Colorado Review

“So much for shoveling the drive-way,” says my husband as he walks into my office and tells me he’s headed down to the deli to do some work. So, it continues to dump on us here in the Colorado Rockies. Earlier this afternoon I was outside of Home Depot (yep, we have one of those up here right next to Super Wal-Mart) carrying a rosemary bush I had just purchased with my husband and it was snowing sideways. That’s fun. And currently, I-70 is closed in both directions between Vail and Georgetown.

But, it’s winter and snow is what I signed up for when I moved up here. My husky loves it, that’s for sure!

Drunk driving happens all over the world. It’s certainly not a problem only Coloradans deal with. But, this past weekend we had two terrible drunk driving accidents that killed two whole families. I want to send these stories around to everyone I know who still drinks and drives. (Here is one story, here is the other.) You drink a few cocktails at a Christmas party or at your Aunt Ethel’s Thanksgiving dinner and think you’re just fine to drive. The next thing you know you’re in court facing manslaughter charges.

My husband and I are lucky in that our town is so small we can walk home if we’ve had one too many (and one too many is not that much!). We RARELY if ever drive the 15 minutes down I-70 to go out in Vail — my husband refuses to drive that distance with alcohol in his system.

I’ve driven drunk before. I’m not holier than thou. But, that was back when I was in college and I thought I was invincible. Luckily, I never got into an accident and I never received a DUI. But, I look back and realize how ridiculous I was. You are too if you drive drunk. You really are.

That’s what they’re saying is heading our way right now! We could see a foot or more of snow in the next 24 hours with blowing, swirling winds. Vail mountain opens up on Friday — yes, this Friday, November 17th!! Why not pack your bags and head for the hills this weekend? The conditions are sure to impress.

If you happen to live in or near Boulder, stop by Harpos Sports Grill! My husband used to own the sports bar that inhabited that location (The Barrel House) but he sold it to Harpo a couple years ago. Harpo is a good friend and a good guy. The bar looks great and the service is awesome! I haven’t tried the food yet, but Harpo also owns Serranos (a southwestern grill located out in the Gunbarrel business park), which serves delicious southwestern fare.

I could write endlessly about Boulder…it is my favorite little town in the world! I pretty much became an adult in Boulder. In 1990 my parents drove me from Dana Point, California where I’d spent my high school years (we moved to southern Calif. when I was 11) to Boulder, Colorado. And it was truly love at first sight. I lived and loved in that town until the year 2000 when I moved to Denver (I was at one of those points in my life where I just “needed something new” — so I moved myself 30 minutes down the Boulder turnpike…silly, silly.). And of course in 2005 I moved to Vail to get married.

Anyway, I’ll write more on all that later. On Monday night my Kevin and I went down to Boulder for a little get away and because he had some meetings to attend on Tuesday. The weather was divine (a very balmy and beautiful 75 degrees!!!). I spent the day strolling around Pearl Street, shopping, visiting with my pastry artist friend, and enjoying being back in my blessed Boulder. Of course, I forgot my camera!!! But here are some pics of a few of my favorite Boulder spots.

Christmas on Pearl Street…

This is Chatauqua Dining Hall set against the Boulder Flatirons. I worked at the dining hall in the summer of 1993.

This is where I went to college. The Flatirons rise up to catch you…

If you’ve never been here, you may think of Colorado as a snowy, cold, cloudy place. I know I did before I moved here. I imagined banks of snow piled high on the sides of the roads even in the summer. I was very wrong!

Colorado receives a lot of sun. Ever since our “blizzard” (just so you know, I really wish they had not catergorized THAT as a blizzard…it was a mediocre snowstorm at best) last week, we’ve had gorgeous blue and sunny skies. Granted, we’re only up in the mid-forties throughout the day and then the temps drop to the teens at night but overall it’s quite lovely up here right now.

I think we average, as a state, more than 300 days of sunshine per year. And our sunshine is the strong kind because we’re closer to it at more than a mile above sea level When I first moved here I got sunburned more times than could be deemed healthy! I mean the red, raw, burning, peeling sunburn. These days, I wear 45 SPF every day — and if you plan on venturing out this way, I suggest you pack your sunblock too.