Category Archives: New Mexico

Christmas 2013

This year, for the first time, I traveled to New Mexico to visit family taking only Ellen along. It was a really good trip. Not only is Ellen old enough to be away from her mother for two weeks, but she proved to be a fun and affable traveler.

Ellen at the Copenhagen airport Ellen, quickly adjusting to being on vacation with dad Dad Dad, experimenting with his camera Visiting the Thompson ranch in Springer Ellen takes a short ride on Sugar with help from Aunt Donna and Uncle Clarance DSC_2689.JPG Maracas! Nothing says Christmas like student wanna-be cops Call me nostalgic, but when I was a kid, Santa didn't need protection Call me nostalgic, but when I was a kid, Santa didn't need protection Call me nostalgic, but when I was a kid, Santa didn't need protection Call me nostalgic, but when I was a kid, Santa didn't need protection Carly dances at a school performance at the United World College Mom and Carly slave away in the kitchen Carly and mom slave away in the kitchen My sweet traveling companion Got some snow a few days before Christmas Got some snow a few days before Christmas Got some snow a few days before Christmas DSC_2893.JPG DSC_2900.JPG DSC_2905.JPG The drought has killed a lot of trees How did people travel with kids before the iPad was invented? Ben waits impatiently to be served at Sushi King Heather at Sushi King Diego at Sushi King Ellen entertained herself practically all day while I worked on some programming problems with Ben Ellen entertained herself practically all day while I worked on some programming problems with Ben

Ellen had a great time, but the highlight was the “River of Lights” at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden, which we saw with Ben and Heather. At one point she stopped running around and asked me, “Will we ever see this again?” I said I didn’t know — maybe we wouldn’t. She got sad, and has mentioned this possibility to her mother since we returned, so we’d better plan to return.

Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden DSC_2990.JPG Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden Part of the 'River of Lights' display at the Albuquerque Botanic Garden

We had a mix of weather, but generally it was warm and sunny, which was a welcome relief from the damp and dark of Denmark. We also had a bit of snow, so it’s not like it was so warm that we forgot it was Christmas.

Ellen squints in the bright New Mexico sunshine Mom, on a walk into town Carly reacts to her new tablet from Bon-bon and Pampah Connie covets a gift Ellen Arthur Nerd heaven Ellen got plenty of attention from her uncle Ben and auntie Heather DSC_3105.JPG DSC_3163.JPG DSC_3174.JPG Celina, Leah, Joe, Ellen, Cora, and Carly The Coppock gift exchange Celina Cora, Heather, and Ellen Mom and dad's house Waiting for our flight in Albuquerque Waiting for our flight in Albuquerque

It goes on

In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.
– Robert Frost

It’s been a month since we’ve returned from New Mexico, but I wanted to write an entry dedicated specifically to our time at the ranch in Springer, where my last surviving grandparent still lives.

Ellen at the ranch (Credit: Arthur Trujillo) A quiet moment with great grandmother Coppock An old manure spreader (which for many years served as the foundation for the pier at the pond)

I spent many a happy day with my grandparents at their ranch. I can’t imagine my childhood without them or the ranch. There were barns we could explore, irrigation ditches we could swim in, a  pond where we could fish, and a thicket of trees in which we could build forts. Read More →

Vacation 2012

This year we did something we’d been meaning to do for a while: on the way to New Mexico we stayed in Annapolis for a few days, where my cousin Desmond and his wife live.

At the marina in Annapolis Isabelle and her mother Irma Lunch in town with Irma and IsabelleDSC_2665.JPG At the mall in Annapolis Isabelle at the mall in Annapolis

Unfortunately Desmond was called away for work prior to our arrival, but we had a great time anyway. Irma is a great hostess (and an amazing cook — she made us Indonesian, Thai, and Japanese dishes, each one delicious) but she’s also just a lot of fun. It was great to have  a chance to get to know her better. Our visit was made even better because Isabelle and Ellen had a great time playing together. Long after we left, Ellen kept asking when we were going back to Isabelle’s house.

Isabelle and Ellen burn off some energy after eating ice cream DSC_2576.JPG DSC_2577.JPG

Desmond and Irma live in Annapolis because it’s near to Washington DC, where Desmond works. So we naturally felt like we had to go into DC and see the sights. And so we did. But there is no way to compare what we saw with what we would have seen had we not had two hot and sticky kids with us. We managed to see the World War II memorial and get a glimpse of the White House, and then we were more than ready to call it a day.

Dragging two kids into DC during 'Rolling Thunder' has a way of melting your brain Ellen at the National World War II Memorial At The White House

So, after a few days on the East Coast, we were ready to take the relatively short flight (four hours) to New Mexico, where we spent the rest of the vacation. Read More →

Anton Chico

I spent four years of my young life going to school in Anton Chico, New Mexico. Anton Chico is a village of about 600, about 45 minutes from my hometown. It’s the kind of place with one store, and that store is clearly just a room in someone’s house, and behind the cash register there’s a curtain through which you can see the part of the family that is off duty watching TV in their living room.

The church in Anton Chico The church in Anton Chico The church in Dalia (near Anton Chico)

The four years I spent in Anton Chico are not among my favorites. I was an outsider, and life is always harder on outsiders in a place like Anton Chico. But I was also the son of a teacher, and that didn’t help. I also didn’t speak Spanish, which put me even further outside the acceptable circles.

DSC_8036.JPG Abercrombies (long since defunct) where I purchased many a candy bar after school Abercrombies (long since defunct) where I purchased many a candy bar after school

I suppose kids are the same anywhere, but Anton Chico seemed rough to me then and seems rough to me now. I got roughed up and pushed around regularly. I lived in a state of fear, and even though my life was never in danger, that fear made a permanent impression. To this day, every time I walk into a new situation, I wonder if I won’t be ambushed. I can’t help but tense up, and think about how I might best defend myself if someone steps out from behind a door and clobbers me. Read More →

Christmas 2010

This year we spent Christmas in New Mexico. If we’d had some way to know in advance about the extreme weather, closed airports, and chronic delays, we certainly wouldn’t have made this trip. But it’s a good thing we didn’t know because our plans were only slightly modified by the chaos. We were very lucky. On the way over we saw many cancelled flights on the departure boards, but our flights were largely on time.

Flying out from Copenhagen De-icing before take-off Flying out from Copenhagen

We worried about Ellen before the trip, but it turned out to be fine. She slept during most of the flights, and was easy to entertain when she was awake. Plus we’ve learned to take longer lay-overs so we had ample time to run her around and wear her out before each flight.

Ben, Ellen, and Lisbeth in Albuquerque Ben and Heather Ben tries to demonstrate to Ellen how much fun snow can be (she was not impressed)

We spent the first full day in Albuquerque, resting up and visiting with my brother Ben and his wife Heather. As usual we’d postponed quite a bit of shopping knowing that we’d be in the US, so we did a lot of shopping. (We became iPad owners, and almost immediately found our laptop to be unbearably heavy and cumbersome.)

Mom (or Carly and Celina participate in a church skit Celina, trying to act serious about church Ellen and her uncle Diego Ellen works to unwrap another gift Ellen and Bon-bon DSC_2986.JPG Ellen on her Christmas gift from Bon-bon and Pampah Ellen on her Christmas gift from Bon-bon and Pampah

Read More →

Capulin

Last week we went to Capulin, a volcano in Northern New Mexico. It’s about 90 minutes from Springer, the town where I was born and my grandparents still live. But, like the Sandia Tram, it’s something that I’d never seen.

Ellen listens quietly as I explain our plans for the day One of many fantastic views from Capulin DSC_0211.JPG

The volcano doesn’t look like much when you’re approaching, and I thought it would turn out to be pretty lame, but when you start to climb, the view gets fantastic almost immediately. (There are hiking trails, but apparently none of them go from the bottom to the top, so you have only one choice — drive to the top.)

When ladybugs attack When ladybugs attack When ladybugs attack

Read More →

New Mexico, hot and dry

I’d been raving for months about how great Northern New Mexico is in the summer. It’s warm, but not too warm. There’s lots of sunshine, but with frequent afternoon rains, green fields, a soft breeze during the day, and cool, crisp air at night. And so on. At least that’s the way I remember it. But it wasn’t like that at all when we visited in June.

An antelopedsc_0498.jpgdsc_0499.jpg

I don’t remember antelope listlessly roaming around my grandparent’s ranch. I don’t remember the pastures being overtaken by prickly-pear cactus. I don’t remember otherwise healthy trees near my parents house drying out and falling over. It was hot and dry. Very dry.

A bridge over a dry irrigation canalA (very dry) irrigation canal

On our last night we could smell the smoke from a fire to the North, and water restrictions were enacted in Las Vegas right after we left. Read More →

Christmas in New Mexico

(After conducting a few pop-quizzes this Christmas, I learned that certain members of the family don’t actually read what Iwrite here. You know how you are. So if youjust want the pictures — including many that aren’t in this post — go here.)

After spending a few days with Lisbeth and her family, I went home to New Mexico just before Christmas. It was COLD! It was colder than Denmark has been all year. That actually isn’t unusual (Denmark has been record-breakingly warm recently, thanks in part to global warming), which makes it frustrating when Danes say, “Oh, you’re going to New Mexico — it’ll be SO warm!”

The view from mom and dad's porchthe road up to the ridgeThe view from the house

It was the first time I’ve used my sunglasses since September. Even on a clear summer day, the sun in Denmark is muted compared to the sun in New Mexico. Read More →

Southwestern skies

“There’s no way to divide the beauty of the sky from the wild western plains” – Natalie Merchant — Gold Rush Brides

I took these today, driving from Springer to Las Vegas (New Mexico).

Northern New Mexico SkiesNorthern New Mexico SkiesNorthern New Mexico SkiesNorthern New Mexico SkiesNorthern New Mexico SkiesNorthern New Mexico Skies

 

Wide, wide angle

I’ve been wanting one for a quite some time, and yesterday I gave in to temptation and bought a new lens. Apparently the official name of this lens is Nikon 12-24mm f/4G IF-ED AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor, but most people just call it the “12 to 24″. It’s a professional-grade, digital-specific, ultra-wide angle lens.

dsc_0092.jpgdsc_0120.jpgdsc_0140__2_.jpg

This is my first professional grade lens. Everything else I’ve been using is pretty low-end stuff — often costing less than $100 new. This lens is…well, not that affordable…

dsc_0194.jpgdsc_0183.jpgdsc_0192.jpg

I wasn’t incredibly impressed with it at first, but now that I’ve used it for a couple days, I’m definitely warming up to it. If I have complaints, it’s the weight, the limited range, and…well, the price.

dsc_0119__3_.jpgdsc_0152.jpgdsc_0144__2_.jpg

It is a lot heavier than the stock lens, which gives it a nice feel, but I’m more aware of it, especially when it’s in my bag. The limited range means that you pretty much have to carry about an extra lens. This is not a do-it-all lens.

dsc_0156__2_.jpgdsc_0157__2_.jpgdsc_0149.jpg

And no, these pictures are not of Copenhagen. These were taken where my parents live in Las Vegas, New Mexico, where I’m on vacation.