all I could think about, after saying aloud “wow”, was giving this one and others some space! My movement was to back away and move eventually to behind a backyard gate. Nine javelinas walked across our front yard, across the neighbor’s driveway, through their side yard and on.
I step out from behind our gate toward our front door when another javelina looks at me! Backing away again, 6 more javelinas walk by me! I’m glad we are all getting along so nicely!
Fifteen javelinas! I bet at least one of you are chewing my irrigation lines, stomping on our rain gutter overflow spouts, and/or running over our bushes. Convinced I could get back to weeding, I return to the front yard.
A grunt. A movement. And there is another javelina! I am in its path. Quickly I move away and see 2 javelina walk across our yard to our neighbor’s driveway, their yard and beyond. My neighbor was watching also as she had just opened her garage and was soon to pull her vehicle out. We know the javelina’s path so no surprise there.
Where was my camera! Darn, this number, 17 javelina, seen at one time would have broken my sighting record! Oh well… my weeding goes on and the rotten smell has left the yard!
A wash is more obviously a riparian area when water is in it. However, in the desert that doesn’t happen often enough! Actually when the monsoon is truly heavy with rain water, the wash overflows and floods the local road. I love when that happens. The desert needs the rain. But on this day, we are walking in a very dry, sandy wash! It’s an early morning birding adventure. Our goal is to observe birds before the air temperatures climb to a triple digit! Let’s get out of the wash before then!
I love birding with other people and a guide who almost always knows more than the rest of the group. So many human eyeballs looking for birds! The birds were smartly hiding within the tree leaves as the crazy humans looked for them while standing in sun or shade, yeah, when available.
When you first look at a wash, such as the one we were at, one can wonder if we will see any bird. Yet we did see! Twenty-eight different species of birds were seen, 106 individual birds! I was fortunate too to have observed a bird new to me, a rufous-winged sparrow! A new bird for my life list!
I loved having access to our guide’s viewing scope to get a great look at a blue grosbeak, lark sparrow and bullock’s oriole. While I have very good binoculars, these observations went to the next level. Plus having the guide’s expertise in knowing exactly what the bird was that we were viewing in the scope.
We had a productive 2 hour morning and then on our way to air-conditioning and cool drinks! Heat exhaustion and dehydration are real concerns with our latest hot weather, so 2 hours was plenty for us. The birds seem to find places to escape the heat and enjoy water features since our monsoon has not provided rain for wildlife. Hope it rains soon!
Final note: we don’t only observe birds. Some of us check out plants. Often we’ll see lizards and on this day there was a king snake crawling across the trail:
