Balloons Overhead

I was awakened this morning by the whooshing of propane tanks firing as balloons floated overhead.  I suspect they most likely didn't launch from the Balloon Fiesta field but more likely from some open space on the west side of Albuquerque.

It was lovely weather this morning.  However, I'm suspecting the evening Glowdeo may be cancelled.  Some nasty looking clouds are moving in from the west and I think I'm hearing intermittent thunder.

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

Over the Back Fence

Balloon Fiesta is underway.  It started this past weekend (10/3) but I've become rather jaded after 20+ years so haven't really made much of an effort to track the balloons.

However, it's not hard to enjoy things when a balloon comes to me.

Granted, he didn't do any real 'flying' since he remained tethered to the ground.  You'll also notice it doesn't have a traditional gondola (passenger basket) underneath.  It was one man sitting in a chair-type device.

Here's another view as he fires up the propane.

What fun!  Nothing like my own 'personal' Glowdeo!  The neighborhood kids certainly enjoyed it.

I may have to do some balloon stalking next weekend.

Papillon

A night at the ballpark

Last night was a company event at the Albuquerque Isotopes.  For the unfamiliar, Albuquerque has long had a farm club for the LA Dodgers (with a short hiatus when they were the farm club for the Seattle Mariners).  Originally, our local team was the Albuquerque Dukes, named after the Duke of Alburquerque who held the original land grant.  (Yes, the Duke's version is the correct spelling of Alburquerque.  The current correct spelling of the city of Albuquerque is, in fact, incorrect.)

I don't remember the dates, but Albuquerque was without a baseball team for a number of years after I moved here when the team was sold to (I think) Portland. 

Then efforts were made to get another team in town.  When those efforts were successful, the new owners needed a new name since the name 'Dukes' went to the Northwest location.  The TV show, The Simpsons, had run a storyline where the fictional Springfield is worried that their minor league team, the Isotopes, is going to be sold to Albuquerque.  So our team has been called the Isotopes since, life imitating art.  They even put up some life-sized statues of the Simpson family (with permission of the show, of course).

July was the fourth wettest July on record.  This made it worrisome that the game would be rained out, especially because the morning looked really threatening.  Very dark clouds loomed over the Sandia mountains.  However, they cleared off as the day went on.  There were a few clouds in the area during the game, but nothing remotely like a rain cloud.

Here's one of the Isotopes batting at last night's game.

The weather was nicer than in years past.  The past few times I've gone to one of these annual events, the temperatures have been really warm, 90 degrees and thereabouts.

Last night started out at 81 degrees.  The temperature slowly dropped as the night/game went on and a stiff breeze popped up.

By the end of the eighth inning, the temperature and breeze made me wish I'd brought a lightweight jacket.  It was 71 degrees at 9 PM.  The 'Topes were also down - the Tacoma Rainiers won by a score of 5-2.  I suppose I could have stayed on to the end, but I headed on home. 

It was a nice enough evening. 

Papillon

Weird commute, pretty color

There was a major accident on westbound I-40 during yesterday's evening commute.  Because of that, lots of people bailed off onto surface roads.  Which means my normal route home was CONGESTED and it took LOTS longer to get home.

While sitting in slow moving traffic, I took this picture of some of the autumn's color.

And a bit later, this one.

Gotta love those colors.

Papillon

Weather Hi-jinks

We've been in drought conditions for several years now.  This summer Mother Nature has been making up for lost time.

Last night, the weathercasters were talking about how Moriarty (east of Albuquerque) was getting a lot of lightning.  I walked outside around 11 PM and sure enough, there was a lot of lightning off to the east.  It looked cool, but like 'not a big deal'.

I went to bed around midnight.  It's a good thing I had today (Friday) off because I woke up and my alarm clock was flashing, meaning the power had been off for a while.  If this had been a work day, I'd have been late to work.

I'm not sure when the power went off and for how long - after all, I was asleep at the time.  In calculating the time the clock had been flashing, it looked as though the power came back on around 4:30 PM. 

Tonight, the weathercasters said that between the hours of 10 PM and 4 AM, the Albuquerque metro area got 1,000 lightning strikes.  Wow! 

Right now, 7:15 PM on Friday, it looks like we've got another storm moving in.  Lots of wind and clouds. 

Staying under cover,
Papillon

A Night at the 'Topes

Albuquerque has had a Triple A baseball team for decades.  When I moved here, the team was the Dukes, so named because this area was originally a land grant from the king of Spain to the Duke of Alburquerque.  (Note:  the correct Spanish spelling includes the 'extra' R.  This means the 'correct' spelling of the city of Albuquerque is 'incorrect'.)

The team was sold to a group in Seattle and moved there.  After a few years, the decision was made to see about getting another team to move to Albuquerque.  The team arrived and was named the Isotopes, nicknamed the 'Topes.

A friend and I went to last night's game (July 20, 2013).

 

We had a good time.  Unfortunately, the 'Topes did not have a good time and lost 4-2 to the Omaha Storm Chasers.  Here the 'Topes are on the field - probably in the top of the first or second inning.  They're not wearing their regular uniforms, since this was Dukes Retro Night.

 

 

You may be able to notice some storm clouds behind the stands.  We didn't get any rain at the stadium, but when I drove my friend home, we could see there'd been rain at her house.

 

After the game, there was a fireworks show.  Very pretty.  I got a couple of shots, but the multiple 'blooms' rather confused my camera as to what to focus on.

 

 

 

All in all, we had a nice time.

 

Papillon

 

Spring Time

Since Spring has sprung so I decided it would be fun to go to the Botanic Garden.  152 photos later, my feet were telling me that the new sneakers I'd bought were not the best choice for an hour and a half of walking.  So I headed home.

In the meantime, here are some of the photos I took this morning.

Over the years, I've seen any number of photos that people have taken of closed doors.  I like open 'doorways' instead.  I rather like this archway with the flowers showing through.

Here are a couple of photos of some of the blooming flowers.  I do so like tulips and daffodils.

Not surprisingly, the Botanic Garden has a goodly population of water fowls.  They have some large ponds and they are close to the Rio Grande.  This is closest I've ever been to a Canada goose.

I do appreciate this male wood duck 'posing' for me.  He is a handsome lad.

The park has a small train that circles the park.  It used to run on a fixed schedule, but the schedule is now a bit more irregular because of budget cuts.  They're now operating on a 'volunteer' schedule.  I know in the second shot, it looks like I'm about to be run over by the train.  I'm not.  I'm actually standing off to one side and am in no danger.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Papillon

 

A Sunny Day

I hadn't realized it has been a month since my last entry!

After a series of days that have been cold/chilly or windy or both chilly and windy, today was lovely.  It was cool but sunny with very little wind.  I had seen a notice in the paper that the Botanic Garden at the Albuquerque BioPark was going to have an exhibit of blooming bulbs.  I thought, how fun and decided to go.  When I got to the Botanic Garden, they had notices up that the Blooming Bulb display has been postponed.  Since I was already there, I decided to go on in anyway. 

I got some nice photos and had fun doing so.  When you first walk into the Garden area, there's a large structure that's covered in vines.  During the spring and summer months, it's a lovely green spot.  Even now, at the end of winter, it's still fun to look at - to see the bare bones of the vines and the supporting structure.

They still had some leftover flowers from a flower display shown in January and February.  Here are some of those.

The above are both cyclamens.

I have NO idea what this next flower is but it sure looks nifty.



Next up is a male wood duck chasing away another duck who was wanting in on some bread dispensed by some other attendees at the park.

Here's another duck going bottoms up to feed.



And here are a couple of ducks doing a nice circular pas de deux (web de deux?).

I hope you've had a nice day where you are.

Papillon

Snow in October

Yesterday's rain, which washed out both the morning and evening events at Balloon Fiesta, had another impact.  This time on the Sandia Mountains east of town.

It's not unusual to have snow on the Sandias at this time of year.  What I found out of the ordinary was how far down it is on the mountains.  Normally the 1st or 2nd snows of the season hover right around the top.  Maybe this is a hopeful sign that this drier-than-usual year is becoming less dry?

Another positive note, this morning it was sunny and not too breezy so the morning's mass ascension was able to take off.  I didn't see a whole lot of special shapes, it may have been just a bit too breezy for them.  I suspect they inflated but didn't take off.

Hoping for a good day tomorrow.

Papillon

Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

I feel sad for this year's participants in this year's Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.  It started out nicely with lovely weather last weekend.

Unfortunately, the weather has gone downhill since late on Tuesday. It's been rainy or windy or both windy and rainy. 

An aside -- I had to laugh at myself.  I woke up this morning around 6:00 AM and thought, 'What is making that odd noise?"  I almost got up to go check and then realized the noise I was hearing was rain on the roof.  Oh, right.  THAT'S what that sounds like.

Because of this morning's rain, the mass ascension was canceled.

I do have one more photo taken last weekend.  Here's a balloon coming in for a landing.

I'm hoping the weather's better tomorrow and Sunday.  I'm hoping I can get some more photos.

Ya gotta love those balloons.

Papillon

Balloons

There are a couple of ways to tell it's autumn in the Albuquerque area.  One is the smell of roasting green chiles.  I'd explain, but it's a New Mexico thing.  You really need to experience it at least once.

The second autumnal indication is the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.  Lots and lots of gorgeous hot air balloons.  Today is the first day of the 9 day event. 

A number of balloons drifted over to the west side of town.

Here's a patriotic balloon seen in the area of the Rio Rancho Post Office.

This next photo is a shot of the Smokey Bear balloon coming in for a landing near the Target in Rio Rancho.  The fans of the 'caught on video' type of TV show will know this is a replacement balloon.  The original Smokey Bear was blown into a radio tower several years ago.  It was ripped beyond repair.  Fortunately the pilot and two passengers were able to climb down the tower's ladder to safety. 

I'll be trying to get more photos of the next eight days.  I actually got at least one more balloon today, but I haven't developed the film yet (my digital camera's batteries decided to die at a critical moment so I had to go 'old school').

Papillon

Play Ball!

For decades Albuquerque had a semi-pro baseball team called the Albuquerque Dukes.  So named because this area was originally part of a Spanish land grant involving the Duke of Alburquerque.  (Yes, the extra 'r' is correct in the Spanish spelling of the word.)  The Dukes were a farm team for the LA Dodgers.

About 10 years ago (or more), the franchise was sold to a group up in the Northwest (Oregon, I think) and subsequently was moved there.  Albuquerque went without semi-pro baseball for a few years.  Then another group formed a team which was named (with a distinct nod towards The Simpsons TV show) the Isotopes.  As before, they are a farm team for the LA Dodgers.

Back when they were still the Dukes I went to a couple of games over the years.  I remember the old stadium had the concessions on a lower level that always seemed dark and closed in.

After an extended period of unemployment, I have signed on with a new employer.  I started my employment just in time to take advantage of a group night at the Isotopes.  This happened last night (8/27).

When I got to the stadium, I was pleasantly surprised and pleased with the renovations done to the stadium for the Isotopes.  The walk-up to the stadium is lovely.  The concessions are up on an open-air mid-level concourse that is user-friendly.  I found my seat and then went to got a beer and some popcorn and finally settled in to watch the game.

My seat was located way down the first base line.  Here's a photo of my section taken from behind third base.  Locate the long white sign on the left side of the photo.  You'll notice a large blue circular logo on the right side of the sign.  My section was under that circular logo.

The Isotopes were playing the Round Rock (TX) Express and the evening went well for the 'Topes who won by a score of 8 to 3.

It was a fun evening.  It was rather hot when I first got to the stadium - in the mid 90's and initially my section was in the sun.  It was better when the sun went behind a cloud and then eventually set.  After it got dark, the temperature dropped into the upper 80's and a nice breeze sprang up so it was quite nice.

Here's a photo of what the game looked like from where I was sitting.

See that expanse of nighttime sky on the right side of the photo?  We kept seeing lightning off in the distance (the northwest section of the Albuquerque metro area).  Not a lot.  Plus, it was far enough away that we never heard any thunder.  Still. it made me nervous to be sitting near large light poles knowing there was lightning in the area.  I don't know if the lightning meant somebody was getting rain.  While driving home, I didn't see any spots that looked like they'd gotten rain.

I took a closeup shot of the game.  This is while Round Rock was at bat in the top of the 8th.  They're in the gray uniforms.  The 'Topes players were in blue shirts.

All in all, I'm glad I went.

Papillon

Smoke Column

I was north of Albuquerque in the Bernalillo area today.  We finally have enough humidity to make clouds and possibly even some rain.

However, I noticed this.  It's WAY north of Bernalillo and I'm wondering if it's a column of smoke from the Las Conchas fire (near Los Alamos).  Or possibly it's from another one of the wildfires in northern New Mexico.


 Granted, at the top of the photo, those are obviously clouds.  But that column has got to be smoke.  I had not seen anything like this before.













Papillon

Hazy Yet Again

After several days with no smoke haze hanging over us, it's B-A-A-A-C-K!

Normally the Sandia Mountains east of town are easy to see.  After all, they're close and, of course, HUGE.  Here is a photo I took a couple of years ago right around sunset.  This photo shows why there are so many references to Watermelon Mountains in and around Albuquerque.

However, thanks to all the smoke haze this is what the Sandias looked like today at around 1:00 PM.

It's a little disorienting to have them so obscured.  We can only hope they get all the wildfires under control and the smoke goes away.

Papillon

Feeling Good

A week or so I was making my weekly trip to Goodwill to see if I could find any good books to read.  One of the books I found was a copy of Horatio Alger's Ragged Dick.  It's been a couple of decades since I last read any of Alger's books so I thought 'what the heck' and bought the book.

When I bought the book I noticed it had markings indicating it was a part of the Albuquerque library system.  I didn't think much about it because libraries periodically cull their files and sell the books they know longer want to keep.  I figure this was one such book.

However, when I got home I noticed there was nothing on the book to show it had been pulled from the stacks by the library.  So I went out on the official city website and checked the library's catalog.  They had the book listed, but also said there were no available copies.  Normally if a book has been checked out, the catalog will show this.  So their notes meant they had no copies in the system. 

So I read the book and then took it to the closest branch library and put it in the book drop-off.  Tonight when I checked, voila!  They now have one copy of the book listed in their records - ready to be checked out.

I'm not sure how the book ended up at Goodwill.  So I did Good will a favor by buying the book and supporting their efforts.  I helped out the library by returning the book so they don't have to buy another copy - saving them money.

I'm feeling good.  Two good deeds in one fell swoop!

Papillon

A Day Late (or Thereabouts)

I'm not sure why I didn't post this sooner - just laziness, I guess.

Last Friday was a lovely day.  I'd heard there was a display of tulips being held at the Botanic Garden as a follow-up to the display of cyclamens (mentioned in an earlier post).  I like tulips so I thought I'd head on down and enjoy the weather.

I got to the Botanic Garden and decided that the first thing I would do is ride the train.  Now, this is not a full-sized train.  This is a smaller version that is designed to chug its way around a route that encompasses parts of the Botanic Garden, Tingley Beach and the zoo.  Here's a photo of the engine:

There are actually 2 different trains, usually heading in opposite directions from each other.  Each train has 4 cars, 2 that are open and 2 that are partly enclosed.  I chose to ride in one of the semi-enclosed cars, here's a photo from the inside looking towards the engine.

It's a pleasant ride, if a little noisy - some banging and clanging as the train rolls along.  It's definitely not some sort of high-speed amusement park ride.  Gauging by the people we encountered along the ride it was faster than a walker, about the same speed as a jogger and slightly slower than someone on a bicycle.  All in all, it takes about an hour to make the full ride, not a bad way to enjoy a lovely spring day.

When I got done with the train ride, I went to see if I could find the tulip display I'd read about.  I discovered nary a tulip bloom in sight.  I'm thinking there may be a display in the near future, but someone gave the wrong dates to the newspaper.

It wasn't a total waste.  There was a magnificently blooming amaryllis.

Plus, here are some photos of some of the local duck population.  First of all, a male wood duck.

I have a fond place in my heart for wood ducks.  For years I entered my needlepoint in the Texas State Fair.  And for years, the best I could do was several second place finishes.  Then, one year I entered 3 items and they ALL won first place ribbons.  One of the entries was a picture of a male wood duck.  Gotta love 'em!

Next we have a male mallard.  He's just coming out of the pond and is giving me a hard look to make sure of the following:  1) that I'm not a dangerous carnivore preying on mallard ducks, and 2) that I don't have any food to share.

I like mallards because they were one of the first ducks I could identify when I was very much younger.

Have a lovely spring!  And love to all the folks trying to survive following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

Papillon

Thanksgiving Visit

I'm spending Thanksgiving with my mom.  She used to come & visit me, but thanks to a number of things including increasing frailty as she gets older, I've been visiting her for the past several years.

The problem is that there is no easy way to get from the Albuquerque area to San Angelo, TX.  You can fly to San Angelo, if you don't mind spending hours & hours in airports during various layovers in Houston or Dallas.  Or you can fly to Midland, rent a car & drive for a couple of hours.  Unfortunately, what used to be a late afternoon flight was moved by Southwest to a mid-evening flight - leaving the traveler to drive the couple of hours in the dark (literally and sometimes figuratively).

Thanks to my getting a new(er) car earlier this year to replace my 20 year old truck, I've been driving over the hills and through the prairies - for about 9 to 10 hours.  Which is what I did yesterday.

At first it's fun to see the scenery change.  The evergreen trees in the Sandias changing to the evergreen shrubs changing to the grass punctuated at first by lots of cholla (cactus) to occasional cholla to very little cholla and mostly grass.  However, after about 5 hours, it starts to get VERY old.  This photo was taken in Lincoln County, NM - looking west from the highway.

I was glad I was doing the speed limit when I drove through Vaughn.  By the side of the road sat the police.  In a pickup truck.  And not just ANY pickup truck.  Imagine said pickup with a kick-ass paint scheme of blue and black.  Plus the fact it was a pickup that apparently had been taking steroids for a considerable period of time because it was very big and very intimidating.  The windows were tinted so I couldn't see if the occupant matched the truck for size & intimidation. 

I keep meaning to stop in Vaughn.  As I've driven through I've noticed a diner - one of those old-fashioned kind with lots of chrome on the outside.  It looks very 1950's.  I may stop on the way back to Albuquerque for a snack.  I'll keep you posted if I do.

Happy Thanksgiving!
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

A Lovely Summer's Day

I spent part of the day at the Rio Grande Botanic Park.  One of the reasons I went was to see the Butterfly Pavilion.  As to be expected, there were lots of lovely butterflies fluttering by.  (Oh, there was also the cutest family of ducks outside of the pavilion.  A mama & about a half dozen babies who acted like they owned the joint.)

After the Butterfly Pavilion, it was fun & rather soothing to wander through the rest of the Botanic Park.  Lots of flowers - begonias & roses & daylilies among others.

My favorite spot in the whole park is the Japanese garden tucked all the way at the back.  Extremely soothing.  Lots of shady spots to sit & reflect & relax & just commune with nature.  A couple of dragonflies seemed to be posing for me.  (Let's hope those photos come out OK!)  A few people walked through but for the most part I was all by myself. 

I did swing by the Heritage Farm area of the park.  I was minding my own business taking photos of daylilies when something in the foliage STARTLED me.  It obviously wasn't some small critter or a lizard, but was of significant size.  I backed up a bit & at first thought it was a cat.  Nope, it was a fairly hefty chicken.  During the day, the farm area lets the chickens go free-range.  (They're put in their coop at night - no reason to provide hot snacks for the local coyote population.)  It obviously agrees with them because they're of good size & have a rather carefree attitude.  It was fun to see them doing their thing.

Papillon