This week is busier than normal and this is not the day for much in the way of storytelling. So, instead, I have a few snapshots from the Garden of the Gods for your viewing pleasure.
Here’s another view of Balanced Rock.
I have hiked there but had never seen it on a snowy day so that was pretty exciting. We just drove through for a few minutes and enjoyed the view from our nice, warm vehicle.
Isn’t it beautiful?
Have a great day, friends!
I’m settled back in and ready to face a new day after being gone for a conference last week. While I learned some things that can help my day job, I was there because I’m the Vice President of the Governing Board of my local Educational Service Center. The conference was held at the Broadmoor, a legendary hotel and resort in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Our wonderful Superintendent gave a presentation at the conference and she invited me and our Board President to go along. I joined the board during Covid and haven’t had a lot of opportunities to participate in conferences or other learning events so I jumped at the invitation.
This turned out to be a wonderful trip despite some hiccups and, in some cases, the hiccups enhanced the experience. The Broadmoor lives up to its reputation in more ways than I can count. It’s possible I will be ruined for life and am still mourning the lack of turndown service at my home. The thoughtful lighting choices, classical music and chocolate left on the nightstand made going back to the room a real treat every night.
Plus, they got a few inches of snow while we were there that enhanced the Broadmoor’s absolutely gorgeous Christmas decorations. On our first night there, I awoke around 4 a.m. and was delighted to find myself in what appeared to be a Christmas snowglobe.
Our Superintendent had put together an agenda that allowed us to be at the conference and get out to experience some of Colorado. As it turns out, the snow which made the world seem so magical also made the world more challenging. Our breakfast spot that first morning was closed for weather as was the Garden of the Gods where we were to take a tour. Snow also prevented us from making it to the top of PIke’s Peak.
That’s ok because the three of us get along well and had no trouble pivoting to do other things. Better yet, we had a great time on those pivots. As I so often find to be true, what we do when things go awry can be even better than the plans.
And I’m grateful that was the case.
I complained the other day (once again) about the state of air travel. Yet, I want to stop a moment and encourage you to think about the miracle it is that we can get on a plane in Ohio and, in a few short hours, be halfway across the country. Trips that once took days in a car now take a fraction of the time.
I’m also grateful to every person who played a role in making my travel safe this trip. My two companions did all our driving and took good care of us even in weird traffic situations and on slick roads. Shuttle and car drivers, pilots, and the crews who keep all these vehicles operating are rock stars. I thanked all our drivers for a safe journey.
So, it’s back to work and back to the real world today. There are no doormen in fancy uniforms and no one to give me fresh towels so I guess I’ll go back to doing those things for myself!
Stay tuned. I will tell you more about the Broadmoor, the PIke’s Peak Cog Railway and some things we saw sightseeing around Manitou Springs.
I slept late this morning.
Yesterday started in Colorado at 3:30 am. One short car ride, a flight, airport train ride, another flight, airport shuttle, and rides in two more cars brought me to my Ohio home on the ridge by about 8:30 pm.
Easy peasy!
As I turned down the bed, I couldn’t shake the sensation I was still in motion. Luckily, Scout curled up next to me and I was out like a light, sleeping through the night for the first time in longer than I can remember.
When I awoke this morning, I knew I was home before opening my eyes. The sound of the heat pump and even the feel of the bedding are unmistakable elements of home.
And when I opened my eyes, Scout was sitting at my right arm, staring at me. It’s hard to tell how long he was there. He didn’t make a noise and wasn’t asking for anything.
He just sat there watching me as though confirming I was really there. I scratched his ears and he settled in next to me for a nap.
I tried to go back to sleep but the dry nose I always bring home high western elevations made that impossible. But I have stayed in this spot, hurkle durkling for a while and luxuriating in the solace of my own home.
This is partly for me and partly for him. While he didn’t go on a journey, he’s had a rough week too. My parents take good care of him but that’s not the same as having me there and he doesn’t understand where I go or why I would want to leave him.
Our pets are our family but we sometimes have to leave them. Whether it’s for a few hours or a few days, they are left alone and wondering why you left in the first place.
They miss us. He misses me. It doesn’t hurt me to lie here with a stuffy nose for a while longer just so he can luxuriate in the moment of having his person home.
This is a travel day for me. I’m headed home to Ohio from a conference in Colorado Springs. I have a few stories to share that I’ll add to the backlog of other stories I have been meaning to tell you.
Meanwhile, I’m sitting in a packed waiting room at the Dallas Fort Worth Airport waiting to board where one guy is snoring loudly. Air travel is a more efficient way to go long distances but it’s so unpleasant and time consuming. Flights are packed and hot. Airports are too big. People are impatient. Some of them even snore.
I’ll be glad to see my cat and my pillow tonight and will be glad to tell you some stories soon!
With inflation hitting grocery stores so hard this year, now is not the time to be wasteful with food. Yet, I found myself throwing away a bunch of food when cleaning out the fridge Saturday simply because I failed to use it up.
A serving of green beans here, half an onion there, an entire container of cottage cheese that I took a spoonful out of before it hid from me in the back of the bottom shelf. Not that much if you’re talking about one thing but shameful when you see it all together.
Americans waste a ginormous amount of food every year so I try to be mindful that I don’t want to fit in with that crowd. But as life ebbs and flows, there are times when using up what I have is easy and times when it’s not.
So I cleaned out the fridge and then realized I had an entire bunch of overripe bananas staring at me from the kitchen counter. You see, there are two sides of me. There’s the side that can’t get enough bananas and the side that pretends they don’t exist.
I don’t care for banana flavored things but have a basic recipe for chocolate chocolate chip banana muffins that can be dressed up. I had enough for a double batch so I mixed up the batter and started adding to it. First, there was a handful of random chocolate chips that needed used up. Then I discovered a jar of peanut butter that produced a fair serving when scraped with a silicone spatula. Then I added some blueberries that were languishing in the freezer. The recipe calls for sour cream or plain yogurt which I didn’t have so I subbed with some low sugar vanilla yogurt that was begging for attention.
In the end, the batter was thick and heavy and produced three dozen of some pretty good muffins. Not bad for some pantry basics with odds and ends of leftover stuff!
My grandmothers knew how to cook a chicken, produce broth from the carcass and preserve it for another day. They knew how to use up those odds and ends and how to make a meal delicious with the magic of bacon grease and a little flour. They knew how to use what they had to make a good meal. Today, I know someone who will throw away an entire roast because their spouse doesn’t like leftovers and they don’t think you can do anything else with meat that was cooked once.
Oh, both of my grandmothers would have a hissy fit.
I don’t eat meat but I do know how to transform the bits and pieces of my leftovers into something great when I set my mind to it. It’s a life skill we all should possess.
I was able to give away some muffins and still have several for the freezer so we’re ready to go on a cold winter day when we want a muffin but have been actually eating the bananas instead of ignoring them for five straight days! My future self will thank me!