I am taking the challenge

Inger over at Desert Canyon Living asked me if I was taking the A - Z challenge. I don't normally do these things but after checking it out decided I would go for it.......I am not alone, when I signed up I was number 1,262!
There is still time if you want to join in, just click on the A -Z banner to the right and you can get all the info.

Another hit!!

Hubby says I always come up with something good for our little jaunts and this one was superb!

So where did we go? 


Cottonwood, Arizona. But we went to some of the vineyards along the way. Have to look close to see the vines in the distance.
Can you believe any grapes would grow here?









We stopped at the first one.....Page Springs Cellars........ My suggestion??? pass on by and go to the next one....Oak Creek Vineyards. They grow their own grapes and offered a cheese tray and 8 tastings of wine (four each).

The wines  were good and the little cheese tray....

was excellent! What fun...........little bread rounds, almonds, green olives, dried pineapple and cheese's (sorry, I took the picture after we had eaten over half of it).

We decided we best not hit the next winery (too much wine) and headed on into old town Cottonwood where we had reservations at the historic Cottonwood Hotel.

John Wayne romanced Gail Russell here during their 1946 filming of "Angel & the Badman"


so of course I choose the John Wayne suite....lots of pictures to share.

 Writing desk

 The mirror above the bed.....

 Not very large but so nicely decorated....

 With long stem roses tucked here and there.

 The cutest little bathroom ever...

 Claw tub

 ps....the Duke don't lie.

The front of the hotel

a view from the balcony

We walked across the street and had dinner here.

I had checked it all out online and it did not disappoint!! The bar is beautiful...

 Came out the Biltmore from  here in Phoenix

I think they should have kept it.......

We sat at the end of the bar

and what a surprise to be able to see directly into the kitchen from here.......

Quite a behind the scene treat and were they ever efficient....

They advertised King Crab Legs and I was in heaven!! They were huge and delicious.....few places here in the valley offer them anymore so didn't figure they would be very good but they must have some special inside contact.

Well, I am sure we will be going back ....four more wine tasting places right in town and five more suties to check out at the hotel and close to home to boot.

Lumberjacks

The days of old......




lumberjacks used different types of axes, such as larger broad axes and smaller felling axes, to bring down and hew trees. Broad axes were more commonly employed to chisel and hew a felled log into a square beam. Small branches and undergrowth were dealt with using brush hooks, which have a long, curved blade. In addition to axes, lumberjacks also used bucksaws and cross cutting saws to fell trees.












In honor of the lumberjack this "Paul Bunyan" was erected in Portland, Ore.













and a sharp axe was the tool of the trade.









Then everything changed when these showed up on the scene

and the sounds in the forest roared and were cleared in half the time.





But you won't believe your eyes at this new invention....

Only in competitions will you see the skill of a man overcoming a log ..........

Good news/bad news

Good news....the crown is back in my mouth covering the hole.
Bad news....Crown has a hole worn through the middle of it.

Good news...dentist figured out I have had this crown over 30 years so I got my money's worth.
Bad new....I need a new one.

Good news..... dentist isn't charging me to fit it and took $100.00 off.
Bad news....it still costs a arm and a leg.

Out of place

No it isn't suppose to be sitting in my hand....it should be in my mouth where there is now a big hole.

Oh how I hope I won't need a whole new crown because they cost a arm and a leg.

Borders

Borders are simply boundaries or divisions.



 Some are friendly

Netherlands on the left and Belgium on the right.



Some are obscured like this one.....This river is the border between Finland and Norway

Some are famous like the Berlin Wall

and the Great China Wall

Some have a few soldiers like this Moroccan and Algeria border

Some have many soldiers like here between India and China

Some show great life style difference like Ghana and Togo Africa

Some not.........

Some are heavily guarded like this one in Pakistan

This is a Mexican border .....easy to cross and desirable in contrast

Some people don't like borders and boundaries but most are there for good reasons.......

 even the ones you aren't looking for.......

 

This was a quote from a Japanese Admiral but perhaps our ever invading Federal Government should take heed.

More of those intelligent questions.....

1. Have you ever gone skinny dipping?

2. Have you ever cut your own hair?

3. Scrambled or fried eggs?

4. Shower with bar or liquid soap?

5. Do you snore?

6. Have you ever locked the keys in the car?

7. Do you dance?

8. What color are most of the walls in you home?

9. Coffee or shower first in the morning?

10. Do yo spend more time watching T.V. or on the computer?

My answers:
1.  Yes every summer with hubby in our pool at night....shhhhhh
2. All the time....I was a beautician.
3. Scrambled for me.
4. Liquid soap.
5. Yes I am sorry to say....I snore and it aint' pretty.
6. Locked the keys in a rental car in Philadelphia.
7.  Yes, Hubby and I have been dancing together for 47 years and get lots of compliments on our "style".
8. A very bright white....(a little old fashion)
9. Coffee for sure.
10. The computer hands down.

Okay....it's your turn...........................................

The days of yesteryears......

I miss those days of yesteryear's........

This was my very first post.......

We use to make a trip to Mexico at least once a year but no more; even though
The head of the U.S. State Department  Janet Napolitano
 told reporters at the Bridge of The Americas border crossing in El Paso, TX, that security along the U.S./Mexican border “is better now than it ever has been,” and that the so-called spillover violence is not yet a serious issue.
She went on to say: “There is a perception that the border is worse now than it ever has been. That is wrong. The border is better now than it ever has been.”

Meanwhile..........
here is the real story
Cruise line: 22 passengers robbed in Mexican seaside resort
By the CNN Wire Staff
updated 5:52 PM EST, Mon February 27, 2012 (Our last trip was a Mexican cruise)

The robbery comes two weeks after the U.S. State Department issued a travel warning to Americans to avoid all but essential travel to all or parts of 14 Mexican states, including the state of Jalisco. Puerto Vallarta is the sixth-largest city in Jalisco.

The State Department also warned travelers to use caution in visiting part of Baja California, Colima and Morelos.
The travel warnings follow reports that more than 47,500 people were killed in drug-related violence in Mexico between December 2006 and September 2011, according to the State Department. While most of those murdered were involved in criminal activity, innocent people were also caught in the crossfire, the State Department said.

Keep in mind, the new DHS budget doesn’t include securing a single additional mile of the US-Mexico Border.

Yes, I am concerned about our country but I also grieve for a beautiful country and culture that  has been over-taken by drug lords and yes even with our help.........

 Leader of Fast and Furious

Well,  I have my pictures and my memories and hopefully one day it will be safe to return......

Dejé mi corazón en México