Holiday Collage

The holiday symphony this year was absolutely fabulous. It was a mixture of songs that moved seamlessly from one to the other. It included playing with the lights so that different areas were spotlighted or uplit. The group was fantastic and you could tell that a lot of them were having fun.

Gardiner Christmas Stroll

Tonight was the Gardiner Christmas Stroll but I was sort of just over being social. I went anyway. And had a lot of fun. It's a small town so on nights like last night, you get to see almost everyone in town, all at one time. With lovely food and free wine, friendly people and lots to see, what's not to enjoy?

MacBeth

Went to see a modern interpretation of MacBeth tonight. There were text messages between the king and the witches, lots of heavy military, and Skype messages. It was really interesting but still quite long. My next-door-neighbor was in the play so that made it more interesting. But it didn't get done until 10 and I barely made it back awake. Thank goodness one of the 7 other folks who had come up from Gardiner offered to drive back with me.

Bechler Day 4

Woke up around 5 and couldn't get back to sleep so I read until Trudy woke up around 7. 

There had been rain off and on during the night so I thought it might be wet out and when we opened the tent door, there were two little icicles hanging off the bottom. But when Trudy opened the rain fly, it was dry. Apparently, our body heat had generated condensation which then froze.

We decided to wait for a while and let our stuff dry since most of it was still damp. We finally hit the trail a little after 10 with mostly blue skies ahead but some darkish clouds dotting the sky. We made it to the slough fairly quickly and I had my water shoes on so I de-pantsed and waded in. It was muddy from yesterday's rain so it was quite exciting to wonder whether the next step might be into a hole. There weren't any. So we pantsed back up and headed on.

We had each made a prediction when the stock group we met yesterday might pass us. Trudy predicted at the junction and I predicted about a half mile beyond. They caught up with us just as we were about at the junction but they were just getting off for lunch. We also decided to pause.

Hanging out

Dinner at Rebecca Kreklau's house was really fun. It's a lot of people that I know but don't necessarily spend a lot of time with. It was incredibly fun and I got to talk to break out of my normal little group.

Robert Gresswell

Historical threats to the native western trout included overharvest, fish stocking, and habitat degradation

YNP tried to protect the fish with stricter angling regulations

Cultural Resources tour of GRTE

Jackson Lake Lodge (1955) is a National Historic Landmark (2003) -- first modern structure of the NPS, landed in between the original Parkitechture and the Mission 66. Gilbert Stanley Underwood designed the Lodge and it was built between 53-56. He also designed the Ahwahnee (North Rim of the Grand Canyon) trying both times to blend with the landscape(though the definition of "blending" did change during that time. The building is made of "shadow box" where the concrete was power washed to look like wood. This is not the original finish but the company that created the original acid finish is still around but it does need to go on fresh concrete. The Lodge was built to accommodate cars -- the parking lot, the long Porte cochere. Rockefeller never wanted TVs, pools, or golf courses here. The point was to have people come to the Park, not to the Lodge.

There are some Vernon items in the Lodge, these are not part of the larger museum collection (of the 10,000 items, about 1400 are in the collection).

The art in the lobby are Rungius copies. Most of the originals are at the National Museum of Wildlife Art.

Betsy -- historic architect

Abby -- acting deputy superintendent 

Erica -- Teton Weed and Pest

Colter Bay Visitor Center

Vernon collection was loaned to the Park Service in 1972. It was eventually donated to the Park. About half of the exhibit was on exhibit until  2004 when the superintendent id'd the fact that the collection needed some conservation.

AMK Ranch

The land was originally owned by a man named Sargent who never really made a go of it and ended up committing suicide and his brother let the land lapse into bankruptcy 

Oldest Research station in the Park Service

Owned by NPS; run by University of Wyoming 

Michael -- Director Research Station

Katherine -- 

Johnson Lodge (May-Lew Lodge for May and Lewis) -- rare two-story log building (at least rare out here)

On the National Register because of how it exemplifies rustic

The logs on many of these have black areas where mold would grow and then be shellacked in the next year. It could be argues that it was part of the history of the area that log buildings were treated like that. It certainly protected the logs. 

There have only been five caretakers for these buildings. You can see the transitions from caretaker to caretaker.

17 total buildings on the property

Boathouse

Johnson era buildings are the ones that have green caps on the end (to stop the log from sucking in moisture)

Johnson was one of Hoover's who bought this land for a dollar. He sold the property on 36/37. He sold the property to the Berols. Alfred was an executive with the Eagle pencil company. The AMK was for Alfred, his wife Madeline, and son Kenneth. The Berols very much loved this property and lived here all summer.

Kenneth sold the property to the Park Service in the 70s and UW took over soon after (though they had been in the park since probably the 40s)

The AMK Lodge has a branch of the UW libraries in the back wing

There is a bat problem and a carpenter ant problem but they are working on both of thos

Revised Leopold -- 3 pillars 

What Staffan has done to grow stewardship

Transparency -- BE with people, let them know what you're doing, when, and why. Let them know what's going on when problems crop up

Get Feedback -- hear what they think, solicit honest comments and then go back and let them know how you used it

Understanding -- get people on your side, to let them see what you're doing so that there's not a break in trust

Engagement -- make sure that the people who are supposed to be involved, get involved. Make sure that people not only know that you should be involved; they're going to be willing to ask you

I

Tuesday keynote

David Quammen

Asked by National Geographic to write an issue about Yellowstone. Quammen actually wrote the entire issue.

Eventually he came down to 2 ideas: the paradox of the cultivated wild and the grizzly bear as the hub of the great wheel

Bechler Day 3

Woke up around 5 and couldn't get back to sleep so I read until Trudy woke up around 7. 

There had been rain off and on during the night so I thought it might be wet out and when we opened the tent door, there were two little icicles hanging off the bottom. But when Trudy opened the rain fly, it was dry. Apparently, our body heat had generated condensation which then froze.

We decided to wait for a while and let our stuff dry since most of it was still damp. We finally hit the trail a little after 10 with mostly blue skies ahead but some darkish clouds dotting the sky. We made it to the slough fairly quickly and I had my water shoes on so I de-pantsed and waded in. It was muddy from yesterday's rain so it was quite exciting to wonder whether the next step might be into a hole. There weren't any. So we pantsed back up and headed on.

We had each made a prediction when the stock group we met yesterday might pass us. Trudy predicted at the junction and I predicted about a half mile beyond. They caught up with us just as we were about at the junction but they were just getting off for lunch. We also decided to pause.

Bechler Day 2

I actually slept pretty well but we still didn't get moving until almost 8. It didn't help that the overcast clouds made it seem later than it was. We did hit the trail at 10 and about two miles in saw some loose horses. We had made it to the stock site, 9A2.  The people were friendly and they hit the trail soon after we passed them because they passed us as we were drying our feet at the nearby stream crossing.
It sprinkled off and on as we made our way up the hill toward Dunanda. We opted to take the lower trail that runs through 9A3. We grabbed a quick lunch and the changed into our bathing suits and headed for the hot springs. And was it ever beautiful. After about an hour and a half of floating, it started to thunder so we decided that it might be good to head back.
About 1/3 of the way down the trail, it started to rain. Now, I had made the fatal error of believing the forecast of 30% chance of rain and not brought a rain jacket. I have learned this is not wise in the past but somehow I forgot. So I was pretty well soaked through. But I did stop by the horse camp to drop off the sunglasses that had been left at Dunanda. The owner was pretty darn excited to have them back.
When we got back to camp, it was still raining, so Trudy and I crawled into the tent to read for awhile. We got out for a quick dinner and then drifted off to sleep

First day in Bechler

I picked Trudy up a little after 8 and we were off -- over Dunraven (the Norris road was closed) and then Canyon and out through Madison. We stopped in West for coffee, whiskey, and sandwiches from Eddie's Deli. The BLT was $11 but there was a LOT of "B" so it worked.

Thank God Trudy remembered how to get to Bechler because the signage is horrible. After about 11 miles down a gravel road, we got to the parking lot. And So... many... cars. Good Lord. The last time I came down. I remember a few cars on the day we went in and only one other on our way out. Today, the lot was full. Thank god I have a mall car or we would have been waiting around for the two tours that had just come out (about 10 eating a picnic lunch and another 10 or so getting off a horse ride). 

We checked in with the backcountry office and were on our way.

The whole time we had been talking about this trip, Heidi and Trudy had been warning me about the slough crossing and the subsequent bog. We forgot it has been a very dry fall and the slough crossing was barely above my knees and the bog was completely dried out.

We knew we were about 4/5 of the way there so we stopped for a whiskey break. It was delightful. 

We continued on to 9A1 and set up camp and filtered water. We had our permit checked by a young ranger who wanted to make sure we weren't up to any tomfoolery. Then dinner and just waiting for an appropriate time to turn in.

Roosevelt Cookout

Jeanette picked me up just after 2:30 and I hopped in her truck with Carrie. We headed upturn hill and picked up Mel. Traffic was light and we made it to the corrals by 3:35z as we arrived, one of the wranglers started explaining the ride. He was a fantastic speaker and was able to stretch his talk when the other speakers were not loading the horses as quickly as he expected.
Cole and Ric were our wagon leaders. We had a lot of fun on the way out with a mixture of Cole telling us some of the history and explaining some of the natural elements here. Then he had everyone introduce themselves and say their favorite part that they've seen or want to see.
Then we made it to the cookout and Jeanette brought out her water bottle which was filled with wine. And we sat and enjoyed that while the food line went down. Then we got up and waited in line with options for cornbread muffins, coleslaw, potato salad, corn salad, and steak. Delicious, perfectly cooked steak.
Then there were songs and stories around the campfire. And back onto the wagons and back to Roosevelt.

Peale Island -- Day 1

I was going to wake up early and get a run in before we spent the a large portion of the day in one vehicle or another. But it was 5am and I had been up late trying to get packed. So I rushed to get everything ready and then get down to the HRC so I could unlock the building for the interns and then get the HHR ready to get down to Lake. I packed myself in and then grabbed Heidi and Trudy. Luckily, it was a fairly uneventful ride down to Lake and we made it there by 7:50. 10 minutes early for the ride.
We got on the boat and headed to the island. As usual, the ride was fantastic. I just love being on the research boat. On the way, we saw our first groups of pelicans. There were pelicans galore this weekend. So. Cool.
When we off-loaded, Trudy, Heidi and I grabbed our bags and headed for Peale Island while Eric and his dad went to check out some bays for aquatic plants. After we got set up, we headed over to help them look for more plants. This involved a lot of wading in the mud and letting me get touched by icky plants.
After a few hours of this, it was back to the island for dinner. Heidi and Trudy cooked up some burritos, including warming the shells. It was fabulous.
We then introduced Barry to the joys of Farkle. Eric had already played and we had a rollicking good time.

Park work trip

Molly talked about Horace Albright
Hailey discussed Marguerite "Peg" Lindsley, the first female park ranger. Peg was often called "Paint Pot Peg" after she fell into a geyser while leading a three-day horse pack trip and fell into a geyser burning part of her leg
We stopped at the second pull out of the Mammoth Terraces where Tyler talked about filming in the park
On Swan Lake Flats, Kelsey talked about Electric Peak and electricity in the park
We weren't able to stop at Obsidian Cliff because of the construction but We pulled off at a nearby pullout so Emily could discuss the cultural significance of the site. There is some discussion that Yellowstone may have been viewed as a "neutral zone" because of its significance to so many tribes (26 that are formally linked at the moment)
Joe had us stop at Madison and talked about the campfire myth and Stephen Mather.
We stopped at Mattie Culver's grave since we were making good time. Colleen discussed the Marshall Hotel and Fountain Hotel.
Sam very bombastically talked about the 1915 World's Fair where the Union Pacific set up a miniature Yellowstone, complete with canyon, 80 foot waterfall, and to-scale OFI.
After lunch at OFI, we stopped at Kepler Cascades where Suzie talked about stagecoach robberies
The next stop was a pullout after Pott's Basin where Deb talked about the American Loon which is a species of "special concern" (not quite threatened or endangered)
Then Amanda discussed the South Entrance road and the road system in general. Craig Pass, Dunraven, and Golden Gate are all fears of engineering.
We got stopped on the way to Lake because of an accident and ended up back at the Old Faithful General Store for ice cram and a pee break. Then we did the last five minute sections that we were going to on he set side of the park. Vanessa talking about he Lake Lodge and Colleen talking about Fishing Bridge. One interesting note was that in the early automobile camp, there were shelters for
The automobiles while the people had to sleep in tents. In the 70s, a plan was developed to shut down Fishing Bridge completely but Cody revolted. There were bits and pieces hat have been shut down (or burned down in the '88 fires) but other concerns have taken the fire and it will probably remain open for a long while.
Katelyn and Joe talked about the Craighead brothers. They were pretty hard core before even getting to Yellowstone and starting a 10 (or 12) year study on the Bears of Yellowstone. The park was concerned that the Bears were getting too habituated. During their time, the Craigheads pioneered tranquilizing Bears, eventually tranquilizing over 600 Bears in the park. When the park decided to close the dumps, the Craigheads were concerned that they were moving too fast but the Park decided to just shut down all the dumps immediately.
Seth rounded out the evening with a talk about the flight of the Nez Perce. They are not native to the area but the trail is an important part of the park's history.

Trip to Cody

I was lucky enough to get picked up right from home; Colleen, Jackie, and I. We had fairly good luck on traffic through the park. One stopped car for a black bear but he pulled off into Petrified Tree rather quickly. The talks were interesting. And we got to see a moose on the way home!

European wrap-up

A wrap-up and a bit of miscellany. We had a driver from the airport who also took us to Normandy. Hakim was awesome. With the train strike, it made it so nice to just hop in our car with all of the luggage rather than struggle to get on the Metro.
Asking me about the best meal I had? They were all awesome. There were a couple that were only okay, true, but everything was just so much better than you can usually get over here.
There were so... many... English speakers. I tried to speak French but no one was enjoying my accent so the folks in the shops and restaurants usually just switched right over to English if they could.
I also finally learned how to prounounce Peugeot (poo-jus, (like au jus))

Dinant

We got to have a leisurely morning since we didn't have to leave until 9. Then we had a little (~3,000 steps) hike over to the Grand Centraal Station. We were off to Dinant, where we had lunch at the Cafe Leffe. Delicious.
Then a tour with Theierry. We started at Brasserie de Bocq. On the way, we passed the Leffe Abbey (which we learned last night, that means that the beer was once brewed by monks but no longer; the Trappistes beer is brewed in the Abbey an at least overseen by the monks). There are still monks in the abbey, but InBev (sp?) now makes the beer and uses their name.
Mouseau, a family brewed beer until just before the Second World War when they sold to the Lamotte family until a storm blew down the stack in the 70s. It was closed for a couple of decades but then opened by a man from Lamieux who renamed the beer Caracole (snail in French, the nickname of those
From Lamieux)
Two types of castles - on meant to defend something (usually on top of a cliff) This one was the same, but surrounded by wetlands that were dangerous to those who didn't know the area
The oldest part of this castle is in the river side. It has belonged to the same family for 25 generations. The gardens are not watered by pump, it comes down from the hills
Caracole beer is the last one in the world to heat the grains in the fireplace. They produced four beers until recently but now have a gastronomic beer by a local chef (at least a local gastronome)
Troublette -- white beer, a little dry for me
Saxo -- pale ale
Caracole --
Nostradamus -- five different malts

Brussels Day 1

We went with the Belgian Journeys company and our guide was owner Marie. She is a fabulous guide and had appointing she is very willing to share. Neuhaus? Not in her chocolate tour. #1 she doesn't like it; #2 they use palm oil in their chocolate.
Pralines in Belgium are all chocolate - not mixed with almonds
Started in Chocopolis -- looks tacky/touristy but is local and they are the only company to ship anywhere in the world
There we got to taste a dark chocolate ganache (dairy free in Belgian) with chili -- nice and smooth and then, POW!
The. We walked over to the next stop and saw some history along the way.
Picture of the "Royal" area, palace, library, etc.
Museum of Music -- art nouveau
Brick building closeup is of an art nouveau building (ransom, just a neat building)
Confiseer - buys chocolate that is already made, melt it down and create from there
Chocolatier - buys cocoa beans and creates their own chocolate
At the second shop, Frederic Blondeel, Marie had us stop and smell. It was a fabulous: all fresh chocolate.
Marie told us she likes to start with single origin, then have an old favorite and then end with something experimental (flowers, etc.)
So we got a 73% chocolate from Papua New Guinea and then we got to choose between bay leaves/basil/peppercorn, black pepper, and citronella and THEN a choice between a milk praline hazelnut, a raspberry caramel, passion fruit caramel, and sea salt caramel) and THEN a ganache with Christmas spices and run
We went to the next stop, Pierre Marcolini, which was very busy but our guide took us up to the second (third) floor which had a thick carpet but it was fake grass which was interesting to sit on.
Marcolini was a pastry chef until he developed a gluten intolerance and then turned to chocolate
First chocolate was 75% chocolate from Madagascar. He makes tea with chocolate but also makes chocolate with tea -- we tried the Earl Grey Tea. Not Dad's favorite
And third we tried a chocolate that had a paste inside with cardamom. Interesting. That's all I've got for that one. Interesting.
On the way to the last chocolatier, we passed the medieval wall of Brussels. It is in Flemish territory but it is different.
Then we passed the Mannekin Piss, the official symbol of Brussels. The first one was put in in the 14th Century. Then it was replaced in the 17th Century when it was stolen. The last time it was stolen was the 1970s and it washouts in the river with its legs cut off.
We stopped in Grand Place which has existed as a square since the 12th century. It was mostly razed by Louis XIV's troops in the 1500s (except for the tower.
We went through the Royal Galleries (picture of the open air arch). Very Fancy Shops (Shoppes?)
Our last sweet shop was Meert which originally opened in 1761 (but only opened at this location in the last 5 years). We got to choose two and I got the Yuzu (lime from Japan) and the sea salt the Marie recommended.
The first beer stop was a puppet theatre. There are low fermentation beers (quick to make, most of the well-known beers e.g. Corona, Heineken, Budweiser). High fermentation is for the more complex beers (ales). Spontaneous fermentation (lambic beers from Brussels). We tried a cherry lambic, not sweet.
11 Trappist beers in the world, 6 in Belgium (only one in the States).
Duvel - like beer and champagne had a baby
The fries in Belgium are deep-fried in beef fat
We tried a stout which was good
Double and Triple beers -- beer used to be 3%, 6%, and 9% alcohol (so three, two times three, and three times three).
We had a round with Manchego and bread and then some salami and Serrano.
Apparently fresh hops and fresh weed smell very, very similar since they are in the same family.
The last beer was an IPA on the sweet side, not as citrus-y.
Then it was on to the oldest bar in town with traces into the 17th Century. I got a "girly" beer (another Kriek) while the "male" beer was the Trappistes Rochefort 8. Mortsubite.

Notre Dame and bus tour

We started off with a Metro trip to Notre Dame. After an hour spent in quiet contemplation, we hedges off for a bus tour. It was really nice to spend a few days on foot and then a day sitting and getting the whole overview of the city (and get to listen to interesting Frencc music relating to the areas we're in
And you learn a little bit about the whole history of France. Like the fact that this tour really likes to talk about the .salacious side of France, referring to Henry IV as a philanderer (twice) and talking about what people got up to after beheadings (brothels were involved.) students went in search of the lowlife in the disreputable areas near <jardins>
The picture of the Eiffel Tower includes a look at the statues in the Trocadero, seven men and one woman.
It takes 60 tons of paint to recover the Eiffel Tower
We also experienced some excitement when a motorcyclist went around the bus and we all went flying forward when the driver hit the brakes. Seatbelt are a good thing
he obelisk is the oldest monument in Aris

June 10 -- Champs Elysee

On Wednesday, we had fit so much into our day that we took Thursday morning a bit more slow. We didn't even leave the apartment until 11, heading over to the Arc de Triomphe. While the rest of the group sent over to the Harley Davidson store, I ran up to the top. Almost literally. The line was super short to get in and then to get up. And everyone was moving fairly quickly. Not like my memory of 2000.

June 8 Louvre tour with Malcolm

Started in the statue courtyards aka the Richelieu wing.
The green statue was one of four that were at the foot of a statue of Louis XIV. When he was overturned, his statue was melted down but the statues of his victims were left untouched.
Four statues representing the four rivers
The apartments of Napoleon Bonaparte III <one picture of Catherine de Medici>
Then we moved into the French painters
John the Good (Jean Le Bon) - the oldest picture of a French royal <picture>
Also saw pictures by Seuer and Poussin. Also some Vermeers, Goyen, and Dujardin in between the Richilieu and Sully wings (the Dutch and Flemish rooms mainly being closed at the time for renovation, some paintings had been kept out).
Next we went down three levels to walk through the moat of the royal palace (1200s/1300s, probably filled in during the 1500s) that had been excavated in the 1980s
Through the Greek antiquities to see the Venus de Milo and the winged Victory of Samothrace discovered in 1863.
The Coronation of Napoleon <picture>
And of course the Italian Renaissance -- Titian, da Vinci, Digiorgio. "She looks like the kind of women who promises more than she delivers" -- Oscar Wilde
Ending at some of Michaelangelo's statues

Taste of Paris

Started in Le Halle with some musk melon (cantelope, very sweet)
Then we had cherries (Rainier and Napoleon)
Stopped at a Patessiere and then a Fromagerie for tasting
There was a Rocquefort, some goat cheese and a couple of hard cheeses as well as some quince and Mary Ellen's homemade tapenade- olives, anchovies (rinsed), olive oil, capers, garlic. The two best things were the soft cheese and the homemade tapenade.
Macaroons were brought from Italy with Catherine deMedici. In the 19th Century, the French macaroon was created.
Storer is the oldest bakery in France. When a Polish princess married the King, she brought her pastry chef and he invented Baba a Rum and the Well of Love.
We got to try (goose) rillettes and (duck) foie gras at Godard, a shop that specializes in goose.
A last bite was the "Cushion of Lyons". An almond paste in the outside with a chocolate sauce and Curaçao.

Normandy Day Trip

Hakim came to pick us up at 8am and 3 hours later, we were in Normandy. We started at the Normandy Cemetery. It was incredibly affecting and amazing to see how many people were therein uniform. A couple were old enough to have served in WWII. Also, there were some historical reenactors. Very strange to see them in 1940s clothing by they weren't past mid-forties themselves.
11 cemeteries in France, 5 for WWI and 6 for WWII
Omaha Beach - has 3 villages on 6 miles
35,000 men landed or tried to land. 4,000 died; 800 on the beach
90% of the 1,000 men of the first wave were unable to join in the rest of the fight
Families were given two years to decide if they wanted to leave the bodies in Normandy or if they wanted their loved ones repatriated to the States. Because the bodies were put in as the families decided, there is no order
Semi-Circle memorial surrounds the Garden of the missing. The statue represents the spirit of the American youth
The circular chapel is in the center of the cemetery which is laid out in the shape of the Latin cross
9,386 buried in this cemetery (40%)
At noon, the clock rang and then chimed out the tune to "America the Beautiful" and the "Panis Angelicus"

June 6th Afternoon walk

Also known as the Left Bank -- based on the Seines, Numbering was set by Napoleon Bonaparte
Poisoning scandal of 17th Century -- Poison list 1676 -- Wormwood (absinthe), cypress leaves (Gordon and the Marquise de Van Villiers(?)) "The Leather Funnel" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle -- Further writings from the letters of Madame de Sevigny
St. Michael is traditionally shown vanquishing the devil
St. Denys, the patron saint of France, is shown beheaded, often holding the head
Church of Saint Severin -- hermit from the 6th Century -- the church has expanded sideways over the centuries to grow expanding communities

June 6 in Paris

An example of breakfast:

Paris Walks -- Notre Dame with Chloe

The Notre Dame Cathedral used to be a temple to Juno

I think this is the Hall of Justice

The spire (see picture) was added in the 18th century by a man named La Duke who really captured (some say invented) the Gothic style. Though he took many liberties.

Chloe really getting into it

Oldest working clock in Paris

Oldest Public clock in Paris dating back to 1894(?)
It was very noisy as we were on big public streets, Chloe had an incredible vocabulary throwing in words like "vertiginous" and "insalubrious" "palaver."
There are 36 bridges that cross the Seine in Paris
Picture of Man on the horse -- Henry IV town planner, made a lot of public places - Green and Gallant one
#36 where Maigret works
Notre Dame -- Key stone laid in 1150(?)



















We walked over to the Latin Quarter to eat lunch. Dad and Brian had been wanting sausages and they got... something orange? We also got some really awesome desserts including a locally made sorbet.

Pedicure -- Fun with Cari and Anna

Got a pedicure. In Gardiner! Had fun sitting with Anna and Cari the whole time. Only had 6,000 steps so I went to the gym. Had to walk about 3,000 steps in the flip-flops while my toes dried. Looking pretty for the spring!

Welding Class

Welding Class

Jackie totally hooked me up with this adult education class where we got to go weld things. I've been wanting to do it for awhile and it was totally awesome playing with melting metal and hooking up metal pieces to other metal pieces. I made some fun stuff and learned that if the teacher tells you to keep your gloves on, it's really a good idea...

Chili Cook off!

For, like, the third year in a row, I convinced myself that I wasn't going to make a chili. And then Saturday, I was cleaning out my pantry and remembered that there were only three people signed up to bring food so... away I went! It was truly a Kitchen Sink chili. And even though I threw a TON of spices in, it just tasted sort of bland. Apparently the lentils just sucked it all right up. Things to remember for next year. But, hey, at least I got double the number of votes (4) as the last time I participated.

Book swap

Up the hill to Amy and Candace's I went at 7pm (so late!). And had a wonderful evening. I think there were about 15 people piled in. We got birthday cupcakes since it was Kate's big day. Made it home by 10 so it was a little late but the enjoyability of the evening made it worth going out.

Bozeman Symphony -- Shostakovich

A trip up to Bozeman started with a Pure Barre class. I can't claim to have nailed it but it was much easier (or at least a little bit) since I've been doing Insanity at least three times a week.
Then, Heidi and I had lunch at Sweet Chili. The service was actually fast and the meal was just spicy enough (at three out of four chilis).
And the Shostakovich... wow. I hadn't slept well the night before and the Pure Barre made me tired but even trying to take a nap. It was just a fabulous trip.