A few days in Steamboat Springs, CO

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Day 1 (2/25)

Today is a travel day with a 6am flight. That wouldn’t be so bad but I had a hockey game at 10:15 last night, if I got a hours sleep I’m lucky. I arrived at the airport with plenty of time. It’s been a while since I’ve flown and the $15 bag check fee was slightly unexpected. Glad I decided not to bring the snow board I borrowed that would have been $75 since it was oversized. Seems like some airlines charge and some don’t, unfortunately Frontier did. I’ll think about Southwest next time.

The drive to Steamboat was 3hrs. We stopped in Dillon at the Village Inn for a late breakfast and made it to Steamboat early afternoon. The condo is across the highway from the mountain and we have a clear view of the slopes. It has 4 bedrooms, 3 baths and sleeps 10 to 12. In addition it has a deck, 10 person hot tub, fireplace, two car garage and grill… very nice. After everyone was settled we gathered up coupons and headed to town to rent ski’s. We found a place away from the slopes called Straightline Sports. All three of their packages were less than $30 a day with the coupons that made the middle package $19, a great deal. With the skis taken care of it was across the street to the pub for a brew before stocking up on groceries.

Groceries for 10 for 4 days took a bit but once loaded up with the essentials it was back to the condo. I doubt that will be the only time we take a trip to the store.

Day 2 (2/26)

Today it was up early for some breakfast, biscuits and gravy, and then off to the slopes. One of the guys has a condo on the property so we parked in the garage for his units. It was a short walk to get lift tickets and I opted for 3 days instead of 4, that would turn out to be a good choice. Lift ticket in hand it was on to the Gondola and up the mountain. We skied the right side of the mountain in the morning, those of us that didn’t want to be on the blacks (expert) runs that is. Here is the map for reference. Conditions weren’t optimal and I thought my skis needed waxing since there was no glide in them. Lunch was at the Rendezvous Saddle, mid mountain just above the South Peak lift..

The afternoon was short as some of us headed down early and grabbed a table at the Gondola Pub for a brew. We stayed there an hour or so and then headed back. On the dinner menu was chili with pasta and turkey. After a dip in the hot tub and a few more brews we called it a night.

Day 3 (2/27)

Breakfast this morning was bacon, sausage and eggs with a brief moment of entertainment thrown in. A fox walked up on the deck, drawn by the smell of bacon I guess. It wasn’t there long enough to get picture but it was still cool. Skiing today was better as it snowed last night. The skis road better with the new snow which was a welcome change for me, it was to much work yesterday felt like they were covered in fur. We started the day going to the left side of the Gondola down Buddys Run, there are few blues and mostly black runs there. The weather wasn’t the best overcast, colder and windy. Wind was so bad I had to borrow a balaclava from another one in the group to keep my face from freezing.

After one run there it was back to where we were the day before and familiar territory. Once over there we found an area off Tomohawk called Ramrod that was fresh powder past your boots. We spent the rest of the morning there until lunch where we met up with the others at the Gondola restaurant. Lunch yesterday, today and tomorrow would be water with granola bars. I carried a back pack with me that was very convenient as prices at the restaurants are pretty high. One of the guys pulled a leg muscle just before lunch so a couple of us headed down with him and called it a day. For me that was a smart move for me as I was already fatigued, legs were sore and I still had tomorrow to go.

A few hours later the others showed up at the Gondola Pub, we had a couple pitchers there and went back to the condo. Dinner tonight was chicken with pasta. The day ended with another dip in the hot tub and a few more brews. It was going snow again and with the weekend crowd coming it would be good skiing tomorrow, we had yet to see a groomed run but that would change.

Day 4 (2/28)

We could see going up all the trails were groomed. After a few runs on Tomahawk we joined up with the more experienced guys for a run or two down some blue/black runs. That was a new experience and I only lasted for two runs. I could tell my day would end early as the legs were fatigued again. It was back to Rendezvous Saddle for lunch and from there the plan was to ski down instead of taking the Gondola. That proved to be the right choice as it was a ways to get there and I was spent by the time we got through Vagabond to Right O Way. Cruising in to the Gondola loading area shoes and a brew were calling. That would be it for me and skiing this trip no crashes and everything in tact, not to bad.

Day5 (3/1)

No skiing today for me and a few others, the rest were off for there last hurrah. I slept in and hung out at the condo till lunch time. Then me and one of the the other guys headed to town for a little shopping. I was able to find a few good deals a Columbia Titanium jacket and a pair of Keen sandals, both half off. We stopped there, which was a good idea, since the others at the condo wanted wings for the race (Sprint cup). We headed across the street to the Steamboat Smokehouse for takeout, and a brew while we waited of course. 20 minutes later the wings were ready and we were on our way back to the condo.

Tomorrow it’s back to the airport and reality. A great trip with a great group of guys. I hope to do it again next year.

Moving to Gmail

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It was about a year ago when I signed up for a Gmail account intending to use the Calendar service. At the time I had a number of things going on and was looking for a way to get at them where ever I was. It has worked out well be it at home on the PC, traveling with the laptop or at my finger tips on the communicator. So after my recent trials setting up fetchmail, dovecot, and ldap and then adding Squirrelmail and Spamassassin I thought “why not just use Gmail ?”.

It wasn’t the first time that had crossed my mind. I’ve followed their blog and read good things about features in other places but was never ready to “let go”… I guess. Well beginning of the year I decided to give it a try if it didn’t work out I could always go back.

It’s been a few months now and I’m enjoying it so far. Spam filtering is excellent and I’m getting use to the labeling vs folders. I even switched to the reader for blogs and news subscriptions. To deal with the “I want a copy on my server” just turn on imap and pull a copy via fetchmail. Using these instructions I was able to get that working with minimal effort. So for now Gmail it is.

No Power

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It seems to be a regular occurrence these days for the power to go out. While it doesn’t happen every day or week it has a few times in the last 6 months. Today was one of those days and not a good day for it. About 10:00 this morning the laptops battery kicked in and then I heard a loud pop. The power was out. No point wasting time as I was in the middle of a few things I loaded up and was off to a cafe that had wifi about 10 minutes away. Unfortunately when I got there they did not have power either. I figured that meant power was out for 10 square miles from the house and I didn’t know of any other wifi spots close by.

So it was decision time, wait it out or find a place to work. I opted for finding a place to work. I know of a Panera Bread about 30 minutes from the house so I headed that way. I was able to get some work done but after a couple hours I’d had enough of the slow connection and getting disconnected. It was back to the house and power was on by the blinking clocks the outage lasted for about and hour and a half. Hopefully it will be a while before the next one.

I think I need to scout the area one of these weekends for a closer alternative if the one cafe is not an option.

Dog Training

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The holiday season was about to start last year when I signed up for dog training through The Woof Waggin, a dog care and boarding facility in town. I started taking Roscoe and Cooper there shortly after hearing at the dog park they offered day care services to help dogs socialize.

Before the class I thought I was fairly knowledgeable about dogs and was doing most of the right things for mine and their health …. needless to say I had a lot to learn and still do. What prompted me to sign up was the initial evaluation by the Woff Waggin on their first visit. They just don’t let your dog hang out with anyone they evaluate them first and put them with other dogs that will help whatever challenges they might have, if any. The evaluations came back for both as nervous and anxious around other dogs, in general they didn’t know how to act. That was surprising especially about Roscoe. So that got me thinking if I couldn’t read how they acted around other dogs what else was I missing ? Enter training.

The class I signed up for was one to two hours every Monday, with a week skipped here or there for holidays. We covered the basics of walking, sit, stay, going in and out of doors and ignoring on command. Even though that doesn’t sound like much for the time it was plenty. I learned ways to accomplish these I would have never thought of on my own and since neither Copper or Roscoe excelled at any, they’d have a chance now.

The training was really for us not the dogs. How do we react when “anything” happens, what do we say or do when they’re bad or good. Sending confusing signals and not being consistent were things I didn’t realize I was doing, but I was. I’m sure I still do that today but hopefully less. We have progress and walks are more enjoyable. If things aren’t going the way I want them to I can change it. We can go through doors or gates without me getting run over and if it’s time to leave something alone it’s left alone, most of the time…. still working on that one.

So if you have dogs and are challenged like me find a trainer take a class or two, you might just learn a little about yourself, and your dogs might be happier too. Special thanks to everyone at The Woof Waggin for hosting and Nikki Ivey for the training.

Cheers !!!

Weekend in Vegas

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This past weekend Kay and I took a quick trip to Vegas. Kay had earned this short vacation from a company she does business with. We left early Friday morning and got in about 10:30am. This was my first time in Vegas, Kay had been a few years ago with a friend. You hear and read “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” all the time and see news coverage of some amazing events but it’s a little different in person. On the ride in we flew over the Hoover Dam, that was one option were we considering for the afternoon. Doing a little sight seeing as we wait for her sister and boyfriend to get in. It was impressive from the air and even though we only got a glimpse in the end decided against going.

Day 1

We took a shuttle to the hotel that only took about 15 minutes, not bad. Check-in was a little slow, of course normally I’m not exposed to a dozen stations and a waiting area that could hold 30 people. Needless to say it won’t be the only time I’m caught off guard by size.

Kay got us an upgrade to the north tower, even though the rooms are older the view is better. We could see the Bellagio Fountains and part of the strip up to the Luxor that was nice. Once settled, which was all of about 10 minutes as we were starving, it was out for a walk to the Hofbrauhaus. On the way we passed Planet Hollywood and City Center which is currently under construction.

After a pint or two we walked back to the strip and headed up to MGM and New York New York. Along the way we stopped at the M&M Store. Speaking of M&M’s the store is a real treat especially if you have kids. Four floors of everything from hard to find colors of both regular and peanut to Nascar merchandise.

As we made it to the MGM and stepped in the casino we were immediately met with a wildlife display, holding lions. This was unexpected. You can see more details on their website, but it was interesting to see that in a casion. Moving across the street to New York New York the outside is made up of all the buildings prominent in the New York skyline… and a roller coaster.

By now we had spent enough time that Kay’s sister would be getting in so we headed back. We passed by the City Center a massive project with some beautifully designed buildings, big buildings. Did I mention the hotels are a hair larger in person than on TV ? They are. After Kay and her sister worked out where we’d meet we headed down to Toby Keith’s. Didn’t know Toby had a place there, it was a little hard to find as you had to go through Harrah’s and upstairs to get to it. But the food was good, atmosphere was nice and they had entertainment too.

From there we headed back and did a little gambling before turning in for the night. Kay actually did more than me I try not to do to much of what I’m not good at, gambling is one of those things.

Day 2

Plans for day two started with us heading across the street to the Bellagio to meet Kay’s sister. From there we headed north on the strip stopping along the way at a few places. We made it to the Venetian before turning around. Rather than listing links for the hotels I’ll let the Vegas tourism site help out. They have a nice map that takes you down the strip in both directions.

It was now lunch we had done enough walking so we started looking for a place to eat. Most were pretty crowded until we got to Monami Gabi in front of the Paris Casino next to Balleys and across from Bellagio. It’s a trendy French bistro where half the seating is outside but we settled on inside, no waiting and all. It was then back to the room, stopping for a little more gambling first, to rest up before going down town for the evening.

We had reservations at Binions an excellent steak house. Dinner was very good, I actually had lobster, and then it was off for a stroll down Freemont Street. That was the highlight of the trip for me. 52 ounce beers in plastic footballs and and daiquiris tall enough they give you a strap to put around your neck so you don’t have to hold it. Light shows put to music at the top of every hour on the roof above the street and not to mention the street performers, what a sight. We stopped in one of the casinos, Kay needed to play a little roulette and by 11:30pm we were ready to head back. We picked up a cab and made it to the Bellagio for the 12:00am water show. We stayed for a few, they run every 15 minutes, and then went back to Balleys. Kay hit the video poker for another donation and I called it a night. It wasn’t to long before she did to.

Day 3

It was Sunday and time to go home, our shuttle scheduled for 2:00pm. A short day so we slept in and had a early lunch with Kay’s sister and her boyfriend at one of the places between Balleys and Paris. My thoughts on Vegas is it’s a different world plain and simple. If your into gambling and have cash to burn not sure there’s any place like it. For me it’s a nice place to visit but not sure I’d want to live there. I would like to go back but think I’d take in more of the sights, travel outside the city maybe to Hoover Dam or the Grand Canyon. We did run into some neighbors on the plane back, small world I know. They were in town for a convention and had been to Zion State Park just a few hours away in Utah. They said the drive was excellent. So maybe next time we can do a few more of those things. Regardless we had an excellent time, didn’t donate to much to the casinos and didn’t get to crazy. Now just like everyone says when they get back from Vegas …. back to reality.

Cheers !!!