Christmas

Plans change. We've had a few vanloads stop by for the Christmas lights. Tonight was the 40 passenger tour bus from the senior center. They do a Christmas light tour every year and always finish at our house with cookies, cider, and candy canes. Plans change. We got a cell phone call from the bus a little after ten. It broke down in Boulder on its way back to Louisville. We took the Jeep to go meet them. Judy handed out cookies and candy canes on the bus while some of us went for a couple vans to evacuate everyone back to the senior center.

It wasn't quite the evening everyone planned on, but they all finished it with good spirits. Merry Christmas.

Shoulder

Good news on the medical front.

We went to see the orthopedist this morning. I got the answer I wanted, and Judy got an answer she didn't want.

There is no rotator cuff problem in my shoulder. It is just a separation. No surgery required. It will be painful until it gets better. The month of January to rehab it should take care of it just fine. That's my good news. Judy pushed the doctor on my not playing in the meantime. She was trying to get him to say I would make it worse if I continued to play on it up till vacation in January. He told her the more I played, the more it would hurt, but that I wasn't doing any additional damage in the meantime.

Cool.

Wireless internet

Progress on the mobile internet hookup. The cell phone to laptop hookup is convenient because I can do it right from the motorhome, but it is painfully slow. I can send and receive email, but it is too slow to look up anything on the web.

Verizon has a high speed wireless data cell phone service. It's not really high-speed like a DSL line, but high speed compared to other wireless connections. They're opening up this service state-by-state. They had it in Texas last year, but not Colorado, and you can only sign up for it if it's offered in your home area.

Now they offer it in Colorado. Judy got us signed up for it. I tested it yesterday and it works. It was at least as fast as our home dial-up service. Jamie even transferred a client file to me and it only took four minutes to download. I can work with that.

Movies

I'm changing my opinion. I'm taking a stand.

I just watched "No such thing" again. It is generally regarded as one of the worst movies ever made.

I disagree. It is not a bad movie. It is a misunderstood masterpiece.

Now my favorite movie.

Trains

After a week of being buried beneath snow, the trains are running again. It has been sunny every day, but below freezing, so the snow pack hasn't changed until now. Suddenly we got a sunny fifty degree day. The tracks went from icy to dry. Suddenly everything works.

Racquetball

No racquetball news to report. I suffered a separated shoulder in a collision a couple weeks ago. It interferes with my game.

I laid off racquetball for five straight days and that helped. I think the month off to recuperate in January will be a good thing.

Trains

Winter continues.

Trains

Bumble waits patiently for spring.

Winter

Puff the red-nosed sea monster is called into service for Santa.

Weather

More trains. Just because I can't help it. Poor little bumblebee.

I promise I'll stop.

Winter

This is a quiz.

What is wrong with this picture?

Weather

Winter storm warning. In excess of twenty inches expected for the mountains. Meanwhile, the on-time record of the Louisville Express takes a beating.

Christmas

It has been a busy last few weeks, with yard decorations, yard trains, Thanksgiving, the Parade of Lights yard party Friday night, and the office Christmas Party, (excuse me, Holiday Party since we hired the Jewish guy), last night (dessert and house/motorhome tours at our house after). Once every three years my audit practice gets audited to make sure I'm doing it right. The audit of our auditing was was last week.

Right up through yesterday, we've been pretty busy. Today we stopped and relaxed for the first time in a long time. Watched some football. Thought about the January trip. Put the kayak rack back up on top of the car in preparation.

Ready for another week of work. Time to finish the year and put the finishing touches on our projections for next year before we head off to the Texas coast. We should be ready to leave about January first.

Trains

And still. Holding the place of honor.

Annie

We have this problem dog. She is wound so tight, we just can't get her to lighten up.

We'll keep working on it.

Traffic

We got to drive on a new road. They're building that loop road around Denver. Interstate 470. Only a quarter of it is actually interstate. Each part that is funded without federal dollars gets a different kind of name. We have C-470. The E-470 toll road. The Northwest Parkway toll road. That's our part. The Northwest Parkway. Before this, three quarters of the loop have been completed. I-70 and I-25 cross in the middle of Denver. From I-70 on the west side, you can loop around to the south to I-25, then take the toll road up the east side to I-70, then continue on past the new airport to join I-25 well north of Denver. It's 70 mph all the way. This newest section links the I-25 part with the Denver Boulder Turnpike. We pick it up about three miles from our house. It covers about one-third of the missing quarter. All that remains is to finish off the section between the turnpike and I-70 west of Denver.

It's a toll road. We have a transponder, so we can drive on it any time it's convenient, and never have to stop to pay a toll, though. It will just charge automatically to our credit card. That will be particularly handy anytime we want to leave the area in the motorhome during heavy traffic hours. For a few dollars, we can drive all the way around Denver with essentially no traffic. I think I like that it's a toll road.

Trains

A new feature this year is bringing the outer loop all the way out around the south maple, so it runs right next to the fence. That way people on the sidewalk can be right next to a train going by, even if they don't come in the yard.

Christmas lights

That brightened up the yard a little.

Christmas lights

Got the cottonwood tree decorated today.

Trains

And the house is lit.

Trains

And in the morning light.

Trains

This kids enjoyed them last night.

Trains

Taa daa!

The trains are done.

The north loop revisited.

Trains

The tracks begin to reemerge.

Maybe by Thanksgiving the road can be running again. Still got to finish that outer loop.

Weather

We did get a little accumulation. I sure liked the way the Jeep handled in the snow and ice. Four wheel drive and antilocks. A good combination for winter in Colorado.

Weather

The snow started at 8 this morning. The wind started at 9. It's 23 degrees.

Happy Winter.

Weather

Blue pushes. Red resists. Yellow wins.

Train

The Bumblebee makes a test run.

Train

The interior loop takes shape.

Weather

This is cool. If you load these in order, then click through them, you can see the red get pushed right off the map by the blue and yellow.

But then the red starts to regain a hold in the west. It does, but I didn't want to freeze everyone's computers with too many pictures.

Work

Lots of response to the mobile office. Every phone call and email starts with: "saw your ad" or "got your flyer". No new clients yet, but plenty of conversation. Got a call from Crested Butte today, but it was for something I could help with just using the fax.

Got a call yesterday from an executive director we already work with. She is headed out for a meeting with thirty-five executive directors of nonprofits in outlying areas. They have been wondering as a group what to do for audit services. She asked if I could provide a stack of flyers to take with her.

We were glad to oblige.

Babies

Grandbabies.

What could be finer?

More grandbabies.

Another on the way.

The fourth of July.

Taylor, Tony, and Teigan expect a baby brother or sister.

I can't send a picture just yet.

We're all excited.

Work

I love those maps you stick pins in so you can see all the places you've been, or all the stores you've sold to. I need a map for the alphabet. I was just looking through our client list, and we have at least one client for every letter except four: O, V, X, and Z.

Motorhomes

Shamu left the driveway today. The excited new owners brought us some more money, and a check for the balance. When the check clears, they get the title.

They're planning an immediate trip to Pennsylvania. Next weekend.

Things are simpler here now. Only three vehicles, and they are all 2002 vintage. Less miles on all of them combined, than on Shamu.

Less stuff.

Tricks

Saw the greatest trick wheels on a truck. Pickup truck. He rolled up to the intersection, wheel covers rotating and flashing in the sun. He stopped. The wheel covers kept rotating. That was startling.

Trains

Here are some possibilities.

Decorations

Well, finally it got back above freezing. No more ice.

No decorating duty today, though. It's still cold and cloudy and drippy with temperatures in the thirties.

Lots of thought about Christmas trains, though. I think one more locomotive would make for a really really cool layout. Three trains going all directions. Yeah. That's it. Three trains.

Halloween

Twenty-nine degrees. Freezing rain. One hundred eight kids.

Happy Halloween.

Pic

The Halloween pumpkin.