A Day in Fort Collins

Perhaps a Saturday wasn't the best choice to visit Old Town Fort Collins - or maybe it was the fact that they were welcoming the Colorado State University students back for the fall - or maybe it's because we were actually on the "main strip" in Fort Collins, and not in the actual Old Town area - but, for whatever reason, it seemed like we were walking through the Pearl Street Mall in Boulder.  Most of the clothing shops were for name-brands and came in extremely small sizes - for anorexic teens and college students - or the stores were just too over-run with small children whose parents were letting them have a free rein...  We've decided to go later in the fall and see if it's any better.  There were two stores that were actually nice - and one of those was an artists' co-op shop.
    I think the other thing that bothered me was that people were so rude.  Both men and women, boys and girls, the whole gamut of ages, reached in front of us while we were looking at items, almost knocked us off the sidewalks, almost knocked us down with backpacks and/or papoose-style child carriers, and the shrieking babies were the worst.  And they were being ignored by their parents.  When I go out to wander and relax, and check out new places, I do not want crying infants and children up to six years old shrieking with temper tantrums in a book shop or a furniture store.  It's a good thing that "looking daggers" is just an expression - otherwise, I'd have been a mass-murderer today.
   At least all of the animals were cooperative and easy to deal with this morning, and this evening.  Lovey had quite a lot to say this morning, and woke Beatrice up earlier than usual, but, then, she's been extremely vocal ever since I returned from vacation.  Nedi does his purrs and little trills and the occasional soft meow.  Lovey comments at the top of her voice any time I'm not touching her, and frequently, when she's already laying on top of me.  Sometimes I think the only way to keep her satisfied is to let her live under my skin...
  Tomorrow, I'll spend most of my time with my animals - that will be calming and therapeutic.

Awwww and Ewwwwwwww.....

The first photo I saw on line this morning made me say "Awwwww" and feel all mooshy inside - a photo my niece posted of her daughter Evelyn and her husband Michael; she wrote "This is my heart."

The second photo made me say "Ewwwww" - my nephew Brian was riding his bicycle home from work last night, and had an accident.  He's most upset because it wasn't a "cool" wreck - he glanced away from the road and his front wheel hit a gutter.  He went home first, and it took his brother a lot of voice theatricals to get Brian to go see an ER doctor to get sewed up.  Brian wanted to make some butterfly bandages and forget it.   He got ten stitches in his chin, and ended up with a betadine bath, as he has road rash everywhere...   This is Brian in the ER before stitches:

Yikes!

Boulder is under a tornado and major thunderstorm with damaging hail watch until 10 p.m. tonight.  The wind is gusting and swirling, and the temperature has dropped at least 15 degrees in 30 minutes.  Looking north, I see a towering wall of boiling clouds - all shades of grey, with a nasty-looking brown in the center... Looks like the kids and I are in for a wild night!

The Colorado Wildfires

While the news about Boulder's fires and the High Park fire fire have gotten better, the news from the Waldo Canyon fire has gotten a little worse.  Both the Flagstaff and Ironing Board fires are under control, and unless we encounter an unusual storm or wind event, there is little to concern Boulderites other than the air quality...  The High Park fire looks as if it might be contained by July 1 - with only one human casualty and the loss of 257 homes.  The High Park Fire is estimated at 87,284 acres, meaning the fire has not grown for two days. Containment is now estimated at 85 percent. The estimated containment date has been moved up from July 15th to July 1st. The current cost of the fire to date is estimated at 36.4 million dollars. There are 1,125 personnel assigned to the firefighting effort. Equipment resources include: 3 Type 1 hand crews, 9 Type 2 hand crews, 79 engines, 9 dozers and 12 water tenders. Air Resources include; 3 Type I (heavy) helicopters, 4 Type III (light) helicopters, fixed wing support aircraft, and available heavy air tankers.

 (It should be noted that "containment" means that a containment line exists around the fire, which fire managers believe will hold the fire within the perimeter. "Control" means that the fire is actually out which, on a fire of this magnitude, typically requires an act of nature such as prolonged rain or snowfall. Islands of fire will continue to burn within the perimeter during the containment phase and residents should expect to see smoke for days, weeks, and even months as the fire moves from containment to control.

  The Waldo Canyon fire has claimed 348 homes, one life, and there are two people reported missing.  President Obama has declared the state of Colorado a disaster area due to the wildfires, and will fly over the Waldo Canyon fire sometime today.  It has been, and will continue to be, a horrible time for home-owners and families.  The up-dated facts on theWaldo Canyon fire:

Size: 18,500 acres and growing
5% containment.
100s of homes burned
Hwy 24 Closed in Ute Pass/Waldo Canyon
36,000 evacuated
1,200 firefighters (plus CSFD & other local agencies)
Military helping with heavy machinery/dozers

 

All of us owe a very great deal to the wonderful fire fighters who are fighting the flames of these fires throughout the state. 

 

If you would like to make a donation for either the victims of the fires, or for the fire fighters, please visit the website for the American Red Cross at: http://www.coloradoredcross.org/  and/or the Colorado Professional Fire Fighters Foundation at: http://www.cpfffoundation.org/ 

    Thank you.

Colorado Wildfire Photos

Hundreds of homes are lost in the Waldo Canyon fire near Colorado Springs

Deer seek the sanctuary of a creek in the High Park fire near Fort Collins

On the out-skirts of Boulder, a fox drinks from a bird bath while vacating from the Flagstaff fire