R.O.T.C. Monday?

Starting out on a surprisingly overcast morning

There was only one car in the Sunset Area parking lot when I started off this morning (alone again), but far west of the mountain I ran into a large group of runners (25 to 30) who were probably R.O.T.C. cadets.  All but one was a man.  Almost every one addressed me as "Sir."  They're trained to do so, of course, but the respect kind of went to my head and I could barely refrain from giving them all an order to stand down, to stop and smell the Claret Cup Cactus flowers.

This and the following three images:  Claret Cup Hedgehog Cactus

Slashing across the mid-foothills

Missed the Easter Bunny by one day

Who me?

Long expanse of Chihuahuan Desert to the Organ Mountains

On the horizon:  the Franklin Mountains near El Paso, Texas

A hint of sunlight

Mormon Tea pollen

Many of these runners who passed me said, "Good morning, Sir."

Strange cloud pattern

I took this image through the lens of my sunglasses