OMG, Stagecoach
Restored, these things are worth $90,000. Check it out, look it up. 1880 Concord Stagecoach.
It will take a few bucks to restore, but the return rate is better than any stock out there. I'm going to try to figure out a way to buy this thing. AND the property next door. Holy Guacamole would that be the best thing ever. Somehow, somehow, somehow, there is a way to make this all happen.
Investors? We're talking something under five thousand here. Split up. We can do this. And I'd love to keep it in the yard. But a hundred grand? If we get there we sell and split the profits. In the meantime it is gallery Yart (Yard Art). I am SO serious about this.
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Adjustments
In New Mexi-Land things are different. Jan is staying here rather than her new apt. because her new apt. made her quite ill. Possibly a gas leak. Possibly mold. Possibly who knows what? The apt. is way more funky than Jan wants –or that I would put up with—I feel so bad!! I wish I would have looked at it so much more carefully! But she is being kind and not faulting me....saying at least she is glad to be here.
In any case she will stay in our house while we are away, and everything is totally good with that. The good news is, she does not have a lease, month-to-month only. So if this place doesn’t work (I don’t think it will) then she’s only out one month’s rent and we’re willing to give up the couch in the meantime. The BIG HUGE house across the street from her is a possibility...In any case she’s here!
And though we’ve met people and made friends...I do not know anyone like her that I can dish with, that I can thrift store shop with, that I can lunch with, that I can shop STAGECOACHES with a GREAT price for an 1880, rudimentary but restorable (some work has already been done), Concord...I want it!) It is just such a treat to have her here. And such a relief to know I have reliable care for the kitties! I’d considered taking them with, but realized what a bad, bad idea that would be. I have a friend here that lost one of her cats from a motel room, while she was in transit, moving here. I could not bear that.
Yeah, I totally want the stagecoach. I mean the price went from $42K to $2.5K and even I can see that's a good deal. In a land where you routinely pay over $500 for a wagon wheel in disrepair. This entire thing is in AWESOME shape (it's a skeleton, but then. it *would* be at that price.) ALL the wheels are there and workable, the cabin's suspension system is fully functional and in full glory, and the bones of the cab are all ? iron? and welded in place, primed, and ready to restore. Plus, they have the tongue and maybe some doors and all sorts of extra parts. Need to move some big paintings. Cause if I can come up with $2.5K I'm buying it.
I understand you can rent a restored stagecoach to movie companies for $3K a day. Anyone interested in investing?
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Jan is here!
Yay! My friend Jan is here, too cool. We got her settled in for the night at her new place. Uhmmm, it needs some work but that is the New-Mexi Way.
We got here on the last leg of twilight and full-on dark is just a moment behind, so we’ll tour Truchas and make introductions tomorrow. She did get a glimpse of the new house as Leonardo was still working on it as we came into the village.
I checked out a space in Santa Fe today—haven’t snagged a gallery there yet but a Real Estate office (that keeps coming up, doesn’t it? That Real Estate thing.) has offered its walls for an art exhibition. Leonardo and I will be showing with 2 other artists...immediately. I’m taking a truckload of our paintings down there to install on Friday (yes the day before we leave for Las Vegas, NV and yes, the day after tomorrow). When things you wish for happen you don’t mess it up with scheduling. You pull all-nighters or do whatever you have to do and you get it done.
Real Estate Lady originally wanted to have 2-day shows (weekend shows.) I said no, that’s too much work for too little time, what else have you got? When I got there she treated me like a rock star. Really. And she’ll have our work up until the end of January. !!! From 2 days to 2 months? How great is that? Oh, and there’ll be a catered reception in there somewhere between this travel, Christmas, and the next travel. Right in downtown Santa Fe, right next to an actual art gallery. We’ll do cards & the whole thing. Now that Jan's here she can totally help me with marketing--"getting out there"--hell, she'll probably go talk to the galleries that ought to be representing me in person! She's good like that. Details forthcoming.
Synchronicity again. The Real Estate lady organizing this “art in the office” had recently been up to Truchas....oh the story with recently deceased father, a horses’ unusual attentions, she saw our gallery sign “Ghost Pony Gallery” as we were closing for the day....then here I come in response to her call for artists.....the Ghost Pony Gallery girl....real tears came to her eyes as she told me the story, and treated me like a king from a foreign land/rock star, you get the idea. She was sucking up to ME! Whoa! I like this turn of the tables!! It actually took me a minute to catch on. Not being used to that sort of thing.
They call New Mexico the Land of Enchantment. It most certainly is in more ways than I impart! Add Magic and Mystery to that—and you’ve got a pretty strong stew.
I could not be more thankful for being here and part of all this. It's like I got to go to heaven before I even had to die!
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Synchronicity
Wow. Synchronicity always blows me away. It is more than good luck, always timely, and when one recognizes it and can take advantage of it’s offerings...how do you say the small miracle? Perhaps it is not a small thing. La Milagro. Perhaps it is truly a real miracle... not only to have the opportunity present, but to be able to recognize it and grasp it just .....THEN!
Here I am in Taos checking out some winter boots off CraigsList. Turns out the lady works at a real estate office. I mention I’m studying up for my license. She wastes no time in trying to sponsor/mentor/recruit me to her office. The terms (as I’ve researched them on the most basic level) seem more than appealing.
So. Before I commit myself I whip off a quick email to the real estate broker who helped us buy our house. Cause we think she’s awesome. And what if, you know, what if, say she needed help? So I said, “oh, crazy enough, I’m thinking of doing this. Here is this company’s offer, what do you think”?
She immediately counters by recruiting me to her organization, for a look, a read, and a walk-through, before I commit to the Taos people. Excellent. I was hoping that would be her response, because there is a level of trust already there. Also because I didn’t really know how to approach her. It appears we learn to read between the lines.
My friend from California who is moving here...will be moving here by flying out to kitty sit whilst we are in Las Vegas for the picture-framing class. Yes, never too many options for the livelihood. Picking her up from SunPort in Albuquerque tomorrow. (I just love spelling Albuquerque, and I’m so glad I don’t live there!)
Gaaah. I have an old, old friend, Casey, who just bought a sizeable parcel in Costa Rica. He sent me pictures. He’s moving his family down there. His wife, an architect from the Ukraine, will design cabins and “gringo specification vacation homes” on their property, and he and his wife will build their dream home up top of the property on 8.6 acres overlooking the whole thing. They have forest, they have cliff(s), they have banana trees, they have mist.
Ahhh, and we have Milagros, Truchas, a million dollar view, billion dollar friends, and each other. No comparison. Hands down, I’ll take this. I actually don’t like hot sandy beaches and the tropics and I am totally sick of palm trees. Ugh.
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Ahhhh, what a long weekend!
Friday we woke up to 8 inches of snow! What a winter wonderland that was! I managed to convince Leonardo to come out for a walk and he finally admitted it was kind of nice. Then we lazed around with movies and Tom& Jerrys.
Saturday we went into Taos for my winter boots (totally rad Uggs, mid-calf, with vibram soles, then smooth leather, then suede leather, they lace all the way up and all shearling inside, so cozy, so perfect for up here, don’t even ask how much they were! They will last for years, think of it that way). Then I totally mucked out, cleaned up, and rearranged the studio/gallery. Wow, it looks great. Since the High Road Tour with all the crunch work on the house—before cold weather—and focusing on that Trout-- the gallery has not been open much.
Since it looked so good I opened up on Sunday—and made more sales that one day than all summer put together! Yay! So today Leonardo is in Taos dropping off my paintings at the digital studio. Our client wanted prints I did not have, so we are having them made. We do that. I think she might have purchased the painting but that’s the one going to the Ambassador’s residence in Namibia.
Today I finished up four of those little ones—“the details” of the larger paintings, and just might finish up the other 2 I have in the works before dark (that would be in an hour).
We still have snow on the ground and another storm is expected later in the week. The kitties have not gone out for four days—of their own volition. Amazing. Now I open the door and they run from it rather than to it.
So now, back to the studio.
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Cookies at 8100 feet elevation
So tonight, in the midst of a batch of Snickerdoodles (it IS the season) I thought to check on high altitude cooking tricks. OMG! It’s a wonder we have food up here at all! There are SO MANY THINGS you have to do differently. Baking—you have to add to several and reduce many other ingredients. The recipe is really just a list of clues. You know all that stuff goes in—but you have to add to or subtract from virtually all of the ingredients! In some cases, literally all of them. Amazing.
Then there’s the boiling point of water. Who remembers this from science class? 212 Farenhiet at sea level. Up here? It’s about 196 to 197 degrees. That’s a 15 to 16 degree difference! It boils at a lower temperature so it takes much longer to boil that 6 to 8 minute pasta. Slow cooked stews? An extra HOUR for every 1,000 feet elevation over 4,000 feet. That means my usual beef stew...I did wonder why it took FOREVER....takes about 5 to 6 hours to cook. My husband loves to cook beans. They say over 7,000 feet it is virtually impossible to cook them to doneness without a pressure cooker. (We also had an afternoon’s worth of “why isn’t the pea soup ready yet?” recently. That would be why.) So we’ll probably get a pressure cooker as that many hours of propane just ain’t worth bean soup.
I’m a little confused as in the old days, beans were one of the staples of the diet up here. I guess they just put the bean pot on top of the wood stove that goes on in October and the fire burns until May. So—you plan your meals a few days ahead. This pot is ready Sunday, this next one on Monday, and so forth.
Woo Hoo! We got the new door up on the new place. AWESOME, totally awesome. Yes, I will do a new pix post on Trishtown soon, I just have about 9 thousand things going on right now.
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Party Recap
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Press Party
Today's the day the trout débuts. It's looking quite elegant over at eL gallery. It's a semi-formal event so we're shining up. Photos begin at 3pm and the event itself is from 4 to 8pm. We have one bid on a trout already!
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Doors and mica
Picked up the doors for the house today, boy are they heavy. They feel like solid core doors PLUS the decorative barnwood nailed in patterns to each side. Very southwesty.
We've also decided to finish the whole big back living area with mud plaster with mica. This means it'll be whatever color the dirt is we choose to plaster it with--I think we'll go out and shovel out some red dirt as there is plenty of that in the desert here, then we mix that with chopped straw, sand..... and MICA! for a sparkling natural mud plaster finish. Oh yeah!
Now to work on Old Grandfather Trout--the unveiling is tomorrow. Mine will be slightly less than half done but it'll still look great.
Especially in front of that painting.
Happy Friday!
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Life's little twists and turns
Sometimes they get ugly. They all pretty much happen in a second's time. What are we made of? How do we deal?
A friend has breast cancer...the good news is she's looking like a survivor. And she’s just bought a condo overlooking a lovely park. The best view for future thriving.
Thanksgiving plans are canceled because someone’s 21-year oldish nephew is in jail and the uncle cares enough to stay home and be a mentor and help sort it out. As well as help the suicidal girlfriend of said nephew into the hospital and onto the plane back to her folks. What’s up with youth these days?
An old friend has a motorcycle accident and has lost memory of who we all are. She sort of remembers some of us. We’re fortunate for her few memories, she’s lucky to be alive at all. Broken ribs, collapsed lung, obvious brain damage. Yes, she was wearing a helmet. But she was a new rider—and crashed about 2 am (no, no alcohol involved. She went out, but didn’t drink--CHP (California Highway Patrol) verification for that) Still, she was on Highway 4, California’s most dangerous road. For whatever reason she crashed, and laid in the ditch until an early morning commuter saw her and called 911.
So all my troubles pale. I have troubles? No, I do not. I have absolutely no complaints.
No guests for Thanksgiving? Sad for no company, happy for good health, and just think! I can get a couple of quail for us rather than that ungainly turkey.
Maybe each of the kitties get a quail as well!
Why not spoil them now, whilst I’m still here. I’m pretty sure if I die Leonardo would care for them but I can pretty much guarantee he’ll never cook them quail!
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Holiday visitors
I'm completely annoyed by my friends. The folks we've been looking forward to having on Thanksgiving for months now are waffling at the last minute and might want to postpone Thanksgiving until mid-December. Nope. Thanksgiving is on Thanksgiving and if they miss it they miss it. End of story.
And then I have other friends that just show up. Got a call from someone last night..."Hi, I'm in Santa Fe." Said person mentioned they might come for a visit and would "call tomorrow to let me know." That was several days ago, I didn't get a call until last night. Well, I have a trout to ready by the press party on Friday.
Sheesh!!
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It's all about the trout
I've got the background finished....DRY, finally! And the first couple two-hour sessions getting going on the skeleton. It's looking great! The next week (the press party is the 17th! Arruuggh!) is all about painting the trout. I just MAY be able to finish if I devote every day between now and then to it.
I'll take a progress picture today. Seems to me it might be time to put up another photo-blog over on Trishtown.
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Shipping work
Got started on the skeleton part of the trout...it is shaping up to be a real stunner. Esp. since it will be displayed in front of “Painted Desert.” Yeah, yeah.
Got news from the State Dept...they WILL be borrowing my painting for the embassy in Namibia, so sometime after the first of the year I’ll be internationally exhibited! Woo Hoo.
And, last but not least, High Road Artisans elected officers last night, and yes, once again I was voted into office. I am not an executive board member—I am Secretary of the organization.
That’s it for now, gotta run!
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Tomorrow's Roses
It was a gorgeous day. Too bad my birthday is actually tomorrow. It takes a bit of the kick out of it...but we had a fabulous brunch at Doc Martins---Grilled buffalo steak with wild mushroom gravy, eggs over medium, and just a smattering of delectable potatoes...not too many. Grr, the gravy by itself (with a hefty helping of actual wild mushrooms) was worth the trip!
Then we wandered through a couple galleries (most are closed on Sunday, esp since we are getting into the “off” season now—that would be “tourist season,” yes, indeed. There is a season for tourists). Went to the Harwood museum to see the show of NM women artists I did not get into...and now it’s clear why. They were looking for edgy, contemporary work. I didn’t think the show was strong at all—but there were a few pieces that both my husband and I did really enjoy. As a whole, though, I felt it weak. (And no, not because I didn’t get in. I’m not making that sort of work right now, so it makes perfect sense to not be included. No hard feelings.) We both thought it lucky it was ‘free day’ for New Mexico residents as we both felt we would not have wanted to pay the admission price for the show. The exhibition was in two venues but based on what we saw in venue one we did not bother to seek out venue two.
Then we meandered down the road and visited a few places in the Dixon open studios tour. I’m afraid we came away more impressed with the architectural details of recently renovated homes than being impressed by artwork, though we did see some wonderful framing work (the art was accomplished as well but more commercial than content-rich) and amazing adobe plaster walls (that art was colorful and lighthearted.) The paintings lacked in technique but there was one assemblage that I thought was very content-rich and well done. I probably would have purchased it if not for the fact that we are in full renovation of our own space. You know, I might still. It moved me and was quite affordable. Reminded me of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. Besides, buying art is good karma for an artist who wants to sell art, right?
I already know I get a dozen red roses for my birthday tomorrow. I put them in their vase already. One of the challenges of living in such a remote little paradise is....whenever one of us needs to go into town we generally combine trips to save on gas, time, etc. So we rarely get a trip in on our own. Plus--we both look forward to a "trip down ." I got tomorrow’s roses in today’s parking lot. That’s ok, I told Leonardo to give them to me again tomorrow with morning coffee. I’m always so groggy waking up that I will have forgotten I’ve already gotten them! Perfect!
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Birthday Brunch
Then I’ve got to go fix someone’s computer up here. People here seem to have the idea that I am little Miss Tech. Thank goodness I side-stepped being in charge of the website for the High Road folks—the Hooked site is plenty. Geez. I’m trying to get OUT of all that!
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Delay, Thank Goodness
interviewer at Planning and Zoning had some sort of emergency and we had to postpone the interview until next week. Good luck for me. Went clothes shopping today (without having to rush straight to the interview. This simple delay held my sanity intact) . It was an arduous day, as I do not enjoy shopping for clothing, but fruitful, nevertheless. I did not glean as professional a wardrobe as I would have wished, but still, shiny, new, and perfectly acceptable for City Planning and Zoning. Slacks, under-blouse, cardigan sweater. Plus, the best part? I do NOT hate what I bought. It’s stuff I can actually stand to wear to interviews, to work, anywhere that requires a slightly spiffed-up version of Trish.
In any case, an improvement on my last interview in Berkeley, where I arrived in borrowed clothes. Well, they were fine, and I did get the job. It’s just that I don’t keep that sort of wardrobe on hand, really. I only need it for interviews. All the places I work generally let you wear what you want—but you still have to look spiffy for that first impression. It’s terrible. Last time it was 13 years between interviews (I know. That one career thing went really well for a long time.) So you have to buy new clothes. You can’t wear 13-year old interview clothes. Even if they still fit you.
Plus, the BEST news? I found CUTE shoes my beleagured, bunioned, abused feet can get into with comfort! A pair of velveteen Mary Janes with little heels—AND a pair of black, semi-dressy clogs (if clogs can even be semi-dressy). I thought my “cute shoe” days were over, but no! I was so happy to find cute shoes I could actually wear I went back and bought two pairs of stockings and a knee-length skirt! I had feared my feet were to be retired to the Birkenstock line and I would have to wear slacks forever (I HATE slacks, I much prefer skirts or dresses. JEANS are fine, but slacks? UGH). (You cannot find a decent job in Birkenstocks, you just cannot. Well, unless you are still in Berkeley).
In any case, that clothes thing is a huge weight off my mind. When they finally decide on the interview date I can sashay in there feeling completely comfortable (unlike in borrowed clothes) and command at least a dollar or two more an hour than they’re going to offer me. I’m kind of intrigued by this position, actually, given my interest in real-estate. Plus all the absolute corruption of any sort of public office in this state! The people I will rub elbows with alone may make this worth the while. The city must interact with the county, no? What I would really like is to work with the county. That is where some real inroads might be made. County planning and zoning. But hey, experience is experience, right? One may expect to move from city to county in time.
That begs my next question. Funding & Budget. Whose is better? Because for the city, I get the city zone & city car. I’d be much more interested in county. Rio Arriba county is big. Bigger project, further field work. You know, more time OUT OF THE OFFICE.
OK, I’m rambling. The only other job I’m up for now is painting birds and fruit and trees on ceramics for $14 an hour. And while I expect the city to offer me $10 (not sure, that’s typical though—doesn’t it suck?) I would get benefits and a leg in the door for better stuff down the line. A local gov’t history (although I’m not interested in a gov’t history) it can be useful here in many ways. Not in the least by knowing who is who (and related to who, and who is dating who, et. al.)... and making friends/acquaintances/contacts with said who’s. This is a small place. It becomes very important who you know. And everyone is related. It becomes important you also learn everyone's family history as much as possible.
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The best Halloween Party I've EVER been to
We just went to the best Halloween party we’ve been to in our entire lives. Husband and I both agree. It is just astounding how magical things are up here. It was Donna and Ramon’s party but they held it at Tafoya’s Cantina across the street.
We drank beer, we danced, we experienced tequila (Patron!!), we played pool, we made jokes, forged relationships, made deals, met new friends, and had the HELLA good time. I kid you not. The last time I had anywhere near this much fun was at my 50th birthday party.
Chris, one of the Tafoya sons, was a great DJ, and forced us to dance our asses off all night. Not an easy feat at 8300 feet. And then Alvaro asked me to dance, just as I wanted to sit down. I tried to beg off. To no avail. “I’m 81 years old,” he said, “how old are you?” I told him I was 94 (well, I HAD to!) as he winked and drug me onto the dance floor anyhow.
Then they start rolling Creedence Clearwater and the Rolling Stones...
Happy Halloween!!
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