Author: cometsgirl

My youngest granddaughter is a sophomore at Rice University in Houston. Her schedule worked for me to fly to Houston from Arkansas to have a visit.

We made plans for our afternoon together.

It began with lunch. We met at a local restaurant, Kâu Ba. Over lunch we began our 5-hour chat.

We talked about all the things going on in her life. Classes. A new job. Housing for next year. Study abroad this summer. On and on.

I found such delight in her smile as she talked.

After lunch we walked down the block to the coffee shop/bakery, Common Bond.

Coffee in hand, we Ubered to the Rice campus I’m a huge Uber fan, especially when I come to the big city to visit. The conversations I’ve had with the drivers are so interesting.

A short walk to Moody Museum for the exhibit Hayv Kahraman: The Foreign in Us. Gut Feelings. It was about the microbes within our body – those that harm us. We actually found some of it thought provoking.

Next up was the basketball game. Rice has a player who is remarkable and is quite the scorer. I was anxious to see her play. Sadly, she did not suit up for play. Other players were on fire!

Play was fast and furious. We cheered and cheered. And cheered some more. But Memphis overpowered Rice. Still, the fast and furious play was fun.

Our time together passed too quickly!

I have gratitude beyond measure for our time together.

I traded the quiet beauty of Crystal Bridges for a regional jet, with a cowboy-type pilot. He was determined to get us to Houston. On time. Possibly early.

Even though there were severe storms approaching. And the airport was temporarily closed in Houston.

Without any notice we were told to line up to board. The captain wanted to avoid the Oklahoma storms coming our way.

Onboard we waited impatiently for the last 2 passengers to show up so we could get out of dodge. Literally XMA.

While we waited we ended up chatting with our pilot. He told us it was quite possible we would end up in San Antonio. My friend mentioned that my son was a Captain with Southwest Airlines. Oh does he ever want to fly for SW! I told him I would see what I could do.

Last passenger onboard. Time to buckle up and soar to the awaiting clouds.

I put my airpods in and drifted into harmonies and soothing melodies. My bag of popcorn helped too.

The captain kept us apprised of the situation outside our windows. He was pretty certain we could weave through the storm, land now that the Houston airport was open, for an early arrival!

Our cowboy captain had the flight attendant notify us that we would land in seven minutes. I set my timer.

And just like that, we landed the very second the timer hit 0. Hallelujah!

Traveling mercies indeed.

Today it’s a Rice University women’s basketball game with my granddaughter. Go Lady Owls!

Yesterday was the 31st anniversary of my friend’s Ordination to the Priesthood. Yep, she’s an Episcopal priest.

We had lots of delightful reminiscing. I attended the ordination which was at my church at the time, St. Dunstan’s. She would go on to serve there for the next five years.

What follows are pieces of the ordination liturgy;

Do you believe that you are truly called by God and his Church to this priesthood?

I believe I am so called.

You are to love and serve the people among whom you work, caring alike for young and old, strong and weak, rich and poor.

With all God’s people, you are to tell the story of God’s love.

You are to share in the administration of Holy Baptism.

You are to love and serve the people among whom you work, caring alike for young and
old, strong and weak, rich and poor.

You are to preach, to declare God’s forgiveness to penitent sinners,

to pronounce God’s blessing.

In all that you do, you are to nourish Christ’s people from the riches of his grace,

and strengthen them to glorify God in this
life and in the life to come.

May the Lord who has given you the will to do these things give you the grace and power to perform them. Amen.

Well done good and faithful servant.

Alice Walton, daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton, collected contemporary art by artists in the United States for many years.

At some point she decided that the people of rural northwest Arkansas- most especially the children- deserved an art museum. Not just any art museum, rather one that rivaled well-known and prestigious museums on either coast of America. Plus, it should be free.

Thus Crystal Bridges Museum.

My first visit was in 2014, soon after it opened.

This is my fourth visit to Bentonville. Arkansas, location of Crystal Bridges Museum, also Walmart headquarters. I’m here to see an exhibit of photographs by Annie Leibovitz. Annie Leibovitz at Work.

Bentonville is a charming town, with much construction going on as the success of the museum has been significant. Still, it is a small town.

21C Museum Hotel. A museum within the hotel. And filled with green penguins.

Onyx Coffee an easy walk away.

Lunch at the museum.

Late afternoon at Onyx.

Premier of A Case for Love at the local theater.

A lovely first day in Bentonville.

Museum Hours is a 2012 film. “A Vienna museum guard befriends a visitor, and the two explore their lives, the city and the ways artwork reflects the world.”

While I’ve not seen the film, the words museum hours seems to fit as I travel today to Crystal Bridges museum. Located in northwest Arkansas, it’s an amazing place.

My best traveling friend and I are on a travel lark. We are journeying to see Annie Leibovitz At Work. Leibovitz, a famed photographer, has been in residence at Crystal Bridges for several months. She completes her residency in 6 days. Whew! We made it!

Annie Leibovitz At Work is a new exhibition of portraits.which includes a set of new works made just for Crystal Bridges—Leibovitz’s first museum commission.

Another exhibit I’m looking forward to seeing is Congruence by artist duo HYBYCOZO.

“Congruence is made up of 12 geometric forms. These are all truncated octahedrons, a special type of polyhedron that easily stacks together, leaving no gaps. The artwork includes a tall central structure and three individual shapes, revealing how the pieces fit together.”

Specifically commissioned for this site at Crystal Bridges. the sculpture glows with light,

We shall see.

Traveling mercies.

I returned home from the Land of Enchantment a week ago.

Writing those words just now made me wonder about the origin of the phrase.

I found this: “The phrase was first used by American journalist and author Lilian Whiting in her 1906 travel guide The Land of Enchantment:From Pike’S Peak to the Pacific. The book does not actually focus on New Mexico alone, but on the southwestern states of Colorado, Arizona, and California as well.”

It took nearly 30 years for New Mexico state authorities to take up the phrase. In 1935, New Mexico’s Tourist Bureau described the state as “the Land of Enchantment” in one of its brochures in an effort to attract visitors to the area. In 1941, the legend was added to license plates and came into common usage soon thereafter.

I find Land of Enchantment fits my expectation and my experience of travel in New Mexico. I am often enchanted in this place.

By the vistas…

by the food…

by the silence when everything is covered in snow…

by the faith expressed around me…

and by the people, some of whom have become treasured friends. Abby, Dean, Sue, Lydia, Pablo, Bonnie.

I will return again and again to this enchanted place.

Traveling mercies.

While in Taos I have checked the weather repeatedly. How cold is it going to get tonight? Tomorrow?

Is it going to snow?

Last night when going to bed, we were under a winter advisory from 11pm to 11am. Snow flurries first, then snow! Yippee!

We previously had just a dusting of snow.

But wait! Today was the main event. Once it got going…

…it kept going. It snowed all morning and well into the afternoon.

It was stunning.

We needed more firewood, though. We had one pair of boots between us so we took turns traipsing over to the high stack of firewood.

I used the fireplace brush to clean off the car in hope of leaving tomorrow morning.

I also started the car up and drove backwards and forward repeatedly, moving over to each side so as to create a base for driving out.

We had a fire going for 12 hours.

Fire and Ice.

It was a very good day.

Today we took a road trip to one of my most favorite places in this area. Pilar. And the Taos Junction Bridge.

Awakening to a winter sky,

a morning fire was in order.

Then book a trip to Iceland for May, and off for coffee. Dogs frequently join their owners for coffee, and today was no exception.

Pilar is seventeen miles south of Taos. There were gorgeous vistas along the way.

After reaching Pilar, the turn-off west is where the real beauty is for me.

The road meanders for about six and one-half miles along the Rio Grande River to the Taos Junction Bridge.

I was gobsmacked by the views seen as we headed east for the return drive to Taos.

Back in Taos it was time for cheese enchiladas at a favorite spot, La Queva.

In for the night with what else, an evening fire.

Winter advisory in place tonight and tomorrow. Three to five inches. Stay tuned.

We had a variety of worship choicess yesterday on the Sabbath day. The Roman Catholic Church at 7am at the Taos Pueblo. The Episcopal Church at 10:30am.The Methodist Church at 11am.

We vacillated until we decided it was pj sabbath. Part of me felt this was not okay.

The other side of me felt it was okay. At home I am very faithful to my parish and in community with those who worship on Sundays. So I gave myself permission for a pj sabbath.

My friend and I stayed in our pjs the entire day. We even wore pjs to our coffee place.

There were snow flurries off and on during the day. It was beautiful to watch the flurries dance their way to the ground.

I built a fire that lasted all day! It was good training for my fire-building skills.

Our one activity outside was to journey to Taos Apothecary. IN our pjs.

On the drive home we detoured just a bit so I could take some photos.

I woke up this morning….

And it’s still snowing.

It’s beautiful.

But how to get out? After all, this is massages day.

I borrowed my friend’s boots, grabbed the small fireplace brush, and set off.

There’s a real possibility of getting out!

Yesterday was a day of leisure. From dawn to dusk.

I built a fire first thing, of course.

It was a chilly morning.

It was only a 10 minute drive to Taos Coffee Apothecary for a cappuccino and a warm cookie. A chance meeting with the owners was delight-filled.

Later we decided to try a new BBQ place in town. SUP – Craft BBQ. We each enjoyed a S’Ploaded P-tater. My baked potato was covered with chopped brisket. Delicious!

Late afternoon it was time to go chase the sunset. Having missed opportunities to drive west toward the Rio Grande River gorge in December, we would not miss again.

Oh, how we were rewarded!

Turning around there was this…

And then day was done. Gone the sun.

Later I ran into town for supper takeout, and was treated to music softly played by this gentleman while I waited.

It was a very lovely leisurely day.