Shhh! Skunks under porch......

    We finally found the cabin and slowly drove down the gravel driveway.  The first thing I see is a sign that says "Shhh!  Skunks under porch!".


     I'm gonna back track some.  Jay and I were married 20 years ago in Houston, in an unused bar, at a retirement center. Yep, seriously.  Originally the wedding was planned to happen at the Houston Arboretum, a beautiful place, except for when there are mosquito warnings.  Hence the change of venue to my place of employment.  The only people not there that day were my brother, deployed to Desert Storm,  and my Daddy Bill, as he had passed away.  My wedding was the first time Mom had to spend time with my Dad and his wife Omah, NOT comfortable.  Everyone behaved and we were married.  Our wedding video was taped over with  the 90210 show!  We flew to Albuquerque for our honeymoon, a gift from Jay's parents and good family friends, stayed the night and tried to rent a car.  There we were, I think we had $300, no credit cards, and the rental company needed most of our cash as a deposit.  After another day of delay, family friends bailed us out and we were finally on our way......with one exception......a warning from the best dressed and best behaved state cop Jay and I had ever met.
    
     I suspect some superstitious people would have asked for an anulment at this point just because of all the bad luck.  Not us.  Our honeymoon gift included a weeks stay in a cabin in Dalton Canyon, New Mexico and we were going.  The more we drove the happier we were.  So beautiful, so not Houston!  We were to pick up keys and directions to the cabin from a woman named Francis.

     So, here we are looking at the sign warning us of skunks, wondering how to approach slowly and quietly.
Don't slam the door, walk carefully over the gravel, do we knock on or scratch the door?  We got inside without incident and met the incredible Francis.  I think Jay and I fell in love with her immediately.  Inside it was warm, cozy, smelled of coffee, wood and cigarette smoke. And a dove flew around freely!

     After hugs, coffee, Winstons and much conversation we got our keys and left.  Our honeymoon lasted 6 days, our cabin was beautiful, we were falling in love with New Mexico then and didn't know it yet.  With the exception of one road trip north, and a day long working horseback ride, we spent our time with Francis.  As we sat at her kitchen table listening to her stories of New Mexico, watching her take care of all her birds, (she had many in huge cages attached to the house), her skunks, tend to her fireplace and make us pot after pot of coffee, we knew we wanted her sense of adventure and self-sustainability in our lives.  We did not know the term self-sustainability yet but we've been working towards it since then.

   **  Just a little unsolicited advice.  If you and your loved one are on your honeymoon and you have scheduled a beautiful, romantic horse ride and you seldom ride, DO NOT FORGET TO GET OFF YOUR HORSE AND WALK OCCASIONALLY.  Remember, this is your honeymoon.  Jay and I did not walk, at all, and we spent at least 2 days of our honeymoon feeling like we'd been run over by a truck.  Not romantic, so walk a little and get to love each other a little more.**

     This happened in 1991.  It took us three years to gather the courage, arrange a job transfer, and put on our adventure hats for our return to New Mexico.