My 40 for 40 | Peaches Prattlings

{March 28, 2021} Start with a Ride…End with a Seder

Sounds like the perfect Sunday to me, right?! It’s the second night of Passover, but the seder isn’t until the evening, so we planned a motorcycle ride with some of the guys from our group and another group.

It was supposed to get warm, up to about 57 today, sounds good. I layered up, had my Cuddl Duds on under my jeans, high-top sneaker knee socks, a long sleeve Indian Motorcycle shirt, my Looney Bin zip up sweatshirt, it’s not a thick sweatshirt, but it fits under my Indian Motorcycle Jacket. I wore leather gloves and covered my face with the neck gaiter I got at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. You’d think I was warm enough! Think again! O M G!

The wind, which was not supposed to come in, came in, and oh my word, it was frrreeezzzing! My legs, arms, and chest were fine. My feet and hands…let’s just say when I got off the bike at our first stop, I had trouble walking my feet were so cold and I stayed in the bathroom a few extra minutes, under the warm air dryer! PSM had even given me glove liners, didn’t help after the first 20 minutes!

We had met two of the guys at the usual starting point, then we rode into Illinois, it was about a 25 minute ride, met the rest of the folks that were riding, everyone one geared up, leather chaps, heavy winter coats, face coverings, the works. Mother Nature was trying to beat the tar out of us! She was succeeding. We left from the parking lot and rode to Grafton, only about a 30 minute ride from where we were.

At that point, after I came back from the hand dryer, which I considered taking with me! PSM and I decided we couldn’t keep going with them, they had about another 60 or 70 mile ride. On any other day, I would have been with them, I just couldn’t do it. I was also feeling the weight or in this case, the lack there of, of my bike. It’s a heavy bike, it weighs just under 600 pounds, but what this wind was doing, I was fighting some times to keep her straight, I was never in danger of falling, it just took a little more to keep her upright.

So…we bid everyone a fond farewell and headed back into town in search of breakfast. I will tell you, PSM was texting with one of the guys, they all felt like they had gotten the you-know-what beaten out of them! I think we made the right decision. Before I do another ride like that, much warmer gear!

We rode into Grafton, IL and looked for a place to eat. Google Maps listed a place that said “Great Weekend Breakfast”, perfect! We parked and went in. Guess what they didn’t have. Really? We looked for a few options and settled on the Alton Village Inn Pancake House, sorry, I could only find their menu online, the other links wouldn’t help you if you were interested! It was warm! They had hot tea and decaf coffee, we were happy! The service was pretty good and we were feasting on a veggie omelet and hash browns in no time. Ahhhh.

Eventually, begrudgingly, ha ha, we got back on the bikes and headed home. After getting the pups out of the crate, I headed in one direction…the hottest, steamiest, hottest, did I mention hottest? shower I could take! I took a few extra minutes in there, it was hot and steamy! And I finally started to get feelings back into my extremities again. Warm clothing on, we did stuff around the house and relaxed and eventually, it was time for second night seder with PSM’s family.

I was also able to sneak in a Zoom hello with my family, that was dad, LaLa, my sister, GES, my b-i-l ACS, and my nieces, EJS, and MGS. They were also zooming with extended family friend, I haven’t seen them all in a while, it was great! This was while we were on a break from PSM’s family. Tonight went a lot quicker than last night, less people so less technical difficulties, still a lot of fun, stories, laughter, and love, and food, always food. We went through the exodus out of Egypt, drank our four cups of wine, but…BTK, who wrote up the virtual haggadah added two extra blessings over the wine for PSM and I, hmmm…broke matzah, brought it together again, let in Elijah, and were blessed, what more could you want?!

We started with a ride and ended with a seder, life is good!

{March 20, 2021} Waiting…Waiting…Waiting…Now GO!

The day started like any other Saturday, up too early to go to yoga, par for the course, but then…it stalled, but turned out alright, what more could you want?!

We went to hot yoga, it was good, I think, to go back, I hadn’t been in almost two weeks due to busting my ankle, all good now, promise! It was my second class and just a twinge here and there and I modified what I was doing, I was careful. After yoga, headed home and while we were relaxing and waiting for the weather to warm up, we were going for a motorcycle ride…I told you, if it’s above 45, we’re on the bikes! Or the top is down on the car!

So…we’re sitting there waiting for the weather to warm up, we started watching The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, starring Anthony Mackie as The Falcon, and Sebastian Stan as the Winter Soldier on Disney+, a new offering from the MCU/Marvel Cinematic Universe: Phase 4, which also include WandaVision, if you’re in the know. We’ll get to those later, I digress.

As we’re watching and getting into it, we hear and feel the boom, the dogs jumped a little, and at the same moment, total power out. We looked at each other and had the same thought…Squirrel Sacrifice or Squirrel Suicide, this is a common occurance, not only in our neighborhood, but across the country…these would be electrical distruptions caused by squirrel. This is a quote from September 2020: “The American Public Power Association says squirrels are No. 2 this year on its “Top Causes of Power Outages.” … According to the American Public Power Association, there were about 3,456 squirrel-related power outages that cut off the electricity of more than 193,873 customers in 2016.”

I honestly had no idea this was a major thing here in Missouri, but it seems to be, especially in our neighborhood. We met a neighbor when we first started taking walks through the neighborhood who told us that squirrels are a serious nusience in the neighborhood. Apparently, they like to get into the undercarriage of vehicles left outside of houses and unfortunately, into the transformer boxes. They are rampant here, torturing our dogs, and every dog in the neighborhood, but that part I don’t think is unusual. Last year, the power went out and we were talking to another neighbor who told us that they can get into the transformer cages and…

I checked with our nextdoor neighbor, same situation. I called the power company, they put in a ticket and assured me they would try to get someone out here within an hour, ok. So…we needed something to do, it was still early and too chilly for a ride.

Let’s call and combine our cell phone bills. We both have accounts with T-Mobile, we’re a family, why not a family plan. We had gone into a store and they told us they couldn’t do it in store, we would have to call, seems simple, right? Where’s the head banging emoji? After finally getting a person on the line…we talked to her for a while and the plan changed at least once, me going to PSMs account, then PSM going to my account. After talking to her for a while…we were transfered to another person…finally…and that took another forever.

The entire process, with no power and combining the phone lines took about two and a half hours. Ugh…so…waiting…waiting…waiting…now we’re free! Let’s go! It was about 1pm, so we didn’t want to be away from home for too long since the pooches need a walk and dinner some time, ha ha. We usually take them out about 5p, a little later is ok.

We headed out toward Washington, MO. We’ve been there before, on a ride with two of PSM’s co-workers, to Sugarfire Smokehouse, not my choice, of course, but killer cornbread! OMG! Anyhall, as my grandmother would say…we went to Washington, MO and PSM mapped a fun route that wouldn’t take us on the highway too much, which we both enjoyed, it took us about an hour, which was a good length of time, only because it was ch…ch…chilly, we needed to warm up.

We parked and found a place, right across the street with a great balcony called John G’s Bier Deck, which offered a great view of the Missouri River, score! We walked up the many, many, many steps, this city is on a hill, walked in and instantly warmed to the atmosphere. There were a lot of signs telling customers ‘Do not feed the dogs’, ok. One even above the very loveable looking golden shepard. Across from the bar was an area with tables, a fire pit, and blankets, and an audio set up, looked like for live music.

Outside, we walked down to the deck, half covered and half sitting in the sun, which was perfect, because it was still a bit chilly. We ordered some food and drinks and enjoyed soaking up the rays, trying to block out other coversations, watching the current move quickly, admiring some of the muscle cars and trucks go by and occassionaly, a cargo train would go by. This was the way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

After a bit, we walked down the street to see what it looked like, went into another bar for a drink and then it was time to head home. It took about an hour and a half, the sun finally started to warm things up, sort of, but it was a great ride. PSM, being our Ride Captain, he tries to find us routes that avoid the highways, which is nice, makes for a longer ride, and we get to see things we might not have seen before and…some of the roads, great curvy, leading to long stretches, sometimes the curvy ones are down tree lined roads, gorgeous!

We got home, took care of the pups and hung out. After the hiccup in the mid-morning, it turned out to be a really nice day. Can’t wait for our ride tomorrow!

{March 13, 2021} It’s chilly…but not too cold for a ride!

The rain was predicted, but held off! It held off for the day, it had been raining the few days before, but not today! So…what should we do?! Go for a ride! It’s chilly, but we’re in riding season!

Now…I’m not a hard core rider, I don’t ride when it’s below 48, I might put the top down on the Beetle-Bug when it’s in the high 30s/low 40s, but the bike, nope. I don’t have the fancy stuff on my bike to keep me toasty, like butt warmers in the car, you’re kind of exposed, so…bundle up. I was fine on the top, but from the thighs to the ankles, a little brrr. Next time, Cuddle Duds under the jeans. Such a chance from last weekend, when I could have gone out in a sweatshirt!

We decided to ride to Grafton, IL, I don’t think I’ve mentioned Grafton yet to you. Its a small town in Illinois on the Missisippi River, turns out it’s the oldest town in Jersey County, IL. It gets crazy crowded in the summer and it’s a known spot for bikes, motorcycles, that is. Someone told me about it as a nice ride and one of the biker bars, the Hawg Pit BBQ, it made it an easy destination to put in the GPS.

It’s about an hour ride from here, so not too bad, and a nice destination, as I mentioned. You can go by the highways, yesterday, PSM took us on some alternate roads and it was nice. We eventually connected with the main drag that takes us over the Clark Bridge to Alton, IL, the middle of the bridge is actually the state line, pretty cool. It really is a pretty bridge, I have yet to take a picture of it, we’re always on the bikes. Alton is a cute town, we haven’t explored much of the town, there is a cobblestone street where they have a few restaurants with tables set up outside, which we’ve eaten at, it’s charming.

It was a bit chilly on the ride, so we decided to stop in Alton, but inside, ha ha. We stopped at The Old Bakery Beer Company, as the name says they have beer, tee hee hee. It’s a certified organic craft brewery with food options. We were going to get lunch in Grafton, so I settled on a cup of tea. I would like to go back, they had a nice looking menu with vegetarian and vegan options. It’s a warehouse-like open space, exposed beams, streams of edison bulbs, with tables, spaced appropriately socially distant, mask mandates, hand sanitzier, just like most places. It had a nice open, welcoming feel. Everyone seemed to be having a good time.

After warming up a little inside, we walked outside to the bikes getting ready to head towards Grafton, it seemed to have warmed up a little, outside. One of the things we love about having Indian Motorcycles are the conversation starters. When we came out, a woman was in her car looking at the bikes and told us she was just sitting there admiring them, which was nice, and a guy came up to us to talk about our bikes, he’s thinking about joining the club! We would welcome him! He was wearing a great utilikilt, we’re getting near St Patrick’s Day, people were out celebrating. A utilikilt is a kilt made for every day work wear.

We got to Grafton and pulled in to the parking lot and walked into the Piasa Winery and Pub, we were there for the view, not the food. It was a seafood restaurant, they had some other things, but it was mostly seafood. PSM had a fried alligator, I tasted it, I was curious. I’ll just say, aside from the spicy batter, which I wasn’t crazy about, it still tastes like salty chicken, didn’t make me change my vegan ways, ha ha. For me, I had the grilled pear salad, it was quite tasty. A variety of greenery, grilled pears, glazed walnuts, and cranberries. We sat on the deck and there were heat lamps warming everything up, we needed it. Even the table was warm, I was happy!

After the winery, we went to the Gold Bar Saloon, there was a bar with a few stools, but the true gem was outside, well, sort of outside. There was a building next door with fire pits, that was fabulous. We took our drinks in, took off our jackets and sat on one of the sofas and just enjoyed ourselves. There were a few other people in there, but they were each at their own set of sofas and firepits, awesome! The music was country, but classic country that everyone seemed to know, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, and Boz Scaggs.

After a while, even though we had just eaten, we were slightly peckish and all I wanted was french fries. No idea why, I haven’t eaten or craved french fries in a long time, they just don’t agree with me, so I try to avoid them, but I was craving them, so off we went. We walked…next door, ha ha, to the Grafton Pub. We ordered fries, when I asked the cut, I was told they were somewhere in between steak fries and Burger King french fry. It was funny, when I asked what the cut was, she looked at me funny, so I explained the different cuts. We also ordered guacamole bites, which are a bit odd, but we were curious. We were told they were like wontons with guacamole in them, and fried. Ok…let’s just say, they were hot as all get out, to me anyway. We’ve had them before I realized, and let’s just say, not ordering them again, not everything tastes better fried…The french fries on the other hand, were tasty, if you could get past the coarse salt and pepper they put on them, seriously?! Just not my cup of tea honestly, I forgot to order them unseasoned, which would have meant fresh out of the frier, nothing extra, which would have made them perfect, they really were good fries, good size, perfect crunch on the outside, texture and taste of potato, I know that sounds weird to some, I’ll explain in a later post.

The Grafton Pub is also on the water, and Grafton itself it really is a pretty place in the Spring and Summer, especially with the trees in bloom and boats on the river.

After our snack, it was time to go. Interesting thing…until we sat at The Gold Bar Saloon, we didn’t see another motorcycle all day, then there were a few, it was nice to see some other cold weather riders like us. We got to the bikes, met another group of admirers, theses folks were slightly closer to inebriated, they were getting into the St Patricks Day mood, but still admirers of our bikes, which we definitely appreciate and welcome the conversation. After that, on the bikes and head back down by the river, over the bridge, on the highway this time and hello puppies.

The sun pretended to try to peek out, but aside from that, a great day overall. What could be bad, motorcycle ride, good company, laughter, the wind in your face, as I’ve told you…wind therapy! Wonder where the road takes us next…

{March 7, 2021} First group ride of the year…ahhhh

I think I told you last week, while I was in Colorado, that there was a group ride on Sunday, and here we are! I told you that PSM and I went out on the bikes to get some dinner last night, after we both got home and it was brrrr…chilly! Today, the official group ride. Wah to the hoo!

We belong to the St Louis Indian Motorcycle Riders Group, or IMRG. When we lived in Hawai’i, we joined the IMRG HoloHolo chapter, well, we actually still belong to the group, we have the 2021 patches to prove it! Man, I still need to get a vest to put my patches on! At this point, I need two vests or something to put the patches on. I absolutely LUV my motorcycle vest so much, I don’t want to put anything on it! Is that terrible?! I’m looking, I’ll do it eventually, promise!

We got up, took the pups for a walk, had some breakfast, geared up, well, you have to put your gear on, every super hero does! ha ha. Because we’re riding, we start with jeans, I’m sure you’ve seen people wearing shorts on a bike, not me, ever. Ok, I can’t say that…the last staycation we had in Hawai’i, we went to the Big Island and rented motorcycles. The last morning, when we were returning them, we both wore shorts the 2 block ride to return the bikes, but I promise, there is no way I would ever ride in anything by jeans. Short sleeves, definitely, especially when it’s hot, and I’m usually wearing a vest that helps protect my chest, but my legs, no way! I have to tell you, I was so happy to be completely covered the day I wrecked my bike, years ago! Wow, digressing now! You wanted to hear about our lovely ride!

So…back to our apparel. Jeans, long sleeve shirt, thin sweatshirt I got last summer at the Looney Bin Bar & Grill. I will be telling you all about it this summer when we go on our annual motorcycle ride with the guys in New Hampshire, cannot wait! Then, I have a heavy denim Indian Motorcycle jacket, it’s quilted on the inside, so it keeps me warm, but it’s not too warm to sometimes wear in the summer. Yup, I wore my Chucks, and got grief from our Ride Captain, it was awesome! I showed him the picture I shared with you from KN, “How to spot a biker chick”, he still rolled his eyes at me! I had my black gloves with red trim that I got at Harley Davidson in Seattle, WA, I had to go a long way to find those and those…saved my hands when I wrecked, I will never give them up! Neck sleeve that I got with sunflowers that got at the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam, headphones, goggles, and helmet…we were good to go!

We met the group at the designated QuikTrip, gives us a chance to greet each other, this is the first time a lot of us have seen each other since the last ride in the Fall, I think it was October, get something to drink or a snack, gas up the bikes, and get our riding instructions. When you’re riding in a group, it’s important to know the rules and hand signals, all that good stuff to keep everyone safe. There were about 25 of us, it was great! There are male riders, female riders, as you might guess, couples, Indian motorcycles and two Can-Am Spyder Roadsters.

After all that, we were off. We ride side by side to get started, then we ride in staggered formation, you’re on the left, I’m behind you on the right, and so on, and in some places, depending on the road, we ride single file. It’s quite the site to see a line of bikes coming down the highway. We try to stay together, when we’re at stop lights and stop signs, acting as a tractor trailer, so to speak, trying to keep any cars from getting in the middle of our group. That’s common for most group rides.

We rode to Sandy Creek Covered Bridge Park, a beautiful park with, you guessed it, a covered bridge. It looked like a great park for walking, together, with the dogs, a picnic. There were signs telling you the history of covered bridges and where to find Missouri State Parks and Historic Sites, something to strive for. And every ride…a group photo, have to commemorate the ride!

After the ride…lunch! We rode to Cafe Smok N Pi in De Soto, MO. I always look up the restaurant we are going to go to that day to see if there is anything I can eat, I finally got smart! This time, I really got smart, I had made myself a sandwiche to bring with me. It was a cute place with character and everyone seemed to enjoy it. Cafe Smok N Pi was our final destination and some people took off after lunch. The rest of us went to the Dew Drop Inn in Bloomsdale, MO, PSM said they were known for their bloody mary‘s, but did he have one? Nope, but the ones I saw, wow, they were like a whole meal! Celery, bacon, pickles, olives, pulled pork, really? Wow!

We had a great time, drinking, laughing, telling stories, getting to know each other, making new friends. The biker community is like no other, when you have a bike, you respect each other and look out for each other. If a biker is on the side of the road, other bikers will stop to help. I remember one day, I was coming out of a gravel parking lot and my bike dropped, immediately, bikers pulled out and stopped traffic in each direction and two bikers helped me pick up my bike and made sure I was set and the bikers stopping traffic waited until I was back on the road before they started moving again. It really is something.

After the Dew Drop Inn, we got back on the road and headed home. I have to tell you, it was a little chilly in the morning while we were going to meet the group, then it started to warm up when we got to the Park, some people started taking off their jackets as we were heading to lunch, and progressively, it headed up to almost 70 degrees, it was fabulous! It started to even out my sunburn!

How fabulous, skiing on Thursday, convertible Friday and Saturday, riding a motorcycle on Sunday, my life is full! I can’t wait for the next ride!

{March 6, 2021} I’m comin’ home!

Mama, I’m comin’ home, by Ozzy Osborne is one of my favorite songs. I just wanted to throw that in there! Today, I am home! Back with PSM and the girls, Ruby and Bee, right where I belong.

I had the best time while I was in Colorado! I was with the dogs in the backyard and chatting with a neighbor, when I told them where I had been, they asked why I wasn’t still there…I missed my family! I will admit, it was tough to leave, but I wanted to be home, if they were with me, I would have stayed all month! Yesterday was really tough, I didn’t ski! I worked in the morning, then headed out. It was so tempting to go to Keystone when the lifts opened, for just an hour or two, then work for a few hours, then start driving. I was good…sigh…I worked until about noon, then took off.

NM and AM left earlier for the mountain to go riding, I finished working, packed up, let the dogs out, let the dogs in, loaded up the car and away we went. Annie II and I, that is. The roads were clear, what a change from my drive in and every day I was there! As I was on the highway heading away from Dillon, I was so glad not to be heading in the other direction, the line of cars was crazy! O M G! I’m sure it was going to take people about 2-3 hours to go 20 miles, no thanks!

I drove about half way, I was in Kansas at this point, sometimes with the top down, fabulous! Got some food and a hotel, settled in, talked to CWB, then crashed, it was nice. Today, got up, made some breakfast, then…I was on the road again, that was exactly the text I sent, by the fabulous Willie Nelson! Made me laugh. The temperature began to climb and it was 60 in no time, and you know what that means…top down on the car the entire drive home! The only drawback…I just realized I think I got a bit of a sunburn!

I got home, played with the pups, they seemed to have missed me! PSM had been out on his bike, came home, I dressed for the weather, jumped on the bikes and headed out to dinner, an impromptu date night! It was nice, we went somewhere new, talked, laughed, caught up, laughed, got goofy, perfect date night for us.

Now…we’re snuggled up, the pups are in the crate, and to quote the most famous Kansan said “there’s no place like home…there’s no place like home…there’s no place like home.”

{March 1, 2021} Work, catnap, dinner out

Happy Monday! It was a fabulous weekend! I got to ski at three mountains, two that were new me, you would think I would have been exhausted…

Yeah, well…I got back from Vail, took a nice hot shower, did some work, then grabbed some grub, the second half of a really tasty frozen pizza, believe it or not! It had beet sauce, butternut squash, and goat cheese! I have to say, frozen pizza or not, it was tasty! Yes, I know, it had goat cheese, but I took a chance, and…y u m!

After I ate, I hung out and watched some tv, started watching His Dark Materials, I’ll tell you what I think after I finish it. As of right now, it’s not that different from the movie, The Golden Compass, please, no one jump on me over this yes, let me finish watching the entire series or at least season 1 and then we can talk again. About 8pm, I think I nodded off for about 30 minutes, I’m not actually sure, but I think so. Eventually, about 11, I went downstairs to get in bed and guess what happened…

If you guessed that insomnia reared its ugly head, you would be correct. I kept looking at the clock…1 or 2am, that’s ok, that’s normal, but 3am, 4am, seriously?! It was somewhere between 530 and 6am, I was actually able to force myself to go to sleep, thank gawd! I really needed some sleep so I could work. I fell into that deep coma like sleep and the 7am alarm was cruel. I snoozed twice, knew it was time to get up, so I motivated, or whatever that was that passed for motivating. I brushed my teeth and got fully dressed, no easy feat! Up stairs, made breakfast and go to work by 8am local time.

I was pretty good until about 2pm and then I looked around the room and couldn’t focus, so I set the alarm for 30 minutes and laid down on the sofa. Let me tell you, I sat up like a shot, thought I missed the alarm, it was literally ten minutes into the nap, wow! So…I figured, I have 20 minutes left and fell right back into it, woke up at 230p ready to go! I worked until about 5p, then headed out to meet LJ for dinner at Beau Jo’s Pizzeria in Idaho Springs, Colorado.

The atmosphere is rustic and western, high ceilings, wooden posts or tree trunks in the middle of the restaurant, exposed beams, very old west feel. Best part, for me anyway…they have a plant based menu! We had vegan chicken bites and then I had the Dude Ranch, a plant based pizza with chick’n, bac’n, bits, spinache, Italian seasoning, non-dairy cheeses and vegan ranch dressing. The crust was a bit thick, but overall, the pizza was really good. I had two whole pieces, out of the eight, guess what’s for lunch or dinner tomorrow! Hey, maybe even breakfast, ya never know!

It was so good to see and catch up with LJ, we got to see each at the end of January. She’s one of those friends who gets excited to try new vegan with me, she’s not vegan, but she’s always up for going with me and I appreciate that. We had so much to catch up on! Her hunt for a new apartment, new job, current job, family, friends, her first time skiing a few weeks ago, and so much more! This trip didn’t work out to go skiing together and after this trip, I probably won’t be skiing again this season. It’s getting towards the end of ski season and that means…motorcycle season! PSM and I have our first ride this coming Sunday! So…I’m hoping next year, when I come out to ski, she can go with me! It would be so much fun to have a friend to drive up with and ski down with! I can introduce her to some of my favorite places!

It was fun talking about her first experience, some good, some bad, both of us lamenting about how much work it can me, not just skiing, but getting the boots on and off! HA HA. I’m really glad she lives here, I have another friend to see!

Before we parted, we talked about maybe meeting in Chicago when PSM and I go to see the Immersive Van Gogh Exhibit. I cannot wait to tell you all about that when we go! It’s going to be similar to the Sistine Chapel Exhibit that we went to a few months ago. I need to tell you about that one too! We hadn’t reconnected when we went, so that will have to be another post. How great would it be to meet up in Chicago for a weekend and the exhibit, especially since we’re talking about riding the bikes there! Wah to the hoo!

Anyway, overall, it was a good day, really productive with work, then a fabulous dinner with a good friend, which, just like you and I, we picked up where we left off! And now friends…I am going to put on my jammies and chill!

{February 27, 2021} It’s Saturday…let’s go to Beaver Creek!

I was excited today, going to a new resort, Beaver Creek. I think I mentioned the other day one of the things I like about having to make reservations to ski is the opportunity to explore other mountains. I was thinking about it, I think the reason I only go to Breckenridge and Keystone when I visit Colorado is that I’m usually only here for a few days, so I think I stuck to what I knew. In addition, Beaver Creek is about an hour from Dillon and Vail is 30 minutes, which is not bad, while I stay here, but if I am staying in Golden, which I usually do, that adds almost 2 hours each way and while I don’t mind driving an hour and 20 each way, the longer trips don’t always seem worth it, especially if I’m only going for a few hours. Driving 2 hours there isn’t bad, but driving back, after skiing a few hours, exhausting. Well, that makes sense to my swiss-cheese brain!

I must be getting comfortable with the altitude and time difference, I have been getting up a little earlier every day! 530am is too early, but it is what it is! Even though I was up, didn’t mean I had to get out of bed! I leisurely lounged, watched some Netflix, and made it a lazy Saturday morning, sounds good to me. Eventually, I got up, motivated, dressed, made some breakfast, and looked outside…snow…and lots of it. I’m in the mountains of Colorado, what did I expect?! Let’s get the car packed and go!

I left the house, the streets had a new layer of snow on them, made it almost to the highway and almost couldn’t see the cars in front of me, hmmm…do I still want to go? I called PSM and we looked at the weather together, well, he looked, he’s much better at it than me!

We already know Annie II can do it! Not worried about her at all, and she proved that she can drive in the snow and we made it to Beaver Creek. Let’s just say it was a little crowded, all but one of the parking lots was full and when I finally got to the parking lot that was open, it was closed, huh? As I’m driving back down the hill I asked someone and he let me park on the side of the road, with everyone else in the same boat, which was great because we were pretty close to the lift!

I walked up to the lift, put my skis on and headed up the mountain. I really enjoyed Beaver Creek, just like all the Vail Resorts I have been to, the slopes are wide open and manageable. I find that when I haven’t been to a mountain before I tend to stay on the green circles, which are the easiest, for the first few runs, then I venture into some of the blue squares, more difficult. I haven’t reached the point this year that I want to ski the black diamonds or double blacks, most difficult. I used to, I just don’t these days and I’m ok with that!

I think I mentioned the snow that started sometime in the morning, continued on the drive and…most of the day, there were times you couldn’t see too far ahead of you, the snow kept coming, and the wind picked up, there were even a few snow swells and swirls, not quite snownados, but looked like it! If you look at my pics, it looks like of black and white, doesn’t it?!

Despite the view, or lack there of it, there was still much swishing and swooshing, and smiling while doing it! All that snow made for nice fresh powder in a lot of places. I had a few very nice companions on the chair lifts who gave me some advice on runs to do and they were spot on, thank you!

I lost track of how many runs I did, but I took a break at one point at one of the lodges, hung out by the fire and was thinking it might be time to head out, I had been there a few hours, but when I asked someone how to get back to the gondola, their answer didn’t fill me with warm fuzzies, the other resorts I have been to had ways to get back to the bottom, wherever I needed to be from wherever I was. Thankfully at that, because half the time, and I know you won’t be surprised, but I don’t know where I am half the time! I was telling someone that I admired all the skiers and riders that knew the runs and what they were called and where the ended up. You laugh, but it’s true! I remember when I would stay at the Doubletree in Breckenridge, a fabulous ski in/ski out hotel and I would have to remember the run that would take me back to the ski in part!

Anyway, she told me that I would need to go back to the top and ski to where I needed to go. That’s a tough one when your mind has told you your done. You have to kind of trick yourself, ok, let’s do another run! Well, two more and then skip the last one! I went to the top where she told me and I couldn’t figure out where she was telling me to go, so I asked someone at the top and they said, no, go this way, which I did and whew, I ended up where I needed to be! When I got to the bottom of the hill, I was a little confused, but…I found the exit, it was actually a nice run to the bottom, the lift that I came up on! That was very cool, at some other mountains, you ski, then get on a gondola, or you’re at the bottom and you walk out, this was ski to the bottom to where the hotel entrance was, a very short walk to the car, that was fun!

I got to the car, it had stopped snowing at some point and the sun came out. I thought, ooh, I’ll go into Beaver Creek Village and look for something to eat. I should have kept my car there and taken the gondola into Beaver Creek Village. I was not paying $30 for parking for the very short time I was going to be there. I wanted to walk around, get a bite to eat and maybe a t-shirt and sticker for my helmet, not worth the money. So…I started back to the house.

The drive was sooo much better on the way back than coming up there! It was a breeze. I stopped at the grocery store and picked up some supplies, then back to the house. Into the house, and I told you how nice that was to be able to put my stuff up in the garage/house! I even memorized the codes for the garage and door! Go me! Shower, pizza, movies, and you. What could be better! Tomorrow, Vail, another mountain I haven’t been to and I’m so looking forward to it!

{February 26, 2021} It’s Fri-yay! Let’s go to Breck!

Apparently I got enough sleep last night because I was up about 6am, so I settled in to work, I had some playing to do too!

I think I told you I made some reservations at some resorts so I can ski while I’m here and today’s reservation is Breckenridge. I worked until about 1230p, got dressed, loaded up the car, and headed out the door. I have to thank AM and NM for letting me stay here, it’s been so great to be in a house, be able to keep my stuff in the house and just walk into the garage to load up, instead of having to gather everything and head out of the hotel. Being in the hotel isn’t that bad, honest, this is just really nice. There is a closet right inside the house from the garage, I don’t have to lug everything from the room, down the stairs, out the door, find the car in the parking lot, just nice.

It’s also nice staying about 30 minutes from the resort, and when you stay so close, you don’t worry about how long you’re going to be there, even when I stay in Golden, I don’t mind the 1.5 hour drive. And I think I told you, since I have the pass, I don’t feel like I have to stay all day, and I’m at that age as well, I can go for a few hours and I’m good.

The drive to the resort was nice, it was a crisp, clear day, good visibility and always fabulously scenic. So much better than my drive here Wednesday night/Thursday morning. I got to the resort, found a decent spot in the usual lot not far from the gondola, paid for parking, walked to the shuttle and away we went. I got on the gondola and headed up the mountain to the lifts.

All the Vail Resorts are doing their best to abide by social distancing, there are mandatory mask signs everywhere, the gondolas and chair lifts have seating suggestions, people even putting their own stickers on things and for the lifts, I didn’t realize, but if you stand with your skis touching someone else’s skis, that’s about 6 feet, I hadn’t thought about that, well, unless it’s a kid, then it’s a little shorter!

The lift lines were a little long, but they moved and when you talked to people on line, it moves faster. It’s fun to look at what people are wearing, the kids and their colorful and fun ski or snowboard outfits, the helmet covers, and then…the group of 8 in front of me, all wearing different furry ski/snowboard outfits. Let’s see, there was an elephant, crocodile, engaged couple, both unicorns, hers said ‘Future Mrs. Somebody’ and his said ‘Fiancé’, they were quite the gathering.

Up, up, up, and away we went. As I said, the day was clear and crisp, the slopes, as always, never crowded, and there was fresh powder from the Wednesday/Thursday snowstorm, it was wonderful! There was swishing, swooshing, and more swishing. I lost track of the number of runs I did, I just went until I was a bit peckish, I grabbed a chai latte and a fabulous piece of coffee cake, it was heavenly!

Swish…Swoosh…Swish…Swoosh

One more run for me. Up I went and swished and swooshed my way down and realized I was done, so I wrapped up my skis and headed for the gondola line and oh my word, the line for the gondola was ridiculous! They even came up to move us into a more formal line, helping up avoid getting hit by any skiers, happy for that! It didn’t wrap around like that when I headed up for my last run. It is what it is.

As I was waiting on the line, a woman and her daughter walked by and I asked if they wanted to stand in line with me, mom was ever so thankful, she was done, and she was carrying her skis, boots, and her daughter’s skis. Very nice people, mom and I got on really well, it turns out we had a lot in common, and her daughter was a five year old cutie! At one point, I offered to help her and carry something and her daughter told me I could carry her skis, thanks! Bottom line, it made the line move faster and that’s what matters.

I got to the bottom, headed for the shuttle, got to the car, took off my boots, ahhh, back to the house, shower, a little more work to round out the week, dinner, and chill. Sounds like a pretty good day to me! Looking forward to tomorrow!

{February 25, 2021} To ski or not to ski…not today!

As we talked about yesterday, I got to the house in Dillon, Co, early this morning. When I say early, it was 330am. I got in the house, unpacked the car, crawled into bed and couldn’t fall asleep right away, go figure!

I finally nodded off sometime after 4/430am and it was deep when I got there! I got up about 7am local time, which is 8am Central, yeah, it gets confusing! Imagine trying to keep all that, and other times zones, straight while you’re on the road! It was something.

I got up and got to work, played with the idea of going to Keystone to get in a few runs, kept working, toyed with the idea, after all, that’s why I’m here, to ski and work, work and ski, then ski some more. I got my Epic Local ski pass when I first moved to Colorado and I renew it each year, and I always think that if I can ski 6 or 7 days each season, the pass has paid for itself. I already skied three days last month, I’m here for about a week, let’s see what I can do.

That being said, since I’m going to be skiing a bunch while I’m here, do I really need to ski the day I arrive? After driving 15 hours and getting about 3 hours of sleep, nope, I’m good. I worked until about 630/7p, had some dinner, then sat on the couch and watched some tv, ok, I laid out on the couch and started watching tv. About 2 glorious hours later I got up and headed to bed, where I couldn’t sleep, go figure again! I love naps, but they kill what little sleep I get!

I’m happy I made the executive to skip skiing today, tomorrow is a new day and I made some reservations. No, I don’t have reservations about skiing, ha ha, I made reservations to ski! The interesting thing, I’ve gone to one or two other mountains that are included with the pass, but I’m usually only in Colorado a few days, so I tend to stick to Breck and Keystone. With Covid restrictions, you have to make reservations for the resort and that has forced me, so to speak, to look at other resorts based on availability. I’d say that’s a plus!

I’m going to Breckenridge tomorrow, Beaver Creek on Saturday, and Vail on Sunday, two resorts I’ve never been to, very excited about it! And you know I’ll tell you all about them after I go.

Gotta get some rest, work, then ski tomorrow, night!

{February 24, 2021} My car is not a 4-wheel drive…shhhh don’t tell her!

PSM kicked me out of the house…to Colorado to go ski! He’s so harsh! Ha Ha! He knows what it means to me and with my new job, I can do it, serious work/life balance. Besides, sometime in the next few months, he’s going to do the same to me, take off work and disappear to parts unknown. Works for me.

I packed up the car with my ski gear, it all fits in the car! and cleared out the fridge and freezer of al the things I knew PSM wouldn’t eat, I didn’t want it to go bad, besides, this helps me not eat out every meal, win-win. Even had the leftover ovo-vegan lasagna from Thanksgiving, it’s been in the freezer, and it’s still good! Here we go!

It was 59 degrees out, you know what that means! Yup, sweatshirt on, butt warmers on, drop the top! It was gorgeous! Eventually the top had to go up as the temperature dropped, which was alright, I could hear people on phone if they called and eventually it would be too cold for the top down. It was a good thing too, NM told me there was a snowstorm coming to Denver, it wasn’t predicted earlier in the week, I checked the weather. Ok… we could do it. I don’t know if you remember me telling you that we, Annie II and I, drove through the a bit of a snowstorm a few weeks ago coming back from Denver. Now…we’re getting on going to Denver, oh joy!

Annie II is a beast! I had her when I lived in Colorado years ago and she drove through the snow all the time, she even had to do some snow and ice driving in Atlanta when I lived there. So the snow started somewhere in Kansas, it is a very big state! I know it was after Topeka, but I couldn’t tell you where I was, only that it was Kansas.

It started as just snow coming at the car, then it progressively got stronger, slicker, and started to build up on the ground. I was able to keep driving in my Chucks for a long time, there was cover at the gas stations, and I would have to start kicking some of the snow from the wheel wells. Eventually, as I was driving through Denver, people were starting to skid out, the work trucks and snow plows were out in force. I had a few moments of “don’t use the break”, “go with the skid” nothing major, but I remembered my experiences while I was growing up in New York, driving, even learning to rock a car out of a snow bank, driving in Western New York, learning what to do when you start to skid. The skid warning light or traction control indicator came on a few times, but we were fine, just go with it.

One of the last time I stopped to get gas, I had to put on my wonderful, furry, winter boots, love them! I got out and got A LOT of snow from the wheel wells, that’s the only thing I worry about, it builds up so quickly and can mess with your driving abilities. As I was getting back on the highway, we spun a little, slowly, but we spun, not sure if it was lucky, but the snow was thick and soft, we righted and got back on the highway.

By now, the roads had cleared and it was just me, Annie II and the work trucks and snow plows, that was kind of interesting. Eventually, we got to Dillon, we made it to the house and into the garage, safe and sound. The trip took a little longer than it should, 13 hours turned into 15, but…

My car, my little beetle bug convertible, a car that is not known for driving in the snow, conquering the skids, mounds of snow, and slippery roads, but…Annie II is a champ and seems to love it, so…don’t tell her she doesn’t have 4-wheel drive, why crush her dreams!

Ok, so….I have to correct myself…sort of…I just looked up Beetles driving in the snow, and I had forgotten all about this and now I la la la love my car even more and know why she is a champ! She has front-wheel-drive, this gives her a natural advantage for dealing with snow and ice, it’s the weight distribution. Go Annie II! Oh yeah! Could I love this car any more?!

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