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June to November; Colorful Colorado shines

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  While it might be traditional in some countries to track events from May through to September, put it down to a later start or to simply thinking about it during June. No matter what turned out to be the catalyst, on the tenth of each month as summer approached on through to late fall, I was able to take these photos of how the seasons affected us. Without any preplanning involved I took each photo on the tenth of each month and the overall impact of seeing the transition one photograph to the other not only reinforced the passage of time but unfortunately marked our steady trek, one more time, around the sun.   Maybe it’s being out on the deck grilling something tasty, but it struck me that I really hadn’t ever tried to capture the light and shade that came with each ever so subtle change in the weather. I hadn’t even really thought about this being something worth writing about. And yet, after six months and with the onset of the traditional holiday season, it is a way to highlig
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Being socially responsible in unconventional times

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I was reading a magazine where the columnist remarked on how his car had stayed on the driveway for several months. Part of being socially responsible, he admitted. In these times, irrespective of your political leanings, it still does come down to how we view social responsibility and it does take many forms. All of which is to say, practices now embraced will be with us for many more years and we all have to be more than a little aware of both our surroundings and those with whom we socialize. A few times now, the west end of our street has been holding driveway gatherings. Throughout late summer there were occasions when we carried folding beach chairs to each other’s driveways, practiced social distancing, did a few elbow bumps, and conversed. Those impromptu gatherings often ran into the evening and even as I now forget the topics of the day, the conversations were lively as I recall. As a socially responsible outlet for our small community, it certainly went a long way toward r
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Colorado fires rage; cooler heads are needed!

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This is a post I didn’t plan on writing. However, with the number of inquiries concerning our safety we have received, it’s probably the easiest way I can convey what I know – and it will surely be read by family and friends. Before going any further I want to reassure everyone that Margo and I are safe and well away from the flames as is our daughter Anna and her family. We may live in the Boulder and Laramie counties and reside close to Boulder and Ft Collins, but these forest fires raging in the foothills would have to cover a lot of territory before having any direct impact on any of us. Having written the above it’s also worth stressing that there are many families facing difficult times with little to no knowledge of their situation, other than what they see in the news or read on social media. Having viewed this material and pulled some images from their coverage it is still shocking to Margo and me that, in modern times, Mother Nature can turn so quickly and bring such devast
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What we have learnt as we returned to the road

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  Yes, we have returned from nearly two weeks on the road. Our itinerary included southern California with a quick attempt at a business meeting in northern California and while our focus was mostly on business, the global pandemic didn’t help us a whole lot. Nor did the coming end of quarter and end of year activities of HPE, but that was completely understandable and our opportunity to chat with some folks was always going to be problematic. On the other hand, we were able to talk business with folks we are close to and the news is rather mixed. You will read more about the business outcomes in my next post to the NonStop community blog, Real Time View, but for now, our itinerary was deliberately constructed to maximize the mix of cities we would pass through, including some where we overnighted. So, what was the big takeaway from our travels? It is as diverse as the country itself as we were presented with so many different approaches to combating COVID-19 that oftentimes it left
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More normal? What will follow remains to be seen!

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Standing in the checkout line at a CostCo this week, looking around at the patrons emptying their carts, Margo turned to me wryly observing that this is now looking more normal. Yes, our favorite brand of TP was readily available. And yes, the passage through the checkout stations and then on through to the exit for a final count of items, there was little acknowledgement that anything other than a kind of normalcy had returned. Yes, there were still a strong contingent of naysayers on social media dwelling on the downside of this global pandemic but to anyone living in Northern Colorado (NoCol), observing the bare minimum of social interaction anyway, it meant that well, it was getting harder by the day to see anything having changed at all! During my early trips to Tokyo, Japan, I have to admit I was taken by surprise to see passengers on commuter trains and buses wearing masks. Turns out that for Tokyo residents, waking up of a morning with a sniffle meant that out of common court
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Seen fire, seen rain; seen sunny days I thought would never end!

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I recall a television show on the ABC channel (no relation to America’s ABC network, but rather, the Australian government service) simply called Australia you’re standing in it. I also saw tee shirts while travelling that took it a little further: Welcome to Australia; you’re standing in it! You can read into this what you want but the thought being conveyed was that well, if you are looking for something new and different well, you have come to the right place. I was reminded of this momentarily as I looked out of my home office window. What I saw I will address a little deeper into this post but suffice to say, Colorado can almost lay claim to exactly the same sentiment. As the lock-down we all associate with the global pandemic has gradually eased and there’s more confidence among Coloradans to simply grab a mask and step outside, it’s good to see that creativity always finds a way. Walking through the small town of Louisville in Boulder County, the main street has been closed
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