Nov 30, 2006
The office of Lucky will not be operating outside today
It was SOOO cold today that, even with a 2-hour delay to go to work, I couldn't get the ice dislodged from Lucky's water bowl, and he seemed miserable when he went outside, so he had to stay inside the house for the first time ever while I am at work. He looked betrayed when I left this morning and didn't follow his normal schedule. I hope he hasn't collapsed in a pool of tears by the time I get home. My poor baby puppy. In related business, do you think I should spell his name "Lakhi" instead? Oh, probably not.
Nov 29, 2006
Vans
There is a book that I really like. It is 101 Things to do before you die, by Richard Horne. One of the things to do is "live in a van". Somehow, that one really caught my attention, and I REALLY want to do it - just travel around with one other person (and maybe a big furry dog), live simply, meet people, see beautiful places, eat good food and live day-to-day, without a plan. Ever since this idea started brewing in my head, I am apt to notice "good" (meaning somewhat suitable) vans in which to carry out the plan. Sometimes these vehicles are not really vans, but well-accessorized trucks. (I have ideas about how to outfit my own truck for this purpose, too). Sometimes they are pull-along campers. Mostly, though, they are vans. This weekend, I got pictures of two such "dream vehicles". Neither is perfect, but I thought I might put together a bunch of pictures and eventually have the perfect one. 
Zarek in front of the pull-along camper.
Talal inside the pull-along camper. It has a double bed, a small kitchen and a bathroom. 
Nov 28, 2006
Release
Now that You Know
(Christine Kane)
He saw faces in the sides of mountains
Driving out in Colorado
The open spaces made him think of shelter
Made him feel like he was hollow
All the darkness that had been his lifeline
Was now just a heavy-hearted hobby
One-night romances and one-more-for-the-road
Had left and empty hole within his body
Maybe you grow
Once you see your history with open eyes
Maybe your soul
Takes hold and something dies
Where do you go
Once you have released all that was yours
Now that you know
That way won't work anymore
Then the night came like a ceremony
There had to be about a billion stars
In the high plains and unrelenting lonely
He called the future in with outstretched arms
And he cried all night
Maybe you grow
Once you see that possibly there's something more
Maybe your soul
Lets go and finds that door
Where do you go
Once you have released all that was yours
Now that you know
That way won't work anymore
Dawn's first light
Softly glows
Mountains carve their silent shadows
Maybe you grow
Once you get there's more to it than your survival
Maybe your soul is making way for its arrival
Where do you go
Once you have released all that was yours
Now that you know
That way won't work anymore
This song always pops into my head when I am in the mountains and when things are hard. It's good to think about opening yourself up and coming face to face with yourself. To release what is holding you down. To be real. To know that it is scary, but you don't have to be afraid, if that even makes sense.
(Christine Kane)
He saw faces in the sides of mountains
Driving out in Colorado
The open spaces made him think of shelter
Made him feel like he was hollow
All the darkness that had been his lifeline
Was now just a heavy-hearted hobby
One-night romances and one-more-for-the-road
Had left and empty hole within his body
Maybe you grow
Once you see your history with open eyes
Maybe your soul
Takes hold and something dies
Where do you go
Once you have released all that was yours
Now that you know
That way won't work anymore
Then the night came like a ceremony
There had to be about a billion stars
In the high plains and unrelenting lonely
He called the future in with outstretched arms
And he cried all night
Maybe you grow
Once you see that possibly there's something more
Maybe your soul
Lets go and finds that door
Where do you go
Once you have released all that was yours
Now that you know
That way won't work anymore
Dawn's first light
Softly glows
Mountains carve their silent shadows
Maybe you grow
Once you get there's more to it than your survival
Maybe your soul is making way for its arrival
Where do you go
Once you have released all that was yours
Now that you know
That way won't work anymore
This song always pops into my head when I am in the mountains and when things are hard. It's good to think about opening yourself up and coming face to face with yourself. To release what is holding you down. To be real. To know that it is scary, but you don't have to be afraid, if that even makes sense.
Nov 27, 2006
Denver!
For thanksgiving, I made the long trek up to Denver by myself. It's a beautiful drive and went pretty well, except for the stretch between Colo. Springs and Denver, which was bumper-to-bumper almost the whole way. I finished listening to "The Life of Pi" by Yann Martel. The end of the book found me crying to my steering wheel in the middle of Colorado. It was a beautiful story and I loved Pi as a narrator. He told his unrealistic story so realistically that it no longer seemed out of the ordinary at all. I was inspired.
I got some knitting done! pictures to come.
While we were there, we had to check out the local Indian shop, where Talal picked up some methi (fenugreek) and masala tea mix. We also rented Hum Tum. The guy was good-looking, but his character was almost insufferable. It drives me nuts that so many Indian movies have miscommunication as their major conflict. This one, in particular, developed the miscommunication very well and definitely made us all very mad. It ended happily, though! They rarely end sadly, I guess. 
We also met up with a friend from high school in Denver, and saw the sights. 
Talal, Zarek and Nate in front of some cool hotel. 
The view from the end of the sixteenth street mall. Very nice. 
Siblings in bad light.
Nate and Shaila at the end of the 16th st. mall
Who knew? A bagpiper in Denver!
Recycled art at its best. A model stadium made out of Coors cans and labels etc. at the ESPN zone. It was cooler in real life. 
Yay for FREE public transportation. Don't they look excited?
The Capitol Building, which looks suspiciously similar to most other states' capitol buildings.
Driving west in the overlooked but awesome state of New Mexico.
"Radical Grace"
"I used to say that if I ever wrote a book, its title would be Nothing Truly Radical Happens After Age Six, Except Grace. Grace, that experience of unconditional love, breaks through the whole system and can change anything. All of Christian life could be described as an ever-deeper encounter between our wounded inner child and the wondrous world of grace. Grace can bring us back to the radix, our roots, and orient us toward the conversion Jesus called for. That’s why we say grace is radical. Radical grace empowers us to shuck off the system and become children again: children of God, brother and sister to all of humanity."
-Richard Rohr, from The Spiritual Family and the Natural Family
I have a sticker on my nalgene that says "ponder grace". This is what it means. Grace is radical. We cannot explain it. It is infinitely understandable. I learn more about grace, how to receive it and give it and recognize it and accept it, EVERY DAY. It is new every day. Unless we really need grace, it seems, we cannot truly know how radical this grace is. Jesus came for the sinners. We sinners would be dead (in so many ways) without this grace. In any case, Richard Rohr says it better than I can.
-Richard Rohr, from The Spiritual Family and the Natural Family
I have a sticker on my nalgene that says "ponder grace". This is what it means. Grace is radical. We cannot explain it. It is infinitely understandable. I learn more about grace, how to receive it and give it and recognize it and accept it, EVERY DAY. It is new every day. Unless we really need grace, it seems, we cannot truly know how radical this grace is. Jesus came for the sinners. We sinners would be dead (in so many ways) without this grace. In any case, Richard Rohr says it better than I can.
Nov 20, 2006
Dhaka Bazaar
This weekend, I got to go to my one of my favorite stores in ABQ:
This store is the purveyor of fine goods such as rasgullah,
paya curry mix (don't worry, if you don't know what this is, you probably will think it's wierd).
and, of course, a few good Bollywood movies. This time I rented "Mistress of Spices". http://imdb.com/title/tt0407998/ Finally, Aishwarya Rai doesn't seem awkward in an english speaking role. It was aesthetically beautiful, but the dialogue was a bit lacking, and there was little chemistry between the main characters. Too bad; it was a cool concept.
I also finished some knitting projects which I can't show in their entirety since they are going to be gifts.
I also got my embossed leaves socks finished. They are for me!!
And I have pictures to show of some other crafts I finished recently. A bottle swished with acrylic paints on the inside:
Handmade magnets using magazine cutouts, flat-backed marbles, glue and small magnets. I made about 50, but here are some samples:
I also made some yummy citrus and brown sugar body scrub but there's no point showing a picture of that.
This store is the purveyor of fine goods such as rasgullah,
paya curry mix (don't worry, if you don't know what this is, you probably will think it's wierd).
and, of course, a few good Bollywood movies. This time I rented "Mistress of Spices". http://imdb.com/title/tt0407998/ Finally, Aishwarya Rai doesn't seem awkward in an english speaking role. It was aesthetically beautiful, but the dialogue was a bit lacking, and there was little chemistry between the main characters. Too bad; it was a cool concept.
I also finished some knitting projects which I can't show in their entirety since they are going to be gifts.
I also got my embossed leaves socks finished. They are for me!!
And I have pictures to show of some other crafts I finished recently. A bottle swished with acrylic paints on the inside:
Handmade magnets using magazine cutouts, flat-backed marbles, glue and small magnets. I made about 50, but here are some samples:
I also made some yummy citrus and brown sugar body scrub but there's no point showing a picture of that.
Nov 18, 2006
Valle Vidal Protected - FINALLY
SENATE PASSES VALLE VIDAL PROTECTION ACT. SENDS MEASURE TO WHITE HOUSE
Passage Sealed with Domenici-Bingaman Pact to Move House Bill
WASHINGTON – Just hours after U.S. Senators Pete Domenici and Jeff Bingaman announced their agreement to push for Senate passage of the Valle Vidal Protection Act (HR.3817), the Senate passed the measure to add new protections for almost 102,000 acres of U.S. Forest land in northeast New Mexico. The Senate approved HR.3817 Thursday night by unanimous consent, following work by Domenici and Bingaman—the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee—to gain clearance to move the House-passed bill in the Senate without a committee hearing. The bill now goes to President Bush for his consideration. “I am happy and surprised that things fell into place so quickly for this bill. I am confident the President will sign this bill so that the Valle Vidal will continue to be a virtually unblemished piece of New Mexico for people to enjoy for generations to come,” Domenici said. “This is terrific news. The Valle Vidal is a beautiful part of New Mexico that deserves to be protected. I’m very glad we able to get Senate support for this bill so that we could send it to the president,” Bingaman said. HR.3817, like legislation introduced by Bingaman (S.1734), would prohibit energy or mineral development on the 101,794 acres that comprise the Valle Vidal Unit of the Carson National Forest in New Mexico. HR.3817 was introduced by Representative Tom Udall and cosponsored by Congresswoman Heather Wilson. The Valle Vidal is managed by the U.S. Forest Service. The property was transferred to the federal government by the Penzoil Co. in 1982. While natural gas production occurs on the adjacent Vermejo Ranch, energy production has not ever occurred on the Valle Vidal. Until today, Domenici, as chairman of the Senate Energy Committee, had reserved his outright support for the Valle Vidal legislation as he worked to promote other energy production proposals around the nation. “I have been concerned about being perceived as pushing for or even forcing energy production in other states while saying ‘not in my backyard’ in New Mexico,” he said earlier Thursday in announcing his intent to push for passage of HR.3817.
- from the New Mexico Wilderness Society
Passage Sealed with Domenici-Bingaman Pact to Move House Bill
WASHINGTON – Just hours after U.S. Senators Pete Domenici and Jeff Bingaman announced their agreement to push for Senate passage of the Valle Vidal Protection Act (HR.3817), the Senate passed the measure to add new protections for almost 102,000 acres of U.S. Forest land in northeast New Mexico. The Senate approved HR.3817 Thursday night by unanimous consent, following work by Domenici and Bingaman—the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee—to gain clearance to move the House-passed bill in the Senate without a committee hearing. The bill now goes to President Bush for his consideration. “I am happy and surprised that things fell into place so quickly for this bill. I am confident the President will sign this bill so that the Valle Vidal will continue to be a virtually unblemished piece of New Mexico for people to enjoy for generations to come,” Domenici said. “This is terrific news. The Valle Vidal is a beautiful part of New Mexico that deserves to be protected. I’m very glad we able to get Senate support for this bill so that we could send it to the president,” Bingaman said. HR.3817, like legislation introduced by Bingaman (S.1734), would prohibit energy or mineral development on the 101,794 acres that comprise the Valle Vidal Unit of the Carson National Forest in New Mexico. HR.3817 was introduced by Representative Tom Udall and cosponsored by Congresswoman Heather Wilson. The Valle Vidal is managed by the U.S. Forest Service. The property was transferred to the federal government by the Penzoil Co. in 1982. While natural gas production occurs on the adjacent Vermejo Ranch, energy production has not ever occurred on the Valle Vidal. Until today, Domenici, as chairman of the Senate Energy Committee, had reserved his outright support for the Valle Vidal legislation as he worked to promote other energy production proposals around the nation. “I have been concerned about being perceived as pushing for or even forcing energy production in other states while saying ‘not in my backyard’ in New Mexico,” he said earlier Thursday in announcing his intent to push for passage of HR.3817.
- from the New Mexico Wilderness Society
The Candy Lady
It was the kind of week where this was less a want and more a necessity:
Very yummy. I got 2 kinds of truffles, 2 other chocolates and some fudge. This morning, Lucky was very cute and didn't want me to leave, so he blocked the door.
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