Today's errand run turned into more than just picking up meds and Starbucks. Walking down Indian School Road near my partner's place in Albuquerque, a few things along the way caught my eye enough to stop and take some photos.

It's been a while since I've picked up my camera like this, and I didn't realize how much I missed it until I was standing there, framing up a shot.

Orange trumpet vine blossoms climbing along a fence

A trumpet vine dripping with orange and red blooms, buds still unfurling above the open flowers.

 Pink and magenta desert willow blossoms among narrow green leaves

A desert willow in bloom, its blossoms a mix of soft pink and deep magenta, right at home in this New Mexico heat.
Clusters of yellow-green cholla cactus buds

A cholla cactus lined with clusters of yellow-green buds.

 Tall cholla cactus growing along a weathered wooden fence and adobe wall

A cholla cactus towering along a coyote fence and adobe wall, spines catching the light.
Feathery pink-toned ornamental grass in front of an adobe wall

Some feathery grass swaying in front of an adobe wall, soft and a little wild against all that brick.

I lucked out on the weather too. No brutal heat to fight through this morning, though I still worked up a bit of a sweat by the time I got back. That's fine by me. It was good exercise, and my body needed the movement.