Winter

Winter does seem to have made its mind up to hit town. 

For the past couple of weeks, we've had slightly above average temperatures (mid-50's).  That came to an end this weekend.  Friday was cloudy and overcast.  Saturday it started raining around 8 AM and continued to about 10 AM.  It stopped long enough for me to run errands.  Then it started up again and continued into the evening, later turning to snow.

Here are the Sandias in early afternoon on Saturday.

I got about half an inch of snow at my house, much of which has melted since we got into the low 40s today.
Here's what the Sandias looked like today, at about the same time (early afternoon) as yesterday.

The weather's supposed to stay cold with another slight possibility of snow later in the weekend.

I'm already over it.
Looking forward to Spring,
Papillon

Brrr!

On Saturday, we had nice weather, cool but sunny.  Here's more autumn color.

Then a minor cold front blew in on Sunday bringing rain with it.  Since we're in high desert country, rain is always welcome.  (Just not when I'm walking to and from my car at the ABQ main library for their book sale.)

Today, more wind, more cold, more rain then snow.  After sitting out in the cold, I guess the car's battery was affected because it took a bit longer than usual to turn over.  It cranked, but didn't start up right away.  Panic, followed by relief.

I got home OK.  Here are a couple of trees in the front yard.

Wet roads plus overnight temps below freezing - not looking forward to the morning commute.  I'm really hoping work delays opening tomorrow.

Papillon

More odd weather

As mentioned in earlier posts, Albuquerque is officially high desert.  That means we do get rain, but not just in large amounts.

July and August are considered to be 'the rainy season'.  June is normally considered to be the 'dry' summer month.

Which made yesterday's weather both surprising and welcome.

I'd noticed clouds moving in for most of the afternoon.  And then I heard the thunder.  Yippee!
Later on, I noticed it was raining.

More yippee!



The forecast doesn't look promising for the rest of the week, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Papillon

Confusion

Albuquerque exists in an environment known as high desert.  High as in being a mile above sea level.  Desert as in - not a lot of precipitation on a yearly basis.

That said, this has been one wet month of May.  It started raining yesterday and has been intermittently doing it right up until about mid-afternoon today.  Then the clouds moved off (mostly) and the sun came out just in time for sunset.

Whatever blew through also blew in some cooler temperatures.  Normally daily highs in mid-May are in the upper 70's.  Today, the high was forecast to be in the low to mid 60's and I'm not sure it got up that high.  I had to turn on the heat this morning.  Not very high, but enough to take the edge off.

The weirdest part has been the snow in the Sandias.  I tried to take a photo around noon, but the clouds had rolled in and looked to be dropping another light layer.

All this while the vegetation around town is still doing the spring thing.  Notice the green in the lower fifth of the above photo.  Or this lovely bush, I think it's called Spanish Broom.

Later the clouds pulled back a bit.  You can see small areas of snow at the top of the mountains and just below the clouds, if you squint a bit.

Tomorrow it's supposed to start warming up a bit.  And we might get more rain later in the week.
Either 1939 or 1941 are the wettest Mays on record.  If we keep going the way we have been, we might just beat the record.  Considering how recently the state was listed as being in a drought, any and all rain is welcome.

Papillon

Lucky for trick or treaters

The 200 or so people that showed up at my house on Halloween got lucky.  That night it was chilly but clear.

That wasn't the case today.  It started raining around lunchtime and has continued, off and on, since. 

We're glad to see this.  After all, it was just a couple of months ago that New Mexico was officially out of drought conditions.  Even with that good news, there are still a lot of reservoirs that are WAY
below levels where they should be.  So more rain is a good thing.

Papillon

Rainy Days

Yesterday and today, we've had cooler temperatures and sporadic showers.  Bad for Balloon Fiesta, good for the countryside.

Driving home from work yesterday afternoon, I spotted a lovely rainbow.

I did get some fun news further along on the way home.  I decided to fill up the car.  Imagine my pleasant surprise to see the price per gallon was $2.99.  It's the first time in I-don't-know-how-long that the price of gas has been below $3.00.  Granted, it's only a tiny bit below, but it's still a good thing. 

Papillon

Ups and downs this weekend

There have been some ups and downs this weekend.  Starting on Friday, we've had some rain showers move through each afternoon.  As I was leaving work on Friday, it had been raining, but stopped long enough for me to get to my car and get about halfway home.  At that point, it starts to rain.  No big deal, until it starts to hail.  Fortunately, it was only pin-sized, but it was fast and furious and VERY noisy and slightly scary.  I drove through it and finished the drive home.  No damage to the car.  Yeah!

Saturday morning started out with me running errands and then heading to the State Fairgrounds for a quilt/craft market.  Part of the way there, my 'low tire pressure' light came on.  WTH?  A few minutes later, it went off.  Again, wth?  I found a gas station and put in a few pounds in the front tires.  (The rear tire pressure was fine.)  In the process I got dirt all over my right fingers from the tires.  Sigh.

I had a good time at the quilt/craft marketplace.  I found several fun panels.  A couple I may leave as is, just sandwich, quilt and bind.  One, I may cut up and rework since I want a longer than wide panel and as is, it's wider than long.  It's kitchen/bistro themed and should look cute on the wall in the kitchen.  I managed to get all my shopping done while there was a shower going on outside.

I headed homeward.  On the way, I thought I'd do my weekly stop by the old house to check things are OK.  I got there, stuck my key in the deadbolt and started turning it.  Only to have the cylinder come part way out of the lock.  It then got stuck in position, which meant I couldn't get the key out of the lock.  Sigh.  Then, when trying to get things to a position that'd allow me to get the key free, it snapped off.  Sigh.  All items are about 20 years old so can't entirely say I was surprised.

I went to the new house and called a locksmith I'd used to rekey the new house.  He could be at the old house in about 45 minutes.  Hooray!!  I stopped on the way back to the new house and bought a new deadbolt.  I got back to the old house and read part of a Perry Mason mystery until the locksmith showed up.  He was able to replace the old lock with the new one and rekeyed the new one to match the old deadbolt key (I had another non-snapped one on hand.)  Problem solved!  Woohoo!

This morning (Sunday) was sunny with a few clouds.  Around 7:30 AM I woke up to hear balloons overhead.

And another - in the distance.

And two more.

I make it a point to sleep in on weekends so after taking these photos I went back to bed.  About an hour later, I was again awakened by balloons somewhere close.  I rolled out of bed and what do I see but a couple of different balloons landing in the park in back of my house.

I would have taken more pictures, but the batteries in my camera picked this point to start flashing 'low battery' warnings.  At this point, I got up and headed out to get groceries.

In early afternoon, more clouds started rolling in.  I know there are probably folks who'd planned lots of outdoor activities this weekend.  I, on the other hand, am glad to see the rain.  It sure made it easier to pull weeds in the backyard.  Not to mention giving me an excellent reason to stay inside and read a good book.

Here's hoping tomorrow goes well.  I've been feeling a bit paranoid when I've been driving (since Saturday morning), keeping a wary eye on where the 'low tire pressure' light is.  So far, no recurrences.  Keeping my fingers crossed.

Papillon

Xmas in New Orleans

After my mom died in April of last year (2012), my sisters and I decided to do non-traditional Christmas celebrations for the next few years.  Last year we went to Colonial Williamsburg.  This year we decided to go to New Orleans.

My older sister did yeoman's work and found us a very nice hotel on the edge of the French Quarter at a really terrific rate.  We all (me, two sisters and BIL) flew in on Sunday, December 22nd and were greeted by a thunderstorm.  After landing, my plane got to sit on the tarmac for about 30 minutes because the ramp people at the airport gate didn't want to operate the ramp during repeated occurrences of lightning.  I can't say that I blame them at all.

We found a very nice man named Kevin who had a large van (not minivan) and a valid livery license and made the soggy ride to the hotel as pleasant as possible in the circumstances.  (Considering that NM has been in drought conditions for several years now, it may be heresy to admit that I was so over the rain in a short period of time.)

The hotel we stayed at was The Saint on Canal Street.  Here's a photo of the nighttime view from my hotel room.

And here's the daytime view.

 

The next day (Monday the 23rd) my older sister and her husband went to the WWII museum.  My younger sister and I decided to take the Hop On, Hop Off tour of the downtown area.  Here's one of the gorgeous houses in the Garden District.

 

We also went by Mardi Gras World where they've been making stuff for the floats in the assorted parades.

 

The item hanging up on the left-hand side is some sort of large fish.

Then we got to see the mighty Mississippi river.  A LOT more water than I've seen since I came back from Colonial Williamsburg.

For a long time in early U.S. history, Louisiana was the only place where women could own property.  One of those owners was Micaela Almonester Pontalba who built some of the oldest apartments near/on Jackson Square.  She helped to bring some design ideas from France such as ornate balconies and first-floor breezeways.

The ironwork contains the Baroness' monogram (A/P).

That's all for this blog entry.  There's more to come.

Papillon

 

Rain today

This morning I woke up to rainy-looking clouds.  No rain.

During the day, we went from mostly cloudy to mostly sunny.

Then, this evening more clouds rolled in and we actually had a couple of brisk showers roll through.  Hooray!

We not only got rain but a double rainbow.  The top one is rather faint and is kinda hard to see.  But it's there.

Papillon

Rain!

As we've been told for the past several years, New Mexico is in a drought.  Thankfully, it looks like there may actually be some rain during this year's rainy season.

I actually got sprinkled on while driving home.  It wasn't much, but it's better than nothing.

As the sun went down, there were some really nifty and pretty clouds overhead.

And some more.

Gotta love the potential for rain.

Papillon

 

Rain and Snow

We've gotten rain...and snow!  Woohoo!  It's been over a month since we've gotten anything.

It started on Friday.  At my house it rained for about half an hour.  The airport got .15 of an inch.  It's not a whole lot, but at this point, we'll take what we can get.

Today we actually got some snow, sort of (at my house, anyway).

Here's what the Sandia Mountains looked like around 1:30 PM.

The mountains are hard to see through some falling snow.  There are also patches of sunlight along the valley floor.

Then we've got storm clouds to the north of town.

Finally, on the way home, I went through a short storm of snow pellets.  This eventually petered out.  The pellets stayed on the ground for about a minute and then melted.

The storm passed on through and sunshine is supposed to be back tomorrow.  Oh, well.  We can only hope for some more precipitation in the near future.

Papillon

 

 

 

 

Rainy Day! Hooray!

After months and months and years of minimal rain, we got a good 2-hour soak today.  Hooray!

For a while it cleared up, then another rain shower.

More clearing and then lots of wind with some rain.

For now, it looks like it's been raining lightly enough that I haven't heard it, but the windows and roads are wet.

I'm glad it's happening on a Saturday.  If temps get below freezing tonight, the roads could be dicey tomorrow morning.  Instead of worrying about going to work, I can just stay home and sleep in.

On the other hand, the forecasters are saying there might be more headed our way through Tuesday.  We might even get some snow.  Sigh.

I figure I'll take it a day at a time.  If things look slick on Monday or Tuesday, I'll go in late.  I've got vacation time and see no reason to endanger myself by trying to get to work on time if the roads are too slick.  (My desire to be retired peaks at times like this.)

Papillon

Rain and snow...maybe

Today was cloudy and chilly.  A very definite change from normal New Mexico weather.  I was rather hoping for some sort of precipitation, but no luck here in the Albuquerque area.

Fortunately, other parts of the state have gotten snow.  This is a definite plus during a drought.  All the skiers are very happy since a lot of the ski areas have gotten numerous inches of snow. 

This is good, not only for the skiers, but also for the agricultural folks.  They have a rough several years.

I'm trying to get everyone to do the Law of Attraction.  Thoughts become things.  If all anyone thinks about is drought, that is what they will attract.  I'm trying to get everyone to switch their thoughts around.  Instead of concentrating on drought, they should think thoughts of precipitation.

They should also emulate Goldilocks.  She was a smart cookie who knew exactly what she wanted.  We should attract not too much rain or too little rain, but we should attract the amount that is 'just right'.

Papillon

What a day!

Today I've been through the oft-mentioned roller coaster of emotions.

The day started out well.  When I got up, it had been raining and continued to do so for most of the morning.  Nothing very much, but all of it was welcome.

I went out in the rain to do battle with Bank of America.  They are the holders of the mortgage on my house.  Over the years, I've been paying extra on my monthly payments.  Some months got more, others got less depending upon my financial circumstances.  In November I noticed that the balance was low enough for me to contemplate paying it off.

I called the 800 hundred number and spoke with a young man named Michael.  I told him what I wanted to do and he gave me a total that he said would pay off the mortgage.  Per his instructions, I got a certified check and mailed it off.  I've been watching the mail for paperwork showing that the mortgage was history.

Yesterday I got some paperwork for BofA.  Guess what, Michael's total hadn't paid off the mortgage.  So I called again and got a young woman named Ciji (pronounced SEE-gee).  She pooh-poohed most of what Michael had told me.  She gave me another balance.  All I had to do was get a certified check to one of the local BofA branches by 12/17.  I pointed out that wasn't a whole lot of time.  After all, Michael had given me 30 days.  She 'graciously' allowed me another couple of days by extending her deadline until 12/20.  Gee, thanks!

I also pointed out that Michael had said his balance would pay things off and it hadn't.  So what faith should I have in her balance?  (Note:  I was polite throughout this phone call.)  She said she would send me some paperwork that I could take into the bank branch.  I pointed out her extended deadline was only 5 business days away and that I doubted that the mail service would get it to me by then.  She pooh-poohed that saying it would not be a problem since all they had to do is read her notes.  (Ummm, if that's true, why did I need her paperwork.)  She's talking as she's typing away and finally says the paperwork should arrive in 7 to 10 business days.  Say what?!

Needless to say, I had VERY LITTLE faith in what she had to say, especially in light of the fact that she kept having to put me on hold to go ask questions. 

I decided to take the bull by the horns.  I went to the nearest branch and met with a woman named Rosa.  I told her my tale of woe and asked for her help.  She got to experience some of my frustration when she called the Mortgage Payoff Hotline and got a run-around similar to mine.  At one point the woman at the other end of the line said I could pay with cash if I wanted to and then seconds later said no, I couldn't pay with cash.

Rosa was finally able to get a final total.  I went to my credit union and got the payment in hand.  I trotted back and was able to give it to Rosa.  Now I just have to wait to see if this brings the process to an end.  If it doesn't, the gloves come off.

I did have to laugh to myself.  At the end of the process, Rosa asked if I wanted her to tell her all about the products available at BofA.  I just smiled and said I was happy with my credit union.

I went home and turned on the TV.  That was when I found out about the horrible shooting at the elementary school in Connecticut.  Oh, how very sad!  It's a small enough town that you know this affects everyone.  My heart goes out to everyone there.

Papillon

We had our first fall storm roll through.  We received rain yesterday, the first time in 50+ days.

It looks like the Sandia mountains east of town might actually be getting some snow.  I don't know if it'll provide any measurable amounts or if they'll stay for more than a day or so.  I'm just glad we're getting some moisture.

Here's what the mountains looked like this afternoon.

A bit further south, you can actually see some moisture headed down.  I don't know if it was actually hitting the ground.

It's supposed to be chilly and windy for most of the rest of the weekend.  It's supposed to warm up a bit early next week.

Papillon

I Love A Rainy Night!

The Albuquerque area is designated as high desert.  One, because we're a mile high.  Second, we don't get a whole lotta rain.  (Note:  desert doesn't necessarily mean really hot, although lots of deserts are.  It usually refers to the rainfall, or lack thereof, in an area.)

Anyway, we don't get a lot of rain on average and rarely do we get a whole day of it.  So it's very lovely when a day like today happens.

I'm just sitting back and enjoying all the lovely rain.

Happy Autumnal Equinox!

Papillon