Back in Business!

Hooray for the great people at Lessor's Business Machines in Casa Grande. All fixed up with a new keyboard, and no other damages, so will be good to go for a round or two now. I have lot's of catching up to do, and tax season is here again so it was just in time. The weather here has been real cool and it rains every other day. Tuesday was the exception and we took a leisurely drive through the Sonoran Desert, 323 miles,stopping at the Sagauro National Park and listening to a very informative speaker. I learned a lot about the desert and some of the cacti species.
The Sanoran desert is one of four deserts here in the United States. The climate is arid and the hotest month here is June. Winter is December and January and Spring begins in February. Two Rainy Seasons, August is part of the Monsoon season and winter is the other rainy season, as we have been experiencing this year. The largest species of Cactus here is the Saguaro, and they are protected.
Some live to be 150 years old and are very slow growing, about a half inch a year. All the vegetation here has to be very drought tolerant, so to survive the very hot dry spells. Some Saguaros can weigh 3-8 tons and are 30-40 ft. high. They have 1000s of roots, not deep but growing in all directions for support. Each one is unique, and some provide homes for a few woodpecker species. Some other types of vegetation are the Jojoba bushes, Long thin spiney Octillo bushes, which some were already blooming,
Palo Verde and mesquite trees. Wild flowers come alive in all colors when the Desert wakes up, usually around here in April. There's not much out there that won't hurt you and I can't imagine walking out there for a long distance. Along the way on our drive, we drove through a good part of the Tohono O'Odham Nation in Pima county Southwest of Tucson. Couldn't help but notice the many crosses and decorated Shrines to those who have died in accidents on the road, some very intricate and decorative. We passed through the towns of Sells, Why and Ajo. Stopped in two Border Control Stations, one point we were about 20 miles from the Mexican Border and those stations have more cameras than you can imagine, there's Border Patrol Officers everywhere!
While in the ToHono O'Odham Nation we stopped and browsed in an Indian Art Shop and ate lunch that we packed in the cooler. We turned back north and passed through the Barry M. Goldwater Air Force Range. A white drone target sat poised on a partially obscured runway. As the sun set in the West, we picked up I8 at Gila Bend and merged back into I10 heading south. We stopped at a Mexican Restaurant for supper and it was a good 12 hour day. There's a payback out here for enjoying this mild weather. Some people are getting respiratory sick now. One gentleman here has Pneumonia, and a lady is very ill with Valley Fever. It is a fungus from the dirt that becomes airborn and gets in your lungs.
Pets can also contract it and while humans usually survive and are cured with medication, if a pet gets it, it can be fatal and at best they have to be on Anti Fungal Meds the rest of their lives. They started the project today to fix the road that was compromised with flood waters through the rains, so hopefully that will be fixed before we leave here. Valentines Day is coming up this weekend, and we will be going to a dinner and dance here at the park. Our Nebraska Musician Friend is playing for us. We will just hope that we can stay well because the next weekend is the NHRA Drag Races. Sure feels good to be back online, don't feel cut off from the world now!