I am in the computer lab once again. 4 days to go until we get our DSL service at our park model. The lab is quite amazing. There are about 40 desktops available for use by the park residents. In addition there are two work spaces designated for laptops. These all have cables so you can connect to the park LAN. I am at one of those tables tonight. The only downside seems to be the HVAC. It is about 80F in the Lab and there does not appear to be any air moving. Think "sauna".
Yesterday we said good-bye to Kevin and family. They headed back to Canada, and back to school and work. It was so great spending some time with them. Hope to see them again sometime soon. We had Kevin and Sherri stay in our "guest suite" (the converted storage room). It has a queen bed and a 1/2 bath. Jo, it is about the same size as your London hotel room plus it has it's own toilet so you don't have to go down the hall or share it with someone else. K&S said the room was quite comfortable for a few days.
We are busy each day cycling or birding, or cycling and birding. I am attaching 2 photos of us on January 1st, our inaugural bike ride in 2014. I am also posting several new bird photos from yesterday afternoon. We normally bird at Gilbert Water Ranch in the morning but yesterday the sun was so great that I wanted to photograph some birds in the afternoon light. We were rewarded with a sighting of a Peregrine Falcon (no photo - it was too fast for me). So far we are up to 61 species for our Arizona total this year.
Included in the photos is an American Kestrel, Snowy Egret and Northern Mockingbird. These birds are common at the water ranch. I am including them as the light was fantastic, and they cooperated for their pictures. I am also including a bonus photo. It is not a bird. The Gilbert Water Ranch seems to be a healthy ecosystem. We found a very healthy Coyote hunting in one of the dry ponds. It was quite far away from us but I got a good shot and am including it in this post. I am getting to really like the bright sun here in AZ. It enables me to do so much more with my camera. I can reduce the ISO, increase the shutter speed and aperture. All opposite to what I was doing back home in the Fall.
We went for dinner last evening with K&D. We went to our favorite restaurant in Mesa, The Blue Adobe. We found the food to be just as great as it was last year. The company was pretty great too.
I hit the links for the first time yesterday. 9 holes, then brunch at the Little Mesa Cafe. Sunny and warm. A very nice first time out. The golf was nothing to write about, however, I did par 2 holes and missed several par attempts. The saying, "drive for show, putt for dough" is very, very true. I'll just leave it at that, for now. I go again on Thursday for a 9 holes and breakfast. Should be fun.
After being here for a week we finally got the 4Runner washed today. It was getting a bit embarrassing driving around in a dirty vehicle. We also went to Albertson's grocery store where you can buy Tillamook ice cream and butter. As soon as I post this I will head home for some Mudslide before bed.
Well, that is about it for now. This no, or poor to non-existent Internet service at our park model is way past wearing thin. 4 days to go.
btw: I included a feature on the blog that will enable you to get email notification of a new post. Give it a try, it is pretty easy to register.
Enjoy the photos. Ciao!
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