New House and Old Cemetery

I finally made the effort to get a photo of me with the mask made by my mother-in-law. This is on our food shopping day, Thursday, in front of the Smiths before I went in. Russ waits in the car so we have only one person shopping; it's a requirement here in New Mexico. I've been shopping with a list from Russ' mom plus items for us (mostly vegetarian fake meat for me).

Ready to brave the supermarket. The mask fabric is

a print of cow skulls with red chilies.

The property has been especially lovely. The irrigation pipes are working properly, so Russ goes out to the field every day and moves water around. As we were standing on the edge of the field with Russ cousin who stopped by for some social distance visiting, a red-tailed hawk came down and struck one of the prairie dogs in the field. It was such a large bird that we weren't sure it was a hawk, but Russ confirmed that he saw the red tail feathers.

Small Black Birds in a Cottonwood Tree.

These are loud twittering birds that wake me every morning.

Close up of Elm Tree blooms.

Our niece with Russ in the R-Pod.

Brandy Time... but with whisky. Mom gave us

these mini bottles in our Christmas stockings.

Russ' mom with one of her finished quilt tops.

This still needs a backing and to be quilted.

We did drive into town to see the progress on Russ' brother's new/old house. They have been working on it since last year and are finally done with all the structural and utility work and are now finishing. The doorway here was widened and the dark-stained wood added to cover the beam and the posts. You can see the flooring stacked up behind in what will be the kitchen. Russ' brother and his partner decided to leave the original plaster and brick showing. They used the old wood floor boards to make the kitchen tray ceiling. This is the final look.

This is Russ' youngest brother. The floor has been laid since

this photo was taken. It looks amazing.

Russ and I have been taking the trash to the transfer station. There is no trash pick up here.

Odd sculpture at the transfer station made from salvage.

Stop. Pay.

Mailboxes at the end of the street by the transfer station.

Since we were over there on the east side of Highway 550, we went up to the Cedar Hill Cemetery. Russ's family has a plot there, so we paid our respects. It's up on the hill, so you can see views of the La Plata Mountains and the San Juan Mountains, as well as the Animas River below. The oldest graves we saw there were from around 1937, but some were too eroded to read the year, so there are some that are probably older.

The cemetery gate.

Russ at the family plot. This represents three generations.

New Mexico sunset.

Sunset with the large cottonwood in the foreground.

The cottonwoods are the last trees to leaf out in the spring.

The sky is a wonder here. I miss seeing the stars from the high desert when we are at home.

Irrigation Pipes, Kittens and Apple Pie

We have developed a routine, but it is rather loose. Russ an I go do the food shopping on Thursday, and then usually get some take out in town for lunch. Sonic is a favorite. Russ has been helping around the property. This week they laid down the irrigation pipe, since water has now been run into the ditch from the river.

Green chili cheese sandwich with tots. Yum!

Russ clears flotsam out of the newly filled ditch.

Flotsam hero.

The most distant weir sends the water under Highway 550.

Getting started.

Done laying the pipe.

Russ' mom found this pamphlet about the Ditch.

1912 and still in use!

Russ' mom made pies for Easter, but other than a ham for dinner, we didn't do anything special. Everything is still shut down for the pandemic response, so it was a quiet day. Mama cat has moved her kittens out to the small piece of carpet at the end of the stairs into the house from the garage, so we have to step over them every time we come into the house. They are super cute, but I'm working hard to not get attached. Russ and I decided that we don't need to replace our cats too soon. It's nice to travel and not worry about animals at home, or make provisions for them to come with us on the road.

American as apple pie.

Mama Cat with three extras.

Too cute!

On Mondays, Russ and I go up to Durango for specific shopping, and usually take a walk on one of the local trails. I particularly like the Animas River Trail. This week we walked it in the other direction (upriver). There was a fantastic kinetic sculpture near our turn around point.

There used to be a uranium smelter across the river here.

They cleaned up the tailings pile and turned it into a park.

Russ takes the shot.

Celebrate, a sculpture by J. Gunnar Anderson

Aspen tree in the background.

Old mine equipment repurposed as art.

Chalk graffiti on one of the foot bridges.

Going my own way. Notice the fly fisherman in the river.

A different kind of fly.

Russ and I have been reading and relaxing in the R-Pod. Plus, I continue to exercise. We found that one lap around the "dry land" field is a quarter mile. I cut Russ' hair today as he sat outside our trailer front door (the shaver plugs into the outside outlet). We're just muddling along and enjoying our time here. I didn't take a photo of the haircut, but I should have. It was an unusual location. I'm glad we brought the supplies to do it, since getting a haircut at a barber shop is not possible right now. My haircut is good until June. Not sure what will be happening by then.

Laps around the dry land. The house is behind me, 

right at the level of my head.

Relaxing in the Pod. The door beyond our window is the shop.

Russ' dad has quite a wood working setup.

Staying in and Going Outside

I've been saving up too many photos, so this will be a long and picture heavy post. We've been working around Russ' parents property and getting out and walking when we can. There is a lot to do now the spring has arrived, from setting up the irrigation pipes to pruning the trees and cleaning out the decorative pond (the fish were still there!).

Pruning trees.

Chalk art at Riverbend Park in Aztec.

I like the sentiment.

Someone has been leaving painted rocks around the park.

Russ Measures the Mural

Owl Rock.

I have no words.

We participate in a sacred ritual here known as "Brandy Time" every day at 4 pm. Brandy is always available, but any alcohol is encouraged. Russ and his Uncle usually drink beer. Russ' Uncle has property just across the highway, and will sometimes drive a 4-wheeler or tractor over to join us.

Brandy Time.

Blank tank outlet replaced! Russ and his Dad got it done.

On Sunday, we drove up the canyons in search of Aztec's Arches. Our niece and nephew wanted to see them, and deserved a break after all their on-line school efforts, so we went exploring. This area is home to a huge natural gas industry, and there are numerous dirt roads up and around the mesas to access the well heads and compressor stations. There were a lot of folks out in the hills, taking a break from being cooped up indoors, but everyone was careful to practice social distancing. We drove up Arch Rock Canyon through Hart Canyon to Ditch Canyon and then up Mount Nebo.

Arch Rock. I think it looks like a turtle.

One of Russ' old relatives (Great Grandfather?) used to drive

a wagon under this and could touch the side with his arms spread wide.

The wash is a lot deeper now.

Russ' younger brother with niece and nephew thru Arch Rock.

Heroic Russ stands near the Octopus Arch.

The views from here out over the Animas Valley are spectacular.

Octopus Arch. It's lost some arms over the years.

This was obviously a popular place for beer drinking.

Judging from the broken glass, popular for many decades.

On top of Ditch Canyon. View to the south.

On top of Mount Nebo. The Pump Jack is for water (I'm told).

It is mostly gas here (not oil).

The tower on Mount Nebo. We can see this from the house.

Russ photographs the San Juan Mountains.

Russ and I have also been trying to do all the town chores, like shopping. On this trip, we took the long way home though the town of La Plata. It was a beautiful day.

View from the La Plata Highway to the north.

Juniper.

Aztec Airport. The runway is too short for commercial jets.

The stake with the yellow top marks a natural gas line.

These are everywhere out here.

Hanging out on the property doesn't feel like a hardship. I spend time watching the prairie dogs and try to work out regularly. I tried the 7-minute workout for strength training (you do it at least twice), and found out how out of condition I can get in just a month of sporadic effort. Plus, we are at about 6,000 feet of elevation here, and there is just not enough oxygen! I'm going to make and effort to do it three days each week until it doesn't hurt so much.

Super pink moon rise.

Sorry the i-phone camera didn't do the best job.