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cottonwood leaf, direct scan

I found this brittle leaf on the sidewalk during a mid-morning walk from our house to Old Town. I had gone out to get away from the usual distractions so I might think more clearly about some possible photo projects. One of those is a botanical series, inspired in part by my recent find of Taschen's Karl Blossfeldt book, along with some possibilities I have been mulling over about alternative photo printing techniques. It seems a nice idea to have an ongoing project which can be worked on at any time.

We've had an unusually warm winter this year in Albuquerque, and I really didn't need the winter coat I was wearing on the walk. By the time I got to the Old Town Plaza, I was feeling a little light-headed, and decided on an early lunch. I went into the Church Street Cafe and ordered a bowl of posole, made with garbanzos, pork and red chile. I sat at an outside table, and the waiter brought me a basket of warm tortilla chips and some salsa, along with the bottle of Dos Equis I had asked for. The posole, not very picante, arrived with a couple warm sopapillas. I took my time over the bowl of stew, and ate most of the salty tortilla chips as well. I don't know how far I'll get with the botanical project, but it was a great lunch and a very fine winter day in New Mexico.