Thanks to those who create, read, dream and support!

Thanks to those who create, read, dream, scan and support!

A photo I took of the Catalina Mountains, Catalina, Arizona

I enjoy sharing my photos and adventures with the internet world.  Many of those who

read

this blog,

are part of the Type 1 community.  They have Type 1 diabetes and know the real ups and downs and additional challenges that this disease has on each of us who deal with this 24/7.  It is my true hope that through photos and my adventures that I can help inspire others.  Maybe to

dream

of their own their own adventures or next challenge.  Diabetes is not going to stop them! 

I am honored and especially touched when those who

create

, use my photos or stories as a small step to use their talent as they share and inspire others with their creations.  

Below are creations by Dana Belore and Joseph Lansing.  Thank you Dana and Joseph for such a Blessing and encouragement!

Painting by Dana Belore (a talented 13 years old, who happens to have diabetes) of the photo above.

Photo I took during a run in Charouleau Gap, Catalina, Arizona

Painting of the photo above, by talented artist, Joseph Lansing (also a member of the diabetes community)

Let's Do It! (Part 3)

Let's Do It! (Part 3)

At the end of Part 2, I mentioned something about the fact that Roger and I rarely knew where we would be resting our heads  after a day on the bicycle.  That was part of the excitement of the day as we pedaled to the end of either:

1.  our sanity

2.  our hunger

3.  daylight

4.  our physical limits

5.  all of the above

I only remember 3 hotel/motel stopovers.  These were not planned, just happened to come across a cheap hotel/motel or we truly needed a shower.  

The beauty of this adventure was a true lack of planning and a 'winging it' attitude.  Since we only had about 1.5 months to prepare, it did not allow us to do much planning other than the expected scurry to get out of Tucson, pedaling east.

Since I have diabetes there was at least a degree of extra planning on my part.  Keeping Dave alive would require insulin, syringes, low blood sugar items, blood testing supplies, patience, and perseverance.  

We did a lot of camping out.  This was in Santa Fe, NM

The true heroes of the tour were the fraternities, kind families we usually met in grocery stores, churches, and the dependable fire departments.  They always took us in.  I can still remember sleeping in a fire truck. I have this vague memory of setting off the fire alarm in the fire station in Sonora, Kentucky, as we accidently burned, yet another meal.  I will have to dig into my photo archives for the classic photo of Rog dressed in fireman apparel on his bicycle.  

One of those lingering memories is a couple in Missouri that invited us to stay at their home.  After dinner they went out for the evening.  We had the place to ourselves.

A list of places we challenged ourselves to spend the night included:

Cemetery

- score!

Jail

- we were rejected

The Cookie Lady

- A Virginia must stop!  There were cookies, so not really a 'true' challenge.

Bus

- Don't remember if it was on our challenge list, but we managed a bizarre evening in a bus.

Yes, after Part 3 we will escape New Mexico!

The Monster

The Monster

It was a rather unusual week at the casa in Catalina, Arizona.  The week started grindingly slow and as we headed into the weedend it was verging on dawdle time. Yes,  there was March Madness time and the tv was airing the pregame hype of the Arizona vs Wisconsin game.  March Madness didn't do much for my search for stories and/or photos, but 8 words would change the story line.  "There is a bobcat in the back yard" gushed my father.   

Wildlife has given us lots of love at the Nevins casa, with sojourns from bobcats, coyote, hawk, deer, javelina (that visit is worth it's own story!), gambel quail (with a troop of little paws).   

A guest had asked my mother why she had not taken down all of the halloween decorations.  That 'decoration' happened to be a roaming tarantula.

With those 8 words, I sprang for my Canon.  John, our company, sprang for his camera and we met on the back deck, eyeing the small palm tree, where the feline had last been seen.  The bobcat leaped onto the back wall and bounded into the neighbors yard. 

My camera, clenched in my hand, the same number of photos available as when I had grabbed camera, a few minutes ago.

I had missed the opportunity.

The Gila Monster Video #1

I knew the 'usual' route of the bobcat and I gave marching orders to John to follow me and we should be able to catch the 'visitor' near the wash.  I zipped down the right side of the house, feet moving quickly from flagstone to flagstone until I veered left, toward the street.  It is always exciting when you are running hard with an expensive camera in hand.  I looked back to see if John was nearby, and saw nothing.   

This animal distraction was perfect timing.  The Arizona Wildcats were getting pasted and I had been avoiding the tv.  Where was John?  I was in position for an award winning photograph(?).  The bobcat came right toward me, just as I expected.  He or she did make a slight change in the usual stroll through the wash and over to the golf course.  I fired off 2 or 3 shots and the fur ball was gone.  John?

Bobcat

Back at the house I heard another 8 words (or something like that).  'There is a Gila Monster in the back yard'.  

Ok, 9 words. 

The Gila Monster is one of only a handful of venomous lizards in the world.

They may spend more than 95% of the lives in underground burrows, emerging only to feed and occasionally to bask in the desert sun.  Another reference had indicated up to 98%.

They are considered a threatened species and are rarely seen above ground.  

A component of Gila monster venom called exendin-4 was recently investigated for treating type-2 diabetes.  This peptide stimulates the secretion of insulin in the presence of elevated blood glucose levels.  It also has the effect of slowing gastric emptying.  Phase 1 clinical studies have recently begun with this exciting experimental drug.

The Gila Monster Video #2

The story unfolded............John did follow me, sort of.  He first used his brain and headed toward the left side of animal house.  Shorter route then going right.  Sounds good on paper but there is no real passage on this side of the house.  The 5 million watt AC sits square in the way of about anything except maybe a Gila Monster, or other small critter.  He crossed paths with the monster and that got his attention.  Forget the bobcat.  I would never have come across the Gila Monster, even if he/she had been on that side of the house for the next 10 years.  The odds?

Photo of the Week - March 9-15, 2015

This week's photo is from a journey on the nearby Willow Springs / Freeman Road loop near Oracle Junction, Arizona.  Eric Peffer and I captured many photos during the day but it was at night that photography became much more interesting. 

The scene was typical for an evening in the saguaro-studded landscape, along a remote dirt road, in the evening.  Quiet, no traffic and the sky lit in a beautiful glow of stars, full moon and faint city lights.

It was a beautiful background that included 3 stately saguaro cactus, the glow of the very distant lights of Phoenix, stars and a passing plane, on it's track to Tucson International Airport.

Let's Do It! (Part 2)

Let's Do It! (Part 2) - 

The (Almost) Cross Country Bicycle Tour

On our 2nd day we already have traveling fans!  The Woolridge's, Willcox, Arizona

Part 1 of this bicycle tour saw Roger and I pull into Willcox, Arizona (our first stop).  We had hatched a plan to ride across most of the country, with little time to plan, a rider with a serious back issue, both of us with severe lack of money but with optimism for the miles ahead.

Roger Burke, somewhere in New Mexico

What I learned from the first day in the saddle:

1.  Butt was not created to spend 7-10 hours on a narrow seat.

2.  The kindness that ushered in our first day would be the single trademark that would bless us each and every day of our adventure.

3.  Good company is golden.

4.  No matter how tired, angry, hungry, ticked off, etc., scribble notes about each day in your journal.  It really pays off 20+ years later!

5.  A classic line from Rog's journal - "I hit the gorge point for lunch and ate furiously for about 35 minutes".

T or C New Mexico

Day 2 would be a good, good day but trying at times (my exact journal notes).  While yesterday was a tough day for Rog, today would be my day of challenges.  Low blood sugars would take their toll.  There would be many adjustments to my new life on the road.  The diabetes added a factor that made the trip more challenging, and at times more frustrating, but in the bigger picture, the diabetes was the reason for my journey.

I was riding, with diabetes, and largely for diabetes.  Not as a fund raiser or for a sponsor, but for myself.  This trip would be monumental for the life ahead of me.   

New Mexico

Day 2 highlights from our journals.

*  We seem to be the center of attention for any small town we roll into.

*  Our 2nd day and we have our first border crossing into New Mexico.  

*  We are hit with monsoon action and headwinds.  Welcome to life on the road.

The day ended with the road climbing near the New Mexico border.  We pulled into Lordsburg, NM and expended some serious time that should have been earmarked for eating, to find a place to camp.  As the coming days will prove, we rarely knew where we would be catching zzz's each day.  We would see how the day went and aim for a good stopping point.  Oh, the stories of what housing we would discover.  

Photo of the Week - February 16-22, 2015

Photo of the Week - February 16-22, 2015

|

Sunset on River Road, San Manuel, Arizona

This day would see us (Eric Peffer and I) spending quality photo time in Oracle State Park (Oracle, Arizona) and then along River Road in San Manuel, Arizona.  Our journey along the trail system and then the Kannally Ranch House in Oracle State Park was good, but lighting for photography was sketchy at best.  After the stop at the historic ranch house we headed toward the Galiuro Mountains and San Manuel.  No clear destination, just back roads and an exceptional and very inaccessible mountain range.  

As we rolled along River Road the sun began its final dip into the Arizona landscape.  Eric parked in a area that was only a couple miles from the last time we were in this area.  That trip was especially remarkable as we watched the sun vanish behind thick cloud cover near sunset.  The Galiuro Mountains behind us, suddenly began showing a beautiful golden stream of light across the range.

We were surprised at the changing scene and were able to capture some epic photos.

The photo above is from our recent trip.  The Arizona sunsets continue to amaze me.

Photo of the Week - February 9-15

Photo of the Week - February 9-15

This photo was taken on Sunday, February 15th from my parent's back porch near Tucson, Arizona.  Not much of a story behind the photo.  Simply a walk out the back door with the camera.  If only photography was always that easy. 

Photo of the Week - February 2-8, 2015- Arizona BASE Boogie

Peralta Cliffs Base Jump

My photo of the week draws a pretty good portrayal of life in the desert southwest.  An outstanding sunset, stately saguaro's, serious lack of clouds, jumbled array of rock & mountain topography and yes, a base jumper.  

I can fairly easily include all of that list on almost any day of the year taking photos, except for that elusive jumper.  This jumper is tied to the popular Arizona BASE Boogie, and my boogie connection is through a good, base jumping friend of mine, Gauge Score.

I get a small bundle of credit for ushering Gauge into adventure sports.  I introduced him to bungee jumping, and he has taken adventure to new heights (and cliffs, antenna's, bridges, etc.).  Sporting only a couple of sky dives and a single base jump (tandem), I am a long leap from real base jumping and livin' the life, but I am still jazzed to have been at the event.   My friend, Eric Peffer and I did our best to capture the amazing jumps, the stunning scenery, and the fun moments that a crowd of crazy people will bestow.

After taking over 800 photos (whew!), I chose the photo up top as my favorite. We had shot at Saguaro Lake early in the day and ended up at the Peralta Cliffs.  This is the only photo that I snapped that had a base jumper and the sunset.  There were only a few that came down that late in the day and it took one to go a little off course to sneak in the disappearing orb in the sky.  I was lucky to get a few saguaro's  into the frame and to get the reflection of the sun on the canopy.

Oh, and one last note.  This jumper happened to be the only naked jumper of the day.  You get to witness the 'G' version of of his clothes-less flight. 

The real photo of the day award goes to Eric for taking the shot of me, below.  The landing area had around 70 people and he did a great job of framing it, sans people, with a glorious backdrop.

The Unleaded / Diesel Sign

The Unleaded / Diesel Sign

We were on our way back to Tucson, Arizona, after putting on the Viva Bike Vegas cycling event in Las Vegas, aboard a very large, and a sluggishly slow Penske Truck.  A full tank had gotten us to Kingman, AZ and it was now time to feed the beast.

a slow mode of transportation

Marco and I were in the Penske and Richard was driving near us in a rental SUV.  Thankfully, Marco had taken on the duty of driving because that was the last thing I wanted to do.  My past experience driving one of these beasts was very shaky and involved two large California cities and driving aimlessly around trying to find overnight parking in the congestion of downtown San Francisco. Needless to say, I wasn't thrilled about getting behind the wheel of a large truck again. 

Abandoned store/gas station in Kingman, AZ

Before filling the beast, Richard handed me the keys to the SUV and said I was free to take off if I wanted to.  So we switched vehicles, but I decided to wait and follow them to Phoenix where I would take a different road that would route me home north of Tucson. 

But we never got that far.  As they pulled out of the gas station and rolled about even with where I was parked near the highway entrance, the Penske sputtered to a stop in the middle of the road.  

Apparently, someone (and I am not naming any names here...) fed the beast with regular gasoline instead of diesel.  Science experiment #1 would tell us that they had just enough diesel gas in the line to make it to the highway entrance, not an inch closer.  

It was going to be a long night.

So we huddled up around how were going to handle our dilemma.  Eventually phone calls were made and we were told salvation would be parked behind us in 45 minutes.  Exactly 45 minutes our salvation stepped out of his wrecker and greeted us.  We knew that the evil gasoline would need to be sucked out of the tank and diesel put in its proper place.  We also knew that this was and going to be a costly mistake.  Little did we realize, that there is a safety mechanism that prevents gas to be siphoned from a Penske Truck.  The roughly 50? gallons would have to be extracted by a basic straw. 

As you can imagine this took awhile.  So I decided to use my free time to see what I could do with my camera.  I was surprised at the results.  With nothing better to do I found and conquered: 

1.  An abandoned store/gas station that was well hidden (and probably why it went out of business).  Interesting graffiti and the perfect Unleaded/Diesel sign that perfectly portrayed our journey's adventure.  The main building was accessible and led to an interesting exploration.

2.  Cool rustic fence line that caught the last rays of the sun.

3.  A dirt road that led to some beautiful sights.

4.  One last patch of sun as it moved into darkness

An unusual photo opportunity, but was kind of glad that it opened up.  

Photo of the Week - January 26 - February 1, 2015 - 'Rain in the Desert'

Photo of the Week - January 26-February 1, 2015

'Rain in the Desert'

Record rain fall pounded the Tucson area this week.  Much needed, but the search for stellar photos was horribly hampered.  Records fell as a Pacific storm unleashed 1.39 inches on Friday(January 30), and another 1.41 inches drenched the city on Saturday(as of 6pm). These 2 days would contribute about 1/4 of our yearly total. A drop in the bucket, for my previous residence in the rain forest of Sitka, Alaska.

U.S. Weather Data working overtime reveals Sitka with 87+ inches of rain a year with 33 inches of snow fall.  

Mt. Lemmon, rising above the city, would receive 5.4 inches of liquid sunshine (term borrowed from Washington).

This rare occurrence must be a sorry sight for those seeking the desert during Superbowl week, 2+ hours of pavement from Tucson.  

A unique, missed photo, of a coyote out my window, was my flash of nearly good fortune amongst dreary weather and a week of blood sugars that were not among my best, and were keeping me somewhat caged indoors.  I fired the camera 3 or 4 times as the coyote passed my point of view.  It would have been classic stuff since

Canis latrans

had some interesting behavior.  

Guess my camera settings had been 'nudged' as the photos were total black.   The setting might have worked had a lightening strike hit at the exact time as I had taken the photos. 

The rain began to fall on Friday and I watched it rain.  And rain.  And rain some more.  The water began to spill onto the deck and seep toward the house.  When water begins to create an H2O imprint in the desert then it is photo time.  I grabbed the camera and caught many photos including the one at the top of the page. 

Photo of the Week - Lion lookout over San Xavier del bac Mission, Grotto Hill, January 19-25

Photo of the Week -  Lion lookout over San Xavier del bac Mission, Grotto Hill,

 January 19-25

This week I was on a requested photo shoot at the San Xavier del bac Mission (completed in 1797) in Tucson, Arizona.  The request was unique as I was asked to use a 35mm camera and take slide photos.  An artist in Kansas will use the slides to transpose onto a pot, so he can work on the intricate details of the mission's front facade, onto the pot.  

After I shot the mission with both the 35mm and digital camera (for myself), Eric Peffer and I strolled over to Grotto Hill, next to the mission, to get a few photos from a different location.  It was an interesting find to come across 2 lion statues, situated 1/2 way up the hill.  These two cast iron lions, patented in 1875 and installed in 1908, sit atop pillars at an entrance path to a religious grotto.  

Our timing on Grotto Hill was more luck than planned, but it was perfect.  We had arrived at the mission to catch sunrise for best lighting, and the best situation to improve our possibility of photos of the mission, sans people.  We had, somewhat, succeeded.  

We watched the sunrise teasingly wrap around Grotto Hill and inch toward the iron cast lions.  Once the rays reached one of the lions, our cameras fired away.  The magic moment came and quickly dissipated and we were off to capture Tubac, Arizona and San Jose de Tumacocari.  

Let's Do It! (Part 1)

Let's Do It!  (Part 1)

Roger back in his home state, via spandex

I had met Roger Burke many years ago and the early days of friendship included cycling, learning about the fine art of coffee (our biggest sponsor on our bicycle tour was a coffee company! (Arbuckle Coffee) and spilling stories of our lives and the goals and dreams for the future.  Being linked via the velocipede,  I had even shared my aspiration to pedal across the country.  

Ready to roll, Tucson, Arizona 

I only knew a couple of key facts about the energetic and good humored guy.  Mainly, that he was a bicycle racer, who was not showing any discernible interest in loading a touring bicycle with 30+ pounds of stuff and moving at speeds that would be terrifyingly slow for a racer.

3 days after the  cycle America conversation, I  crossed paths with Rog and all I remember him uttering was 'Let's Do It'.

Whaaaaa?????   Is it time to go get more coffee?  My observation and analysis of this bicycle racer was 100% wrong.  We were going on a little road trip.  

Our first night was spent with the Woodridges in Willcox, AZ.  Their daughter got on her bicycle the next morning to join us. 

The summer was square upon us and we would have to fly out the door asap. The calendar allowed us about 11/2 months  to prepare for this rather detailed adventure. With a departure date of August 31st, we were asking for rather cold weather and extremely short days by the time we grinded up the Appalachians, but we were game, and we had already turned in our escape to adventure slips at work.

A rather difficult camping spot on the cement-hard soil in a pecan orchard in Garfield, NM

As I write out this story, I am aware of the fact that I really should not be writing about bicycle tales from the back roads of America.  2 weeks before the journey, I had seriously injured my back at work.  Somewhere lost in the stubborn zone and sketchy optimism that it would all work out, I continued to plan and pack.  Training had stopped, abruptly.  Come August 31st I was planning on mounting my trusty 2 wheeled steed.    

Albuquerque, NM

It was about a week before the trip, amidst daily visits to the chiropracter and/or physical therapy sessions from hell,  I spilled the news of my disintegrating health, mixed with my resolve to buck up to my calendar plans.  At this point, I had not even ridden my bicycle with any of my substantial piles of bicycle gear, clothing, food, diabetes supplies, toiletries.  I did lighten the load in one area.  My wallet would be shockingly empty.  

A great sign in Oklahoma

August 27, 28, 29, 30........no riding.  Still in pain.......

August 31st, I got on my bicycle.  81+ miles to Willcox, Arizona. 

Part 2, coming. 

We had approximately 10 miles of dirt road (in Kansas).  Appropriate time to have bicycle issues.   

Photo of the Week - January 12-18, 2015

Photo of the Week - January 12-18, 2015

I woke up this morning (last day of the week) with no good options for a photo of the week(that were not a sunset photo).  I had posted a sunset photo last sunday.  Since last week was the first time I had posted a photo of the week I did not want to roll into the 2nd week and have to take a selfie, so I would have something to post. Much like the Seattle Seahawks football game today, what started off miserably, somehow, ended well.  I now have at least 5 photos to post in 1 spot.  

I chose the photo above, taken on my run today.  A few hours later, yet another amazing sunset blitzed the skies of SE Arizona.  My challenge is to 'NOT' post a sunset every photo of the week.  

Ok, I might slide some sunset photos at the end of this post.  

I have a wonderful running loop that circles around some beautiful desert and includes the 2nd highest paved road(?) in the Tucson, Oro Valley area.  The views are stunning.  I try  to be on the road, running south, near sunset.  This points me in the direction of the setting sun and hopefully great photos.  

I have 4 fences that I have to crawl through, over, under or to manage to get tangled in.  As I reached the 3rd fence, with my lack of photos to post, I was doing my best to be creative, and think 'outside the box'. 

At the fence line there are 6 pipes sitting on the desert floor.  I took a few photos, since I liked how the row of pipes lined up with a distant dirt road on another hill side.  In this setting, they were an unusual sight.   

I decided to check out the pipes, close-up, and continue the thought process.  A photo shot into the pipe, with the sun beaming through the cut slots and a conversion to black & white, and I had my photo of the week.  I like to have a creative angle.

So I have managed to attach 5 photos to my 'photo of the week'.  Beats a selfie.

Sunset today

Sunset today.  helicopter in the middle.  I caught the same(?) helicopter in a photo below

Kitt Peak National Observatory - Quinlan Mountains (from Today)

same(?) helicopter taken a few days ago 

Photo of the Week and the Story behind the Shot

Photo of the Week

And the Story behind the Shot

From the back yard - Catalina, Arizona

Ok, so I didn't have to work very hard for this shot, but yes, there was a bit of history tied in with this photo.  Since I seem to take a very healthy amount of  photos each week (instead of sleepwalking, I think I actually sleepphoto) and the fact that I need to become much more consistent with blog posts, I decided to share a photo a week and the background behind the photo.  If the photo tales are on the boring end then maybe I can develop better fiction writing.  :)

For the shot above I was totally in the wrong place at the wrong time.  My daily run usually puts me on a road that rises above the stunning area that I live in Catalina, Arizona.  Breathtaking views and incredible sunsets.  Absolutely, amazing colors splashed across the sky.  I stack the odds in my favor and try and run near sunset time and do the loop with feet plodding toward the setting orb.  

I decided to break my usual route and run the loop in the opposite direction.  Mistake #1.  I had also meandered out of the casa later than normal.  Mistake #2.  I had done some 180's on the run and noticed a reasonable sunset developing behind me, but it did not appear that it was going to be worth pulling out a camera.  Unfortunately (or fortunately), my trusty monster Canon SLR does not accompany me on runs so I am winging 'photography on the run' with a point and shoot, a crappy cell phone cam or if the heavens line up, a GoPro.  

My loop spills me onto a rarely used dirt road/trail for the last half of the run.  As I took the final turn home, the sky quickly darkening, I now headed toward the fading sunset.  Still weak, as sunsets go.

Heading down the home stretch and Mistake #1 and #2 began to scream my name.  The colors before me, were now unbelievable, although I did not have a clear view of the southern sky.  I was now kicking up dust as fast as I could.  I made it home, just in time, to fire off a few shots with the Canon and darkness swept over the desert.

Lights, Camera.......and a Gravesite

Lights, Camera.....and a Gravesite

Camels have played such an important role in Arabian culture that there are over 160 words for 'camel' in the Arabic language.  In my part of the world, I am only aware of 1 word to describe an even toed ungulate bearing distinctive fatty deposits known as "humps: on its back.

As we rounded the first turn up Redington Pass Road, heading away from the lights and sounds of Tucson, Arizona Eric made reference to a possible camel sighting amid the cactus studded territory.  Sure enough, there stood a camel, in someone's yard.  

A great and a truly unique start to our little photo back road adventure.  I could have used a little movement from our humped friend, but will have to settle for a photo featuring his or her back quarters.  

Within the next couple of turns we encountered a gigantic rattle snake, a riveting golden sunset and a stunning backdrop opposite the fiery sky.  A panorama featuring our dirt road, weaving its way across the rolling landscape, set against a beautiful sky, lay before us.  The photographer side of us was in high gear.  Fortunately or unfortunately, the jeep was not in a higher gear as darkness settled in.

We had a late start so we knew that the lengthy journey from Tucson to San Manual and then to our home in Catalina would roll us into the late evening and a switch to photo's in the darkness.

Now shrouded in thick darkness, we pulled over to ‘experiment’ with our arsenal of camera’s, tripods, lenses, and a dose of creativity to blend it all together.  As Eric was setting up a tripod I explored our patch of Arizona back road.  Not much to explore, with a tiny headlight in hand, shooting a beam that was illuminating almost nothing, other than rocks and dirt within a few strides off of the dirt track.  I was rather surprised as my paltry beam resonated off of something that was not a rock or plant.   

About 30 feet down the hillside was a small cross, paying honor to Steven 1986-2010.  The chance of randomly finding a miniature cross, 30 feet down a hillside, in the dark, along a lengthy dirt road, is a little more than my mind can comprehend, so I won't kill any brain cells trying to wrap my mind around those odds.

A google session would lead me to a site called 'find a grave'.  Steven Everett Burrows was born in Fort Collins, Colorado and moved to Tucson when he was two.  He died in a rollover accident in Redington Pass.  It was noted that he was doing one of the things he loved best.

Steven Everett Burrows shrine/gravesite

Steven Everett Burrows - 1986-2010

A little light play near the gravesite