If you read my blog last week, and I sincerely hope you did, you will recall that I was in Texas. There are not many reasons a fresh veggie lovin’ liberal from northern California would visit the land of everything-deep-fried-including-Oreos, certainly not for the foot long corndogs or the politics–no, no–NOT the politics, but I had a VALID reason to go to the lonestar state, the BEST reason of all … I’m a grandma.

Now go read that post so you can see how seriously I take this grandma stuff. You have to do that so you can understand how leaving the munchkin would’ve been hard, would’ve been devastating, would’ve broken my heart in a thousand little bitty pieces…if I didn’t have something to look forward to…

A side trip to Las Vegas to visit an old friend. A friend who knows me well enough to know that rocks and sun and light and big sky would feed my soul. Feed hers as well. 

It was a quick visit, 48 hours, nearly every one of which–when we weren’t sleeping—involved driving around the desert. 

Chasing the sun.

And falling in love with a landscape stripped down to the basics. A landscape that makes you reach deep inside and pull something out you didn’t know was there. Something...holy.

Long before the gamblers, the silicon titties, the wild and frantic seven deadly sins check-list that is the Vegas strip, long before that, THIS was here.

And the ancient ones who painted their lives, their gods, their hunts, their stories on the walls of rock were here.

I’ll be back. I HAVE to go back. Have to experience this more deeply. I want to camp. And hike. Take photographs. Make art. And I want to share this with you. The seeds of a workshop have been planted.

Now I just have to figure out the logistics.

And listen to da muse who was WAY inspired. Inspired enough to play with charcoal on a whole ‘nother level.

Primal # 1. Susan Lobb Porter. Charcoal on paper

Primal # 2 Susan Lobb Porter. Charcoal on paper

You up for joining me? It will be quite the arty adventure! Promise, really. Pinky swear even.

As always, would love to hear what you have to say in the comments below.

xoxo