Pickleball News + More

 

I was just scanning through some of the other Palm Creek websites to see if anything new has been added.  Rosemary Reese has been busy updating the pickleball blog as players send her summer information about their beloved sport. 
 
Check out this press release from none other than CNN regarding Tom and Ann Earley.  Click on the link below to watch the CNN video.

Tuesday, June 10, 2014 

For years Tom and Ann have done much to support and grow the sport of pickleball.
When they leave Palm Creek and return to Georgia, they do more than most would even consider.
They have opened their home to all active adults who want to come and play.   Lessons are given to new comers who soon become skilled players. It has grown so much, that last year, they expanded the courts to play on to SIX.  Yes, these courts are on their home property. These courts are listed on USAPA.org under places to play.  For the past seven years they have also hosted an annual tournament.
It is no surprise that CNN showed up at on their doorstep.

Tom and Ann Earley CNN News

 

Our Pottery people are still active in the summer too.  The room is open several days a week plus there are even some introductory classes for the newcomers.  Look at some of the stuff they've recently created.  Go to their blog at Potters of Palm Creek.  Thank you to Sandy Milner for keeping their blog updated.

 

 

Cute little garden trolls!

 

These honeybees are happy with a late blooming cactus flower at Mark and Cindy Nelson's house on Mountain Mirage.

 

 

Another kind of cactus is blooming for Chris and Linda Stewart at their pretty casita.

 

 

 

Our residents continue to stay cool and occupied at other hobbies.  Bev Johnson is an avid jigsaw puzzle fan.

 

 

Our hardy golfers are out on the links EVERY morning to take advantage of the cooler temps.

 

 

Work continues over behind the sewing room where they're planning to move the trash receptacles and allow for better access to that area.

 

 

 

All in a day's work:  Thought I'd take a minute to pay tribute to my hard-working hubby.  As we make our morning rounds for watching houses, we also take time to report any problems we may encounter.

 

 

Finding "water spouts" from broken lines or popped off sprinkler heads is a common every day occurrence.  Don fixes whatever he can and keeps an ample supply of plumbing parts in our cart.

 

 

 Checking air conditioning units and thermostats......changing MANY batteries.

 

More sprinkler heads.

 

 

More sprinkler lines.

 

 

Rinsing and refilling water buckets for homeowners.

 

 

 

 

 

............and sometimes we just have to take time to enjoy the view.

 

Have a GREAT day.

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Activities Dept Moves for the Summer Remodel

What a chore to pack up everything from the Activities Department and move it all to the Zuni Room for the summer!  Whew!

 

There is a lot of "stuff" to box up for the move.

 

I hear that the counters will be redesigned and some much needed office space added.  We'll all watch it develop.

 

 

MaryAnn Brown will really have her hands full this summer as she struggles through packing, unpacking, getting ready for the upcoming season......then repacking and moving again.  Hang in there Girl.  You are awesome and we all appreciate your hard work and caring attitude.

Duck Crossing

Other than a myriad of remodeling and installation of new houses, life gets pretty quiet around here in the summer.  Doves are busy nesting anywhere they can get their bundle of sticks to rest without falling on the ground.

 

 

Don and I laughed as we actually had to stop our cart and wait for this duck to cross the road in front of us.  There's not a lot of traffic these days.

 

 

 

We spotted this VERY UNUSUAL cactus this week.  Never saw one quite like this before.

 

 

 Meanwhile.....back to the busy part of the park.  We said good morning to another pair of legs in the library.  They're very busy with all the re-wiring above the ceiling.
 

 

The mystery man finally popped out to say good morning.  Hi to David.

 

 

David's coworker is Bill.  They're contractors helping with the remodeling project.  I believe the library and the computer lab will be combined into one room.  That should give the library more room and make the computer lab more accessible. 

 

 

Trimming of bushes, trees and shrubs continue.  All the shrubs in front of the main buildings have been trimmed back.  Looks very nice!

 

 

It may be 105 degrees, but that doesn't stop us from having outdoor fun.  We meet at 5:00 at the nice shady pavilion for a happy hour and delicious potluck dinner before heading off to the swimming pools.  Some go up front for water volleyball and the rest of us head to the north pool for some "noodle time". 

 

I was just about ready to post this when I walked over to the coffee pot by the kitchen window and spotted two of our cute little tree lizards.  I didn't get to the camera quite fast enough to video their romantic interlude but I'm betting we'll have baby lizards before long. 

These little critters are quite plentiful anywhere greenery appears in the desert and they seem to really like our little flower bed.  We're delighted and happy to have them too because they eat MANY bugs and insects.  The more the merrier!

 It's really entertaining to watch the new daddy as he flexes his strong muscles and does his dance routine.

 Hope all you readers are having a GREAT day.  Drop me a line now and then to keep me motivated.  I love hearing from you.  sue77hepler@hotmail.com

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Another Day

Joel drew a tough hard job for digging this long trench by hand in the hot summer sunshine.  Whew!  I believe this is in preparation for moving the trash receptacles located behind the sewing room and enclosing them.

 

 

 

 Work continues with remodeling of the library and computer lab.  This area will be expanded or perhaps combined.  Will have to wait and see. 

 

Here's what it looks like with all the rash and ladders cleared out.

 

 

Jose has the clean up job for the palm trees today.  Those branches are sharp!   

 

 

Trimming continues. 

 

While our staff works hard.....we summer residents play hard.  They had a big turn out for an evening water volleyball game.

 

 

Here's another great way to spend a hot summer afternoon.  Have a little wine with your Pegs and Jokers game!!  (Suzette Taylor, Lillie Corbitt, Sue Hepler, Sue Neuman, Peggy Brown, Avis Gray)

 

 

Had to stop and snap a photo of the front pond this morning.  The reflection was really pretty.

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Have a GREAT day!  Cheers!

 

 

Bugs, Birds, and even some news.

Thank you to Lillie Corbitt for identifying our mystery bug.  It's a boll weevil.

 

 

 

The boll weevil is a common name for a destructive beetle that infests cotton plants. The adult insect has a long snout, is grayish in color, and usually less than 6mm (less than 0.24 inches) long. It feeds only on the cotton plant.  Beginning in early spring, it punctures the buds and bolls and lays eggs in them. The eggs hatch into larvae in three to five days. The life cycle of the boll weevil from egg to egg-laying adult is about three weeks; and four to five generations may breed in one season.

The larvae, a fat white maggot, does most of the damage. It lives on the internal tissues of the buds and bolls. An infested bud usually drops, but most of the damaged bolls remain on the plant and become stunted or dwarfed. Adult weevils that emerge in the autumn hibernate in grass, old bolls or other vegetation, or in the seed around cotton gins. They reappear in spring.

 

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It is still too warm outside to open the windows at bedtime but when we awaken during the night, it has cooled into the 70s and I always open a few windows then.  No matter what time of the wee hours, I can always hear a mockingbird singing.  I love to lay there and listen to her huge myriad of songs.  I've quite often seen flashes of mockingbirds as they fly around the park but this is the first year I've heard one singing throughout the night.  I copied some info from the internet for you. 

 

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There are two new holes dug for houses over on Desert Wind Lane.  This morning we watched some quail as they explored the area.  I caught this photo as a male climbed atop the big dirt pile.  It's hard to get a photo of these fast moving birds so getting one that's not all blurry with my little camera always pleases me.

 

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Later in our rounds, we checked out a killdeer nest we've been watching behind site 1838.  The eggs hatched a while back but we found one lonely abandoned egg still in the nest.  Mama was nowhere around so I guess this one was just a dud.  That is a BIG egg for such a small bird as a killdeer!  Ouch!

 

 

Next stop for the day is up at the clubhouse to see what's going on with all the remodeling.  Everyone was busy and hard at work.  Looks like Brittany (at right) is doing some cross training at the front desk as normally we would find her in the sales office.  Say Hi to Martha and Christy too.

 

All the lights have been removed from the billiards room.  Today Joel and Jose are rolling up the carpet.

 

The library is empty.  Suspense mounts as we wait to see what will happen next.

 

Next stop was Activities just to say hello.  Sharon Kidd is creating tickets for some of our upcoming fall events.

 

MaryAnn Brown is creating posters for the events.

 

In the mailroom, we found Helen Vosburgh and Flo Fillippe  forwarding mail and handing out packages.

 

With so many trees, plants, shrubs, and flowers in the park.....maintenance is a constant issue.  Must keep the sprinkler lines working.

So that's the tour for today.  Hope you enjoyed the ride. 
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P.S.  I was just about finished with this post when I walked past my kitchen window and spied a dove taking a shower and a cool down in our sprinkler system.  It was soooo fun and entertaining to watch.  First he would lift one wing into the mist...then the other wing...and then he just sat there and let the cool mist envelope him.  It actually looked like he was having fun!  After all..........the thermometer here on my desk says it is 108 out there today. 

 

 

Have a GREAT day!