Dad's trip home continued

I started a new post so the newest pics could be on top. Also, for those interested, dad is now back home, confirmed by mom.



(A Sliver)
A sliver isn't much on which to base an opinion and a ribbon of highway is a pretty thin sliver. A single spot on that ribbon is insignificant. Yet sometimes that is all we have.

A story in a Colby, KS newspaper detailed a meeting in which wind power industry spokesmen were urging the KS legislature to take more advantage of this abundant natural resource.

I can attest to how widespread that resource is - I had to fight it pretty much across the state.

A historical marker in the Flint Hills region east of Salina described the area and mentioned that another resource, the prairie, is used to graze a million head of cattle per year. Just in the Flint Hills region.

A big, wide open place filled with cattle, grain, oil, wind, and people making a living getting those resources to all of us. Thank goodness we have it.

I'm through Kansas and with family in Missouri. My goal is to get to St. Louis, visit my niece and get somewhere further east, perhaps to Nashville.



(Arches)
I seem to have a thing for arches. You have to admit, they can be pretty spectacular. Whether created via a multi-million year process of sediment deposition, rock formation, erosion by multiple forces at different rates through various rock strata or through a mult-year visioning, architecting, engineering, money-raising, and building process, the resulting grandeur can be overwhelming.

I left my sister and brother-in-law's house in Overland Park, MO this morning, stopped in St. Louis long enough to see my niece and get a picture of the arch and skyline and hit the road again. I made it to Paducah where I'll spend the night.



("Sweet memories...Coming right up!")
This is the line on a freeway ad for a national chain restaurant. Care to guess which one? I can think of several to which it would apply for me.

Earlier in the day, prior to seeing the sign, when I got hungry I thought "where would I like to eat?" The answer: "a place with comfort food and fond memories." For me, the one place that fits that description is the same place with the ad. If you've been to one, the ad is well connected. If you haven't, well ...

The food reminds me of summer family gatherings with my mom's family. The interior is filled with pictures, signs, and implements of a bygone era. Comfy rockers await on the front porch.

It has a cozy fireplace that defintely felt good on this particularly frigid day. The wait staff are friendly. Charles worked at one in college and we would eat there on our way home after a visit. Just what I needed as part of my transition trip home!

Interior of a Cracker Barrel on the way home.

Dad's trip home

A linear collage of emails.



Roads were dry but snow covers the landscape.



(Arches)
First stop!



(Play Day)
Delicate Arch is 1 1/2 miles from parking lot, relatively smooth ground but some elevation gain. Cold. Last section skirts a cliff, trail was snow covered at that point. Glad I had my trail shoes, parka, hat, and gloves.



(Outdoor Pool)
Fed by hot springs! The air is still freezing but people are in the water.



(A bit "redrum"ish)
The Hotel Colorado interior. Completed 1893. Buffalo Bill Cody, Al Capone, and the Mayo bros. (founders of the Mayo Clinic) all have an association with it.



(Skiing)
Not the best day for taking pictures. If you like skiing in the sun, not the best day for that, either. But I've skied in worse and if you like shallow powder, this was great. Before today, I didn't know what the fuss was all about. Now I have an inkling.

The resort is Sunlight, south of Glenwood Springs on the way to Snowmass and Aspen. I believe it has a bit more terrain than Bluewood, close to White Pass but more vertical drop. Friendly people and not much of a crowd, particularly for a holiday. Just the type of resort I was looking for.



(Hot Springs - Good for What Ails You)
Sauna, steam room, they work too. I've never been in one much bigger than a coffin or broom closet. Well not one that would hold more than 8-10 people anyway. And yes that is large enough for a gathering, particularly in Europe where one attends sans clothing.

But if you have something bigger in mind for your après ski, check out the hot springs in Glenwood Springs, CO. It is huge and draws quite a crowd.

It was snowing but with the water temperature at 104 degrees F (40 C), the snow didn't matter.

From above it looks quite bright. Standing in the pool in the mist the feeling is completely different. Eerie - people come and go from sight as the mist shifts, even when they are just a few feet a way.



(Over the Mountains and Through the Snow...)
To Denver I Shall Go!

My picture looks amazingly similar to the CO DOT webcam pictures. It wouldn't make nearly as good a story if I sent a lesser picture.

It looks bad - and seeing the webcam pics didn't exactly ease my concerns. However, through a combination of caution, watching out for the other guy, the application of superb driving skills honed through years of practice, watching the weather, timing my approach, and a bit of luck, it was a rather uneventful, albeit harshly beautiful, trip.

I made it to Denver, washed the road crud from my car and had lunch with Kris. Didn't time my exit so well and ended up in Denver rush hour traffic. Even so, I made it to Colby, Toto, just into the central time zone.

Tomorrow I'm on to KCMO (Kansas City, Missouri)

Out of the Gate

It finally happened. It probably would not have without the gentle yet effective persuasion of someone close to me. We have had conversations about it in the past with her offering to help and me not committing. She finally took the step that hooked me - she set up this blog and offered that we maintain it jointly. With the offer of such effective support, it was an easy decision to make.

You see, she is a blogger already (http://allisonmarie.wordpress.com/) and has been blogging for years. Her posts keep me coming back to see the new ways she finds to express herself, her emotions and feelings, her view of the world. Her posts make one think and consider things from different points of view. She helps me grow.

Getting started at something new is difficult without the right guidance and motivation. Thank you, Allison, for this gift.