Cometsgirl

The Spring grandkids tour begins today!

It’s not actually spring – by month or by weather. Nonetheless, the Spring tour is underway.

I’m headed to Houston today, where the low temps are in the 20’s. What?

My granddaughter, Valerie, and I are going to a Rice Owls basketball game this weekend. This will be the 3rd year for us, during which the team has become better and better. Even transitioning from Division 2 to Division 1.

We’ll meet for lunch, catching up on her life as a Junior at Rice. And mine as a Senior.

The bonus of my trip is seeing and staying with my best friend. We’ll have some most-excellent adventures, I am certain.

Come along.

Traveling mercies.

It’s not surprising how much was packed in during our 48 hours in Miami.

A scenery-filled drive from the airport to the hotel.

Lunch at the Taco Shop.

Followed by ice cream just around the corner from a stunning Banyan tree.

The next morning began with breakfast at Zac The Baker. Reservations required.

Then off to the Florida Keys. It took 3 1/2 hours of driving to get to the first of 15 keys which stretch 100 miles from Key Largo to Key West.

We visited the first, Key Largo, and

then the next key, Isiamorada.

This was all we had time for, so we returned north, knowing we could now say “we have been to the Keys”.

Late lunch at Macondo. Awesome delight.

Two for the road.

At last, UNRIVALED!

Dazzling fun!

Two games. Elite players. Front row seats. Unrivaled.

A great adventure! We’ll return next season.

Traveling mercies.

I’m in Miami. Yes, Miami. You see, there is a new women’s basketball league. You know the rest.

The league was built in collaborationn with the biggest stars in womens basketball. Six teams were formed.

Season play is during the WNBA off-season. All games are played in Miami. Three instead of five players is the games format. Fast and furious!

Each night two back-to-back games are played.

My traveling friend and I met in Miami yesterday. We wandered about the rest of the day in this color-filled town.

Tonight we’ll enjoy two games!

I’m ready!

I returned home from Taos a few days ago. I left snow and returned to snow

It must be winter

Taos in the season of winter is wonderful.

It’s quiet.

It’s slow, with time to sip and sup.

It’s hodeezyeel, Navajo for calm.

It’s soothing.

It’s delicious.

It’s blue sky.

It’s reunion.

From sunrise,

to sunset, it’s glorious.

Thank goodness it’s an annual event.

A couple of days ago we decided to drive north to the John Dunn Bridge.

Around 1893 John Dunn bought a bridge that crossed the Rio Grande River. He established a business taking passengers and freight from the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad at Tres Piedras to Taos.

The bridge burned down and he rebuilt it in 1908.

He built a hotel near the bridge for travelers. The hotel provided fresh fish from the Rio Grande and fresh milk from his milk cow. It was a toll bridge for which he charged $1 per person and less for livestock.

He operated the bridge until 1912 when he sold it to the the Territory of New Mexico who made it a free bridge.

Closed in 2007 after a rockslide, the John Dunn Bridge reopened in April 2024.

It was a large day to be out and about. The temperature never rose above freezing. Still, the John Dunn Bridge is such a beautiful space to wander.

We then headed northeast to drive the Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway. It’s an 84 mile circle around Wheeler Peak, the highpoint of New Mexico. Not long after we turned on to NM Highway 38, we encountered this:

We could have reached out the window to touch them as we drove by.

They grazed on something in the middle of the road, paying little attention to the cars passing by.

The Enchanted Circle was glorious!

Thirty minutes along the circle, the road ahead was covered in snow as it led uphill. That was it for us. We turned back.

Retracing our steps,

then stopping at a favorite place,

La Queva. Plates of blue corn enchiladas.

It was a most excellent day of Enchantment.

One of my favorite places in northern New Mexico is the 6-mile drive along the Rio Grande River, from Pilar to the Taos Junction Bridge.

Excerpts from Mary Oliver’s At The River Clarion

“I don’t know who God is exactly.
But I’ll tell you this.

I was sitting in the river named Clarion, on a water splashed stone

and all afternoon I listened to the voices of the river talking.

Whenever the water struck a stone it had something to say,

and the water itself, and even the mosses trailing under the water.

And slowly, very slowly, it became clear to me what they were saying.

Said the river I am part of holiness.

And I too, said the stone.

And I too, whispered the moss beneath the water.

…And still, pressed deep into my mind, the river
keeps coming, touching me, passing by on its
long journey, its pale, infallible voice
singing.”

Tonight I’m seated in front of the fireplace in the casa where I stay.

It’s cold and blustery outside.

Land of enchantment certainly describes northern New Mexico.

Yesterday as my plane descended to the Albuquerque Sunport, the scene below reminded me of colors to come.

Saturn, as confirmed by my Night Sky app, was showing off in the sky tonight after dinner. No star could match Saturn!

Now, as the fire dies down, I do so as well. Today was a large day.

Night night.

Today is the Feast of the Epiphany. In the Christian tradition, the coming of the Magi (astronomers) is celebrated.

My traveling friend and I are journeying to Taos today. It’s a tradition we began about a dozen years ago – to travel to Taos in mid-January.

It’s a perfect place to be after the hustle of Christmas. And for me, the family celebration of my grandson’s recent college graduation.

Now soaring high to Albuquerque, with and then about a two hour drive on to Taos.

We will utter a quiet sigh as we arrive.

“Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.” Isaiah 60:1

Traveling mercies.

Last night we attended the choral performance – Voices of Light. It was held in the cavernous Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern. The Cistern is a former drinking water reservoir built in 1926 for the City of Houston.

After operating for decades, an irreparable leak was found, and the reservoir was decommissioned in 2007. Three years later, thanks to the Buffalo Bayou Partnership, “the 87,600 square-foot Cistern was restored and repurposed into a magnificent public space for performances and art installations.”

The Schola Cantorum of downtown Houston’s Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, sang for around 25 minutes. Their offering was a “journey through centuries of music, from 4th-century chant to ethereal modern compositions”.

Special lighting complemented the singing and transported us to another realm.

Works of Hildegard van Bingen, Guillaume Dufay, Elizabeth Poston, Arvo Pärt, Crista Miller, filled the space.

The acoustics were incredible; the echo carries for 17 seconds.

The concert was all too short. However, as we walked out of the Cistern, we decided it was a must to make this an annual tradition. Yes, it shall be!

As I write this, I am seated in my chair in the sky headed to Atlanta and on to the mountains. The 2-day lark was just about perfect.

One awesome concert,

a meal at the original Ninfa’s on Navigation,

beautiful Sunday worship at Holy Family Episcopal Church,

a new coffee spot – Coco’s Donuts & Coffee Bar – with perfect cappuccinos,

and time spent with my best friend in her home and garden. .

Abundance!

Traveling mercies.

Today is the winter solstice. For we who reside in the northern hemisphere, it is the longest night of the year.

Mary Chapin Carpenter’s The Longest Night of the Year is a favorite of mine.

They say that spring will come again
But no one knows exactly when
Still the sun’s a long lost friend
On the longest night of the year

Make a vow when solstice comes
To find the light in everyone
Keep the faith and bang the drum
On the longest night of the year

I’m on my way to Houston for a couple of days. My best friend and I have plans. Two concerts, Sunday worship, a new-to-me coffee place, and Tex-Mex dining for sure.

So keep me safe, hold me tight
Let the candle burn all night
Tomorrow welcome back the light
After the longest night of the year

Traveling mercies.