When the Cat's Away, the Mice Will Work

Dave just returned from sunny southern California--a vacation week of hanging out with the boys prior to starting Summer classes. While he was gone, I spent the week working on my art and catching up on some yard work.

And the occasional trek down to the Post Office/Recycling Center, where I found these books, some of which are books on tape. Yes, even though it's 2007, we do still have a tape deck! I'm going to thoroughly enjoy listening to these while working on my art this Summer. When I'm done, I'll pass them along. I was especially thrilled to find Amy Tan's The Hundred Secret Senses, which I haven't read yet. I love her work!

And, as proof that I really did work on my art, above are the moulds that I poured at the end of the week. Okay, for all you know those are just two boxes filled with plaster, but there really is some art underneath: four, original plasteline labyrinths. You'll see the fruits of my labor later on this Summer.

While working out in the yard, I got completely distracted by some of the skulls and bones that I've picked up during my hikes. I think it's actually illegal here in New Mexico NOT to display a cow skull somewhere on your property. Hey, I'm not one to take chances! I attached the above skull and jaw bones (which look either like wings or horns, depending on who you ask) to the gate that leads out to the driveway.

And the above set to the same gate, but on the other side. And then, finally, I attached the set (below) to the gate which leads out to the very back of the house. I have to tell you something about old, dried out bones. They have splinters! Later that evening, I spent the night with a magnifying glass and tweesers, pulling bone splinters out of my hands. Note to self: use gloves in the future!

And when I wasn't busy making art and "legalizing" our property with skulls and bones, I was removing cacti from the fenced in area of the yard. Poor Miss Frida often comes limping up to me, usually on 3 legs instead of 4, to have me remove cactus needles from her little paws. She was very happy to see me haul three wheelbarrel loads of cacti down to the arroyo.

A close-up shot of one of the cactus flowers. Gorgeous, huh? Don't worry--there are still plenty of these beautiful plants outside of the fence!


When I was done, as if a gift from above was being bestowed upon me, a flock of rare Northern New Mexico Desert Flamingos landed and set up house under some junipers. I hear that they have an aversion to cactus, so I'm glad that I did all of that work!
And, finally, in the spirit of my blogger friend, Mary Ann, I snapped this photo of my typical lunch: sliced tomatoes & mozarella with fresh herbs from our garden.
Yum, yum!!!

Racing Trains in Arizona

It would have been nice to spend a little more time in Arizona, rather than speeding through (hey, Dave was driving). It's so gorgeous there--particularly up north in the Grand Canyon area, and Sedona. Being in Arizona always brings back fond memories. When we lived there, back in the late 60s-early 70s, Mom and Dad took us all over that state. We camped, hiked, sight-saw, backpacked, drove, you name it. A typical weekend would see us loading up the camper (tent, cooking gear, sleeping bags, food, sterno, and each of us had our own camp chair and water canteen!), driving out to no-man's land, and setting up camp for the weekend. Dad played his harmonica. Mom looked for evidence of ancient people. Us kids--6 of us--would look for treasure (rocks, rusted metal, scorpions, lizzards), and our dog, Snoopy, would shoot out of the camper like a rocket--only to come back later covered with "jumping cactus."

Nice memories. It's funny--people often think of the desert as some desolate, barren, bleached-out-bones kind of place. And it can be that. But it's also full of life. And being in the desert makes me feel innately happy. There's just something very cool about being surrounded by sand, gorgeous rocks, lightening-fast lizzards, mammals and birds that "blend" with the landscape, and the burst of color that comes from cactus flowers, and from the mountains at sunset. There's nothing more alive than that!

You know, when you're on the road; and especially when you're on the road for long periods of time, oftentimes you make your own entertainment. Dave enjoyed "racing the train," while I looked for odd road signs to photograph. Don't worry--we didn't actually race the trains to any particular destination (like, tracks crossing the road, for instance!). We just zoomed alongside each other. I'm telling ya--there are some seriously long trains criss-crossing northern Arizona!


This photo was less than crystal clear (it's hard to take good photos when you're the passenger, and the driver rivals Mario Andretti), so I decided to really distort it in photoshop.

And tomorrow, it's "Cal-i-for-nia Here I Come!" (Just imagine the tune in your head)

644 Days Unti George W. Bush Leaves Office!
645 Days until the BIG PARTY!!!!