A Life in Snippets

Today's photowalk was my third trip through Dreamy Draw. It's been a wet spring, and the hills are surprisingly green! Really! We only get this green twice a decade, if we are lucky! (And yes, I live in a desert, THIS IS GREEN!)

This little guy was enjoying the sunset just as much as I was!

I've been processing photos from my photowalks back in January! Yes, I really am that far behind!

This photo is from a park not fifteen minutes from my house. Weird to think that this area is actually surrounded by concrete, freeways, and houses. I do live in the fifth largest city in the US (by population).

The guy on the second horse was actually playing a harmonica! It was a a real old west moment for me! I asked them if I could take their picture. I think they liked that.

This valley is where the wild poppies bloom. They don't bloom every year, only every five to seven. We've gotten so much rain this year, that I'm really hoping they will bloom. I went on this photowalk to take some "before" type photos, hoping I'll get some afters later in the season. The line that is across the photo, between the dark hill in the midground, and the hills in the background, is one of the major freeways of the city. I like this park, because the hills block the view of the city, and it feels like you are out somewhere distant.

Motivationally speaking, I have a hard time taking desert photos. The colors are so washed out, and the vegetation is so sparse. Not much to inspire me. Though I have to laugh, because ahurimoo keeps saying how she isn't inspired by her winter photos (for similar reasons), and I go gaga over them whenever she posts them. So maybe someone will find my desert pics inspiring and wondrous for the glimpse of a different place they offer. So to speak, anyway. Right outside my front door is concrete and asphalt, and cookie cutter homes that look just like mine. But that's not a very inspiring photo, either. Unless it's pouring rain in the middle of the night, then I like to snap a few shots.

All the rain is turning the hills green. I love the wet years. I keep mentioning it, but greenery like this only happens every five to seven years, so it really is an event. And I love it!

A few weeks ago, I walked this same trail, and I took this photo. It's of the very same spot, This is how much greener it gets, and how fast!

Today I took my weekly photo walk. After all the rain this week, I am hoping it will be a green spring. It isn't always around here. My photo walk was in my favorite spot for wild spring greenery. I wanted to take some "before" pictures while the land is still cloaked in winter browns. I walked a section of the the A1 trail in the Phoenix Mountain Preserves. No denying the pervasive brown in this stark desert landscape. But the sky is clear and blue and gorgeous after the clearing rains. What a beautiful winter day! The moon even makes an appearance in this photo!