On the 1st, Jef continued weeding circle of puncture vines. Drove Kathy to MD at local clinic.

Chinchweeds doing well in our yard

Looking to SW from great curve on BS Rd

Looking west into Tubb Canyon

Chinchweed in back of Rickard's old house

Kathy waited in car as Jef snapped a few pix on way home

On the 2nd, drove Kathy to doctor in Rancho Mirage.

Chinchweed near elementary skool

Car near skool on Borrego Valley Rd

On the 3rd, Jef got results of blood tests - nothing terrible.

Texas rangers still blooming after the late summer rains

On the 4th, Jef did final puncture vine removal on W Star.

A couple puncture vines before Jef dug them out

After digging out

Returning home with bucket full of puncture vines

On the 5th, Jef did puncture vine removal on upper part of W Star and Lightning, as he missed a bunch on original attempt. Started removal on E Star.

Water district has a little leak as there is standing water and very healthy spurge

Kym got Kathy a b'day cake & champagne, so we had a little ceremony. Jef picked some flowers from backyard

On the 6th, Jef drove to SD & got teeth cleaned & crown that fell off in WA temporarily reattached, as new crown will be needed. Stopped at Big Rock house on way home and did some front yard trimming and clean-up(40 minutes worth). Got Kathy a Thai dinner for a belated b'day gift and did some shopping before returning home.

Big Rock house after clean up

Panorama of valley with yellowing band the chinchweed fields

Our WStar house is in this pic

On the 7th, drove Kathy to dentist in SD. He found she needed a tooth pulled & tooth puller was across the hall & was available, so got her tooth pulled (with not-enuff novocaine, so very painful). Drove back home, arriving after dark.

Chinchweed still around, but starting to fade

At the dentist

On the 8th, Jef did chores & Kathy took it easy all day.

Jef started weeding puncture vines on East Star - before pic

After doing some weeding

Trash getting pretty full

After weeding even more

On the 9th, Kathy saw her 1st patient in over 3 months.

Jef did more puncture vine weeding, finishing nearly all of West Star

On the 10th, mostly took it easy at home.

Jef took pic of sky after sunrise this morning

Pepper snuck out, as Jef didn't close front door

Cool sky as seen looking to the west

Daisy hunting Pepper

Daisy(R) chasing Pepper(L) in back yard

Vertical panorama including drained pool

Looking NW

Sunset this evening

On the 11th, drove Kathy to MD in Escondido. A few minutes prior to arriving, we got rear-ended by a hit & run driver. We stopped & checked out damage & then went to MD and soon after tried to get a police case report started. Got Thai food and shopped on the way home. Then went over to John's place to discuss up-coming Borrego Days parade plan(Kathy's Bloody Mary event).

Chinchweed even blooming on foothills(this is the Borrego Spur)

Damage to rear bumper

The black compact car hit us around the center of this pic

Talked Kathy out of calling 911, so we could see MD before they closed

Kathy & John - we brought rest of Kathy's b'day cake & some wine

Pepper being blessed by the "angel" Joseph

Joseph & John enjoyed playing with the puppies

Joseph took this pic

John took this pic

Jef's "repair" job of damage to bumper earlier this day

John & Joseph continued taking pix

Jef briefly got camera back & took this pic of John & Joseph

Joseph got camera back for these last 3 pix

On the 12th, Jef did chores all day, including weeding about 35# of puncture vine in upper E Star, while Kathy took it easy.

Jef had called water district a few days ago about a leak here, and apparently they fixed it!

Jef with wine-stained shirt from prior nite at John's...

...while walking puppies around circle

Kathy temporarily took doggies on Lightning spur, so Jef could take a pic

Daisy was sniffing this light thing on WStar. Jef looked and wondered what it was in the waning light... Turned out to be a baby rattler

On the 13th, failed to do much in town as pharmacy, post office, and bank were closed for indiginous (aka Columbus) day.

Puncture vine

Jef, temporarily, put this day's puncture vine haul in this container

Chinchweed fields by the Center Mall

Panorama near Center Mall - as we shopped at the Center Mall store

Back home - panorama of sky this afternoon

Possible sphynx moth caterpillar on this puncture vine

Nearly overflowing trash with puncture vines ready to be put in

On the 14th, had a trace of rain from remnants of storm passing thru.

Chinchweed flowers behind Sewanee with recreational burn barrel

Burning palm fronds

Chinchweed fields just west of Center Mall

Some rain in the mtns

Cool clouds near sunset

On the 15th, pretty much took it easy at home, but did do another puncture vine removal in our circle.

As trash was mostly full of puncture vines, Lupita put house trash on top and didn't close the lid, so the ravens terrorized the trash bags

Still a few clouds from storm that moved thru - this was trash day

Chinchweed flowers are a pale shadow of what they were a week or 2 prior

Sample puncture vine before loading it in this bin

On the 16th, pulled more puncture vines. John dropped off 16 super jumbo eggs(some with double yolks) and Jef made deviled eggs for following day.

Some puncture vines in upper EStar are super healthy and generating big burrs

On the 17th, did another round of removing puncture vines, completing EStar/WStar circle. All that remains is upper half of Lapped Circle spur.

On the 18th, got down to parade camp site and off-loaded deviled eggs and bloody mary making supplies. Helped Kathy make bloody marys thru the parade and hung out afterwards for another hour.

John had already set up the base camp

We were the first to arrive afterwards

The quiet before the parade

People arriving

These 4 planes flying in formation provided the only aerial part of the parade

Planes drew squiggles in the sky on this 3rd pass

Remnants of smoke plumes after the 4 flybys

Start of ground parade

Legion entry

This guy did loops while going down the parade route, all the while doing a wheely! What balance!!

Miss Borrego float

The new restaurant, Michaels, entry in parade

Day of the dead float

Ramona Waste entry

Borrego Space Force

Holtville was the only marching band

Sylvia & David on their palominos

Start of BS alumni entry

End of BS alumni entry

Pedestrian BS alumni

Zoey, the desert dog, on John's lap - we didn't bring out puppies

Frederick's entry

State park entry

Horse women from Julian entry

After parade, one of the teachers accompanies John & Joseph to go to rides in the circle

Hanging out at John's camp after the parade

Took pix of chinchweed flower fields by the hi skool - note the puncture vines in foreground

Panorama

Puncture vines are very healthy here

Jef went back into town later this afternoon to get some oriental food for Kathy's dinner

While sitting outside after Holley & Alvero arrived, noticed a bunch of smoke to the NW - by the time I got camera, it had faded to this

On the 19th, Holley made us some breakfast & we walked doggies around the circle before they left.

Got Holley & Alvaro to walk the dogs

Holley tried running Pepper, but Pepper wouldn't let her get very far ahead of us

On the 20th, Jef finished weeding the circle by harvesting 2 buckets of puncture vine on Lapped Circle spur. Then drove to Rancho Mirage by himself, shopped & got an imaging, but had to wait an hour before being seen there. Then drove home.

Took pix before sunrise to see if any comet was visible, but failed

Windmills blooming on East Star

After completed weeding on Lapped Circle

Panel came loose driving to Rancho Mirage, so re-taped it there

On the 21st, mostly took it easy at home. A little rain during the night.

Whenever I try to put on my shoes, puppies jump on me and try to "help"

Virga in the Santa Rosas caused this mini rainbow

Fall foliage panorama

Chinchweed nearly gone in our front yard

Took puppies on 2 mile walk late this afternoon

Somewhere under the rainbow...

Crepuscular rays near sunset

Tried and failed to see any comets - the problem is the comet sets while it is still too bright out

On the 22nd, mostly took it easy at home.

Just before sunrise - we had a tiny bit of rain prior nite