Man in Denver gets paid to sample marijuana

There are over 200 medical marijuana dispensaries in Denver. This guy gets paid to sample their products and write reviews. Watch this! I think this guy smokes so much grass -- once a month he has to mow his stomach! They now have marijuana-flavored toothpaste. You still get cavities, but you don't care.

Cubs fans fill Coors field

A common complaint by the Rockies fans is that so many Cubs fans show up when the Cubs are in town. Last night they were greeted by a 12 run 8th inning! Keep coming! But you might want to leave the Cubs Jerseys at home. Final score: Rockies win 17 - 2. After the game, the Cubs manager Lou Piniella said, "I've never seen an inning like that, we had two outs and two strikes on a hitter and they score 12 runs. I've never seen an inning like that." The Rocks batted around twice! I guess Ian Stewart gives credit for this one where it's due.

Why the delay?

"I had far rather walk, as I do, in daily terror of eternity, than feel that this was only a children's game in which all the contestants would get equally worthless prizes in the end."

- T.S. Eliot

Herbert Hoover's words

It was Herbert Hoover who said, "Blessed are the young, for they shall inherit the national debt."

Taxes

Taxes are going back up. Yes, it's true! Every bracket will be going higher unless Congress acts soon. What I find interesting is that the tax bracket with the largest increase will be the lowest. That's right! People in the 10% tax bracket will now have to fork out 15%. Hmmm. I thought Obama was just going to tax the rich? And now it looks like poor people will shoulder the largest increase!

This raises a number of questions. How can they pay that tax when they can't even afford to put gas in the car? And gas prices will certainly increase with new regulations on off shore drilling. Taxation is based on supply and demand. We supply when the government demands. I can hear what the people in this bracket are going to say. Every time my ship comes in the government unloads it!

What is God doing?

"Without somehow destroying me in the process, how could God reveal himself in a way that would leave no room for doubt? If there were no room for doubt, there would be no room for me."

- Frederick Buechner

Little big horns

Nancy and I went for a long bike ride yesterday from our house all the way up Waterton Canyon to Stontia Springs Reservoir. On the way we were greeted by these young big horn sheep.

Other bike riders stopped to watch them and none of all this activity seemed to bother the animals. I would've thought so many people would scare them off. They were unafraid, playful, and seemed very tame. Of course the adults weren't around.

Up Early in Alaska

Alaska has a special charm and very good raspberries! We got up early one morning because it was so light and went for a walk up an old little two rut dirt road. This was the kind of road you drive your truck on and grass in the middle scrapes the underside of the chassis. Everything out there had that fresh clean smell after the rains from the day before, and the berries were just dropping off the bushes into our hands. All you had to do was touch one with your finger and it would drop into the palm of your other hand. I almost felt like we were taking the food right off the bears' plate! We ate about as many as we collected and then returned to the river, built a fire, and enjoyed a cup of coffee. What a special place.

City lays off firefighters and spends $850,000 on a fountain!

The City of Ann Arbor, MI laid off firefighters but spent $850,000 on a fountain! It looks like the City is learning from the Feds how to operate.

Click here for the article

Alaska fragments

During our camping trip in Alaska we went with our good friends from Wasilla. Nancy and I slept in this camper at the end of the Chitina airport. Two planes would land everyday and two planes would take off every day. It was a no-frills airline. Twenty minutes before the flight the passengers got together to elect a pilot!

The best part of the trip is being with such great people. It's amazing that you can be thousands of miles apart in such unusual places and yet have so much in common. We love the outdoors, fishing, camping, eating, reading, our church, and so much more.

On the big fish, Rich filleted the fish... mercifully. I can butcher a little one with not much damage, but the big ones... well, I'd hate to destroy one of those! I'd be all thumbs! Or worse, no thumbs!

Wrangell St.. Elias Range

When you camp on the Copper River in Alaska you get views like this. The Wrangell St Elias Range is the largest National Park in the United States. However, nature made one goof in Alaska. Mornings are too early!

This little creek was not far from our camp and flowed into Copper River. We stopped here on our way back to Wasilla. And no, once again I missed seeing a bear. We did see a moose.

Alaska Fishing

Nancy flew to Alaska with me last week to visit our franchise owners in Anchorage. They drove us to Chitina over the weekend and we went fishing on the Copper River. When we first got up in the morning, Nancy and I went for a walk and found loads of these yummy raspberries.

This 35 pound Chinook was pretty slippery but I managed to hold on. A guy from New Hampshire stopped by and was telling us about some of the fish he caught. He'd taken a picture of some of the smaller ones, and the picture weighed five pounds!

She certainly was tasty. You know, I decided to quit my job as a food taster. They don't give me enough time for lunch. A few minutes later sparks were flying from my knife and fork. More on this trip tomorrow...

Reflections on my journey

I love the words of James Michener in The Fires of Spring. Perhaps it's helpful to reflect on our lives from time to time. However even this, requires exceptional courage.

"For this is a journey that men make to find themselves. If they fail in this, it doesn't matter what else they find. Money, position, fame, many loves, revenge are all of little consequence; and when the tickets are collected at the end of the ride, they are tossed in a bin marked failure. But if a man happens to find himself, if he knows what he can be depended upon to do, the limits of his courage, the position from which he will no longer retreat, the extent of his dedication, then he has found a mansion which he can inhabit with dignity all the days of his life."

We find God as much as we want to

They're nice folks if the water isn't too cold. The trouble with religion today is that a lot of people practice it but not too many are good at it! It's a good thing God forgives us. Which offends you more - your ongoing pain, or your ongoing sin?

Jefferson on the media

Thomas Jefferson was a believer and proponent of free speech. In fact, he insisted that if he was forced to choose between a government without newspapers or newspapers without government, he would readily opt for the latter. But during his later career he became so angry with the newspapers that he said the papers should be divided into four categories: (1) Truth, (2) Probability, (3) Possibility, and (4) Lies.

Daisy by the daisies

She knows her oats. That's what they feed her. And children cannot understand adult logic. Why does a kid have to go to sleep when Mommy's tired?

Clinton gets it right

Gerald Ford said, "The three martini lunch is the epitome of American efficiency. Where else can you get an earful, a bellyful, and snootful at the same time?" However, now times have changed. We have computers and politicians have them too. As hard as I tried to contact Udall through the Internet, I got nothing. Nada. No response except a pithy "form email" from one of his minions. Then my friend in Ft. Morgan sent me this new billboard that went up. So I think it was Bill Clinton who really got it right when asked why he plays the saxophone. Clinton said, "You don't have to inhale. You blow out."

Why work?

I found this photo and thought you might find it interesting. I thought it was intersting because they were all smiling. What's so amusing? Is it the back of my head?

God's trail

We must never be satisfied with any movement toward the way things should be that does not also vigorously revolt against the way things are.

When I start out on a trail in the mountains, that is the most important part. Miss the start of the trail, and you never walk the path. Maybe there's a narrow gate that opens the route toward God, the gate that many Christians think they have walked through but never have, and maybe it can be found in an idea so simple that we often miss its force:

You know you're finding God when you believe that God is good no matter what happens.

Swimming at Chatfield

Both our kids have fond memories of swimming at Chatfield Reservoir. So, off we went to take the grand kids to the lake on Saturday. I still don't know where that hat came from?? Anyway, we decided to give little Andy drowning lessons. There's nothing like running to the lake, jumping into the water, and realizing it's 65 degrees! There's nothing like it, so why do it? Because it's there and it looks so refreshing, I suppose. Anyway, once he got used to the cool rocky mountain spring snow run-off water, he was just fine. Not quite the same as swimming in a nice pool, is it little buddy!

Rockies win

Seth and I went to a Rockies game last night. With a win tonight against San Diego we pull within 2 games of the division lead.

Okay, we were down by 3 in the second inning and then down by 5 in the next inning! Uh oh. Below Carlos Gonzales hits the first of many home runs by the Rockies. Ian Stewart had two home runs and the last one was a grand slam to win it. Score: Rockies 10, Padres 8

As soon as they started to lose, it facilitated a series of meetings. The Padres had a rough night to say the least. The good news I suppose is, I got to see nearly all of their pitchers play.

Here is Daisy and Andy enjoying the cool grass in our front yard. It looks like Daisy has something to say. I think she needs to explain why she eats rocks, grass, and goose droppings and won't touch her cottage cheese. And how did the inventor of cottage cheese know when he was finished?

Grandchildren

One of our favorite things is eating chips and salsa out on the back porch. Of course we had to have two glasses of water each! One to drink and one to cool us down! Did I ever tell you about my grandchildren? How much time do you have? My granddaughter said "Granddad" for the first time today! Did you know she's only 14 months old and can recite the Gettysburg address, and even Lincoln didn't do it until he was much older.

Family arrives

Noelle and Seth finally made it up to Denver after a delay due to Daisy's fever. She certainly seems to be back to her spunky self. We're amazed at how smart she is and how many words she uses at only 14 months. Below is a photo of Seth and Daisy by the daisies in our front yard.

Noelle and Andy enjoyed a little walk on the trails around the neighborhood. We could hardly keep up with him. Where he got that Tennessee hat I sure don't know.

Little Andy found a rabbit lounging in the grass out in the back yard. Our neighbor Jim is not too happy with the rabbits. They dug a hole under his AC unit and are happily living there. His comment was, "where are the coyotes when you need them!"

Hail storm

We had a pretty nasty hail storm the other day. I don't think we had any damage but I am glad the cars were in the garage. It was terrible weather for rats and mice. It was raining cats and dogs, plus they were belted pretty good too.

America the Beautiful

Here are the lines to the second verse of America the Beautiful. It was written by Katharine Lee Bates as she looked at Pikes Peak here in Colorado. I hope you'll enjoy it on this anniversary of the brave and courageous day our founding father's determined a new history for this nation.

O beautiful for pilgrim feet
Whose stern impassioned stress
A thoroughfare of freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America!
God mend thine every flaw,
Confirm they soul in self-control,
They liberty in law!

Bad taste in people's eyes

I was walking in the United terminal at O'Hare Airport the other day and there on the floor, right in front of me was a dental floss holder. I've seen them in the grocery store parking lot, on the grocery store floor, in the rental car shuttle, on the carpet at church, near my mailbox, on the street, in the crosswalk, in the gutter, and practically everywhere else! They're everywhere! Can't people floss in the bathroom? I've even seen them on the trail, Do they say, "Oh gee, I'm going for a hike, I better not forget my dental floss holder." And then they throw them all over the place! C'mon you boneheads. Nancy calls them the new cigarette butts. Quite honestly, it leaves a bad taste in people's eyes!

Goldwater and envelopes

One of Barry Goldwater's favorite stunts during the 1964 campaign was to poke his fingers through a pair of lensless black-rimmed glasses and say, "These glasses are just like Lyndon Johnson's programs. The look good, but they don't work."

I thought you might enjoy this little bit of history, because the stock market just plummeted another 500 points this week. Unemployment remains very high at 9.8%. The beaches are getting covered with oil. Is the stimulus plan working? Is FEMA working? Is the President working?

A recent President said each incoming President should have three envelopes. During the first year, when the going is always rough, he should open the first envelop. The message inside reads, "Blame the guy who was in office before you!"

If things are still less than smooth at the end of the second year, he should open and read the second letter: "Blame Congress!"

At the end of the next year, when he's battered and bloody, he should open the third envelop and read its message: "Prepare three envelops!"

Bless election years

Most politicians can't stand on their records until they get their feet out of their mouths. From now on I don't vote for the better candidate. I vote for the one who'll do the least harm! Bless election years! We get a chance to go at the scoundrels and scalawags.