Albuquerque is such a great place. The city is large and spread out, it's old and new, and everyone I met was friendly. I visited several bead stores and bought seed beads, cabochons, pressed glass, and of course some turqouise. I also walked, swam, enjoyed the mountains, and, most of all, enjoyed spending time with my husband. Here are some photos from the trip:
Visiting Morwyn (on the left) in her great book store. It was a pleasure to meet her in person and to see her bead journal project, plus an entire case of her bead work.
Some friends invited us over for dinner. We ate outside in their lovely courtyard. The meal was delicious and the company was great. Here is my husband having a conversation with our host, who unfortunately didn't make it into the photo.
Here is Dennis again with his new friend in front of one of the Flying Star restaurants. 
This photo shows part of sculpture outside of Elinor Oldham's eclectic bead store. There are quite a few sculptures and I liked the detail on this one and the way it flows.
Back to the Flying Star, here is an indoor mural. My father was in the bakery business and this mural reminds me of many hours spent in the bakery.
And finally, some detail from an indoor column at the Flying Star. Not only is the food good, but the decor is so stimulating, it's like taking an Artist's Date, for those of you familiar with the Artist's Way.
I had hoped to visit KV in Las Cruces, but it didn't work out, much to my disappointment. But I fully expect to be back in New Mexico in the future. Both my husband and I like it very much and my husband has a sabbatical coming up, so who knows???
But for now it's back to regular life, working on the magazine I copy edit, sorting out my new beads, thinking about next year's journal project, and enjoying summer.
I am visiting my husband, who is spending the summer in Albuquerque. I love Albuquerque! I am so glad I came. We took a wonderful walk this morning and walked by an acquantaince of his and his wife and had a delightful talk. The weather is great, a clear sunny morning. On Monday I will start visiting the bead stores, of which there are many here. I'll take pictures and post them of my visit. Lots of outdoor art, interesting scenery (when you're from Michigan), and anything that catches my eye.Be back soon!
My rock garden was kind of barren this year. I asked my neighbor, who loves to garden, if she would help me. And just as we beaders think about colors and finishes and sizes, so do gardeners. Dottie spends all winter reading books about plants, looking at their size, color, leaf shapes, and draws out her ideas. And then when spring comes, she spends all her time gardening. In particular, she likes digging up and moving plants until they feel just right. Wait 'til you see what she did with my garden, or, as I say, our garden.
First off, though, is the windmill that my husband made from a kit. He had fun making it, but I have to say I was a little shocked when I saw that he put it right on the front lawn! It kind of broke up the flow of the gardens between my neighbors house and ours.
The garden is kidney shaped.
This is the fuschia end of the garden, bright and happy.
This section is the green transition from fuschia to purple.
And this end is yellows, including a hybrid black eyed Susan!
My son is going to mulch the garden tomorrow and it will look even better, plus hold the moisture from the water.
Thank you, Dottie, for being the best neighbor!
(I don't know why there are lines under my writing, or why some of the colors are different. If anyone knows how to fix this please tell me!!!)
I had hoped to visit KV in Las Cruces, but it didn't work out, much to my disappointment. But I fully expect to be back in New Mexico in the future. Both my husband and I like it very much and my husband has a sabbatical coming up, so who knows??? 
