While
awaiting my return to Houston for the surgery which is intended to
“remove all visible cancer from my lungs.” the doctor prescribed
a brisk daily walk. The walk was to be “10 minutes out and 10
minutes back.” After a bit of experimentation, I fell into an
every-other-day routine using the 2.5 mile Neighborhood Walk
previously described in a 14 June posting on my blog:
Having
already described this walk in some detail in the aforementioned
posting, I will only note the changes, mostly seasonal, that I have
noted in recent walks.
The
wildlife still includes a plethora of young rabbits, perhaps
indicating a diminished coyote population. On the other hand, a few
days ago I encountered a herd (is three a herd?) of javalenas
crossing Acoma Drive. They looked especially fit and healthy,
sporting what appeared to be new winter coats. It would seem to be a
bit early for that, so perhaps the shiny new growth was due to the
abundant vegetation caused by the relatively heavy monsoon rains we
have received.
The
century plant located on Brook Hollow Drive has now shed all of its
gorgeous yellow flowers; however, the nearby Mexican bird of paradise
shrubs are still in bloom, although not as profusely as before.
Angel,
the owner of the house with all the old farm implements located along
Christina Draw Wash, has been working diligently to keep the water
from undermining the bank at his house.
The
prickly poppies I saw earlier along the wash, and occasionally along
the roadways, are all past the blooming stage now. Without their
large white blossoms they are just another nondescript desert plant.
The poppies have largely been replaced by silver leaf nightshade.
The
short trail I built at the start of the monsoon season to ease the
descent into Christina Draw Wash has held up well, requiring no
repairs to date. I also took my clippers along with me on one walk
down the wash and clipped a few branches that were overhanging the
path. The walk down the wash from the end of Meadowlark Drive to at
Brook Hollow Drive, always easy, now doesn't even require bending to
avoid the occasional overhanging branch.
The
large sunflowers that grew at the end of Acoma Circle are now past
the blooming stage; however, another patch of smaller sunflowers are
still in bloom in a yard along Brook Hollow Drive, between Elk Circle
and Arrowhead Lane.
The
most pleasing change during this time has been the removal of the old
sedan that was slowly deteriorating alongside the street on Elk
Circle. Thankfully, someone chose a tow truck instead of cinder
blocks.
Back
at our house the Texas sage is sometimes in bloom and sometimes not.
The bushes are quite attractive when in full bloom, appearing as
solid light purple masses. Unfortunately, they bloom only
sporadically during the season and the blooms are very fragile, never
lasting long. On the other hand, our two beds of lantana, one yellow
and one red (or orange-red) bloom continuously from spring to late
fall. The lantana is planted in beds with irises and starts blooming
about the time the irises finish, soon taking over the entire beds
and providing color all summer. We just cut the irises back in the
spring and then cut the lantana down after it dies in the fall. It
all comes back again the next year.
