Centipede

I saw this centipede crossing the road by the Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill. It looks like it is going in two directions at once, but it was moving to the right.

I saw a millipede just a few minutes before that. The millipede was not as photogenic. It was more like a black worm. You had to see its legs moving like a wave to appreciate it.

Does It Pay to Shop for the Lowest Interest Rate?

I just received this from Sue Pullen at Fairway Independent Mortgage:

Since Loan Officer Compensation Reform took effect recently, loan officers are no longer being paid based on the income they bring to their company. The bottom line is that lenders don't have much wiggle room -- or incentive -- to cut pricing on loans. So the biggest difference between one lender and another won't be based on price: it will be based on competence, knowledge of underwriting guidelines, efficiency, communication, and service - in short, the ability to close the loan on time and without hassle.

I agree with Sue that consumers should choose their loan officer based on the loan officer's ability to deliver a mortgage on time, at the terms they promised, with a minimum of drama. Most home buyers assume all loan officers should be able to accomplish that, so buyers focus on finding the loan officer who promises the lowest interest rate.

Time and again, I have watched loan officers promise the sun, moon and stars, but they deliver last minute surprises, delays, and most tragically, no mortgage. It is frequently too late to choose another lender by the time the buyer learns this hard lesson, and they are unable to buy the house they planned to buy.

The Buildings of Tumamoc

Tumamoc Hill is west of A Mountain, where the city does the July 4 fireworks show. I walked up the hill last night around 7:30 after hearing a lecture at the gorgeous Desert Laboratory Library (above), which is located half way up the hill. It's the same as when I make the walk at 6:30 AM. Hundreds of Tucsonans are huffing and puffing or effortlessly running up and down the hill.


The three beautiful buildings at the Desert Laboratory were all built with local rock between 1900 and 1910. They are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Residential Sales Statistics for September

The Tucson Association of Realtors has released the Residential Sales Statistics for September.

Yikes! Average sale price was $150,699, down 17% from September last year. Median sale price was $117,500, down 19.4% from a year ago.

The reason for this is clear. Foreclosures and short sales still dominate the market. Of the 1,166 sales in Tucson in September, 534 were foreclosures and 162 were short sales. In other words, 60% of the sales were distressed properties.

Way Out West, When the Cactus is in Bloom

Usually saguaros do their blooming before the summer monsoons. I was surprised to find this lone giant flowering on Tumamoc Hill last week. Climate change seems to have everyone confused.

Today I noticed two more saguaros: one had recently bloomed, and the other will in a few days. What's up with that? All the other bare-headed saguaros wonder what these renegades are up to.

Happy Fall Equinox

I have been in Tucson 21 years, and somehow I had never managed to see the petroglyphs near Picture Rocks Road.
Friday was the Autumn Equinox, and it was a very special day to make my first visit.
Archaeologists believe this spiral was made by Hohokam people about 1,000 years ago.

Only a few years ago, someone noticed that this spiral is a calendar marker. Around noon on the Summer Solstice, sunlight slips through the crack in the rock above the spiral, and a dagger of light points to the spiral. This marker doesn't work for the Equinox, so the Hohokam cleverly chipped away at a ledge to the upper right of the spiral to enable a dagger of light to point to the center of the spiral on the first day of spring and fall.
I got to see this at 11:07 AM on September 22.
Isn't that wonderful?

I also had an opportunity to walk a modern labyrinth at the Picture Rocks Redemptorist Retreat Center.
Do you know the difference between a labyrinth and a maze? Neither did I. A labyrinth has only one route. You can't get lost. A maze has dead ends.

The Tohono O'odham Man in the Maze represents Man's journey through life, from his start at the top of the labyrinth, sometimes getting close to death at the center, but then temporarily moving away from death. This labyrinth has one short dead end, below the center, where Man can look back on his life just before death.


I had a tile made for the foyer of Desert's Edge showing the Woman in the Maze. Notice she is wearing a dress. I was pleased to discover that my labyrinth does have that one dead end for reflection, just before the end.

600 E River Rd., Apt X

My newest listing is a terrific townhouse off River Road west of First Avenue. Here you'll find quality masonry construction in the toes of the Catalina Foothills.
Beehive fireplace has the southwestern ambiance you want. Plantation shutters add style. Wood floor in living room.
Carpet in bedrooms. Private little walled retreat off master bedroom. Two walk-in closets. Mountain view from the pool & spa. Ramada, gas grill & grassy lawn in the common area.
Convenient location between Tucson Mall and St Philip's Plaza. Close to miles of serenity along the beautiful Rillito River hiking and biking path.

Sold December 27, 2012 for $81,000.