THE SETUP.

I arrived in the mountains of Ojo Sarco late at night, and the next day revealed a wonderland of fabric to sort through, sewing machines to tinker with, ponderosa forest to adventure into, and all the other workings of Violette's home studio and in-town classroom. She has been teaching a quilting class in the neighboring town of Truchas, at a building that could be considered the community center. Her classroom is off of the library which is a great resource for internet, scanning & printing, and research for the class. It is also the classroom that her two middle-aged students went to school in when they were ten years old. Truchas is a tiny town that sits cliffside over a truly striking valley, with Los Alamos on the other side. We also made a visit to the local free box- a small building on the same pull-off as the dump. Violette helps manage the free box, which is stocked with beautifully random clothes, electronics, and housewares. She visits frequently to tidy it up and take home fabric for her stash. I made out with some items to wear, and some items to cut up.

sewing and tending the wood stove, and tending our bellies- an all-day job:

the hub of Truchas, the library/senior center/clinic/classroom:

inside the class:

freebox score: