Dust and haze over west Phoenix
We have a pollution advisory till Thursday night. Phoenix is in something of a valley, and during the summer heat we’re prone to inversion layers. On top of that the west valley area is still largely agricultural, so when the farmers disk their fields the amount of dust in the air is truly impressive. We live far enough west that we generally have clean air (dairy farms aside!) but you can see the dust and pollution clearly to the east.
I do a lot of shopping on line, or in big box stores, but for some things it’s really nice to deal with a specialty shop. There was recently a recall on my mountain bike for an issue with the quick release for the front wheel. We bought the bike at Landis Cyclery in Phoenix a few years ago, so after receiving the recall notice from the manufacturer I took it in for the fix. It only took a few minutes, and I saw that they had printed out the names of the purchasers of the affected bicycles and were calling them to arrange the fix. Not something you would get from a big box store. While we were there one of the technicians was prepping a cute little girls bike. Same tools, same procedures and same knowledge that goes into a competitive road or mountain bike. Definitely worth the drive into town.
Out and about today we came across a little horse ranch that sells trail rides. Ranches around here all seem to have a large open gate – historically there’s probably a reason for it but as near as I can tell they’re decorative any more. This one had a nice little framed stucco arch topped with lights and a cross. It looks like it’s seen better days, but somehow it’s right for the desert in July.
Hasselblad 500/80mm@f11 and 1/250 sec, Fujifilm Acros 100 ISO
Phil Ryan Photography 