pictures

Last night, I promised to upload a few pics of the Santa Fe Christmas eve celebrations. They are above.

First is the Spirit of Christmas. She gave out candy canes and was gracious to all.

Next down is a tree that one of the galleries decorated with lights.

The third photo is of one of the pieces at a gallery. The owner gave permission to photograph it. I want some of the Arkanas artists to see and get ideas for new work. This one is very complex. The iron is formed first. The four glass blowers use their pipes to form the glass inside. Because the iron is such a good heat sink, someone has to keep it to temperature where the glass approaches or touches it.

The last picture is a blurry one of the luminaria. Traditionally, these are candles in paper bags that have sand in the bottom. Because the candles burn out, many people use electric lights in brown plastic wrappings to simulate them. One of the galleries that used the traditional method had trouble with the candles burning out. One of their volunteers stayed outside, tending the bonfire and replacing candles.

The people last night were so friendly and helpful. It made me think that the spirit is alive and well. There was a warm, community feeling in spite of the cold temperature.

Thank you Santa Fe.

Christmas Eve

It's that time of year. This time was even better than most. As usual, we were with our daughter and grandchildren in Los Alamos. We had Christmas eve dinner with a friend of long years who had recently returned to New Mexico. She and her family hosted us in a pot luck at her home in Santa Fe.

Our friend lives about a block from Canyon Road. If you've never been in Santa Fe, Canyon is where many art galleries are located. All of them feature excellent things, from sculpture to painting to ceramics and mixed media. I took some pictures (with the gallery owner's permission) and will post them when I get a little more time.

The special thing about this area is that about five in the afternoon, streets are closed off to vehicular traffic. Gallery owners put up Christmas lights, especially the luminaria that are unique to this part of the US. Most corners sport bonfires surrounded by happy people who warm themselves and take part in singing Christmas carols (like Little Town of Bethlehem or It Came Upon a Midnight Clear) and Christmas songs (eg. I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas or Jingle Bells). It doesn't matter if everyone knows the words since those who do carry those who don't through the parts they have forgotten.

Of course, many of the galleries are open. Some serve hot coffee or cider. People can walk through, talk to the owners and, in some cases, the artists. Many of the works you can see are museum quality.

On the street, hot food is sold as well as hot drinks. People dressed for the winter parade up and down as they admire the windows or walk into the galleries. There were even some who dressed in Victorian clothing and gave out candy canes or led carols. One gallery had a blues singer who played the harmonica and had a toptoppy drum accompaniest. Another had a classical guitarist who played beautiful classical and Spanish music. He talked to some of the amateur guitarists who visited and gave hints on technique.

The way home was lovely. The snow of yesterday had been cleared from the highways but remained on the lawns and vistas. A bright half moon illuminated things. Of course, many houses were decorated with lights, both the traditional luminaria (or feralitos) and colored lights and yard sculptures. Although I was tired, the views were so enchanting that I could not close my eyes. I'm wired enough to finish this, but not to transfer the photos from my camera. Later.

Merry Christmas to all. My heartiest good wishes for the coming year.