Sidetracked Charley

The 1942 Case Tractor   The weather forecasts through December and January kept saying Snow Showers. And on those days we would get an inch or two. I wanted more. I wanted snow up to a Labradoodle's chest. Magique hunting voles It would take at least that to keep us from sinking more into the drought and cause us to face another wildfire. And then it appeared in the NOAA forecast: Snow Shower, Snow Shower, and SNOW. Capitals are mine. But we got approximately eight inches combined from the two days of Snow Showers. And 18 on the day it called for SNOW. Wasn't over yet That was last week. I figured that was our freak weather event and we would slide back to La Nina weather of Snow Showers. But this Wednesday the Tuesday snow began early and stayed late. Melding into the major winter storm Olive. Unfortunately it was also a severe wind event. And included warnings for another possible Snow Squall like last winter. Snow Squall is the mountain equivalent of a straight wind tornado...

A funny thing happened on the way to recovery from the Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak Fire: I lost my way. I have been through Post Traumatic Stress Disorder before. And I just figured I was there again. I knew my way out. Keep putting one foot in front of another. Replant all the seeds which were abandoned without water when I was yanked from my roots and put in an alien environment. Check on your neighbors like the Red Tailed Hawk, and Kellie across the street, and Leslie back from Guam. Plant a garden way late and paint. Survive. But like head injuries, each subsequent episode of PTSD gets harder. Not easier. Denial stronger. I became obsessed with my garden. Things which are green and growing and close to the ground so I could keep my head down and not scan the horizon for any cloud which looked too much like smoke. All clouds looked too much like smoke. When my Angel Fire friends talked of fire pits and fire works I zoned out. I even began deleting those fire bugs which talked of such t...

Hoop House 2018 When I first moved to Black Lake it was a zone 3 and had only about a 90 day growing season. I wanted at least 120 days so I could grow lettuce. At that time the local market only sold Iceberg Lettuce. I do not call it lettuce. But it seems the Moreno Valley was famous for it at one time. Some old timers even claim it developed, raised, and popularized it. And so began my experiment on how to stretch my growing season. The use of pvc for hoops to support 6 mil plastic over raised beds promised to give me ten days on either side of summer. In its last season 2021 I planted in the beginning of May and continued to harvest through September.  Essentially I had lengthened my gardening season to 150 days. But not without trauma. As in late heavy spring snows which required going out and pushing the snow off the plastic every hour all night long. When the snows begin the plastic came off This year we had the snow squall in December. It overturned the garden shed. And then...

  The Calf Canyon and Hermits Peak Fire is at last contained. That does not mean out. It means that the perimeter is 100%. Crews are not trying to restore areas they rearranged in an effort to establish that containment; put fences back and erase some dozer lines. And then there are the containment lines they put in for the fire which did not get there. Sounds silly but when you know the extent of the sickness of our forests due to drought it is necessary.  This far and no further lines are out beyond the established perimeter and are based on preventing the worst case scenario. Some nights that is where my goes, out beyond the perimeter and to the worst case. Even with all the wonderful rain I know the drought is not over. We need more than one good monsoon year, more than one fantastic year of snowpack. But while it does no good to obsess about that it is silly to not do what you can do to make things better. The sunflowers are a last blooming. They are a month behind. Every...

The Fall of Stars 20 x 30 Mixed Media on Gallery Canvas $1350 Been trying to get my studio, my yard, and my life back to normal, whatever that is. I seem to bounce from project to project. I complete them but without a sense of satisfaction. In the last month I finally got the above painting finished. The canvas had been on my easel for almost a year. But with the but with the studio tour looming the end of September it had to be done. Flower beds and yard rescues seem to draw me away from what needs to be done inside. Maybe it is because of Ernestina Pacheco. Any excuse to go to her nursery and cheer myself up. She and her family are from Chacon, near the heart of the fire. They have survived though at the moment their well is contaminated. It does however have water. Their house is okay but they are living out of trailers on the nursery property. She makes me smile. I have visited her too often and bought entirely too many plants. I waste too much time watering them, but their flower...

The Once Great Hoop House I read just today that the Taos Pueblo has not reopened since it closed at the beginning of the pandemic. I believe I fully understand. The Calf Canyon and Hermits Peak Fire and dozen day evacuation has me radically re-examining my life too. I am thrilled my home was not burned down. And no doubt the residents of Taos Pueblo are thrilled their community and its lifestyle survives the two year pandemic. They may even be very glad to not have to cater to the visitors. Living in the home of a friend for 12 days gave me a chance to see how others live. And living in another town as not a visitor but not a resident allowed me another view of that town and my neighborhood. Initially I just became overly involved with my house now that I was back in it. I had left it in a horrid mess. Running from room to room finding everything you wanted or needed to take aways from the fire with you leaves the house a total mess. I was shocked. Putting it right seemed so overwhelm...

  I watch no other news but the fire brief twice a day. And the fire weather brief between those. I cannot walk outside without scanning the horizon for smoke. Question every cloud that it might be lying to me. I have traveled no further than Eagle Nest, and can feel the anxiety build as I near Angel Fire. Some part of me knows the Calf Canyon and Hermit's Peak fire will make it to West Angel Fire or Taos Canyon or both. Because I know how very hard 3000 fire fighters have fought for that not to happen. Today in an Eagle Nest store the new owner asked me where I was from and I said Black Lake. And she said, "I bet you are happy that fire is over." "It is not I said. Won't be over till after the monsoons." Another friend thinks it is under control. Fifty percent contained is not under control.  I now know more about wildfires than I ever wanted to know. I know you can burn a pile of downed logs, put the fire out. Let mother nature bury it in three subsequent ...