Rocky Mountain highs and lows

What a couple of weeks. We were in Colorado from Feb 9 through 15. A great trip. A little work thrown in, but primarily a real winter getaway. We stayed in Frisco, up in Summit County, just a 15-minute drive from Copper Mountain, where we skiied for 4 days. At first, I thought we were just extra wimpy after getting LA-spoiled by temperate weather; but in fact, our local friends (Sudie, and her boyfriend Tony) were shivering just as much. It was 3 degrees the first day we skiied. Seriously! And the next morning, when we all got up, the car thermometers read -19. It was insanely cold.

Of course, while skiing, the cold was not so noticeable--only going up the lifts did my fingers turn numb inside my heavy-duty, Gore-Tex mittens (with liners and disposable heat-packs tucked in the open space). As long as my hat covered my hair and forehead, goggles covered my eyes, and neck gaiter covered the rest of my face...I was OK! Noah cursed his clothing the first day (yes, literally), and it was understandable. Winter really does encumber.

The 3rd and 4th days were much better. Temps were in the 30s and 40s, which felt downright balmy when we had to walk around the mountain's base. It helped me to remember how I could have felt that Colorado winters were so tolerable, even comfortable. That seems ludicrous every time we complain about 60-degree days. On campus yesterday, for example, every time an exterior door opened, I heard loud laments about how "freezing" it was. I think the high was 58.

We had a terrific time visiting with my Dad and Mark, who came up for most of the time to share the condo and enjoy their own winter getaway. They went snowshoeing, (dog) sledding, skiing, and shopping--the 4 Ss--and it seemed like a lot of fun. I think next time I'll take one day off from skiing (oh, the sore quads!!) and try some of those alternatives. Sudie and Tony snowshoed one day, too, and then skiied with us for two days. Actually, not with me--I was sticking to the easier slopes, as my legs complained loudly every time I tried to carve a turn. But Noah divided his time between them and me, and I think he got more skiing in than any of us. Mark turns out to be quite a good skiier for not having hit the slopes in 15 years. And Dad gave it a try for the first time ever, at 65. Impressive. He looked pretty comfortable during the brief time I watched. Hopefully he'll go again before too long.

Though we all went out to dinner the first night, it was a bit exhausting, and I think none of us was really excited about the noise and crowds of the apres-ski scene in Breckenridge. So we tended to have quieter meals after that--spaghetti and meatballs (fake & real) one night, a sort of scrounge-for-yourself the next. We got to bed at around 8 or 9pm and slept about 12 hours a night. Even so, on our way home, I got the cold that Sudie was battling during the whole trip. She was a trooper; I, less so.

We spent some time in Boulder on both ends (including my time meeting up with folks from CU). On the 14th, Noah and I celebrated our 10th "dating" anniversary. On that date 10 years ago, I showed up at his apartment ready to declare my feelings, and instead stammered in a corner to get him to declare his. It worked out. And how nice that we were back in the same place, 10 years later, for one night only. We had Valentine's Day dinner at Chautauqua Dining Hall, just the two of us--the same place where we had our wedding reception. It was a very nice symmetry and, despite our fatigue, a romantic dinner.

Of course, right afterward, we high-tailed it to Denver, to check into our airport hotel for about 4 hours of sleep before getting on a 6am flight the next morning. I had to teach that next day at 3:30, and we planned our flights to allow for any mishaps. Good thing, as we missed our connection in Phoenix (well, actually we didn't--the airline just said we did--that's a whole 'nother story) and had to spend some stressful hours waiting to catch up with the planning. In the end, I made it to class, delivered two lectures (sore throat and all), and we settled back into our lives very smoothly. I taught my other class on Thursday, taught one makeup class on Friday, and today we have been relaxing.

Kibble had his first stay at a kennel. He came back a bit shell-shocked, but intact. He has also settled back into his life, and has remembered our family relationships and our affection for him with no trouble. Once Noah gave him a bath and made him bearable to smell (kennels do lead to stench, don't they?), he's been a joy to cuddle.

That's it for now. No politics or philosophy today, just the update. More soon, I hope.

Filed under:

• Colorado
• travel