Denver

Hey, I got to pin a new place on the map!

Denver was a good mix of fun and relaxation. 5 people with different opinions can be a recipe for disaster, but we have a good group and we always manage to keep it enjoyable.

We went back and forth between renting a house in the mountains or a condo in the middle of the arts district. We decided on the one in the city. Besides the full modern kitchen, it had a private rooftop hot tub with a view of downtown and plenty of entertainment within walking distance. It was awesome.

Speaking of restaurants, most of my meals were a sandwich that I packed and took with me. I spent a lot of time watching the rest of the group eat at restaurants. That plan, while boring, was very successful and also very cheap.
(It was really the only safe option, since I don't trust restaurants anymore and did not want to be sick on vacation.)

The only part of the trip that I did not enjoy was the driving. I did all of the driving so the rest of the group could enjoy the recreational marijuana as much as they wanted, which was no big deal. I was happy to be the designated driver.

But. I did not expect it to be so stressful! Driving around Denver sucks, for two main reasons.

-Street parking. Street parking. Street parking. Even at the condo it was street parking, and many times it was hard to find. Especially since we rented a full-sized SUV and I do not know how to parallel park.

-The streets are laid out weird (or at least, I'm not used to them). The city has a lot of intersections at weird angles, and the signs on the roadways are not great. Even with navigation, I did a lot of turning around and re-calculating and "going for it" because you couldn't see if a car was coming because the view was blocked by the cars parked on the street.

My advice: uber or walk everywhere in the city and only drive to locations that are farther away.

Here's what we did.

Friday:
Travel, check in to condo
Visit a dispensary
Dinner in RINO (Shake Shack)
Grocery store
Tetra Lounge- So. Much. People. Watching.

Saturday:
Church- This was so cool. This building has been different churches throughout the years, and now it houses the International Church of Cannabis. The art inside is incredible, and there's a laser light show that they beam on the ceiling.

Grabbed lunch at Rosebud cafe, then stopped into a few of the shops nearby.

The rest of the group went to a concert at Red Rock, which was actually the whole reason for the trip. But it sold out quickly and the only available tickets were second-hand and really expensive. FG and I agreed that we didn't want to pay that much money for a concert so we made other plans.

The amphitheater itself is supposed to be pretty spectacular, so we talked about getting up early Sunday to see it when there wasn't an event (it's open to the public), but of course we chose to sleep in instead.

Our original plan for the afternoon was to take a boozy train ride into the mountains and go on a mine tour, but it was too far away and the timing didn't work out. Our back up plan was to check out the botanical gardens, but once we got there it looked hella packed and neither of us were in the mood for crowds.

At that point I must have seemed pretty frustrated (mostly with the driving), because FG suggested that we take a break and insisted that I eat a meal that wasn't a sandwich. We went back to the condo and made dinner, which was really what I needed.

We had planned to go have a drink at this speakeasy Luke told me about, but we got lazy and hung out on the roof, watched the sun set, and drank the beer/wine we already had. In hindsight, we probably should have checked out some more of the city, but at that time the thought of driving made me cranky and the thought of paying for an uber made staying home look better.

Sunday:
Zip lines- this was fun. A 45-minute drive from the city, in a cute little town that looked like it was just plopped into the mountains. They have several different packages. We did the 4 zipline tour, which I thought was enough and well worth the price. There is a little bar onsite, too, so afterwards we enjoyed a drink and the world's longest game of big Jenga.

Ate a late lunch at a nearby Italian restaurant.

The we went hiking and hung out at the lake. We got here in the late afternoon, but it could have easily been an all-day activity. I could have wandered around the hiking trails for hours, and the lake water was cold and refreshing. Watched the sun set behind the mountains and life was good.

Monday:
Brunch at Snooze
Wander around the area, look into some shops
Travel home

Other neat stuff that we didn't have time to do:
The Yoga Mat
Frozen Matter/Retrograde
Botanic Gardens
Larimer Square
Twist and Shout
Georgetown loop Railroad + mine tour


Overall, I'm glad I got to check out Denver and I had a good time, but if I went back I think I'd choose to stay in the mountains and maybe only spend one day in the city. And not drive.

hummers, memories, cat lady status

I hung out on the back porch tonight, partly because it was below 90 degrees, partly because I wanted to keep an eye out for hummingbirds.

Sure enough, I spotted two ruby-throated cuties flitting around the garden. I'm always a little too excited to see them. Glad I've been putting out fresh nectar in the feeder.

A random memory popped into my head this evening while I was scanning the yard for tiny birds. When I was a kid, around dusk, sometimes my dad would get in the mood to go for a drive. And he'd grab one of us kids, already bathed and in our jammies, and head out the door. We'd drive around with the windows down, even during the summer (he'd blast the air conditioning). We wouldn't talk much, just listen to music and cruise around town. Sometimes we would stay close to home and drive the streets of the neighborhood, and sometimes we'd head downtown. Watching the unfamiliar lights and streets whiz by on a school night was particularly thrilling. Occasionally we'd stop for an ice cream but most of the time there was no destination; we'd just ride around until suddenly we were home and I was struggling to keep my eyes open.

He did that a lot. I don't know why he did it, but I'm glad he did because we all have those memories. Although, I hear that in contrast to our drives, when he took Ashley for a drive, all she did was talk. That cracks me up. 

I feel like I've gotten to a good balance in a lot of areas lately. Soaking it up, because the next thing you know things will be wonky again.

Pumpkin has been so finicky when it comes to eating. She does seem happier and healthier, but it's such a struggle to coax her to eat sometimes. I've done a little experimenting, and lately I've had luck with what my mom and I like to call Cat Food Soup. It's disgusting but she'll eat it. Basically you take a little bit of wet food and mix it with warm water until it's a soupy consistency, then sprinkle a couple of treats on top. It's ridiculous and gross but she eats that happily.

I feel so much better about my upcoming travel plans now that I'm not so worried about her.

Mondays like these

Today was one of those days where it rains while it's sunny.

After working across town, I took the back way home, avoiding the mindless inch-up-and-brake cycle at traffic lights.

Walked in the door and swapped all my clothing for a shapeless housedress.

Poured myself a glass of wine and tucked into a bowl of sesame pork that was ready in the crock pot.

The dishwasher and washing machine are humming happily in the other room.

There are fresh flowers on the end table.

I've got the whole evening to myself and it feels good to come home and have the option to do whatever I want.

Which will probably consist of lounging on the couch reading magazines while watching something on tv that I'm not really watching.

Did I mention that there are about a thousand tadpoles in the stream? Kind of shocking at first to see that, but then they're kinda cute. I know only a fraction will survive but, welcome, natural pest control.

P.S. I have yet to see a hummingbird at the feeder, but I know they're close.

hey wednesday

My glasses have a smudge on them and it's really, really, really getting on my nerves. I could get up and clean them, but... then I'd have to get up and clean them.

During a really unproductive conference call today, I planned our whole Memphis trip. It's going to be a blast. It kinda blew my mind how all of the fun things to do are in such a tiny geographical area.

I had planned to go for a walk around the neighborhood this evening to get some fresh air and movement, but I wasn't really in the mood. I looked at the temperature and the "feels like" of 110 made me pour another glass of wine and turn on the tv, and then it started to rain. Glad I trusted my intuition. Also glad it rained because I planted some new flowers about a week ago and even with daily water, they're struggling. I guess it wasn't the smartest of me to plant something in August with 100+ temperatures.
Poor plants never had a chance.

I've had too many office days in a row and I'm starting to get a little stir crazy. I woke up this morning to emails from customers in distress, and I'm happy I have a reason to put on a bra tomorrow. Yay job security!

All right, time to go clean that smudge off my glasses.

health, work, vacation

I have had the biggest appetite lately. I'm not sure why, but I want to eat big meals and graze constantly. Maybe I need to be taking in more carbs or something? Of course it's impossible to objectively consider motives while I'm on my period. Perhaps I'll revisit this next week.

I also have not wanted to drink. Like, wine has not been agreeing with my stomach. Another way my body is telling me that I need to take care of myself? Or maybe I just need to stop drinking cheap wine and spring for better stuff.
Yeah, that's it.

One of our major customers at work has changed the way they handle credentialing, and it's a LOT more rigorous than their previous system. I have to go in and get a bunch of bloodwork done to prove I have immunity to a handful of things, because it turns out, they don't like the way my doctors have filled out my immunization records my entire life. Pain in the ass.

In addition to the bloodwork, I might also have to pass a drug test, so for now it's time to stop taking the full spectrum CBD. I don't take it often, just when I have a stomachache, and it works SO WELL. Calms things down without side effects. It has been a life saver in situations where feeling sick is really not ideal, like when I'm driving long distances.

I never feel the effects of the tiny bit of THC in the full spectrum oil, but it's technically in there and I've been taking drug tests now and again to monitor it. It has never made it over the positive threshold, but it's definitely there and I'm not taking any chances. So I'm trying a CBD isolate to see if it still works as well.


This last week I have had a solid chunk of time at home, in town, with no travel, and now... I'm bored. I have another project on the horizon, but that's not until after vacation.

Vacation. I managed to pull up a bunch of things to do in Denver that are on the cheaper side, and pitch them to the group. I even made sure we planned out a menu so the grocery bill stays low. Luke gave me a few great ideas and again, I searched "Denver Itinerary" on Pinterest and got a bunch of neat ideas that I hadn't seen anywhere else.

Pumpkin doesn't care that it's literally 100 degrees outside and 80 degrees inside and is snuggled up to me while I type this. The weather in Denver is supposed to be 80s/60s and I am very much looking forward to that.

living easy

I added sesame seeds to hot oil tonight while cooking dinner. I expected them to get all toasty and add another layer of flavor and texture to my dish of pork and veggies. 

What I did not expect was for them to merrily start hopping out of the pan. Little white specks, flying all over the stovetop and counter. Sure to be a bitch to clean up, but it was a little amusing at the time because there's really nothing to do about it except scramble for a lid and wait for things to calm down.

I didn't have to go out of town this week and it's been GLORIOUS. Sure, I'm still working. Logged quite a few hours and visited a few local customers. But Pumpkin's gotten attention, I finished painting the living room, FG fed me dinner, I planted some flowers, and my muscles have gotten a much-needed break from pushing on the gas pedal. All good things.

Kinda been waiting for my bank account to be all flush again, but damn, I am continuously feeling broke. Expenses just keep popping up. Just when I recovered from the several thousand dollar endoscopy, I got hit with a higher than normal electricity bill, the engagement party, and renewing my yearly security system monitoring bill and flood insurance. And I'm broke again. It's not coming at a good time, because in a few weeks we're taking our Denver trip, with the friends who vacation like Diamond Jim and casually suggest we all just split the bills equally. I'm going to try really hard to regulate expenses without being the cheap bitch who splits hairs. *Looks up free things to do in Denver*

A bunch of random stuff

Have you heard the news?? (of course you have.)

I'M GOING TO BE AN AUNTIE TO A LITTLE BABY GIRL!!!
*cue ribbons and bows and glitter*

I am so happy about further solidifying my auntie status, and I would be plenty thrilled if it was another boy, but I sure am excited about this niece.

I had so much swirling through my head yesterday and I thought, "I should blog," but I was too tired to blog. Now that I'm sitting in front of the computer, I can't remember what I wanted to write about.
Maybe it's the excitement of the baby girl. (GAH!)

It was a busy weekend. I really wanted some downtime but somehow had planned my whole weekend, all of it with FG.

Now. I adore him, but it seems like lately he demands a lot of my time, and I get it because I've been gone so much, but this weekend I resented it for a little bit. I like my Me Time and I got none. And I haven't had any for a while.

I did offer to help him do a few repairs on his rent house, because I actually enjoy that type of stuff and he was stressing about it. Then we had social plans Saturday night and he was having a family dinner on Sunday that he wanted me to attend/bring a side.
Normally that would actually be a fun weekend, but after traveling all week I didn't want such a packed schedule. I felt super annoyed at one point, but I was able to vent to Ashley and I quickly shifted my grudge. A lot of that was my own doing... none of it was actually his fault and he's just a sweet guy who wants to spend time with me... Literally I tried to leave Sunday after dinner and he asked if I would just sit on the couch with him for a minute. I did, because nothing is so important that I can't spare a few minutes on the couch, but I was torn because I was enjoying sitting on the couch but was also thinking about how I needed to get to Petsmart before they closed because I was out of cat food.

It's just that lately I feel like I'm being stretched in so many directions. Traveling Monday through Friday leaves only 2 days to take care of everything and it's not enough. It doesn't help that I have plans every weekend from now until the end of September. Some of them are more relaxing/fun plans, like glamping at our friends' property and a trip to Denver, but they are obligations nonetheless.

I think I've pinpointed what I need: a few days with NO PLANS. I equate relaxation with no obligations; I like to simply wake up and do whatever I feel like doing at that moment. I think that if I'm able to spend a little bit of time in town, at home, I won't feel so overwhelmed by weekend plans, but I still blocked off a weekend towards the end of September for pure ME time. Reading magazines, painting, shopping, whatever I feel like doing. Don't ask me to schedule anything, I'll decide 5 minutes beforehand what I'm doing.

Today, what a treat, I got to stay in town. I got a ton of work stuff done in the office, plus I was able to get so much personal stuff done. It's so nice being home. I get to do things like go to the grocery store and pet Pumpkin and go to my brother's house for his baby's gender reveal. (OMG time to start shopping for a little baby girl!)

A couple other things:

Pumpkin- I've noticed lately that if I'm up and doing stuff around the house, Pumpkin will follow me around and meow until I sit down on the couch and pet her. Poor kitty, she just wants some attention. Right now she's on the bar stool next to me, purring. She's doing much better with the daily steroids. Still not eating a whole lot, but overall she seems happier and healthier.

Something to note- I really love how FG has confidence in me. Like, I told him that I was really good at caulking (hello, experience). And even though he is a very particular guy, he didn't question me. When I offered to replace the caulk in the bathrooms at the rent house, instead of acting hesitant or wanting to supervise to make sure, he simply said, "Okay," handed me the caulk, and left to go fix the ceiling fan in the bedroom. Then when I was done, he highly praised my caulking skills, although I'm not sure if it was because it looked really great (it did), or he just wanted to take advantage of the obvious innuendo.
Perhaps both. Which is just another reason to like him.