high and dry

i was in taos, new mexico, a few weekends ago. it was my first time there although i had been to roswell several years back, but that’s another story.

taos is a beautiful place. i love how time there slows to a glacial pace; or at least it seemed that way because of the unbelievable vastness of the vista. and the regularity of the afternoon thunderstorms was both surprising and soothing for a city dweller like me.

that’s where i met lauren, a sweet, elegant woman in her 70s about to move out of her home in the hills into an assisted living center. there’s something dreamy about lauren, or maybe i’m just projecting after learning one night how she used to room with marilyn monroe and shirley winters, and how she was with janis joplin the night before she died. as we talked, i also learned that she has quite a record collection. those records, she told me, were special to her and her late husband, something that both of them used to express their love for each other, and because they both brought their own records into this collection, served as an emotional refuge when the sailing wasn't as smooth.

to my surprise, she offered them to me. i was flattered, curious and excited. i always had this voyeuristic fascination with other people’s music collection. it is another way for me to get to know the person. of course, you ain’t going to get too far if the person is not into music. but it’s good to know that too.

Posted by cellpharmer at July 31, 2004 08:57 PM

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