Congratulations are in order

  

Brian has been doing what he's doing for thirty years.  Thirteen years ago, he left Xilinx Software and went out on his own as an independent programmer.  That independent endeavor has gone well.  Today is Brian's last day of work.  He has resigned from his latest project.  He is retiring.

 

And, not to worry, he has plans for how to enjoy retirement.  Becky will continue to work at Taylor, Roth, and will be the primary wage earner.  Brian will absorb the household, kid, and kitchen duties.  Housefrau.

 

Congratulations, Brian.  Well done!

 

 

 

 

The exchange at the gate

  

Background:

 

We're here for two weeks and we're parked in a spot that has electricity only.  It was time to dump and fill, and since I had to move the bus anyway, I drove out to a nearby truck stop to top off the tank for the next leg of our trip.  I returned to the state park, by myself in the rig, and stopped at the entry station and spoke with a woman I'd never met.

 

The conversation:

 

"What can I do for you, darlin?"  (That was her speaking.)

 

"We're already checked in to our spot, thanks.  I just tanked up the bus and I'm coming back in."

 

"Great.  What site are you in."

 

"33".

 

"Wow.  That's a really good spot.  Good choice, and you don't even look that smart to me."

 

 

Possibilities:

 

Okay.  New favorite person!

 

She is truthful and blunt to a fault.

 

This person has an instant impeccable sense of just how far she can let her humor take her.

 

She is constantly in trouble, and this is just the next job that she's going to get fired from.

 

I'm going to go with "finely refined sense of humor".

 

 

 

 

 

One would think

  

One would think that with as much time as we spend in Colorado, we'd have reported birds in every county by now.  Not so.  Although we have visited every county in Colorado, we haven't been in some counties since we started recording birds in ebird.

 

We're not averse to spending more time in Western Colorado, but it's not in the plans for this trip.  We'll have to build that into future travels…

 

 

 

 

Don and Rosie

  

My first accounting professor from 1970.  We've stayed in touch for all these years.  We thought we'd lost track of him for the last decade or two, but thanks to Rosie, we reconnected. 

 

A pondside afternoon with he and Rosie at their farm on South Boulder Creek outside Boulder.

 

I can't say enough good things about this guy.  He is such an important part of my life; he inspired me at the very start of this lifelong accounting journey!  I'm still living the dream, thanks to him!

 

(…and they fed us really well…)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We dragged it out as long as we could.

 

 

We could barely make out the deer in the meadow as we drove back out.

 

 

 

 

And now for something completely different

  

How to set the sailboat speed record?

 

 

Separate the sail from the boat and fly it as a kite instead.

 

They haven't actually built it yet.  This is an animation of what they expect to do.  They're looking to go 80 knots (92 mph) with this concept!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWnjnuqoKaI

 

I hope Americas Cup doesn't hear about this.  This is exciting, but I kind of like the grace of the old boats that stay in the water like they used to; something we all still recognize as sailboats.

 

 

 

 

Along the way

 

 

Most RV Parks have dog runs.  The dogs like to go there and play with other dogs.  Wide-open. Plenty of room.

(Not my photo.)

 

This dog park we encountered however, looked more like a cheetah run!

 

The last two nights we spent here were in a temporary spot.  Now we’re in the one we stay in for two weeks.

 

 

Colorado

 

 

Now in the daylight, our spot at St Vrain State Park.

 

 

Dinner with family on the deck!

 

And Becky’s cheesecake with homemade cherry topping, cherries from her yard, for dessert!

 

Becky’s garden.

 

Healthy grapes on the arbor.

 

That looks like this inside.

Concord grapes.

 

By the end of the evening, one of the worn-out puppies.

 

 

A Colorado Day

 

 

From the desert around Grand Junction.

 

To Glenwood Springs for a meet-up with Jon and Deb!

We see them every time we come through here, but we haven’t been through here in years, so we had to route ourselves this way for a visit.  Enjoyed a long lunch together.

 

Through Glenwood Canyon.  Cleanup underway from some flood damage.

 

 

Out the other side.

 

 

To the top of Vail Pass.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Complete with streams and beaver dams.

 

 

 

 

 

And onward.

 

To the Eisenhower Tunnel.

 

 

Down the other side past Silverthorne and the trains for the Georgetown Loop.

 

To St Vrain State Park outside Longmont.  Can’t take a photo of our site tonight; we arrived after dark!

 

A Utah day

 

 

Nice morning light.

 

Through Ogden, Salt Lake City, and Provo.  That took about two hours.  Off to the left to cut across through Price to Interstate 70.

 

 

Hang a left again at Green River and into Colorado.

 

We did fill in some blanks on the Utah map.

 

Added three counties.  Now they all touch.

 

Here for the night at Colorado River State Park.

 

2021 Fall Trip Map Link

 

A quick drive up to Colorado National Monument for the evening light.