She was just perched on the tip of the antenna on our little red car. It was so cute.

Guess where the camera was. Of course, it was in the car.

I don't know if those of you who read this blog also read my "main" blog at Foovay's Cauldron. If you do - I apologize - because you've already read this. If you'd like, please play quietly among yourselves while I bring everyone else up to date.

Yes, that's our little winter home in the Southwest below this entry. The full moon beaming the blessings of the Goddess down upon us. And believe me, the place is the most wonderful blessing you can imagine. It came to us through a series of serendipitous happenings that can only be explained by - it was meant to be.

The motel we were in just had so many ongoing connectivity problems with the Internet we had decided to give up and move out. We called around TorC, checked on campgrounds to apartments and had not found anything that would really quite work for us for this winter. We somewhat sadly concluded we would go hole up at the campground in Why, AZ in the tent. Before we left New Mexico, however, I wanted to have a day in the natural hot springs spas in TorC and go see the Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge in Socorro, NM (famous for winter birding).

We walked to Riverbend Hot Springs and made a reservation. The next day when we showed up we were told that the clerk who made the reservation had made a mistake, that they do not allow pets. (In two days we talked to four different clerks and got four different answers about their pet policy) However, they had already charged our card, so they would let us stay. Yeah, they were about that shitty about it. In fact, they were so nasty (and mind you, we NEVER tried to conceal we had the cats, announced it up front to their clerk who made the reservation) we seriously considered leaving. But the springs and tubs were so beautiful, we stayed.

In the morning, I was seriously considering just packing and getting out - although we had enjoyed the springs immensely. James went out to soak at 7 am and finally I grabbed some coffee and followed him. He had met a very nice man in the tubs, Monty. We all chatted happily for a couple hours and I told Monty the URL for demented-pixie as he wanted to see my artwork.

James and I left at check out time and drove up to Socorro. The motels up there were pricey, and not very welcoming to the poor kitties yet again. I had hoped to stay up there a few days to see all the things we wanted to see in the area. Instead, we changed our plans. We stayed the night and left very early in the morning, to get the best bird watching times at the Refuge. Meanwhile, I was able to check my email and had a couple of short missives from Monty who had checked out the webpages. I wrote him back how much we had enjoyed meeting him and so on. He wrote back. I wrote back again.

The day we spent at Bosque del Apache is described in detail on the Bird Watchers Notebook - complete with some really fantastic photos James took. It was an amazingly wonderful day.

We finished at the Refuge and went on down the road to have dinner at a rest stop before returning to TorC. To see if I had recieved a payment owed me on the first, we stopped here, at the computer lab. What joy - the money was there. So we had to decide, stay in T or C for the night, or go on down the road towards Why.

After some thought, we decided to go on down the road. However, we needed to pick up some road food and supplies. In the grocery store, who should we run into except Monty! He turns, smiles and says, "I was just thinking of you. Would you be interested in staying in T or C for the winter?" We told him we had been planning on it, but couldn't find a suitable place to stay. He replied with, "A friend of mine needs someone to ranch-sit - would you be interested?"

Next thing you know, we're spending the night at Monty's. This morning we met Ron, drove out to the ranch, and...we have a place to stay at T or C.

Now - for you pagan and new age people - get this. For several weeks we've been doing readings of both the tarot cards and I-Ching trying to help us find a winter situation to our liking. Over and over the readings said, to paraphrase, "Don't worry about it, don't keep trying to force the issue, it is taken care of, just be patient". Also - over and over - there were references to the hero's journey through death, through the underworld, to rebirth.

There is a old trail through New Mexico called Journados Del Muerto - Journey of the Dead Man. It was so named by the Spanish, because so many men did die on the trail. There were long stretches of it with no water. Here and there in our travels we have gone past historical markers for the trail - and it has always somehow sort of captured my imagination. One of those things you mentally bookmark to look into more later.

The Journados Del Muerto runs straight through the center of the ranch.

How awesome is that?

We are all settled in at "The Bunkhouse", as we call it. We're told that besides a few million desert cottontails, pack rats, and the rattlesnakes who feed on them, coyotes, desert foxes, and even one of the newly reintroduced Mexican Wolves have been sighted here. One of the cattle this year was killed by a cougar. Antelope are reputed to graze in the front yard. We've seen tracks and bunnies - but that's it so far for wildlife.

But as for birds! Besides the Phoebe, flocks of doves seem to have adopted the outbuildings. White winged and Mourning Doves both grace our days. Meadowlarks sing the sun up in the morning. I've seen tracks of a Roadrunner, although the bird himself stays away from the house area, unlike the nearly tame one down in the campground in Why, AZ (remember him?). The Gambrel's Quail, too, are mainly glimpsed as they fly away in a burst of sound and motion.

Not a day goes by without visits from several different hawks - the most striking of which has to be the Northern Harrier that swooped low over the backyard one day, then zoomed over the house to vanish. He is an unmistakeable sight with his flat, owlish face and blazing yellow eyes against the dark grey of his feathers. A Prarie Falcon hunts here, as well as a family of Harris Hawks. A Swainson's Hawk drops by now and then, too.

A short distance up the main ranch road is a small lake. American Coots float sedately along it's surface every time I have been by - but I haven't yet at the time to spend a day or so sitting at lake side to see who else might be visiting.

All this and we are a short drive from Caballo Lake State Park - renowned for the birding - as well as Elephant Butte State Park.

Someone pinch me, I think I must be dreaming. On second thought - don't - this is too good to stop now!