Thursday Afternoon

So it has been quite some time since my last post. Between work, research, and other sundry things life simply got in the way. Oddly enough, not much of any real interest to report during my time away from the blog.

Except for one thing.

I found out this afternoon that I have been awareded a summer research grant for which I applied several weeks ago. It's not a tremenous amount of money at all, but will be sufficient to cover air fare, accomodations, and other incidentals during my time abroad. I'll be heading to Guatemala to do the biologist thing with a trip duration of anywhere between two weeks and a month. My in-country contacts are thinking a month minimum (which is fine by me), though I have certain obligations here that might get in the way. Thesis reseach won't be a problem as I can ensare some ungraduates to carry out the fielwork whilst I am away. Making the arrangements with work will be a bit more dicey, though I have sufficent leave to cover my absence. I'll broach the issue with my director tomorrow and see what happens. I suspect that a month away might be too traumatic for admin, so the most viable solution may be two trips of two to three weeks each, with the first trip being in early July and the second trip coming later in the summer.

Anyway..more on this later.

Puerco Pueblo

Below are shots taken in the Puerco Pueblo area that was built around 1250. The first shot is of the pueblo ruins (obviously). If you look closely at the second picture, you can see petroglyphs carved into the rock. These were created 600 to 800 years ago and are located near the pueblo.

Badlands at Blue Mesa

Further along the Petrified Forest park road, we came across the Blue Mesa stop. Pictured below are two shots of the badlands that surround the mesa. Completely otherworldly in appearance, this was one of my favorite stops in the park.

Painted Desert

On Thursday, April 20, we stopped at the Painted Desert/Petrified Forest for a few hours. The shot below is of the Painted Desert near the Tiponi Point stop along the trail.

Clinton Library

Last Tuesday we rolled into Little Rock, Arkansas to see the Clinton Presidential Library. Unfortunately, we arrived after they closed at 5pm, so the visit was limited to walking around the grounds and taking a few pictures.

Road Trip Recap

It was a little difficult returning to work today. This is the usual post-trip phenomenon and it will pass in a day or two once I get back to the routine. The first thing my staff commented on (before launching into questions) was just how brown I am now relative to before I left. I have Portugese ancestry, so such darkening is expected after a few days in the sunny Southwest.

Anyway, to recap the roadtrip:

• 
  It took us four days to travel from Norfolk to Phoenix. We left Norfolk shortly after noon on Monday and arrived at our destination around six in the evening on Thursday. The one day we really pushed it was Tuesday and that was to get though Tennessee as fast as we could. No particular reason for this other than not wanting to linger in Tenn. Otherwise we took our time and stopped here and there for breaks and a little sightseeing. I'll post later about specific sighseeing stops (including a few pics). The daily breakdown (for anyone interested in such trivial detail) is as follows:
  Monday: Norfolk to Bulls Gap, Tennessee
  Tuesday: to Fort Smith, Arkansas
  Wednesday: to Laguna, New Mexico
  Thursday: to Phoenix
• 
  One positive thing about Tennessee was they had the cleanest rest stops of any state through which we passed. There is no word to describe them other than immaculate. On the opposite end of the spectrum was Virginia. Rest stops here were just nasty. This is my home state; I am ashamed.
• 
  Texas was by far the most visually boring state through which we passed. Entertainment was limited to counting State Police cars parked out of approaching traffic's view behind overpasses or similiar obstructions. As we crossed the panhandle, we didn't have to endure Texas for very long. This was a good thing since counting police cars holds ones interest only for so long, no matter how many there were waiting in ambush.
• 
  We stopped at small "local" restaurants as often as we could along the way. Chain restaurants are largely the same wherever you go, so locally-owned places were selected to enhance the feel of the area. This turned out to be both good and bad. The absolute worst was the Incident of the Mouse Dropping in My Rice (MDIMR) at a small Mexican restaurant in extreme Southwest Virginia. I ordered one of the house specials and it turned out to be just that. Ick. On othe opposite end of the spectrum was this local place (I think it was called Dell's Restaurant) in Tucumcari, New Mexico. The atmosphere and food were great and I would certainly revisit were I ever again to find myself in Tucumari. I would also recommend Nick's Barbeque and Catfish just east of Little Rock. Sure, it's typical southern food and a little greasy as one would expect, but you really can't criticize a place that has fried okra on the menu.
• 
  New Mexico and Arizona were by far the most visually stunning states and as such were the settings for most of the pictures I took during the trip. Rocky terrain, butes, cactus, mountains, and all the pine trees around Flagstaff. Absolutely wonderful.
• 
  Though I spent only a few days in the Phoenix area (Chandler, Gilbert, Tempe, and Maricopa) I can honestly say it's a place I would love to live. It is charming in a Southwestern way (particularly the above cities just outside of Phoenix proper) and very beautiful in terms of geography and architecture. I will certainly have to spend some more time out there.

Anyway...I'm off to bed. Need to catch up on some much needed sleep. Will post some pics next time.

A Good Sign

As a relatively adventurous, explorer/naturalist sort of person, my hopes were raised by this promising sign, except for the fact I don't like snakes and am not too keen on the whole poisonous creature thing either. I saw a number of such signs in New Mexico and Arizona, but as it turned out, the signs were about as close to such beasts as I came during my time out there. A pity, really, as I had practiced my shrieking and hopping around techniques just for such an enounter. Ah well, maybe next time.

Reunited

I must commend U. S. Airways on their promised luggage delivery. I had given up hope around ten and headed on off to bed. A phone call a few minutes ago followed by a knock on my door and the wayward luggage is back into my possession. Sure, having it delivered at midnight is a bit later than I would like, but that's ok. At least it saves me a return trip to the airport tomorrow.

Back Home

Just a quick note to let everyone know that I arrived home safely this morning. As has been the pattern of the last few trips (3 out of the last 4 to be exact), I arrived without my luggae. Supposedly it was misplaced during the layover in Charlotte. Supposedly it should have arrived in Norfolk this afternoon. Supposedly, U.S. Airways will give me a call when it has arrived. Supposedly they are going to deliver it.

We shall see.

Anyway.... just a brief note. I'm pretty much wiped out from the overnight flight and need a lot of coffee to get myself going this afternoon. The trip was a lot of fun and there are a few interesting things to prattle on about, but that will have to wait until I'm a bit more caffeinated.

And They're Off!

Still have packing and a few errands to run before we head out this morning, so I though I'd hammer out a few quick lines while having my morning coffee. I anticipate that we'll leave no later than 11 or noon at the very latest, which will still put us well into Tennessee by tonight. Or that's the plan at least; nothing is set in stone. The route is mapped and we have plenty of time, so we'll just play it all by ear. Hopefully I'll have some stories and pictures to share when I get back next Monday. Some of them might actually be interesting.

Anyway.....everyone have a great week and I'll post again next Monday.