Daytripping

4-Wheelin' in Style in Des's Geo Trekker

When I last posted here, I was getting a little concerned about my slothfulness. The initial novelty of living in Truth or Consequences seemed to be wearing off, since I'd seen most of the town, and I was getting into the habit of taking a daily siesta and not getting much accomplished. But that is so last week!

My Zephyr

A day or two after my last post, I ran into my friend Phil at the thrift shop. He's the guy I used to live next door to at the RV park and he's a great bicycle mechanic whenever he doesn't have any beer money. He showed me a nice old 1980s Zephyr Boardwalk cruiser that had just been donated and said he could fix it up for me. Better yet, he would teach me how to fix it myself. It's my favorite color of green and now that it has newer tires and new tubes, it zooms along great in one speed--mine.

Later in the week, I met a new friend, Sam Ace, who is a poet. Friday night, I got to go out to eat at Groovy Grits, a new restaurant in town, with Sam and his wife Amrit, and my friends Des and Kelly, who have a sort of grandpa-granddaughter friendship that is very sweet. I had wanted to check out this cafe, but had been told it was pricey. Not so! I had a terrific Sante Fe Red Chili Cheeseburger with outstanding sweet potato fries and a bottomless tumbler of iced tea for about 10 bucks. The conversation was great, and we were well entertained by a singer-guitarist who looked familiar, and when we chatted I found out it was because he works at the local grocery store. I've forgotten his name, but the next time I shop I will reintroduce myself.

Saturday night was the monthly Art Hop here in TorC, and now that I've lived here a month, I actually knew some of the people involved in the events. James Gosowski had a great exhibit by local artists called "So Gay" and I really enjoyed hanging out there with his friends for a while. Then I had to hightail it over to Rio Bravo Art Gallery to hear Sam's reading from his latest book of poetry, "Stealth." Unfortunately I have no photos from that evening or from Friday night, because I was just having too darned much fun to stop and take any snaps.

Wild desert gourds that look like baby watermelons

Sunday, however, was a big picture-taking day. Kelly picked me up and we rendezvoused with Des and his neighbor Chris, my friends Roz and Dick, and Des's friends Barb and Gabe, and all drove out to Box Canyon near Monticello, New Mexico, for a wild day of four-wheeling. We had two vehicles, which was good, because the folks in the second one were all rockhounds and stopped more often than we trailblazers in Des's Trekker. It was an amazing day unlike anything I've ever experienced before.

Driving down the middle of the stream

The road through the canyon area is crossed at least 50 times by a shallow but quick-moving stream, and there were many times when we drove right down the stream bed itself. We went through a wide variety of environments--desert, oases, open range, homesteads, gentle hills, rocky little mountains--and we saw all sorts of vegetation, birds, deer, elk and even scimitar oryxes, a specialized breed of North African antelope that was introduced into New Mexico game ranches and that has since gone wild here, which is pretty cool considering they are now extinct in Africa.

Kelly kissing a horse, even though she just met him and doesn't even know his name

The conversations in the Trekker and the lunch break were also fun. Everybody shared great stories, and we pondered what it would be like to live way out there where some of the ranches are. This area is also where Geronimo is said to have hidden out prior to his capture in Arizona in 1886. We also wondered about what that stream must be like during the monsoons that hit New Mexico around this time of year. We did see a 10-foot water gauge one place along the creek.

Roz, scanning the rocks for the petroglyphs that we never did find

I also got to learn a little bit about photography from Chris, who is a very accomplished photographer. He suggests that I get a polarizing lens for my camera to help me get better desert colors, which seem to all blend together in my pics.

Chris, looking happy and relaxed at the end of our drive

We had a very full day and all went home exhausted in the late afternoon. I really missed my siesta! I'm so used to taking a midday break that I'm wondering how I'll cope once I start my job at the spa next week. I guess I'll have to bring iced coffee with me on my work days.

Today's eBay and Mosaic Fodder

I missed my siesta again today. I drove the Guppy 70 miles down to Las Cruces to apply for a replacement Social Security card so I can get my New Mexico drivers license. It is a joy to drive my eBay RV now that it no longer contains everything I own! With the art supplies, vintage fabrics, sewing machine, sheet music, etc., all removed, the Guppy drives much more easily. While I was in Cruces, I visited a couple of thrift stores (of course!) and got some great eBay inventory, including cowboy boots, cowboy shirts, African fabrics, and a bunch of Vera scarves. I also stopped at Lowes and bought grout and some great clearance-priced glass tiles for my mosaic work. I came home feeling very inspired, just as a monsoon started, which was a very refreshing break from our 100 degree temps. It's cool tonight and it should be very good sleeping. The thunder and lightening scares Sonja, who prefers to nap in the shade on a hot day, but there will be plenty more of those.