if were a seahorse
and you asked me for a ride
i’d have to say i’m sorry~
this seahorse rides alone.
no time to be with folks like you
my life I spend with seahorse thoughts
in liquid blue, the waves are mine~
this seahorse rides alone.
Mala Mujer (Bad Woman) is a roust, winter-deciduous herbaceous perennial to 1.2 m tall, with stinging hairs 4-8cm long. Blooms mostly May through July, found in the cape region of Baja.
Amidst the decaying desert plants, clustering blooms are showing off. There were several of these along the path this morning as we walk in the desert hills by our home.
Hard to believe I used to hate the desert. I thought it was ugly. How wrong I was. Maybe I just grew up and started appreciating things more. The desert is alive with beauty, as are all landscapes, no matter how barren they may be, because life is there. Glorious life.
My husband and our German shepherd were blessed with lots of blooms on our walk this morning. There was also a bunch of garbage dumped along the way. Such a shame that people think it’s okay to throw their garbage anywhere–everywhere. That is one thing I will never get used to, living here in Baja Sur.
Mala Mujer
I accidentally had my camera set to “soft” so all my photos turned out, well, soft. Reminds me to check my settings before I shoot. But they are pretty photos in spite of the wrong setting.
Because there was a heavy marine layer this morning, the light was pretty good for photos when we got home. One of our cactus–called a tuna–has fruit this year. It’s the first year for fruit. This cactus has been through a couple hurricanes, but it comes back strong. Like us.
Here’s what it looked like when we planted it:
Here’s what it looks like now:
The marine layer has burned off. The breeze is blowing and it’s warm and comfortable as I plan the rest of my day. Retirement means you can enjoy the work you do–working in the yard, cleaning house, doing laundry, hanging it out on the line. It’s all good. Life in Baja has its troubles, like anywhere else, but there is nothing like it. Slow and easy, enjoying la playa, el desierto, los amigos, el jardin, y las tiendes. It’s a sweet, simple life.
Mi vida es muy sencilla.
The adverb now is out of date
Obsolete and what we hate
No longer added to make it better
Slash it, write it a Dear John Letter
Once sought and used for HOW? WHEN? WHERE?
No longer needed, we just don’t care
Poor Adverb! Once a modifier
Now no work, we cannot hire
Not slowly, brightly, or uncontrollably
Not succinctly, proudly or simply horribly
The adverb now is shunned and hated
It’s sad demise so underrated
Avoid all adverbs! This you must do
To the worthless helper we bid adieu
This kind and gentle artist has made so many beautiful pieces for me and for many others. Some people I know have 20-30 pieces; some with whole sets of dishes. I’m well on my way to a fine collection myself. This photo shows the latest: pizza pans, two bowls, and a French bread pan.
Marcos and Margarita live in the mountains with his sister. The drive is spectacular and sometimes difficult, as it was this time. The roads are not paved, and they were in bad repair from the hurricane two weeks ago. Glad we have a good Toyota truck to make the trip.
In the summer it typically rains a lot in the mountains. It looks so green and lush it reminds me of Hawaii. We saw so many butterflies and goats and cows and donkeys. We got a glimpse of a deer jumping off the road into the brush. The butterflies can’t touch down in the puddles of water, so they land in the mud for their drinking pleasure.
Look closely to the photo below and you’ll see them in the mud puddle in the road. We drove over it and they flew all around the windows of the truck.
Yesterday, when we arrived at Marcos’s house, his grandson was visiting. What an adorable little guy. His parents were there too, but I’m sad to say I don’t know if the mother or the father was Marcos’s kid. At any rate, Margarita, the grandma, was enjoying her time with the baby. He has such a sweet smile. I got to hold him too as he put out his arms to me. I was honored. Thrilled. So happy to have a baby in my arms.
His shirt says, “I’m with the BAND!”
Maybe he’ll grow up to be a musician, or a potter like his grandpa.
Soon after we left for home, we ran into this guy. He doesn’t look too happy to us, does he?
Home now and getting excited to use some of my new pottery.
I decided to start with French bread. Here’s the baking dish before I filled it with my rising dough:
Here it is with the 2nd rising of the dough that’s ready for the oven. Fifteen minutes on 400 degrees F and 30 more minutes at 350 degrees F.
Here it is coming out of the oven:
Come over for a nice slice of French bread made in the baking dish Marcos made for me.
I’m in heaven!
Living in Baja and being retired here to enjoy the simple pleasures, like baking bread and
exploring the area, make me happy ever single day.
Walk this morning took us around the neighborhood and then down onto the beach. The skies are cloudy with patches of blue. The bo bos are out in full force. For those of you who don’t know what a bo bo is, call yourselves lucky. These teeny tiny flying bugs have arrived and the only thing you can do is flap a kerchief around to keep them off you. They even come into your nose and your mouth. Yuck.
However, the sights and sounds keep us happy and there was a lot to see this morning.
Along with the bo bos, many flowers were out to greet us. I don’t know what this is called, other than it is a weed. I think I like weeds when they are this pretty. All in the eye of the beholder.
Sour pitayas put out these gorgeous babies. They don’t last much longer than a day, but they sure give me a thrill when I come upon them.
We’ve had a few showers and the desert is green and lush again. I love this time of year. Most of the gringos are part time residents and don’t experience the rains. Sometimes it is still pretty green when they start showing back up in Oct. and Nov., but they miss out on the lightning and thunder and showers. The beautiful scent of the desert after a rain is without a doubt one of the most luscious smells.
When I get a break from chores around the house I like to paint. Rocks are my canvases. It’s relaxing though I’m sure some people, including my husband, think I’m nuts.
I keep inviting my friends to join me, but so far I’m the only nut case showing my Baja love on rocks.
I’m 37 years sober, so Nap Time is my Happy Hour.
I may be sober, but I’m not usually very serious.
Don’t chase your tail. That’s my parting thought today.
Would you be excited to have a rattlesnake in your yard? How about a fox? Does standing on your deck watching whales cavort in the ocean sound good to you? If you answered yes to these questions, you won’t be disappointed with my photos of Baja wildlife I’ve come to know.
We’ve been here almost six years and I’ve only seen two rattlesnakes. One of them was in my yard (see below), but we quickly snapped him (or her) up and took him (or her) for a ride to where we’d seen the other rattler hanging out. This is about a mile from our house. Our “visitor” is the only snake that’s been in our yard (that I know of). I believe snakes are just as afraid of humans as humans are of snakes.
The next critter visited our house when we lived on a hill overlooking the ocean. Foxy wasn’t feeling very well and after he went away we unfortunately witnessed the buzzards eating him for lunch. (Sorry.) But not before he posed ever-so-nicely for a snapshot.
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Speaking of buzzards, they like to spread their wings
allowing the sun to warm them up
for their day of flying in search of food.
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I can’t imagine being in Baja without donkeys. These are all from the East Cape. Cute and always happy to eat the scraps that the campers leave for them. (Far away from camp though…don’t want that donkey poo by your campsite).
Is that one on the right pregnant?
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Leaving land for a minute we find sea lions napping together. Such cuddling!
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Snorkeling just outside La Paz we came across some small mantas doing water ballet.
Not far from the mantas, this whale shark was feeding when we got this photo. Thank goodness they don’t eat people.
In fact they eat the smallest creature in the water.
These are amazingly large, but they are juveniles. No matter!
They made my heart sing (and beat fast) as I swam with them.
We weren’t the only ones swimming with the whale sharks.
These fish like to stay close to the big guys. Perhaps for protection?
I think swimming with the sea lions was as big a thrill for me as were the whale sharks and rays.
They are playful and graceful and so much fun to watch.
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Rays also jump. I focused on them in a different blog, “Jumping Rays…Why do They Jump?”
The rays have been doing a lot of jumping lately.
I was lucky enough to photograph them on my morning beach walk.
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Now here’s a guy I could do without. In fact, Mr. Scorpion was at my neighbor’s house, not mine. Whew.
We have to be careful when walking around outside at night. Wearing shoes is a good idea.
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This bat was also at the neighbor’s house.
The neighbor only lives there part-time and lots of critters visit when nobody’s home.
He stuck around (pun intended) for a couple days and then he went back to his bat cave I guess.
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This is an oyster catcher. I never expected to see one in Baja.
I thought they were only in the Pacific Northwest.
~~~~~~
Very common is the pelican. They are quite fascinating to watch. Good fishermen.
The pelican below was doing its fishing on the East Cape.
Making a splash!
~~~~~~
Along highways and like here in the mountains, you always find goats grazing.
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There are many horses in the mountains.
Sadly, this one succumbed to death and the vultures are getting a meal.
Circle of Life!
~~~~~~~
According to what we’ve heard and read, this bird, a black throated magpie jay,
is not found in Baja. And yet we saw this one in San Vicente in the Sierra Lagunas.
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The blue heron has a wide range. This regal bird was hanging out just outside La Paz.
Another bird with a wide range is the osprey or fish eagle.
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Watching whales cavort in the water in front of our house
is one of the biggest thrills about living here.
~~~~~
I do run across dead creatures on the shore from time to time.
Look at this eel’s eye and teeth.
Sea birds come along and eat the eyeballs. Vultures will clean up the rest.
Next is a dolphin washed up on shore.
I didn’t photograph the whole body. Didn’t want to gross you out.
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Closer to home there are familiar, friendly birds (house finch and orioles) who come to eat and nest.
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I couldn’t resist including the dragonfly. His wings are exquisite, don’t you agree?
~~~~~
Although I have done entire entries on turtles, I am including a few photos
here of the turtles I’ve witnessed heading to the ocean after hatching
on the beach in front of our house.
The excitement of seeing this phenomenon never gets old.
A little beach glass and a shell makes a cute turtle.
The real thing is much better. These guys were heading down to the water.
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Thanks for coming along as I shared Baja wildlife I’ve come to know!
Who knows? Scientists can only speculate. I’ve found many sites that discuss their jumping behavior. One that I liked is http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150512-watch-these-giant-rays-fly. It’s a short article, and like other scientists, Joshua Stewart, from the Gulf of California Marine Program at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, says:
“As far as we can tell, all mobulid rays jump, as do their myliobatid (eagle rays) cousins. Many theories have been suggested [as to why they jump], from feeding, courting, communicating, and ridding themselves of parasites.”
Hope you are having as much fun as we are.
Sometimes I feel like I’m running on all my pistons. I’ve got what it takes. Life is just so darn good. The days when it’s not like that are just a reminder to me that I need to be more appreciative of the times that make me sing and dance.
The political scene in the United States is abysmal. I don’t even want to think about it today. I’m swearing off all political posts and articles. No more! At least not today.
Today is for loving my life and appreciating where I live. The little piece of my paradise that are El Pescadero and Todos Santos and the surrounding areas bring me great joy. Let’s just stick with that.
I’d like to think I could be like this finch and brave landing on a cardon.
Or that I could grow in sand and lean against a rock in a garden.
Hangin’ in a tree with a promise of something sweet.
Just be happy!
Stickin’ my feet in the sand as the tide comes up.
Desert plants grace my back yard and now we’ve got new palms on the side.
The beach is just across the street. How blessed am I?
surf si puedes…surf if you can!
Morning Mist
Going in the back door. There’s an outdoor shower back there too.
Outdoor dining. The way to go.
If you’ve never been in a hammock chair you’re missing out.
Cruising around in our Polaris 4X4 is the sweetest ride on these dirt roads.
Witnessing the birth of the Olive Ridley turtle makes my day!
El Pescadero–frutas y verduras!
Passion Fruit from our “green fence.”
The health benefits of passion fruit are off the charts! I can have it anytime I want.
And so I’ll end with this: We knew what we were talking about in the 60’s. What the world needs now is love, sweet love. And living in the desert by the ocean with a big beautiful sun bringing warmth, it’s easy to feel this love.
Okay, so there are some ouches sometimes, but life is full of opportunities. I’ve just got to make the most of them.
Not much really. The shoreline is ever-changing, but always a delight and I am thankful to live at the furthermost south end of San Pedrito in El Pescadero, BCS.
Heaven is my home. Every morning we take the trail across the street from our house and we’re on the beach in under a minute.
A quick walk and my toes are in the water.
Living on the Shores of the Pacific
It’s not merely the waves
or the sun or the sand
It’s more than the spray
or the crash or the splash
It’s not only the sparkle
or the rocks or the fish
It’s the wonder of it all
A whipped cream of an ocean dance
With the vapors and song of the shore
to erase our worries and make our hearts sing.
Bienvenidos a el Verano
(Welcome to the Summer)
Just a tad humid so far, and still the occasional marine layer hanging around, but summer is definitely here in Southern Baja. It’s so quiet around here too, as those with 2nd homes have gone to parts elsewhere. I like it quiet, but most folks would say it’s quiet even when it’s high season. Just depends on what you call quiet I guess. El Pescadero and Todos Santos are not big cities. Más como pueblos pequeños. (More like small towns).
Here are some sights around my place:
Sour Pitaya
“The sour pitaya is a sprawling, much-branched cactus, with branches up to 3 metres long (see also the image below). The stems are dark grey-green. Where their tips touch the ground they can take root, so that eventually this cactus can form thick, impenetrable thickets. This cactus is a near-endemic of the Baja California peninsula, although it also grows in a small region of mainland Mexico. It is a dominant plant in many desert regions of Baja California. The name “sour pitaya” refers to the fruits, which are edible but not as sweet as those of the organ pipe cactus. The plant produces large white flowers, usually in July – September.” Taken from http://archive.bio.ed.ac.uk/jdeacon/desertecology/cacprof1.htm
Santa-Maria Barrel Cactus (This one is huge)
or
Ferocactus santa-maria
The flowers are so pretty on these cactus. What am I saying? All cactus flowers are gorgeous.
Barrel Cactus in Bloom
Bananas soon!
Golden Barrel Cactus
These aren’t native to Southern Baja, but they are all over in pretty landscaped areas.
We used to have two, but one died after about a year.
Agave (front and center) and Cardon
Traveler’s Palm (Ravenala madagascariensis) and Arika Palm (on right)
Travelers palms are actually members of the bird-of-paradise plant family, and is more closely related to the banana tree family than the palm tree because of the shape of the leaves. It’s a fast grower. The traveler’s palm gets its name from the fact that thirsty travelers could find stores of water in many parts of the plant including the leaf folds, flower bracts, and inside each of the hollow leaf bases each of which may hold up to one quart of water.
– See more at: http://www.palmtreepassion.com/travelers-palm.html#.V2rDrle_2u4
Ah, the fragrant and lovely plumeria!
Our Finch on our Cardon
We call him ours, as he and his main squeeze have been nesting here and raising their babies.
They sit on our kitchen window bars and watch me cook.
“Stand up and be Counted!” says my hibiscus.
Our friends planted the top of a pineapple and lo and behold…a baby comes into their garden.
A tree in our friends’ yard puts out this beauty. We don’t know what it is. Do you?
Wouldn’t be summer without bougainvilleas and mangoes.
The flower of the nopal cactus graces our front yard.
Hibiscus that haven’t opened and a visiter. Look closely at the photo above in the bottom, left quadrant.
Here’s a close-up of the dragonfly on my plumeria bud.
Mangle–Mangrove
Coastal region native plant.
We were lucky enough to have a lot of these mangroves on our property. They don’t transplant well at all. We give them a little water and they are flourishing.
All the low growing bush-like plants are mangrove. In the summer they have those pretty red berries.
See more @https://tosea.wordpress.com/2015/10/28/mangroves-the-trees-of-life/
Next time I will include the beach. It’s not summer without spending time at the beach, right?
But wherever you are, enjoy your life. Every single moment.
over the political scene in America, I’m cooking, baking, walking the dog, reading, writing, cleaning house, singing to myself, dancing by myself, doing the laundry, exercising, working with my husband, or relaxing in my hammock chair. You get the picture. But sometimes I let my creative juices guide me into some other territory.
Don’t bother reading this one unless you like little kids and are interested in making a Pop-Up Book for some little one you know and love. Maybe it’s a birthday gift that you want to personalize. Or maybe it’s just for no special occasion, except you want this little tyke to know how much you care about her (or him). This post is a quasi “How-to-Make-a-Pop-Up Book.”
I can’t draw. I simply can’t. But I have lots of ideas and lots of ways of letting out those juices I mentioned. I don’t let it bother me that I can’t draw. I just doodle around it. So here goes my little lesson on making a pop-up book.
First you must have an idea of what you want the book to be. An ABC book? A little story? A picture book? A photo book?
Next gather your supplies. Heavy weight paper of different colors, pencils, pens, scissors, glue, water color pencils, paint pens, and markers are important items. Obviously if you are doing a photo book or a picture book (where you aren’t doing the illustrating) you will need to throw those things into the mix. The sky is the limit really. I could see using buttons, ribbons, glitter, stickers, stamps…whatever you want. Let your story line guide you, or let your supplies guide your story line. Either way, just have fun.
Okay, now I’m going to cheat. I’m going to send you to a site where this great fellow shows you how to do lots of different pop-ups. Why reinvent the wheel I always say.
Visit http://wp.robertsabuda.com/make-your-own-pop-ups/
This said, I must say he doesn’t have you put a back on your page though, and that is something you must do.
Here’s another site: http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Pop-up-Book
You can find lots of YouTube videos as well. Go ahead. Check out the internet.
Here is what I made for Aleia (Ah-lay-ah). She is a sweet little girl who will be two on Sept. 14th.
I took this picture of her last week. Isn’t she darling?
At first I wrote out this story with tons of detail. Then I thought, how silly that was because she isn’t old enough for such depth. She won’t have the attention span for something like that. I’ll save that story for when she’s older. But what I did was pare it down. Way down. Basic items of the story.
I’ll just show you the book now. Here’s the cover:
Next up, the first page: On a beautiful day, Aleia went for a walk.
Doodles, lots of them.
My simple pop-up parts are the letters to her name. So the first page has an A.
Page 2: The birds were singing and the sun was shining. (The letter “l” pops up).
More doodles and a couple stick figures, plus lots of color. Kids like color.
Page 3: Down the road she discoverd two ducks playing in a pool. (The pop up is an “e.”)
Okay, I tried my hand at a little illustration, but I couldn’t even draw the ducks, so I got some clip art from google images. The rest of it are my attempts at drawing. I used markers and water color pencils, so I added water and smeared the paint. Works for me.
Page 4: The next thing you know…Aleia found a red, yellow and orange kite. “I bet I can fly this kite.” And guess what? She did!!
Again, I doodle, use water color pencils and clip art.
Page 5: At the top: FREE BALLOONS. Wow! 3 red balloons tied to a fence. Free! What could be better?
Aleia has a kite and 3 red balloons. But wait (written in the arrow) There’s more!
(Next section) Farther down the road were 3 sunny yellow flowers. It was meant to be.
Okay, those pages all have a pop-up of the letters of her name. A-l-e-i-a
Last page: When Aleia got home, she gave her daddy the kite, her mama the 3 sunny yellow flowers, and she gave the 3 red balloons to her baby sister. Why? Because Aleia has a happy, giving heart. 
The heart is the pop-up on this last page.
I haven’t given her the book yet. Saturday I will go over to see her and I hope she loves it.
That’s it. You may wish to do something like this for a child in your life instead of pulling out your hair or doing laundry. It’s therapeutic for me. Who knows, maybe for you too.
Cala does her thing!
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What makes for a more exciting afternoon at the beach than
a dog surfing contest?
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The recent 3rd annual Dog Surfing Competition at Los Cerritos was definitely a hit with all who attended. This contest is a fund raiser for Pescy Dogs, getting its name from the town El Pescadero, where it’s located.
Collecting donations!
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Our community’s organization, Pescy Dogs, works 24/7 to provide shelter, medical care and most importantly love for sick, injured and/or homeless dogs in the El Pescadero area, BCS. http://www.pescydogs.org
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Kim of Baja Zen http://baja-zen.com works tirelessly to put on this fun event.
Thanks, Kim!
…
Even if you missed the dog surfing contest at Los Cerritos on June 5th,
you still have a chance to donate to the Pescy Dogs.
http://dogsurfcompcerritos.com/donate/
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We’re just a hop, skip, and jump from Todos Santos, but Pescadero has a different flare because we are more of a farming and beach community than our neighbor to the north.
Surfers share the beach with the fishermen too.
Danito, a local farmer.
Early morning at Los Cerritos.
…
If you’re a surfer anywhere on the west coast of North America you’ve most likely heard of Los Cerritos. Any day of the week you will find people and dogs enjoying the beach, but on June 5th it was all about the canines!
The fans and their dogs and families!
Well, maybe some of the children had other ideas, but the surf dogs put on the best show.
Local surfer, Perry, helps Marshmallow get out for a wave in the first heat.
The dogs were into it.
What a beauty!
Here goes Marshmallow again!
Go, Marshmallow, go!
Baraka is on the beach all the time with Juan Carlos. Today it looks like she can walk on water!
Dismount with grace!
Sweet pup named Surfo!
Meanwhile, back on the beach–boys do what boys do! Dogs aren’t the only ones who dig holes.
The shovel is for–well–you know.
Back to the contest: Sully is Tillman’s brother. And Tillman was a famous canine surfer, better known as a skateboarder. He has his own Facebook Page too: https://www.facebook.com/TillmanSkates
Sully has lots of spunk and style. See for yourself.
Making his brother proud.
Pirata is a local Cerritos dog who belongs to Perry. What a great surfer (Perry too).
Pirata nails it.
Cala brings home the prize for Carlos and Paula of Todos Santos Surf Shop. Way to go!
1st Place: Cala of Todos Santos—sponsored by Todos Santos Surf Shop https://www.facebook.com/todossantossurfshop.activities/ and Explora Baja https://www.facebook.com/explorabaja/?fref=nf
2nd Place: Pirata from our local Cerritos Beach—sponsored by Baja Zen and La Katrina Surf Shop.
3rd Place: Sully from Scorpion Bay—sponsored by Tillman.
Best Wave award went to Pirate sponsored by La Katrina Surf Shop https://todossantos.cc/shops-and-business/la-katrina-surf-shop/ .
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See you all next year at Los Cerritos for another fun dog surf contest.
Visit the official Dog Surf Contest page if you like: http://dogsurfcompcerritos.com