Cowboys in Vegas

Matthias and I went up to Las Vegas last week, because his motorcycle was finally fixed and ready for him. We took Mr. Pono with us, because it's getting to the point where he gets so traumatized when we leave him with the pet sitter. (Even though I know he loves her - he just hates being left behind.) Pono is a really good traveler, and mostly just sleeps in the car. Plus, we found an inexpensive hotel room that takes dogs. Pono was a really good dog in the hotel room, although he did bark at a drunk guy that made too much noise in the hallway. Who can blame him for that? I was proud of him.

We did go to our favorite hotel, Southpoint, because we like the breakfast buffet there. When we got there, the parking lot was packed full of big diesel trucks, and there were cowboys in wranglers all over the place. As it turns out, the 50th Annual Wrangler National Finals Rodeo was taking place. Southpoint has an equestrian arena inside of it, and during the first weekend of the National Finals Rodeo, there was a horse sale at the equestrian arena. Walking into the hotel felt to me like walking into my past. I grew up in the Black Hills of South Dakota, and cowboys ran rampant there. It very comfortable for me, being around all of those cowboy hats!


Breakfast was delicious, as it usually is, and we were glad we stopped. It was fun people watching, with all of the cowboys there. One thing I noticed about the women was that they were sparkly. They either had sparkles on their belts, on their purses, or their shirts, or for some, all of the above. The women were not as likely to be wearing cowboy boots, which is something I found interesting. Personally, I love cowboy boots. (I have two pairs!) Of course, I am nothing more than a poser, since I have never lived on a ranch or had a horse. My sisters and I did ride horses in South Dakota, growing up, and I did learn how to barrel race when I was in high school at summer camp, but I don't think that qualifies me as a real cowgirl. (I am only a cowgirl in spirit.) It's too bad we didn't know about the rodeo, in some ways. I think I would have enjoyed seeing some of it. Of course, with Pono along, we weren't about to leave him in the car while we went to the rodeo.

After breakfast and a bit of shopping, we did finally pick up the motorcycle. Matthias rode it home, while Pono and I followed behind at a much slower pace in the car. We didn't take Gordita the wondervan since we knew we weren't going to camp. It is a beautiful drive, going through the Mohave desert, but I didn't take any photos. I haven't been good about taking photos lately. You will notice that even my cowboy photos are all blurry. ??? I don't know why. At least you got some cowboy shots. I will make a concerted effort to take more photos next time. I promise! Maybe I will even be able to hold the camera still.


Five things I am grateful for:
1. cowboy boots
2. diversity
3. People who appreciate my art
4. my blog readers and blog friends
5. That my friend Nora introduced me to the Griffin and Sabine books

Pono goes to a river

...and other exciting adventures! Last week, Matthias and I decided to get in the VW Van with Pono and drive to Las Cruces, NM. My parents have a little condo there, and they are there for a little vacation. We took the scenic southern route, driving through Tombstone. We camped one night on the way there. The next morning, just before we reached Tombstone, AZ, we came upon the San Pedro River. We decided that Pono needed to go for a little splash in the river. He loves rivers, since he grew up in Salida, CO, where the Arkansas river runs right through town. He used to wade in that river every single day. We had to duck under a barbed wire fence, and scramble down a bank to get to the river. As soon as Pono saw the San Pedro river, he got SO EXCITED!!! He actually bounded a couple of times before tearing off towards that water as fast as his fuzzy paws would move. It was so much fun. I haven't seen him that happy in a long time. It made me think that we need to move near a river again. I wish I had a photograph or movie of Pono bounding toward that water. It was the embodiment of joy.

It has probably been a decade since we have been to Tombstone. For those of you who aren't old west buffs, Tombstone is the old mining camp where the famous shootout between Wyatt Earp, his brothers, "Doc" Holliday and the Clantons and McLaury's took place near the OK Corral. If you want to read more about Tombstone, click here. I like Tombstone, and it hasn't changed much since our last visit. It was a little too windy to enjoy much walking around, but we still had some driving to do anyway.

We celebrated an early Thanksgiving with my parents, and Matthias had to leave from El Paso to go to work. I'll tell you about the rest of our trip tomorrow!

I want to list 5 things I am grateful every day this week. So here goes:
1. People who love me
2. The rain that fell here this week
3. The sun that returned today
4. My dog Mr. Pono and his fuzzy ears
5. The Bobcat that visited us this morning, especially his enormous paws.

Upcoming Road Trip

Tomorrow I am headed out for Colorado once again. This time, I have decided to drive, so that I can take Mr. Pono with me. So I have spent the day loading up the VW Van, packing clothes, food, sleeping bags, etc. I also cleaned up the house a bit. I hate to come home to a mess. I will be visiting my Mom and Dad. Mom is in the hospital again. I am her main advocate in the hospital, so I better get going.

I leave you with another watercolor painting. This one is older, from 2006. I just discovered it in a drawer, and I really like it. It measures ALMOST 8 x 8 inches (more like 7 3/4 x 7 3/4 inches, really.) I am still pondering the title, but it might end up being called "Close Up".

I also want to take a moment and thank all of you for your input on my artist's statement! It really helped to have feedback. I am in the process of polishing it now, and I am keeping all of your suggestions in mind. Thanks!

Oh! I almost forgot. Two of my cactus outside are about to bloom, and one of them looks like a rabbit or some kind of critter. Here's a photo. I had a discussion with this cactus, during which I told it to bloom tomorrow so that I could see it before I leave for Colorado. It promised to try really hard.