Talk about slow.....

We have been without internet since last night because of a lightening storm. I finally figured out how to use dial-up on my old computer. So both the internet and I are slow. :)

I wrote the following yesterday:

We returned to Silver City from a trip to Albuquerque and Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. I was sharing Gene's iBook for e-mail as mine doesn't have an airport. The hotel was only wireless. I didn't post blogs or read many blogs, so as usual I am way behind the game.

Gene rode his bike 43 miles or so today. I went along and waited for him at a few places as his SAG (Safety, Assistance and Gears) car. At the first stop I pulled out the watercolor pad and had not brought along any paper towels. I am much too messy to use watercolors with no paper towels, so decided to use colored pencils. I lightly sketched in the scene with a regular pencil and then began to add color. This is as saturated as I could get the sketch in a little over an hour. I added a few ink touches at the end to define the tree and yucca. (I just checked and one of the items for Scavenger Hunt 97 is something green and leafy, so this sketch will work for that. Number 1, about 1.5 hours, colored pencil with pen. Nice.)

View on Highway 180

9 x 12 on Cotman Water Colour paper, 140 lb.

I pulled a regular "Jo" operation. At this first stop, Gene came by and got his drink and went on down the road. I continued to sketch for about 15 minutes and then rolled up the windows and went to start the pickup. Rrrr, rrrrrr.....rrr..rr...r...... The engine wouldn't turn over. Hmmmm. Besides forgetting the paper towels I had left the lights on. Ouch! I looked and had a phone signal. Good thing, I thought, just in case.

We have a little jump start for this special occasion. I got out and started to get it out of the back and thought, "I don't know how to use it. Probably simple, but what a lot of trouble." I looked around and I was parked at a turn off gravel road to some houses. There was a pretty good slope. So I put the pickup in neutral, gave it a little shove and it started rolling down the road. It took a couple of times when I put it in gear to start, but it did! Whew, I thought I had forgotten how to do that. Problem solved. I went back on the highway and met up with Gene about ten miles further along. We got back home and the bottom fell out of the clouds. The biggest rain since we have been here. It is now nice and cool and smells great with the windows open. I love this hight desert country.

The beautiful clouds where we turned around, near Cliff, New Mexico.

The following is from today. Scavenger Hunt #97 ends today, so I may not get these posted to the Hunt until tomorrow. I sketched the nose and eye while Gene was upside down on his inversion table. A new idea. It was nice to get in some sketching.

Hopefully we will be back on high speed and the new computer tomorrow. Gene is planning a long bike ride, so my sketches or paintings will be on the road.