After-Hours Break

I'm just takin 5 out of my schedule after work to chill and blog before I jump into more busy stuff. I paused briefly to read some of a book and scope the scene. It's a beautiful March day. Almost April. Almost outside season. I love Colorado.

I Love Beer

So if last night was the night to create a delicious meal, tonight I found the beer to go with it: Great Divide's Denver Pale Ale... delicious.

This van living experiment has really opened the door to me meeting many, many new people that are so friendly and inviting. Tonight I drove some friends to the airport, and in return they got me a 6 pack of some delicious beer. To me, I almost feel guilty as I love driving and I love spending time with friends. For doing this, people give me beer?!  I guess it goes to show that if you take the time to do the things you really want to do, life will reward you.

Battle Slurry

Tonight I think I perfected the Battle Slurry. A while back, I posted a blog about my dinner. Tonight, I tweaked it, and it was delicious. I'm dubbing it "Battle Slurry". Battle... obviously because of where I am. Slurry is a term I first heard my friend Todd use in reference to a big bowl or pot of some random, mixed... unknown... foodstuffs. So for my slurry, I put in a regular (16 oz?) can of black beans with jalapenos in lime sauce, a two-thirds size can of corn with peppers in it, a small can (3 or 4 oz, maybe) of diced green chilis, a small can (tuna sized) of cooked chicken, and one pack of Uncle Ben's long grain wild rice (the already cooked, throw in the microwave back, about the size of a DVD case). Throw it all in a pot and stir it up while you're cooking it so you don't burn it. Serves two. If you're one, save the second half and eat it for dinner tomorrow. For desert: devil squares by little Debbie. Perfecto.

Oh yeah, I checked out Golden Gate Canyon State Park today. I thought of my mom the whole time, as it was nothing but rolling hills and lodgepole pines, snow, and mountain panoramas. She would have loved it.

From The Bunks

It's an early night tonight. The last few days, I've found it more comfortable to make a cozy nest on the floor and just pile myself up with blankets and such. It's been a great experience so far. Tonight I lay on this floor looking up at my home... so simple. So tidy. I just feasted on a dinner of clam chowder and potato bread. Time to do some reading. Still working on Atlas Shrugged... sigh...

Morning in the snow...

I woke up this morning, turned the van and the heat on full tilt, and tucked myself back into my nest. Ten minutes later, I was comfy. Way comfy. It wasn't nearly as rough as I thought it was going to be.  I love this project!

Cold and snowy.

It's 10 minutes to 11 at night, and I've burrowed myself in a cozy mummy bag under all my blankets and I'm sound as a pound. This blizzard has been the first real cold temp and deep snow test of my journey. I'm lovin it so far! It's awesome. Way drier than the snow cave was on Berthoud Pass last year. We'll see how I feel when I wake up.

The Blizzard of '09?

I wonder if that's what they'll call this sudden masterpiece of mother nature's wrath.  We went suddenly from beautiful afternoons with shorts and t-shirts to a stunning and strong snowstorm, with snow blowing and falling nearly horizontally. We got almost half a foot to a foot and a half in some places in less than 6 hours.

I was really looking forward to hunkering down in the van, but I got invited to spend the afternoon (and perhaps the evening) with a good friend's family. It os all the more touching to me that it seems that the most adverse conditions in nature spark the opposite response in humanity.

Wow, big thought: the worse circumstances turn out to be, the more we stick together and overcome the odds. Look at all of the disasters of our time, like Katrina, 9-11, even our little snowstorm here, which brings us together to help out and be helped. My friend calls it, "the upside of the downtimes". Awesome statement. Good company. Warm rooms. Tasty food. Cozy and cuddly big red dog.

Sometimes humanity is awesome.