The ice cubes had almost melted completely by the time I was done with my morning prayers, and yet my lips did not fare much better. I will have to ask Carolyn where I could find the nearest pharmacy.
As usual, Carolyn had treated Gary and me to another gut-busting breakfast that neither one of us was supposed to have finished.
In the meantime, I asked Carolyn for directions to the nearest pharmacy. She said that there was CVS (You mean they have them there, too?!) just a bit of a way down the road past where I would turn off to get to Foster's.
So, I decided to leave a little bit early so that I could find that CVS and perhaps have a pharmacist suggest what I should do. I really did not relish the idea of having to go to the emergency room.
But first, I had to stop at the post office just down the road to mail my post cards and to get some stamps for my international post cards.
It was easy to mail the postcards, but the window was nowhere to be found. All I could see in the lobby was a rolled-down door where the window should have been. I asked the clerk, who was collecting the mail from the outside mail box and raising the flag on the pole, what time the window opened.
9 o'clock.
That's the same time my class starts.
Oh well, let's be off and find that CVS. I drive by the Rancho Mañana Road that I need to take to Foster's and keep on going. I pass the town hall and then the fire station. Soon, I'm out in the middle of nowhere with no CVS in sight.
Hmmm. I guess folks in Arizona have a different definition for "a little ways down the road."
Not sure how much farther I would have to travel to get to that blasted CVS, and not wanting to be late for class, I turn around and head to Foster's. I could always go there after class.
Today's class was on bit-map editing. There was SO much information being thrown at us today. And the pace increased even more after our lunch break. I think that by the time we done, everyone was dazed from information over-load.
Later that evening there was to be the big boot camp cook-out at Foster's. We could stick around and swim in his pool or return at 6 o'clock. Everyone opted to leave.
It was just as well. I high-tailed it back in the direction of CVS. And after driving through the middle of nowhere, I did indeed find it at an intersection with traffic lights.
I asked the pharmacist for her recommendations. She said that my affliction looked like one big massive cold sore. Well, I had cold sore before, and they never felt and behaved like this mess on my lips.
Anyhow, the pharmacist recommended an oral analgesic with 20% benzocain for the pain, a soft sun-blocking salve with no alcohol to keep my lips moist, and an over-the-counter pain-killer to bring down the swelling.
In the meantime, I noticed something in this CVS that I had never noticed in any other CVS. Booze! Yes, this CVS sold beer, wine, and hard liquor. I couldn't believe it. Anyhow, I bought a bottle of Chianti to bring to the party just so I could say that I bought booze at CVS.
But should I really be surprised that this CVS sold alcohol? After all, I discovered that in Arizona, one can buy alcohol at gas stations. What a concept ~ get gassed while you gas up.
Allowing gas stations to sell booze really doesn't seem to be the bright thing to do in a state that has serious problems with drunken driving. And had I stayed longer in Arizona, I suppose that I would have discovered even more stupid things to add to the list.
Well, I was done with CVS, and I actually had enough time to swing by the post office to get stamps for the post cards that are going to Canada, England, and New Zealand.
Now to go back and decompress from today's information over-load before returning to Foster's house.
I guess that by the time I got back to the B & B, I changed my plans about decompressing for awhile. Instead, I roped Gary into accompanying me for a walk up the road so that I could take a picture of that "JAVELINA X-ING" sign that I saw a couple of days ago.
Actually Gary was very nice and accommodating about indulging my crazy wish for a walk. And he was quite the gentleman making sure that I stay off to the side of the road and out of harm's way from the sporadic on-coming traffic. (I guess with a lot of the summer people back home taking up the entire road as they walked, that careless habit must have rubbed off a bit on me, too.)
Figuring that it was going to be a short walk to the javelina sign, I didn't think to put on my hiking boots. I figured the red cowboy boots that I brought with me should get some use and that they would be good enough for that short walk. Besides, this time I remembered to wear my boonie hat.
Wrong again.
That javelina sign was much farther than I thought. Judging from the time it took for us to get there, it must have been a mile and a half. And it was not an easy walk either.
There was no such thing as totally flat and shaded pavement here. While the incline was nowhere near as brutal as the ones on Saguaro Hill and the ruins, there was just enough of an incline in this hot and shade-free climate for me to feel a little bit more than an easy moderate level of exertion.
In order for us to get off the road, we found a rocky path that ran parallel to the road. However, it would have been nice if the path were as straight and level as the road, because all those little dips and curves must have certainly put on more mileage on my boots than if we were to continue walking on the road.
Finally after all that sweating and huffing and puffing (at least on my part, because a Texas boy like Gary is already used to this kind of climate), we finally reached our destination.
Finally after all that sweating and huffing and puffing (at least on my part, because a Texas boy like Gary is already used to this kind of climate), we finally reached our destination.Now was time to pause and take pictures. Even Gary took pictures because he had never seen a "JAVELINA X-ING" sign before, even though he has seen plenty of javelinas where he lives.
I got a kick out of the red reflector stuck on the javelina's nose. While I had seen plenty of such mischief on the "DEER X-ING" signs back home, I would have never expected such treatment of a "JAVELINA X-ING" sign.
After all, it makes sense with deer, seeing that everybody knows about Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. But what have we here? Ramirez the Red-Nosed Javelina? Doesn't make for the best of alliterations when we're using javelinas instead of reindeer.
Having accomplished our mission, it was now time to turn around and make that long, hot walk back to the B & B. While walking, I could not help but notice these coyote tracks in the dirt. They had to be coyote tracks because all the time I was there I never saw a dog, or cat, wandering around.
But is that all surprising in a land where it's hot and there's plenty of coyotes and rattlesnakes?
One of the things that I found out was that pets here have to be snake-proofed.
Now what in God's name is snake-proofing? I certainly didn't know, so I had to ask.
Snake-proofing takes place with aversive conditioning. A shock collar is put around a pet's neck. Then the animal is allowed to have its natural curiosity manifest while it's exposed to a live rattlesnake, which is kept in a safe and secure container.
Whenever the animal approaches the rattlesnake, it receives a shock. After a sufficient number of shocks, the animal associates these painful sensations with the sight, sound, and smell of a rattlesnake. (Apparently, rattlesnakes also have a very unique scent.)
And that's how to snake-proof your pet in a nutshell.
With the proliferation of such noxious creatures, it is easy to see why people want to protect their pets by keeping them indoors. There are snakes ready to strike at every cactus. And those sweet kitty cats and cute little dogs make delicious coyote canapés.
Heading back, there's Black Mountain way up the road, the same mountain that I nearly drove off the day before.
While walking back, Gary wanted to stop and take pictures of the desert houses. You can barely see them in this picture. Look at how they blend in with their environment. However, they would stick out like a sore thumb in New England, just like a New England farm house would stick out in the Arizona desert.
Here's a closer view of those same houses in the picture above. A lot of the houses in Arizona are the adobe style houses that have been common to the Native Americans in that area. But instead of being built from sun-dried bricks of sand, clay, straw, and dung, these modern day adobe homes are made from poured concrete.
Also, I saw many houses that were going up that had particle board for the walls. And while such a material generally doesn't work well in humid climates like New England (even though contractors still use it because it's much cheaper than plywood), it's ideal for a hot, dry desert climate like Arizona. And besides, the concrete creates a pretty good seal against any possible moisture.
Here's a dark orange adobe house off in the distance. Notice that it's a different color than the previous adobe houses. I'm not sure if the color is added into the cement mixture or painted on later.
Here's that same house a little more up close. I wonder what those white patches by the windows are. Repair work perhaps?
It's an impressive structure, and it looks Italianate in some ways. Not all adobe homes follow the lines of traditional Native American adobe homes. Tuscan style adobe homes are also popular in Arizona.
Hey! We're getting closer to the B & B. I can see the Spur Cross Bed and Breakfast and even Carolyn's car in its parking spot. Behind the B & B is the Desert Foothills Library, which is presently under construction. (Gee! Just like our public library back home!)
And who can resist these 3 amigos? I must say, that I have really been taken in by the saguaro cacti. In fact, they were a big reason why I was looking forward to my trip to Arizona. I wanted to see cacti as tall as trees.
Even Gary could not resist taking a picture of these 3 fellows. There are no saguaro cacti in El Paso, Texas.
Saguaro cacti are only located in the Sonoran Desert, which straddles the U.S.-Mexican border. In the U.S., the Sonoran Desert is located in the southwest corner of Arizona and in a very small portion in the southeast of California.
Even though it may look like a hot, dry, and barren bit of land, the Sonoran Desert sports quite the vast diversity of plant, animal, and insect life. We are truly fortunate to have this unique treasure right here in our back yard!
Anyhow, we made it back to the B & B in one piece. I realized the mistake that I made when I took off my cowboy boots with that one pair of socks. There, on the base of both big toes, were 2 huge water blisters. In fact, the one on the left broke and was oozing plasma.
Boy! Did it sure feel good to get my dogs out of those boots and into a pair of comfy, broken-in sandals.
And now, time for Foster's party.
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