As we relocated to New Mexico we came to the belief that we wanted to live in a city again. It had been about 30 years since we had lived in THE city (NYC for the uninformed) and really missed the conveniences of city life. Here in Las Cruces we are minutes from all the amenities - restaurants, movies, doctors, desert, mountains, museums and the like. However, not everything is peaches and cream. We are about 100 feet from a main road and so traffic, motorcycles, police cars, fire trucks, trains and the like. Therefore there are those intrusive sounds all the time. It does not help that Nelson has taken to howling at the sirens either. It really does not bother us but is very different than our former life in Massachusetts. We deal because it is our home.
Every since we visited Las Cruces for the first time, The Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park, has been maybe my favorite place in town. The biggest reason that I have for liking the State Park is the solitude. It is just so quiet and peaceful. Such a reversal of where we live and lived. I work at the park on Friday mornings at the visitor center and I feel like an ambassador of the park. Frequently when I first arrive, I take my coffee and sit out by the native plant garden. In the last 3 Fridays, here is what I have seen and heard.
-a group of bullock orioles, calling each other and moving from hummingbird feeder to feeder
-several mockingbirds imitating every other bird in the garden
-the constant buzz of hummingbirds approaching the feeders. Sometimes they fly so close to my head, I swear I can feel the air move as they pass
- a mated pair of quails, running round the garden eating seeds
-a covey of quail, 2 adults and 9 youngsters doing the same thing
-a roadrunner, trying to get some quail babies for lunch, being screamed at and chased off by the two quail parents, who were puffed up to 2-3 times their normal size
-a mockingbird building a nest in the honeysuckle vine
-a family of phoebes preparing to fledge at the urging of their parents, because they were now too big for the nest
-two rabbits checking out the garden for some greens.
-two swallow nests brimming with babies, waiting for their next meal to swoop in.
This all beats firetrucks and motorcycles anytime.
