The Rest of November...

Corona de Tucson

November 30, 2025 

Desert Marigolds...

The rest of November just flew by.  The Tucson Museum of Art hosted their Annual Fall Artisans Market on November 21-23.  It is a great market and a fundraiser for Southern Arizona's oldest arts institution located in downtown Tucson. 

The market features over 100 artists and artisans with crafts, original artwork, pottery, glass, jewelry, and textiles in an historic outdoor setting.  

Plaza Militar, the location for the market, is directly behind the museum.  Parking for the event is free.

We enjoy perusing the plaza and always see unique things that catch our eye.  One artist we met was Amy Lanterman.  She is a self-taught artist based here in Tucson and says I love to experiment with various mediums and techniques often drawing from the natural world for inspiration. Her playful approach to texture and color reflects her own joy and sure put a smile on my face.

A new piece for our kitchen...

The Romero House was built in 1860 with the first resident being Leonard Romero.  Leonard was the town's first carpenter and became well known for his work on the San Xavier Mission and other landmarks.  

Today this piece of history is home to a popular ceramics studio...Romero House Potters. It is a non-profit organization offering classes for adults.  It features hand building and wheel rooms as well as both electric and gas kilns. 

Noa is a ceramic artist specializing in functional kitchenware and an instructor at the studio. She has 12 years of experience and has mastered her skills in various ceramic techniques.  She moved to Tucson from Israel in 2024 where she continued to develop her craft and share her passion for pottery.  Her teapots are beautiful and she is offering a workshop to give students an opportunity to create their own.  

We had a very nice Thanksgiving and hope family and friends did as well. Jamie, Andra and Ozzie arrived late Tuesday and spent the week-end with us.  I baked a turkey, made southern cornbread dressing and gravy, Senator Russell sweet potato casserole, fresh green beans, and rolls.  We all enjoyed the Macy's parade and the National Dog Show.  Both are a tradition on Thanksgiving Day.  

Ozzie never misses a beat when animals are on the screen.

Friday evening we headed to Tucson Botanical Gardens for "Lights Up!".  Joe and I went a couple of years ago, but Jamie and Andra had not been.  

Saturday, we did a few errands.  The last stop was Houghton Meat Market.  What a nice surprise!  The market provides choice cuts of beef, pork, poultry and seafood.  But that is not all.  They make their own sausage.  Varieties include Brooklyn made with sweet Italian base with bell peppers, onions, and pepper jack cheese, Breakfast mildly seasoned, and Nashville Hot with Nashville Hot Sauce just to name a few.  They also make their own Polish sausage and Bratwursts.  But that is not all.  They make their own salsa and sauces.  

 But that is not all.  They have a great selection of all natural doggie treats too.  Femur, knuckle, and center cut marrow bones were in the freezer.  Fruit and veggie flavored donuts, and bags of treats all locally made.  

We came home with steaks for dinner, peach jam for breakfast, and  peanut butter and jelly doggie treats for Ozzie and Lucy.

In between eating,  decorating the Christmas tree, errands and football (Navy beat Memphis and Alabama beat Auburn...wahoo for both!), we spent a lot of time outside.  The weather was absolutely amazing.  

Back at the oasis in-between and/or before or after this and that, we had a rainy day.

 We walked with Lucy.

 

 

Back on the east coast...Edith spent the day exploring in the city with her family.

And just like that...it's December! 

Until next time,

HAPPY TRAILS

and SWEET DREAMS!

Celebrations...

Corona de Tuccson

November 20, 2025

Violas...such happy little blooms!

I failed to mention in the last blog that Joe had a birthday on November 2nd.  He was 79...where do the years go?  It was his choice to just enjoy a quiet day at home.  And other than a mid-morning walk with Lucy, that is exactly what we did.  

Lucy was a year old on August 20 this year.  We signed papers for adoption the first of November last year and it was on November 13, 2024 that she made her trip from Greenville, SC to Tucson.  I can remember the day as if it were yesterday when the flight nanny handed her to me.  Being that the 13th was our one year  "gotcha day", we celebrated at Bark'n Berry Doggie Ice Cream Parlor.

Lucy devoured a banana (sugar and lactose free) puppy ice cream with dried salmon sprinkles and a puppy size cone on top. 

Celena is the owner of this unique ice cream parlor.  She is a former veterinary nurse and is an animal welfare advocate who founded her business to create a safe
community space for dog owners. The parlor has dog-friendly treats, locally made pet products, and hosts events to support local animal rescue and charities.  

"I think about going back in the field, but I think I am better suited to serving ice cream,"  she said with a laugh.  

This fun shop located on Broadway in downtown Tucson offers birthday parties complete with doggie birthday cakes and ice cream, puppy yoga, ice cream socials, low cost vaccines and microchips, nail trims and on occasion a chance to meet adoptable pups. Celena's passion and enthusiasm for what she believes in is contagious.  Lucy had a blast!  Joe and I had a blast! 

The day after Lucy's gotcha day, was Jamie's birthday.  Jamie , Andra, and Ozzie came for a weekend visit.  Friday was cake and ice cream...

and Saturday was race day!  

Tucson Dragway is a 110 acre venue that is a NHRA sanctioned track for drag racing. 

We watched the weather all morning as it was raining all around us.  We arrived at the track about 3:00 pm and the weather was still iffy, but not one drop fell on the track.  

Our tickets gave us access to the pits.

Entertainment for the day was "Wicked Sinsation", a jet dragster. My oh my...what a thrill it was...not just the sonic booms before "take off" but as the car neared us at the 1/8 mile marker we could actually feel the power!  Most impressive was the 287 MPH at the 1/4 mile marker in under 5 seconds.  It was so fast...no clear photos were taken.

A zoom photo of the start line...

My insides rattled as it went by...

The event we watched was the inaugural of Fuel Altered Chaos at Tucson Dragway.  Next years event is already on the calendar as it was a huge success.  The event was a two-day drag racing festival that featured a competition of various "altered" drag cars which are stripped down, modified vehicles.  Various combinations of nitro methane burning machines, blown alcohol entries, and turbocharged altered cars competed.  We arrived at 3:00 to watch the preliminary runs and the semi-finals.  The finals began about 7:00 pm.  

Preliminaries...

Semi-finals...

The afternoon glow...

Sunset behind the track and pits...

And finals under the lights...

Ozzie and Lucy had a great week-end too!

In between fun, Joe and I had our annual medicare checkups and Joe has completed 8 (that's half) of the radiation treatments.  It's an hour plus roundtrip to the dermatologist so Lucy and I ride too.  She and I both agree people watching is very entertaining.

Back at the oasis, the weather has been nice for walks just about anytime of the day we choose to go.  

We have had lots of teasers this week...only one day did we actually get some rain. 

 

I knew I loved the desert the very first time we arrived in Tucson almost 12 years ago.  The phrase "there is no place like the desert" comes to mind often on our walks. The deep quiet of a sunrise and a sunset, the resilience of life that thrives in harsh conditions,  and the unique beauty and dramatic landscapes are just a few reasons why I love living here.  I never lack for an opportunity to take photos...the big things I see, the little things I see, and everything in between.  

Joe and I are looking forward to Thanksgiving with Jamie, Andra and Ozzie next week. We sure have lots to be thankful for. It is with lots of love and good wishes we send a Happy Thanksgiving to all our family and friends near and far. 

I'll close with a few more photos... 

We are thrilled to finally see a male Ladder-back Woodpecker.  The misses has been hanging around for awhile. 

More and more of these sweet little Lesser Goldfinches are in the yard.

And the Sparrows sure know how to have a good time!

Until next time,

We enjoy the sunshine!

We are thankful for every drop!

We watch for the sunset!

And we play everyday!

HAPPY TRAILS!