How Green was my Valley

First, let me say this blog has reached a milestone. It's now received over 10,000 views since I started, back in November of 2014. I think that's kinda cool.

You'll see the title is How Green was my Valley. It's likely only those with the same Welsh heritage as mine will have any knowledge of that title. It was a somewhat infamous book, written back in 1939, by a man with a truly Welsh name, Richard Llewellyn. Only Welsh people will be able to pronounce that last name, and there'll be a lot of spit involved! I say infamous as he professed to be Welsh and to be recounting his experiences, whereas in fact he was English with Welsh ancestry. For those who know the battle between the Welsh and the English, it's understandable to think an Englishman would want to be Welsh. I'll say no more, and move on to our latest travels.

The title is a lead-in to our latest house sit, which is in Green Valley, Arizona, USA, about an hour's drive south of our previous sit in Tucson. This is a new sit for us, and we arrived yesterday. We had a lovely evening meal with the homeowners, and met their two lovely girls, Molly and Maya.

Molly

How long will Agua Caliente Park have agua?

Sunday the weather was in the low 80s, so I thought a trip to a park with a pond would be enjoyable. Given that we're living in desert country, it's unusual to see any natural standing water. This park was rated on Tripadvisor as #26 of 249 things to do in Tucson, Arizona, and had great reviews, so off we went.

Let Yelp be your breakfast guide

On our recent journey from Phoenix to Tucson, Greg asked me to look for a place to stop for breakfast. From past experience I knew we were on a stretch of interstate where towns are few and far between. I turned to the Yelp app for information. I found good reviews for the Cattleman's Cafe, which was open for breakfast and brunch only.

Flexibility is important in house sitting

A common question for house sitters is what we do in the times between house sits. Another way it's sometimes asked is how we manage to make the sits flow from one to another without gaps. Even with conscientious planning, inevitably there will be gaps. We're coming to the end of our second year of house sitting, and we've only spent six nights in hotels between sits. We consider that a success.

Plants are flowering ahead of usual this year.
We've only seen these dormant, when they look dead.

Zeena, rest in peace, my sheep-loving friend

We're at our fourth sit at our current home in North Phoenix, Arizona. As I've mentioned before, we consider this couple good friends, and they consider us family. In some families that wouldn't be a compliment, but we get along well so I think all is OK.

We're at the home of those I fondly referred to as "The Three Amigos". 

Shiloh on the left, Jake on the right, Zeena below

Interested in learning to play the saw?

This past weekend Greg and I went to the Glendale Folk and Heritage Festival. Glendale is a city within the Greater Phoenix area, and is not too far from our current house sit in North Phoenix. More about the house sit in a later post.

One of the many groups of musicians & singers

A visit to Tucson Botanical Garden

On our last full day in Tucson, Arizona, we visited the Tucson Botanical Garden. Although we were living at a nearby home surrounded by indigenous plants, I also wanted to visit these gardens. I was intrigued by the website, which showed that Reader’s Digest named it "the BEST Secret Garden in America". I wasn't disappointed.

How much are you paying at the gas pumps?

Before I talk about gas prices, I'll share a pet sitting story with you.

As house sitters, we often send photos or text updates to the home/pet owners, to assure them all is OK. As this is the second time we've house sit for these owners, we've already proven ourselves and so can comfortably be a little more relaxed and playful. In the photos below, Tagine was in her sunny spot in the garage when Greg set her up for a photo shoot. This is what I sent to her owner.

"Greg tells me it's catnip tea and it'll make me sleepy"

A reason to visit Picacho, Arizona

Greg and I arrived in Phoenix, Arizona on March 8th, and stayed overnight with friends.

When we started house sitting, we hadn't expected to develop friendships with the owners. After all, they would be gone when we were there. However, that hasn't been the case. We've come to know many of the homeowners quite well, but this couple in Phoenix has become good friends. At least, I call them good friends - she calls us family!

She caught the biggest fish that trip

Time to say goodbye to our friends

Today was our last full day in Lo de Marcos for this trip, so we had to say goodbye to a few of our "friends". We brought six sheep with us, and acquired one here. The latest one is Pepe, in the middle at the back. Greg named him after the parakeet that lives nearby.

L to R - Zena, Pepe, Grumpy, with Savvy in front

Volunteering at the telesecundaria

In an earlier post I mentioned that Greg and I are volunteering at the local high school. Sadly, we're coming to the end of our time there, as Monday will be our last session before we return to Arizona on Tuesday.

In Mexico's education system, schooling is mandatory for primary and secondary (middle school) level only. What I didn't realize is that telesecundaria is the secondary level, not high school as I'd thought.

Students progress through three grades at this school. The telesecundaria concept of watching prerecorded lessons is not being followed for English. The students find the televised lessons too difficult and so work through the textbook instead. Unfortunately, the textbook is poorly designed, and poorly written by a native-Spanish person.

Zulema, the grade 3 teacher I coached

My husband, the pet-whisperer

Many who follow this blog will know that Greg and I are volunteer house and pet sitters. We are snowbirds, travelling to warmer locations to escape the cold Canadian winters.

This big chihuahua wanted nothing to do with us! 

A glorious blaze of colour

My husband, Greg, has been sick over the past few days. This year, it's not uncommon here for people to get a virus from mosquitos. Greg's been through a few symptoms that I'll just say have kept him close to home.

January 28, 2016