Happy Pride

On Sunday, we were riding the Metro to DC and a large group of women got on the train. It was World Pride DC Weekend, and they were obviously in town celebrating. Rainbow fans, little cute face temporary tattoos, T-shirts, and a closeness only a certain fellowship can conjure. 

Happily headed to wherever their next destination was, and happily chatting and laughing together. And it made me very happy to see such happiness.

At the next stop, a very large man got on the train and he began a diatribe. 

"To all the Homos and Lesbos on this train," he yelled. "How the hell did you get on this planet?" 

A hush fell over the train car, just for a second. And all the girls started back to talking and laughing. Louder. Ignoring him.

I could not hear more of what the guy said, he was far enough away, and was yelling and ranting but his hate could not match the strength of the loudness of a Metro Car. A drag queen, partially done up but obviously planning to complete her getup once she got to her destination, engaged with him. With smiles, and love, and no fighting back. The guy was belligerent and the queen composed. Like a Queen should be.

Turning to the two girls sitting behind me, I said "oh I am so sorry about this in my city. He's a jerk." They laughed and said they'd heard stuff like this all weekend. They asked what wonderful thing were we doing that day. We told them about Hen's rock concert and they thought it was delightful. I invited them to come see. But.  They were off to meet up with some friends at a brewery. I asked which one, and let them know DC has a GREAT gay owned/veteran owned brewery in NOMA, and it is one of my top two faves in DC.

They were super excited to hear about that, and one girl got her phone out to look it up and make note of it. 

Before I got off the train, I turned around again and said, "I love you. Just know that. I'm an old Cis-het privileged white lady who if that guy stepped up to you, I'd stand between you and him. I've done it before. I'll do it again. Please have fun. Please enjoy the day. Happy Pride."

They all beamed and smiled and said "Happy Pride to you too!" 

It seemed kind of funny to be wished Happy Pride, but I'll be honest. I'll take it, as an ally to those who recognize when someone is on their side. We can share it. 

I don't like co-opting anything like Pride because it doesn't belong to me. I see a lot of kids that grew up with my kids, online, doing Pride things and I know for a fact, ain't none of them queer. Right? They go along to "support" but also, I know they go to just party and festivus with friends. 

I have always felt differently. Pride does not belong to me. I don't go to the parades, I don't go to festivities. I feel like "you go on with your super gay selves, you friends, and have fun. I'll be over here."

But okay. Those kids from home, they ally. They flex their friendship and their support. Something I have always felt I'm not entitled to do, really. I'll leave that to the younger kids, and I'll watch quietly from the sidelines and step in in very different ways. But for a moment, it was gifted to me by these oh so beautiful humans on a loud Metro train on a Sunday afternoon.

And, since I didn't challenge that guy, I will say.... 

How did the homos and lesbos on that train get onto this earth? The very same way you did, sir. And you have no MORE rights on this planet because you are straight, or gendered the way you think you should be. They have no LESS rights than you do because you are the one who is not queer. 

The Grace of God all of us got here. Or if you don't buy that, an egg got fertilized by a sperm and science started happening, and someone carried to term that science experiment to become a human (you) and they got here. We all got here, we are here. That's how it happened. 

Digits are below.

digits

exercise: 12/12 hours.  Treadmill walk/jog. 21 min/1.24 miles. 10k+ steps by bedtime

blood glucose:
8am: 135
5:30pm: 151
10:45pm: 112

food & meds:
8am: phentermine, jardiance
10am: met+glip
11:30am: english muffin w/pb and some bonnie mamans cherry preserves
3pm: 2 baby bell cheeses
6:30pm: pork medallions w/ sweet potatoes and a nice sauce a la Geoff (very very good!)
8:30pm: met+glip
8:30pm: cashews
9:30pm: triscuits + dill dip
white wine+diet ginger ale

Wat Doin? I Halp!

My sister and I will often text or FB message each other with a simple "Wat Doin?" It comes from an old meme on teh interwebz, pictured below. 

Wat doin? I halp. 

No dog. You ... are not halping. 

So that's usually a cue for one of us is looking to chat with the other, and catch up or whatnot. 

Today, I needed to grab something for dinner, and of course Planet Fitness is next to the market. Geoff had gone shopping this morning but only bought stuff for a dinner he wanted to make that has a lot of pre-prep work.... and I knew I would not have time to do it today. So. We'll make that for tomorrow. 

"Did you happen to, I don't know, buy anything other than just the stuff you needed for your recipe?"

Of course, he only bought what he needed for his recipe. I told him hey, we'll save that for tomorrow. I'll get something else. 

I got to the gym and got a text from Linda that just said "Wat" 

Of course. 

Wat Doin?

I sent back this selfie of me at the gym, and said "I'll call ya after." 

It was good to catch up, we haven't had a chance to talk since before we left for Colorado. Lots to share. Great to chat. I called her while I was on line at the market. I swear. Lidl is great but they only ever have 2 registers open, 90 people in line, and I spend more time waiting to check out than I do picking up things. 

Got home and got dinner going, Geoff and I talked about what would need pre-prepped for tomorrow for his recipe (there's tea that has to be brewed? what? um okay) and we got to eat dinner before 8pm. 

At the gym, I did 25 min. on the treadmill and cut it there, because I wanted to get to the market, get the stuff, get home. I should have pushed it another 5. 

So I felt somewhat back on my bullshit being there, doing the walking/jogging, at sea level. Yay. 

After dinner, I did a bunch of helpdesk work. I had a 90 minute meeting/training thing with a client today and told her I'd just do the web layout stuff she needed, because to have her just do it would be torture. She's all set but I am going to set up another training with her soon. Maybe not this week. 

Tomorrow is Jess' 33rd birthday. How the fuck. Honestly. How do I have a 33 yr old human. They are coming down Thursday and I cannot wait. 

I also have to admit, my body is on Mountain Time. I'm super wide awake at the time of this writing (11:15pm) and I have to go to bed. Buuuuuut I'm not tired. And then, in the morning when the alarm goes off at 8am, I'm hitting snooze. Over and over. Like I don't got no job or some shit. 

It takes me until 11 or so to feel human. 

Your girl is a mountain time girl. 

Alright. Digits. Below. Yay. 

digits

exercise: 12/12 hours. Treadmill yaaaassss. 25 min/1.42 miles; 10k+ steps by bedtime. 

blood glucose:
9:15am: 137
4:30pm: 91
11pm:  124

food & meds:
9:30am: phentermine, jardiance
11am: large bowl of plain greek yogurt w/ 2 granola bars crushed up, and blueberries
12:30pm: Met+glip
6:30pm: small bowl of penne pasta w/meat sauce and 2 small pieces of garlic bread
8:45pm: met+glip
white wine with diet ginger ale

A day of rock shows in DC and Baltimore

Sorry missed out on posting a journal entry last night. We got home at midnight, and went to bed at 2am. Long day! 

Here is the Sunday recap. 

MS and I were met by our friend D from Philly and we went into DC for Hen's rockshow. He wasn't as on point/task as the last time I saw him perform with School of Rock but he was into it. All that matters. He was very surprised to see us there, and maybe that was a distraction. But we loved it. 

His band was a Funk band, so they played a lot of really cool interesting things. A lot of things with lyrics that I don't think tweens and teens should sing, but.... hey. It's music. And the musicians have grown and evolved and changed. I've seen a few of these kids perform before, and they were just so good. I want to be these kids when I grow up. 

I have NO idea what Hen was going for here with his look, but, holy shit he was hilarious. 

MS, D, and I bailed before the last 2 songs so we could get up to my house, D could grab his car (since he lives in Philly, leaving from Baltimore with the car was smarter than leaving from Baltimore to my house 1/2 hour south, to go back north). MS and I grabbed my car and we headed to a meetup that I set up. Only a few people came to this one. That's okay. We had a couple core friends, and two new intros to our team. 

We were hanging out upstairs, and my friend was at the bar downstairs. He called me and said "get your ass down here NOW!" 

When M says something like that, I know it is good. 

I stopped at the bar and asked what's up. He said "Did you invite Brian to the meetup? He's outside looking confused." 

Oh shit.

Brian, of course, is the drummer. I went out and said "Hey B." 

He replied, "Hey C." 

So weird when you have a thing verbally with like, a bona fide rock star but. For years if we talk on email, he's B. I am C. This is Brian. This is where we are as fan to rockstar, or perhaps even friend to friend?

I asked if he wanted to come up and hang out with some fans, usually the band knows about meet ups, but they do not come. 

"I'm waiting for my wife to park the car and come here," he said. "It's our son's birthday. We're having dinner before the show but parking is tough here." 

Yes. Yes it is. I drove around forever until we found a spot. 

He has twin sons.

So soak that comment in for a minute. "It's my son's birthday." Single son. His twins were born on two different days.

As a super fan, you know this. 

I asked which son, and he told me. The other son's birthday was the day before. I thought it was so fucking sweet that they were taking just this one out for his birthday and I hoped the day before they took the other one out for his. I bet they did. 

After chatting for a bit, Brian noticed an open parking spot across the street and told me he was going to go stand in it and call his wife to come and park. Genius. I went back upstairs. 

What was really funny was I didn't tell anyone else what I went downstairs for until I went upstairs. It was not a send 10 people running downstairs to say hi to B at top speed moment. 

Some folks went down to say hi to B as he and his wife and son were getting put at their table. My friend MS had brought a bag with her and she had a BUNCH of whoopie pies from Maine. She handed me one and said "I feel weird going back down, bothering them, but can you give his son a whoopie pie for his birthday?" 

I said "He has twins, so maybe two? One for each?" she handed me a second one. I went downstairs. 

I walked up to the table, respectfully, said hi to Mrs. B. And I handed the birthday boy a whoopie pie. I explained that someone upstairs didn't want to come down and be disruptive but. I have no problem being disruptive. Here. Happy Birthday. We love you. 

He was thrilled. 

I handed the second one to Brian. 

"Oh, I'm off sugar," he says. Oh no, honey. 

"This is for your other child celebrating their birthday, not for YOU, ya dingus!" I said.

"Oh, so you weren't thinking fondly of ME."

"No. I was not. It's for your KID, please give him this. But yes I think fondly on you but I know you are not on the sugars (another weird thing to know is that B and I have talked about Type 2 diabetes and pre-diabetes in the past). Not for you, but for the other kid.  Happy birthday everyone. 

Oy.

The look on his face when I told him it was for the other child was HILARIOUS. 

When we were done upstairs with our dinner and our fellowship we came down, and B and his family were still there so several folks stopped to talk to him. 

I just said "hey, don't suck tonight, okay?" 

His wife thought that was very funny.

At the show Fastball started (we pretty much skipped them), Guster next, and Barenaked Ladies performed.  This is an annual thing BNL does for the Last Summer On Earth tour, and the last time I went to a LSOE tour was Ben Folds 5, Guster, and BNL 2013 was that year, and the Tanglewood show was Brian's 40th birthday. 

Now, long time readers (all 3 of you) know that I truly love Barenaked Ladies. When Steven Page left the band in 2009-ish, I was so sad. I love Steven. I love him as a solo artist. And I kind of felt the band lost a lot when he left but hell if those motherfuckers didn't keep making music. Hell yeah. Also, I'm super infatuated with Ed Robertson so .... I'll take it! 

and BNL introduced me to Guster. Look where we are today with my obsessive fandom?

I've only seen BNL once or twice since 2009. I've seen Steven solo or with his trio once or twice since. 

My adoration and respect for them as artists will always exist. 

BNL on Sunday night were just amazing. Absolutely amazing. Most of the people in attendance were there for BNL. Not for Fastball or Guster. There were some Guster fans, and those of us there to cheer for Guster were very into them. 

At one point, Ryan Miller leaves the stage and comes out into the audience, and he comes right up to the guy who was at our meet up, who we've never met (Tim) and just starts singing with him and hugging on him.

I recorded the whole moment as my new acquaintance was just all of a sudden living his best Fan Life. When it was over, and Ryan was back on stage he came screaming over to us freaking out that this happened. 

After so many years of being a fan, he finally got this moment with the band. 

So happy for him. 

The show was great. Encore was BNL bringing Fastball and Guster back out on stage to sing the "Canadian National Anthem," which of course is Bryan Adams' "Summer of 69." 

Hilarious to see Luke Reynolds absolutely crushing the keyboards for this one. 

Here are a couple pictures from the show. We had great seats but I was exceptionally in the moment and paying attention to it all. 

BNL can still crush it, without Steven. And Steven crushes it with his new friends. And I'm super okay with that all. Nothing changes or alters my love for them at all.

Sunday digits

exercise: 11/12 hours. Missed 9am for sleeping in. walking to metro in DC, 10 min/.39 miles; 11k+ steps by midnight (bedtime came at 2am)

blood glucose:
10am: 124
n/a: didn't take mid afternoon reading
11pm:  175 (checked again at 2am after snack and meds, 124)

food & meds:
10am: phentermine, jardiance
didn't track food times, but had an english muffin w/pb and low sugar jelly before going to DC
noon: met+glip
4pm: slices of ham & havarti
6pm: 3 meatballs w/ sauce at little italy in B'more
11:45pm: met+glip; mixed nuts; white wine

Monday digits

exercise: 12/12 hours.  2 walks. First in the house while dinner was cooking, 20 min/1.13 miles. then a pokemon walk, 15 min/.6 mile. 

blood glucose:
9am: 134
5pm: 104
11:45pm:  136

food & meds:
10am: phentermine, jardiance
noon: met+glip
12:30pm: blt salad
6pm: 3 frozen burritos buried in cheese w/salsa on top;
8pm: met+glip
through the evening: trail mix, white wine+diet ginger ale

It's The Altitude. Leadville to Denver to Home

The entire time we were in Colorado we kept making jokes about our own mental mistakes. Doug said something was somewhere and I said no it is not. It is here... and he said "It's the altitude." 

He also said "be sure to put me in a nice home" after making a big mistake. 

Personally, my mental capacities were okay but I did feel dizzy. A lot. This is not helpful when you're on a cliff. Thankfully no injury befell me. I tripped twice during the trip, thankful for a bush that caught my fall before I landed on my face or shattered my knees. 

We left Leadville at 10am since we had to check out of the tiny house. The altitude was seriously impacting Doug, and I had a horrible night's sleep thanks to muscle spasms in my shoulder like restless leg syndrome. Is there restless shoulder syndrome? 

Stopping at Circle K for coffee, neither of us were hungry, we started our drive to Denver. Our flight was scheduled for 4:30pm, and I'm glad we left when we did. We hit traffic between Idaho Springs and Denver. Hours. Hours of waiting. Millions of cars. Three lanes reduced to two lanes reduced to one lane. 

Absolutely maddening to come up to the end of the lane restrictions and not even see one guy working. Thanks. Thanks a lot. 

We stopped for lunch at 1pm, and we re-organized our bags, getting our carry-on situation TSA safe, and all of our treasures like the antique things and the marble tucked into the big suitcases. 

Our flight was uneventful. On time, but delayed then on time and delayed again. We did finally leave on time. Weather was touch and go for a bit. Glad we were able to get off the ground and back home. 

Toffee lost her mind when we came in. As we predicted. So happy to see her. And I'll be honest, we had probably one of the best vacations we've ever had but coming home to her was the best part of it all.

My friend MS came this morning, she drove down from Maine so we can go see BNL/Guster in Baltimore tomorrow. When I reminded him last night that she was coming, Doug said he didn't remember me ever telling him. Thing is, I did. I know I did. Because when we were making our trip plans I told him I wanted to be home Friday so she could come Saturday (I thought it would be Saturday Night) and we'd go to the concert Sunday, and she'd head home Monday morning. 

She likes to leave Maine in the middle of the night, a lot less traffic to deal with but this time of year, a lot more construction.  

I didn't house clean too much since honestly, I got less than 5 hours of sleep and I was surprised when she told me she'd be arriving between 10 and 11. Like I said, I presumed she'd be coming around maybe dinner time. So having a full day to spend together was nice. She brought us gifts as thanks for hosting. Always a classy move.

Doug went to Aldi and she went too, because she'd never been to one and wanted to check it out. Such fun. I walked the dog while they were out. I didn't get my 12 hours of 250 in, missed the 8pm one because we were sitting around outside chatting after eating dinner. 

And I didn't go take a good long long walk, not going to hit 10k today. Resigned to that fact. But we'll get it tomorrow for sure. 

MS took this pic of Doug at the back patio. She wanted him to pose with the Bissell Brothers' On the Ocean beer from last year's fest.

Digits below. Good day today with an even better one to look forward to tomorrow. 

Friday digits

exercise: 6/12 hours. Somewhat impacted by losing 3 hours of time in the airport+time travel. 10 min. walk around the airport before the flight (I procrastinated, could have done a lot more!) half mile total. 7600+ steps by bedtime

blood glucose:
8am: 90
n/apm: no afternoon reading, on the plane
11pm (ET):  135

food & meds:
8am: phentermine, jardiance
can't really remember times that I ate, but at 1pm we had lunch at Cafe Rio. Burrito w/steak, guac, sour cream, black beans, cheese.
1pm: met+glip
airplane snacks
10pm: mixed nuts while waiting for luggage. Met+glip
11pm: triscuits+peanut butter

Saturday digits

exercise: 11/12 hours. Missed 8pm because we were sitting chatting at the picnic table. Took Toffee for a nice but short walk due to the heat, 15 min/.65 mi. 7500+ steps by bedtime

blood glucose:
9am: 131
5pm: 102
11pm:  112

food & meds:
9am: phentermine, jardiance
1pm: turkey, provolone, lettuce in low carb wrap. met+glip
5:30pm: some mixed nuts
6:30pm: met+glip; cheeseburger over mixed greens salad, cherry tomatoes, ranch dressing, small scoop of potato salad
white wine

home

 Our flight was pretty great. I don't have the energy to do an actual entry so that'll wait until tomorrow. It is midnight, my brain thinks it is 10pm. Ha Ha Ha, brain. Go to bed. If you can. 

More later.

Up in the Clouds, Leadville

This morning, I went to see one of my clients because heck, we were in their town! I hadn't planned on seeing anyone but then had second thoughts. I found out we drove through Paonia and I could have stopped there but I just wasn't thinking of work people. 

I was so happy to reach out to them and ask to come by. We had a lovely visit, Doug stayed at the hotel. He didn't want to meet people and his belly has been feeling super bloated the past few days so he needed some alone time. 

After my visit, I came back and he had us fully packed up. We went out to late breakfast. I had been thinking of having lunch in Aspen with another client's office but Doug was hungry, and we obey Doug's tummy when it wants something. 

In Carbondale, C had recommended a spot so we headed right there to the Village Smithy. Fantastic. Amazing. Delicious. And my breakfast came with a side of 3 larger than silver dollar but smaller than "normal" pancakes. 

I did not have regrets.

I have not had pancakes in so long, and these were perfection. I only ate half my egg/bacon/spinach quesadilla and none of my hash browns as a result, it was too much food. 

We walked around Carbondale a little bit until it started to rain. Hitting the road again, we headed to Aspen. I met up with my colleagues and had a longer visit there than I expected I would. They were just so friendly and the engineer wanted to show me all their Audio to IP equipment he's been installing. I have no idea what that is or how it works, but he's super pumped about it and proud of the work. 

Also, they had a dog. In the office. She's 6 months old. And I love her. 

Leaving Aspen, we headed up to Independence Pass. We stopped at a couple lookie lou spots, and it started to snow. Real, serious, amazing snow. Independence Pass was full of cars that made it up there and I don't know, thought they'd wait out the snow. It wasn't sticking to the road, the air temperature was a little too warm, and we kept going. I would have loved to have stopped, looked at the Independence Ghost Town on the way up, but people were driving like idiots and we wanted off that ride. 

Down and down back into Teller county, to Rte 24 where you either turn left to Leadville or right to beautiful Buena Vista. This area was familiar to us. No more snow, 15 degrees warmer, and raining hard off and on. 

We got to Leadville where Doug had rented us a tiny house. 

No one is there to check you in, you just have the code to the lock emailed to you and you go in. And you just leave by 10am. They are very strict about that.

There are a dozen of these really super cute units, and we are staying in the Dragonfly house. It has a loft up over the bathroom, and Doug climbed up to take a nap. He was pretty wiped. I checked us into our flight for tomorrow and took a short walk. Short being the operative term. I feel like I've gotten used to the altitude say at about 7k ft up. But at this over 10k height ... wow. This is a bit much. And Doug is super feeling it. 

I came back from my tiny walk to the tiny house, and I also took a nap. Woke up in time to do steps. Doug had a hell of a time getting down out of the loft, which was both hilarious and nerve wracking. He could have fallen 6 feet down or slipped and landed on both feet, jamming his knees and heels. 

It also took all my willpower NOT to grab my camera and record him trying to get down. I would not like someone doing that to me, so. I exercised restraint. We decided no. We would not be sleeping up there. Luckily the little couch in the living room folds out to what appears to be a decently sized bed, if not a bit super firm. I think when you make the reservation at the Tiny House Leadville, they should ask how big you are and you should be honest. There are other units that are unoccupied, that look as if they have different sized sleeping spots. 

We slept in a loft in Florence at the hot springs, and it was perfect. Easy up and down (the only thing I didn't like was it had no hand rail on the open/exposed side but that seems to be the style?) 

Anyway. Dinner time.

Doug wanted to go to the Silver Dollar Saloon, and it was around the corner. Easy walk. But their kitchen was closed. 

We had one beer and looked at all the amazing things. Very historic location, but we were hungry. The bartender recommended a spot across the street so we headed to the Tennessee Pass Cafe. The food was good, the beer was all local, and it hit the spot. 

Back to the tiny house, quietude, slow internet that does not like images but seems to be doing okay with just writing this entry. 

Tomorrow we check out of here and head back to Denver. And home. Doug said he's ready to go home, and is thankful we planned it this way to have Saturday and Sunday home before we have to work. 

Digits, below. Here's the inside of the tiny house. From the couch to the bathroom door, 18 steps. 

digits

exercise: 12/12 hours.  two short walks, one for about 3 min./.19 mi just to stretch my legs and get light headed; another for about 11 min/.29 mi go go to dinner. 10k+ steps by bedtime

blood glucose:
8:30am: 134
5pm: 80
10:30pm:  138

food & meds:
8:30am: phentermine, jardiance
11am: 1/2 breakfast quesadilla, 3 pancakes
12pm: Met+glip
5pm: the other half of my breakfast quesadilla
8pm: hot bacon salad w/ cup of beer cheese soup. 2 beers
9pm: met+glip

Black Canyon of the Gunnison

The hotel Doug picked for last night was decent. It had a large jacuzzi tub and he thought I'd really love it, with the jets and everything. Not a big fan of hotel jacuzzis because they look hard to clean and I wonder how clean they really are, but, he did it for me. 

At 10pm I found myself soaking in the jacuzzi, where the jets were in all the wrong spots (needed hip-side jets not feet and lower back only). I spent about 20 minutes in there. It took longer to fill the thing. 

But I slept well. It was relaxing. I did wake up four times to pee. 

Staying hydrated has its downsides! 

This morning we took our time getting out and ready. We both were awake by 8:15 and he drank room coffee, I went down to the lobby to investigate the breakfast scene. Be proud of me - it was hard to pass up the waffle. So hard. 

We hit the road but stopped at a nice little sandwich shop in Gunnison, ordered take away, and then did a 3 block walk away and back to allow for the sandwiches to be made. Then we hit the road. 

Doug had waffled on the plan he'd set but decided we'd stick with it. We headed out of Gunnison to the West, Rte 50 to the Blue Mesa dam and onto 92 taking it to the branch off to the Black Canyon.

The entire way the sky was threatening, to the west, and we were driving into that direction. We got to the ranger station where there is no staffing, and people were very frustrated because they wanted to pay for camping an day use. We tried to use the QR code and it would not work, so instead of getting frustrated, we went. Go. Go see the thing. Doug wants to buy a year pass for the national parks and when he does we'll just consider this visit paid for. 

I am so glad we did not pass up this visit, this opportunity. 

What a stupendous place. 

We visited the North Rim because Doug read that there is a ton of road work happening on the south rim and it is a much longer drive that would put us out of range of where we wanted to be to get north to Carbondale. 

The views were unreal - we were blown away by the entire place. Every corner we turned showed us something radically different, unexpected. 

Doug suggested we do a hike, all basically flat, but the rain started to kick in harder so we opted to pass on that. 

We did stop at each of the overlooks to overlook. And I was obsessed with the wild flowers growing all over the place. 

After taking in our fill of the Black Canyon we headed out. Through Crawford, Paonia, making progress northward. 

Doug read about a little town called Marble, and we took a side quest to check it out. Not a lot to see, but there was a box on the side of the road where if you made a donation to the town, you could take a block of Marble. So ... Doug did. And now we have a nice paperweight sized blank piece of Marble to cherish. 

Leaving Marble, we continued north on 133, into Redstone and we stopped to check out the historic Coke ovens on the side of the road. Dozens of these line the road, part of the history of Coal and Coke in Colorado. 

We finally got to Carbondale, and went straight to the brewery that served food. Great meal, super friendly people. The guy next to us was super chatty and so sweet. I had to finish 2k steps after we checked in, because we didn't get our hike in. So I hiked all around the building and up and down the stairs just to make sure I got it all in there. 

Our hotel is good, there is a big husky in the lobby and I love her. Digits below my ridiculous face reminding you as well, that yes, you are beautiful. 

digits

exercise: 11/12 hours.  Missed 1pm from being in the car and the rain. took 2 walks. One at black canyon quickly in the rain but enough to be measured, 7 min/.32 mi. second at the hotel. 11 min/.50 mi. 10k+ steps by bedtime

blood glucose:
8:30am: 147
5:30pm: 153
9:30pm:  144

food & meds:
8:30am: phentermine, jardiance
9:15am: english muffin w/2 sausage patties, some scrambled eggs
11am: met+glip
2pm: turkey and avocado sandwich, some chips, powerade
6pm: patty melt, 2 beers
8pm: met+glip
8:30pm: cheese and nuts and another beer

Florence to Buena Vista to St. Elmo to the Great Divide to Gunnison

I completely forgot to mention in yesterday's entry, Jess is coming for a visit after we get back. They took the entire birthday week off, and will come Wednesday, leave Sunday, and they are bringing their dog. 

And I so very very hope Dijon gets along wonderfully with Toffee! 

They asked to go see Twelfth Night at the Folger Shakespeare Library, so we'll do that on Friday. Doug wanted to do the 2pm Saturday show but ... oh no. That's going to be kind of a Day To Stay Away From DC. I won't say more about that. But ... Ugh. Plans altered for that day. We will find something else to do on June 14th. 

This morning we woke up early. Well, Doug woke up early like a little kid at christmas to jump back into the soaking pool. He made us coffee and we headed out to enjoy our last bit of time. I didn't get the really cool shot of the clouds lower than the mountains, black green surrounded by white grey. But I got a little of it after. Staged this shot of our coffee cups after we got out. 

Hard to leave go of this little space but we had to. We headed into Florence to grab coffee and started our journey for the day. We headed to Rte 50 in Cañon City to run alongside the Arkansas River for a good long time. There are a lot of little towns named on the map but nothing there really. 

We got to Salida, and it was too early to stop for lunch so we headed further north to Nathrop. Which... is .... a nothing town. oops. We passed where we needed to turn just to go up to Buena Vista, or BV as the cool kids call it, and there were tons of options there for lunch. We picked Sorelle and got take out sandwiches and an oatmeal cookie whoopie pie. 

Off to St. Elmo. 

We enjoyed our trip from Buena Vista over, passing the chalk cliffs and Mount Princeton. Gorgeous ride along the Chalk Creek up to the top where the "ghost" town lives and lives and is lively! We ate our lunch in front of the Mercantile building, walked all up and down the road reading about the history of the town. We stopped in at the general store and I got a refrigerator magnet, and we found a license plate for Geoff's collection. 

They have a ton of hummingbirds there, so hummingbirds are big on all their merch. We were fascinated watching them fly and fight. 

Doug went and bought sunflower seeds so we could go over to this wood pile and feed the freaking chipmunks. And I think it was the best dollar we ever could have spent. 

I took maybe 900 pictures of the little beasts eating right out of our hands. And video.

There were a dozen little kids there and the chipmunks were afraid of them but also really wanted sunflower seeds. After the kids cleared out, we had the beasts to ourselves. An older couple came by and the husband was feeding the chipmunks while the wife recorded and took pictures. They were laughing hysterically. 

Relationship goals in 10 years for Doug and Chris. 

Doug and I both agreed that my dad would have had an absolute blast feeding chipmunks from his hand. 

Anyway.

Onward. Back down the road out of St. Elmo into BV, instead of over to Tincup. I'm glad we went this way to get to the Cottonwood Pass because the ride was extraordinary. So beautiful. I took almost as many pictures up there as I did of chipmunks in St. Elmo. 

I am not good at selfies, but there you go. That's the highest point on earth your girl has been to at over 12k ft above sea level. 

Down from the Great Divide you leave San Isabel Park and enter Gunnison. The terrain changes, there are more trees, It feels less desert and more forest. We stopped at Stage Coach Meadows and watched a deer graze by a pond filled with frogs and peepers. The symphony was amazing. I don't know how to put Video into blogger, but if I figure it out, I will. 

Over to Taylor Reservoir and the dam, and over to Almont and into Gunnison. Whew. 

Dinner at the brewery in the center of town, and boy are we tired. Our hotel tonight is nothing compared to last night and the three nights in Cripple Creek, but it's perfectly cromulent, and it has a jet bathtub which methinks I want to soak in! 

Doug is plotting our day for tomorrow. I just know we are staying in Carbondale, and we could zig or zag or loop-de-loop tomorrow all around the area. Not sure yet what the plan is. 

Digits below. 

digits

exercise: 12/12 hours. Really good walk in St. Elmo. 46 min/1.05 miles; 10k+ steps by bedtime

blood glucose:
6:30am: 135
4:30pm: 123
9:45pm: 162

food & meds:
6:30am: phentermine, jardiance
8am: met+glip. cheese and blueberries
1:30: turkey and cream cheese of some sort w/arugula and cranberries on a nice roll; bread pudding
5pm: oatmeal whoopie pie 1/2 split with Doug (on top of the great divide!) 
7:30pm: 2 beers, goat cheese & beet salad w/chicken, 2 slices of pizza w/pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms
8:30pm: met+glip 

and we are at the hot springs

Lo and behold, they have wifi after all. Lucky us! And Lucky YOU!

We left our lovely hotel around 11, and had a great chat goodbye with the owner. Honest to goodness, really enjoyed our stay there. And I think he liked us. He said they get their fair share of unhappy people, and he was very happy to have us and get to know us. 

The Shelf Road doesn't take nearly as long to drive on as Phantom Canyon did, and it is extraordinarily beautiful with surprise scenes around each bend. Just when you think you've seen the coolest thing, just go around the corner. 

It is a very rough road so we were happy to have the jeep. The hotel owner said he's done that road in his Subaru Outback, with AWD and big knobby tires. You need them. It was muddy and thick in spots, and then dry as a bone with dust everywhere. 

We got to Cañon City and cut through to Florence, the antiquing capitol of the USA! Or so they claim. There we spent a ton of time browsing one store. I couldn't imagine going to another store. It was exhausting. I found two license plates for Geoff for his collection, a sweet bottle opener for Jess, and Doug found a really cool dolphin figurine for the upcoming birthday cellie next week.  

And there was a brewery around the corner, so we went. Excellent beer, super staff. We enjoyed a fun visit there for sure. 

Because we were going to the hot springs to stay the night, and they are rather remote and don't have food, we decided to eat a big meal and buy some snacks for later. So we went to a sushi/steakhouse and had a great dinner too. Florence is an alright town! 

We stopped for ice for the hot/cold bag because we didn't think there would be a fridge. Turns out they have ever amenity you'd want except a TV and that's ok because we don't need to watch TV. Desert Reef Hot Springs is really cool, semi-secluded, and there are a multitude of soaking options. Super hot to a lot less hot, clothing optional so leave your judgement in the car. 

And we have this cute little short trailer unit and our own little soaking pool. 

So right when we got checked in and brought to our abode, we jumped in for a soak. Super Rancho Relaxo. Doug had hoped we'd have stars to look at tonight bit it is cloudy and we're supposed to get some serious thunderstorms after 11pm. 

I should have bulk uploaded my pictures to Facebook from today like I did with the ones from Phantom Canyon, because the wifi here is not fast, or good, or ... So the only picture I put online today was on Instagram, and I grabbed it just for here. 

Big Beer and Lil' Beer. Digits below! 

digits

exercise: 12/12 hours. slow saunter walk through downtown Florence, 17 min/.46 mi. 10k+ steps by bedtime

blood glucose:
8:30am: 117
n/a pm: did not take a reading
8:30pm: 108

food & meds:
8:30am: phentermine, jardiance
9am: apple and peanut butter
through the morning, beef jerky, sugar free powerade, nuts
3:30pm: met+glip; 3 beers at Florence Brewing Company; bowl of snacky popcorn
5pm: pad thai, onion soup, gyoza, tempura shrimp
8:30pm: met+glip
9pm: sliced cheddar and a small glass of beer from the brewery

To The Hot Springs

 Doug is relatively certain there is no wifi at the next overnight (tonight) so I thought I'd just post a quick note. I have been getting 2,000+ hits a day on this blog which makes me think I'm being crawled by AI "learning" bots and not humans unless carrie and linda are checking a thousand times a day to see what's happening. 

Cripple Creek is over 9000 ft, yesterday we dropped down to around 5k-ish. I felt the difference immediately. More awake, alert, alive. On the way back up I still felt okay. It wasn't until I was getting ready for bed I could see my pulse in my eyeballs. 

Not fully used to it up here I guess. 

Super bummed to be checking out of this hotel. Doug did good by having us use this as our basecamp for a few days and not quickly move to another area. There is a lot of Colorado to see. And I kind of hope we'll be back here. It's special, and worth the visit. 

So everyone, book your stay at The Hotel St. Nicholas and treat yourself. 

Will update when able. Who knows, it could be tonight after all!