Back from the Southwest!  My traveling companion Oscar (who was on his way to visit his wife Gina and daughter Solymar in Ignacio, CO) and I had a great trip.  We began by running into one of my former college roomates on the shuttle on Thursday morning.  I ofcourse did not recognize her (I have that problem) and later I told Oscar that I might not have been that friendly to her in college.  We only lasted one semester together...but that is a story for another blog.

Anyway, my mom picked us up from the Albuquerque airport and we were on our way for the three hour drive to Durango.  This was a fun and uneventful drive with nice scenery, and good conversation, plus it was nice to catch up with my mom.  After we dropped off Oscar we arrived in Durango or D Town (as Oscar calls it).  The bed and breakfast we stayed in was nice, and from there it was easy to walk everywhere in Durango (including Starbucks) but I do have to say the bed I slept in both nights was HORRIBLE!  It is not a good sign when you have a crick in your back that won't go away based on the bed you are sleeping in...but I digress.  Another observation about Durango is that it has been over 10 years since I moved away from Colorado, and things there don't seem to have changed.  Particularly in the realm of fashion.  People are still wearing the same tee-shirts, jeans, tevas, and fleece vests that they were during the early to mid 90's.   Also, I always forget that Colorado is a crazy dog state.  People shop with their dogs and you see them sitting by their owners at outdoor patios.  Maybe if Californian's didn't have to drive everywhere we would take our dogs everywhere too.  Oh, I guess we do...in our purses.  I should add that Colorado is where my dog, Buffett, was born.  She looks like a scruffy Colorado dog.

The show was awesome!  My artwork looked great up there on the walls of Rain Dance Gallery.  This is such a pretty gallery, and I have to thank Bob and Lori Curtis for doing such a great job, and for putting on such a beautiful show.  It was really nice to meet so many Colorado clients for the first time, and fun to have a show in a great setting.

So we started home on Saturday (without Oscar, he would meet up with me again at the airport on Sunday).  My mom and I were just making our way back to Albuquerque for a party at my mom's house.  The trip was uneventful, until........ I got my very first speeding ticket in a speed trap in Cuba, New Mexico.   OH I AM STILL CRANKY ABOUT THIS!!!!  I might have to address this topic again, because I am trying hard not to use foul language in this blog.

So onto the party at my mom's.  This was fun because I saw my older brother Chris and his wife Angela, and their three kids, Christian, Eric, and Kayla.  It is always fun to see those guys, and the party was catered by the world famous Josie, so the food was awesome New Mexico fare at its best.  I did miss my family at home because they would have loved this part of the trip. 

Sunday was Mother's Day and I went to breakfast with my mom and Byron and we had a great time, and then it was on to the airport, where Oscar was really sad to say goodbye to Solymar and Gina.  And then we were delayed.  This is what I learned about Oscar during our delay.  He is not scared to lay on an airport floor and just fall asleep.  This is an admirable quality because to me it showed not only is he comfortable in his own skin, but he isn't scared of all the germs from the bottom of everyone's shoes getting all over his clothes. 

Finally we made it home around 7 on Mother's Day and it was great to be back with the kids!!!  My Mother's Day Gift was a Joshua Tobey sculpture called Patience.  It showcases a mother polar bear with two bear cubs, and it has always been my favorite Josh piece (and the most fitting).  You can view this piece on www.tobeystudios.com by clicking on Joshua. 

And now I'm home, and back at it.  It was a fun trip, but I am glad to be back with my family.  I will write again soon!