I heart nature, pt II

These pictures are from Sunday's sunset. The sky was such a beautiful blue - the intensity and saturation of color was unbelievable. And despite racing for the camera and snapping a few pics, the color cannot be duplicated. I was swoony standing next to Thomas. The blues, the pinks in the clouds, the way the light was not quite clear and bright. It seemed as though we opened the door of the house and walked into a painting.

And now the storm has subsided and the power went out. In lieu of pounding rain or thunder, I now hear the splashing of cars driving by....ah, nature!

I heart nature

Right now I am taking a personal moment at work. I am working late tonight, so for the moment I am enjoying the rain pouring down in sheets. The sound is soothing, though loud; the breeze is cool. I am grateful to be protected indoors, as the road is a brown river flowing down the hill. It looks like blue sky in the direction of home, but I am hopeful that this rain might be reaching Miami, too. The thunder claps are ear-splitting, but storms like this don't last long out here.

It's true that I heart nature! On my way to work Friday, I saw a bear on Philmont property. On the way home that afternoon, I saw a golden eagle. Never in Denver...

The sunsets have been amazing, too. The colors are so vivid and radiant that a picture will never compare. Here are a few from Saturday night - it was like fire in the sky!

End of Summer Fun

Thomas and I did not have a summer vacation. We aren't students or teachers afforded this privilege, nor were we able to take a sustained period of quality time away from our jobs for leisure. Both of us kept very busy with work at our jobs and with work at home. This will probably be true of many summers to come. We did have fun with some weekend jaunts from home. And we certainly enjoyed the company of friends and family a few times. This, we hope, will also be true of many summers to come. Labor Day used to mark the end of "summer", though calendar-wise it should be my dad's birthday. Growing up, school didn't start until the Tuesday after Labor Day. Out here (including my years in Denver), school starts mid August and usually ends by Memorial Day. Thus, "summer" was over for our nieces and nephews a couple weeks ago, even earlier for their parents. For Daniel, who works at Philmont, summer is the "on" season, so he is actually just coming off many weeks of extra long days and no weekends. We made a celebration of the transitions on August 13th. Thomas and I got up early - a little earlier than we needed, but we didn't want to miss the Colfax County Fair parade. David invited Thomas to drive the fire truck, so he could ride up top with his kiddos - an opportunity he has not yet had, since he is usually driving. Thomas and I biked down to the fire hall, leaving shortly after our arrival in the tender. We were told to arrive early and not miss the cake walk! We got registered for the parade and walked back toward the cake walk. Pop was hard at work collecting quarters from the walkers, but there was no sign of the Salas gang. We hung out in the shade until they arrived, and then I joined the fun with the girls. I won a cake right away - a red heart cake. Maya won right after me. Marie quickly called Julie to say that we had dessert for a family dinner planned for the evening. Cakes in hand, it was time to get ready for the parade. I declined my ride in the cab with Thomas, so Marie could join in the fun. We had a great time, saw lots of friends and people we knew, and ran out of candy too quickly!

You'd think there was a cool float behind us or something or that they were posing for a "Go West, young man!" poster, but nah...just an alarm or something that caught their attention simultaneously.

Maya was hiding on the other side of David. Someone has a smart mother who knows that the top of the fire truck is hot!

To continue the festivities post-parade, we gathered for dinner at Daniel and Julie's. The ribs and beer were a hit, and as soon as dinner was over, we got toned out for a fire. It was a false alarm of sorts, but more than anything, it was a damper on a night of relaxing and celebrating. Julie kept the beers cold till we returned, but the vibe was lost. Maybe we are getting a re-do Labor Day weekend with camping and logging in the mountains!

And a random shot from the car on my way home from work this week. There were about forty elk cow hanging out at the polo ranch munching away. Hunting season is almost here - an unfortunate change of seasons for the elk...

Videoing Portland (not calling)

I love having a land line! First, the cell service is pretty spotty out here, but there is just something nice about picking up the phone instead of pulling it out of my pocket. There may come a time when all that has to change, but I really do like the feel of a full size phone, the sound of the phone ringing, and the cord that keeps it from going everywhere with me. On the other hand, I have just made another technological leap into this century with skype. My laptop at work has a camera built in, so I considered, after OMG arrived, that maybe I should learn how to use it. I have had a couple of video calls to Portland and really enjoyed getting to see the party on the other end, as well as hear them. It turns out that the signal is even a might bit slow in town, but out here in the country where internet comes via satellite, it is too slow to sustain a conversation via camera over the internet. Another fun plus is the snapshot feature. Here are a few of the people I have gotten to see and hear...

Dad up in his office, aka "Captain Jack's Bar", aka man room...

Marty came to claim Abba for a bucket of balls at the driving range.

Ollie showing off his momma and his skill for keeping his lunch down (Miki had just finished feeding him).

Saying "good night" in the afternoon, as these two were ready for an afternoon nap.

The snapshot feature can capture some nice shots, but they have also afforded me some good laughs of the funny faces of family captured in photos!

OMG - He's Just SOO Cute!!

I have been busy - consequently exhausted, too. I have been giving the happy family a hard time about posting pictures or updates to their new family blog: www.greenleepdx.com. Of course, I am not one to talk. I have been stalking their blog for updates and am grateful for the e-mails of pictures that everyone else has sent. I got an e-mail from my fairy godmother with some pictures...an interesting coincidence that the night before the pictures came, I actually dreamed about them together our in the backyard around the patio table.

Marty, Miki, and Ollie - looking so photogenic in their back yard (pic from the Dorseys)

When my dad came to visit in June, he wanted to go the notorious Colfax Tavern, generally known in these parts as Cold Beer. Tom and I have gone for pizza on occasion and even a cold beer. He and his brother shuck oysters on Mardi Gras for the big party there, and it's a popular hangout year round. We ended up celebrating our anniversary at dinner at the St. James and listened to Rod Taylor out on the patio afterward. But we did save time for a trip to Cold Beer, which is typically crowded all summer long with seasonal staff from the scout camp. It turned out to be a slow, slow night up there, but the t-shirts were sold out all the same. Abba's Father's Day present came in the mail, and he was only too proud to send me a picture.

Ollie and his grandpa hanging out in the backyard...rumor has it there might be a beer named after him soon!

The little man ready for an afternoon nap. Notice that big foot!

Shake, Rattle, and Roll

Phew - I made it!  Friday when I left work, I wasn't sure I could get to Tuesday.  I was feeling a little overwhelmed.  I was helping with reading and singing at a funeral on Saturday morning, baking cakes all afternoon for the enchilada dinner on Sunday evening, singing at Mass Sunday morning and staying all day to prepare for the dinner, and then after wrapping up that presenting my first parent meeting up in Eagle Nest Monday evening.  Lots of long day, late nights, and general tiredness! 

 

Those three days are over, and while there is still plenty to do, I can breathe a little easier. 

 

When I got home at 8:30 pm last night, I made myself a fried egg sandwich and read for awhile.  There is nothing like a good book (House of Spirits by Isabel Allende) to take you to a different space and time.  I was getting sleepy, but Thomas wasn't, so I tried to hold on a little longer, but not long enough.  I lay in bed trying to fall asleep listening to the list of things to do run through my mind. 

 

Then my hopes got up that Thomas was coming to bed.  I felt the house shake, but I didn't hear his movements.  And it wasn't the kind of shaking of heavy footsteps.  And it kept going.  But it wasn't windy, and there weren't any storms.  And he still hadn't moved.  And it kept going.  It was kind of nice, being in bed, because it was almost like being rocked.

 

This morning I read the report of a 5.5 earthquake about 11:20 pm between Trinidad and Raton.  One more thing I survived in the last three days...

Eating My Words

Yesterday I received a message from a colleague, catching me up to date.  It included the predictable question about the weather.  It's not just that anyone and everyone asks.  This area has been experiencing such a terrible drought this year, so people know this and often pray for us to get rain and want to know if anything has changed.  Mostly the answer is no.  And in a lot more words, I responded about how little rain we've had, and though there have been good storms here and there, they really are too few and far between. 

 

Now I feel like I am supposed to eat my words.  Yesterday it was a little overcast at 5 pm when I got home, but hot.  I set to doing a few things outside, and then Tom got home.  Hot and tired, he layed down, and I turned the cooler on for him because there was no wind, and the heat was just exhausting.  I kept about my tasks and debated about weeding in the garden, but headed in the house to check on Tom.  By 6:00pm the sound of a few raindrops tapping the roof was enticing me to the window.  It only sprinkled a little at first, but by the time we were supposed to leave for firehall, it was a downpour.  We were testing the pumpers at training, and we were both pretty soaked from working outside.  It was a welcome change to be working out in the rain, though I don't like to be clammy.  In the hour and a half we were gone, the 55 gal rain barrel filled up (and it only collects from the mud room section).  It rained on and off for quite a while into the night. 

 

I had expected it to have been muddy this morning, but that is just how dry it was - the ground soaked it all right up!  Crazy!  I know the garden was grateful for it, and I am grateful for not having to water it for a couple days.  As I passed the lake on my way to work, it was noticeably fuller, though still terribly low.  I hope there is more rain coming our way!