Finally saw my first rattlesnake this week. It was in a corner outside the building furthest from my office in the maintenance yard, but the custodian came to get me to see it since I had complained that they were all pulling my leg about there being snakes in the park. It was beautiful, a pale tan-and-brown diamondback, with white and black banded rattles. I wonder if snakes all shed their skins at about the same time, because they all look brand-new right now. Those I've seen in co-worker's pictures, that is, as well as this live one. One of the guys came out with a lidded bucket and a hooked tool about 2-3 feet long, just scooped up the snake and popped it in the bucket, flipping the lid closed quickly. We could hear it rattling inside, guess it was not happy about the treatment. He let it go, far away from our buildings and the campground. Later that day we almost ran over another snake that was the prettiest pinkish-orange color. When I described it to my boss, he said it was a red racer, and that, though not poisonous, it would chase humans. Evidently just playing, as it doesn't try to bite. He said when he was a kid he would get one to chase after him and then he'd stop abruptly and watch it speed past him. I can never tell when they are teasing me, so will take that with a grain of salt until I can verify it.
I still haven't seen a gila monster, either, though I keep hearing of other people in the park seeing them. We are watching the progress of the saguaro cactus blooming, though. Right now many of them look like they are wearing little hats, as the flower bulbs sprout from the tops of the main stalk as well as many of the arms. Some have opened to these almost ridiculously-small white, flat flowers. I keep forgetting to take my camera to work, but will try to make it a priority from now on.
I don't think I mentioned last week that we encountered my boss and his wife at the restaurant we chose for Friday date night. I found out this week that they actually own it. Fortunately for me, I could truthfully tell him it's the best in town, with regard to both food and ambience. It turns out that the other temp admin person who started the same day I did used to be one of their servers, too. Small town fun.
So...I figured out what to do about the national debt. Found out that tens of millions of dollars of marijuana are interdicted just in the local area every year. We're only one of maybe half a dozen small towns that are on the carrier routes for the stuff. I think the government should make it legal, sell what they're confiscating, and use the profits to pay off the national debt.
In a related story, the local school district just got hit with a $1.2 million dollar reimbursement bill for including non-resident alien students in their claims for government education money. These kids' parents provided false addresses within the US, but there are pictures of dozens of them crossing the border every day to be picked up by school buses in Lukeville and transported to Ajo for school. All the locals say that school officials knew very well what was going on, but turned a blind eye in order to get the money.
We've had a bit of a shake-up in our expectations for federal employment, but we don't yet know which way it's going to go, so I won't say more just yet. Hopefully the picture will be clearer by next week. Meanwhile, Budd and I are both applying for fed jobs both here and elsewhere, just to hedge our bets. Watch for us, coming soon to a town near you (maybe).
Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there, especially mine and Budd's. We love you! Hope my kiddos call me tomorrow...I really miss them.
OK, it's time for basketball. Go Jazz!!!
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