Friday, September 26, 2014

Quickie...it's been quiet on the gender front.

While the past couple weeks have been busy, there has been very little to talk about on the gender front.  I've been preparing the antique car for shows and another tour, and getting some little glitches fixed.  Plus cleaning up the garage.

Our weather has been cooling off - lows in the 50's and highs in the 70's.  More like the autumn, which is already here by the calendar.  So, my wardrobe has switched more to a fall-ish appearance...  stirrups or capris, pantyhose and - yes, my ballerinas.  I'm now able to wear those whenever I want!   Maybe it's because of my silver toe nails...which my wife doesn't like, but which I've declined to change till my next pedicure in early October.  Whatever the reason, I don't mind at all.  And I seem to be right in step with the ladies...who, on the cooler days, are wearing longer pants.

Though I love my capris, it feels wonderful to wear stirrup pants again...

With the thought in mind of the various volcanoes which have been erupting over the past year or so, discussion about the volcanoes of which Yellowstone is comprised, and the clips about them all on the Weather Channel on cable TV here in the USA, I present the following pictures of Capulin Mountain, the remains of a small cinder cone volcano along US-87, about 10 miles SE of Raton in the high plains of New Mexico.  I took these pictures in the winter of 1972 - hard to believe that it's over 40 years ago!

Colorful sunrise in the high plains... after a night at an $8 motel in Clayton, NM.  No, it was not a Super 8!

From the National Park Service:  Capulin Volcano National Monument is a well-preserved, relatively young (58,000 to 62,000 years old), symmetrical cinder cone. It rises steeply from the surrounding grassland plains to an elevation of 8,182 feet above sea level. The irregular rim of the crater is about a mile in circumference and the crater about 400 feet deep.

Capulin Volcano is one of the outstanding landmarks located in the northeast corner of New Mexico, where the rolling grasslands meet the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Capulin Volcano's highest point provides unobstructed, panoramic views of the volcanic field, distant snow-capped mountains, and portions of four states (New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Colorado).

That sloping stripe across the blackness of the cone is the driveway to the top...


At that time of year, the Monument was not frequently visited, as evidenced by this picture of my car (now my antique), being the only one in the parking area.   There weren't any other humans around!  Only Mother Nature...

Traveling has always been such fun...from away back.  Maybe that's why I enjoy it now...


4 comments:

  1. While I like the summer the heat does not comport well with my dressing. I had a chance to go out last night and work a fairly light short sleeve orange shift dress with my pumps and pantyhose. It was nice to get dressed and not worry about sweating. I even had a light jacket on over my dress and felt comfortable. I just went to an LGBT bar and had a few drinks and kidded around with the regulars. They all joke about the fact that I tend to leave to head home just as the activity picks up but I do need to get up early to get to
    work.
    Pat

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  2. I know what you mean about the heat...but I suspect hot days are soon to fade into history! We haven't turned on the furnace yet, but have used an electric heater a couple times!

    Glad you were able to get out and about...sounds like fun, even if you had to leave early!

    Mandy

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  3. As you may recall we have a small house down the Jersey Shore and our primary residence is in northern Westchester. We sold our home that had two wood fireplaces and moved into a condo with none. On cold nights just the concept of a fireplace is warming and we looked into installing a gas burning fireplace since the condo would not permit a real fire place. The cost and effort of running gas lines and getting permits, etc was daunting until my wife found an alternative for about a grand. It was an electric fireplace inside a TV stand. It arrived at our condo in two boxes, the unassembled furniture piece box weighed 135 lbs.
    It took me two nights to get the thing together. Why am I boring you with the details of this do it yourself project? You may appreciate the irony of me wrestling with this "some (all) assembly required" piece while wearing a bra and tank top, denim skirt and pantyhose.

    Pat

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    Replies
    1. Oh, my...what a project! But it sounds like you made a fun time out of the work...it's more fun in a skirt!

      At a previous residence, it seemed like every time a bird landed on an overhead wire, there was a several-hour power failure. So we paid someone to put in a whole-house generator. I know about all the travails of getting permits, HOA
      approvals, and getting gas lines run. The worst part was finding a plumber who knew how to use the "manometer" for gas pressure. (Wonder if they know how sexist that name is...LOL!)

      Finally got enough people on the payroll to finish the job. And it really was worth the effort - we ended up giving extension cords to the neighbors on either side, so they could keep their sump pumps running and avoid flooding their basements (again and again.)

      And shortly thereafter, home generators started showing up in the neighborhood like crocuses in the springtime....

      Mandy

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