Changes in Longitude, Changes in Dogitude

 

To Stella:  A bright spot on Earth, now shining above.

Greetings from another of my favorite stops, Chatfield State Park, in Littleton, Colorado.  Camping here in years past I have enjoyed the long walking trails (miles and miles) and view of the reservoir; this year I enjoyed swimming, paddling and, in something I have NEVER seen in a campground, a bright, clean laundry room. 

I may never leave.

My previous trips to this part of the country must have been in late Fall or early Spring as, during preparation, I was very concerned about how cold the nights might get.  Beagle does a great job of keeping me warm running on propane, but if faced with multiple days of below freezing weather (when I would need to run my tank heaters as well), the batteries will only hold out for a few days—not even the bright Colorado sunshine on the solar panels would keep up.  So when I booked this site and noticed that it came with electricity, I thought, “That will be very useful for heating over my 10-day stay.”

Also in preparation, I bought Opus a fluffy deep-donut bed to help him keep warm at night—a bed he would have nothing to do with while on BI but that he would not get out of during our cold nights in Wyoming.  He slept in it all night which he has never done; usually opting to curl up behind my legs at some point.  But not anymore!

Driving down from Wyoming it became increasingly hot and dusty.  In the middle of a driving day I decided to enter a Truck Wash; maybe you have seen them advertised on the freeways, a friend of mine swears by the great job they do, especially with our shinny Airstreams.  I got in line. 

Out walked a young man and I explained that I had never done this before and he assured me that they do RV’s all the time.  Despite me being the sole non-semi in the line, I decided to give it a shot.  Well, actually, by then I had no choice as at least ten semi’s had lined up behind me so there was, literally, no going back.

He explained that they will motion me into the giant warehouse-looking bay and then I can get out and go into the office to pay and wait.  My turn came.  They motioned me in.  A mob of sprayer-wielding men descended upon us and one yelled, “You can come out now.”  I thought, “Can I?!”  It was like a cyclone of wet soapy water in there.  But I got out and managed to get Opus out, both of us getting soaked and Opus thinking, no doubt, that this was the worst dog wash ever.

It took me right back to the first time I took Liebchen through a car wash:  She was still new to me so you can imagine my surprise when, in the middle of the wash, I thought I pushed the button to fold in the rear view mirrors but instead hit the window down button.  Massive amounts of soap and water were flying in and the giant brush was smacking me in the face.  Now, if you have never had this pleasure, I can tell you, your first instinct is to protect your face with your hands, which I did, leaving behind the window button and thus allowing it to go all the way down.  The car moved quickly past the brush, and I hit that button again but automatic windows do not go up as fast as you would like in a situation like that. 

The heat continued into Colorado; it has been near or over 90 degrees my entire stay!   The electricity came in handy to run the A/C and the laundry room came in handy as I did not pack nearly enough short-sleeved t-shirts and shorts.  After sunset, it was delightful outside and Opus, who for years has chosen to be right next to me, took to laying outside Beagle late into the evening.

Some readers have asked what I eat on the road.  My diet has little variety:  I eat a lot of Amy’s Lentil Soup for dinner but with it being so hot, I bought a bag of carrots and some hummus and that has been my dinner most nights—until the last two nights when I have been down to plain toast:  I thought I had contacted food poisoning but since it lasted more than 24 hours, I think I have nailed it down to my hydration tablets.  As some of you know, I was in a couple of tennis tournaments down here and, with it so hot, I started to add a hydration supplement to my water.  Pretty sure that it caused my severe, shall we say, digestive issues.  The irony is not lost on me.

It is a gorgeous day here today with a cool breeze, bright blue sky and large puffy clouds.  I can see a storm cell moving in from the Rockies and it makes me miss living here.  The quintessential Colorado day—and perfect for a recovery day.  I am enjoying it at camp, with short walks with Opus, hydrating without tablets and now listening to the thunder and watching the lightning. It's about to pour!!  Oh how I love the rain on Beagle's roof.

To celebrate the rain, I think I’ll add some homemade blackberry jam to my lunch toast, wish me luck!

-K