In the loop

I now have my own hula-hoop! Neighbor Robin made me one yesterday. It's surprisingly easy:

1. Determine the proper size of the irrigation tubing (the circle should come to about mid-waist).
2. Cut the tubing where you want it (Robin has cool ratchet shears).
3. Place one end of the tube in boiling water to soften for insertion of the coupler.
4. Insert the coupler (a step I failed to photograph).
5. Place a handful of dry beans or popcorn kernels inside for the "swoosh" effect you loved as a kid.
6. Place the other end of the tube in the boiling water and attach to the coupler.
7. Cover your creation in fun electrical tape (which I haven't done yet) and you're ready to roll!

Round and round

Our neighbor Robin made hula-hoops (irrigation tubing, coupler and tape). Last time I'd tried one as an adult, it didn't go anywhere, but I seem to have gotten the moves back. It's exhausting, but I'm guessing great for the abs.

Mascara tears

Her PTL past aside, you've gotta love Tammy Faye. And if not, check out the documentary "The Eyes of Tammy Faye." The woman was self-deprecating and nonjudgmental and showed a lot of chutzpah. And she developed a seemingly genuine friendship with porn star Ron Jeremy, her polar opposite. I don't think even I could do that.

Kicking out the jams

As we do with most of our visitors, we took a recent trip to nearby Red Rocks Amphitheatre. Our friend Dan came to see us after a family reunion in Utah. While at Red Rocks, Michael decided to try out an interactive exhibit and jammed with some kids. Behind him is a photo of one of the earliest performances at Red Rocks.

Colorado sunset

Playing a bit of catch-up. This is looking out of the window of the rooftop patio of the Buckhorn Exchange, billed as Denver's historic steakhouse. Mom wanted to eat like the Denverites do, so we took her there during her visit last month. She had elk and buffalo. Michael had baby-back ribs. The only "meat" on the menu that I probably would ever order was the salmon, though it didn't appeal to me that particular day, so I had a baked potato and salad. I have to say, they have fantastic ranch dressing, buttermilky just like I like it.

Arrested development

Mom and I were transported to the '80s last week when we saw The Police's reunion tour at the Pepsi Center. They did all the hits and then some (lots of great songs I'd forgotten all about) and had a blast. We had the chump seats behind the stage, but they turned out not to be too bad at all since we were actually closer to the stage than people facing the stage at the far end. The band (including my favorite, Stewart Copeland, who's now a silver fox, yow!) approached the back of the stage at times, and the big screens helped. You can see there was one pretty much directly in front of us.

I have to say, I was skeptical about seeing Sting. He's gotten a bit too New Age-y for me in the past few years, and I just expected him to be a big beefcake tantric lunkhead. I was pleasantly surprised, though, to see he is quite the hottie (Mom has never disagreed on this point) and has aged very nicely. He also didn't seem to take himself too seriously, which I had feared.

Andy Summers seemed to be the most serious of the bunch and not enjoying himself much. Mom and I noticed "GOD" on his guitar strap and thought maybe he'd become born again and was just humoring the other guys by heading out on tour with them. We were happy when we got a closer look and saw that it actually was an "Oh, my GOD, they killed Kenny" guitar strap from "South Park." So apparently he has a sense of humour after all.

Sweet!

Mom's here visiting, and during a quick trip to Boulder, we checked out Powell's Sweet Shoppe. It's a chain, so maybe you've visited one before. I never had, and it was super-cool. Filled with candies of yesteryear (I didn't even know they still made Zotz!), and there's a screen in the back that plays a loop of "Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory," complete with a few movie-theater seats for your viewing pleasure. They also had then-and-now signed photos of cast members. Mike TeeVee was bald as an adult in his. I'd seen Charlie Bucket in later photos before, and he's pretty unrecognizable. Augustus Gloop still looks Gloopy.

Today we're off to the cooler environs of Estes Park (Rocky Mountain Park area) and a stay at The Stanley Hotel, where at least part of the TV version of "The Shining" was filmed. The hotel offers ghost tours, but I have a feeling we'll pass.

Special delivery

My friends Brigette and Dave stopped through Denver last night on their way to Yellowstone from Indiana. Mom was having my little-kid rocking chair refinished, and Brigette graciously agreed to bring it with them on their cross-country trip.
Mom also sent along a couple of my baby blankets, including this animal quilt. She included a note saying, "I painted the blocks and Grandma hand pieced and quilted it." (Grandma being my grandma, Mom's mom.) Either I never knew this or had forgotten, but it will make it all the more special to have for our own kid.
	I remember, as a kid, always having these fabric paints around the house. Mom said she thinks the company was called Artex, and they held home parties where you could buy paints, patterns and caddies. I still have lots of vintage tea towels made with similar paints. I found a company online called Tri Chem that seems to still manufacture them.
Brigette brought us a sweet little quilt too, made by little old ladies, she said. So our forthcoming Sagittarius is well on his/her way to winter warmth!

Slumber party

Michael and I, along with neighbors Shane and Cristine, had a few friends over for Memorial Day. Apparently the excitement was too much for Zoe Violet, above left, and Keona Rose. But Emma and Grayson, at the slide, had no trouble keeping awake and busy. All in all, a great day for a cookout. The weather even cooperated!

Vegging out

The veggie garden survived the hailstorm pretty well (this picture was taken right after planting). The bell peppers are growing. No snap pea shoots yet (planted out of view of this photo). In the rear corner is lemon balm. Our yard is crazy with it, and we used to pull most of it out because it can take over but have since learned its value for tissanes (like a tea) and body products. Supposedly it's also good for calming dogs, though we have yet to brew any for Esther.

Speaking of Esther, check out Kat's May 30 entry for a funny pic.

All hail breaks loose

We kept hearing that a cold front was moving in, but all day it had been pleasant and sunny out. Then it got overcast for a while. Next thing we know, bam! Here comes the hail! It lasted only about two minutes but managed to pelt the poppies and columbines, and it turned the street white. Crazy! Now it's just raining. Of course it is. It's Tuesday, the start of my weekend!

The life of Reilly

Charles Nelson Reilly has departed this mortal coil at age 76.

Best remembered by me as a regular on "Match Game" (best game show ever!) and as Horatio J. Hoodoo on Sid & Marty Krofft's "Lidsville."

Trivia I just learned about CNR on IMDb: He met "Match Game" host Gene Rayburn while serving as Rayburn's understudy on Broadway in "Bye Bye Birdie." He was a several-time Tony nominee and one-time winner. He and his partner were together for 27 years.

Quote: "When I die, it's going to read, 'Game Show Fixture Passes Away.' Nothing about the theater or Tony Awards or Emmys. But it doesn't bother me."

Season's weedings

	My neighbor Cristine & I decided to try planting a little vegetable garden around the side of the house in a cute little structure that a past tenant built. It was completely full of weeds when I started (these photos are after pulling about half of them).
	Today we planted tomatoes, red and yellow bell peppers, Anaheim peppers, crookneck squash and seeds for sugar snap peas. I would show you a photo of our handiwork, but with the rain that's currently coming down, I'm guessing it's a bit flooded (and possibly the peas have washed away). Will include a shot when it dries out a bit. I noticed the Anaheim already has a small pepper growing. We had great luck with peppers last year; so-so luck with tomatoes. We made sure to cage them this time, as last time they were too unwieldy.

P.S. Thanks to Kat for teaching me to make html tables. I'm still learning, but this is my fanciest one yet!

New blooms

The backyard gets better all the time. Actually, the bleeding hearts have been around for a while. They're my favorites.

Our niece!

Here's Rebecca, all swaddled up. Look at that hair!

Craigslist rocks!

We just posted our second item for sale on Craigslist, and both times, the first person who's come to look at the item bought it.

We got this fabulous turquoise (though it looks more sea green here) sectional in Albuquerque at a thrift store. It has never fit in our place here (the setup in the photo is for sale purposes only; we had it split into different rooms and one piece stored in the basement). It's super-cool but just not practical for our narrow turn-of-the-century rowhouse, and besides we have a brand-new couch on order. The dogs' little nails also did a number of some of the cushions, but we still managed to sell it for the same amount we paid for it. The only downside is we agreed to hold onto it for three more weeks, when the buyer moves into her new place.

While the woman was here looking at it, Angus & Esther hopped up to lie down, and then little neighbor Grayson came in and started jumping up and down on it. Luckily, the woman is really laid back and said she didn't mind at all. "It'll probably have a wine stain on it a week after I get it," she said.

We have a bunch of other stuff in our basement taking up valuable storage space that's going on next. Craigslist makes it so easy to sell (and it's a free service), there's no reason not to. So there you have my testimonial!

Call me Auntgela!

Michael (aka Munchael) and I have a niece! Rebecca Ellen was born on Mother's Day, 8 lbs. 13 oz., 20 inches long. Congratulations and all our love to Leah & Kyle!

Creatures great & small

Summer's almost here, and our yard has been dog central. Two of our more recent neighbors have brought new dogs into the mix. There's Morris, the "gentle giant" American bulldog who, if you just saw his backside, you'd think was a tiger. He is gigantic but the most mellow dog of the lot. Our dogs are still getting used to him. Though he's calm and slow, his size intimidates them a little. The newest member of the commune is Radar, a golden retriever puppy. There is a reason all those commercials use golden puppies. They have the most adorable faces and are fuzzy and snuggly.

Radio days

If you're bored, go to This American Life to hear my radio moment. My friend Dan in Louisville put together this segment and interviewed some of his friends on their "Zoom" recollections. Click on "full episode" to listen. The "Zoom" segment doesn't start until about 4:40 minutes in, if you want to "zoom" ahead. I'm in some of the early part of it, actually even singing part of the theme song on national radio. Ugh. The bulk of my interview comes in around 26:22 minutes. Pretty funny.

Actually, my best radio moment probably was talking to Bob Geldof on "Rock Line" in the late '80s. Of course, that conversation was much briefer and more one-sided.

And that's all I've got. Sorry no real posts. Maybe now that the weather is finally good for real (knock on wood), we'll be out and about more and have something to offer you.

Cuteness in the house

Our neighbor Grayson hung out this morning while his parents were working/running errands. He's just the cutest, sweetest kid.

Also, last week I started volunteering at the Dumb Friends League, where we adopted Esther. Today, in only my second week, I already managed to fall in love. There is a little skinny Chihuahua who is the spitting image of Angus. She isn't up for adoption yet, as she has some fear issues, but is enrolled in the "Canine Courage" program to get socialized. You could've fooled me. She is a super-sweet dog and loved my attention. She even has expressive eyes like Angus. So if anyone's in the market for Angus' double ...

Life in the city

Living close to downtown, we often find fliers left on our windshields, usually for clubs or DJs, but this is one is the best by far -- a drag-queen competition at the Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Center, which, among other things, puts on the annual gay pride fest that starts in the park near our house. I only wish I'd gotten to see pix of the other candidates!

Happy Peepster!

Check out these brilliant uses of Peeps. My favorites are Mommie Peepest, The Peepsons, Reservoir Peeps, Little Miss Peep, Peep Haw and Say Anything.

Oh, and remember how spring was springing a few weeks ago? Well, now, snow is snowing. It's our third snowfall in the past two weeks. When does it ever end? It does remind me of the year it snowed on Easter back home once when I was a kid and, instead of a snowman, we made a snowbunny.

A 1 and a 2 and a 1 and a 2 and a 1 and a 2 and a 1 and a 3

Well, all I can say is it's a good thing the Oregon Ducks are in the Elite Eight to mix things up ever so slightly. Of course, given my marital lineage, I'd be cheering for them regardless of their seed, but, c'mon, 1's and 2's?! I stand by my earlier assertion that, overall, it's been a fairly boring championship.

I know my brother-in-law thinks it's only because of my bracket in his pool, but I have so many brackets in so many different pools, it's not about that. Just always nice to see some low seeds in the mix. Even with the nail-biters, they mostly came down to the higher seed winning.

So, that's all I have to say on that topic, except: May the better water animal win today in Ducks vs. Gators. GO DUCKS!

Spring is springing

Let the madness begin

Sheesh, what a boring NCAA Tournament so far. Give me some upsets!