251:365:2011


I love old cars.

I am sure it has alot to do with my dad... who was a great car aficionado... and at one time... had dreamed of being a car designer.
 Whenever we were out and about ... and he saw a cool car... we had to stop.
When he and my mom came out for a visit in 1998... it coincided with the Great American Car Rally on Route66... and he was SO excited to spend a couple hours drooling over the vintage hot rods and such. He even got a ride in the rumble seat of an old 30's wagon... and it was awesome.

Anyway... today I went out to the airport to pick up BAJ from another out-of-town trip... and we went by one of several parking lots .... BUT... this one had a TON of vintage cars there. Apparently the owner of the lot has a hobby of buying old cars, restoring them... and re-selling them.
How cool is that>!
And so... I had to stop...

*photos by Elaine A. Russell

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One of the coolest places to eat downtown in ABQ... is the Frontier Restaurant.
Located on Route66 (Central Ave)... this local eatery has been in business since 1971.

It is a fabulous place ... with tons of cowboy art... wagon wheels... even old guns on the walls.
And the food? Well... I like the breakfast burrito myself, covered in green chile, a side of fries... and a large fresh squeezed OJ.

See more on the Frontier: here

This place is legendary, and has been on "Diner's Drive-Ins and Dives"...
and most recently on "Man VS. Food"...
Plus... ya gotta give the people watching factor a 5 Star Rating!



And this last photo... is a photo I took of one of the bronze sculptures inside the restaurant.
I cropped it close... and added a layer of the sky over-top of it...
I thought it gave it a sort of "Ghost Riders in the Sky"... kind of effect...


*photos by Elaine A. Russell

249:365:2011


Allergies are severely kicking my ass... as is (the continued) back injury and such...
And so... I will simply wish you all a very happy evening... and send you my best.
Here is a photo of the wisteria plant named "Elsbeth"... who is on my front patio...

248:365:2011


As a child... I was always told that I had an "old soul." I would guess that that is true.
As a teenager... I had a strange fascination with information about WWII... and poured over books and accounts of it. I felt as if I had been there. When I was in Germany... I made a point of going to Bergen-Belsen... an infamous concentration camp. It was an incredible experience.
Early in my marriage... I went to see a "fortune teller"... who randomly told me that I had been a gypsy in a former life... probably dying in WWII at a camp... this ... without any prompting on my part... in fact... I had forgotten about my earlier interest... until she mentioned it.
Several years ago... I started researching history on the Rom (gypsies) in western Europe... because I had an inkling that my father's family were indeed Romany people from England/ Ireland. I slowly started collecting books on the Rom... and to my amazement... this photo was in the front part of a book by Raymond Buckland. The caption on the photo reads.... Gypsy Girl, October 1912.

Now. Those of you who have known me since childhood... would swear this was a photo of myself. It is uncanny. The shape of the face... the coloration of the eyebrows... the hair... everything. When I saw it... I shook. It was like looking in the mirror.
And... if this little girl would have been around during WWII... she would have been around the age of 20... and would certainly have been taken off to a concentration camp to be exterminated. Over 6,000 Romany people were thought to have perished in the camps... perhaps more.

Sometimes life is stranger than fiction.

247:365:2011


One of the things I "found" when I was cleaning out the studio... were 2 sets of vintage curtains.
I have no idea where they came from... perhaps they were my sister's... or perhaps they were from my grandmother's... or perhaps I picked them up at a sale... I don't know.
But there they are... and I love them.

I am envisioning them in our "next" place... on an enclosed porch... or in a reading nook... or in the studio....
The wind lightly blowing them about... clean and fresh from being hung on a clothesline in the summer sun... having been washed by the rain the night before...


*photos by Elaine A. Russell

245:365:2011


 ... and I'm thinking tonight of a very dear friend who lost a family member in a tragic and horrific,
senseless... violent act...

I am so sorry.
As a species... we really need to get our crap together.

244:365:2011


I know. I have a thing for toys.
I love to photograph them... and I love to have a few of them around as inspiration... as well as for fun.
These toys are in a local diner... and I love the way they hang about.

 
*photos by Elaine A. Russell

242:365:2011


Today was a bad day... as far as pain control went...
But I am hopeful... and tomorrow is my acupuncture appointment.

My son's divorce and child custody issues are finally resolved... and it is good. We are so happy to be able to visit with his daughter. And.. he is enjoying his new job.

My daughter continues to make great strides with her OCD ... and is making some kick ass art lately. She is so helpful to me... in so many ways... and I appreciate it so.

And BAJ has some more traveling coming up with his job... but on the other hand... his job has lasted much longer than we anticipated... so it is good. And .. he is getting some recognition with his game writing and such... which is really cool.

...progressing along...

*photo by Elaine A. Russell

241:365:2011


OK.
I didn't think I would ever taste a donut better than the ones at Mickey's Diner growing up.

Then... I discovered "fresh off the line" Krispy Kreme's... and I thought it couldn't get any better.

Today I had a Flying Star "cream-filled" donut.
.yah.

~~~

Which proves 2 things:
1. I am often wrong
2. donuts are good... AND
3. Never stop trying new stuff (from my friends Julia and TJ)...


*photos by Elaine A. Russell

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I am not the most patient person in the world.
In fact... quite the contrary.
Once I get an idea in my head... I like to "boldly go where no one has gone before..."

So.. .waiting for my body to heal and get better is excruciatingly slow going.
Waiting to move out of New Mexico... seems an endless proposition.
It's like waiting for my hair to grow...

And so... I am trying to distract myself.
I am forging ahead with the organization of the studio... I am continuing the massive downsize that I started way back in 2003... giving away an item for every day of the year... I am trying to make lots of things to list in my Ebay shop, my Amazon storefront, and my Etsy store... to bolster savings for the move...

And this weekend... the daughter and friend went to the library, and brought home a "substantial" stacking..


*photos by Elaine A. Russell

238:365:2011


The theme for today seems to be green.
Green ...for all the wonderful plants we have growing around us... for friends who are having money issues... even for the lovely super large tomatoe that the evil squirrel munched out of the garden today.

And so... I have to remember that green is also a symbol for prosperity... for growth... and for positive change. It is also a symbol of healing... for balance... and for harmony.... and all is well.

*photos by Elaine A. Russell

237:365:2011


And the theme for today seems to be nature.
Every time I took a break today... some little guy was just beggin to have their photo taken :)



Hungry hummingbird, 2 spotted Ladybug, and a Red-Tailed Hawk in the sunlight...
*photos by Elaine A. Russell

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... and today... I am feeling a bit better. The herbs I am taking are predominantly composed of ginseng... which is helping my (general) circulation. I find that.. .between the herbs... a daily dose of motrin... White flower oil... and the hot pack... things are slowly improving. Today I went to the acupuncturist... my 3rd week in a row... and I think it is beginning to make a difference.
Afterwards... we went out for a wonderful meal at Flying Star... and had the best eclair ever!

And tonight... it rained. It was glorious.

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Blessed water... it finally rained here in NM... just as I was posting these rain pix from PA...


*photos by Elaine A. Russell

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So.. my new plan.... acupuncture once a week... pain relieving tea (pretty much all day)... white flower oil on the nasty areas... motrin and a hot pack at night... and things are slowly getting better... or at least I am trying to believe they are.

And in the meantime... things are sprouting like crazy in the front yard. We have lots of different kinds of peppers coming... some really nice looking tomatoes... and a whole lotta herbs!
Plus! Today.... we got a beautiful sunflower blooming away :)

 
*photos by Elaine A. Russell

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The garage/ studio is finally getting  in shape a bit... to the point where I feel like I can actually sit down and work on things without feeling an overwhelming urge to straighten up instead.
And so... I am thinking this is the beginning of a NEW ERA in art making... and it is good.


(if you click on the photos... you can see them bigger)

 


*photos by Elaine A. Russell

231:365:2011


I've been traveling back and forth to PA so many times... and for several years now... that it seems really odd to be here in ABQ for the summer. In fact... I don't think I've spent much of any summer here in the past ... say... 6yrs or so. It's strange.
And so... I find myself wandering about the house... wondering what I am doing. (and no... it's not early Alzheimer's).

The past few days I have been going thru boxes of papers... magazine clippings... memorabilia... etc. that I had strewn about the garage/studio for several years now. It has been interesting going thru it... and yet... oddly depressing. So very much has changed in the past few years... it's really amazing. And not bad. Some of it has certainly been sad... but I think the overall growth has been good.

I am not sure what to make of this "limbo-like" time... but I am sure there is a reason for it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About the photo for today: Sometimes I like to go back in my digital files and see what photos I took on that date... but in another year. This is one of those shots. I took this photo a year ago ... and it was taken while I was driving over a very long bridge in Ohio...