Dec 30th, 2010

I thought this looked like "praying hands."

Merry Christmas Shiprock

Ok, here's the scoop, friends. I met a boy, enjoyed every moment, and then it was over. I was totally and unceremoniously dumped Christmas eve morning! Since this was my first involvement since my split with Don, the break makes it especially worse. It basically hurts like hell . . . mostly because I didn't see it coming . . . I was blind to the many red flags. He was like everything on my "list" that I wanted . . . which made it harder to see the red flags. But, I offer a quote from Oprah . . . which I wish I had followed: "When someone tells you who they are, listen." Apparently, I was too enthralled in the moment to listen. Oh, well. Lesson learned.

So, yesterday, Christmas eve day, in my misery, I called someone to commiserate with me: Don, my ex-husband! Talk about the ex-husband of the year award . . . he deserves another one! The best advice that he gave me . . . and it's been getting me through . . . is that, "Now, you're back in the game again." That is so true. It's been three years since I left him, and NO men in my life! Now, I AM back in the game again. Thanks for your wisdom, Don!

Honestly, having it come down like this is a writer's greatest dream. Being dumped on Christmas eve? It's awesome, really. I wrote down every one of my thoughts and feelings . . . still am. And now, some time in the future when one of my characters gets dumped, I will know EXACTLY how she feels. It really doesn't get much better than this!

This morning, Christmas Day, while eating my breakfast, I looked up to a poster that I had on the wall. I had bought it at the Navajo Fair during the summer, and the poster is of Shiprock . . . one of my all time favorite places. It suddenly occurred to me that it would be a good idea to . . . go there! So, I packed up Moki in the car, and off we went.

About an hour later, I found the old farm road that I had discovered once before. It didn't have a no-trespassing sign or anything, so I drove over the cattle guard, and slowly kept going. I have all wheel drive and this road was more four wheel drive. I got as far as I could . . . probably farther than I "should," and then had to stop. Shiprock was in the distance, but still not close. I decided I would see how close I could get to it, walking. So, off we went.

The closer I got, the more excited I got. I could feel it, I could breathe it . . . and it was getting closer and closer with every step that I took. After walking what I took to be a mile, I was a lot closer, but still not what you would call close. So, I decided that I would walk another mile and see where that got me. It got me close. Not close enough to sit at its base, but pretty durn close. Someone had told me that there was a fence around it . . . but, there was no fence. It was awesome, looming up before me like some magical kingdom.

I could have gotten closer, but I knew I still had two miles to walk back. So, I stopped at a place where the road was on a little rise, moved off the road into the damp sand, and lay down. All the time I was walking, I was taking pictures, and once on the ground, I took more. Then, I lay back and meditated. This is a very sacred place. I could feel it. I felt it the very first time I saw Shiprock, about two years ago. I asked it to heal my pain. I meditated for a long time with my eyes closed, and then I thought maybe I should open them. My field of vision from my position on the ground, allowed me to see just the top tip of Shiprock. So, I kept looking. And then an amazingly magical thing happened. I saw stars. Have you ever fainted and seen stars? It's a very peculiar thing. But, I wasn't fainting, I felt fine. But, there they were, moving around like little fireflies. I watched in amazement for several minutes, and then moved my glasses thinking it might have something to do with them. No change. The stars still there moving around. Then, I closed my eyes wondering if that would make them go away. When I opened them, they were still there. The chill wind was blowing too hard for them to be particulates in the air. It was just magic. Just plain magic. Fairy dust or something, and I lay there a long time watching the golden stars. I felt blessed.

Then, it was time to leave. It was a long, chilly walk back to the car. After quite awhile of walking, I thought I spied a white speck and thought it was the car. But, when we got closer, it turned out to be a plastic bag! I had used a reiki protection symbol on the car before I left it, but I thought I had forgotten to lock it. Plus, I thought I was on private land, possibly illegally, and there was a chance that if someone came across my car, it could get towed away! I was on the "res" - - the Navajo reservation. Anyway, after a few more rises in the road, several more minutes, and a tired girl later, the real car finally appeared. It was bigger than a speck, but still pretty far away. We finally got there safe and sound, albeit very tired and thirsty.

So, we left the magic of Shiprock behind us, and headed for home. What a magical day this was! What a great decision to go out there today! It was exactly what I needed. And the magical, golden stars that happened to me while I was there . . . what a gift that was!

September something, home from Maine

My trip to Maine was spectacular and I accomplished everything I wanted to accomplish.

My flights there were uneventful, except that for some reason I got pulled aside at one security clearance and "patted down." This was BEFORE all the hoopla about groping and all. But, I'm here to tell you . . . that she TOUCHED me. She didn't even say excuse me or anything, just did it and moved on. Oh, well!

I had a garage sale and open house. The first day of the garage sale was the last day of the aftermath of some hurricane that had come to town. Still, I had a lot of people there and sold quite a bit. The second two days weren't as successful. But, I did end up selling enough to pay for my entire trip to Maine. Don volunteered to pay to ship back my twenty-three boxes . . . so, you know, I let him. I totally appreciated it, and thanked him profusely.

I ended up staying with him in the spare room, and we got along wonderfully. Had a lot of talks about the end and our former relationship, and how each of us have blossomed since we split. When he drove me back to the airport and dropped me off, he actually kissed me on the mouth. It was very appropriate. I think we both came to a better closure from the whole experience . . . I was there for ten days. I thought I already had closure . . . since I was the one to leave . . . and I did . . . but, this was even better. We love each other, but we don't belong together.

Back in Colorado

It took me a couple months to find places for the stuff in the twenty-three boxes. In fact, some of the stuff STILL doesn't really have a place! My one bedroom apartment was already quite full before these boxes came, so it was a challenge!

2010 - - finally

Well, as you can read from below . . . I really did think I was caught up. But, now it's months later, and I never posted this. I still have another post about my trip back to Maine . . . then, I'll be almost caught up. I'll try! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone!

September 12, 2010

Hello Everybody who's reading! This is CURRENT . . . notice the date . . . 2010! I'm finally caught up! Ok, I'll give a very brief synopsis of the past year, and then I'll thrill you with my account of my spectacular trip to Maine! Here goes!

A couple months ago, a friend and I went to the Renaissance Fair in Pagosa Springs, Colorado . . . that is about an hour and a half car's drive from where I live. It was very small, but nice . . . I bought some insense, sage, and lavender. The highlight was when the belly dancers were on stage . . . belly dancers who were about my age . . . I walked by the a tent close to the stage and heard someone call them the "geriatric troupe!" They were actually quite good for geriatrics!

The therapeutic riding place where I volunteer had a fund raising trail ride in June. The main guy who was arranging everything unfortunately ended up in the hospital. So, a lot of his stuff fell onto me. But, it all got done thanks to the board, and everyone had a great time. I might have a picture of this one . . . oh, the only pic I have doesn't show much . . . sorry! This pic shows everyone registering for the ride.

Then, there was the Renaissance Fair in Mancos . . . the town I live in. It was also small, but interesting. The best part, though, was after dark . . . when I returned to watch the fire dancers. Everyone surrounded them in a great circle, and they danced in the middle doing daring things with fire that looked even more spectacular in the dark. It was pretty awesome, really.

I did hear one guy say . . . "hey, there are no electronics here and everyone is still having fun, imagine that" . . . I did get a kick out of that . . . and I agreed!

I also went on a few archeology club adventures, including one in the winter or early spring that required me to drive about a half hour in a snow storm! It was worth it, though, and I had a great time. I've also returned to Mesa Verde a time or two . . . I always love the time I spend at that place.

Sun Mon Thurs Sat September 2009 something

Sunday - When Moki and I took our walk this morning, there were more balloons all around. At one point, there was a big balloon right above us trying to gain altitude. The burner kept making this loud noise. Moki looked up at it, and with his most grown-up voice, gave the balloon a deep warning bark! It was so cute!

Monday - Went to more Plus lessons in Cortez, and then was an "angel" to one of the new guys who is learning mainstream. Angel, means that I was his partner. He really already knows most of the moves, which is pretty cool. There are three other people there who are just learning, so it's all an educational experience, though!

Thursday - This was the last day of therapeutic riding at Cadence. All of the people I've been working with have improved so much. Most everyone had two side-walkers to begin with, and now many of them ride almost completely on their own. It is so satisfying to see that. I came for the horses, and stayed for the people. What an incredibly gratifying experience it has been.

Today, when I went to renew the book I'm reading, _Sophie's World_, they wanted to give me my new library card. She said, "That's funny, your old card shouldn't have worked." Then she checked, and my old card and my new card had the same exact number. She said, "Wow, that NEVER happens. That is really amazing." Then another woman from the library came by, and she showed it to her. The other woman was shocked, too. They asked something about my life, and this must be a lucky sign. And I said, "My life has been pretty amazing lately, and I'm not surprised about this at all!"

Saturday - parade

Today was the non-motorized parade in Durango. One of the little boys I work with rode Magic, and I led him down the middle of the parade. It was a gas!

Friday and Saturday September 2009 something

Friday - When Moki and I took our walk this morning, in the field where there are often cattle, I saw several Canadian geese on their way South. One way that Border Collies learn to herd sheep is to start with geese . . . so, I thought . . . maybe I could turn him loose in the field and see what he does. But, I figured they'd all fly away!

I walked a couple more steps and looked to the right, and saw balloons! This weekend is the Mancos balloon festival! It was really cool!

Square dancing! Before the regular square dancing is now Plus lessons. I love plus! It has some really cool steps to it. We learned Acey Ducey, Load the Boat, Coordinate, something about a teacup, which is really a fun move. Before plus started, Richard did me a favor and had everyone do Spin the Top, which is a mainstream move, but I didn't know how to do it. So, that helped me a lot.

Then, during the main square dancing, Richard threw in a lot of the plus moves, so I got a chance to practice, which was great!

Saturday - Moki and I got up at dark thirty, and drove toward Dolores about thirteen miles. It wasn't as easy to find as it was supposed to be, but I found the ranch at last! This was the trail ride fundraiser for Cadence Therapeutic Riding. I sat at the check-in table, gave people their numbers to pin on their backs, and had them fill out a couple release forms. So, I got to see everybody, which was pretty cool!

Right before the ride began, Ron asked if I wanted to be an assistant judge. So, I got in the truck with Katie, Ron's wife, and a bunch of people, and we went looking for the obstacles. Unfortunately, no one knew exactly where they were! After driving around for awhile, we got close, and then Scotty, the lead rider, found us and showed us where we should be. I was with Robin, Burt's daughter, and Burt and Katie and Dave. We were at the stream crossing obstacle. Robin judged the contestants on how well they and the horse crossed the stream. Burt called off the numbers, and Katie and Dave took pictures, and I timed the contestants. They were only allowed one minute to cross the stream.

There were two main categories: open and pleasure. All pleasure had to do was to get the horse across the stream. Most of them had no problem, although some of the horses balked a little. For open, it was more complicated. They had to approach the stream, turn the horse around 180 degrees, and then back the horse down a small embankment into the water . . . still backwards. Lots of those horse didn't want to do it. I had to call time on several of them. It was all fun to watch. And surrounding us were the beautiful hills turning to fall colors. It was like being surrounded by a huge patchwork quilt.

It took quite awhile for all the riders (67) to complete all the obstacles. Afterward, all the points had to be compiled. Then, Ron handed out all the prizes. It was a great day!

Pictures . . . riders in the trail ride . . . a horse at the water hazard where I was . . . me sitting at the end of the table in a blue hat . . .

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Wednesday - Started putting together my futon today, and wouldn't ya know it . . . I'm missing one of the major pieces. Major bummer.

I think the baby swallows have already left the area! I didn't see them at all today.

Thursday - Therapeutic riding. Ron (the main guy) said that I should try to get a NAHRA certification . . . that I'd be really good at it. I'll check it out. I took more pics of horses today for the book. Also, had to take some over with Dolly. Burt took the pics for me. I hope they turn out.

I saw the baby swallows today . . . three of them, anyway.