DC Day 3

Today, I am writing you from the lobby of the hotel I'm staying in right outside the metro station in Arlington, Virginia.  Much to my chagrin, I have a cup of Starbucks coffee sitting next to my computer because, as I found out when I checked in, you have to pay for the wifi in your room.  I found this a little absurd, as even mediocre hotels have wifi, and I figured if I had to condescend to using a public place to do my writing for today, I was going to use somewhere other than the hotel lobby.  I bought my coffee, sat myself in the corner of the small building, and pulled out my laptop, wondering how I would begin today's post, and what I saw astounded me.  The Arlington Starbucks near my hotel didn't have wifi.  WHAT?!

Slightly ticked, I made the short walk back to the faux leather adorned lobby, grumpily pulled out my laptop, and started writing.  Things could be a lot worse, to be sure.  I finally got the chance to talk to my parents and tell them about all the amazing things I've learned this weekend, and I'm watching Costa Rica give Uruguay a shellacking they'll never forget.  And hey, I'm in DC.  Life is pretty good at the moment.

I'm saddened that my weekend in DC is almost over.  I'm flying home tomorrow on Father's Day (my flight should arrive back in Knoxville around 9:34...so my precise ticket says), but I learned SO MUCH between yesterday and today.  I tweeted a lot during the conference, and several of my tweets we favorited and retweeted by astute analysts and politicians, and Tyler, one of the young men in charge of the event, complimented me on a few like the following:

"@MQ_McShane: solid ed reform views and amazing hair. #vc2014 @ValuesAndCap"

Or this one:

"Integrating solid economics and hilarious comedy. @MichaelRStrain ladies and gentlemen. @ValuesAndCap #vc2014"

(My Twitter handle is @Scarlet_Snow, by the way.)

After saying goodbye to my new and good friends, I hopped on the metro (which runs a lot slower on Saturdays), and arrived here at my hotel around 2ish.  I'm planning to go to Carlyle Grand Cafe tonight (if it isn't too far of a walk...the Library of Congress closed early today, to my disappointment, so I'm staying in Arlington), and since I won't have any interwebs on my laptop in my room, I figured I'd go ahead and post this now.  If I have any fabulous adventures tonight, I'll write you tomorrow or just update on my phone or something.

Hoping for a smooth evening and an even smoother flight home tomorrow!

DC Day 2

This morning I wasn't up quite so early I as was the previous day, but what with the AC breaking in our hotel room last night (my luck...the same thing happened in CO Springs), and with the War Horse (that's what we've nicknamed my roommate...a friend and freshman from Bryan) snoring, sleep was off and on last night.  But that was totally okay, because today was a fire-hose of wonderful information.

Here at the Values and Capitalism Conference at AEI, I've already made so many new friends, and appreciated plenty of new theological insights surrounding my faith and politics, my future career, finding a church in DC, etc.  A theme that came up twice today (neither speaker meant for this to happen, so we're saying it's a God-thing), and that was quoting The Chariots of Fire when Eric L. said "When I run, I feel God's pleasure."  Both Hart and Hendricks (two speakers for the day) said, "You need to ask yourself what is that you can say 'when I ______, I feel God's pleasure.'  And you might need to branch out of your comfort zone.  You might need to move somewhere completely new.  You might have to work long hours.  But you'll be feeling God's pleasure."

There were so many new connections and suggestions for jobs and internships and new perspectives on life and work that I had never considered.  I have told several people that just today, I have found out more about myself and more about the field in which I am interested than I have in the last three years.  It's been overwhelming to say the least, and sessions went from 8am this morning all the way to 7ish tonight.  But I loved every second.

I wish I had time to tell you all the amazing and revolutionary ideas I was exposed to today.  There was so much.  I am confident that this conference was a direct God-send for me.  I really needed to hear everything that the people at AEI have graciously taken their time to tell me.

Tonight after the sessions, I set off with a group of 9 people (only 3 of whom I really knew...but we're all so like-minded that I felt like I've already known all of them for a while), and walked from the AEI building all the way to the Mall, to see the Lincoln Memorial, the Vietnam Memorial, the WWII Memorial, the Korean Memorial, and the Washington Monument.  They were all so...awe-inspiring to me.  I can't believe how much history and culture so many people live around here in DC.  I wish I were here to soak it all in.

In the morning I hit AEI again nice and strong at 8am, and finish at 1.  I'll do some sight-seeing after checking in to my new hotel, and maybe find a good restaurant with one of my new friends.  I'm sure you'll hear from me sometime tomorrow evening!

Hopefully; expectantly,

-J

DC Day 1

This morning saw me awake before the sun, nervously donning my "business casual" shirt, tie, and slacks, grabbing my rolling carry-on and briefcase, and heading to the Knoxville airport for the first flight of my life.  Mom drove me to the airport where Dad had just gotten off the mid, and they saw me through security, and watched from the window as my plane took off.  And now here I am, thousands of feet in the air, listening to Pink Martini tango music, and watching God's beautiful creation sail lazily by below me.  This sight certainly goes on the top the top ten most beautiful things I've seen.

I think it's safe to say that I'm already hooked on flying.  I feel as if I grew up all at once this morning.  I have scheduled interviews with Russian Foreign Specialists and Congressmen, I have planned my metro routes, and I have reservations at hotels.  Life moves quickly sometimes, and today I feel as if it's moving faster than ever before.

Conveniently, I am required to wrote journal entries about this weekend for school, so my little habit of blogging my travels is going to come in handy.  I don't have my hilarious siblings along for the ride this time, but I have a feeling that this Creasy's capers are still going to be interesting.  It isn't every day you sit across the aisle from a man who drinks iced tomato juice.

Being back in DC in my business casual, I am no longer viewed as a young tourist.  The tie and the brief case give me a rite of passage almost; a several tourists even stopped and asked me for directions.  I love traveling metro, and ready feel right at home.  Next stop: Capitol South, and Congressman Duncan!

Finding the Congressman's office from the metro station wasn't difficult, and upon approaching his door and seeing my state's flag outside, I felt a huge sense of pride that I'm from Tennessee.

The interview with Congressman Duncan went spectacular (I may add some notes from the meeting later), and I found my way to the Holiday Inn in which I am staying two nights (before going to another hotel Saturday night).  The lady at the front desk spoke with a heavy Jamaican accent, and hearing myself referred to as "Mista Creesy" was slightly odd.

Wouldn't you know it, my phone has picked this weekend to completely freak out.  The battery is dying within an hour, the screen freezes up and won't let me use it, and Google maps is practically nonexistent.  First world pains, right?  But when you've stored most of your necessary info on your phone (addresses, phone numbers, schedules), it's kinda annoying.  Thank the good Lord for paper.

After a quick interview with the research assistant of a Russian Specialist (I got a crash course on how to get any job in the Russian field, and felt like I was flowing a debate round again, she spoke so quickly), I moseyed down the road to find a place to eat (not having eaten anything all day...and it's getting on 2pm).  I settled on a little mom & pop place called the Sunrise Cafe - owned by a super-friendly little Mexican woman who spoke 900 mph, and had my food out in 6.3 minutes.  The steak and cheese sandwich was fantastic.  I even got it with grilled onions just for my Dad.  I'm sure he'd be proud.

Just across the road is a small coffee shop named Peet's Coffee and Tea.  Apparently established in Berkeley, CA in 1966 (so it says on my cup), the mochas are good, and the environment crowded enough to be private.  My phone is plugged up next to me, and I'm working on researching the "Boren Scholarship" that I found out about in my interview.  The lady I spoke with sounded fairly confident that I was looking for internships/jobs at the right time, as the market is aching for Russian specialists.

I'm really enjoying myself thus far.  I'm sure I could work here and love it, but I'd have to have a quieter home not right smack-dab in the middle of the city.  The noise is the only things that gets to me after a while.  Noise is everywhere.

Today I had 3 Cokes, a mocha, and one black coffee.  Talk about caffeine overload.  But you know what I did with my 1.5 hr break between interviews and registration?  I came back to the hotel and slept.  I don't even know how that's possible.

The conference itself has been amazing thus far.  Our keynote speaker was Robert Doar, who I at first thought was a liberal speaking at a conservative conferences (AEI is a Christian, conservative think-tank, for those of you who don't know) as he was in favor or work-supported welfare, but he confused me when he was extremely conservative on minimum wage issues.  I plan to discuss this more in a paper I have to write for the Federal Seminar class this conference is counting as, so I won't bore you with details.

The intellectualism in the conference room itself is palpable.  I feel as if I'm in a room with world-shakers, and I love it.  I never thought I would seriously consider trying to work for a time in a think-tank, but AEI is tempting me.

I'm looking forward to one thing right now: sleep.  It's only 9:34, but I am *wiped out,* and devotionals start at 8am in the morning.  Nonetheless, I can't wait to hear more speakers.  Free market economics, capitalism, and entrepreneurship, here we come!

P.S. As my time to write this blog is rather limited, I won't be putting up a lot of pictures here.  If your'e interested, my Instagram is @Scarlet_Snow.

Also, for any of you who are familiar with my other blog (scarlequain.blogspot.com), I wrote this poem in the plane somewhere above Virginia, as well as I can figure.

Until tomorrow! 

Sea of faces,

Cliffs of spaces,
A kingdom of air,
God's personal stair:
Above the Clouds.

Day 8

Never in my entire life have I not wanted to leave a place more than Estes Park, Colorado.  I really do wish I could just stay here, even knowing how the winters are.  The Rockies have captured my heart, and it's terrible to leave them.

Today, we're driving back to Lawrence, Kansas (joy), which none of us are particularly excited about.  Last night, we had KFC for dinner, and Dad ordered a personal size coleslaw that they forgot to give him, so this morning, he swung back by and demanded they give it to him. So now, on the way back to Kansas, Dad is munching on coleslaw and sipping on Baja Blast Mountain Dew.  Just after breakfast.

Its extremely depressing driving through super flat country again, watching the mountains fade into the distance.  Mom commented that it's neat to see where we have been as opposed to going there and having no idea what's ahead of us.  I tend to agree: the mountains change you.

To anyone traveling through Colorado on I70, a word of warning: Limon is home to the slowest and most incompetent Subway ever, and they try to kill you with mustard.  I don't know what it is about these flat-landers...
In the words of my wise father, "the only good thing about Kansas is the band."  I happen to agree.

You know you're headed back towards home as the humidity gets high enough to notice.  I feel sticky already and we're only in Kansas...

Well, it's 10:43pm Central time, and we changed our itinerary just a bit.  Instead of going back to Lawrence, we decided to spend the night in Independence, MO, so we will be closer to St. Louis (and the City Museum!).  As it is, we will have been in the car for just about 12 hours today.  I don't really have any fabulous pictures from the drive today (although we did see a cargo train carrying the blades of wind turbines...pretty cool), but I have relearned one important fact: long distance trips aren't meant for people over 6 ft.  Holy smoke, my knees.

Anyway, I'm glad to be with my family right now.  I don't get to see them enough with me and Dad and Jessica working.  So I'm thankful.  I'm not even waiting to see if the hotel has good WiFi, thereby avoiding disappointment.  Goodnight, from just outside Independence, MO.  Tomorrow will be the last day of one of our best adventures this far.

Day 7

This morning began hoping that we could pick up two of the things we've missed: a coffee shop, and the Donut Haus.  As it turns out, Coffee on the Rocks is the most picturesque coffee shop I've ever seen.  It sits nestled at the foot of a mountain surrounded by both a calm pond and a rushing river.  There is a stone patio

surrounding the shop, and there is a small indoor seating area with a beautiful chess set inside.  That place made me wish I lived here even more...Fate smiled upon us today, and the Donut Haus was actually open.  If this is any indication of how our day will go (the coffee and donuts are both divine) then we're in for a spectacular day.

According to Jacob, the world's worst insult is: "you're a hock, sir, and your mother goes to college."  These are the things and words we invent while we're riding in the van. Also, it's not every day that your little brother quotes Huey Lewis and the News.  I'm proud of him.  And it isn't every day that you see a "watch for ice" sign in June.

We took the highest paved road in the US towards Grand Lake, CO.  The view here is absolutely incredible.  There is at least 3-5 feet of snow nearly everywhere (Jacob had to make sure it was really that deep), and it actually started snowing on us around 12:30.  A marmot walked right up to us while we were on an overlook, and generally, on either side of the road, there was a minimum of 6 ft in snow drift, with some places getting upwards 12 ft.

We made it about to the halfway point, but decided to head back to the cabin.  Altitude sickness got the better of some of us.  It actually turned out really well for Jacob and me, as we got the chance to explore the area around the cabin, particularly one out-croppping of rock on the top of the mountain that is in plain sight of our living room.  So we packed some water, a camera, and my ENO hammock in Jacob's backpack, and set off.  We took TONS of pictures, and ended up hiking all the way up the mountain, and over to the other side to the park we visited yesterday.  We found a perfect spot for the ENO on the very top of the mountain, and both enjoyed it before heading down.  Once we got back down to the park, we waited on Dad to come pick us up.  A brief rain-storm went over while we were tossing rocks in the stream, but we would have been fine had Dad not been able to come - a nice man offered us a ride back into Estes Park.  ;)

As our vacation comes to a close, I'm extremely sad to leave Estes Park, CO.  I have found a home away from home, with the mountains towering all around me, keeping me safe.  If I don't ever get to live here, I at least hope I get plenty of chances to come back.  The majesty and splendor of God's creation has rarely been so evident to me as it has the past few days.  Praying for safe travels back to TN (and maybe a chance at the City Museum in St. Louis, MO).

Day 6

We are having a super fantastic time at the cabin.  The drinking utensils are ginormous, but not so ginormous as Jacob originally thought.  As it turns out, he had a glass of mountain dew out of a flower vase.  That provided a good laugh.

Today, we are going ATVing!  I'm super excited, as our family hasn't done anything like that ever.  (A quick aside, the Pole Position high score has gone back to me.  Not sure how long this will last; the competition is getting tight.  Addendum: Jacob has reclaimed it as of right now.  We shall see what happens in the next few hours.)

We did a short hike to Moraine Park where we enjoyed the enormous rapids and a good view of the mountains, and while we were there, a nice man offered to take our picture.  Turns out, his family is from Seymour, TN: he was wearing a fire-station volunteer sweater.  It's a small world.

Well...we drove out to go ATVing and as it turns out, the person who rented the ATV before us crashed it into a tree, so we didn't get to take out out.  So, instead, we decided to go to the Donut Haus, a super

famous donut shop.  As it turns out, they had already closed.  Just isn't our day, apparently.  As you can see, Jacob isn't very happy about all of it.




Despite the momentary set-backs, we had a good rest of the day.  From the ATV rental place, we found a beautifully picturesque Catholic chapel built on a huge rock at the base of the mountain.  It was difficult to tell where rock ended and church began, and the view was fantastic.







From there we headed back towards our cabin and decided to hit up the Rocky Mountain National Park and just explore.  What we saw there ranks in the top 5 most beautiful landscapes I've ever seen, up there with the Grand Canyon and the Canadian Wilderness.  The area we spent the most time in was a valley completely surrounded by huge snow-covered mountains.  Through the valley snaked a deep-blue stream that looked as if it hadn't been there long: the bed of it was just bent-over grass, and there was no river bank.  I have a bit of trouble writing about it because I can't find the words to describe what I saw there.

Jacob and I have been aching to climb some good rocks ever since we found out that essentially everything is restricted at Garden of the Gods, so we found a small path leading up to a huge outcropping of rock, and climbed all the way to the top.  The view from up there was incredible, and we satisfied ourselves, for the time being, with such huge rocks.  ;)




After exploring a good bit of that area of the park, we all headed back to downtown Estes where we did a bit of souvenir shopping.  All the kids bought a hoodie (Jen opted for a tshirt), and we tried out some super-
killer hot sauce in an espresso shop (weird combo, I think), and I found this pretty neat picture that I know a lot of people will appreciate: the Lord blessing mankind with coffee.



We've seen probably 50ish elk since we've been here, and tonight hasn't been an exception.  We saw a ton on the way home again, and got a few more fantastic pictures.  Tomorrow we're planning on going to a gorgeous lake that everyone has recommended, as well as visiting Coffee on the Rocks (a superb coffee shop), and maybe we'll get to that donut shop.  We shall see.

Goodnight from Estes Park, CO!

Day 5

Welp, today we began our trip by packing up (Jacob and I vied for the top score on Pole Position for a while, as we were packed in 10 minutes...he finally beat mine), and heading to tour Focus on the Family.  It's pretty neat here (like an aspen tree).  We visited Whit's office, I took a picture in Eugene's face, and we visited Narnia for a few minutes.  Conveniently enough, we have enough kids to fill the four thrones.  Jennifer rode a three-story tall slide, and Jessica found the man of her dreams (that she sadly was forced to leave behind in CO Springs).  We all felt so close and connected as a family (like an aspen tree).

I think today is a dingbatty sort of day.  You can ask mom about her version of the story, but Jessica, Jacob, and I all thought that she told us to sit in the waiting room and wait while she and Dad went into the book store.  So there we sat, until Dad finally came out and asked us why we didn't want to go in.  When we told him, he said mom told him that we didn't want to come in.  We rolled our eyes and browsed around for the Siamese Tiger section (because, according to Dad, the Focus on the Family bookstore has everything.  Like aspen trees).

We made a brief stop by the Air Force Academy, to visit the pristine chapel there.  Their organ and stained glass totally blew my mind.  I kept thinking how amazing it would be to go to school at the base of the Rockies, and to play some Vivaldi along with that organ.

Each spire of the chapel represents the wings of the Air Force.  The reverence was palpable in the upper chapel, but I found it annoyingly ironic that there was a Buddhist, Jewish, and Catholic chapel in the exact same building just below the Protestant (main) chapel.  Hurray for political correctness.

From there we headed to Denver, which I had some qualms about...last time I rode through Denver I ended up on my back on the windshield of our RV.  Rather painful.

In Denver we stopped for lunch at Casa Bonita: a super unique, all you can eat Mexican restaurant (you can see how unique it is there to the right...not every day you see a super-huge, pink restaurant).  They even have a staged gun fight, a pirate sword fight, and a gorilla that runs around mockingly stealing people while you eat.  The place is enormous and doesn't seem to end, and there's a waterfall that the staff dive off of into a fourteen foot deep pool.  We found a pirate cave that winds narrowly through the edge of the restaurant, and I managed to scare Jessica three times, the first two times being within thirty seconds of each other.

I couldn't help but think that Dr Page would be proud of my "cultural experience."

The drive to Estes National Park was absolutely stunning.  The river runs wildly through the valley for most

of the way, and mountains tower around us.  Jennifer is hoping our cabin will be "nice and wildery" like the terrain around us.  I kinda do too.  ;). We saw our first elk on the way in today, and mom finally saw a prairie dog.  Or so she thinks.  It could have been a figment of her imagination.

After driving around Estes Park to pick up some groceries, we have decided that elk here are nearly as common as squirrels back home (before Jacob started shooting them).  They are EVERYWHERE.  Jacob and I went out on the deck of our cabin tonight just to spend some bro-time stargazing, and I do think that the sky here is the closest I've gotten to the beauty of the Canadian wilderness.  Stars are everywhere here.

 Tonight, I will be lulled to sleep by the distant roar of the swelled river that is a two-minute walk from our cabin.  It's surreal being out here.  I feel the rugged land coursing through me in an odd way.  I feel more alive and at home here, much like I did in Canada.  I can't wait to explore.

Day 4

Today is a Chacos, bandanna, rock climbing and adventure-filled kinda day.  Or, so we thought at first.

Garden of the Gods is much more touristy than I remember.  Restriction signs are on every rock, reading "no climbing."  We were overrun with Russian tourists (I chuckled at the irony...especially when people say that

Americans are loud and obnoxious), and walked through a wedding that looked rather spontaneous.  The groom was in shorts and a polo.  I even got a picture of it, just for you.  That wasn't the only romance going on in the Garden of the Gods park, however.  Had to snap a quick picture at the Kissing Camels rock formation.  ;)

Today saw us exhibiting a lot of the crazy attitudes and antics that characterizes our family.  Here are a few photos to enlighten you a little more, if you haven't picked up on that already.

We had lunch at a really cool BBQ shack called Rudy's.  Everything is "do it yourself" with them just providing the meat.  A random fact about me: very few things make me feel awkward, but taking forever to order at a restaurant with people behind us makes me feel extremely uncomfortable.  And with a family of six, that happens all the time. Regardless, the brisket was spectacular, and the atmosphere makes me feel right at home.  We ate in an open air patio on a big wooden picnic table, and instead of plates, you lay down a large sheet of paper on your table. Probably my favorite place we've eaten thus far. 

On our way to Cripple Creek, we drove through a quaint little town named Woodland Park where everything (Walmart, McDonald's, NAPA Auto, etc.) was built to look like a log cabin.  The entire town has a fantastic view of Pike's Peak.

Jacob: How does a creek get crippled, exactly?
Me: It runs too much.  AAHHHAHAHAHAH!

Also, we saw our first wild mountain goat. THAT was cool.  We were driving on the edge of the mountain, and it was on the side of the road.  It looked straight at me for a picture
as we passed.

In Cripple Creek, we boarded a train (completely coal powered...take that EPA!), and took a scenic route through the mountains learning about gold mining, mountains, and bar-maid carousing, and towards the end of our trip, a red fox ran across the tracks in front of us.

This town is rather depressing after being here a few hours.  The population is very low, and all that is left here are bars and casinos.  It is a true mining town if ever I've seen one.

We tried so hard to get Mom to see a prairie dog, and even pulled off on the side of the road multiple times, but as of yet, she has yet to see one.  She is of the opinion we're making them up.  ;)

We made a quick pit stop in Woodland Park for Donuts, and good grief, they were as big as 2-3 Krispy
Kreme donuts.  We ate them and took super awkward pictures with Pike's Peak in the background.

Also, for your enjoyment, here is a random quote from Dad: "You should take a picture of the Walmart with the sun shining on it."  Yes...he was serious.

Tomorrow, we head to Estes Park, where we will be staying in a cabin for a few days.  Leaving CO Springs, Pike's Peak, and the Garden of the Gods will be sad, but I'm super excited.  Wilderness, here we come!

Day 3

Today's post really needs to start with last night, just before I went to bed.  Jacob, Dad, Jen, and Jessica all went down swimming together, and when they came back up, Jacob grabbed me and said "DID I TELL YOU I ALMOST GOT MURDERED?!"  As it turns out, Jacob and Jessica went down to swim after Dad and Jen did, and as they were waiting for the elevator, an arm reached around the corner, grabbed Jacob's wrist, and screamed "BWRAAAHHH!"  As Jacob was dying of the ensuing heart attack, another patron of the Inn apologized profusely, as he thought Jacob was his girlfriend.  Yes, Jacob is that pretty.  Yes, Fate was incorrect in its vengence.  Pretty sure Fate was sposed to get Jennifer.

You wouldn't believe how many things around here are named after Pike's Peak.  Pike's Peak Grocery, Best Trinkets Pike's Peak, Your Pike's Peak Mom Goes to College.  Mom tried to pull up the directions to the mountain in the GPS...and yeah, pretty much everything has "Pike's Peak" in it.

And if you haven't figured out yet...WE'RE GOING TO PIKE'S PEAK!  As soon as Jacob head about the wind, he made sure to pack his hat...and a comb.  We're filling up at a gas station before heading up, and he's already whupped his comb out to fix his luscious locks.  I told him it's a lost cause, but ya know... Carly Simon had it right.

The weather is absolutely perfect today: 71 degrees and slightly windy, but to jen everything is "freezing" even though we're only 5 minutes up the mountain.  She must be nervous because she hasn't stopped talking since we started.

I was blown away by the fact that several people are skiing and snowboarding down the mountain.  They're my heroes.  The just sorta stare down the mountain, grin a little, push off, and cut down the slope like nothing I've ever seen.  Dad keeps acting like he's going to fall off the edge and the girls are freaking out. It really reminds me of my grandma when we were here last.

The wind and the snow up top are intense.  There are no wonders I can find to describe the majesty and grandeur of this place.  Our world is wonderfully made.  I got chills of patriotism reading the America the Beautiful plaque that overlooks the purple mountains and fields of amber grain.

Even though we had weak legs from oxygen deprivation, Jacob and I
ventured down to the Free Mason deposit, and then climbed down to a cliff.  It was totally worth it.  The view was spectacular.

Despite almost all the girls getting altitude sickness, we simply had to have the famous Pike's Peak donuts. They can only be made at this altitude, and they are delicious.  I've never had anything like them before.

On our way down, Jacob, Dad, and I made our mark on Pike's Peak.
  We climbed on tons of huge rocks (if you look closely at the picture on the right, you can barely see Jessica waaaaayyyy down below us.  Near Jacob's shoulder) that drop into oblivion, and we saw our first marmot!  I wish I could show you all the pictures we've taken...so many fantastic ones.

I always feel a strong sense of sadness leaving the great Peak at my back.  It leaves deeper resonances in my mind of things past and things to come.  I think a trip to Pike's Peak is amiss if you do not descend a person different from the man who ascended the mountain.

We spent the rest of our day driving all over creation in search of somewhere to eat (that's an entirely different story involving expensive bbq, the incompetence of Arby's workers, and exactly who's fault it was that we drove all the way across town for nothing.  I'll let you know as soon as we figure it out), and exploring a small area of Colorado called Red Canyon.  It's similar to a miniature version of Garden of
the Gods, which we'll be visiting tomorrow (AAAHHH!!!), and even
though it was a bit hot, Jacob and I found plenty of rocks to climb on.  Go figure.  And to do crazy Michael Jackson shadow poses.  As evidenced in the right picture there.  Grandma would be terrified, let me tell ya.

So that's today.  It's been great.  Jacob and I are watching MIB2 and eating pizza right now, and the rest of the fam is next door eating the same and watching the BBC Pride and Prejudice.  Super looking forward to tomorrow.  Can't wait to write to you all again!