The Daily Topaz

Wag More, Bark Less.

2011-12-01T07:28:00.001-08:00

120111: Ahhh, September. My absolute favorite month! Well, so is October, November, December, January and February because we are closed and get to rest. But then again... so is March, April, May, June, July, and August because we are earning money. BUT, on the peaceful, nice-weather-o-meter, September is still the top month. Oh, and did I mention September is one of the few virtually "no kid" + "nice weather" months? Yes, I do like September very much....

Labor Day Weekend. One of the last hoorays for families to get out and vacation.

Just after LDW we take the fingers off the North Dock. One person can do it, two is better, but three gets the job done in about an hour! Since our LakeCam is giving us fits and uploading about 3 photos a day instead of the normal 5760, it actually captured a photo of me on the dock helping. And since it is 25 degrees this morning I cannot help but miss the days of short-wearing weather when I look at this photo.

The tip of the South Dock is just showing now that the water has dropped enough. That dock was still fairly loaded with boats throughout September. The first of October brought the close of fishing season for three months. This is the time that we get to stare at our beautiful lake practically devoid of any boats as what need is there for any boat to be out on the water because they can't fish and it's too cold to for watersports. It's actually kind of funny when we do hear a boat zooming by, breaking our peaceful serenity. We silently curse the nerve that a boater has to disturb our scenery! (And their intelligence level.) How dare they!

I'll have more photos to share soon. Right now we are getting settled back into a somewhat normal winter routine after being unexpectedly gone on yet more personal business. Priorities sometimes boils down to "feeding the hungriest mouth first." In the meanwhile until I get back on this blog, enjoy the holidays. Relax, enjoy your family and friends. And in the words of a sticker I recently acquired - which I think will become my 2012 motto - "Wag more, bark less."

Starting Over

2011-11-11T11:11:00.000-08:00

111111: Two mornings ago I was out in our backyard very early. I took notice that the sun had risen to a cloudless sky and was warming the morning air. Suddenly a series of screeches cut through the silence. I didn't need to seek the source, for I know that if I hear her she is always there perched on that dead pinion of the Eastern slope looking out over her territory at the lake. I turned to see her, knowing I would spy her in the distance. I was not disappointed. I left momentarily to retrieve my camera and binoculars and as I reentered the backyard she screeched again through the silence. So silent I swear I heard her call echo through the hills. In the focus of my binoculars I could see the sharpness in her eyes, the yellow of her beak, the sun glinting off the sheen of her feathers. Good morning, lovely. She was looking towards the rising sun. Probably for her next meal. I never tire of seeing the majestic beauty of our Bald Eagles. Never.

Rewind

2011-11-06T09:15:00.000-08:00

110611: Yes, I know. I've been missing in action. But for good reason. Sometimes blogs have to take a back seat to more important things like family, running a business and sleep. Mostly family. Our season is closed now for the winter and a little voice - a little nagging voice - has been bugging me to update my neglected blog. Truthfully, there are stories I want to share with you, but it is going to take me some more time to put my thoughts and feelings into words. However, I don't want to wait for that unknown time that the words will finally gel into a story. So, in the meanwhile, there is still this little blog in the background that needed a new photo beside another spectacular orange sunrise that I posted last on July 29th. Even I was getting sick of that photo!

The problem with all this is that I have barely picked up my camera in the last three months. I have pathetically too few photos to share and those aren't even really worthy of posting. But a thought came to me this morning in this extra hour we have (is anyone else glad that Daylight Savings Time is over???) that I have screen shots from our LakeCam. I have filtered through those and starting with August I have posted a few below! I have to say that the LakeCam takes pretty good photos. It's not your average over-the-counter camera and I'm glad we spent the extra money to provide a fairly accurate window into our world we call "Topaz Lake."

On a side note, yes, I'm fully aware that the LakeCam is not working properly right now. I tried for about two weeks in late summer to narrow down where the problem lies. Not surprisingly, and somewhat humorously, I seem to be caught in a bad cycle of "the problem is not on our end" as the camera manufacturer, the internet provider, the server, the FTP loader, etc. all apparently are working perfectly. (Insert sarcasm on that last sentence.) So, I hope that we can find a resolution to this sooner than later now that we have gone into hibernation.

The water level stayed unprecedentedly high through the peak season and well into August. It barely started to drop in mid August making us nervous about where it would end when we needed to take our docks out. As you scroll through the photos below, you can see the water level dropping slowly.

Sometimes I feel like our daily view of the sunrise gives me a chance to breath and be thankful for a new day.

A summer day at Topaz Lake. And a very typical day of water activity.

I don't believe I have ever caught a moonrise on the LakeCam. The nights are just as pretty as the days. the white specs you see on the photo are the camera exposure maxed out. I have had many people question if it is snowing when they view the camera at night!

6:15am. In the quiet hour.

You wouldn't know it by looking at it, but of all these photos that I'm posting today this one is my favorite. And it all has to do with the story behind the lady in the photo, playing with her dog one last time before they leave to go home.

I sometimes think that these scenes look like a painting.

The end of August is always a quiet time. The kids have gone back to school, and vacations have ended. Families usually take one last trip over Labor Day weekend to end their summer so we fill up again for a brief time before we welcome back our September fishermen.

I'll be going through the September LakeCam photos soon. In the meanwhile, I'm wishing you a beautiful day.

Goodbye July....

2011-07-29T07:15:00.000-07:00

072911: Well, July just zipped by like no body's business. Snuck in and out like a stealth burglar. *Blink* *Poof*....gone. Looking forward to August already....

The lake level remains ridiculously high. To the rock wall high. No beach kind of high. Yeah, lots of water..... will somebody tell those farmers in Smith Valley to start watering already? The lake level is so high that we find it hard to believe that in 7 weeks or so we will be pulling one of our docks out of the water. Which means that there has to be beach to do that! We always think about it every year when the water is this high, but Mother Nature's heat usually takes care of us and the lake level drops.

Keep an eye on the LakeCam to watch the lake level drop. (Don't fail us now, Mother Nature!)

This morning's sunrise....

Holy Moly, It's July Already!

2011-07-01T07:39:00.000-07:00

070111: Okay, who took the first half of 2011 and what did you do with it?? I want it back!

The format to blog posts have been changed by blogspot so now I can choose larger sizes of photos than before. So, I have and will continue to feature a favorite photo of mine in each post.

This photo was taken just after Memorial Weekend. Besides the obvious beauty (well, I think so) of the blue sunrise, look how far the water is down compared to the next photo.

Really the only way you can tell the difference in the water level is by looking at the hills in the background. In this photo they are smaller because I didn't zoom in with the camera as much as the last photo. The photo was taken on June 27th. Oh, and you will you look at that water! Glass!

The Topaz Polar Swim at dusk. I really didn't think that many would participate, but I was surprised again. The campers were very cautious and there were four different lifeguards standing by on seadoos, etc., to help anyone if necessary.

James, finished the race in style. One of the many winners!

This is not a pretty photo, but I've been getting many questions about "how high is the lake?" So I purposely took a photo to include the shoreline in relation to the rock wall (high water mark) to the deck off the back of our home. I think this photo answers that question! The photo was taken on June 27th and the water is even higher now.

The Federal Watermaster is My Buddy....

2011-06-24T17:16:00.000-07:00

062411: Ummm, yeah, there is a lot of water out there. This winter was very good to us. Again. And beginning in March of this year the Federal Watermaster started making room for the Spring run off. We have been on a bit of a roller coaster ride since we opened and put our docks in the water. Everyday seems like a guessing game....Will the water go up? Will the water go down? Now it is absolutely clear that the Spring run off has started and the water will continue to go up until the lake fills up - which should be in about 3-4 days from now. (It is a mere two feet vertical, or about 5,000 acre feet, from filling up.) How do I know all of this? Pure knowledge and experience.....on how to pick up the phone and ask the Federal Watermaster: "So, are we done with the roller coaster lake level and, by the way, when is the lake going fill up?"

Capturing Spring

2011-05-31T07:44:00.000-07:00

053111: I've been telling people that we are crazy busy because we are just that: crazy busy. Emphasis on the crazy part. But I will take crazy busy any day over not being the opposite: mundane slow. ??? What is the opposite of crazy busy? So, with that said, while we have been crazy busy in the background running our game we call a "RV Park," there has been many signs of fun happening and, despite recent weather, spring is actually springing.

I went out on the North dock to catch a glimpse of the snow covered Sweetwater Mountain range.

The impending signs of inclement weather in May.

I'm rather fond of stormy days. I like the contrast of dark and light.

I've been busy in the mornings lately and haven't seen or captured many sunrises. Though I did catch this sunrise of the North dock before the fingers were installed this year.

So there were these three pelicans, in full breeding bloom swimming along.... Only another pelican could find that plumage attractive, though I do like their hairy little heads.

Here's your photo Mike! This is a photo of just one the many beauties I have seen this year - the fish, not Mike... Well, to clarify, Mike is handsome and the fish is a beauty!

Some of our lake front sites awaiting Memorial Day customers. I like the contrast of the aligned trees to the askew picnic tables. No, actually that drives me a little nuts....

Four preening pelicans on a sunny day.

Evidence of one the two hand fulls of nice days in May at Topaz.

Behind the Beautiful Scenery

2011-05-10T18:53:00.000-07:00

051011: Our equipment doesn't have hearts or brains, otherwise they would know better than to breakdown a mere month before our summer season starts! Our little workhorse tractor, whom we dearly love, broke the other day. "Little Blue" was torn down to her petticoats to find the problem....

It takes three men to drain the fuel tank. One to hold the hose. One to hold the funnel. And one to tell them how to do it right.

David invited (read: begged) my dad, Ross, to join him in this dirty venture. David said it was necessary for Dad to be here because "he is a tractor encyclopedia."

You can tell my Dad has years of experience over David. He's wearing coveralls.

Seeeee? Dirty! I had to wash those clothes!

A tractor actually has four parts: The front, front, the front, the back, and the back, back.

Four hours later, the tractor in four pieces and probably 400 bolts laying around... this is the source of the problem. Do you know what this is? I have learned this broken piece is called a release lever. It resides on the clutch cover to the pressure plate. This little broken piece caused all this trouble! Trust me, a tractor will not "go" without a functional release lever.

As I took these photos, I couldn't help but notice my dad's hand. The years of grease and grime from all the hard work were once a way of life. Now retired, his hands have softened and weakened, but they are still large, still gentle, still needed more than he knows. Today the grease of an old tractor folded into the lines of my dad's hands and it was welcomed. Thanks, Dad. Thanks for everything.

Intermission

2011-04-06T17:16:00.000-07:00

040511: Fishing boats waiting for fishermen. Seagulls waiting for fish remains from fishermen.

A Lifetime of Learning

2011-04-04T19:01:00.000-07:00

040411:  You may start out reading this post and think, "What does this have to do with Topaz?" Bear with me, because it has everything to do with Topaz... And if you haven't read this post first, this one won't make much sense.

I'm a private person. You may not have surmised that fact since I write a blog where post photos and tell silly stories, and I run a very public business. But there are very few people that really know me on a personal level. Why is that you might wonder? Well, it really doesn't matter because I am who I am and, more importantly, I am okay with me. However, we found out something recently that has gotten me so twisted and turned inside out that I hardly know me lately. In continuation from my previous post, we found out that Tony Ennis has cancer. (Insert sound of bomb dropping here...)   It's been really sudden and really devastating for Tony, his family, well.... everyone.

Wait, you know what? I'm not going to be nicey, nicey about this, because cancer is not nice to anyone so why should I be nice about it? CANCER SUCKS! That's a rather juvenile approach, I know, but I don't care because it's the truth and I can't put it any more succinctly. There is nothing good about this insipid, horrible disease. It nearly ripped my own family to shreds twice when my own mother was fighting against it. And were it not for the glue we call "Dad" and the incredible well-of-patience that is he, I don't know what would have happened to our family. Don't get me wrong, we all pulled together during her treatment, but the after affects since her treatment have been just as difficult to live through, too. And time after time my dad has shown that he wears a big ol' teddy bear suit but underneath he has tiger blood running through his veins! (Charlie Whats-His-Name is nothing compared to my dad.)

Okay, enough of that... When we heard about Tony a ton of emotions came flooding forward for me.... the past. The Past. THE PAST. Now Tony? Not Tony!!! Why Tony?!? And why am I feeling this way now? I've known too many people to count that have had cancer. So why is Tony's diagnosis affecting me so deeply?  I walked around like a zombie for days and days trying to process my emotions so I could get a grip on what was happening and then one night I had a dream about literally fighting cancer. Literally.. like in a boxing ring.  It was Team Cancer vs. Tony and his team. And I woke up saying the words, "Team Tony." And then I started to understand. I was beginning to answer some of my questions. And from there an idea grew. And then I really started to think....

...to be continued...

It's a Sign...

2011-04-02T17:22:00.000-07:00

040211: In late 1962 my dad, who had joined the Los Angeles Fire Department earlier that year, cut his big toe off. Well, if truth be told, my mom did it. But not maliciously! It was an accident! She accidently ran over him with their boat in a lake after he fell waterskiing. (Does anyone remember what waterskiing is? I will have to write about that one day...) Shoot, I'm not really making my mom sound too good here, but the point of this story is about life changing events. You see, having just joined the fire department my dad was considered a "rookie" and all rookies are on "probation" for their first year. Now, my dad's toe is okay, but back then it was touch and go. He knew that if he lost his toe he would lose his job on the LAFD.

AND (this is where is gets interesting...) if he had lost his toe and, thereby, his job in 1962, he never ever would have met Tony Ennis who was also on the LAFD. And if he never met Tony Ennis, whose in-laws were building a little trailer park on a lake named Topaz, we never would have started coming to that little trailer park in 1967. And I wouldn't be where I am and who I am today.

In the past, we have laughed about how, if Dad had actually lost his toe, it would have changed our lives. However, I've known all along that my life and what it is today is not because of an almost-lost-toe but because of my dad meeting a man named Tony. That is the actual, seemingly ordinary, event that changed my life.

Now, of course, I realize that events in our lives are all intertwined and who is to say who, where and how caused what! But, I'm telling you confidently that if my dad had not met Tony our families would have never become friends. We would have never come to Topaz. My parents would have never bought the little trailer park years later when Tony's father-in-law passed away. I would have never moved up here to finish school and start my career. I would have never met my hubby through my career. And we wouldn't have bought the this little trailer park from my parents 11 years ago. It's as simple as that.

You see, I've had the opportunity over the last eleven years to tell this story often because I've been asked many times in some form or another, "How did you end up owning an RV Park?" Well, now you know.

Can you trace the pivotal points in your life? Sometimes "things" that seem so ordinary and normal can impact your family and future in ways that you would have never imagined. Think about it and you just might be surprised.

....to be continued....

My Megan

2011-03-22T19:41:00.000-07:00

032211: The Park is beginning to show signs of life in between snow storms. Winter has gone and Spring is apparently here. Well, according the calendar at least. My niece was born on the 21st of March and every year I think of her a lot as we transition from Winter to Spring. Because like Spring, she is beautiful and bright and all the colors of the rainbow. She is a photo in my heart.

Winter Sunrise

Winter Sunset. Yes, we really do have sunsets.

I like how the tree looks as if it is growing the clouds in the morning sky.

It's hard to believe our Topaz Lake can be so silvery white.

You are missing out on some spectacular sunrises.

Going fishing. The rocks in the lower right corner are below the point in #7. This gives you perspective on how high the water is right now.

As I was attaching the other photos in this post we had some visitors this evening. I stopped, stepped quietly outside, and took some photos of our mule deer for you.

Love this place.

Lucky

2011-03-15T19:45:00.000-07:00

031511: We've been busy puttering around in between fast moving storms. Our lives are dictated by weather these days and what projects we can get done on good weather days. Over the last two weeks since I posted last I have taken over 200 photos. Here are a few...

The lake was especially calm on this morning. The morning was hauntingly beautiful.

Three of my favorite photo subjects: Hubby, his cat and the dock.

The coots dot the lake as the day begins to glow in the East. Our sunrises are traveling further and further North as they heads towards the Vernal Equinox (3/20) and then onto the Summer Solstice (6/21.)

This beauty stopped by the other day and perched in tree about 30 feet from our house. I cautiously started out taking photos hoping to catch some close-ups. I wasn't disappointed as this Bald Eagle stayed put for about 30 minutes and it didn't care if I walked around, walked under, spoke outloud, coughed or laughed. I'm not 100% convinced that it is the same bird that I posted about (below.) But, none-the-less, it is juvenile Bald Eagle.

Not a bad way to start any day, eh?

Busy, Redefined

2011-03-02T08:31:00.000-08:00

030211: Well, two series of storms over five days total left 23 inches of snow behind. Now, we have been sitting around watching it melt while trying to stay busy otherwise. Below are some photos that I have taken over the past two weeks. Rain is expected over the next day and our white world will disappear before our eyes.

North Dock glowing in the morning sun.

I liked the light and dark of this scene.

David actually called me outside to take a photo of this fog creature rising from the lake. I liked the mirror image on the lake, too.

This one is my favorite of the group.

Icicles at sunset.

Sunrise in the fog.

Our resident Canada Geese, Honky and Honey.

I spied this young raptor yesterday hunting for breakfast. It's a 2-3 year old Bald Eagle as denoted by its' coloring. A Bald Eagle's wing span reaches 80" and it weighs just about 9.5#.

After the After, But Before the Next...

2011-02-18T15:32:00.000-08:00

021811: The second snow storm snuck in yesterday and quietly left 11 inches of snow upon us overnight. No snow drifts, just a nice gentle never ending snow! And just about a hour ago, it started again and it is supposed to snow all night long. Again. Again, Again....

I just took this photo before posting this blog. The lake had smoothed out and mirrored the hills across the lake. The patch of ice that had started out on our shoreline this morning had now moved off shore. It's gray, quiet and cold.

Yesterday afternoon, before the snow started again, I spied what I thought was a juvenile Bald Eagle. I was wrong! As he escaped my presence I could see that it was a Red Tailed Hawk.

11 inches of snow. Everywhere.

We'll just see what this scene looks like tomorrow...

Before and After

2011-02-17T08:13:00.000-08:00

021711:

Today we are going to take the dogs out to play in the after. We figured if we can't work in it we might as well play in it. More after is expected later today into tomorrow. Awesome.

The Not Funny Comedy Show

2011-02-16T09:56:00.000-08:00

021611:

A mere three weeks before we open. Five hours and four inches into a three day winter storm.

Snow wreaks havoc on our clean up and get ready schedule!

I am not amused.

If you are reading this anytime around 2/16/11 check out our LakeCam here.

Good Morning, February

2011-02-01T08:06:00.000-08:00

020111: Sometimes blue mornings are the best.

Photo taken 013011. As two fishermen trolled by David and I commented that 1) The guy standing up in the boat really shouldn't be standing up in a fishing boat, and 2) He looked like George Washington crossing the Delaware.
020111. Cloudy, cool day. And hungry birds.

On Snow Days We Call in Lazy

2011-01-30T07:49:00.000-08:00

013011: I woke up this morning to snow flurries and the storm has now progressed into heavier snow, but off and on. It is supposed to be like this all day long. Fortunately the weather forecasters nailed this short storm and we were prepared! Everything is tucked away until tomorrow when the warmer weather will begin to return.

I pulled out a few photos that we took on January 1st. David with Colt and Gunner. (Yes, named after David's love of all-things-gun.) Can you see the brave fishermen on the lake? Only on opening day of fishing will we see fishermen in such weather.

David's hand at photo taking. Not, bad, eh?

Gunner in his natural pose...waiting for the ball.

This morning. There was a peak through sunrise but it was snowing, too. Moments later the clouds fully engulfed the sunrise.

Carpe Diem

2011-01-19T08:05:00.000-08:00

011911: If you have ever thought about or have the chance to live at lake, do it. I highly recommend it. Years ago, when we took over the Park from my parents, my mom told me to take time to enjoy the view as often as possible. She regretted that during their tenure here that she had been too wrapped up in the work required to really appreciate the view out their back door. That advice has stuck with me all these years since. Maybe that is why I started the photo blog, to preserve the memories. And maybe that is why we installed the LakeCam, to share the daily view with you.

This last week has been a spectacular week of sunrises. And you can thank my mom for my want to photograph these for you. (And for me, too....)

011311, 6:52 am. The early morning clouds become a canvas for the pastels of pink and purple.

011311, 7:01 am. Nearly 10 minutes later the pastels transformed before my eyes to a fire in the sky.

011411, 6:50 am. This morning was a combination of all the previous morning's colors.

011511, 6:50 am. And on this morning, same colors, but bolder, sharper strokes.

011811, 5:53 am. At this early morning hour I caught the beginning of the sunrise. I thought the simplicity of the view was so pretty. There are about five visible ripples (rings) on the lake. Those are from fish jumping to catch their breakfast.

011811, 6:03 am. Same morning! You can see the thin layer of clouds to the far lower left of the photo. However, as the sunrise progressed it touched all the awaiting clouds in the sky. This may not look so spectacular in photo, but in person it was breathtaking. I actually called David out from his man cave to see this as the entire sky, as far as we could we could see in all directions, was aglow with orange puffy clouds. We were engulfed in the beauty of this morning's sunrise.

Early Preparation

2011-01-11T16:44:00.000-08:00

011111: We are just beginning to think about our upcoming season and all the start up preparation necessary to complete in the next few months. I seriously need to write down my "Need To Do" list before my head explodes with all these thoughts!

If you like useless fact about Topaz Lake's water level read section #1 below first. If not, skip to section #2:

1. I just checked the lake level and it is 10 vertical feet higher than it was one year ago on the same date. To clarify, vertical feet is synonymous with elevation feet, not shoreline feet, which is incomparable due to changes in the lake bed year to year. However, for a visual comparison sake, last year after Memorial Weekend I wrote about the rising lake level due to the melt off (you can read about that here) and right now - on 1/11/11 - the lake is as high as it was on 6/4/10. The runoff that supplies the lake occurs mostly late May, early June. Last year, the runoff was record breaking, (which I wrote about here) And a few other interesting facts, (that is, if you find this interesting to begin with!) the current 10 ft difference is equal to about 28% of the total lake storage. And the lake will be considered full or at its' maximum in another 11 ft which is equal to 39% of the lake storage. Yes, the last few feet is a huge part of the total water storage.

2. The lake is usually high for this time of the year. There is about 90 feet of beach left, which believe me is a lot when you have two docks that the water is creeping up under already. Though we fully expect the lake to fill this year, if that happens and how long it would stay full depends on when and how much the farmers use in the spring.

So, in closing, I just checked my calendar and we open 8 weeks from today! Yikes! If you have read any of my previous posts about time flying past us, by my calculations 8 weeks already occurred 3 days ago. I've barely begun the year and I'm late already!

Glow Lake

2011-01-09T17:37:00.000-08:00

010911: Yes, I take a lot of morning time photos. That is the time of day that I seem to have a moment for me to take photos at my will. And I believe the mornings at Topaz are truly the most beautiful time of the day. So my time constraints seem to work well this fact!

This morning I was getting ready for the day and we, again, had early morning fog. It was a "blah" view looking East, but as the sun rose, the fog lifted on the South end of the lake and the air began to glow only in that area. I was in our bedroom and saw the view at a sharp angle but could see the glow occurring with the tree in the foreground. I dashed for my camera (not ran nor sprinted, but dashed..) then carefully stepped out on our frozen deck for the shot. I didn't stay out long because the windchill was so cold! But I snapped a few photos and thought this was the best of them.

Mother Nature's Paint

2011-01-08T16:25:00.000-08:00

010811: I'm in the middle of a painting project right. Finally getting around to painting our extra bedroom after 10 years of living with the flower wallpaper we inherited from my parents' era in this house. No offense to my mom, but I'm not much of flower-wallpaper-kind-of-girl. I prefer solid colors, to which painting is a perfect solution for me. But I do like paint textures and have experimented with them in different rooms in our house. Not all textures have been successful, but fortunately I like to paint so I can always start over again.... Boy, if any of you are reading in between the lines here this sound a lot like digital photography!

My recent photos of the pogonip fog have had me thinking of nature's colors and textures. The fog, if you ever have a chance to see it in person, it is just breathtaking. It's like thousands upon millions of miniature icicles that cling to anything and everything. And when the sun warms the surrounding air to the right temperature the icicles release and you would swear that millions of diamonds are falling upon you as they sparkle in the air....

A closer view of the pogonip on some twigs on one of our younger Honey Locusts.

It looks snow covered, but it's sagebrush encased in pogonip fog. After the fog melts, it's brown winter coat will return.

Our newly trimmed trees back dropped by the diminishing pogonip fog.

This now has become one of my favorite photos. Fog frozen tree, icy blue winter sky, receding fog...

These are the neighboring trees to the tree in the preceding photo. Winter stopped by a few weeks ago and decided to stay awhile. Mother Nature has painted our world shades of blue and white and I like it.

Same Ol', Same Ol'.....Beautiful

2011-01-06T08:25:00.000-08:00

010611: I took about a 30 photos yesterday of the Pogonip fog that has occurred over the last few days. I need to spend some time choosing which photos to post here, so in the meanwhile here are a few photos from the days preceding...

I like this photo for several reasons: 1) It's sunny out. Cold, but sunny! 2) Fishermenwoples on the lake on opening day 3) The snow on our beach shows evidence of how our neighbors & us visit each other.... we walk!

This was a truly beautiful morning. I took a lot of photos this particular morning, but decided on this as I am always a fan of sun rays and golden-like snow. (Note: Golden snow, not yellow snow!)

Our sleeping Park casting their frozen shadows. Can you see the cat prints in the snow in the middle/bottom of the photo? We have one feral cat on the property that we are taking care of now.

A winter sunset. So quiet, so glossy.

Happy Thursday, y'all! Stay warm!

Children Playing

2011-01-02T09:35:00.000-08:00

010211: Well, as I mentioned before we awoke yesterday morning to a snowstorm. The first of the year... and we reset the weather forecasters prediction counter to zero. So for 2011, they are 0 for 1. But to be fair, snow was predicted in the upper elevations. It just dropped about 2000' lower than predicted. It was beautiful and quiet and apparently fun, too. And since my cousin, Mike, says he reads my blog....this one is for you!

My niece, Katie, and her friend, Karlie were trying to find a place to sled down the beach...

Their homemade cardboard sleds weren't successful so they found another use for them.

We are used to hearing children play and laugh outside in the summertime. It was nice to hear it in the winter, too.

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T08:10:00.000-08:00

010111: I really shouldn't be up and forming thoughts in my head right now since I only went to bed hours ago. We went out last night to celebrate the coming of the New Year with friends and family. We had a treacherous drive in the freezing weather.....600 feet down the road to their house! Great times at our old friends'/new neighbors' house! We got home near 1 am and hubby wanted to stay up and see the clock turn 1:11 on 1/1/11. I think my goofiness is rubbing off on him.

I awoke to a snow storm outside and quickly stepped out for a photo op of any fishermenwople on the lake. I came back in started developing a plan for my 2011 while thinking about the year 2010. These thoughts made me recall a story I had read about how the month of January got it's name. Let me share:

January is directly linked to Roman mythology, named after Janus, the god of the gates, doors, doorways, beginnings, endings and time; coming from the Latin word for door (ianua) – essentially meaning that January is the door to the year. His most prominent remnant in modern culture is his namesake, the month of January, which begins the new year. Most often he is depicted as having two heads, facing opposite directions; one head looks back at the last year while the other looks forward to the new, simultaneously into the future and the past.

How interesting that our modern day celebration of ringing in the New Year is linked to roman mythology?

Meanwhile, as I write, the snowstorm I awoke to has now turned into a S.N.O.W.S.T.O.R.M!!! And I know there are die hard people out there fishing, too. If it lightens up a little we might run the dogs out in the Park as they love the snow. Enjoy your day and Happy New Year!

Reflection

2010-12-31T14:46:00.000-08:00

123110: Do you remember where you were and what you were doing 10 years ago today? We were just beginning to pack for our new lives in Topaz Lake RV Park. The year 2001 was our first year here. Now on the eve of 2011 we are entering our 11th season. As always, we are hoping for a good year at the Park.

I took this photo yesterday afternoon after the storm blew through.

One lone pelican showed up the other day. He is a bit early for opening day on fishing.

Remnants of the snow/rain storm. The South dock is pulled up near the rock wall yet the water is creeping up under it. The water level right now is 9 feet vertically higher than it was on the same date one year ago. I *think* the lake will fill up this year!

I'm slipping a photo of our cat Rascal for you. He's a keeper because he's black and white.

We drove to town today and saw this juvenile Bald Eagle resting on a roadside telephone pole. We are always glad to see more Bald Eagles in the area.

Coming back from town we stopped to look at the lake. You can see our Park is along the shoreline near the bare cottonwoods. It was a beautiful, cold (24 degrees!) day out. Tomorrow the lake will be dotted with fishing boats on opening day.

This photo of the snowed covered mountains in the lake reflection is the last of 2010.

Enjoy and Happy New Year! May all your dreams come true and it be a prosperous year for us all.

Naughty and Nice

2010-12-19T21:27:00.000-08:00

121910: I wanted to do a quick post before the holidays. We've been busier than we probably want to this time of year, but up until recently the weather has been real nice for us to get some projects done. The weather has now turned really very bad, i.e., naughty! And after the holidays are over, we start gearing up for the next season. So here are a few photos over past few days.

A gaggle of Ross' Geese joined us recently for the day. We've had one lone Ross' Goose for awhile. Now all his friends caught up to him and they all went South for Christmas. Nice!

The "winter" sunrises are always beautiful. And cold. Nice!

I was in our bedroom getting ready for the day and heard an Eagle outside screeching to another. I finished dressing and popped outside to catch just one perched in a nearby tree. Nice!

That same day I was forced to run some errands and keep some appointments. The weather was really yucky ALL DAY LONG. I snapped this photo driving home. The snow is really beautiful, but driving in snow is not! Naughty!

Two new visitors; bad photo! This is a male and female Common Goldeneye. I haven't seen a Goldeneye since 2007 (yes, I keep track of odd sightings) so this was a treat. They're gone now along with the Ross' Geese. They probably are meeting up for the holidays somewhere warmer. Nice!

Have a wonderful, warm, safe and healthy holiday season everyone!

My Camera, My Eye

2010-12-05T16:05:00.000-08:00

120510: So a couple of mornings ago I stepped out to capture the sunrise glowing in the Eastern sky. Pretty, huh? It only took me 7 shots and 2 cameras to get the photo I wanted. *Only* Actually I take a lot of photos so 7 shots isn't a big deal, but the 2 camera part really irritated me!

For 25 years or so I used a Canon AE-1. For those who have become so technologically spoiled, myself included, that would be a FILM CAMERA. I will keep that camera forever. When digital cameras started showing up for consumers, my hubby insisted that I have one and he bought me a Kodak point & shoot camera that was a 4 megapixel (MP). This was only about 10 years ago, but on average cameras cost about $100 per megapixel. That Kodak broke and I got another Kodak. It broke, too and I got another Kodak - apparently I hadn't learned my lesson about Kodak, yet. I actually liked that camera very much and it was the camera that took most of the photos that customers see in my office. Until, it broke, too. I can't blame Kodak for quality, though....Shamu broke it when he splashed water on it. True story!

Side story~! Starting with the first digital camera, I purchased the extra insurance and for every camera that broke, and I returned, I upgraded each time only paying the upgrade difference until I was able to purchase my first SLR camera body, a Nikon D40X. I think Best Buy changed their return policy because of me, because as the price of cameras came down, the quality rose and I was able to purchase more expensive cameras each time.

Now SLRs have all the bells & whistles, but sometimes they can't beat a good ol' point and shoot pocket camera. My pocket camera is a Panasonic Lumix. I've had this camera for 4 years and put it through the wringer and it performs beautifully, i.e., it takes great photos! Especially on mornings that the lighting on my SLR won't cooperate!

The Lumix camera shot (above) - 1 photo....

The SLR. The expensive camera. The camera that I almost drop kicked off my balcony because it wasn't cooperating, but I didn't because I knew Best Buy wasn't going to take my camera back! I took 6 photos and gave up.

Sometimes more expensive doesn't mean better. You, too, can take, beautiful photos with practice on a point and shoot camera. I believe that the beauty of photograph is not in the colors or subject but how they are set up within the frame of the photo. A good eye is what makes a good photograph. Train your eye, learn your camera, and you can take good photos, too.

It's Bloomin' Cold Outside!!!

2010-11-29T07:25:00.000-08:00

112910: So I'm sitting here and all I can think about is the cold weather. Holy smokes, it's cold outside! Actually it's below freezing outside. And it's been this way for a week plus. Nighttime temperatures have been dipping down into single digits or the teens and yesterday was the first day it 'warmed up' to 32 degrees. Such temperatures are not uncommon in the high desert, just usually not in November.

The cottonwood in #7 looked so bitterly pretty after a recent snowfall. Along with all the other cottonwoods in the Park, it has been trimmed. Now it no longer droops into my photos.

The daily feeding of the bird menagerie. As you can see, David isn't bothered by the cold. He is still wearing a T-shirt and shorts! Amongst the daily water fowl visitors are the two Mallards (Mike & Squirt), Canada Geese, American Coots, Double-crested Cormorants (they stay on the far outer fringe of birds), Northern Shovelers, Common Loons, a pair of Gadwalls, and one lone Ross' Goose (a small white goose.) The other day we had a LARGE flock of Mallard drop in for a pit stop before they were on their way. We hoped a single hen or two would stay behind for Mike and Squirt, but alas they are still bachelors. AND we were treated to another visit by the Tundra Swans the same day. They arrived within two weeks of the anniversary of their visit last year (which you can read about HERE), but then again the cold weather arrived earlier this year, too.

Doesn't this just want to make you bundle up with a hot cup o' cocoa next to a fire?

Fall in Topaz...

2010-11-08T06:54:00.000-08:00

110810: When you live in an area where there is four seasons, you learn to always be aware of forthcoming weather. Especially during season 3 and season 4 - that would be Autumn & Winter! Several days ago the forecast called for wind and rain this week and if I was going to have any chance of capturing any photos of the fall colors and leaves on the ground I had better get out before the wind blew it all away.

The cottonwoods on the beach by #50.

Holy moly, look at the leaves! And the colors! And the happy doggies!

The 'front row' Red Oaks and Honey Locusts.

Colt playing 'King of the Picnic Tables.'

Red Oaks! If you look closely you can see some acorn caps still attached.

Acorns! The Red Oaks don't produce acorns every year, but it has been explained to me that when they do it is a sign of a good winter ahead. Apparently trees bare their 'fruit' in abundance when there is a good chance of reproducing or producing. Hmmm....how do they know?

Honey Locusts. Why honey? They certainly don't produce honey, so is it the color? Looks more like mustard or squash in color to me. Squash Locusts.

See the storm coming in? Our beautiful Cottonwoods and Squash Locusts.

Storm a-brewin'! See all those leaves?

The wind and rain has come and gone. We watched the leaves dance in the wind during the storm. Now they are all conveniently packed up against the rock walls where they will stay until we clean them up. David has been trying to convince me for years that we need a goat to get rid of all the leaves and weeds. I'm an animal lover but I do have my limits. However, after years of back breaking clean up I have relented. I have broke down and David now has a goat.

Photos and more on our new goat later.....

Bird Brain

2010-10-23T07:39:00.001-07:00

102310: We really do enjoy our wildlife here at the Park during the off season. It is part of our conscious thought and topic of frequent conversations. We have learned when to expect our returning visitors just as if they have a date circled on their calendar and on that date it says: "Topaz." The Canada Geese are part of returning regulars. They join us in the late summer, usually about mid-August and sometimes don't leave until late spring. Everyday they fly into our shoreline awaiting leftovers from the ducks' food that we provide. Actually, how it happens is we go to the shoreline to feed the two ducks, the geese see us & fly in, honking all the way. Usually there are two small, consistent groups that arrive and then a semi-battle/chase scene occurs to establish pecking order on the remaining food. And the groups are always even numbered, too. I'll try to get a video of them one morning arriving and honking and battling.

I was just about 20 feet from the shoreline. The male geese are pretty aggressive and watch us closely.

I thought I would provide a slightly better photo of Henry (you know, Henry the Heron.) He is just fascinated with our docks. (Maybe he thinks the poles on the docks are Henriettas?)

So obviously I've got birds on my brain this morning and there is a good reason why, too. Yesterday, we were very excited (really, really very excited) to see flying right above our house, two ADULT Bald Eagles, and one juvenile Bald Eagle. Momma, Poppa and baby! Earlier this year I wrote about how an adult Bald Eagle was found dead beneath it's nest. (Click here to read that story.) What I didn't mention in the story is our fear that we believed we had only one adult Bald Eagle and one juvenile remaining. And would this lead to an eventual demise of our Bald Eagle family? Well, whatever happened since then to produce what we saw yesterday has made us very happy. The three Eagles soared in circles above our house, screeching out to each other, gradually rising higher and higher on thermals until they were specks in the sky and disappeared...

We love our Eagles.

Necessary Fall

2010-10-22T06:45:00.000-07:00

102210: The fall weather is arriving. In between rainy days and cloudy days we see the sun bursting through. I wondered out the other day to take some photos of the trees. I wasn't trying to capture the fall colors starting to turn, but I was taking 'before' photos of our trees throughout the Park. We are having some extensive tree work done throughout the Park and I wanted to capture the 'before' so I could remember what they looked like when I capture the 'after.' Yes, I will post the 'before and after' photos at a later date. But, while I was out taking wide angle photos of the trees I couldn't help but notice the change in colors. I switched my purpose for a little while and took some photos of the fall colors. Unfortunately, the sun wasn't bursting through at that time, but you get the picture, right?

The Cottonwoods start turning colors in October, eventually dropping their leaves. This process doesn't stop until January. Yes, for three months straight our lives are all about leaves, but we have a new plan this year to tackle the kajillion leaves we must clean up. More on that in another post....

The Red Oaks are by far the prettiest during the fall.

The Cottonwoods on the South end of the Park are the first to turn, and the North end are the last.

Tree work. I was very emotional the first day they were here as they felled (cut down) several trees that day. The trees we are having removed are either diseased, crowding others or are impeding upon roads or parking. Practically speaking I know what has to be done, but emotionally I'm sad as some of these trees are very old and have been here since the Park was opened. And if you know me at all by now the history of the Park is very important to me, and some of these tree are part of that history. Fortunately, our tree service has been excellent in discussing each tree and every tree with us prior to pruning or felling. This has made the emotional factor a little easier to bear for me.

Moments Ago

2010-10-16T07:49:00.000-07:00

101610: Wow, I just wasted 15 minutes of my coffee buzz on trying to format this post because the Blog God decided it would be entertaining to underline everything I typed. And then it suddenly stopped... Does anyone else hate computers as much as I do?

Okey, dokey, let's get back to the blog now...

20 years ago today I started a new job as a manager that I stayed at for 10 1/2 years. I worked in an office with no windows, wore suits & heels, and everyday did my hair and makeup, and sometimes worked from before sunrise to after sunset never seeing the light of day. My how times have changed. I still have an office, but at least it has windows. We just finished our 10th season at the Park and I haven't worn a suit or heels since, and rarely do I wear makeup and my hairstyle is a ponytail. And I found out very quickly 10 years ago that my "office" was not only indoors, but outdoors, too. And more importantly, I wanted it that way. And after 10 years of being at this Park, I still want it that way more than ever. I work hard, but I enjoy what I do very much.

I'm sure you have said at some point in your life something like this: "Wow, time flies. That seems like yesterday." I remember the day I started my new job 20 years ago just like it was yesterday. And if 20 years ago was like yesterday what is 20 years from now? Tomorrow? Hmmm.....

Make the most of your life. Find something that fulfills you. Enjoy the present as it is a gift. (Yeah, I know that was kind of corny...)

Took this photo just moments ago. It gave me the idea for the blog title which lead into the blog topic. (Don't try to keep up with my brain. It's impossible! I can barely manage it at times!)

There are still some pelicans scattered around the lake. I am mesmerized by these big birds. They always make me think of pterodactyls.

If you look carefully you'll see that it is a double rainbow. I love rainbows over Topaz Lake.

When I told this customer who was heading out towards the Burning Man event that I was going to take a photo of his RV he said: "Far Out." Most of the customers before Burning Man are pretty tame and mellow. After? The RV's are really dusty, everyone needs a shower, and some are a little glassy eyed. If you have never heard of Burning Man, google it. And enjoy!

Henry. He comes back every fall. He's a Great Blue Heron. I named him Henry so that I could remember that he was Heron. Henry, the Heron. Because I was constantly being corrected by my spouse when I called him a Crane!

Wow. The rain came at the beginning of this month and stayed for 4 days. It poured! Thankfully it stopped before we started building an ark. And I was getting pretty tired of toweling off wet dogs.

We have closed our season for this year and have a lot of plans for this off season. We have five seemingly long months to accomplish a lot, but after ten seasons we know that in March we will look back and say: "Where'd the time go?"

Have a nice day, y'all. I really mean that.

Where the Heart Is

2010-08-20T19:30:00.000-07:00

082010: The sun setting on another day at Topaz Lake. Seemingly an average day, but not really.

Customers all day long preparing to go home. Packing, cleaning, squeezing in the last of fun, and saying goodbyes. The summer is winding down and as our friends check out, making new reservations for next year, they are already looking forward next year's vacation.

They are going home to where their heart is, but many are leaving a bit of their heart here.

It will wait for them until next time, until next year. And when they come back it will feel like coming home.

Until next year, folks......

Start to Finish

2010-07-25T22:16:00.000-07:00

072510: Today. It was a good day. Not only did I start out the day by wanting to and then finding the time to pick up my camera for a quick moment, but it was my birthday. I celebrated today.

The day started with the oncoming storm clouds that stayed all day long. Today I went and played bingo at the Lodge with the girls. (I lost!) Today I had a panick attack as I watched a midday storm unleash its' wind and rain upon our little Park, whilst I played bingo. Today I relaxed with family and friends. Laughed and drank (water, of course....) and ate dinner in the cool evening air. Visited more, drank more (okay, wine after dinner) and laughed more. Today we watched the day's storms turn into a glorious pink sunset accented by a beautiful bright rainbow.

Today I worked little, played a lot and enjoyed my time with family and friends. Today I took the day off (mostly) and it was a good day.

I enjoyed today, and now I'm more tired than when I work a full day. (I don't know how you vacationers here at the Park manage all this fun...) So now that today is nearly over I thank you all for a great birthday ~ including all the wishes, the hugs, the food, the wine and the laughs. From start to finish it was a perfect day.

It's All About the Families

2010-07-12T07:25:00.000-07:00

071210: Throughout each season here, there are many family reunions. My own family not excluded....

This week is our Stevens/Johnson/Gross/Purmalis family reunion. There are Grandmas, Grandpas, Moms & Dads, Brothers & Sisters, Uncles & Aunts, Cousins, 1st cousins, 2nd cousins & 3rd cousins, and more kids than I can think of...

I believe we have 59 people, 5 boats, & 14 sites all told.

Photo is evidence of the daily gathering on the boats at the dock.

If you tune into the LakeCam everyday this week between 2pm - 6pm you can watch the live version of "Stevens Nation."

God's Eye

2010-07-06T18:30:00.000-07:00

070610: I took this photo about a week ago. Maybe longer. Not sure as I've been so busy lately. None-the-less, I remember how pretty the darkened blue morning clouds were with the rising sun behind. The clouds were lined in slivers of gold as the rays of light reached towards the rippling waters below.

I wanted to share this with you. And just as I chose this photo to post, I noticed something new in the photo.

Can you see it? Upper left hand corner. A tiny little rainbow.

Sometimes we get caught up in the obvious splendor and overlook the minute beauty around us.

234 Years Ago

2010-07-04T07:44:00.000-07:00

070410: It is not uncommon to see the American flag flying somewhere in the Park. Numerous customers through the season will fly their flag, attaching the poles to their RV's in some manner.

I try to take the time to thank them and usually find that regardless if it is a holiday or not they fly the American flag when they set up their RV.

Today, there are flags flying throughout the Park. Independence Day is a special day for Americans. It's not an opportunity for a long summer weekend. It is a day set aside to remember why we free in this beautiful country of ours. It is the day that commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence written on July 4th, 1776 declaring independence from Great Britain. But we all should remember that everyday is independence day.

Whether you are vacationing, picnicking, or watching fireworks, enjoy today everyone. Have a safe holiday.

Somebody Call Webster, I've Got a New Word for Them!

2010-06-24T20:11:00.000-07:00

062410: Fishermen. Fisherwomen. Or if you want to be "PC": Fisherpeople.

Whatever. They like to fish. And I write this post as a dedication to all the fisher...men.wo.ple who have been beyond thrilled this last week with the fishing. The weather finally turned and the fishing turned with it.

You know what? The fishing as been so good that they have been complainin' because the fish have been practically jumping in their boats & they are back by 8:00 am. So they come back to camp, smoke/eat their fish and stare at each other for the rest of the day.

It's feast or famine in the fishing world. Hence, there is no pleasin' those fishermenwoples!

(Don't be jealous, Chris. There's always next year.... We miss you, too.)

Welcome Home, Summer

2010-06-22T07:41:00.000-07:00

062210: Well, summer is here finally. Probably. I think. I hope. The weather this year has been temperamental at best. In May the wind prevailed and the temperature never reached 80 degrees the entire month. That apparently was a record. It's June 22nd, folks, and today it going be the hottest day yet of 2010. That's just wacky!

With the Summer Solstice now past I hope we continue to see days like the last two days: A sunny day, with no wind, and ridiculously calm waters. This kind of weather translates to water fun, good fishing (GOOD FISHING!) and lots of laughter.

This is a view from the LakeCam taken only moments ago. The lake is practically full, but you can probably see that by the lack of beach! Many of the fishermen have already left for a day of "work." Later today you will see the kids playing in the water along with their moms floating nearby....

Where's your fishing pole? Where's your floaty? Where are you are? Don't you wish you were here now?

AnOtHeR SuNrIsE.......& yeah, it was windy

2010-06-18T05:14:00.000-07:00

061810: Our summer season starts tomorrow for us. And our routine will change from our spring preparation to the weekly turnover we will experience until nearly the end of August.

During this busy summer I'll try to remember that we have a lake right out our back door. (Literally out our back door right now!) Believe it or not there are days that I don't appreciate that fact. And I'll keep my camera handy. It's been awhile since I posted a sunrise. I'll work on capturing more during the summer.

Right Under Your Feet

2010-06-17T07:10:00.000-07:00

061710: I enjoy taking photos of the docks when they are being prepped to be moved. The dock level is sunk to it's lowest point so that it can be pulled further out of the water and then re leveled. Between the symmetry of the pipes, the reflection of the water and the sign laying on the dock adding the touch of interest for your eye, I find it all very pleasing.

For me, personally, I hold further regard for the docks as they hold a history of all the owners of the Park. Parts of the dock date back to the Thompson era. The docks as you see them were built by my dad during the Stevens era. He engineered the original concept and they have withstood the test of time. In our last ten years, we have rebuilt nearly everything but generally maintained the original concept.

Additionally, they are big, expensive, and require more maintenance year 'round then most people realize. We are diligent about the use of the docks in all aspects, but for good reason. We want to make sure they last for the next generation.

A Girl, A Grandma and Their Golf Car

2010-06-16T05:23:00.000-07:00

061410: If you are a girl and you drive around your golf car more than your car, shouldn't it be adorned with flowers? I think so.

About 8 years ago, my grandma downsized her home and moved to a retirement community. I was the lucky recipient of her golf car. Of course I paid for it, gladly. And I desparately wanted her golf car as I had fond memories of riding with her around her mobilehome park community. She would always say, "Come on... Let's go for a ride, Julie."

Not long after I acquired her little red "cart" she corrected me: "It's not a cart. A cart has three wheels. A car has four wheels. So it's a golf CAR." I don't even care if she is right or not. If grandma says it's a golf car, then it's a golf car.

This little beauty is a G-16, 36-volt Yamaha and I love it. Our other golf cars are faster, but they are not P.O.B.M.G. (Previously Owned by my.... well, you get the picture...)

Now a few years back, my beloved grandma passed away, but nearly everytime I jump on my golf car I think of her. And if you hear me say aloud, "Come on Grandma, let's go for a ride...." well, now you know why.

If the Shoe Fits, Describe It!

2010-06-14T18:50:00.000-07:00

061410: So, yeah, the Walker River, the West Walker River to be specific. It's a running. High. Wide. Fast. Heavy. I personally have never seen it running so swiftly. (Oops, there's another adjective!) We went on a little tour the other day to check it out.

Down we went to Topaz Lane and passed over the bridge. The river was at it's capacity, which was at floodstages. It was brown, mirky, & cold. (Adjective, adjective, adjective!) For some reason there were MANY cliff swallows flying around. Funny, since there weren't any nearby cliffs....

We ended up at the Day Use rest area about half way down the Walker River Canyon. Ummm, yeah, lots of water. I was kickin' myself because I forgot my video camera. I was amazed at the water flow and couldn't help but think of all the other times I had seen the river look like nothing more than a large babblin' brook. Check out this photo for a comparison: Click here!

On the way back to the Park we stop near high point as I wanted to capture the river inlet to the lake. Yes, I agree. Wow! And muddy, too. Yuck.

Oh, and did I mention that we stopped to coo at the little bebe goatlets on Topaz Lane? Well, David cooed, I took photos. Okay, I cooed a little, too. Will you look at those little bitty horns? So adorable. Yes, I know they are just baby goats, but "bebe goatlets" fits their adorableness. Yeah, I know, that's not a word either.

I know. Too many adjectives. But how can I describe the beauty around us without adjectives?

My Patience vs. Mother Nature

2010-06-11T06:22:00.000-07:00

061110:

Dear Mother Nature,

With all due respect to your awesome powers and the abundant waters that you have bestowed upon us, could you and your winter team pack your bags of winter weather and go back to your Northern home?

Seriously, we welcome you and your team ~specifically Mr. Stormy Clouds, Mr. Blustery Winds, Mr. & Mrs. Rain-Snow, and Mr. Jet Stream ~ in the winter time, but check your calendar, ma'am, it's spring! The word 'Spring' means that life is trying to spring up! Flowers are trying to spring, birds are trying to spring, trees are trying to spring, and, well, we're trying to get some work done! (And we know you are busy managing weather all over the world, so should you need proof to our current conditions I have enclosed a photo taken at 6:19 this morning.)

And further more, have you been keeping up on the economy? It's bad enough that consumers are tightening their belts, so must you give them yet another reason not to go on a vacation?

Please go wake up Mr. Sunshine, Mr. Calm Breezes and Mr. Pleasant Evenings. Enough of this fickle work effort. It's time to show up to work permanently for the season. Come this November, we will put out our welcome mat for you and your winter team once again.

Thank you in advance for your efforts and consideration to this dire situation.

Respectfully,

Julie & All the Customers & Fishermen at Topaz Lake RV Park

*******

Anyone out there have Mother Nature's address?

7 Feet in 7 Days

2010-06-07T06:37:00.000-07:00

060710: We've been a bit busy of late preparing for the incoming summer customers. In the meanwhile, our normal routine for June has been amped up a bit by the rising lake level. Mother Nature has turned on the faucet and left it running for the last week. The majority of water has been crusin' in the last three days and the lake level has been rising one inch per hour. That's ONE INCH VERTICALLY, people! Here's what that translates to visually....

At 6pm last evening, David raised the docks way out of the water! This is the North dock.

This morning at 6am, they are flat in the water.

A side view of the South dock at 6pm last evening.

And this morning at 6am.

Not since 2006 have the docks had to be raised twice a day due to the rising lake level. And the lake was full, full, full in 2006. The West Walker River, which is the inlet to the lake, is raging right now and it's maximum flow (called discharge, cubic feet per second) is second only to the flood of 1997. I'm going to try to get down to the river today to take photos.

The Gift

2010-06-03T19:50:00.000-07:00

060310:

I've watched them stare for hours as they scope the land.

I've seen them soar the skies for their next meal.

I've listened to them call to each other and it has sent chills down my spine.

I've smiled as they have taught their young to hunt the waters.

I've marveled at their patience.
I've been in awe of their fierceness.

I've stared into the eyes of one and felt I had been given a gift rarely given.

I've been amazed by their beauty and grace, and it never gets old.

The Bald Eagle is a majestic bird. It is our national bird. It is a protected bird under the Migratory Bird Treaty of 1918. It owns the land, the air and waters of Topaz.

I've watched these birds up close every winter. They have captured my attention, been the subject of my photos, and even after 10 years I am thrilled when I spy one in the skies above.

Today, I learned that one of the adult Bald Eagles was found dead beneath it's nest near the lake. Because of their status, there will be an investigation to determine it's cause of death. I pray that it was natural. Because I do not want to feel the anger I will feel should I learn otherwise.

Today, I mourned the loss of a skyward friend.

Science & Nature, (& a smidge of sarcasm)

2010-06-02T11:09:00.000-07:00

060210:

Question: "Is the lake up?" or "Is the lake coming up?" or "Will the lake be full this year?"

Answer: "Yes", "Yes", & "I'm pretty sure it will be."

This a graph of the water level at Topaz Lake for the past week. The downward trend was the result of the cooling off period we experienced before Memorial weekend. On May 29th & 30th the weather turned warmer and as a result on May 31st the lake leveled off and started coming up yesterday. And since last night the rate of storage has increased more than compared to yesterday. If the warm weather continues as predicted the lake level will continue to rise until such time that it is full. This should occur sometime between the 3rd week of June and the 1st of July.

It's all very scientific, yet can be very unpredictable at times. And, just when we think we got the pattern dialed in, mother nature will throw a monkey wrench into the pattern. Why do we care enough to pay so much attention to all this data? Well, in addition to predicting the placement of our docks in the water, it helps us answer questions about the lake level more accurately. Because after spending hours and hours studying all this data, formulating the pattern and predicting the future lake level, we can crunch all the scientific jargon into layman terms and simply say: "Yes, the lake is coming up."

Aren't you impressed?

Our Bountiful Joy

2010-05-18T12:58:00.001-07:00

051810: Tomatoes. Lettuce, peppers, homemade salsa, picante sauce & guacamole. More lemons than you can ever imagine. Loaves and loaves of hip-lovin' Schat's Bread. Wine, beer, champagne, soda, Saturday-water, apple martini's, BBQ'S (& BBQ'd food.) Strawberries, cherries, oranges & nectarines. Oh hell, all kinds of fresh fruit. Two boat trailers, fork lifts, buoys, and a catamaran. Homemade cakes & pies (from the blackberries in our own hills!) Parties, celebrations, dinner out, dinner in, meals-to-go, just a hair more than a few hangovers, compliments & gift certificates. Launching boats, cleaning sites, cleaning our bathrooms, watchful eyes & helping hands. Fish. Lots & lots of fish ~ canned & fillets. Tools, tool chests, rolls of electrical wire & propane bottles. Washable tattoos, T-shirts, hats, & polished stones. An old boat for a garden, orchids, daisies, irises, petunias, pansies, roses & just last week: hybrid geraniums. The other day: 12 glorious jars of an annual jam supply. Today: Candies (for moi!) & one dozen fresh brown eggs. Laughter, love, hugs, smiles, support, advice, encouragement, shoulders, sounding boards, security and truck loads of memories. Good stories, sad stories and the kind of stories that make you say, "Are you kidding me?"

And one day when I'm old n' gray I can sit back, smile and fondly remember all of these odd, delicious and generous gifts bestowed on us while we lived at Topaz Lake.

Springtime = Birdtime

2010-05-14T20:39:00.000-07:00

051410: I was out in the Park today and upon walking back to my office I heard a bird up in the trees by the office. I had never heard this bird before, so I stood there and looked for it amongst the tangled branches. When I finally spied the bird, I knew I was looking at a Bullock's Oriole. Usually these little beauties live on the South end of the Park and build little hanging nests that look like sacks of woven hair and fishing line. I have never seen them on the North end of the Park, let alone heard them. I'm posting a link here so you can hear their call. This little male was chasing his mate through the canopies.

He was flittin' around so much I was lucky to catch a few poses in focus. This one cracked me up as he was perched on two different branches.

He is a pretty little guy and soon he and his mate will bring more little Bullock's Orioles to our Park.

A Mom Story. Kinda.

2010-05-09T06:26:00.000-07:00

050910: Yesterday, a relative of one our customers came into say "Hi" and ask about guest charges. I know her but not well so we engaged in a little small talk for a few moments.

She was staying through the weekend and wanted to know if there were any guest charges. And she wanted me to know that Max came with her, too. I told her definitely there would be a guest charge for her and asked her how old Max was? She said he had just turned 4. It was then that I replied that guest charges apply at 5 years or older. She paused and then said "Okaaaay."

Later that day I was speaking to her mother-in-law (who I know much better.) The topic of her visiting family came up and I asked about Max. I hadn't seen this little child named Max, but her daughter-in-law had told me Max came with her. It was then I learned that Max was a dog, not the child I thought he was! I laughed out loud at the thought of my Abbott & Costello conversation with Max's mom. Later I ran into her and revealed my misunderstanding of Max's species. She laughed, too, admitting that she thought our age policy for dogs was a little strange, but she assumed I knew that Max was a dog because he had been here before. Admittedly, we can do a lot of strange things, but I have never considered charging only for dogs 5 years and older!

Re: Photo. I haven't posted a sunrise photo in quite awhile. I captured this one the other day. Sometime today, David & I are going to go out exploring and I plan to tote my camera along to catch the beauty of our surrounding areas. I wish all you ladies out there and beautiful Mother's Day.

Woman + Me = We

2010-05-07T07:42:00.000-07:00

050710: It's Friday and it's a gorgeous day outside. I'm having trouble concentrating because I want to be outside soaking up the sun. But I have work to do. Hey, I wonder if David will move my desk outside?

Re: photo. We put the North dock in the water the other day. Well, technically "we" didn't do it as hubby pointed out to me. But I tell him that I say "we" meant in the singular tense. Just like when he says "we" need to go grocery shopping or when are "we" going to do some laundry? You know what I mean?

Well, enough of that. There is more than enough to do keep busy all day long. So I think "we" will go finish the laundry and "we" will do some vacuuming. Then maybe "we" will take a little nap and then have him make we something something for dinner.

Work, Shmurk

2010-05-03T14:55:00.000-07:00

050310: The last few days have felt like spring. Finally. The warmth of the sun, the gentle breezes, the calm of the lake are beckoning all to come outside. It's hard to concentrate on the work to be done on days like this....

Sometime during the day yesterday the feeling of joy overcame me. It happens many times of the year/our season, but it only happens the "first" time once a year. Yesterday was that day. Much like today, the Park was alive with our fishermen and our fisherwomen. The social level and pure friendliness of all were abundant. Every one's joy was evident. My realization of this was because Mother Nature smacked me upside the head and told me to put my work down and look around. Topaz Lake and our Park makes so many people so happy. This, undoubtedly, would bring myself joy, too.

This photo is of our new neighbors. They are working hard on projects in their new home, but they find the time to enjoy the reason why they moved here. Then again, I don't think they had a choice when the lake beckoned to them, too. Or maybe Mother Nature smacked them, too? I'll have to ask them when I see them next.

Post Water Devil

2010-04-27T19:52:00.000-07:00

042710: It was a bit windy today. Okay, it was really, really windy today. Just before this photo, we saw a few water devils. Actually we don't know what they are called. As I write this, Dave and I are discussing what they might be called. Not quite a waterspout, not a water funnel (no such term) but it looked like a dirt devil over water. Hence, water devil.

I've posted two photos. The same photo actually but as I looked at the original I noticed how this color photo appeared so black and white. So I converted a copy of the photo to black and white. Can you discern the subtle difference?

The Meaning of Everyday

2010-04-24T06:43:00.000-07:00

042410: I think a month is long enough between posts....Don't you? Thanks for your patience. I've been getting needled by readers about The Daily Topaz not being so "daily." So I thought I would write a post about semantics.

Yes, I would love to post everyday. But my other job has been keeping me busy. And that other job requires daily attention by me because, after all, it is the one that pays the bills.

Originally when I started this blog I had planned to post everyday with a new photo and story, but I found my time spread a little too thin so I needed to back off. Over the last 10 months The Daily Topaz has been redefined. It is not necessarily in reference to a daily post by me but the daily occurrence of the beauty at Topaz Lake. Whether I take a photo everyday and write a story, this is secondary to the beauty that we & our customers experience here everyday. With that said, I will try to post more often.

Go ahead, people, give me an orange and I will give you back an apple.

Looking forward to writing about Spring (it is Spring, right?) and all that it brings. The above photo was captured by our LakeCam last week. As I sit here in the morning and do some computer work, I will often view our LakeCam to see how it views the morning sunrise. I liked this particular sunrise. It looks like the North Dock was directing the sunrise as the nearby cottonwood waits for the warmth of the day to bring her COTTONPODS to life.

Go ahead, people, give me a sunrise and I will give you story. Oh, and pray for freezing whether now so that those bloomin' cottonpods will go away....

One More "Day"

2010-03-14T07:20:00.000-07:00

031410: We have one more day until we officially open for the 2010 season. Which is great, 'cept for the fact that that day is only 23 hrs. long! When we are on countdown to opening, you could say that I'm not a big fan of the start of "Daylight Savings Time." This would fall under the higher category of "I'm not a big fan of anything that takes away from my sleep." People knocking on my door, barking dogs and the telephone ringing all at inappropriate hours also fall under this main category.

I know that there are other non-fans to the start of DLS out there, too. And they are easy to spot because they walk around for the first few days after saying things like: "I stayed up to watch the 11 o'clock new last night which is okay, because it was really 10 o'clock. But then I started watching Leno after and didn't fall asleep until after 12:30am, which is really 11:30am, and that is way past my bedtime." Or: "He wants me to meet him at 10am today. But we scheduled that appt. before DLS, so do I meet him at 10am or 11am?"

And while I'm at it, who decided that DLS should begin in March? That is just ridiculous. I'm going to start my own rule about DLS. Every morning DLS will end, and every afternoon, it will start again. That way I can sleep in and close my office early. I think I'm onto something here...

RE: Photo.... David & his cat, Ollie out for a morning walk. That cat follows us around, comes to us when we call him and he loves to walk out on the docks (whether in the water or not.) David was out early this day, inspecting the dock before we put it in the water.

Creatures of Habit

2010-03-13T07:59:00.000-08:00

031310: The other day my errands called me to town. My list in hand, I set off for the day to check it off. As I drove through the country side I realized my list loomed on the seat next to me but nature was now calling for my attention.

Today I watched the stormy clouds kiss the snow covered mountaintops. Mr. Sunshine peaked through now and then again, reminding me to be patient as he was returning soon to stay with Springtime in tow. I laughed at all the little lambs prancing around their stoic mothers. Not a care in the world was upon those little lambs. I saw the newborn calves huddled in fields. Only their heads visible above the foot high alfalfa which lent them cover. I wished all the newborns warmth against the incoming storm.

And Target was having a sale.

It was a good day.

Mule Days; Topaz Version

2010-01-27T07:38:00.000-08:00

012710: We had some visitors yesterday. They didn't have reservations but we let them stop for awhile because they just wanted to have lunch then be on their way. Turns out they wanted to lunch on our shrubbery. Do I have to make up yet another rule about not eating our shrubbery?

Nice pose, Buddy.

Mama following Baby. Rather than trudge through the snow, they all walked down the tractor trail we had created in the snow.

Do you hear something Buddy?

1st Baby photo

If they had an SUV, it would have decals showing a Papa deer, Mama deer, and three kid deers behind them.

When we start seeing the Mule Deer out in the open like this, we will see them more frequently everyday until the snow melts in the hills. These are just a few of our many winter visitors.

One Sunrise, Hold the Coffee

2010-01-19T07:21:00.000-08:00

011910: Snow. Lots and lots of snow. Yeah, snow! 'Cuz that means more water this summer!

So, this morning I get up around 5am - normal time - and I can see that we have a lot of snow, and I'm already thinking that we are going to have a spectacular sunrise due to the cloud formation on the horizon. I start making coffee to prep for hubby needing "fuel" to clear the driveway of the overnight snow. Then the tragedy of all tragedies occurs. Our brand new coffeemaker bites the dust. OMG, people! How AM I supposed to start my day without coffee? How are we supposed to get the driveway clear without coffee? How are we going to survive?????

We are trapped.

So I get online, find the manufacturer, call them, and speak with some darling young lady named Midge in CT. I'm sure she's used to talking to coffeeless people, but she seemed extra bubbly. Probably this means SHE had coffee already. Anyways, Midge is sending me a brand new coffeemaker (for free!) because their warranty says: "1) Don't argue with coffeeless customers. Just send them a new coffeemaker. Or 2) if the coffeemaker breaks within 1 year, send them a new one. Whichever comes first." And while I'm talking to Midge and she is literally saving us from extinction, the sunrise begins to peak. I quickly step outside and snap a few photos while holding the phone to my ear. Geeze, apparently I can still multi-task even without coffee.

I managed to take three crooked photos of the lake. Beautiful colors - crooked lake. Sorry. I blame the coffeemaker tragedy. I will be better tomorrow.

:::EDIT::: People, I just took a look at that photo again. Seriously, I'm not taking credit for that shot. I just pointed the camera and took the photo as the colors this morning were just unbelieveably awe inspiring. Thank you, God. Nice show! *clapping*

Happy 2010 Everyone!

2010-01-06T12:36:00.000-08:00

010610: Okay, folks...who stole my December, 'cuz I want it back!

The holiday season went by far too fast and now January, 2010 has arrived. January is month full of promises and hopes for the new year for many. For us, it also means the pending arrival of a new season and preparation for our awaiting customers. (And it also means lovely tasks such as doing our taxes! Fun times!)

We are also looking forward to a big vacation that we have had planned for some time now. We leave in February for 10 days and when we get back we will be ready to go, go, go for you all!

To play a little catch up....here are a few photos over the last 3 weeks:

Seriously, who can resist a sleeping dog with his tongue out?

010110! I so wanted to write a post on January 1st because of that date, but obviously didn't. I talk about "Where'd December go?".... How about: "Where'd the last decade go!!!?"

Just another winter sunrise on Topaz Lake. Can you tell that I never get tired of them?

So there were these three fishermen.....

I took down the Christmas decorations the other day and took a moment to decorate my cat, Max. That is Max's "I'm not amused" face.

Happy 2010 to everyone! May the new year bring you all the joy, happiness and fulfillment that you deserve!

Frrrrrrozen!

2009-12-10T07:26:00.000-08:00

121009: Sooooo.....it's been a bit cold out the last few days. The temperature is not as cold here at the lake because of the lake, so that's good. But we have fog every morning lasting well past noon. Right now it is 10 degrees Fahrenheit. Woohoo....double digits! It's 0 (zero!) in Minden just to show you the temperature difference.

Now I know there are many areas across this great land of ours that get much colder than us, but this cold snap here is unseasonably cold. About 25 degrees colder than normal. So what do we do when the weather turns so cold? Stay inside with cocoa sitting by a crackling fireplace? Sounds good, right? Well, we don't a fireplace and I ran out of milk for cocoa so I went to town to do some shopping.

As I drove to town - looking quite like the (red) stay puff marshmallow man in my big down jacket, fleece scarf, hat, gloves and ugg boots - I marveled at the varying temperature difference as I headed North to Carson City. Seriously, I marveled. Topaz Lake 13, Holbrook 9, Leviathan Mine Road (peek elevation) 21!, Ruehenstroff 7, Waterloo Lane 4, Minden 0, Carson Valley -4! and Carson City 3. It was a first for me to be out in such cold weather and thank God the sun was out otherwise it would have been miserable. As it was, it was only slightly miserable. And I apologized repeatedly to my Jeep as I subjected her to the elements. So I come home and promptly put her in the garage were she melted the road ice all over the floor.

Photos of my cat(s) staring out of the kitchen window. They snuck out the other day and stayed out for about 2 seconds and ran right back in the house. Spoiled cats.

He *thinks* he wants to go outside again.

Bookends.

Change of focus.

Motivational Juice

2009-12-09T07:23:00.000-08:00

120809: I've been walking around for awhile in a daze and saying things like, "I've lost my mojo." The good part about this is that I actually was aware that I lost my mojo and not floundering around wondering what the hexk was happening to me AND I also know why I lost my mojo. Those are some big hurdles to overcome if you want to ever want to find your mojo again.

Slowly but steadily my "bucket" is refilling and I'm getting the energy to tackle some winter projects. My mojo is returning. Yay for me! We have been closed for two months at this point in our off season and it's taken this long for my mojo to find it's way home.

Why all this talk? Well, frankly our personal life is put on hold during the peak season, which means things like appointments, trips, BLOGS, etc., are shelved until off season. Our main priority is running the Park. Afterall, this is our employment, source of income, and future. And during the off season, we take a break from the Park and catch up on our personal life. BUT, sometimes the two overlap when we have personal things to attend to during peak season. This equation will suck the mojo out of us everytime! That's what happened the later part of the season, but in recent weeks life has been returning to normal. (Of course, "normal" is a subjective term and worthy of it's own blog post on another day....)

Photos of recent winter weather. It is now 4 degrees out, foggy and very white outside. Hubby usually walks around lamenting about the snow and this morning was no exception. He asked me, "Don't you hate the snow?" Actually, I don't, so I said to him, "No, I don't hate the snow. Because the snow is the time of year that I get to enjoy only you, our home, our lakeside view and we're sitting here on a Wednesday morning in our sweats, not on our way to a job but enjoying our coffee together." His response, "I think you need to lay off the coffee, honey."

Before the snow.

The snow started over night and I awoke to these never-before-seen view... Those aren't white birds, but birds covered in white. The sleeping Canada Geese were covered in snow!

After the snow stopped. I like showing photos of the Park with snow as many customers are amazed to see the their summer vacation place with no leaves and covered in white.

The constant morning fog we've been experiencing for awhile now. And why? Well, meterologically speaking it involves terms such as condensation, radiation, saturation and dew point. My explanation?: Cold Air + Warm Water = Fog

Winter Day with a Cherry on Top!

2009-12-08T16:27:00.000-08:00

120809: It was foggy this morning. Again. I called my dad and he had blue skies, but we were socked in. Again. I waited patiently all morning for the fog to break so that I could take some pictures of the Park with snow. It's so pretty with snow on a sparkling blue morning. Every once in a while I would step outside to check the lighting. Nope, not yet. BUT, I could hear something on the lake. I knew it was birds, but didn't know what kind. "Kloo, kloo, kloo," they were calling. But until I could see them I couldn't identify the kind of bird calling out through the fog.

Then I took a nap. God help me - I love the winter because I get to take naps!

When I awoke, I walked into the kitchen passing by the open blinds of our diningroom. I was looking at the now clear lake and could not conceive what I was seeing. I called hubby to come see. We pulled our woren Sibley Bird Guide out and confirmed that the birds I had been hearing were Tundra Swans. And let me tell you folks, there weren't just a few swans. I don't know the correct term for a grouping of swans, so I'll just say there were Sssssssswwwwwwaaaaaannnns. We estimate that there were probably 500 plus swans resting out on the water in the middle of the lake, maybe more. We thoroughly enjoyed being bird geeks for the next hour. We photographed them, recorded them and hubby broke out a high powered spotting scope to see them up close.

It was such a treat. And lucky us, it happened right in our backyard.

Three incoming.

So many (look closely) my wide angle could not capture them in one frame.

Close up of the Tundra Swans. There are also some American Coot (Mud Hens) behind.

At one point there were so many flying overhead I couldn't take them all in.

Late afternoon exodus.

Maybe we will see them tomorrow?

For audio purposes only - turn up your volume.

Stevens Nation

2009-12-05T06:15:00.000-08:00

120509: In 1926, a man named William Stevens married Olive Jeffrey. They had three children and from those children our family exploded into a nation. Sadly, Grandpa Stevens, died young and never knew any of his children's spouses, his grand children, nor great grand children. I think he would be very proud of his expansive family and legacy his name created.

Several years back, someone in the family described our large family by coining the moniker "Stevens Nation." And what "Stevens Nation" truly describes is the strong ties, love and respect we all have for each other. Every year the family comes to our Park, as they have for many years before. 2009 was a probably a record breaker as I believe I counted 56 family members at one point. The majority of the family lives within blocks of each other in Southern California, but they all travel 400+ miles every year to come to Topaz Lake. It is a week filled with fun, laughs, family dinners and great memories.

Photos courtesy of my niece, Kimmie.

Relaxing in the morning sun.

One of many family dinners.

The floating Stevens Nation: Relaxing in the afternoon sun.

Our family is composed of 99.9% men.

Bunco night. Alot of laughs!

Yes, some water sports did take place. It's not all eating & drinking.

Part of the next generation. My nieces and nephew.

Walker Burger: A chance for the women's night off from cooking!

I'm Going to Buy a Foghorn Soon if THIS Keeps Up!

2009-12-04T07:19:00.000-08:00

120409: Woke up this morning and it was the first day I could see the lake in the morning in quite a few days. The cold nights and warmer lake water has been socking us in with freezing fog until noon somedays. Just a few miles up the highway and above the lake the sun is shining on a bright day. The freezing fog, also known as pogonip fog, clings to everything with growing ice crystals. Very pretty, but very cold!

Sitting at my desk in the house looking out my kitchen window. Nothing but fog!

Pogonip fog clings to everything. Very pretty, if fog can be pretty.

Topaz Lake covered in fog. The temperature difference is about 10 degrees higher just a few miles up the road. 30 degrees at the Park, 40 degrees from this vantage point.

This morning's sunrise. Very little fog over the lake initially, but as I sit here the fog is creeping up into the Park. I can't see the lake right now.

Celebrate Life

2009-12-02T06:57:00.000-08:00

120209: There is rarely a bad day here at Topaz Lake RV Park. Even during the fire in July, 2002, I don't think many thought that was a bad day. Memorable, yes. Bad, no. And truly, Topaz is all about building great memories with your friends, family and children. And in the summer time it is all about the kids!

With that said, this past July, we planned a specific day of celebration for the children here at the Park. During the later part of July we found out that a daughter of a L.A. County Firefighter died after recently being diagnosed with cancer. Her name was Taylor and she was a young teenager and her life was undoubtedly far too short. The news of her death ripped through the Park, affecting our firefighter families deeply, many who knew Taylor's family and worked with her father.

I approached a family staying at the Park who knew Taylor and her family well. Together, Marie and I hatched a plan to celebrate the life of Taylor symbolically by celebrating the lives of the children at the Park. We decided to give as many children as possible the opportunity to ride in a hot air balloon. After very little effort our plan evolved into a Park event and it played out like this:

July 27th, the morning started early. Crack of dawn! Adults and children gathered to help launch the hot air balloon. You can see the flowers on the beach bought for Taylor.

The morning was surprisingly cool and the first riders dropped the flowers and petals on the lake in memory of Taylor. (Photo courtesy of Mike Linch.)

As Mike Linch said, "Rest in peace, sweet Taylor. You will be missed...." During the entire morning you couldn't help but notice the petals and flowers floating on the water.

Up, up and away. Each ride lasted about 10 minutes and rose over 500 feet above the lake.

The basket would slowly rise from the lake while raining water.

The rise above the waiting flotilla of boats.

Each boat carried waiting passengers. The volunteer dads/drivers, etc. were so very organized!

There were many happy faces on the children and adults that morning.

The next set of passengers moves in to meet the descending balloon.

We planned for six rides that morning, knowing we were limiting the number of children who could go. But we were blessed with a very cool summer morning allowing nine rides total. Every child, and then some, got to go on their first hot air balloon ride.

Back on the beach breaking down the balloon.

Every rider gets to help pack up the balloon.

Marie's son made bracelets and the children wore them in honor of Taylor that morning.

It's a tradition to initiate and toast first time hot air balloon riders.

After the ride, after the initiation ceremony and after a moving speech by Tom Stukey (L.A. Co. F.D.) to remember to celebrate the lives of your children everyday, some of the children gathered for one last photo. The large card, presented to Taylor's family later, was signed by all participants and reads, "In Memory of Taylor."

I must thank our longtime family friend, Gary Peterson, who is a hot air balloon pilot and owner of Rise to the Occasion. He was kind enough to come out on a moment's notice to help us in our day of celebration. Thank you, Gary! You were extraordinary!

All days are good at Topaz, rarely are they bad, and there are many great days to remember. This day was an exceptional day. Thank you to everyone who made it one of the best days for the children at Topaz.

Winding Up to Wind Down

2009-09-14T06:55:00.000-07:00

091409: I'm going to post early today, because there are many things happening today and I don't know entirely where the day will take me. I owe you, the reader, the customer, many photos from the summer and I'm still thinking about them, but for right now I'm going to put them aside. I'm going to concentrate on picking up my camera again and enjoy the thrillllll of the capture.

Yes, I said thrilllllll! I have always enjoyed, loved the art of photography and it is exciting to me to capture a scene from my viewpoint, that I now share with the world. I often take multiple photos of the same scene, but each one is just slightly different. And I know which photo is the best, too, when I've captured it. Often I say outloud, "That's the one." And even later when I'm reviewing all photos on my computer I can see that I was right and that one photo is the "one." Anyways, I digress ('cuz I need more coffee.)

So yesterday, we took the fingers off the North dock - she's winding down her seasonal commission. It was quite the laborious task for me since I chose the job of actually removing the fingers vs. driving "Big Blue." (I like driving "Little Blue" - but she's in the shop right now, stripped down to two tires, etc., having multiple, mid-life procedures done...) So today, after yesterday, I'm suffering from "single jack arm." I'm more of a "hammer" girl, so the single jack wore me out a little!

After we finished with the fingers, my dad came down for a visit and at some point we were in the office together. We listened to a few messages on the machine left earlier in the morning. We were quite amused to hear several messages from a friends/customers that were watching the finger-ectomy on our LakeCam! Sometime soon we will be taking the North dock out of the water. Wait until you see that - my job is to run around and save all the little crawdads!

I like that job even better than driving Little Blue!

A Preferred Preposition

2009-09-13T18:39:00.000-07:00

091309: Years ago, my mother watched me driving the tractor around doing the necessary things that a tractor & driver would do and she exclaimed, "You are not your mother's daughter!" Yes, it's true, kinda.

For many years I spent too many hours inside, in suits and in meetings. Now I relish living on a lake and being on a tractor or on my golf car and out of the city. Actually, if I think about it more, it's not that I'm not like you mom. I just prefer to be like this.

With a little soaps afterwards....

Heavy. Silence.

2009-09-11T06:38:00.000-07:00

091109: Life is beginning to return to normal. Yet, "normal" is a relative term for each of us, isn't it? I can say that our lives have taken on a new definition of "normal." Life is what it is, never the same as before.(One of my favorite photos from this summer.)

Now is the time of year that we reflect on the recent past as well as look forward to the future months. The years and seasons are flying by, beginning to add up to the sum of many memories - all of which shape and define our normal lives. Essentially we never forget the past that has brought us to this place and time, and we look forward to each day. I hope you do, too.

It's the Principle

2009-09-03T07:17:00.001-07:00

090309: I've used alot of analogies to describe our own lifestyle here at Topaz Lake RV Park. But I like the "Gumby Principle" the best. I told someone in the Park this summer about the Gumby Principle and they laughed at the accuracy of it but yet practicality. Here it is: (Are you ready?) When life, even daily life or hourly life, seems to be pulling you in many directions you have to "be Gumby" aka be flexible, go with the flow. If you stiffen up, you end up fighting the flow and get much less accomplished. Here's a good example: Recently in the news it was reported that a skydiver fell 10,000 feet (videoing taping it on his helmet) when both of his parachutes failed to deploy properly. Now here's where the gumby principle came into play - he blacked out while falling, and landed on a roof. It was reported that had he been conscious when he hit the roof, he probably would have died as we naturally brace for impact by stiffening up. But since he was a "gumby" (my word) he survived!

The Gumby Principle helps me frequently survive our Topaz days. Of course, I like to be busy, and I thrive on handling multiple tasks. But I couldn't do it without Gumby.

It just occured to me that I might be showing my age a bit when I refer to Gumby. My version of Gumby refers to the flexibility of this clay figure, not his persona - though I can wreak havoc when I want to! And why in the world am I thinking about Gumby right now? Because I've got alot to do today to prep for the holiday weekend coming up, and I've got 17 minutes left before I open up this morning, and I've got to feed the dogs, get dressed and what else? Oh - I'll think of something....

Me and Gumby gotta go.

A Friend Indeed

2009-08-06T11:56:00.000-07:00

080609: The following photos are courteous of Mike Linch, photographer extraordinaire! Thanks Mike for allowing me to post your beautiful photos!

In the hills West of Topaz Lake there are trails all over for riding and hiking. Several trails will take adventurers to a peak overlooking Topaz Lake. Quite a view, don't you think?

I don't think this was a pose, but doesn't this look like an ad for riding gear?

L-R: Eric, Jesse, Jason, & Brandi.

It was a beautiful morning for Hot Air Balloon rides. There was a significant purpose behind the rides on this day, but I'll write about that & post more photos later.

The balloon rides were all about the kids. The first riders up were the Idol, Porter and Bashara children. You can see that the balloon was being towed out from where it launched on our beach to over the open water.Okay - this is why it is called an "Air Chair."
The talented Eric demonstrating his capabilities. But I think Mike called Eric a "show-off." ;-].

More "catch-up photos" coming in the next few days....

The Best Ride

2009-08-05T18:17:00.000-07:00

080509: WoW! It's been a long time since I've written and posted photos. It feels like a whole month since I've been in contact my little ol' blog... wait a second.... Whoops, time flies when you are having fun - it has been a month! I anticipated the physical/time challenge when the summer crowd arrived. I truly didn't anticipate the mental mush that my brain would turn into as we became so busy. Every creative brain cell I have transferred to another department sometime in July to keep up with our schedule. I would literally sit in front of my computer trying to write something and my creative brain cells had abandoned me! Ah well - mea culpa and my apologies. Especially to all the people who have been so overwhelmingly kind in your comments and support of our website and my blog. (Oh - and thank you, thank you, thank you!)

Okay -so what can I say at this point to play catch-up, but not bore you to death with the tedious details of our summer lives? Let me summarize:

B.U.S.Y! = June; July and now August. For us, June is like the climb on a roller coaster, peaking at the top and the initial drop where your stomach ends up in your throat. July is the screaming drop at 3.5 G's at the bottom with a few 360 loop-to-loops in the middle. And August is a few last twist and turns, jerking you to and fro with a quick stop at the end. The roller coaster rests for only a little while before taking off again for a quick ride through Labor Day Weekend. Of course, this is just us. We are the owners, therefore we are busy on our roller coaster. You, the vacationers, are having a great time on vacation!

Sometime in September our stomachs will drop back into place.

Here's a few photos from the last month: EnJoY!

Another spectacular June sunrise

If I see water like this in the morning I wonder why no one is out enjoying the glass?

I turned around to see the same sunrise lighting up the Park.

Wake up everyone!

No phones, no computers....this is the Topaz version of "Facebook."

The bright orange sunrise and pelican slowly cutting the water - I couldn't help myself. Have you all grown tired of my bird & sunrise photos?

The July 4th Vacationers! You gotta love their enthusiasm! Many thanks to the Oades family for displaying their love of Topaz Lake on the trip up/down Highway 395~!

I'm going to stop and take a break from this post and continue it tomorrow. I'm challenging myself to find and group the photos by events this last month. Until then....

In Any Tense

2009-07-02T22:42:00.000-07:00

070209:

A very special lady she was.

A most dear friend we had.

She will be missed sorely by us.

She will be missed by so so many.

Through my tears I shall not think of her as passed,

but shall remember the past times with her.

I will remember her laugh, her love,

her gentle spirit and the spark in her eyes.

May God bless you, Ida. I will always love you.

The Lake is Near; is High.

2009-06-27T19:50:00.000-07:00

062709: We have been lucky this year. The lake has continued to remain high into our summer season. How long it will do so remains to be seen.

In the meanwhile we will continue to enjoy it. And on the edge of a very hot week, the customers will enjoy having the water so close that you can feel the cool breeze across the water.

The Smiling Trooper

2009-06-25T20:04:00.000-07:00

062509: I threatened to take a photo of Chris even though he didn't want me to. Obviously I took it anyways. And by the smile on his face he didn't seem to mind.

We had just spent the last 1/2 hour on the docks working to tie down the boats tighter as Mother Nature had decided we had not been challenged enough lately. Today she threw a heavy Southeast wind through Antelope Valley causing rollers (not wakes, but big rollers!) at least 7 feet high to pound our docks. Okay, alright already - they weren't 7 feet high and I couldn't begin to guess how high the rollers were from peak to valley. But using the "Holy" exclamation scale, today's rollers reached the "Holy C%@p" exclamation level!

Chris & his brother-in-law, James, were gearing up to take James' boat out to moor it on a buoy. The rollers were giving James' boat an e-ticket ride while tied down to the dock. Not wanting to swim back from the mooring, James & my hubby came up with the idea that James & Chris would take with them a large float that they would board and attached to it a long rope by which my hubby, who remained on the dock, would reel them back to safety. That's the point at which I had to go get my camera! However, Mother Nature got bored and changed the wind direction and the men's stupendous plan never would be seen! Darn~! That would have been a much more interesting photo!

Though I am happy to show the smiling face of Chris, who come rain or shine (or wind) is always game to lend a helping hand.

1 Year Ago Today

2009-06-24T20:21:00.000-07:00

062409: Today we celebrated the annual "June BBQ." This is a Park function that exists solely because of the efforts of our great customers. The day's events include a horseshoe & cribbage tournament and ends with a feast of pork loins and potluck. It is a good day, a fun day and a tradition.

The June BBQ is held sometime in the 3rd week of June every year and this year we chose today as our day of celebration. It was a special day for it's tradition, but even more so we chose to celebrate the life of our friend, Murph. A man well-loved, well-respected and even more so, well-missed. A year ago today we mourned his passing during what would have been his annual two week vacation at Topaz Lake. Today we held our glasses high (a beer for you, Murph!) to celebrate his life and his family who returned to be with us again this year. (Any many years to come...)

The touching words in the remembrance of Murph left many with tears in their eyes. And during it all, quietly and lightly, the rain began to fall. When the words had been said and the resounding clapping of his friends concluded, the rain stopped as suddenly as it came.

We miss you, too, Murph. We miss you, too.

Summer Season Has Arrived

2009-06-20T20:07:00.000-07:00

062009: The Daily Topaz went on hiatus this last week while we were preparing for our summer crowd arrival. School is out and the families are heading out for vacations and we are the lucky recipients of many of those vacationers!

So to play a little catch-up here are a few photos from this last week:

Rain! Lots of rain this month. Rain clouds filled the sky everyday.

The sunrise.

The sunrise in his face!

After the arrivals...total number of watercraft 37!

No red boats allowed on this dock.

Full.

And now, if you don't mind, I'm going to bed.

It's Partly Sunny!

2009-06-12T19:51:00.000-07:00

061209: The June Gloom continues...

Threat of weather all around us accompanied by distant rumbling thunder.

Wondering if this weather will ever turn the corner towards our average sunny days?

Last year the lake was low, and fishing poor and the days were sunny. This year the lake is high, fishing good and days are partly cloudy.

We can't win them all!

A Break in the Weather

2009-06-11T19:49:00.000-07:00

061109: It was mostly sunny today. Such a nice change in the weather compared to the "June Gloom" we have experienced so far. Though no one seems to be complaining too much as the morning, a.k.a. "fishing time," has been calm enough for the fishermen to go to "work."

Besides the sunny day, we enjoyed the visit from some friends who stopped by on their way home. They left our Park on May 1st for another destination and dropping in today they were surprised to see the lake level had risen so high in a mere 6 weeks. We so enjoyed seeing you Phil & Nancy.

An Honest View

2009-06-10T18:34:00.000-07:00

061009: Everybody seems to be commenting on the numerous pelicans these days. And you might be getting tired of pelican photos, but soon this majestic birds will be gone, and I will miss their presence.

Besides I have a funny pelican story to tell you...

A new customer arrived at the Park in the last day, having never been here before. He walked from his RV towards the lake and when he realized that the water was so close, he exclaimed: "WOW!" I was standing near and pointed for him to look to his left, towards the crowd of pelicans and we heard and even more enthusiastic "WOOOOOW!"

Yes, I agree. The lake, the pelicans, the everything - they all bring out the "WOW" factor.

To Be

2009-06-09T18:36:00.000-07:00

060909: We are going to have a busy summer.

We are in high gear now preparing for the summer crowd.

We are cleaning up the Park.
We are getting so many phones calls.
We are getting just as many emails.
We are getting many drop ins looking for a place to vacation this summer.
We are looking forward to seeing you all.
We are looking forward to our annual Stevens Family Reunion at Topaz Lake.

(We are tired already, but we are thankful!)

Topaz Lake, near Seattle, WA

2009-06-08T20:31:00.000-07:00

060809: Rain again! (No complaints though, as it is all helping raise the lake level.) The day started sunny but quickly turned to clouds, thunder in the distance and steady rain. It was a day to spend inside.

At the end of the day I wandered downstairs to the garage and found hubby working on a gunsmith job (more on his talent another day...)

I kissed him and whispered the sweet nothing every husband loves to hear:

"Honey, Love of my life, I think the docks need to be raised...."

Leveling the Swallows

2009-06-07T21:00:00.000-07:00

060709: Since the barn swallows returned in mid April they have been busy building their little mud nests. Every night the pairs ~ there are about 10 now ~ hunker down for the night and the world becomes silent.

One girl and one boy have decided that the wind chime on our back porch is the perfect nighttime perch. These chimes are right outside our backdoor and every evening when I let the dogs out into the backyard those little birds remain like statues. The wind can be blowing and those chimes are swinging, but the swallows remain planted firmly.

Several weeks ago I got a step ladder out and straightened the chimes as the round wood on top was quite slanted. Ha! I just realized that just like the customers in their RVs, I leveled the swallows, too.

Another 1st

2009-06-06T20:20:00.001-07:00

060609: Our LakeCam is being viewed around the world. As I've mentioned in a previous post, I have a way of monitoring that people are viewing the website/LakeCam and their general proximity. It's quite fascinating to watch that people as far away as on the other side of the world think we are fascinating enough to watch....

I received this photo from the Fullers who spend a few days with us last week. Despite the days of rain and wind, they thoroughly enjoyed themselves. At one point they (& their dog, Buster Brown) posed in front of the LakeCam to wave hello to their friend who captured this photo on his computer. And, by the way, not a bad photo captured by the LakeCam!

I'm sure this will be one of many scenes I will see this year of waving or sign-holding people in front of our LakeCam. (Yes, that has already happened, too!)

1st Postcard

2009-06-05T06:32:00.000-07:00

060509: Wow - I'm up and at 'em early today. As I sit here answering emails, with an IV of coffee to wake me up, I'm already thinking about today's Daily Topaz. So I decided, why not post it now?

I mentioned in a previous Daily Topaz having one postcard from the Tommy & DeLila Thompson era. I have scanned it for all to see. It's condition is rather poor (it makes a photographer's heart ache), but I love it still the same. I'm really guessing here to say that this photo was taken in the early to mid 1970's. I base my guess on the size of the trees and the lone dock.

Last weekend I was checking out a longtime customer, Fritz. I teased him as he made his check out to "Topaz Trailer Park." Many longtime customer's still refer to us as "Topaz Trailer Park." Fritz' "excuse" was his wife usually checks out with me, but because of my teasing he asked, "When did you change the name of the Park?"

Uhhh, 1984, Fritz.

Path to Nowhere

2009-06-04T19:15:00.000-07:00

060409: I might have explained this in an earlier post, so forgive me if I'm repetitive. The "weeds" on the very South end of our beach, referred to by me as the "hayfield," start growing before the water level rises from the snow melt. As the water rises, it kills the weeds and when the water level begins to drops what is left is a nice clean beach. Any weeds left behind clearly indicate the high water mark for that year.

In 2008, the water level did not rise very high so consequently we had an abundant hayfield last year. A natural, clean path from the South end of the Park to the water's edge is created by the customers walking through the growing hayfield. We would get a chuckle out of watching someone disappear into the hayfield, maybe see their head bobbing occasionally and reappear down near the water.

This year the water is much higher and as it rises it has nearly covered the hayfield. The water will melt away last year's hayfield. However, as the photo shows, there is still a path - directly into the water! My intent was to photograph the trail, but the pelicans swam into the frame. In their rush to get further away from me they swam right up the path.

Chicken For Dinner

2009-06-03T19:56:00.000-07:00

060309: Sorry. Sorry for yet another pelican photo. I couldn't help it! The pelican population has suddenly exploded overnight after a recent drop off. I suspect we are seeing returning parents with their young. It's hard to tell the difference between an adult and juvenile pelican as they are the same size.

Today as I sat and photographed the pelicans swarming the fishermen at the fish cleaning station I marveled at their focus & the bravery in their proximity. These birds wanted fish! (And look at that symmetry!) Donna, wife of Denny (cleaning fish), exclaimed the same and stated that she stood guard over their stringer in the pond above fish cleaning station for fear that the pelicans would take their stringer. I didn't doubt her...

Later today, Mary came into my office to get some quarters to do some late unplanned laundry. She laughingly told me that the pesky pelicans had taken their stringer of 6 fish from the pond and had eaten all but one fish off the stringer. She found the stringer and the one lone fish in the water off the shoreline and went wading in after it. I'm sure it was quite a scene during & after the stringer burglary. If I was there, I would have had my camera. And made you suffer through more pelican photos.

The Last Bonfire

2009-06-02T20:31:00.000-07:00

A while back I mentioned I'd tell a story about David's first and only burn lesson from my fireman father. The photo doesn't match the story but is evidence of weed burn gone slightly awry. The scorched tree stands nearly 20 years later.

060209: On February 14th, 2002, we weren't officially opened yet, but had two customers staying with us. The first was an longtime customer who arrived early for his seasonal fishing at the lake. And the second was a husband who surprised his wife for her birthday (I think), by blindfolding her, packing up and bringing her to the Park.

That night, after creating a massive pile on the beach of leaves, tree cuttings, etc., that stood over 6 ft high and a diameter of about 20 ft, my dad decided to show hubby how to burn this pile the "fireman" way. Now I could go into alot of details here, but let me just summarize this and explain that a fireman doesn't flick a bic, light the pile and watch it burn. NOooooo. That wouldn't be any fun and besides it would take too long!

If I remember right, I believe the use of an accelerant, a high powered blower, and two tractors (you need a back-up) were required equipment. At one point the flames, fanned by my now maniacal hubby were so high, so bright, it lit up the BACK of the Park. Oh...did I mention it was nighttime? Despite the scream of the high powered blower and the roar of the inferno fire, I swear I could hear hubby's inner Mr. Hyde coming out: "BwaHaHaHaHa! Burn, baby, burn!!!"

Those customers never came in early again. We had burnt faces the morning after. And we haven't burned debris since. The fires in the area in the summer of 2002 completely changed the burn policy making it much more restrictive- tiny piles, burn during the day only and you had to have a water hose on hand, etc.

That's not any fun! For pete's sake, what self-respecting fireman would use a hose!?

The Color of Sun

2009-06-01T21:11:00.000-07:00

060109: CrAzY dAy! Need I say more? Pulling a photo from the archives.

Enjoy the color of the sun.

Wet, Really Wet

2009-05-31T20:31:00.000-07:00

053109: I don't know what the heck is up with the weather lately!

Years ago it was not uncommon to have a summer thunderstorm nearly every afternoon. The last few days have been reminiscent of those days. And it's been muggy! I'm accustomed to being dried out and cracked most of the time. The change to moist air feels like someone threw a wet blanket on me and I can't get rid of it!

Today, the black clouds rolled in early promising to provide us more rain. They did, but not before it hailed! Yes, today it hailed ~ big, huge pea-sized hail. Okay, it wasn't huge hail, but it hailed a lot and it hurt!

I always manage to be outside during downpours and today was no exception. David was in town getting building supplies while I was running around dropping awnings that were pooling water on top. I was out at one point checking the docks (by then the hail and rain downpour had stopped.) It was raining only lightly and about 20 pelicans were swimming in unison around the docks. The scene was so breathtaking I wish I had my camera. Though I did take this one photo later (after I dried off!)

Lake View

2009-05-30T15:17:00.001-07:00

053009: This photo is for my cousin Dave. Today he called to ask about the water level ~ Up? Down?

I'm standing in his site (#7), and this view is not wide angle, not telephoto, but just as you would see it if you stepped out of the door of your RV.

My vote is for "UP!"

Don't know how long "UP!" will last, but "UP!" is better than "Down!"

Exodus

2009-05-29T21:25:00.001-07:00

052909: I wanted to post this photo on Tuesday, but I forgot. I'm forgetful!

The fishermen patiently waited for all of the boaters & campers to go home. On Tuesday, promptly at dawn, they were waiting for the sun to rise to head out for a leisurely morning of fishing and calm waters.

"I Said RIGHT!"

2009-05-28T20:14:00.000-07:00

052809: So, today was like any other day. Phones, paperwork, departures, pathetically and clumsily attempting to catch a Western Grebe tangled in fishing line from our kayak, cleaning the restrooms and arrivals.

What? Don't you think that sounds like a normal Topaz day?

Yes, you read that right - we cleaned the restrooms because our favorite restroom user arrived today. We wanted to make sure they were sparkly clean for him.

What's that? You want to know about that Grebe? The one that we attempted to catch to free him of his entanglement? He refused to be caught despite our best efforts. And after 3 hours in a kayak - okay maybe 20 minutes - and getting soaking wet (I will choose the front of the kayak in the future) and repeatedly reminding my hubby that conversation carries far across calm waters - especially conversation including swear words - we decided to quit our rescue efforts.

It was a good decision as I didn't want to have to say in the future: "We got divorced because of a stupid Western Grebe."

At the end of the day, I had no new photos. I took this one Memorial Day Weekend.

Wild Waters

2009-05-27T19:02:00.001-07:00

052709: Hardly a fisherman was on the lake due to all the weekend boaters. I say "boaters" in general because it covers the wakeboards, surfers, seadoos, occasional skiier, etc. Waterskiing is not as big as it used to be "back in the day." Owning a boat now is for wakeboards, boogie boards, and surfing (behind the boat~?!!), and those big blow up thingys that multiple people can ride on at once. Everything is higher, bigger and faster.

Hand me the red flag ~ I'll be the observer, thank you very much. Oh, I'll be the photographer, too, because now the wipe-outs are higher, bigger and faster, too.

Zero to 60

2009-05-26T21:06:00.000-07:00

052609: Holy Cow. Though we know that Memorial Day Weekend is busy, it never fails to shock our senses. Our leisurely pace turns suddenly into a full sprint to keep up with the huge arrival of customers, new & old.

It was a good weekend. We have great customers that made it a good weekend.

Tomorrow we say goodbye to our friends, Frank & Ann Tolson and their little Yorky, Rusty. I took this photo of Rusty cruising around on the cat walk hubby built in his shop above his desk. The cats didn't quite know what to make of him and he didn't quite know what to make of the cat walk...

There Are Birds Everywhere!

2009-05-25T19:56:00.001-07:00

052509: A month ago on April 22nd I posted a photo of a House Finch's nest with five eggs nestled inside. Sadly, all of the eggs disappeared soon after, more than likely due to other birds in the area.

Fortunately, Mama House Finch (& Papa, too) didn't give into the raiding of their nest and she laid 5 more eggs and sat firmly on her nest starting about two weeks ago. I did my hatching calculations and guessed the nest would start hatching this weekend. Obviously the above photo is the result of the beginning the hatch. Since then I have taken a photo of all five baby birds hatched and the parents deligently caring for their brood.

Steeling Some Shuteye

2009-05-24T07:11:00.001-07:00

052409: While I was out and about in the Park today, someone was sleeping on the job!

Our little Aussie, Steel, likes to hop into my office chair and watch for my return. I often catch him sleeping like this and it's easy to do because (1) he likes to sleep & (2) he was born 100% deaf. We rescued him from a shelter and we couldn't be happier - and based on the way he wiggles his back end when he sees us, I think he feels the same way....

Lake Level

2009-05-24T06:43:00.000-07:00

052309: I wanted to post this photo on Friday, the day of downpour, but the downpour photos won out.

On Friday we were out and about cleaning up this and that around the Park, getting ready for our incoming customers for the holiday weekend.

Already the thunderclouds had started to develop. I took my camera with me to take photos from a different view in the Park. I liked how this scene is framed and it shows how far the water was come up. As the lake rises, the water kills off the weeds, a.k.a. the "hayfield" on the shoreline. You can easily tell the high water mark from the previous year as the hayfield only grows above it. In this photo, the water level this year has passed the water from last year has it is well into the hayfield. Did you get that?

All it really means is that the water higher this year than last year, and there is still more to come.

Downpour

2009-05-22T20:56:00.001-07:00

052209: The day started out warm, bright, hardly a cloud in the sky. It was warm and breezy all day long.

In the late afternoon the hot weather had created thunderstorms and we had a heavy (heavy!) but short lived rain shower (downpour - big, fat, and cold drops!)

Early evening, as the clouds dissipated, we ended our day wet, yet enjoying the sunset glow.

Memorial Day weekend falls on the cusp of bad to good weather, i.e., the unpredictable to predictable weather patterns. So we are never terribly surprised if it rains, or even snows. And we always hope for, and usually get, some kind of sun over the weekend.