Teton & Yellowstone National Parks

We're halfwy through Yellowstone staying the night in a little Montana town right outside the Northeast entrance. There is wildlife all around us and for the first time I am uneasy when walking by deer. The bucks actually size us up. There are warnings everywhere telling us not to approach the elk as they will not hesitate to attack. I saw a 12 point buck before dinner but it was to dark to get his photo by the time we were done. He is HUGE and thanks to him I finally got to hear an elk bugle. So far we have seen otters, bison, elk, deer and all kinds of birds. The bison I got pictures of ended up turning and looking right at me and I all about threw up. I ended up getting behind some old guys car. He didn't love that Linclon half as much as I do. As much as these creatures don't seem to care that I am right near them taking their picture, their size keeps me on edge. Then again, what doesn't?

We're heading back in tomorrow. I'm hoping to finally see a bear. This is bear country after all. Mr. F isn't as thrilled and after observing the fearless wildlife he put his foot down about camping. I kind of see his point. It's nothing like 12 points but it's super cold here at night so it wasn't very hard to convince me.

I am wiped. I can't remember the names of anything. I'm writing down the route we are taking and one of these days I will actually document it. :D At least I remembered to swipe Mr. F's laptop for a little typing time. I'll keep dumping pictures... If you think of me, send a little bear energy my way. Preferably bear viewed from the car energy...

Idaho Falls, ID to Jackson Hole, WY

We were taunted by snippets of foliage right before...



The road that goes forever. Look at the last two pictures. The first is of a home that has it's own personal junkyard in front of it. Old broken down schoolbus included. The second home is to the very top right. I wanted to give you an idea of the desolation. Who are these people? Why are they out there in the middle of nowhere? Why am I jealous and creeped out all at the same time?




No really, do you have any idea how many cows are out here? Do moo?


We frolicked along the river in Swan Valley for a bit...


Found evidence of poaching...


Parked again and hiked down a hillside trail toward the lake...



Frolicked some more...



Then we drove on up to Jackson Hole, WY.



Though beautiful and fun, Jackson Hole is very expensive. We wandered about checking out all the little shops and then stayed in the only vacant hotel that was dog friendly and not a million dollars. I forget the name of it. Pretty sure it was Flat Creek. Flat something anyway. It was a great little place. Highly recommended. :F I will also pas along the good advice of checking out The Million Dollar Cowboy Bar.

And I still don't understand gambling...

Korean Dog Park (Carson City). Because this place rules... and now you get the gist of how large it is.






Lake Tahoe. It's the largest body of water in the US when speaking in terms of elevation. It's massive and beautiful.




Waiting and hating, but oh so trendy... The Scion got a thumbs up AND an admiring nod out of a biker dude. Does it get any "cooler"?


The perfect ending...

Carson City, NV

We took the dogs to the Korean War Veterans Park (thank you google!) this morning and it turned out to be totally worth it with trails of off leash heaven with a running creek and everything!!

We came across these guys just hanging out. Wild horses? Tabitha didn't know what to make of them and observed from a distance. Jim freaked us all out by going right up to say hello to the black one. The phone pics aren't the best. My camera was in the toaster as "nothing picturesque is going to happen here". Oh my.

You're probably wondering what happened to my threat concerning literal ineptness? Spell Check, copy & paste are god. It's an annoyance to say the least, so it will be limited.

All you need is love... doo doo doodoodoo...

After hacking up the big AZ I thought it only fair to have a little something to compare it to. Also, I m dying my hair and have the time. Brown/Black. I like it super dark and the color brown/black further supports my ridiculous decision making "skills".

I soaked my keyboard overnight to no avail. The F, R, 4 & F4 key are busted and gone like yesterday. I probably won't be blogging the trip very much because of this. I will drop some pictures here and there though. As you won't be able to read my incessant nattering for a spell, try to enjoy this one as much as you can. Get ready. This is another big old post. I am no longer blogging a little at a time. Instead, I am going to mash as much as I can in because the days are numbered and chunks of time are hard to come by. Hold on to your hats...

Things I Love About Phoenix by The JH

Hummers! - Arizona is visited by 18 different species of hummingbirds. They are as follows:

Black-chinned
Broad-billed
Anna's
Magnificent
Rufous
Broad-tailed
Allen's
Blue-throated
Costa's
Calliope
Violet-crowned
Berylline
Lucifer
White-eared
Plain-capped Starthroat
Cinnamon
Ruby-throated
Bumblebee

As you all know, I cannot get enough of these little guys! I hope KY has hummingbirds in abundance. I am going to make as many feeders as I can and lure them in once we are there. It's going to be fantastic...

Bees - These busy little pollinators are not in the "abnormal bug exposure list because a.) If you don't bother them, they don't bother you and b.) without them, there is no flowering desert. Without the flowering plant life, let's face it, this place is basically the fucking moon. Which brings us to:

The landscape - To this day, I still occasionally almost cause drivers to rear end me because I cannot believe what I seeing and let off the gas. The plants are like alien life forms. The foliage itself is mind blowing and then everything flowers and it's just spectacular. The severe cacti become blazed with color. The spiky little who cares agave sprout the most amazing thick stems that can grow ten feet easy adorned with the most interesting flower stalks.



Here are some of the pictures I have caught with my camera. Thrilling.





As we are on a little nature kick here, I thought the sky worth mention. I had never seen such shows until I came here. Sunsets that would blow your puny little human mind... They are so fabulous that most times, I end up standing still awash with wonder until they have passed. Then I immediately think, damn, I should have captured that with my camera. But you know, the times I have, it just wasn't the same. It never is.

This was taken from my backyard and I'm rather proud of it. I have two others, same tree, different night but this is my favorite...


This is actually the sunrise at the greenbelt. I couldn't believe it's beauty, the fact that I was up early enough to take it, or that I had my camera with me...


We went to Lake Pleasant last Wed and this is what we were met with as the day died down. I have way more pictures of the day but those will have to come later I suppose...




Lake Pleasant was... dare I say it? Pleasant. I wondered how refreshing the water was going to be and it was perfect. Pleasantly so. Ha. But that made me think of another thing I will miss. There is no such thing as cold water coming from your faucet! It's always the perfect PLEASANT temperature for my delicate hands. It's the little thing don't you know...

Los Betos - One Carne Asada Burrito and a medium Horchata to go please!!

Storms - Holy crap, the storms out here are frighteningly awesome. We have a monsoon season. We had a storm the other night that actually set records for the most lightening strikes in a minute. WITNESS! I have video of it and as soon as I figure out how to get them on here, you'll see what I mean. It was the scariest weather incident I have ever been in. We also get dust storms and as much as it's gross and makes everything gritty with sand (think eyeballs and mouth), watching them approach is overwhelming. My favorite though, is when it pours and to begin with the sidewalk is so hot, the water immediately evaporates. So it's pouring rain but the ground is bone dry. You'll often see rain storms that do not even reach the ground, it'll just be raining half way to the ground. It's called virga and it's bizarre. I have seen the most scary and violent storms while here. I have been trying to take pictures of the lightening. Here are some of the decent shots I have gotten:






This is a dust storm coming in. See the blue sky to the left? See the lack of blue sky to the right? Dust. I will attempt to get a better picture before we go to KY.


WINTER - I know it seems obvious after all my endless bitching, but still. That's how much I love the winter here. It is perfect weather no matter what you are doing. Summer clothes all year round is a bonus. A big one.

Male Species - Also rather obvious, but not mentioning Mr. F while professing love for the big AZ seems absurd.

Driving Etiquette - I'm from Boston. You drive as angrily and aggressively as possible and never ever let anyone know where you are going, because they are just as angry and will do everything they can to keep you from reaching your destination without a good healthy fight. I was trying to merge onto the packed highway a while back and I was bitching about how people don't let you in, figures, all that. Mr. F looks at me and says, "Put on your blinker". A blinker parts traffic here like Moses parting the Red Sea. People aren't out to get you and they are okay with sharing the road. It's heart warming. Over it, onward.

Signage - Roadways here are... get this... clearly marked. There is no guessing if the ramp you just barreled past is the one you were looking for. Highway going to be closed? You know weeks in advance. The main surface streets are broadcasted before you get to them. There is no guess work. There is no stress. It's boring, but way efficient.

APBT - Every back yard has at least 2 dogs. Minimum. Sometimes there is up to five dogs. Big dogs. I would say every other yard has a pit bull or pit bull mix. Jimmy and Tabitha get smiles, compliments and pets all the time. I watched one chick put her hands into my car while they waited for me. For one, that's balls man. For two, come on, if you need a two, you should grow a fucking heart.

And that's that. I'll leave you with my favorite picture taken up at Mr. C's last weekend.


OH! I almost forgot!! I grabbed the scorpion finding black light and camera and we drove around the untamed (4 wheel drive untamed) desert late Saturday night and stopped to look for scorpions. After what we heard I thought they would be everywhere. NOT ONE! I was in the bushes, kicking rocks over... I mean, I threw my back into it. Not one scorpion. MYTH BUSTED!

We leave to finish my trip Monday morning. I am PUMPED!!!

Bite who now? Here's a mohawk. Have a nice day!

Love is... being bit in the face by the boss's dog? Yesterday, a chick I work with decided it was a good idea to give Jim and the bosses dog cookies while they were staring each other in the face. Boss man's dog went for Jim's cookie crumbs and Jim defended them. Which earned him some nasty bite marks on his face. Which earned BM some nasty bite marks of his own. Needless to say, I am bullshit. If this were the first time this had happened, I would be somewhat forgiving. This is the THIRD FUCKING TIME Jim and this dog have gotten into it. The first was an honest mistake involving some dropped food. Who knew the 35# Scottie mix would take on the James? The second time the little bastard actually came looking for a fight. On a very busy day, while no one was paying attention, he pranced up to Jim, dropped his bully stick on the floor and waited for Jim to pay it some mind. Again, who would have seen this coming? This time however... WE ALL FUCKING KNEW! Instead of picking up the easily controlled small dog who is topped off with blood lust, this chick grabs Jim's back legs and hauls him backwards away from the little savage who of course followed and continued to chew on Jim's face. Jim is on antibiotics and has a bunch of bite wounds on his face. This brouhaha happened directly after I realized my super long day from hell was finally over and I started relaxing and cleaning up. So that's cool.

Today I groomed the boss's dog. *toothy grin* Now, before you get the wrong idea, let me explain. The last time I groomed this guy, I realized he could pull off a mohawk like no one's business. (It's my JOB to notice this kind of thing!) He is shaved nose to toes and has a long thin snout. By the time I realized he'd look great, it was to late, I had shaved his head. I vowed then and there to make it a mohawk next session. So you see, this bite fest came at a very inopportune time. I tried to explain to the doctor that only vindictive bitches run on spite and the mohawk has nothing but brilliant creativity behind it but you can see why he'd be skeptical, no? All right, I admit, him thinking it's payback makes me clap my hands and titter with glee. It also makes me incredibly thrilled that the entire office backed me (after my boss said he wanted it gone) by saying things like "I bet owners who teach their dogs manners don't have to deal with things like this", "I'm going home for lunch, I'll grab some pomade so it'll be spiky!" or "I pity the fool!"

Just in case that last one was a little confusing:



The mohawk stayed. All's well that ends well!!