Funny thing about those plants in the yard. Although a lot of them are native species of the low water using variety, they still get thirsty. They get especially thirsty at this time of the year, when daytime temperatures are in the triple digits and rain is scarce. A popular solution to the thirsty plants…
So, I’m sitting here in the studio, minding my own business, and what should I hear but a-knocking at my door. It’s Pat from Heath Consultants, and guess what. It’s time to replace my gas meter. For free. Mind you, Heath Consultants (under contract with Southwest Gas) isn’t making this offer out of the goodness…
Spent Saturday morning in a greywater harvesting class. After class, it was time to hop on the bike and head back to the neighborhood. What should I see in the southeastern sky but a huge pileup of clouds. “Yeah, right!” I said to them. Like they were really going to bring us rain. After stopping…
So, I wrapped up a pretty good day of work, and it was time for a bicycle ride. This evening’s destination, the University of Arizona campus. Community open house on the university’s proposed bicycle and pedestrian plan. Okay, so Martha’s on her bike, pedaling toward campus, and what’s this? It’s the Incredible Disappearing Bike Lane!…
Among the many things I’ve become interested in since moving to the Southwest 25 years ago, gardening is among the more challenging. Especially now. Hot summer gardening is one of those challenges that only a plant geek would love. It helps if your geekiness is complemented with a willingness to conduct experiments. My experimental turn…
In the spring of 2009, I began volunteering at Tucson’s community radio station, KXCI. At first, I was part of the pledge drive phone crew, and I was pretty happy working behind the scenes. Late last fall, an invitation to join a KXCI deejay class landed in my e-mailbox. Tuition was at the can’t-resist price…
For the third year in a row, I was the official photographer for the Tucson Folk Festival. Held Downtown Tucson, the Folk Festival treats thousands people to a free weekend of acoustic music on five stages. One of this year’s performers was Michael McGarrah, a singer/songwriter with a wickedly funny sense of humor…
Welcome to my place, home of the slacker mesquite tree. This tree has the dubious distinction of being the last one on the block to bloom. But when it comes to dropping leaves all over the place, my mesquite is a champ. I truly adore having to sweep the porch, over and over again… Then…
This spring marks the debut of the Tucson Bicycle Swap Meet’s new location. Now covering four city blocks instead of three, the new venue features a trolley track-free shopping experience. Said trolley tracks are the reason for the swap meet’s move. The Modern Streetcar construction project on 4th Avenue is underway — and will be…
Well, here we are at the start of Bike to Work Week here in Tucson. And what’s a work-at-home bike-tographer to do? The answer is: Set the alarm for oh-dark-hundred, gather up the photo gear, then head over to the University of Arizona campus. Sounds a lot like the seven years that I spent employed…
Last month, I received word that my recently published bike-tography book had won an ADDY Award from the Tucson Advertising Federation. What kind of ADDY? A Gold, Silver, or Bronze? The notification e-mail didn’t say. But, since bike-tography is the act of combining bicycling with photography, I embarked on a bike-tographic expedition to the Fox…
Xeriscaping update: It only took 3 hours and 40 minutes to get the better part of that big pile of mulch into the front yard and spread around. Amidst all the mulching, I also had to remove a pile of cut up mesquite branches from the yard’s main water harvesting basin. Those branches were left…
In the life of a xeriscaper, there are fewer questions sweeter than “Would you like some free mulch?” Why the affection for ground up tree trunks, branches, and leaves? Because mulch holds moisture in the soil. It also builds the soil and controls weeds. In the arid Southwestern United States, we like such things. A…
I’ll admit to feeling sad while at a bicycling event. Why? Because we may have seen the last UA Criterium on Saturday. The closed-course race around the University of Arizona never attracted huge numbers of spectators. But if you were into cycling, you just had to be there. No way could you miss it. Several…
So, there you are, trying to do the right thing. You go to all the trouble of controlling the weeds on your property, then there it is: Buffelgrass. According to the Southern Arizona Buffelgrass Coordination Center, “[R]apid spread of buffelgrass and conversion of fire-resistant desert to flammable grassland rivals urban growth and water as the…
Time for a look at Tucson concert venues, past and present. First, a look back at one of the hottest dance clubs of a couple of decades ago. I’m talking about the Green Dolphin, which was located a few blocks south of the University of Arizona. This was one of the clubs that students raved…
A year ago yesterday, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and 18 others were shot at the “Congress on Your Corner” that she was hosting in Tucson. Six people died. The past few days have been filled with various tributes to the victims. And the big buzz around town was that Rep. Giffords would be attending the candlelight…
Being the owner of a middle-aged house that I’m slowly fixing up, I’ve had the need for more than a few tradesmen and women. Many of them have arrived in huge pickup trucks. Imagine my surprise when I heard about a local arborist who plies his trade by bicycle. Time to do something about that…
This past Saturday was one of those gray, windy days that offered more than a hint of rain. By Tucson standards, it has been a wet month — almost an inch of rain so far — so looking for more wasn’t out of the question. Fortunately, the rain held off until after the weekend. And…
Well, it’s mid-November in Tucson, and that means it’s time for another bike swap meet. Yesterday, thousands of bicycle enthusiasts converged on 4th Avenue for a day of buying, selling, and trading bikes and accessories… Does your bike need a crankset? Plenty to choose from at the swap… Or maybe your taste runs more toward…
Yesterday was one of those cool, breezy days that offered a hint of the Tucson winter to come. And since it was the first Sunday of November, it was time for Tucson’s annual All Souls Procession. This year’s edition featured a new route: From 4th Avenue and University Boulevard, go straight down Fourth to Congress…