Microblog Mondays

November 28, 2016November 27, 2016

Nothing

Know what’s between Phoenix and Las Vegas? Nothing.

I don’t mean it’s totally empty – on the way to Las Vegas, we drove by a Joshua tree forest and ate at an unfriendly hot dog place.

We also noticed a spot on the map off highway 93, between Wickenburg and Wickieup, for the town of Nothing, Arizona. I’m using the term “town” very loosely here.

On the way back, we stopped there, in front of the abandoned gas station that’s the only building in sight. According to the sign painted on the side, Nothing has a population of 4.

But even that may be an exaggeration.

September 26, 2016September 26, 2016

Room with a View in Big Sur

I saw this image on Pinterest of what looked like a tiny cabin with large picture windows. The caption said “Big Sur,” but the link was broken.

A few years ago, Phillip and I drove down Highway 1 through Big Sur – wooded mountains on one side and cliffs dropping off into the ocean on the other. It is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been.

Which may be why, in a late-night, insomnia-fueled obsession, I had to find out more about the place in the photo.

Eventually, I spotted it in a vacation-rental listing in Big Sur.

The listed lodging is this cute vintage trailer nestled in a valley and off the grid.

A few yards away is the “cabin,” which turns out to actually be the bathroom, housing a cast iron tub with an ocean view.

It’d be a nice place to soak awhile, don’t you think?

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Photos:

September 19, 2016September 19, 2016

Apple Desserts for Fall

It’s apple season here! And I wanted to share a few of the delicious-looking desserts I’ve been seeing recently.

First, if you’re planning to go to an orchard, check out these apple-picking tips from Bon Appetit. I wish I had read an article like that before Phillip and I went to pick apples at Apple Annie’s in Willcox! We had a fun time, but would’ve been helpful to know a few tricks.

Speaking of which, did you know you could core an apple with a metal melon baller?

1. Baked Apples (via a Beautiful Mess): Whole apples covered with puff pastry and stuffed with pecans – yum!

2. Caramel Apple Bar (via Craftberry Bush): A fun idea for a fall get-together, slice up apples for people to dip in their favorite toppings!

3. Apple Pie Bites (via The Blond Cook): A quick recipe for crescent roll-wrapped apple slices that taste like little pies. I’d try these with my DIY Holiday Spice mix.

4. Peanut Butter and Apple Oatmeal Cookies (photo and recipe by Creative Culinary): Okay, peanut butter + apple + oatmeal cookie…how could I argue with that combination?!

Do you have a favorite apple dessert?

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Photos via respective sites.

September 12, 2016January 11, 2017

August Photo: Goat

For August’s photo, of course, I couldn’t resist this goat from our visit to the Ranch at Fossil Creek.

Always gotta go with your goat, right?

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September 6, 2016May 23, 2023

Downtown Mesa Community Garden

There’s a community garden in Downtown Mesa that I’d heard about but hadn’t been to until my sister-in-law Liz was in town.

Mesa community garden

Isn’t it funny how you tend to see more of your city when someone is visiting?

Mural in urban garden, Mesa

Anyway, after lunch at Republica Empanada (at Hibbert and 1st Ave.), she asked about the gate next to the restaurant that leads into the Mesa Urban Garden, and we went to check it out.

I wasn’t expecting to see much, because August in Phoenix is rough on plants and only the most hardy survive. But there were still a fair number of things growing – veggies and vinca and this gorgeous trumpet vine with orange flowers and long green pods.

Community garden, Mesa

The garden is surrounded by walls with colorful murals, and there’s a Little Free Library made from an old phone booth.

I’ll definitely have to return later this fall!

Mesa garden

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