My childhood memories of Philadelphia are not good. In the 1960s and 1970s, the place had a well-earned reputation as a crime-ridden hellhole. For suburban kids like me, Philadelphia was the #1 place to stay out of. And so we did. But, as they say, that was then and this is now. During a late…
In November 2012, I started taking classes at The Studio for Actors. The long-term goal is to create a show about my bicycle travels through all 50 of the United States and living car-free in Tucson. This show will combine storytelling, photos, and live music. While it’s fun to talk about long-term performance goals, there…
Late last week, I spotted a City of Tucson streets department worker marking the sidewalks outside my house. Being the curious type, I went out to ask him why he was doing such a thing. Answer: The sidewalks that have shifted or buckled need to be replaced. Well, to me such a task spells just…
This past Thursday, Tucson was visited by something we hadn’t seen for a while: Rain. Our soggy guest stayed around for the weekend and was most welcome. On Saturday morning, a nearby neighbor hosted a Watershed Management Group (WMG) earthworks workshop during intermittent showers. More than a dozen people turned out, including this couple from…
September 2015 update: The website has been redesigned since this post was published. If you’re running a pharmaceutical company, you want to know that the compounds you’re developing are safe for human consumption. If you’re a patient, you want the same assurance. Both of these needs are the concern of Metabolic Profiling Inc., a startup…
Last week, I got a request from Tucson’s Food Conspiracy Co-op: Could I photograph their 5th annual Chicken Coop Tour? Well, sure! I’ve always wanted to shoot a bunch of chickens. What a great way to spend this past Saturday, which happened to be a lovely sunny day here in Tucson. The Chicken Coop Tour…
It’s been almost 18 years since my last trip to the mining camp-turned artists’ colony and tourist destination, Bisbee, Arizona. I’m pleased to announce that I broke my Bisbee fast yesterday. Bisbee is one of those places that’s easy to love — and satirize. Matter of fact, a local bumper sticker describes Bisbee as being…
Yesterday was my eighth house-iversary. Meaning that it’s been eight years since I first became a homeowner. Being in charge of a 56-year-old house that sits on a small plot of land in central Tucson has been quite the learning experience. One of my ongoing areas of study is self-sufficiency. To what extent can I…
This past Saturday marked the 30th anniversary of El Tour de Tucson. Once again, this event attracted thousands of bicyclists and a a really fast guy beat out the rest. That would be Arizona’s speediest chiropractor, Scottsdale’s Eric Marcotte, who has won the 110-mile race for three years in a row. No Eric pictures here….
It’s mid-November, the fall rains have returned, but wet weather won’t stop thousands of bicycle enthusiasts from swarming to the intersection of 5th Avenue and 7th Street near Downtown Tucson. What’s the occasion? The Fall 2012 Bicycle Swap Meet. Once again, it lives up to its billing as the shopping place with just about anything…
Just got back from visiting friends in Peoria, Arizona. Another great time with my host, Judy Vorfeld, and her ever-irreverent brother, David Crook. Case in point: We’re at the Wildlife World zoo in Litchfield Park. It’s the 1 p.m. feeding time for the Lory Parrots, and zoo patrons are encouraged to participate. So, David decides…
Nothing like a sunny fall day for admiring low-water use landscaping in Tucson. This past Saturday’s Homescape Tour attracted more than 100 people to 13 private residences and one public elementary school. The tour was organized by Tucson’s Watershed Management Group (WMG). Although I wasn’t able to participate in last year’s inaugural event, I added…
You have to hand it to Tucson’s bicycling community. When a cycling legend comes to town, they turn out in droves. Such was the scene this past Wednesday when Gary Fisher, the father of mountain biking, rolled up on Trek Bicycles of Tucson. The store presented the annual Ride with Gary Fisher, which attracted around…
It’s been almost a month since we’ve had a proper rainstorm, and I’m starting to feel nostalgic. The last precipitation of note happened on September 11. With predictable effects on flags… After I took my flag back into the house — and hung it up to dry — it was back outside to observe the…
This past August 24, I had the opportunity to travel to Nogales, Sonora, with the Tucson, Arizona-based Watershed Management Group (WMG). I’ve been a WMG volunteer for five years, and I also send them some monetary love via the monthly donation program. The occasion was a fiesta on the campus of Instituto Technológico de Nogales…
If you’ve been following this blog for a while, you know that event photography is one of my favorite subjects. And now that fave has its very own website, TucsonEventPhotography.com.
The City of Tucson’s semi-annual Brush and Bulky waste collection is quite the event. All over town, the treasure hunters come out in force. Some load their pickup trucks full of castoff furniture, scrap metal, lumber, railroad ties, you name it. Count me as one of the two-wheeled Brush and Bulky treasure hunters. And what…
One of the very best things you can feed your garden plants is rotten. Very rotten. We’re talking compost, people! The decayed remnants of your fruit and vegetable scraps, egg shells, tea leaves, coffee grounds, yard clippings, and why don’t we toss in a little straw for good measure? Point of information: You can get…
In November 1991, a storm packing 60 mile-per-hour winds attacked Tucson. Among the casualties was one of our city’s most beloved concert and dance venues, El Casino Ballroom. The storm blew half the roof off the building, and that ended any sort of performances at the Ballroom for nine years. The half that still had…
There’s a big streetcar construction project underway in central Tucson. The construction is wreaking havoc on the smooth flow of vehicular traffic, the survival hopes of small, locally owned businesses in an already tough economy, and the ability of bicyclists to ride safely and find places to park. The hip and happening section of 4th…
Part One: Martha is Totally Underwhelmed Last Saturday, we had a wee bit of rain during the afternoon hours. Enough to make me start worrying about whether I’d be able to head out for an evening of dancing at 2nd Saturdays Downtown. I mean, come on. Do you call this a measurement of rainfall? Looks…