It’s been a while since I’ve written anything. I’ve always had the intention of keeping up a regular blog but for various reasons, mostly working, I never managed to do it. Now I have the time and desire to reach out and express myself.

Two big life changes occurred for me. First, I moved from Belen, NM to Albuquerque, NM where I bought a small house. Second, I retired from the Whitfield Wildlife Conservation Area as of May 29, 2020. After being sequestered and working from home for two months due to Covid19, the transition to retirement didn’t seem that big of a deal. I find myself busier than ever. I don’t know where the time goes as cliched as that sounds.

We have a great little garden going this year. We are already harvesting radishes, Swiss chard, lettuce, and squash.  

Our four chickens have grown up since we got them on Valentine’s Day. Hopefully, we will be getting eggs sometime this summer.

I completed laying out and mulching my “tropical bed.” I hope to plant winter hardy subtropicals and plants that have a tropical look. I figure since I can’t live in the tropics, I’ll have my own little tropical world right here. 

I feed the birds and have been especially pleased with the niger seed-filled socks that I hung up for the finches. Lots of Lesser Goldfinches have been showing up. In the last few days, a Ladder-backed Woodpecker has been coming and eating out of the hummingbird feeder as well as a feeder with a seed block made to attract woodpeckers (obviously works!). 

Since I lasted posted, I went on two trips that I will be writing about in upcoming blogs. In August 2019, I traveled to Vietnam, a country full of surprises. In January, I took a winter vacation to Puerto Vallarta, México, where one of the highlights among others was a whale watching trip. I’m looking forward to the day when travel is safe again and the Corona Virus is a memory.

I’m looking forward to sharing my life’s journey with you with things that may interest and inspire you in the future. 

I have a love of art and gardens and one of my favorite places, the Getty Center in Los Angeles, has both. While known for its outstanding art collection, the gardens are an artistic masterpiece in themselves that change all the time as one plant blooms while another fades away. Designed by California artist Robert Irwin, the Central Garden is one of the two showpiece gardens, the other being the Cactus Garden, at the Getty.

It was a hot, sunny summer day the day I visited and the air was hazy. I went on one of the regularly scheduled tours you can take with a docent. It was a good introduction to the Getty and it’s grounds and gardens and I highly recommend doing so when you visit. 

The Central Garden is so named as it is the heart of the Getty Center campus. Your journey begins along a man-made stream, heavily planted with all kinds of plants including lots of succulents, flowers, shrubs and trees. Over 500 kinds of plants are planted in the garden. 

At the heart of the garden lies a maze of azaleas (long past bloom when I was there) set in a large pool of water with a waterfall. This highly ordered design element is surrounded by a colorful cast of flowers in all colors. A variety of plant textures contributes to the overall composition.

Large, sculptural trees are covered with bright red bougainvillea blooms. These are one of the most interesting looking structures in the garden.

Bright red dahlias steal the scene here. The colors and textures of the garden provide a soft contrast to the sharp outlines of the angular, buff white buildings designed by architect, Richard Meier.

Be sure to take advantage of the umbrellas that they offer at the beginning of the tour. While there are shady spots throughout the campus, there are also areas open to the hot California sun. Wear sunscreen of course as well.

Being a cactus lover, I had to go see the cactus garden. It is located in the southeast corner of the Getty complex and actually requires seeking it out. It is totally worth it though as the view over the cacti and the panorama of Los Angeles is stunning. Comprised of columnar cacti (I’m not sure of the species) and more golden barrel cactus (Echinocactus grusonii) than there are probably found in the wild, it is a living sculpture garden, appropriate at an art museum.

While I came for the gardens, there is of course the outstanding collection of art at the Getty. Here are two of the more well-known Impressionist works, Iris by Vincent van Gogh and Wheatstacks, Snow Effect, Morning by Claude Monet.

Irisis, Vincent van Gogh

Wheatstacks, Snow Effect, Morning by Claude Monet

Be sure to plan plenty of time at the Getty Center, perhaps a whole day. The Getty Center sits on a hilltop in the Santa Monica Mountains.  From the moment you begin by taking the tram up the hill from the parking level, you are going to be in brain overload by the time you leave as there is so much to see and take in. The Getty is a must see if you are in Los Angeles.

Of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, only one still exists today, the Great Pyramid of Giza. In 2001, the New7Wonders of the World were chosen from a selection of 200 existing monuments through an online vote. One of those wonders is Chitzen Itza in the Yucatan of Mexico. If you are staying in Cancun or Playa del Carmen along the Mexican Riviera, Chitzen Itza is a must-do trip and easy to do with multiple tour companies available. 

The largest and most famous structure is the pyramid known by the name the Spanish gave it, El Castillo. Not only is it impressive to behold, but its symbology is amazing. At the base of one of the stairs are two large serpent heads. They represent the god Kukulkan, the plumed serpent god worshipped by the Mayans of the Yucatan Peninsula. “During the spring and fall equinoxes, the shadow cast by the angle of the sun and edges of the nine steps of the pyramid combined with the northern stairway and the stone serpent head carvings create the illusion of a massive serpent descending the pyramid.” (Wikipedia)

Human sacrifice was part of the Mayan religious practices. As in many Mayan cities, the ball court was one of the ritual ceremonies in which someone would end up as a sacrifice to the gods. The ball court at Chitzen Itza is perhaps the largest of the Mayan ball courts. These games were played out before the upper class. 

I was surprised to learn that the captain of the winning team would willingly offer himself up for sacrifice. It was believed to be an honor and bring good fortune from the gods to the whole community. On a wall in the ball court is a frieze depicting such a “winner” with blood gushing out of his neck from a severed head. At least this is the story our guide told us. 

On the way to the ball court, there is a low wall that has many skulls around it. Each one is different and was a person who was willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good of the Itza community during times of drought, for example, to bring rain from the gods. Again, this is the story our guide told us. 

We were lucky to have a great tour guide. I highly recommend Amstar DMC México tour company. I booked both this tour and one to the ruins of Tulum through them and they were excellent in every way. Be aware, that Chitzen Itza is very crowded with tourists (2,000,000 a year) and there are over two thousand vendors(!) you have to walk past coming and going from the ruins. They will try to scam you with lines like, “only one dollar, almost a dollar, almost free, and so on.” Just say no and/or walk on by unless you see something you want to buy. There really are some cool souvenirs there. Also, be sure to wear sunscreen and a hat as it is very open, sunny, and hot there. 

There is much more to see and learn about at Chitzen Itza. You will find Chitzen Itza a fascinating legacy of the ancient Mayan people.

Sometimes you don’t have to travel far from home to find an exotic destination. Here in New México, there is one place that is so unique that it has been featured in many movies as another planet, filled in for other deserts, and just appeared as itself. That place is White Sands National Monument, which is like no other place on Earth.

Located in the Tularosa Basin of southern New México, White Sands is famous for its pure white sand dunes. I was there with a friend over the Memorial Day weekend. That’s me walking on one of the very large dunes. I hadn’t been here in over 20 years and it was just as fun the second time around. Even with lots of people that day, you can find plenty of space to be alone if you wanted.

Feeling the squishy sand between your toes at White Sands brings the kid out in everybody. Adults and children alike like to play in the dunes. It’s like being at the beach, but without any ocean.

In places, it looks like it snowed with drifts flowing onto the roads. It is actually grains of gypsum forming the largest gypsum dune fields on the planet covering 275 square miles in the Chihuahuan Desert.

While the dunes might seem barren to us humans, there are over 800 animal species found here! Plants grow and thrive here, adapting to the conditions of constantly shifting dunes by growing taller as the dunes fill in around them. Sometimes, the sand then moves away leaving the plants to survive on a pedestal of sand. Nature can be amazing in the way life manages to survive in harsh conditions.

If you go to White Sands, and I strongly urge you to do so, be well prepared. In the last four years, four people have died in the desert conditions. Be sure to wear a hat and sunglasses, put on sunscreen, and bring plenty of water. If traveling alone, be sure to let someone know you will be going there.

The dune field is so large that it can be seen from space, but you can go and it up close and personal. For more information, go to the National Park Service website for White Sands National Monument at https://www.nps.gov/whsa/index.htm.

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton