Why? Gearing Up for a Move

Sonja in a shopping bag, ready to move on again

I've been in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, for three-and-a-half months and I am beginning to prepare to move on.

This surprised me at first, because TorC has so much to offer me--friendly coffee shops where I've met very nice folks, a couple of thrift stores to replenish my eBay inventory, a great recovery community, places to sell my artwork, and more.

However, I've also found myself back in the trap of being a wage slave here. My motorhome is large enough for travel, but is too confining for everyday living, so I rented an apartment. But, to afford the apartment, I needed a job.

Now the job has overshadowed my life, mostly because of the arthritis I still have in my knee following arthroscopic surgery. As I whined in my last blog entry, working just two days a week takes a lot out of me, because I tend to hurt pretty badly for several days after a work day. So two days of work means five or six days of pain every week, which has affected my productivity in other parts of my life...my eBay business and my artwork.

Surprise! Caught in the act of being helpful...

The obvious solution was to quit the job (done!) and live on my earnings from self-employment, while reducing my living costs. I asked my landlord about having Steve move in with me here in my nice little casita, and the answer was, NO. There's much that could be said about that, but I will refrain, except to say we each live in our own dream or version of reality.

I contemplated looking for a new place to rent with Steve here in TorC and decided against it. Much as I love this town, I am ready for new horizons, new experiences, new faces and places. It's who I am. I used to wonder what was wrong with me, that I am so ready to move on, but I've finally accepted that I am simply a traveler. I've never worked my genealogy back far enough to verify it, but my Scandinavian roots must lead to Vikings.

Recently completed shelf

So I'm giving my notice on the apartment, and in a month, Steve and I are heading for his place at Coyote Howls in Why, Arizona. I'll spend the winter there rent-free and be able to meet my expenses (health insurance, phone, Internet, food, vehicle insurance, and a life insurance plan to leave something to my kid) through self-employment.

Why is a very small town about 10 miles from Ajo, a metropolis of 4000. Surprisingly, there is public transportation. I'll be able to go to Ajo or even to Tucson (100 miles east) for the day whenever I want. Steve's sister lives in Tucson and we'll probably visit her fairly often and take in some entertainment there. Ajo has a lively artists' community where I might find some opportunities to study, volunteer or work.

Coyote Howls is a primitive RV park in the Sonoran Desert that's off the grid, except at the clubhouse. Steve's 5th wheel has solar electricity, but I'll probably need to head up to the clubhouse with my sewing machine when I want to sew. I'll have the Guppy with me, of course, and plan to use it as my little art studio/eBay office so I don't have to impose my stuff on the space that Steve will share with me. The Guppy can also serve as a guest bedroom for visitors.

Because "Gesundheit" wouldn't fit...

I expect to be back in TorC once or twice during the winter. My kid Sly will visit me during his winter break from college, and I'd like to show him TorC and introduce him to some of my friends, particularly the gallery owners who may be willing to show Sly's work. And, if things go according to my own dream, I'll have artwork of my own to bring back here for sale at January's Gallery.

In the meantime, before heading for Why to spend the winter, I have much to accomplish here. I plan to use up some of my art supplies, especially vintage fabrics, so I'll have less to move with me. I've been commissioned by La Paloma Spa to do some mosaic work, and I'll still be filling in there occasionally, but not working the long 9.5 hour shifts that aggravate my arthritis. I'll be taking a short trip north to meet my friend Joni who's flying in from California for the Albuquerque Balloon Festival.

And what's next, after wintering in Why? Hmmm...the choices are endless. Steve and I are thinking of some possibly extensive travels in the Guppy before heading back to TorC. The Pacific Northwest, maybe Alaska. That remains to be seen.

Manifesting

Busking--my way of manifesting a small cheese pizza

My neighbor Janice, who would probably prefer not to be photographed or discussed in my blog, works nights at the spa where I work two days a week. Sometimes when I'm taking over the reservation desk from her in the morning, there are no lodgers expected that day, so Janice's next night shift might be curtailed and she might make less money.

On those days, she leaves saying, "Manifest me some guests, Sue."

I'm, like, "Um, okay, will do."

I don't really know how to manifest lodgers, but apparently I must be doing something right, because every night by the time Janice returns to work, we have overnight guests. I wonder if I can take credit for this, or whether the guests come because it's getting cooler and they're more interested in staying at a spa where they can soak in the hot springs than they were during the middle of summer.

Well, anyway, this regular request from my friend and coworker has gotten me thinking a lot about manifesting. I've read The Secret and other stuff of that sort, and it seems to me that there's just one element that may be missing from the concept that you can get what you want simply by imagining having it while coming from a good place: work. But maybe that's just me.

Saturday night was the Art Hop here in Truth or Consequences (apparently our town is too small to have a full-fledged Art Walk), and I decided to manifest a pizza.

Not having complete confidence in my ability to do this simply by creating my own reality, I took my flute and music stand and some baroque music that I used to play in college back when my flute chops were awesome, and busked on a street corner for a couple of hours. I manifested enough money for a small personal sized pizza, but I gotta tell you, I busted my chops to do it.

I am pretty sure that if I learn (or actually re-learn) some jazz and pop tunes from my former incarnation as a semi-professional flutist, I will manifest more money. "California Dreamin'" will probably manifest an extra large, and "Baby Elephant Walk" will manifest extra toppings. Of course, it will take me quite a few hours of practice to manifest this much pizza.

I may sound pretty skeptical about manifestation, but really I'm not altogether a doubter. I have had some pretty incredible things happen to me since I came here to TorC. The very day that I needed an apartment because I was feeling overcrowded in my small motorhome, I went for a walk and happened upon a friend who had an apartment available. And the day I moved into the apartment, Janice told me about the part-time job that I've held ever since. I did absolutely nothing to have these goodies come my way, except to realize that at some point I was going to need a larger place to live and a job to pay my rent.

Now, a few months later, my needs are changing, so I'm thinking a lot about manifesting. For one thing, the person who I replaced at the spa may be returning, and our original understanding was that she'd have the job back if she came back to town. This is really up to the spa owner to decide, but I'm inclined to bow out and let the old employee come back and have the job, which has been more difficult for me than I expected due to the knee problems that arose right about the same time that I started working there.

I think the work, which involves walking around showing people to their rooms and giving them tours and instructions on use of the bath house, as well as some light housekeeping, is slowing my recovery from surgery. I do a lot better on the days that I don't work, and after working a day, it takes me a few days at home to get back on track--by which time I have to return to work again.

Of course, I do "work" on the days that I'm not at the job. I get vintage clothing ready to sell on eBay...photograph items and write up auction listings...pack stuff that's sold and get it to the Post Office...shop for new inventory at the thrift store, rummage sales, yard sales, etc...smash plates and nip them into tiles...clean and paint items that I can mosaic...glue tiles onto the forms and later grout them...take finished works to the gallery for sale...ad infinitum. But when I'm working at home rather than at the spa, I can pace myself and I tend not to hurt nearly as much.

A $3 yard sale shelf in the process of being manifested into a $50 shelf

I'm more actively making art than I was when I first got to town, and I would really like more time to pursue this. Can I manifest all I need from doing artwork? I consulted a local Tarot card reader on Sunday (she manifested $15 from me), and she assures me that it's all clear sailing, with no need for a job. According to Rebecca, my artwork will take care of all of my needs, and the only thing that might hold me back is my doubts that are based my dark cloudy past. Let go of my worries, and I will manifest abundance.

She also confirmed that I'm on the right track in my partnership with Steve, with whom I'm planning to travel to Arizona for at least part of this winter, where my living expenses will be vastly less than here in TorC, because I'll stay at his place. We're also contemplating sharing rent for whatever time we remain here in New Mexico this year and in the foreseeable future.

Chiles are almost certain to manifest abundance in New Mexico...or at least a twenty

So, for right now, I'm feeling very open to the idea of just selling my artwork and antiques at January's Gallery and continuing to sell vintage clothing on eBay. Whatever happens with the job, so be it. I have been well cared for by a loving God no matter what questionable ideas I've gotten into my head over the years. I'll keep doing my daily morning routine of asking for guidance and see what manifests.

Sonja (in laundry basket) daily manifests kibble, water and canned cat food, merely by being my cat...or is it mind control???!!

Back in the Saddle & Making Travel Plans

A cherub-topped birdhouse that is ready to grout and my next little project

Today it's been two weeks since my arthroscopic knee surgery. I was feeling like my recovery was slow, with more pain and swelling than I'd expected, because I've heard so many stories about people having such quick recoveries. However, when I saw my surgeon yesterday, he said I'm right on track for a person who has a lot of arthritis. I have more pain and swelling than some people because the surgery, although fairly minor, stirred up my arthritis. So it's just going to take me a while longer to become fully functional and pain free.

In the meantime, though, I am released to go back to all of my normal activities, including being able to fully immerse my knee in water again. Yay! So I went to the spa last night and soaked in the hot mineral waters, and it felt really good. I'm going to do that every day for a while, maybe even more than once a day.

I also rode my bike this morning for the first time in well over a month, and that felt great! Biking is easy on my knees because there's no impact. It's actually easier than walking. The doctor said I can ride up to 30 minutes a day, and just be careful to stay where the streets are flat and fairly smooth. So I rode my bike to my 7:30 a.m. meditation meeting and then to the grocery store, with no problems.

I'm very happy to be able to get back into the flow of life. I lost some income from my spa job while I was convalescing and I also took a break from eBay selling because there wasn't much point in selling stuff that I wouldn't be able to get out and ship. But now I am fully back to work, and I'm getting more mosaic artwork done again, too.

Sonja in one of the boxes that arrived while I was convalescing

While I was housebound, I ordered some box lots of vintage scarves from other eBay sellers, and now I've sorted through them and selected the best ones to resell individually. So today I will iron or steam some of the nicest scarves and photograph them, then write up some descriptions, set the prices, and upload the auctions. Some eBay sellers don't have the patience to do this with individual scarves, and that's why I'm able to buy estate lots of, say, 50 scarves or three pounds of scarves from other eBayers. Personally I love the work I do to sell individual scarves. I'm grateful to have found such a fun niche. I love the beautiful colors and handling the silk and the descriptive writing that's involved in preparing each auction listing.

I'm planning to work really hard this fall, winter and spring while it's the busy tourist season here in Truth or Consequences. I'm planning to continue at my part-time spa job as well as taking my own artwork and found objects (antiques, collectibles, other people's artwork, etc.) to January's Gallery for consignment, as well as working my eBay business.

Shelf that will go above my stove when finished

My hope is to get a little bit ahead of my monthly expenses so I can take off and travel all of next summer. Steve and I are thinking about going to Alaska, although we have a few other possible destinations in mind as well. Steve has never been to Alaska and it's been a lifelong dream of his to go, and I haven't been up there since the 1980s when I used to live there. So it would be a great destination, and we could visit lots of family and friends along the way.

In the meantime, we're going to take a shorter vacation up to northern New Mexico the first week in October, to visit friends in the Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Taos areas. This will be a good test of how well we travel together in the Guppy before we plan a really big trip!

Steve standing between the Guppy and John Rogers' 1970 VW Camper

Steve has lots of knowledge and experience with RVs, having lived in RVs and RV parks for about 25 years. So he's fixing everything on the Guppy that never worked while I was living in it full-time. I could never hook up to water, because there's a leak that gets the kitchen cupboards all wet. Steve is in the process of eliminating that problem, and then he'll see if the hot water heater works and whether we can use the shower. (I always used showers at campgrounds along the way, and I just filled up gallon jugs of water for drinking, dish washing, etc., and heated up water on the stove.) He's also going to fix the propane furnace, which I could never get to work. So the Guppy will be in great shape for our October trip--and the trips to come!

Semi-Ambulatory, Soporific and Sophistical

Me, not using a cane or other assistive walking device

It's five days since my arthroscopic knee surgery and I am walking some of the time. I only had to use a walker for one day, then a cane for another day, and after that I did not need to lean on anything.

I did, however, overdo it the past two days. On Sunday I walked a block-and-a-half to Black Cat Books and Coffee and then got a ride home, but it was too late. I'd already overdone it. So I spent the rest of the day asleep and had to resort to taking a pain pill in the evening again, after having gone all day without.

Did I learn from this? No! I was sure yesterday would be better, so I walked not only to Black Cat, but also a few more blocks to the Post Office and then home again. After all, if a block-and-a-half is too far, what more harm can I do myself by walking eight blocks? Hmm. Quite a bit, it seems. My knee got swollen up and sore, and I had to take pain medication in the afternoon and at bedtime.

Today is a new day. No walks for me. I am staying at home all day. This is hard. I'm a social person. I like my routines, especially the ones I've developed here in TorC. I want to get back to those days when I could just hop on my bike and fly over to the Post Office and then breeze downhill to the thrift store to see what old thing is new. But such whims and impulses require good knees.

My left knee

There's no way to take a pretty picture of your own knee. But this photo shows that the surgery left me with just three little holes and some swelling.

Being housebound leaves me with whims and impulses that occur only in my mind--such a dangerous place to spend time alone. But it's also given me time to think through some lingering unsettledness about my past. (Yes, I am making up words now...this is what happens when I'm home alone.) I've come to understand some things about my childhood, my young adult years, and the 20 years I spent in a sad marriage. I'm appreciating that I've come out of all of this as a person who is pretty good inside and out--loving, caring, kind and increasingly respectful of myself and others. And I'm letting go of regrets over the years I wasted as a drunk and as an unappreciated spouse. Maybe I needed two decades of active addiction and another two decades of being sober but unhappy in order to be exactly where I am today--a happy, sober woman with a peaceful life, who only needs to let her knee heal a bit so she can once again zoom around on her bicycle.

Smiling Steve

My boyfriend Steve and I have started talking about all sorts of new adventures that we might share. He is a free spirit. We have both been in TorC only a short time and we both love it here, but the road is beginning to whisper in our ears again. I see this as a time to rest and regroup, but I'm getting ready to redeploy. Probably not on a long-term basis, but from time to time, using TorC as my home base. I've thought of starting a teaching art studio here, but it isn't the time for me to be that tied down. I am a youngster of 56 and still have a lot to see and do, especially now that I've finally learned how to live one day at a time.

Sonja in the doorway, enjoying the inside and outside at once

My cat is a good teacher of living in the moment. This morning I watched her intensely pursue a ball in the courtyard, but then, while crouching to attack it, she discovered some tasty grass to chew on and she relaxed and forgot the ball. That's kind of the way I am with this idea I have about starting a little art school. It's a great idea. I may pursue it sometime. I may have other things to do first.

For now, I'm Snoozy Suzy, and I'm off for the first siesta of the day.

Sorny's Sore Knee and Wonderful Support Team

There will be no pictures accompanying this blog post, because I'm a gimp these days and am not getting out of the house except for necessary stuff like work, medical appointments, and the occasional errand or social event. No wandering around aimlessly on foot or bike lately, so I haven't had my camera anywhere interesting for a while.

About 45 years ago, I acquired the nickname "Sorny" first at school, later at church camp, and then I used it as my Girl Scout camp counselor name into my 20s. It's short for Sorensen, which was my last name before I decided I'd rather be Sue Soaring Sun. I wonder if there was something prophetic about choosing the name Sorny, because in my dotage I have had nothing but trouble with my knees. Shoulda picked something like "Goodny" instead, I guess!

I noticed that Facebook friends of my nephew Eric also call him Sorny. Eric, tell 'em to stop, quick!!! You're not getting any younger!

A few weeks back, I blogged about going off-roading with friends and it was a wonderful time except for one brief moment when I was climbing out of the back seat of a small vehicle and felt some horrible pain in my left knee. The right knee is made out of Titanium and is more reliable than my left knee. I had it replaced about four years ago. After the painful exit from the back seat of the Trekker, I switched seats so I'd put my weight on the bionic knee while getting out of the car.

For a few weeks after that, I had intermittent pain in the left knee, but it felt okay if I didn't push it too hard or sit or lie in one place too long. Eventually, though, the pain got constant and more intense. On the day I could no longer get on my bike, I called the local clinic and made an appointment to see the doctor the next day. He ordered an MRI, which showed that I have two torn menisci.

There are no orthopedic surgeons in my small town of Truth or Consequences, so tomorrow I am going down to Las Cruces to see a specialist and he will schedule me for arthroscopic surgery. This will be a day surgery and I'll only miss about a week of work at La Paloma Spa. What he'll do is make tiny incisions to insert an arthroscope, which has a light and camera, and surgical tools. He'll basically shave off the bad parts of the menisci, which are arc-shaped pieces of cartilage that act as a cushion between the shin bone and thigh bone, and clean up any other problems he sees while he's in there. Hopefully there will be plenty of cartilage left so that I won't eventually need to have this knee replaced, but he'll get a better idea when he sees it close up.

I had this same surgery on my right knee about a year before my total knee replacement, but it wasn't successful in relieving my pain, swelling, stiffness, etc. I hope this one is! It's a lot easier surgery than a knee replacement, which has a long recovery time.

I've been taking pain meds for about 10 days now and I am really sick of them. I wish I could just get by on over-the-counter Tylenol or Advil, but it just doesn't help enough. The prescription pain meds make me feel sick to my stomach a lot of the time, so I've mostly been staying close to home while waiting this out. I'll sure be glad when this is over. I hope my surgeon is not too busy and can fit me in for surgery pronto!

In the meantime, I am feeling enormous gratitude towards my VanDweller friends Brian and John, who have taken me to the grocery store and other places I've needed to go. John is taking me down to Las Cruces tomorrow, and both guys said they'd try to be available for whenever the surgery happens. Also, my new boyfriend, Steve, may be back from Arizona by the time I have surgery or at least while I'm still recovering, and I know he'll do all he can to take good care of me. The women from my 11th Step meeting are planning to bring a meeting and game night to my home after I have surgery. Other friends have promised to bring me some entertaining AA speaker tapes to listen to, since I probably won't get to a meeting for a few days. Also, my best friend back in Washington State, Helen, has been through all the same knee stuff that I have, and more, so she is a wonderful listener and help to me.

So I'm sure your ears perked up when I mentioned having a boyfriend, and I won't get away with just mentioning his name and not giving any more information. Steve is the nicest guy I've ever dated. We haven't had a chance to date much yet, because about the time we decided we liked each other, he already had some commitments in Santa Fe and Tucson, so he's been on the road more than he's been here since we started seeing each other. However, he'll be back to TorC this coming weekend and is going to rent a place and stay here in town so we'll have lots of chances to get to know each other better. We met in an anonymous program for recovering drunks, where we are both old-timers with lots of years of sobriety. Steve is serene, kind, gentle, generous, smart, fun, good-looking...I'd need to get my thesaurus out to completely describe what a nice man he is. We both deserve a great relationship, and I'm glad we've found each other.

I'm off to make myself a protein shake, which is one of the easy foods I really appreciate on these pain meds, and then John is going to drive me up to the movie theater to see the latest Harry Potter film. John is a fantasy writer himself and has followed the entire Harry Potter book and film series, so it will be fun to go with him, and I so appreciate not having to walk or drive myself to the movie theater.

Wish me luck tomorrow when I see the surgeon! Let's hope he can fit me in for surgery as soon as this week!

Becoming New Mexican

La Paloma Hot Springs & Spa

Yesterday I started my job as a part-time spa attendant at La Paloma, which offers hot springs baths, massage, lodging and a conference center for retreats. It's a very nice facility, and one of the perks is that I get all the free soaks I want.

The job itself is pretty easy--two days a week, I will take whatever reservations come in, check in people as they arrive for a stay, and do some light housekeeping in the bath house between bathers. Job duties include such things as making sure the New Age music from Pandora is always streaming into the bath house and doing a sage ritual at shift change.

The downside of the job is that everyone that works there is seriously nucking futs. Housekeepers come into the office to complain about everything and everybody. So I'll be learning to have good boundaries on this job. The only question is whether to be really positive or just tell these crazy people I will hurt them if they spew their negativity at me. I'll probably try the nice approach first.

I did talk to a few people that I consider to be sane about the bitchy backbiters at work, and they said, "Welcome to TorC." I could get a job somewhere else, but it will be the same anywhere. This is a town where you are a superstar at work if you show up, do the job, and don't say anything really crazy (such as attributing missing cleaning supplies to ghosts...seriously!), and that's what I intend to do.

Turtleback Mountain just before a monsoon

In my last entry, I wrote about selling both antiques and my artwork at January's Gallery With a Card Shop here in Truth or Consequences. A few days ago, I stopped by with more vintage stuff for January to sell in her shop, and she kindly included me in a "ladies night out" at the new ice cream shop in town that evening. It was really fun getting to know a few more people here, especially since they share my interest in reselling old crap.

I took the picture of Turtleback just as I left the house. Normally the mountain is a dark brown against a light blue sky, but with a rainstorm about to begin and the sun on its way down, the mountain was illuminated against a dark cloudy background. For those of you who know Brian, that's his house on the right with the big swamp cooler on the roof. Brian lives so close to me that I sometimes back the Guppy into his fence, trying to get out of my parking space and into the alley. Not on purpose, of course.

Sonja's kibble in a moat

I didn't know about the monsoon season before I moved here. Coming from the Pacific Northwest where it rains all fall, winter and spring, it seems funny to be someplace where the majority of the rain falls in the summer. But it's also nice, because the storms usually occur in the afternoon or early evening, and they bring cool relief from the hot days. When I was at the ice cream event the other night, the rain came down pretty hard for a while, so we just stayed longer and chatted more until it cleared up.

Another thing I didn't know about before moving here was the ants! Lots and lots of little ants, different colors and different kinds. The locals know their names. I don't. They're all just pests to me. I was feeling frustrated about ants coming into my house and swarming in Sonja's cat food dish, until I talked to my neighbor Janice, who does a lot of pet-sitting. She told me to put Sonja's dish inside a larger dish full of soapy water. This completely alleviated the problem.

Candlesticks painted in New Mexico colors, then distressed

This week I took a major shopping trip down to Las Cruses with my friends Gretchen and Tom. Man, do they know how to shop! I thought I was a shopper, but they wore me out. Gretchen shopped 'til I dropped. It was good, though. We hit some thrift stores that have a 30% senior discount on Wednesdays, and I found lots of good stuff for resale and also to incorporate into artwork. Then we went to deep discount department stores, such as Big Lots and Factory 2U, and I got a bunch of things I needed for my apartment. We topped it off with lunch at Golden Corral, which also has a senior discount, but I wasn't old enough for that one. I don't think I can afford to go with Gretchen and Tom every week (money-, time-, or energy-wise), but it was fun and I will definitely do it again.

Overall this past week has been another social butterfly week for me. This just amazes me, given that I used to be such a loner. I find myself dropping whatever I'm doing to have coffee with Dhultky or iced tea with Brian or a chat with Janice, plus I need to fit in the phone calls to friends and family elsewhere. I've also begun writing a weekly snail mail letter to my son Sly, because sometimes it's difficult to find times that we're both available to talk on the phone. I am changing here...no longer isolating, and becoming a person who values companionship, kindness, and mutual interests when they come my way.

Mosaic birdhouse completed this morning

I do, however, need to grab those times that I have to myself and get things accomplished! I actually do that, but not to the extent of my capabilities. I gather things up to take to January and I do artwork and I eat pretty well and ride my bike here and there to run errands, but I tend to put off the less fun stuff. So today I'm having a Garbage Day to take care of the garbage I'd rather not do, such as pay bills, do paperwork, and clean house. And I'm going to get it all done before my siesta, so I gotta run. I know I'm not completely a New Mexican yet, because if i was, I'd take my siesta first. One day at a time, I guess.

At Long Last--Back in the Mosaic & Antiques Biz

Mosaic Tray Completed Last Night

Being able to do mosaic artwork again is like breathing clearly after the allergy season finally ends. It's taken me a while to accumulate supplies since I settled here in Truth or Consequences a little over a month ago, but now I'm back in business. I have a few plates and tiles to break, a few items ("forms") to cover with tiles, some grout, sponges, etc. And I have a place to sell my work.

While I'd like to eventually do some solo gallery shows, and I will, for now I'm going to sell some pieces at January's Gallery With a Card Shop on Broadway in TorC.

January is a very nice woman who runs a combination art gallery/antiques store. On Saturday, I brought her some retro stuff that hadn't sold on eBay, and she liked everything and will sell it on consignment.

Consignment is a great way to go! I used to have my own rented antique spaces up in the Pacific Northwest and it was a lot of work to price every item, stage everything in my space, and keep it neat and clean. At January's, all I have to do is bring her the stuff, and she'll do the pricing and display. Of course, she takes a larger percentage, but, hey, I know how to buy low and sell high, so that's not a problem. Now I can have the pure pleasure of "picking"--going out and buying stuff that I can turn around for a profit--which is the most fun part of the antique biz for me, anyway.

Two Trivets

I'll also be bringing January some mosaic pieces when she reopens this week (like many TorC businesses, she mostly operates on the weekend, when the touristas are in town). She really likes mosaic work and already has one mosaic artist in the shop, but my work is very different from what is already there, so that should work out fine.

"Sue Central"--My Kitchen Table, Where It All Happens

I continue to make friends and enjoy new activities here in New Mexico. This week I got to meet John Rogers, whom I've known from the VanDwellers for some time. John is staying in his 1970 VW van at nearby Caballo Lake State Park. He came into town to take care of some business one day last week, and we had a fine time, drinking sodas at Little Sprout Juice Bar, meeting up with our mutual VanDweller friend Brian at my house, and then having a burger at Groovy Gritz. John is a kind, mellow guy who I know is going to be a wonderful friend. We've got some more plans in the works--a camp dinner at Caballo this week and maybe some gold panning up in Silver City! I wish I'd remembered to take a photo of John while he was in town. Whenever I'm having a really good time, I forget to get out the camera.

Organic Heirloom Tomatoes from Artists Habitat (My Apartment Building) Communal Garden

In addition to John's visit, I had coffee with several friends this week and went on a hike at Elephant Butte State Park with Kelly and her dogs. I also worked a lot at getting some business taken care of, such as applying for my New Mexico drivers license, switching over some life insurance from my ex's name to mine, stuff like that. I went to the movie theater on Saturday night to see the very silly but well-animated Cars 2, then had my friend Steve over to drink iced tea while we sat on my patio, looking at the full moon. The past week has been quiet, but satisfying and productive.

With that, I'm off to mail stuff that's sold on eBay and to see what new wonders have appeared at the thrift store. G'day!