Merry Christmas, 2011!

Sanctus Desertus (Desert Saint)

Merry Christmas and very best wishes to all as we celebrate the rebirth of another round of seasons with yet another new year!

Days are getting longer, but it's still too cold and inclement to do much outside. It's a time to rest, dream, plan and burn fires. Even more valuable, it's a time to simply be and observe, even as we are active and celebrate.

The little critters know this well. Our reptile siblings have been here a lot longer than we hair-covered thought forms. They are resting within Mother Earth in the bliss and fulness of the emptiness between dreams of insects and hawks.

The collard lizard is among the saints of the desert. Shari chose this little critter to express a little whimsey amidst the retail bustle and Christmas hype. Christmas is within, and that's where humble critters reside.

May we all know the peace and empathy that we call Christmas, or winter solstice, Saturnalia, or whatever! The days are getting longer and soon they will be warmer when our friends, the desert saints, will be emerging to enjoy their busy little lives.

Winter Season

I forgot we had winter in Tucson. Our three-digit summer weather extended well into September, then in the space of a weekend, the weather skipped autumn and became winter. As new as we are to the Old Pueblo, we got used to walking barefoot in our underwear. It took some time to remember why I had sweaters, thick socks, and space heaters. I realized I had to wear them.

It's a continental climate, so there is considerable variation between summer and winter. Even in winter, there is considerable variation between day and night. That means even though we get sunshine and, in the afternoon, warm weather, it can be really cold at sunrise.

Unusual morning fog so thick we could not see
any neighboring house

By Lower Alaskan standards, it's a summer. We recently had a friend from Seattle stay a few days and I felt a little bad because we've had rain here. Actually, we've had a pretty wet December. For the desert it's great, and for locals it's an exciting and different treat, but I felt badly that our friend flew all that distance and got rewarded with two and a half days of rain out of five. He, on the other hand, thoroughly enjoyed Tucson as a welcome change from the cold, dark, damp weather of Lower Alaska. It's all relative.

We have more guests lined up to stay with us this winter, so I feel obligated to make full disclosure: warning, it can get cold and wet in Baja Arizona.

Bring warm clothes and be prepared for the frustration of tepid air and ever present desert dust stirred by heat exchange systems that work better as air conditioners and are far less satisfying as central heating systems. (Flow one way cools; flow the other way heats, sort of.) Fireplaces here don't work a damn. No inserts, so all the heat goes up the chimney and soot somehow ends up in the room. Rain falls off roofs at random and the guys who put in the concrete apron around our pool didn't bother to worry about water coming under the back doors.  People here can learn a lot about dealing with cold and rain from Lower Alaska.

But also be prepared to enjoy the smell of the desert in rain. If you are lucky, you will see water flowing in the nearby Rillito River. Ordinarily, it's a dry wash filled with sand. Be fascinated by winds that tear branches, and clouds that hide surrounding mountains. Be amazed at how clear the mountains can be, dusted with snow after the cold clouds lift with the heat of the day.