Toasting in Boulder......

Somewhere in the back of my brain.....I thought I was going to beat the southern heat on this vacation....right now I'm in Boulder and it's 90+ degrees....that's not my definition of cool.

It's been an interesting few days......went from Santa Fe to Taos...and spent two nights there.

Big mistake....found Taos boring. But did find the answer to a interesting question....remember hippies? wonder what happened to hippies who fried their brains.....good chance they moved to Taos.....man...I saw an incredible amount of feeble looking folks both young and old....and all of them seemed to be leashed to strange looking dogs......finally figured out that a lot of the dogs must be wold-cross breeds....cause their muzzle and stature just didn't fit the normal bow bow dogs you find elsewhere.

Bored we decided to leave the city on two adventures. Both interesting but unsuccessful.

First....we found a particular Indian artist whose speciality was engraved jet black pottery. Incredible stuff.....was just wowed by her pots. We heard you could drive up to the reservation and find the artist or perhaps a small shop with more of her pieces. So off we went to two Indian reservations. Once we got there....we had to register and then we were told you just walked around and looked for houses with the sign "open" on them. This meant an artist had pottery and was home for a look. I immediately felt uncomfortable. I imagined browsing through a small shop filled with local arts.....didn't expect to be going into people's houses. So....we walked through the village.....and knocked on a few doors with signs. People invited you into their homes....where they usually had a small display of their families goods. Trouble is....how do you politely say....I don't like any of your work when you're in some one's house? I claimed in one house the pottery was too small.....I claimed in another house....the pottery was too big.....I didn't claim.....I disliked their work. Since we were way off the beaten track we decided to go to another reservation....the San Carlos pueblo ....to track down our favorite artist. After several wrong turns....we ended up discouraged.....but found ourselves in the middle of a village. By gosh I looked up and there was a sign....with the artist's name we were looking for plus "open". All excited I knocked on her door .....but .....no one was home. Discouraged we went to the little village store and with the help of one of the locals....Paul Speckle Rock...found another piece which was quite remarkable but still not one of her works. I suppose when I get home I can try and track some of her pieces down on the internet....of course....I should have bought the piece I saw in Santa Fe ...the ol' better something in the hand then dreaming of what's in the bush.

Our next adventure took us out into the desert. I just wanted to drive around. I love these wide open places....I always feel like my mind, my spirit and my heart expands to fit the landscape. So we're....enjoying big sky big desert big mountains.....when we stumble upon a little town. The map states something about a hot spring. So we amble down a road....and find ourselves in the middle of this wonderful resort.....a health springs/spa resort. Posh looking....fountains gurgling....nestled against the desert hills. We enter the lobby and discover they allow walk ins to use the facilities...immediately I spot what I want......a private scented mineral springs bath.

I shower.....put on a loaner swimsuit....and walk to the bath house....just aching to slip into scented hot water and relax for a half an hour. But it's monsoon time in the mountains....and suddenly there's a clap of thunder and a brilliant blast of lightening. The employees emerge and shut down everything....including the bath house. No bathing in the springs for 25 minutes after the last flash of lightening. 24 minutes later....I'm watching the clock smiling..... soon I'm going to be floating in my tub.....when zip bang flash.....another bolt of lightening and a loud long rumble.....I sadly head back to the registration desk....for a refund....for now it will be another 45 minutes before they open the facility. Looking on the bright side....I did get to shower free in mineral water.

My final adventure in Taos was just cute.

The Bed and Breakfast we stayed at....had a resident peacock... George....a fat plump bird who was moulting and in heat. The Inn keeper warned my hub not to go near him since he intensely disliked men during his mating period. In fact, there were spray bottles around....to convince George to stop chasing a man. George, however, in his amorous state liked women. And on our last morning in Taos.....I was rewarded for being a female....George squawked at me......turned around and vigourously shook his bird butt at me....then turned again and gave me the full fan.....complete with some extra shaking.

He was gorgeous. Gorgeous George...and I was impressed and told him so. I've seen peacocks in pictures fully extended but I've never had one standing in front of me. Amazing....thank you George.

Cycles ..........

I knew something was missing. I looked out into my back yard and realized our New Mexico totem pole was no longer standing.
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Termites discovered the pole a couple years ago and attacked it with a vengeance.
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My daughter and I bought this totem in Albuquerque ....8 years ago. She had graduated from 8th grade and was heading into high school.
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To celebrate this life transition, I surprised her with a road trip to New Mexico. Since kindergarten, she was a fan of Georgia O'Keeffe...so I could think of no better gift than to show her the art and landscape of her favorite artist.
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I remember her surprise as I announced we were heading to New Mexico. I also remembered her eyes widen when I tossed a couple of maps into her lap and told her she was totally responsible for navigation for the entire trip.
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At that time in my daughter's life, I wanted her to learn to be independent....and strong...and to find her way in the world without having to depend on others.
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We had a great trip. At the Texas border, my muffler came apart and we sparked our way down the expressway for a couple of miles...I was absolutely certain my 40 gallon gas tank would ignite and explode. We didn't ( a few guys cinched it up at a gas station) and we took pictures of ourselves to celebrate our intact-ness on top of the Suburban in the middle of the desert.
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We ate lots of Mexican food....stayed in a beautiful bed and breakfast and bought art books. We found the totem pole heading out of Albuquerque and thought>>>> great backyard art. Coming home, we listened to Maya Angelou on tape ...I remember looking at her at one point and saying..."Honey...where the hell are we?"....Maya's voice was so mesmerizing...we missed our exit by 20 miles.
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Now the totem pole has fallen...exactly 8 summers since we put it in its place.....and my daughter faces her next transition in life.....she's graduating from college next weekend.
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She is a strong and resourceful woman......on the dean's list....and hopefully heading off in a year to graduate school in psychology. She's patient and kind and has this ease in loving and being generous to others.....that I greatly admire in her.
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I was supposed to fly home after graduation ....but she asked if I would be willing to stay for a few days........she works evenings in a bookstore....and she needs some help during the day to pack and move.
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Of course I will stay....and in the quiet of the hotel room in the evenings....I'm sure the magnitude of this transition will catch me.....she begins her big adventure now....and I am glad I will be there to see her off.
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