Saturday, October 23, 2010

Honey Bee

 I have given Brooklyn a new nickname. It is Honey Bee. She is sweet like honey :-) Well, generally she is sweet. We all have our off days. Her first and last initials are both "B" and she has told me numerous times she would like to compete in a spelling bee. She just scored 199 out of 200 on a spelling test at school (but that is another story). However,  the number one reason I've taken to calling her Honey Bee is her sting on the soccer field. Whether she is playing goalie, fullback or forward she is a force to be reckoned with. She lunges, she plunges, she thrusts her body right in front of an opposing player to get at that ball. She will kick hard and she is not afraid of being kicked. Sometimes her enthusiasm is so great she will swing for a kick and completely miss the ball. A little more patience and control on her part wouldn't be a bad thing but once she perfects that we will be calling her Queen Bee. Sometimes I find myself getting a little embarrassed because she is so aggressive but today after the game a man we didn't even know came right up to Brooklyn, bent down to her eye level and said, "you are quite a player out there." She has not made a goal yet but she has prevented plenty of goals from being made by her opponents. Some of you know what a struggle Brookyn's life has been, wouldn't it be fabulous if she became a true soccer star?  O.K., it's only her second year, but grandmas can dream.





Sunday, October 17, 2010

Arches National Park and Canyonland, Utah

 There are no words or adjectives to describe the sheer beauty of this part of the country that would do it any justice whatsoever. This place of beauty  is called Utah. The name Utah comes for the Ute Indians and it means, top of the mountain. It should mean top of the world because that is what it feels like to stand on this ground and look for miles in every direction. Each turn of the road brings another and another and another magnificent, geological, natural sculpture.  We spent one day at Arches National Park http://www.nps.gov/arch near Moab, and I wish we could have stayed a week. We did the scenic driving tour but there is much, much more to see when hiking the trails and exploring this area to it's fullest. The town of Moab is actually a very small and we didn't have hotel reservations so fortunately we were able to find lodging at the Aarchway Inn. Not worth posting a website for but just beware if you are going to plan ahead and have a reservation in place if it is peak tourist season. We had no trouble finding a wonderful place to eat called Desert Bistro, http://desertbistro.com . The old ranch house decor is divided into two medium size dining areas and although the website says, gourmet southwestern cuisine, I had vegetarian lasagna that was fabulous and Dean had Elk which is said was equally as good as my handmade pasta dish.
From my perspective, this gorgeous piece of our great planet lies about two days driving time from Sacramento CA and I strongly urge anyone reading this blog to get a wild hair up their ass, jump in their car and drive there. You will not be sorry. Don't wait for that "right moment in time" or for someday.................just do it.







Saturday, October 2, 2010

Cog Wheel Railway to Pike's Peak

The thought of taking a train straight up the side of a mountain to the height of over 14,000 ft was pretty frightening to me. Even as I called to make the reservation I wasn't sure I could do it. My paratrooper son Ryan was stoked of course. The man in reservation said, "Oh yes, you're lucky, it is almost sold out for the Labor Day Week-end." "Right, lucky" I thought. But damn it, I have to start getting over some of these fears that limit me and keep me from experiencing life. "So how scary is it?" I ask the man on the phone. "Not scary at all. I have a fear of that kind of stuff too and I loved this trip when I took it." I was certain he was lying. He probably has to tell people that so they sell all the tickets. As it turned out, it wasn't nearly as terrifying as I had made it out to be in my mind. This is one website you should really check out, http://www.cograilway.com
The second of its kind, the Manitou Cog Railway was built in 1889.  It is an amazing feat of engineering which allows the train to climb as much as 25 feet for every 100 feet it moves forward. This is a 25% grade and the average over the entire line is 16%. It is the highest cog railroad in the world, reaching 14,115 feet. The train is completely enclosed and literally has cogs that drop into holes in the special track that propels the train forward. A grade of 2% is considered steep for a regular "adhesion" railroad so the advantage of the cogs was tremendous. Enough of the history and mechanics of the train. We boarded at 9:30 a.m. for the hour long pull up the mountain. It really was spectacular to look back down and see Colorado Springs from an almost aerial perspective. We found out that we would only have 45 minutes at the top to take pictures, visit the gift shop and eat a freshly made donut upon reaching the peak. Evidently the donut eating is a tradition of some sort but I never did fully understand why. As it turned out the 45 minute time frame was adequate. We should have had lead boots once we stepped out because its was so windy I feared we would be blown clean off the mountain. According to the official Pike's Peak website, http://www.pikespeakcolorado.com, the mountain was part of the Louisana Purchase. President Jefferson dispatched Zebulon Pike to discover the southwestern borders of the Purchase and so Pike set out to climb the Peak on November 24, 1806. I don't know what kind of explorer sets out to climb a mountain in November but a blizzard sent him scurrying back down the granite slope and the summit wasn't conquered until 1820 by a botanist named Dr. Edwin James. I'm  not certain what everyone was doing in the 14 years between the two ascents and I'm not quite sure why they named it Pike's Peak but it literally is a breath taking experience. At the 14,000 plus foot elevation and the 40 degree temperature, taking a breath was an effort. We were told there is only about 60% oxygen level at the top. The view is indescribable and on a clear day, which we had, you can see for about 150 miles in all directions. So once again quoting Via magazine, "If you are going..........." make a reservation, bring your camera, your coat and of course your lead boots.  All Aboard!!