Another Planet

Have you ever visited another planet?
Well...I have and lucky for you I brought back some pictures.

You can click on the pictures to make them larger.

As you can see it's dry, very dry, desert dry

So this is where I really was.  The Bisti Badlands or De-Na-Zin in Navajo - good luck pronouncing that correctly.  

This area was once covered by ancient sea and water is what formed the river beds and weird formations that you see.  When the ancient sea receded many animals flourished in the area.  Apparently there are many fossils to be found, but I did not see any.  There was plenty of petrified wood around, though.  Proving that at one point this place was lush with trees.  What is now left is sandstone, mudstone, shale and coal that has been eroded over time.  

The area is a vast expanse of near nothing, as you can see from the pictures.  There are no trails, it is an area to wander free and hope to be able to find your way back to your car.  It is beautiful in its own unique way.   I also did not wander upon some of the more impressive structures, as I was alone and did not want to wander too far astray.  

I've also realized that I prefer the mountains and green scenery over the desert any day.  The desert and it's unique rock formations as well as places like Bisti and Monument Valley are beautiful, but I would much rather spend my time near the ocean or in the mountains.  Maybe it's because in those places the cool air is so refreshing and there are unique smells that stimulate the senses.  In the desert it's hot and the air doesn't feel fresh and there aren't any unique smells associated with the atmosphere.  

This weekend, I'm heading outside of Mancos, Colorado to see the beauty of the evergreens!  

Guest Blogger: Penny Princess

Hey it's me the Pennster.  Mom asked me to write a guest blog post, since I'm not with her right now and she knows that all of you readers must miss seeing pictures of me.  

So here you go - here's a picture of me resting at my Aunt Sarah's house in my chair.  It's a pretty sweet chair.  It's got a tall back set up in a corner so no one can sneak up on me.  The big arms protect me from the sides and the afternoon sun shines right in and keeps me toasty warm.

My new cousin Bart he likes to share my chair.  I try to be good and share, but he'll just sit on me or lay on his back with his paws in the air and be either on top of me or shoves me out of the way.  How Rude!

As you can see below, I beat him into my chair today hee hee.

We get along though too - we play with this new cool toy mom bought me - it's a soccer ball and Aunt Sarah puts treats in it and Bart-mew rolls it around and I try to eat up the treats that fall out of the ball before he sees them.  sneaky sneaky.

Mom told me I should post a picture of Bart too, but I don't want to because really - we know it's all about me. 

:)

Ciao

- Penny

Sand Canyon

On my day off I took a ½ day trip to go to the Canyon of the Ancients/ Sand Canyon to hike.  The trail is in Colorado on the way to Cortez from Shiprock.

The directions are the type where you turn at x stoplight and then drive for approx 15 miles and then there is the trailhead.

Well, I missed the trailhead on my initial drive.  I was too busy enjoying the view on the drive.  The green of Colorado and the blooming wild sunflowers were gorgeous.  I appreciate greenery even more now that I live in the desert.  Both types of landscapes are beautiful in their own right.

Here are some pics from the hike. 

Trailhead, start of the hike - back from the road a little - that's why I missed the giant sign the first time I passed it. :)

Greenery :)

Beautiful layers within the rocks.  If only I were a geologist so I could tell you more about the different layers.

The Sand Canyon

When was the last time you went for a hike?  Where did you go?

Lonely Flower

Growing up, I loved being around people.  I never really understood the need to be alone every once in a while.  Maybe it was because I had plenty of alone time, being an only child.
I distinctly remember the first time I really really really wanted to be by myself.  It was as a camp counselor during the summer after my Freshman year of college.  I guess that is what living with six 10 year old girls will do to a person.  That summer I would wake up early, before the campers in order to be by myself and salvage a little peace and quiet out of the day.

Since that summer, I've learned to enjoy me time.  It's a good lesson to have learned, seeing as I am by myself most days on my rural rotations.  But now I have the benefit to do what I want to do, when I want to do it - only limited by the rural-ness of where I'm living, haha.

Where I'm living now has no internet, no TV.  In a way it's freeing.  And in a way it's completely annoying, haha.  Life runs at a slower pace here.  Want to know what I do in the evenings to keep myself busy?  I listen to an audiobook on my phone and work on a jigsaw puzzle.  Yup - I said jigsaw puzzle, which I'm totally addicted to right now.

It sort of feels like in the winter when there is a rainy day and now there's an excuse to curl up on the couch to read a good book or watch movies all day - that's what it feels like everyday.  It's a nice change of pace from the normal craziness that is residency and my life.

Even though I'm bored at times, it's important to take the time to cherish these moments.
Who knows the next time I'll do a jigsaw puzzle?!

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What would you do for fun if TV and internet were not an option?

4 corners pictures

Photos as promised!

The plaque in the middle, surrounded by the 4 states and their state seals.  I have individual pictures of the state names and seals, but didn't want to bore you too much!

Vintage postcard shot. 

I'm off center because no one was around to take it - so I set up the camera myself for automatic picture taking.

From afar so you can get an idea of the whole area.  Note the stalls to the left hand side and to the back - there are individual sellers there, mainly selling jewelry, t-shirts, shot glasses, cards, mugs, and other wonder

For Fun!

Aztec Ruins

Last night - no babies.  I don't remember if I told you - but i'll be working all nights while in Shiprock, covering labor and delivery.  No babies last night - so I got to sleep.

Today I took a day trip to Aztec, where there is a national monument of the ruins.  I also went into Farmington (town ~30 mins away from SR).  It's a real town with a Wal-Mart, Target, movie theaters, etc.  Apparently it's lacking a good book store.  

Currently I'm at a coffee shop and bookstore, but it appears they are moving as 90% of the books are packed up.  I'm not complaining though, because I've got good food and internet!  woo hoo

Here are some pictures from the Aztec Ruins.

These are ruins left by Aztec, Native Americans.  The National Monument site is one of many in the area.  It is a rather large complex.

This is a reconstructed Kiva - where many ceremonies would have been held.

Much of the tour, I spent walking on the roofs of some of the buildings.  Many of the daily activities took place on the roofs as well as within the plaza.

This North side wall is longer than the length of a foot ball field.  Pretty impressive for something that was built in the early 1100s.

Finally Made It!

Have you ever had that one place you've always wanted to visit?  To see some sight or do a certain activity.  Well....I have.  One of my dreams (haha big word for such a small place) was to visit the 4 corners and say that I stood in 4 states at once!

For whatever reason my Dad refused to take me as a child on vacation to the 4 corners.  I have no idea why?!  It's obviously a destination and a unique one at that.  Where else in the US can you stand in 4 states, that's right I said 4 STATES - at one time!!!  No where - that's where.

I had the opportunity one other time in my life to visit 4 corners, but instead chose the Grand Canyon instead.  Now 4 corners is less than 30 minutes from my current post in Shiprock NM.
So I finally went.

I phone - pic!

Finally there - 4 states at once!

   

I obviously have more pictures, but no internet where I am currently staying.  I'm at McDonalds using their free wii-fi and it's really really really slow at loading so these are the only pics you get for now!

More to come.