Back from Vacation!
*Celandine tiptoes in, grimaces, hopes they didn’t notice I’ve been gone for a month*
Hello all-I know I’ve been away for a long time but have just been overwhelmed of late with so many things-however, am so happy to be back and hope everyone is well and rockin’ along with their lives.
I think I was in India during my last post-and that was an uneventful trip-just work, but nothing too bad (or interesting enough to comment on). I was back for two days and had to set up a whole presentation and give it to an important client prior to rushing off to New Mexico for my vacation. This was to attend a “landowners weekend” at Deer Canyon Preserve and see my “new” land again-now that I actually own it. : )
But dragging along (after the India trip), I got to Albuquerque, on a late flight at 1:00 AM only to find the car rental place closed and no other suitable cars available-so I spent the first night of my vacation in the multi-company car rental place. *shakes head* Fortunately, I had a blanket with me-and I was never so grateful as it got colder and colder in there. Anyway, no matter, I finally got my car and drove up to my reserved hotel room in Mountainair, NM (about 80 miles SW), checking in at 8:00 AM for a few hours sleep.
But after that rocky start (and a flat tire the next day, eek), I had a wonderful time!
I met a lot of great people at the social events, including a composer who had just published her first CD, an amateur astronomer (who is moving there for the “dark sky”), a botanist, a wildlife biologist, and a medical director at a pharmaceutical company. The latter was a single woman and I met another single woman too-so there are some singles moving into the community. That is so good to hear!
They held three receptions at a large tent on the preserve and it was so beautiful. The sun was just setting over the Manzanos and the sky was swirling with dark clouds and fascinating plays on the fading light (we were treated to a wonderful spectacle of lightning and thunder--but no rain).
This pic was taken just outside the tent. Someone had brought a dog and he was fascinated by some cattle who were wandering by in the distance. But I like the pic-it has some interesting textures and shows the preserve spread out in the distance, with the Manzanos in the background.
I also (like, duh) went out to see my land-for the first time since buying it (in May)--and it is still there (!), looking very nice indeed. And I like it-all 20 acres! BTW, the area here and the preserve itself are even more beautiful than I remembered--and that is saying something.
I drove up my driveway to the clearing and parked the car. Then I walked straight back for some time. It was level and full of beautiful scrub vegetation, mostly cedars and pinion pine with prickly pear cactus, yuccas and some other small shrubs. I also saw some lovely barrel cactus.
My land appears to be a high plateau that gently slopes down to the main road in front and each side of the plateau sweeps down to rugged arroyos--quite scenic really and part of it is very red soil--like Sedona, AZ and very beautiful.
It was very rocky but easy to walk on with good footwear--and there was almost no underbrush so it was easy to make one's way and many pathways in every direction.
Here are some pics-sorry, couldn’t resist it!
Part of my land from across the main road. The soil is very red here.
Walking along the plateau part.
I explored along the plateau until I came across the next lot and its small clearing, then walked along the side road until I came back to my driveway. Then I walked up my own driveway for the first time. That was really a neat experience. Here is the view from partly up my driveway:
And here is the view at the top of the driveway--from approximately where the house (hopefully) will be.
Afterward, I spread my blanket under a bit of shade and enjoyed spending a few hours relaxing and reading my book. Simple but fun.
And here is a sunset view from my land:
The sky here is so magnificant--vast and wild.
I really enjoyed meeting everyone at DCP and I am very happy with the land I have and also the fact that some single women will be living in the community (single men would be even better, LOL--hopefully there will be some). I think the concept and the community is attractive to singles and couples alike--which should result in a well balanced community of all kinds of people--at least one can hope.
So that part of the trip was great. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed just walking around my land and getting a feel for the topography and just what is there. I discovered some really beautiful parts that I had not seen before.
The town of Mountainair is very small but my contingency plan (after moving here) is to try to establish some kind of social network in Santa Fe (about 90 miles away) and to drive up there often to see an opera/concert, check out the art galleries and restaurants, do some shopping, etc. There are things going on in Mountainair--artists, writers, poets, composers, but not much.
Anyway, after four days in Mountainair, I drove north to Santa Fe. It was a beautiful, I mean really beautiful drive north along Route 14--otherwise known as the famous Turquoise Trail (about 1 hr, 45 min). The city was lovely and full of wonderful art galleries, Santa Fe architecture, Southwestern atmosphere, and all the things people come here for.
I had a lovely and uneventful time in Santa Fe, staying at a very nice B&B near the Plaza, without any agenda-other than to “hang out” and wander around. And that’s what I did. Hit the museums, shopped, sat on the Plaza (laid out in 1620, I think) and read, people-watched, and chatted with lots of folk who lived there or were visiting. I really liked Santa Fe and think it will make a great “second home” and place to escape to when the “peace and quiet” get to be too much, hehe.
I loved walking along the "Palace" portico and observing the Native American-made goods and admiring the craftsmanship displayed there. I bought a lovely dish for my friend, S, (who was taking care of Remy) from a local artist on the Plaza. She had a cart full of colorful pottery that she makes herself and we chatted for a time. She told me how much she loved New Mexico, and was very supportive of my moving there, saying that you may have less but you have more.
She then explained that she makes pottery for two weeks, then comes to Santa Fe and sells for two weeks. Not a bad schedule, IMHO. How fun and she seemed so bubbly and happy with her life in New Mexico. It was great to talk with her and rather inspirational.
Here is a view of the “very” historic Plaza of Santa Fe. A great spot to hang out and people watch.
And the courtyard outside the fabulous museums on “Museum Hill.”
So I really felt at home in Santa Fe and am hopeful that I can establish some sort of social network there and have it as a neat "get away" place to spend the occasional weekend with new friends.
Eek, I hope I haven’t bored everyone too much with my travels and aspirations. It is so great to have something to work towards and look forward to.
And I hope we can finally set up Claudia’s hobbit writers’ get-away commune on my land for everyone to spend time in a peaceful, lovely environment surrounded by nature, hehe. You are ALL WELCOME!
BTW, the preserve, in addition to hopeful baby boomers, is home to a regular contingent of reptiles and rabbits, but you can expect to see deer, elk, bobcats, cougars and bears--although the latter two are quite rare. All I saw was jackrabbits (with the very long straight-up ears) and a deer family crossing the road.
So, all...I had a great time but was just exhausted when I returned home from two back-to-back trips--almost half way around the world--to an enormous amount of work and so many things to do-thus I haven’t had the energy to even stop by to say hi until now. But things are calming down, so I hope to be a regular again. Forgive me for not having followed anyone’s posts the last month-but I hope all is well!
*smiles, waves hello* (((hugs flist)))
Hello all-I know I’ve been away for a long time but have just been overwhelmed of late with so many things-however, am so happy to be back and hope everyone is well and rockin’ along with their lives.
I think I was in India during my last post-and that was an uneventful trip-just work, but nothing too bad (or interesting enough to comment on). I was back for two days and had to set up a whole presentation and give it to an important client prior to rushing off to New Mexico for my vacation. This was to attend a “landowners weekend” at Deer Canyon Preserve and see my “new” land again-now that I actually own it. : )
But dragging along (after the India trip), I got to Albuquerque, on a late flight at 1:00 AM only to find the car rental place closed and no other suitable cars available-so I spent the first night of my vacation in the multi-company car rental place. *shakes head* Fortunately, I had a blanket with me-and I was never so grateful as it got colder and colder in there. Anyway, no matter, I finally got my car and drove up to my reserved hotel room in Mountainair, NM (about 80 miles SW), checking in at 8:00 AM for a few hours sleep.
But after that rocky start (and a flat tire the next day, eek), I had a wonderful time!
I met a lot of great people at the social events, including a composer who had just published her first CD, an amateur astronomer (who is moving there for the “dark sky”), a botanist, a wildlife biologist, and a medical director at a pharmaceutical company. The latter was a single woman and I met another single woman too-so there are some singles moving into the community. That is so good to hear!
They held three receptions at a large tent on the preserve and it was so beautiful. The sun was just setting over the Manzanos and the sky was swirling with dark clouds and fascinating plays on the fading light (we were treated to a wonderful spectacle of lightning and thunder--but no rain).
This pic was taken just outside the tent. Someone had brought a dog and he was fascinated by some cattle who were wandering by in the distance. But I like the pic-it has some interesting textures and shows the preserve spread out in the distance, with the Manzanos in the background.
I also (like, duh) went out to see my land-for the first time since buying it (in May)--and it is still there (!), looking very nice indeed. And I like it-all 20 acres! BTW, the area here and the preserve itself are even more beautiful than I remembered--and that is saying something.
I drove up my driveway to the clearing and parked the car. Then I walked straight back for some time. It was level and full of beautiful scrub vegetation, mostly cedars and pinion pine with prickly pear cactus, yuccas and some other small shrubs. I also saw some lovely barrel cactus.
My land appears to be a high plateau that gently slopes down to the main road in front and each side of the plateau sweeps down to rugged arroyos--quite scenic really and part of it is very red soil--like Sedona, AZ and very beautiful.
It was very rocky but easy to walk on with good footwear--and there was almost no underbrush so it was easy to make one's way and many pathways in every direction.
Here are some pics-sorry, couldn’t resist it!
Part of my land from across the main road. The soil is very red here.
Walking along the plateau part.
I explored along the plateau until I came across the next lot and its small clearing, then walked along the side road until I came back to my driveway. Then I walked up my own driveway for the first time. That was really a neat experience. Here is the view from partly up my driveway:
And here is the view at the top of the driveway--from approximately where the house (hopefully) will be.
Afterward, I spread my blanket under a bit of shade and enjoyed spending a few hours relaxing and reading my book. Simple but fun.
And here is a sunset view from my land:
The sky here is so magnificant--vast and wild.
I really enjoyed meeting everyone at DCP and I am very happy with the land I have and also the fact that some single women will be living in the community (single men would be even better, LOL--hopefully there will be some). I think the concept and the community is attractive to singles and couples alike--which should result in a well balanced community of all kinds of people--at least one can hope.
So that part of the trip was great. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed just walking around my land and getting a feel for the topography and just what is there. I discovered some really beautiful parts that I had not seen before.
The town of Mountainair is very small but my contingency plan (after moving here) is to try to establish some kind of social network in Santa Fe (about 90 miles away) and to drive up there often to see an opera/concert, check out the art galleries and restaurants, do some shopping, etc. There are things going on in Mountainair--artists, writers, poets, composers, but not much.
Anyway, after four days in Mountainair, I drove north to Santa Fe. It was a beautiful, I mean really beautiful drive north along Route 14--otherwise known as the famous Turquoise Trail (about 1 hr, 45 min). The city was lovely and full of wonderful art galleries, Santa Fe architecture, Southwestern atmosphere, and all the things people come here for.
I had a lovely and uneventful time in Santa Fe, staying at a very nice B&B near the Plaza, without any agenda-other than to “hang out” and wander around. And that’s what I did. Hit the museums, shopped, sat on the Plaza (laid out in 1620, I think) and read, people-watched, and chatted with lots of folk who lived there or were visiting. I really liked Santa Fe and think it will make a great “second home” and place to escape to when the “peace and quiet” get to be too much, hehe.
I loved walking along the "Palace" portico and observing the Native American-made goods and admiring the craftsmanship displayed there. I bought a lovely dish for my friend, S, (who was taking care of Remy) from a local artist on the Plaza. She had a cart full of colorful pottery that she makes herself and we chatted for a time. She told me how much she loved New Mexico, and was very supportive of my moving there, saying that you may have less but you have more.
She then explained that she makes pottery for two weeks, then comes to Santa Fe and sells for two weeks. Not a bad schedule, IMHO. How fun and she seemed so bubbly and happy with her life in New Mexico. It was great to talk with her and rather inspirational.
Here is a view of the “very” historic Plaza of Santa Fe. A great spot to hang out and people watch.
And the courtyard outside the fabulous museums on “Museum Hill.”
So I really felt at home in Santa Fe and am hopeful that I can establish some sort of social network there and have it as a neat "get away" place to spend the occasional weekend with new friends.
Eek, I hope I haven’t bored everyone too much with my travels and aspirations. It is so great to have something to work towards and look forward to.
And I hope we can finally set up Claudia’s hobbit writers’ get-away commune on my land for everyone to spend time in a peaceful, lovely environment surrounded by nature, hehe. You are ALL WELCOME!
BTW, the preserve, in addition to hopeful baby boomers, is home to a regular contingent of reptiles and rabbits, but you can expect to see deer, elk, bobcats, cougars and bears--although the latter two are quite rare. All I saw was jackrabbits (with the very long straight-up ears) and a deer family crossing the road.
So, all...I had a great time but was just exhausted when I returned home from two back-to-back trips--almost half way around the world--to an enormous amount of work and so many things to do-thus I haven’t had the energy to even stop by to say hi until now. But things are calming down, so I hope to be a regular again. Forgive me for not having followed anyone’s posts the last month-but I hope all is well!
*smiles, waves hello* (((hugs flist)))