June 2014
Blog 198: Stormy Weather
Late one afternoon the temperature dropped, the wind raised, and the thunderboomers came rolling in like the barbarians sacking Rome. Wow! Colorado is gorgeous!





Odds and Ends
Here is a shot of a spiderwort taken on a walk through a nearby meadow, and another hummer pic taken outside our front door.


Jan’s Old Signs
Here are a couple of old signs from Colorado.


Old Trucks
Here are three old trucks.



See you next week.





Odds and Ends
Here is a shot of a spiderwort taken on a walk through a nearby meadow, and another hummer pic taken outside our front door.


Jan’s Old Signs
Here are a couple of old signs from Colorado.


Old Trucks
Here are three old trucks.



See you next week.
Blog 197: Top Gun Wannabe
Morning Walks
Our campground has numerous trails to walk and wander. Here is a rock formation, lupine, and a cactus in early bloom.



Hummer
We have a Russian Olive right outside our front door, and our feeder attracts hummingbirds all the day. The speed and maneuverability of these aerodynamic critters would make a Top Gun jealous. Here is a shot of one female fueling up.

Jan’s Old Signs
Here are a couple of old signs from Colorado.


Old Trucks
Here are three old trucks from recent trips.



See you next week.
Our campground has numerous trails to walk and wander. Here is a rock formation, lupine, and a cactus in early bloom.



Hummer
We have a Russian Olive right outside our front door, and our feeder attracts hummingbirds all the day. The speed and maneuverability of these aerodynamic critters would make a Top Gun jealous. Here is a shot of one female fueling up.

Jan’s Old Signs
Here are a couple of old signs from Colorado.


Old Trucks
Here are three old trucks from recent trips.



See you next week.
Blog 196: Quick Trip to NASA
Quick Trip to NASA
I had a great two-day session with some professionals from NASA in Houston. As you’d expect, they were as smart as “rocket scientists” and quickly grasped the business concepts and skills and honed them to their environment.
As a youngster I was a huge fan of science fiction, devouring most of the works of Ray Bradbury, Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, Frank Herbert, and others. So I was especially delighted that my friends at NASA were kind enough to arrange a private VIP tour for me. I toured the original Apollo Mission Control, the active Space Station Mission Control Center, and two exact replicas used for astronaut training, the Space Station as well as the now retired Shuttle. They shared with me lots of stories (I shan’t share) and invigorated me to anticipate the Orion spacecraft and (hopefully) a mission to Mars in the next few years.





Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument
Jan and I and the Kids took a day trip out and around Florissant and Cripple Creek. At the Florissant Fossil Beds we walked a trail and learned about the fossilization of giant redwood trees and other insects, birds, and animals. Very interesting place.


From there we worked our way down to Cripple Creek, home of big-time gold mining and lots of casinos.

On the way home we decided to take a shortcut and work our way through the Pike National Forest. Lots of fun as the narrow forest roads became skinnier, rockier, and crooked-er…sure glad for clearance and 4WD.



More Baseball
Here are a couple of pics from the baseball tournament.



Jan’s Old Signs
We ran into a number of great old and newer signs at Cripple Creek and other stops along our day trip.



Old Trucks
Here are three old trucks.



See you next week.
I had a great two-day session with some professionals from NASA in Houston. As you’d expect, they were as smart as “rocket scientists” and quickly grasped the business concepts and skills and honed them to their environment.
As a youngster I was a huge fan of science fiction, devouring most of the works of Ray Bradbury, Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, Frank Herbert, and others. So I was especially delighted that my friends at NASA were kind enough to arrange a private VIP tour for me. I toured the original Apollo Mission Control, the active Space Station Mission Control Center, and two exact replicas used for astronaut training, the Space Station as well as the now retired Shuttle. They shared with me lots of stories (I shan’t share) and invigorated me to anticipate the Orion spacecraft and (hopefully) a mission to Mars in the next few years.





Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument
Jan and I and the Kids took a day trip out and around Florissant and Cripple Creek. At the Florissant Fossil Beds we walked a trail and learned about the fossilization of giant redwood trees and other insects, birds, and animals. Very interesting place.


From there we worked our way down to Cripple Creek, home of big-time gold mining and lots of casinos.

On the way home we decided to take a shortcut and work our way through the Pike National Forest. Lots of fun as the narrow forest roads became skinnier, rockier, and crooked-er…sure glad for clearance and 4WD.



More Baseball
Here are a couple of pics from the baseball tournament.



Jan’s Old Signs
We ran into a number of great old and newer signs at Cripple Creek and other stops along our day trip.



Old Trucks
Here are three old trucks.



See you next week.
Blog 195: Nature Girl Meets War Hound
After a quick trip to Irvine for business, time was spent on walks, at playgrounds, and at baseball diamonds--it is playoff season you know! Here are five shots from the past week.





BTW, Nature Girl doesn’t really meet the War Hound--I just thought it made a good title for the blog. ☺
Old Trucks
Here are three old trucks.



See you next week.





BTW, Nature Girl doesn’t really meet the War Hound--I just thought it made a good title for the blog. ☺
Old Trucks
Here are three old trucks.



See you next week.
Blog 194: Back to the Trails
Spruce Mountain Trail
Finally, Jan and I are back hiking! We worked our way around the meadow through blooming wildflowers, then up the mountain through groves of pines, and then down the switchback trails, with vistas all along the way. Here are three pics from the five-and-a-half-mile Spruce Mountain hike. We will do it again.



Nattie
Here is a shot of granddaughter, Nattie, at play.

Old Sign
Here is one old sign we ran across while shooting old trucks.

Old Trucks
Here are three old trucks from this past week.



See you next week.
Finally, Jan and I are back hiking! We worked our way around the meadow through blooming wildflowers, then up the mountain through groves of pines, and then down the switchback trails, with vistas all along the way. Here are three pics from the five-and-a-half-mile Spruce Mountain hike. We will do it again.



Nattie
Here is a shot of granddaughter, Nattie, at play.

Old Sign
Here is one old sign we ran across while shooting old trucks.

Old Trucks
Here are three old trucks from this past week.



See you next week.