Settling In

Last Thursday we waved goodbye to Matt and Adam and wished them well on their way west. We think they had a good time here, if wading knee-deep in snow on a hiking trail and capsizing in the Rio Grande can be considered fun. At any rate, we enjoyed having them here and look forward to reading their comments about Taos!

Meanwhile, life goes on and we continue to renew old friendships and meet new neighbors. We went to a new sushi restaurant with Jim and Rebecca, and we welcomed Santos and two new clients into our home while Rick, Santos's business partner, videoptaped us walking through the rooms. Santos will use the video for prospective clients who want to see his work. Maggie, our new neighbor to the north, is planning to build a new home on her second acre in the very near future. Clark, a retired orthodontist, lives a few doors down and knew Drew's orthodontist, Dr. Parsons, in dental school.

It seems that each day unfolds with something interesting or unexpected. Last Friday, Rebecca asked me to go with her to Michael Trujillo's place in Lower Las Colonias to check out his furniture workshop, which is in an old railroad car. He makes simple, colorful cabinets, hutches, bookcases, and nightstands, but he's so busy with his furniture-making that he has no time to sell the stuff. Rebecca offered to help him by being his sales rep in exchange for pieces of furniture. He'll load his furniture into a 42-foot trailer, park it in front of a friend's place in El Prado along the Paseo del Pueblo Norte, and that will be his "shop." With all the tourist traffic along the Paseo, he's sure to attract many interested customers.

On Tuesday evening, we went to a concert of choral music at the church of San Francisco de Asis. The singers, the High Desert Chorale from Santa Fe, performed a program of Spanish renaissance music. It was a lovely setting for beautiful music!

We spent last evening with my friend Betsy (a work colleague) and her boyfriend Daniel who are staying at La Gallina, a little casita in Taos near the Martinez Hacienda. It was their first visit to Taos, and they were having a wonderful time here, although Daniel was having a little trouble adjusting to the altitude.

Stu and Terri, our next visitors, are due to arrive in Albuquerque on Saturday, and we'll meet them in Santa Fe on Sunday, go to the wine festival at Las Golondrias, and drive back here. Such fun!

Homecoming

We arrived at Las Mananitas yesterday evening around 6:00 p.m. after two days of uneventful driving across the plains and over the mountains, 1260 miles door to door. As we drove into New Mexico from Colorado, the first thing we noticed was how green everything looked--not exactly lush, but certainly greener than on any previous visits. As we pulled into our driveway, we saw that weeds and little tufts of mesa grass had sprung up everywhere, giving our previously barren landscape a more lived-in look. The heavy spring rains worked their magic on the mesa, and now even the alpacas down the road have a new field of grass to munch on.

Once inside, we found evidence of rodent visitors scattered throughout the house, and Steve discovered a little mousie in the utility room, patas arribas. There were also a few more cracks in the plaster, and we plan to call Santos to remedy the situation. But it was wonderful to be back in our casita, listening to the coyotes howling at night.

Speaking of critters, we saw a young coyote pup running across the road as we were on our way to dinner last night. It ducked under the fence into the Pueblo land with our neighbor's dog, Zoey, in hot pursuit. We were a little worried that Zoey might be lured by this wily guy into a hungry pack of larger coyotes, so we stopped the car and called to her to come back home. Of course she paid no attention and kept following the pup deeper into the sage. But all ended well; this morning we saw Zoey in her usual spot lying next to Lars (her Great Pyrenees buddy) in Karen's driveway.

We'll be doing lots of cleaning today to get the house ready to receive our summer visitors. We're waiting for Matt and Adam to come tomorrow!

A Message to Family and Friends

Welcome to Las Mananitas, our little house on the mesa. We look forward to your visit, and we hope you'll enjoy your stay with us. Here are a few things to keep in mind as you prepare for your trip:

• Our home is in a remote location with no cell phone service, no internet access, and no TV, so bring a good book or two.
• The summer sun is very intense, with a UV rating of 9 or 10 most days. Be sure to pack some sunscreen and a hat (cowboy hats work best; if you don't have one, you can buy a cool one here).
• You may have trouble adjusting to the altitude (we're at 7500 ft.) for the first 24 hours, so be prepared to take it easy while hiking, and drink plenty of water.
• Summer daytime temperatures are in the 80's, but the nights can be quite cool. You'll need a light jacket, a sweater, or a sweatshirt when going out in the evening.
• Please leave your pets safely at home; we wouldn't want them to fall prey to the coyotes, bears, snakes and other critters that roam the mesa close to our house.
  
  
  Please post a comment after you leave us--we'd love to read your impressions of the mesa.
  
  See you soon!
  
  Beth and Steve