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The Bus 2 Pingree

Wednesday, September 21st, 2011

It’s near where we went in 2008 on the Veteran’s Day Trek.

No hike today: We went via a CSU Bus

to the beautiful Pingree Park Conference area and learning center for CSU’s forestry students. We didn’t hike up to the B17 crash site this time; We just took a tour of the many buildings at the park and took in the fall colors.

A member of the Warnar College of Natural Resources

tells us how we could become involved in the many activities at the “mountain campus”, including music and painting workshops not to mention getting lost on the miles and miles of hiking trails.

Taxidermy in the museum

among other things. I haven’t posted a picture of a stuffed cat in a while, so here it is.

The Cold Storage

is one of the buildings on this site. George Pingree first came here to cut down trees for making railroad ties in 1868 then the Ramsey and Konig families homesteaded the area and built a number of log structures.

Kiddie cemetary

Some of the Konig kids didn’t make it through the harsh winters here. They were buried in the plot with lamb markers (now placed upon cinder blocks for easier viewing).

The Colors!

The park is a little over 9,000 feet in elevation so we were able to catch an early glimpse of what to expect down below in FoCo in the next week or so.

Posted in Environment, Museums, Teaching | Comments Off on The Bus 2 Pingree

It was fun, fun, fun until Walter took the VW away

Tuesday, September 6th, 2011

1st there is denial:

I know, it looks like my car, but it can’t be

Nothing wrong with the car… Why would anyone trade it in for a freakin’ bicycle????

Then An-Grrrrrr!

WTF! Them bastards at New Belgium tricked me! And who’s this Walter guy who thinks he’s a bad ass that he can just take my car??? Damn them all to hell, I tells ya!

Wait, maybe I can make a deal with this guy…

“Hey Walter, old buddy… “

I know you were born in Bahia Brazil. I bet you love Samba music right? I can get you front row tickets to the next performance of Bloco em Foco. What do you say… Is it a deal?

** DEPRESSION **

(Nothing to see here. Don’t want to be here. Everything is dark. Go away!)

I ACCEPT !

The car is going to a good home

…and that’s all that matters.

Posted in The Dead | Comments Off on It was fun, fun, fun until Walter took the VW away

2011 TDF

Saturday, September 3rd, 2011

That time of year again:

A time for bicycle conversion

This event was first reported here and here and there in 2008 and then here in 2009. We missed the 2010 tour, but this year we came back!

other trasportation

The Segway! Did you know it was first called Ginger? It’s because one of Dean Kamen’s balancing robot prototypes was nicknamed ‘Fred’ so naturally they called the next big invention ‘Ginger’. Ain’t them engineers a stitch!

Purple and Green Grapes

The original logo of Fruit of the Loom was developed in 1893 and included the grapes pictured above plus apples and gooseberries.

The Rhino Pirate

and Muzzled Giraffe

Note both pictures have a bamboo pole attached to the right fork of the bike.

Fat Tire Beer and Wonder Classic White

Back of the main stage: Fortified bread (what, maybe eight essential vitamins and minerals?) and beer? At least it’s not Smart Bread!

Not just beer but…

even more weirdest to come.

Lots to do here. Marcus Santos is in town next week and I want to get started on the TDF video NOW and have it done before Marcus arrives. How is that possible?

Posted in Bike, Environment | Comments Off on 2011 TDF

Spooky Fort Collins, Part Second

Friday, August 12th, 2011

For the first part of this series, click HERE.

Lori in someone’s basement

Somewhere near the old Calaboose jail house, perhaps in the basement some prisoners were kept in what was called solitary confinement cells.

Below the Happy Lucky’s Tea House of all places

is where a not so happy/lucky prisoner by the name of Jack Cassidy died presumably of anxiety ?

This looks like the basement of my old house in Indiana!

when you turn off the lights, it’s really dark and SPOOKY!

Yet another basement photo (un-retouched to reveal actual digital psychic phenomena)

And here is the location of the jail-house morgue!

Glad to see the dead have been keeping it tidy after all these years.

The old morgue is under the “Jilly Bean”

Note the picture of Jimi above left of the bar. He’s dead.

This picture of a tree at the Jilly Bean

It has been noted that this picture tends to move; perhaps by a ‘prankster spirit’. This particular spirit has issues that it needs to address: maybe some earth linked emotions need releasing? Any ghost whisperers out there that can help Jilly Bean?

Posted in Entertainment, The Dead | 1 Comment »

Spooky Fort Collins, Part First

Sunday, July 17th, 2011

I ain’t afraid of no ghost!

Lori talks of the dead at the old Linden Hotel

It’s part of some new tour in town called Haunted Fort Collins where you can look at and go into some of the more scarier places around town. This week Lori and her two grave digger assistants Jake and Chris took us on a little tour exploring various morgues and jails and underground places where they might be ghosts!

The Linden Landmark Building

It’s where a woman apparently hung herself on the second floor. Children are the only ones who see a woman spirit in the hotel. According to Haunted Colorado the place was recently cleansed of ghosts but things still mysteriously fall off the shelves!

The front “door” to the calaboose

It’s the old jail where James Howe briefly took up residence until some citizens got together and broke him out and hung him… people do seem to hang around in town.

Side window of the old Jail

You see, James Howe apparently slit his wife Eva’s throat in front of his house (where the Armadillo is now) in the middle of the day and landed in the Calaboose when the law caught up with him.

Near the Old Firehouse

The jail is now haunted by a jewelry repair business

But back in the wild days of the Fort the locals found it necessary to find Mr. Howe guilty and to perform a proper ‘lynchin’ which the Urban Dictionary defines as a form of population control that has been replaced by the drive by shooting.

NEXT TIME: We look at the underground world of Fort Collins!

Posted in Entertainment, The Dead | 1 Comment »

Dead Presidents

Sunday, July 3rd, 2011

On this July 4th weekend:

Big Head Lincoln

Many who looked at these costumed characters said out loud “It’s gotta be boiling inside those!” They seem to depict the stone-faced presidents on Mount Rushmore. But why?

With George Washington throwing the first pitch?

They were well designed costumes; No character attendants were necessary as they seemed to always stand with Washington on the left, then Jefferson, Roosevelt and lastly Lincoln on the right. And if they had to walk single file, it was always Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln in that order. Damn, they were good!

Dinger was there! This must be Coors Field!

The “Fab Four” as they are called in Rapid City, SD were in Denver for the weekend to promote South Dakota tourism why not?

Happy 4th of July You all!

The Rockies figured that they would sweep the K.C. Royals but it didn’t happen. For some reason, the Rockies have not won a game on a Sunday in the last 11 consecutive Sunday games. Not bad mile-high seats: we could even see Westminster Castle .

Posted in Historical, Sports, The Dead | Comments Off on Dead Presidents

Snow Melt 2011.2

Friday, June 10th, 2011

Apparently not that bad:

Sylvia, Jeanne, Lucas, Bianca, Jim and George

Rafting on the cresting Poudre River just days after the access roads were closed by Fort Collins officials: “When life gives you lemons, go white river rafting with friends”

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Snow Melt 2011.1

Thursday, June 9th, 2011

Near the Poudre River at the Sweatsville Zoo:

The fishing guy is up to his elbows

and the banjo playing dinosaur (photo taken last week)

… has wet feet!

With nearly 200% above normal snowfall in the mountains and the early high temperatures this Spring we are ready to see some high water in places in and around Fort Collins as the snow quickly melts. Will it top the flood of 1997? I don’t think so. That flood was caused by a huge series of storms over a two day period. We will have to see what this snow melt brings.

Yesterday Fort Collins closed all access roads to the Poudre River from city-owned natural areas and parks and a number of bike trail under-passes have been closed due to hight water along the Poudre trail.

Posted in Environment | Comments Off on Snow Melt 2011.1

Frozen Dead Guy Days!

Monday, March 7th, 2011

In the sleepy little town of Nederland, Colorado:

There is a frozen dead guy resting in this Tuff Shed.

And as this Wiki Link says, there is a yearly celebration in this town of the discovery of the cryogenically frozen corpse of a one Bredo Morstel. The celebration includes various events like “The Polar Plunge” , the Hearse Parade and the Coffin races. And it would not have happened without:

The Parade “Grand Marshals”!

Of course there was no time to make a proper sign. Scratching the words “Grand Marshals” in the dirt on the side of a pickup truck is good enough! Riding in the truck are Robin, Kathy and Shelly Beeck, the creators of an independent short subject film documentary called “Grandpa’s in the TUFF SHED” The film put Nederland on the map. And the rest is hearstory.