We were only in Colorado for about 20 hours but for me the trip went back more than 20 years. Good fortune allowed Paul and I to route the trip so that I could visit with some very good friends in Colorado Springs and Lafayette, a suburb of Denver. It was entirely too brief, but it was great fun.
Jamie and I actually met over 30 years ago in junior high school. We were close friends through high school graduation and kept in touch through college, but had a hard time keeping in touch after school as both of us relocated several times. Through the wonders of social networking we reconnected last fall and got together for dinner in December when he was in DC for work. It was great to be back in touch then and I really enjoyed hearing about his family and career. Yesterday was the first time I met his kids, Chris and Cassie (12th and 8th grade, respectively, and both very nice, funny, smart, cool, grounded and overall great people!) and to catch up with Aly, his lovely wife. The kids were disappointed that I didn't have any scandalous stories of their father from high school - please! I can't remember what I had for breakfast! As Paul noted, they provided a wonderful late lunch for us. We were only able to stay for about two hours, but it was fun to catch up and I look forward to our next opportunity to do it again.
After that we drove north to visit Janine and Greg and their boys, Ethan and Caleb. They provided another wonderful meal and we had a few hours in the evening to try to catch up on the past few years – an impossible task but we covered a lot of ground in the short time we had. Janine and Greg and the boys visited the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone about a week before Paul and I this summer, and it was fun to compare notes. They were able to continue north to Glacier National Park – it was on the wish list for us but we didn’t have the time to go that far north. Hearing their stories I wish we’d made the time to see it while we were in Montana.
It was a wonderful visit with both families. Paul and I were so comfortable and sated from the meals and hospitality that we forgot to get pics of our hosts and their families! My bad! We regret that our schedule didn’t allow us more time to hang out with both families and to explore more of Colorado – next time we’ll take in the Air Force Academy, Pike’s Peak, the Denver and Boulder, and such. We did drive by Mile High Stadium (I know, there’s an “Investco” in the name somewhere – whatever) as they were setting off the fireworks during the National Anthem of the Sunday Night game. If there was a blimp shot on SNF you might have seen us (I had a brown shirt on). It wasn’t as cool as being inside for the game, but hey, it’s something.
Driving east across Kansas today gave me a little time to think (yeah just a little, ahem) about the past weekend and the wonderful families we were fortunate to visit in New Mexico and Colorado – and really since South Bend for me and since Alabama for Paul. These families and friends opened up their homes to us – booting kids so we could sleep on their beds, delaying their meals to fit our whacky schedule, and extending generous hospitality in the short time we were together. What wonderful living-breathing examples of community! It’s very inspiring to spend time with folks who are so dedicated to their children and each other, who reach out to friends, who choose to care for the environment, who think beyond themselves and consider the world in which they live. This also describes our other friends back home and around the country and of course our families. You can never get too much of that, and it never hurts to be reminded that there are plenty of good folks out there working hard and trying to do the right thing. We are very blessed!
Quick shout-out to Kansas for the awesome wind farm we passed on I-70 this afternoon. The thing was huge – literally went on for miles and miles. Some of the towers were right up against the highway giving us our closest view yet of those amazing towers and propellers. Hope they are generating energy and such, but for me they are cool looking even when they are standing still. One thought, though, would it kill you guys to try a few different colors? Seems to me you could generate just as much energy if they were different colors – the white thing is pretty much played. Just sayin’.
Oh, and one more thing, am I the only person that doesn’t watch the Food Network?
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