San Antonio, NM

We're here at Birdwatchers RV Park, right outside Bosque del Apache, and it is lovely. A bit warm, but cooler than at Elephant Butte.

Yesterday (Saturday) there was a free seminar at the Bosque about identifying, propagating and cooking cactus, so of course we had to attend. It was quite informative, but we were a bit disappointed that they cancelled the cooking part of the demonstration! At least they talked about how to harvest and prepare cactus for cooking, so we may be tackling that in the future.

One interesting fact we learned. You know how in the old cowboy movies, they always cut off a piece of cactus to drink the water? Well, that's not possible, because the cactus catches any available water and turns it into a gelatinous liquid. Since this liquid is viscous it doesn't evaporate, but stays available for the plants nourishment.

The arboretum at the Bosque
is in full bloom.
It's certainly worth a trip
if you're in the area.

They've done a beautiful job
of combining the various plants.

I can't seem to take
enough pictures of these cactus roses.
They're so delicate, yet so vibrant.

I'm always fascinated
with the fences here in New Mexico.
They use every available bit of wood,
achieving enchanting and functional results.

Cliff Swallows have built
dozens of nests
in the eaves of the Visitors Center

Above is the original shot
and here's a closeup
of this baby looking out at me.
He kind of looks like a seal,
don't you think?
(Remember to click to enlarge).

Once again we've put up
the window feeders
for the hummingbirds.

On these two shots
I was shooting from about twenty feet away
and only noticed the shadows
when I looked at them in the computer.
The shadows look better than the hummers!

In addition to the hummingbirds,
we've attracted a BUNCH
of Bullock's Orioles.
These guys LOVE to sit on the feeders.

And even though their beaks
don't really fit in the feeder holes,
they still manage to drink.

If they can't get a drink,
they've learned that if they put their beak
between the window and the feeder,
they can "snap" the feeder,
splattering drops of liquid
on the window and the feeder.
They seem just as pleased with this.

But they make a bunch of noise!

They also like to tap
on their reflection in the window.
We've started tapping back at them
resulting in this look.

This is my favorite shot
of the Bullock's Oriole.
They're much brighter than this,
but I was shooting through our tinted windows.

And of course I had to include a sunset.

I thought I'd mention that we've learned that the reason we came down here is a definite go, so we're excited!

Just a Bit More T or C

We are now ensconced at the Birdwatchers RV Park, where we'll spend the next week. In looking over my pictures, I have a few that didn't fit anywhere, so I thought I'd put them together into this one blog entry.

I loved these little yellow flowers.
They're scattered all over
the campground at Monticello
and were in full bloom when we left.

While not as colorful as the yellow flowers
these little straw blooms
have their own appeal.

I wasn't able to identify these trees,
but they're planted around the campground.
Sort of bamboo-ish,
they make a great foreground.

We attended the Annual
Truth or Consequences Fiesta Parade.
This is a pretty accurate representation
of the entire spectacle.

This door caught my eye.
It looks better when clicked and enlarged.

This sort of sums up the shopping situation
in downtown Truth or Consequences.
And they wonder why they don't
have more business???

I'll finish with the cactus bloom.

That's it for today!

An Adventure!

Something sort of exciting has come up and we've had a sudden change of plans. We will be leaving Elephant Butte tomorrow and heading up to Bosque del Apache.

If all turns out as I hope, I'll have a great adventure to share.

Stay Tuned!

Kingston, New Mexico

The other day, we decided to visit Hillsboro. We had taken a drive there a year or so ago and were so taken with it, we decided to give it a second look.

It was a beautiful day for sight seeing, and when we arrived in Hillsboro, we chose to go a bit farther up the road, just to view some new territory.

Several miles on, we saw a sign for Kingston, but the town itself eluded us, so we kept driving. We went till we were seeing some serious mountains. We knew if we kept going, we would end up at the Gila Cliff Dwellings, so we knew it was time to turn around. Coming back down the hill, we spied a small dirt road that read "Kingston" (which we had totally missed on the way up) and decided to give it a look see.

What a surprise!

It was just a dirt road, and pretty bare, but several hundred feet up the trail we spied some buildings.

Now I want to say something here . . .

Regular readers know I've been playing with different settings on the camera lately, as well as trying different ways of manipulating them. If I would really sit down and read my manual, I might avoid mistakes like I made this day . . .

See, I was playing with the exposure settings on the camera (something entirely new to me, I usually do that afterwards in the computer). But in the interest of learning new techniques, I was trying it in camera. And on my camera, I'm still confused as to what button does what (they're so darned small). So I generally shoot in automatic. Thinking I was being slick, I hit the button that I THOUGHT was the exposure control button and just started snapping away. After an hour or so (I'm not too quick sometimes) I noticed that my camera wasn't focusing properly. Upon actually LOOKING at my buttons, I realized I had pressed the auto focus/manual focus button instead of the auto exposure/manual exposure button.

So that must be why my pictures weren't in focus, Ya Think????

So please, take my stupidity into consideration and don't judge these photos too harshly (you should see the ones I didn't use!).

Anyhow, back to Kingston.

We found one lovely old building that I wanted to see a bit closer, so I got out to explore. To my surprise, it read the Percha Bank Gallery and Museum and there was a sign in the window that said Open.

When I walked inside, I saw these lovely Craftsman tiles

and this sign.

A gentleman walked out to welcome me and introduced himself as Mark Nero, the owner of the Gallery and a printer by trade.

I told him we had friends who have a lovingly restored Craftsman home in Glendale, California, and how beautiful his work was.

He proceeded to tell me a great story.

He had been a printer for years and was always interested in the Craftsman style. Years ago, when chatrooms were fairly new, he was online discussing printing with others when he noticed that someone had signed himself Dard Hunter, a name well known to Craftsman fans. Intrigued, he emailed the fellow only to find that he was corresponding with Dard Hunters grandson!

And out of such serendipity, a relationship was built.

Mark has moved his printing press
into the old Percha Bank,
where he is currently creating art
in the Craftsman tradition.

Other parts of the Bank tell the history of Kingston.

This bank was once
the largest bank in New Mexico.
Kingston boasted a population
higher than that of Albuquerque or Santa Fe.

The town thrived
until the United States
went on the Gold Standard.
That signaled the end of the Kingston boom.

The Gallery also boasts
a small selection of books.
I just had to take a picture of this one.
In fact, I almost bought it, just for the title.
But of course, I now have control,
so I left it for some other lucky cook.

For more information on the Gallery,

you can go to their website.

And if youre in the area,
it's really worth a trip.

Outside the Gallery, I saw these beautiful trees. Marks' wife (to whom I apologize, I can't remember her name), told me these were called Trees of Heaven. Brought here by Chinese workers during the silver boom, they are now quite common in New Mexico.

In this photo,
you see them up against
the original exterior of the Percha Bank.

As always, you can click on any inage
for a full sized version.

And here's a picture of Marks' wife,
who was so friendly!

I love their gate.

We had a great day.

New Mexico continues to excite and amaze us.

ABC Wednesday-P

I've been blogging a lot for the last couple of days, so this will be a short one.

Today is ABC Wednesday-P, so I will be showing you the Pyrrhuloxia.

A cardinal-like finch native to the southwest United States and northern Mexico, we've seen these guys around many parts of New Mexico. They really do resemble a cardinal, but their color is predominantly grey with bright pink to red markings. While the female is nowhere near as colorful as the male, they still have the distinctive comb.

But it''s the male who really shines, as is so often the case in the world of birds.

Even though we see them frequently, we still get excited every time we spot a new one.

the Touch (My New Toy)

I think I'm finally ready to talk about my new toy. Before I start, I'd just like to mention that these photos are not up to my usual standards. I believe it has something to do with trying to photograph an electronic screen, so be warned. The photos here are just for information.

Okay, here we go.

Have you heard about the ipod touch?

I actually got a little sick of hearing about it. Most of you know by now that I'm a pretty die hard Mac fan, since like 1984. I'm not a blind follower but I do use and advocate their products. I think they make a great product and offer good support.

But I already have an ipod. I love it, it holds 60gb of music, more than enough. So while a new toy is always nice, do I need another ipod?

Of course not.

But then my friend John stopped by and showed me his ipod touch. Terry says he knew right away that I was doomed (after 39 years, it seems the man knows me too well).


So what's the allure?

Number one, yes it is an ipod and it plays music (mp3s) just like all the other ipods. You can also store and show off your photos, like other ipods. And you can put movies on the ipod touch and watch them, again like other ipods. Nice but no big deal.

But here's where it starts to go down a different path than other ipods. Instead of navigating with a round "wheel" on the front, you navigate by actually touching the bright and colorful two by three inch screen. The screen on the ipod touch is a real beauty, with a whooping 163 pixels per inch resolution. In case that doesn't ring your bell, let me just say that this is an INCREDIBLY clear picture, especially on a 3.5 inch diagonal screen (I believe most Mac monitors log in at 100ppi). This beautiful resolution makes viewing your photos and videos a much more enjoyable experience.

So now you know how good the screen looks.

But that's really just the beginning. I guess the easiest way to describe the ipod touch is to say it's a small pocket computer. It has many of the same (or similar) aps as a full sized computer.

And it connects to the internet!!!!

There are thousands of applications (available via the Ap Store in iTunes), many of them free and most others between $1 or $2. These include a variety of applications including games, address books, movie players, photo viewers, auto/trip logs, money managers, maps, and my VERY favorite, an ap called iBird Pro.

Now, we have a ton of bird books that we carry in the rig. I love looking at them and reading about the different birds. Lots of information. I should note here that while we are both interested in birds, we are no where near experts, or even what many would call Birders. So while the bird books are great entertainment, they have one major drawback. They are not especially portable. Also, you seem to need to know a bit about birds before you can identify them. Since we're such beginners, our standard mode of operation is to just thumb through till you recognize a picture.

But now that's in the past, because we have the ipod touch and iBird Pro!

Let me state that there are various versions of iBird Pro, from free on up to $29.99. After looking at the options and knowing what we have spent on bird books in the past, we opted for the iBird Pro, which is the version that includes all the others. After using it for a month, I have to say it was REALLY money well spent.

For starters, there is an excellent search function. We recently were visited by an Altimira Oriole. A beautiful bird with an amazing orange yellow color on his body. By simply limiting the area to New Mexico, the month to April, then the area to Lakes and rivers, and typing in the color orange, I was presented with the Altimira Oriole.

Once you identify your bird,
you get to see a beautiful drawing,

Also, actual photos,

a complete description,

a list of similar birds,

and a list of facts.

You can also view a small piece on their ecology and habitat AND play a sound file that lets you listen to their song! There is also the option to go online and learn even more about the chosen bird.

Is that too cool or what?

All this in a small device that fits right into a shirt pocket.

The ipod touch also has the best little notepad I've ever used (shopping list, complete with the look of crumpled paper), a to do list, a wi fi locater, clocks, calendars, a compass, and a level that actually works from side to side.

There are also mapping programs, Google Earth, and, well, just about anything else you could ask for.

And new aps are being made available every day.

I LOVE this thing, and I've FINALLY learned how to play Sudoku!

I should also mention here that the lovely braided leather case you see surrounding my ipod touch was a gift from John (a fine leather artist), who is the one responsible for introducing me to this new toy.

The ipod touch is actually an iPhone, minus a camera, minus the GPS technology and minus the ability to make phone calls (although you can use it to make calls using Skype).

That said, it is also minus the $60 plus monthly charges.

IF the iPhone was available through Verizon (something that is currently being hotly discussed in the news and online chatrooms) I would definitely get one, but for now, the ipod touch is my very favorite new toy.

Out Galivantin' Around

We've been out and about quite a bit lately. One day, we took a day trip to Kingston and Hillsboro, both of which I'll try to cover in a future blog. But for today, I want to post a few pictures that I shot on the way to these tiny hamlets.

The day started out when we spotted a high flying bird. I shot a bunch of pictures, but only one came out. My new camera have an auto tracking function which I'm still trying to wrap my head around.

I'm not 100% pleased with this shot
but it's the best of what I got.

It's spring here in the desert
and the green shines
incredibly bright
against the azure skies.

It was just a bit breezy,
but I thought this movement
made the green seem even more intense.

We pulled out at an overlook
and there was this lovely pale golden grass
growing all around the perimeter.

I've been reading about a photo technique
called Bokeh.
The technique intrigues me.

As I understand it,
Bokeh
is what happens when a part of a photo
is in sharp focus,
and the rest of the photo,
generally the background,
is soft and blurred.

So I think this series of grass shots
might be good examples
of Bokeh.

Or maybe not.
If any readers know about Bokeh,
I'd like to hear more.

I do know that this next shot is
definitely not Bokeh.

But I like the color and the light.

This next one really needs to be enlarged
(just click).
I usually like clouds in my shots,
but the lone tree against the sparse sky
worked for me this time.

We also stopped and visited an iris garden.

I saved this shot for last,
it's my favorite of the day.

As always,