It has been a rather slow day here at The Ranch. Some of the members went out to lunch at Artesia. We did some cleaning on the front of the coach, bug accumulation from the trip up from Hondo. I do not know how big the bugs were but they sure made a big splash and after it dries in the sun a few days, you just have to soak them off.
Our photo today is across the drive from the entrance to Carlsbad Caverns showing the vastness of the desert and hills to the east. One can only guess how far you can see before things just blend in with the horizon.
We watched the wildlife a while this morning. The cotton tail rabbits were all around. We could see 4 or 5 at the same time. They are not afraid of people and they will hunker down and act like they are hiding when they are out in the open on the gravel drive. But they will move if you get closer that 5 feet and then only hop a few feet and then watch you. There are a lot of quail around, we must have seen 20 or more mostly all together but others running to catch up to the covey. The only time they will fly is if you walk up on them and surprise them and then they all take off at the same time and make a lot of noise with their flight. We have yet to hear the Coyotes or see one, but they say there are a lot around and make a lot of noise during the night. Probably the reason the cotton tails stay so close to the park and people.
I saw some interesting names for ranches, "More or Less Cattle Ranch" and "DunsBrokeus Ranch". I can understand them both in this area of desert and little vegetation, unless you irrigate and you can not water the whole desert. That is why the cattle run on open range covering several thousand acres.
I heard a cute joke at happy hour this afternoon. I will try to get it correct. "There were two brooms hanging in the closet and they got to talking and actually fell in love and decided to get married. So, on the wedding day the Bride broom was so beautiful in her long wedding dress. The Groom broom was very handsome in his tuxedo. The ceremony was nice and afterward, the Bride broom said to the Groom broom, "I think I am going to have a little whisk broom and the groom broom was astonished and said, how than that be, we have never swept together." One thing to read and another to actually say it and get it right.