September 18-20, 2014 Fort Collins, Colorado

Hot weather in the 90’s. Beautiful days.

I planted this silver lace vine and the sunflowers in the alley at John’s house years ago. This is the first time we have been around in the fall to really see how they look. Nice. Lovely sunset too.

This snake was on the bike path yesterday. About 3-4 feet long, and fat. He posed for the photo then turned around and went back into the grass. I spent the afternoon in the studio working on a new piece. The little round one is one I already made, I was using it for reference. I added roots to the new one.  It will end up being an oval bowl.

 

Here it is in the kiln before the first firing. We walked down to old town and listened to the music of Young Ancients. Some of the members are part of the Subdudes.

 

I love seeing my studio a mess, means I am working! A great blue heron on the Poudre river as we walked the  one and a half miles each way to the Sustainable living fair this afternoon.

The main stage at the fair. They had music, booths, food, and beer. This is the Holler a band we like. Michael Macfarland playing the mandolin in the middle won his category in the Telluride Bluegrass festival this fall.

The crowd and booths at the fair. They even had Kelty recycle tents.

Art work on the New Belgium beer garden. New Belgium is all about bicycles. Fat Tire is theirs.  Bike wheels and plastic bottles opened and painted into flowers. On the way back we stopped at Old Town at the Hoptoberfest. There were two stages with music, food and beer booths and lots of people. We listened to some music then headed home. Lot going on today.

September 16, 2014 Big South, Colorado

We went west up the Poudre River to see the aspens changing color.

 

Not all of them have turned yet, but enough to be beautiful.

 

We hiked up Big South Canyon a couple miles toward the source of the river the Poudre river in Rocky Mountain national park.  John is checking out the rapids.

The river is still very turbulent, but no where near as high as it was the end of July when we were here.

Golden aspens up high. Green aspens down lower.

 

Hooping ahead road sign, asters, fall colors, juniper berries, hare bells, red aspen leaf, yellow scrub, rose hips.

 

Fall raspberry leaves, red berries, yellow flowers, cinquefoil leaves, yarrow, fall leaves, aspen daisies.

 

Wooly bear caterpillar, cinnamon pine, red leaves, yellow asters.

September 13-14, 2014 Denver, Colorado

Saturday I went to Denver to go to the Colorado Trail Recognition Picnic. The Colorado Trail is a 500 mile trail from Denver to Durango through some of the most beautiful scenery in Colorado. It was built entirely by volunteers, like me. I worked on the Colorado Trail every summer for at least 17 years. The last 5 years I worked as a kitchen manager for huge crews. I retired from the Colorado trail crews when I met John. I started using my vacations for vacation with John, about 9 years ago.

 

The picnic was at Bear Creek Lake Park in Lakewood. They supplied  free food and drinks and lots of good company. I was surprised that there were still people I had worked with. This is Gudy  Gaskill. She is the ‘mother’ of the trail. In 1987 she visualized the trail and worked   tirelessly on the trail, recruited volunteers, and raised money for many years and the Colorado Trail Foundation was formed and the trail was built. She is still on the board and very active with the foundation.

I worked many years on crews led by Jon Greeniesen. Marilin ran the kitchen and inspired me to take on the same job. We had lots of fun on their crews, and built lots of trail. Here is the cake with a picture of the part of the trail (I may have worked on the section) that was for dessert. 

  

After we ate there was a hand chain saw competition. The saw blade is like a chain saw blade with loops on the end. You put a stick through the ends and get two people together and saw. These guys were all very good. Cindy on the left top worked  on the crew that I cooked for. She now leads her own crew, and runs a mean saw.  Sunday I went to the Glass Artist Fellowship meeting. I have not been to a meeting for years. I saw many old friends and learned more about glass. We also discussed the glass show this fall, I will be here and can participate.

We have our meetings at Mike and Sandy Penfound’s studio. Here is the glass blowing part in the back. They do beautiful work.

September 7-10, 2014

We are still in Fort Collins, waiting for my surgery in Oct. Very nice place to be for awhile.

I just had to take a photo of this. It is something I have never seen. John cleaning the bathtub. The super moon rising over sunset.

More sunflowers on the bike path. Fall is lovely. I had lunch with 9 other ladies at a birthday luncheon for Ann Kotzman at the Blue Agave, Mandy’s mother. Saw some old friends and met some new ones.

 

The birthday girl, Ann with her birthday brownie. I was in Denver still cleaning my things out of my house there. Reed my cousin who is renting it went for a job interview in Montana. I figured since I am here waiting for surgery I may as well get finished cleaning the house out so if and when he does move I don’t need to rush back from where ever I am and do it in a hurry. I had dinner with Reed, Katy Hales and my brother Jerry at the Swing Thai restaurant on Tennyson in Denver.

I also attended a lecture on Bullseye glass at D and L glass. Very informative. I saw some glass friends, happened to buy some glass and  I can contact the lecturer for a tour of the Bullseye glass factory when I am next in Portland, Ore. My glass studio is here in Fort Collins, since I am here, I am going to make glass. There is a glass show in November, and I will be recovering then, so I will participate.

September 4-6, 2014 Fort Collins, Colorado

 

Just got my new computer and am setting it up still. The new one is on the left, the old dead one is on the right. I downloaded the blog program and it is a new version, I am still figuring it out.  These sunflowers are on the bike path by the Poudre River that I rode on today.

 

I trimmed the basil plants today. The top photo is the before and the bottom the after. Here is the pile of leaves I trimmed off. 32 packed cups of leaves. They are now made into lots and lots of pesto. Can never have too much pesto.

Rain on the bike path today. Then a rainbow.

A vintage trailer at the Classic Car show today in Old Town Fort Collins. Most of the cars were younger than I am. Saw lots of cars I saw growing up. The bottom of this photo is an RV made on a VW body, it even has a bathroom, an out house towed behind it!

September 1-2, 2014 Denver, Colorado

We came back to Denver because I had an appointment with the ear, nose and throat dept to review my sinus cat scan and see if I needed surgery. We are parked at the Prospect RV park in Wheatridge so that in the morning I can drive down to my appointment.

We drove to Denver from Salida on Labor day. To avoid the really horrible traffic we came into Denver from the south on I-25. This was the worst of the traffic, and only for a few miles. The RV park is very nice, right on the lake at Prospect park next door and the bike path along Clear Creek. Good thing we had a reservation since it was full. My cousins came to visit the bus. Morgan, Justin and Reed Fink. Reed is renting my house in Denver and the boys are his sons. They have been trying to coordinate their schedules with when we are around to see the bus for year. They finally made it.

When I lived in Denver I rode the bike path along Clear Creek almost daily. Beautiful path. I got a chance to ride it again while we were here.

I went to my appointment with ENT only to find out I need sinus surgery. It is scheduled for Oct 30th, so we will be here a while I guess. I am on the cancelation list, so maybe I can get in earlier. The sooner the better as far as I am concerned, get it over with and be able to breath, smell and taste again. I was able to visit with my friends who work in the lab after the appointment, I used to work there years ago.  Katy Hales had us to her house for lunch after the appointment in her garden. Very nice. Back at the RV park it is overrun with bunnies. I think they were stalking our basil plants. On the 3rd we drove back to Fort Collins and unpacked the bus and put it in storage, for now.