Wednesday, April 22, 2009

A Perfect Day


And about time!

It had been over six weeks since I had done any shopping and I was getting kind of low of some the more perishable items, so I made a supply run yesterday. It was a perfect day to do it: bright and sunny, 75°, and not too much wind. Just an ideal day to make the 250-mile round-trip to the nearest decent shopping spot.

A distant neighbor and I usually share these runs. We stopped and had a nice store-boughten lunch and then stocked the larders. The truck was full on the way home!

We drove back along the river. The plains are starting to green up quite well, especially after all the rain we've had, but the scrub along the river was still stark and bare. It'll be another week or so until it starts to get some color.

When the land and the sky come together like that, it's hard to imagine a more beautiful sight. The Indians used to say "Only earth and sky last forever." That may be enough.

8 comments:

Home on the Range said...

Enough indeed. Beautiful picture. Your pictures are often my desktop background on those days I'm trapped inside.

Rio Arriba said...

You're too kind.

I'm working on a line of archival-quality greeting cards.

This is NOT a commercial plug! Well, maybe a little one.

Ryan said...

The parts of that region I have seen weren't my cup of tea but that picture is sure beautiful. The landscapes there are sure amazing.

Rio Arriba said...

TOR, I can understand that. You either love this country or you hate it. There ain't much in between. It's just too hard a place for namby-pamby. But year in and year out and season after season it never ceases to seduce and hypnotize me. 'Course, I could be retarded I guess...

Anonymous said...

That sure looks good to me out there. Every time I see one of those pictures, I think about moving. But then, lately, I've also been thinking about moving to the beach, or back to New Mexico......

mike's spot said...

Forgive me for being so naive, but I was curious about services out in your neck of the woods? it may sound silly- but how do you deal with the little everyday things like garbage disposal, items that spoil quickly like diary, and storing enough fuel to make your trips here and there?

Sorry if this is too personal- but I envy your rural lifestyle. I'm from 'rural New York' but that's nothing in comparison to you guys out West!

Rio Arriba said...

Not too personal at all, Mike.

There aren't any services. That's about it. In all the time I've lived here I have never seen a sheriff or statie vehicle. No garbage; I burn what I can, bag the rest, and take it down to the county dump every month or so. I get mail three days a week when the road is open, from the little post office that's 38 miles away. There's a little grocerette at the county seat 32 miles away and for occasional needs it serves, even though the prices are high. I have three freezers and keep them pretty full, plus a large pantry.

My truck has a 500 mile range and I use it only for distant trips. Locally I use my UTV.

You learn to plan ahead. Make lists. Sometimes do without for a few days.

Like I said before, it's not a lifestyle for everybody. I'm used to it, like it, and wouldn't want to live anywhere else.

mike's spot said...

thanks much for that. I figured it was independent living by in large- but I confess I feel a bit foolish for wondering about some of the amenities of urban living.