A Few Good Things About the Week

Let's start the week at Sunday, the middle of a much-appreciated three-day weekend. I made use of some free time and our mild winter to drive myself east to the Pawnee Grasslands, a marginally protected area of Colorado short-grass prairie. Marginally=gas and oil development here and there. Protected area=pronghorn herd, prairie dog village, some birds of prey, and a developed hiking trail around a butte. This was my first actual hiking trip of any note following my ankle injury a couple of months ago and we did fine. More about that further on in another good thing. Back to the butte, the prairie will serve nicely as a substitute for my beloved desert--just as wide open, just as minimally chromatic this time of year, just as enriching to the soul. The small hike took me around some badland-type area with gullies and spires and washed cavities perfect for the burrowing owls who live here. In the distance, wind turbines disclose the nature of the prairie. Closer, the old fashioned kind pumps water for the cattle I did not see.

Prairie, grasslands, the Great Plains. If you are not trying to eke out a living from this barren landscape or keep the aerial prairie (hence the windmills) out of every cranny of your existence, the beauty is easy to see. It stretches out in every direction in a giant bowl of sky. Even the clouds which seemed ominous back in town are revealed as having edges, endings, out there somewhere between the hawk above and the horizon. And oh how good to walk again on this earth, the dust settling fine over me and mine.

Thich Nhat Hanh says that the real miracle is not walking on water or on hot coals; the real miracle is walking on this earth and knowing that we are walking on this earth.

Monday we commemorated Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Fort Collins hosts a walk/parade. We met in Old Town, hundreds of us on the square. Then we walked through town and over to campus where a program was held in the student center. Primarily the program consisted of young people who had won writing contests. We heard winning poetry and essays from 4th grade to college level. We were also treated to an African drumming group and a man singing a medley of songs from the civil rights era. A really wonderful event.

Wednesday I went back to physical therapy for my ankle and she told me it was less squishy following my week of icing and exercises. Progress. The dentist appointment following wasn't quite as easy peasy, but nothing unexpected...although I don't relish revisiting the gum surgery for the third time. I count it as progress, and therefore a good thing.

A good week at work as I geared up for today's deadline; material was due today for our annual report of which I am the editor and designer. Many people have submitted early and it's looking quite nice. And best of all, one of my plaid-wearers (complete with fleece vest) invited me into his office to help him select a photo to go with his story. This turned into a 20+ minute tutorial on hydrology, hydrogeology, and well drilling technology. I LOVED IT! It was supremely geeky, and it signified that this man (pretty representative of our plaid-wearing species in this way) gets that I'm very intelligent, very interested, and simply lacking slightly in hydrologic education. He described core samples (swoon).

Meanwhile, I replaced the oxygen sensor in the Jeep on Monday (after King). She's running great. I've been driving her around a lot the past few days. Turning her off, starting her up. No problems at all. She's back to her old self, let's hope.

And in a sure sign that I've boarded the crazy train, I've found myself a real estate agent and a mortgage broker. I am, I guess it's official, house hunting. Ack! Now, that's a daunting prospect. We'll see where it leads. One thing is for sure, it signifies how much I like this little scrap of earth that I'm walking on and want to make it my home. The sign is made, the house will come.