Snowzona?

What?  When I woke up this morning and looked outside I couldn't believe my eyes.  Despite the warnings I really wasn't expecting this.  The snow only lasted a couple of hours thank goodness.  Tomorrow we are supposed to be back up to the 60's and then 80's by Tuesday.  The high desert can be an interesting place to hang out!

Poor John even had to do some shovelling.  Talk about improvising.  The mini dustpan came in handy!

The good thing is we are not really camping and we are spending the day inside by the fire and watching the poor buggers out on the golf course on TV.

Stained Glass Project Yeehaw!

Well, this has been quite a project!  In January I decided to take the stained glass class course here at Voyager and made a little project; the sunset previously posted on this blog.  Then I had an idea to make a sign out of stained glass.  I had seen them before but I didn't realize how challenging this could be for a beginner.  Lettering in stained glass is quite a feat!

Thanks to some very experienced and kind people here I was able to make this beautiful sign to put in front of our RV or in our window at home.  I am so thankful for Mary in particular.  She is from Michigan but has a Park Model home here.  I heard through the stained glass grape vine that she had a sign so I biked over and knocked on her door.  She helped me design this one based on a golf pattern but with her and my ideas for the rest.  Mary would be my Mum's age if she was alive and what a sweetheart.

The sign will have a wrought iron frame yet to be purchased.  I have a line on that.  Unfortunately there is a small crack in the sky and I have no idea how it happened.  I could fix it here but we are nearly out of time so I will take it home and maybe get help from "The Glass Hummingbird" store in Ripley to fix it.  Or it will wait until I get back here next year.

We plan to come back here in November and then to Florida in the spring.  We are on the verge of a huge road trip but a few things are up in the air so I will post the details soon.

The Bone-In

How could you resist eating at a Restaurant thus named?  Jackie has done some research on places to eat around Tucson and came up with this interesting place most famous for it's ribs.  They are smoked for 14 hours and have a special sauce.  The meat falls right off the bone.  The smokey flavour is a common feature of southern cooking and of course is in keeping with the Cowboy theme around here.  I find the smoke a bit strong but enjoyable once in a while.  Many people love it.  The meal came with a wonderful salad with home made dressings and cowboy beans or a baked potato.  No beans for me but John liked them!  They are pinto beans actually in a red sauce with onions. The decor and atmosphere here was wonderful.  This was a cold day so when asked where we would like to sit we said "somewhere warm."  How lovely to sit beside a fireplace!!  

A long time ago Sidney Poiter won an academy award for a movie called Lilies of the Field.  I guess I am too young to remember it.  Snort!  But parts of it were filmed at this restaurant.  The name of the restaurant at that time was different however.  The grounds did look interesting but because it was getting dark we did not get a good tour.  It would be a great place to eat in warmer weather since the outdoor facilities were beautiful and we could see a little chapel.  Weddings and events are held here.  

  

Biosphere 2 Living Laboratory

Mount Lemmon can be seen in the background at the Biosphere sight. 

 The other day we went with Nick and Jackie  to Biosphere 2.  This is an "artificial materially-enclosed ecological system" in Oracle Arizona, 20 minutes north of Tucson.  If  you search back in your memory banks you may remember something about this.  I think of futuristic attempts at humans living on another planet or the moon and isolation experiments in relation to this.  In 1984 this property was bought by Space Biospheres Ventures and they began to construct the current facility in 1986. Human Missions 1 and 2 lasted from 1991 to 1994 with one session lasting 2 years.  Eight people, 4 men and 4 woman, lived in the Biosphere.  They had to provide for all their needs within the sphere.  Theoretically humans would be able to live in this environment for 100 years.  This experiment hit a wall when the CO 2 levels became dangerous and some people considered the experiment a failure.  But really it was not.  A lot was learned and scientific information gathered.  For more detailed information and explanations  google Biosphere 2 or go to this website.  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biosphere_2)

Of course we were wondering about Biosphere 1!  Duh, the earth itself is it.

5 areas called biomes are in the large glass section

This sight is now run by the University of Arizona and is an earth Scientist's dream.  Many experiments are still run here and it is a work in progress.  I thought it was funny that the people who lived here are referred to as "biosphereans." Somehow this adds to my impression of Arizona being an "other worldly" place.  From Jerome to the Vortexes of Sedona, Kitt Peak to Biosphere 2; we have encountered this theme.   Even the landscape gives you the feeling of being on another planet and references like this just add to the image.  

This was an interesting side trip but it was expensive.  It costs $20 each and you can do the tour and wander around in about 2 and 1/2 hours.  Being experienced tourists we have learned how to get "two-fers" thank goodness.  When we arrived at Voyager we bought a Passport Book which has 2 for 1 coupons for many attractions in Arizona.  We had a similar book when staying in Lakeland Florida.  

Ocean with coral reef, currently being re-furbished

Savannah grasslands

 Rainforest

Living quarters, kitchen, laundry etc. in this section with the South lung under the large lower dome

Fog Desert

Student Housing in Columbia University Days, now used for accommodations for people attending conferences here

Underground complex workings to keep the system going

Tunnel to the South Lung; yes a strange set up that kept air in the Biosphere