The old photos!

 Hi to those who enjoy old photos, which we term Sepia...and weekly we gather whatever we wish to share on Saturday!

Yep I'm a day early, since I don't want to miss Saturday Critters, and it's pretty hard to find old photos that are also critters.

This is my Sepia Saturday contribution. 

A couple of artists, Frida Kahlo and …

BIG OOPS. I JUST LOOKED AT HIM AND THOUGHT WHAT’S PICASSO DOING WITH FRIDA?

My mistake thinking he was Diego Rivera!

I love portraits of the generations, but don't know who these women were.

I wasn't here for this pyramid of Heym family members.

On bottom is Norm DeWolfe, Doug Heym, and Rick Heym.

The ladies are Carolyn Heym and Sally Heym.

Top are my sons, Marty (brunette) and Russ (blond.)

My ex is Doug Heym. I took back my maiden name when we divorced.

The Sepia Saturday prompt.

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I am doing better, and slowly getting this "cave in Durango" to look nice and homey. Thanks totally to my son and his wife. They came and rearranged the furniture, then unloaded boxes to shelves, and went out to pick up lunch. 

I had a short nap, and found some of my blogs won't let me reply to comments. Hope that's temporary, because I do love the conversations that occur here...making this true social media.

At least I have ac which makes the 90+ temps each day bearable keeping it around 70 inside.

I went out for about a half hour this morning to a local grocery store, then drove back a different way. I can't wait to have the energy to drive around more and find what's where. So far I saw the court house and post office. And a health food store. The last and maybe the post office will be useful.

The little Durango-Silverton train (narrow gauge but full size cars) just whistled its way by. It passes several times a day...but not at night.

There are several engines pulling the trains, this one yesterday, while today an orange one did the job.

It looked like all the cars were open air, but different set-ups. Some trains had about 10 cars, some just 4...of the few that I've stopped to watch go by from my windows.

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PS, it's Colorado Day here...the 150th birthday of the state. So all I know about it is that the Animas Museum here in Durango is open free today. I don't think I'll make it to the museum today though.

How did she actually do that?

We've had quite enough personal posts...whew, I'm definitely putting my feet up. Now that I've returned to the internet, now to make sure all the providers of things I need/enjoy know where I am.

So here's a post I prepared a while back. Just something I find quite interesting!

 Maria Popova writes about Marie Tharp and her work mapping the oceans floors.

This essay came from the recently published book Traversal, by the same author.

Marie Tharp at work. (Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.)

Leaving home in a sense involves a kind of second birth in which we give birth to ourselves. -Robert Neelly Bellah, sociologist and author (1927-2013)

Yes, I know this post doesn’t have any of my personal life news in it. Just wait. I’ll be back soon!

One shot

 

First light, first morning in new apt. IPhone messes with the lighting, so it lookslikedaylight. Sigh.

Don’t have internet yet, and hotspot with the iPhone is slow tonight. So I’ll leave this as my contribution. 

I have a fever again…wish I knew what was going on. But health insurance is not transferring automatically as several agents said…so I’m postponing several visits that I’d scheduled. We’ll see if I can even get coverage by August.

Tomorrow he internet should be on!

My daughter-in-law spent 5 hours Tuesday unpacking and organizing the kitchen, then carting all the boxes and bubble wrap to the garbage downstairs. Some she took to a recycling center nearby.

See ya!

Cortez to Durango July 27, 2026

 

Tai in his backyard overlooking the little canyon.

I drove car behind the truck full of stuff…between Cortez and Durango.

Filled out forms, and brought first furniture in from U-Haul

My super son, he did most of the lifting, carrying and stacking…what a guy!

He did have 2 friends chip in to help. I gave them some lunch money.

Feeling very grateful. I found the two boxes out of twenty which had the espresso machine and the coffee.  

My hand is on the handle of the little cart which I’ve had for 20 years, and it’s taken pottery and now breathing equipment from place to place. We’re in our new home!

Elevated me! and travel pics #1

 Remember (if you've read my blog in the last month or so) my attempt to go to higher elevations to start acclimating myself to my move to Colorado?

Well, I've moved. And for the last 3 days I've been breathing air over a mile in elevation...and  using lots of oxygen to help. It's not quite doing the job. I am tired, and very sluggish, and get out of breath doing the least little thing.

Cortez, where I'm currently sitting at my son's home, is elevation of 6,181 feet. The fact that it's 93 degrees out keeps me in the house. 

Tomorrow morning we drive the rest of my stuff to Durango, which is at 6512 feet. I feel really bad that I can't help load and unload just the needs for each night. But this old body I'm living in is demanding breathing equipment.

Eventually we'll get the U-Haul unloaded (today when you read this) and take the truck back. And my son and his friend will drive back to Cortez and leave me in my new apartment with the hoard of boxes! And don't forget tupperware tubs!

But at the last minutes there was room for the little twin bed, which needs replacing, but provides me a place to put my pillow. And the old rocker wasn't quite ready for the trash heap. After all, there's a personal connection between us survivors from the 70s!

So you came for the travel pics, didn't you?

Saturday we left Santa Rosa, after a delightful breakfast. Then across New Mexico through Albuquerque.

 My first sighting of a train!

I loved seeing rocks that looked just like lava.

Jaba the Hutt for Star  Wars fans.

We got to Cortez CO

No idea who the cute baby was…

Checking into La Quinta in Santa Rosa, NM las night…while the fever raged. So I’m glad I took a photo before sleeping it off with a glorious night sweat (and tylenol and ibuprofen).

This day (Saturday) was long, but we got to my son’s home and have done most of the things ones does when you get home…

My son played with Zora, his Blue Tick Healer.

 And his wife prepared a simple delicious meal we all enjoyed, after I had a short rest horizontally.

Now I need to return to that position, so will show you more of the trip with fantastic views soon.

Accountability for AI

Thanks Keith Kron newsletter What really Matters on Accountability and Consernt. An excellent essay.

“… I think it’s time to hold the multi-billionaires accountable while leading by our own examples. Because we can’t just hold them accountable. It has to be us. And we have to agree to some standards around not doing harm, about supporting people who will lose jobs to AI, and about how we use it and for what. And it will take more than the AI leaders to do this.

It will take people who know, live, and teach what accountability is to teach them about it. Because they don’t get it. Or want to get it. They just want more for themselves. That’s not accountability. That’s greed.”

I came down with a fever last evening, and got it down with meds, but kind of skipped doing anything productive.

Here’s one more shot from today’s camera roll (figuratively speaking.) I changed the header already.

Our motel Thursday night was located on Rogers Ave, in Fort Smith. My son and I are both surname of Rogers. We are certainly not doing any sight-seeing on this trip. It’s just drive drive drive.

The bad news was losing my credit card by leaving it in the gas pump somewhere in Oklahoma.  I did call the bank and cancelled it. Fortunately I can transfer funds to another bank…which is my next job.

Two days on the road

We left Black Mountain at 11 am on Wed. July 22, earlier than planned.

 

Rafting on the Pigeon River - NC while we slowly drive the I-40 detour.

Tai driving past the Sun Sphere Knoxville TN

Nasheville TN

Sleep in Nashville TN

Breakfast

The highways in Tennessee were embraced by trees in many miles!

Memphis TN

Near the St. Jude’s Hospital with Danny Thomas Blvd…and continuing to Little Rock

The mighty Mississippi

Ok, the pictures are worth a thousand words. Right?

We started off from Nashville on Thursday and crossed all of Arkansas!

Our first and huge solar farm!

Tai enjoying his eggplant Parmesan in the motel in Fort Smith Arkansas 

My fettuccine Alfredo 

We’re enjoying Door Dash!

And watching Independence Day while I did my nebulizing treatment. I’m fine sitting in the truck, but am a whimpy noodle getting out and walking halls of motels.  Especially in 92 degrees. And Tai has done all the driving!

I am so glad we had the step stool because I couldn’t get in or out of the truck since the first step was higher than my knees!

Thanks for coming along with us!  

I felt so close to all who commented yesterday and I can’t thank you enough.

Blue Ridge memories

Rhododendrons at the southern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway

 

Just south of Richland Balsam Overlook

Thanks to a FaceBook post from David and Julia on the site: Riding the Backroads with Bonita

Biltmore House seen from the Shut In Trail, by Mandy Gallimore

Caney Fork Overlook on May 19, 2026. Doubletop Mountain and Kuwohi in the distance. by Anthony Crowley

Caney Fork Overlook on May 19, 2026. Doubletop Mountain by Anthony Crowley

Probably Grandfather Mountain with Linville Viaduct below

Linville Viaduct by unknown photographer - it only carries vehicles on the Blue Ridge Parkway, no water like ancient viaducts!

by Barbara L Kahn Laurel Knob Overlook on the BRP. 12.1.23

by Barbara L Kahn fire is burning adjacent to U.S. 80 (Buck Creek) in McDowell County, NC. 12.1.23

Black Cove Complex 3.27.25

Dawn - Aug 28, 2024. 7.22am by Barb Rogers at  Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway 

I-40 in Old Fort in McDowell County, coming home to Black Mountain NC from the east, not my photo, but I sure do know the feeling of coming home to the mountains!

Linville Gorge

Good thoughts and actions can never produce bad results, bad thoughts and actions can never produce good results. This is but saying that nothing can come from corn but corn, nothing from nettles but nettles. We understand that law in the natural world, and work with it; but few understand it in the mental and moral world –- although its operation there is just as simple and undeviating -– and they, therefore, do not cooperate with it.
      - James Allen, As You Think