It's a variant of the common Prickly Pear. The first time I saw one, I would have sworn it was spray painted by a graffitti artist.
If not that, it must have been fabricated from metal. Some of them are gun metal grey.
The color just doesn't jive with an easterner's sense of what is natural. There it is, though, sporting spring's first yellow flower.
An Easter cactus! Purple and yellow. A single pad rarely blooms, so this little guy is sort of special. Someone must have said "Bloom where you're planted," and he took it to heart.
My Darlin' and I were walking down the street to a birthday party for a neighbor, but I had to run back to the house for the camera.
I pumped up the contrast a little in the photo below to show off the detail of the flower.
I'm Mike in Tucson, your preferred Tucson, Arizona mortgage lender.
Think of me as your local expert.
