Lights at year's end

Jean and I caught the last evening of the River of Lights at Albuquerque's Botanical Gardens. It was freezing, but we were glad we went.

Here's a basket of illuminated posies in the Moorish Garden just to the right of the entrance.

I'm pretty sure these are thistles. They were on the opposite side of the garden.

The bat was nicely done, I think. There were hummingbirds, too, but they were huge and somewhat scary.

Pollinators, you know.

Hope for the New Year

springs eternal, and summers over, falls "like a blind roofer" and winters cold ...

ugh, bad poetic-ness. The poinsettias are still lovely and I hope to keep them, barring any extended absences like this past year.

The vines are Jean's jasmine, happy to be inside where it's sunny and warm. I entirely sympathise on this cold windy day.

My wish is that we grow in wisdom and beauty, whenever and whereever that's possible, and throw out whatever hinders or harms in this year to come.

Engine Engine

These colors were so bright, and still unscathed by graffiti.

Full Moon setting

Early Monday morning, Dec 24, Xmas eve and on my way to work

from TrC.

Talent in ABQ

I saw this drawn on the side of a car in the parking lot at La Montanita on Rio Grande Friday night. Albuquerque has art everywhere!

Ah, Sammy

He loves warmth and sitting in his strawberry box. Here's the curling-up process beginning.

and continuing -- it always surprises me that he can still fit himself into this little box.

Voila! Fait accompli

More crows!

This is the mob of crows I see from the train most mornings. The first time they were there was most unfortunate; the train killed seven or eight of them as they rose up and crossed over the train tracks. They had the correct instinctive response, but it was fatal for them.

But they've learned and the fatalities have dropped to almost zero.

Snow! and crows!

Snow started falling on the way through the Isleta Reservation.

and got heavier

and heavier

as we headed north to Albuquerque. Then there were crows, many more than this...

My first shot of all the crows was too blurry, so all you get is the remnants. They gather to pick food out of the piles of detritus from the chicken houses nearby.

more about last night

a bit more Brian

The Detonators opened, a great bunch of English not-quite-lads. Here's the singer:

and the rest of the band.

Tonight with Brian Setzer

I had a fine ol' time, and I think he did, too.

Look at this dude gettin' low.

On the way to work this morning

This little marsh reminds me of home.

Coming around the bend

Many, many ducks and geese -- the white ones are the geese

Someone reading, which ordinarily I would promote, but there's so much to see from the train windows

token picture posted

what I really want to do is rant for a while

Screens keep out pests. I need to put up a screen house around my heart. That way the nasties won't get in to do any damage.

from a courtyard garden

I found during my mid-day walk, this time south to the UNM campus.

and then this sky-bridge between the old and new buildings.

La plus ca change

Plenty of change in a mere half-hour, from this

to this

and I have to make some changes myself.

in the lobby

Ain't nothing shaking

cuz there's no leaves on the trees

I must be having the holiday blues.

Wed on campus

Suddenly, the holiday weekend is over

The last thistle just west of Hillsboro

a rather tropical sunset in TrC

This is what I saw just before I headed back to Los Lunas. That rabbit sat there until I got the camera out and focused.

Then it did the wise rabbit thing and took off.

Coming back down again