New Mexico day 2: Georgia O'Keeffe and more

Got up early-ish, ate dinner leftovers for breakfast, and headed back to the plaza because we had early tickets for the Georgia O'Keeffe museum! 

Full disclosure: I didn't know very much about Georgia... and, frankly, what little I knew about her was wrong. I knew about the close-up flower paintings, and how people interpreted them as representing female genitalia. I had no idea that she consistently rejected those interpretations, saying that "men see what they want to see". I suppose sometimes a stamen is just a stamen...

It's an exquisite gem of a museum, with a tight, well-organized collection and a nifty downloadable audio tour that's free. I loved seeing not just her paintings and sketches, but some of her collected items.

And I loved learning a little bit about her. Her grasp of color, her vision, all of it. 

And later, in the gift shop, seeing this magnet (which now graces our refrigerator):

I would like paint more often, and though I'll never paint like Georgia O'Keeffe, I find her spirit inspiring!

After leaving the museum (and, of course, the Gift Shop!), we walked around Santa Fe a bit, stopping at the Farmer's Market, and grabbing some snacks and margaritas. 

More importantly, we popped into Kakawa Chocolate Shop and indulged in some of their Mesoamerican "Elixirs" -- traditional drinking chocolates -- plus a box of their locally inspired caramels and truffles, in flavors including pinon, prickly pear, and red chili. Glorious!

We poked around the galleries on Canyon Road, wondered who was buying all these massive yard sculptures, and then wondered where we could put a giant metal buffalo... and how we'd get it home. 

Tomorrow: Meow Wolf!

**A quick note about this post -- I'm catching up with my New Mexico memories and backdating blog posts to each day. 

New Mexico day 1: Albuquerque to Santa Fe

Slept well, then up early to walk to the rental car office, about half a mile away. We picked up our car -- slightly challenging, Gold Canopy had no cars in it, so we had to go into the office and were told to pick up a particular car that was so new, it still had bits of the shipping plastic wrap on it... and 2 miles on the odometer. 

We went back to the hotel, picked up our bags, and hit the road. We drove across Albuquerque, loving how quiet and empty the streets were. It was only later that we realized it was super early on a Saturday, so most people weren't up and around yet!

First stop: the spaceship house, which is actually the home and studio of architect Bart Prince. 

Then, on our way out of town, we diverted to a stretch of classic Route 66 that was renovated a few years back as a "Musical Highway". The signs are gone now -- and it's gone a little out of tune, but we drove over the special rumble strips, thought it wasn't working, and then, UNMISTAKABLY, heard a snippet of "America the Beautiful". So nice. 

(Note, this is not my video)

Amusingly, finding this video led me down a "musical highway" rabbit hole. There are lots of them, including one on a highway up to Mt. Fuji that we must have driven on. 

Anyway, we then headed north on the "Turquoise Trail" -- a nice, two-lane highway. We stopped in adorable Madrid to stretch our legs and visit ... CONNIE'S PHOTO PARK. 

We wandered around, taking lots of silly photos... because WE LOVE A PHOTO OP. 

Then back in the car, where we skirted the edge of Santa Fe and headed out to Pecos National Historical Park. Our main aim was to stretch our legs, not thinking that the reconstructed kivas and pueblo mission church ruins would be particularly interesting. But it was beautiful and quiet and -- despite being very, very cold -- made for a great couple of hours.

Then we headed back to Santa Fe to find our AirBnB... though en route we stopped for BEYOND CHICKEN AT KFC... which gave me childhood flashbacks of the flavor of the breading and the way the boxes open...

The review? Well... meh. I mean, I'm thrilled when fast food companies add a meatless option to their menus. And they tasted a lot like I vaguely remembered KFC tasting. Would I eat them again? Probably not, but only because I don't eat much fast food. Now, extra crispy? Maybe...

Then it was into the South Capitol neighborhood of Santa Fe to scope our our gorgeous AirBnB. We were still a couple of hours early, so we parked in the quiet neighborhood and walked downtown. Hello, ristras!

We explored a little, nosed around some shops, and just enjoyed the city. Then back up the hill to check in to our gorgeous AirBnB. Seriously, I have nothing but great things to say about this location!

Great house, very comfortable, and full of beautiful local art. A real treat. 

After settling in, we eventually decided to go out in search of dinner, despite the bitter cold. Dinner was ... just okay (perhaps my fault for ordering an "interesting" margarita when what I should have ordered was their house standard!)... and given the cold I was just glad to get home and into a hot bath. 

Tomorrow: the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum!

**A quick note about this post -- I'm catching up with my New Mexico memories and backdating blog posts to each day.

New Mexico Trip kickoff: to Albuquerque

For our first flight in nearly 2 years, we decided to treat ourselves... we booked first class tickets round trip for the short flights. We shut down early for the day, took an Uber (again, our first in nearly 2 years) to the airport, and made our way through security. Because we were flying Alaska, we were able to use their fancy lounges -- something we couldn't do with our Priority Pass access. So we found a nice little table by the window and settled in. Ahh. 

The lounge isn't Beijing lounge nice, but it was airy and pretty and relatively quiet. The limited food may have been due to COVID? Not sure. But we had a couple of drinks and some snacks and relaxed. Feeling antsy, we left and went for a walk, popping in to one of the other lounges, too. Because, well, why not? We were on HOLIDAY. 

The flight was short an uneventful. We had preordered our meal (???!!!???), a "harvest grain bowl" that was fresh and lovely. And of course we had a drink or two. See, it turns out that when I booked the rental car, the rental car office closed at 10pm, so we wouldn't be able to pick it up until early the next day. 

We arrived, got our bags, then called for the airport shuttle. The room was nice, quiet, and spacious. We tried going for a walk to see if there was anywhere open to grab a bite to eat -- we had an amusing moment at the Burger King, where we walked in and surprised a crew member ("how did you get in?" "umm, through the front door?") and ordered two Impossible Whopper meals. We got our drinks and waited, and another employee saw us and yelled "why are there people here?". The woman told him what we had ordered, and he told us they couldn't make it because the grill was turned off. (Huh?) They asked us what we wanted to change our order to, so we pretended not to know that NOTHING ELSE WAS VEGETARIAN. So they gave us a refund and we left. Note: this is the only bad dining experience we had all week long. 

Back in the room we ate cookies, I had a hot shower, and we went to sleep. 

Tomorrow: to Santa Fe!

** A quick note about this post -- I'm going through my New Mexico memories and backdating blog posts to each day.

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 17

Hi everyone! Apologies for the "lateness" of this post, but it's still relatively early on Sunday morning here. :)

I seem to be losing track of time, so was surprised to read Avis's message (thank heavens for the reminder!) and realize it was another 3 weeks! 

Here's where I was last time:  

And here's where I am now, with apologies for the dark photos:

I didn't quite get the two columns stitched, though I only have one color to fill in . 

My goal is to have this and the neighboring column complete in time for our next check-in in three weeks. In the meantime, why not check out the glorious projects my fellow stitchers are working on: Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 16

Hi everyone! I've survived three weeks of "interesting" meals... I made a curry out of a can of potatoes (seriously, I have no idea where it came from) and a can of pigeon peas, vegan tacos from jackfruit in brine and barbecue sauce, chocolate noodles and butternut squash, tofu with sofritas sauce, random biscuits, waffles, and scones from mixes, and endless stir fries with frozen veg, tofu, rice, and packaged sauces from the deep corners of the pantry. But more importantly, I've been thrilled by how clean and tidy and organized it is. Ahhh.

I've also been happily stitching away. Here's where I was last time:  

And here's where I am now. I've stitched three of the bottom columns:

Here's a close up of all those lovely blues:

I'm hoping that I can stitch another two columns before our next check-in in three weeks... but we'll see how it goes. In the meantime, why not check out the glorious projects my fellow stitchers are working on: Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 15

Happy new year everyone! Apologies for the late post; though in my defense it's still the morning of the 9th here in Seattle!

I'm spending the weekend cleaning out our terrifying pantry, taking everything out, painting the walls and washing the shelves, and putting things away again. We often do a "pantry harvest" and "freezer harvest" project in January, but we've lived here for 15 years and have never actually gone in and done a full clearance. So wish us luck -- both with the clearout and the "interesting" meals we'll be having for the next couple of weeks!

Last time I had just finished the top half of Great Wave. Thanks for all the cheering, and yes, I did a little happy dance:

I rolled the frame and started to stitch the bottom half. It's nice to have all the blues!

Here's a close-up of the column and a bit I stitched:

Well, that pantry won't paint itself, and if I want to reclaim my kitchen table I'd better get to it. My treat tonight will be to sit down and see what my fellow stitchers are up to. 

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 14

Hi everyone! I hope everyone is well and they're able to make time for themselves in all the extra swirl of the holidays. 

It's late on the Saturday night for me -- I think I'm the latest, time-zone wise, in our stitch-a-long group -- so I'm going to keep this short.  

Here's where I was on "Great Wave" last time:

And here's where I am now:

I finished the top half! I'm so excited about this! 

Tomorrow morning I'm going to roll the frame (always a thrill, eh?) and get ready to stitch the bottom half. I'm looking forward to getting to know the bottom half of the print as well as I know the top half. 

Our next check-in is in 2022, so until then I wish you joy and health and warmth and light, no matter what holidays you observe. 

Soon I'll be checking out the blogs of my fellow stitchers to see their beautiful projects. I'm sure they'll inspire you, too!

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in 2022!

Jamestown S'Klallam 5K race report

* I'm writing this race report months later, but want to make sure and note how great I thought this 5K was! I'm dating it back to when the event happened to keep the blog organized. 

The Jamestown S'Klallam 5K was the last race is the Run the Peninsula series. And, yes, going over to the Olympic Peninsula is a long way to go for a 5K, as we decided when we signed up, it made for 5 nice weekends away. 

I also loved the structure of this race -- a glow-stick and headlamp-lit night run out and back on the Olympic Discovery Trail. Because it's December, "night" starts at 4:30 up here in the north... and because the race was on Saturday, we didn't have to try and cross on the ferry on a Friday night. 

In fact, we were able to cross at a civilized time on Saturday, and time it so I could pop into Quilted Strait... where I bought more fabric for my overflowing stash. (Quilt fabric, why can't I quit you?)

We also poked around Port Townsend for a little while, buying cider and bread and cheese at the farmers market, and then headed to 7 Cedars, the fancy casino / hotel where the race would be starting. Nice rooms, good soundproofing. We changed into running gear and then headed out to the parking lot to get on the shuttle bus, and quickly realized WE WERE UNDERDRESSED. 

image courtesy Peninsula Daily News

Lots of people were fully decked out in holiday attire -- Christmas lights, Santa hats, elf dresses, FULL REINDEER ONESIES. All I had to offer were my reflective NYC GTS shoes. 

The shuttles loaded quickly for the short ride (it's not far, but there's a highway to cross). It's clearly a popular race with the locals, which meant bib pick up was a little slow. (I wonder if running pickup at the shuttle point would have been better?) But the weather wasn't too bad, with only a bit of drizzle. And, of course, it was festive! 

Eventually we lined up toward the back and got underway. We knew we'd be walking most of the race, but started off trotting just to help spread out the pack a bit. 

image courtesy Peninsula Daily News

Not much to report from a course perspective -- we had run this stretch of the ODT before. It was fun to see all the costumes and the lights, including a nice glimpse of 7 Cedars all decked out across the highway. Seriously, it's almost Disneyland, right?

It was also great to see the other runners, including the very fast reindeer. ("Run run reindeer!") After we hit the turnaround it was a little more challenging -- lots of headlamps shining directly in our eyes -- but we just kept moving and eventually crossed the finish line in 44:37. Not great, but not terrible either. 

why, yes, we are wearing raincoats...

We picked up our race swag -- some very nice folding backpacks this time; again, I love that the race swag is different for every race in this series! 

Then back on the shuttles and back across the highway to 7 Cedars. Did I mention the decorations?

We changed out of our running gear, put on street clothes, and spent the evening exploring the casino. We signed up for the "loyalty program", and received $10 each to "try things out". Wil managed to lose it all in three spins of a slot machine, weirdly, I doubled mine and promptly cashed out. We took the $20.43 to a bar and had winter cocktails made by an overworked bartender ("may we see your cocktail menu?" "we don't have a cocktail menu" "oh, we saw these online?" "oh, that cocktail menu"). Then we grabbed a pizza, some beer from the nearby minimart (second best gas station in Washington state! seriously!), and retreated to our room where we relaxed and remembered that we're not really casino folk. 

In the morning we admired the view, then scraped frost off the car and headed home on an early ferry. Perfect. 

Jamestown S'Klallam 5K

44:37

14:22 pace