Adam Miller and Family

Isabell went for a sleep over at Niamh's hous...

December 21, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Isabell went for a sleep over at Niamh's house today so I could go to a co-workers birthday party. I'm just realizing that half of Santa Fe smokes dope. No one at the party did this of course, but mention of previous parties obvious had this element. It was fun to talk to my other teaching partners and learning the gossip of the directors. Obviously no one is fond of Nancy nor Stephanie. All of the teachers are frustrated and are eventually leaving in the next few years.

I left around 11:00 drove back to Penasco where they had their version of a Rave. I stopped by to check it out and stayed for over an hour dancing and having fun. It's amazing to see all of the different people who show up for this. Not the hippie type but the funky type who listen to techno rave music. I saw one of my parents from Dragonfly School there, it's kind of strange seeing a parent going wild on the dance floor. Know when I see her at school, I'll have a different vision of her.

I'm going to pay for this tomorrow morning that's for sure.

When I arrive in Oregon next week, please

December 19, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

When I arrive in Oregon next week, please...please...I don't want any family drama. I just want a quiet week, where I can get up in the morning, enjoy a cup of coffee, with rum, watch a bunch of sappy Christmas movies and enjoy being with family.

Thursday was so mind boggling at work, I have no idea how I survived. I got to work, and I realized I needed to sign up for an early childhood class for January and the registration date was yesterday. There's scholorship forms to fill out, and expensive classes to take, and the whole enchilada. The kids were on speed, it started to rain, and it ruined all of the beautiful snow. The whole school prepared food for all of the animals in our school yard, so we had kids all over the place make projects, but half of them were bored and were running all over the place. We had an inside recess with all of the kids running wild. I really wanted to go and hide.

I finally managed to leave around 2:30 so I could drive to Taos to finally pick up my Subaru. This has been a hastle for over a month trying to get my car out. I did get 10% off my deductable. My rental car was quite expensive, and I then rushed home to watch Isabell in school winter performance. When I got there, they canceled it do to the weather.

However, things went a little better. We Had pizza at Sugar Nymphs, a bistro in Penasco. While there, a family came in and they have game night every Thursday. They invited Isabell and I to play Scrabble, and it was really fun to play with them.

Today has a half day of school, and I'm off for the holidays, so I will go in and help Isabell with her party. Her friend Niamh will be coming over for a sleep over, and then on Saturday, Isabell will go over there and have a sleep over, so I can go to Sagitarius birthday party at one of my co-worker's house. Should be fun.

Do you know that feeling of trying to please ...

December 17, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Do you know that feeling of trying to please everybody and you seem to fail miserably every time. Arlene is a lot like that. I try so hard to keep the house clean, I shovel the parking area, and I break my back doing everything to be polite, however Arlene always finds a way to be disappointed. I shoveled for an hour and half, trying not to put snow in her parking area. (We all share a parking area.) I thought I did a pretty good job...then Arlene and Anne are shoveling later on, and she tells me I shouldn't be blocking her area. Wow...watch the air come rushing out of a balloon. I was so proud at what I did and then this. I know I shouldn't worry about what she thinks, but it's hard since I like to please people.

I ventured out today and made it to the post office and sent off all of my Christmas cards and presents. I actually did Christmas cards this year. Amazing! I can hear the angels singing "HALLELUAH!" Anyway, I drove 10 miles an hour and eventually made to and from the Post Office in under six hours. Just kidding. All I want for Christmas is a sleigh and eight minature reindeer. Horses will work fine too. If your still wondering what to get me, I'd like the Planet Earth DVD set, and all of the Charlie Brown DVD holiday set. If that is too hard, I'll settle for Peace on Earth and Goodwill to all men.

No School Today! No School Today! We are snow...

December 16, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

No School Today! No School Today! We are snowed in, with more than seven inches of snow on the ground. Sipapu Ski area eight miles down the road reported 18" of new snow in twelve hours. Taos Ski Valley reported 20" of snow. It seems that all of Taos is closed today, with people calling in and saying they are closed.

Seraph leaves for Portland today, and I hear that Portland is also covered in snow today! I hope she will fare well in this winter wonderland.

Yesterday the roads were in poor condition, and Seraph and I left the house at 7:30, and when we were close to Las Trampas, our car started to slide and we were lucky enough to slide into a snowbank. We tried to dig ourselves out for a half an hour without any luck. Several nice people stopped by to say that they would drive down the road and call a tow truck. Finally a snowplow drove by and the man was nice enough to pull us out. I was very grateful for the help and we were on our way driving 20-25 miles an hour.

Two hours later we finally arrived in Santa Fe, where I dropped off Seraph at the bus station, where she took the bus down to Albuquerque. I went to work, and all of the child were so happy to see me that they all rushed over and hugged me. I think it was such a relief to get to work that tears almost rolled down my cheeks when the children came rushing up to me. Love those kids! The snow didn't let up, and by 12:30, Santa Fe Public Schools finally dismissed school early. I left school around 1:30pm and headed home. When I approached Espanola, the roads cleared up, and the hills and land around it were only snow dust covered. It still amazes me at how many micro climates this area has. At around four I picked up Isabell at school and came home and relaxed.

Today I will be wrapping presents, writing cards and walking to the post office and sending off presents.

Tonight was Las Posadas on a cold and chilly ...

December 15, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Tonight was Las Posadas on a cold and chilly night in Vadito. It was the first Posadas here in a long time, and the community got together and did a fantastic job of putting it together. Poor Mary, was cold, but put on a brave face as she and a much older Joseph went door to door to see if there was any room for them. Finally at the community center the weary travelers were let in and a fiesta celebrated their arrival. It was really nice to be able to attend the first Las Posadas, and it felt very personal, as there was a small but brave band of followers on this first Christmas miracle.

Winter has descended upon us in a cold and sn...

December 14, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Winter has descended upon us in a cold and snowy hurry. Seraph now has a job up at Sipapu Ski area, where she works in the rental office. When she left for work on Saturday there was another couple of inches of snow on the ground. Isabell and I went to town had breakfast at Michaels, went to the library and went Christmas shopping. We spent the whole day going in and out of shops until I was satisfied that I bought all of my presents. We all so took our time and finished all of our laundary that needed to be done.

Seraph was suppose to call us around three and meet us in Taos to go and see Twilight once again. At 4:25 when she didn't call, I was getting concerned about her, and horrible images sprang to my mind of Seraph stuck in a snow bank. Isabell and I raced up the mountain, and a huge sigh of relief escaped from me, as I saw her small gold Kia pass me. I turned around and we raced back to Taos. We find out that Arlene had kept Seraph later than she was suppose to work, and Seraph was not to happy about this. We missed the first fifteen minutes of the movie, and I would have been happy missing it, however Isabell really wanted to see it again, and we really didn't miss much at all.

We woke this morning with wind whistling down the stove pipes and snow drifting over the house. Seraph had to work this today, but she will take a break and come to church, so we can read the advent scripture today. I hope this job works out, Arlene is a sweet woman, but tends to be all over the place, and forgets that Seraph needs to be somewhere on time. Seraph really only wants to work part time during the week. Arlene has other ideas, and wants Seraph to replace Arlene as the assisant manager of the shop. I told Seraph if this becomes to much, that she could always find another job. Some how, it will all work out.

The nights have been beautiful here with the full moon illuminating the snow and leaving long dark shadows transversing the land. When you walk out around nine o'clock, it feels as if night has become day and the moon has become the sun. It's so beautiful seeing all of this snow and I'm still amazed at all of the wonderful cloud formations. Yesterday, as we headed back to Taos after finding Seraph, the mountains were shrouded in an orange mist from the setting sun and it all felt so surreal!

We woke to six inches of snow this morning, a...

December 09, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

We woke to six inches of snow this morning, and it was a winter wonderland. Trees, roof tops, and cars buried in powdery snow, I haven't seen snow like this in a long time. Of course all schools were canceled or two hour delay in the Taos vicinity. So, I expected Santa Fe to be on the same schedule, but there was no such luck. They only got a few snow flurries, and school was on schedule. I tried my darnest to get out of the drive way, however my rental car started slipping and slidding, and there was no way I could get out. I called several subs, and finally found one who could come in and cover for me for the day.

Isabell had a two hour delay,and took the bus in, and poor Seraph and I are snowed in with no place to go. We'll have to figure something out to do. Maybe a nice winter walk, read books by a cozy warm fire, play a rousing game of chess, or snuggle and drink hot chocolate. Wow, what a way to spend a snowy day. Sorry, Oregonians, I wish I could send snow your way.

^

This has been an exciting week with Seraph su...

December 06, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

This has been an exciting week with Seraph surprising us on my birthday on Monday. It's a strange feeling having the full family back together, when it was only Isabell and I for three months. The great things is that I can leave for work earlier and come home earlier. When I first started working, I was contracted to work from 8:30am to 4:00pm, however I get to work at 7:45 and finish the day at 3:15. It's nice coming home to have my family back and enjoy the evening with Seraph.

I forgot to mention a very memorable disasterous birthday dinner I had with my mom, dad, Carolyn, Teresa, John, and Isabell last Friday evening. We had a wonderful day shopping around Taos Plaza, and eventually wondered back to the hotel where my dad and Carolyn were staying at. We had a few drinks while we waited for our reservations. At 6:00pm, we all sat down to enjoy a fine dinner. My dad let me order anything on the menu, so I ordered a $72 kobe steak meal. While the rest had ordered bison, ribs, and lamb shops. When the meal arrived, all of us wore stunned looks as we eyed the small portions of meat, vegetables, and french fries. The meal took up only 20% of the plate, and then when we tried cutting the meat it was tough and dry. We were so upset over the meal that we complained to the manager and we refused to pay for the meal. Luckily we had had a few drinks before hand, and saw the humor in all of this. In the process, we warned a few arriving customers, and they fled into the night. We left, and went to Ogalvies Restuarant on the plaza and had great deserts. One birthday meal I will not forget in a long time.

Today, we got our first half cord of wood, and stacked it up against our outside walls. I felt like country boy out there with our warm clothes, hiking boots, and gloves as we stacked the wood. We had a mix of cedar and pinon wood, and the heart of the cedar was colored egg plant. It is so beautiful that one doesn't want to burn it. We have another load coming in next week. Since Seraph has been here, we burned more wood that I have in the last month. It will take Seraph a little longer to adapt to the cold crisp weather here.

Tonight, Isabell had her Winter Trapezee Recital at the Penasco theater. I was amazed at how much they have learned in such a short time. Isabell did really well, and I was impressed by the artistry of all of the kids. I love living here, and seeing all of the fun activities that they have for all of the kids. They try so hard to make this a family friendly town, and I am very grateful for this.

We will be taking care of Eric and Shaun's chickens while they travel to California. In exchange, we will get fresh eggs. There are so many advantages of living out here!

I awoke to my first NM snow this morning

December 03, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

I awoke to my first NM snow this morning. I managed to remember all of my safe snow driving tips while taking Isa to school. Hopefully folks were not too ticked at the newbie while I crawled along at 25mph! I did tell Isa that here you get a white Chirstmas, but at least the snow disapears with winter!
I head back to PDX on 12/16, and Isa & Robbie will be coming back on 12/22. Much love & wamth to all until then.

Happy White Thanksgiving Everyone! We had a w...

November 28, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Happy White Thanksgiving Everyone! We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with me, Isabell, my mom, dad, Carolyn, grandma, my aunt Teresa, and uncle John, cousin Cory, his girlfriend, and their little daughter. Like a dream come true, we had snow on Thanksgiving, and watched as it piled onto our cars and the road. As we left, the roads were a little slippery, so we drove cautiously home and made it safely. Isabell is sleeping over at the hotel with dad and Carolyn. She will have lots of fun. Tomorrow we are going back to town to celebrate my birthday.

Yesterday, I went out to the house in Chamisal with an architect and went over plans and ideas for the house. It seems like a daunting task to build the house, but she has great ideas, and will help us a lot.

Mom made it around 5:00, and didn't get lost too bad. Just a wrong turn in Truchas, but made it safely. I had tacos, and a warm fire waiting for her when she arrived. We had a great time catching up, and enjoyed a relaxing morning before heading up to Questa.

This week was the first full week we've had i...

November 23, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

This week was the first full week we've had in a while, and it felt very long. Luckily it was uneventful, and the kids did a pretty good job of listening and playing. This week we are having a stone soup lunch on Tuesday with families bringing vegetables, herbs, and spices. It should be a fun day. Thank God that there are only two working days this week, and I'm looking forward to some down time with my mom and my dad in town.

We've had a beautiful and unusual warm weather the last few weeks with highs in the mid 60's. It's been welcome, but I'm in the mood for cooler weather and I believe it is approaching us soon. The forcast says snow is on its way on Friday, and early next week. The ski areas are hoping it will come soon so they can open full time. Today is overcast with cold breezy conditions sweeping down from the mountains. A good day to relax and sit around a blazing, crackling fire.

Christmas has come early here, with decorations appearing overnight in Taos. Friday night, Niamh slept over, and we drove to Taos the next morning to find Farolitos (lunch bags with sand and a candle) gracing rooftops of hotels and banks. It's so weird to see all of these decorations up already when Thanksgiving hasn't approached yet. I'm not sure if I agree with this or it's slowly welling up inside of me and I'm looking forward to the festive season.

On the same day, I drove Niamh and Isabell to Niamh's house where they had a sleep over. It was so nice to get out and walk around Taos without being loaded down. I went to the library, walked around the plaza, and went to see Quantum of Solace (sadly, it wasn't the best James Bond film, hopefully they've learned from their mistakes, and will do better next time). I went grocery shopping, finally went home, and watched another movie. Today, I went to church, and now I'm home writing, and reading a book.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

Some times I wake up or I'm driving and find ...

November 17, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Some times I wake up or I'm driving and find myself thinking that I'm actually here...here in New Mexico. This is a dream that I thought wouldn't happen for a long time. Now that it has happened, I still can't believe how fast it all came to be. It all happened in a blink of an eye.

Though I loved Oregon and still do, my heart and soul pulled me to the huge and blue skies of New Mexico. The final straw was the awful rainy winter and spring that we experienced in Oregon. I just couldn't do that anymore, I needed release, and I needed a sign to move here. Thank goodness for Craigslist! A listing of a beautiful house in Vadito drew my attention and once I talked to Seraph the plan became reality, and I flew to NM to see the house, see family, and interview for a job. From there it was an avalache of activity; talking to Eric and Shaun, looking for jobs, and getting our house ready to put on the market. Before I knew it I was off with my mom without any job security. I had a few job leads, but no offers. In Utah, I received a call from one preschool in Los Alamos offering me a job, and waited for a second interview in Santa Fe.

Once there, we found our cute rental home, went to Santa Fe for my second interview, left for Los Alamos with out an answer from the school. I was enamored with the job, and the Los Alamos job didn't have the same spark. I told the woman in charge I was waiting for a job offer and that I would call her tomorrow. Biting fingernails, I waited, and finally Stephanie called and said that I had the job. With a breath of relief I was on my way to full filling my lifes dream.

I still can't get rid of the Pacfic Northwest. There's a direct pipeline from NM to PNW. I've met so many people who have lived in Porland, or Seattle. I meet at least one or two people a day who have connections with the PNW. When I lived in Portland, I had several friends who are from NM. One of my parents is from N. Portland, and has family that lives only a few blocks from our house. The afterschool teacher is from Seattle. I'm constantly in awe at how many brief encounters and coincidences that I've seen from the pipline.

Back to normal time. Thursday and Friday were conference days and we didn't have school. It was interesting meeting with the parents, learning about their children, and their behaviors at home. Now I know these kids secrets!

Saturday, we went to Questa to pick up my laundary from my grandma, and presented her with a rosary from Chimayo. She was so kind to do all of that laundary for me. Afterwards, we went back to Taos to go to the library, and to get our haircuts. After this, we went to Ojo Caliente where they have hot springs. This place is the only place in the world where there are four different springs; soda, arsenic, iron, and lithium. All of them reportedly have their own healing powers. It's an hour a way, so we drove over in the afternoon, and enjoyed the healing powers of these ancient springs. It feels and looks like Tuscon with it's red rocks, and pear cactus growing. We had a lot of fun, and Isabell was really the only kid there. I was worried that the adults would be offended having her there, however they loved seeing her youthful energy. After two hours, we left and had dinner at a mexican restaurant in the town. I met a woman who lived "off the grid" nearby. She lived part time here and in Los Angelos. Her name was Arianna Solare, and she is a singer who has recorded a couple of CDs. I had this feeling that I should of known her, but I had no clue who she was. She sings folk vintage music, and she gave me her website information. When I got home I looked her up and heard some of her music, and I was impressed by her. Maybe the napkin she wrote on, will be worth a fortune in the future.

At church today, I had my first taste of Thanksgiving. We had a Thanksgiving feast potluck and many people showed up for it. I stuffed myself with great food, and Isabell played with a lot of friends. I found the solution to many of the empty churches. Have potlucks every Sunday, and all of the people shall follow. Sounds like a nice solution to me! This Afternoon was lazy and little boring. We tried to rack our brains for something to do, but we couldn't come up with any grand ideas. Isabell played outside, and watched a movie, while I surfed the internet and made lasagna. I did go for a walk down the road and talked to Seraph. I miss her so much, and I can't wait for her to be down here with us.

I woke up this morning to my radio alarm goin...

November 10, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

I woke up this morning to my radio alarm going on saying that school was still on time. I jumped out of bed and what to my bewildering eyes do I see, snow. I expected in to be windy and rainy, but there was at least two inches of snow on the ground and it was still snowing. My gift to Seraph is snow.

I took a disappointed Isabell to school and headed to Taos to figure out all of the fun details for my car. I took it to the repair shop and waited for the results. A very nice older woman came in and her car was also hit, but the person "painted" her car with his. She was the friendliest person I've met in a while, and she said that she grew up in the Penasco area and her father owned a grocery store in Chamisal. When I told her that I was a preschool teacher, she laughed out loud for joy. It ended up that she was the director for headstart for 15 years at the Taos Pueblo Headstart. I told her that I might pursue a Masters in Early Childhood Education, and she told me a friend of hers got her masters on-line in a year. I gave her my name and number and she said that she would get in contact with me. I love these coincidences, especially in small towns and I also love knowing everyone. Here I worked at a really nice school in Portland, but I felt like I never saw any one around. Here I bump into people all of the time that I've met once.

The cost wasn't to bad considering the damage and said that they could fix it for me. The insurance agreed to pay it and that was a little relief. I took my time puttering around Taos; had lunch, went to the plaza, and to the library. I had an orthopedic appointment at 2:00 and what an experience. I've seen their sign before, and decided to stop by since mine are falling apart slowly. They fit me in, and asked all of these strange questions about pain. I told them all I needed to get were new prosthetics. First they took x-rays, and then finally gave me a perscription to a place in Santa Fe. All of that and I still have to go to Santa Fe! Anyway after that I went to the car rental place, and got a car and headed home to a winter wonderland!

I had a great time in Eugene this weekend

November 10, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

I had a great time in Eugene this weekend. Yayoe & I kicked up our heels at the opera, and with her Ukulele group! It was fun to once again eat the 3+ cereal concoctions of my childhood. On Sunday we had a great lunch at Mom's house. It was so much fun to catch up with everyone.
Based on all sorts of circumstances - especially Robbie's accident, I decided to speed up the moving process. I put in my 2 weeks notice at work this morning, and am working with our realtor to sell our house asap. It's simply time to start moving forward, even if the finances are more difficult.

*Before I start on how much I love New Mexico...

November 08, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

*Before I start on how much I love New Mexico, I had an accident this morning in Taos. I was stopped at a red light heading to Questa, when I got rear ended by a huge truck. I had Isabell and her friend Niamh with me, luckily there were no injuries. The driver was a young girl, and she told me to follow her to the Katchina Lodge where she worked. The left drivers side back was smashed to bits, and my hatch door does not close all of the way. I find out that the girl is underage, and has no insurance. Her father was trying to be reasonable, and said that his daughter would pay for the damages. It looks like it's going to cost a lot of money. I had to deal with the insurance company, and file a claim. Not fun, luckily Niamh's mom picked Isabell up too and now they are having a sleep over. I love NM, however, nothing is opened on a Saturday. I was looking for an auto shop, but they aren't open on the weekends. Just now I feel like I'm a thousand miles from civilization. I'll have to take Monday off, and deal with the adjuster, and get a rental car.

Back to my love affair with New Mexico. On Wednesday we woke to a fresh dusting of snow. I was so excited that I turned on the radio to see if school was canceled or not. (SORRY...ARGGGH!!I CAN'T FIND THE CORK SCREW FOR A NICE GLASS OF WINE! Phew...I found it!) Anyway, no such luck. Isabell was disappointed, and tried to convince me that I wasn't listening properly. I dropped off Isabell, and was cautious driving fearing the higher I went I would find lots of snow. But my fears were not, as I was surprised to find no snow in Truchas, which is the highest town in New Mexico at over 8000 ft. I arrived in Santa Fe without seeing any snow at all. I had a little bit of snow on my car and brought it in for the kids to see. Around 10:30 we were ready to go outside, when out of the blue, the wind kicked up and it started to snow. I was the last one out and by the time I got down to the playground, it was a winter squal. The kids were crying and scared, so we rushed back upstairs. Once inside the kids were excited, and watched the storm from the windows. I thought I would have to drive home in this, however within fifteen minutes, the storm past as fast as it arrived. It was cold and windy, but the famous New Mexican sun arrived. We went back outside, where the snow was the driest and lightest I had ever seen.

On Thursday late afternoon as I was driving home, the Truchas Peaks were lit by a beautiful mauve (aspen glow)color. It was so breathtaking, that I wanted to be in a rustic lodge with picture windows, with a roaring fire, a glass of ruby red wine, soft jazz, and with the love of my life, and enjoying the dying dusk, as the mountains disappeared into the night sky. By the time I got home, I wanted to post, but my internet was down.

Friday, I stayed late to write up assessments for our kids, and I got a late start back up the mountains. I brought my camara to recreate that scene on Thursday, however the light didn't cooperate with me, so I rushed home to pick up Isabell. When I got there, I was bombarded by Isabell and Niamh wanting a sleep over. I reluctantly agreed, rented Hairspray for the girls, and I rented The Inconvenient Truth. I've been hesitent to watch this movie, but I decided to brave it out and watch this documentary. I was saddened to see the truth, however by the time it was over, I really want to build an enviromentally green house. The move ended with hope, and only hope Obama will help reduce carbon emmissions.

I finally figuered out how to regulate the heat in the woodstove, so I was toasting warm last night. I have my red wine, crackling fire, views of the mountains, but sadly no love of my life to settle down with. (Worlds smallest violin is playing right now.)

I woke up to the news that Obama won, and it ...

November 05, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

I woke up to the news that Obama won, and it snowed last night! If we lived in Portland, we would have a two our delay or a cancelation, however here in the mountains it would have to take an avalanche to cancel school. Isabell was disappointed, but this is only the beginning.

October flew by like the leaves on the trees

November 05, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

October flew by like the leaves on the trees. We had a misadventure on Halloween, and I had one very disappointed little girl. We were suppose to go trick or treating with Isabell's friend Niemh, but Isabell didn't want to go to Dixon for Halloween. She wanted to stay nearby, but I didn't know the areas in Penasco and Vadito very well.

On Friday, I was exhausted from our own Halloween Party at school, and wanted to stay nearby. I picked Isabell from Trapeze, and went to a Halloween party at the local community center. They had a haunted house, in which Isabell was scared, and wanted to go out. Luckily it was short, and she was fine. It was fun for her to run around with friends, and I talked to several other parents. We were told that Taos plaza was very good for trick or treating, and Isabell wanted to to go desperately. It was only 6:30pm and we thought we would have plenty of time. We arrived in Taos at 6:55, and the plaza was deserted. Isabell began to cry, and I felt terrible about this. I rushed back to Vadito hoping there would be time to trick or treat, but all houses looked dark. I suggested that we'd go and see The Nightmare Before Christmas, Isabell brightened up, and we had a good time.

I was very anxious for the arrival of Seraph and my mom, and I knew they'd be here around 1:30am. I lit a candle in a plastic pumpkin, to show them the way around midnight and went to bed. At 2:45 the phone called, and was panicked to see how late it was, and envisioned a terrible accident. However, they were lost in Penasco, and couldn't find Vadito. They had been close, but thought they had gone to far and went back to Penasco. I guided them in from Penasco, and I was very happy to see them. Exhausted, they fell asleep right of way.

Saturday, we woke up early and headed to Taos for breakfast at Michaels, and headed back to the Penasco area to go and see the house in Chamisal. A contractor came out to see the house and to see if it was worth renovating it. At first glance he was little discouraging, but once inside he thought there were great possiblities and that gave us hope. Seraph was impressed by the house and the beauty of the area. We went home, and Seraph worked out possible designs, and exhaustion descended on us. We all took small naps, awoke, and made a delicious dinner.

Sunday, we all went to church where everyone was very happy to meet Seraph and my mom. They were probably happy to know that Seraph really did exist. Afterwards, we went up to Truchas to go to an art gallery. I bought Seraph a beautiful bracelet for an early birthday present. Afterwards, we drove to Dixon for their annual art and craft show. The streets were packed and we saw some exquisite art, however Isabell, who doesn't care for this was bored, and wanted to go. We took a quick trip to several galleries and went to Taos to do some grocery shopping. Once at home, we ate a small dinner and headed to bed.

Monday, we drove up to Questa for a quick visit with grandma, and headed back to Taos to see Elisabeth for Taos Lending Team, to calculate numbers for the purchase of the house. It's always above my head when it comes to these things, and I can only pray that it all works out. After our meeting, we had lunch on the plaza and hurried home to pick up Isabell from school.

Tuesday, We dropped Isabell at school, and then we all drove to Santa Fe, where I introduced Seraph and my mom to the staff at my school. They stayed for a while and headed to the plaza and the state capital to see the art inside.
They came back around 12:30 and we said a final goodbye. It was sad to say goodbye, and I can only hope that these final two months will fly bye so we can be together as a family again.

With the time change, night has approached as I drive home, and the evening sun has dipped into the horizon, leaving a fire in the sky. Low dark clouds are nearing, with a promise of snow in the air. We are expecting cold and blustery conditions tonight and we might wake to snow. We will have to wait and see.

This week seemed very long

October 26, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

This week seemed very long. We had a field trip to one of our children's home where they had pumpkins for all of the children. It was really fun to go out there, and pick pumpkins, feed chickens, and have our lunches under the portal. It was very relaxing, and I didn't really want to go back to school. Isabell was able to go with us, since she didn't have school that day, so it was nice for her to go and pick her pumpkin. After school, we tried to go to Goodwill and Salvation Army, boy, do I miss Goodwill, and St. Vinny's in Portland. These places here do not compare! It was a very busy area, with lots of congestion and I felt claustophobic with all of these cars encroaching on me. Once on the highway home, and I saw the mountians beckoning me home, I felt the tension lift from within me. I'm now decitified and I have no desire to return to that hectic life style.

By Thursday, I was tired and the kids were wired from the day before. Going on field trips in the middle of the week really throws off the schedule. I was already for the weekend, but still had two working days left. On Thursday evening was Isabell's parent-teacher conference, and I rushed to her school, and waited for twenty minutes to see her teacher. I was pleasantly surprised to see such a huge turnout for the conferences, all possible parking was full. After twenty minutes, Mrs. Esquibel told me that Isabell is great student, is getting mostly all A's, and loves having her in her class. I felt so proud and guilty at the same time. Since I'm working full time, I feel that I'm not giving Isabell my full attention, sure, I try to make sure she has all of her homework done, but I feel disconnected with her school. When I lived in Portland, I had all of the time in the world to help at school, but here I don't. Isabell is an amazing kid, and I'm so proud of her as she adjusts to life here.

On Friday, Isabell had her friend Niamh, pronounced Nieve, over for a sleep over. They are friends from trapeze class, though they go to different schools. She's a very sweet girl, and they had lots of fun. I rented a movie, made pizza, and popcorn for them. Both stated that they were going to stay up all night playing Littlest Pet Shop, and watching movies. By ten o'clock they were both out cold. In the morning, we made gingerbread, and then headed to Taos, where they went to a mask making party. They both made cat masks and gave them to me. Very sweet! We went to the library, and then I took some money out and went back to a garage sell where they both bought costumes. I was suppose to sign papers for the house in Chamisal, but no one was at the office, so we went to Walmart to buy me a costume. Then we went to go swimming, however they were closed, so we went to a children's Halloween party downtown, where they got bags of candy, played games, and had a great time. I was ready to go home, when our realtor called and said that someone would be at the office, and that I could go over and sign papers. Went back, finally signed the papers and headed home. I talked to Niamh's mom, and I suggested that she could sleep over one more night. Isabell and Niamh got along famously, and her mom agreed! We went home, had more pizza, and they played and watched more movies. Again they said they were going to play all night, but eventually they fell asleep around ten o'clock. I was so happy Isabell made friends with Niamh, since I don't know any of her other friends. Hopefully we can get together often, since they get along so well.

Today, we dropped off Niamh, went to church, and now we are resting a bit. A hike might be possible this afternoon. Will have to see.

Sad news to report from Portland - last night...

October 21, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Sad news to report from Portland - last night my old cat Ripley died. She was 14, and has been aging quickly over the last few months. She's moved with me 10 times, in 5 cities, and would always be waiting form me at the front gate when I got home. Good cats are hard to find.

It was wonderful having three days off last w...

October 19, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

It was wonderful having three days off last week, it made the week shorter, but we had a lot going on at school . We had two birthday circles; each child brings in his or her parents and we sit in a circle with a candle lit in the middle. The candle represents the sun, and the child walks around the circle with the parents and teachers narrating the childs life. It's very new age, but I think it's neat for the parents to witness the growth of their child.

On Thursday, we went on a beautiful hike up near Santa Fe Ski Basin. The Aspens were still in glory, and the weather was heavenly. We stopped at a place called Hyde State Park, and the small lodge was built during the WPA era, which happens to be my favorite period of time. The children did really well, as we set off on our hike. I had a little boy named Samka with me, who refused to walk, so I had to give him a piggy back ride. We passed several artists painting the golden aspens, and wanted to stop and see their painting, but alas that was not to be, as we kept on trooping up the path. We passed several evergreen trees decorated with aspen leaves for Christmas.

After school on Friday, I went to pick up Isabell from trapeze, and had pizza afterwards. Isabell's friend Neve from trapeze and her family ate pizza too. The kids wanted to watch The Great Debators, but I told Isabell that she wouldn't enjoy it, but insisted on watching it. We all watched the movie, with only Neve's mom and I enjoying the movie while the kids ran and danced around the theator. Luckily there was only a few other people there, and it was fun for Isabell to have someone to play with.

Our valley is in a middle of a gold rush right now. Not a monetary gold one, but a golden cottonwood tree rush that takes your breath away. The cottonwoods snake their way along the Rio Pueblo river which stretches up to the high mountain peaks. We witnessed this spectacular sight on our way to Taos, where we went for breakfast at Michaels, and then went to Questa to visit my grandma. We stayed for a while and headed back to Taos to go to the library. Afterwards we went to Prudential Real Estate, met with Dawn, where we made a bid on a small old adobe house in Chamisal! Seraph and I are realizing that buying the house in Vadito, would tie us down for a long time, and we couldn't really enjoy our lives. The house in Chamisal is very cute, very run down, but with love we could make it into our own beautiful casa. We will find out this Wednesday if our bid was accepted. The other good news, is that our house in Portland is hopefully going to be bought by some good friends of Seraph, and then we can go ahead with the buying process of the house in Chamisal.

Today, after church we went back to Santa Barbara Camp Ground to hike some more. I'm currently reading a book called Last Child in the Woods, a book I highly recommend for parents. The author directly links the absence of nature in the lives of today's wired generation to some of the most disturbing childhood trends: The rise in obesity, attention disorders, and depression. Children are being discouraged from playing outside, and are too dependant on todays technology and are losing touch with nature. I feel so lucky that Isabell loves the outdoors, and that we have this great "backyard" where we can go hiking and exploring. Parents told me about this incredible hike that we had missed last Sunday. We hiked up further, and discovered beautiful groves of leafless aspens with branches weaving themselves upto into the indigo sky. It literally took my breath away, as I laid down amongst the carpet of aspen leaves. Isabell joined me for awhile, but soon tired of this and wanted to continue. Around another bend, was another joyous spectacle of aspens. It was a Cathedral of Aspens as their towering trunks soared up to the heavens. I always said that if I were to die, I want my ashes to be spread amongst aspen trees, and I have now found my resting spot. Looking up amid these towering bare trees, one could imagine snow flurries fluttering around you as you gaped at these lofty trees. We hiked down again, and could feel the cool soft breeze as it penetrated your clothing, and you could hear the soft whistle as it whirled around you. We saw one little aspen with one yellow leaf hanging on for dear life, and it reminded me of a Peanuts cartoon that I saw a long time ago; in it Snoopy, Woodstock, and a few other birds, where holding up a blanket, waiting for the last leaf to fall off of a tree. I have searched unsuccesfully for years trying to locate this cartoon again.

We hiked down, went home for forty five minutes, and went to seet the Princess Bride. I love this movie, and Isabell who hadn't seen this movie in years, like it a lot.

We've had a pleasant cool weekend, and I have loved every minute of this beautiful weather.

"I live for autumn

October 12, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

"I live for autumn. All year long I have reveries of those cool beautiful days to come, and memories of Octobers past. It is the most alive, the most heartbreakingly real season in my bones..." quoted by John Nichols from his book The Last Beautiful Days of Autumn.

No truer statement could be said about autumn in New Mexico. We are in the middle of a glorious Indian Summer and the aspen leaves are fading into the cool fall breeze. A few trees are bare, and leaves are clinging on bravely, afraid to glide through cool autumn air. Not only are the aspens beautiful but the autumn sunlight reveals deep shadows on the rust red rocks as I drive home through Chimayo. Isolation is a word that comes to me as I drive through these hills, as shadows and light dance from rapid cloud shadows as they scuttle across the rocks. Once in the mountains, the trees sway to and fro, as leaves blow gently across my windshield.

My heart becomes full, as I take in these wonderful sights, and inside I want to become an artist. Not only a painter, sculptor, but a fly fishermen, and guitar player. New Mexico is an art form...one thrives to be an artist, and not only as a hobbiest. Driving through the mountains today, I watched a man in his fishing vestiges wade into the rushing stream, casting his rod. His motions were smooth as he swung his rod back and forth, and it was an art form.

I bought a guitar yesterday, and want deperately to play spanish music, and feel frustrated that I can't pick it up and play skillfully. I look through the beginners book and strum diligently, but far from playing beautiful notes. This too, is an art form, and hopefully one day I will be able to sit by a fire, or sit outside and play smooth music.

Today, we took a drive in "our backyard", a half an hour from our house we drove to Santa Barbara Camp Ground, and hiked through the dazzling aspens, and other fall trees. A breeze whipped around us, as we hiked along the river. We stopped here and there to look at pebbles that glistened in the water. We'd find one that looked spectacular among the rocks, and I would pluck it out, only to be disappointed. It belonged with the other rocks as they framed the beautiful pebble. I collected stray aspen leaves, and with the help of Isabell she found a red aspen leaf. It was so beautiful and looked so out of place, that it came home with us. My senses here are so acute here, that I notice small things around my feet. I found an aspen leaf with a small dew drop on it; we found a honeycomb among the grass, and spotted beautiful bluebirds hopping in and aroud the brushes and trees. I took many beautiful photos, and when I figuere out how to post them, I will share with you the beautiful images of Northern New Mexico.

Friday morning, as I came out to defrost my windows, the haunting sound of coyotes echoed throughout the valley. Though chilling, it was beautiful hearing them communicate with each other. A few times I see them trotting throughout the woods, and I have seen a pair saunter through the red rocks near Nambe. Misunderstood creatures, whom farmers hate, and enviromentalists love. I think they are exquist animals with cunning skills. In lore they are tricksters, and collaborators, and I believe they are beautiful animals who help stablize the ecosystem.

I thought I'd give a bried story of my love affair with New Mexico, instead of an everyday account of what I do each week. This is as close to poetic as I come.

Quick update on my weekend plans! I'm headin...

October 10, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Quick update on my weekend plans! I'm heading off to Lincoln city after work today. Jenny & I have a room at the same hotel as Dad, so hopefully we can meet up for dinner or breakfast. Tomorrow are the boat races, and I find my self extremely excited about it! Saturday evening Jenny & I are driving back to Eugene, and I'll be staying at Mom's house.
Sunday morning will be breakfast with Adam, Jamie, and the kidos, and Jamie & I are sneaking off to King Estate in the afternoon. Yeah!
Other exciting news is that we may have buyers for our house! My friend Michael - a former Ai professor - and his fiance are working out the financing, but want to buy our place. As happy as I am about the sale, the part that makes it even better is that they have decided to get married in November, and I have offered to have the wedding at the house! I'm nearly giddy with the thought of adding a wedding to the history of the house.

It has been a nice and relaxing weekend, and ...

October 06, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

It has been a nice and relaxing weekend, and wish it would last a bit longer. We had a great harvest festival at my school on Friday night. My Aunt Teresa was really nice and brought Isabell down from school, so she could come and join the festivities. I was hoping that Teresa and my grandma would stay, but they left right afterwards. In the evening, there was a band playing, great potluck food, and lots of families enjoying the relaxing atmosphere. Several teachers, including myself hung around, listening to the music, and watched the parents playing with their own kids. It was so nice just hanging out and not watching the kids.

Saturday, we took our time waking up, and eventually went out to the post office. I don't get to the post office until Saturdays, because it opens when I leave, and closes when I return. Waiting for us at the post office, were four packages. It felt like Christmas, as we returned home and opened them. One was from Grandma Hanni, a Kit Kittridge costume that was fantastic looking, and a few Halloween decorations; A package from Grandma Susie, with more clothes of Isabell's, and a few goodies; A book of South African animal stories from Grandma Carolyn; and finally a book I ordered from England. It was a book about New Mexico printed in 1936, but was only published in Great Britain, how crazy is that!

Once the presents were unwrapped, we went to Taos to the Library, to Michaels for breakfast, and off to Grandma's house to do laundry and catch up with the family. We stayed until 6:00 and went back to Taos to watch Beverly Hills Chihuahua. It was a very cute movie, and afterwards, Isabell talked all the way back about wanting a Chihuahua too. I really don't want one that looks like it had to much caffine, and one that I can loose under the stove. When we left, it was a down pour, and a welcome reminder of Oregon. By the time we got home, it had let up a bit, and we went to bed.

On Sunday, we went to church, and decided to go to Taos once more to buy a few things at Walmart and at Smith Groceries. When we left the house, we looked up into the top of the mountains, and there was a good dusting of snow on top of the peaks. I was so excited, and wanted to take a picture, but the clouds were moving fast and it wouldn't clear up enough for me to take one.

We walked around the plaza for a while, bought some presents for my mom and Seraph, and went home to relax. When we arrived it was hailing and very cold, and soon we started the first fire of the season. I was expecting Elisabeth from Taos Lending Team to come over to discuss finacial matters, but she called and said that her car broke down, and she couldn't make it. So I made enchiladas, watched Fools Rush In, and enjoyed the fire. Arlene called me, and told me there was a double rainbow, and I ran outside with my camara and took several pictures of this glorious sight. I'd post them, bought the pictures are really big and would take a long time to down load. I'll have to figure it out later. It was a nice relaxing evening, and now I'm ready for bed.

The house in Vadito has been the catylist for...

October 02, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

The house in Vadito has been the catylist for our move to Vadtio, NM. When we were heads over heals for the house, we thought we could make it on my salary, and what ever money Seraph would make. We now have serious thoughts about the place. Do we really want to have such high monthly payments? If they lower the price for us, we still would love to buy the house. However, I have been looking around and want to stay in the area, so Isabell still can attend Penasco Elementary School. On the other side of Penasco, is a village called Chamisal. It's a very cute town, and there is an old parish house for sale. It was builit between the late 1880's and 1900. It's only 65,000, and it's definitely a fixer upper. It has a lot of charm, with flag stone floors in the living and dining area, scroll work around the doors, and walls. The kitchen and bedroom need complete updating, and we thought it would be great to add a couple of rooms, another bathroom, and a couple of kiva fireplaces. It's on decent size lot, and there would be plenty of room to grow. It's an option that we are thinking of doing.

Today, I learned a new aspect of fall in New Mexico; the roasted smell of green and red chili. When we were on the playground at my school, someone nearby was roasting chili, and what a heavenly scent as it drifted toward us. I became ravenously hungry for chili, and have decided to buy some this weekend.

So, I tried not to cry at work yesterday as a...

September 30, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

So, I tried not to cry at work yesterday as all of our stocks nose dived, and Isa's college fund continues to dwindle. I guess it's a good thing that I never thought my generation would be able to retire in the first place. My only hope for Isa is to migrate to a country with paid higher education.

Saturday, I woke up early to clean house, and...

September 28, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Saturday, I woke up early to clean house, and make fried potatoes. It was nice to relax for a little and enjoy a nice warm breakfast. Afterwards, we went over to Eric and Shaun's to help with the gallery. While there, I overheard Shaun talking to a person on the phone about the house. I was discouraged about this news, and lost heart in being there. I tried being cheerful, but deeply troubled by this. I pray everyday that our house will sell fast.

We left for Taos around one, and felt better when I saw a mountain in full autumn glory with aspens in dazzling gold. We went to Taos Public Library, checked out books, and went to the Taos Arts and Crafts Fair. Right of way, I found Christmas gifts for dad and Carolyn. We walked around admiring all of the beautiful pieces of jewelry, paintings, sculptures, and other amazing art. Afterwards, we walked around town, and the plaza before heading home.

Sunday, we went to church finding out that one of the pastors is leaving the church to work as a hospice in Santa Fe. She was extremely nice, and will be missed by the congregation. After a brief stop at home, we left and headed up to Sipapu Ski area to hike and play frisbee golf again. On the way, I had to stop and take a picture of the mountain I spoke of. All of the aspens bursted to life, like fireworks on fourth of July. I was mesmerized by the sight, and only came to my senses with Isabell telling me she was tired of aspen trees. Once up there, a frisbee golf tournament was just wrapping up. We played ten holes with brief stops to take photos of the glorious aspens. We tired out after the tenth hole, and decided to go down by the river to play. Isabell was like a deer hoping from rock to rock and crossing the river several times. I attempted it and managed to do this with out falling in. Up stream, a family was fishing in a deep pool, and watched as they caught several trout. After they left, we went were they were fishing and looked into the slow deep moving pool. The sun reflected off the water, and I could see two or three trout gliding upstream effortlessly. It's so beautiful to watch these fish in their natural habitat. I've seen them in streams at the High Desert Museum and at the Portland Zoo, but never in nature, and found another reason why I love it here!

This evening, while Isabell watched a movie, I made a cup of tea, listened to Celtic Women, lit a candle, and I settled into a papasan chair overlooking our valley. I watched as the dark mountains slowly disappeared into the night sky as they became one.

On Friday, we had an inservice day, and Isabell sick, came with me. One of our meetings we learned about brain gym. A new concept that I've never heard before. The basic concept is to reenergize your brain and make the left and right hemispheres work together. Isabell has been learning this at school, and it is an amazing concept. We did a few simple excercises that worked to energize and relax you. I tried these tonight and it really worked. I also read The Secret a few months ago and applied that philosophy to my life. I feel relaxed and positive and hopefull life will be good this week.

Fall is definitely in the air

September 26, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Fall is definitely in the air. Cottonwoods, aspens, and other decidious trees are trimmed in yellow. In another week or two, all of the trees will be decorated in yellow, orange, and reds. Creeping brush and bushes, between the pine trees, are oranges and reds, and look like a trail of fire along the ground. I'm ready for the cooler weather to come, so I can wear sweaters.

This week is going much better, the kids are finally getting with the program. We are having fun, and are finally doing art projects with the kids. Stephanie and I are bumping heads about when to do the art work. I wanted to do this later in the morning when we had our circle time, so I could introduce the theme and art project. Stephanie prefered the morning when the kids arrive. This didn't work, because we had snack and long outside time. We tried bringing kids in to do the art work, but they rather play outside. I finally realized the only way to solve this was to do the project in the morning. I compromised, and it seems to work.

Today, it was a pretty good day, but we had seven potty accidents in a half an hour time, and that kept us on our toes. One of the parents brought us Concord grapes, and we made juice out of them. It was really good!

Isabell has been fighting a cold this past week, and I've been feeling guilty wanting to keep her home, but I've just haven't been able to take the time off. Tomorrow, I have an in-service day, and I'm going to take Isabell out of school, and she's coming to work with me. I have meetings and planning time, so Isabell will probably hang out, relax, read books, and maybe watch movies. Hopefully three days off will help her overcome her cold. Friday night we are going to watch a movie called Tortilla Heaven, a movie that was filmed around here. I can't wait to see this movie. I'd like a relaxing weekend so I can catch up on cleaning the house. I know I'll be helping at Eric and Shaun's gallery on Saturday, and we'll have a trip to Taos. Maybe Isabell and I will go on a fall hike on Sunday. We'll wait and see!

We've had a nice and relaxing weekend, and I ...

September 21, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

We've had a nice and relaxing weekend, and I feel refreshed for this week. I was so happy that this week ended. It was a tough last few days, with me thinking I was not up to the task of being a teacher. Our non-nappers were a handful, and wouldn't listen to a word I said. I was so depressed on Thursday night and Friday morning, that I really didn't want to go to work. Luckily, Friday turned out to be beautiful, and there weren't many kids either. We made playdough, had fun outside, and the kids did really well during nap time. I felt so good leaving work, that I was singing out loud and happy to go home. Monday, Stephanie, me, and the other TA's will meet after school and see if we can solve some of these problems.

Saturday, we woke up early, went to the post office, picked up my new glasses, and headed to Taos. (My nose pads on my glasses broke off, and I ordered new ones a month ago, and they finally arrived now.) In Taos, I got my tires rebalanced, since they needed it badly. Driving 65 miles an hour the car would vibrate badly. After this was done, I went to the plaza to get my lens transfered to my new glasses. While I was parking, a woman pulled out and hit my car. It wasn't bad, a little dent, and scratch, and it really wasn't anything to get excited about. The woman was really nice, and apologized perfusely. While I was writing down her information, a man that the woman knew came out to see what was wrong. He immediately tried to blame me for not parking properly, and saying anybody would hit me for the way I parked. I was about an inch inside my line. He told her that he was going to call the police, but she said not to listen to him, and that she would be leaving soon.

This is something I learned while living here. Spanish men tend to be very over protective of woman, and they feel that women can't solve problems on their own. Single woman who live in the villages are assured to have hispanic men knocking on there doors at all hours of the day.

Back to the story in hand. While she was leaving, the man chased her down to make sure she didn't want to call the police. She assured him that it was her fault and didn't need to call the police. I watched in amusement as this unfolded in front of me. Once she left, I got my glasses fixed, and headed toward the library. After a brief stay at the library, we went to our traditional breakfast stop at Michaels. After breakfast, we got our haircuts, and went to Questa to see my grandma, and to do our month load of laundry. Isabell, was able to catch up on a week worth of Disney channel, since we don't have any TV reception. We were there for most of the afternoon, and headed home.

Sunday, I helped out at Eric and Shaun's gallery. This weekend, and next is the the High Road Art tour, and many retired people take this tour every year. It was fun, hanging out, and seeing who came to look at the art. We hung out in the front yard, laying in the hammock, and throwing apples at each other. Eric and Shaun are great, and are almost like family. They love having Isabell around, and Eric had fun tossing apples at her. Shaun is funny. A Subaru Forester drove, and she joked saying, "There's no money there!" A reference, that a lot of people own Foresters around here. We stayed for a little while, walked next door to the community center where they had more art. They also had a small kitchen, where Isabell ate a hot dog, and I ate posole. Eventually we walked home, rested, and went to see ET at the theatre. We are now at home, and we are enjoying our evening.

Happy birthday Jamie!! Even though it's Talk...

September 19, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Happy birthday Jamie!! Even though it's Talk Like A Pirate Day, I hope your family sang Happy Birthday without too many "argggs..."

We're on Wednesday, and almost over the hump

September 18, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

We're on Wednesday, and almost over the hump. Thank God! Monday, was a much better day at school, as the kids were getting better at adjusting to school. After school, I went home, picked Isabell from school and went home for a little while. Arlene came with us, as we went to look at a home near by. This house four bedrooms, five baths, three fireplaces, two sunrooms, and an acre and a half. It was built in 1978, and it was decked for the 70's. It was combination of the Brady Bunch and a bad late 70's early 80's ski movie house. On one wall in the livingroom/diningroom, there was pull out A-track player, and a record player. In another part of the room, there was a wet bar, and pool table with Coors Lite Lights over the table. Upstairs, there are three bathrooms. One in the master bedroom, and two in the hallway; one is blue, and the other is pink.

The plus side, is that there are gorgeous views from the sunroom, and the river winds down below through lush vegetation. There is fireplace in the formal livingroom, one in the den, and one in the masterbedroom. With a little updating, it could be a beautiful house for entertaining. I'd keep the record and A track player, so we could get down be groovy! All family and friend will have to wear bell bottom pants, and polyester leisure suits. Of course, when Isabell went to bed, I had to watch one of those bad 80's ski movies to be in the mood.

Tuesday, I got off school a little early, picked up Isabell, and went home. Arlene is renting a trailer to an old friend named Anne. She's in her late 70's but very active. I really like her, and she has had an interesting life. Anyway, she came over to see if I can help her install a chimney to her woodstove. I had no idea how to help, but I had act manly. The pipe is a telescope type that extends, so we first tried screwing it in, but that didn't work. So she held one end, and then I pulled and twisted to make it longer. NO SICK IDEAS! Eventually, we got in on the stove and connected to the ceiling. I felt like a real country boy! I came home, and made rice in a pot, with out a rice maker, and felt like a real cook! I'm starting to be self-reliant!

Today, started out so promising. The kids were doing so well, until quiet time while the other kids napped. Any improvement on Monday went out the window. I had five kids today, who were so wild. They yelled, threw puzzle pieces, and ran around! I tried talking to them gently, and they laughed more, and kept on throwing things. I felt so inept as a teacher. Stephanie came in, and I thought she'd solve the problem in a minute. She had a time stopping the children, and it took her 20 minutes to calm them down. Eventually a game of burrito child helped out. You wrap a child in a blanket and you pretend to cook and eat them. They love it!

I came home, had a glass of wine, watched Harry Potter with Isabell, and I am preparing to go to bed, and watch another bad 80's ski movie. Sad, but true, I have a couple of these bad movies with T&A. I don't watch it for the T&A, but for the excellent skiing. I dream of skiing!

We just wrapped up a beautiful weekend

September 15, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

We just wrapped up a beautiful weekend. On Saturday morning, we drove to Penasco to help with the cleanup, and had lots of fun. There were about ten adults and kids helping out, and Isabell did a really good job of picking up trash. There was a lot of laughter, as the boys tried scaring the girls and women saying they saw a snake. One boy actually found a water snake inside a can. At first we thought he was joking, until he actually pulled out a two foot snake! I loved being out there, and enjoying the company of these people as we talked and joked around. There is one woman who workes for the catholic church, and she lead us in prayer in front of a vacant lot. She explained later on that the area was used for drug trafficking, and a man had died there. They eventually cleaned it up, tore down two trailers, and now it's vacant. I suggested that they make a park there, and they thought it was a great idea. I better be careful, because I'll end up on the committee leading the project!

I planned on going to my grandma's to visit, and do laundry, but I couldn't get a hold of her. We went to Taos anyway, and brought our recycling. Living in a small village there is no garbage or recycling pickup. There is a dump in Chamisal that I haven't gone to yet, and you have to take your recycling to Taos. It's a pain in the butt, but that's only a small sacrifice. After separating the recycling, we had breakfast at Michael's (a weekend ritual), went to the library, and headed to Taos Ski Valley for Oktoberfest. This is mom's old stomping ground, where she was a certified ski instructor. It's a beautiful drive through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, with a pristine creek winding and weaving beside the road. Once there, we had a lot of fun wandering through all the sights. Isabell got her face painted, jumped in the bouncy castle, and we took the chairlift up the mountain. Isabell was a little scared as we rode up, since this was her first ever chairlift ride, however she loved the scenery. They have a sign at the bottom that say, "Don't worry, this is only 1/30 of the ski area!) The run is called Al's Run, and it is extremely steep! Once back on level ground, Isabell made a friend with a girl her own age from Hobbs, NM. She and the girl made sandcastles, and played around in the sand. Her parents were really nice and even bought me a beer. Eventually, the festivities wound down, we said goodbye to our new friends, and headed home.

Sunday morning I woke up early, and decided to make chicken enchiladas for the potluck for our church. I didn't sign up, however I thought it would be nice gesture.
I made a big plate of enchiladas, hoping I would have extra, but my mistake, they were popular and I came home empty handed.

I planned on going to Questa to see grandma again. Grandma, Teresa, and John had gone to Albuquerque yesterday, and I made plans to see them again. We drove up, and John informed that Teresa and Grandma went to Espanola checking on my cousin Daniel. To long to explain, so I'll spare you the details. Long story short, I didn't get to do my laundry, however I did visit with my grandpa. I'm ashamed to say that this was the first visit with him since I moved here. In my defense I have to say, that he is very depressing to be around. He is alway complaining that he is dying and his body is always aching. Even Isabell doesn't feel comfortable around him, and it was nice chatting with him, but I was ready to leave.

It was actually nice coming home and resting. A luxory that I don't do much of. Isabell watched a movie, and I sat down read a book, and took a short nap. Later in the afternoon, Isabell and I took a walk, and watched the sun slowly vanish behind the mountains. As we turned around, we were greeted by the most beautiful and magical sight; The full moon slowly rising over the valley, and we were in awe as it ascended into the evening sky. We grabbed the camera, and took a few pictures. If you've done your homework, and watched the Milagro Beanfield War, you'll know what I'm talking about. I could hear music wafting through the evening air, and could almost see the old man prancing around with his accordian as he waltzed through town. You need to watch the movie! It was all so magical, and I immediately new that I made the right decision on moving here. I have been looking at other properties in the area, in case this house doesn't work out, but after tonight and seeing the moon, I just couldn't imagine us anywhere else!

This week has been long, and crazy and I can'...

September 12, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

This week has been long, and crazy and I can't wait for the weekend. Tuesday night was our Back to School Night, so I was in Santa Fe from 8:30am-8:00pm. After school, I went to see my Great Uncle Francis, I realized that he only lived a few blocks away from the school. However, he was not there, so I went to the plaza, where there is an antiquarian bookstore I wanted to visit. When I started off insearch of it, dark clouds rolled in, and it started to rain. When I reached my destination, it had already closed, and I headed back towards the plaza in a down pour without a rain coat, but I didn't mind in the least. It was a nice warm rain, and by the time I made it to the plaza I was drenched. I went under the portal of the Palace of the Governors, where the Pueblo Indians sold there jewelry. I looked around, got spoked by a loud clap of thunder, and went to have an early dinner. I ate spicy enchiladas, and a beer called Roswell Alien Ale, it was a great label with an alien and a spaceship on it. I felt relaxed as I went back to school, and had our meeting with the parents. They are a great group of relaxed parents and it should be a great year.

We stayed longer than I anticipated, and called Arlene that I wouldn't be back until 9:00pm. Luckily, I know the road well enough, so I could go a decent speed around the curving roads. I spotted a huge beautiful Elk with an enormous set of antlers on the side of the road. It spooked me a bit, realizing that these magnificent animals could wander on to the road. By the time I made it home, I was so tired, that I put Isabell to sleep and I crashed right of way.

Since I arrived late, two consequences occurred. One Isabell was not able to do her reading log, and then she lost her homework. I felt terrible that this had happened, and I wrote to her teacher. Then next day, she found the homework, and the teacher told me she could hand it in on Monday. I felt so grateful and relieved that Isabell has such a nice and understanding teacher.

I'm between two worlds living in New Mexico. More than half of me is German, and the other half is hispanic. When I'm around my community in Vadito/Penasco, or my family I feel my hispanic heritage, and I love being around them. They are so relaxed, and easy to laugh around. They are all very friendly, and as you drive slowly down my road, they all wave to you, and you feel very much part of this village. At our Back to School night, the cleaners were busy getting the classrooms ready, and they all are hispanic. They were very happy group, and joked around quite a bit. One lady that I met, greeted me warmly, and jokingly asked If I were there to help her clean the tables. I love there is easy ways, and I feel totally comfortable with them.

I need to explain something about there culture. It is a mistake to call the people hispanic. There is a proud group that could call themselves hispanic, and are a liniage from Spain, and have "true blood." But, most people have Indian blood too, so they are not true hispanics. Over time, the spanish people called themselves Hermanos (brothers) and this is where family places a big role in the Spanish culture. Family is number uno in this community, and it doesn't have to mean immediate family. They are all brothers, sisters, and cousins, and the term hermanos was shortened to manitos (little brothers.) A term that I like very much, as it applies to most communities in the mountains and valleys of Northern New Mexico.

In my other world, I have been mostly raised in an upper class anglo society. In every community that I have lived, I have never really lived in a diverse neighborhood. Living in the areas that I have, one doesn't see many hispanic, African American, Asian, or Indian families, so I never really knew these cultures very well. I wasn't really introduced to these cultures until Seraph, Isabell and I moved to North Portland. Here, in this area of Portland, it really is a melting pot of culture, and it took me a long time to feel comfortable in such an environment. In the long run, it was great for Isabell, who grew up here, went to day care, and elementary school with such a diverse population. It won't effect her, and she can live anywhere, and feels like she fits into any community. As for me, I have only taught at well to do schools, where the community is segregated from the rest. In Eugene, I worked at EEI, in South Eugene, in Portland I worked at Hillside, an influent neighborhood, and here in Santa Fe, I'm working at an expensive school. If there are children of diverse backgrounds, they are usually adopted. When I moved to New Mexico, I really wanted to change this pattern, and work with the families of the area I'm living in, but to really afford to live in Vadito, you have to have a well paying job, and they are hard to find around here. To find good paying jobs you have to travel to Santa Fe or Taos, and these schools are usually private, and don't have the cultural backgrounds. It is sad, because I would like to immerse myself in this community, and I will try to do this, by volunteering in the community. On Saturday morning, Isabell and I are going to help with her friends from school to do a trash pickup of the area. This should be fun to hang out and talk to the kids, and adults that will be participating. Ironically, we are doing this clean up for the Enchanted Circle Art Gallery show for all of the communities between Taos and Santa Fe. (Each town will participate in this clean up.) It's usually for the well to do anglo tourists who come through these areas that stop at these galleries. Here again, I'm between two worlds as I want to get to know my community and be apart of the family, however, I also want to mingle with the anglo society as they tour the galleries and spend lots money on art. (By the way, that's not going to happen.)

I love it here, and I thank God everyday for this grand opportunity to live in an area, where anglos, spanish, and Indians live, and I want to immerse myself in all of these cultures, and I want Isabell and I to enjoy these cultures and learn from them, too. When Seraph comes, she will also enjoy this, too, and we as a family will love every aspect of New Mexico.

Yeah Adam! Have fun in Canada

September 11, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Yeah Adam! Have fun in Canada. This might be one moment you wish you had taken up that Canadian citizenship (if only to avoid the passport issues).

Saturday, a strange "loco" north wind swooped...

September 09, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Saturday, a strange "loco" north wind swooped into town, leaving me on edge. Isabell and I went to Taos to go to my Uncle John's company picnic. We left early to take my car in, to get a tune up and took the public transportation into downtown Taos. We walked up to Michael's Cafe, and the wind blew through my soul, leaving me homesick for Seraph. Isabell was feeling it too, and we ate a huge cinnamon role in silence. I really wanted to talk to Seraph, but I couldn't get a hold of her, and I was feeling depressed. We left Michael's and went to a bookstore, to see if that would lift my spirits. Surpisingly, it didn't. I didn't find anything of value, but Isabell did, and then we went to the library where I picked up a few books for school. The Auto shop closed at one o'clock, and we rushed from the library to the park, hoping that my Aunt Teresa would drive me over to the shop. It was 12:35 when we arrived, but Uncle John told me that Teresa dropped him off, and that Teresa went back to Questa and would be here soon. I frantically, called the shop, and I then paid over the phone, and they left the car for me outside. My soul recovered a bit, as Teresa showed up, and we watched Isabell participate in the potato bag, three-legged, and obstacle race. They tried a water balloon toss, but the kids had more fun throwing them at each other. After that, they had two pinatas, and Isabell came out like a bandit. My cousin Cory, his girlfriend Joni, and there five month old baby came by to visit. I haven't spend much time with my cousins, and I don't feel in touch with them. They live a different life style than I do, and I have a hard time talking to them. They live a simple life, and I really don't have anything in common with them.

My cousin Cory, was talking about getting wood for the winter and how he would go up to the mountains and cut some down. Since that conversation, I've seen trucks loaded up with wood everywhere. Pinon, is a very fragrant tree, and is one of the type of woods that people burn during the winter season, and leaves a ever lasting impression. Fall is right around the corner, and I can't wait for the cooler days, and smell the aroma of burning pinon.

Later on, Teresa took me to pick up my car and we headed home. We watched a movie called The Education of Little Tree. About a boy who lives with his Grandfather and Grandmother in the Smokey Mountains during the Great Depression. Good movie, sad ending, and I felt terrible again, knowing I wanted Seraph there with me. So far, I've been doing really well, with my love and adrenaline for New Mexico and it has carried me through. Here and there I've missed Seraph, but that day, it really hit me like a brick, and I really wanted her right then.

Sunday, I woke and my soul felt much better as we went to church. Every other Sunday, they alternate churches between Penasco, and a small town called Chamisal. It's not far from here, and it's a very cute little adobe church. They are selling it, and it peaked my curiousity. Seraph and I had talked about finding a cute church and converting it into a house. In the end it was only a fantasy, and it would take a lot to convert it. On the way home, we went throught the Picuris (Pick-a-rees) pueblo, in seach of baby buffalo, but we didn't see them . It was a beautiful drive though, and we'll have to explore it again. Later on in the afternoon, we watched Babe at the the theatre, and came home and I worked on projects for work.

Today, we implemented our new schedule, and it went pretty good. We have some ironing out to do, but I believe it will work. My group of kids is very good, and they are read to do the calendar. When I left work, huge billowing clouds hung overhead, and thunder rumbled through out the city. I'm still so fascinated by these beautiful display of clouds, as they look like towering cities in the sky.

My watched stopped at worked, and I didn't have my cell phone, so I rushed home thinking I was going to be late picking up Isabell. But I had no worries, as I was on time. She had trapezee lessons at the theatre after school. I love this small community, because they do so much for the kids. It was free, so there were a lot of families. It seemed that the "white people" crawled out of the woods and joined the class. There aren't many white families in the area, since it is mostly hispanic and Native American. But some of these white families appeared, and I just stood there amazed. Next time, I'll come out of my stupor and ask where they live!

We rushed home, grabbed my homework binder, and hurried off to Taos from my class. We had a quick bite to eat, and made it to my class, only to find out that they canceled it for the term. There were not enough students. I was P.Oed for two reasons. One, I need to take the class for work, but I have six months to take the class again. Secondly, they could have called me to tell me this, but NO, I had to waste gas and drive all the way there. However, I went to Wal*Mart, bought some poster board for work, got a new battery for my watch, and an answering machine. If you ever have the need to call me, my number is: 575-587-1910. You can call me in the evenings.

There was a bonus though, we drove home to a beautiful sunset. The sunsets here appear like the ones in the Old Western movies, where the cowboy rides into the sunset. I would love to do this, but I think it would hurt! I perfer to watch them while driving and from my front porch.

I had an email from a parent from Hillside, exclaiming that my old kids missed me, and one little girl was told by her mom that I was on an airplane. Now the the little girl thinks I live in the sky! Almost the truth, my head usually is stuck in cloud 9! Yours would be too, if you lived in such a beautiful state.

More next time.

The first chaotic work week has ended! We hav...

September 06, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

The first chaotic work week has ended! We have 21 kids, but usually we have around 19 as most kids don't come the full five days. I have to say that my group of kids that I have by myself, are great. They listen, they pay attention at circle time, and do a great job. Stephanie on the other hand, who chose the children for the classrooms, has her hands full. She has a few wanderers, and criers, and she worries if I can handle my kids. I keep on reasuring her that I'm perfectly able to handle them. One of the big problems that I have noticed, was that the children arrive between 8-9:15, and we have an art project set up, and the kids are free to choose an activity. I don't like this, because when we do an art project the kids have no idea why they are doing this. I'm use to having a circle time at the beginning of the day, and explaining our theme of the week, and what the art project is going to be. Finally on Friday, I told Stephanie that we need to have more structure, and have a circle time at the beginning of the day. She readily agreed, and so I wrote out our new schedule, and hope we can implement this on Monday.

On Friday, it was a pretty good day, as two parents of criers stayed the whole day. The father suggested that the classrooms were too big, and that is why his son his having a hard time adjusting. Between you and me, this kid doesn't have chance. Even when his parents are ten feet away, he goes panic and starts screaming. Anyway, another change, is that we are going to split our groups for longer times. Since I have a smaller classroom, I'll be myself for two hours with 9 kids and Stephanie will have 13 kids with a TA. I like this better, because it will give me time with my kids and I get to know them better. I guess this is why they pay me the big bucks!

After work last night, I picked up Isabell, had pizza at the Bistro, and then watched Transformers. It was actually a packed house, with several kid running around. It's great, because it is family oriented, and they have mats for the kids to lay and play on. I had a little boy, who was a first grader, and he kept on asking me questions and declaring he was "the smartest person in the world!"

We drove home under a heavenly sky of stars. Isabell claimed that she hadn't seen so many stars in her life. I tried in vain last week to show her the stars, but she didn't want to go out and see them. Now, she was amazed!

Today, we are going to Taos, to go to my uncle Johns company picnic. It should be fun to hang out with them, and maybe wander around town.

We've had beautiful clear days here, and it actually got so cold yesterday morning that there was frost on the car windows. It almost feels like an Indian Summer. I can't wait to see the aspens, and cottonwoods in full autumn colors. With the contrast of pine and golden aspens, it should be a spectacular fall!

This week is the first week that the children...

September 04, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

This week is the first week that the children return to school. On Tuesday we had a big potluck with the parents and the kids. While it was fun to meet the families, it was chaotic to see where all the children were. There are two playgrounds at the school; upper and lower. Obviously, the kids wanted to be in both places, so teachers had to be stationed at both playgrounds. For the most part the kids seem really nice, though there are a few wanderers who roam around the classroom. We have a few kids that are on the shy side of three, a few kids who just turned three, and a few who turn four in the next month or two. We have nap time after lunch, and it's like herding cats. We have to keep walking around and laying children down; when one goes down, then next child gets up and heads for the toys. For the kids who don't sleep they go in the other room, though they really need the sleep.

Today, the children trickled in, and we had cardboard boxes out that the children painted for our parade on Friday. I had a successful circle time, however my teaching partner Stephanie had a few wanderers and had to be herded back to the circle. We also had a few..."I want my mommy!" types. They are always the boys too...damn mama's boys!

Over all, the children did relatively well, except for a few cryers, wanderers, and nonlistners. The nice thing, is that I have the drive home. For the first time since I've moved here, the weather was absolutely beautiful this afternoon. Usually when I go home, the clouds have drifted in, and we have a few thunderstorms. I've said it before, I love the drive back and forth. There's something here in New Mexico that just agrees with me. I have returned to my spiritual home, and my soul is free to live. I loved the Pacific Northwest, but my soul always felt contained, and I never felt content with life. Here, I rediscovered my smile, it's back where it belongs, and I can't be happier. I smiled, and shouted out as I drove with the windows down, and enjoyed every minute of the scenic drive. Luckily with wide open spaces, my voice doesn't carry far. Friends and relatives, you need to come out here and experience what I feel here. You'll love it!

Living in a small rural area has been a very ...

September 02, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Living in a small rural area has been a very interesting experience. Arlene, is a single woman who lives by herself, and values her privacy. She has her eccentricities, that can not be explained. When I first called her to see if I could rent from her, she explained to me that she didn't want me to tell many people where I was staying. I do understand this, because when you live in a small community, word gets around fast. Also, everyone is related to everyone else. You might have a scuffle between cousins, but when someone says anything bad about that cousin, you defend them to your death. Yesterday, we came home from watching Wizard of Oz, and a hispanic man came running down the lane, asking if Arlene was OK, I had no idea what he was talking about, because I could see Arlene talking on the phone and waving to me. Arlene came out to the gate, and had a heated conversation with this man. Obviously, something had happened to her ram, and she is one that cares very much for her animals. The man insisted if the ram was sick you should shoot it. Arlene vemenetly told him to knock that type of talk off, and told him thank you for checking on her, but to leave.
Later she came over and told me when someone comes over that I don't know to close the gate right of way and walk away. She told that her neighbors are all nice, but this man abuses alcohol and drugs, and has two faces. Nice most of the time, but damn mean when high.

Another reason why she doesn't want people to come into her property, is that she is working on the house we are staying in, and doesn't have licenses to work on the house. She's afraid that people will notify someone, and then she will be out the money. She's a great woman, but it's hard trying to tell people where I'm staying. However, most people know Arlene, and know that I'm staying here. It doesn't take much for people to know who lives where.

Another small community matter, is with our sellers Eric and Shaun. They don't want anyone knowing that they are selling their house and property. So I have to be extra careful when I say we are looking at property around Vadito. They haven't said anything to his brother and sister-in-law about selling the property. They were at the art show, and luckily I mentioned that we were looking for property and didn't mention Eric and Shaun's house. I was taken back, when they said that if Eric and Shaun's place went up for sale, they'd like to buy it. It seemed strange that they didn't mention this to family. I do understand that they probably don't want to get overly excited by the prospect that they we might buy it, and then be greatly disappointed if it falls through.

Ssshhh...don't tell anyone, but we are ghosts living in a heavenly place.

The other day, I saw a house for sale on craigslist about eight miles north of Espanola. It sounded like a beautiful homee, and I became intrigued with it. I emailed the guy who owned it, and setup an appointment to see it today. We left at 9:35 thinking I'd make it on time to see it at 10:00. Isabell was in the back listening to Johnny Cash. (We saw the movie Walk the Line the other night, and now she is hooked on him, and the song Jackson.) I keep on forgetting about the manana miles, and it was already ten when I turned South from Dixon. I still had 15 miles to get there. I tried using my cell phone, but there was no service. Finally, I was able to call, and told the owner that I was running late, but he said it was no problem. We drove through San Juan Pueblo, (a very cute town), crossed the Rio Grande River, turned right after the bridge, and drove up to a beautiful house. The main house is over 100 years old, and contained two rooms. The house is L-shaped, with one room added to the short L side, and then they added a livingroom, another bedroom and bathroom to the long L. A portal (Front covered porch ran along the front of the house. It had beautiful scenery looking over a long green field, and a spectacular view of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. It was definitely a handsome house, and was torn between this and the Vadito house. Both have their own charm. We left for Espanola, and I talked to Seraph about the house. I can always tell from her voice when she is not excited about something. When I told her that I looked at another house, I could tell by her flat unenthusiastic voice that she wasn't impressed. Number one, it is to far from Isabell's school. We love her school, and don't want to take her away from it. Secondly, we love the community of Vadito. Everyone is so nice, and they try so hard to keep it a safe community where neighbors keep an eye on each other.

After this, we went to the Super Wal*Mart, and went grocery shopping. I hate going into a place that I'm not familiar with. I had a small grocery shopping list, but it took me an hour an half to find all of the groceries. Never again will I go there again. On the way home, I realized that Vadito was our home. I love driving up into the mountains and seeing miles and miles of forested valleys, mountains, and little oasis of meadows, where giant cottonwoods wade by small creeks. I love how the sky reaches down and touches the mountains.

When we got back, we went on our frisbee golf adventure and what an adventure we went on. The course is on Sipapu ski area, and it didn't dawn on me what the course would be like. I bought two disks, one for "driving", and the other for "putting", got a map and headed for our first frisbee golf experience. I'm usually pretty good at picking up new sports, and thought this shouldn't be too hard. How hard is it to throw a frisbee? Just like golf, they have Pro, Advanced, and Recreational tee off boxes. Most of the holes are parr three. (You have to make it in the basket in threes shots.) The first hole goes straight up the mountain. Just like when I tee off in golf, I have a natural slice and it doesn't go very far. Eventually after six throws we made it to the basket, where we "putt" the frisbee in. Though I was disappointed I didn't fair well, we had lots of fun. The second hole, was down hill and down to the right. At first, we couldn't find the hole, I didn't think it would be that far away. I consulted the map, but it didn't make any sense and decided to ask the woman at the shop where the basket was, and she said it should be there. We went out, and realized it was further than I thought. After another six shots, I finally realized this was harder than I thought, and we seeked out the recreational tee box. The third hole was across the stream, and far away. We cheated a bit, got closer, and tossed it over the stream. This is only a brief discription of what occurred, I won't go over every hole detail, but it was more mountain climbing then throwing a frisbee. On one hole, my natural slice ended down the side of a hill, where I slipped and slid down a slick muddy hill, almost lost the frisbee, and managed to make it to the hole in eight shots. We climbed up the mountain, down the mountain, and across the mountain. two and half hours later, and twenty holes, we finally made it down the mountain! It was a lot of fun, but what a work out. Besides the hiking and searching for frisbees, the scenery is spectacular up here; huge stands of pine trees, intermixed with tall gracefull Quaking Aspens, and a new favorite of mine the Blue Spruce. I've never seen huge stands of them before, and I was in awe at the blue hue of them. My mom loves these trees, and has one planted in her yard, but they are breathtakingly beautiful to see them in the wild. This was the first time in a long time, that I had such fun with Isabell, and not worrying about anything.

We came home, made dinner, and ate outside, watching the clouds race by. I had a glass of red wine, and watched as the birds fluttered from fence post to tree. I bought a hummingbird feeder today, in hopes of attracting them to the house. I was astounded to see so many hummingbirds i

Even when I could read this site at work, I c...

August 31, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Even when I could read this site at work, I could never watch any of the You Tube links (another blocked site at work). Just now I was able to watch Adam's Lute Hero video. I nearly laughed my ass off in this little coffee shop. Adam - you have to send me your clothing sizes, so I can start working on the complete Steampunk look! Thanks for the morning chuckle!!

I live in two worlds, two worlds that often c...

August 31, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

I live in two worlds, two worlds that often collide within one another. Living in New Mexico one can experience both of these worlds. Here you have poverty and wealth, living right next to each other. In Vadito, their are neighbors who have to work very hard everyday to make a living, but down the road, there is a brand new beautiful house, going for $425,000, that some well to do family will buy. It is evident in that Vadito, like any other village in the Sangre de Cristo mountains, it is a different world than Santa Fe/Taos. These villages compromise 65% hispanic, 35% Native American, and 5% white. On any given day, you can go into Santa Fe and Taos and see hispanic and Native culture, but there is a more pronounced white influence. An example of this, is when I went to see my relatives in Questa. No, they aren't poor by any means. The live comfortably, but it's definitely not the life style I would prefer. However I do enjoy their relaxed life style and sitting around and talking. After spending the afternoon with them, we were invited to a friends art gallery opening. Five of Taos top art talent were exhibiting their art; so there were many well to do people attending the opening. Isabell and I explored the art, and the people who attended. I found it more interesting watching these people as they were as flamboyant as the art; young hip couples, older influential couples, and nouveau young single people eyeing the art. I casually glanced over the price guide to the art, and stared in disbelief at some of the outrageous prices: $45,000 for an oil portrait of a woman with tatooes. (Not in my life would I hang this picture in my house.) This is an area that I can thrive in too. I love being in this atmosphere, and I can feel the money in the air. If there was only a way I can tap into this wealth, like one tapping for syrup in a maple tree. I drank smooth red wine, snacked on goat cheese, crackers, and strawberries, and mingled with the people. What can I say, I love this type of environment.

I have also lived both life styles, too. I grew up living the wealthy life style, traveling to Germany, Mexico, and South America. Staying in nice hotels, and eating out at five star restaurants. Traveling with my dad, is like living on Fantasy Island, and you never want to go back. I've also lived the life of eating macaroni and cheese in every creative way possible.
Either way, I can be happy. I've had wonderful times with Seraph eating noodles, watching tv, and enjoying each other. I can also be happy living the high life, and schmoozing with the wealthy. I don't need a million dollars to live this life, but a life where one can live modestly, and have friends come over for dinner parties, and enjoy delicious wines, would be very comforting.

This life continued, as Isabell and I left to go home and a beautiful sunet illuminated the darkening sky. Here in New Mexico a sunset can't be described in one word. They are breathtaking, gorgeous, awe inspiring, etc. These sunsets reminded me of nights in Mexico watching the sun vanish behind the Pacific. The difference being that the sun vanished behind waves of mountains. A life worth living.

Once in Vadito, Isabell wanted to watch a movie, and I tried in vain to get Isabell to come out and see the spectacular night show outside. The stars were in full glory tonight, and one could see the Milky Way! The Milky Way! I can't remember the last time I saw the Milky Way. Now I know why I moved out here! The only other way to see the stars like this, is to a planetarium. Here I feel alive watching the stars. Feeling small is not a horrible thing, it makes all the big worries seem so small. When I lived in Ashland, I would drive up to the top of Mt. Ashland in the night, sit there while I viewed the city lights, and realize that my problems were minisculed compared to others. Life would go on, and everything was going to be okay. That's how I feel here; the sky is huge, the mountains are beautiful, and all I can do is smile and enjoy my new found life.

Quick note from Portland! I'm a bit out of t...

August 30, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Quick note from Portland! I'm a bit out of touch, as FM has classified this site as a gaming site, and it's now blocked from our network. Sigh... big brother is watching. Anyways, not having a computer at home, I am now at an internet cafe nearby catching up on Robbie's posts. It's starting to get far too quiet here, and I go between lathargic, and high speed house work. During the slow times I've been doing small projects like sorting the CD collection and organizing financial records. Durning peak times I'm pressure washing, sanding, and painting! The house will be officially on the market in a few weeks, and I hope you're all ready for me to be down on weekends! I've told my realtor I can be out whenever she needs me to be.
Love to all!

When I awake in the morning, the sky is a bri...

August 30, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

When I awake in the morning, the sky is a brilliant royal blue, and I enjoy watching the sunrise, as it washes the mountain in bright sunlight. Though, it's a long drive, I love driving in silence, and thanking God for this opportunity to live in such a beautiful place. By the late afternoon, dark clouds have formed over the mountains, and lightning and thunder illuminate the skies. Over certain areas, long dark finger like rain can be seen over the hills, while long beams of sunlight stretch from the clouds down to the hills. From Santa Fe towards Truchas, the hills are light rust red, with stunted junipers, and they are contrasted beautifully by the dark clouds that have formed behind it.

For the most part, I was able to finish my room, while others still had a lot to finish up by Tuesday, the first day of school. I was late picking up Isabell on Friday, so we went to the bistro, and ate really good pizza. Afterwards, we decided to watch Walk the Line, about Johnny Cash. Even Isabell thought it was a good movie. I forgot my cell phone at home, and I was worried that someone would try to call, and I wanted to go home before the movie to get it, but Isabell didn't want to go, so I chanced it, and enjoyed the movie. When we left the movie, a thunderstorm had settled over Penasco, and a gentle rain fell over the land. It was quite a show watching the lightning appear over the mountains. They were not contained in a certain area, but flashed everywhere.

Today, we are planning to go to Questa and see my grandma, and my uncle and aunt, and do some clothes washing. We'll head back to Taos, go to the library and hopefully get our library cards. I need to do some grocery shopping, and then we were invited to Shaun and Eric's (owners of the house we want to buy)for an art opening. Shaun said that Eric's nephews are in town, and Isabell might like playing with them.

I have two days off, and on Sunday we will go to church, and then watch Babe at the theater. On Monday, I hope to go up to Sipapu Ski area, where they have free frisbee golf. I've never played before, and I thought it would be fun for Isabell and I to play. It's suppose to be a championship frisbee golf course, so this might be very special.

Since I stayed up until 11:45pm and woke up a...

August 28, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Since I stayed up until 11:45pm and woke up at 6:15, I was especially tired. I woke up Isabell, got her ready for the bus, and followed her out on my way to Santa Fe. I arrived at 9:00, and proceeded to empty out a room that I am going to use as the class library. Someone had donated hundreds of elementary age books, so there were 10 heavy boxes of books. Reminded me of all of the books that are in storage. The room was quite dusty, and that really effected me. I did manage to find a whole collection of American Girl books, that were not in use, and liberated them for Isabell. Anyway, I managed to get rid of the books, and set up my room, though I didn't have a lot to set up on my shelves. Every summer, they have to empty the rooms, because they share the space with 200 elementary age children and at end of the summer they have to rearrange all of the classes. So the supplies are scattered everywhere, and I had to search for these supplies.

By the end of the day, my head started to pound from lack of sleep and all of the dust I stirred up. I left work and the sides of the my head felt like it was in vise grip, and it took all of my concentration to get back to Penasco to pick Isabell up at Boys and Girls Club. Only Devine Intervention guided me safely over the mountains and curves. I picked up Isabell, went home, and went to sleep for a hour and a half. Isabell was so so good to me, and felt bad leaving her on her own. She woke me up around 6:30, and I wobbled to the kitchen and stuck a pizza in the oven, and watched Millions on the bed until Isabell's bed time. My headache subsided gradually, and went to bed at 10:30.

The next day, I woke up at 6:30, washed dishes, and tried waking Isabell up at 6:55, but she was dead to the world. I finished cleaning the kitchen, waved the bus driver on, and had breakfast. Finally at 7:35, I woke Isabell up, and made her rush around the house to get dressed, and have a bite to eat. She was a little late for school, so I went in with her, and got an excused tardy slip and walked her to class. I was about ten minutes late for work, but no one noticed, and I started filling my shelves with art supplies, and chatting with my co-workers. It's a great group of women, as usual I'm the only male, which I don't mind. One, I'm use to this, and second, I don't mind!

I met Dee, the owner of the school, who also runs the after school program. A nice lady from Texas, who has her own rules for the after school children. There are several of our children who are in the after school program, so we had to go over the rules. It's funny, because Stephanie my supervisor has different ideas then I am use to. She lets the children play with sticks, and use them as weapons. I totally don't agree with this, but it's one of those new fangled ideas that children need to learn how to play with them appropriately. Which is a good idea, but all I can hear in my mind is, "You'll shoot your eye out, kid!" They also let the children wrestle, supervised. The rules are, that they have to stop when they say stop and not to rough. It's whole new philosophy. Dee, is a very conservative person, and I tend to agree with her on these type of rules. But since we are our own separate school from hers, we can decide what is best for our children.

After our meeting, I decorated one corner of my wall with a large tree, owl and squirrel. I left work around 3:30, and it began to rain. By the time I arrived in Penasco, the sun was out, with the only evidence that it rained earlier here were small puddles of water.

The one exciting thing that happened tonight was that Arlene's cat came in our house. She's big, fluffy, and calico colored, and she came running into our house. I forgot about her, and right after Isabell fell a sleep the fireworks began. Skippy spotted Arlene's cat, hissed and pounced on her. A huge raucaus from both cats occured, and I tried to head them off by going around to the other side, and trying to catch the cat. When I approched it, it hissed at me, and right then Skippy bolted for her, and it came racing out through the living room. (Since this is a one room house, Isabell sleeps in the living room on a bed.) Both were hissing and growling, and they both could of woken up the dead. I was afraid Isabell would wake up, but I was shocked when I looked over and saw that she was tight asleep. I have no idea how she slept through the whole thing. Again I tried to help the cat get out of the house, however she was traumatized, and started hissing and pawing at me. I tried throwing a rug on her and grabbing her, but she didn't like this and raced by onto the breakfast nook and onto the window sill. I tried throwing the rug on her once again, but everytime I did this, she jumped up in the air and ran to the otherside. I was getting anxious and scared that this cat would turn psycho on me and turn Cujo on me (Stephen King book). I grabbed the cat carrier and tried coaxing the cat into it with out success. If Arlene looked out her window, she would have seen me in my underwear chasing a cat with a wooden spoon trying to get her into the cage. Eventually, I opened both doors to the outside, and the damn cat finally took the hint and bolted outside. Good ridance! Finally I get some sleep!

O

Robbie; I need to point out the obvious obser...

August 27, 2008 by Jamie in Cortez

Robbie; I need to point out the obvious observation that geeze, dude, you apparently NEEDED to move to New Mexico. I am almost convinced that I need to move there myself!!!! Save a guest room for me, I feel a soul searching coming on ;-)

If you want to know more about my life in New...

August 26, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

If you want to know more about my life in New Mexico, I recommend that you either read or watch the movie The Milagaro Beanfield War. An Introduction to the hispanic life, and its beauty. Another book I recommend is called, The River of Traps, by William DeBuys, that describes the area around here. The story takes place only about 20 miles away. He also has a book called Enchantment and Exploitation: The Life and Hard Times of a New Mexico Mountain Range. A great book that tells the history and environment of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. You can find all of these and more at your local libary.

Living in the mountains, has many advantages, but there are few disadvantages that have developed. Number uno is that cell phone reception is a nuisance. Since the adobe walls are three feet thick, there is NO reception what so ever. The cell phone keeps searching for service, and eventually you loose phone power. Outside, I walk up and down the fields searching for bars. I hold it North, East, South, and West as if I'm praying to the gods, but no luck. One day, I went to the post office on the main road, stopped on the side of the road and finally called Seraph. I thought this was ridiculous that I had to go to the main road and call anyone. Another day, I stepped outside the gates on to the road near our house, pulled out the cell phone, proceeded to my cell phone ritual, and miracles of miracles, I found service. I had to stand in one spot in the middle of the road to receive it. The spot is know known as the sacred milagro spot. To make things weirder, is that I have better reception in the morning than in the evening. I constantly have to walk around a bit, and say, "Can you hear me Now!"

On Tuessday, Isabell proudly went on the bus, and she headed for her second day of school. Seraph packed up her bags and we went to Taos, and explored the plaza. (Most of these towns such as Taos and Santa Fe, have these square plazas, that use to be the original forts. Santa Fe's plaza contains the Palace of Governors, which is four hundred years old.) We explored all of the little shops and entered narrow little pathways that led to other boutiques. We ate at nice little restaurant, outside and listened to the touristas as they rambled by. This is a little self-centered, but my senior year in high school, we lived in Sunriver. My friends and I use to sit around and spot all of the tourists. It felt great knowing they were visiting and we actually lived there. The same feeling came back as we sat there eating, knowing I'm not the tourist anymore. I live in this great state, that everyone is visiting. Sorry, hate to brag! Anyways, after a delicious lunch, we strolled around, and said our last goodbyes, as Seraph headed back to Denver to fly out. It was terrible to see her go as she will be in Portland for four more months. I know she'll be back in September or October, but she won't be there when I need a pep talk, or to share sunsets, or to enjoy Isabell as we go hiking or go to the markets.

Arlene's parents are here visiting for the week, and they are quite a kick. Boni and Carmen, her parents are in there mid 80's and are still very active. He had a stroke not to long ago, but he still helps Arlene around the house. They are so warm and generous. Seraph and I met them on Monday morning. I had forgotten that they were here, and I wanted Seraph to meet Arlene, we went over and this small hispanic man welcomed us in to her house. It finally connected that he was Arlene's father. It was kind of weird walking in and talking to them, but they were so friendly that we didn't dare refuse. Carmen came out and offered us coffee, and raisin bread. Seraph and I looked at each other, and smiled. We accepted graciously and talked to them for a while. Arlene finally had a break and slept in. Over the week, I helped Boni weed the garden. I'm use to my little electric weeder, that buzzes merrily around the yard. Arlene had the big manly man gas powered weeder. A Tim Allen special power tool. MORE POWER!! She bought a new one, and I felt like a city kid with this big powerful tool. She showed me how to use it, and I was ready, decked with goggles, and pads to protect my city jeans, and shoes. I took it out reved the engine, and suddenly it died on me. I tried pulling the chord several times and it didn't turn over. I thought I ruined it, but Arlene came out and tried it herself, and she couldn't do it either. I felt better. She took out the manuel, and she thought is was the carborator. I shook my head not knowing what she was talking about and agreed. While she called the shop where she bought it, I flipped through the manuel and saw an illustration of the carborator. I took out a screw driver, and turned the screws like it said in the manuel. Tried it again and it started but died. It also said to check the spark plug, so I took it, cleaned it, replaced it, and it started right up! I was so proud of myself, I felt like a manly man!

Arlene's garden is not a regular size garden, it's thirty feet, by 10 feet. Boni started on one side and I on the other. I started and I thought I did a lot, until we sat down for a delicious lunch of tortilla, beans, and chile. I looked at where I weeded, and saw a ten foot clearing. I sighed in disgust. Everyone took a break, so Isabell and I went bike riding, and rested. I thought I was done for the day, but there was Boni weeding again. This man has more energy then the energizer bunny. I couldn't let him make me look bad, so I had to go out there and weed some more. Two days later, I finally finished the garden.

The beautiful thing about this area, is that you wake up to beautiful blue skies, and by the afternoon, dark clouds come in and you'll have awe inspiring thunderstorms. From under the porch, we sit and watch them slowly cross the sky. Absolutely beautiful! Here the clouds aren't flat gray like in Oregon. Here the clouds billow out in different shades of whites and grays. Huge clouds that looks like fortress surround us, making us feel so small. All of Northern New Mexico has different micro climates. It could cloudy, windy, and rainy in Taos, but in Vadito it's partly cloudy and sunny. WHere in Oregon, you can drive from Portland to Eugene and never seen the sun. I can know understand artists when they say the love the light in New Mexico.

Since we don't have dishwasher, I tend to fill up the sink with soapy water, and place the dishes in there to soak. In the evening I started to clean the dishes in the sink and put them in the dish rack, when I grabbed something wet and soft. I shrieked, dropped the thing, and look down at it again. It was a mouse that obviously had fell into the sink, after the cats chased it around. Half of me was disgusted, and the other felt sorry for it. I used a cup, swoopt it up and threw it outside. Now I see why Arlene was encouraging when she said it was great to bring our cats the mousers. I don't know if I'm aware now, but I swear I hear the little padder of feet scurrying through the night. The cats are always playing at night, so I'm not sure if they are chasing mice, or chasing each other.

On Saturday, Isabell and I drove down to Santa Fe for the annual Indian Market. Hundreds of vendors, were selling jewelry, pottery, statues, and paintings. Thousands of people strolled through the booths, buying or viewing the art. I love watching the different people; you can spot the obvious sunburnt tourist, and you can see the wealthy Santa Fean people with their turquoise jewelry, and urban cowboy wear. I want to be just like them! I love the older women here, as they were broom skirts, blouses, turquoise jewelry and their hair tied in a bow. No need to worry, Seraph knows my obsession with older women. We wondered up and down the booths, with Isabell wanting to buy a bow and arrow. I dragged her around looking at turquoise rings. Finally found one, that wasn't to expensive, bought it,and a

I had to go back and edit some of the stories...

August 24, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

I had to go back and edit some of the stories, because I forgot to some stories about the cats.

When you move to a sparsely populated state, you find out that people not relatives of yours, or they are your relatives. When I was checking into the hotel in Chama, I started talking to the woman at the front desk. I was telling her that my last name was Cortez, and I had relatives in Questa/Cerro. She mentioned that she new a woman in Cerro by the last name, and she had blond hair, and freckles. It didn't ring a bell until she said that her name was Ella. It struck a chord, I told her that she was my great aunt of my grandpa's side. Small World!

One on the road, I was so happy to that we didn't try driving in the dark to Taos. The road was curvy going over the backside of the mountains. It was truly beautiful with evergreens, aspens trees, and open meadows, with little streams winding in and out. But my poor car struggled through the curves. Once on the otherside, made good time, and finally crossed the Rio Grande Bridge. It was looked so impressive in movies, but was disappointed when I finally crossed it. It wasn't as long as I thought. The sheer depth of the Gorge was impressive, but that was all.

We finally reached Taos around noon, had a great breakfast and my favorite Restaurant called Michaels. The first lesson for you non southwesterners, is that there is chile and there is CHILE. They usually ask you if you want red or green, they have both styles of chile, and both are great. Green chile is a little milder then the red, and both taste great going down. Later you'll be reminded why you don't eat to much of it. When you choose both, its called Christmas style.

After engulfing two breakfast enchiladas, we went to Walmart, gathered all essentials, and went to Vadito, which is thirty minutes southeast of Taos. My next adventure started when I couldn't find Arlene's place down a narrow dusty paved road. I went by it once, had found myself stuck trying to turn the trailer. Once again, my mom was out yelling for me to turn the wheel the other way. By this time all of the two hundred residence of Vadito knew we were here. Finally I got it back on track and proceeded to miss it again, I tried calling Arlene, but she was not there. I tried again, and missed it, and was stuck again. This time I had a hell of time turning it around, as the neighbors watched and rolled on the ground laughing. By this time my mom telling me she was ready to have a heart attack. Finally I motioned to the neighbors and they let me go through their yard and turn around. After I swallowed my humiliation, I finally found Arlene's house. She told me I needed to back in, and in turn, I hopped out and Arlene backed it in for me. The house is very cute and it was built in the 1830's, where it was once a saloon and dancehall. The most interesting aspect, is that Billy the Kid use to dance here. Isabell and I were very excited about this history. I let her watch Young Guns, before we knew this, and she thought that was very cool. They history around here is quite interesting. A group called the Penitente, religious group from the 16th century, taught and preached to the local people. They didn't have any formal training, since many of church clergy were driven out by the Pueblo Revolt of the 17th century. Without the priests, the Penitentes kept alive the yearly cycle of feasts and festivals with improvised observances of their own, many of which featured flagellation and other physical penances. The Catholic church didn't recognize this group for many years, and it was one of the reasons why New Mexico didn't become state until the 20 century. Now, they are recognized, and have gone away from many of their old traditions. Their churches are called Moradas. They are still around, the Brotherhood (not the Penitente anymore. They are still affluent in their villages, helping people in need.
On the hill behind Vadito there is a cross that has been there since the 17th century. Of course over the years, it has been replaced with a new one.

I went outside and enjoyed the tranquil setting. Arlene's fields extend down to the cottonwood lined Embudo River. There is an old stag tree that has been there for four hundred years. The tree is inhabited by an owl, which I haven't seen yet, but hope I will. She has sheep, llama's and four dogs, that Isabell loves to play with. One of the sheep is named Toots, whom Arlene rescued from a frozen ditch. She brought him home, dethawed him, and raised the sheep in her house. Now he is accustomed to the dogs and thinks he is one of them. We have our own compost...Toots. Mountains, and fields surround me, and I can't help but think this was the right move.

Once unpacked, my mom and I drove to Santa Fe for second interview with the preschool I've been wanting to work for. I was hoping to get an answer for them that day, because I was offered a preschool job in Los Alamos. (The next day, I was offered the job in Santa Fe, and I was thrilled.) The job is an hour away, but the pay is great.

On Friday, I took my mom to the airport in Denver. Here I moved from the rain, only to drive all the way to Denver in pouring rain. I haven't seen rain that much in years., even in Oregon. I thought we had all of the time in the world, but like I said before a mile in Oregon is a Manana mile here. Through the pouring rain, I raced to get my mom on the plane. When we got to the south of Denver, there were toll roads to the airport. I had to stop three times, to pay, but it was much faster then taking the normal rout. The airport in Denver is thirty two miles away, and I didn't think I'm make it, but we did make it at the last minute. We arrived at 8:55, and mom made it on at 9:27. Whew!

I stayed the night since Seraph and Isabell arrived the next day. Again it was pouring, and I thought this was ridiculous. They arrived safely, and I welcomed them to Portland...I mean Denver. Couldn't tell the difference with all of the rain. Luckily they got their luggage, because it started to lightning, and they canceled luggage service until it stopped. We got a quick bite to eat and headed out in the down pour. Seraph's back was aching, so we stopped here and there for rest. I looked at the map and saw a shorter way to Vadito, I thought. Again Manana miles came into play. We drove into Raton, and kept driving down. I was planning to cut through the mountains, take a scenic drive, but the weather played havoic. We stopped got gas, and was informed that the direction I wanted to go was very stormy with hail and sleet. We went south to Las Vegas, NM not Nevada and stopped for dinner. To make this story short, by the time we made it home, we had been driving for 9 hours. It took my mom and I 4 plus hours to Denver. My short cut was a long cut!

The next morning Seraph awoke to a beautiful blue sky, and Isabell was introduced to the country. We went up to Questa to visit my grandma, and my aunt Teresa and my uncle John. John took Isabell on a ride to his four-wheeler, and Isabell had a huge smile across her face. I think she'll be okay out here. A freak hail storm arrived and drove us inside.

On Monday, we drove Isabell to school worrying how she would do. We walked her to her class, and met her new teacher. A very sweet woman, and Isabell seemed to be fine. We left with heavy hearts, and drove to Taos, bought some more necessities at Wal*mart, went to the college to register for my 45 hour credited class for my Early Childhood certificate. Then we went and met with the Center for Performing Arts for Seraph, to see if there were any job opportunities. We were informed that it would only be for volunteer jobs, but were told to check out Santa Fe's TV & movie headquarters. We will do that next time Seraph is in town. We came back had lunch, and delivered shoes for Isabell for PE. Watched Milagro Beanfield, and then we went and picked up Isabell. Are worr

Back on the road again, we carefully dragged ...

August 23, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Back on the road again, we carefully dragged the cat carrie back to the car, headed south and we saw the most awe inspiring scenery. It wasn't beautiful as it was wide open country, with little vegetation, and mountains on either side far in the distance. It leaves a lasting impression, and makes one ponder how big the United States really is. My mom and I both love Geology, and we both appreciated it, and discussed how all of this was formed. Which means we need to find a book on how this was formed.

Before Isabell was born, Seraph and I went camping through the Steen Mountains, Arches National Park, and Zion National Park. It was trip that we will alway cherish, as it was absolutely spectacular. Seeing these beautiful red rocks that were sculpted by wind and water was an amazing sight. It was also special, because we hiked The Narrows in Zion. We hiked through a stream between these towering red cliffs, where I was recently diagnosed with CMT (A degenerative muscle disease in my feet) which means I don't have upward movement with my feet. To be able to walk through the water and hike was an incredible accomplishment.

Anyway, my mom and I drove through Arches National Park, and I got gas near the campground that Seraph and I stayed. In the far distance you could see some of the arches. If we had time, I would have loved to seen them again. We drove on to Moab, stopped for some food, and headed off. I noticed that the temperature gauge was heating up, so I decided to turn around and go to the nearest oil change place. While we waited, my mom took the cats out, since it was really hot there. He informed me that my temperature guage was malfunctioning and that I could by the part cheaply at Chuck's automotive store. I went there bought the part, and was informed that there was a Auto Shop around the corner. We went there to see if we could get it done fast. The man was really nice, but said he couldn't get it done for a while, and said there was another place down the road that might be able to help me. In an hour we were off again, thanks to a nice family owned business that helped me out, and it didn't cost to much. Again we had to take the cats out so we wouldn't have any fried pussy cats.

Our next stop was in Monticello, UT where I stopped for gas. It happened before, where I had to get my American Express card cleared for security reasons. I understand that when you are spending money all over the country, the company wants to make sure that some one hasn't stolen your card. This time, they said that I couldn't use my card. They feared that I might dash into the Canyonlands and disappear with my mom, cats and a hot American Express card. I called the company, was informed that Seraph had to call them. I promptly called my dear Seraph, and she straightened up the situation, and I was off again.

We crossed into Southern Colorado, went through Cortez and thought we would make it Taos the same day. I believe that when you make to the Southwest, the mile hear becomes a manana mile. It takes for ever to get anywhere out here. We drove and drove, and didn't seem to make it any further. I called my landlord Arlene, and told her we'd make it around 8:00pm. Finally we made it to Chama, NM. I thought it would be a hop, skip and a jump, but found out I was wrong. It was 7:00pm and there was no way that we were going to make it, since we still had two more hours to Taos. I called Arlene, said we'd make it tomorrow, got a room, went out to eat, failed miserably at turning the trailer around, had a wonderful dinner, and went to bed.

We move forward to 8/10/08 and it's time for ...

August 23, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

We move forward to 8/10/08 and it's time for our big move. For most of the weekend, Seraph and I pack up boxes, dividing the ones she needs and the one I'll need down in New Mexico. We keep joking that this looks like we are separating and we have divide our belongings.

On Sunday, our adventure starts by my mom, Isabell, and I going to pick up the U-haul trailer. Everything was just fine, the guy hooked us up and off to home we go, but a mile down the road the trailer hitch pulls out of the its socket, leaving only the chains to hold to the car. I looked in my review mirror and the trailer is weaving in and out, and luckily I pulled over, only to see it coming closer to the car. I was freaking out, my mom was freaking out and Isabell was freaking out. Thank God, there was no damage. Once I got my senses back in order, I put the hitch back in, and drove straight back to U-haul with Isabell crying that she wants mom to pick her up. When we got there, the guy obviously did not put the hitch together right, which he apologized and assured us that it would be alright. My eyes were glued to the review mirror all the way home.

Before I go on, I should explain that my mom have a great relationship, but when we are both hysterical, we are total wrecks, and easily get on each others nerves.

Starting again; if you have ever driven with a trailer, you'll know what I've gone through. I drive it home and I try to park along the right side of the road, and I can't for the life of me go in reverse and park the trailer, without hitting the sidewalk. My mom is yelling at me to turn the wheel the other way, which I am by the way, and I can't. By this time I told my, very nicely, to get out of the car. I tried again, gave up, and parked on the other side of the stree. My stress level is up, we have a painter friend over to quote me a price (which was ridiculous), pulled Seraph to side, and cried. How in the hell was I suppose to drive to NM with this freaken thing behind me. Seraph is my guardian angel, for she knows how to sooth my soul, and I begin to feel better about all of this.

On Monday morning we were off and flying, I felt great knowing I was only two days from NM. The drive through the Gorge was beautiful, and I said my silent good-byes knowing it would be a while before I saw them again. Once in the Blue Mountains, my brave Subaru, barely made 40 miles an hour. I'm not use to driving with such a heavy load, and seeing VW buses passing me. Boy, I thought, I hope we don't have many passes to go through. We actually made good time, and saw the famous windmills that they are setting up all through Eastern Oregon, Idaho, and Utah. Seeing them up close is really amazing. They are so big and powerful. Everything at this point was good, and we wanted to go as far as we could, and by the time we were near the Idaho/Utah boarder, we were getting tired (Oh did I mention that we had the cats too. They did great) and were looking for a place to stay. We saw sign that said Snowyville twenty miles, and decided to stay there. We saw another mileage sign, only to find that Snowyville disappeared. We drove and drove, but no Snowyville. We weren't even sure if we even crossed into Utah, since there was no welcome sign. We were ready to give up, I called my grandma in NM saying we were going to the next town, when out of the blue Snowyville showed up again. By this time we were so tired, that we laughed out loud. We stopped took one look at the motel, and decided, it was just not what we were looking for. Six rooms, five guys smoking and drinking; get the picture. We drove Brigham City, all of the hotels were booked. I told my mom that everything would be okay. She's beginning to panic, saying we should of booked something ahead of time and she began to worry about the cats. They had been the carrier for over thirteen hours, and she was afraid they would die. We go to Ogden, everything is booked. Now I'm starting to panic a bit. I borrow a phone book, and call the Best Western operations. First they tell me everything is booked, but he finds one room for us in Southern Salt Lake. By this time it's 11:00pm and both mom and I are frazzled. We finally made it. Most of the hotels did not take animails, so we had to stealth like, carry a huge carrier up the back stairs and into the room. Skippy who does not like the car (thinks she going to the vet) immediately went under the bed. Nightwalker on the other hand began exploring by jumping on the bed, under the bed, on top tables and chairs. We had to literally drag Skippy from under the bed just so she could eat.

More tomorrow!

Jumping forward, Seraph and I decided it was ...

August 22, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

Jumping forward, Seraph and I decided it was time for a change, as we needed a change in pace. We were so stressed out with city life; rushing Isabell to school, taking her to dance classes, rushing to work, and not relaxing. I was stressed at the point of being sick, and not sleeping. Oh did I forget to mention the rain? This last winter and spring was so depressing. That was the final staw.

Here was our chance, to leave all of this behind, and start fresh again. 90% of me wanted to be back in New Mexico, and 10% said what the hell are we doing! I have all of these great friends, a nice house, and lots of beautiful Portland to explore. Then it rained, and the decision was made.

It's hard to explain why I love New Mexico, but I can only say that it's in my blood, and it's my spiritual home. Some say, that once you visit Northern New Mexico, you'll leave part of your soul here, and you'll always want to return.

My biggest concerns were that Seraph was born and raised in Oregon, and that Isabell was finally adapted to her house, school and friends. But Isabell impresses me more and more, and she responded by saying that she can always make new friends. What a wonderful child! Seraph alway has and will always have an adventurous spirit. The most important thing about us, we always be together, and home is where we all are. Plus it helps that there is a lot of sun here.

Moving on, my fantasy mode was in full swing, dreamng of eating apples and swinging in a hammock, and enjoying life to its fullest. We'd sell our house for big money and buy this house in Vadito. But I fell out of the hammock and reality came rushing back. Our house is on the corner, and there are businesses next door, and a busy street. None of this bothers us, but our realator said this might bug other people. To make this short, she said we would have to lower our price. This meant that our down payment on the house in Vadito would be smaller, and I thought our dreams would be smashed to bits. I talked to Eric and Shaun, the owners, and told them our situation. They fully understood and emailed me later on, saying that they really liked us, and they would figure something out to solve the problem. I love them! We decided to rent a house in Vadito. With the help of Eric and Shaun, they knew someone who had a rental in Vadito, fully furnitured. Thank goodness for small towns!

Reality struck again, as we prepared to move. Seraph is one of those gung ho type of people; pack everything, paint the whole house inside and out. Did I say that I live in a fantasy world? Not all of the time, but most. So I helped as much as I can, while preparing for this trip. We managed to paint Isabell's room, the family room, and the sunroom, but poor Seraph had to finish the rest, as my mom and I left for New Mexico.

I will continue with the journey later on!

This wasn't suppose to happen for another two...

August 22, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

This wasn't suppose to happen for another two to three years, but thank god for craigslist. I love to stroll through the list of houses, and I was only looking for houses in our price range. However, a listing caught my eye,and I couldn't help but clicked on the listing. But what to my wondering should I see! A beautiful territorial adobe house with apple trees, three acres, and a gallery to boot! It was absolutely beautiful, and I called Seraph right of way! I told her not to look at the price, as she would've fainted of sticker schock. After regaining consciousness, she told me if could make this work, we could possibly move to NM. My Loyal Craigslist, came up with a preschool job in Santa Fe. I called them, and they seemed pretty interested in me.
After talking to Seraph, I decided it was best to fly down to NM, and see the house myself, and go and see the preschool. So in May, I flew down, drove up from Albuquerque. I stopped in Santa Fe at the Walgreens. When I came out, a beautiful sunset awaited me. The dark clouds had turned a beautiful apricot color. Feeling like a fool, I secretively took out my camera and snapped a few pictures. Unfortunately, a few people spotted me, but they agreed that it was a beautiful sight. I believe that sunset was a sign and a warm welcome to New Mexico.
I drove to Questa to stay with my Grandma, and the next day, I drove to Vadito with my Grandma to see this "fantasy house". All I can say, It was more beautiful in person, than in pictures. Shaun, the wife, showed me around the house, as I took photos and filmed a majority of the house. Every corner and nook gave me something to smile. Above the property is a water irrigation ditch called an acequia. This water is what feeds the fields. In my fantasies, no not those ones, I could see Seraph, Isabell and I growing pumpkins, vineyards, corn, a variety of vegetables.
They also raised chickens, the coop was made of adobe as well. I was in love, and trying to figure out how to afford the house, was making my mind spin.
After viewing the house, I dragged poor grandma to Chimayo, a very spiritual church, were many people claim to have been healed. In fact every Easter, thousands of people pilgrimage to this holy site. We prayed, (me for the house) bought some souvigners, departed, had some delicious New Mexican food in Espanola, and headed back to Questa. With a quick stop in Taos to find a bookstore. People who know me, know I can resist a bookstore.
I spent a wonderful two days with family exploring ski towns, the Rio Grande, and lazing around. When the day came to leave, I was sure that I would return sooner than my family thought.
I will stop here and continue tomorrow.

INTERNET!!! I'm finally connected, it only to...

August 21, 2008 by Robbie in Cortez

INTERNET!!! I'm finally connected, it only took five days to finally get it. I'm here in beautiful Vadito, NM. I've decided from now on, I'll be writing in journal form, so family and friends can follow my adventures. I'm afraid that friends will have to wait until I have e-mail. It takes a few days to process, then it will work. I'll post more in a while.

Well, I'm back grudgingly from the Land of En...

August 21, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Well, I'm back grudgingly from the Land of Enchantment.
It was a wonderful few days, though sad to leave Isa and Robbie behind. They are settled in on a beautiful piece of property down the road from the house we want to buy. The landlady keeps sheep & lamas, and has several dogs. Needless to say, Isa was in heaven.
Isa was off to school on Monday. We were a little nervous for her, but she ended the day with friends, and was ready to start taking the school bus each day (it stops right in front of the house).
Robbie doesn't start his new job until next Monday, so he has been helping out around the farm, getting signed up for a class at the University, and generally getting his feet on the ground.
While there, we had dinner with the couple with the house & gallery we are looking at. They were wonderful, and full of great stories and helpful advise.
I've been working away on the last of the house projects. Weather depending - I should get the outside pressure washed & painted this weekend.

Quick note to say that Mom & Isa got off safe...

July 30, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Quick note to say that Mom & Isa got off safely to Chicago on Monday. When we talked to them last night, it sounded like they were having a great time. Anita & John were doing a wonderful job showing them all of the sites, and Isa was excited to see lightning bugs for the first time!
Today they are going to the American Girl museum, which Isa has been looking forward to for months.
Robbie & I continue to paint, clean, and pack. Not nearly as much fun, but quite satifying in its own right.

Happy Birthday Mom!!We wanted to call this mo...

July 23, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Happy Birthday Mom!!We wanted to call this morning, but we thought the birthday girl should get to sleep in, so we'll give you a ring tonight.

We had a sad thing happen at work yesterday

July 18, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

We had a sad thing happen at work yesterday. One of our interns died suddenly. She was 20, in great health, and recently engaged. Although I didn't know her very well, it was a strong reminder to live life to the fullest, and not to dwell on the negative, because you can't always count on their being a tomorrow.

Sadie, your post was perfectly timed, as I wa...

July 02, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Sadie, your post was perfectly timed, as I was just reading Edible Portland! Oh so wonderful!

We're looking forward to a sunny weekend! Ye...

June 13, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

We're looking forward to a sunny weekend! Yeah!!
Here's a pic from the reunion in Black Butte.

Made it to Singapore safe & sound

May 14, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Made it to Singapore safe & sound. It was a really long trip, but we we able to have the afternoon to shop for some samples, and eat some good pepper crab. Tomorrow it's back to the real work, with a factory tour and price negotiations.
Much love to everyone! I can't wait to see all the family in Black Butte!!

Happy belated Mom's Day to everyone

May 12, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Happy belated Mom's Day to everyone. We had a nice weekend with Destin & Jorden. I forget how grown-up & easy they are!
Robbie & Isa are geared up for 10 days of "No Mom". They're old pros at this by now, and most of the teary eyes come from me anymore!
I fly out this evening, and I'm trying to take care of last minute stuff at work. There really isn't anyone who covers our jobs when we're gone, so we do a lot of crossing our fingers.
Hey Adam - thanks for the great Steampunk article!

Here are the kitten's at 3 weeks old

May 08, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Here are the kitten's at 3 weeks old. So far we've been calling them Nightwalker, Small One (or Snowball 1), and Big One (or Snowball 2). I think they're all girls - haven't looked to closely.

Breaking News" in the Cortez household (sorry...

May 07, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Breaking News" in the Cortez household (sorry, really bad pun). Isa broke her left wrist yesterday afternoon. She fell durning a game of Darth Vador tag in fitness club.
It was a clean break, and she'll be in a cast for 3 weeks (luckily kids heal 2x a fast as adults). I'm a firm beliver that ice cream can cure anything, and after the hospital we went for some of the sweet stuff. So far she's been a trooper.

We had a great weekend! Friday night Isa ha...

April 22, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

We had a great weekend!
Friday night Isa had a sleep over at her friends house. I was out with my co-workers, "living it up" as we completed a major deadline. I got home around midnight, and stayed up watching a Jack Black movie with Robbie.
Saturday we took it easy in the morning, and then headed out to Isa's recital rehersal. That, and the continuing cold weather, put us in an Irish mood, so I made some lamb stew and Irish soda bread for dinner.
Sunday morning Isa and I made a compost bucket to celebrate Earth Day, and then after church we met up with Mom & Hanni, raced off to Isa's recital. It was our very own mini Riverdance! Afterwards, we hit a great little dessert bar "Pix" near our house.
It's back to work/school for all of us today. Isa & Robbie went out to the movies, and I'm catching up on a weeks worth of neglected e-mails. I can't wait to see all of you next weekend! I hope you're all ready to eat, becuase I'm ready to cook!!

Here are the new kitties! Any suggested baby...

April 17, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Here are the new kitties! Any suggested baby names?
They were born on tax day, so we thought of Roth, Ira, and EZ. It is also an election year, so we discussed Hillary, Barack, and John. Or, there's always Huey, Duey, and Louie!

Quick hello before I head home from work

April 17, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Quick hello before I head home from work.
Other then the usual craziness, our little cat Skippy had her babies yesterday evening! There are 3 of them, 2 pure white, and 1 black sheep. So far, kittens and mama are doing fine. Unlike most cats who hide away, Skippy is neurotically attached to us, and takes better care of the babies when we are hovering near by. Hence, her basket is at the foot of our bed, and Robbie and I were up several times in the night to baby squeeking noises (a little deja vu). They look like little rats, but I will try to post pics tomorrow.

It's been an age since we last posted

March 31, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

It's been an age since we last posted. For Easter we went out to the Warm Springs reservation with Hanni. Isa loved horse back ridding, and swimming several times a day. Robbie and I got massages, and Robbie even got in a game of golf!
Today it's back to school for Isa. I think she was getting a little bored the last days of the break. Although she did ask how long it was until summer vacation!
I'm in crazy deadline time at work. Things should calm down some after April 16th, but I'll will stay mostly insane until mid-June.

Actually, the conversation was about a week w...

February 18, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Actually, the conversation was about a week without sugar/sweets, not meat.
We went without television for the 1st week of Lent (movies still permitted). It was only momentarily difficult for Isa, who realized on Sat morning that there would be no cartoons. This week we're going veggie. We have not yet decided on next week, but we've discussed a week where NO money is spent.
The last week, in preparation for the gluttony of Easter is not sugar/sweets. I will be lamenting the loss of sweetened coffee, and Robbie & Isa will have to do without candy & chocolate. This was the part where the topic of lying came up. Although Robbie & Isa may consider eternity in hell a nice change to my nagging ; )

It's been an age since we last posted! I've ...

February 12, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

It's been an age since we last posted!
I've been enjoying my annual week(s) of back pain. I travel to LA on Thursday, so I'm hoping it's cleared up by then.
We're in the middle of the Chinese New Year at work, so work is relatively quiet. This holiday used to shut everything down for 3 weeks, but as our demanding delivery schedules encroach on other cultures, they've narrowed the holiday down to 5-10 days.
Robbie has been writing away on his book, surpassing the 100 page mark! He also met with a meteorite specialist the other day, and swapped rock knowledge over coffee.
Isa continues doing well at school and in her various activities. For Lent we've decided to give up 1 thing each week. Week 1 is television. Isa was reluctant at first, but it hasn't turned out that hard, as we don't watch much to begin with. She was happy that we are still letting her see the Arthur Spiderwick movie on Thursday!

We all had a nice weekend celebrating Isa's 7...

January 23, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

We all had a nice weekend celebrating Isa's 7th birthday! On Monday we had a group of her friends over for pizza making and general merryment. Hanni surprised her by sneaking up on Tuesday afternoon.
I took Monday & Tuesday off of work, and it was nice to get a jump start on spring cleaning. I've decided I need to take a day off each month simply to get caught up!

Mom - Take a deep breath

January 16, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

Mom - Take a deep breath. It sounds like you've handed your friends over to a very intellegent woman!

It keeps raining here! Although there has be...

January 08, 2008 by Seraph in Cortez

It keeps raining here! Although there has been some snow at the higher elevations, there has been none in the city. We're gearing up for a busy month. I have a few comp days, due to my December trip, and we're planning to get out of town some.
For Isa's birthday we'll be heading towards snow. The cabin we stayed at last year was booked, but she still wants to go sleding!
Robbie and I are heading up to Vancouver, BC at the end of the month. Isa stated quite clearly that she was not interested in joining us! Darn, an weekend by ourselves.

Older Posts

Adam

Family

Features

Isabell went for a sleep over at Niamh's hous...

When I arrive in Oregon next week, please

Do you know that feeling of trying to please ...

No School Today! No School Today! We are snow...

Tonight was Las Posadas on a cold and chilly ...

Winter has descended upon us in a cold and sn...

We woke to six inches of snow this morning, a...

This has been an exciting week with Seraph su...

I awoke to my first NM snow this morning

Happy White Thanksgiving Everyone! We had a w...

This week was the first full week we've had i...

Some times I wake up or I'm driving and find ...

I woke up this morning to my radio alarm goin...

I had a great time in Eugene this weekend

*Before I start on how much I love New Mexico...

I woke up to the news that Obama won, and it ...

October flew by like the leaves on the trees

This week seemed very long

Sad news to report from Portland - last night...

It was wonderful having three days off last w...

"I live for autumn

Quick update on my weekend plans! I'm headin...

It has been a nice and relaxing weekend, and ...

The house in Vadito has been the catylist for...

So, I tried not to cry at work yesterday as a...

Saturday, I woke up early to clean house, and...

Fall is definitely in the air

We've had a nice and relaxing weekend, and I ...

Happy birthday Jamie!! Even though it's Talk...

We're on Wednesday, and almost over the hump

We just wrapped up a beautiful weekend

This week has been long, and crazy and I can'...

Yeah Adam! Have fun in Canada

Saturday, a strange "loco" north wind swooped...

The first chaotic work week has ended! We hav...

This week is the first week that the children...

Living in a small rural area has been a very ...

Even when I could read this site at work, I c...

I live in two worlds, two worlds that often c...

Quick note from Portland! I'm a bit out of t...

When I awake in the morning, the sky is a bri...

Since I stayed up until 11:45pm and woke up a...

Robbie; I need to point out the obvious obser...

If you want to know more about my life in New...

I had to go back and edit some of the stories...

Back on the road again, we carefully dragged ...

We move forward to 8/10/08 and it's time for ...

Jumping forward, Seraph and I decided it was ...

This wasn't suppose to happen for another two...

INTERNET!!! I'm finally connected, it only to...

Well, I'm back grudgingly from the Land of En...

Quick note to say that Mom & Isa got off safe...

Happy Birthday Mom!!We wanted to call this mo...

We had a sad thing happen at work yesterday

Sadie, your post was perfectly timed, as I wa...

We're looking forward to a sunny weekend! Ye...

Made it to Singapore safe & sound

Happy belated Mom's Day to everyone

Here are the kitten's at 3 weeks old

Breaking News" in the Cortez household (sorry...

We had a great weekend! Friday night Isa ha...

Here are the new kitties! Any suggested baby...

Quick hello before I head home from work

It's been an age since we last posted

Actually, the conversation was about a week w...

It's been an age since we last posted! I've ...

We all had a nice weekend celebrating Isa's 7...

Mom - Take a deep breath

It keeps raining here! Although there has be...