Vegas, Baby!

The MGM Grand was home for most of this past week. It was a nice break even though I was there for business and didn't have much time for myself. In order to get from the hotel / casino to the conference center I had to walk past the pool each day. I'm not really a "lounge around the pool" kind of person but I could picture myself out there in the sun amongst the palm trees with a good book and a margarita. Unfortunately there just wasn't time.

Living in Santa Fe is tough on the skin so when I arrived in Las Vegas on Sunday I dropped my luggage in my room and immediately scurried down to Lush to stock up on bath bombs and replenish my supply of facial masks and cleansers. I love that Lush stays open until 11pm during the week and midnight on the weekends.

As far as entertainment goes, gambling doesn't really interest me but I love the Cirque du Soleil shows. I wanted to see Mystere again while I was there but the theater was dark during my stay. And Zarkana was sold out. That'll teach me not to plan ahead. Hopefully I'll get a chance to catch one of them when I'm in Las Vegas in November. I'm looking for spa suites already. 

I have to confess that there's just something about Vegas that makes me want to buy clothes with rhinestones on them. So I did. I needed new jeans and a belt anyway. And a corset may have been purchased. Or three. And maybe a pair of rhinestone stripper shoes. What can I say, sometimes you just have to let the spirit move you.

And now I'm back home again in Santa Fe, getting back into my daily routine, and trying to get caught up on all of my projects. It's always nice to sleep in my own bed and wake up to the smell of fresh-brewed coffee.

I popped a rib when I was heading back home so I need to find a better laptop bag and purse to travel with. I'm open to suggestions for TSA-compliant laptop bags. I love my Timbuk2 laptop messenger bag but it's not making for a good traveling companion.

Things I Love About Living in Santa Fe...

the sunsets... being able to walk out my door and see the mountains... sitting in the Teahouse and hearing someone talk about their latest astrology reading while I sip lotus chun mee tea... Summer and Jerry, the cab dispatchers, knowing my schedule and habits better than I do sometimes... nutty mocha mate from Artful Tea at the Farmers' Market... Amore incense from Ark Books... yoga at Yoga Source... meditation at Upaya Zen Center... 

Speaking of Upaya Zen Center, I'm taking Calligraphy: Brush Mind from Sensei Kazuaki Tanahashi this August. It sounds like an amazing workshop... "This rare workshop offers training in classical and free Zen painting and calligraphy with the renowned master artist Kazuaki Tanahashi. We cultivate the process of creativity by reproducing ideograms and paintings from ancient Chinese and Japanese masterpieces. We interpret these works while exploring the creative process. We also create original spontaneous works, using a variety of  brushes on primitive paper. For beginners and seasoned artists.  Sensei Kazuaki Tanahashi is a master calligrapher, Dogen scholar, and social activist." I'm beyond excited about this opportunity.

Spring has finally arrived here in Santa Fe. I love this time of year. The city is starting to wake up, there are more activities and events going on, but the tourists haven't overtaken the city yet.

The art galleries are starting to hang new shows and some of the work I'm seeing from both emerging and more established artists -- Antonio Puri at NUART Gallery, Christina Chalmers at Selby Fleetwood, Nancy Scheinman at Jane Sauer Gallery, Marilyn Radzat at Chalk Farm Gallery, just to name a few -- is really incredible. It looks as though it's going to be a strong art season.

Just a few more weeks and it'll be warm enough for breakfast in the courtyard at the Teahouse. My needs are simple and I'm very much a creature of habit. A bowl of oatmeal with strawberries and tea on a Saturday morning then a ramble down Canyon Road to see what's new at the galleries is all I need to relax and get centered after a chaotic week.

And last week was a fairly chaotic one. The first part of the week was spent in San Antonio, TX and I have to tell you, I was totally underwhelmed by the city in general, as well as what I saw of the art scene there. Even the River Walk which I had heard such great things about left me feeling a bit "meh". So, unless business takes me back, San Antonio isn't a place I'll return to.

I ended the week with an astrology reading. I really should have talked to Elizabeth back in January. It would have saved me a tremendous amount of frustration and aggravation. And I wouldn't have wasted the last four month trying to "swim upstream". After the reading I treated myself to a massage at Absolute Nirvana Spa. Trust me, the name, Absolute Nirvana, says it all. By the end of the day, I felt like a new woman.

I'm off to Las Vegas, NV for a few days in early May. Vegas isn't a place I would visit for pleasure but business takes me there a couple of times a year and I always end up enjoying the trip. Las Vegas is just so over-the-top in every way that it's hard not to be entertained. Everything is so bright and shiny and sparkly. And it gives me a chance to stock up on goodies at Lush and Sephora. I love that the stores stay open until 11:00 pm during the week and until midnight on the weekend. Let's face it, Las Vegas is an insomniac's dream.

Then I'm off to Atlanta in early June for Uplevel Your Business LIVE!. I've accomplished a lot since the retreat in Asheville earlier this month (which seems like a lifetime ago for some reason) but I still have a great deal of work to do before the June event.

So I'm following Elizabeth's advice... head down and concentrating on work -- Delphi Technology, Gypsy Wolf Marketing, and Dakini Dreams -- until the Fall when my energy around relationships will start to shift.