What's Up Next for Me?

petroglyphs

Smells like a Hershey bar.

The last time I wrote a post was about the ugly mass on my face.  It turned out to be basal cell cancer.  The big “C” is a tough thing to hear you have, but if you are to get skin cancer, this is the one to get.  The basal cancer is confined to the area and doesn’t spread or attack your cells like the other types of skin cancer do.  Since this is on my face and near my nose, my doctor recommended a plastic surgeon.  I have an appointment on Friday for my consultation.  I also have another mass near my hairline and under the frames of my glasses.  I forgot to show my doctor this one because I frequently see it and it is out of sight, out of mind.  I will have the surgeon check it out and remove it as well.  I am nervous about the surgery, but just want the cancer off my face.  I will see if he can remove the bags under my eyes while he at it, lol.  I will update everyone after I talk with the doc.

On a good note, Sharon and I are taking another trip.  We wish ya’ll (I sound like my sis, lol) could come with us.  We are helping with the cemetery crawl that our friend Debe Branning puts on every year.  I haven’t done this before but have expressed interest in doing so.  We get to wait at the contestants’ first cemetery stop and make sure they find the right headstone.  After they all check in, we get to head off to Holbrook where we will be spending the night in a teepee.  Hey, if it is good enough for Oprah, it is good enough for us.  Besides, I hear there are ghost roaming around those teepees and in the city of Holbrook.  I hope they are up for making an appearance.  That would be fantastic.  The next day, we have another cemetery to wait at and then it is off to the finish line.  We plan to take lots of pictures and photos of the race and any other places we see along the way.  Look for my “Route 66” giveaway.  I will be shopping along the way to buy fun things to giveaway to all my fab followers.

At the end of April is my hubby and mine’s 30^th wedding anniversary.  We decided to take a 3 day, 3 night trip to Sedona and stay at a cottage near the river that flows through Oak Creek Canyon.  We plan to spend a day in Jerome, a night on a UFO tour, another day checking out petroglyphs and Native American ruins, shopping, and sightseeing at all the other places that this unique city has to offer.  I will be taking tons of pictures and posting about our experiences (not all the experiences, teehee).

May is going to be a big month too.  Not only is our first born grandchild going to be two, but we will be grandparents again.  My son and his wife are expecting a baby on May 6^th.  Along with my family getting larger, Sharon and I have a couple of trips planned too. 

I can’t wait…..

What's On South Mountain?

petroglyphs

When you take a hike up South Mountain in Phoenix, you come across several different things.  Here is some of the things we came across on our trek:

petroglyphs

more petroglyphs

dried up creeks

more dried up creeks

"Sleepy Hollow" trees

more creepy trees or Bigfoot nests

moss on rocks in Arizona

more mossy rocks (rare sight for AZ)

pottery shards

snake holes (thank goodness it was hibernating)

The South Mountain Mysteries

petroglyphs

Here we go again, another daytrip. Last month Sharon took a trek up South Mountain with her buddy Vinnie. She went to check out the petroglyphs drawn on the many rocks dispersed around the mountain. She also told me about the abandoned castle and many Native American shards that are scatter all over the place. She knew this would be the perfect daytrip and information I can add in my future book.

The South Mountains were named for their geographic location south of Phoenix. The land is managed by the city of Phoenix and considered sacred by the Akimel O’odham as well as the Sierra Estrella Mountains. Many UFO’s have been reported hovering over the mountains and over 20 communication towers are located on its peaks. There are many hiking paths and a mystery castle found in the foothills on the north side of the mountains. This castle was built in 1930 from weird materials and trash and used as a private residence. Also found on the mountain are ancient Indian ruins, petroglyphs, and pieces of pottery all over the grounds.

Of course this Sunday is going to be cold and rainy. When I say cold, it is by Phoenix standards of 50 degrees. I think the rain will add the right type of mood for all the pictures I plan to take. Be looking for videos, photos, and stories of our trek up the mountain.

Arizona's Mysterious Painted Rocks

petroglyphs

These mysterious petroglyphs are found on many rocks all over the state of Arizona. Most of the petroglyphs were created by Southern Sinagua inhabitants between about 1150 and 1400 AD. The V-bar-V petroglyph site is the largest known petroglyph site and is located in Sedona, Arizona. The rock site consists of 1,032 petroglyphs in 13 panels and is protected and kept open to the public. What an interesting way of communication before newspapers, books and computers.