Welcome to spring on the Hill. It is greener this spring than it has been for almost 20 years, and wildflowers are everywhere. We have had much rain and snow in May. Snow? Read on! Above is a flower "river" of camas lilies not far from the Hill. Camas lilies are exquisite! My grandmother, Lily, was named after Camas; her eyes were this same clear, intense blue. Do the hills look pink through some strange trick of photography? No, the foothills truly are an odd, misty purple/pink/fuchsia this time of year as the grass heads mature to maroon, pink, and magenta, dominating much of the landscape. Come out and walk awhile with us in the green and purple hills.
This is a newsy Hill Page, friends, and has many pictures, so will take a while to load. So much has happened since we last met!
The Tucson National was a wonderful event this year! I had a GREAT time! During the winter, the Hill's kitchen was full of Sculpey, paint, yarn, tissue festooning, little teddy-bear eyes and noses, and a number of other things as I worked on fiesta decorations for the 2010 National banquet. Above are the moccasin sheltie-hangers that went on some of the tables. Most of the tables were centered with a pebble-filled terracotta dish in which were little adobe houses lit from within, strings of tiny Mexican fiesta flags, and little Shelties (below). This is not all the little Shelties. There were also mahogany sables and bi-blacks, as well as more of the other colors. I love making little animals with Sculpey.
I tried taking photos of the finished centerpieces, but my camera chose that time to run out of battery -- dang. The four Sheltie pinatas (1 bi-black, two sable, and one tricolor) started out as pony pinatas, but received tipped ears, Sheltie tails, coats of tissue-paper "fur," teddy-bear eyes and noses, and yarn tassels. They were so much fun to make!
My old friend Maureen and newer friend Lacey and I stayed in the hotel together and were a little bit crazy, so that was fun. In fact, it was so much fun that Asher's placement was the icing on a very delicious cake. Go to the Puppy Page to see Asher's show photo from the National!
After the National, I stayed with Maureen for a day, and then Scott joined me and we took off for some desert exploration in the Tucson area. We still own a small acreage very close to Saguaro National Park (which was not a park when we bought the land many years ago), and we have loved the Sonoran Desert for a long time. By luck, this is a flower year in the Sonoran, something that hasn't happened for a long time. And we got to see it!
The desert annual flowers were just coming out around Tucson at the end of March, delayed by unusually cool weather -- but before we flew home, a number of wonderful flowers had spilled over the desert like bright paint. Above, a giant saguaro takes center stage in the foothills above our acreage. To come with us on our visit to the Tucson area, click below!
When we returned from Tucson, it was nearly Easter, and time for the annual Clan Duncan Egg Hunt! This silly event is always a good time for people and dogs alike. To see a bit of the 2010 Egg Hunt, click the large button below!
And then it was time for another trip:
Then we went to Texas, to San Antonio. Yes, that's the Alamo. And below is where we strolled along the River Walk one soft and sunny afternoon. Why were we in San Antonio? Well, as you know, photos of me in these pages are almost nonexistent, but here is one. When one receives an award, that is lovely. When one receives an award from soldiers, that is very special indeed, so I thought I would put in a photo of me, just this once (taken by Scott). Below right, there I am, just at retirement, receiving from Colonel Kiethen of the Washington D. C. National Guard Bureau, the National Guard Conservationist of the Year Award, a wonderful finish to my long career as a biologist for the National Guard. I was so glad that Scott got to come, too.
San Antonio was a delightful interlude, unexpected -- and it included having ice cream on a balcony with two old-friend colonels, moments to tuck away into my library of memories.
Meet Ichabod, the beautiful Compass Legend of Sleepy Hollow. He is from our Ch. Freddie's first litter, and we have always admired him. Ichabod has joined our ranks, courtesy of Compass Shelties. I guess it was fate that a dog with a Halloweenish name should come to a Halloweenie like me. Currently Ichabod is at Rodnstaff Shelties in Tennessee, where he has sired some lovely puppies.
This May it was amazingly green here, and the wildflowers had a fling! Such an event hasn't happened here since 1993, so we invite you to share it with us by clicking on the button below:
When we were forced to leave the Old Hill, Scott and I dug every plant we could dig and moved them to Antelope Hill, because everything we left there was to be bulldozed. We hired the biggest tree-movers in the state, both companies, and had as many trees moved as, large as they could handle. 24 of the 27 trees we had the movers move, are still alive, and many are thriving. We also dug sagebrush, bitterbrush, golden currant, wild rose, yarrow, and other native plants, as well as my mother's columbine and my grandmother's baby's breath. We planted the trees, sage, and bitterbrush right away. And last year we bought some other native species at the annual native plant sale. But planting all these smaller fellows had to wait until we had earth-moving work finished, which took a long time. So we set up a chain-link dog run and placed inside all these plants, still in their pots and buckets, to protect them from hungry rabbits. "The Farm" is what we called this collection of plants from the Old Hill. It has been three years, and we have finally just planted all the plants from the Farm! For the first time since we moved to Antelope Hill, the soil is moist down as far as one cares to dig. Yesterday was cool and just perfect for planting. Our friend Lacey and I hauled potted shrubs and perennials, hoses, shovels, and so on, all over the southern half of our property and planted out nearly all the Farm plants. These native species will require minimal watering, and will provide food and cover for birds and other small creatures -- besides providing beauty, fragrance, and interest for us! The columbine and baby's breath are now in large pots at the house, and the columbine is bursting with fat buds. It feels good to have saved all these plants.
Have a close look at the desert foothill wildflower photos on the wildflower page reached by one of the buttons above. THEN look at these photos! On May 23, we got six inches of snow on Antelope Hill, flattening all those flowers and giving us an instant winter landscape! It was very disorienting at first, but I recovered quickly and built a snowgirl. However, the snow lasted only a couple of days. Startling.
The snow is all gone now, except on the high peaks.
Here is a tour of my recently abandoned office, now tenanted by a capable fellow who worked for me years ago when he was in college. (Yes, that is a real snake on the wall. He was found dead on a dirt trail, dried by the desert sun. And that's a porcupine skull on the small table with the large salt crystal. Ahh, a biologist as interior decorator.) I have retired, and I keep telling myself, "You aren't a working biologist now. You are a writer and an artist." I am now in the business of seeing how many of my long-held dreams I can realize. First, however, we must finish the house! And I guess that, too, is a dream.
Here's Mattie, the little boy with a big boy's heart. He's still small, but we think he will break the 14" mark! He's a sound, sound boy with a very sweet, bright personality and many other fine qualities. This is Matt in early April, so he's older and coatier now.
The days grow long, although outside my window it is still chilly and gray with drifts of intermittent rain. But summer will be here soon, bringing all her riches. The nasturtiums that made their way to the window in the back bedroom against all odds, are still blooming. Hope, like early summer, is alive in the world. Go now and step from the Virtual Hill into the real world. For early summer I wish you windblown wildflowers, the small-bells sound of baby birds being fed in the nest, spring azure butterflies, true friendship, heart-stopping sunsets, a flash of minnows in a clear stream, and the unconditional love of a faithful dog. Be sure to return for a visit to the Hill in summertime.
In case you have missed the story of how we lost the old Hill to eminent domain, click the button above. The evil of eminent domain is still alive in the world.
