The Socorro County Fair

Every year on Saturday we go to the Socorro County Fair. We look at the exhibits, peek in at the animals, and do some of the carnival and then wander home again. Not unworthwhile, but not a highlight of our year.

This year was different. It turns out that the key to The Socorro County Fair is participation. This year my daughter showed a Booster Goat. Boosters or Cloverbuds are the Brownie Scouts of 4H. They may show chickens, rabbits or goats (all small enough not to knock them over!). Their animals are exempt from most of the tagging, registering and tattooing (female goats still need a TB shot). And their show is non-competitive. Where the big 4H kids need to be able to answer questions about the breed, age, and how the animal was raised, Boosters are asked two questions they are unlikely to blank on in the ring -- What is the name of your goat? Why did you name it that?

I took Lynn out of school Thursday and Friday so that she could participate in the run-up (Nadya and Seneida are home-schooled so they are present for four straight days). Now I understand why during high noon on Saturday the fair feels a little dead. Thursday morning the trucks arrive, the animals are unloaded, everyone unpacks their stuff and gets settled near their assigned pens. The carnival (rides) is slowly being assembled but not open till Friday. Most of the booths are there, but only some are open for morning coffee and breakfast burritos.

There's constant traffic to and from the animal showers -- Thursday night is booster goats and 4H pigs -- "swine" according to the announcer. Animals have to be fed and watered, then restrained. The sheep eat the sawdust, so they get little muzzles. The freshly washed pigs get blankets or sweaters, and sometimes a board between them and their pen-mates if they don't get along. The goats just get yelled at for eating the shade structure.

The last four hours before your class is a mad dash to re-wash, re-sheer your animals, then a desperate attempt to keep them clean before they show.

There's constant changing of clothing -- on unloading, you wear your 4H camp t-shirt and 4H baseball cap. Suddenly, kids spout braids, bows, starched ironed jeans, and very large shiny belt buckles. The teenagers have several different sexy outfits -- layered tanktops for washing the cow, dusty broken-in cowboy hat, boots and holey jeans to prove they worked that cow, black drapey top with bling for after nightfall, then on show day, poofy hair, large belt with jewels in cross patterns, black cowboy shirt with rind-stones (no hats allowed in the ring). Did I mention sunglasses that would put Elton John to shame?

There's only two places in town to get cowboy clothes -- Brownbilts and Western Mercantile, so many kids are in the same shirt. Rather than this being a prom-type disaster, it's very cool -- especially if an older kid like Casey is wearing the same shirt!

The Booster goat show allows the kids to have the goats on halters. A halter wouldn't work for a pig -- you get sticks to try and control those. But the older kids are supposed to control their sheep and goats by holding the head and poking them in the butt when necessary. (Goats you haul the hind quarters off the ground by the tail.) After a lap around the ring, they line up in "inspection position". The kids pick up the front half of the goat in a hug then push it down and back. This encourages the sheep to push against against them -- much like a muscle builder flexing. In this position the judge feels the sheep all over for muscle mass. There's some tickling and tapping going on trying to get the sheep to stay tense. It's an art and there's a special award for "Showmanship". I didn't realize what a trick it is to control a sheep this way until one got loose late in the day. The Navajo girl chased it all over the ring, till they moved the gates to corner it.

It is hot and dusty and both days we arrived at 8 AM, left at 2 PM for a nap, returned at 5 PM and stayed till 8. We were exhausted. Not being farm people we don't normally stay out all day in the sun and heat. I know there's lots of prep we weren't there for, but I suddenly remembered all the animals AT HOME that had to be fed and watered. So there's at least an extra hour of work at either end of a very long hot day.

A Not Quite Sucessful Railrunner Trip

What could be better than a train trip to Santa Fe on a Saturday? Well, hmm...maybe you can help me figure it out.

The first hitch for rail travel is the very limited schedule on weekends. No lazy Saturday here. We had to set an alarm to make sure we were in Belen for the 8:50 AM train. It arrives two hours and twenty minutes later in Santa Fe. Now the Railrunner is awesome. It's clean and fun, the view from the top deck is great. There's a water fountain with conical cups and nice bathrooms (ask the conductor when you get on, which cars have bathrooms). You are welcome to bring drinks and snacks -- just no shoes on the seats.

But frankly, two and a half hours is just too much for age 6 and 2. They were very excited to be unbuckled and really wanted to run around the train. Making a few trips to the bathroom wasn't sufficient -- laps had to be done. As the train filled up, this had to be curtailed and the kids were uninterested in the books and coloring supplies we had brought.

We arrived in Santa Fe at 11:08 AM, a few blocks from the plaza. After 30 minutes of complaints about sitting down, we skipped the free bus, and walked to the plaza. But frankly, the Santa Fe plaza is not a very kid-friendly. The six year old wanted to shop, which was totally out of the question. Finally we spent $6 at the Five & Dime. It was hot and we had the limited choice of two departures: We could leave at 1:17PM arriving in Belen at 3:45PM, home at 4:30PM, or we could leave at 4:32PM, arrive Belen at 7PM and home at 8PM, really after the two-year old's bedtime.

I keep thinking about what would make this a perfect Saturday outing -- and I think it's just too long a ride. An hour would be about perfect, then ice cream, then return. But an hour takes you to downtown Albuquerque, walkable, but pretty quiet on weekends, and no icecream in sight.

So send me your suggestions -- where did you take the train? Was it great with older children? Did you take the bus to Museum Hill, get out of the tourist trap that is Santa Fe Plaza?

The Cat Walk -- a hike to remember

So it's a 3 1/2 hour drive from Socorro to the Catwalk. That is quite a ways. But it's such an awesome hike, and so perfect for kids, you have to fit it in somehow. It is actually an ideal stop on the Socorro to Tucson drive (the back way). The Catwalk started it's life as a mine sluce -- water from the Whitewater River was diverted down the sluce to bring the ore down to the bottom of Whitewater canyon for processing. When the mine was closed the sluce was a daring, scary way to hike up the canyon above the river. Now run by the US Forest Service, the structure has mostly been replaced with an open-mesh walkway with safty rails.

During the spring the river is roaring and the walk is especially exciting, but later in the summer as the river dies down there is more appeal in splashing in the river, especially near the parking lot where it runs broader and shallower. Unlike many New Mexico rivers I've never heard of this river running dry.

Minimum age for this walk is three -- there's a third of a mile of typical (but lovely and shaded) hiking before the first set of "catwalks". The total length of the Catwalk portion is 1.1 miles. The first half mile can be done with a stroller (maybe even a wheelchair) but then stairs and dirt trails finish the route. There's a prize at the end: "The Catwalk ends with a swaying suspension bridge leading to a cavern ledge overlooking a thundering waterfall." With a two year old and six year old this was a two hour stop for us.

Taking advantage of the Santa Fe Opera

A world class opera company is located in New Mexico. Doesn't seem very child friendly? A three-hour drive, shows start at dusk (9PM! but later in the season 8:30, then 8PM), ticket prices range from $27-$195.

But wait!

First you should know that not only is the singing good at the Santa Fe opera, but the casting is excellent, the set and staging is awesome and the acting is really good. What does this mean for young kids? There will be no fat ladies dying of tuberculosis at the top of their lungs. There will be action on stage -- most arias (solos to show off the lead character's voice) will have visual as well as vocal appeal. The costumes will be great. The Santa Fe Opera Company collaborates with a dance company. Several years ago we saw a modern opera (Benjamin Britten) where a line-dance of sheep held us spell bound -- I kid you not!

Secondly your child, age six or older, has a special invitation to attend. Youth Night At The Opera are full dress rehearsals where adults can attend only if they bring more kids that adults! Adult tickets are $15, child tickets are $8. There is a mini class for kids called "1-2-3 Opera" held before the show and during intermission.

You should know that the dress rehearsals are EARLY in the season (the full season is July 2-August 28, 2010), and they take place during the work-week:

Madame Butterfly on Monday, June 28
The Magic Flute on Tuesday, June 29
The Tales of Hoffmann on Tuesday, July 13
Albert Herring on Tuesday, July 27

All the operas are in their original language (OK by me since I can't understand the words even when they sing in English). Each seat (and the standing room seats!) have their own "subtitle" display -- in English and Spanish. For younger children this might not help -- after reading the translation they may turn to you and say "what does that mean?". After playing with the buttons you might encourage them to turn it off and just enjoy the spectacle.

We do a dramatic reading during our tailgate-picnic of the opera story from "A Night At The Opera" (Sir Denis Forman, rather than the album by Queen, or the movie by Groucho Marx). Forman's take on opera is lighthearted and silly, covering the basic plot (and pointing out gaping holes) with the right touch for kids.

How to get the most out of the opera? Arrive early with your child's favorite picnic dinner (we do Indian take-out from Albuquerque). If you are attending a non-youth night, prelude talks are given two hours and one hour before the performance. Admire the shiny sparkly stuff for sale in the gift shop. Have a tailgate dinner and watch the sunset, admire the opera house. Rather than getting sleepy, the kids will build excitement for the main event.

Buy sweets at the intermission to maintain the sugar high.

Should you dress up? The Santa Fe Opera has no dress policy: "Whether you prefer casual, informal, or formal attire, your own sense of style is welcome". Our daughter loves to dress up -- it makes the event special and grown up. We do the drive in t-shirt and shorts, then use the outside bathroom (to the right of the entrance) at the opera to emerge in full princess regalia. PJ's are the costume of choice on the way home. Bring a warm blanket into the opera -- you are outside at 7000 feet, and with a summer thunderstorm the temperature could go as low as 40 degrees.

Go Opera! Bravo! Brava! Whatever!

Golf for kids in Socorro

My introduction to golf at age ten, consisted of being woken up early, driven 45 minutes to the driving range, hitting three buckets of ball with dry granola for sustenance, and then being driven home. The great joke between the three oldest siblings is that we did it only for the strawberry milkshakes at the clubhouse -- and those were occasional treats. Needless to say I haven't golfed since.

However, my six year old just came back from a golfing date, glowing with enthusiasm for the sport. The moms played a lazy nine holes, starting a 5 PM. Lynn and her fellow six year old steered the cart, did somersaults down the greens, had drinks from the cart, and occasionally, hit a ball with a club. They found lost balls in the rough, watched the women tee off and enjoyed the cool weather as the sun set. Greens fees are $25-$28 and twilight fees include the cart rental (otherwise 25$ for eighteen holes). I suspect a golf course with higher demand than New Mexico Tech might be less forgiving about the somersaults down the putting green, but my daughter may very well grow up with a passion for the sport I never learned.

More information at the New Mexico Tech website.

Visiting with kids at Good Sam's

The Good Samaritan Village is a nursing home on Route 60, just across from Socorro General Hospital. If you have small kids, I would really encourage you to visit. It's a lovely place, smells good, the staff seem happy and they are very respectful towards the residents. While I was there they had to clear out the recreation room and one resident didn't want to leave. She was wheelchair-bound and clearly the nursing aid could have easily wheeled her off, but at her protest, everything ground to a halt, and first the nurse, then the director came and spoke to her quietly, consulting, listening. When I'm old I want my unreasonable demands to fetch the director.

The center has a huge finch cage with 6-8 nesting finches -- my kids love watching that as much as the residents do. They are also excited, I must confess, about the juice in the cafeteria.

There is a locked Alhimier's ward, and this is where I would take the youngest children. The ward is an open, airy, sunny large living room, and the residents sit at tables, pace, or in easy chairs. There are children's toys -- ballons, balls, crayons, and while I was playing catch with my two year old, half the eyes in the room where watching, some smiling and laughing, some just alert. The place is spotless and a crawling baby won't find anything to get into trouble with. When my baby headed toward the exit, without me, one of them spoke up and said "She went that way". A babe in arms would be greatly admired, a young crawler would be very appreciated and any child young enough to be cheerfully self-absorbed would be enjoyed by the residents. Next time I am going to bring some music and dance with my kids for the grandmas.

4H had a special "crafts day", and I know that schools sometime visit but really it's much better for a smaller group -- an ideal thing for a stay at home mom with two kids to do. Just the presence of the kids in the center makes a difference. It doesn't take long before the residents recognize you. Christina and her girls take nail polish and do all the residents fingernails.

While there are many visitors on weekends, during the weekday, especially during the work day, there are very few. Many of the residents really enjoy hanging out and chatting in the hallway.

During flu season, children under 14 aren't allowed, so you may want to call ahead. As with daycare I would follow the 24 hour rule -- no visit 24 hours after a fever, or vomiting.

Learn from a failed New Mexican Gardener

I cannot claim to be much of a success as a New Mexico gardener. Intermittently I get the bug, and rarely are my crops bountiful. But it occurred to me that like Edison, I've learned a lot from my failures. Since every gardening instinct you learned on the East Coast is wrong for New Mexico, I thought I would share my lessons.

Don't buy seeds or plants from Walmart, Ace Hardware, or Home Depot

The buyers at national chains are happy to sell you flowers that have no business in New Mexico. That pansy or daisy that was so perky in the store, will give it's last gasp the moment you lay it's cultured roots in New Mexico soil. I recommend you only shop at Plants of the Southwest and High Country Gardens.

Don't read any garden books from Santa Fe or Taos

North, high New Mexico is not the desert. It's not reality. They have cooler weather, get more rain, have more flowing plants. I've never seen a garden in Socorro which looked anything like those Santa Fe books.

You can never go wrong with roses

As difficult as everything else is, roses do really well in New Mexico. Roses are in fact desert plants and do really well here (even roses I've bought at Walmart).

A buried soaker hose is the best possible way to water.

The water stays underground, where the roots are. There's little evaporation. It lacks the satisfaction of splashing around with the hose, but much more water gets to the plants.

Even desert plants need a lot of water to get established

You might think that with the harsh conditions in the desert you can toss the right seeds on the ground and walk away. However, that turned out badly for me. I've done much better when I regularly watered my newly established plants. Books on starting xeric (low-water) gardens warn you that during the first 1-2 years, xeric gardens need just as much water as a lawn and marigolds.

When you are ready to go beyond roses, look for things described as "invasive", "pernicious", "tough", and "grows in cracks in parking lots".

I recommend Hollyhock, Evening Primrose, and Arizona Poppy, and mint.

Invest in an expensive water timer

You have to think watering new plants in New Mexico as bottle feeding an orphan kitten, not putting out scraps for a stray. That plant is completely, 100% dependent on you for moisture. We once were forced to reseed a lawn in May, the worst possible month to plant. The gardener set up the automatic water system to water three times a day for 10 minutes. Wow! You should have seen that grass grow!

Never, never plant trees in the spring or summer

Wait for the first cool weather in the fall, then plant and water like mad. Spring winds are terrible for drying out baby trees, and summer heat is aweful for tiny root systems.

Sow plastic in the ground

I feel bad about this but polymer water crystals (Soil Moist, Watersorb, Watercrystals, Moist Soil) have made a huge difference in my gardening success. Adding these little grains to the dirt (in or out of pots) means that my plants don't suffer nearly as much from dry spells. I worry a bit about whether they break down as enviromentally as they claim, but I swear by them. Skip the expensive dirt+polymer and just get the crystals themselves.

Container garden in a beer cooler

It may seem to you that the best way to oppose the dryness of the desert is to container garden -- plastic holds the moisture in, and you are watering a much smaller volume. However, if you plant one plant in a container and another in the ground, you will find that the one in the ground does much better. In New Mexico, plants in pots get their roots cooked. There's two solutions for this: buy containers that are made of styrofoam -- like a beer cooler. They look like terracotta but are rather light. Or, you can make your own insulated pots by placing a small pot inside a large one, with a layer of soil between the two.

Skip the RoundUp

Beside the issues of adding chemicals to the soil (and whether New Mexico ever gets enough rain to flush them out) they just don't work. If you spray a weed with RoundUp, you get a dead, mummifed, weed. It will stand there for months, until you pull it up, just as you should have done in the first place.