“Get in the truck!” “Yikes, not with that fat old sidewinder poised and ready to strike!” After I shot this picture I tackled the little vermin, grabbing him (I verified it was a him) I wrestled it into submission. Without anything else in frame for reference it might be hard to tell, but this rattler was more than 20 feet long and was fatter than a pot-bellied pig. After pinning it, I whipped out my Bowie knife (I typically have one strapped to my calf) and cut off the rattler, and skinned this critter right there in the street. Tomorrow I’ll show you the swell belt I’ll be making from its liberated skin, but tonight we’ll be eaten fried rattler – tastes like Tofurkey.
Millions of Dollars of Anger
Running along Pima Road in North Scottsdale between million-dollar homes is this normally empty acreage, owned by a man who, by the size of the property, is obviously worth many, many a million of dollars. He appears to be rather pissed off with city officials and local residents. This eccentric guy or gal has peppered the property with signs of protest, cheap-looking artwork that mocks the city of Scottsdale’s attempts at maintaining a Tony appearance, as well as a variety of other debris and flags that is quickly becoming an eyesore. I’m sure that all these new Californified desert transplants don’t find this silent protest to be dignifying their elitist ideas of sterilized conformity. The drive home is now marred by this effective, albeit less than flattering, attention grabber.
Princess Liberty
She introduced herself as Princess and was happy to have her photo taken for my blog. Across the city of Phoenix, we are bombarded with signs, billboards, inflatable gorillas, Uncle Sam’s, and giant SUV’s, but my favorite are the people who get into costume and give it all they’ve got in order to shimmy, shake, and gyrate so vigorously that you are somehow compelled to take notice and visit the business being hawked. I wonder, does anyone really go for this? Sure, guys will stop when girls in bikinis get their attention for a fundraising carwash, but does a dancing chicken make you hungry? Does a dancing Princess Liberty have you racing home to collect your tax documents and return to give this little company your business? Tomorrow I will dress up as a wire, maybe a length of RJ-45 and stand on a busy intersection and see if anyone stops by to get connected.
Yep, Another Saguaro
While I have posted a few saguaros here over the past year, there is something especially enticing about them this time of year. Maybe it’s because they are greener and plumper due to the spring rains. Maybe it’s because the purple flowers in front of this one with a crisp blue sky in the background simply strike the eye. I am not certain why this giant cactus should be so appealing but it does seem to have universal appeal.
Red Flowers
All around us, we are seeing bright splashes of color, no, it isn’t due to excesses during acid house days. Har, you may have thought I’d reference the hippies or something, well I’m not old enough to have been a real hippy, my youthful music fascination spanned punk rock and industrial to acid house and the birth of techno.
April Fools
We made the long 25-mile drive to a local discount theater to see the Hindi film Malamaal Weekly. We held six additional seats for the friends who were joining us. Previews of coming attractions hint at what’s to come in the next months and then the feature film rolls. The titles play, the music starts, the voice-over starts narrating and Caroline and I are left wondering, well, just what is this guy saying in Hindi? Grrrr, no subtitles. Three hours of Hindi comedy without a clue about the dialogue would not have left us very entertained. We got a refund and caught a different film.