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The muse of minutiae

Flower is a muse of minutiae
The muse, she’s beautiful close up, yes?

 

So the muse called yesterday. Not from anywhere far from home, but right in the backyard and even in the house. Fortunately, she called while I was watering the plants and before we hit the jackpot temperatures we’ve been getting lately. Yes, we are “enjoying” that heatwave that’s the talk of the Southwest. But if you stay in the shade and don’t move around too much, it’s not bad. It really is all about the humidity. And the fact that we live in New Mexico, NOT Phoenix with its 119º. Okay, it helps that both of our AC units are back online. Last week we had to limp along with just one of them for several days.

 

But back to the muse; I’m calling her the muse of minutiae because I was looking at things close-up rather than trying to see the big picture as I often do. Really, I wanted to find something extraordinary in the hum-ho of the yard I look at each day. But who really looks closely at their backyard every day? Guess I need to practice that more, particularly at off times. It is a nice backyard, especially at the end of the day when the hummingbirds visit while you sit out with a glass of wine.

Muse's energy
This is a close-up of a painting by my aunt Pat Croke. Talk about the muse’s energy, people!
I’m a big lover of all things sun – hell, why else would I have chosen to live out here in the desert? This is part of a chiminea that the original owner of our house left. If we touch it, it’ll break. It has to stay.

 

 

Taken as I am by the sun on the chiminea, I’d never noticed this almost shadow of a kokopelli hiding down near the ground. Who isn’t inspired by the happy flute-player?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the muse in the shadows
What do you see in the shadows?

 

 

 

What a treat to find a rose like this one blooming during this heatwave!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Muse of touch
Then there’s texture. Who’s not excited by the muse of touch?
Muse of the sun
LIke I said, the god of sunshine is always here in my Albuquerque backyard.
Muse of the sun
And he brings his a-muse-d friends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meanwhile, someone else is not enjoying the heat one iota! Tynan barely agreed to show you “what’s on the frame” this week. He’s barely looking me in the eye to shoot the pic. Instead he insisted that he was too hot to pose, to move even. That is until I got the shot and mentioned the usual treat. He was up like a puppy – not a heat-stricken nine-year old. He’ll feel better when he gets his hair cut tomorrow.

dog muse of rug hooking
Maybe he’s just embarrassed by the shameless commercial nature of this new rug. Even if he was its muse!

A reminder, the blog will be back in a couple of weeks. I think I mentioned that Tom and Tynan and I are off to Pagosa Springs in southern Colorado soon for a little R&R. Nothing big; it’ll be just as warm there. But nothing sounds better than morning hikes and afternoons spent lolling on the patio with books and beverages. Pics to come!

What fun are you up to now that summer’s fully set in?

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4 comments

  1. Debbie Moyes says:

    Your shadow picture asking what do I see makes me think of classes I took at the Worcester Craft Center. The instructor asked us to draw the shapes in between the shadows. It was a Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain exercise before that was popular. It ended up looking like the shadows, but it made my brain work in a different way. And sometimes I try to focus on the less obvious shape…
    I love the garden around the pool and when I am swimming, I hang around the edge of the pool and gaze at the flowers. It’s an interesting aspect to be at “ground level” with them. They are amazing now – tons of day lilies and lilies and the zinnias are starting. We have only seen one hummer, but I have the feeder out.
    Have a wonderful time at Pagosa Springs!!! I’m jealous!

    • LauraS says:

      -Ah, that is one of the reasons I would prefer a “real” pool. To make it beautiful. Okay, and it’s difficult doing laps in blue plastic. 🙂 -Ooh, I might have to try that shadow exercise. I like stuff like that. -We were disappointed in our hummer situation. Tried a new feeder and…suddenly we had regular visitors. Think we had a contaminated glass feeder.

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