Photo: ARTrageous at the Scottsdale Center for the Arts

Last night was the annual ARTrageous fundraiser for the Scottsdale Center for the Arts.  The even featured a reception with a silent auction in a tent outside the Scottsdale Center, then a dinner in the lobby, followed by a concert by Pink Martini.

This is a photo of the dinner in the theater lobby.  It was a delightful event.  By coincidence, we were seated at a table where the woman sitting beside me went to the same high school in suburban St. Louis as my husband, both in the 1960's.  They had some of the same teachers and knew some of the same people.

Today is Sunday, so we have new photos posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.  This week we are showing photos of Budapest, Hungary.

Photo: Theme Day: "Worker" -- Jose Orozco

Today's worldwide City Daily Photo Theme is "Worker."  I chose this street art mural of Jose Orozco behind the Bario Cafe in central Phoenix.

You might be asking yourself how this ties in with the theme of "worker."  Along with Diego Rivera, Orozco was one of the great Mexican muralist painters, and one of their recurrent themes was the life of Mexican workers and peasants.

I remember being quite surprised by the murals of Rivera in the Mexican Parliament building.   They promote the role of workers and contain scenes highly critical of government and the church.  They are far more political and ideological than would ever be allowed in the U.S. Capitol.

This week we are showing photos of a festival in Punahka, Bhutan, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

To see how other City Daily Photo bloggers have interpreted the theme of "worker," please use this link.

Photo: The use of fill-flash outdoors

This is a scene similar to yesterday's photo, but with a different camera setting and using a fill flash to illuminate the cactus in the foreground.

I don't like to take flash picots, as I prefer natural light.  Most of the time I use a flash is to lessen the shadows in back-lit subjects in the foreground of photos taken during daylight.

If there is one subject that people in Arizona should have plenty of experience photographing, it is cacti in the sunset.

Today is Sunday, so we have new photos  posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.  This week we are showing photos from a festival in Punahka, Bhutan.

Photo: Clouds in the north sky catching the rays of the sunset

Often the views in the opposite direction of a sunset are as attractive as the sunset.  The sun never sets in the northern sky, of course, but these clouds captured the glow of the sunset and added texture.

In recognition of the upcoming holiday season, there are photos of a special Christmas Eve in Vienna that my husband and I enjoyed several years ago at a unique restaurant posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Sunset over Camelback Mountain

I never tire of sunsets over Camelback Mountain.  This is the view from our kitchen window, looking west towards the east side of Camelback Mountain.

Cloudy days produce better sunsets, as the feathery texture of the clouds captures more light than they typical clear Arizona skies.

In recognition of the upcoming holiday season, there are photos of a special Christmas Eve dinner in Vienna that my husband and I enjoyed several years ago at a unique restaurant posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: A Thanksgiving Toast

Happy Thanksgiving.  We have so much to be thankful for, so please join me in raising a toast to family, friends, good food, fine wine, our ability to help those less fortunate, and, in Arizona, our ability to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner in delightful weather outdoors, such as the setting for this photo.

In recognition of the upcoming holiday season, there are photos of a special Christmas Eve in Vienna that my husband and I enjoyed several years ago at a unique restaurant posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Eagle on our house

If yesterday's photo of an eagle in a tree in our front yard was too obscured for your tastes, here is a photo of the eagle perched on a corner of our house.  I took this photo from a greater distance and with a point and shoot camera, so it is somewhat grainy, but it shows the unmistakable bold post of an eagle.

In recognition of the upcoming holiday season, there are photos of a special Christmas Eve in Vienna that my husband and I enjoyed several years ago at a unique restaurant posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: An Eagle in Our Front Yard

It is hard to see amidst the leaves, but if you look closely you can see an eagle who likes to perch in an Argentine mesquite tree in our front yard.

This is just steps from our front door, and just one mile from the heart of Scottsdale and the busy Scottsdale Fashion Square shopping area.  One would not think that eagles frequent such an urban area, but he is apparently attracted to the plentiful supply of bunnies in the neighborhood.

In recognition of the upcoming holiday season, there are photos of a special Christmas Eve in Vienna that my husband and I enjoyed several years ago at a unique restaurant posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Close up of an agave stalk

This concludes the three-part series on the death of an agave.  This is a close up of the fibrous stalk that this agave sent skyward.

In recognition of the upcoming holiday season, there are photos of a special Christmas Eve in Vienna that my husband and I enjoyed several years ago at a unique restaurant posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Death of an agave; part 2

This is a closer view of the same agave stalk that I showed yesterday. Often agave stalks have tight geometric patterns.  This one was quite different.  It was an explosion of vibrant yellow worm-like shapes. It resembles something that might give inspiration to Dale Chihuly to mimic in glass.

Today is Sunday, so we have new photos posted  on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.  In recognition of the upcoming holiday season, we are posting photos of a special Christmas Eve dinner in Vienna that my husband and I enjoyed several years ago at a unique restaurant.

Photo: A stalk signaling the death of an agave; part 1

It is both sad and a source of wonder when one of the agave plants in our yard sends a stalk up to the sky, often ten times greater in height that the height of the plant.  It signals the beginning of the end for the agave, as it will die following the sprouting of its one stalk.

This stalk seems to be mimicking the palm tree under whose shadow the agave has lived for about a decade.

I have had to take a brief break from my Scottsdale Daily Photo posts for the past several weeks due to the press of work and travel.  I plan to be able to return to more frequent posts in the weeks ahead, including two more installments on the death of this agave.

Photo: An Airplane Lost in the Sunset

If you look closely, there is an airplane about to descend into the sunset saturated cloud layer.

The trouble with Stuart viewing the sunset from a remote Jeep trail, as he did when he took this photo, is that he must then return late in the day, but he is an expert off road driver.

This week we have photos of the Dalmatian Coast of Croatia. posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Jeep in the Sunset

When Stuart took his recent Jeep trail trip up Four Peaks, he naturally had an irresistible urge to photograph his Jeep and the beginning of the sunset.  Tomorrow I will show a photo of how the sunset evolved.

This week we have photos of the Dalmatian Coast of Croatia. posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Four Peaks Jeep Trail

This is the jeep trail that leads up to the top of Four Peaks.

Most Arizonans love the beauty of the desert.  Visitors seem to have mixed feelings.  Some regard it as exotic.  Others feel that mountains should be covered with green trees rather than rocks and desert vegetation.  Some fall in love with the beauty of the desert.

I should again acknowledge my appreciation to my step son, Stuart, for sharing his photos from his many hikes and Jeep excursions in the area.

Photo: Four Peaks

Four Peaks are a prominent landmark to the east, visible from much of Scottsdale and Phoenix.  The peaks are located in the Mazatzal Mountains.  They reach 7,544 feet  (2,330
 meters) in elevation.

There are jeep and hiking trails in the area, and part of the area is preserved as a wilderness.

A couple of times each winer there is a dusting of snow on the top of the peaks.

This week we have photos of the Dalmatian Coast of Croatia. posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: The social scene at the Scottsdale Polo Championships

The Scottsdale Polo Championships, held this past weekend, are as much a social event as they are a polo match. When the event was first held 4 years ago, it attracted only a few thousand spectators.  The newspaper projected that this year 15,000 or so people will attend.

We have attended the Palermo Open Polo Championships in Buenos Aires, Argentina, several times while visiting my step son.  In what is the Super Bowl of polo, they fill a large stadium with matches in a tournament that lasts about a month.  It will be a long time, if ever, before polo develops in the USA to the level of Argentina, but it is fun activity at whatever level it is played and watched.

I do not dress up like the women in this photo when attending polo matches, but they look like they are having fun.  The guy in the back of the photo looks like he is having fun, too.

This week we have photos of the Dalmatian Coast of Croatia. posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Halftime at the Scottsdale Photo

During halftime at the Scottsdale Polo Championships, fans are invited to walk the field to stop on divots to smooth out the field.  It is a social activity, and people are dressed in style, which sometimes includes shoes that do not seem well designed to smooth out horse divots on a polo field.

Today is Sunday, so we have new photos posted  on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.  This week we are showing some photos of the Dalmatian Coast of Croatia.

Photo: Horses and Horsepower

The Scottsdale Polo Championships this weekend have the theme "Horses and Horsepower."  The event includes a display of cars from the Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction, which is held every January.  It is the country's premier classic car auction.

this photo is from the time we attended the Polo Championships two years ago.  It featured displays from the Bondurant School of High Performance Driving, which teaches and gives people a chance to drive cars around a race rack.

Unfortunately, we have too much work to attend he polo matches this weekend.

This week we are showing photos of Budapest, Hungary on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Scottsdale Polo Championships

Polo players and their horses must act as one in  changing directions and chasing the ball.  One side of the polo field at the Scottsdale Polo Championships is set up for tailgating, which allows specters to bring their vehicles right next to the field and set up lawn chairs to watch the matches up close.  It is exhilarating for polo players and their horses to thunder past

This week we are showing photos of Budapest, Hungary on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Scottsdale Polo Chamionships

This weekend is the Scottsdale Polo Championships.  We won't be able to go, but I am posting a photo from when we attended the event in the past.

Now in its 4th year, this event is growing, with additional festivities planned besides the polo matches.  The program for this year advertises that they will have what they are calling "The World's Longest Fashion Show" as well as a "Canine Couture" fashion show.

There will also be a car show sponsored by the Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction.

This week we are showing photos of Budapest, Hungary on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.