Saturday's walk in the park

Saturday, just after noon, I found myself in the park behind Boulder High School.  The Maple trees were holding onto their yellow, orange and red colors.  It was cool and overcast with a chance of rain in the forecast.  Walking on the creek path, going in the opposite direction, was my Sunshine neighbor, Jane.  She was wearing a light jacket and had her brunette hair tied back in a pony tail.  She had a rather strange look on her face.

            I asked her what she had been up to lately.  She said she had been fighting the computer system at the State Department of Transportation.  She had recently applied for a new driver’s license that had to be mailed to her.  When it arrived she looked at it for a quick review.  Jane told me that the giant electronic wizard, the know-it-all IBM master computer; the savior of the massive amounts of data that the state holds on us made a small mistake.  Her license had her date of birth correct, had her hair and eye color correct; even her weight and height correct.  Everything was correct except her name.  Her license called her John instead of Jane.

She immediately called the Department of Transportation and informed them of the mistake.  The person on the other end of the phone said she had the correct form to deal with the issue and would promptly mail it to Jane.  It arrived the next day.  Jane completed the form and returned it.  Two days later an envelope arrived.  Enclosed was a sticker to be attached to the back of thedriver’s license.  It states that, in the eyes of the state, her name has officially been changed from John to Joan.

Oktoberfest October 15

Today Wayne and Hildegard hosted Oktoberfest.  It is only fitting that they hosted as Hildegard is a native of Germany.  The local band, The Blowtorch Hillbillies played well into dark.  There was food and beer, more food and beer and yes, food and beer.

 

The next neighborhood event will be the Halloween party at the school house.  The event usually starts with a children’s party.  There are various stations with games for the children to participate in.  There has always been a haunted hayride up to the Sunshine Cemetery and back.  Two year in a row there was a play that the adults participated in reliving some old and factious Sunshine history.  For many years the children’s party was followed up by a pot-luck dinner and then an adult party.  This year, we are going to have an open microphone stage and adult party.  No talent is required to participate.

First snow of the season, 2005

5" of snow at first light this morning.  Needless to say, Milo and I took our walk on the treadmill.  The road has a tendancy to get rather muddy on days like this.  The TV news people make such a BIG DEAL over the first snow.  It's kind of funny to watch.  5" of snow in January will not be much of a story.  Oh well..........  It is a pretty sight.

Sunshine October 4 Morning walk

It was chilly this morning as Milo and I took our walk.  A cold front has moved in from the northeast.  Fingers of fog quietly moved up the foothills until it overcame the town of Sunshine.

I found a couple of interesting sites about Sunshine.

Colorado ghost towns:

http://www.rockymountainprofiles.com/sunshine_colorado.htm

Sunshine Fire Protection District:

http://www.sunshine-fpd.org/

October 3 Morning walk

Spring and fall are short seasons at 7200’.   Today we are in the mid 80’s.  They are calling for a chance of snow on Wednesday.  The aspens and cottonwoods are all a bright yellow.  They add a splash of color to the green pine and spruce trees.  We usually have a pretty good cold snap and then move into a beautiful Indian summer.

 

Last year we completed the community volleyball court.  There is a small picnic area next to the court. We will be adding a horseshoe pit next year.  I don’t think we kept score at any of this year’s games.  We play for fun.  Mountain volleyball adds a new dimension to the game.  If anyone hits the ball out of play it could cause someone to chase the ball down the mountain.  That is usually one of the kids who is wearing shoes.  While the ball is being retrieved, most of the game participants leave the court and find their beverages.  We will be taking the net down in the next couple of weeks.

 

If you look real hard at the picture, you can see my buddy, Milo, the wonder dog.  He still can’t hold the flag while I fold it but he does keep the bears away.

 

The volleyball court is behind the new fire station and below the cemetery.  Speaking of the fire station, they installed the doors last week.  Hopefully we will be ready to occupy the building soon.

 

The next planned event is the Halloween party at the school house.  It will take place on October 29th.  More on that later.

Sept 28

Today is cool and damp.  The air is calm.  Milo and I had a great walk. Bob had a treat for Milo as he drove by in the School Bus.

The craft fair at the school house went very well.  There were shoppers there on both Saturday and Sunday.  There was pottery, paintings, blown glass, jewelry, Fresh Honey, Christmas decorations and much, much more.  This year vendors even set up outside the school house.

Our neighbor, Paul, is the Director of the American HomeBrewers Association ( www.beertown.org ).  Pauls organization puts on the Beer Fest every year.  It is a national event, with beers from all over the country.  This year 380 breweries and 1,669 beers will be there.  Many Sunshine residents will be attending the annual Beer Fest at the Denver Convention Center.

Morning Walk Sept 22

Have you ever gone camping in the forest or walked through the woods after it rained?  It rained last night and my walk had that “clean and alive” smell.  Half way through the walk the school bus passed.  Bob threw Milo a biscuit and all the kids waved.  The sky was clear blue and the waning moon shown brightly overhead.

 

Gold was found in Sunshine in 1873.  In 1876 there were 1,200 residents and the population of Sunshine was greater than Boulder (a statistic that did not last long).  By the beginning of the First World War, the mining had played out and most of the residents of Sunshine had moved on.  Although most of the people were gone the mine tunnels and shafts were still here.  At that time there were no requirements that the land be reclaimed.

When I first visited my wife’s family in Sunshine, Janice’s father wanted to show me around.  Harry took Janice, David Bashford, his dog, Benny and I on a tour.  We come upon one of the open mine holes above the house.  It looked to be about 50 feet deep.  We were all standing around talking about the dangers of the mine holes when Benny came running up the hill.  He didn’t see the hole in time and took a leap into the air.  I’ll never forget the look on his face. It was the “Oh Sh--, what have I done” look.  He made a 180 degree turn and started pawing as he slid down the edge of the hole.  Fortunately there was a ledge about 20 feet down and he stopped there.  Harry ran down to the house and grabbed a long rope.  He repelled down the side and brought Benny back up to safety.  Since that day, we have called that the “Dog Hole”.

The Bureau of Mines has started a program of capping all of the old mine shafts.  Most of the holes and shafts in Sunshine have been capped (including the "Dog Hole").  We are still careful of anything that looks like a prospect hole, especially if it is covered with wood.  It’s a bad idea to walk across one.