Mike Is Leaving...

My thermostat says it's 65 degrees here in the apartment, but my body doesn't believe that - it feels more like 55... When I arrived home last night, I let the kids run outside for 10 minutes before I got cold enough to close the door, and both kits were back inside. Then we watched the end of the Packers-Lions game, and went to bed and snuggled all night. When I went out at 7 this morning, it was 17, and the wind was blowing... Chilly! They say we'll have seasonal temperatures this week, but no snow. That means highs in the low 40s and lows around 20, so I guess I'll have to dig out my long johns so I can stay warm while walking the dogs.

   Mike is due to move to Hawaii on Friday, and I don't know when I'll see him before he leaves. Normally, we'd have a family get-together - at least a close family dinner - before he leaves, but he's scheduling times to see friends and folks that he grew up with, so Kathy, Jim, Sarah, and I might not really get to spend time with him before he flies away. Just last New Year's eve, he asked Annie to marry him, and had purchased a 1.5 carat solitaire for the engagement ring. Annie said yes, they had a quiet weekend together, and then she shipped out for Basic Training. Mike and she had discussed their life together, including kids, and Mike's being the stay-at-home Dad, while Annie got her medical degree via the Army. She didn't read the fine print in her contract, and now wants out. She didn't save any part of her salary, and has spent all her pay on clothes and new gadgets. Mike had a big spring bash for Annie, at his folks' house, to celebrate her finishing training and their engagement. After the party, she admitted that she had had to borrow the plane fare from her parents, had already sold her engagement ring, and was sorry, but didn't think she could spend her life with Mike. (She had been asked about the whereabouts of the ring, and had told him that she couldn't wear the ring while doing her Basic, had gotten into the habit of not wearing it, and had forgotten it and left it back at camp.) Mike felt like he had been rolled over a cliff and stomped by buffalo at the bottom. He decided to get rid of all extraneous belongings and start over - in Hawaii. One of his best friends has family there, and they will help him settle in and get a job... I'll miss the young man.

  The Fern Lake fire up in Rocky Mountain National Park has been covered by over six inches of snow - but some large trees and areas are still smoldering. Officials said that the fire is 80% contained today, and that they expect it to be burned out and dead by December 31. Only one cabin was burned in the fire, but over 7 square miles of pasture, brush and trees has been burnt. The following photo was taken last week of the only burned building; it is copyrighted by Scripps Media:

 

No Snow...

The wind was bitterly cold last night just before 10; I watched the News to see what was holding up the arrival of the predicted snow, and heard that our "snow event" was over. Boulder got NO snow at all. Luckily several inches fell on the Fern Lake fire up in RMNP - the fire is now 45% contained, but is expected to smolder for at least another month. I had a great time with my friend Bea yesterday evening - we had an early dinner at Ted's and then sat and talked for a couple of hours. I think the most surprising thing was learning that Bea was the first black cheerleader for the Broncos - back when, as she says, "they wore clothes and actually cheered" not the teeny costumes and sexual gyrations the "cheerleaders" seem to do these days.... We decided late last night, that, with our shared interests, we need to incorporate ourselves as "The Bodacious Bs."

  It's all of 17 degrees outside, and, as usual, I have the patio door open so the kits can run in and out (but my legs and feet are getting cold, so the next time Nedi comes inside, the door gets closed). I fed and walked Aiko and Yoshi earlier this morning, and have been home catching up on my e-mail and the news for the past hour. Lovey is purring away, but is determinedly sitting between me and the keyboard - my attention should be hers, she feels. - OK, the patio door is now closed, so maybe the heat will begin to feel like it's kicking in...

  Today, The Denver Post published an article about the number of feral cats wandering in the city. It is estimated that more than 100,000 feral cats are living free in Denver. The bird folks don't like them, or the people who feed them. I'm going to urge all of you, who can afford to, to send a tax-free contribution to The Feline Fix, a program of the Rocky Mountain Alley Cat Alliance. You can read about the program and what it does at http://www.thefelinefix.org/ This is a trap, neuter, and return program for feral cats. The captured wild cats are neutered or spayed at the low program cost of $20 apiece. Once the cats have been altered, and given their shots, they are released back into their original range. This way the cats cannot reproduce, are vaccinated, and are back in familiar territory. With the economy tanking and folks losing their jobs and their housing, most people seem to just turn their cats loose rather than take them to an adoption agency. It's a sad but true fact. Please help support and/or sponsor a TNR program, if you can. Thank you.

Snow In the Forecast

Yesterday was a chilly day - even though the thermostat was set at 65, the heat seemed to turn on every 15 minutes or so. The ravens are scolding Nedi in the back yard, and Lovey has decided to eat some food. I spent yesterday and last night with Aiko and Yoshi; they are dear little boys, but decided to bark at something in the front yard at 1 a.m. and really scared me. I was scared because I was sound asleep, and couldn't figure out why there were high-pitched barks coming from a hall way I didn't recognize.... Once I woke up enough to know where I was, it was no big deal - but it was a surprise this morning.

  I didn't blog yesterday because I was so emotionally depleted after meeting with my new shrink Monday afternoon. Unfortunately, I had to give a recap of all of my "problems" for as long as I could remember - and I was astonished at how tiring and draining it was. And Cindy had a lot of questions for me that seemed a little off the wall, too. And once I got home, I realized that she hadn't renewed my medications, so I had to call back and get that done, as well. *Sigh* .... The one nice thing that has happened is the announcement that Prince William and his Duchess Kate are expecting a baby - but I could only grimace when I read that she was suffering from hyperemesis. That's a really debilitating and overtly gross phenomenon, poor girl!

  The Fern Lake fire has somehow managed to stay inside the Rocky Mountain National Park, even though more than 600 people were evacuated (again) on Monday. Fire officials hope to be able to allow some of those displaced to return to their homes today. The winds blew the fire over a 3-mile stretch of country in under 30 minutes Friday night; and if the winds continue in the same direction, with the same intensity and amount of spread, the fire would be in downtown Estes Park within another 30 minutes today. The Fern Lake fire has burned over 7 square miles of trees, brush, pasture, and one cabin since it began back in October. ... And we actually have snow in our five-day forecast! The weather folks are saying that we'll having dropping temperatures Friday and Saturday, and that we'll start getting snow Saturday evening. At the moment, they are only stating that we'll get "a few inches, not the 2 feet that we need." They say the high Saturday will be 34, the high Sunday will be 23, and the low Sunday/Monday will be 10.

  A flock of geese just flew by, honking melodiously. I hope that the rest of your week is as peaceful and calming as that chorus was.

A Windy Monday

It's beautiful outside. At dawn there were a lot of clouds covering the sky, but now the only cloud to be seen is to the west behind the mountains. Nedi is outside watching the squirrels, while Lovey is sitting on the corner of my desk. It's currently snowing up at the Continental Divide, with about 6 inches already piled up. The winds are still whipping around in Rocky Mountain National Park, and the Fern Lake fire is now 20% contained; however, more than 600 houses are on the evacuation warning list for this morning. And TaRhonda Thomas is reporting live from the entrance to RMNP, and is being blown about by the wind gusts. One of the oddest news stories this morning was about a fire in Red Feather Lakes, northwest of Fort Collins. Sometime early this morning a fire started at an uninhabited cabin; it spread to a second cabin. The second cabin had a propane tank beside the building, and the fire caused the propane tank to shoot like a missile through the Red Feather Lakes Association clubhouse. Both cabins are total losses, while they are still inspecting the clubhouse that had the propane tank blast through it....

  I'll be heading out shortly to walk the Rs, then I'll hang around until it's time to walk and medicate Peach. After a short visit home, I have to head off again to meet my new psychiatrist. I know that I dread meeting her, as I kept dreaming that wild and crazy men and women were breaking into my apartment all last night and this morning. I'd wake up, scared to pieces, and check the doors and window... It was not a restful night.  I hope I like this new Doc....

  And I was so disgusted yesterday by the Jets and Cardinals game! The coach finally decided to bench Mark Sanchez - hooray! - but Tim Tebow was on the Injured Reserve list yesterday, and didn't even get to dress. So the third string QB, McElroy was called in. He ran the offense down the field and scored the only touchdown of the game - the Cards got two field goals. It was an ugly and extremely frustrating game for me. Then I was able to enjoy the Broncos game, but I had to grit my teeth over the phrasing at the end... "And the Broncos win their AFC division for the second time in a row, thanks to Peyton Manning." This second divisional win was due to Peyton Manning, but last year's win was due to Tim Tebow. I also saw the Cowboys - Eagles game and was disappointed by the lack of defense. So sad....

Intriguing Names in Louisiana

Something must be wrong with the kits; they let me sleep until almost 8 this morning. I smelled smoke from the Fern Lake fire a couple of times yesterday, and one could definitely see the smoke to the northwest. The winds of Friday night spread the fire 3 miles closer to Estes Park, which is what caused the evacuations yesterday. Most folks who were evacuated were allowed back home last night. However, there is a Red Flag Warning that begins at noon today for the Front Range and RMNP, which means winds in excess of 40 mph on top of the drought conditions. I've always wanted a cabin in the mountains, but I'm kinda happy I don't have one at this point in time.

  The kits have been running in and out this morning, as I've checked my e-mails and read the latest news (and stuffed my face, too). It's sunny, but cooler. I move in with the two munchkins on Tuesday, and stay through Sunday evening. Aiko and Yoshi are entertaining companions, and the house is next door to Rosie and Remy, so I'll be close to everyone. (I'm also walking and medicating Peach Monday and Tuesday.) I started marking next year's calendar with reservations yesterday afternoon, and found I'm solidly booked through June already. Then I started looking for more information on Isaac Newton Capps' parents. Since I'm currently reading through the 1850 Census for Louisiana, a couple of names jumped out at me. The first was Alcifort Bonamour, a 25 year-old field laborer; the other was an immigrant from Quebec, whose name was Bigearellide Capis. That first name intrigues me... how would one pronounce it? Break it up into chunks, and get Big-ear-elli-de? It's an interesting conundrum.

  I hope that your Sunday is a super one.

Colorado Wildfires and Snow

The cold temperatures and snow has helped with both of the wildfires that are still smouldering - the fire at Fern Lake in the Rocky Mountain National Park has received a lot of snow, but at 1.6 square miles, is still smouldering near large rocks and overhangs, and under thickly forested areas. The Fern Lake fire is only 17% contained. The same goes for the Wetmore fire, which is 65% contained, and covers 3 square miles. Fourteen homes were destroyed in the Wetmore fire, and almost all folks who were evacuated are being allowed to return. There is also a third wildfire, burning near Cortez.

   It's 23 degrees outside, and the sun has just gone behind a cloud, even though we are supposed to be sunny. Aiko and Yoshi had fun in the snow this morning; and Nedi went out bounding around in the snow in the back yard when I got home. Lovey checked out the snow and came right back inside. I am worried about the "Frankenstorm" over by the east coast. What a combination of nasty things! I'm wondering if the storm will affect Chincoteague and Assateague like the Ash Wednesday Storm in 1962... I hope not.

   It seems that Austin Sigg, the person accused of the murder of Jessica Ridgeway, will be tried as an adult. Also, the judge who was at the original hearing has already placed a gag order, so until the trial actually happens, more information will probably be sparse.

     Go Gators! Go Gamecocks! Go Tigers! Go Buffs!