Antique Art Glass

Bohemian art glass was made in and around the present-day Czech Republic during the Art Nouveau era. Antique pieces in this genre most often consist of a classic vase form that has been hand-worked into interesting shapes. Many have an iridescent sheen from the firing and reduction techniques used at the time.
One of the regions leaders in this field was Loetz, which took first prize exhibited at the 1889 Paris Exhibition. My late brother collected this style of art glass. He had many pieces made by Loetz, Rindskopf, Pallme-Konig and Lalique. Here are pictures of just a few......

Beautiful Music

This is fantastic.......A History of The Beatles from 1962-1970.

Wildflowers

In search of wildflowers today north of Bartlett Lake......

The Doo Wop Project

The Doo Top Project traces the evolution of Doo Wop from the classic sound of five guys singing harmonies on a street corner to the biggest hits on the radio today. In their show we heard songs from The Belmonts, Smokey Robinson, The Tempations, Jason Mraz, Michael Jackson and Maroon 5.

The five singers are all stars of Broadway's smash hits Jersey Boys and Motown: The Musical. Their voices are incredible and the show was so entertaining! If it comes to your town, I would highly recommend it. Next year they will be performing with the Phoenix Symphony.

Western Week in Old Town Scottsdale

This week is Western Week in Old Town. It's so much fun with western and Native American festivals, art walks, the Parada del Sol Parade and the Pony Express.
Last night we went to the art walk along Main Street. all the galleries were open, many serving refreshments and there was music on many street corners. The singing cowboy on horseback was a special treat!

Turtles

On our walk yesterday, we found a family of turtles sunning themselves along the edge of the lake by our home. I have never seen so many in one place!

The Waste Management Phoenix Open

This golf tournament is also known as "The People's Open" and "The Greatest Show on Grass".
The 16th hole is completely surrounded by seating. It is known as "The Coliseum". The crowd will cheer the golfer if he hits onto the green but will also boo if the green is missed.
We went on Thursday and walked the course, watched the golf and had a Thunderdog for lunch cooked by some Thunderbirds. The Thunderbirds Charities is a non-profit organization to distribute monies raised through the Open golf tournament.
What a bunch of guys cooking the hot dogs!

Old Town Scottsdale Farmers' Market

We visited this lively market this morning. The market features local growers and specialty food producers. There is produce, jams, honey, freshly baked artisan breads, pies and cakes as well as many ethnic foods.
The market is located in Old Town where there are many unique shops, restaurants and art work.
A fun place to visit and shop for dinner!

Tower of Power

Tour of Power is an American R&B-based band and horn section that has been performing since 1968. The band originated in Oakland, California.
Doug's friend Emilio Castillo is the leader of the band and plays the saxophone. We went to see them last night at the Mesa Arts Center.
Marcus Scott is the lead vocalist with the bank and is known as the "Memphis Soul Man". He is so amazing. It was a fabulous show!

Spring Training

Salt River Fields at Talking Stick is a stadium complex near Scottsdale. It is the spring training home of the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies.
Yesterday I went to a game and saw the Diamondbacks play the Cincinnati Reds. What a beautiful day to see a game. I also enjoyed ballpark food.....a hotdog and later, ice cream!

Snow in Scottsdale and Fountain Hills

Yesterday a blanket of snow covered northern Scottsdale and on the mountains around my house. This morning I went on my morning walk and took a picture of the McDowell Mountains. Also, after lunch, I went to the Fountain Hills Great Fair and took some more pics of the snow from around there for you to enjoy........

Fog in the Desert

In the Phoenix area we rarely see fog. To see a lot of fog, you need moisture which we usually don't have in the deserts of Arizona. But this morning, the day after a storm, we had 100% humidity. We had cool temps and clear skies so the moisture cooled and condensed and formed fog.
On my morning walk, I took a couple of pictures of this rare phenomenon for us here.

Las Noches de las Luminarias

Last night we went to the Desert Botanical Gardens to see the Desert Winter Wonderland. The Electric Desert, a light and sound experience was amazing! We sat in chairs and watched the lights on the mountain change to the music - so hard to describe but utterly incredible!
More than 8000 hand-lit luminary bags line the paths through the gardens and every so often you come across some entertainment. There was a Mariachi band, carolers, guitarists, a bell choir and more.
It was a truly spectacular evening!

Fireplace

We are so loving our new electric fireplace insert. It looks so real! You can adjust the height of the flame, the temperature and the blower. It is heating our living room and even the dining room and hallway. It does get chilly here in Arizona in the evenings.

Convergence of Water, Art and Light

The Canal Convergence show at the Scottsdale Waterfront was a beautiful event that we went to last night. We saw the Floatus show first which consisted of 12 lotus sculptures with flames shooting fire up to 30 feet in the air. It was synchronized to the music of "Queen"........spectacular!
There was also the Light Flutter which was a kaleidoscope of 30 mechatronic, illuminated butterflies with vibrant, translucent wings.
The Floret was a 15-foot-tall, inflatable, interactive light sculpture that bloomed when you stepped on the pressure pads.
There were other exhibits and sculptures as well along the canal. It was a beautiful night to stroll along and enjoy the festivities!

Hurricane Rosa

Remnants of Rosa brought major showers to the Phoenix Valley. There were flash-floods pretty much in the whole area and amazing waterfalls were falling from Camelback Mountain.
The bike path by my house was under water and the golf course was flooded as well. Water was pouring from the mouths of the horses at the Indian Bend Wash.

Basset Hounds

I just had to show this picture of these basset hounds we came across as we were walking along the river in Peterborough, New Hampshire. They made me giggle!

Jimmie Vaughan

Last evening, we went to see Jimmie Vaughan at Talking Stick Resort. He is an American blues rock guitarist and singer based in Austin, Texas.
He is the older brother of the late guitar legend Stevie Ray Vaughan and actually taught his younger brother how to play the guitar.
Jimmie had with him in his band a sax player, trombone player, bass player, guitarist and drummer. The music was great and the atmosphere was electrifying. We had a lot of fun!

Linda Ronstadt

Last evening we saw Linda Ronstadt at the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts. The show was titled "A Conversation with Linda". Her talk covered her four-decade career in the music industry and there was a big screen showing videos, personal photos and music. She talked about her early years with the Stone Poneys, her long association with the Eagles and her friendships with Jackson Browne, Neil Young, Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton and Aaron Neville.
Linda is unable to sing anymore due to Parkinson's disease but her memoirs were poignant and funny and so interesting. A wonderful evening!

Scottsdale Xeriscape Garden

The Scottsdale Xeriscape Garden at Chaparral Park provides an educational resource to growing plants in a sustainable landscape to conserve water resources for the future.

The garden, which is a National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitat, conceals a 5.5 million gallon reservoir from the Chaparral Water Treatment Plant.

My tour of the garden was very educational and many of the trees and plants were in bloom to enjoy. I have also included a few other trees and plants that are in bloom at this time in spring.......