JUST IN TIME

The Rogue Speaks:

This will be a quickie Saturday Centus because Rod and our daughter, Chris, are coming in tomorrow and I have to finish painting the guest bathroom! So here go's:


"I'm sorry, Mr. Wallis-- we can't accept checks. Your electric bill must be paid in cash -- too many bounced checks."

It was four o'clock, and the electric company closed in thirty minutes. He just had time to dash to the bank. He couldn't let the electricity get shut off with a new baby at home.

He ran to the ATM. He put his debit card in and the ATM began dispensing twenties, Lots of them! More money than was in his account! He grabbed them, and ran back to the electric company.

“You made it," said the clerk.

"Yes," Wallis mused, "Just in time..."

T is for TUTANKHAMEN

The Rogue Speaks:

My "T" offering for Jenny's Alphabe-Thursday is about the boy king affectionately known as TUT!

He was the son-in-law of Akhenaten, an Egyptian Pharaoh, whose rule has been determined as the most over-rated on of all the Pharaohs. As for Tut's own parents, we know nothing. He could have been a descendant of a Royal, but then again, maybe not. By marrying the daughter of a king, however, he became a potential heir to the throne, according to Egyptian law.

Akhenaten had no male heirs, but he did have daughters. His daughter Mertaten was married, and her husband, Smenkhkare, was associated with her father as co-regent. She had wanted to be queen, but her husband died around the same time as her father, and shortly after, she disappeared, leaving the the throne up for grabs.

To make a long story short, Tut was married to the only surviving daughter,Ankhesenpaaten. They were both mere children at the time, so of course there was someone in the background, pulling all the strings. This someone was Ay, Chief Priest, Court Chamberlain, who was a personal friend of Akhenaten, and whose wife, Tyi, was a nurse to the royal wife, Nefertiti.

Ay really wanted to be the next Pharaoh, so it is suspected that he had a lot to do with Tut's early demise.

Far more interesting than the life of King Tut is the discovery of his tomb in the Valley of The Kings. The tomb, a fairly modest one, lay hidden for more than 3000 years.

In the late 1800's, an American business man, Theodore Davis, was the first person to find items related to Tut's resting place.

In 1907, more clues were discovered in a small pit, but were disregarded by Davis as having any significance. It wasn't until later that Egyptolotist Howard Carter, working with Davis realized the importance of those relics. He became convinced that Tut's tomb lay in the Valley of the Kings. He was permitted to begin digging in 1914, but the war broke out and it wasn't until 1921 that the actual excavation began.

The tomb was found and opened! It was heavily photographed and eventually the contents were taken to the Cairo Museum. There have been two world tours of these treasures--in the 1970's and again in 2005.

But enough about those old mummies! Here is a photo of the REAL King Tut. He stole my heart and tickled my funny bone many years ago, and he still does today.

Steve Martin, that "wild and crazy guy," is one of the most gifted comedians that I know. The most important aspect of his talent is his impeccable timing. There is just no other comedian who can match him in that regard. Tuts may come, and Tuts may go, but to me, his Tut is THE BEST!!

All's Fair in Love and War

The Rogue Speaks:

I have a very busy day today, so I got up extra early to write this Saturday Centus that Jenny has come up with. It's evil, this one, and not at all what I expected, but here it is:

"I never thought this would happen!" Carl thought as he packed the boxes. He looked longingly at the brownstone as he loaded the boxes into the trunk .

It had been ten years since they had moved into their "nest" as she called it. They had been happy! He had a great job, with his best friend of 25 years, Ted. He and Elizabeth were starting a family.

They had been college roommates. They were like brothers. "I'd catch a grenade for ya!" Ted had said. Yeah, sure!

"I'm sorry, Carl," Elizabeth had said. "Ted and I….."

S is for SAGUARO

The Rogue Speaks:

Our letter for Jenny's Alphabe-Thursday is "S," and here is my offering:

The saguaro(pronounced suh-WAR-oh), the largest cactus in the United States, is found exclusively in the Sonoran Desert. I am lucky to live in the Sonoran Desert, so I see these cacti every day! They are really huge! They can grow as high as 60 feet, and if we have a good monsoon season, they can weigh between 3200-4800 pounds! The saguaro has a taproot that goes down around two feet into the soil, but the other roots are only 4 to 6 inches deep and go out as far from the plant as it is tall.

Saguaros grow very slowly, and a ten-year-old may only be a couple of inches tall! The saguaro begins to grow "arms" when it is about 40 to 50 years old. I love those arms! Whenever we have been away for a while and I see the first one on the way home, I feel like those arms are greeting me. "Come over here so I can give you a big hug," it seems to say. Unfortunately, the long, sharp thorns can be very painful.

Saguaros can be very whimsical, and lend their photos to some interesting captioning.

I have a small collection of saguaro photos that always make me smile!

Little baby saguaros grow in the shade of a shrub or small tree, called a "nurse tree" because they shelter the baby from the hot sun. Since the saguaro can live to be 200 years old, by the time they reach maturity, the "nurse" is long gone.

The saguaro bloom is the Arizona state flower. The flowers grow and bloom on the tips of the saguaro's trunk or arms in May and June. The blossoms are very fragrant. They draw bees and bats who pollinate the flowers which then turn into red, seeded fruit that the birds and animals love.


The saguaro also houses the Gila woodpecker. This fellow hollows out holes in the trunk and makes its nest. The hollowed out portion dries and scars on the inside, forming what is called a "boot."

A friend found this boot (shown above) while hiking in the desert and brought it home to me. If you look closely at my painting at the beginning of this post, you can see the holes that the woodpeckers have made in the saguaro so they can build their nests.

Eventually the giants of the Sonoran Desert die, either from old age, severe draught, or damage by vandals. After they are gone, the sturdy ribs remain, and are used to build fences, or ramadas, or even furniture. In the picture below, you can see two boots still attached.



I hope you have enjoyed this post about our beloved saguaros. Next week our letter is T. Hmmm--wonder what I will come up with for that letter??

To My Mom

The Rogue Speaks:

I might have known that Jenny would do something "Heartsy" for this Saturday Centus in honor of Rod's birthday--oops! To everyone else, that's Valentine's Day. My BFA called yesterday and was talking to Rod about his birthday. She asked if I had a big celebration planned, or if we were just having a romantic dinner and wild sex afterwards. Rod told her that we'd probably go out to a nice restaurant, and as for the sex, he'd have to ask. "Well," she told him, "At least you don't have to beg!"

Jenny has given us quite a challenge this week to create a Valentine for someone special, using the photo she found online, and only 50 to 100 words, or less. Here is my offering:


To Mom on Valentine's Day



We go for walks
You give a snack
You rub my tummy
When I'm on my back
You take me out
When I have to poo
And that's why, Mom,
I love you.

Love always from your super dog, Sweetums




I saw that some people had done more than one, and that a lot of people had a butt-sniffing theme, so I came up with another one:

To Mom on Valentine's Day


Well, sniff my butt and call me "Stinky!"
I've got more brains in my little pinky
Than you, to dress me up like this!
What happens if I have to p***?
GRRRRRR!

R is for RAPTOR

The Rogue Speaks:

Well, it's Thursday already somewhere in the world, and time for Jenny's Alphabe-Thursday. Since the weather is beginning to warm, and my dog-children are anxious to get out back and lie in the sun, I thought I would treat you to one of the hazards of desert life--raptors!

You will note that I said "raptor" and not "rapture." I'm not quite ready for that just yet. And this isn't Jurassic Park, either--no velociraptors--just plan old everyday birds of prey.

Arizona boasts the most diverse selection of raptors in the continental United States. We have hawks, eagles, falcons, kites, owls, vultures, condors, and host an occasional visit by other birds of prey that just pass through on their way to their home in Mexico.

In Honey Bee Canyon, less than five miles from our house, one can find petroglyphs depicting Great Horned Owls who have made the canyon their home for hundreds of years. They are a little camera-shy, so I don't have many photographs of them, but they are there, nevertheless.

I frequently see hawks on our golf course. It's a virtual Hometown Buffet for them! The rabbit population explodes every spring, and the hawks get fat and sassy over the summer. Hawks also love Gambel Quail, whose babies are the size of walnuts--only an appetizer for a hungry hawk. I have seen hawks sitting on a branch working on a fresh kill. The Great Horned Owls like to take their catch to a nearby roof-top to dine.

The Red-tail Hawk in the painting above has an interesting story. She lives in the care of Raptors, Inc., a non-profit that rescues birds of prey that have been injured, with the goal of eventually setting them free and back into the wild. This particular lady lives with them permanently because she is blind in one eye. Birds frequently have mites in their feathers, and when they scratch with their talons, occasionally they will put their own eyes out.

No small animal is safe from the grasp of a raptor, and pet owners have to be very careful about letting their animal children outside. I kept finding owl feathers in our ramada, and convinced Rod that we should screen it in to protect our Precious girl, who was very small and very vulnerable. He readily agreed when we went out to have our coffee in the ramada one morning, and found a juvenile Great Horned Owl sitting up in one corner. He stayed with us while we drank our coffee, and Rod realized just how vulnerable Precious really was. Little Lizzy is even smaller, weighing in at only 4 pounds, and we have to stay close by her when she goes outside the screened area.

Only this week, I was sitting outside with one of our dogs, Mulligan, when a large Red-tail Hawk came flying in from the west, across our pool. He had seen only Mulligan's head peeking around the corner of our house and was heading straight for it until Mulligan stepped out and revealed his true size. The hawk pulled up short and flew up and over our wall. Had it been Little Liz out there, I shudder to think what might have happened.

The Arizona Sonoran Desert is certainly a beautiful and peaceful place to live, but you have to be very careful. Between the cacti, the snakes, and the raptors, someone just might get hurt!!!

The Plot Thickens!!

The Rogue Speaks:

Jenny's Saturday Centus is always a challenge. Now Ames has given us a prompt that should really make imaginations run wild. I know that a lot of you are not really interested in sci fi, but since the genre has pulled me in, and is holding my brain hostage, I thought I would give you a little taste of what is happening with Scott and Selah these days in their sector under The Surface. The prompt is in bold type.

*********************


“I have some new fruits that I have developed, “ said Reaya. “Perhaps I could bring them, so you can have a taste before I introduce them to the others.

“Great!“ Scott said enthusiastically. “We’ll set a date and give you a call!”

As soon as they were out of earshot, Scott turned to Selah. “Something’s not right! How could they seem so happy, so relaxed? It doesn't make sense! And Reaya! She barely remembers the archives?? How can that be?”

The two walked quietly past the crowd of people at the doorway. There was a mystery developing here, and it was growing bigger by the minute.