I realized this morning there are more points I haven't addressed. There are patches of a type of grass here that grows very tall, perhaps 8 or 10 feet high. Now, with winter coming on that grass has blossomed with white mare's tails fluttering in the trades. The result is theere are now patches on the mountains that look like impossible patches of snow.

Mowing is done with weed whackers. I have seen a few lawn mowers and there is one huge field here on base that is mowed by a tractor and gang mower. But all the small patches get gangs of people with gas powered weed whackers, carefully swinging back and forth as they trim the uneven ground. And the workers don't strip down to accomodate the heat of the sun. Instead they are robed like Arabs with head gear to cover their whole head, plexiglas face plates to protect their faces, masks to keep them from breathing in the dust particles and heavy work aprons.

I hadn't realized how slick the coral road surfaces are until I left the house last night. I had the windows down in the truck and when I started out from the stop sign at the end of my road I could hear my rear wheels slipping on the pavement. Amazing.

I am fighting ants in my kitchen. They are coming in through the electrical outlet that feeds juice to my coffee maker. I cleaned up the counter and set out an ant bait to try and dissuade them from coming in. They are very tiny and they move very fast.