Back to the old routine again

Since I have given up editing the Penwheels Newsletter I seem to have so much more time for writing and have veered off in different directions. Just like when I began writing ‘Jacob's Tails’, I want to writing about certain incidents but am concerned about unintentionally hurting someone’s feeling – no, I will not wait until they are all dead, this time – but it sure is tempting to write a novel, instead of my “Creative Non-fiction”, so far I have resisted the temptation..

To Start with, the Escapees Magazine finally (more than a year after it was submitted) printed the article on My Cotton Story;

RV West has been great about continuing the Snowbirding 101 column and has printed the Relationships piece; the piece on Canadians Volunteering, the piece on the Aviation Boneyard and the Solar Farms in Arizona 

RV Lifestyle Magazine out of Ontario want a couple more pieces for next year and have promised to print the Magical Mystery Tour

A different direction This has been such a different travel year for us:

• not straight down Interstate 15  but east towards Wyoming, Colorado, and south through New Mexico;
• staying at more RV Parks than we usually do;
• fun visit with friends at their home; and
• little time boon-docking in the desert.

We spend a lot of time around Tucson and enjoyed touring around there and a few weeks in Yuma but have missed the freedom and quiet of the desert.

Back to the old routine again - Hi Jolly BLM at Quartzsite. We wanted to wait until after all the people left after the BIG TENT RV Show but there were more people than we expected.

I have my favourite spot where we set up the feed and water for the birds and squirrels and fill the hummingbird feeder that sits on the window next to where I do my writing.

It doesn’t take them long to find us and establish their routine (just like we do ours). The hummingbirds are the first we see in the morning. As usual the Annas outnumber any other hummers we entertain. There seem to be two male and a female. The males are very aggressive swooping down on each other to protect their spot on the feeder. We have noticed one sitting on the feeder all puffed up in his attempt to keep the others away. They even try to intimidate us if we interrupt their business.

A couple Gila Woodpeckers have joined the hummers to eat at the feeder. They are about 10X the size of the hummers and balance themselves with their tails as they try to suck the nectar from the tiny yellow flowers.

This year the Quail are here en-mass (literally). First thing in the morning a dozen or so of them strut in single file to check out the feeding grounds. They scratch around throwing dirt every where.

If the feed is plentiful, another contingent join them (they seem to signal each other).

Sometimes one of the larger Quail will sit up on the bush while the others feed but mostly they all just scratch and feed. Every so often Doves or smaller birds will wander in while the Quail are still there but they get run off to wait their turns.

The next group is the Doves – some Morning Doves and some Ring Necked. Their cooing is so mournful.

My writing continues – every month now, RV West has either put in another Snowbird 101 or destination piece  so they keep me working – love it!

Since I no long need to dredge up pieces for the newsletter, I’ve started writing some other stuff like The Awesome Adventure of the Extra Special Denim Shirt – fun stuff!

We always seem to approach each year like it may be our last year to come down – who knows! We did see a Motor Home that was terrific but then, is that what we want to spend our money on – they wanted a fair amount for it but didn’t want to give us anything for ours – if we get something else, I think I would get it in Canada and avoid all the export/ import paperwork.

In the meantime, Fred keeps totally occupied keeping old Betsy here running and in good shape.

We’re back in Casa Grande now for a week or so and then will meet our bird-watching friends down in Why. Judy and Terry are great birders and I learn so much from them

The good thing about getting older is that you can spend eons learning all about the birds and wild flowers . . . go home for the summer . . . and then relearn it all again next year.

Taming the Arizona Sun

As usual, we tried to find a different road to take us from where we are to where we want to be. Coming out of the city of Casa Grande we took a new route that mostly took us in the direction of the RV Park. We discovered businesses and factories we never knew existed: we finally found out that the building that stuck up from the flat Casa Grande horizon was an Abbott Pharmaceutical facility where they make products like Ensure. Beyond Abbott’s is a Frito Lay complex that seemed to go on for miles.
Frito Lay
On the other side of the Frito Lay buildings, there were rows and rows of solar panels. A high chain-link fence protected them from wandering explorers like ourselves.
I never thought of Arizona as being particularly environmentally friendly so the sight of this solar array surprised me. But it makes sense – Arizona boasts that it is the State with the highest number of sunny days each year – and heaven knows there is ample flat desert space to establish a solar farm.
Frito Lay (part of PepsiCo) in Casa Grande has instituted what they call their “near net zero” vision. They aspire to “be as far off the grid as possible and run primarily on renewable energy sources and recycled water, while producing nearly zero landfill waste.” http://www.fritolay.com/about-us/press-release-20111005.html
Over 18,000 solar panels sit on over 36 acres and can produce in excess of 10 million kilowatt-hours of electrical power. These are what they call photovoltaic (PV) systems - meaning that solar radiation is collected through the panels and converted directly into current electricity. Frito Lay’s system is multi-directional meaning it runs on both dual and single track axes.
We sat and watched all those panels move in unison as they followed the sun across the sky.

According to Frito Lay, they chose the Casa Grande location because it is big enough to be effective and small enough to be manageable. The goal is to use 90% less water, 80% less natural gas 90% less electricity, and keep 99% of the waste out of the landfill. In Casa Grande, they partner with the local utility Arizona Public Service. Casa Grande is an environmental learning lab. Thus far, they claim that the Casa Grande facility has achieved 85% reduction in electricity load.
The Agua Caliente Solar Project
Sometimes you just have to take the Interstate highway like Interstate 8 from Casa Grande to Yuma. But this time it turned out okay.
About 65 miles east of Yuma (around Dateland) there is another even more massive array of solar panels. This field is called the Agua Caliente Solar Project and now has the capacity to provide electricity to over 100,000 homes every year. It takes up about 2,400 acres of land in one of the most consistently sunny areas in the USA and is close to existing electrical transmission lines.
The panels, themselves, are different from the ones we saw in Casa Grande – they are concave rather than the conventional flat and are considered to be significantly more efficient. (According to the Japanese Journal of Physics a concave panel can generate output with a conversion efficiency of 16.3%; while a conventional panel generates an output of about 14.3%) 

 







http://jjap.jsap.jp/link?JJAP/45/1664/

The project is expected to be completed in 2014, when it will reach a capacity of 397 Megawatts and will be enough to service more than 225,000 homes.
Incredible the things you see and learn along the road!!

Another Treasure in Tucson: The Boneyard

Even last year, Fred wanted to visit the Boneyard. Greg told him he could see it from outside the fence. We looked but there was no place to pull off the road so he didn’t get a chance to see it. This year, when we saw the Aerospace Museum in the Tucson Passport Savings book, we decided to try again.
The Boneyard is actually separate from the Museum. You don’t need to pay to get into the Museum to tour the Boneyard, but you do need to access the tickets through the cashier there.
There is no doubt – the USA is totally into their military. And the AMARC (Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center) – The Boneyard – is a major facility attached to the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. There aircraft is stored, maintained and rejuvenated for all branches of the military.
Not interested in old airplanes?
I didn’t think I was either but this was different.
We toured around the 2600 acres (with over 4200 aircraft) on a bus with a veteran guide with an intimate knowledge and interest in many of the aircraft. Every year between 25,000 and 30,000 visitors tour the "Boneyard."
In 1946, a place was needed to store the old planes and bombers out of WWII. Tucson was the perfect place to store the equipment – it’s dry and the ground can support the weight of some of these monstrous mechanical birds.

The yard extends as far as you can see against a backdrop of Arizona mountains and deep blue sky.

When an aircraft is brought in for storage:
• All guns, ejection seat charges, and classified hardware are removed.
• The fuel system is drained, refilled with lightweight oil, and then draining it again (for protection).
• It is sealed by a variety of materials from simple garbage bags to high tech vinyl plastic spray to protect it from dust, sunlight, and high temperatures. It is then towed to its designated "storage" position.
There are four categories of storage:
• Long Term – Aircraft are kept intact for future use
• Parts Reclamation – Aircraft are kept, picked apart and used for spare parts
• Flying Hold – Aircraft are kept intact for shorter stays than Long Term
• Excess of Department of Defence needs – Aircraft are sold off whole or in parts
Not being particularly aircraft-savvy, I did catch some of the names mentioned by our Guide including the YC-14, a prototype cargo plane designed to replace the C-130 Hercules, and the F-100 Super Sabre, the first U.S. Air Force aircraft to break the sound barrier and the F-4 Phantom, the most numerous American military supersonic built (5195). They were used from 1960 to the mid 90’s.
There are all kinds of aircraft and equipment stored there:
Big and Small

Helicopters

 





And Others

Photos by Phred

 We’re still here at the Escapees Park (Rovers Roost) in Casa Grande for the month (leaving date Jan. 5th). I wanted to catch up on my writing and it usually is nice to share the Holiday Season with the folks here.

It wasn’t until I started working on the article about the Tucson Botanical Gardens that I realized the fantastic photographs that Fred has captured.
I want to share a few of the flower photos he took at the Gardens.
 If you know the names for any of these flowers, please let us know.
Thanks! 

                  Click on Photos to Enlarge!!

Butterfly Magic

Click on Photos to Enlarge!!
Out of New Mexico: Into Arizona

Truth or Consequences: a strange name for a community!
Yes, there is a story behind that, too. Remember the radio program Truth or Consequences?
The host of the show (Ralph Edwards) offered to pay a community to change its name to Truth or Consequences. Hot Springs, New Mexico took him up on his offer and became Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. Ralph Edwards visited the community every year to celebrate.
Some citizens, who didn’t like the idea, left and became a small community adjacent to T or C. –Williamsburg.
There is a growing Museum in downtown T or C that started out small and now extends from one room to another and covers more than a square block. It is filled with stories and pictures of Ralph and an assortment of dignitaries and local memorabilia from the ancient Native tribes to present day.
When we left there we went off to visit with friends at the Saguaro Co-Op RV Park in Benson, AZ and tour around Tucson again.
Butterfly Magic
We keep finding treasures in Tucson: we revisited the Desert Museum but the prize treasures this season were the Tucson Botanical Gardens and the Boneyard at the Pima Air Space Museum..
The spectacular treasure at the Gardens is the Butterfly Magic exhibit.

Cattleheart (Transandean)  Cracker (Red)

Cracker (Variable)

 Glassywing (Spotted  Tiger)

 Helena Birdwing

 

 LaceWing(Red)

Catone (Spotlight)

 
Charaxes
   

Charaxes

Glassywing (Spotted Tiger)

Longwing (Zebra)

Monarch

 

Morpho (Blue)

 

 OWL (Giant)  

OWL(on my head)