Bureaucrats in Washington DC dictated that national parks be closed. I can’t take my kayak into the lakes that are part of the Tonto National Forest.
I can’t hike the trails of the Superstition Wilderness that is part of Tonto. But somehow, Walmart is okay.
Today we hiked the green belt near Apache Junction. We had to get out of the house. Netflix and Amazon Prime are spotty, cutting out due to volume. They probably will not refund us for the time we were unable to use their services.
The green belt is an area that is closed to motorized vehicles, open only to hikers and horses and bicycles. We only saw two girls on horses during our hike.
With all of the rain we had this winter and spring, the area is green and overgrown. It is usually dry and brown.
Wildflowers are ubiquitous. The wet winter and spring assisted in promoting the flowers. We saw Gambel’s quail, and lizards.
We searched the washes for arrowheads, didn’t find any. Unfortunately, or fortunately we did not find much detritus, the debris that I collect for my found object sculptures. I found a few pieces of rusted iron. But hiking the desert was better than being holed up in our house.
I am fortunate in that my boss is doing everything possible to keep us working and gainfully employed. I am looking to the desert, the barren land that somehow turns drought into vibrant color. As Jeff Goldblum said in his character in Jurassic Park, “Life finds a way.” That is never more apparent than in the desert. The quarantine and lockdown does not affect the desert blooms.
And it should not affect us. We will survive. Was it Gloria Gaynor sang that? I prefer the Cake version.
Tomorrow I go to work. I know I have two hours of work to do, and hopefully the jobs will keep rolling in.
I am in a good situation. My former employer closed their doors three weeks ago. Other shops also shut down until June. My current boss is doing everything possible to keep us busy. Until this thing ends, we are hunkering down. God speed to all.