Winter Solstice

Today is the Winter Solstice and already I am so very tired of winter.  Or at least with its byproducts.  All we've been hearing is that La Nina will be giving us a very dry winter.  So far we've had three winter storms in two weeks with the latest one hitting today.

In a theoretical sense, I like snow.  I like to stay indoors and watch it snow.  I don't particularly like to be out in it. 

What's most annoying is the timing of this latest storm.  It was originally forecast to hit us starting late yesterday and continue on into today with it clearing out tomorrow.  Instead it started tonight and is continuing on into tomorrow.  I'm hoping we don't get a lot of snow or I may not be able to make it to the airport on Saturday so I can visit with my family on Christmas.  Sigh.

Oh, well, will deal with things as they happen.

On a related note, things were VERY foggy in the way to work on Wednesday.  Normally when you look at this tree, you can see buildings behind it.  I thought it looked cool with standing there all alone.

Papillon

It Takes All Kinds

I like to read the etiquette column written by Miss Manners.  I may not always agree, but I find it to be an interesting read.

Sometime back, a reader wrote in saying they like to read obituaries.  (Not my cup of tea, but it takes all kinds to make the world go around.)  The reader said they had noticed the beginning of an annoying trend.  In most obits, it says something to the effect of "in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the charity of your choice".  Or something similar.

However, the annoying trend spotted by the reader involved relatives of the deceased asking for cash contributions to be made to them instead.  (The relatives, not the deceased.)  The reader thought this was just another cash-grab on the par of people asking for cash instead of wedding gifts, birthday presents, etc. and thought it was tacky.

Miss Manners agreed, although in a much more refined fashion.

Since then, I've taken to occasionally scanning the obit section of the local paper.  It doesn't happen often, but I spotted an example in today's (12/10/11) paper.  Specifically for an 85-year-old named Marian W. Payden.  She's described as beloved wife of (her husband), loving stepmother of Scott and Kristin Payden.

The obit goes on to say, "In lieu of flowers, donations can be mailed to Scott and Kristin Payden, (street address), Medina, Ohio...."

In the past I've seen verbiage that asked for cash to help with funeral expenses.  I can sort of understand that.  In these tough economic times, not everyone has insurance or savings to help pay for funeral costs.  But today's example left me with a dropped jaw.  For all we know, good old Scott and Kristin are going to take the 'donations' and head for a Caribbean cruise.  Or Las Vegas.  So much for honoring their 'loving stepmother'. 

Sheesh!

Papillon

Snowed In

In yesterday's post, I spent a fair amount of time kvetching about the small amount of snow we had gotten.  I should be careful about what I kvetch about.

The forecasters all said we would be getting more snow.  Maybe 1-2 inches overnight with the possibility of more snow today.  Sure enough, it started to snow last night.  I was hoping it would blow through  leaving a minimum of snow behind.

No such luck.  I got up this morning and found a good 4-6 inches on the ground and more falling.  Work's start time was delayed by 2 hours.


















One problem - I drive a PT Cruiser.  The front end only clears the ground by about 4 inches.  (I've confirmed this the hard way by scraping the curb if I pull too far forward in a parking space.)  With 4 to 6 inches of snow on the ground, I'm no longer driving a car, instead I'm driving a cute red snow plow.

So I called work and said that I'm taking a vacation day since I'm not able to get out of the subdivision.  Fortunately, I didn't have anything critical work-wise on my plate.  I did miss a holiday luncheon that sounded as though it was going to be yummy.  (Rats!)

I really didn't want to see the snow.  I'm saving up my vacation time for some stuff I'm planning on doing next year.  The snow just shot 9 hours of that.  Sigh.  Plus, since I took the above pictures, I've been shoveling snow.  Apparently I overdid it with my right arm because it's feeling really tight.  Oh, well.  After I get done here, I get to go out and move more snow.  I may spread some sand as well.  No point in walking out tomorrow morning and hitting ice.  I've never been fond of falling down.  Nope, no thanks.

Papillon

P.S.  I actually measured the snow on top of my car.  I officially got 6 1/4 inches.  Sheesh.  One of the forecasters said there are parts of the metro area that only got a few flakes.  Salt in the wound.
P.S.2  The forecasters are saying we will be getting down into double digits over night.  Oh, really.  If I wanted winter time temps in the single digits I'd move to some place like Minnesota or North Dakota.  (And yes, I do realize their single digits are usually negative numbers.)
P.S.3  I am SO glad I had my house re-piped earlier this year.  Now my pipes are all properly insulated (unlike those installed by the builder) and much less likely to be affected by really cold temperatures.

Not Everyone Dislikes the Snow

Yesterday I ranted about how I'm not the world's biggest fan of snow.  This feeling obviously does not apply to everyone and that includes some of the area's critters.

I have a large fir tree in my front yard.  Several years ago I noticed that one or more of the local rabbits likes to hang out at the base of the trunk of said tree.  To a certain extent, it makes sense.  With its butt up against the trunk, the rabbit is fairly safe from larger predators sneaking up on it from behind.  This is bolstered by the branches around the base of the tree.  The possibility of being stabbed in the face by a branch deters coyotes, et. al. from just rushing in.  On the other hand, the branches aren't packed too close so as to hinder the rabbit's field of vision.  (Note:  I don't know if it's always the same rabbit I see or if a number of rabbits have figured out the niceness of napping under my tree.)

After all my anti-snow rantings, I was surprised to walk out around mid-morning and see the rabbit snuggled under the tree.  Here's a wide shot of the rabbit - he's the small mound of brown fur at the base of the trunk.

Here's more of a close-up. 

I was hoping to get a shot from an angle that didn't have a branch across him/her.  But Rabbit was camera-shy (or people-shy) and hopped off after just a couple of shots.

I'm not sure why Rabbit wasn't freezing its butt off sitting directly on the snow.  But it seems to like where it's at because its been there for several hours.

To each, their own.

Papillon (who's staying inside and out of the snow)

Extremes

I like moderation in all things.  I am NOT a fan of extremes. 

This applies to food - not too bland and not too spicy.
And to clothing - not too much, not too skimpy.
I especially dislike poltical and religious extremism.

All of this also applies to weather.  I love spring and autumn.  The weather (usually) is not too hot and not too cold. It is normally just right.

I am not a big fan of summer.  However, air conditioning is a big mitigating factor.

I am the smallest fan ever of winter.  I don't like cold.  I don't like windy and cold.  I especially don't like to have to personally experience snow.  Now, don't get me wrong, I'm happy to look at snow.  I don't mind looking at photos at snow.  Or, looking at snow from indoors is OK.  As long as I don't have to actually go out into it.

What brings all of this up is the current weather.  It snowed very lightly last night.  It melted off rapidly this morning. 
It's snowing again tonight.  I'm willing to be fine with it since tomorrow is Sunday and I don't HAVE to go anywhere tomorrow.

The forecasts say there may be more snow on Sunday night.  NOOOOOO!!  I hate driving in snow.  I can do it, I just hate it while I'm there.  I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that the forecasters are wrong.  But I'm suspecting they're not since the chance for snow tomorrow night is 90%.  (Forceful expletive deleted)  On one positive note, they're only expecting about an inch.  If they've got to be right, let's hope they're right about that.

Papillon

Life Imitating...Life?

I like to watch those 'caught on camera'-type shows.  Some of the shows I've watched have shown dash-cam footage caught by police cameras as they're in high-speed chases, etc.

In one of the programs, the announcer noted that during a traffic stop, as the patrol officer approached the stopped car, he put his hand on the left rear corner of the car.  The announcer said this was an identification technique.  If, for some reason, the person being stopped decided not to deal with the police officer but drove off instead,  there is always a possibility that at some point, the suspect could lose the pursuing officer.  That police might later find the vehicle with no one in it.  It's possible that the vehicle might be similar in appearance to the one the police had been chasing, but not the exact same one.

This is where the officer's hand print comes in.  If police technicians check the fingerprints on the left rear corner of the car and they match the officer's fingerprints, then they have proof positive that, yes, this was the original car involved in the police pursuit.

I bring this up because I actually saw this happen this morning.  No, not a high speed police chase.  Not even a low speed police chase.

As I was exiting my subdivision today, I passed by a white pickup truck that had been stopped by a local police officer.  (I don't know the reason for the stop.  It could have been for something totally innocuous.)  In any case, as the police officer walked up to the driver's window, the officer paused for a moment and put his hand on the left rear corner of the pickup.  Then he continued walking.

I had to smile slightly as I drove on by.  Police procedure in action, in the flesh.  A small thing, but kinda fun to actually see - as opposed to secondhand on tape.

I hope everyone had the Thanksgiving they were hoping for. 

Papillon

A Fun Little Cocktail

Here in the Albuquerque area we have a number of free newspapers.  One is a weekly, another is published every couple of weeks or so and several others are monthly.

The one that comes out every couple of weeks has a column that features a different cocktail in each issue.  In the most recent issue, the spiritologist (is that even a word?) was discussing a very 'old' cocktail.  I can't remember what he called it, but I found the recipe on line and it was called a Kentucky colonel. 

The reason it's an 'old' cocktail is that its origins date back to around the 1920's and 1930's when cocktails were becoming very popular. 

It is so very simple - 1.5 ounces of bourbon and 1/2 ounce of Benedictine.  The Benedictine has a very nice effect on the bourbon - taking the edge off and making it a smooth little drink.  Just combine the two ingredients and pour over ice.  Simple, yet effective. 

Papillon

Halloween 'Toys'

I'm not sure if this is new - but so far today, I've seen two cars so adorned.  This one was parked next to me at work.

I must admit I was startled for a couple of seconds.

Papillon

Chocolat Pour Vous

Several weeks ago I was browsing the used books at Goodwill.  I spotted a nice copy of Chocolat by Joanne Harris.  Although I have not seen the movie, I had heard good things about it.  I decided to buy the book.

I found it to be a fun read.  When I was done I took it to work and asked a coworker if she'd like to read it.  She said she had seen the movie and liked it.  She thought it would be fun to read the book.

Today she brought it back and said she had enjoyed it very much.  She said it had taken her the better part of the week to read it because she doesn't have a lot of time to read at home (family concerns).  Her only current chance to read is when she's riding the bus to work.

The even-more-fun part of this?  Because the bus she takes to work is used by other coworkers, there's a consistent group of people who ride the same bus every day.  Several other women saw what she was reading.  Two of the women - one had a copy of the movie and brought it in for the other to watch.  A third woman asked my coworker if she (third woman) could read Chocolat now that my coworker was done.  Since the book is mine my coworker said she did not feel comfortable loaning out my property. 

Me?  I said what the heck.  It's not like I bought the book brand new especially for me.  Let's get folks reading!  I told my coworker to let the third woman read the book.  All I ask is that she use a bookmark and not fold the pages to mark her spot.

Unleash the books!

Papillon

An Odd, Yet Readable, Book

I recently finished reading a rather unusual and slightly odd book.  The title is Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children.  It's a novel by Ransom Riggs.

It starts out with a family tragedy which severely affects 16-year-old Jacob.  He ends up journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales.  There he discovers the ruins of the aforementioned. home.  He begins to learn more about the home and 'peculiar' children. 

One interesting part of the book concerns the photos used as illustrations.  According to the chart at the end of the book, the photos were not created for the book.  Instead they are odd and weird and unusual photos that have been found at flea markets and antiques malls and yard sales.

I'm not sure if the author found out about the photos and created the story to fit the photos or if he started creating the story and found about the photos and used them as additional themes.  In any case, it's a very effective device.

Papillon

Snow in October

Yesterday's rain, which washed out both the morning and evening events at Balloon Fiesta, had another impact.  This time on the Sandia Mountains east of town.

It's not unusual to have snow on the Sandias at this time of year.  What I found out of the ordinary was how far down it is on the mountains.  Normally the 1st or 2nd snows of the season hover right around the top.  Maybe this is a hopeful sign that this drier-than-usual year is becoming less dry?

Another positive note, this morning it was sunny and not too breezy so the morning's mass ascension was able to take off.  I didn't see a whole lot of special shapes, it may have been just a bit too breezy for them.  I suspect they inflated but didn't take off.

Hoping for a good day tomorrow.

Papillon

Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

I feel sad for this year's participants in this year's Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.  It started out nicely with lovely weather last weekend.

Unfortunately, the weather has gone downhill since late on Tuesday. It's been rainy or windy or both windy and rainy. 

An aside -- I had to laugh at myself.  I woke up this morning around 6:00 AM and thought, 'What is making that odd noise?"  I almost got up to go check and then realized the noise I was hearing was rain on the roof.  Oh, right.  THAT'S what that sounds like.

Because of this morning's rain, the mass ascension was canceled.

I do have one more photo taken last weekend.  Here's a balloon coming in for a landing.

I'm hoping the weather's better tomorrow and Sunday.  I'm hoping I can get some more photos.

Ya gotta love those balloons.

Papillon

Balloons

There are a couple of ways to tell it's autumn in the Albuquerque area.  One is the smell of roasting green chiles.  I'd explain, but it's a New Mexico thing.  You really need to experience it at least once.

The second autumnal indication is the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.  Lots and lots of gorgeous hot air balloons.  Today is the first day of the 9 day event. 

A number of balloons drifted over to the west side of town.

Here's a patriotic balloon seen in the area of the Rio Rancho Post Office.

This next photo is a shot of the Smokey Bear balloon coming in for a landing near the Target in Rio Rancho.  The fans of the 'caught on video' type of TV show will know this is a replacement balloon.  The original Smokey Bear was blown into a radio tower several years ago.  It was ripped beyond repair.  Fortunately the pilot and two passengers were able to climb down the tower's ladder to safety. 

I'll be trying to get more photos of the next eight days.  I actually got at least one more balloon today, but I haven't developed the film yet (my digital camera's batteries decided to die at a critical moment so I had to go 'old school').

Papillon

Thoughts on Aging (not original to me)

Bennett Cerf was a publisher and co-founder of Random House.  He also liked to put together compilations of humor.  Granted, since these were published in the 1950's, some of the humor and jokes are very dated.  However, now and again, you find something worth pondering.  (Note:  I'm not sure if I'm repeating a former entry, but if I am -- so what!  It's my blog after all.  Plus, it's worth repeating.)

So here's the good thought on aging:

"Feeling old and discouraged?  The snap of youth gone from your stride?  Look over these statistics compiled by an agency pushing old-age annuity policies and take heart:  Between the ages of 75 and 83 Commodore Vanderbilt added 100 million dollars to his fortune.  Kant wrote his philosophical masterpiece at 74.  Tintoretto painted his biggest and most famous canvas when he was 75.  Verdi was 85 when he wrote Ave Maria.  Cato decided to study Greek when he was 80.  Goethe was also 80 when he finished Faust.  And -- listen to this! -- Titian painted his historic 'The Battle of Lepanto' when he was exactly 98!

Sun shining a bit brighter?"

Papillon

Play Ball!

For decades Albuquerque had a semi-pro baseball team called the Albuquerque Dukes.  So named because this area was originally part of a Spanish land grant involving the Duke of Alburquerque.  (Yes, the extra 'r' is correct in the Spanish spelling of the word.)  The Dukes were a farm team for the LA Dodgers.

About 10 years ago (or more), the franchise was sold to a group up in the Northwest (Oregon, I think) and subsequently was moved there.  Albuquerque went without semi-pro baseball for a few years.  Then another group formed a team which was named (with a distinct nod towards The Simpsons TV show) the Isotopes.  As before, they are a farm team for the LA Dodgers.

Back when they were still the Dukes I went to a couple of games over the years.  I remember the old stadium had the concessions on a lower level that always seemed dark and closed in.

After an extended period of unemployment, I have signed on with a new employer.  I started my employment just in time to take advantage of a group night at the Isotopes.  This happened last night (8/27).

When I got to the stadium, I was pleasantly surprised and pleased with the renovations done to the stadium for the Isotopes.  The walk-up to the stadium is lovely.  The concessions are up on an open-air mid-level concourse that is user-friendly.  I found my seat and then went to got a beer and some popcorn and finally settled in to watch the game.

My seat was located way down the first base line.  Here's a photo of my section taken from behind third base.  Locate the long white sign on the left side of the photo.  You'll notice a large blue circular logo on the right side of the sign.  My section was under that circular logo.

The Isotopes were playing the Round Rock (TX) Express and the evening went well for the 'Topes who won by a score of 8 to 3.

It was a fun evening.  It was rather hot when I first got to the stadium - in the mid 90's and initially my section was in the sun.  It was better when the sun went behind a cloud and then eventually set.  After it got dark, the temperature dropped into the upper 80's and a nice breeze sprang up so it was quite nice.

Here's a photo of what the game looked like from where I was sitting.

See that expanse of nighttime sky on the right side of the photo?  We kept seeing lightning off in the distance (the northwest section of the Albuquerque metro area).  Not a lot.  Plus, it was far enough away that we never heard any thunder.  Still. it made me nervous to be sitting near large light poles knowing there was lightning in the area.  I don't know if the lightning meant somebody was getting rain.  While driving home, I didn't see any spots that looked like they'd gotten rain.

I took a closeup shot of the game.  This is while Round Rock was at bat in the top of the 8th.  They're in the gray uniforms.  The 'Topes players were in blue shirts.

All in all, I'm glad I went.

Papillon

Silly Rabbit

I don't know why, but the wild rabbits that live in the neighborhood like to occasionally hang out in the middle of the street.  It has absolutely no cover against predators.  In the summertime it has to be HOT. 

In any case, yesterday morning when I went to get the newspaper, there was a rabbit.  Sitting in the road.  Washing its face.  And giving me the hairy eyeball in case I turned out to be a rabbit killer.  (I'm not, but I did have some homicidal thoughts when I found out they were eating my thyme plants.)

Here's a long shot of the rabbit - in the middle of the lower part of the photo.



And here's a cropped version of the same photo.

The rabbit let me take a few photos before deciding it was time to leave.

Papillon

Things That Make You Go H-m-m-m

A couple of weeks ago, my younger sister (A2) decided to make a quick day trip to visit my mom.  On the way home, she sees a pickup truck headed pulling a horse trailer.  She also sees the horse inside the trailer sticking its head out - just like dogs do when they're riding in cars.  She said she had never seen this before and was highly amused.

My older sister (A1) then related this story.  Earlier in the summer, she and my BIL were on their way either to or from an annual reunion of his family in Nebraska.  What did they see?  A pickup truck pulling a horse trailer.  And the horse is sticking its head out - just like dogs do when they're riding in cars.  She was highly amused.

Today I'm on my way home from work.  While heading westbound on I-40 I come up behind a pickup truck pulling a horse trailer.  There were 3 or 4 horses inside.  One of them, a very nice looking dark brown horse, was (you guessed it) sticking its head out of the trailer.  As I pulled alongside the trailer, the horse looked me in the eye & nodded its head.  It certainly seemed to be enjoying the wind in its hair.

Here my sisters and I have gone multiple decades (each) and have never seen this before.  And in less than 4 months, each of us have seen a horse acting like a dog.

Go figure!
Papillon

General Topics

Today as I was running some errands I noticed that the large cloud of smoke was once again in evidence.  The last time I saw it, I wasn't sure which wildfire it was.  It turns out that it is from the Las Conchas fire up near Alamogordo.  Today, there was more smoke around the base of the fire which the local news said was due to some back burns being done by the firefighters.  All in all, it's an impressive site considering it's more than an hour's drive from Albuquerque.

On another topic, I just started reading a fun new book, The Wilder Life, by Wendy McClure.  The author, as did many of us, read the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder while growing up.  She enjoyed it then.  Later on, she was reacquainted with the books.  She started re-reading them and liked them as much as when she was a kid.  Over time, she developed a mild obsession for reading as much as possible about the family and the actual time line of their lives.  Going to the places where they lived.  Trying things they had done in real life - like churning butter.  (It turns out that finding an actual dash churn to use was much harder than the actual churning.)  I'm only about a third of the way through it but am enjoying it so far.  It reminds me a bit of Julie & Julia from a few years ago.  Relatively normal person becomes mildly obsessed with famous author (yes, Julia Child wrote a book, albeit a cookbook, and thus could be considered an author).  Ends up writing a light-hearted book about their obsession.

I'm rather annoyed with myself.  Lately I've been feeling frumpy, lumpy and dumpy.  (The three cornerstones of a marked lack of self-confidence.)  I should be feeling good since I recently landed a job after an extended period of unemployment.  I start in about a week.  A large part of my problem results from my decision to buy some new tops.  It's been a while since I've done so and I've put on several pounds (OK, more than just several).  I tried on some tops in women's size Large.  All were too tight.  Some across the shoulders, some in the belly area and one weird top where the sleeves were too tight.  I then moved to Extra-Large.  The tops fit a bit better but some were still slightly tight.  Only one looked reasonably decent and it just wasn't what I wanted.  Sigh.  So I walked into the store feeling OK.  I walked out of the store feeling - lumpy, frumpy and dumpy.  I know I'll get over it and I'll find some clothes that will work.  But in the meantime, I'm feeling rather down.

Papillon

Smoke Column

I was north of Albuquerque in the Bernalillo area today.  We finally have enough humidity to make clouds and possibly even some rain.

However, I noticed this.  It's WAY north of Bernalillo and I'm wondering if it's a column of smoke from the Las Conchas fire (near Los Alamos).  Or possibly it's from another one of the wildfires in northern New Mexico.


 Granted, at the top of the photo, those are obviously clouds.  But that column has got to be smoke.  I had not seen anything like this before.













Papillon

Rain!

It rained last night.  Just barely.  It lasted slightly longer than the extremely brief shower we had a week or two ago.  I even got a chance to go outside and stand in it.  The cat thought I was nuts, but that's his problem. 

I knew we had a shot at some rain when I noticed I had moisture on the outside of my bottle of ice water.  Lately our humidity has been so low (4 per cent at one point) that even when my bottle held mostly ice versus water, there was no moisture on it.  So, knowing it had bumped up into at least the teens made me hopeful.

Oooh, I just switched over to The Weather Channel and the radar is showing showers in the area.  Hooray!

I'd be enjoying it more if I didn't feel slightly puny.  I had a medical exam the other day.  During the exam, they asked when I'd had my last tetanus vaccination.  I couldn't remember, but knew it'd been longer than 5 years.  So the decision was made to give me one.

Anyone who's ever gotten a tetanus shot knows it makes your arm hurt and slightly swollen and red for several days.  In addition, there's the diphtheria vaccine that's part of the shot.  Plus, about 5 years ago, the decision was made to include whooping cough to the vaccine.  AFTER I got the shot, the doctor mentioned that adding whooping cough to the vaccine has been known to make you feel crappier than you would have if it wasn't in the shot.

I got the shot on Thursday and, other than my left shoulder, felt OK.  Ditto for Friday morning.  Things started to slide gradually downhill on Friday afternoon.  I practiced my tai chi chih around noon.  However, instead of feeling relaxed afterward, I felt kinda sore and slightly stiff.  Weird.  Then sometime around 11 PM it felt like all my energy had disappeared.  I toughed it out for a while and then gave up the fight and went to bed.

Saturday morning, I felt like the Queen of Lethargy.  Oh my goodness!  I supposed I could have just gone back to bed, but the cat was demanding to be fed and I had a couple of errands to run, so I just kept on plugging.  After I got home I took an OTC flu pill (because it felt like I had a mild case of the flu) and took a long nap.  That helped because I at least felt slightly more human and slightly less zombie.  I did my very best couch potato for the rest of the day.

Today I'm feeling a bit better.  Less ache-y.  A bit more energy.  My arm still hurts, but it's also improving.  A bit less red around the injection site.  It's also itching a little which is a bit problematic what with the achiness still present. 

In any case, I hope you have a great Fourth of July.

Papillon

Hot Air Balloon Overhead

Several Saturdays ago, I was awakened by the propane 'whoosh' of a hot air balloon going overhead.  The first camera I grabbed was my 35mm so I had to wait until I got the film developed before I could show the photos.

Here's the sequence of photos from directly overhead to setting down in the municipal park behind the neighborhood.

I hope you liked them.

Papillon

Hazy Yet Again

After several days with no smoke haze hanging over us, it's B-A-A-A-C-K!

Normally the Sandia Mountains east of town are easy to see.  After all, they're close and, of course, HUGE.  Here is a photo I took a couple of years ago right around sunset.  This photo shows why there are so many references to Watermelon Mountains in and around Albuquerque.

However, thanks to all the smoke haze this is what the Sandias looked like today at around 1:00 PM.

It's a little disorienting to have them so obscured.  We can only hope they get all the wildfires under control and the smoke goes away.

Papillon

Classes

This week has been an informative one.

On Tuesday I started an eight week Tai Chi Chih class.  I'm practicing the moves we learned in the first class.  One requires a bit more balance.  I'm still having a slightly problem with the rocking back movement.  Otherwise, so far so good.

This morning I started a class on herbs.  It's not a cooking-with-herbs class, but more of a how to use herbs for a healthy life.  So far it's been interesting and fun.

I'm really looking forward to the upcoming classes.

Papillon

Smoky Times

Last Wednesday (6/1/11) I headed out of the house and noticed a distinct haze.  I didn't think much about it until I exited my subdivision and headed east.  Normally at that point I have a lovely view of the Sandia mountains.  However, the haze was so heavy that it totally obscured said Sandias.

It was better the next day, but right about sundown there was a distinct smell of smoke.  According to the local news media, a whole lotta people were worried there was some sort of large fire in the metro area and 9-1-1 was rather inundated with calls.  Local fire departments checked and could find no local cause for the smoky smell.

The cause of the haze and smell turned out to be the Wallow wildfire in eastern Arizona.  The winds were just right/wrong and brought it all our way.  Things got a bit better over the weekend but people with respiratory problems were told to stay indoors.

Today started out better, but as the afternoon wore on it got hazier and hazier and around 6:30 PM there was once again a distinct smell of smoke.  I looked out and noticed it was a whole lot darker than it normally is as the sun is going down.  It looks as though someone inverted a large smoke-color bowl over the entire area. 

I took this picture of the sun through a neighbor's tree.  My camera was not up to capturing the totally unusual hot pink color of the sun.  But it's still kinda cool nevertheless.

Papillon

Fiber Arts Festival

There are a number of arts & crafts guilds in the Albuquerque area.  Every other year they band together and put on a Fiber Arts Festival.

I decided to go today and had a thoroughly good time.  Lots of lovely fiber/textile items to look at.  I bought some fat quarters and saw a friend I hadn't seen in a while. 

Here are some of the fun items that were at the show.  We start with a lovely hooked rug.

Then there were some kooky and fabulous dolls.  This first doll was made by a member of the local doll makers guild.

This next doll is a stunner made by a man named Arley Berryhill who makes dolls professionally.

Of course there were quilts and quilted wallhangings galore.  Some were traditional.

Others were more whimsical.

All in all - a fun way to spend some time at the Fairgrounds.

Papillon

Sundays at Tiffany's

On Sunday I went to see the current exhibit at the Albuquerque Museum.  The exhibit is called 'A New Light on Tiffany:  Clara Driscoll and the Tiffany Girls'.

Charles Lewis Tiffany founded Tiffany & Co.  (Yes, as in 'Breakfast at Tiffany's.)  Later on his son Louis Comfort Tiffany inherited the company.  While C.L. Tiffany concentrated on such things as jewelry, flatware and home accessories, his son was very interested in stained glass.

Several years ago two researchers independently discovered a series of letters and sketches by a woman named Clara Driscoll.  It turns out she was integrally involved in the designing of many iconic Tiffany pieces - including many of the lamps.  So much so that when she married in 1909 and left the company for good, the company's output declined markedly. 

The Tiffany Girls refers to the group of 27 women who were responsible for the color selection, cutting and lead foiling of the glass pieces used in the lamps and other decoratives.  The pieces were assembled and soldered together by a group of men at another location.

Here is one of the lamps believed to have been designed by Clara Driscoll.  It's one of a series of lamps using dragonflies as a motif.

Other motifs attributed to Clara Driscoll include a series of poppies (both red and yellow), wisteria, and an interesting cobweb design, among many others.

The exhibit was very interesting and also very beautiful.  All the lamps were lighted to show the glass.  Plus, many/all of the bases were also created by the crafters at Tiffany's. 

My one and only complaint was the display of about half a dozen pieces.  There were several lamps that stood on pedestals that were just high enough to make the top side of the lamp shades visible.  I'm 5'8" and had a slight problem seeing the top side.  Also there were several hanging lamps that were high enough to make the top side, once again, hard to see.  If they would have lowered the pieces in question by about 4 to 6 inches, it would have made viewing of the pieces easier.

Otherwise it was a lovely exhibit.  It runs through August 21st and I plan on going back for another viewing.

Papillon



Feeling Good

A week or so I was making my weekly trip to Goodwill to see if I could find any good books to read.  One of the books I found was a copy of Horatio Alger's Ragged Dick.  It's been a couple of decades since I last read any of Alger's books so I thought 'what the heck' and bought the book.

When I bought the book I noticed it had markings indicating it was a part of the Albuquerque library system.  I didn't think much about it because libraries periodically cull their files and sell the books they know longer want to keep.  I figure this was one such book.

However, when I got home I noticed there was nothing on the book to show it had been pulled from the stacks by the library.  So I went out on the official city website and checked the library's catalog.  They had the book listed, but also said there were no available copies.  Normally if a book has been checked out, the catalog will show this.  So their notes meant they had no copies in the system. 

So I read the book and then took it to the closest branch library and put it in the book drop-off.  Tonight when I checked, voila!  They now have one copy of the book listed in their records - ready to be checked out.

I'm not sure how the book ended up at Goodwill.  So I did Good will a favor by buying the book and supporting their efforts.  I helped out the library by returning the book so they don't have to buy another copy - saving them money.

I'm feeling good.  Two good deeds in one fell swoop!

Papillon

Books and the Occasional Scammer

Twice a year the Albuquerque Main Library holds a 'clearance sale'.  You can buy as many books as you can stuff into a brown grocery bag - no limit on the number of books or the number of bags.  It's a great deal, especially if you're buying hard covers.  Heck, it's a good deal even if you're buying paperbacks.  This year I managed to fill 4 bags.  Woohoo!  Lots of good reading in my future.

For about elebenty-seven years, the price has been $3 per bag.  However, I guess as the result of inflation and budget cuts, the Friends of the Library decided that, starting with today's sale, the price per bag would be raised to $5 per bag.  They've had this information on their website since the last sale in November 2010.  It was also on signs all over the sale area.

Everything went fine until I went to check out.  There was a nice short line with only one woman ahead of me.  As I get into line, the woman's total comes up on the cash register - 8 bags for $40.  The woman immediately recoils in horror.  Why such a high total?!  The cashier (a small elderly woman) explained the change in price.  The customer immediately went into Evil Cheapskate Customer mode.  She had checked the price on the Internet and therefore the library had 'no legal leg to stand on'.  (I'm not making this up, she actually said those exact words.)  The cashier asked what website Evil Cheapskate Customer (hereafter referred to as ECC) had gotten the information from.  As expected ECC was unable to give her a name.  Instead she kept ranting about how she should be charged only $3 because that's what it said on the Internet.

She was so busy ranting and making life miserable for the very polite cashier that she didn't hear the disparaging  comments that the lady in line behind me and I were making (under our breath) concerning ECC's conduct.  I was also running several very pleasant revenge fantasies in my head.

I did comment to ECC that the Internet is full of erroneous information and is not an infallible source, especially in light of the fact that she'd gotten the information from a website NOT run by the Friends of the Library.  ECC dismissed me with an imperious wave of her hand.

Finally, the woman responsible for the content on the Friends' website walked over and said that their website has had the accurate information since November 2010.  That the Friends are responsible for the information on their website and NOT for any information on a website over which they have no control.  ECC eventually backed off and allowed them to finish the transaction. 

We all breathed a sigh of relief as ECC walked away.  The funniest part - apparently ECC is either incredibly cheap or an incredibly slow learner or is a persistent scammer trying to rip off the Friencs of the Library.  Because the library lady said ECC pulls the same or a similar stunt every single year at every single sale for the past 10 years.  It makes my head ache just to think about it.

Anyway, all's well that ends well.  I got my four bags of books home without giving myself a hernia.  The cat worked his nose overtime smelling all the interesting smells.  There is lots of yummy reading in my future.  Life is good.

Papillon

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day!

This photo is courtesy of http://www.dailysquee.com/.

Since my mom lives over 500 miles away, I didn't get to spend the day with her.  I called, though, and we had a nice chat.

Earlier in the day, I decided to go to the Rio Grande Nature Center.  They were holding their annual Herb Fest.  It's a pleasant way to spend an hour or so.  The weather was warm, but not too hot with a bit of a breeze.

Lots of animals enjoying the weather.  I got to see a mother Canada goose and her gosling.  I first noticed the mom.  She was on the bank and was bouncing her neck up and down, obviously checking out all of us humans who were checking her out.  It was a few minutes later that I noticed the gosling.  You have to look closely to see the goose - she's in the center of the bottom of the photo in the middle of a bunch of branches.

There were also turtles sunning themselves on a large branch plus some hummingbirds bickering over a feeder.  Here are the turtles:

It was fun listening to a four-person band playing some folk music.  They were good.

A local wildlife refuge had some raptors available to look at - injured birds who have healed but can no longer live in the wild.  The birds were gorgeous - a peregrine falcon, barn owl, burrowing owl and a crow.

All in all, a nice time was had.  I took some photos but all I had was my 35mm camera so will have to wait until I get the film processed before I can post anything.

Papillon

Tea and Roses

Today one of the local nurseries (Osuna Nursery for the curious) partnered with a local tea room (St James Tearoom) to put on an event combining tea and roses. 

I decided to brave the high winds and airborne dust that are so prevalent in Albuquerque in April and see what was to be seen.

As to be expected, there were lots of lovely roses - such as

And then there was

The tea was as yummy as the roses.  They served tea (of course) and a number of food items.  Two that I tasted were cucumber sandwiches and lavender shortbread.  I LOVED the lavender shortbread.  It was not only yummy but fun as well.

After having tea and admiring the roses, I wandered through the rest of the nursery since I love to see all the blooming plants.

I have long been a fan of dahlias.  Here's a pretty yellow one.

And I loved the color of this little pansy.

I'm glad I didn't let the weather deter me from having a fun and colorful time this afternoon.

Papillon

Continuing My Efforts

Since April 24th is normally the last day of the season where we might possible have a late freeze, I decided this is the weekend to continue my idea of having a thyme lawn. 

So far, the first plant, a wooly thyme, seems to be hanging in there.  Always a good thing with my iffy green thumb.

On Friday I went by a couple of locally owned nurseries to check out their supplies of thyme.  At the first one I went to, no luck.  I couldn't find any thyme in their herb section.  I asked one young man who worked there.  He did not know and said he would find out.  Thirty seconds later, he had obviously not asked and was back to what he'd been doing before I asked - straightening up the tomato plant display.  I then located another employee and asked her.  She informed me they had just planted the seeds for their thyme plants and I should come back in a week or so.  Umm, no thanks.

I went to another nursery right down the street.  They had some larger time plants, but the tag said they would grow slightly higher than I wanted them to.  Their smaller plants were the same variety as the larger plants, except for one tiny pot containg an Elfin variety that looked rather sad.  No thanks, again.

I finally went to the nursery I had gone to a couple of weeks ago.  They had a MUCH better variety including 2 types that only get about 2-3 inches tall.  I got 2 pots of each variety and came home.  I need to think about exactly where I want to put them and then it's transplant time.

It should not be such a hassle to find a common herb like thyme.

On the other hand, it's kinda fun to walk up to a complete stranger (at a nursery) and ask them, "Do you have thyme?"  It has such a nice existential/metaphysical feel to it.

Papillon

Hooray!

I think the final, final, final period has been put on my water leak.

I think the leak had gone on for several hours, possibly days, before it finally bubbled up in my bathroom and headed down the hallway.  That's because my water bill (received this week) was about half again higher than my normal water bill.  Payable, but still .... Yikes!

Yesterday I called the water utility and politely asked if there was any possible way of having the bill reduced.  The nice young woman on the other end of the phone said certainly!  All I had to do was drop off a copy of the bill from the plumber to prove that the repair work was done.  Off I went to city hall and dropped of said copy.

The powers-that-be then looked over the bill to make sure everything was OK.  This morning I got a phone call letting me know that my bill was reduced by about 40%.  Woohoo!  It just goes to show it never hurts to ask. 

Feeling good!
Papillon

Ah, Yes...

Well, another bit of the great 2011 water leak has come up.  I got my monthly water bill.  It looks like the leak most likely started in late March because there was a slight up-tick in usage.  It wasn't enough of a change to make me really sit up and take notice.  I'm sure when I got March's bill, I just put it down to my taking longer showers or something similar.

However, April's bill is when the monthly usage really goes off the charts.  I'll bet the leak was fairly active for a while before it finally got around to leaking through into the house.  Ah, well. 

I can't be too unhappy because the leak kicked me out of my rut of hoping there wouldn't be any more leaks and got me started in the right direction of fixing the problem and stopping the opportunities for future leaks.  Giving me much needed peace of mind.

Onto related thoughts - here in New Mexico, rock lawns are very popular due to the lack of moisture.  (After all, Albuquerque is located in a high desert area - low rain and high altitude.)  For those who are not familiar with rock lawns, instead of grass lawns we have front and back yards where black plastic is laid over the bare soil and then several tons of pea-sized gravel are poured on top and smoothed down into a thin, uniform layer. 

I have never been fond of rock lawns, although it has meant I didn't have to mow the lawn.  Several years ago I heard of an idea for a thyme lawn.  So I've decided to start one of my own.  Where the plumbers had to dig the trench to lay the new main water line from the meter to the house, they had to remove the plastic from that area.  I've decided to start my new thyme lawn along that trench and then expand it slowly across the rest of the yard.  It should ultimately be pleasing to the eye and also pleasant to smell.  And I'll never have to mow it!

So far I've just got one plant put in - a small woolly thyme.  It's listed as a ground cover and is a nice green grey.  I'm not sure if I'll use more than one type of thyme or just bung in several varieties.  I'll have to think on that a bit.  Now that warm weather's here, I do need to remember to water it regularly.  If I recall correctly, it should help the effort by spreading out a bit on its own.

Papillon

Random Things

My plumbing project came to an official end this past Monday (4/4).  When the plumbers were working on my house, they had to go into the attic crawlspace.  The panel giving access to that area is made of drywall.  The original panel was original to the house and due to its age was rather fragile.  A corner was accidentally broken off and the plumbers said they'd replace it.  Unfortunately, they were busy with other people's leaks during the last week of March so we scheduled for panel replacement on Monday the 4th.  The plumber showed up a bit late (he called and let me know) due to yet more leaks elsewhere, but I now have a new attic access panel.  As the plumber was leaving, I said, "you guys did a great job and I really appreciate it, but I hope I don't see you for a very long time."  The plumber smiled and agreed with me.

Since then things have gotten back to normal.

For those who don't know, I belong to an informal quilt group that meets once a month.  Sometimes we quilt, sometimes we don't.  We've known each other for the better part of 20 years and always have a good time when we get together.  This year we decided to have a group project.  For that, each of us brought in a yard of 'mystery' fabric whose identity was hidden in a brown paper sack.  We each drew a sack and now have to make a project of our choosing using the fabric and employing a log cabin block of our choice for the pattern.  I've been working away on my project and have now gotten the top about 95% done.  The design is done and now I just need to decided on what to do for the borders.  I think I'll use my mystery fabric (turquoise background with a brown vine design) as a narrow inner border.  I'll put a wider border on the outside.  I've been looking for something in a nice chocolate brown on brown.  I found one that was close but didn't really quite make the cut (pun intended).  I've seen some lovely tone on tone fabrics, but not a lot in a nice deep brown.  Rats!

Anyway, here's a picture of the top as it stands so far.

I call it 'A Cheerful Heart'.  It's based on a pattern in an older quilt book that I have.  I'm not doing the pattern exactly as shown in the book since it involves doing applique flowers on the bottom point of the heart.  One, I think the flowers make it look fussy.  Two, I hate, hate, HATE doing applique.  It makes my neck muscles tense up just to think about doing applique.  So, I won't, I won't, I WON'T!

Now that I've got that little tantrum out of my system, I'm off to surf the net.

Papillon

Putting a Period on It

The plumber came by for the (hopefully) final time today.  It really wasn't a truly plumbing related visit.  During the 're-pipe the house' project, at one point the access panel to the attic crawl space had a large corner broken off.  It was a piece of wall board cut to fit the opening.  Since it was original to the house, it had gotten rather fragile with age.

I really didn't expect it, but the plumber offered to fix it.  I, of course, said OK.  Originally, the plumber said he'd bring the replacement sometime late last week.  He got busy and couldn't make it. 

We scheduled him to come by this morning.  Shortly before the scheduled time, he called and say he was running late.  He arrived and I now have a new access panel for my attic crawl space.  Plus, the plumber got to pick up the tape measure that one of the workers had left behind.

Win-win all the way around.

As the plumber was leaving, I said, "Don't take this the wrong way because you've been very nice and very professional, but I hope I don't see you again for a VERY LONG TIME!"  He smiled and agreed with me.

All in all, it's nice to have everything back to normal.

Papillon

Bummer - An Update

The plumbing in my home is now fixed and well insulated and working.  Hooray!

It's nice to know that the next time the temperatures drop below freezing, I don't have to worry that the pipes leading to my bathroom fixtures will freeze as well.

I also can stop worrying that a new leak could pop up at any time, especially in light of having 25+ year-old poly-butylene (sp?) pipes. 

Plus I have several small projects that had been needing to be done that were taken care of as part of the re-piping project - like new water connections for the washer/dryer.

All in all, a good ending to a bad episode.  Now I get to spend the weekend with an open trench in the front yard and several openings in the walls where the new pipes were threaded in.  They can't be closed up until the City of Rio Rancho sends somebody out to inspect the work.  But it's OK, I can live with that.

Papillon

Less Bummed

Well, the plumbers showed up today.  The work is about 90% finished and I am now back to having water available.  So VERY nice!

I called the insurance company and they might pay for a portion of the work.  Because what I'm doing is considered preventative, the insurance company is not willing to pay for everything.  I got an estimate from the plumber showing what would have been the costs if I had chosen to just repair the leak and then held my breath for the next umpteen years waiting for the next leak to bust loose.

I'll be sending the estimate to the insurance company and then we'll see what they decide to pay.  Keeping my fingers crossed!

Papillon

Bummer!

I'm sitting here at 11:30 PM and feeling rather bummed out.

I'd been having a fairly normal day.  No big deals.  No problems.

I was in the bathroom around 6:30 PM & it was dry as a bone.  Then, around 7:15 PM I walked into the bathroom and started splashing as I walked.  PROBLEM!  By the time I noticed it, the water was about 1/8th inch deep in the bathroom and was headed down the hallway.

I put a bunch of sponges down to try & stem the flow & sprinted over to my neighbor (a handyman kind of guy) to ask if he could help me shut off the main valve at the meter.  Believe it or not, he actually has one of those wand tools that is designed to shut off the valve with a minimum of fuss.  Which he did.  I then went back inside to start mopping things up and also to call a plumber.

I tried calling the plumber I'd used on the past 2 plumbing problems.  I discovered they don't have 24 hour emergency service.  Since I didn't notice the leak until well after 5:00 PM, they were out of the equation.  Having seen a RotoRooter truck doing work at a couple of houses down the street after February's freeze, I called them.  The supervisor said all their work crews were booked for the evening and suggested I call someone else.  I then called a plumbing firm that I'd used several years ago for a small leak at the T-joint behind the kitchen sink.  They'd done good work then, so decided to use them again.

They had a crews out on several jobs but said they could get someone out if I didn't mind waiting.  I said OK.  A tech called around 9:15 PM and said he was finishing up a job and could be at my house in 45 minutes.  I said OK and then sprinted down the hill to Walmart to use their bathroom.  Thank goodness for stores that are open 24 hours a day!

Side note:  when you ask people a question, why do they give you an answer and then say - oh, but you might want to disregard what I just told you?  When I walked into Walmart I asked the employee near the door where their restrooms were.  He pointed to one near the front of the store.  Then he said - but you probably won't want to use THAT bathroom since they called for housekeeping to clean it and nobody's been in in yet.  Sigh.  He then said there were bathrooms at the back of the store.  Why not just say - the bathrooms at the front of the store are out of commission so you should just head to the back?

In any case, the plumber showed up around 10:00 PM.  I was hoping it was something small.  It wasn't.  It was coming from under the slab.  Sigh.  The plumber gave me two options.  He could fix the leak which would involve jackhammering through the slab.  Unfortunately, I could expect more leaks in the future since I have that poly-whatever piping which has been discredited in recent years.  This is also the fourth leak I've had to fix in the past however many years - including one several years ago which did require jackhammering through the slab.

I decided to go for Plan B.  This would be re-piping the house.  (Although the price is about what I expected, I do have room on my credit card - thank goodness.)  The plumber did a whole lot of explaining what would be involved.  Interestingly - there will be no jackhammering.  What they will do is replace the water line from the meter to the house.  They will then run a pipe inside the wall up to the crawl space and then run the pipe over to the area of the house where my pipes are located.  (Note:  I have one bathroom.  It and the laundry area and the kitchen area are all located in one area of the house.  This makes it easier to do the work).  They will then replace all poly-whatever pipes in the work area.  In addition, they're replacing all the turn-on/turn off fittings.  Plus they will put a main turn-off valve inside the house so in case of future leaks I can sprint into my bedroom and turn things off instead of sprinting out into the front yard.  Much nicer.  Plus, I've had a few turn on/turn off fittings that really need to be replaced.  These will be replaced as part of the work.  Oh, and they will also be putting some insulation in so I won't have to worry as much in the future.  (The builder put NO, absolutely NONE, insulation in the area where the pipes are located.  Was this stupid or what.  Cheap jerks.)  I decided to go with this plan since I'm still 'between jobs' and I might as well take the time to do it now instead of worrying that when I get a job - I'd come home one day to a flooded home due to yet another leak.

The plumber said he could have someone out to start the work tomorrow morning - around 9:00 AM or so.  The job should take about 1 1/2 days.  The plumber said he'd guarantee that by the end of day one I will have toilet use.  Day two should be involved with insulating the pipe area.  (Another good note - the price I was quoted is the final price - the plumber guaranteed I would not be hit with any surprise 'extras'.)

After the plumber left, I went back down the hill to Walmart.  I bought three 24-packs of bottled water.  This way I have water to brush teeth.  Fortunately I washed my hair last night and should be able to stretch things until the water's back on.  If I really need to pee - I can use a bunch of the bottled water to fill the toilet tank.  Otherwise, there's always Walmart.

In the meantime, I'm curtailing my fluid intake.

Papillon

A Day Late (or Thereabouts)

I'm not sure why I didn't post this sooner - just laziness, I guess.

Last Friday was a lovely day.  I'd heard there was a display of tulips being held at the Botanic Garden as a follow-up to the display of cyclamens (mentioned in an earlier post).  I like tulips so I thought I'd head on down and enjoy the weather.

I got to the Botanic Garden and decided that the first thing I would do is ride the train.  Now, this is not a full-sized train.  This is a smaller version that is designed to chug its way around a route that encompasses parts of the Botanic Garden, Tingley Beach and the zoo.  Here's a photo of the engine:

There are actually 2 different trains, usually heading in opposite directions from each other.  Each train has 4 cars, 2 that are open and 2 that are partly enclosed.  I chose to ride in one of the semi-enclosed cars, here's a photo from the inside looking towards the engine.

It's a pleasant ride, if a little noisy - some banging and clanging as the train rolls along.  It's definitely not some sort of high-speed amusement park ride.  Gauging by the people we encountered along the ride it was faster than a walker, about the same speed as a jogger and slightly slower than someone on a bicycle.  All in all, it takes about an hour to make the full ride, not a bad way to enjoy a lovely spring day.

When I got done with the train ride, I went to see if I could find the tulip display I'd read about.  I discovered nary a tulip bloom in sight.  I'm thinking there may be a display in the near future, but someone gave the wrong dates to the newspaper.

It wasn't a total waste.  There was a magnificently blooming amaryllis.

Plus, here are some photos of some of the local duck population.  First of all, a male wood duck.

I have a fond place in my heart for wood ducks.  For years I entered my needlepoint in the Texas State Fair.  And for years, the best I could do was several second place finishes.  Then, one year I entered 3 items and they ALL won first place ribbons.  One of the entries was a picture of a male wood duck.  Gotta love 'em!

Next we have a male mallard.  He's just coming out of the pond and is giving me a hard look to make sure of the following:  1) that I'm not a dangerous carnivore preying on mallard ducks, and 2) that I don't have any food to share.

I like mallards because they were one of the first ducks I could identify when I was very much younger.

Have a lovely spring!  And love to all the folks trying to survive following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

Papillon