Cookie and BunBun

Cookie in her Rin Tin Tin pose.

She is a very pretty dog.

Senor BunBun is a small black and white rabbit.

I'm very fortunate to have found a place to work where I can take care of animals and homes, while still being in Tucson.  The pay is good, it's a non-stress job, and I get lots of love.  Most of the owners are on holiday.  Cookie and BunBun's are in Italy.

The Perfect Job

While we stay at home in Tucson, I've been working with a company doing dog walking and pet sitting.  I get paid to spoil some wonderful animals; best job in the world for me!

Mishka, a beautiful little girl, with a raspy voice.  She loves to talk and be talked to.

Lucky, the ultimate spoiled puppy;  I love him to bits!

These two, Lucky and Mishka, I spend several days each month with.  Their mom works long hours, so I come in the middle of her shift to walk Lucky and generally spend quality time with the two of them.  Sometimes, I even get to stay overnight when Mom goes out of town.

Gila Monsters!

This has been a busy spring for our neighbors here in Tucson.  We have had five rattlesnakes, who have all been relocated to non-residential areas. A King Snake, who is still around somewhere, hopefully eating our packrats, was spotted in the back yard.   Then there is a Coachwhip snake, who loves to hang out on the porch by the east office, where he's been seen twice.  He eats rattlers, so we hope he stays around to scare them off.

My favorite neighbors are the Gila Monsters.  They are really not monsters, just one of the jeweled lizards.  They are venomous, but not aggressive, but they growl/hiss.  Andre the Great Dane avoids them; wise fellow.  For more information visit www.desertusa.com/reptiles/gila-monster

Sandstorm?  I don't worry about a sandstorm!  It does make the colors odd on the pictures though.  This fellow was exploring the back yard.  We try to keep them out, because of the dog.  Looks like we have some work to do.

Looked out my office window as he was walking by, so I followed him to the end of the house, where he tried to hide behind the hose pot.

The smallest one we have seen this year, he was walking up the front sidewalk.  When he saw me, he moved to the large agave and nestled in the leaves.  His coloring was very vibrant.

Lime Kiln Hike in Saguaro National Park East

A Saguaro with multiply arms, growing up out of a mesquite.

The weather has been unseasonably warm, even by Arizona standards, so we decided to make the most of it an go hiking.  Saguaro National Park East is just a short drive from the house.  Bill has his Golden Age pass, which is available to those over 65 and last for their life time.  One of the pluses for growing older.

We walked down a creek bed.  The smooth rocks are caused by water runoff during  monsoon season.

A grouping of three, younger cactus.  They don't grow arms until 30 to 50 years old.

The hike out to Lime Kiln is not very far, but has some beautiful examples of Saguaros.  We are constantly on the lookout for the baby Saguaros.  They are difficult to spot, as they grow under the mesquites and other underbrush.  It protects them from predators and our intense sunshine, until they are much bigger.   We didn't find any on this hike, but we will keep looking!

Bill doing what he loves; taking pictures.

Hillside of Saguaros.

Our path up the creek bed.  The sky was a beautiful blue.

It was warm enough that we found shade when ever possible.

A lime kiln.

Notice the warning about bees!  There weren't any about this morning.

View from the front.  

Two large specimens growing close together.   The holes have been caused by  humans, insects and animals.

In all, we hiked just over three miles.  It was time to return home to the cool of the house.  We each carry  water, at least a litre, for the short hikes.  For longer ones, more is needed.  We wear hats and slather on the sunscreen, even in the winter!

We hiked past the Lime Kilns toward the Cactus Forest Trailhead, but not all the way.

Lake Havasu Triathlon

Our daughter, Amy, has always been athletic.  Several years ago she started running, then doing half marathons, then a marathon.  Somewhere along the way, she added in biking with husband Dan.  This led to El Tour de Tucson, a 111 mile bike race around Tucson.  It's a big deal, with riders from all over the world!
Then a friend wanted her to be on a team which was running and swimming, so Amy started swimming.  This past weekend she did her first triathlon, a half Ironman, at Lake Havasu, Arizona.  Bill, Dan and I went along as her cheering section.  We had the easy job.

Getting ready to swim 1.3 miles in Lake Havasu.

Out of the water and on to the bike for a 56 miles ride.  The course included two really steep hills which had to be navigated, twice!

Halfway through her run of 13.2 miles; a half marathon!  I was tired just watching her, but she always had a big smile on her face when she saw us waiting to cheer her on!

The Finish!  6 hours and 24 minutes later.  Way to go Amy!

This week she is taking it easy, to give her body time to rest.  Saturday she and Dan will do a "taper" ride of 30 miles to prep for this year's El Tour de Tucson on November 23.  Bill and I will be there, cheering them on!

BobCat

BobCat is a calico, which means he is a genetic mutation, because he is a male. 

We never shared our home with cats while our children were growing up.  Bill had allergies, they both had allergies.  Friends had cats, so we were around them, just never in our home.  Then one day last spring, daughter Amy received an email from the Southern Arizona Humane Society with a picture of a Maine Coon cat who was available for adoption.  It was love at first sight.  She and hubby Dan went to visit and came home with BobCat.

BobCat loves to spend time looking out the many windows in our home. 

With three Great Danes in the house, BobCat was limited to one end of the house with a baby gate blocking the dogs out.  As time went on, first Loki, then Clyde left us, so Andre and BobCat became friends.  At least Andre thinks their friends, BobCat tolerates Andre;  and steals his bed.

He is a very big cat.  When standing up to look out the window in our Arizona room, his head is taller than the dining table.  If he were stretching, he could easily put his paws on the table top.

When we arrived home from France, BobCat seemed pleased to see us.  More people to keep his food dish from going empty, I'm sure. 

BobCat contemplating taking over the world.

Baking Chicken in a Clay Pot

We have used a romertopf or chicken brick to bake a whole chicken for many years.  Our first one was a rather primitive looking thing from England.  When it arrived at our Pier 1 store, we didn't know quite what to think of it.  So, instead of shrugging when customers asked what it was for or how to use it, we took one home and baked a chicken.  We were sold on it, and also sold out the entire stock and had to order many more!  We still have this brick.

The soaked Romertopf with the chicken and vegies inside.

While talking with Philip and Gloria, the homeowners in Nice, the conversation came around to  romertopfs.  They had owned on for many years, but had never used it and weren't really sure how to use it.  When they returned from their vacation trips, it was mentioned again.  Philip brought his romerfopf in, so we explained how it worked.  We left the next day, not knowing if he used it or not.

Bill put carrots, potatoes and butternut squash to cook under the chicken.  The seasonings were herb de Provence, onion powder, salt and sweet paprika.

 We thought about chicken cooked in clay for the rest of the trip.  A few days after arriving home, Bill came back from the grocery store with a perfect chicken and the vegies.  It is really quite easy to do.  Soak the brick in cold water for about 15 minutes.  Arrange the diced vegies in the bottom, put the trussed chicken on top.  Season with your favorites spiced; today we used herb de Provence, onion powder, salt and sweet paprika.  Put the top on the pot.  Into a cold oven it goes, then set the temperature at 500 f.  An hour later pull it out, letting it sit a minute or two before removing the top.

 

The romerfopf coming out of the oven.  Notice how the outside is no longer shiny from being soaked in the water, which has now all evaporated.

 

As the chicken bakes, the water in the clay keeps everything moist.  There is no need to add oils to keep things from sticking.  The results are always delicious and easy too.  This is a favorite at our house in the cooler months when we use the oven for baking.

 

Put the chicken on a platter surrounded by the vegetables for an elegant dinner.  Or do as we did; cut up the chicken on a platter while the vegies go into a bowl.

When it's time to clean the pot, don't use soap; take a stiff brush and scrub the inside clean with salt.  After being used, the clay has some staining, but nothing to worry about.  Now we need to find out if Philip used his!

 

 

Full Disclosure Agreements or Marry the One You Love but Avoid Assassin Bugs

I have decided, after many years of marriage, that there needs to be a full disclosure form for couples to fill out before they tie the knot.  Something that brings logic into the equation, to balance out the euphoria of being in love.  If I had known some of the things about Bill, I "might" not have married him.  Maybe....  What are these horrible things?  Well, his family has allergies that make the rest of us look odd for not having them.  Food allergies, insect bite allergies, perfume and dye allergies in soaps, hard work allergies.  OK, just joking about that last one.  I am forever telling our children when they sneeze or itch,  "You can thank your father for that."

We have been dealing with bad jet lag from the return trip.   After finally falling asleep, Wednesday    night, early Thursday early morning, Bill was bitten by a bug that walked down his shoulder snacking.  The ensuing welts were huge and painful.  We applied sting-kill and went on.  We also found the bug, whacked it, but left it sitting on a table top, why I'll never know.  Thursday night the bites were painful enough to disrupt his already weird sleep, but by Friday were on the mend.  

Saturday about 4 am, he was bitten again, but the reaction was painful and swift.  Swelling eyes, mouth, throat, with hive around his waist to his upper thighs.  Again we found the bug, the same sort, which ended up flushed down the toilet.  I woke Amy,  asking if she had benadryl, but by the time we returned to our end of the house, Bill was in distress.   Forget the benadryl, we jumped into the car and headed for the hospital.  I put the bug from Thursday into a pill box and took it with us.

While we were registering, a nurse was summoned, who took one look at Bill and said this can be finished in the back.  We were taken  quickly to an  examination room. Bill was starting to
 have spasms in the back of his throat, down the esophagus and his diaphragm.  The meds to stop the reaction were given intravenously, but it still took what seemed to be, a long time for things to start returning to normal.  The nurse looked at the bug and called it an assassin bug or kissing bug.  Google it if you want to be grossed out.

In the end, he was sent home with prescriptions to help his body get over this event.  Plus an epi-pen to use if it happened again without the time to get to the hospital.   Apparently, the side effects of an epi-pen are huge, so best not to use it unless we have to.  Darn it, Amy and I were looking forward to stabbing someone!

What does this have to do with disclosure?  Well, if I had known then what I know now, maybe I would have missed this entire episode by marrying a man who didn't have extreme allergies.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Bill about an hour after receiving the meds for allergic reaction.  He was looking much better with his coloring returning to near normal.  Before he was horribly red.

Bill is doing very well and we have an extermination company coming out today to spray the house.  We aren't really thrilled with the use of all those chemicals, but it's better than Bill having  another emergency room visit.

Tiling

The floors in most of our house were covered in carpet which was originally white, but had deteriorated into a dirty beige.  No amount of cleaning made any difference, dirty beige it remained. The kitchen was different; a laminated plastic wood look which terrified the dogs because of the noise made when walking on it, plus it was slick!  The three of them avoided walking on it.
 

Our solution was to rip everything up until only bare concrete remained. As we emptied each room, I went through and painted all the walls, ceiling and trim; why put down new floor with old paint? Then we tiled it all in 16" Peacock slate.  Each tile weighed about 11 pounds.  We started in late October 2012 and worked until the end of March 2013, with breaks for Thanksgiving through New Years and occasionally for too wet and cold weather.  Cutting tile in the cold is absolutely no fun!
 

We haven't finished all the floors;  there is still the kitchen, because we want to change out the cabinets before going on, and a dressing area/bathroom which needs walls moved before the tile goes down.  Not too bad though, we laid over 2900 square feet of tile!

The tile, mortar and grout being delivered; 3400 sq. ft of tile.

 

Our bathroom with the new tile and a new dual flush tiolet.

Amy and Bill setting up the tile saw and mixer (which ended up not working!) so we could begin tiling.  We started on the east side of the house and worked to the west side.

Dining room with the floor finished and funiture back in.

Family room floor before the furniture and rug went back.

Our bedroom half way tiled.

Finished!

 

Keeping Busy in Tucson

.We haven't been housesitting for the past year and a half.  There has been alot going on at home to keep us busy.



Amy, JP and I after finishing the 2012 Arizona Distance Classic 5K.

I learned to speed walk and entered my first 5K.  I finished 4th in my age group; the top 3 were runners.  I have been polishing my technique, losing weight in the process!  Who'd a thunk at age 60 I'd become an athlete.  Har Har!   I've continued my speedwalking, entering the Saguaro 5k and then the 2013 Arizona Distance Classic quarter marathon. 




Amy and Bill cutting down the olive tree.  Dan and I were on the ground doing our jobs.

Owning a home comes with all sorts of duties.  The olive tree in the front had been planted too close to the house.  It had gotten too big and was rubbing against the edge of the roof.  Down it had to come.  Amy did the cutting, with Bill standing on point to help.  Dan and I were on the ground to give the pull so the branches would land in the proper place, or at least close.  We left the stump, which has grown out from the ground, keeping it pruned into a bush, with a stump to put a potted plant on if we want.

 

We added a fence around the front yard to keep the javalena out.  They so enjoy eating all the plants and uprooting the ones they don't want to eat.  The fence is a combination of wire and Ocotillo fencing.  The Ocotillo blooms after it rains, but the rest of the year it is just sticks with barbs to discourage visitors. 

 

 

The front yard also needed something else, so I built a patio from brick pavers we already owned.  We added a few chairs, a couple of tables. Viola!  A comfy place to sit and watch the world go by.

 

 

Busy Month

Before I attempt to finish our stay in Nice, here's an update on what's been happening at the Dillon-Willmon household.

All but two of the group. Eric, Don, Jenn, Jen, Amy, Dan, Victoria, Thomas and Robin's arm.

Thanksgiving was our usual gathering of friends, except this year I did most of the cooking.  Amy had surgery on her foot the day before, so she sat on the barstool with her foot propped up on the other stool and supervised.  She also arrainged the potatoes for the cheesy potato casserole.  Dinner was delicious.  Desserts were decadent.  A good time was had by all!

Different view.  Eric, Don, Jenn, Jen, Amy, Dan Victoria, (Thomas is hiding), Robin, Bill.

Amy's birthday was next on the agenda.  Lovely dinner out, with some of the best cocktails I've had in years! Then it was time to buy the Christmas tree and decorate the house.  During this we experienced our first cold winter weather, so plants had to be moved inside.  The delicate ones planted in the ground had to have lights put on them, then be covered for protection from any frost.

It has warmed up again, but still rainy.  Snow on the mountains, but not down here.  That's the way to have it!

Snow on the Santa Catalina Mountains taken from our back porch.

Technological Frustration

It has been a frustrating few weeks trying to blog.  Bill spent days editing the pictures from Nice, only to have the hard drive he saved them to go bonkers.  Another few days spent trying to get said hard drive to talk to him, then all it could say, "would you like to reformat?"

Blogger hasn't been helpful either.  I gave up trying to post pictures, but it wouldn't post just words!  Part of the problem may be out internet connection which is just faster than dial-up, but not all of it.  So I just gave up, until today when I will try again.  Keep your fingers crossed.

Bear with us.

We are having technical difficulties uploading pictures to Blogger.  I think it is Blogger's problem instead of our slow internet, but, who knows!
Stay tuned.

Monsoons

The monsoon season in Tucson has started.  This seems to be how it works.  It is extremely hot.  Thunderstorms build over all 4 of our mountain ranges. There is a race to see which storm can get down or over the mountains first.  One day, the rain may come from the west, the next the northeast, or north or south.  Pick a direction, sooner or later you will be right.

The backyard during the storm.  I took this through the sliding door, it was too windy to be on the porch.

The storm we just had came out of the northeast.  The wind was so strong, the rain was blowing sideways, not down.  Gusts to 50mph!  Lots of lightning and thunder!  It was all over in an hour!  Whew!  That was exhausting.

Loki all relaxed now that the storm is over.

Loki does not like storms.  So his loving Grandmere moved him into the family room, put on a movie with happy sounds, "Robin Hood: Men in Tights", a rubbed on him during the worst of the storm.  He survived nicely.  Clyde and Andre were excited because they got to watch the movie too.

Some of the clean up to be done from the water running off the roof.

We spent the morning cleaning up the aftermath of downed branches, leaves in the pool and on the sidewalks, and putting things back where they belong after being moved to safety because of the high winds.