first impressions
October 21, 2023
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Those of you who have been following my blog for years know that autumn is my favorite season. It is also one time during the year that I experiment with the concept of impressionism. The autumn palette is expansive and loves the camera lens, offering boundless opportunities to willing photographers. Close-up or long range, it never fails to satisf...
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light and semi-dark
October 16, 2023
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I had planned to include more photographs from the Mountain and Valley Wool Association's Santa Fe Wool Festival in today's blog, but a once-in-a-lifetime event and serendipity interfered. An annular (meaning shaped like or forming a ring) eclipse took a direct path over New Mexico from the northwestern corner of the state to the southeastern corne...
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inland fiber sea
October 09, 2023
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The first weekend in October is a beautiful time in New Mexico, filled with abundant activities, including the 9 days of squeal and ooh and ah-filled moments during the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. The city population expands easily by 100,000 people. However, balloons were not the only featured stars of the weekend. A plethora of even...
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of words, images, and randomness
October 01, 2023
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It is the first Monday in October. The autumnal equinox is a week past, evidenced by the shorter days, and trees beginning to shed their summer garb. October is a very busy month for artists and balloonists alike. And aside from retrieving several of Fred's rugs and wool from Tierra Wools in Chama and Centinela in Chimayo, as well as an early after...
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Wool Festival 2023
September 24, 2023
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The Mountain and Valley Wool Association was founded in Antonito, Colorado in 1983, with the mission to "promote fiber from all fiber bearing animals - especially those in Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas -and to pass on the rich history of the fiber-related crafts to the next group of fiber enthusiasts." Members of MAVWA produced the Taos Wool Fest...
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mysteries of flight
September 17, 2023
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I am fascinated by birds in flight. Some birds spend a lot of time on the ground, scratching with their bills and feet for their food, and then suddenly take to the air, as if to escape. Canyon towhees scrounge around parked motor vehicles to see what insects might be on the undercarriage or stuck in the grills. Others, including bluebirds, phoebes...
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web of life
September 11, 2023
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As the horrible day in American history - 9/11/2001 - is being remembered- I ponder life and its connections or webs that bring us together. An example from nature is a spider we have been watching with interest, trying to avoid and keep from walking through its web that is tethered to our patio walls, which have become its patio walls and home. Fa...
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labor of love
September 03, 2023
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It is Labor Day, 2023. Although 1894 was the year the U. S. Congress declared the first Monday in September every year as a holiday to honor American workers, the first celebration happened in 1882 in New York. The holiday also dates back to the Haymarket Riot in Chicago in 1886. According to an article in Wikipedia, a rally by labor organizers "be...
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Valles Caldera
August 27, 2023
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There is a very large hole in northern New Mexico. A circular depression in the earth that covers some 13 miles in width. It is Valles Caldera, formerly known as Valle Grande. Now part of the National Park Service, its official name is Valles Caldera National Preserve. From NM Highway 4 via Los Alamos, or U. S. 550 through Jemez Springs to NM 4, at...
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Indian Market
August 20, 2023
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One of the largest yearly art events in Santa Fe, and probably New Mexico, is the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts (SWAIA) Indian Market. It was held this weekend on the Plaza and surrounding streets. This year's market was the 101st, and it was the first we had attended in five years. It was a joy to spend time at the market. In addition t...
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Gilman Tunnels
August 13, 2023
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Having lived much of my life in New Mexico, I often find myself wondering why there are so many places in the state about which I have read or heard very little or nothing. One such place is the Gilman Tunnels in the Jemez National Recreation Area, roughly five miles northwest of the intersection of Highway 4 and Highway 485. I read about the tunne...
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this and that
August 06, 2023
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As the summer heat continues here and in many places around the globe, and beads of sweat roll down my brow, I still find myself grateful for living at 7,000 feet elevation in the Southwest, where a breeze or a pool of shade can provide almost immediate cooling. Opening windows in the early morning hours allows cooler air to fill the house before t...
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a bug and a seed
July 31, 2023
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It was literally Christmas in July when Fred received the box containing ten pounds of Navajo-Churro wool from the Rainbow Fiber Co-op. Skeins of the indigo and cochineal-dyed wool are eye popping. But first, some background on the Co-op.
"Rainbow Fiber Co-Op is a Diné-led agricultural co-operative established to improve the financial sustainabili...
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the power of nature
July 24, 2023
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Nature is part of us and we are part of nature. Sometimes we notice it more than others, especially when nature reflects the changing climate, as has been the case for the past couple of weeks, or the truth be known, decades. It was just much more profound this July than during years past. Searing heat around the planet, drenching rains resulting i...
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alien plants?
July 16, 2023
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8 Comments
There are plants on this earth that look extremely alien or other worldly. In my 4 June blog, I featured the yucca, the blooms of which can look quite alien. But the process by which the agave (in the same family as yuccas) blooms is truly bizarre.
The agave likes heat. It can grow in desert, high desert, and tropical climates, and many of its spe...
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© Daryl A. Black