At Home In New Mexico and Colorado

The second party of my vacation last month had me visiting my parents in Aztec, New Mexico. It was so freakin' hot there that we escaped to the mountains where it was indeed cooler. It was just like old times when we'd go camping; I'd almost forgotten how rejuvenating just getting away for a few days can be.

Anyway, no trip slightly north is complete without a visit to Durango. We played two days there, visiting bookstores, coffee shops, yarn stores, and a micro brewery. Here I am in front of one of the yarn stores: Gossamer Threads on East Fourth Avenue. I bought some very pretty cranberry washable wool lace yarn there. (On another day, we went to Yarn, which is just down the block from Steamworks, the microbrewery. Yea for proximity to special beer!)
We camped at Haviland Lake, between Durango and Silverton. Here are Dad and Lucky on one of the fishing docks. (Lucky gets to travel more than me. No, I'm not jealous. Not one bit!)

This is at the summit on the way to Silverton. It's a little hard to tell from this picture, but it is frighteningly high. I was very careful not to lose my step (as I so often do) as I took this.

In Silverton, we enjoyed a jaw-droppingly gorgeous day. I mean, look at that sky, those clouds. Plus, the veggie burger at the biker bar (including real bikers!) was pretty tasty.


We didn't actually go to the Silverton Brewery, but they had a cool truck, huh?
This was a very cool antique store where I found the perfect buttons for my linen tank top (which I swear will be finished soon--I'm having a wee bit of trouble with the lace).


Here are my mom and dad at our campsite after we had a yummy dinner of veggie green chile enchiladas. (I must say that I'm very proud of my dad for being able to plan so many vegetarian-friendly meals while I visited. He's a real Midwestern meat and potatoes kind of guy, so this was especially thoughtful. That's the advantage of going to see them alone because when David goes, the meal planning all revolves around him and I'm left with some freezer burned veggie patty from my last visit.)

Again in Durango, this is a bicycle that is available for hotel patrons to use while they're staying. Isn't that quaint?

My last night there, we went to Wines of the San Juan, a delightful place with great wine and live music. Truth be told, I went on a semi-empty stomach (lunch had been hours earlier). That, coupled with the higher elevation and the fact that I had not one but two glasses, led to a slightly drunk me. Let me tell you, navigating to the Portapotty was indeed a challenge.
This is the band, Foxfire, that played that night. They played some great bluegrass. My favorite was when one of the boys (must have been 16 at the most) sang Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" in a voice that wasn't quite deep enough. Definitely a highlight.


Alas, the week I was home went by much too quickly. Still, I had a great time and would have arrived back in LA calm and relaxed had it not been for the horrible flight drama that eventually had me routed Farmington to Phoenix to Las Vegas to Los Angeles and not getting home, after everything was over, until after 2:00 am. Ah well. I made it home and was so happy to see David, Thomas, and Greta. And work was less crazy when I got back.

Next--fun in LA, knitting projects, etc. Stay tuned!