Finding Fulgurites

After going on the last fulgurite hunt, last April, I saw them everywhere and started a good-sized collection.

So we're doing it again!

Darlene Parris, one of the sisters who writes the Wonder Valley column in the Desert Trail, will show us fulgurites that she has collected and tell us all about them.

Meet at the Gazebo in the Wonder Valley Park, at the corner of Amboy and Blower Roads, next to the Old Fire Station, at 11 a.m., on Wednesday, November 7, 2018. There is a $2 suggested donation.

A fulgurite is formed when lightning hits wet sand. The sand melts and turns into a melded conglomeration of tiny rocks and sand. The average temperature at creation is 10,000 degrees. 

Then Darlene will take us walking in the nearby desert behind the park and show us how to FIND fulgurites. We won't be walking far -- maybe 20 feet, or so. Everyone will go home with at least one fulgurite.

You can't miss the 80' tall cell tower palm tree.

Bring a hat and water, a collection bag, a small digging implement (like a garden trowel), and anything else you need to be comfortable (folding chair, gloves, sunscreen, snack).

This event is produced and sponsored by Friends of Wonder Valley. A $2 suggested donation helps us continue creating these kinds of events, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Desert Trail Column, August 13, 2015

The USDA Food Distribution will take place at our Wonder Valley Community Center, 80526 ½ Amboy Road, from 11 to noon on Monday, August 17.

We send out Rainbows-of-Peridots-and-Gladioli to Chad Fairweather and to Cowboy, who celebrate their special days this week. Happy, happy birthday to both of you!

Other people celebrating birthdays this week include Danny Bonaduce (56), Antonio Fargas (69), Linda Ellerbee (71), Timothy Hutton (55), Robert Di Niro (72), Edward Norton (46), Peter Gallagher (60), Gerald McRaney (67), Robert Redford (78), Maureen O’Hara (95), Julie Newmar (82), Ben Affleck (43), Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Jr (56) and Kevin Tighe (71).

Karen’s Commentary:  My husband and I are grandparents to three wonderful grandkids Megan, Tony and Austin; two sweet little great-granddaughters Bailee and Ileigh; and now a whole bunch of grand-FISH! Our fishpond is suddenly loaded with lots of baby goldfish. It looks as though there are tiny babies, “kids” and “teenagers” in there. Our big goldfish (and they are BIG) look like huge monsters next to these little things. If they all survive, we are going to have to relocate some of them because they’re already sharing the pond with four frogs! Anyone with an outdoor pond need some goldfish?

Darlene’s Commentary:  Actually, this is Karen – I’m doing double-duty this week because Dar is recuperating from hip-replacement surgery. Ouch! Instead of writing the column, she is spending her time and energy today gritting her teeth and trying to outlast the pain. (Funny what some people will do just to get out of a little work, isn’t it?) She came through the surgery fine, but ended up back in the emergency room when they thought she had a blood clot. Thank goodness she didn’t, but they did find a couple minor problems that have now been taken care of. Hopefully, she’ll be feeling good enough to write her own commentary next week. In case you’d like to send a card, her address is 5025 Anza Avenue.

The Wonder Valley Book Program has books of every kind, movies and even audio cassettes to loan out. There is no charge, and they can be kept much longer than the regular library allows. Also, there are usually a lot of books stacked up on the “free table.” The Book Program is open at our community center on Mondays from 9 to noon. Call 760-367-9880 for more information.

Handy Hint:  Tired of brick-hard brown sugar? Store it in the freezer to keep it fresh and moist.

Thought for Today:  Golf is the perfect thing to do on Sunday because you always end up praying a lot.

Until next time . . . remember to take time to enjoy the WONDERs all around us.

Eden's Edge - Palms, next Saturday night, July 25

Eden's Edge, 9 Shorts On The Californian Desert

with artists Gerhard Treml and Leo Calice

One of these films feature Darlene Parris, who writes the weekly column for the Desert Trail!

 

High Desert Test Sites writes,

Please join us for a screening of Eden's Edge, 9 Shorts on the Californian Desert.  Vienna based artists Gerhard Treml and Leo Calice developed a series of short films together with an interdisciplinary team of researchers (Elisabeth Marko, Christina Linortner, Edith Schwarzl) to explore the narrative nature of landscape and how everyday stories and mythologies are enacted in them. 

Eden's Edge features one of Hollywood's most iconic landscapes, the Californian desert. Tightly connected to movies and myths relaying the American meta-narratives of the Wild West, the new frontier, and the land of opportunity, this particular landscape is reinterpreted by Treml and Calice's short films based on the life stories of its actual people. 

The visual settings follow a stringently maintained master-plan. We see bird eye-views of minimalistic scenes, meticulously arranged in gray desert sands, usually furnished with but a few props keeping the protagonists in far distance, however, conteracted by the their close accounts on desert life. 

Saturday, July 25, 2015, 8:00 pm
The Palms Restaurant and Saloon
83131 Amboy Road
Wonder Valley, CA

Desert Trail Column, July 16, 2015

The USDA Food Distribution will take place from 11 to noon at our Wonder Valley Community Center, 80526 ½ Amboy Road, on Monday, July 20.

We send out Rainbows-of-Rubies-and-Larkspur to Ronald Rush and to Jayden Root who both celebrate their special days this week. Happy birthday to you both!

Darlene’s Commentary:  What a beautiful and perfectly-timed break in our summer weather this last week, several days in the low 90’s and nights in the 70’s. I had a chance to “crutch” around my yard for a bit and so enjoyed it, as I’ve spent most of the last month indoors due to triple-digits-plus. I never realized that using crutches gives you a lot more than sore armpits and calluses on your hands – you get a free full upper body workout! My arms have more strength and look more toned than they have in a long time. Wow!

Karen’s Commentary:  Okay, here’s my medication story. I was prescribed an antibiotic and a cough syrup, and after one day, I was so hyper I felt like I’d taken a full bottle of caffeine tablets! After being wide awake all night with no thoughts of sleep, I knew I needed rest, so tried closing my eyes. I immediately saw beautiful shooting stars, kaleidoscopes, patterns, swirls, etc. When I’d open my eyes, all was normal, but when I’d close them, the show resumed. The pretty images soon gave way to faces that gradually became sinister, then scary, then gory. The pictures and scenes seemed to be on the inside of my eyelids. Hallucinations are listed as possible side effects on both medications, so I talked to a doctor and was told that I didn’t have to take the cough syrup unless I really needed it, but to keep taking the antibiotic. As it turned out, the cough syrup definitely proved to be the culprit. This is absolutely the freakiest thing I’ve ever had happen with any medication.

Reach Out Morongo Basin will provide free rides to people wishing to go to the 29 Palms Nutrition Site on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Pick up is at 10 am and drop-off at 2 pm, at The Palms, or they will even pick you up at your home. Call 760-361-1410 for further information.

Handy Hint:  Frozen grapes are a great summer treat and can be used in place of ice cubes in any drink, including wine or plain water.

Thought for Today:  All Chinese barcodes start with the number eight, because it is pronounced in Chinese the same way as the word for “prosperity” and considered to be a lucky number.

Until next time . . . remember to take time to enjoy the WONDERs all around us.