November in Review

 No one day or activity was worthy of its own blog space since we arrived at our winter home. So I have gathered some photos to show what we have been doing while enjoying warmer temperatures and sunshine. We try to spend time outside because we can do so without coats and winter gear. 

enjoying sunset colors in the desert

hosting geocachers on the patio

so good to see our winter caching family

Veterans Day Parade

this was only a fraction of the candy collection

saw this on the car parked next to us

just thought it was funny

a little geocaching in Tempe

this mosaic mural hosted the fake scorpion

Tempe Lake is known for rowing

teams were practicing that day

the 'drummer' sets the rhythm

an Adventure Lab completed before an event

in Scottsdale

new luggage for the next cruise

I got a little culture

Hubby watched some ASU football

I have been easily entertained by the hummers

while reading on the deck

the neighbor's saguaro has really grown the last few years

it was hosting some birds

our deck has a new TV

Hubby enjoying a red beer for Happy Hour

more hummer entertainment

our Thanksgiving meal

don't judge all the carbs; it is our traditional favorites

another desert sunset

the Beaver Moon through the window in the living room

recognition for starting the fund raising efforts to cure cancer

a morning of making Christmas gift tags

fun to do some paper crafting again

male ruby throated hummer in flight

I bought a second feeder and we moved it for better photos

I can't identify this one

he kept flying the entire time

even when he was drinking

and finally, ending the month with the first of three Hepatitis shots

Visiting Santa Fe via Geocaching

 I found my photos from our last and only visit to Santa Fe in 2009. We spent some time exploring Old Town Santa Fe and buying souvenirs. Some of the buildings and areas looked familiar but I took very few photos of that stop. We did see some new to us sites this time, because of geocaching. And now I take many more photos.

The Roundhouse, New Mexico's State Capitol Building, is round in shape.

Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the US. It was established as capital of the Spanish Kingdom of New Mexico in 1610. (The Palace of the Governors is the actual oldest capitol building and is still standing in Old Town.)

main doors, with the state seal and statue

The capitol building is designed in the shape of the Zia sun symbol that is seen on the state flag and most everywhere in New Mexico. The statue is Morning Prayer created by Allan Hauser.

Gate/Negate sculpture by Apache artist Bob Haozous

7½ m (18') high steel gate, marked with 12 cut-out silhouets of faces, with dollar signs, Christian imagery, model airplanes and bullet holes. Razor wire is strung along the top. On the bottom the names of 458 extinct North American Indian tribes has been painted.

Passage, bronze sculpture by Dan Namingha

Estella Loretto’s Earth Mother

More than 500 pieces of artwork from New Mexico artists are on display in the Capitol. The artwork honors the Indian, Spanish and Anglo heritage and influence in New Mexico's history. Some pieces are permanent and others are on loan. The Capitol Art Collection was started in 1991 during the renovation of the capitol building. 

San Miguel Chapel

Spanish colonial mission church

Originally completed in 1610 by Tlaxcalan Indians from Mexico, it is often referred to as the oldest church in the US. Original adobe walls remain under the stucco exterior. 

It was rebuilt twice; once in the mid to late 17th century and again in 1710 following the Pueblo Revolt. Mass is still offered at the chapel on Sundays. (It was closed on Friday when we were there.)

Buttresses were added in 1887 and 1889 to stabilize the original walls of the mission. History of the church can be found here: San Miguel Chapel

Across the street/alley from the oldest church was the oldest house, the De Vargas Street House. The people in the photo are standing in front of the oldest house, at least that was the building (not a two story) where the sign was located.

The De Vargas Street House is a two-story adobe building; the first floor is original and the second floor was reconstructed based on the original in the 1920s. Most of the house is constructed from adobe brick, which was a Spanish colonial technology, while a few lower wall sections are puddled adobe characteristic of pre-Spanish pueblo buildings. The first-floor ceiling is original and includes vigas dating to the mid-18th century. The first floor interior has two Spanish colonial-style rooms with corner fireplaces, while the second floor is "a dummy" and not open to visitors. ~ Wikipedia

Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi

The cathedral was built between 1869 and 1886 on the site of an older adobe church. It is designed in the Romanesque Revival style. The Cathedral of Saint Francis of Assisi was officially elevated to a basilica by Pope Benedict XVI on October 4, 2005.

Saint Francis of Assisi

This statue of St. Francis, the patron saint of the diocese, was installed at the cathedral during the 1967 renovations. ~ Wikipedia

Saint Katerina

Kateri Tekakwitha (1656–1680) is the first North American Indian to be beatified, and was canonized in October 2012. She was an Algonquian-Mohawk woman of New York State who converted to Christianity at an early age. The statue was created by Estella Loretto, a sculptor from the nearby Jemez Pueblo, and installed in August 2003. A plaque noting Kateri's canonization was added in October 2012. ~ Wikipedia

a colorful mural 

Día de Muertos decor in the Plaza

The Plaza, a city block, dates back to the early 17th century when Santa Fe was settled by conquistadors. Santa Fe's Central Plaza is at the heart of the Basilica, The Palace of Governors, San Miguel Mission (and the oldest house), many shops and restaurants. The Plaza hosts special events and is decorated for special holidays.

World's Largest Ball...of Twine

 One of the geocaching stops in Kansas was in Cawker City to see the World's Largest Ball of Sisal Twine.

The circumference sign keeps changing as the ball of sisal twine can keep growing. 

decorated for the holiday

Sisal twine can be purchased across the street and wound around the ball. I imagine you could bring your own from the farm and add it to the ball.

If you added your own, they might not know exactly how many feet are in the ball. Currently it has over 8.5 million feet of twine and weighs more than 27,000 pounds. I wonder who checked that info and how???

A painted yellow line meanders along the Main Street sidewalks of downtown/uptown Cawker City because a local artist has created window displays in some of the buildings called the Ball of Twine "old masters" paintings. She included a piece of twine in each of the paintings.

The display explains how the ball of twine got started and the national recognition it has received.

Many farmers had/have sisal twine with no other purpose than to keep the shape of the hay or straw bales until it was fed to the farm animals. I think we just gathered it up from the feed lot and barn yard and burned it.

a quirky roadside attraction

Cawker City has a Twine-a-thon in August each year where locals and visitors can add twine to the ball.

And this is the interesting part because we have also been to Darwin MN and have seen the World's Largest Ball of Twine. 

World's Largest Ball of Sisal Twine in Darwin MN

Darwin, Minnesota, is the home of a ball of baler twine rolled by Francis A. Johnson. It is 12 feet (3.7 m) in diameter and weighs 17,400 pounds (7,900 kg; 8.7 short tons). Johnson began rolling the twine in March 1950, and wrapped four hours every day for 29 years. It is currently housed in an enclosed gazebo across from the town park on Main Street at to prevent the public from touching it. The town celebrates "Twine Ball Day" on the second Saturday in August every year. ~ Wikipedia

created by ONE MAN

According to Wikipedia, there are several World's Largest Ball of Twine:

Heaviest Ball of Twine - In Lake Nebagamon, Wisconsin, James Frank Kotera created the heaviest ball of twine ever built. Kotera, known by his initials "JFK," started working on the ball in 1979 and continued until his death in January 2023. The weight of the ball, 24,160 pounds (10,960 kg), was estimated by measuring the weight of each bag of twine. The ball is housed in an open-air enclosure in Kotera's lawn; since Kotera's death, the town has fundraised to move it to the town hall. The ball has a smaller companion, "Junior", that is made of string.

Largest Nylon Ball of Twine - In Branson, Missouri, a ball of nylon twine built by J. C. Payne of Valley View, Texas, is on display in Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum. The ball, which measures 41.5 feet (12.6 m) in circumference, was certified as the world's largest ball of twine by the Guinness Book of World Records in 1993. It is, however, the lightest of the four contenders, weighing 12,000 pounds.