Poolside in Palm Springs

I wish I could share with you the best part of a surprise desert rain shower. Sure, it's nice to see the droplets hit the pool, but that's not the best part. It's also nice to know we can put the irrigation system on pause for a day. But that's not the best part, either. The best part comes just a few minutes after the rain moistens the landscape, when the wet creosote bushes make the air smell burnt. And just for that fleeting moment, we know that the hedges in the desert aren't quite so dusty today.

Congratulations to the city of Palm Springs on the swearing in tonight of the new, truly LGBT city council, a story that even made The New York Times . The voters having spoken, and spoken with pride, new council members Christy Holstege and Lisa Middleton now represent the B and T, respectively. More importantly, they will represent their constituents. Photo by Benson Kua [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

This morning after breakfast I happened across these lovely ladies, trapped in their swimsuits behind a storefront window in downtown Palm Springs, reflecting on the mountains, the palm trees, and the morning sky: A wider shot reveals that these ladies won't be going anywhere anytime soon: By the way, does this particular mannequin model remind you of anyone? She reminds me of the storefront models circa 1960-1963 that resembled then-First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, because they do bear a striking resemblance to the current occupant of that position -- coincidentally a former model herself. These photos are not multiple exposures and have not been altered in any way, except that the closeup has been cropped. We have many naturally occurring layers of reflections here in the desert. Maybe that's why so many people like to come here to reflect ?

When you're enjoying a Blue Lagoon next to your own private blue lagoon, it's awfully hard to have the blues, Monday or not. The Blue Lagoon is a simple drink: 1 ounce vodka or white rum 1 ounce Blue Curacao 3-5 ounces lemonade ice cubes Maraschino cherries Drink umbrella No cocktail shaker necessary. Put in the ice, then the vodka or rum, then the Blue Curacao, followed by the lemonade, and garnish with the cherries and umbrella. Drop in the straw and give it a little stir before sipping. For a non-alcoholic version, we recommend some blue Gatorade on ice, garnished with cherries and an umbrella. Happy Monday!

A lenticular cloud hovers over Mt. San Jacinto, overlooking Palm Springs, California, trapping a smaller cloud beneath it. You might think we desert dwellers don't like clouds. After all, we've gone to some trouble to live in a place where it only rains a handful of times a year, enduring 100-degree-plus weather for months on end every summer, not to mention the occasional wind storm, haboob , or flood, just so that we can enjoy at least eight months a year of absolutely perfect weather. So we must love blue skies more than most, right? Not quite. We do love our cloudless skies, but the truth is that when a cloud or two does show up, we celebrate. Today, for example, this lovely lenticular cloud has shrouded the very top of Mt. San Jacinto , our very own Alp , all day long. And all day long I've been reminded of what my fellow desert lover Dinah Shore is said to have said about clouds like these: "Today the mountain is wearing her mink stole." With tw...

Dusty Hedges is the nom de plume of a semi-retired journalist and inveterate adventurer who has been the lifelong beneficiary of unearned rewards, not least of which is her affordable yet luxurious Palm Springs home, complete with private backyard pool and spa, nestled on a sprawling fifth-acre in a quiet neighborhood about halfway between the Palm Springs Tramway and the former home of Frank Sinatra . (Coincidentally, Ms. Hedges also once lived in Mr. Sinatra's birthplace, Hoboken, New Jersey, and knows considerably more than the average person about the streets where he lived.) Dusty Hedges pauses at trail's end while hiking in Tahquitz Canyon near Palm Springs. An authentic midcentury modern, Ms. Hedges was born into a typical mid-1950s American nuclear family, which exploded into fragments during Eisenhower's second term. When the property was divvied up, she got to keep her Shirley Temple Doll, Davy Crockett hat, Mom, and baby brother. But let's not get ...