How I Spent My Fourth of July

We watched the fireworks shows on TV -- all of them. We started out on PBS with "A Capitol Fourth" (the Washington, DC fireworks show, preceded by various musical groups/individuals) and when that was over switched to NBC to see the last half hour of the fireworks show in New York. Then we watched a delayed broadcast of the Boston Pops and the accompanying fireworks in Boston on CBS. All three displays were very impressive.

We thought about grilling steaks outdoors, but even though we grill inside a courtyard, the wall isn't very high and we didn't want to take a chance of a stray spark flying up and out and starting a fire, so we (Ron) cooked them in the oven, under the broiler. He added a bit of Liquid Smoke to the marinade to give it a "grilled outside" flavor. I made Potato Salad from the old family recipe (Thanks, Mom).

Los Alamos Update

Residents of Los Alamos have been allowed back to their homes, although people with respiratory ailments are encouraged to wait until the air is better to come back. The smoke there is still very heavy. The fire is about 130,691 acres and is 30 percent contained.

The air up here in Taos is much better and we can run the swamp cooler whenever we need to, which is pretty much all afternoon and in to the early evening. The high temperature today was 92.7. The sky is looking cloudy and I heard a faint rumble of thunder, so maybe we'll get some rain.

Rural Life

Living in the country, I've seen all kinds of animals. In the heat of the summer, the animals are more active in the cool morning hours. Driving home from work at 7:00 in the morning, I'm used to seeing coyotes crossing the road (yes, to get to the other side, where the river is so they can get a desperately needed drink of water). One morning I was startled to see two horses running side by side on the road coming towards me. I had to take evasive action to avoid being hit by them, but they looked like they were having fun, running free (having escaped a nearby horse farm).

But this morning I saw something totally unexpected as I drove home. Turkeys. Yes, turkeys. There was one adult and five or six half grown turkeys walking along the side of the road. They were tall and thin, the way turkeys are meant to be, not the plumped-up, hormonally-injected commercial turkeys. These were either wild turkeys or more escapees from a nearby house or farm. They weren't in any hurry; they just padded peacefully along the side of the road.

In fire news, there's another fire to report. Ron and I went to the grocery store this afternoon and driving back, we noticed big smoke clouds billowing up, but they weren't where the smoke clouds from the Santa Fe fire had been yesterday. So we realized there was another fire (Sigh). Sure enough, I checked the website of our favorite Albuquerque TV station, and they said there's a fire 12 miles south of Los Alamos. At 3:15 pm the fire was 100 acres and of course was 0 percent contained. Click here for the story. It's hot and dry today, and very windy again. The weatherman on that station said it's officially the windiest spring and summer ever as well as the driest.

Update (5:15 p.m.): The fire is now 400 acres in size and the smoke from the fire is showing up on KOAT's weather radar!

The new security guard at work is already wishing for winter. His view is that when you're cold, you can get warmer by putting more clothes on, but when you're hot, you can't do much to get cooler (except turn on ceiling fans and the swamp cooler (which is more efficient the drier the air is, so of course it's working great these days)).

Hummingbirds, Part 3

The hummingbirds are so intent on guzzling at the feeders, they don't mind my presence as much, so I was able to get some pictures of the swarm. They're drinking as much as the can, in preparation for their trip south. They'll be leaving soon, heading to Mexico. I keep reminding myself of that every time I buy another bag (or two) of sugar and every time I refill one of the feeders. Even with three feeders up, the smallest one needs to be refilled twice a day.

The weather lately reflects the reality about living in the desert: temperature extremes. On the same day the high temperature is 93, the low temperature is 44! Yesterday, the previous record high was 87, but we hit 90. This has definitely been a long, hot summer and I'm ready for it to end.

Late Summer Daze

These wildflowers are "volunteers" growing near our front gate. We didn't plant them, but they come up every year. I'm not even sure what kind they are. The wild sunflowers are starting to pop up on the sides of all the roads around here, especially Blueberry Hill.

Here in New Mexico, the wildflowers don't bloom in the spring; they bloom in the late summer and early fall. I'm glad to see them blooming for two reasons. First, they're so pretty and second, it means the end of summer is in sight. I decided yesterday that I'm really REALLY tired of summer and ready for fall. It hasn't been that beastly hot of a summer, but it's definitely been a humid one, more humid than usual. And we've been running the swamp cooler a lot. It keeps the house relatively cool, but it makes it more humid inside, too. Sometimes it just feels cool and clammy in here.

This morning was great. First thing in the morning, it was only 50 degrees. The air felt wonderfully cool. I took my mug of coffee out to the screen room to drink it and enjoy the coolness. It's like the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. In only a couple of weeks, the air will be cool and crisp like that every morning and evening. I can't wait!

Desert Summer Days

You know you've been living in the desert for too long when 25 percent humidity feels muggy. I grew up near Washington, DC, where a typical summer day is 90 degrees (or more) and 90 percent humidity. The nights aren't much cooler. When I moved here almost eight years ago, I was amazed that the difference between the high and low temperature in one day could be 40 or 50 degrees. The night air feels so cool and crisp after the heat of the day! Getting used to single-digit humidity was definitely a big adjustment. It feels like the moisture is being sucked right out of my skin as soon as I walk outside.

For the past few days the temperature has been in the 80s, which is comfortable, but the humidity has been about 25 to 30 percent and that's starting to feel muggy. Maybe it's just perception. I've gotten so used to the clear blue skies the humidity produces. But for the past few days, the skies have been decidedly gray and hazy. This is only because of the smoke from the wildfires in Arizona and Utah, but it gives the perception of humidity-caused haziness.

I should go outside and close my eyes so I don't see the haziness. I'll just feel the moisture being sucked out of my skin.