2014 October

I guess I need to apologize – again – for another very late post!!  I always start them on time….then get side-tracked with other stuff and don’t finish or post them on time…sorry….so again I’ll say “better late than never” to my faithful followers and I will try to work on this shortcoming of mine =/

I hope you enjoy this post anyway……especially the last part about Hanging Lake, an absolutely MUST SEE place in Colorado!!!!!!!

October 1-9

After my long, first time alone on the road, drive, I am now settled in my old “home” in Golden, Colorado.  It’s great to be back, to see my friends, play tennis, work at places where staff and students still recognize me (what a nice surprise!!), and just feel “at home”.  Yes, it can be lonely and I do miss Dave, a lot sometimes, but it also feels good to know that I can do ok on my own in this nomadic lifestyle.  Thanks, of course, in part to my great support system of family and friends =)

The beauty of autumn in Colorado continued to surprise me daily.  I had no idea the show of color I would see everywhere I turned!  I even pulled over once on a city street to take a picture because it was so beautiful.  Having grown up in southern California, where there are no real seasons, this was a great treat for me – I just wish I was able to share it with Dave.

My first project had to be to turn the “temporary” gray water repair into a permanent one, which I did with Dave’s help via Skype.  I now know everything I ever wanted to know (and many things I really DIDN’T want to know…lol) about how the gray water tank works in the RV.

The final masterpiece =)

My third day back in Colorado and I awoke to an unexpected “dusting” of snow atop the Subaru – a fitting welcome home gift from Mother Nature, I guess, and shades of things to come…..little did I know at the time though…………

 

I guess this would be a fitting “Welcome back to Colorado” – the first dusting of snow for the season

Shortly after arriving back, my friend Randy invited me to a Roller Derby fundraising event, where he would be officiating.  It was fun to watch, since I’ve never seen a Roller Derby bout in person before.

 

October 10-12

My next “project” was to get the RV bed fixed.  It had recently started “creaking” quite a lot, and upon closer inspection I had discovered that a small crack in the wooden platform on which the mattress rests had become a much larger crack – big enough that I was beginning to worry that at some point it may completely give way.  And once again, my incredibly talented RV repairman friend, Bob, came to my rescue.  All I had to do was get the broken piece to him and he would repair it and return it to me.  As I quickly found out, that was easier said than done, but I DID IT!  And of course his repair job meant that my bed was not as good as new – it was BETTER than new.  Thanks Bob!!!!!!!!

 

October 16-19

At last, after several glitches – I’m finally a Guest Teacher for the Denver Public Schools.

My badge – I’m now officially a Denver Public School employee

Tennis anyone?  Thanks to global warming the tennis season in Colorado lasted a lot longer than usual this fall.

Skyping with my son and new granddaughter at Paw Paw’s house.  We both can hardly wait to meet her in person!!!!!

Mike and Eva Skyping with Great-Grandma

October 25

My friend Randy had been telling me all summer that we should really go hiking at Hanging Lake because in the fall the weather would probably turn too cold to do the hike.  We just never seemed to get around to it (we are both tennis nuts and couldn’t seem to get off the courts all summer!)  Then, the last weekend of October, after a cold spell that produced early snow, we had an unexpected hot spell and Randy said let’s take advantage of this weather and go on Saturday.  Great call – it turned out to be a PERFECT trip =)

The drive up the canyon was ALMOST as beautiful as the actual hike to the Lake….ALMOST

The hike started out quite cold – about 38 degrees when we first started, brrrrr.  But as the day went on it warmed up nicely.

I’d never seen such clear water.  Because of the early snowfall, which now had melted during the current hot spell, we were treated to quite a bit more abundant water flow than the usual fall trickle.  And the “wild” chipmunk eating directly from my hand and the beautifully “blue” blue-jay were added surprises as well.

 

The hike back down was no less spectacular than the hike up had been.

Glenwood Springs, Colorado

Our final destination – the hot springs in Glenwood Springs – was nice, but paled in comparison to our earlier hike at Hanging Lake.  Sorry, Glenwood Springs!

 

October 26-31

Sunday Randy and I played in the Mixed Doubles Social at Gates Tennis Center in Denver.

Gates Tennis Center – Denver, CO

And so ended the month of October………