"Night Blooming Cirrus Cactus-Queen of the Night"

While many cacti have beautiful flowers, the Night-blooming Cirrus is special in that it blooms only for one night during the late summer. A beautiful flower about 4-5 inches across opens up as night falls, then closes forever with the first rays of the morning sun. My photos were taken at 11:30 in the evening.

"Stop and Smell the Flowers"

Every time I travel back to Minnesota, a visit to the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory in St. Paul is a must. Formerly Como Park Conservatory, it was originally opened in November 1915 and today occupies one full acre under glass, consisting of six indoor gardens and three outdoor gardens with over 50,000 plants covering over 1,684 separate species. Over the years, the conservatory has charmed and entertained millions of people, both young and old!

"Caribou Coffee Musings"

Just a few moments ago, I finished posting a blog on "Peanuts. While here in Minnesota, my only Internet access has been at Caribou coffee, and of course that means having a coffee, and that is not difficult for a "good Norwegian" like myself. What I noticed on the Caribou coffee containers were a number of different sayings that I really liked. They provide good musings for contemplative thought, so I thought I would share them here.

"Go home early and play with your kids."

"Life is short. Stay awake for it."

"Read your favorite book."

"Build communities, not empires."

"Get there on two wheels."

"Take the stairs."

"Kiss slowly, forgive quickly."

"Remember where you came from."

Now here's a good one. "You are as wonderful as your dog thinks you are."

"Run your feet, not your mouth."

"Technology is good, but people are better."

"Dream big, act bigger."

"Hold hands, not grudges."

"Tell someone you love them."

"Peanuts"-Last Comic Strip

Charles M. Schulz was a Minnesota native, and a famous American Cartoonist, whose comic strip "Peanuts proved to be so popular with millions. On January 3rd, 2000, Charles Schulz published his his last Peanuts comic strip and said goodbye with his friends Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy ......

Today, in downtown St. Paul, there are reminders of his friends in local parks. The photos here were taken in St. Paul downtown Rice and Lafeyette Parks.

"Role of Tugboats in Mississippi Commerce"

The Mississippi River runs for about 2,320 miles through the United States, from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico. Through North American history, it has been an artery for commerce. Even with modern technologies, it is easier and cheaper to move goods along the river than overland. Tugboats and barges have become associated with the Mississippi River, and are responsible for moving about 300 million tons of cargo move along the river every year. It has been reported that a single barge can travel twice as far on a gallon of fuel as a train and five times as far as a semi truck. Barges, however, depend on the push an pull of river tugboats, which are highly maneuverable in bringing cargo down river. The photos that you see are pictures that I took from a river landing in St. Paul, Minnesota, with the city of St.Paul nearby.

Hamline University, "Looking Back and Thinking Forward"

Tomorrow I'll be back in Minnesota, and within an hour of my flight landing, I'll be out on the courts playing tennis with my old buddies, geezers like myself! How wonderful it is that a sport like tennis can bring so many people together. No matter our ailments, our aches and pains, our creaky joints, we still trek out regularly to "stay in the game" and smile with glee, when we hit one of those "shots", we used to hit so regularly in the past.

For me, tennis began as a youngster, but was really spurned on by my enrollment at Hamline University and by my coach, "Doc, Benjamin Lewis, who we all called "The Wizard", which he was, really!!, because he masterfully orchestrated our team to a number of Conference Collegiate Championships and through his efforts, all of us benefited.

Hamline University is a coeducational, private university located in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Founded in 1854, and named in honor of Bishop Leonidas Hamline. (That's the Bishop in the Photo) Hamline is the oldest established university in the state of Minnesota and remains affiliated with the United Methodist Church. The first class graduated in 1859 and had fewer than 100 students and tuition was only $6.00 per term.

Today, the Hamline has continued to grow and has 4900 students in Enrollment, a well known School of Law, a School of Business, a Graduate program of Liberal studies and several Bilateral programs in Germany, Chile, Senegal and Japan.

And you might ask, what is today's tuition! Would you believe $28,862, but with that those investments, excellence has been achieved in so many ways and Hamline has become a prestigious regional University in the Midwest.

"Rattlesnakes Eggs!

Here is a delicious recipe for one of my favorite appetizers. Whenever served, they are a favorite of my friends and are a hit at any party. The ingredients are simple, just jalapenos, cheese and bacon. To prepare the "rattlesnake eggs" just follow these simple directions or refer to the pictures above:

Ingredients:

15 whole jalapenos
8 oz package of Rodele Cheese with Garlic and Herbs
1 lb of bacon cut in half

Directions: First slice jalapenos in half and then remove all seeds. Next spread Rondele Cheese on halved jalapenos, and then wrapped with bacon. Once wrapped, place jalapenos on a large enough cookie tray covered with aluminum foil (saves on clean-up) and place in oven on broiler setting and watch carefully. When bacon browns, remove from oven. Allow to sit until cool to touch before serving.

Caprese Salad (Also known as Insalata Caprese)

Caprese Salad initially comes from the island of Capri off the west coast of Italy, where it originated. It has also been called the Tricolore salad, because of the three colors of the Italian Flag, red (tomatoes), white (mozeralla) and green (sweet basil) This dish is prepared according to the following recipe:


•small sliced cherub sweet tomatoes (50) available from Costco

•sliced mozeralla cheese

•sliced kalamata olives (15) available from Costco

•1 bunch of sweet basil leaves

•3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil or 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar

•add sprinkle of Mrs. Dash

•1/4 cup of pine nuts

Next arrange tomatoes, mozeralla, kalamat olives, pine nuts on platter. Now sprinkle your choice of either extra virgin olive oil or balsamic vinegar over top.

"Bufo alvarius, the Sonoran Desert Toad"

Bufo alvarius or The Sonoran Desert Toad is a frequent visitor at the time of our Monsoons, which occur between late June and the end of August. The Sonoran Desert Toad spends most of their lives buried underground and they are very keen to the effect of the Earth's cycle and their own natural rhythm. These toads appear when our summer showers start and breed in the temporary pools that form after the rains begin.

Males croak incessantly during mating until they find their partner, but have a relatively weak call, compared to other frogs and toads.The main part of its range is from sea-level to 1600 m (5300 ft). The Sonoran Desert Toad can be found in a variety of desert and semi-arid habitats: brushy desert with creosote bush and mesquite washes, semi-arid grasslands and woodlands. It is semi-aquatic and is usually associated with large, somewhat permanent streams. It is occasionally found near small springs, temporary rain pools, human-made canals and irrigation ditches. They frequently live in rodent burrows. These toads are very large, many the size of your hand and are dark olive green color in appearance.

The Bufo alvarius toad is carnivorous and is known to eat snails, beetles, spiders, grasshoppers, lizards, mice, and other smaller toad species. A long sticky tongue aids in catching prey. If molested or bothered, however, the Sonoran Desert Toad can secrete a poison which irritates the mucous membranes of most predators. This poison can affect animals as large as dogs, and can cause temporary paralysis or death

"Texas Ranger, the Barometer Bush

In the last week, Tucson has been decked out in regal splendor with the flowering of Texas Ranger bushes. When this bush blooms it produces masses of fragrant flowers that vary from pink to purple and blue to white, with the color intensifying when temperatures and humidity are high. Sometimes the Texas Ranger is referred to as the “barometer bush” for its ability to forecast rainfall. Many times, the Texas ranger will bloom right before it rains or 10 days following hard rains,which we had a couple of weeks ago with the monsoons.

"The Green Valley Pecan Company"

Just south of Tucson in the community of Sahuarita, we have the world's largest pecan orchard with 6,000 acres and 101,000 trees. The trees tap into the Santa Cruz River Basin and thrive on the warm days with bright sunshine and cool nights we have here in Southern Oregon The average yield per acre is approximately 2000 lbs. of in-shell pecans.

Pecans are also known as the healthy nut and are reported to be cholesterol-lowering, having many vitamins, a great protein alternative, providing needed fiber, and lastly containing a number of essential body minerals.

To find out more about the Green Valley Pecan Company and also to order pecans, just go to www.pecanstore.com If you are in the area, I would also recommend that you stop by for a free tasting at the Pecan Store, and if possible don't miss attending the up-coming Sahuarita Pecan Festival which will be held on November 20th and 21st. Just go to sahuaritapecanfestival.com for more information.

Some of my photos were taken within the store and do show the large variety of pecans that one can sample and possibly buy. The picture of the young lady is the store salesperson who waited on me. Her name is Matty and she is holding up Don Julio, the mascot at Green Valley Pecan Company!

"Acqua Caliente Park always a welcome relief"

While southern Arizona has wonderful weather for a good portion of the year, the summers here can be a little bit overwhelming in terms of extreme heat. That is one reason why Tucsonians welcome the summer monsoons which help to not only lower daily temperatures but also to bring our region much needed rainfall.

Yesterday, we did have one of those torrential rainfalls that are so characteristic of the monsoons. The rain came down in droves, and very quickly our washes became raging rivers across town. Then the rains stopped, the sun came out, and I found it to be a good time to visit Aqua Caliente Park.

This park of 101 acres is truly an oasis in the middle of the desert. The park sits on top of a natural spring and features ponds that have an exceptionally rich mix of plants and wildlife. Many wetland birds, songbirds, hummingbirds and raptors nest in the park. Bird watching is best done in early morning.

As you can see from my photos, this is truly a remarkable site. Who would have ever imagained such a park with palm trees in the middle of the Sonoran desert!