Day Trip: Tsankawi & Frijoles Canyon

It looks like we might be in for some late fall weather (i.e., snow or cold rain) for Thanksgiving, so this morning I decided to get out while it was relatively nice.

Today's trip to Bandelier National Monument was pretty casual. Hadn't been to Tsankawi before, so I decided to stop and hike out there. The hike is relatively short, about 1.5 miles round trip. Awesome views from up there, though! Such cool cloud formations today, too. Bandelier is not that far of a drive from Santa Fe (about 45 mi.) & it felt great to get out of town for the day.

Have a great Thanksgiving everyone! :-)

• P.S. You can click on any picture for a larger view.

Bandelier: Frijoles Canyon

All of the pictures above are taken in Frijoles Canyon, Bandelier National Monument, NM. The last time I was here (in 2006 with a bike tour) I sprained my ankle coming down from the Alcove House while trying to take a picture of the group from the top of one of the ladders. Silly me! Didn't get any pics that day, so I had to make it up there today. :-)

Relax and Enjoy!

Hi! Hope everyone out there has had a good week. I have -- but have been quite tired all week. We have a school break coming up, though, after next weekend. Yay! I haven't made the time to decide what to do over break: study all week, take off and go camping... both?? It'll depend on the weather and the homework load that week.

Can you guess where this photo is taken? It's from one of my favorite places to go in off season... mountains in the distance... sandstone in the foreground. Arches National Park! Yes, it is the view from Delicate Arch, the arch depicted on the Utah license plate:-) It's a 3-mile round trip hike up to the arch from the parking lot, but it's worth it! I thought I would post this one because it reminds me of my meditation imagery of Canyonlands. Each week, someone in my class gives a 15-minute self-care presentation to the group. Mine was this week. I had everyone imagine a place they felt was peaceful and imagine themselves being there: seeing, feeling, hearing. It is a method of stress relief. We played some nature/massage music, which helped to set the mood. Give it a try sometime...!

Have a great weekend! :-)

Nothing in Particular

It has been colder this week in Santa Fe. Frosty mornings. Not much more than 50F/10C during the warmest part of the day. So what's that got to do with the photos of Glacier Park, Montana, above? Just thinking warm thoughts, I guess! Actually, I haven't had a chance to take many photos recently. Found these two taken on a hike to Iceberg Lake in July '06. Beautiful hike. (I almost wrote bear-tiful!) Often during the height of summer the trail gets closed due to bear activity. Bears are almost always seen from or near the trail!

In the NMAHA massage school world, our class is doing well for the most part. We just finished Week #8 (we are still breathing!) and our brains are *brimming* with a plethora of information about client comfort, massage techniques, communication, anatomy & physiology!

All this information is beginning to synthesize into something -- I can't describe it in words just yet. Maybe one of my classmates can? We have sessions with the public every weekend -- most of us are working Student Clinic on Saturdays. Some on Sundays. This is how it works: People from the community book 55 minute massage sessions with students (in advance). It's affordable -- $30. Before we go to our booths, we meet with our client to discuss their treatment options, current health, etc. After the massage, we query for feedback: what they liked, disliked; what was effective, etc. Now that I've gotten through the first few clinics, I feel like I'm having mini-breakthroughs. However, the more I learn, the more I feel there is to learn! Isn't that true with most everything, though?

Hope everyone is having a good weekend. :-)

Fall Back

It's a beautiful fall day out there! I just got back from a nice run up on some of the Dale Ball Trails here in Santa Fe. Thought I would get a little fresh air & exercise before hitting the books. Anatomy quiz tomorrow!! :-)

Nice to have that "extra" hour today as Steve & I drove down to Albuquerque this morning for his departure to the Australian Outback. He's going to be bike touring until February! Whoo! We had lunch at Flying Star before heading to the airport. He got out with his bike box, duffle bag, and two panniers ("that's all I need...") and I took his car back to Santa Fe with me. Coincidental that I started my cross-country biking tour in '05 from the same airport? Hmmm! Good luck out there, Steve! (I've posted a link to his bike tour blog on the sidebar, if anyone is interested.)