Warren Miller: Children of Winter

I just bought tickets to see this on Saturday.





Check out www.warrenmiller.com for more info.

Opening Day at Vail

It was a blue-bird day last Friday, and I enjoyed every minute of it while I was outside. Vail opened and I couldn't resist spending some time on the slopes with my friends. Since then, I have skied every day except for Saturday. Instead of skiing, I started the new trabajo by getting stuck in an elevator for 30 minutes. Fun stuff. Back to the skiing - we just took a few runs on Born Free because it was about the only run that was open. At the top of Born Free with Karen and Adam (I'm on the far right).

Sillyness on the lift.

Tomorrow is opening day for Beaver Creek. I plan to ski here at Vail because my office is 100 yards from the lift and I don't feel like driving over there. Hopefully some of the crowds will migrate over to Beaver Creek so I can get on the lifts quicker. Either way I'm going to try to ski every day until I start my new job in mid-December.

Think snow, because we need it BAD!

Morning Ride

This morning was supposed to be a ski morning for some friends and me, but due to the 50 degree weather all week, we decided to cancel. Instead I went on a quick bike ride up to Beaver Creek Village. It. Was. COLD. My fingertips went numb after riding less than a half mile. I even had gloves on. Apparently they weren't good enough. Nor were my socks because my toes all fell off. A pretty ugly sight indeed. I checked the temperature when I got home and it had only risen to the low 20's... and the sun was still struggling to break through the clouds. Next time I'll make sure to were better gloves and get foot warmers. Oh... nevermind... no foot warmers needed since my toes fell off. Looks like I'm all set!

The New Job

As I stated in my last post, I got a new job! I will be working for Thul Electronics. They are a home electronice integration company. They do everything from home theaters, to alarm systems, to lighting, to a/c. I will start by helping install the home theater systems and see where I want to go from there. I'm thinking sales or programming are good routes, but we'll see. Since I told my boss I would be here until mid-to-late-December, I don't start until... mid-December. I can't WAIT!!!

I will actually be doing something that I have an interest in and I will not be sitting at a desk all day. Plus I will be able to PAY MY BILLS!!! WOOO HOOOOO!!!

I Bought an Epic Pass

Some may ask "why would you do that? You already get a free ski pass for working at the resort." Ahhh, my friend, you bring up a good point. But I don't think they will let me keep my pass after I QUIT!!! "How could you quit in an economy such as this?" I'll tell you. I got a job that pays better... MUCH better. And I'll enjoy the work alot more, too. Granted I won't be able to ski during the week like I have been, but paying my bills seems to be a little more important right now.

So hooray for a new job! I don't start for a month because I want to keep this job until my family comes to visit so they can use my free ski passes. HA!!! I'm so excited! Also, I'll be able to get in a decent amount of skiing before I leave this job. I'll post more about the new job later. Right now I am going to leave work because it is 5 o'clock in the p to the m.

BYE!

...That's What She Said

I have joined the group of those individuals promoting the resurgence of "...that's what she said" made popular again by one of my favorite shows, The Office.







Please leave a comment with the best line that was said before you blurted "...that's what she said."

Phone Angst

My phone is not making me happy. First of all, let me say that taking my phone was a mistake and I realize this. I went on a night-time, moonlight hike Saturday night. It was about 2 days after a full moon, so it was super bright. We hiked about 3/4 of the way up Beaver Creek before we turned around. One of our hiking partners just moved up here and wasn't handling the combination of altitude and cardio exercise very well. The two girls took off ahead but I stayed back with the newbie to make sure he was ok. The snowmaking machines were blowing away which made it hard to hear each other even from 10 feet away. The last thing I wanted to happen was for him to drop back, get altitude sickness or something, and us to be out of ear shot.

Anyways, I'm not sure what happened but when I checked my phone after we got back, it was in orgasm mode. I guess the keys were stuck because it kept typing "Uouououououououououou." Now it just chooses to work sometimes and not others. Come to think of it, it pretty much sounds like my phone has turned into... (insert joke here).

After pulling out the battery and SIM card several times and leaving them out, it still is not working a day and a half later. Don't know if it got wet from my leg sweat (I was wearing water proof wants so I know it wasn't from the outside... and get those dirty thoughts out of your head. I wasn't THAT excited about the hike.), frozen from the hike causing some kind of permanent damage, or if it took some kind of impact as we slid back down the hill. But the majority of the sliding was on my butt and the phone was in my front pocket.

Now I can pull the battery out, put it back in, and I may or may not be able to use it correctly for about 2 minutes. Sometimes it doesn't respond to me pushing any buttons, sometimes it won't register when I click the trackball in, other times it just laughs at me.

It's a Blackberry Curve 8310 and I have only had it since July. I decided to buy phone insurance after my last phone fiasco. Of course there is a $100 deductible to get my new phone replaced (probably with a refurbished model) and I can get a brand spanking new one online for only $80 (after rebates and re-signing a contract). Guess I'll be cancelling that insurance to save the $5/month.

That's all I got. Any suggestions?

On Writing This Blog

I was going to write a big long post explaining crap that has been going on in my life. At first I just started writing. Then I realized that it would be much more involved to clearly explain the chain of events that has led me to where I am... why I moved out here, why I was thinking of moving back to Austin, all the factors that would influence my decision. So I erased everything that I wrote and started over. Again I realized that to lay it all out without blabbing and confusing you like I usually do needed more organization. It was time to break out the outline.

I. Intro

II. Why I wanted to move to Colorado

III. Why I wanted to move back to Austin

...this is an assignment! I started to feel like I was back in school. My least favorite thing to do in school = writing assignments. "Forget this, I'm not in school for a reason!" While in school, either high school or college, I would work hard enough on every other assignment so I could still pass the class without writing a paper. Sometimes it bit me in the ass. I actually failed one class because of my aversion to writing. "So why am I doing it again for this post? Wait... why do I even keep this blog if I hate writing so much?!?! I certainly don't write here just to write. It's a way for me to tell my friends and family what's happening in my life and a record of my activities... right?"

Well if it's a way for me to write about the goings-on in my life, why don't I want to write about the most important goings-on in my life? (I know "the goings-on in my life" sounds weird but I like it). As my mom would say... because I said so. So there. I like rambling on sometimes. I like writing about my experiences sometimes. But if it comes to me feeling like it's a task, it's gone too far. All I can promise you is this, if I feel like sharing, I might. Otherwise I won't.

Because I said so.

Redemption

Not really redemption. I just went to ski conditioning and didn't make a TOTAL ass of myself. Rather than show off by kicking the boxing dummy, I stayed far away from him. I did however give him a light punch in the face as we were leaving. WHO'S A DUMMY NOW?!?!?!?! Probably still me.

Embarassing

I attended my second day of ski conditioning last Monday. I'm hoping that preparing for the ski season will help me with better technique and keep me skiing harder and longer... as long as I don't do stupid shit like I did on Monday.

I met the group at the gym and joined them for a fast paced walk on the treadmill. My left knee has been a bit sore since my 35 mile bike ride on Halloween, so I didn't want to hurt it by jogging/running. The girl on my right told me she saw me as I was walking in but didn't say anything because I was pretty far ahead. We don't have a membership to this place, so we have to sneak in. I was in the process of explaining that I was trying to act natural and not draw attention to myself as I was walking in when I stepped a bit too far to the right, off the treadmill. I barely caught myself before being tossed like a rag doll off the back of the treadmill. Just about everybody on that side of the gym turned to see what the commotion was, resulting in my beet red face.

After laughing it off, we went in the studio room to start our workout. Typically we set up 4 stations and rotate between them for 15 minutes. Rest for a few minutes, set up 4 more stations and rotate for another 15 minutes. Then comes core work. So after busting my butt working out, it was time to relax and go eat some wings at the Tap Room. Of course I couldn't leave before a bit of goofing off. In the corner of the room is one of those boxing dummies that you see in police training and stuff. They always make them look so mean.

One of the girls was kicking it and I took it upon myself to show her a little different technique (not that I know any). I showed her how to raise your leg with your knee bent and then extend your lower leg to impact the dummy. My first kick was great, right in the chest. Then I decided to go for the head. Mistake. I jumped up and ended up on my ass. I had to redeem myself so I tried it again. Only this time I jumped too high and managed to come down on the top of the head with my heel like a karate chop. Again resulting in Dan on his ass. I finally wised up and decided the end of a workout was not the best time to horse around. No need to strain something before the season even starts.

Shelf Road Climbing and Camping

I spent the end of last week and the weekend pursuing one of my passions... CLIMBING!!! During my last trip to Austin my friend touted the awesomeness of some climbing area and made me promise I would go before I move back to Texas. Since there is so much good climbing close to me, I couldn't see driving 3 hours to another area to climb. Yet, I decided to take my last summer vacation and head with my friend Alex to climb somewhere new. We chose to drive to Shelf Road (by Colorado Springs) and climb for a few days. Of course, Shelf Road just happens to be the place Alan had raved about. We stopped at a climbing area outside of Buena Vista on our way down. It was pretty cold out, but the rock was amazing. Our first route was around 85 feet long and used up almost all of the rope. We climbed one more route before succumbing to the lack of light and the approaching cold.

We rolled into the camping area around 8 p.m. and set up camp. There was only one other group when we arrived. It was wicked cold, got down to the teens. I turned into a caterpillar that evening as I cinched my mummy bag around my face, exposing only my nose and mouth to the bitter cold. As morning came, I shivered my way out of my cocoon and into my climbing attire.

The first two walls we chose to climb were not wise choices. They didn't get very good sun and the rock sucked the warmth right out of our hands. It's much harder to climb with ice fingers... I guarantee you. Later in the day we hiked across the canyon and found where we would climb for most of the remainder of the week. Cactus Cliff (as it is called) stayed in the sun almost all day and had a myriad of epic routes. You couldn't look at the wall without seeing at least 5 routes that cruised for miles up the perfect limestone.

We learned from the first day that we might as well just spend the whole time at Cactus Cliff in the sun. It was warm enough to climb with our shirts off before the clouds blew in that afternoon.

Jamming my hands into the sharp limestone cracks left my hands looking like a leper. I left my fair share of blood on the rock to get back at it.

Our final day of climbing led us to a different area with fewer people called the Menses Wall. The view was still gorgeous.

The first climb we chose was called Period Epic, followed by the walls namesake, Menses. It was named this because of the huge red streak that made its way down the route. We made our way up a few more before realizing on the route Lightdays, the theme of the route names. A bit disturbing, but funny none the less. If you don't get it, it may be for the better.

We couldn't have chosen a better group of days to climb during this time of year. Overall, the sky's were clear and the climbing was outstanding. I would almost consider living in Colorado Springs just to have easy access to the thousands of routes in the area.

Our Next President!

I'm not going to really say much about this, because I don't like shoving my political views in peoples face.... BUT... I couldn't be happier that this man is going to be our next president.

He may not be the most experienced man, all of his policies may not be the best, but he certainly has a way of getting people off their asses, motivated about changing our jacked up nation, and uniting our nation in a way that nobody has been able to in far too long. Here's to a better future!

Starting the Ski Season

Chris convinced me to join him last Sunday to pop our 08/09-ski-season-cherry. He didn't have to try very hard considering that he paid for my lift ticket to Loveland Basin. His only stipulation was that we had to leave early enough to get there for first chair (we weren't actually on THE first chair, but we were in line before the lift opened). Good thing I got an extra hour of sleep from the time change. It allowed me to recover a little bit from the defeat Texas suffered the night before. My friend was having her birthday party that night and the theme was "Black and White Party." People talked of going in tighty-whitey's and wife beaters or panda suits, but I opted for formal wear and my graduation gown. I arrived at the party just in time for the RedNecks to score a touchdown with one second left. Here was my reaction.

So, back to a lighter note, here was me the next day when we got on the lift.

If you closely examine my eyes and the expression on my face, you will see that my mood had improved considerably. It's hard for it not to when you have views like this are you are riding up the lift.

Chris and I always manage to have a good time whilst (yes, I said whilst) skiing. Especially on the lift. We often brake into song. Sometimes that may not be the best thing for the bleeding ears around us, but it certainly makes us feel better. Sunday was no exception. Our inspiration? A snowmaking machine called a Polecat.

In our grand tradition of ridiculousness, we came up with our own version of "What's New Pussycat?" It turned into "What's new Polecat... snooooooow snoooow snow."

Since we got there so early, we were able to enjoy great snow before the hordes arrived and the day warmed the soft powder into melting butter. I was a bit nervous at first to get back on my skis, but after a few runs my confidence returned in glorious fashion. Now I remember why I love skiing so much... bombing down the run and hitting little jumps along the way. Now I'm looking forward to as much skiing as I can get in this season.

Halloween Bar Hopping

Halloween came this year and I couldn't decide on a costume... or more accurately I couldn't come up with a costume that I wanted to wear. I got home from work and started racking my brain to come up with a good costume. Thought about being one of the brothers from Boondock Saints with Chris. Wasn't crazy about it and I didn't have a necklace with a cross. Writing a bunch of Celtic stuff on myself would have been fun though. Thought about keeping on the bike clothes I wore for my ride that day. Not original enough. Everyone up here is active and it would look like I had just finished a ride... which I did. Plus I smelled like a junior high locker room. Thought about wearing a black speedo and putting fake blood in my hair to be Greg Louganis. That would fulfill my ritual of being scantily clad, but I didn't feel like losing any appendages to frostbite. I had alot of other mediocre ideas, but nothing that stuck out.

Just as I was losing creative hope, I had an epiphany. I could put on a black trash bag and cut out a 'D' to tape on it... I could be a douche bag!

And so it was. We got our group together and planned out a night of bar hopping. Dish, The Gore Range Brewery, Rick and Kelly's, and E-town. I stuck to gin and tonic and rotated in water every few drinks... the water was clutch. It was pretty fun being in character as a d-bag. The sad thing is how well my rude comments and general douche-baggery was accepted. Here's an example of how much everybody enjoyed it.

Now that I think about it, I could have been this guy and had the same outcome.

Moving Fail

Is it wrong to laugh or find humor with other peoples hardships? I hope not. You have to laugh at life, right? This certainly lightened my mood this morning as I was pulling into work. Hidden behind the little RV are the tires of the moving trailer about 5 or 6 feet off the ground. Probably not the most efficient way to move/store your stuff.

Uninspired Title

After safely driving our buckled-up pumpkins home, it was time to cut them up, gut them, and light them on fire. HOORAY!!! It's been years since I last carved a pumpkin so I was pretty excited. We even saved the seeds to season and roast.

I took the smallest pumpkin because it was the best size for my design. If anyone can correctly guess what it is, you win... well you don't win anything other than knowing that you made me happy that someone gets it. Not necesarilly the most creative idea, but I had the best detail work of the three pumpkins.

Chris and Sam took one of the big ones and made a sweet little kitty pattern in to evil kitty. It's hard to see but she has fangs and mean eyebrows. Karen had the most creative pumpkin by far.

You can't see why it was so creative in that picture, but this will show you. Tongue suppressors for teeth, gauze for hair, and a beer bottle through the head. Nice.

Late Climbing Post

I went climbing last Sunday and forgot to post these pics that I took. Alex and I headed to an area called Puma Ridge in Camp Hale. It was a bit of a trek up to the ridge because there was no trail. The rock we were climbing on was pretty loose in many areas. We had a guide book and decided to start on a relatively easy 5.10a route. Alex took the first lead and had a pretty hard time, which is weird because a climb of that difficulty should be a cake walk for him. After looking at the wall more, we realized that the book must be a bit out of date and a route must have been added somewhere. The route we started on was a 5.11a as opposed to the 5.10a we thought it was. Anyway, there was a great view from the top of the climb.

The next route was a 5.10a. Alex took the first lead and we pulled the rope for me to lead it next. It was pretty easy, but I was tired from warming up on the first route, which is at or above my climbing level. So by the time I got towards the top and was going to clip the anchors, I barely had any strength left. I thought about taking a fall and giving it another go, but after seeing what the fall looked like (seeing where I would swing into the wall) I decided to tough it out and go for the clip. I summoned the last bit of energy I had and barely fumbled the rope into the anchor before my grip gave out. That is a great feeling!

Not sure that I would go back to this area to climb again. The approach didn't have a trail so we had to bushwack our way up and the rock on the wall was pretty loose. If the rock was more stable, it would be a really cool place to climb.

Pumpkins Biznitches

We finally found some pumpkins. I think they are the last ones in the valley and they were STUPID expensive. Here is our happy little pumpkin family.

Halloween Costume

I don't have anything good to write about. Instead I will tell you of the two options I am thinking about for my Halloween costume. There are 2 problems with my costumes. First, they both require at least one other person to help me. Second, I don't know how to pull them off.

Here's the first idea. The bar we are going to for Halloween is having a Vegas theme. One of my friends was talking about going as a tiger, so I suggested that me and person X could be Siegfried and Roy and she could be the white tiger. AWESOME! I know. However, I can't find anyone to be the Roy to my Siegfried. And I haven't really done any shopping to find a flamboyantly gay frilly shirt, tight black pants, gold chains, much less a tiger-stripe jacket.

My other option is to be a Beaver Boy. Watch this video for a better understanding. I even bought 2 of the shrimp hats. I'm hoping they come in before Friday. Again, I don't have anyone to pull it off with me. And I don't know many people up here that know what the hell Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job is. Even if they knew what it is, they would likely not get the inane ridiculous humor and think it was funny as I do.

Maybe I'll go as a mop instead.

Tumbleweed: A Short Story

Saturday started off with the best of intentions, but somehow deteriorated in the early afternoon. After a short mountain bike ride, Chris set up a TV by the hottub for us to watch UT play OSU in a much anticipated football game. Some of you may know that I went to school at Texas so I was very excited about the game. I provided a small cooler and bought beer so we wouldn't have to get out during the game (other than to pee). During halftime a random tumbleweed blew by and I begged Chris to retrieve it. It was to become my lucky tumbleweed umbrella.




Sitting in the hottub and drinking 5 or 6 beers over a three hour game can cause one to lose their sobriety. At some point my lucky tumbleweed began to sink. I was sad.

However, the tumbleweed still did its job and Texas won the game 28-24, much to the dismay of my parents who were unfortunate enough to attend OSU. The end.

How I Could Have Died

Yesterday was great fun. Went for a jog at lunch, sat inside and played on the computer at my desk, then went climbing after work... and could have died. "How" you ask? Let me tell you.

Since it finally warmed up enough this week to get outside, I was itching to go climbing. I left work to pick up my friend Alex and drove to yet another climbing area. We wanted to go somewhere that got good late-day sun and wasn't too far away so we could maximize our climbing time. He suggested a climbing wall across from the Wolcott boulders and I was in. The approach took about 20-30 minutes from the car. By the time we got set up, the sun was almost setting over a ridge, but there was still plenty of light.

We chose an easy route to start with. I took the first lead and immediately realized that although it wasn't a hard climb, it would be challenging due to the condition of the rock. There was lichen all over that kept you from getting a solid grip with either your hands or your feet. Plus alot of the holds had loose dirt in them which made them even more slippery. It was the equivalent of walking on marbles. Once I got past the third bolt, I was much more comfortable and cruised up the remainder of the route. After untying from the rope, it was Karen's turn. Alex was going last so he could clean the route.

Karen followed my route, unclipping the rope from the carabiners as she went. She made it to about the second or third bolt before she decided she had enough. So she came down and it was Alex's turn. He was going to lead it, so I started pulling the rope through the anchors. About halfway up the wall... disaster. The rope got stuck in one of the carabiners. Karen didn't know she was supposed to completely untie the figure eight, so the remaining knot got stuck in the biner.

Have you ever had one of those moments where something happens, you look at your friends, eyes as big as the moon, jaw wide enough to insert a watermelon, and can't help but nervously laugh? This was one of those times. Here were our options:

1. Alex or I could climb up to the point where the rope was caught - WITHOUT A ROPE - and tie in there.
2. We could hike out, drive back to Alex's car to get his rope, drive back, hike the 20-30 minutes back up, and retrieve all my gear.
3. I could walk around the side and find a way to scramble to the top so I could let the rope down.

The first option would be pretty dumb. If you remember, I mentioned that the condition of the rock wasn't that great. Not worth it to risk a 20-25 foot fall to the ground because you misstep on some lichen. The second option would be the safest, but would take too long. The sun was already setting over the ridge and it wouldn't be long before it was completely dark. Even with head lamps and the bright stars, not a very fun option. So off I went to scramble to the top.

As I scaled the easy boulders to the top, I pulled a classic move. "I wonder if there are any mountain lions around here?" DUMB Dan, just DUMB. Real smart to freak yourself out about something you have no control over just before you traverse some sketchy rock. I quickly reached the top and started the traverse over to the anchors. Crawling over loose rock, shifting dirt, and unknown territory is not the most confidence inspiring activity. I slowly made my way above the anchors and let out a huge sigh of relief... much too early. Now I had to climb down to the anchors. I have a healthy fear of heights. By that I mean I am freaked out about falling, but not so much that I lock up. You have to stay relaxed and comfortable to perform your best. But I still don't like the idea of falling 50-60 feet to a rocky ledge.

I assess the best way to climb down. My preference would be to clip into the anchors from above before climbing down, but they are just out of reach. There are two decent knobs I can grab to lower myself down, but they are still sandy, so I rub them down as much as possible before trusting my life to them. The ledge that I am on juts out slightly, so I can't really see if there are any decent feet below. This was the scariest part. Smearing my shoes on the face (wish I had brought my climbing shoes to the top with me), I carefully lower myself to the ledge below. Clip myself into the anchors. Breath of relief. Breath of life. Thank GOD (whatever you believe god to be) I didn't fall.

From there I was able to send the taunting rope down. Clipped onto the rope for my rappel, and down I went, unclipping the remaining carabiners from the rope as I passed them. Safely at the bottom, it was very near dark.

Dan: "Well there's a lesson to be learned in all of this. Always check the end of the rope before you pull it. I'll always remember from now on."

There was still time for Alex to climb (and my anchors were still at the top), so I started pulling the rope again. Pulled the rope halfway...

Dan: "Did you guys untie the knot?"

Karen: "That was the first thing we did when the rope got down."

Dan: "Maybe I didn't learn my lesson?"

Winter On Its Way

I have a friend who is dog/house-sitting in Cordillera. I went up the other day to help by feeding the dogs. It had snowed a little and the clouds were still hanging around. I took this on the way back down, overlooking Edwards.





I mentioned in my last post that it's cold and starting to snow. Here's proof.

It snowed about 6 inches last night, and has been snowing on and off through the day. The next 5 days are supposed to be clear and sunny, so most of this will melt off. I guarantee you I will be climbing every second I can until the next snow. Hopefully we'll have enough people climbing so I can take pics to post.

Biking and Climbing

Last weekend was a great return to my outdoor activities. Chris was out of town enjoying the warmth that is Texas, so I was afraid that I may end up pulling another weekend of computer games and football. Luckily some new friends kept me out of the house. I spent a lazy Friday night chilling in the hot tub and then opening my friends eye's to the awesomeness that is the movie Clay Pigeons. They all seemed to be a bit disturbed, but I love that movie.


I woke up Saturday morning and decided to join my friend Karen on a mountain bike ride. She has a friend that races alot and is really good. So the plan was for me to join those 2 ladies and one of their other friends on a nice ride in Vail. I kept up and stayed towards the front for the 1.5 hour climb to the top. My strategy was to keep them talking so they would run out of breath which worked well. However, they CRUSHED me coming back down on the singletrack. I don't have much technical experience on that stuff and it showed. There were some great views from a clearing. This is the Gore Range.

We were directly across from Vail Mountain. Most of the front side can be seen from that vantage point.

Here is the group that crushed me. I'm (obviously) on the left, Karen, Kerry (the bad ass), and Sarah (also incredible on the singletrack).

I believe this is New York Mountain (same as in the background of the previous shot).

After the grueling (not really, I just haven't been on a bike in a long time) ride, we scarfed down burgers at E-Town and then watched UT beat the crap out of Mizzou. HOOK 'EM HORNS!

Sunday came to a slow start, but was an awesome day of climbing in Gillman Canyon. My friend Alex and I took some newbies out. The rock was cold, but the climbing was really easy. Good for a confidence booster. While pulling the rope before leading, my arm grew to tremendous proportions.

Here I am before the crux of a fun climb.

The only problem with this weekend is that my taste for climbing and biking was not quenched and now it has started snowing and getting really cold. Guess I'll just have to tough it out.

Vail Resorts Sucks

Ahhh corporate America... you have left a bitter taste in my mouth. Not that I didn't see it coming, but Vail really sucks. The resort was fiscally responsible by not giving the big-wigs raises this year. Instead they got promotions, which obviously result in higher salaries. As for the rest of us? "Well, the economy is really not doing very well so we aren't even going to give a big enough raise to our employees to keep up with the cost of living. Sorry little guy. Surely someone will replace you. After all, we are in the mountains and everyone wants to live here." That is a direct quote.

So now I'd like to propose a toast to my crapiest raise ever. Drum roll please... 23 cents!!!!

Thanks alot ASS HOLES!

p.s. On a lighter note, I'll post soon with an update of what I did this past weekend. It was a GREAT weekend!

Chautauqua

I've been out of the office the last 2 days in various meetings. We had a 6.5 hour claims review on Wednesday in Keystone. Not much fun, but it is always a nice change of pace. Yesterday we drove down to the corporate offices in Broomfield for a legal/risk department overview meeting. Afterwards we headed to Chautauqua in Boulder for a nice hike. I didn't get very good pictures, but this is a view of Boulder.





On our way out I snagged this one, too. It is nice to still be able to take some pictures of fall colors.

The hike was pretty easy on well-worn trails and the weather was perfect. Around 60 degrees with a calm breeze. You can't ask for much better (especially when you are still getting paid). I tried to get a pic of a sign as we were headed back. I thought it was kinda funny. Unfortunately, we drove by too quickly and the picture was more of the window tinting. I still think it made for a cool pic.

The sign itself was very effective. I'm not sure how long they have had it up, but I'm sure it has accomplished its purpose by now. It read "TEST SIGN."

Comment Decision

Over 72% of you voted to have comments pop-up as opposed to open in a large window. Pretty much a landslide vote. So, as you wish, comments will now pop up.

And Now The Main Event...

I know you all have been anxiously awaiting some pictures of my new glasses. So here you go.




And now, deep in thought...

I have way too many pictures of myself while sitting at my desk.

Molester Glasses

The frames I almost bought. (Posted via mobile blog)

Spectacles

They came in early! I've had contacts for about 2.5 years, and I went straight with contacts and skipped the glasses. It was easy since my prescription was so light (either +/- .25). Now that the "benefits year" at work just rolled over, I decided it was time to have glasses for a back up. I end up wearing my contacts way longer than I need to each day. I went to get some prescription glasses 10/3/08 and they said it would take about 2 weeks. Lucky me, they came in just over a week!

I have kind of an excited nervousness about wearing them. Part of the reason I didn't get them before is because I am unsure of how I will look in glasses. I almost went with some sweet child-molester glasses.

However, I opted for a more youthful not-so-molestey frame. I'll post a pic tonight or tomorrow after I pick them up.

Cougar Hunting

Chris and I are professional cougar hunters.

How Long Could You Last?

I found this on Hillary's blog. I guess the wrestling experience helps alot.

I could survive for 1 minute, 9 seconds chained to a bunk bed with a velociraptor

As Promised... More Fall

I said yesterday that I would post some more pictures of fall in the valley. Unfortunately most of the leaves have already parted way from the trees they so lovingly clung to during the summer. And by the time I got to the top of my ride on Berry Creek, the sun was setting so the light was too flat to catch the color that remained on the canvas of Colorado. The pictures that I got ended up being more of sunset pictures than fall pictures.

I wish I could post a bigger picture of these. Here is a closer view of the peaks in the last one. You can see a little bit of the golden leaves.

The sunset itself wasn't as grand as some others that I have seen so far.

Stupid PODS

I am starting to semi-plan for moving back to TX... just checking out my options. My biggest concerns right now:

1. when will I leave
2. where will I move to in Austin
3. where will I work
4. how will I get my 2+ carloads of stuff back to Austin

I checked out PODS to see how much it would cost to move my stuff and potentially store it for a month. That way I could move in one trip without having to rent a trailer or tow my car on a U-Haul. I really don't feel like navigating the roads up here with a trailer during the winter. But of course, PODS doesn't service anywhere near where I live. The closest place is in Denver, which is 1.5-2 hours away. Maybe it will just be better to rent a U-Haul or trailer. Chris also mentioned that he may be willing to drive down and take a load in his SUV, but I can't count on that for my move. Especially since I don't know about #1 above.

Any Suggestions?

Evening Plans

The brilliant fall colors are starting to... fall. So before they are all gone I am going to ride up Berry Creek across from my house so I can snag some pictures of the valley. We'll see how the view is. Come back tomorrow for pics!

Wolcott Bouldering

Climbing and bouldering are fun. I remembered that after the most recent TX trip. So before it gets cold and starts snowing, I'm going to do as much of it as possible. Maybe even a trip to Indian Creek in Utah. Yesterday I went bouldering with my friends Alex and Blair. Today we are going to Gilman Canyon for some sport climbing. I can't wait to get out there! Here is a shot of Alex working a hard problem at Wolcott. The landing really sucks. If you're coming down, you want to make sure to jump off and away from the wall. Otherwise you'll have a nice meeting with Mr. Rock. (That's the moon just to the right of his head.)

I finally got 3 pairs of shoes back that I had sent to the Rubber Room to get resoled. (Note to the wise... don't type in rubberroom.com to find the site at work. I got a page that said something like "FORBIDDEN ZONE - This page has been blocked by your administrator and this occurrence has been logged. p.s. Pack your crap now because you will be fired shortly. Enjoy the rest of your day... perv.") It felt so good to slide my aching toes back into my Moccasyms. The sole is more flexible than most and feels like an extra hand as it grips around the smallest little rock feature available.

They treated me well as I worked on a problem I have been attempting for awhile now.

Once I finally got through the lower crimpy section and into the crack, I was prety much done.