Some uplifting words for today

Pioneering Arizona's transformation, reinvention and introducing Kingazjay-Pixx

I've been dormant for awhile. A long while. I've always wanted to make this blog more than its been,  but haven't been able to come up with anything interesting. My daughter and I (I affectionately call her Franken-Daughter on Social media) have a shared hobby of photography. For Christmas I bought her a nice starter DSLR camera (One better than mine for crying out loud) we like to take hiking trips in and around our hometown in Northern Arizona. When we're out and about we try to grab the cameras, or at least take an interesting cell phone pic or two. Who doesn't like a good picture? So for now I'm going to turn this blog into a photo journal. I really like macro-photography so be prepared for some great up close and interesting images in the future. For some great on the spot pictures you can checkout my Instagram account (there is a link to the right) I will also posts links to them on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. I can be found by the username Kingazjay on all social media. In the future I want to offer my really good images for sale matted and framed, so if you see anything you like drop me a line (you can also Email me at Kingazjay@ Gmail, Live, or Yahoo, whichever you prefer. For now my new venture will be called Kingazjay-Pixx not sure on the name, so I'm going to put it to a vote....

My ugly mug...

Apparently I just don't have time for that...

Between work, family, and life in general, I just can't seem to find the time I want to blog, and with that said, here is an update...

Happy Mothers day to all the moms in cyberspace and real life. This weekend we did make time to drive down to the river and spend sometime with the wife's family during their 27th annual family reunion at the Colorado river. It was a great day, very cool 87 degrees which is a welcome change from years ago, when it topped 130! Being the desert rat I am that is even too hot for me!

Before making the trip down, I did stop in to get a set of new tires on Soul1 (since we have two now) I decided to go a size bigger, and a little meatier than the last time opting for the Yokohama YK580. I have to say, only a couple days into the new tire, if anyone has a small anything and lives in the sticks needing a really good off road capable, good milage, quite tire... check these out.

If I ever get the time, I'll give a whole review...

Enjoying a relaxing morning...

Yep, just hanging out this morning...

Enjoying the spring sights, although some weather is blowing in tonight. Need some rain so that is a welcome thing. Enjoy everyone.

Hanging out this Sunday afternoon...

Our humble kitchen

More spring time weather...

Had some promising weather blow in this morning, lots of white fluffy clouds building above the valley's and behind the mountains. I just doubt anything will come of them. Would be nice to get some early spring showers... so fingers crossed.

A great shot from the other day...

A repost from Instagram, Love this perspective, and want to give a share.

My yearly PSA.

Only a small rattler

Well, I just can't seem to find enough time in the day to keep up on the blog, but I will post my yearly PSA on watching for snakes. I had heard around town that a few have been spotted, but this is the first one I saw this year. Just as a reminder:

• Watch where you step
• Don't put your hand anywhere you can not see
• Remember wherever you see a rats nest, a rattler will be close by
• Keep collars off your dogs (if they get bit, they will swell, and if they have a collar on, it might strangle them.)
• Snakes are more active early and late in the day.

I could rattle on forever (pun intended) but I'm sure we all know how to keep ourselves safe during snake season, so lets be diligent and make it through another year!

What a great thing to wake up too...

So the gas company is doing some work on their high pressure line. They do it every couple of years, and after they do their repairs they pressurize it and test for leaks. Afterward they have to purge the line, which is what they are doing this morning. First time it was some cause for concern, now that we know it'd not that bad, only sounds like a jet engine running at full bore! This video was taken about five miles from the valve, and if you look closely you can see it blowing in the air around 50'. 

Holy Flash Floods Batman!

Ok been away from Blogging for awhile. Just got back from an amazing vacation with the family. We drove from home in Az, to Eugene, to Kettle Falls, through northern Idaho, into Montana, and then spent three days in the Salt Lake city area. Big news in the works, we may just relocate to that area in the near future. But that is neither here nor there...

While we were away, our home has been hit with flash flood producing monsoon storms every day! Looking at 10 days of storms, and more in the forcast. We now have grass a foot tall, our roads are wiped out, and I get to work 8 days straight, so no time to fix them! Loving that life in the sticks!

More rain in the forecast?

Looks like more rain is headed our way!

Big storm last night...

We knew it was coming, just a matter of time.... Last night it arrived, first really big storm. Today, I'm guessing more of the same...

Finally some rain!

Rain, wash-outs, ash from or local fire a few weeks back, and more of the same threatening this afternoon... Yep I love it!

Enjoying some much needed rain!

We received quite a bit of rain yesterday, and are being treated to a nice sprinkle today. Nice to finally get some rain!

Gonna be a hard tea morning

Been a wild week at work, can't wait for a full day off. Than back for a wild second half of the week.

Freshly painted sign

Our neighbor repainted our private road sign... I love it! What are your thoughts?

Dean Peak Fire Update, Map and pics from other sources.

No new official word on the state of the fire, unofficially seeing very little smoke this afternoon. It is currently 100 at the airport, wind is West-Southwest at 22mph, gusts up to 26mph. We are still in an excessive heat warning, until 11pm tonight.

Updated burn map as of Thursday July 4th

Credit: Herberta Schroeder

Credit: Herberta Schroeder

Great shot of a tanker dropping retardant around the Pine Lake community. 

Rain is a good thing... Dean Peak Fire Updates

Day one, approx 4pm.

Well it is official, we are in a monsoon flow. The dew point has been over 30 degrees, and we have already had two small thunderstorms. Not a lot of rain yet, but thankfully a little moisture. With some luck our roads will have enough moisture, that when we get a big storm they won't just wash away.
On another note, with the lightning, one of our local mountains had a forest fire start yesterday. Today I haven't seen any news on the fire, other than it is still burning. While searching four news on the fire, I did come across an old article about our mountain being declared a state disaster in 1950, after a forest fire, around that time we set a record high of 109. Yesterday we set a new record at an official high of 111! Unofficially we were at 113 at the ranch!

Fire update...
From the Hualapai Mountain Park Facebook page.
"Dean Peak Fire-update from BLM. Approximately 25 to 30 acres have burned. No containment. Caused by lightening. Air tankers, Hot Shot crew plus other personnel are doing their best."
Fire update...
For up to date info, go here www.inciweb.org/incident/3463
Current as of 4pm Sunday 6/30/13
Total Personnel: 40
Size: 120 acres
Fuels Involved: brush, pinion, juniper, pines
Fire Behavior : active
Significant Events:
There was little to no precipitation resulting from the thunder cell that came across the fire this afternoon. Old Highway 93 and DW Ranch Road are closed to the public.
The downdraft from downslope winds is pushing smoke into the Pinion Pines community. Smoke will continue throughout the night.
There are no threats to any communities at this time.

Update 8:45pm Saturday...
The fire is currently burning down slope on the east side of Dean's Peak. The air tankers that were assigned to the fire earlier today have been reassigned and the Type II helicopter has been grounded due to winds. The Hot Shot crew has also been pulled off the mountain for safety reasons.
Update 3am Monday Fire is now 200 acres, with 60 firefighters. The outlook today is high for growth, in rough terrain. My understanding from Facebook friends is that the community of Pinion Pine has been evacuated. A lot of false info has been spread across the social media outlets, trying to sift through it all. It was also released yesterday that Arizona lost 19 firefighters to the Prescott fire, which charred 2000 acres. My heart goes out to their families for their sacrifices. 4am First time outside today, high winds and it looks a if it has crested. Little bit of drizzle in town, forecast calls for thunderstorms, and a triple digit high.
Update Monday 4pm... 908 acres with 100 personnel. Focus today is protecting structures in Pine Lake, tankers dropping retardant on front line. There is a mandatory evacuation for the Pine Lake community. The reception center is at the Kingman High School located at 4182 N. Banks Street in Kingman, AZ. The Pinion Pine community and communication sites on Getz Peak continue to be threatened at this time. CLOSURES: Old Highway 93 is closed and Hualapai Mountain Road is closed to Pine Lake. DW Ranch Road and Blake Ranch Road are also closed except for local residents. Wild Cow Campground will be closed until further notice. Extreme weather conditions will continue today with potentially erratic winds due to thunderstorms forecasted throughout Mohave County. 

Update Tuesday 3 am 
No official update, other than 1500 acres burned, 175 personnel. I am reading updates from Facebook that the fire has jumped Blake ranch road and burning toward the Cedar Hills area. Several friends and coworkers live in that direction, they are preparing to evacuate. As for the Pine Lake, and Pinion Pine areas, I haven't seen any updates on structures. From or vantage point it looks close, but I don't want to speculate.

8am Tuesday update. 
No official update, I am getting reports that no structures have been damaged as of yet. The fire came close to some Pine Lake residence last night, then the winds changed direction. There were some pretty bad flare-ups but firefighters were able to keep them at bay. Reading now, 2350 acres with no containment till July 12! Info from Facebook... The fire is being managed in a full suppression strategy and is burning in steep, rugged terrain with few natural barriers to stop fire spread. Additional resources have been ordered to assist with containment of the fire. Incident Commander Matt Reidy said, “This fire is different from past fires, it is highly visible from the town of Kingman, this is not a typical desert fire and should be visible for some time.” A mandatory evacuation order was successfully implemented for the residents of Pine Lake as the fire crossed over Dean Peak and is backing toward Pine Lake. An evacuation reception center is located at the Kingman High School at 4182 N. Banks Street in Kingman. Old Highway 93 and Hualapai Mountain Road are closed to Pine Lake. DW Ranch Road and Blake Ranch Road are also closed except to local residents. Additionally, Wild Cow Campground will be closed until further notice. A declaration of fire emergency was issued by Gary Watson, Chairman of the Mohave County Board of Supervisors. Two strike teams of state sponsored engines have been ordered to provide protection around the Pinion Pine and Pine Lake subdivisions. Dean Peak Fire information is posted at http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/3463/. Additional information can be found at http://www.facebook.com/DeanPeakFire and on Twitter by following @DeanPeakFire No official update other than 3200 acres burned!

Great photo from a friend who lives on Blake Ranch Rd.

I forgot to share this...

Watch "Wake up number 2" on YouTube

While cleaning up the storage on my phone, I came across this video I took last year. It is of the high pressure gas pipeline that runs behind our place. I took the video around five miles from were they were purging the pipe after they had done some work and needed to pressure test it. They opened the release around 7am, and the vapor shot around 75 to 100 feet in the air, and was the loudest thing I've ever heard! Coolest thing ever, I just wish I had a little warning, but am thankful I wasn't at one of the dozen houses that are within a stones throw from the valve!