Road Trip ... so far

We are in the beginnings of our summer travels. Not as smooth communication wise as we would hope, but I suppose it is all relative. We used to take off and use land line phones only (maybe every other day) and didn't know we were out of touch. In Canada a few years ago, Gene would get his newspapers a day late and he didn't mind too much. Now we can't be an hour or so without communicating with someone.

We left on the Fourth of July. I worked on some sketches for Scavenger Hunt #137. I sketched in the moving car with a Micron 05 pen in my 7 x 10 inch sketchbook, freehand, as always. Also in Magdalena after we arrived.


Number 1, smells good. Popcorn picked up at a quick stop for gasoline. Number 2, shiny. The rim around the air conditioner vent is chrome. Not a great rendition. May try that again later.

Number 3, hot. The highway with the skyline disappearing in the distance. Number 4, fresh. These wild asters and tumbleweeds were fresh after the rain when we got to Magdalena. Yes, rain!! It may rain at home in Bastrop today, I sure hope so. It is badly/greatly needed.


Number 5, old. The view from the motel room in my "old" hometown of Magdalena.

I always take photos, even though we have been down this road many, many times. I take some photos of the same spots over and over.

A horse trailer between Bastrop and Austin. It has room for 5 horses and has a motor home in the front part. We always used bedrolls and the back of the pickup to haul food, etc. We would just sleep on the ground. My Dad would have loved a trailer like that, sigh.......

This is a cottonfield between San Angelo and Big Spring, Texas. I have taken this photo with stacks and stacks of cotton bales. They were about to have a downpour. We were in a little rain along the way. Boy, was that nice?

Arriving in New Mexico. this is not the prettiest port of entry. :) This is on Highway 380.

This is still Highway 380 as you come to San Antonio, New Mexico, the mountains are by Magdalena and the trees and salt cedars are along the Rio Grande. Look at those clouds.

When we arrived at the motel in Magdalena we had a nice rain. We started into town after the rain and as we neared the arroyo, we were talking and wondering if the arroyo might run water. We used to go watch the water arrive from the mountains when we lived there .. it was a highlight and something fun to do.

We got to the bridge over the arroyo and didn't see any water, then we looked toward the mountains and could see the headwater coming around the bend near the center of the photo.


I got out and took photos and movies from the bridge. The water was moving pretty quickly.

As the water filled the arroyo, you see some folks watching the water. Guess the fascination still holds true ... and not much to do in Magdalena but watch the runoff.

I always have to get a photo of the Ladrone Mountains. Why do they seem so interesting to me? Maybe because they sit all alone in the flats. I always take a photo and have painted them once.


More interesting clouds and the Manzano Mountains on the way to Albuquerque. No more rain here, yet.

Hang in There

We are on the road and have not had internet for a couple of days. Also out in the mountains one may not have cell phone service either. My phone works in Magdalena, Gene's doesn't. Can you imagine? We will have to rely on old fashioned telephones. We are in Albuquerque for a couple of days, so I will try to get my sketches photographed and posted.

Don't give up on me.

Happy Birthday, Joanna!!

It is Joanna's birthday today. Happy Birthday, Joanna!

Does it fall to the oldest to be the responsible, caretaker child? Joanna has been the person we call on for taking care of our house, money, other children, etc. She took care of Jennie during Jennie's Junior and Senior year of high school and our house. And much, much more. She takes care of friends and co-workers, too.

She is our tech support and adviser in our computer world. We started out with hand me down computers from Joanna. We can complete each others sentences. I can't say enough good things about her.

She is also a great photographer as a hobby. One of my favorite photos is one she took here in the back yard when we first moved here, so that is about 12 years ago, right? How time flies.

Our Backyard
Photo and copyright, Joanna.

You can see a baby photo and some fireworks from her birthday last year. Another thing that is fun is go to her home page and click on her photo on the upper left of her page. I love it! And, I love Joanna! I hope her day is so special.

P. S. It is also Cody Castillo's birthday and Jerry Rawdon's birthday, a couple of nephews in the family. I hope they have good birthdays as well. Happy Birthday!

On the road again.......

I was hoping to get a collage up of the paintings for the show. Oh well, all good plans, etc. We went to dinner with the girls last night and with Larry tonight. We hoped to all get together for Joanna's birthday tomorrow, but it didn't work out. We had a round about celebration and now we will have to celebrate all our birthdays when we get back.

We will be on the road tomorrow, in Magdalena on Monday, then Albuquerque, then back to Magdalena for the show next weekend. Whew! It will be fun to see everyone and then arrive in the cool mountains of Angel Fire for the summer and relax! And be cool!! It is still 93 degrees out at 11:30 p.m. here.

Our internet is fixed now that we are leaving, sigh. We don't know what kind we will have in New Mexico, but I will be posting one way or another.

See you down the road.....

Wendy Jones, Sad News

Lilly at Peppers

Our trip to Magdalena and Peppers will include a very sad part. Marky's wonderful daughter, Wendy Jones, passed away. It was such a shock as she was very young. We will all miss her. Wendy was warm and sharing and fun to be around. She was very instrumental in getting me started at Peppers and taking care of all of us there at the gallery. Her daughter, Lilliana (Lilly), is a delight and Wendy encouraged her talent in art, both painting and acting.

We will go to Wendy's memorial service on Monday in Water Canyon, one of her favorite places. I'm glad we will be able to be there to share the good memories.

Wendy enjoyed the bustle at the gallery especially during Old Timers, so the show will go on. It will not be the same this year. Our sympathy and thoughts are with Marky, Lilly, David and all the family at such a sad time.

Magdalena Catholic Church - Acrylic Painting

I was putting together my painting list a couple of days ago and realized I only had one small painting for Magdalena. I took the two small paintings to Austin for the Scarbrough Show as you recall, so I decided to get with it and do one more for Magdalena.

Buildings and perspective are not easy for me, but I am pleased with the results on this one. I chose acrylics for their quick drying time and ease of framing for Gene. I painted on one of the little boards that I prepared with the Colourfix Medium for pastels. It works nicely for acrylics as the paint seems to stay wet for a few minutes longer. After drying, I finished it with Kaymar varnish and it looks great.

Mary Magdalene Church
Acrylic, 5 x 7 inches

It is framed in a coppery plein air frame.

I have all the paintings labeled, in their packages and ready to go. I am taking 21 paintings for the show. Some have been in Magdalena before, but that is OK. There will be some new guests and new opportunities.

I am now going to pack my studio .. I take most of my art supplies. Thanks to Gene for the help and encouragement to drag it all along. Hopefully I will get many paintings done and we will have a great time in the mountains.