It Was A Taco Tuesday

 Princess T and Rusty were able to Sell the Cat Tree that Eli Hated and for the Fifty Bucks, which is Five more than she Paid for it, via Offer Up and from Rusty's Home.   They went out to eat with part of the Money, Rusty also gave her a bunch of brand new Cat Litter which he'd had stored away, long forgotten.   They haven't had a Cat for Years, but he forgot about the Two Huge Containers of Cat Litter, still unopened, that were in their Storage Shed.  So, now we got Cat Litter for Days too.   Coz they were the big Kahuna sized Containers you get from like a Costco or Sam's Club, if you're a Crazy Cat Lady or something.  You need to almost be a Body Builder to Dead Lift them!!!   So my 95 Lb. Grandchild was schlepping them down the Hallway like she was dragging a Dead Body.  *LOL*

She'd spent the whole Weekend at her Boyfriend's so Eli was practically hysterical in the Missing of her.  It was so pathetic, he'd lay by the Door of her Bedroom just staring at it for Hours, Crying the Song of his People and waiting for her to walk thru it!  *Awwwwww*   I'd go in and play with him, feed him, clean his Litterbox... and he'd protest loudly to me about his abandonment, he was very upset.  He didn't even wanna watch "Sponge Bob Square Pants", that's how upset and distraught he was about her being gone all Weekend long, poor thing!  *LOL*  He'd also sit in her Window looking out forlornly, it was breaking my Heart.  When she did come Home it was like seeing a Military Family reunion of a Loved One returning from War!!!  *Smiles*  He really Loves his Human and nobody can replace her.  She felt Guilty, as she should.  *Winks*

He's used to her going to Work every Day and I swear he has an Internal Clock that knows when she SHOULD be Home.   So he begins Wailing if she's Late or doesn't come Home.  Cats can make more sounds than you can imagine they can make, he has quite a repertoire, sometimes it even sounds like he's mastered speaking Human Words!   There are times I swear he's saying, "Oh No!", I kid you not!!!  Like the Neighbor's Male Goat, Alfred, who can yell 'Help' and sounds like a Developmentally Disabled Grown Man!!!  Yes, we've Teased Guests before when they hear Alfred for the first time and think a Disabled Neighbor is in distress and yelling for Help!  Pretty sure the Local Police have had Calls to respond to Alfred, thinking a Human is needing Assistance?  *LOL*   Anyway, Eli is more of her Warden than a Parent or Guardian is!  *Smiles and Winks*

It's early and I've got the French Doors Open to our Boudoir and the Screen Door shut, so I can get the Fresh Cool Air of Morning and hear all the Wild Birds singing.   We've had a problem lately with a Woodpecker wanting to peck at our RV Garage Mahal in the back of it.  Little Fucker won't be deterred and taunts us, so I've got to find a Woodpecker deterrent to keep it just pecking at Trees instead so it doesn't do damage to our Structures.  The Arizona Woodpecker isn't as flashy or big as other North American Species of the Bird... and there are 11 different Varieties of Woodpeckers in Arizona.   They aren't endangered Species but they are considered Conservation Species due to their very restricted Range and declining populations.  So I want to ethically deter it from fucking up my Structures.  They are all protected by State and Federal Law, so, if you got a Problem with one, it's a tricky Problem to have and solve.

Anyway, our Mini Farms attract a lot of local Wildlife and some can become a Nuisance.  But, I feel Humans are the biggest Nuisance on this Planet, and the Animals have to Deal more with us being a Nuisance to them really.   We've encroached on all their Natural Habitats and so they're just trying to Survive and I Respect that.  Some adapt enuf to become Urban and thrive amongst us.  I also Respect that adaptation they've just had to make as their Habitats dwindle.   We've got a Pack of Coyote who live somewhere here either in the Mini Farms, along the Canal or perhaps in the large Catholic Cemetery across the Street.  We've got a bunch of huge Raccoon living here and many Predatory Birds that Nest here and would scoop up your small Pets and smaller Livestock.  There's probably many other Species living among us I haven't yet seen?  And I LIKE that about our Mini Farm Community, it has more a Rural Feel and Vibe to it, but with Urban Conveniences all around it.

Today The Man and I will probably do more Environmental Cleanup and turn in some of our Aluminum to the Recycle Center, we've got enuf again to fill up the Bed of my Truck now.  I got a Message from The Niece last Night that she's had to ask The Young Prince to kick back their departure Date again, from the 18th to the 24th, due to some Work related Issues she had to attend to.   So, yet another delay in a string of many of them.   The longer it takes them to leave, the more Hot it will be to Travel as far as they are going and to unpack the U-Haul once they arrive here, Ugh.  I still don't even know where I'm going to stash all his Worldly Possessions again without disrupting all the progress his Mother has made for me here in both the Art Studio and RV Garage Mahal?!  *Le Sigh*  One more Adult with all their Cargo is complex to spread around a Household with this many Family Members with all their possessions too.

We've done it before so it's not as if we can't do it, but, it is disruptive and The Young Prince comes with the most Cargo to displace everyone else's.   Like me, his possessions tend to take over any Space.  *Winks*  At least he has some Cool Art and he likes to wear a lot of my Clothes, so, I won't have to remove all my Clothes from the Art Studio that I have on Racks in there.  *Whew*  I don't know how much he's choosing to leave behind in New Mexico, I'm assuming most of what they Owned tho' belonged to him, Allen is a Minimalist like The Man.  I bet Allen could pack all his gear and Worldly Possessions in less than an Hour and mebbe even carry it?  *Bwahahahaha*   The Young Prince was definitely more High Maintenance and brought the Gay Factor and Gaying It Up to their Home and Union and even what Allen wore.  *Winks*   Allen tends to dress like a Straight Man, need I say more?   The Young Prince, by contrast, is Fabulous.  *LOL*

We did Environmental Cleanup, I got a lot of Sun, so I'm getting pretty Dark fast.  It was a nice breezy and sometimes overcast Day but in the 90's now.  We renewed our Membership at the County Parks for another Year.  We get a Disabled Veteran Status discount, so it's very reasonable and we enjoy visiting all the County Parks.  So, we spent a lot of time Today at the Estrella Mountain Park in the Southwest Valley and Tomorrow will go to the White Tank Mountain Park in the far West Valley.   It's been a while since we've been to either, since we let our Membership Annual Pass lapse for a while, and at Estrella they really had improved the Park a lot since our last visit, revamping it all and doing a lot of Native Tree Plantings.  Most of the existing Trees there are very Old and some had reached their end of Life and they needed to do new Plantings to provide adequate Shade for Generations to come. 

The Mesquite, Palo Verde and Eucalyptus have very long Lifespans, and some can reach 100-400 Years.   But the Desert is harsh and we've had record Heat, Drought and Infestations of Insects that have decimated some of the Trees in recent Years, like the Bark Beetles and other Bore Insects.   Plus, we've had some record Winds and a lot of the huge Older Trees have been uprooted too in these catastrophic Storms.  It was good seeing so much Invested in these Beloved County Parks, since, with budget cuts recently to Parks and Recreation, I was fearful that many would have to close or be neglected.   They generate a lot of Income so it makes no sense to not fund them and keep them maintained.  We spent several Hours at the Park and then at the Nature Preserve by the Gila River this day, which is very close by that Park.

Princess T came Home from Work early, coz she wasn't feeling Well. The Daughter and Mando had to pick her up coz we didn't get the Call.  I wasn't expecting her to call that early, so had left my Phone in the Truck while doing Environmental Cleanup at 10:00 a.m..   So Two Hours later I found out about it when I saw the missed Call in my Phone History and found out her Mom had picked her up and brought her Home, coz Mando was here visiting and helping with some Projects that The Daughter is doing for me.  They're putting Ornate Cast Iron Brackets on my Old Doors to make them into Room Dividers for The RV Garage Mahal Decorating.   Every time I find Cast Iron Shelf Brackets, whether Ornate or Plain, I pick them up for this Project, they don't need to match.  Lately the Hobby Lobby was doing a Clearance and gorgeous $19-$25 Brackets could be had for $3.49!  I'm visiting several locations to get as many as I can Score. 

I don't care what my Brackets look like but many are Ornate like this I've just Cribbed from the Internet.  I've got some Antique Ones, and some newer Repops, we even once had a Vendor at our Antique Mall that Sold the newer Cast Iron Ornate ones.  I've got them in all Colors of Metallics, Black, White and Rusted, I don't care about that either.  They're pretty but mostly utilitarian for the Purpose I want my Old Doors for to divide up a cavernous Warehouse sized Space like the RV Garage Mahal.  Antique ones like those pictured that can be had from Salvage Brokers can cost you a small Fortune, as much as a couple Hundred for a Pair.  So, the Repops are very popular, even tho' if I find Salvaged Old ones inexpensively, I ALWAYS Buy them, even if I'm not using them right away.  Architectural Salvage has been a Passion of mine since the 1970's, so I've been Hoarding it for a long time.  *Winks*

It was a Taco Tuesday... so, even tho' The Man is notorious for not eating what you buy for him if we eat out, he always wants to order the biggest most expensive Menu items. *Eye Roll*  If he ate them I wouldn't mind, but mostly he plays with his food now and barely eats any of it, but makes such a mess of it nobody else will wanna eat it either as a leftover.   And I try to discourage this habit by telling him that looks like an awful lot of Food, is he sure he wants that much and can eat it?   Yes, he will say... and then... well... he doesn't.  *Le Sigh*   Most of the time I'll just throw out what he doesn't eat right there and then, tho' I Hate wasting good Food or good Money.   But sometimes I insist on bringing it Home and making him eat at least some of it for another Meal, so it's not a waste.  We went to that "Mesquite Fresh Street Mex" place, first time there, it's a small Fast Food Chain and brand new, it wasn't bad.

But, he barely ate any of the Bowl he ordered and for the life of me I couldn't just get him to order a fucking inexpensive Taco like I did.  I knew that Bowl was too much food for him and he's barely gonna eat any of it, I wasn't Wrong.  *Le Sigh*   I ate both of my Tacos and had tried their Barbacoa and their Steak... they also had Chicken and Shrimp, but the Shrimp is only available on Saturdays.  It's a limited Menu but decent food, their Mangonada Slush Drink with Tajin was extremely good, I'd go there again just for that.  It's a small Box like place with only Outdoor Picnic Table Eat In, and a Drive-Thru, which is their main business, Takeout.   You walk up to the Window to Order on one side, or Drive-Thru to Order on the other side.   They don't charge extra to have everything on your Order, which is different and makes it inexpensive for what you get.   I guess in Downtown Phoenix they have an Eat In Location that is more like a Restaurant.

If I had a Complaint at all it would be that I like my Taco Shell to be cooked and not just raw Corn or Flour Tortilla.  Which, a lot of the Street Taco Restaurants give you, including this one, an uncooked unheated Taco Tortilla, whether you have Corn or Flour... no bueno.  We don't eat or make ours that way and the best Taco Restaurants don't either.  In fact one of my all time favs now is close by and has a flavored Flour Tortilla which is cooked and they have Goat Tacos, my absolute fav Taco filling Protein, but few places carry Chivo tho', only the most authentic places do.  Those will be the ones you go into and all the Customers are usually Mexican Nationals and know it's the Real Deal and not Americanized Mexican food. 

  Birrieria Obregon is like that and is in the same Strip Mall as Princess T Works, so we often go there after she gets off Work.   The Birria there is excellent, it's a slow cooked Stew of Goat, Beef or Lamb, and they usually give you a small complimentary Cup of it for dunking your Tacos.  I have a Cup of the Goat Birria in the Fridge right now and will make a Breakfast Taco in the Morning to use with it.   Above is my Cup of the Goat Birria, the Goat Tacos with the Flavored Tortillas, which are excellent, are long gone.  *Winks*   I also like that they use shredded Cabbage rather than Lettuce, along with the Onion, Tomato and Fresh Cilantro, Limes to squeeze over it all, and double your Tortilla so it doesn't fall apart while eating it, that's how I prefer my Street Tacos.   Nom-Nom.   If I'm gonna spend $3-$4 for a Taco, give me one of these rather than any other.   Their Horchata is good too.

Damned Irrigation Scheduled our Rotation this Week for 2:50 to 4:20 in the fucking Morning on Easter Sunday, just WTF?!   It's not like it's a Sunrise Service, Okay, so I resent the Date they Scheduled it AND the Time!!!   Fuckers!!!   You don't get to choose when you get it and can't re-schedule it, you get what you get and you don't throw a fit is their adage about Irrigation.   I almost subliminally wrote the Word "Irritation" instead of Irrigation, which would be about right most of the time!  *LOL*   So, I just got the E-Mail Tonight and am less than Pleased let us just say!   The Daughter is helping with it now so I don't have to pay Rob or TJ to do it or the Yardwork anymore.  They were getting less reliable anyway and fucking up, so, I decided to end the Arrangement we've had with them for Years.  The whole John Deere Fiasco was what Iced and Frosted my Cake about it ending completely.  Rob knows he dodged a Bullet there for fucking up that Royally!

TJ is doing less and less, since getting his Cancer Diagnosis he's just become ridiculously reckless in behaviors!   He's still seeing Amber's Oldest Daughter, who is Young enuf to be his Grandchild.  I mean his Ex-Wife Anna was Young enuf to be his Daughter, but this is ridiculous with Amber's Daughter.  He got her Pregnant and she lost the Baby, so that Bullet was dodged, but still thinks she Loves a Man Three times her age and thinks she wants a Baby with him!   She can't Work and is living with her Grandparents, her Gramma has Stage 4 Cancer and her Grandpa is over 70.  She's a Special Needs Adult, very low IQ, but very Pretty and Petite, like a little Sprite.  But tho' she's in her early 20's, she acts like a Jr. High School Aged Girl and has Developmental Disability clearly.  And TJ, well, he's in his 60's and acts like a Teenage Boy, and now has a Terminal Illness, and doesn't Work, still living with his 80+ Year Old Parents, so, NO, they should not produce a Child!  No telling how fucked up that Child might be?  OMG!!!  Just becoz you can have a Child doesn't mean you should.

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Blessings, Love and Light from the Arizona Desert... Dawn... The Bohemian