Las Cruces

I mentioned yesterday that we were on our way to Las Cruces for the afternoon. These are the Organ Mountains, seen from town. Cruces, aside from the adobe architecture, could be Anytown, USA: Home Depot, Target, Village Inn and Chili's. We did stop at the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Museum and listened to a lecture on Dowsing. Bought some lumber at HD for bookshelves and also bought a bench grinder for shaping rocks. The weather has started to cool a little. It still gets up to close to 100F, but for a shorter period of time in the afternoon. With a breeze and low humidity, anything in the mid-90's or lower seems quite balmy and pleasant.

Here's a pot we bought down in Hatch a couple of days ago at a great Mexican Import shop. It's got some little tiny vines planted inside. We've been collecting seeds wherever we go and starting them to see what comes up. These are some kind of locusty looking vines that will eventually spill out the mouth of the pot and climb the fence.

How Does Your Garden Grow

Haven't posted for awhile, so here are some garden pictures. The news from our insurance company is good. We have already received a check for 3 months lost rent to enable us to pay the mortgage while renovation is taking place. Ken Swisher has pretty much torn out the interior of the third floor and we're waiting for final numbers on how much they will allow for rebuilding. It should be sufficient to completely gut the building to the studs, re-insulate, wire and plumb everything.
Meanwhile, we continue our life in the sun. We picked our first zuccini a few days ago. Peppers and tomatoes are almost ready, and we've been making pesto from our basil for a month now. (That's basil with the purple flowers.) We went into the desert a couple of days ago and brought back a bag of clay/sand that's perfect for making adobe. I made a little ball and let it dry in the sun. Now I have a perfect little clay marble. Can't wait to try a pot. Not quite ready to set up an adobe brickworks for a house yet, but that may be in our future. Who knows?
We plan on taking a trip to Las Cruces this afternoon. It's about 30-45 minutes south of TorC, and is the nearest big shopping center, with about 80,000 people. It's also near of the Organ Mountains, which we have only seen from a distance, but they are impressive. It's in a lush agricultural area. Can't wait to see what's growing down there.
I'll try to rememer to take the camera and post some photos of that area.
Susannah, Bea and Dotty arrive September 8th for a weeks visit. Can't wait to show them the sights.

Need a New Home for our Fuzzy Boys!

OK, all my friends out there. I need your help. I need a new home for Herbie-the-Bad-Cat and his partner in crime, Tubby. These wonderful companions kept me safe and sane all last winter when I was confined to a recliner 24-7 and would make me laugh with their two tricks, Cat Wrestling and Cat Races. We had asked Dots (their vet) about bringing them with us in the car, and she advised absolutely not, unless they had been riding in cars since they were kittens, which they haven't. We then thought that we could fly them down, but the trip will be gruelling, we are unsure about the dosage and longevity of the kitty-downers we'd have to administer, there would be layovers in Seattle and SLC and then car rides--it's too much to ask of 7-8 year old country cats. So they need new homes. Matt and Susannah and Bea have been caring for them, but they have a little-bitty house and two 18-pound cats are just too much for them. They are good buddies, but both would be fine if they were adopted separately. It breaks my heart, but I also just couldn't inflict that trip on them. Herbie has the longest legs, tail and canines I've ever seen on a cat. He's a clutz; don't scratch his hind end--he doesn't like it. When he sits on you he's so heavy (18 pounds, as I said) you can't get up. Tubby is short and squat and looks like a doorstop when he sits. He has a tail like a cruller. He always lets you know when there's a present in the catbox and when there's not enough dry food in his dish. He weighs 18 pounds too. Both these boys prefer to be outside to do their business but they'll use a box. They like to be outside, except when it's raining and then they'll whine at you. They're funny and frisky and in good health--have had all their shots, etc. You can call Susannah at 299-4317 or 235-2310 to see them. I really hope someone out there will find it in their hearts to share their home with them. Thanks! Love to you ALL.

Insurance and Back Again

After realizing that our tenants in Homer are out of luck because our home-owner/landlord policy doesn't cover renters belongings, we decided to get renters insurance of our own here in TorC. Went to the local Allstate office and spent half an hour getting all the details straightened out and then she sent off the info online to the Big Computer in the Sky and we were declined, most likely because of our pending claim for the Homer fire. So Annie came home and went online herself, found a policy (for about $100/year more) and so now our belongings are insured for $25,000. IF YOU RENT, GET INSURED! It is normally around $10-$15/month. Think about replacing your clothes, dishes, furniture, music, motel while looking for another rental, etc. It's worth it.

End of Rant

On a more positive note, Annie had her first appointment with her new Primary Care Physician this morning, a very nice woman, Haruhauni Spruce, who is about our age and recently went to medical school and opened her first practice here in T or C. We're looking forward to getting to know her better (she lives a few blocks away). Annie is going to start reducing the dosage of Prednisone to see how that works now that we're in the heat. She sees a rheumatologist in Albuquerque next month. She's been feeling well enough to paint some shelves we bought at a yard sale and the other day painted the kitchen cabinet knobs. (It kind of takes the curse off the insipid, lime green cabinet doors.) I found some fittings at the hardware store this afternoon to attach a grinding wheel to a yard-sale electric motor and have been polishing the rough edges of rock slabs all evening. Amazing how easily entertained we are in our dotage.

Just Another Day in the Sun

Basking in New Mexico.

Keeping On Keeping On

Not much news today about the triplex. Susannah was there yesterday with Ken Swisher going through the things that we had stored in our back room. Fire consumed all our Christmas ornaments (lots of gifts from over the years and things that the kids made when they were little). That made me a little sad, but most of our photos are OK we think and most of our artwork. David's instruments are waterlogged but can be recovered and revived, we've lost books but some may get remediated. The piano can be professionally revived. Some furniture is toast, but that's fine. All in all, the two of us were fortunate, I think. Ken thinks that the house can be skun down to the "bones" and then rebuilt. Hoping that the insurance adjuster agrees...Will write more later when I know more. Love to all our friends. Those of you who rent, GET RENTER'S INSURANCE !!!

Triplex Fire

We got a call from Susannah this morning around 7 our time to let us know our Triplex in Homer was on fire. It apparantly started in some wiring and spread up the wall between the shed and the house, eventually burning the roof on the third floor. Some of our tenant's friends were on the deck around midnight and saw a glow from inside the shed. They saw flames and called 911 and got everyone out. One of our third floor tenants ran around the back of the house and stepped on a bed-frame leaning against the wall. It smacked him in the face and broke a couple of teeth. He had to have his lip stitched up at the ER. Annie and I have been on the phone all day talking to the insurance company and arranging for Kenny Swisher (KAS Construction) to go over this afternoon and tarp the roof and board up broken windows etc to prevent further damage.

The fire apparantly traveled up the wall between the shed and the house, getting into the third floor roof. As I understand it, the shed is pretty much gone and the roof has gaping holes with sheetrock torn down on the third floor to provide access to put the fire out. First and second floors have extensive smoke and water damage. We don't know how much of our stuff (photos, artwork, books etc.) survived.

The good news is, it's just stuff. Annie and I are fine and in New Mexico. The bad news is that our tenants have lost all their stuff and have nowhere to live. Raspberry Lane Pre-School was scheduled to open there next month and already had supplies there. Jeremy Youngblood (Fiddlehead Salon) was on the second floor. His friend, Rene Blanton, had her things stored in the shed (former shed.) Bogdon Baciu and Wayne Wormington rented the third floor, and it appears they lost everything. We just heard that Bogdon has a terminally ill family member in the mid-west and he has no money to travel back there. Susannah has opened an account at Wells Fargo to help the tenants out and if any of our friends can contribute, we would be grateful. Just tell them it's the East Hill House Fire Fund. We always tell our tenants that they should really get renters insurance as our policy won't cover their belongings, but most people don't ever do that, I know we never did when we were renting. I'll pass along more details later.

Birdlife of New Mexico

I haven't written anything for a while, so thought I should post an update. We've been having a great time sitting in the shade for a good part of the day while my rock-saw buzzes away at the piles of rocks we keep bringing home. We read and watch the birds, which flock to our feeder in huge numbers. I finally got a couple of good pictures of these rosy finches. I haven't bothered to take photos of the numerous other finches, barn swallows, and sparrows, as they all look alike to me. The white winged dove juveniles sit on our fence and wait for a willing adult to feed them... very comical. We've also been on several great drives out of town. The other day we went to Montecello, an almost Ghost Town about half an hour northwest of TorC. It's a charming little village in a large valley smack dab in the middle of the flattest desert you can imagine. We found a dirt county road that circled back to the highway and found some great rock picking along the way. We also came upon a buzzard enjoying lunch at the expense of a recently flattened jack rabbit. DO NOT click on this picture to enlarge it if you are a) squeamish or b) a bunny hugger... but everybody's got to eat, right? We also took another drive up Mud Mountain, where we got some beautiful chunks of candy rock (rhiolite) that I've been sawing up. So little time, so many rocks! Annie is knitting up a storm. I continue to play a little music and do a little maintenance here at the house we're renting. The other day the swamp cooler went on the fritz and I had to tinker with the pump to get it running again. The cooler recirculates the water which evaporates to cool the air. There is so much disolved calcium that it plugs everything up. The filters look like there's snow on them and the pump gets filled with sediment. Today, I had to fix a ceiling fan that was rattling around threatening to take off like an upside-down helicopter. This is much nicer than trying to fix a heater when the weather is below zero!!! The humidity ranges from 45-50% at 6am to 13% during the hottest part of the afternoon. It is quite pleasant most of the day, with only a few hours when standing in the sun is like sticking your head in the oven. It still makes my jaw drop to see someone walking down the street wearing a jacket and long pants when the temperature is hovering around 100 degrees. I'm assuming those people are suffering from being dropped on their heads in infancy. But in the words of my favorite recent country song "God is Great, Beer is Good, and People are Crazy." (Actually, that's my second favorite recent country song. My #1 is: "I gave up drinkin', smokin' and women last night, and it was the worst 15 minutes of my life."

Sunset

Had to post this picture from our yard last night. What more can I say!

Garden Pictures

Instead of posting another slide show off to the side, I thought I'd try to embed one in a regular post. Not as easy as it seems. Anyway, you can click on the following link and it should take you to a slide show of our garden. It's hard to believe we've only been here a month. The yard is really taking shape. Annie and I sat in the carport this evening, watching the sun fade from the mountains while lightning flashed in the distance and periodic sprinkles of rain kept driving the birds away from the feeders. The light on the mountains was beautiful. Anyway, check out a few shots of our gardens. http://picasaweb.google.com/homerhorns/OurGarden#

Heat

I can't say enough about the heat here and how wonderful it has been for my little joints. Many days when it gets over 105 degrees, well, I do like to be inside reading where the temperature is only 80. I must admit that the sun can beat down on you and it feels like you've been hit with a hammer. I'm not outside much without my cowboy hat (the Mexican one David gave me on our trip when he bought a new one in Wyoming). You really want that extra protection, or at least, I do. But my hands and elbows and shoulders just suck that warmth in, and use it. I've started knitting a little more lately, which is so wonderful for me. And very often now I can dress myself without help. (This is a very big deal, folks...) There are days when a thunder shower looms over the mountains and I start to feel punk, but then I just sit quietly and read: more Agatha Christie's Miss Marple, Fannie Flagg's COMING ATTRACTIONS and STANDING IN THE RAINBOW. Both of these books are charming--Coming Attractions is written from the point of view of a 7 year old child and is laugh-out-loud hilarious; Standing in the Rainbow is about growing up in the mid-west after WWII, but it speaks to anyone raised in a small town before the 90's changed everything. Very witty, wise and very, very funny...

Yesterday afternoon I went out and sat in the shade and watched the hummingbirds scrap with each other over the feeder. They are so fierce and I never had any idea that they fought so. They dive-bomb each other, spitting and chittering away, the rufous hummingbirds trying to keep the black-throated hummingbirds away and vice versa. Then the house finches, the black-throated sparrows, the mourning doves and the white-winged doves all get into the act, and they start squabbling over the birdfeeder we have up for them. Good Lord--great dramas right in my back yard! And the amazing thing was that I watched it all for over an hour, and did nothing, or thought about nothing else. A built-in meditation: all these little critters afraid there's not going to be enough food for them and so they don't want to share, totally unaware that David and I are committed to feeding them. All they have to do is keep coming back to the source of food and they'll have all they could want or need. There's a lesson there for me about Plenty and how, if we keep coming back to our Source, the promise of nourishment is always there. How's that for the lesson for today, kiddies???

Another Great Day

Another fine day in New Mexico. Got up around 7 and trotted Annie out into the sun to warm her bones. I fired up the rock saw and sat in my chair reading "Bleak House" while we waited to see what was inside the pile of rocks that's been accumulating in our yard. After many failed attempts, I finally got a couple of pictures of the Humming Birds that are starting to find our feeder. There are two different species, and the larger of the two tries to keep the smaller away from the yard. They chatter, hum and flit around, occasionally lighting on the phone wires overhead or in the pine trees next door. We've also had rosey finches, bright red cap and breast, at our feeder, but I can't seem to get a decent picture. The white winged doves also have found the feeder, but prefer to pick up the spilled seeds from the ground. Here's one on our clothes-line pole. Back to the rocks, here are a few that I cut this morning. The first picture shows some of the uncut faces, then a photo of the other side. We went for a drive this afternoon to pick up more rocks. It's sure a lot faster picking them up than cutting them. Not much danger of running out of raw materials. Tomorrow, Brian and I are practicing with a new guitar/bass player Brian met while playing at the Sr. Center last week. Tuesday, we plan to go to Monticello and visit the farm of some folks we met at the Farmers Market. For now, I think I'll go check my rocks.