Paul Hutton Redux

October 14, 2011

Holed up in Santa Fe in a cozy, old school hotel just off the plaza. Kathy is with me. Sat on the porch last night, drinking Santa Fe Ale and solving life. Great to see her and catch up on our hectic lives. Told her about my many adventures traveling along the Pecos River for the past several days.

Found a wonderful B&B-hotel down a backstreet in Taos two days ago. it's Mabel Dodge Luhan's old house. Absolutely the most incredible adobe I have ever seen. Going back when i get a chance. Met a local, Archie, on Wednesday night in Albuquerque who grew up just to the north of Taos, and he regaled me with all the fist fights he had with rival families. He told me you couldn't walk down the road without having to fight. Love that stuff, although i'm glad I didn't grow up that way. Me, I grew up in the rough tourist town of Kingman where I suffered a few wedgies and the occasional cowboy verbal humiliation, but no one ever accosted me on the way to Hood's Market, if you know what I mean and I think you do.

Speaking of white guys who have it dicked, in about fifteen minutes I'm going down to Due West Art Gallery on San Francisco Street (catty corner from the old Herlow's Hotel where John Tunstall had his handshake from hell). Setting up the gallery for tonight's O.K. Corral art opening, featuring new Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp art by Thom Ross and myself. We're having a discussion at 6:30 tonight, open to the public, with Paul Andrew Hutton hosting. Going to be fun.

Speaking of the distinguished professor, he and I had breakfast at the Range Restaurant in Albuquerque yesterday (he bought). Great green chile on their patented huevos rancheros. Talked about several projects, inlcuding our elusive Mickey Free. Paul recently had dinner with a famous movie director (I swear he knows everyone) who told him: "Think of tanks and ground troops. Tanks are the story and characters are the soldiers. The tanks—the story—always comes first." This apt metaphor totally revived Hutton and he has big plans for this mongrel mutt we have been coddling and noodling for the past seven years.

Afterwards, Paul and I went to the UNM campus, where Paul works, to meet with a young student of his who wants to write for True West. Found out Paul's students love him (he has more students in his classes than anyone in the department), thus completely negating my snotty posting from the other day.

"You are just jealous of Paul Hutton's success."

—That voice in my head that I hate so much