September 14, 2004
Dear Family and Friends,
Fall snuck up on us earlier than usual
this year: two-foot drifts of snow shut down Trail Ridge Road in Rocky
Mountain National Park over this Labor Day weekend. The road to Mt.
Evans (the highest paved road in North America) has closed for the
season. Most
of the hummers left last week and the few that remain really ought
to get a move on. Aspens on our property are
turning yellows and oranges, as well as those on the higher hillsides.
They will peak a week earlier this year.
September has always been a
favorite month for us: the days are usually
sun-warmed in spite of air temperature: even at 45 degrees, the sun
keeps us plenty warm; daylight is long enough to permit a full eight
hour hike; and there is less and less chance of an afternoon
thundershower to drive us from the high country. Early fall is also the
time to make sure there is a full winter supply of firewood and
kindling (there is), to clean the chimney (we did), and to finish
outside chores
(still some to do). An added task this year is getting rid of as many
mice as possible from in and around our house before the cute little
darlings hunker down in our walls or wherever they nest for the winter.
Though we didn't seem quite as busy as
in previous summers, we were.
HOUSE REMODEL
PROJECT
In the end, the remodeling project—begun in
June—was, in spite of delays and rescheduling, a success! After weeks
with scaffolding in the great room, we now have
an upper ceiling that exudes the warmth of dark honey-colored pine. The
walls in the great room can only be called different shades of beige;
our bedroom and bathroom are sage to match the new carpet in those two
rooms plus our closet. The new bathroom vanity was an easy install by
H&J Plumbing, and other decor changes were completed by H&J
Interiors. We did have help with the installation of a new closet
"system," which certainly makes more efficient and attractive use of
the walk-in closet. We still want to replace the bedroom sofa which we
"discovered" was nearly 30 years old! It is pretty badly faded in
several places, but remains quite comfortable and is Judy's favorite
place to read. After shopping several "big box" and boutique stores, we
may decide to have it reupholstered instead of replaced.
We are still not "done" with inside projects
(more 
painting and perhaps other ceiling re-texturing),
and we are
looking at what needs to be done outside. We re-stained the garage, but
have put off doing the house. In fact, we're at the stage in our lives
when working overhead from a ladder 30 feet above the ground is not as
attractive as
when we were in our 30s. We're looking at options: hire someone to
stain the house to match the garage (cheapest) or consider a stucco
surface that would never need painting (rather expensive, but we'll see
and weigh the options). The garage roof needs repair or replacement,
something we'd hoped to have completed by this time: H&J
Construction had the lowest bid on this but scheduling has been an
issue.
We're also working with a landscape
architect to propose an outside make-over: walkways, gardens, patios,
ponds, rock waterfalls—we'll see what's possible, what's doable, what's
financially feasible, etc. A friend gave us the idea of where to build
an outdoor freshwater pond; it's an exciting possibility, but for next
year. In the meantime,
we know we'll enjoy being inside this winter.
HECTIC JULY
Looking at the calendar of what we did
in July, it seems more
hectic than we realized. Hughes and 
Michael played in the Barker Dam Brass
Band again in the 4th of July parade while Judy helped local
police with traffic control
and, in the evening, with the fireworks program put on by the fire
department. The following weekend, after the last of the remodel
projects were finished (the carpet was laid and the closet installed),
Judy ran in The
Trespass Trail Run, a new
local 5 mile race that was as tough as any she's done anywhere. Fellow
runners living in the area who did want to face the challenge called
her "an animal" (a compliment among runners). She won her age group in
spite of walking a short portion of uphill that took a lot out of many
of the runners. Two days later, a good friend from our
college days (best man at our wedding, in fact) spent a few days with
us, prompting Hughes's first hike of 
the summer to Diamond Lake
with
our New Zealand trekking friend, Alan. Guys only that day, though we
can't remember why. (The photo of Alan, Ken, and Hughes is one of
Alan's special self-portraits.) We left at the end of the week for
Montana on the
16th.
GLACIER
NATIONAL PARK
Glacier National Park was the destination for our 8th annual reunion
trip with Judy's high school girlfriends and spouses in the last half
of July. We rented a condo at Big Mountain Ski Resort in
Whitefish, about 30 miles from the west entrance to the park. Glacier
is spectacular and we had a very brief but terrific time hiking,
sightseeing, and rafting in the area. We drove a total of five days
round trip for the four days we spent together. Even so, it convinced
us that we need to go back next summer to spend much more time there,
as well as some places on the way (ghost mining towns in Idaho and
Montana) and nearby areas we've not been to (Banff, Jasper, and other
Canadian Rockies destinations). The trip is described in more detail
and with pictures on a separate web
page where you can see more of what we did and saw in Kemmerer and
Green River (WY), Polebridge (MT), and Waterton Lakes, Alberta,
as well as Glacier National Park.
TIVO ARRIVES
We're not sure of how worthy it is to
mention a new technology in the context of this letter, but for those
of us who live in the mountains—those of us who came to the area when
phones were on a 4-party line, when internet access was denied, when
answering machines were verboten,
when TV reception was limited either to fuzzy images from three of the
Denver stations using conventional outdoor antennas or, if one had a
"big dish" and an expensive receiver/descrambler, stations from almost
anywhere by subscription—technological advances are not taken for
granted. Last year we had high speed wireless internet service
installed, and this year we've embraced Tivo!
We know, most of you have it
already. But for us it's the latest electronic toy. Of course we had to
give up
our outdated "big dish" technology (which worked pretty well when there
was no snow or wind or lightning) and purchase the "small dish" from
Direct TV. Taking down the old dish was a challenge and created a
pleasant visual gap that's been easy to get used to. We only made the
change because we could use Tivo. If
you're still among the few who don't have this device and you're tired
of that
incessant soft dog puppet yapping that anyone can get credit, "bar
none" (or political ads and other noise from the wasteland), Tivo opens
a new
world of TV enjoyment.
•Tivo lets you
skip over commercials; you can walk the dogs, go to the bathroom, hit
the icebox, even wake up from a nap and go back to the program you were
watching when you left or nodded off. Aren't you glad you had it during
the Olympics?
•Of course you
could program Tivo to record the Olympic events that came on a 2 a.m.
or mid morning so that you could watch them at a real time—and you
could skip the commercials shown during those recorded events.
•Do you have a
favorite program you want to watch every time it comes on? 
Monty
Python? a daytime soap? Dr. Phil? Tivo can automatically record every
program until you tell
it to stop. It's called a "Season's Pass."
•Are you
going on a three-week trip and don't want to miss something while
you're gone? Ask Tivo to record the programs you want and they'll be
waiting for
you when you get back to town.
•Is there a
movie you'd like to see but you don't know when it might be shown—next
week. next month, whenever? Tell Tivo which movie(s) you want to see
and Tivo will record it when it is shown and then tell you it's waiting
for you to see it when you choose.
•Do you have a
favorite topic or kind of program? Travel in Scandinavia? Chinese
cooking? Kangaroos? Ask Tivo to record everything related to that
topic whenever it comes on. (One of our neighbors is a huge race car
fan; he simply programs Tivo to record everything that has to do with
car racing and when he comes home from work, he sees what's been on
that day and watches what he wants.) Check daily to see what's been
recorded and decide if and when you want to watch it. Of course you can
skip the commercials.
And folks thought sliced bread was a
miracle.
BEST FRIENDS
Probably more than anything this summer, Judy
had been looking forward to her trip with granddaughter Julia to Kanab,
Utah, home of Best Friends
Animal Sanctuary. This remarkable facility takes in animals that
are either abandoned or abused and gently and lovingly cares for them
until
they are either adopted or live out their natural lives. Though dogs
and cats make up the largest number of animals cared for there,
rabbits, horses, 
mules, pigs, birds, and other domestic animals have a
home in their own particular compound on the grounds. We have long
supported the Best Friends Animal Society and several years ago we
stayed
at the Angel Canyon sanctuary to see for ourselves what they do. We
were amazed by what they accomplish and continue to be proud to support
them financially.
This year, Judy and Julia decided to
spend a week volunteering to help with the care of the animals. Julia
flew from Boston and together they drove to Kanab, about 700 miles away
in southwestern Utah. They stayed in Kanab rather than at the Sanctuary
(air conditioning and a swimming pool provided a few luxurious
amenities, plus there was a festival in town that week honoring western
and cowboy movies, music, poetry, and culture). Each day they would
have breakfast, drive out to Angel Canyon to feed and groom horses and
mules, feed, walk, and socialize the dogs, groom and cuddle the
cats, feed and groom the rabbits, and other necessary and routine
chores, like mucking and poop scooping. They worked until noon, had
lunch with the staff, and finished up around five in the afternoon.
Among the folks Judy met there was
Monty Python's Eric Idle who like us, she learned, has been a
long-standing and enthusiastic supporter of Best Friends. This helped
to make up for not seeing Ian Tyson in concert one night during the
western festival. It was a late event, one she didn't think Julia would
stay awake through. On the other hand, Eric Idle is probably much more
interesting to be with than Ian Tyson—and he's just as musical.
Both Judy and Julia enjoyed the whole
experience very much. Julia was a good traveler; she both amused
herself and carried on conversation, never complaining "Are we there
yet? When are we going to be there?" Judy enjoyed the private time with
her and found that, at age 10, Julia's quite 
good company, willing to
work, and really likes animals. They had a great time—so good in fact
that the rest of Julia's family is very interested in coming next
summer (along with Judy and me) to work there another week. We're
looking forward to it already.
MISCELLANEOUS
We are still asked, "What do you do in
your retirement?" Well, in addition to the travels and other things
mentioned above, the summer calendar records that:
•We went to several
concerts/performances in the area including a CU production of HMS Pinafore; a concert by the
Mount Alto Motion Picture Orchestra who performed music written
specifically for silent movies and played background music throughout
a showing of Buster Keaton's silent film "The Camera Man"; and a show
by Dean Martin's son Ricci
at the Isle of Capri Casino in Black Hawk (we went with his sister,
Gina, and other neighbors);
•We continued to attend
our monthly book club meetings: the Mystery Book Readers discussed
Niccolo
Amaniti's I'm Not
Scared (the movie was better); Phillip Gooden's Sleep of Death
(Shakespeare fans take note); and Boris Kunin's The Winter Queen
(the first of Kunin's ten very popular—in Russia—mysteries set in
victorian Moscow). Judy's lit-er-a-ture group discussed Khaled
Hosseini's Kite
Runner, Beast
in the Garden by local writer David Baron, and Jane Hamilton's Disobedience.
Next month's selection is Reading Lolita in Tehran
by Azar Nafisi.
•We helped a
friend's campaign for county commissioner. We got signatures to get him
on the
ballot and worked the
phones on the eve of the election, but he lost anyway.
•We have had, so far this
summer, only one hike together: along with Judy's hiking partner we
climbed Mt.
Audubon, a favorite nearby 13er with a great view of the Indian Peaks
and beyond (see photo on left). While Judy was in Kanab, Hughes was
set to climb a couple of nearby 14ers with our New Zealand trekking
friends, but the trip was canceled at the last minute due to an injury
to one of
other climbers.
•We attended our first
"Kitty Shower" on the occasion of friends' adopting two special
kittens. It was much more fun than some of us anticipated.
•We attended or hosted at
least ten dinners/barbeques/pot lucks in July and August. We don't eat
"out" much, but we eat often and well.
•Judy defended her title of "The Fastest Old Lady in Nederland,"
winning the 60+ women's age group in this year's Neder-Nederland High
Altitude 5K Race with an 8.03 minute per mile pace, finishing a full
minute faster than last year's winning time! She was the 4th overall
woman. It is her 10th win in ten races (she missed running in 1999-2001
due to travel).
•We continue to do our
weekly four-hour shifts at the Visitors Center, Judy does fire
department duties, and Hughes makes music (Celtic and bluegrass) every
other Thursday nights.
•Thanks to Tivo, we watch
more TV and fewer commercials.
We are currently taking
care of Michael and Cindy's dog, Penny, while M & C are on a
road trip to Montana, Idaho, and other parts of the
northwest. They saw our photos of our Glacier trip and agreed the area
looked spectacular. They've not
had a vacation together like this for some time. Fortunately, Penny
gets along well
with Sophie and Bella: they chase the same chipmunks, pee on
the same spots, eat and sleep at the same times, and enjoy walks to get
the paper in the morning, the mail in the afternoon, and trail walks in
the area anytime.
In spite of all the activity,
this
summer did not feel particularly busier compared to other summers. We
had time to
read, do routine maintenance—trench the road, clean the windows, cut
and
stack firewood, and all the myriad of things that keep anyone going. We
try
to stay in touch with friends via phone and emails. Sometimes we have
visitors drop in from Florida to enjoy breakfast in "the meadow"
followed by some casual shopping. Hedy (on the right with Judy
and Sophie) is another friend from our college days who comes just
about every year for a brief but pleasant stay at the Moir Mountain
Motel. You could do the same. Maybe this year you will.
Autumn is a wonderful season. Schools
started here in mid-August—too soon by my pedagogical clock, but none
too soon for some parents. Leaves are turning gold and rust. Football
has started, baseball is winding down,
and we aren't sure about hockey. Elections at all levels will be over
in a couple of months, for which we'll all give thanks. Fall is joyous
season filled with many
holidays for people of all faiths and outlooks. We hope your next three
months are filled with many happy holidays.
