Grocery Run with a Surprise

Like living in a sticks and bricks, us fulltimers still have routine chores that have to be done.  One of them is grocery shopping.  The big difference is that we usually have to find a store because the last one we used is too far away to return to.  It is an adventure even to buy groceries.

We consulted with some of our fellow Escapees members here at The Ranch and they all recommended that we go to Artesia instead of Carlsbad.  Their reason was two-fold; it was six miles closer and Henry's Barbecue.

So we drove the fourteen miles to Artesia instead of the twenty to Carlsbad.  And being conscientious shoppers we never go to the store hungry so we stopped at Henry's and enjoyed some really good brisket and sausage.

But the surprise I wrote in the title was not the good BBQ.  It was a display of sculptures scattered out over the length of Main Street.  Great big bronzes paying homage to early settlers, cattlemen and oilmen.

There were two of these cowboys trying to get a stampede under control.  The other one was across the intersection with three longhorns giving him grief.

She was more than a school teacher.  She was also a pioneer woman.

 Oil is a big deal in the southeast corner of New Mexico and their recognition of it in sculpture is prominent in Artesia.  The rig sculpture, as well as all the sculptures are based on real people from the area.  This sculpture represents the Illinois #3, drilled in 1924.  They hit a pay zone now known as the oil sands.

Scattered around the rig are sculptures of locals that played a prominent role in building this part of New Mexico.


The woman in the middle is the daughter of the man on the right.  The story goes that she pointed to a spot on the ground and said; "This is the place, drill right here."  It turned out to be a gusher.

The rig floor replete with roughnecks is showing a lot of action.  This pose is depicting the making of a connection. 

The driller is watching his floor hands closely.  When the chain is just right his left hand will yank on the lever that will pull the chain that will spin the pipe that will cause it to screw into another section of drill pipe.  If everything works just right the floor hand will not loose any fingers.

The Chain-Chunker on the left is throwing a loop around a new section of drill pipe while the Back-Ups reaches for the tongs.

Land owners, ranchers and wildcatters.
Two local celebrities discussing the day's progress in drilling.

The trip to Artesia turned out to be more of a gem than expected.  Sometimes unexpected pleasures are the best.