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Pop culture junkie, native of Las Vegas, not really a writer.
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Wednesday, July 15, 2009

The desert, my home.

It’s the time of year in the Las Vegas desert when it’s so hot outside it feels like your skin will melt off your body every time you step out of any fully air conditioned building or home. It’s the time of year when the average temperature hovers around 105 degrees and we are always above average. It’s the time of year when even the overnight temps don’t fall below 85 degrees. It’s the time of year when all outdoor activities are suspended unless a pool is involved. And even a day by the pool can be more trouble than it’s worth. I’m a natural redhead. I burn to a crisp in seconds. I apply 75 SPF sunscreen at least once an hour (thank goodness for the invention of spray on sunscreen!) when I’m going to be outdoors for any extended period of time. And I wear a big floppy hat, which, yes, makes me look funny but I look funnier when my skin is the color of a lobster.

But just when I’m cursing my fate of living in the desert for another horrendous summer, something happens to remind me why I love the desert, my home. The other night it was when I came out of the movie theaters at Aliante Station after seeing Casablanca (love). It was about 8:25pm and my truck was on the fourth floor of the parking garage. The sun was already set but still illuminated the sky to the northwest in a way that was brilliant and left layers of color above the city whose lights were just starting to blink on for the night. Instead of just getting into my truck and driving home, I walked over to the edge of the garage to watch as the last remnants of this setting sun changed the sky from blue to purple to black. And I took three pictures with my iPhone which I share with you now. A sky like this is why I love the desert.

You should really click on these pictures to make them larger. They are so much prettier larger!





7 comments:

  1. these are great photos kerry. i really have never seen the sky like that before and now i understand better what people mean when they speak with rapture of desert views.

    p.s. i like floppy hats. i'm sure you don't look silly. :)

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  2. That is why the southwest is my favorite part of the states... the sky... the big sky.

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  3. Sometimes I take that big gorgeous sky for granted and other times it'll announce its beauty to me in the loudest voice it's got and I can't help but be thankful for where I live!

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  4. and as i drove away from las vegas for the last time I couldn't help but have a feeling of dread. where was this coming from? i was moving to begin the next phase of my career. Life was good. That was, of course, until the world started to close in around me. Heading east bound takes you away from that big beautiful sky where your view is always "as far as the eye can see" to a smaller and smaller world. It was well into Oklahoma when I began to feel this strange pressure around me. As I got into Arkansas and Tennessee I knew I had just made the biggest mistake of my life.

    These days all I have is that rare opportunity when I am in a high rise with an open view unable to look away from that brilliant beautiful sky. Come join the party, Jill. Come look at this email, Jill. We are on vacation Jill let's get out of this hotel. That all can wait. Look at this sky - it is so big I can feel it.

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  5. *sniff*

    Jill!

    I miss you. Come home already!

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  6. I know exactly what Jill is talking about as I made that same drive along the I-40 recently. I felt this dread in losing the sunsets I took for granted coming.

    The last month I was in Arizona I made an effort to catch as many of the sunsets as possible. I would get outside as much as possible to see it set. Often I would get outside early and settle in with a book to watch the my world slip into darkness.

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  7. Aw. Dan is so poetic.

    Gorgeous photos. We don't get those here!

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Comments are always welcome! Thank you!