The "S" Word Revisited

SATURDAY. Mayor Chavez made a desperate plea on Albuquerque TV this morning, requesting that I leave Duke City immediately. Once again, record breaking extreme weather has followed me, this time the worst snowfall in 60 years and the most snowfall ever during the month of December. We are among the lucky ones in the neighborhood to still have power (no power at the other end of our street since yesterday), though our phones lines are decoratively draped across the road like sleeping snakes. Qwest has promised to repair the lines by January 5, but I'm not holding my breath. Two more storms percolating in the Pacific are taking aim at the Southwest, the first to arrive Monday evening. Another stormy disruption will, no doubt, delay phone repairs.

At the park this afternoon I noticed the snow reached the tops of my tall Arctic Sorel snow boots, just below my kneecaps. That would make the snow about 14 inches deep here in the North Valley. A few miles to the east, snow was measured in feet, not inches. How clever of us to keep all our snow gear (skis included) in storage during our three years in Florida. Those boots felt mighty good today and kept my toes toasty and dry.

Somewhere under this frozen precip is our garden Buddha. He no longer wears a mantle of snow. He is completely buried. Poor Buddha. I have yet to see a snowplow. The City of Albuquerque obviously doesn't know what to do with this much snow. The citizens, however, seem to know exactly what to do with it. This wet, heavy snow packs exceptionally well.





Though the city is pretty much at a standstill, we spent nearly the entire day playing in the snow with Murphy. As I write this he is snoozing soundly on his very comfy freecycled sofa, dreaming of deep powder, running with his many Labrador pals, chasing frisbees, snowballs, and brightly-colored tennis balls. I myself am pleasantly tired after a brief x-country ski in the neighborhood this morning and several walks in deep snow this afternoon.



The best thing about snow in Albuquerque (and quite possibly the only positive) is the way it looks at sunset. As if on cue, the clouds parted just before the sun sank below the horizon, giving way to magnificent color in the wake of this historic storm.



Stay tuned for more wintry developments from the Land of Enchantment. I have a feeling there are lots of blazing fires and mugs of mulled cider in my immediate future

Boxing Day

TUESDAY. Boxing Day is a public holiday celebrated in the U.K. on December 26th. The origins of this holiday are debatable. Some believe it was once the day when employers would present a Christmas "box," or gift, to workers. Others think it dates back to feudal times, when estate lords would present boxes of goods to families of serfs. Still another interpretation suggests the practice of opening a church's donation box and distributing the money to the poor the day after Christmas. A more novel explanation is that on Boxing Day the king of birds (the wren) was captured, put in a box, and introduced to villagers who would ask him for a bountiful harvest and prosperous year. Another plausible and creative idea proposes that since servants generally worked on Christmas Day, leftovers from Christmas Dinner were boxed up and given to the hard-working servants and their families the day after Christmas.

Personally, I believe it's the day you box up all your unwanted Christmas gifts and return them to Macy's or Home Depot. Though my favorite online urban legend resource, snopes.com, disputes this theory, I find it convenient and comfortable. While regifting is always a viable alternative to waiting on line to return a gift, there's something to be said for getting a store credit and purchasing something you really want or need.

Our Christmas celebration involved much preparation, meal planning, shopping, decorating, and housecleaning. Now that it's over, I can return to casual housekeeping for another year. Actually the day turned out to be very enjoyable, despite a rocky start. It was one of those mornings when everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. For starters, we plugged in our freshly-decorated Christmas tree and watched the twinkle lights in the top third of the tree fail to twinkle. After spending half an hour, to no avail, trying to find the bad bulb and replacing the fuses, we reworked the top of the tree with a new string of lights--no small feat with fragile antique glass ornaments already in place. Shortly after the tree fiasco, I burned the almonds that were toasting in the oven. So much for buttered green beans with almonds for dinner. The broiler wouldn't work properly and I had a difficult time making my special Christmas breakfast omelette. At some point mid-morning I realized the clothes I planned to wear required laundering, and emergency Christmas Day laundry was definitely not on the agenda. And the parade of disasters continued, right down to burning the squash and undercooking the roast.

But somehow, in the final moments before dinner, it all came together. Warm flames danced in the fireplace, the smell of pinion filled the house, the roast was perfect after a few additional minutes in the oven, and we managed to salvage enough toasted almonds for the green beans. We shared a delightful meal and wonderful conversation with dear friends and the rest of the day was a joy.

I hope you all had a good holiday. Inclusivity seemed important this year, so we celebrated several December holidays--Solstice, Hanukkah and Christmas. It matters not which tradition you observe. The important thing is that you, like Murphy, celebrate peace, harmony, and good cheer with loved ones, in the spirit of charity and hope, making sure to take plenty of naps when no one's looking.

Merry Christmas From Old Town Albuquerque

SUNDAY. We made our pilgrimage to Old Town this evening, a Christmas Eve tradition for many Albuquerqueans, but for us a new experience. A sliver of silver moon hung low in cloudless skies, the sweet aroma of burning piñón palpable in the cold night air. My several layers of Polartec fleece served me well.

The Plaza was bursting with humanity, walking in groups and alone, singing, eating taquitos, sipping hot chocolate and laughing. Some folks brought dogs decorated for the holiday. A few, like us, stood silently in awe. Hundreds of luminarias lined the walkways and streets of Old Town. People streamed into the warmth of San Felipe de Neri through open, welcoming doors.


(Fortunately I figured out how to shoot at night. Next time I'll bring my tripod.)


People spontaneously gathered in the Plaza gazebo to sing Christmas carols. A group of carolers looking positively Dickensian in their period attire strolled through the streets. It was all so surreal, I wondered if I'd wandered onto a movie set.





Afterwards we drove through a cemetery a few miles away to see the luminarias that had been placed around gravesites. It was magical and serene.

Happy Christmas!

Reasons To Be Cheerful, Part III

THURSDAY. We are happy we don't live in Denver.

My Holiday Video

Last year I created a short video slideshow I'd like to share with you during this current holiday season. If you're using a Mac (that's you, Judy), follow the instructions below for Mac users. Sorry if it seems complicated. It isn't.

Windows Users
If you've never seen my streaming slideshows, you'll need to download a free browser plug-in to watch the show. (It's perfectly safe - no spyware or viruses. I've been using it for years.) Save it to your desktop and double-click to install. Once the plug-in is installed, click here to watch the show.

If you already have the plug-in, you're all set. Occasionally the plug-in needs to be updated, so if you try to load the show and nothing happens, grab the latest plug-in (using the above link) and install it.

Mac Users
This one's easy. Just click here for a streaming flash video. You'll need the Macromedia Flash plug-in, but almost everyone has that already. If you don't have it, you should, and you'll be prompted to download it. Just follow the directions.

Dialup Users (Windows)
Dialup users won't be able to stream (view) this show on the web. A high-speed connection is required. However...you can download the show and play it on your desktop, but only after you've downloaded and installed the plug-in. The show is just under 5 MB, so it'll take a little while to download.

Dialup Users (Mac)
You folks are out of luck. None of the above solutions will work.

Hope you enjoy the video (unless you're dialing up from a Mac, in which case you might want to consider upgrading).

Buddha's First Snowfall

TUESDAY. It's been snowing in Albuquerque for six hours. Our Florida Buddha in the garden is still smiling. This abundance of white is strange and wonderful. Murphy thinks it's swell. In spite of all my protestations, it really is pretty. I shall admire it a lot this afternoon, because within 24 hours, it will be gone. Oh Toto, we're not in New Hampshire anymore...

Old Town Albuquerque

MONDAY. We're waiting for a major snowstorm here in Albuquerque, which should get cranking this evening and continue through tomorrow night. The wind has already started to kick up. On our morning shopping excursion, we saw a few rain showers and some amazing rainbows. Tomorrow should be interesting. We haven't seen snow in four years. This afternoon we brought some wood inside and figured out how to open the damper in our kiva fireplace. We're well-stocked with hot cocoa. Snowstorm? Bring it on--we're ready!

Yesterday, a perfect 60 degree day, we enjoyed a walk through Old Town, only a few miles south of our comfy adobe home. Settled in 1706 by Spanish families, Old Town was established in the fertile Rio Grande Valley, an oasis in the Chihuahuan desert. A military outpost and colonial farming village along the historic Camino Real (the road that linked Mexico with the United States), Old Town Albuquerque was a typical Spanish town consisting of a central plaza surrounded by a church, homes, and government buildings. Some of the original homes are still standing. San Felipe de Neri Church, on the north side of Old Town Plaza, is the oldest surviving building in Albuquerque.

Albuquerque's 2006 Tricentennial commemorates 300 years of tradition, culture, and progress. However, evidence of habitation near Albuquerque dates back 12,000 years. Several hundred years before the Spanish arrived, Anasazi Indians (Ancestral Puebloans) settled and lived in the area for two centuries, from 1100 to 1300.

Old Town comprises about ten blocks of historic adobe buildings situated around a central plaza. Many of the original buildings have been renovated and now house restaurants, galleries, shops and offices. On Christmas Eve, thousands of luminarias line the streets of Old Town.

Luminaria

ATTENTION SHOPPERS: ONLY 12 MORE
INSANE SHOPPING DAYS BEFORE CHRISTMAS!

WEDNESDAY. Santa Fe and Old Town Albuquerque are famous for their impressive Christmas Eve luminaria displays. I've less than two weeks to figure out how to shoot night photos of luminaria with my extremely complicated digital SLR, not to mention learning how to make hot tamales* (to which I've become hopelessly addicted) for our holiday dinner.

According to Wikipedia, luminarias originated in New Mexico, where they're traditionally displayed on Christmas Eve. Beautiful arrangements of sand-weighted paper bags containing lit candles decorate New Mexico neighborhoods and cemeteries on December 24th. It's believed the lights will guide the spirit of baby Jesus to one's home. Over the years luminarias have become secularized in other parts of the country. For those who can't be bothered with extinguishing bags aflame in the wind, not to mention trying to find sand (if anyone needs sand, we have plenty here in the desert), you can now purchase electric luminaria and save yourself the trouble of actually making them. However, in my opinion, making them is half the fun.

Hints for making luminaria:

• Fill the brown paper sandwich bags with two to four inches of sand. Evidently the sand must be dry. Otherwise the bags will absorb the moisture and tear. I can't imagine this happening in Albuquerque. Right now it's so dry we're beginning to look like prunes.
• Position your bags one to two feet apart on a flat surface away from flammables. (Duh.)
• Anchor the votive candle in the sand by pushing it in about halfway.
• Don't use a regular match to light the candle - use a long grill lighter or long fireplace matches. (Double duh.)
• Keep a pail of water nearby to extinguish flaming bags.

It will be different spending the holidays so far from the family and friends with whom we've celebrated Christmas for decades. (By the way, the politically correct term for the December holiday is Christmukwaanzukkah.) We bought a small tree the other day but have yet to decorate it. Ushering in the holiday spirit will, I'm sure, involve eggnog, Bing Crosby, and several trips to the Mall. Typically I delay Christmas preparations until December 21, preferring to inaugurate the holiday at Solstice. Besides, all the last minute rushing about makes life interesting and gives me an excuse to yawn my way through Christmas Day. This year, however, I will break with tradition and begin my preparations a week in advance. Giving myself a few extra days might actually enable me to stay awake and alert for most of Christmas Day.

By the way, the probability that we will have a White Christmas in Albuquerque is 3%, according to the latest figures from NOAA. I guess I'd better put my skis away.

*Tamales are popular at Christmas dinner tables throughout the Southwest. I recently came across an online course called, "A Beginner's Guide to Tamales." It's a six day course. Need I say more?

Hiking The Lateral

THURSDAY. Albuquerque is honeycombed with a sophisticated system of storm water drainage canals and arroyos. Just two short blocks from our house, hidden far from traffic, the Griegos Lateral winds alongside farms and private residences, ultimately intersecting a larger riverside canal and the Rio Grande.


The most important feature of the Griegos Lateral, other than the obvious--flood protection and the capability of carrying enormous amounts of storm water away from city streets--is the trail that parallels the canal through the North Valley. Unlike some of Albuquerque's canals, this one is picturesque and bucolic. Well known to neighborhood dog-lovers, the Griegos Lateral is THE place to walk dogs off lead. Whether or not this conforms to city ordinances remains to be seen. Throwing caution to the wind, however, we've joined the neighbors and have become daily Lateral walkers.

It's a short hop from our front door to the Lateral, and Murphy already knows the way. He's eager to go for walks these days, now that we've discovered this marvelous trail. Cows greet us at the edge of the Lateral. (The sign is most helpful for those whose bovine identification skills are weak.)

The trail cuts through the largest farm in the North Valley. At the perimeter of the farm, we climb through a large opening in a fence that keeps horses and cows inside, but allows for human traffic.





As the path winds for two miles through the valley, we enjoy encounters with Rio Grande cottonwoods, bamboo, horses, goats, chickens, dogs, mountain views, falcons, sandhill cranes, geese, and songbirds I have yet to identify.








The Griegos Lateral dried up about a month ago. During the rainy season, water flows fast and deep in these ditches, necessitating flash flood warnings. For the moment, the canals are quiet, empty and dry. When full, the water can be six feet deep, or more.


One of the curiosties we've noticed is a house with a tree growing through the roof.


And then there are the llamas and goats...


Once the riverside drain is in sight, Murphy gets frisky. As we get closer, the sound of swift water is too compelling for our water dog to resist, and he rushes to the stream for his daily dunk. A powerful swimmer, Murphy makes easy work of the strong currents.



Bark softly, but carry a big stick...


We're reaping the benefits of our daily four mile hikes. Murphy sleeps for hours after his walks. I find these daily Constitutionals clear my head and elevate my mood like nothing else.

Hope you enjoyed walking the Griegos Lateral with us. It's hard to believe this trail is within the city limits. Ain't life grand?