Cougar on the Mountain

Earlier this season I saw a facebook post about AZ Wonders, so I clicked and looked and marked my calendar. Last week (first day of spring) was the date to watch for the AZ Wonder.

"A few days each year, for just a few minutes, a shadow on the Superstition Mountain east of Mesa depicts what appears to be a cougar chasing its prey. Timing is critical. The cougar only appears during the third week of March and September each year in the late afternoon hours. Locals say one hour before sundown is prime time."

So on March 20th I grabbed the camera and drove west a couple of miles looking for the prime spot to see the cougar shadow. I took pictures of what I thought would be the cougar shadow. I did not find a prime spot and was convinced it must have been a drone photo. And to cap the failure, when I got back and downloaded my photos...I had no photos. DANG! I have no idea what happened and why they were not on the disc. The next few afternoons were cloudy so I did not think the cougar would appear. In the meantime other photography enthusiasts went looking for the cougar shadow. My CV photography mentor posted a photo he took with his phone and shared his parking location and time.

I decided to try again. I grabbed the camera and shortly after 6:00 PM headed for Mountain View Road. I found the spot and parked the car and watched the shadow appear on the mountain.

But first I got distracted by the moon.

And the sight of Superstition Mountain as we don't often see it from the Flatiron front all the way to the end.

And then I saw this crazy shadow. Could it be??? Oh my gosh! I think that's it! I saw it accidentally as I was focusing on the Flatiron Peak and the front of the mountain.

More of the front of Superstition Mountain and the what might be the cougar shadow.

And all that time, 20 minutes, I was focusing on what I thought would be the cougar shadow. I see the head of the cougar...don't you?

And there it was at 6:44 PM the shadow of the cougar chasing its prey on Superstition Mountain.

As I was researching for this post, I found the original web post that inspired me on the hunt for the cougar shadow. DUH! It includes the exact location for photographing the AZ Wonder. I might try it again tomorrow night!

St. Paddy's Day Fun

We had the opportunity to be in Fountain Hills on St. Patrick's Day and see the famous fountain spew green. It was a geocaching event and a reason to head north, see friends and collect a few geocaches.

The fountain erupts every hour from 9 am to 9 pm and spews for 15 minutes. This was the beginning of the noon eruption on March 17th.

slowly the eruption turned green

there it is!

the water reaches 330'

it was a windy day

some of the geocachers who attended the event

(I'm taking a picture of the guy taking the picture. Can you find me?)

guys in green talking

and looking for a nearby geocache

and other find in Fountain Hills

Hundreds of people gathered at the park to watch the green display. Glad we were a part of it.

Some Geocaching Between Appointments

Hubby halted, by doctor's recommendation, cardiac rehab on January 26th. We had appointments and tests and procedures for the next month before he started the EECP on March 21st. We did some geocaching during that time.

I host geo-events once a month on the patio of a local restaurant.

this is from the January event

colder day, not many attended

geocachers from Sioux Falls & CO

There was a special geo-day on January 27th called Aussie Day. We attended two events that day; one in the early morning and one for lunch.

 Signals attended the event

Jon lighting the grill for hot dogs

7 attended the event in Globe

hosts on the right

thanks, lifeisguud!

Jon and Sherry drove from Globe the end of January for a day of geocaching. We found caches that required a group effort!

not Amish...a woman training a horse in pulling a buggy

very happy to find that one!

introducing Jon & Sherry to JustFindingOurWay gadget caches

extra tools needed sometimes

Jon toting the trusty tool box

 Then it was February and time for another meet and greet on the patio. A warmer day so more cachers attended.

some of the Canyon Vista geocachers

faithful event attenders, Marj & Donna

We went to other events and did some geocaching in valley communities, never for long because I'm not walking far and because of possible angina for Hubby. There wasn't anything too exciting, so no pictures of art, buildings or people. Just to let you know we did do something besides attend appointments and tests. There was a little bit of fun.

Correction

I am wrong and not for the first time. The EECP treatment is available in SD. We did not find any info when Hubby tried to look for it on Google, but we have heard from a friend who participated in the program last summer, driving 100 miles one way, 5 days a week for 7 weeks. Good to know it is an option for us and others.

3 Down, 32 To Go

Since the post last month, Hubby has had two more appointments with cardiologists and has begun a new treatment called EECP. Enhanced External Counter Pulsation is a non-invasive treatment for the lack of blood flow through the body.

EECP increases blood flow to the heart, which opens and expands networks of small blood vessels within the heart called collaterals. These channels create natural bypasses around blocked arteries, boosting blood supply to oxygen-deprived areas of the heart. The results of the EECP treatment are: better circulation, blood supply meeting demand, and a decrease of heart disease symptoms.

This past week Hubby started the seven week treatment, five days a week, an hour each day. He drives 30 miles to a spa-like center where he lies on a bed and watches Netflix movies. His legs are wrapped in blood-pressure like cuffs from his ankles to his thighs. The pressure cuffs are connected to a monitor and an EKG. The cuffs squeeze during the relaxing phase of the heartbeat and deflate when the heart beats. (Counterpulsation) This process increases the blood flow to the heart, opening and creating new networks within the small blood vessels.

You can read more about EECP with the help of Google and you can watch a video by clicking on the link.

EECP Heart Therapy YouTube

Hubby says the treatment is not as uncomfortable as it may look in the video. Movies help the time go faster. His treatment is in the morning so he doesn't eat or drink much prior to the morning drive. He feels fine afterwards.

We feel very fortunate to have this option available in AZ as it is not available in SD. Hubby was noticing the angina (pressure in his chest) was happening more often, usually later in the day (when the current medication was less effective) and when minimal exertion was required to complete a task (climbing steps, lifting objects). So it has become very important to get started on the treatments ASAP.

The 35 treatments are covered by Medicare and insurance. There is no surgery involved. The EECP therapy can be used again if Hubby feels the same symptoms he has felt the past 6 months. The EECP 'measure of success' will be if Hubby can mow the yard without experiencing angina.

What this means is we will not be going back home until May. (Last treatment is May 8th.) My hip replacement has been moved to June 5th. It is what it is and could be so much worse. All is well.