74. A First Reunion Part 2

Week 74  12/4/16

This public land is right near Julia and John's house. When it's not cloudy, even more of the Rockies can be seen.

We went to Boulder for Christmas shopping and when Paul was about to enter the book store he found Julia in the window. Window displays are part of her job.

In the third floor ballroom of the book store, Julia points to her officer above. We bought books and had them shipped home.

This is the lobby of the Boulderado Hotel. The ceiling is leaded glass and the woodwork is cherry. Some day we will come here for a meal. The ornaments oh the tree are about a food in diameter.

While Julia and John were at work, we went to Golden one day. Another day we went to the Golden Gate Canyon State Park. It was snowy and the driving was treacherous in the Rockys. I drove. Slowly. When we were really ready for a break, we found this spot in Nederland. We ate a brownie sundae and drank coffee and hot chocolate as we browsed the used books. Next door was a home grown marijuana store. Across the street is a carousel. After coffee we went to the alpaca goods store where I bought a yarn present for Julia.

When Gillian arrived, it was fun to have the whole family together. Ben was amazing at finding good spots to eat. Even John and Julia had not heard of the pizza place we went to that had gluten free crust and good beer.

 Another night we went to this brew pub, Kikopelli's, in Westminster, where two authentic but not terribly gifted Irish musicians sang for us. Paul made a request of a Stan Rodgers song after they started to pack up, and they happily looked up the lyrics and sang the long song for us. 

There was quite a bit of snow when we went to Rocky Mountain National Park. Paul and Ben walked around Bear lake, but I was not up to it because of the extreme cold and slippery path, so Gillian and I waited it out in the car.

We think these piles of wood are created as a safety measure to keep dry brush from starting fires. They are intentionally burned on days when the wind is still.

On another very cold day, we went to the Denver Aquarium which is called "Downtown Aquarium." Gillian maintains her loyalty and preference for the National Aquarium in Baltimore, of which she is a member, but she enjoyed this different kind of aquarium which has more fresh-water fish than many aquariums, being in a landlocked state. I think they have some great exhibits and the animals seem healthy and well cared-for.

Yes, there are tigers at the aquarium. Don't know why.

Back in Boulder for shopping.

On our last night together, we went to the Dushanbe Tea House in Boulder, our favorite restaurant in the area. We asked for the corner table where diners sit on a platform.

73. A First Reunion Part 1

Week 73  12/1/16

Our family all wanted Ben's fiance Gillian to meet Julia and John in person. (We had all skyped at Thanksgiving.) A trip to Colorado was planned between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Gillian was not able to be with us for the whole trip but we had her for a few days before she set off for another previously-planned trip.


We arrived while John and Julia were still at work, so we went to the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Park. There were about 75 bison very close to the road.

The next day, we and Ben went to El Dorado Canyon. There are no rock climbers to watch this time of year. It was snowing but we were able to take a nice hike anyway.

On the weekend we were able to spend more time with Julia and John. Here she is on the balcony of the Denver Museum of Art.

The museum has an extensive wing of Native American art from all over North America.

On Saturday we had a late Thanksgiving dinner. Julia roasted turkey and made the side dishes and pumpkin pie. Ben, or family pie specialist, made the apple pie.

The day after we celebrated Thanksgiving we decorated the Christmas tree. It took a while to find a tree that was not way overpriced but finally one was found.

Paul, Ben and I went to Fort Collins for breakfast with his longtime friend Paul and his wife Pat. Then we went to this notable yarn store where I bought some Wollemeise yarn, available in the USA only at this store. Afterwards we went to the Fort Collins old town and were unimpressed - unless we were in the wrong area.

72. Thankful for family

Week 72  11/25/16

Charlie and Judy offered to host Thanksgiving this year and we were happy to come. None of our children were there, but they were mentioned once or twice.  :-)

Brothers discussing family memories behind the house. We walked around the large field before dinner. On Friday, Charlie and Paul climbed the mountain. Judy made a delicous soup.

View of Charlie and Judy's house in Amherst.

71. Noanet Woodlands

Week 71  11/14/16

Noanet Woodlands is a Trustees spot in Dover. We had never been here before. There is an extensive trail system and lots more to explore in future visits.

This is how the sky looked!

We decided to climb to the highest point overlook and stopped to have a picnic.

And here is the view! The colors were very nice - a bit subtle on first look, but more interesting the more we looked. Can you see Boston on the horizon?

Evidence of drought is very obvious here.

70. Disappointing day, to say the least...

Week 70  11/8/16

On election day, Paul and I hoped (OK -- expected) to be celebrating the election of Hillary Clinton to be President of the United States. We and other like-minded folks met at Vincent and Deborah's house, ate Mexican food and watched a TV screen, trying to figure out what was happening. Paul and I had reserved tickets to the party at Wellesley College, but we decided not to go, after all.

69. A bit of Boston History

Week 69  11/3/16

Paul had never toured the Massachusetts State House, so we made a reservation to have a guide show us around. Of course we had to be scanned through a metal detector at the entrance. Arriving early, we spent some time looking at the exhibits in the main hall.

We both learned a lot about the history and art of this "new" state house. The others on our tour were from Chicago (proud of Cubs recent World Series win) and Philadelphia. Both cities with much history of their own. For me, much of the interest was seeing legislators, aides, press and others scurrying around doing their regular business. One hall was set up for a press conference. 

This hall of flags is a new use for the space. Each city and town in the Commonwealth has a flag displayed. It is used for functions. Medway's flag is in the middle tier, 9th from the left (white flag with seal in the center).

Next stop was to the main branch of the Boston Public Library. We viewed a special exhibition on Shakespeare.

This photo of the main Copley Square entrance makes me laugh because even though I've been here dozens of times, I would have sworn that there were two lions at the outside entrance. Turns out the lions are inside. The figures on either side of the entrance represent science and the arts. Paul has chosen science for his photo op.

We picked up a hot drink at the cafe and watched the tourists.

I was excited to show Paul the beautiful new (last month) renovations to the BPL building at the Boylston Street entrance. Here is a broad view of the information/cafe/radio broadcast booth area.

The upper floors of the renovated building contain spaces for media, children, reference, and so forth. It is getting lots of use. That is me on the stairs. Paul is taking this shot from the matching staircase on the other side of the lobby.

I wanted to see the old reading room where I read and studies sometimes. This part of the library is historically preserved.

This is the Abbey Room with it's murals about the quest for the Holy Grail. The room is being set up for a function here.

68. Barber Reservation

Week 68  10/25/2016

We took a hike at a spot that neither of us had visited before - the Barber Reservation in Sherborn, MA. A walk through the woods took us to a series of connected fields, separated by beautiful stone walls. Others were taking their dogs for walks. Signs warn against going off the paths in order to protect plants and wildlife. The views were beautiful, especially with the autumn color. Because it has been an area for horse events, there are many jumps scattered around. Paul says he has seen notices for these events recently also, and apparently cross-country skiing is allowed.

This property is fairly recently acquired by the Town of Sherborn and is part of the Bay Circuit Trail System.