Anyone want to move to Taos, New Mexico and run a wonderful indie bookshop??! Moby Dickens, where I work, is on the market. It's a great shop with a great staff. All of us get to be buyers here, and the variety of books is wonderful. Check out the website: mobydickensbookshop.com. And it comes with two literate cats, Mabel and Tony.
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Rarin' to Go Blog Again
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Snowflower and the Secret Fan
I'm telling everyone to see this Chinese movie. It's about the strong love and friendship of two young women, both in the past and the present. Beautiful story. I just saw it last night in town, at our local indie film series.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Cadbury Day
Peeping Tom, my neighbor's turkey, just peeked in the window. Hope he doesn't know about Cad's treat this morning! Also hanging out is Mystery, the semi-feral cat that comes over for treats and attention. It's a regular zoo outside my window.
The pup pic of the day is great. I love boxers, and Duncan was the name of my wonderful big dog I had for almost 17 years.
Friday, March 25, 2011
cold noses
Just had to comment on my "puppy of the day" photo. The most appealing eyes! I want to give this one a hug.
I've been stuck at home for the last few days, have a horrible cold/flu/allergy combo that's been floating around with the cold windy dusty weather we're having here in Taos. Gives me the time to work more on my blog but any kind of effort on my part leaves me so tired. Maybe I'll feel better tomorrow. I have a lot to catch up on here. Get distracted by FB but it's more fun to blog. Exercise those writing chops.
I've been stuck at home for the last few days, have a horrible cold/flu/allergy combo that's been floating around with the cold windy dusty weather we're having here in Taos. Gives me the time to work more on my blog but any kind of effort on my part leaves me so tired. Maybe I'll feel better tomorrow. I have a lot to catch up on here. Get distracted by FB but it's more fun to blog. Exercise those writing chops.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Winter Worries
It's a cold, snowy evening in Taos and I'm sitting at my desk at Mabel's. The two couples who were supposed to check in tonight couldn't make it because of bad weather conditions all over the Midwest and East. So I'll leave early. More snow predicted for tomorrow, and tonight it's supposed to get down to 17 below! I worry about the little cat, "Mystery" who I have been trying to befriend for the last several months. He won't let me touch him but will let me feed him-he's no fool. I put out a couple cat beds for him but he must have some other hiding place. Warm I hope.
I also worry about the horses around here that have no shelter from this freezing weather. I know that if they are healthy and well-fed they can do ok out in the cold, but what about the old ones, and the starving ones? I just got a call about a neglected old horse being fed by a neighbor. Seems that the owners just turned it out to fend for itself. Wish I could turn them out to fend for themselves! I'm going to try to find out more about this situation. There are places to go for help. We have a great local horse sanctuary called Equine Spirit Sanctuary and I got some tips from them. But they are full and can't take another horse.
It's amazing I can sleep at all, I worry so much!
I also worry about the horses around here that have no shelter from this freezing weather. I know that if they are healthy and well-fed they can do ok out in the cold, but what about the old ones, and the starving ones? I just got a call about a neglected old horse being fed by a neighbor. Seems that the owners just turned it out to fend for itself. Wish I could turn them out to fend for themselves! I'm going to try to find out more about this situation. There are places to go for help. We have a great local horse sanctuary called Equine Spirit Sanctuary and I got some tips from them. But they are full and can't take another horse.
It's amazing I can sleep at all, I worry so much!
Friday, December 17, 2010
4 months oh no!
It's been 4 months since I posted here, good grief. Well, Facebook is mostly to blame, and the fact that I was so busy with work and pet sits over the summer. But I enjoy this so here goes.
Some highlights of the past few months: a fabulous trip to Utah with my sister, another short trip to the Festival of the Cranes at the Bosque del Apache below Albuquerque, visitors from Pasadena for Thanksgiving, a new one-day-a-week job at my favorite bookstore, and now it's finally snowing. I spent the morning baking biscochittos (sugar cookies with anise, the New Mexico state cookie) for the holiday party today at Mabel's, listening to the three tenors sing carols, drinking eggnog with whiskey, stoking the fire, and gazing at my pretty little Christmas tree. I was supposed to start an overnight pet-sit today but they postponed it till the snow clears. And I've got to find Cadbury's little snow booties-he hates getting his feet in the snow!
Monday, August 16, 2010
Duncan
 |
| Duncan, my doggie soulmate, born 8/15/1988, lived for almost 17 years! This was at the Dog Beach at Huntington Beach, Southern California. |
A nicho on an outside wall of an old adobe complex
 |
| These small adobe homes had sprung up along old trade routes in the 1850's |
The Vicente Silva house, built in the 1870's
 |
| Silva was a sheriff-gone-bad, had a bandit gang in the 1890's |
"Montezuma Castle" built in 1886
 |
| now the Armand Hammer United World College-originally built as a hotel by a railroad company |
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Viva Las Vegas!
The New Mexican one! I just had the greatest little road trip. Las Vegas is about a 2 1/2 hour drive from Taos. Used to be one of those wild west towns. I stayed at the old Plaza Hotel right on the green grassy plaza. Wonderful place, well worth a stay. The night I got there, I went to have a quiet dinner in the bar but ended up staying for 3 hours when a young mariachi trio came in, Carlos Medina y Los Gallos. They were terrific! Carlos has a warm style and strong beautiful voice and sang non-stop for the 3 hours. I ended up sharing my table with two different couples and made some new acquaintances. One of them might use my pet-sitting services, and the other were locals, Armando and Josie, wonderful couple who I bumped into again at a cafe. The owners knew this couple and gave us a free lunch. Enchiladas swimming in red chile sauce, and the best soapapillas. (I tried to make those once but they came out like hockey pucks.)
And of course I stopped in at Tome on the Range, their wonderful independent book store. And of course I bought some books (got to stop this!!). Wanted to buy a copy of "Reading Lolita in Tehran" for my book club, and a huge book on New Mexican painters.
The main reason for my visit was the house tour. I thought it would be all Victorians, but there were some surprizes. A quirky adobe compound, old houses added onto room by room so many years ago. I really liked this one the best. The owner has one of the 7 units and she has fantastic collections of Stuff, glorious stuff, including a beautiful photo of Amelia Earhardt. These old adobes are so organic, sensuous and colorful. No sharp edges or predictable rooms, and the outside walls had little alcoves with statues. They reminded me of an old Craftsman bungalow court I lived in once in Pasadena. And it even had a shared outside area with chairs set around a firepit.
Another interesting building was the "Montezuma Castle", an affectionate nickname given to a World College for brainy high school students who want to study with an international flair. This is in the forested hills in Montezuma a few miles outside of Las Vegas. The original buildings both burned down in the 1800's, what a shame after all the man power and money it took to build them, but it was Railroad money and there was plenty of that at the time. Anyway, this third attempt is just as beautiful as the first two, a huge rambling affair bursting out of the trees with domes that remind me of Russian churches, an all-wood lined lobby, and a nice wrap-around verandah with plenty of rocking chairs from which to admire the view.
And that's not all. I drove back to Santa Fe that night and treated myself to a front row (at eye level with the fast as lightening feet) ticket at a fabulous flamenco show. Juan Siddi who is from Germany but is of Spanish and Italian descent. What a force of nature he is, wow!! He has taken over from the famous Maria Benitez, who has retired I think. I saw her in Taos 20 years ago. I love the passion of flamenco. His whole troupe was so incredible, including a couple very young boys (8 or 9?) who had the moves and the expressions down pat. And the singers and musicians were just as astounding. Though I was partial to the handsome Spanish guitarist, a real gypsy guy. And the girls costumes! I've got to go down there again before their season is over (like next week I think, darn).
And of course I stopped in at Tome on the Range, their wonderful independent book store. And of course I bought some books (got to stop this!!). Wanted to buy a copy of "Reading Lolita in Tehran" for my book club, and a huge book on New Mexican painters.
The main reason for my visit was the house tour. I thought it would be all Victorians, but there were some surprizes. A quirky adobe compound, old houses added onto room by room so many years ago. I really liked this one the best. The owner has one of the 7 units and she has fantastic collections of Stuff, glorious stuff, including a beautiful photo of Amelia Earhardt. These old adobes are so organic, sensuous and colorful. No sharp edges or predictable rooms, and the outside walls had little alcoves with statues. They reminded me of an old Craftsman bungalow court I lived in once in Pasadena. And it even had a shared outside area with chairs set around a firepit.
Another interesting building was the "Montezuma Castle", an affectionate nickname given to a World College for brainy high school students who want to study with an international flair. This is in the forested hills in Montezuma a few miles outside of Las Vegas. The original buildings both burned down in the 1800's, what a shame after all the man power and money it took to build them, but it was Railroad money and there was plenty of that at the time. Anyway, this third attempt is just as beautiful as the first two, a huge rambling affair bursting out of the trees with domes that remind me of Russian churches, an all-wood lined lobby, and a nice wrap-around verandah with plenty of rocking chairs from which to admire the view.
And that's not all. I drove back to Santa Fe that night and treated myself to a front row (at eye level with the fast as lightening feet) ticket at a fabulous flamenco show. Juan Siddi who is from Germany but is of Spanish and Italian descent. What a force of nature he is, wow!! He has taken over from the famous Maria Benitez, who has retired I think. I saw her in Taos 20 years ago. I love the passion of flamenco. His whole troupe was so incredible, including a couple very young boys (8 or 9?) who had the moves and the expressions down pat. And the singers and musicians were just as astounding. Though I was partial to the handsome Spanish guitarist, a real gypsy guy. And the girls costumes! I've got to go down there again before their season is over (like next week I think, darn).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
