ABQ: 1902 Postcard

ALBUQUERQUE

Postcard from 1902--bridge over the Rio Grande in Barelas.

STYLE: Be Careful with Metal

STYLE

Be Careful with Metal

One of the easiest ways to look pulled together, no matter if your style is casual or more formal, is to make sure that your metals don't clash.

It's easy to forget that the buttons on clothes and shoes, zippers, clasps on accessories, and our jewelry may be made of different metals. For example, brass fittings on a purse don't look good next to silver buttons on a jacket. While a few people may get away with electic, most of us just seem disorganized and somehow not quite together.

Worse are more obvious mismatches, such as when a silver necklace is worn with gold earrings. The only way to compensate is to find somewhere the two metals can be mixed--say, adding gold and silver braclets mixed together to complete the outfit.

To avoid having to put too much thought into the issue of metals, look for non-metal buttons on clothes, hidden closures on shoes, and purses without exposed metal fittings.

ABQ: Downtown Grid

Albuquerque

Downtown Grid

This photo was taken during a flyover of Downtown by Todd Clarke.

The larger, but short, white building in the upper right side is the convention center. Notice the crossover bridge above the street. In the lower right are a couple of dirt lots that are about to be turned into townhomes and apartments.

The two highrise buildings with the red triangle roofs,  Albuquerque Plaza, are the tallest buildings in the state. Which is to say, New Mexico is built out horizontally rather than vertically. One block to the east (right) and one block to the south is the Sunshine building.

Central Avenue, old Route 66, runs on the north side of the Sunshine building. To the south is Gold Avenue.

ABQ: Greater Downtown Neighborhoods

ALBUQUERQUE

Downtown Neighborhoods

Greater Downtown Albuquerque has around a dozen neighborhoods, depending on how they are defined—West Park, West Old Town, Old Town, the Downtown Neighborhoods area, Sawmill, Wells Park, McCellen Park, Santa Barbara/Martineztown, Huning Highland, South Broadway, Barelas, Raynolds Addition and Huning Castle (Country Club).

McCellen Park remains a neighborhood mostly in name, only. The area began to turn commercial with the original Route 66, which ran north/south from Santa Fe to south of Albuquerque, following the Rio Grande, in the 1920s. Downtown it ran along Fourth Street.

In the 1930s Route 66 was realigned to run east/west on what is now Central Avenue. It continued to run through McCellen Park and encouraged more commercial development. But it was the building of the freeways, I-25 and I-40, with the nearby interchange and subsequent industrial development, that seemed to end the residential appeal of the neighborhood.

Eventually the actual park, for which the neighborhood was named, was replaced by the federal courthouse. The building sits back from the street to mimic a park feeling. A controversial statue of a pioneer woman statue was moved to the side and back of the site.

The area is now mostly occupied by businesses and government buildings related to the courts. With new apartment buildings and condos being built in the core of Downtown, theorectically the neighborhood could be revived in a new form.

STYLE: Weed Your Closet

STYLE

Weed Your Closet

Recently I've done some research for a writing project about how to create a great personal style. I'm realizing as I age, it takes a lot more work to look great. Okay, there are plenty of days I would settle for simply looking pulled together and not sloppy.

A great wardrobe starts with an organized closet. I used to think that I didn't have much to wear. But after reading enough advice articles I realized I had way too much. My best pieces were lost in the clothing clutter. I had no idea what items worked for each season--let alone finding them.

It was time to weed.

I started by creating three piles: give away, throw away and keep. I needed the throw away pile because I have a bad tendancy to think I'm going to fix torn clothing or replace buttons, although it rarely ever happens. So clothing remained in my closet that wasn't even suitable for a thrift store. Bad, very bad.

Other categories to weed a closet can be created: ugly, too big, too small, broken, left over from the Nixon administration, "like" versus "don't like," and "people laugh behind my back when I wear this." Be brutually honest with yourself or enlist the help of a compassionate, yet stylish, friend.

The point is to get rid of the items that don't enhance your figure or make you feel good about yourself. It's easy to hold on to the wrong things because they were a gift, inherited, cost too much or the item was recently purchased. Everything must go that doesn't work for your current lifestyle.

The second step I took was to divide my clothes into four seasons. Yes, a few pieces can cross over, but not many. Most clothes work the best at one particular time of the year.

I have a clothing bag set up in a spare closet for putting out of season clothing away that still needs to remain on a hanger. Everything else could be tucked away in a large garmet box under my bed. I've found that a plastic container with a lid that snaps shut works best, due to the abundance of dust bunnies that nest under my bed.

Seperating my wardrobe seemed like it would involve a lot of work, but actually turned out to be fun. It forced me to get focused on which articles of clothing are functional in each season. More importantly, it got rid of three seasons of clothing from my closet that were quite distracting when I went to get dressed in the morning.

The best part of a weeded closet comes when the seasons change. I get to go shopping in my own stockpile of clothes. There is something refreshing about getting to add "new" items to my wardrobe and getting rid of the old ones, even if it's only to put them away until next year.

ABQ: Cities as a Center

ALBUQUERQUE

Cities as a Center

In the past century Downtowns have gotten a bad rap. In many mid-sized and smaller cities around the country, like Albuquerque, the central core became a dumping ground of abandoned buildings and a concentration of social services and the court system. Downtown was left to the undesirables.

Despite all the gains produced by the internet, there still is no substitution for innovation among people in face to face contact with each other. The most vibrant atmospheres are created when people exchange ideas. People need to talk with each other. This is still best accomplished in cities.

Top American cities have strong and diverse economies, a diverse set of economic anchors, world connectivity, and status as a magnet for the best and brightest of all ages. Dense cities are the greenest places in the U. S.

Cities are export entities—they exist because they provide people a way to make money. Residents of the same place buying and selling things to each other will not produce a city. Cities are born from intercity transportation—a major airport, an interstate highway line, a train link, and a port. (Improving these links is the quickest way for a city to generate economic growth.)

Main Street is the economic engine, the big stage, the core of the community.

Why does this matter?

Because cities that embrace improving their central core aren't just improving a single neighborhood. Investment into better infrastructure, improved public spaces and multiple forms of public transportation is going to bring long-term benefits to the entire region.

An ideal Downtown is the central meeting space for the entire city. Residents from all walks of life feel comfortable in the space. Which, in turn, leads to increased information exchange, the true building block for economic improvements in the twenty-first century. Innovation is shared and new ideas are incubated. Real growth is created.

GARDEN: Backyard Sunflower

GARDEN

Backyard Sunflower

I have sunflowers blooming in late June in the backyard. Some I started from seed and nursed along, while others sprouted on their own from last year's plants. Only this one has reached the mammoth size promised on the seed package.

GARDEN: Box Tutle Garden

GARDEN

Box Turtle Garden

When we moved to our new house in Downtown Albuquerque, I needed to find a way to keep our dogs and pet box turtle separate. Our old adobe house, near the plaza in Old Town, had been blessed with two courtyards. The dogs got one and the turtle lived in the other. But with the move, our creatures would need to share a backyard.

The box turtle garden was born. It also proved to be a good way to hide the air conditioner.

The first summer season I planted greens and herbs, imagining the turtle happily munching on fresh garden plants. It would be a plant utopia. However, he showed little interest--preferring to catch bugs. Soon he was a one-turtle pest control system. He rid the kitchen of ants by eating the ant line. He tirelessly hunted insects from my plants.

The kitchen compost pile, next to his water dish, proved more of a hit. While he didn't seem to notice the fruit and vegetable scraps, he digs for worms, thereby turning the pile for me.

The turtle has fresh water while he's out of hibernation in the summer. Like the garden itself, he requires no care in the winter. The first year I filled a larger planter with loose soil and put it down into the ground. I'm not sure if he could dig down deep enough to for his hibernation in our hard clay soil without it. He found and used it without problem.

I know winter is about over when I see the turtle start to emerge from the ground.

I now plant herbs and flowers in the turtle garden, knowing I don't have to worry about bugs. If you look closely in the picture, you will see the brown turtle behind the water dish, on the compost pile. (He resembles the rocks.) He's about to eat a raspberry I picked for him from the surrounding bush. He also enjoys the occasional strawberry, but still doesn't touch the herbs and fresh lettuce.

ABQ: Old Town Farm

ALBUQUERQUE

Old Town Farm

A valley runs through Downtown Albuquerque along the Rio Grande. For many generations farming has been located along the river. So while most people would think of the city center as being urban, a surprising amount of crops are still grown and livestock kept in more rural sections. These areas include the Biopark Heritage Farm, where food is raised to feed animals at the zoo, as well as the zoo itself.

In addition, front yard vegetable patches, neighborhood gardens, and backyard chickens are increasing in popularity in the denser urban areas.

Pictured above is the Old Town Farm, located in the neighborhood of West Old Town, which is not surprisingly, west of Rio Grande boulevard and the Old Town Plaza. CSA memberships are available and produce is sold at local farmers markets.

ABQ: Paseo del Bosque Bike Trail

ALBUQUERQUE

Paseo del Bosque Bike Trail

16 miles of uninterrupted paved trail runs from the northern end of Albuquerque to the southern end. The multi-use trail passed through Downtown on the western edge by the Biopark, Tingley Beach and the zoo.

The trail was named as one of the best in the western USA by Sunset magazine.


This trail is a beautiful ride along the Rio Grande through an area of trees known locally as a bosque. Native plants and animals can be spotted, including cranes in late fall and winter. It's a great way to watch hot air balloons at Balloon Fiesta on the northern end of the trail while avoiding the crowds.

The city is rather hot in the summer. Therefore, the best summer times to use the trail are in the mornings and early evenings. Albuquerque may not reach peak temperature for the day until 4 PM in the afternoon. Be advised to have plenty of water with you always. And thorn proof your tires if you are bringing your own bicycle instead of renting locally. The area is covered in goat head stickers--which are even worse on the connecting dirt paths. Trust me, you don't have enough patches in your repair kit. It's a long walk home if you get a flat. 


According to NMTS:

The bike path is used by children, recreational road cyclists, and experts (usually getting from one side of the city to another), not to mention walkers, inline skaters, joggers, and others. A gravel parallel road parallels the paved path on the northern portion. Be careful not to startle horses.

There is no water or bathrooms on the trail. There are porta-potties at the Alameda trail head and bathrooms at Tingley Beach. It crosses the diversion channel over several well maintained bridges and there are little benches along the way. The only negative is that there are several chicanes, or "mazes" south of Tingley beach where you have to dismount and walk your bike through. The are connections at Rio Bravo where you can find a convenience store nearby if you're getting hungry.

GARDEN: Rio Grande Bosque

GARDEN

Rio Grande Bosque

Downtown Albuquerque borders one side of the Rio Grande. On both sides of the river we have the Rio Grande Valley State Park. The area is great for cycling on the bike path, hiking trails, watching birds and just finding a restful spot in the city.

According to the City of Albuquerque website:

Established by the State Legislature in 1983, this Park is managed cooperatively by the Open Space Division and the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District (MRGCD). The 4,300-acre park extends from Sandia Pueblo in the north through Albuquerque and south to Isleta Pueblo.

The Rio Grande bosque offers a unique environment in arid Albuquerque. Large cottonwood trees, coyote willow, and New Mexico olive create a cool, shady forest and provide habitat for beaver, numerous bird species, turtles, and snakes.



GARDEN: artwork/Gargoyle

GARDEN

Gargoyle

The garden statute looks almost like a dog. He is rather contemplative and not at all scary.

GARDEN: artwork/Aloe Plant

GARDEN

Aloe Plant

I create this style of artwork from photography. I first print one of my photos off the photocopier in black and white, adhere the image to a board using beeswax, then finish the image with oil pastel over the beeswax.

GARDEN: St. Francis/artwork

GARDEN

St. Francis Statue

This artwork I made from a photo of a statue taken at Gertrude Zachary's Downtown antique store. She has a marvelous selection of outdoor garden statues, fountains and various types of ornaments. I find her store inspiring to visit.

GARDEN: artwork/Hen & Chick

GARDEN

June 2012 I had four pieces of artwork in a group show "Miniatures and Small Works" at the Bright Rain Gallery in Old Town, Albuquerque, New Mexico.