It is just absolutely freezing here! I mean, it isn't literally freezing...but it is 55 degrees in the middle of the afternoon on July 30. Last night, we contemplated putting our electric blanket back on the bed...but opted for an extra comforter and no fan instead.

I'm pretty sure that the whole country is having wierd weather this summer, but I know Colorado Springs is for sure! We had a monsoon yesterday that started just when I was on my way to the grocery store. The drainage systems here aren't really built to handle lots of rain, so I was watching the Subarus in front of me to make sure their mufflers didn't go under water at the numerous flooded intersections. Rain, wind, lightening, and of course the hail that seems to come with every Colorado rain we've seen so far. The thunder here can be pretty ear-popping, but sometimes the thunder is long and drawn out. The first time I heard that type of thunder, I was expecting to hear air raid sirens and a radio alert that Ft. Carson had just exploded. This is the type of thunder we're having today as the raing has just picked up again! Thankfully I haven't had to water my garden or fill my birdbath in quite awhile.

On a lighter note....everyone should come visit because according to Outside Magazine:

America's Best Cities 2009: Colorado Springs, Colorado No. 1

By Sean Brander

	Garden of the Gods (courtesy of Garden of the Gods Visitor & Nature Center)

KEY STATS
617,000: Population (metro)
$180,000: Median home price
A: Multisport grade
1,200: Number of Olympic athletes who live in town to train at the U.S. Olympic Complex

There's a reason 1.3 million people have rushed to Colorado's Front Range in the past two decades: With 249 annual days of sun, an ascendant, heavily tech-based economy, and quick access to nearly four million acres of Rocky Mountain wilderness and a dozen world-class ski resorts, it's simply a pretty awesome place to live. And while we love Denver's laid-back vibe (see right), the Springs simply outscored it this year. (Boulder wasn't large enough to qualify.) Considering that the town is base camp for both the Air Force Space Command, NORAD, and ultra- conservative advocacy groups like Focus on the Family, it may be a bit conservative for some. But regardless of your political bent, it scored extremely high in our education category, has the best weather of any city on our list, and, most important, blew away the competition when we compared average income to cost of living. The city is experiencing something of a cultural resurgence, too. Colorado College's ten-month-old, $33 million performing-arts center has begun drawing national classical music and dance groups, and this year the city launched its own roots-and-blues festival, Meadowgrass. But you don't come to the Front Range for the music. You come for 14,117-foot Pikes Peak (directly above town); the Arkansas's Class IV rapids (two hours west); world-class athletic facilities (Carmichael Training Systems is based here); and 260 miles of multisport trails available within a ten-mile radius. Sure, there are a few other towns with this many outdoor options, but they generally cost twice as much—or, like Boulder, require you to shave your legs.

So, there you go...I guess that is a good thing? Hopefully it will stop raining while we live here so we can enjoy more of the aforementioned amenities of this fair city.

First of all, I'll apologize for the lack of posts recently. We're in a pretty normal routine now, Joel has been working some long hours, and it has been raining alot, which means there hasn't been lots of blog-worthy excitement here in Colorado Springs. We've mainly been watching movies in our nice and cool (temperature-wise) basement and taking neighborhood walks when the clouds clear.

Last Wednesday, we did make it out to America the Beautiful Park again for the weekly "Gettin' Down Downtown" concert. But, once again, the thunder and lightning cut it a bit short. We've seen a couple about our age sitting near us there both times we've been, so we've decided that if we see them again this week, we're going to introduce ourselves.
The ominous clouds heading our way at the concert.
Our picnic basket.


Also, our little squirrel friend was back this week. We've been hearing him off and on in the attic, and we've even seen him poke his evil little head out of a hole in our overhand, but this week...he as after brownies at our kitchen window:


I'm attempting a small garden in our backyard even though the Colorado Master Gardener representative told me the soil is awful here and I planted way too late...
You probably can't tell, but there are 2 squash plants here and some flowers. I also have 3 tiny green tomatoes on some plants I brought from Starkville, but I'm about to give up hope that they will ever turn red.

Joel had to work a full day on Saturday (Joel's boss...if you're reading this, remember that you told him y'all don't work Saturdays?), and afterwards we headed up to my aunt and uncle's to hear the Denver Symphony in their neighborhood park. We got there late since Joel got off work late, and by the time we finished supper, the bottom fell out and everyone was running up the street from the park in ponchos. So, instead of hearing the symphony, we sat on their front porch and watched people run up the street while rivers of water rushed down the hill. It was quite the storm.

Sunday morning, we woke up in time to drive back down to Sunday school in Colorado Springs. We met a few more people in the group that we had not met yet, and there will be a community supper this weekend that we'll be attending!

Well, I guess that is about it for now...I have a few clinic visits/interviews scheduled for this week, so you can pray that something will come up soon!

It is 12:24 p.m. mountain time, and it is 64 degrees outside.

PPIHC 2K9

We're getting back to normal here after an eventful weekend!

On Saturday, Joel, JP, and I went to the Royal Gorge, which is a little over an hour southwest of Colorado Springs. It had some absolutely beautiful views, but I wouldn't suggest it if you're afraid of heights. The bridge over Royal Gorge is the highest suspension bridge in the world (according to them), and there is also a gondola that takes you across the gorge...about 0.25 mile above the Arkansas River. You can see rafters and the passenger train running along the floor of the gorge. There is also a very steep "incline railway" that runs to the bottom of the gorge. Saturday was a beautiful day, and we were able to partake in all of these activities.

The gondola that took us across the gorge.
The ladder attached to the ceiling of the gondola...note that this was a standard sized ladder and we were 0.25 mile above the river.
Joel and JP.
A view of the canyon floor through a gap between the wooden planks of the bridge.
The flag of my mighty Mississippi.

The incline railway.

On Sunday, we left the house a little after 4 a.m. to get a good spot on the mountain for the Pike's Peak International Hill Climb. We found a parking spot at Devil's Playground (the highest area parking was allowed for the race) and staked out a spot with our chairs. We then sat in those chairs for the next couple of hours in the dark, cold, windy mountain air (well, Joel and John did...I napped in the Subaru!). The rest of the day was filled with more wind and quite a few adrenaline rushes as cars, motorcycles, 4 wheelers, and other speedy vehicles sped past us. It was certainly an experience I'd recommend if you're in Colorado in July!

Sunrise from Pike's Peak.
More views.
Spectators scattered on the hill prepared for the race.
JP and Joel (JP is on the left covered with a sleeping bag).
Good morning!
The first car up the mountain...the vintage class!
Motorcycle class.
"Quad" class.
We could see a lot of the track from where we were sitting.

One of the racing cars was stuck in traffic with us on the way down the mountain at the end of the day. A few minutes later, we passed him again and he was being towed!
One of the racing semi-trucks...unfortunately, the rain prevented this division from racing.

"Monster" Tajima looking to break the elusive 10 minute barrier up Pike's Peak. This was the moment all had been waiting for...but he didn't make it! Maybe next year, Monster.


This is the sidecar division. When I heard sidecar, I was thinking big clunky motorcycle carring an elderly couple. As you can see from the video, I was a little off!

A mid week outing.

Last night, we FINALLY made it to the "Gettin' Down Downtown" concert in America the Beautiful Park. This concert series is held on Wednesday evenings during the summer, but we have either been out of town or had something each week. When we showed up last night, we were really surprised to see how packed it was. Joel and I keep saying we've somehow missed the Colorado Springs 101 class, as it always seems as though everyone else in this city knows where to hike/eat/play, etc and we've neglected to receive the memo. Last night was another example of that because it seemed like every Colorado Springsian (?) was there!
The centerpiece of America the Beautiful Park. A large rotating circle thing that sprays water.

Kids playing in the pool at the base of the large rotating circle sculpture/fountain.

It was a lot of fun, but once again, the rain came....thankfully we got to see most of the concert before we had to bail out.

Joel sitting under his chair because of the rain. I, on the other hand, brought my rain jacket...so I was sitting IN my chair.


Joel was wearing an M-State shirt last night, and some guy came up to us asking if we went to State. It turns out that he's from TX, but his brother went to State and married Davis Wade (of Davis Wade Stadium)'s granddaughter. Boy, do I love being from the South...you can always find some sort of connection!

Well, its about t minus 4.5 hours until our first out of state visitor arrives. JP is touching down at the Colorado Springs airport this afternoon. We look forward to a fun-filled weekend of dangerous car racing (Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on Sunday) and visits to tourist attractions.

One thing that we've noticed is that we are so close to the mountains, that you can't really see the sunset...this is the most color we've seen in the sky at the end of the day:


I feel as though we're in Colorado Springs for the long haul now, as we don't have any trips home planned any time soon. Joel and I had the pleasure of attending Chuck and Emily's wedding festivities in Memphis over the weekend of the 4th- a good time was certainly had by all! After that, Joel flew back here for work and I went home for a few days!

Now Joel is back to working in full swing and I'm back to the job search.

Even though Joel had to work this weekend (which only means spending less than 3 hours each morning blowing off tennis courts and being home by breakfast), we had a nice relaxing Colorado weekend! Friday morning, we went to America's Family Yard Sale at Focus on the Family. We took this time to take our unofficial tour of their facilities, and we bought a great radiator heater for $3! Here I am at Focus taking my first step through the wardrobe into Narnia:

Aslan on the other side:

We spent the rest of the morning browsing REI, and then took a nap and headed to Bear Creek Regional Park for some hiking:



Unfortunately, the afternoon thunderstorms have returned, so our trip was cut very short, but we planned to make another go of it on Sunday.

Sunday, Joel got through with his work in time for us to attend church and Sunday school. We're really enjoying the new Sunday School class that we've been visiting, and can't wait to get to know the couples better!

Sunday afternoon, we had another big storm, but it cleared up by around 4 p.m. and we decided to make another attempt at hiking. We'd read about St. Mary's Falls, so we thought that would be a nice rewarding hike. Both the hike and the falls were beautiful! With the views along the trail, I really kept thinking we'd see a bear or other large mammal, but we only saw a bunch of chipmunks.




Some John Denver for your listening pleasure...

Lions and Tigers and...

I mean...why couldn't I have been downtown at that particular moment!? And too bad Joel wasn't the landscape worker mentioned- he could have been famous! Read on:

Bear prowling downtown nailed on parking violation

| Recommend 1

July 10, 2009 - 1:33 PM

LANCE BENZEL

THE GAZETTE

A black bear that ventured into downtown Colorado Springs this afternoon was captured when it tried to hide in a city-owned parking garage.

State wildlife officers tracked the animal down with the help of Colorado Springs police. The bear was tranquilized in the municipal parking garage at Nevada and Colorado avenues about 1:50 p.m.

The state Division of Wildlife could not immediately be reached for information on where the bear would be relocated.

Witnesses called police after the black bear interrupted the course of business on a busy stretch of East Pikes Peak Avenue, a few blocks from the central business district.

About 1:15 p.m., the bear was spotted crossing Pikes Peak to the south. It darted around a building that formerly housed Sportique Scooters and then crossed a parking lot where landscape worker Doug Marker was on the ground laying wire.

He said he heard someone yell "Bear!"

“I almost fell over him,” Marker said. “I got up and he was about two feet from me.”

The bear bolted south across Colorado Avenue. About a half-dozen people were on cell phones alerting authorities to what they'd seen.

I mean...why couldn't I have been downtown at that particular moment!? And too bad Joel wasn't the landscape worker mentioned- he could have been famous