On a recent excursion into the Cienega Creek Natural Preserve my companion began referring to many of the plants as weeds. I commented with a simplistic definition; a weed was a plant growing out of place or where it was not wanted. A plant native to the Sonoran Desert would not be a weed within a natural desert habitat, but would be a weed in a...
March 27th marked the annual luncheon of the Del Lago Women’s Golf Association. The event capped the Club Championship with Pam Smith of Vail, the Low Gross of the best 2 rounds of 3 played. Dana Roy, also of Vail was the Low Net winner. The tournament took place at the Del Lago Golf Course over a four-week period during the month of March...
It took three extra holes for John Liu to defend his Del Lago Men’s Golf Club A Flight title over Scott Fields while Bill Camp won the B Flight title with a two-day total of 165. Liu shot a 147 for the two-day event that took place at the Del Lago Golf Club over the April 8-9 weekend. Stuart Katz was the Low Net A Flight winner while Doug Scott...
What happens when a group of students comes together with a goal of giving back to those less fortunate than them? In the case of one group from Empire High School (EHS), they board a plane and travel on a service trip to the Equator in Ecuador. A group of four EHS students – Amanda Betancourt, Harmony Fitzpatrick, Drew McCleod and Diana RoDee –...
Every river on earth begins with some sort of geological malformation. A slot canyon and its river course simply exploit that malformation by expanding a crack into a slot. When a co-worker asked me for a description of a slot canyon, I said it’s like a cave passage without a roof. Some pundits assign numbers to the definition but I feel like a...
Last week I got a good visual observation of Comet Tuttle-Giacobini-Kresak, (41P) one of the earliest known periodic comets. It was a fat, little “faint fuzzy” spot of light projected against a background of faint stars – nothing to write home about; but for me, it was fun just because it was a comet. This comet was only the 41st that was...
Two years ago, my wife and I decided to install a rooftop solar system. The plan was to take advantage of the Arizona sun, reduce our electric bill, and receive a tax credit. To date, everything is working as expected. The “fly in the ointment,“ so to speak, is the rate and rebates from Tucson Electric Power. Rather than guess what the outcome...
It was 1991 when, then Captain of the Pima County Sheriff Posse, Andrew Hodge had the innovative idea of adding a Gymkhana to the Posse’s program. The Gymkhana continues today under the leadership of Posse Captain Jim Heier. A Gymkhana is a horse show with electronically timed events using a variety of competitive patterns on horseback, said Alex...
Cardiovascular Exercises Cardiovascular endurance allows you to walk, run, jump or pursue other type activities like Jazzercise and Zumba that have become very popular. These are the large body muscles like the front of the thigh and buttocks. Cardiovascular endurance enables your lungs, heart, and circulatory system to function properly. Before...
Black-tailed Jackrabbit by John R. Leeper All the little furry creatures in the Cienega Creek Natural Reserve make quick exits whenever I get too close, leaving me with only a fleeting glimpse of their tail ends. So, it was a pleasant surprise when a jackrabbit posed for a series of photos. I eventually got too close for comfort and it hightailed...
