the week in review

Holiday weekends are a pleasure, the way everything relaxes and slows. Thanksgiving is especially lovely because there isn't much to do but cook and eat and chat (all among my favorite activities). And even though tv and movies cast Thanksgiving as sort of a frightening thing, requiring alcohol to get through all of the family time, I quite like my family (although I will admit I was quite ready to get away from them this morning). I let my 5-yr-old niece be in charge of the family photos and she did a surprisingly good job. I especially like this one of my mom looking a bit witchy (she is a much lovelier woman than this suggests):



She also took some charming pictures of the holiday decor:



I also got in some good desert hiking (only one day instead of two because of the impending snowstorm). The canyons we traversed were challenging (ever so slightly beyond our abilities), so they provided good adventure. My arms are bit achy today because of climbing and chimneying and I think I need to get in better shape. It was good to get away. There's this feeling I get when I arrive at the desert (actually it always arrives when I'm driving through Wellington, when I know the desert is just around the corner), this blissful moment, where I instantly feel completely content and calm. I love that. Here are a few shots of the canyon:






The big disappointment of the week was not getting to meet the Rolling Stones. There's this art gallery by work that was showing some of Ronnie Wood's paintings (which, by the way, were all of the Stones, and the gallery could only play their music during the exhibit--if I were part of a larger-than-life rock band, I think I would want to escape it occasionally). Anyway, Mr. Gallery Owner taunted us with the info. that the Stones themselves would be stopping by on the day of their concert for a private party/ art viewing. The date of the show coincided with my 32nd birthday, so I decided I was destined to meet Mick Jagger. I don't even particularly like the Stones (I mean I like them when I hear them, but I don't own any of their albums), but I know celebrity when I see it, and if Mick Jagger is going to be next door on your birthday, it seems like you should get to meet him (or at least catch a glimpse of him). But no. Even though there were photographers hovering outside the gallery (ok, maybe only one) and the place was busier than usual, the Stones never arrived.