OH MY G O O D N E S S ~ G R A C I O U S !!!!!!!!!!!!! That is just soooooooooooooooooo F U N N Y !!!!!!!!!! Oh me.... AKUP that is so sweet of you to tell us that.... I was thinking while I was reading... I should tell you my cell phone number.. then you could call me when you are "LOST" and I could look up the "MAP QUEST" map and give you the ~~~~~~~~~~~~ D I R E C T I O N S ~~~~~~~ but.. as I was reading... I was think'n of me and my FREECYCLE>>> ADVENTURES>>> and My DH finally got me a New Van with the NAVIGATION SYSTEM... so I would quit getting ******* LOST ********** and getting home late to fix DINNER !!!!!!!!!!!!! But this.... TEXAS ~~~~~~~~~~~~ To CANADA story really Takes the C*A*K*E !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HEY............. I'm closer... up here in Illinois... maybe... if she still has the trays.// I could Dog Sled on up the rest of the way... pick up the Metal Trays.. for you... Then I Could tell DH I am D E L I V E R I N G the trays.. to You and ..... You & Ms SusieYellowRose of TEXAS and I could have our TEA PARTY.... Invite... MsDaisyDal down... across the Border..and everyone else... that wanted... ** Maybe Cait could catch a BIG BOAT and come on over ....(TeeHee) and have our selves... A *BIG* SHENDIG* at The SusieRose Wants.... Company PARTY !!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ha Ha won't Hubs.. just croak on that one..... Well... AKaup thank sooooooo much for sharing... It is a REALLY GOOD Story... and make the WORLD NEWS>>. not seem sooooooooooo Important! Ok I'm gonna stop.... cause.... I would want Kirkus.. & Carol... & Purple Moon... and Use2BCapeCodder... and Jeannespines & Bright &tooooomuchglass and GoldenPond & Luvs2Click and other LUVS Tennessetrash & counterprimrose and NM GIRL debby_md a n d lunaLenaFeliz & sunnycal & smickerdoodle & nanagramma and Kudzukween & princess Mimi & rmurry and katishooked & mzclaassic calamityj & desertrat.... leeveta & .............................................. ___________________________________________________________ * A * L * L ~ ~ ~ ~ Y A 'll come on over to SUSIEWANTSCOMPANY 's house !!! she and hubs are having a B I G ~~~~~~~~~~ HUGE ! ! ! Texas Hoedown !!!! YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA W !!!!!!!! rid'em little doggies !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! alert the T E X A S ~ ~ ~ RANGERS ! ! ! ! ! B ON THE L@@K OUT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! G A R D E N ~ ~ ~ JUNKERS might L@@K RUSTY>>.... but... we still got it go'N ~~~ ON !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sherry, The Mojave is considered a "high and dry" desert. The high because it is between 2,000'-5,000' in elevation. The dry because on average it only gets a little over 2" of rainfall per year. The low precipitation is because of the rain shadow effect of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, where falling moisture normally evaporates before it hits the ground. Hard to believe when the early or late monsoons are in and a thunderstorm floods the valley in mere minutes. It doesn't rain cats and dogs because they too head for cover when the sky opens up and literally dumps. It's common that 30 minutes later the water has soaked in and the surface is bone dry again. The Mojave is the most unique and diversified of our four deserts because it is nestled between a high plateau (cold) and a low (hot) desert. So it has habitats within it that run from one extreme to the other north to south and east to west. That is why it is anything but bleak, hosts more species of flora and fauna than any of the other deserts, and on the edges can be effected by non desert habitats. The canyon above starts low in the desert on the very edge of the true Mojave and the upper couple of miles of it runs into the lower foothills of the nearby high mountains that do get a snow base. Enough of a snow base to have a small year-round stream feed by those mountains. So along the stream it is very riparian habitat, and 20' away very desert habitat going up into high plateau desert habitat on the rim rock cliffs. IOW, a very diversified place with all habitats present except for the high riparian and arctic/alpine. So both plants and animals from the higher habitats can spread down into the true desert along the narrow stream corridor. That allows all species found in that greater part of the country to live and thrive in the same place. Not a well known place to Lepidopterists like Madera Canyon in SE AZ is, but it is truly a heaven for plant and bug diversity, and about the farthest north magnet for stray species migrating from as far away as Central America. The Las Vegas Valley, being 160 miles further down into the true Mojave doesn't share that diversity, except to a point on its NW edge where the Spring Mountains also create a drier but still riparian habitat. These mountains being well isolated and surrounded by the desert is what makes them unique. Being isolated from the gene pool, species have evolved on their own there into species that exist no where else on earth. The other areas around the valley are anything but bleak though, but the flora and fauna have had to adapt to and find their own niches to survive and flourish there. It may appear bleak to those who do not know how to find those niches, but it is far from it. BTW, there are many species that use cactus and succulents for their larval food plant. From utilizing the new growth, leaves, florens, or tunneling into the roots or stems. My son always loved going on Megathymus and Agathymus larva/pupa "digs", and we got a kick out of handing visiting newbie bug collectors a shovel instead of a net to go collect them. Larry Gene, Even though I have collected in many beautiful places around the world, I'd sure like to be able to go back to the Beartooth Plateau on the WY/MT border just one more time. Won't happen, but out of the hundreds/thousands of places I have been studying bugs, it is easily my favorite. It's a place every budding Lepidopterist should visit at last once in their lifetime, and although 11,000'-14,000' feet high, it can be easily accessed along Highway 212 even in a motor home. Seeing millions (literally) of dozens of arctic/alpine species of butterflies on the wing all at the same time is a sight few would ever forget, and there are species there that are not found anywhere else. Larry

I'm fairly new to this forum, but I must say, I'm going to miss EG too, reading this forum and checking in at EG's blog daily is better than any soap opera! Oops! I've just given away my age with what word useage. Thanks to all of you, tomorrow is "planting day", with this forum and Mel's old book, we built ours beds, mixed our soil, and planned out our plant placement. We have renamed the "Victory Garden" (from yesteryears to what we think speaks of the present times to "SURVIVAL GARDEN". We will take pictures and post the results, good or bad, it's the only way to learn! Mary

My husband and I just returned from a weekend getaway with just such a situation as you describe..."fully equipped" kitchen and with us in the mode of hanging out watching the sun set over the ocean rather than driving into town to eat etc. We do this twice a year, for a long weekend, and I've gotten quite expert. The accouterments of the "fully equipped" kitchen tend to change, so I always bring some basics. The important thing is to remember is kitchen items can play double roles in situations like this. A frypan can double as a lid for a large pot, a mixing bowl can serve as a serving dish or a soup tureen. Ziplock bags are your friends. And a roll of saran wrap and foil can save you in any number of problem situations. I find it helpful to write out a menu listing for all meals. Saturday breakfast, Saturday lunch, Saturday dinner...etc. Once this is accomplished, it is much easier to think about what special utensils or seasonings you might need to bring. The menu, once written, is not chiseled into stone by any means, but it gives you a framework for packing. When you visualize making any given meal, you will find yourself suddenly remembering that you would need this or that which you hadn't thought of. I have also found it a good idea to pack a few food items to cover, "just in case." Tins of smoked oysters, sardines, pate, Vienna sausages, crackers, a can or two of fruit, olives, pickles,some cheese, a few Top Ramens or Cup O'Noodles, cans of Campbell's soup, chili or pork and beans. Whatever quickie foods your family would eat without mutiny. These come in handy for the unexpected incident or the instance where the one whom everyone depends on to cook gets a bad headache or something.