Walking, Shopping, and Eating

Not necessarily in that order, and I could definitely do more of the first and less of the other two. The weather improved dramatically today with highs in the upper fifties and a beautiful cloudless sky. I spent most of the day walking around downtown. I feel very safe here, which is important when I'm traveling by myself. The only time I've had the slightest apprehension was this morning when I went in the local Walgreens (I had a nosebleed that just wouldn't quit) and a man in an old white Lincoln was lurking in the lot. He was quite a large man, and he kept getting into and out of his car. Before he parked, he sat in his car in the middle of the parking lot looking at me -- or at least in my direction -- and made me very uneasy. I had planned to get my nosebleed under control and drink some water before getting back in the road, but he was so creepy I got in the car and left. My rental car is a Fiat with a switchblade-like key that looks pretty mean. And the guy was old and fat; I could have taken him even without the switchblade key, but I wasn't up for trouble.

Again tonight, after a bit of shopping on the Plaza, I had coffee and dessert for dinner. Tonight's choice was pumpkin cheesecake with gingersnap crust. It was so good I think I'm going to try to make it for Thanksgiving. My favorite place to go out to eat is The Plaza Cafe, but even though the food is delicious, that isn't what I like most about it. There's a window booth at the front where I can people-watch as I eat. I've sat there both times I've gone to the restaurant on this trip. If I could go only one place while I'm in town, that would be it. I would sit on a bench in the Plaza, as weather allowed, and go into the Cafe for all of my meals.

Last night I dreamed that I ran into Anthony Bourdain. I asked him if he'd like to go for coffee, and he said, "Let's do breakfast, not just coffee." That presented a bit of a dilemma because in my dream I had started a new job -- that very day -- and I wasn't sure I should leave to go out to breakfast. It wasn't too difficult a choice, and I'm sure you know what my decision was. Maybe tonight we will lunch together, and then go to dinner the next night; who knows where we might end up.

If the weather is nice tomorrow, I'm going to get an early start and drive to Taos, about an hour north. I'm perfectly happy wandering around and doing what I have been, but I need to stop spending money. Today I could see snow-peaked mountains in the distance, despite the nice weather at my altitude. I've been warned about driving north; colder temperatures can lead to sudden snowy and icy road conditions. I could do without that, but I really would like to visit Taos again and maybe some pueblos and villages along the way. Without buying anything. But I'll eat.