Monsoon Sunset — Image by kenne
With just a few days left in July, Tucson has already received 5.71 inches of rain, making this the fourth-wettest July.
I have recorded 7 inches on our patio in the Catalina Foothills. This amount of rain will help Southern Arizona recover
from the ongoing drought, improving from a D4-exceptional drought to a D3-extreme drought (National Weather Service).
There are indications that monsoon activity will start uo again toward the end of the week.
Giant Saguaros off of State Highway 77 — Image by kenne
At first glance, you may not notice how thin the giant Saguaros are. Saguaros can survive in drought conditions
for over one hundred years by taking on a lot of water during the two rainy seasons each year in the Sonoran Desert.
They can expand, take on hundreds of gallons of water, then contract as they use the stored water during the
hot-dry time of the year. Unfortunately, the combined total rainfall from last summer’s monsoon and winter rains
was less than half the average amount. As a result, many of the older and diseased saguaros are now dying.
As we enter this year’s monsoon season, we hope for plenty of rain to fatten up the symbol of our desert.
— kenne
Corral Fence Line — Photo-Artistry by kenne
“One final paragraph of advice: do not burn yourselves out. Be as I am – a reluctant enthusiast….a part-time crusader,
a half-hearted fanatic. Save the other half of yourselves and your lives for pleasure and adventure. It is not enough to fight
for the land; it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it’s still here.”
— Edward Abbey
Agave Plant — Image by kenne
“Nearly all agaves, along with most bromeliads such as pineapple, are somewhat peculiar in their flowering habit.
They grow vegetatively for many years (though not the hundred years that gave rise to the common name of
century plant) without producing a single flower, and then when they get the urge to reproduce, they send
forth an enormous stalk with hundreds and hundreds of them. These plants that flower and set seed only once
in their lives are called monocarpic.” — Source: Succulent Gardens
Another Year of Few Wildflowers In The Sonoran Desert — Image by kenne
Spring wildflowers in the Sonoran desert depend on fall and winter rains. When there are little to no rains, as
has been the last few years, then there are few wildflowers in the spring. The above image is in the Molino
Basin, where in non-drought years, there are plenty of wildflowers to photograph. This year there are only a
few patches to be found.
— kenne
Wildflowers on King Canyon Trail — Images by kenne
(Click On Any Image For Larger View)
Lupine Wildflower — Image by kenne
— kenne
Arizona State Route 83 Vista in Southern Arizona — Image by kenne
Southern Arizona Fence Line — Photo-Artistic by kenne
— Mary Oliver & Wendell Berry – A Found Poem
(Source: Simply Blessed)
Tumacácori National Historical Park — Images by kenne (Click On Any Image To See Slide Show.)
– Alan Watts
Hut In Southern Arizona — Image by kenne
Homeless;
– Down by the muddy Mississippi
Skinny as a rail,
Sleeping under the old Eads bridge
Feeling low, dirty, and frail –
Homeless;
– With less than two coins
In both pockets,
Empty eyes
Look through sunken sockets –
Homeless;
– So many people walk right on by
I wonder how many care,
They all keep moving
Even though they stare –
Homeless;
– Lost a job
Lost a home,
Lost a family
Lost all hope –
Homeless;
– Where will I go from here
What should I do,
I’m so thankful when the weather’s fair
And the skies are blue –
Homeless;
– Don’t know the day nor season
And, yea, it sure gets cold at night,
I’ve got an old sleeping bag
I’ll be alright –
Homeless;
– There’s so many of us out here
Without a home,
Even so
I feel so very alone –
Homeless;
– It’s a tough situation
Not pretty, just true,
And at any time
It could happen to you –
Homeless;
– Hey buddy…
Could you spare a dime,
And say a prayer for us
… sometime –
– I’m just homeless, not less human…
— Smoky Hoss
Green Heron — Image by kenne
— kenne
Fall Landscape — Photo-Artistry by kenne
— Thomas Moore
Cattle In The Dusty West — Photo-Artistry by kenne
Once beautiful desert grassland,
Now destroyed by overgrazing
On land unable to sustain
The native desert environment
Draining the groundwater levels in a
World of “pay me now, or pay me later.”
— kenne
American Snout Butterfly — Image by kenne
— Alan W. Watts
Becoming is Superior to Being 