Blog

Tonight, I headed back to the rock climbing gym to get checked out on the belay gear, and once that was out of the way, I was cleared to climb all over the joint. I had one day left on my complimentary week-long pass to the gym, so Brenda came with and we figured we could climb together.

So about a year ago Brenda bought me an “introductory lesson package” gift certificate from the soaring school at Boulder Municipal Airport. I finally got a chance to get on the schedule.

It’s been a while, but tonight I finally tried something new: rock climbing. More specifically, I took a belay course at the Boulder Rock Club, that included a little rock climbing. Brenda got into rock climbing about a year and a half ago, and at the time I had no interest in joining her. I was riding my bike around while she was hanging from tiny little pieces of plastic bolted to the climbing walls in the gym (and later, from chinks in the rocks of Eldorado Canyon), and that was fine with me; she had her hobby, and I had mine. Once she started her classes last year, Brenda absolutely fell in love with the challenges: the physical challenges as well as the mental puzzle-solving challenges that go with the territory. Still, I just thought rock climbing wasn’t for me. I’m too heavy, too klutzy, too weak. Too outta shape.

Yeah so it’s been over a month since I’ve posted, and it’s not that I fell over dead from surprise that this nation elected a black President. Been busy, been distracted, been lazy. Lots of my friends whose blogs I read are either resorting to posting infrequently and populating their pages with twitter links and whatnot, or giving up altogether.

Oh my god, he did it! Barack defeated the idiots, the racists, the conservatives. He did it, he fucking did it! Colorado is a blue state, the United States has a new President-elect and a Democratic Senate majority.

I voted this morning, on my way to work. Paper ballot, hope it gets counted. Got the butterflies going, but I’m pretty hopeful–more hopeful than in ‘04–that we will right the ship this time around. Can’t wait to see if Colorado goes blue here!

I know I haven’t had much to say on the election this year. Maybe because I said so much about it in 2004. Luckily my friend sent me this video today, which has spurred me to at least share it with you all. See you on Tuesday.

I know. No action. Sorry.

Well, I got my transcript from my undergraduate institution, the first step in ascertaining just how badly I messed up my first pass at “College”.

Well, Hooper had a long day, but he’s home, he’s sleeping, and he’s minus one tooth. The remains of one of his upper incisors were removed–in pieces–from Hooper’s skull, and he now has “character” in the form of a gap in his toothy facade.

Tonight in my biology class, I got my first test results back. Ace. My instructor even wrote on my quiz: “Good; I think this vet thing might be doable”, and encouraged me to take a chemistry class as soon as possible. Then I got a text message from Brenda, asking me to come home right after class because Hooper broke his tooth playing at the ballfield.

Tonight was one of those nights I truly felt lucky to live in Boulder. Tonight, at the fabulous Boulder Theater, the Reel Rock Tour kicked off to a packed house, and Brenda, Leslie, and I were there.

Ahh, Boulder. Scott Carpenter Park, just around the corner from our house, has a public municipal swimming pool that keeps the kids cool all summer. Now that summer is over, the pool is officially closed for the season–to people. Boulder being dog-crazy Boulder, that does not mean the pool is yet closed for good to all creatures, though. No, after a de-clorination process last week, the pool was officially open to dogs starting this weekend and extending to next weekend. Yeah (woof)!

I finished reading Merle’s Door last night; I cried like a baby through the last forty pages.

Brenda, Hooper & I all piled into the car today for a drive to Denver, to attend a birthday party for some friends of ours. Partners Greg & Ted share birthdays a day apart. Greg aged a year today, and Ted did the same yesterday. And so a joint birthday picnic/barbecue in the park near the Denver Zoo was in order, with dogs.

I am unable to speak–have been for days–because I saw Bob Costas’ Olympic hair. You have GOT to be fucking kidding me.

One year ago today, Brenda & I brought Hooper home from the Boulder Humane Society. What a year it’s been.

Brenda & I just got back from Denver, having just taken in the cutting, silly, schizophrenic, smart and above all, funny standup act of Eddie Izzard. Brenda & I saw him in New York back in 2003, and when we heard he was taking his new tour through Denver, we bought our tickets months and months ago. Turns out we had pretty great seats, just six rows back! Being that close to him, it felt like we were in a venue much smaller than the Paramount Theatre, and you could really see his expressions that are such a part of his stage presence.

Eighteen years ago last night, Brenda & I kissed for the first time. For nine years and change after that, July 28 was our “anniversary”, until I finally got my shit together and married Brenda. Nowadays, May 7th is our anniversary, and we’ve celebrated eight of those, but July 28 is still our first official anniversary and yesterday we marked eighteen of them. Kinda cool. We will celebrate this weekend in Grand Lake.

Emma was Brenda’s pet cat. Well, that’s what she started out as. Brenda got her shortly after the two of us got together, and Emma immediately spent much of her time showing her displeasure at having to share Brenda with me (especially the first year, when I was finishing school and Brenda often left Emma alone in her apartment while visiting me at school). But in those first few years after Brenda got her, I also took care of Emma during the summers when Brenda was off doing summer theatre gigs. I quickly became very attached to her, as, I believe, Emma got attached to me. We sorted each other out.