Just a little something to hold you over

I am in the process of figuring out my life so that is why I haven't been posting. I was in Durango but didn't get any bites on jobs so I came back to Creede to think about things and explore my options. At this point it seems like I will be coming back to the east coast--probably Vermont-- for the winter. So I'm here until I figure out how to do that. Meanwhile, I guess I've been having kind of an extended vacation.

I got here on Friday and my friend Kat and I went tubing on the river. It was awesome. I went with Molly last week and it was SO COLD and we made it kind of a long trip not knowing and by the time we were done we just wanted to get out and get in the hot car. But this time it was perfect. It was gorgeous out and the water was actually warm. We hit some fun rapids and had a great time.

Yesterday I needed to clear my head and couldn't decide on a trail to go hiking so I drove out on route 149, which is a gorgeous drive. So here are some pictures I took.

Maybe a slight indication of why I want to stay here so badly...

And on one last note, when Molly and I were driving back from the airport last week we saw this:

We couldn't get over how awesome it was and got sort of giddy and giggly like we were "high on rainbows". It was pretty funny and a little bizarre. The brighter one was a full rainbow and at one point the lighter one was too, but it faded a little.

This is the best I could get of the full one.

I'll update you all when I figure out what I'm doing or if I do something worth posting about while I'm here. Which hopefully I do, it would be a shame to waste my last days here.

Polar Caves

Whoops, I said I would post about this yesterday and I forgot until Mom called me out on it last night. Oh well, here it is! On Wednesday I went to New London to visit Tim and Erica and the boys and (except Tim because he was working) we all went to the Polar Caves in Rumney, NH. It was really fun. Also really hot, but I had a great time.

The whole crew. One of Erica's friends came with us with her three kids and one extra.

Before you get to the caves there is this animal farm type area where there are deer you can feed and all sorts of pheasants and a peacock and a duck pond.

It was actually sort of difficult to get the kids away from the duck pond. I think they just liked throwing things at them. Devin was rather taken with the peacock.

All the caves have names. I think this is the first one. That woman down there was forcing her frightened child to go into the cave because he wanted to go there so badly he's going in whether he likes it or not.

There was a lot of climbing involved. And it was hot. But it was very cool in the caves. It was very different from what I was expecting. I thought it would be big caves you just walk into and walk around. But they were mostly just crevasses you had to crawl around and duck and waddle through. It was really cool.

After the cave we went to the "Sculptured Rocks Natural Area", part of the New Hampshire state parks. I didn't get any pictures but here are a few I found online:

This is where we were, plus a billion other people. I would go here everyday if I lived nearby. Just below/between these cliffs is a very deep swimming hole. Deep enough that you can jump off of either of the cliffs into the water. Which Erica and I both did and it was sooo fun. It was the perfect thing to do after the caves because the water was so cool and wonderful after sweating in the heat and humidity all day.

That was my day. It was so good to see everyone and fun to go somewhere I had never been and enjoy the day outside. I'm not sure what other adventures I'll be having while I'm home but if anything comes up, I'll be sure to tell all about it.

Durango, CO

So, last week Molly and I spent Monday and Tuesday in Durango, which is a town about two and a half hours away from Creede. I didn't take very many pictures and there isn't really much to say about it because we spent most of the time just wandering around town, checking it out. But it was still a lot of fun. It's a cool little town with lots of shops and restaurants.

This is the view from Wolf Creek Pass on the way to Durango. The view is amazing and rather impossible to capture with a camera.

The Olde Tymer's Cafe where Molly and I had lunch. It was pretty good, even though my friend who lives in Durango calls it the "Old Slimer's".

This is one of the bars we went to Monday night. Before that we were at the Balcony watching a guy sing and eating delicious fried pickles.

I realize most of this post is about where we ate but we didn't actually do much else. This is where we had breakfast the next day, it was real tasty.

This is a poster I thought Grampa Spike should have but I couldn't buy it so I took a picture of it instead.

Probably the best part of the trip was the sushi we had at a place called East by Southwest. It was indescribably delicious and I can't wait to go back and have more. But that won't be happening until I get a job so I can pay for it...

I was really happy with the trip, which is good considering I was planning on moving there before I had even visited. It's a very cool town and I hope that I will be able to stay there.

I spent the day today with Erica and the boys at the Polar Caves and had a great time. Again, I didn't take many pictures, but I'll post about it tomorrow. It was a great day, I was so glad to see them all.

Raspberry Hunting

So I guess a few things have happened since my last post. For now I'll just post about my outdoorsy day and the next one will be about my trip to Durango.

Last Sunday I went out hoping to find large amounts of raspberries to pick and eat. Unfortunately it is still a little early so we didn't find much, but I had a few and they were tasty. I'm hoping they will be more in season when I go back and I can just chow down.

Yummy! I can't wait until they're in full bloom.

This is Million Lake, where we found the few raspberries that were to be found.

After that we went to Big Meadows Reservoir, and walked a trail that goes all the way around the lake. It was very pretty.

This is a shelter made by trappers.

Just pretty :)

It was too bad we didn't find many raspberries but it was nice being outside all day and enjoying some new scenery. I'm hoping when I get back I can do some more hunting and be more successful because raspberries are my FAVORITE.

I didn't take many pictures in Durango but I'll post about it later. We had a great time.

I'm in Philly now and will be heading to Vermont on Sunday.

Headed Home...

I'm on my way home today...Well, I'm on my way to Philadelphia and then home. I will post about my trip to Durango and whatever else I've gotten up to lately as soon as I can. I can't wait to see everyone!

Last Shop BBQ

We had our shop BBQ last night and it was a lot of fun. We had great food and it was good to have one last time to hang out before we all start heading off. Bohb left this morning, which is very sad. I am not looking forward to my departure, but at least I'm coming back so it's not permanent.

Everyone hanging out waiting for the burgers.

Bohb the grillmaster.

We set off more fireworks that Bohb had stored away. They were pretty and sparkly.

We decided to leave our mark as the shop crew 2010.

Bohb and his pretty shop ladies.

It's sad that we will all soon go our separate ways, but we've formed some great friendships this summer that won't likely end just because we're all in different states and that is something to be grateful for.

The end is near...

Molly and I didn't end up going to Durango, so there's no post about that. Nothing much has happened this week. Wednesday was open mic night which was a blast as always. Last night was preview for This Day and Age, which officially opens tonight. It was really good, humorous but with a more serious, meaningful side to it. There was also a band playing at Tommy's last night called Hillbilly Hellcats so I went to check them out after the show. They were a rockabilly band and they were awesome. There was one guy there who was having a rather good time and whose horse was tied up outside the bar across the street...Yes, a horse tied up on the sidewalk. Apparently it got loose at one point and started following one of my friends home, he had to walk it back and tie it back up. Only in Creede....

Tonight the shop is having a BBQ as sort of a goodbye party. Bohb, who is the head carpenter, is leaving tomorrow morning to go back home to Texas and of course I'm leaving next week. So we're going to have a good time together before we all have to go our separate ways. It's going to be tough leaving but I am excited to come back home and see everyone. Bittersweet, as always.

I'll be taking pictures at the BBQ and will post about it this weekend.

These are not served on the halfshell, my friend

The other day, Molly and I were ready for dinner and she wanted mozzarella sticks so we decided to go to OMI (The Old Miner's Inn) where they have all the tasty fried food. I also suggested we try the Rocky Mountain Oysters because I've been saying all along that I would try them. So we did. This is what they look like. Pretty harmless looking, right?

The definition of Rocky Mountain oysters from foodreference.com: "Prairie Oysters or Rocky Mountain Oysters, a term common in the western U.S., refers to sheep's, bull's, boar's or prairie dog's testicles used for food. Usually breaded and deep fried, they can also be sauteed, braised or poached."

Mostly they just taste like fried things. Most people would eat them without knowing what they are and probably enjoy them. But knowing what they are, most people won't go near them.

Yesterday we got out of work early and it was hot hot hot so we decided to go swimming. We drove out to one place and walked down the river quite a ways but didn't really find a good spot so we decided to go back and drive down further and try to find the great spot we found the other day while we were rafting. I knew it was at a curve of the river with a big rock face on the left and I spotted it after a short time and thankfully there was a handy parking area right there and we walked a short distance on the river to get there. It was totally worth it and now we plan to go as often as possible. YAY! I looovvve swimming, it's what I've been missing all summer. Glad we solved that problem.

We load in the next show tomorrow and then Molly and I are going to Durango for a day or two, so my next post will probably be about that. And I only have nine days left :( :(

Dancing and Hiking and Swimming oh my!

Mom and Dad left last Saturday morning. That night there was a band playing at Tommy's called the Ben Miller Band and let me tell you, that was a good time. The band was INCREDIBLE. They play a kind of rock/bluegrass music, the kind that you can't help but stomp your feet too, and stomp we did. The bar was completely packed and everyone was stomping away (there wasn't much room to do anything else) to the point where the floor was definitely moving. Even the band couldn't believe how much we loved them. I couldn't dance hard enough.

Sunday Molly and I went to Kip's for lunch and watched the final World Cup game. Afterwards we decided it was high time to finally get out and go for a hike. So we went to the Ranger Station to find a good trail and ended up choosing the Miner's Creek trail. It's one you have to drive a few miles to and it took us a little while to find it, but we finally did and hiked out until we knew it was going to get dark soon.

We hugged trees.

We forded streams.

And climbed big rocks.

It was a very successful and fulfilling hike. I was especially glad to try out my new hiking boots from Christie, they worked out marvelously. We were so glad to finally get out there and now hopefully we'll do it more often.

Monday we relaxed for most of the day and recovered from an exciting weekend and in the afternoon our friend Greg took us out on the river in his (or his boss's?) raft. It was PERFECT weather, we had a wonderful time.

Gorgeous views all the way down the river.

We even braved the cold water and went swimming. It wasn't very deep here but later we found a perfect swimming hole that was deep and slow moving where we jumped out and swam downstream a ways. I just wish we could find that spot again just to go swimming.

This is what happens when you get swept away by the Rio Grande while holding onto your sunglasses so that they don't fall off your face while you're swimming. I was trying to save my flipflops but got swept off and couldn't stop for some time and had my sunglasses in my hand that was trying to stop myself on the rocks. It was rather hilarious, though, and I thankfully did not lose my flip flops. I needed a new pair of sunglasses anyway...

So that was my action packed weekend. I love how much of it was spent outdoors. Last night was open mic night at Tommy's, which is always a good time. Lots of people come to dance and last night was no exception. I love it because most of the guys acutally know how to dance, like two step and swing you around the dancefloor. It's kind of one of my favorite things ever and I got plenty of it last night. I always end up smiling and laughing like a fool the whole time because I love it so much, I can imagine people get a kick out of watching that. I even danced with a couple of real life cowboys, one of which told me if I ever come back to Colorado I ought to marry him. I just might have to take him up on that offer ;)

Well now that I'm all caught up I will try to stay that way and not leave you all hanging. I'm only here for a couple more weeks and I intend to make the most of it so there should be plenty to post about.

Birthday Weekend With Ma and Pa

So I had grrreeeeat time with Mom and Dad, and I think they had a good time too, which is really what matters. Most of the pictures in this post are from Mom's camera. We ate some good food, visited the Sand Dunes, scooped the Loop and mastered the hook game at Tommy's. Explanations on all that to come...

Here I am, modeling off the lovely Great Sand Dunes sign. I look goood.

And here's my artsy fartsy picture of sand falling.

The dunes. They were huge. We didn't walk out too far, but with enough water and energy I bet it would be fun to go exploring and reach the top peak.

Medano Creek or something or other. Mom and I took our shoes off and played around in it for a few minutes. Definitely a fun place for kids to splash around and make killer sand castles.

Mumsy and I climbed up the hill to see the Stations of the Cross. It was very moving and even a little creepy with the dark clouds and thunder rolling in the distance.

"Scooping the loop" means to drive around what is called the Bachelor Loop, which is a road that winds around the mountains in town past all the old mines and loops back around to the other end of town. It's a fairly quick drive and has some amazing views and some fun historic facts if you spend the $1.10 to get the guide book.

We met some Texans at the top who were hitting golf balls off, so naturally we made Dad do it. He secretly wanted to, even if he didn't say it out loud.

This is a view of Creede from the Loop. Quite possibly the best view you can
get of the town and the countryside beyond.

The other exciting happenings of the weekend were at Tommyknocker Tavern aka Tommy's which is where I spend most of my free time. They have this ring/hook game outside and I can't for the life of me think of why we didn't take a picture of it or of one of us doing it, but anyway... It's just a ring tied to a string hanging from above and there's a hook on the post and you have to swing the ring so that it hooks onto the hook. I'm definitely going to have to get a picture of it, because that doesn't make any sense to someone who has never seen it. But anyway, Dad got it within a few minutes. But Mom tried ever time we were there over three days and only on the last day did she finally get the right technique and got it. It was very exciting.

Besides that we went to the Hotel for dinner on Friday for my birthday dinner because we just weren't hungry enough on Thursday to do it then. And then we went to see The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at the theatre. I think they liked it, I even heard Dad chuckle a few times.


So that's the jist of Mom and Dad's visit. I'm really glad they were able to make it out here and see where I get to live for the summer. I even got to do a few things I hadn't done yet. YAY!

Next I'll post about the rest of my weekend after Mom and Dad left. It was a good one!