and the cowboy who loved you so true

Before I head to my little island in the northeast, I’m spending some time with my family in the American southwest. We rented a little house just outside of Taos, NM and we’re here for about a week. It’s a beautiful place, I’ve spent the whole time feeling like I was watching a movie, which I guess is fitting since so many movies have been filmed here.

Our driving around has taken us along the banks of the Rio Grande and into a couple different mountain ranges on the south of the Rockies. We walked across the highest bridge in the US and drive through the Red River Valley. We visited Taos Pueblo, where people still live in adobe buildings that are hundreds of years old. It was actually a little uncomfortable to be there at first. I felt like I was intruding. They have this beautiful piece of land with a river running through the middle of it and mountains all around. They talked a lot about living in communion with the land and the importance of respecting our environment. A good lesson for us I think.

Another highlight was yesterday’s visit to Bandelier National Monument to see the cliff dwellings. The land changes so much, even in an hour drive we went from mountains to mesas and the rock was totally different. We did the trail through the remains of the homes carved into the sides of the cliff in Frijoles Canyon and climbed a bunch of wooden ladders to go into a couple of the rooms. We also saw snakes, lizards, and these weird squirrels with tufts of fur over their ears, which sort of make them look like rabbits with long tails. Bandelier is not too far from Los Alamos, so I’m pretty sure they’re mutant squirrels from all the radiation. :)


Family climbing around in the cliff dwellings.


Going down into a "kiva" or Pueblo religious space. What you can't tell from this photograph is that you have to climb 4 very tall ladders to get up to the alcove in the rocks where this kiva is.



We’re going back to Santa Fe tomorrow. When we went a few days ago and I bought a pair of earrings made by local Native American artisans. They are in the shape of a spiraled triangle. The artist told me that the spiral stands for the journey of life and the triangle is for stability. They have good mojo, I can tell.



I also officially have plans for getting myself up to Star. I’m taking a bus on Wednesday and staying with Shannon that night so we can both catch the 7am boat on Thursday. I can’t wait to get the summer started! Now I just need to re-pack all my stuff and figure out if I need to ship it or if I can get Natael to take some of it for me.

I miss everybody back home. It’s going to be hard to be away from 211A for the entire summer.

Hello there

Welcome.

This summer I'm going on self-enforced exile from the house I love in Brooklyn and spending about 4 months working on a crazy island and trying to get my grad school stuff together. I'm studying Art History, so to try to tie work and grad school together, observe the picture to your right (or not, if you're reading this on google reader) which is by American Impressionist, Childe Hassam, who used to paint on my island and the others nearby.

I'll be out there in a few weeks. Until then I'm home in Ohio and leaving for a family trip to New Mexico tomorrow morning. Hopefully this blog will be full of pictures and internet-appropriate musings about working and applying for school. I'm already convinced it's going to be an awesome summer and I want to share it with all of you!

So welcome to my blog. Nice to have you here.

Sea Fever

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea's face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way and the whale's way, where the wind's like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.

- John Masefield