Now You See It, Now You Don't

Who wants to drive all the way into Tucson when you've got a view like this.  Nothing stands out more in the desert than these Mexican Bird of Paradise plants.  It has been rather cool in the last couple of days ... as in the low 90's.  That's mostly because there has been cloud cover every day, which works just fine for me.  Now you see them, but in an hour, all those gorgeous clouds gave way to grey skies.

It made for a nice day in the city.  First stop ... an antique store.  I thought I might find a quilt ladder or another wall hangar, but I would be disappointed.

What I did find was that I was in the middle of a not-too-classy looking neighborhood.  It was easy to find the store, as the windows were all covered with heavy steel bars.  I wasn't really sure I wanted to get out of the Jeep, but finally gave in.  I've been an antique nut all my life.  Shoot, now I AM an antique.  The funny thing is that half of what they sell as antique, I actually bought brand new.  

I spotted the black quilt rack first, but of course it had a big NFS (not for sale) sign on it.  Why do you do that?  If you don't want to sell it, take the darn thing home!!  Luckily at another booth across the aisle, I found this one.  It's almost the same, just painted white.  It was a steal at $24.  Good grief, you can't even find cheap wooden ones for that price!!  SCORE!!!  

At the next store I found nothing.  Not unusual.  In the third store I snatched up a nice drapery rod for $20 that I'll use to display a quilt on the wall.  I'm definitely on a roll!!  Unfortunately, that ended when I arrived back home.

Just in time for lunch, I grabbed a Lean Cuisine, tossed it in the microwave and shut the door.  Now you see it .............

Now you don't ..... because that big piece fell off and hit me in the head before bouncing off the stove and slamming end first into my once broken toes.  I said a lot of very bad words as I hopped around the kitchen on one foot.  Gosh that hurt!!!  

I grabbed the piece and put it back, only to have it fall off again, this time barely missing my nose.  This is an antique that really needs to go, but this year the front porch awning comes first.  I found some earthquake putty, placed a little bit on all four corners and stuck it back in place.  It seems the little tabs that hold it are broken.  Hopefully the putty works long term because next year it's the RV cover.  

Now you see the rain, now you don't.  It dripped nicely on and off all day.  No thunder and lightning, just a nice soft rain, which continued last night and is forecast again for today.  If this keeps up, it just might be a lovely cool month.  Never in my life have I seen such a GREEN desert.  

Tomorrow is another poker night with smoked brisket.  These guys are certainly raising the bar when it comes to dinner.  That means another visit to the new Safeway store.  Now you see your money, now you don't.  It's a tad on the pricey side, but well worth not driving so far for milk, plus you get gas discounts.  

The puppies and I will be on the patio, enjoying the cool air and gorgeous sunrise.