It's Audrey III! Eeeek!

If you've ever seen the Little Shop of Horrors, you know who Audrey II is. I posted the following image to Facebook this morning, and the first response was "Little Shop of Horrors". I can definitely see the resemblance.
When this Tiger Aloe bloomed this past April, it grew a "baby" on one of the flower stalks. I've never seen this happen before, and I'm wondering whether this is common. I think I'll call her Audrey III. LOL.

New Life for the L.A. River

As a child, I rode my horses up and down a dedicated equestrian trail that at one time ran from the Pacific Ocean all way to the San Gabriel mountains. My use of this trail primarily took place between Alondra Boulevard and stopped at Pacific Coast Highway. East of Alondra, we could switch over to the Rio Hondo and ride all the way to Whittier Narrows (a 20 mile ride from  my stable), which provided a cool escape from the summer heat. Trying to go further West past PCH wasn't really feasible, but it was possible to switch over to the Compton Channel just past Del Amo Boulevard and ride up to the Dominguez Hills.
This trail system got its start during World War II, when the Long Beach Mounted Police used it to patrol the western-most part of the channel, which is accessible from the ocean. The concern was that Japanese and German submarines could navigate upriver, creating a war time threat.

The LA river was a huge part of my childhood, and having grown up just a few miles from it, I was happy to learn that there is a movement underway to restore as much of it as possible to it's original state. A group of individuals decided to kayak/canoe a 51-mile stretch of the LA river to prove it was navigable. Navigable waterways automatically fall under the Clean Water Protection Act. Due to the acts of these people, the LA river was designated by the EPA as "navigable" and is now under protection. A documentary about the expedition has been produced titled "Rock the Boat", which will be shown in the LA area this coming summer. The TV show "Urban Dirt" recently showcased this documentary, as can be seen in the following video.

Desert Big Horns at Canyon Lake

Whenever I visit Canyon Lake, I am on the look-out for wildlife. While kayaking, I tend to spend a lot of time looking at the geology and if I'm lucky, I'll spot something interesting. Today, I saw 5 Desert Big Horn Sheep and was able to take a few quick pictures. The quality isn't what I would like, as I really had to zoom in, not to mention I was sitting in my kayak. :) Anyway, I got a few decent ones. I also saw a Bald Eagle, but it landed up high on a cliff. I tried taking a couple of pictures, but neither one came out.

 Munching away.

 There are 5 sheep in this and the next picture. Can you spot them all?

Sentimental Journey - B17G Flying Fortress

One of the perks of living so close to a former Air Force base is that lots of interesting former and current military aircraft make use of the landing strip for various purposes. Today, I watched Sentimental Journey, a B-17G Flying Fortress pass over my house at different times during the day. Just after 5 PM, I headed over to the airport to watch her make multiple touch-and-go passes before she headed back to her home port at Falcon Field. What a beauty she is. Her story can be accessed here: http://www.azcaf.org/pages/sentjourn.html.

Flying History -- FIFI -- The only B-29 still in the air

And I was able to watch her in flight during my lunch hour today. I live 2 miles from the former Williams Field Air Force base, which is hosting a 3-day Commemorative Air Force (CAF) show this weekend.
She obliged her loving fans with not 1, but 2 fly-bys. Watching her in flight, brought tears to my eyes.

Here she is after finally touching down.

I found a couple of nice videos on YouTube taken from her cockpit during take-off and landing from Long Beach (my home town). She flew right over Cal State Long Beach both times (look for the blue pyramid).

What really happens to our socks!

Climb to Conquer Cancer

The alarm sounded early this morning. 5:00 am to be exact. Today, I participated in my first cancer climb at South Mountain Park in Phoenix. Each year, in association with the American Cancer Society, individuals and teams can raise funds for cancer research by walking up the mountain (literally) to help in the fight against cancer.
Some people do it in support of someone they know who has fought cancer and is still winning the fight. Others walk in memory of a loved one who lost their fight. And, still others are walking because they are the survivor. I met such a survivor on the bus ride to the starting point. However, at that moment I didn't know she was. I found this out when the same gal sat next to me on the bus ride back to where our cars were parked. With several thousand people participating in the event, what are the odds that I would sit next to the same person, twice! I noticed she had a different color t-shirt in her hands. She was wearing the same shirt as me, which was given out to everyone. Her other shirt had the word Survivor on the back, and then it hit me. She told me she has battled cervical cancer, and she has made it 6 years since having to undergo surgery, radiation, and chemo. She said you don't know how precious life is until you go through something like that and that it was the toughest thing she's gone through. What do you say to a cancer survivor? The only thing I could think of was to say "congratulations". Kind of lame, but she thanked me.

This is the route we took. Starting from a parking lot near the center top of the map, we walked just under 6 miles to the summit. From the summit, you could choose to walk down or take a bus.

Downtown Phoenix from the 3 mile mark.

The party at the top.

Made it!