A House For Sale in Boulder, Weather, & World Events

Today we have an overcast sky, and it's still a bit chill out - 32 degrees.  The weather folks say that we'll have a high temperature in the mid-50s, but we're supposed to get 3 to 6 inches of snow tonight and tomorrow morning...  We'll see.  The dusk-to-dawn lights are still alight at the Millennium Motel, the squirrels have consumed 3/4 pound of walnuts, and Nedi and Lovey are curled up in my bed.  I sent my polite letter of complaint to the apartments manager, about the "service" dog living next door, last week.  I was informed the next day that my complaint had been noted and acted upon.  That poor dog is still being turned out multiple times each day wearing its harness and dragging a leash...  It ran out yesterday evening, looked me in the eye, and pooped directly in front of my patio.  I was standing still at my closed patio door.  Then the dog ran up to the door and barked at me.  I called the apartments manager, and he said he'd talk to the owner, again, today.  If the dog was actually trained, and the owner was taking good care of him, I wouldn't have a single complaint - but the dog isn't trained, and the owner is not taking decent care of him.
   So...  What's going on in the world?  There's still tons of unrest in the Middle East; war seems to be brewing in the Balkans, as usual; there was the horrible mudslide in Washington state that buried multiple houses and killed people; there was the 8.2 earthquake off Chile's north coast last night, and the resulting tsunami; there's an Ebola outbreak in Africa; and, after almost 4 weeks, no one still has any true idea of what happened to Malaysia flight 370, that disappeared on 8 March, with 239 people on board...  Will we ever find any evidence of that flight, or will it just be another mystery, like Flight 19?  My Father was one of the searchers for Flight 19, back in December 1945 - he was, at that time, stationed at NAS Vero Beach, and spent many hours in search of the five TBM Avengers and 14 crew members who just... disappeared.  They were on a routine navigation and combat training exercise and became lost to the world.
  Kathy and Jim had a wonderful time in Nebraska over the past weekend, visiting the sand hill cranes.  And Janet and Jim thoroughly enjoyed their time at Capitol Reef National Park in Utah.  I glad they all enjoyed their time away from Boulder.
  And I was just informed that one of my friends has decided to sell her home of 30 years in Githens Acres, here in Boulder.  It will actually go on the market on 12 April, and her Realtor is Paul Dart of ReMax, whose cell phone number is: (303) 931-5197.  Here is a beautiful video that my friend made of her home and the wildlife that visit her:  http://youtu.be/rnBWcJV9cVc   The property consists of a little over an acre of land (I believe); a single-story ranch house with two bedrooms, two baths, a mother-in-law-apartment, and an open airy art studio, with attached double garage; a yard shed; several gardening areas, two covered patios; and the end of one of the lateral lines of the Silver Lake Irrigation ditch.  The property is in the county, but is part of a neighborhood encircled by the City of Boulder.  The property has it's own water well and septic tank; as well as a pump house for use of the irrigation water.  The neighborhood consists of about 45 houses on 57 acres, and has no through traffic, other than pedestrians and bicyclists; there are no street lights, no sidewalks, no bike paths.  But there is plenty of wildlife - the Four Mile Canyon Creek runs through the neighborhood, and one frequently sees black bears, mountain lions, coyotes, mule deer, fox, an occasional otter, and a multitude of birds, including great blue herons and great horned owls, in various yards.

Lots of Things...

It is still snowing outside; perhaps we will not be under water restrictions this summer, after all.  Before this ends, it's been predicted that we will get 9 to 12 inches of snow.  Believe me, I am not complaining.  We need the moisture desperately - and even though my apartment sits beside Boulder Creek, I don't have any fears of flooding, like the folks along the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers and their tributaries.  We might reach 32 degrees today, but it seems unlikely; just like the forecasters say we'll have temperatures in the 70s this weekend.  I'll believe it when it happens.
  All of my critters are doing well - although Nedi is a bit miffed with me because I made him come back inside after playing in 19 degree weather in the snow for an hour this morning.  He is currently looking regal on top of the bookcase, while Lovey is curled up in bed.  Squirrels visited the patio throughout the day yesterday, but none have appeared so far this morning.  The ravens and crows called to me raucously until I fed them half a loaf of wheat bread this morning.  If I don't accede to their demands, they land on the back of my wicker chairs next to the window and flap their wings, which drives my kits crazy....  Those birds are not dumb.
  I started reading Night Moves by Randy Wayne White last night; it's the twentieth Doc Ford mystery-adventure novel in the series.  And this one seems focused on the loss of Flight 19 - the five planes that disappeared on 5 December 1945 from Fort Lauderdale on a routine flight mission.  My father was a part of the search for the planes and 14 crew members while he was stationed at Vero Beach, so I'm finding this to be an excellent read.  And I was supposed to see my therapist this morning, but she has been subpoenaed for a court appearance today, and we had to reschedule - at 8 o'clock last night.
  I watched DaVinci's Demons on Starz last night, and decided that I'm getting old and prudish.  The sex scenes didn't bother me, but I found the language somewhat offensive.  Other than that, it seems to be a very entertaining show; witty, well-written, and fast-paced - and very colorful.  But I must say that my favorite limited series so far is still Vikings on the History Channel. Episode 8 is titled "Sacrifice" and deals with the gathering at Uppsala every 9 years.  I was excited to learn that the Gamla Uppsala Cathedral was built on the original Hall of the Gods, where sacrifices were made - and that it still stands today.  I think I'm going to have to travel to Sweden and Denmark before I die and visit my ancestral roots.
  In horse racing news:  Zenyatta now has a full brother, a bay colt born at Ashford Stud on April 9; but I have yet to see photos of him.  ....  Kentucky Hardboot trainer Ron McAnally won the San Juan Capistrano Handicap for the third time this past weekend; he first won the race with the great John Henry.  ....  Goldikova, the mare who won the Breeders Cup Mile three times, has a full brother named Anodin.  He won his first race in his three-year-old campaign this week.  Anodin is trained by Freddie Head, like his sister.  ....  And eleven horses belonging to the Godolphin Stables have tested positive for anabolic steroids in Great Britain.  Godolphin trainer Mahmood Al Zarooni states that he did not realize that using anabolic steroids while the horses were not currently racing was illegal.  Certify, who was being pointed at the 1,000 Guineas, tested positive and will not be allowed to compete.  Simon Crisford, the spokesman for Godolphin Racing said, "His Highness Sheikh Mohammed was absolutely appalled when he was told and this is completely unacceptable to him. We will await the outcome of the BHA inquiry before taking any further internal action. Sheikh Mohammed has instructed me to begin an urgent review of all of our procedures and controls. That is already underway and we will take advice from the BHA in completing it."