Ted DeGrazia

I had not heard of, nor was I familiar with, the work of artist Ettore (Ted) DeGrazia, but friend Nancy invited me to go along to an exhibition of his Superstition Collection at the Superstition Mountain Museum.

Like many artists, DeGrazia (1909-1982), is an interesting character. His work also fits that category... interesting. I admire his use of bold colors to depict the mountain and its legends. The mountain that is in my back yard.

I used my new iphone to take a panoramic shot of some of the collection.

Again, Nancy was my instructor.

This was a skull with paintings and etches

by DeGrazia. He also worked with jewelry.

The skull had some imbedded stones 

and gold.

Some of the displayed pieces were watercolor,

and some were pen and ink.

I wonder if this isn't his depiction of Tortilla Flats?

These pieces were oil paintings.

Very few of his people had faces.

Dr. Thorne led by the natives

The legend or story of Dr. Thorne

Dr. Thorne collecting his gold

The story of The Dutchman, according to DeGrazia

DeGrazia's painting of The Dutchman,

one of the few with a face

The Dutchman's tired, old mule

A contrast in spirit

Most of his animals had faces.

Weaver's Needle

And my favorite, the Superstition Mountains

I also like how he described the mountain,

giving her a personality. 

Thanks, Nancy for another educational adventure and

for introducing me to the work of Ted DeGrazia.

The Final Desert Botanical Garden Post

The final post from the Desert Botanical Garden has nothing to do with the Chihuly Glass that is featured this winter and spring. Instead, it is what you would expect to find at a desert botanical garden...desert plants. My photos are of the cacti that caught my eye and the lens of the camera.

The trunk of this cactus is much different than that of the saguaro.

You can see the remains of its flower on the fruit of this cactus.

I liked the name of this cactus, but it wasn't as interesting 

as the next photo.

I do not know the name of this cacti type,  but it

reminds me of brain matter, or a pile of worms.

This little flower stands out among all the sage green.

I don't know if the saguaro is purposely 'mothering' a

pin cushion, but it is highly unusual, whatever the reason-

manmade or nature.

Nancy gave me some tips on taking photos.

I like the pollen tips on this fairy duster.

The fruit of the prickly pear, used to make jelly, ice cream, 

flavored honey, sauces, etc.

Loved the sun shining through the Y of the saguaro.

Gambel's quail wandering about the garden.

Toothpick Cactus native to Argentina

The fruit of the barrel cactus

There was no name tag for this cactus,

but it was unusual and caught my eye.

I think this is the final post from the Desert Botanical Garden,

but you never know...

Lil' Red Goes to the Desert

We were in search of some caches from the Snakes and Reptiles series in the desert to the east of us. There are over 100 geocaches in the series. We have found one-third of them in our two visits. We enjoy going to the area because it is new to us, and along the base of some mountains. The roads are not dangerous like some we have taken. This part of the desert has a variety of cactus types. Here are photos from Christmas Eve Day.

I missed seeing the unusual arm on this saguaro on the 

trip in to collect the cache.

I did catch it on the way out.

I don't believe I have ever seen the tip of an 

arm curl the way this one does.

A view of Weaver's Needle

A palo verde tree is on the right.

Lots of saguaros along the hill/mountain side.

Another view of Weaver's Needle over a cholla cactus

and a mesquite tree (I think) on the right.

This is our backyard Superstition Mountain.

Another view of Superstition Mountain.

The highest point is Peak 5057, its elevation.

A mountain to the east

Cactus in this photo are left to right, front:

prickly pear, stag horn cholla, and jumping cholla

The small, dry bushes are brittle bush.

There is an ocotillo behind the saguaro.

Most of the ocotillo we saw in this area were fully leafed.

We think it is because of the recent rains, as usually 

they don't get their leaves until February or March.

Notice the green grass on the ground. 

Also a result of the recent rains.

And who says the desert isn't green?

How Did You Spend the End of 2013 & the Beginning of 2014?

I'll give you 3 guesses as to how we spent the last day of 2013 and the first day of 2014...

On Tuesday we asked Don if he'd like to join us on the hunt for a cache with a high difficulty rating. We had heard a ladder would be useful. 

Don was happy to assist.

The cache was hanging on a nail quite high in the tree.

Hubby had to stretch to reach it.

The ladder was not only useful, but necessary!

Then it was off to a park.

Lots of folks out on a 70º day.

A friendly game of football

Some folks having a picnic

Shaded playground equipment for the kiddos

And another successful cache find!

So that is how we spent New Years's Eve Day.

And New Year's Day????

Joined about 35 geocachers on a hike to start the new year.

The registration table

Getting last minute instructions

The event coordinators

After the hike, waiting for the door prizes

The raffle prizes

Hubby won a prize

And after all the little prizes were gone...

I won the big prize,

a new travel bug tag!

A fun start to a new year!

Happy New Year

The first day of 2014 is almost over. 

This post is to let my friends back home know I am thinking of you.

Notice the winter theme...

This is the tumbleweed Christmas tree

in downtown Chandler.

We happened upon it last week Saturday.

Each year tumbleweeds are collected,

spray painted, and stacked as a cone in

the community's town square,

The decorations are simple.

My snowman collection decorating the top cabinet.

My welcoming snow person by the back door.

Happy New Year!