Raven Walk

Fault Line

Every now and again as I stand on the rim, I feel not quite a vibration but an electrical current. When I went on the fossil walk, I found out why; this is a picture down into the fault line through the canyon.

Wilde Discus Beasts

This is a rare siting as these wild beast tend to only come out at night under the cover of darkness....

History in shadows

Under direction by conquistador Francisco Vasquez de Coronado to find the fabled Seven Cities of Cibola, Captain Garcia Lopez de Cardenas led a party of Spanish soldiers with Hopi guides to the Grand Canyon in September of 1540. Not finding what they were looking for, they left. Over 200 years passed before two Spanish priests became the second party of non-Native Americans to see the canyon.


Canyon shadows

Conquistador in color

This looks like an airplane flying over. It's clouds illusions I recall...

Conquistador in black and white

Don Qioxote and Pancho Villa

Blessings

I don't know who wrote these words, however in the email forwarding I was blessed with receiving them. Though I've read them many times, there are moments when they finally hit their mark, especially the last line. A new friend is teaching me about blessings, for that I am grateful.

As we grow up, we learn that even the one person that wasn't supposed to ever let you down probably will. You will have your heart broken probably more than once and it's harder every time. You'll break hearts too, so remember how it felt when yours was broken. You'll fight with your best friend. You'll blame a new love for things an old one did. You'll cry because time is passing too fast, and you'll eventually lose someone you love. So take too many pictures, laugh too much, and love like you've never been hurt because every sixty seconds you spend upset is a minute of happiness you'll never get back. Don't be afraid that your life will end, be afraid that it will never begin.

The Breath of God

Looking into the night sky I stare breathless. The vastness of the space with all the nightly glory is immense. The stairway of the stars, the milky way stretches from one side of the earth to the other as stars actually twinkle. Can you hear their laughter upon your soul? Can you feel the connection through every pore with every one, every thing, here and there? Can you feel your soul fly? Do you 'know'?

9-26-71 to 9-13-07

Arnaud's spirit was released from pain and humanity.

A piece of soul
Stripped from me
Left mine exposed
Vunerable
Sad
Far a part has flown away
Released
Into the universe
To shine in the heavens
And dance among the stars

I celebrate your life and loving friendship.

Canyon Visions

Look who stopped by for dinner....

At the neighbors house he decided to stop by. He's a 12 point bull elk. Welcome to Arizona Exposure.

The Adventure Begins...

It seemed like a blur to get from Florida to the Grand Canyon but we made it here on Monday August 20th. Thank you MJ for the beautiful card that brought on the waterworks, you always have a way to do that.

Pictures do not do the canyon justice, there is just no replacing looking at it from one's own eyes. Exquisite, beautiful, and any other definitive terms one could describe beauty is not enough. It brought tears to my eyes to see it, one can smell the pine in the air. The animals are unique in their environment; it still amazes me to look over my shoulder and see it there.

I will be back on line 9/4, at that point I will post pictures of the 12 point elk that decided to have his dinner at the local juniper tree across the street from us. Boy are we tourist! When the mule deer decided to have a late night snack under our window that's when I started feeling like a character from Northern Exposure. Good thing I loved that show.

When one door closes...

Freedom! Shouted from within the walls of home. A healthy hand clap from David as I emerged no longer en employee of the hotel. My nerves gave a current of unknown excitement with the butterflies flapping. It was really nice how many people sought me out to give a hug. The 'best damned chocolate chip cookies' were gone in record time - 2 hours, Jeff brought in baked ziti, another great pasta dish with ham, peas and a cream of mushroom sauce and a bodacious spinich salad with tropical fruits - yum. I turned in the very unflattering blue shirts, my name tag and walked out the front doors.

Today I still think I'm just having a day off, and think I have to get up for work, when the work is more clearing of my abode. It's strange to see it so bare. David has been so nice to help with the use of his truck and muscles for the things for storage. Brad came over today to help, gosh it was good to see him. Thank you my cute young muscley friends - hell at my age any young man under 30 is cute!!!

Of course my best friend T who keeps riding the waves of changes as I call with we'll be there...no plans have changed....etc. Hey now she knows what it's like to be in my loop. Scary, huh?

All in all, after one door closes...walk to the open one.

Butterflies

In my belly. Time draws ever so close to the 17th and the departure date. Still so much to be done, but still a bit accomplished. I cannot thank my friends for all of their help with everything including being the great cheering section they are. Every time I touch the globe on my charm bracelet I think of them and as MJ put it, the connection we have where ever we are.

I look forward to texting on each leg of the journey, and calling with new discoveries. I look forward to hearing the stories from here as time progresses for each one of us. This weekend is my last weekend in St. Pete. Time to say good by to the Yaya's - a different set of friends I've kept over the years from working at a luxury hotel on the beach. 3 out of 4 of us are now grandmothers. Did I ever think about that title bestowment? How do we picture our grandmothers. Though MJ and I are the only two at this point grandmothers in the core group, we like to think, or maybe we are, creating a new imagry our children or grandchildren think of when one hears the term 'grandmother'.

By starting to pack my clothes, the new coats and stuff, I guess that made the determination of the move being more 'real'. It was funny at work, a co-worker commented on me coming back like I did last time. I ended his sentence with 'for a visit' as the last time I left and came back was for a totally different reason. Then I wanted to just close my eyes and not wake up, now I want to keep my eyes wide open.

The Door of Friendship

MJ is the owner of the door as it is through her we've all been brought together. The colors are symbols: Purple, MJ; Blue, Terry; Green, Dori and Red for me. One on each corner though we'll see if she can position mine in the West of her garden decor. In the center is a cumulation of all of us. Can't wait to see it in place, so MJ you've got yet another project.

Dueling Cameras

You've heard of dueling piano's well my brother came by for a visit and in a moment of comradarie we created 'dueling cameras'. Here's my results:

GGW 2007

Here it is, the girls gone WIDE tour 2007. As MJ so eloquently explained it, 30 years ago we all became friends. Back then we were girls gone wild, so now we've become the girls gone wide. Needless to say it was a success, after all where ever we are there is a party. If there isn't one, we make it.

How many years has it been since men stared at our breasts? It was rather funny as many different people, of all different age ranges read our shirts and all had comments like "looks like you still got it", or "you go girls!", or a simple glazed look below the chin line. A couple of us may end up in a college blog somewhere (get your mind out of the gutter we didn't flash any one!) We left it to their imaginations...

Each night or should I say morning we staggered back to the hotel room around 4am. Frankly the beds were SO COMFORTABLE I believe they help alleviate a hangover. Sure did me.

Despite the experience of being a source of joy for those around us, it was another bonding moment as my best friends and I celebrated the depth of friendship we hold sacred. What a send off to the 'wanderer' in the group. At least this wandering is joyously anticipated and gives them another place to visit.

So what do you think girls, GGW2008 in Vegas? Do we dare have a camera person?

It's so hot (even Rocky thinks so)

I wonder

I wonder if there are lightening bugs out West? Will the crickets sound the same? Is it true one can smell the wild sage on the breeze? What is the night music and how will it differ? Can tree frogs live in that climate? Will thunder boom, roll or roar?

I look forward to seeing the stars, I hear one sees more falling stars out there. How will the landscape look painted in the monochrome colors from the moon's watery glow? Do they put Christmas lights on cactus'?

This and so much more....I wonder.

Countdown

Well the count down begins. Today I made my flight reservations to get into Phoenix, the bus ticket will be waiting for me, and the hostel has my reservations for when I get in.

Right now it doesn't feel real. I remember making detailed plans on visiting my new grand daughter, and changing them at the last minute due to judegements of past choices thrown in my face like the rotten egg time turned it into. Hmm how could those be changed and the egg made fresh again? It can't, like the past it's always there; I just don't choose to let the past be my present or future. Choices.

This time I'm not going for anyone by myself, with that said I will say I'm a bit nervous, excited, and not just a bit wistful as anticipation flows. Changes are happening, sometime it moves so slow like erosion we don't see it, but it's building momentum as time draws near. Expectations? I'm striving to keep those at a minimum, as they tend to turn into predispositions which in turn tend to be disappointing. As we all know fantasy is most times better then the reality. I am leaving the expectations open to discovery of new places, new people, and new experiences with hope they are all exceptional.

I will miss my friends. I've come to realize how lucky I am they aren't selfish. Selfish in the fact they aren't trying to guilt me into staying, giving me bad reports of what's happening, or pouting. Instead they have reserved the best cheering section of the bleachers; and I hear their words of encouragement, their hand clapping, hooting and hollering. They and I know we're always with each other no matter how far apart we are and besides it gives them a new place to venture to.

Natures firewords

Surface stuff

Today is yet another day. July 9th. Mercury goes forward tonight, it was 89 degrees but felt like 99, humidity feels like 110%, gas is $2.85 a gallon (at least for my car) and I worked. Surface stuff.

I've been reading a wonderful series of books (Ugh, David I'm going to thump you on the forehead!), about Earth Man. It's written by a husband and wife team, she's an archaeologist and he's an anthropologist. Though the characters may be fiction the events are real, there's even bibliographies in the back for further research. Fascinating reading.

On another venture I've been looking up information regarding the magnetic north pole. What I found coincides with the changes throughout history in the geographical findings dug up. Those thousand years or more were but a blink of an eye or a layer in the rock. Global warming. I had to laugh when I read an article on my news regarding one of the major conferences in which our fearless leader refused to sign with regards to the global warming issue. In it, the article stated (and I'm paraphrasing) something with regards to lowering the global temperature several degrees. Who has their finger on the earth's thermostat? Hmmm, that's what I'd like to know.

Either way, personally, I don't think we have much say in the issue of nature taking it's course; neither did our ancestors thousands of years ago. Have we changed much with regards to beliefs of our climate changes being curses from the unknown all powerful? Not likely. I'm pretty amazed as I read, (yes I know they're fiction!), how similar our governments and social atmosphere hasn't really changed all that much. Even warfare was atrocious. That hasn't changed much either, just the weaponry used.

There is no easy answer, but the same story keeps coming around. Hmm, isn't there a quote somewhere with regards to learning history or be doomed to repeat it?