Goodnight Bush...

So we're two days into the DNC and it just keeps getting better (crazier). If you've been reading the news, you should know that there has been a series of protests, some of which have ended in arrests. There is a huge police presence on the mall and around the city. Here's a pic from Sunday evening.
















As you can see, they are in total riot gear. And they hang out in groups of 10-15. There are also tons of cops on horses and in normal outfitting. It all seems a little extreme. They mostly sit around talking to people.

But there are also really cool things on the mall. For example, today I was walking down the mall after work to meet Zach for dinner and I heard band music playing. As I kept walking I could see horns moving through the crowd. The guys and girls below were marching down the street playing fantastic, upbeat music. Their shirts said "New Orleans for Obama."
















After dinner, Zach and I decided to head to Tattered Cover. Outside was a small choir singing the text of Goodnight Bush. If you don't know about this hilarious book, it's a parody of the children's classic Goodnight Moon. Here's an exerpt from the product descripton "Goodnight Bush: An Unauthorized Parody is a hilarious and poignant visual requiem for the Bush administration. In it we see a childlike George W. Bush tucked safely away in the confines of his own room with all of the toys he's willfully destroyed, abused, or defaced. Complete with a quiet Dick Cheney whispering "hush," this bedtime story lets us finally say goodnight to the disaster that was the last eight years." So this group was singing it, and they did a fantastic job. Below the pic is a small clip of the performance.




















On a non-DNC related note, Zach and I headed out to Union Chute on Sunday to do some kayaking. Unfortunately, the rapids were extremely low. So we just kind of hung out in the water. The pic below is of me sitting in the middle of the rapid. That's as deep as it got. As you can see, not nearly enough water. Below the pic is a video of Zach trying (and failing) to take the "rapid" on his back. Good stuff...

A Trip to Turquoise Lake

Zach and I took a drive up into the mountains today to Leadville. It's an old mining town, one of the original ones. We had lunch at Rosie's Brewpub, the highest brewpub in the United States. We of course had to sample the wares, and we both had a wheat beer. Then we went out to Turquoise Lake and drove around. A storm was coming in, and it was absolutely gorgeous. It rained lightly occasionally, but mostly it was just overcast with lightning flashing in the distance. It gave the whole place a kind of surreal feeling. We got out of the car at one point by a small waterfall and went wandering in the woods. It was very rocky terrain, and we played a game in which we each tried to get to different points without touching ground, only jumping from rock to rock. I got some great pictures with my phone (see below) and a funny video of Zach trying to jump to a big rock. He never made it, though he tried valiently. All in all it was a lovely day.

Let the DNC begin

So this weekend was the start of the DNC. True, it doesn't actually start until Monday. But the masses have already begun to descend on Denver. Check out the Denver Post to read about the start of the DNC. Zach and I got to go to the Pepsi Center (DNC central) on Friday for a tour. It was amazing inside. And an aboslute madhouse outside. Here are some pics from my phone.

Let's start with CNN headquarters. They've taken over this building across the street from the Pepsi Center. Awesome, huh?














Here's the media room in the Pepsi Center. They've taken over the gift shop and transformed it into the tech wonder you see below.















Here's the main floor. You'll probably be seeing quite a bit of it if you watch the proceedings. Illinois and Colorado get the best seats in the house, of course.














Pictured below you see one of the massive bundles of wires that run all through the Center. Zach and I were amazed at the amount of planning that must have been required to wire the whole center.















This is the front of the Pepsi Center all decked out for the convention.
















Some graffiti from the sidewalks around the Pepsi Center. They were totally covered with similar markings. There are tons of protesters coming in for next week. They run the gamut of every possible thing you can protest. I'm trying to start a group that protests Zach. So far there aren't many members...














Here's FOX news' headquarters down the street from the center.















Here's one of the temporary buildings that has been set up around town.














Finally, here's one of the bike stations that you can find all around Denver. You can borrow a bike here, ride it around as needed, and drop it off at any other station. It's supposed to help with the traffic around town during the convention. We get to keep a certain amount of the bikes and stations after teh convention is over.














Well, there you go. The DNC is about to descend and I'll update you as we find out more.

City Park Fountain

So last night Zach and I went on a quest. “A quest?” you ask. Yes. A quest. For yarn. As the evenings get cooler and we get sporadic 60 degree afternoons in between our 80-90 degree days, I’ve decided to take up knitting again. And I’m going to begin with a retro-style afghan. So of course we had to go looking for the perfect yarn. Well, I went looking and Zach graciously went along. He even helped pick out colors, which was nice because he’ll have to look at this afghan spread out on our couch for the foreseeable future. We wandered around to four different stores (two Joanns’, one Michaels’, and one independent little store) before deciding on Vanna’s yarn. Yup, you heard right. Vanna White is endorsing yarn these days.

After our quest had been accomplished, we headed out to City Park for the relighting of the Prismatic Electric Fountain. It was first built in 1908 for the original Democratic National Convention. It is a fountain in the center of City Park’s lake that uses lights to create magnificent displays. It fell into disrepair over the years, and was finally shut down in the 90’s. Denver has invested close to 3 million in repairs, and last night was the unveiling of the new working fountain. It was spectacular to watch. The picture below was taken from the Denver Post, by the way. I can claim no credit.

Zach and I find that there is always something to do here. Even on a Tuesday night in the middle of August there is some event to go to, something new to see. And if there isn’t, then there is always an evening drive. The view still continues to amaze me. Last night we watched the sun set over the mountains, turning the entire sky this fantastic shade of orange. Zach and I are in love with our city, and while we miss our friends and family back east, I can’t see us returning to Ohio in the near future. Except to visit, of course…

Our Fabulously Full Weekend

So last weekend was an exciting and packed weekend. It started on Friday night with Chris and Steve (from Zach’s work) coming over, along with Steve’s wife Beth and their baby Nevada. We all hung out and watched the opening ceremony for the Olympic games in all their HD glory. That is, until a huge storm hit, affecting NBC’s local studio. They had to drop the HD for a large portion of the broadcast in the middle, and they occasionally lost picture and/or sound completely. It didn’t matter, though. We still had a blast.

Saturday started out with breakfast at Snooze (an incredible breakfast place across the street from our apartment) and then moved on to some kayaking at Union Chute. Zach did more rafting than I did. I spent half the time sunning on some rocks that were right by a rapid. If I placed myself on certain rocks, the shallow part of the rapid ran over my legs and arms. It wasn’t quite strong enough to pull me with force, but the current felt lovely on a hot morning.

Afterwards we took the light rail down to Littleton and went to my new favorite store…Savory Spice. Savory has every type of spice you could ever imagine. I got some good curry and some ginger and nutmeg. There’s a Savory closer to our apartment, but this one was fun to go to because Littleton is such a cute little town.

After dinner at a wings place, we went out to Lakeside. Lakeside is an amusement park that just celebrated its 100 year anniversary. It has retained most of its old rides and signage, and it is a fascinating place to visit. It’s only a few dollars to get in, and you have to pay for each ride. Zach and I went on their original roller coaster-an old wooden one with peeling paint and jerky turns. It was a little nerve-wracking, but it was still fun. We also hit up the bumper cars and the Ferris wheel. We were home in time to catch the re-airing of my favorite show, Psych. Ahh, the joys of Denver.

Sunday proved to be fairly eventful as well. We woke up with the intention of heading out to St. Mary’s Glacier. It’s located about 40 miles west of here, and it’s an honest-to-goodness real glacier that you can hike to. Unfortunately, we never made it. We followed the directions in my guide book, but ended up wandering around looking for the entrance to the trail. Eventually two other women came up, also looking for the trailhead. Interestingly enough, they were from Ohio and were huge Buckeye fans. one of them (Heather) informed us that there was a Buckeye bar located on Market Street (just 6 blocks from our apartment) that aired the games. The four of us wandered through woods for about an hour, repeatedly thinking we had found the trail, and repeatedly being disappointed. Finally, we returned to our cars and Heather waved down another car. We were informed that we should head up the road another half a mile. Upon following the driver’s directions we found that the trailhead was quite obvious once you passed a bend in the road. Furthermore, it was terribly crowded. We decided to head home and attempt trail another time, possibly on a weeknight.

Our whole weekend was full, which has become typical of our free time here. For once, there is too much to do and not enough time in which to do it. And that is a problem I am happy to have…

The Wilhelms Visit the Mile High City

So yes, it has been a while since I last posted. And I DID promise update the blog more frequently. Oh well; you know what they say about the best laid plans…Anyways, on to my parents’ visit. Mom, dad, and Rebecca came to visit the weekend after Ariel and Craig left. They stayed in an apartment in the building that was set aside for guests. It was perfect…two bedrooms, two full baths, a family room and kitchen. It was the same size and general layout as our own apartment. Mom and dad are coming back in November for Thanksgiving, and they’re bringing Lindsay and Grandma Dot. It will be a blast.

We did many of the same things with the as we had done with our friends from C-bus. But there were a few differences. First off, we were able to (finally) go to a Rockies game. It was a perfect night for it. The temperature was upper 70’s, the sky was clear and full of sunshine, and the Rockies totally kicked the Pirates’ asses. Zach, Rebecca, and I were able to have a Blue Moon from the restaurant where it was first brewed. And Zach and I were able to sit a few rows ahead in empty seats, allow me to avoid obnoxious tall people. Afterward, we came home and mom and dad played pool at the tables in the game room of our apartment building.

The other highlight of my parents’ trip was the trip the Buckhorn Exchange. This restaurant is one of the oldest in Denver, and it boasts the first liquor license of the city. It was originally a place for miners to come and spend their hard-earned money drinking. The food was absolutely wonderful. We started out with appetizers of rattlesnake (mixed in this cheese sauce for dipping) and alligator. Between all of us there was a variety of main courses, including buffalo steak, elk, quail, salmon, and (regular) steak. It was all fantastically delicious. And the atmosphere was interesting. We sat in the Buffalo Bill room, surrounded by buffalo heads and stuffed ducks. We did a variety of other activities, including going to the Colorado History Museum and hitting up an art festival in Boulder. All in all, it was an enjoyable weekend with the family. I can’t wait till they come with Lindsay and Grandma Dot at Thanksgiving.

Ariel and Craig do Denver

So technically the first person to visit us at our new abode was Hallie (Zach’s best friend from college and one of my bridesmaids). But she only stayed for dinner and we had a much longer visit later with both Hallie and her husband, so I’ll talk about her later. Ariel and Craig were really the first to visit us for any period of time. I met Ariel while teaching last year in Delaware; she was a first year English teacher full of promise and hopeful expectations…and while she might have lost some of her naiveté after a year with some truly horrid youngsters, she still remains an awesomely creative and brilliant teacher.

Ari and Craig (who just graduated from the same master’s program that I went through and who will further be teaching Spanish in Worthington this year) arrived in Denver on July 10th. I picked them up from the airport and brought them back to see the glories of our apartment and the 16th Street Mall. By that time Zach was back and we were able to begin our weekend. It included a trip to Red Rocks, a Ducky trip down the Platte River, adventures in gold mining, dinner at Casa Bonita, and the discovery of the Silver Linings.
Before I can really explain everything that occurred that weekend, I feel I must admit that I had recently gotten a case of food poisoning. It wasn’t terrible, but it was annoying. For most of the time that Craig and Ariel were with us I was unable to eat much without feeling nauseous—which was horrible because we went to so many excellent restaurants. But getting back to the enjoyable parts of the visit…

We started with a morning trip to Red Rocks. When there isn’t a concert, you can explore the amphitheater and the surrounding area as a park. We hiked up a small, rather sandy hill so we could see the whole amphitheater. This little adventure was particularly amusing for two reasons. First, there was an abundance of crickets. They swarmed around us, landing on any part of our bodies that they could find a purchase. For some reason, this particularly disturbed Craig, who would jump back in startlement every time a cloud of crickets appeared. I know I shouldn’t make fun of him, but it really was funny to see a grown, rather serious man trying to avoid harmless little crickets. And then there was Ariel. Poor, sweet Ariel who did not bring a sensible pair of tennis shoes. The sandy hill that we climbed up provided great difficulty to Ari, who kept sliding backward with every step up. I had to hold her hand during most of the ascent, and sometimes shove her forcibly upward. But we eventually made it, surveyed our surroundings, and then decided it was time to move on.

Next we went to Idaho Springs and the Phoenix mine, where we were able to take a tour. It was not only interesting to see a working mine, it was also quite a bit cooler in there, providing us a respite from the 90 degree weather. After lunch at Idaho Springs we headed back to Denver.
The next day we all took a 3 hour Ducky tour down the Platte River. A Ducky is a kind of inflatable kayak. It can go down rapids and looks like a miniature, inflatable canoe. The benefit of it is that it is much more stable than a traditional kayak, and thus easier to control for those new to the sport. The trip was a ton of fun, highlighted by Craig falling out of his kayak when he tried to take a mini rapid standing up.

That night we wandered around the mall listening to the various street performers. Eventually we came across two guys playing in a little courtyard. They had set up microphones and such, and they gave a terrific performance. They were called the Silver Linings, and supposedly they will be on iTunes soon. I certainly hope so.

The finale was on Sunday night when we all went to Casa Bonita. If you want a quick highlight of what Casa Bonita is like, go to YouTube and type in “Casa Bonita South Park.” Even if you’re not a fan of the show, they do a pretty good homage to the experience of this restaurant. It is a winding maze of a restaurant that includes mines, a ghost tour, a lagoon with divers, and much more. It is a very interesting experience that was tons of fun.

Well, I’ve rambled for a ridiculously long time. I hope you’ve stuck with me throughout this post. And I hope you enjoy my future posts detailing such adventures as: “The Parents Arrive!” “Beer Festival with a Pregnant Woman” and “Where Exactly IS Saint Mary’s Glacier?” Tata for now!


Here's Ari and Craig asleep on our way back from Idaho Springs. Aren't they cute?
















Here's Ari at the Molly Brown Museum trying on some period headware.















And here is the always adorable Meghan trying on another hat.

A belated July 4th post...

So, I know I haven’t written in a while. What can I say? It’s been busy. I’m going to catch everybody up via a series of several posts. I figure that if I try to write it all out in one post nobody will read it…it’ll be too long to hold your interest. So here goes…post number 1.
Zach and I went out to Red Rocks amphitheater on July 4th for a concert. Most of you haven’t been to Red Rocks before, but I assume you’ve at least heard of it. If not, go to YouTube and type in “Red Rocks U2.” They did an amazing concert there in the 80’s that has great views of the amphitheater.

Anyways, we got to the amphitheater about 4:00 and the concert started around 5:00-5:30. First up was Collective Soul, followed by Live. Great performances from both. Just as it started to get dark, the last band—Blues Traveler—came on the stage. Blues Traveler has been playing at Red Rocks on the 4th of July since the early 90’s. The neat thing about this performance was that they went on just as it was getting dark. If you’ve ever been to Red Rocks, you know that if you sit in the upper seats you can see all of Denver and its southern suburbs spread out. Which means you can also see all of their fireworks. We had the concert right in front of us and the fireworks farther out. It was fantastic.

We left right before the concert ended to beat traffic, and ended up home before 11; just in time for the fireworks at Coors Field. We were able to sit on our balcony and see the fireworks as they went off a block away. It was an amazing way to spend our first fourth of July in Denver.

A busy weekend

So this weekend has been non stop. It started on Friday, when Zach called me around 5:30 to tell me to meet him and some of his coworkers at the Rio Grande for some margaritas. Then we went to another bar called B low. One of Zach's coworkers told us that half the night's profits were going to a charity, so we simply had to go. It was very interesting; it had a sort of vampire vibe to it. You had to go down an alley, then into a basement to get to the bar. Inside it had a very dark, Gothic decor. And it played the most awesome 80's music. Not that pop stuff, but bands like the Smiths.

So we hung out for a while on Friday night, meeting new people, and then came home fairly early. Saturday was pretty boring, but today was again fantastic. We got up early and drove down to Colorado Springs to see the Garden of the Gods. It was absolutely lovely! Zach got some wonderful pictures that we'll post later. Unfortunately, he takes his pictures raw, so they're too big to post until we reformat them. It was perfect weather, with clear skies and mild temperatures. The only real complaint I had was that there were too many people. It wasn't really a hiking adventure...more of a leisurely stroll on paved paths. But it was still amazing to see all the rock formations. We had lunch at a cute little restaurant in Manitou Springs, right outside of Garden of the Gods and then drove through Colorado Springs for a little bit.

After we got home we decided to take the light rail down to a mall in southern Denver. It was my first time using the light rail system in Denver. It was kind of nice being able to just sit back and watch the city without having to worry about when to turn off or where to merge. It took longer to get there on a Sunday afternoon than it would have driving, but during rush hour I think it would actually be a shorter trip. I can see why so many people commute here. And Denver just keeps increasing its public transport system. They recently passed this huge initiative to expand the light rail system to some of the suburbs. I can't wait until we can just hop on a train to Boulder and do some shopping. For now I guess we'll just have to depend on the express bus.

So those were this weekend's adventures. I'm sorry I haven't posted lately, but I didn't think anybody was reading. However, I learned the error of my ways when I received a variety of commands from my loyal readers, demanding that I create new posts. Well, perhaps if you would all comment and let me know that I'm not alone in this wide world I might post more frequently. Consider that you need to click the little link that says "comment" next time you wish to hear more from me. But enough lecturing. I hope you all had an enjoyable weekend, and I'll try very hard to post more updates this week.

Outdoor Experiences

So today was our first real outdoor experience in Colorado. Zach and I took a trip down the Arkansas River via the American Adventure Expeditions. It was fantastic. it took us about 2 1/2 hours to get there, and then we had to wait about an hour before the trip started. Zach and I rented wet suits ( they were only about $5.00 extra) and they kept us perfectly warm. The water was freezing, but with the wet suits we were fine. It was so much fun. The water was much higher than usual; it was higher than it's been in about 20 years. So they had to change our route a little. But it was so much fun. We left here about 9:30, got there around noon, and the trip began at 1:00. We saw some beautiful mountains during the trip down river. I wish we had a water proof camera; we could have taken the most gorgeous pictures.

By the time we got home, it was about 6:30. We showered and then went out to find some dinner. We found a fantastic Irish bar where we were able to listen to Irish rock and drink local (organic) beers while we ate some salads and appetizers.

By the way, let me take a moment to mention how wonderful satellite radio is. We lost regular radio about a half an hour out of Denver. With the satellite radio in the car, though, we were able to listen to NPR the whole way out. After an episode of Car Talk (where they validated my theory that turning on the air conditioner DOES help to defrost windows) we were able to catch up on some world news via the BBC and some local news via CNN. Let no one try to tell me that satellite radio isn't worth its money. It is entirely useful when driving through captivating mountains that block out typical radio waves.

On the same tangent, the Tomtom is the best present that I have ever gotten Zach. We do not leave the apartment (driving, at least) without it. I never have to worry about getting lost with our GPS at my side. And trust me...knowing that the mountains are always to the west will only go so far. You can still get lost in Denver pretty easily. There are a set of roads that go conveniently north/south and east/west. But then there are those roads that go at an angle. These are the ones that confuse me. Thus, the satellite radio consistently leads me to my destination.

In conclusion, our new life in Denver is fantastic. The lifestyle is beautiful; we can spend the morning and afternoon rafting on the Colorado rivers and then come home in the evenings for a drink at an Irish pub and a late dinner downtown. If I could only find a job, I'd be the happiest I've been in years. But that is a topic for another blog...

Update and New Pictures

It will soon be a week since we arrived in Denver, and a lot has happened. I finished putting the apartment together by Friday, and Zach and I finished putting up our art work today. During our daily wanderings we've learned a few things about life in Denver.

First of all, Urban Outfitters is the coolest store ever. I know they have them in Columbus, but it never fit with our 130-year-old house. Now it fits perfectly. I've found awesome ways of organizing my massive costume jewelry collection, gorgeous art, and nifty clothing.

Secondly, Denver is something like the microbrewery capital of the U.S. What does this mean? Pretty much every restaurant has its own beer or a beer of a local brewery on tap. Tuesday Zach and I went to a cute little pizzeria called Il Vicino. Not only was it delicious, it had the best beers. Supper yummy. And a really good price, too. Rock Bottom Brewery is equally delicious, and they have a chocolate creme brulee to die for.

Thirdly, it is fantastic being able to walk everywhere. Technically we can't walk to the store for any major shopping. But it is only ten blocks away. If we just wanted to grab a few things, it's not that bad, and it's just a short jaunt in the car.

I'm sure we've learned many more lessons that we could impart on all of you (for example, the opener for the door into our underground garage is only for coming in...the door opens automatically if you are going out, thus explaining why every time we used the door opener we ended up leaving through the wrong door...) but I think our time could be better spent showing pictures. You can click on the album to the left and it should open a slide show of pictures for you. Please note: the large empty wall beside the couch is reserved for a giant urban mural of some sort. Zach hasn't found the right one yet. And we know that the office is rather bare. We're working on it. You would think that a house full of art would suffice to decorate a simple apartment, but it has not been the case. Please send comments and tell us what you think!

Pictures!

I know you have been waiting with bated breath for a new update. Well, I can't promise anything too long and involved...I AM still unpacking, you know. But I can provide some pictures for your viewing pleasure. Please excuse the mess; we are currently under construction.

First off, here's the floor plan again so you can see where everything is in relation to everything else.




















Here is a picture of the kitchen. You can see we have stainless steel appliances and granite counter tops. In the background you can see the entrance hall. To the right of the kitchen you can almost see the entry into the office space. There is a ton of counter space and lots of room to move around.














Here's a picture of the family room taken from the kitchen. On the left is a fireplace (you can't really see it from this picture), and straight ahead is our balcony. We will probably sell our dining room set to open up more space. The counter functions as a bar on the other side, and that will serve just fine until we can find a smaller table.














Next up is the view. The following pictures show the view from our balcony from left to right. Yes, that's the baseball stadium in the far left. If we sit on the balcony and listen, we can faintly hear the announcements from the game. Otherwise, the noise is not a problem at all.








































Here's a picture of our huge bathroom. As you can see, again there are granite counters and light wood cabinets. You can't really see from this picture, but the floors are a kind of slate material. The tub is around the corner, and it is a large oval soaking tub.














Here's the master bedroom. Isn't the view awesome? Again sorry for the mess. Today I'm organizing the closet and everything is spread out all over the place. No, the bike will probably not remain in the bedroom.














Finally, so you can visualize me as I blog, here is the office. My desk would be the one with the iMac. My chair is actually facing a closet in this picture, which is full of random storage. Including our Christmas tree that Zach thought would never find a home. Take that, Zach! I knew I could find a place for it.














Well there you have it. I hope this will keep you satisfied for a little longer until I'm able to write more.

Road Trip, Part 2

Well, that last blog was written about 4 hours ago. Things have since gotten better. After passing through a series of heavy storms, we've hit smooth sailing...err...driving for a while. We are currently passing through Omaha, and we should get to the border of Colorado by 9:00 our time, leaving us a three and one half hour drive tomorrow to our new home. I'll try to post an update tonight when we get to our hotel. You won't believe some of the pictures I took of the flooding! Byebye for now.

Road Trip, Part 1

So it has been an interesting trip so far. We have driven about fifteen hours and only made 10 hours of progress. It started off well enough; Zach and I piled all our belongings from the hotel into the car, I sat Josephine (our cat) on my lap, and we drove over to the Budget rental office. I left Zach there while I went to Ariel and Craigs to start getting our stuff out of their basement. When Zach showed up with the truck, we threw everything in (not literally) and left for the storage unit.

By this point, Josephine had worked herself into a veritable frenzy, yowling loudly and clawing the cage. We left her in the cage on the passenger seat of the truck with the window down while the rest of us packed up the truck. This also went well, with everything easily fitting in place with room left over. Several times I went to the front of the truck to check on Jo. It was during one of these breaks that I noticed that the top of her cage, which comes open to allow easier access to its inhabitants, was open. And the window of the truck was open. And there was no cat to be found. Ariel, Craig, Zach, and I had to traverse the expanses of the storage complex, which ended in a large field and a salt silo, searching for the damn escaped cat. After several minutes I saw her walking across the parking lot a distance away. I ran after her and cornered her into a fenced dead end. By the time I got there, though, she had disappeared. We finally found her crammed into a tiny corner under the fence. When we dragged her out, she was panting heavily and even more worked up. Have you ever seen a cat pant? I haven’t. I gave in and shoved half a cat tranquilizer down her throat, and she relaxed within minutes.

After this adventure, things began to go smoothly again. We left Columbus with no problems, moved through Dayton, and continued along 70 through Indianapolis. At this point we noticed signs saying “70 closed ahead, take 74.” Hmm…doesn’t look promising…maybe we should check the Indiana transportation department. Using my trusty computer, wired into my cell phone’s data plan, I combed through a variety of websites. Nothing. No mention of problems on 70 or anywhere else in Indiana. We found the same silence when we turned on Indiana’s traffic and weather station. And given the fact that 74 slowly branches more and more away from 70, we decided to ignore the warnings and moved along at a steady pace for a while until, suddenly, we came to a stop. Not heavy traffic, not 30 mph. A stop. In two and a half hours we went maybe 10 miles. Finally we were routed off of 70 and we went north to 40. We figured, hey…it goes parallel. Eventually we can just hop back on 70 and continue on our merry way. Until we stopped again, of course. Yup. We drove maybe half an hour before we hit the same wall again. We wasted another two and a half hours going 20 miles until we finally decided to turn around, drive an hour north to 74, and completely reroute ourselves. It turns out there was a huge flooding problem in Indiana. Terra Haute was in a state of emergency and was being evacuated. By the time we found a hotel right by the entrance to 74, it was 9:00. We had left at noon, had made maybe three hours of legitimate progress, and it had been nine hours. What a complete waste.

All these complaints don’t include a variety of other problems we encountered. Our roof leaks…right onto my head. The transmission is located right under our feet, and this makes the floor (and everything resting on it) terribly hot. This includes our cat carrier. It took us a little while to figure out that she was really over heated and not just complaining about being in a cage for hours. But we finally made it to a hotel, where annoying drunk people ran through the halls yelling until 3:00 am.

Today has been much better. The worst that has happened was a little accident with Jo. We tranquilized her before we left this morning, but she woke up about an hour into the trip and was really restless and uncomfortable. I finally figured out that she was pawing the floor of her cage like a litterbox and crying. Unfortunately, I figured it out too late. She peed all over and then got it all over my sweater when I picked her up. She was more comfortable, I was far less. Oh well. It has now been 7 hours, we have 9 more to go today, and the worst problem we’ve had is a little cat pee. Of course, we’re driving through Iowa on our way to Des Moines and the fields have become lakes that come a little close to encroaching on the highway. But hopefully the waters will stay at bay and we’ll be able to drive through this mess. Meanwhile, Zach and I are trying to keep ourselves occupied listening to endless episodes of This American Life, Car Talk, All Music Considered, and a variety of other NPR gems. And we have, of course, been keeping track of license plates. We purchased a little magnetic tin from Target that has all the state license plates that we can position as we see them. We’re only half way there and we’ve already found thirty-three states. Oooo…In fact, Zach just got two in one (Washington and Oregon) when he spotted a semi who’s rig had a different license. We despair of completing all fifty states since we’ve left the more common thoroughfare of 70, but one never knows.

18 Days and Counting...

So...it's eighteen days and counting until my move. That's seven days of actual teaching, three days of exams, one staff retreat, one work day, and a couple of weekends sprinkled in. Even more exciting is the fact that I only have two days left with my seniors. My short career as a Latin and English teacher is about to be over...for the time being at least.

Zach is sitting here asking me, "Can you imagine how cool it's going to be when we get out there?" Yeah. I can imagine. For the past four weeks we have been living in an Extended Stay Suites hotel. Zach, me, two cats, and 400 square feet. Our 950 sq foot apartment will be a luxury after this. Granted, it hasn't been terrible. I can watch tv, eat dinner, and do my grading all from my bed. But every time we cook a meal smoke fills the room from the crappy pans, and the cleaning staff hasn't cleaned in two weeks because they're supposedly terrified of our (declawed and harmless) cats.

But back to positive thoughts...Our apartment is going to be gorgeous. 943 sq feet, 6th floor, fireplace, and a balcony facing westward toward the mountains. Isn't it lovely? I cannot wait to arrive and begin making it my own. I have promised Zach that he can design the bathroom, though. And he gets one large black and white mural. We haven't agreed on the picture itself, yet, though.
Which brings me, finally, to the point of this blog. When we move to Denver, I will be experiencing a new city in a new state in a new part of the country. As a teacher, I will be paid through August, and I will thus have all summer to find a job. So I have decided to record my observations and experiences in Denver and the surrounding area. It should be an interesting discovery process. And it should be tons of fun...