a couple of creampuffs

8 degree morning, wind-blown snow on the Flatirons, Boulder, Colorado

Yesterday morning, I headed to Boulder early for an errand and decided to try and catch the sunrise. Some parts of Denver got snow but at my house we got no more than a dusting. Along Highway 93 though, as I came into Boulder there were the typical white-out conditions. I headed up to Chautauqua Park to snap a few photos. The sun wasn't up enough to bathe the Flatirons but the blasts of snow-blown wind was very invigorating. I had to admire the walkers and runners who were out enjoying the beauty. With enough of the right clothes, you really can be warm.

I realized how much of a cream puff I have turned into. At least I have company in that respect!

Pat basking in the afternoon sun

"dusting" of snow

It rained most of the day yesterday. Sometime overnight it must have started snowing. I awoke to a rather heavy dusting of snow – if you can call anything this wet a dusting! Everything is a riot of green, which takes on a special look when it is mixed with white. The morning dawned bright and sunny with lots of ground fog and low clouds. Humidity – not something we get in excess.

By mid-morning today, the clouds moved in and it rained all afternoon. It is almost as if the snow and the sun never put in an appearance.

winter is back - temporarily!

After an evening of ominous clouds loaded with tornado watches, I woke up this morning to heavy driving rain. We don’t get this kind of rain very often. My drenched morning photos (not to mention my drenched clothes) are testimony to the wimpy umbrella that I was trying to stay dry under.

It kept flipping inside out – outside in.

Holding it was a little like wrestling a tiger.

Try to imagine that I was taking photos with a Holga.

By this evening, the wind whipped rain has turned to snow. Imagine giant snowflakes swirling all around. I am hoping that it stays light and that my apple tree, now in bloom, is spared.

Apple Watch

What a difference one day can make. After all, this is Colorado. We had warnings all day that a little shift in the storm setup would bring us snow and yesterday 's strong winds seemed to give weight to that possibility. March is normally one of our snowiest months - just not this year.

The snow comes at just the right (wrong?) moment. The fruit trees are flowering but for some lucky reason, my apple tree is holding back. Maybe there will be apples this fall!

Friday Cat: tiger paws

Watching Wiskerz in the snow reminded me of this old commercial for Uniroyal tires. I think I could use this particular car to get up my hill! It sure seems like a simpler time!

Blizzard of 2006 - Denver, Colorado

It started with a forecast that actually predicted 2-4 feet of snow. We get a lot of snow predictions that fizzle. This one didn’t!

My son was set to fly out of Denver International Airport on Wednesday to Germany. His airline kept telling us that the flight would take off on time, so we headed to the airport. The conditions were terrible but we made it fine after a nerve-wracking 3-hour drive. (normally only 40 minutes) The airport was already packed and my son’s flight was checking in passengers. We had to wait in a line to pick up his ticket and 2.5 hours later he had his ticket in hand for a flight that was cancelled at an airport that was (by then) closed!

The weather was even worse than earlier, so I decided to stay the night with my son. We both had our cameras and I even had my tripod (although you might not be able to tell from my photos!) We walked around and took photos of the people and the weather and the beautiful architecture.

We waited too long to pick up our complimentary blanket and pillow, so we had nothing beyond what we brought or had in the car. Luckily, I had found a close in parking spot so I could get the one blanket I had there. My son and I found a spot, claimed our territory and took turns resting on the floor on the blanket with our coats for warmth and his backpack as a pillow. I think I slept for about 2 hours. I knew I would be going home later in the day, so it wasn’t like most of the rest of the people who were stranded for days.


Thursday morning, we heard that the airport would remain closed until midday on Friday AND that the weather was clearing and that the plows had cleared the road to the airport. We decided to leave and I put my son on the train to another city without weather problems. As I write this, my son is on a flight to Munich and we have dug 2 of my 3 cars out of their snowdrifts. Life will slowly return to normal, only the biggest piles of snow will linger.

sunrise on a cloudy day

Red Rocks Park – Green Mountain – Denver Skyline

Snow Moving In…