Rocky Mountain High

I had a wonderful, relaxing weekend in Colorado with Jennifer and Shelly. They picked me up at the Denver airport on Friday, and we drove back into Fort Collins to get some Scottish food at the Stonehouse Grille. I got to meet their houseful of animals--I had already met Jen's dog, Kelsey (the last time I was in Colorado, probably 5 or 6 years ago), but this was my first time meeting Shelly's dog, Alex, and the cats Keegan and Gertrude. All of them are very sweet (and that Keegan is quite a stinker!). Saturday morning, Jen and I headed to an Aveda salon. She got a haircut, and she treated me to a facial. And what a treat it was! It felt really good and was SO relaxing. Afterward we walked through downtown Fort Collins and had a delicious breakfast at Rainbow. That afternoon we went for a good hike at Lory State Park (one of Jennifer's favorite spots), and that night we all went out for Tex-Mex and very strong margaritas at Rio Grande. Sunday morning, Jen and I went to a Quaker Friends Meeting. Neither of us had ever gone before, and we both really enjoyed the experience. There were only five of us there, and only one woman spoke during the hour-long meeting. Other than that, we just sat in silence. It's pretty rare that I sit still and quietly for a whole hour, and it was pretty powerful. That afternoon, Jen, Shelly, and I had a lovely picnic by a stream, then went for a short hike. We spent the rest of the day relaxing at their home, eating dinner, and talking. One of the best parts of the whole wonderful weekend was the chance to just sit and catch up. Jen & Shelly are leaving soon for a three-week trip to Great Britain. I wish them all the best on their travels and hope it won't be 2-1/2 years before we see each other again! (If you'd like to see more pictures from my weekend in Colorado, check out my Flickr page.)