Yes, you're at the right place. I found an easier to read template that works very nicely, so switched to it.
Well, the countdown is continuing...we load the truck in a week and make the 6 hour drive to Phoenix the next day. I dread packing everything up again. We've been doing a little sorting and purging here and there, but I've put off getting boxes until next week.
Maybe that's cutting it a little too close, perhaps I'll make a token cruise of the area behind the mall today and see what I find. Cameron went for a long ride today and I opted to stay home. We just did a grueling 12 hour ride a couple of days ago and my knees just can't take that kind of abuse anymore. (I'll post about that ride in the next entry, still trying to catch up to current activities.) It was a painful last 3 hours.
This entry is about our ride to Los Alamos with a friend of ours. He's the one who picked up, stored and brought back, Cameron's motorcycle after the accident. That's who you'll see the back of in most of the pictures. He took us on a long and very interesting ride through some absolutely beautiful parts of New Mexico. I took lots of pictures of the scenery because it kept changing. One minute we were in typical high desert, the next in mountains, the next in red clay canyons; it was incredible.
We met him at his house, that was conveniently not far from ours, and headed north. It was a great day for a ride, though there was a possibility of rain along some stretches of our route. The sky was scattered with clouds the entire day, which I loved, and only added to the gorgeous surroundings.
We were on the bike for most of the day, except for a couple of fuel stops and to eat lunch in Los Alamos. Los Alamos was not as I had expected. (I wish I had taken more pictures as we drove through the section of downtown on the way to the little place we had lunch.) It's a small city, nestled in pine-covered mountains. Since we were traveling on a Sunday, most businesses were shut down and the place was pretty quiet. It would be interesting to visit it on a weekday to see what the general population was like and how busy it is.
What made it different from a typical mountain community was the presence of the laboratory complex. The entrance to its secured boundaries was also the route to a popular ski area. In order to get to the mountain road we were to head back on, we had to pass through guard gates. They just waved us on through, but I wondered what it would be like during ski season. There were a lot of gates, but it seems like it would still get congested. After passing through the gates, everything seemed like a normal road toward the higher mountains, until unobtrusive buildings started appearing to our left. There were signs designating sections and building numbers. The long gaps between buildings, made me think that was the end of it, then more would appear. They were not hidden, necessarily, but they weren't advertised, either. Painted the natural colors of the surroundings, made them easier to ignore (if one wasn't fascinated by their presence). They were not fenced and there were no apparent barriers, though I'm sure the place is well covered with cameras and other devices. After a while, we passed through a smaller row of guard gates, only about 2 as it was a narrow road. I guess it's so they can lock down the facility if needed. It's strange how it is so accessible the rest of the time.
The rest of the ride took us through canyons, mountain pastures and on and off of local reservations. The red rocks and green grasses in the pictures were as striking as they appear.
Follow this link to the slideshow.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Santa Fe is great for shoppers
About 4 weeks ago, we rode up to Santa Fe for our 3rd anniversary, to see what the place was like and see the showing at one of the museums.
We went by way of highway 14, known as the Turquoise Trail, which winds its way around the back side of the Sandia Mountains from Albuquerque. We've been up and down the lower part of it several times to visit one of our favorite local spots, the Lazy Lizard, or to traverse the side road that leads to Sandia Peak (over 9,000 feet),but hadn't been farther than that. The weather was threatening at times, with some moderate rain around Cedar Crest, but we had drier conditions the farther north we went.
Our first stop was in a little former mining town called Madrid (the accent is on the beginning of the name) which has stayed alive by becoming a haven for local artists of many types, and a great food stop for the motorcycling community. Everyone kept telling us to stop at the Mineshaft Tavern, so we did and were greeted by the shiny chrome of several motorcycles and their friendly, but impatient, riders. It seems the place isn't open for breakfast so we had about a 20 minute wait for it to open for lunch.
No problem, there were quite a few interesting-looking shops nearby so off we went to explore their wares. The usual assortment of touristy "gift-ware" was at one shop, so we passed that one up and moved on to one that really caught my eye. They advertised tapestries and textiles. Inside, the place smelled faintly of incense, and a woman of uncertain age stood next to a rack of colorful fabric. She explained that everything was hand woven by members of the community who had participated in a weaving class that she had taught last year. Beautiful wraps and ponchos of different styles hung on numerous racks about the small shop. There was also a rack of colored, hand spun, yarn. Some of the dying was done using berries or other natural coloring agents. I took a card, promising to purchase a wrap at a later date. (Since they aren't created in a third world country, the prices fit the beautiful workmanship.)
By the time I finished oooing and awwing over the racks of pretty things, it was time to enter the Mineshaft Tavern. We had eaten a late breakfast so weren't particularly hungry, so we ordered sodas and some of their homemade salsa and chips. The inside of the restaurant/bar was like stepping back in time. There was a long wooden bar and all the tables, chairs and walls were wood. In the "front" of the large room was a small stage where we were told they have live music performances.
After this brief stop, we hit the road to finish the ride to Santa Fe. It was a scenic ride and the weather held for us, providing nice cloud formations along our way. Once in Santa Fe, at least the portion I saw, didn't impress me all that much, except for the architecture of the older buildings, which were built after the Pueblo style. The newer commercial buildings we passed upon first entering town did their best to cheaply fake it, which winds up looking cookie-cutter-like and artificial. (I guess they succeeded)
We went in search of the Plaza, the main center of museums and cultural encounters, where the Georgia O'Keeffe museum is located, our ultimate destination. The plaza consists of a plentitude of shops and small galleries scattered along several blocks, a great place to unload lots and lots of cash. The buildings in the Plaza, whether newer or older, all resonated with the Pueblo influence. Great care had been taken, here, to blend the style of any newer structures with the surrounding ones. On a less-busy day, it would be a nice place to quietly stroll and contemplate, but since we were there on a weekend, it was filled with the tourist crowds. An interesting area of the plaza was a stretch of sidewalk, along the side of a long building, where native Pueblos, Navajos, perhaps others, are allowed to sell their wares. There's actually a sign designating that stretch of sidewalk as their sales territory. One right after the other are there with their handiwork displayed on tables or cloth on the ground. In my personal opinion, that's where I would prefer to spend my money. It was interesting to hear them explain the methods they used to make the items. I was dismayed at the low numbers of customers along this narrow strip of the plaza in comparison to the commercial stores.
The museum was inconspicuous and off to the side of the plaza, not what I would have expected for a tribute to someone who is so famous in the area. They were running a showing of Ansel Adams prints alongside O'Keeffe's paintings. In some instances, they had captured the same images since they had travelled to the location together for that very purpose. The differences in their views of those images was really interesting.
After getting our fix of O'Keeffe and Adams, we grabbed a bite to eat at a burrito restaurant, that was recommended by a woman who was outside the museum and playing with her grand-daughter, that's owned and run by the family of one of the local chiefs. It was an order at the counter and wait until your number is called kind of place, and the food was excellent.
Pleasantly full, we got back on the bike for the ride home. We planned to take the 41 back since we hadn't been that way before, but had trouble locating it. So, we headed back the way we came, besides, its a nice route.
Follow this link to a captioned SLIDESHOW
We went by way of highway 14, known as the Turquoise Trail, which winds its way around the back side of the Sandia Mountains from Albuquerque. We've been up and down the lower part of it several times to visit one of our favorite local spots, the Lazy Lizard, or to traverse the side road that leads to Sandia Peak (over 9,000 feet),but hadn't been farther than that. The weather was threatening at times, with some moderate rain around Cedar Crest, but we had drier conditions the farther north we went.
Our first stop was in a little former mining town called Madrid (the accent is on the beginning of the name) which has stayed alive by becoming a haven for local artists of many types, and a great food stop for the motorcycling community. Everyone kept telling us to stop at the Mineshaft Tavern, so we did and were greeted by the shiny chrome of several motorcycles and their friendly, but impatient, riders. It seems the place isn't open for breakfast so we had about a 20 minute wait for it to open for lunch.
No problem, there were quite a few interesting-looking shops nearby so off we went to explore their wares. The usual assortment of touristy "gift-ware" was at one shop, so we passed that one up and moved on to one that really caught my eye. They advertised tapestries and textiles. Inside, the place smelled faintly of incense, and a woman of uncertain age stood next to a rack of colorful fabric. She explained that everything was hand woven by members of the community who had participated in a weaving class that she had taught last year. Beautiful wraps and ponchos of different styles hung on numerous racks about the small shop. There was also a rack of colored, hand spun, yarn. Some of the dying was done using berries or other natural coloring agents. I took a card, promising to purchase a wrap at a later date. (Since they aren't created in a third world country, the prices fit the beautiful workmanship.)
By the time I finished oooing and awwing over the racks of pretty things, it was time to enter the Mineshaft Tavern. We had eaten a late breakfast so weren't particularly hungry, so we ordered sodas and some of their homemade salsa and chips. The inside of the restaurant/bar was like stepping back in time. There was a long wooden bar and all the tables, chairs and walls were wood. In the "front" of the large room was a small stage where we were told they have live music performances.
After this brief stop, we hit the road to finish the ride to Santa Fe. It was a scenic ride and the weather held for us, providing nice cloud formations along our way. Once in Santa Fe, at least the portion I saw, didn't impress me all that much, except for the architecture of the older buildings, which were built after the Pueblo style. The newer commercial buildings we passed upon first entering town did their best to cheaply fake it, which winds up looking cookie-cutter-like and artificial. (I guess they succeeded)
We went in search of the Plaza, the main center of museums and cultural encounters, where the Georgia O'Keeffe museum is located, our ultimate destination. The plaza consists of a plentitude of shops and small galleries scattered along several blocks, a great place to unload lots and lots of cash. The buildings in the Plaza, whether newer or older, all resonated with the Pueblo influence. Great care had been taken, here, to blend the style of any newer structures with the surrounding ones. On a less-busy day, it would be a nice place to quietly stroll and contemplate, but since we were there on a weekend, it was filled with the tourist crowds. An interesting area of the plaza was a stretch of sidewalk, along the side of a long building, where native Pueblos, Navajos, perhaps others, are allowed to sell their wares. There's actually a sign designating that stretch of sidewalk as their sales territory. One right after the other are there with their handiwork displayed on tables or cloth on the ground. In my personal opinion, that's where I would prefer to spend my money. It was interesting to hear them explain the methods they used to make the items. I was dismayed at the low numbers of customers along this narrow strip of the plaza in comparison to the commercial stores.
The museum was inconspicuous and off to the side of the plaza, not what I would have expected for a tribute to someone who is so famous in the area. They were running a showing of Ansel Adams prints alongside O'Keeffe's paintings. In some instances, they had captured the same images since they had travelled to the location together for that very purpose. The differences in their views of those images was really interesting.
After getting our fix of O'Keeffe and Adams, we grabbed a bite to eat at a burrito restaurant, that was recommended by a woman who was outside the museum and playing with her grand-daughter, that's owned and run by the family of one of the local chiefs. It was an order at the counter and wait until your number is called kind of place, and the food was excellent.
Pleasantly full, we got back on the bike for the ride home. We planned to take the 41 back since we hadn't been that way before, but had trouble locating it. So, we headed back the way we came, besides, its a nice route.
Follow this link to a captioned SLIDESHOW
Here We Go Again!
This is just a quick note to everyone. I'm still getting all the pics together of our adventures here, but wanted to fill you in on a new twist to the Weckerley escapades:
On Sept. 1st, we're both moving to Phoenix, AZ. The original plan was for him to rent a room there while he attends motorcycle mechanics school, and I would stay here and work, especially since we have a 12 month lease. Well, the employment situation here is pretty rough and I haven't gotten hired for any of the plethora of jobs I applied for. Also, we checked into the rent for a room in Phoenix-$400! Need I say more?
Our manager is very understanding and is letting us out of our lease, if we pay an extra month's rent. But she says that if she rents the unit out soon she'll refund the extra rent. So, I guess it's going to be goodbye, at least for now, to our new friends and the 80 degree with cool breezes, summer days here; and hello to 106 degree days of Phoenix. The saving graces to all this? A much nicer apartment (of course the rent is a little higher than Albuquerque), better employment prospects, and Cameron doesn't have to travel back and forth to see me.
So back onto the emotional roller coaster, I was just settling in and feeling at home, it's time to begin pulling up those roots that had started to dig in and move on to our next big adventure!
Oh, I'll email everyone the new address and, thankfully, I hadn't made the final changes on our phone number so that will be done when we get there.
On Sept. 1st, we're both moving to Phoenix, AZ. The original plan was for him to rent a room there while he attends motorcycle mechanics school, and I would stay here and work, especially since we have a 12 month lease. Well, the employment situation here is pretty rough and I haven't gotten hired for any of the plethora of jobs I applied for. Also, we checked into the rent for a room in Phoenix-$400! Need I say more?
Our manager is very understanding and is letting us out of our lease, if we pay an extra month's rent. But she says that if she rents the unit out soon she'll refund the extra rent. So, I guess it's going to be goodbye, at least for now, to our new friends and the 80 degree with cool breezes, summer days here; and hello to 106 degree days of Phoenix. The saving graces to all this? A much nicer apartment (of course the rent is a little higher than Albuquerque), better employment prospects, and Cameron doesn't have to travel back and forth to see me.
So back onto the emotional roller coaster, I was just settling in and feeling at home, it's time to begin pulling up those roots that had started to dig in and move on to our next big adventure!
Oh, I'll email everyone the new address and, thankfully, I hadn't made the final changes on our phone number so that will be done when we get there.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
First Things First: Getting Here
U-Haul trucks look much smaller inside than you think they are. It's amazing how much we can cram into them, sometimes it's actually far more than we really need them to hold.
Our moving day was harrowing, at best. Exhausting, hot, nerve-wracking, frustrating, scary, dirty, fortunate (for some neighbors), patience testing, and did I already mention exhausting? ***Keep in mind, when packing a truck for a long-distance move, put your prized possessions, your must-haves, into the truck first.*** This could have been a very hard-learned lesson, except for the fact that it turns out those must-haves that we had to leave behind (see fortunate neighbors), haven't been must-haves after all. I think the only thing we've really missed is TV. Yes, the big screen TV, actually the little one, too, got hastily donated to some neighbors in greater need of them than us. Dressers, who needs them? The large clear plastic tubs that I packed our clothes in work fine. Besides, where would we have put them when we got here?
Scaling down, a pretty mild term, from a 3 bedroom, 3-car garage home, to a 750 square foot 1 bedroom apartment, sans garage, is a magical process. One often best undertaken blindfolded! Looking at the remaining boxes of odds and ends that actually made it here, we realize they, too, could have been left behind and not missed. It's funny how few "things" you really need to have to function quite well on a day to day basis. I guess they call that minimalism.
I'm actually quite late in posting all this since we made the move over 5 weeks ago. There's been a lot happening and I'll try to catch you up over the coming few days. In the meantime, here's some pictures of our multi-day trek to our new home.
Our moving day was harrowing, at best. Exhausting, hot, nerve-wracking, frustrating, scary, dirty, fortunate (for some neighbors), patience testing, and did I already mention exhausting? ***Keep in mind, when packing a truck for a long-distance move, put your prized possessions, your must-haves, into the truck first.*** This could have been a very hard-learned lesson, except for the fact that it turns out those must-haves that we had to leave behind (see fortunate neighbors), haven't been must-haves after all. I think the only thing we've really missed is TV. Yes, the big screen TV, actually the little one, too, got hastily donated to some neighbors in greater need of them than us. Dressers, who needs them? The large clear plastic tubs that I packed our clothes in work fine. Besides, where would we have put them when we got here?
Scaling down, a pretty mild term, from a 3 bedroom, 3-car garage home, to a 750 square foot 1 bedroom apartment, sans garage, is a magical process. One often best undertaken blindfolded! Looking at the remaining boxes of odds and ends that actually made it here, we realize they, too, could have been left behind and not missed. It's funny how few "things" you really need to have to function quite well on a day to day basis. I guess they call that minimalism.
I'm actually quite late in posting all this since we made the move over 5 weeks ago. There's been a lot happening and I'll try to catch you up over the coming few days. In the meantime, here's some pictures of our multi-day trek to our new home.
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