My sweetie, Luis, stole me away to Durango a few weeks before Christmas... it'd been a long time since I'd seen snow - and while there wasn't any on the ground upon our arrival - it snowed the second night starting at 2am...  it was truly breathtakingly so quiet... and very cold!  This Texas girl had forgotten what it was like to be in snow.  The top image was taken on the highway between Purgatory and Silverton CO - at about 10,000' altitude.  There was a big storm rolling in - and this was the last picture taken before we decided to get back to Durango.  

Somehow - there is always glass!

The B&B was a cute main house with cottages out back... 

The trip had us flying into Albuquerque - then driving through Santa Feand on to Durango.  I totally fell in love with Santa Fe.  I'd hear for years about what a beautiful place it was for artists and of the many studio/shops there... but I truly had no idea.  We stopped for lunch on the way up to Durango - and came back to spend the last day of the trip there to explore more...  sigh. 

 I am thankful Luis was so patient - as there were so many things that caught my eye - we were forever stopping to capture this and that!!  There was a garden full of those metal kinetic wind sculptures - I'd only ever seen one or two - so it was amazing seeing so many lazily going about their airy ballet...

... and then there was this...

We tripped across this amazing sculpture at La Mesa Gallery in Santa Fe discovering it in the evening, and chose to come back by daylight to capture the image.  The artist is Russ Vogt, and all I can say is that it filled my heart with such joy - I thought it would burst!  I can only imagine it does you as well.....  it stands about 8' tall - and is a series of pottery 'beads'... they sway slightly in the wind and are quite the statement.

I also noticed that Eleanore Macnish - EllieMac was represented at this gallery - yay glass artists!!  She had a case filled with her colorful lampwork - lovely.  I have much more to share - but will have to be next week (next YEAR)!! BIG smiles - Jill