Plein Air in Truchas

Yesterday we drove up to Truchas, a small art community on the High Road to Taos. The community is located on a spur road which runs along a ridge at the foot of Truchas Peak. Creeks were burbling along and the spring flowers were edging the roadway as we made our way to the far end of the little traveled road. There are artist studios interspersed along the road with their signs out inviting you to come in and see the metalwork, weaving, paintings, hand made bells, and pottery that they produce way up there in Truchas. Its probably all they can do in the winter as it is more than likely snowed in for the season. We chose a scene that looks out over the Truchas Mountains and tried our hand at plein air painting. There was a bit of a wind and I noticed Allan running down the road after his painting which had taken off in a gust, but I was tucked down behind the back of the truck and was sheltered from the wind for the most part. The objective was to spend no more than 1/2 hour getting down the colors and forms of the distant view....making sure that the atmosphere had volume. Above is the actual view that I was looking towards and to the right is the study that came from that view. I think that I got the atmosphere coming down into the mountains but still need more practice at this plein air experience before we arrive in Campobello Island for Michael Chesley Johnson's workshop in July.

Sunshine in Santa Fe

Today we had sunshine for the first time in several days and it seemed like a perfect time to head to the Plaza and get some fresh air. After we parked the truck, we walked along the storefronts towards the plaza but we were detoured around numerous trucks full of equipment and arc lights. As we approached the plaza we had to stay away from the west side as they were filming a movie with William Defoe and Tim Robbins. They were inside one of the plaza cafes and although we waited around for a bit, they did not emerge out into the street where there were numbers of camera crew standing around and extras placed strategically on the park benches. If we had only arrived a little earlier we could have been extras, oh well, that is always the way....when our ship comes in, we are always at the airport.

So instead we headed past the plaza down Palace Ave to visit the Nicholas Potter Bookstore where we both found some interesting used books. One of the books that I purchased was by Wolf Kahn and it was about the paintings he had done as he had toured across America. Another treasure I found was a book with the original text by Daniel Defoe as he toured Great Britain prior to the Industrial Revolution. You might remember him as the author who wrote Robinson Crusoe. Allan picked up a real fast read entitled "The Rising Sun in the Pacific 1931-1942, A History of United States Naval Operations In World War II". Prowling around a used book store always gives us an appetite, so we headed up to the Pink Adobe Cafe for lunch. Allan had a burger and I had the Green Chile Chicken Soup and both were delicious, but couldn't be outdone by the Pear Custard Amaretto which we shared for dessert. On the way back to the truck we stumbled onto another bookshop where I found yet another fascinating book called "Journalistas" 100 Years of the Best Writing and Reporting by Women Journalists. What a wonderful day.... good food, sunshine, and great books to read. Now if we had only gotten into the movies, our day would have been complete.

Las Vegas in New Mexico

Yesterday we took a drive NE to see the town of Las Vegas which is about half way between Raton and Santa Fe. This little town was where the early visitors to Taos would depart the train from back east and complete their long travels by motorcar. The town still had a large train station but the remainder of the town was either boarded up or falling down. Most of the buildings looked as if they had not been painted or any other repairs since the early 1900's. Most of the town's inhabitants that we saw on the streets also looked like they have been going through hard times or in some cases were just released from prison. But we managed to find the book store which was called Tome on the Range and found several new and used books to drag back to the RV. I had already researched where to have lunch and we drove to Charlie's Bakery & Cafe which turned out to be a Mexican Restaurant. But in spite of the change in menu, the food was plentiful and good. As usual we could choose between the green hatch chile sauce or the red sauce but I got something I had never had before, a green chile relleno and a red chile relleno. After lunch we headed back to our rig, ready for our nap. For the last few days Allan (with the steel immune system) has had this horrible cold and cough, in addition to the lingering cough that I still have, so we are trying to get lots of rest, and just take short jaunts out into Santa Fe or beyond.

Finally...Back On The Road

We arrived in Santa Fe, NM today, thinking we made it, barely. First off we had been waiting at home for our new automated awning to come in and be installed on the rv prior to our take off, and that did not happen. It never arrived and we had to cancel the order. Then the whole week prior to leaving, I had the flu. How bad can that be? Well after the first two days of seasickness (did I mention I was not on a boat) and several ejections of evil spirits, I thought OK, thats it. No, that was it for stage one. Stage two was where someone snuck in and poured battery acid down my throat and my head decided to crack into two halves around the midline of my face. At this point, Allan moved into the spare bedroom. Stage three began around day 5 with horrific coughing and expellation of all extraneous lung cells and throat tissue. Day 7 dawned bright and clear with only a steady hacking sound issuing from the sickie, that's me, and a relapse fever after Allan brought the rv from storage to be packed for the trip. We managed to set off on time Tuesday morning and arrived in Holbrook, AZ where the wind was howling and buffeting the rig about in the OK RV Park where we spent the night. This morning we got up and set off early to the tune of only minor coughing from the passenger. And now you are wondering where are the photos of all the fabulous scenery and interesting people. Well we are wondering where they are too. So I will include a prior almost finished painting, just so there is more color for you to see other than the published black and white. Stay tuned....