Desert in Bloom

The bug bloom is huge right now, thanks to the return of the rainy season. The cone-nose bug above wanted to get into the house and eat us, but was out of luck thanks to the magic of window screens and silicone caulk. The yellow-ball flowers are from a whitethorn acacia.  They are quite common in our area, and easy to spot when in bloom, thanks to their bright, safety-yellow flowers.  And the chubby caterpillar will grow up to be a sphynx moth, after pupating underground for a couple of weeks.

Can I go to work with you?

Although the area is pretty quiet during the summer, we've been plenty busy with solar work. But it is nice to go into town and have some fun during the summer, when all the turistos have checked out until cooler weather.  Just last night we had a blast celebrating our dear friend Debbie's birthday. Nothing proves true friendship like standing up in a bar and singing karaoke in front of friends and strangers.

Gypsy Jess belts out 'Just a Girl' at La Kiva.

Also managed to carve out some time for a bit of landscaping, or more specifically Xeriscaping. Just some pretty rocks and a few cacti for now, but we're far from done.

An Excellent October

At the beginning of this month my good friend Arick arrived for a few months' stay on the Terlingua Ranch. Arick originally guided us to this place and he also has a lot of input on the micro-windpower technology.

We have been working on a few projects, and one of the more fun ones was building adobe nesting "caves" for the chickens. This was Sara's design that we had been wanting to try.  We managed to pour a footing with 8% Portland in the adobe mix, and also lots of old bottles and cans.
The wall is 18" thick. We used a bucket for the form and we plan on making a slightly thicker mixture so that we can shape the rest of the wall by hand into some interesting curves.

My parents Kathie and Robert arrived on the 13th and stayed for a very busy and exciting seven days. We started their trip off by visiting the Cottonwood Spring and exploring Smugglers' Notch.
My parents also looked at some property on the Ranch, and one of the more notable pieces is picture below.
My father, Arick, and I were lucky enough be taken to the Agua Fria Ranch by TR GM Frank. It was an amazing tour! This place has a rich history, mainly due to the spring which feeds the area. The ride took us through beautiful pasture, but the highlight was the spring and its surroundings. Simply amazing.

Spring's source

Ancient petroglyphs

 

Some of the friendly locals

Dad and I hacked out a new, circular driveway, and in doing so we pulled out a ton of the invasive greasewood (aka creosote bush). Using Dennis' patent-pending greasewood popper:
We finished off my parents visit with a trip to the underground bar and grill La Kiva

(L to R): me, Arick, Dad and Mom

To finish off our evening we made a trip down to the Rio Grande at Lajitas to watch the sunset.