Pictures from the west

These are a few more pictures from our trip to the west.  The old town is Jerome, AZ.  It was a ghost town clinging to the side of a mountain which has been rejuvinated.  The old rusty stuff was in front of our favorite Rock Shop in Moab, Utah.  

The  old tree tying to grow in ash and lava is at Sunset Crater, AZ.  This sunrise was amazing.  It really looked like a forest fire on the horizon at the Grand Canyon. The arches are in Arches National Monument, Utah.  There were incredible sandstone formations everywhere we went but we realy liked the ones at Arches. 

Back from the West

We had a great time on our Road trip out west!  We flew to Phoenix, rented a car and drive to Denver stopping at many wonderful sites along the way.  Our fun really began in Jerome, AZ, where we explored the House of Joy, art galleries, and enjoyed a delicious lunch at the Flat Iron Cafe. Then we drove on to Sedona, Oak Creek Canyon and Flagstaff.  We decided to take in Sunset Crater and the Wapatki  Ruins before sleeping . The next day, we were up early driving to the Grand Canyon South Rim where we spent the whole day.  There are not words to describe the sites there - the changing light, the wind, the spectacular views everywhere! The next morning we got up to watch the sunrise which was a bit subdued by clouds but still beautiful.  We ate a fabulous breakfast at El Tovar and then hit the road for Chinle and Canyon de Chelly.  We had Hopi Tacos at the Hopi Cultural Center and enjoyed them, but felt overstuffed most of the afternoon.  When we arrived in Chinle it was 3:30 where the guide said that would be a great time to hike to the bottom of Canyon de Chelly so we did.  Some knees did fine, others did not!  But fears were conquered boldly by some and whining and complaining by others (me) was ignored!  It was a great day finished off by some good burgers at the Burger King in the rain and dark.  The following day we headed to Mesa Verde in Colorado.  We all four hiked down to Cliff Palace again conquering fears and pushing our knees beyond where they wanted to go!  At the end of the hike there was a big climb up several tall ladders.  Another challenge but we made it.  We met Frances and Ivan  at a scenic overlook of the Balcony House.  They were Native Americans from Tuba City, AZ, where we used to live.  It was fun to chat with them!  The next day we drove through Utah to Arches Nat. Monument.  We loved it too.  We hiked to landscape arch and really loved all the arches and land formations we saw.  Moab was a fun place to visit.  Our next to last day we drove through the abandoned town of Cisco and then on to Dillon, CO.  We could not make it to the Rocky Mountain National Park as the roads were closed because it snowed, but the snow was lovely in Breckenridge.  Our last night we stayed in Denver and had a wonderful Thai meal at a small family restaurant.   Birdie Doc's brother, Chirpsy, my sis-in-law, Birdie Doc and I had spent a week in a minivan and had a great time!  The only thing that could have improved the trip would have been a little O2!   These are a few of my favorite photos from the trip.   

Remembering to begin again

Relying on God has to begin all over again every day as if nothing had yet been done..."
--from a letter "To Mrs. L." (50) C.S. Lewis

I love this quote. It is certainly true for me. I need to be reminded everyday and I need to begin again every day to rely on God. I love the hymn "The Old, Old Story" because it is about reminding and I do not want to ever get tired of being reminded to rely on God. He is good, and He is always intending us good. Why is it so easy to lose sight of this fact? Why am I so easily distracted from remembering it? I can remember to feed my cat everyday...and take my pills....and check my e-mail...it is truly a mystery to me why I cannot remember to rely on God everyday!

Some artwork to enjoy

Ihave been wanting to add some of my art for a while and I think I will try to do that now. My last try was a failure, but I will keep trying til I succeed. Not that I have been doing much of late, but I am thinking alot about what I want to do next. Birdiedoc had a great trip to Peru and took some wonderful pictures...some especially for me...and I really want to put them into a collage. Seems like the team had a very productive visit and hope to go back next year. I would like to join them so I want to work some on getting into shape for hiking with no oxygen. It will be hard but worth it in the end ,I think.

Ok, I am uploading some artwork that I have done in the last year. Most of this is for Art Journal round robin swaps, etc, but a few projects are just for fun. The tiny spiral book if full of Birdiedoc's grandmothers pictures. We don't know who these people are, but they were having lots of fun as opposed to the usual dour expressions of their era. Enjoy...

Peruvian Plans

Peruvian plans are being made as we speak! Birdiedoc and friends will be off to the mountains where there is almost no oxygen to breathe very soon. They are gathered here to divide up the supplies and make the final decisions before departure. While they are gone, I will be visited by my favorite art instructor, Chirpsy, who will teach book-making skills to all of us who want to learn. She is also my dear SIL and my very dear SAH (sis at heart)! Will will have so much fun while she visits. I hope we will have time to scour the junk shops around here for some good art finds and go for some nice walks by the river... and just have time to be.

Today I listened to some wonderful music by Brooks Williams that made me remember eating watermelons outside on a hot evening and listening to the cicadas as we watched the sun set in glorious shades of pink and gold. I don't know why his music made me think of that, but it was a beautiful memory. I loved the old, hot, and slow days of growing up in the south.

Beloved Rubber Gloves

I love my long yellow rubber gloves. They are soft on the inside and shiny on the outside. They warm my hands. They offer protection from many undesirable substances, and they keep my hands clean. They are simple and cheap but provide great service. I have tried pink ones and green ones, but always prefer the sunny, happy flavor of yellow. I think I love them most of all because they make me start a project without thinking about starting. Once I slip them on, it is impossible not to start cleaning. Ordinarily, starting is my problem. I do not mind any cleaning project and can continue for hours once I have begun. It is just the starting that is hard. I wish there were yellow gloves for many other projects I would like to start -like journaling or writing letters to people, or just communicating to people that I care about them and they are loved - or sorting the mountains of paper that appear on all the surfaces of my living space. I will look for "yellow rubber gloves" to remedy those things in my life.