April and Arizona

Macro 365 - Day 1, originally uploaded by kari1121.

kari1121, one of my Flickr contacts posted this succulent closeup. Isn't the color lovely? I chose it as my Flickr Photo of the Week but also thought it would be the perfect photo for my weekly post for the Etsy Bloggers since the theme this week is around "April" and what it means to us.

For the past few years, I've often been in Arizona for part of April, staying at my "villa". Now, that may conjure up an image of an immense estate surrounded by acres of cactus, javelina, and other Arizona wildness. In truth, it is a small one bedroom condominium, but what I believe to be a very charming one. I love going there not just because the weather in April is frequently perfect there (70's and 80's daytime, 50's overnight) but because it is a place where I can totally relax. We have a routine of waking early (without an alarm), driving to our favorite thrift stores (one I posted about in November you may recall has a line of people waiting to get in each morning). I like to sip coffee on the east facing patio, read the local paper, and knit. We play tennis and explore the area, and sometimes I go to the gym to work out (there are wonderful recreational facilities I can access) or we go to the driving range. At the beginning of each day, there isn't an agenda of any sort (and definitely no meetings) though at the end of the day, there is a ritual of eating brownies with low fat vanilla ice cream (only the very best kind) and then it's early to bed and another relaxing day unfolds the next morning.

I'm now back in Idaho after my two week Arizona respite (much too short) and I retuned to find the jade tree at my office in significant decline. I wish the leaves looked like those in the photo above. Maybe the plant is pining as I am for the warm, dry Ariona climate instead of the continuing Idaho winter. Today, there were snow flurries while the sun was shining so that's my new definition of Idaho spring, the sun is out while it snows! Take me back to Arizona, please!

Oh, and here's a photo of my little "villa"...isn't it cute?