Around Here

Around Here.. We are starting to anticipate the post-vaccine days ahead. 

Artwork by Mary

Our second vaccine is due on the 17th and we figure that by Easter we'll have reached that great 95% protection level.   To celebrate we're planning a two-night visit to a nice resort up in the mountains.  We'll get out of the house and be someplace besides Boulder!  We're going to sit inside a fun tavern and eat burgers and drink beer! (It'll be early in the week and is at the somewhat remote resort, so it shouldn't be crowded.)  We're going to soak in a hot tub! (Open only by appointment.)  If there's still snow in early April up there we're going to do some cross country skiing.   We're going to sit in big leather chairs in our nice room and look out at spectacular views of the Continental Divide.   And it's something to anticipate.  How nice to have something fun to anticipate!

But before that we're invited to dinner at our friend's house.  Probably without masks since they will be fully vaccinated, also.  And probably inside their house, which we haven't been inside for the last year.  This is very exciting!  

We're looking forward to everyone being vaccinated by early summer, including our own Paul, and plan to wear masks, etc.  in public for a quite a while longer.  But it's heartening to see things starting to return to a more normal pace around town.  Restaurants recently increased their capacity levels, many schools are doing in-person learning to at least some degree, traffic has picked up, and when we drive past the Pearl Street Mall we see people actually hanging out there, shopping and eating.  

Around Here...  Boulder has been in the news, and not in a good way.  This "party gone wild" was just a few blocks from us.  We heard the firecrackers and drones and helicopters circling overhead, and got a text from Paul telling us what was going on and that he wasn't at the scene.  I jumped onto Twitter, where news seems to break first, and saw what was going on.  CU students often have big loud parties, but rarely do they result in cars being damaged and people being hurt.  

And, of course, pre-COVID parties weren't the super spreader that this one will probably turn out to be.  We see so many students and young people in compliance with COVID safety guidelines that it's a shock to see this blatant disregard.   We're watching developments and hope the resulting rise in cases won't be too bad.  

There was some other interesting local news, which was how a United aircraft dropped parts of its wing and engine as it flew over the nearby town of Broomfield.  Not something that happens every day!

Around Here....  I'm in the final week of my online class about Photoshop Elements, and the work is getting harder! The most recent lesson and homework was about using the Magic Selection tool to apply gradient color and patterns behind an isolated image.  After struggling with this for a while I submitted this photo for my homework with the note that "This is what I need after practicing the Magic Selection tool"!   The teacher said it was "hilarious."  (You can see that even after eight tries my selection is just barely acceptable.)    

Around here....  I'm halfway through quilting my little scrap quilt and am busy adding more blocks to my big one.  The yellow in this photo shows how I'm beginning to audition inner border fabrics.  It sure is fun to work with all these lovely batik fabrics.  

Around here.... Turbo continues to make friends.  Here he is kissing the receptionist at the groomer's.  You can tell that he really hates going there.  

Around here..... I've read several really good books lately.  

Well, it's almost 9:00 and we're leaving for our Meals on Wheels run by 10:30, so I'd better walk Turbo and eat some breakfast.  We're supposed to get a high of 66 degrees today with a "chance of drizzle."  Hope that holds off as we've invited our neighbors over for an afternoon chat around the firepit.