Back from Trinidad

It's been a busy few weeks--work, then a weekend conference, then more work, with a nail-bitingly tight deadline. The deadline was met and immediately after I started feeling drowsy and unmotivated, which is a great feeling until it starts lasting indefinitely. Then I think about researching non-work career choices, like being a princess, except that all that research seems like too much work.

The weekend conference was the Colorado Art Ranch, a group I love, and it was in Trinidad. Trinidad, Colorado--the little mining and ranching town that also happens to be the sex-change capital of the world, or used to be, until other hospitals started doing the procedure. Just so you know, if I ever run away, you can come looking for me in Trinidad. Try one of the crumbling old Victorians on the hill above town--one of the ones with a sun-filled yard and a view that extends for a thousand miles, all around. And which is still in walking distance of downtown. That's where I'll be, drinking a beer on the front porch and watching the sun sink behind the mesas west of town. I might not be happy to see you, either. I won't want to go back.

It was a good conference: writers, artists, rogue philosophers. Not a boring presentation in the bunch; I think my favorite was Mark Newport, the guy who knits himself superhero costumes (Sweaterman!). He also makes self-portraits: himself as a Kiss-style rock n roll star, taking a break from the electric bass to work on his knitting (I spent an unseemly amount of time trying in VAIN to find a photo of this on the internet.) I like the Colorado Art Ranch because it's small, and if I show up, I'll inevitably get to sit next to the big-ticket names at lunch, even if I won't be able to think of a single thing to say. Also, I'll spend way too much time during the conference trying to think of ways to get more people to attend. It seems like the kind of thing that is SO AWESOME that I can't understand WHY there aren't more people. Of course, if the events were packed, it would less enjoyable to attend.