Our World

Month: November 2025

  • Res and Climber Visit Cherry Creek State Park

    Res and Climber normally post about their adventures on their facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/8563662930377524 but Facebook does not make it easy to post sequential photographs and tell a story, so Res and Climber asked me to let them post here. OK, we will give this a shot. Please share on your own social media if you like.

    Res: We have had a busy day! It started getting cold in Colorado so Dad decided to put us in our coats. It was just under 30 degrees and he was muttering something about “this will be interesting.” Well, I like my coat so I had no problem putting it on! It matches my colors.

    Climber: There is no way in HE double hockey sticks I am wearing this.

    Dad: Yes you are. And you better get used to it.

    Climber: You will take me out of this thing! (starts rolling around the grass trying to get her coat off, people around us are taking video).

    Res: Can we leave here? She’s an embarrassment. She won’t go anywhere as she refusing to walk.

    Me: Nope, we can’t leave her. Guess she wins on the coat, for now, we will let the other dad do a few solo walks with her and a coat.

    Res: Ok, but I keep telling you she is trouble.

    [Park walk complete and couple hours later]

    Res: Sis! We going someplace!!! We going for a ride!! [Bouncing around]

    Climber: How you know?

    Res: Dad’s car is out of the garage and we are in our muzzles! Don’t you dare mess this up!

    Climber: He may be taking us to the dawgtor. Me not sure about this.

    Res: Nope, Dawgtor is only one of us at a time. We both on leashes and muzzles. We both go.

    Me: Res, if you can get your front paws up into the car why do I have to lift your back-end?

    Res: It’s good exercise, you are supposed to be lifting anyways and you’re not.

    Me: Climber, I know you can jump a 4 foot wall, why can’t you hop up into the car.

    Climber: Lift me!

    Me: Ok, behave now!

    Res: No chance of that with her in the car. If she steps on me, can I get her?

    Me: Exactly why you both have muzzles on.

    Res: We here! We Here! So much sniffing and looking to do!

    Climber: Look!!!! WATER!!! GO GO GO!!!

    Me: Climber that is going to be cold, but I’ll let you get your feet wet.

    Climber: BIRDS!!!! Get Them!!!

    Me: I wouldn’t do that if I were you.

    Res: Why not?

    Me: Canada’s army is doing maneuvers, those are Canadian Geese and they are mean!

    Climber: I can win! I hear they taste like Chicken!

    Me: Nope, the vets are closed today.

    Res: Look, mountains! When can we go to the mountains?

    Me: We’ll try to go in the Spring. Right now the roads are too snowy through the tunnels.

    Res: Dad, how much longer?

    Me: Until your sister is tired out.

    Res: We don’t have all day! She never tired.

    Me: We have 1.5 miles back to the car. I am sure you can make it.

    Res: Get the sticker out of my paw!!!

    Res: FINALLY!!!! Get me in the car!

    Me: OK, now you both jump right in? You couldn’t do that at home? You suck!

    Res: We are home. Nap time!!!

    Me: So, active day today, first our morning park walk, and then the visit to the State Park!

    Total distance: 3.02 mi
    Max elevation: 5619 ft
    Min elevation: 5552 ft
    Total climbing: 267 ft
    Total descent: -253 ft
    Average speed: 2.89 mi/h
    Average cadence:
    Average heart rate: 105
    Average temperature: 22.4
    Total time: 01:10:38

    Total distance: 1.12 mi
    Max elevation: 5617 ft
    Min elevation: 5560 ft
    Total climbing: 94 ft
    Total descent: -90 ft
    Average speed: 2.74 mi/h
    Average cadence:
    Average heart rate: 101
    Average temperature: 20.4
    Total time: 00:32:20

  • November 3, 2025 – Home!

    November 3, 2025 – Home!

    Today started off with dropping the rental car at LAX and taking the shuttle bus (they have a People Mover that for some reason they can’t get working) to the terminals. Car rental shuttles are a curse of the past and should remain there. The positive side of this morning was it took me less than 10 minutes to get through security at LAX.

    Finally a nice flight home, then my usual “Planes, Trains, and Automobiles” and I was home.

    Of course when I get here the chimney contractor that I had asked to come out and look at our chimney found that the entire inside of the chimney is destroyed and it looks like someone in the past had a chimney fire at some point. Also, it hadn’t been cleaned in about 5-6 years. Yup, that goes along with everything else we have found in the house. I kept thinking they had a fire at some point. I would think you should disclose that stuff on your property disclosures.

    Anyways, I am sure this is going to end up with about another $10K worth of repair work. Guess I know where my bonus is going this year.

    Anyways, at this point home. No more trips planned.

  • November 2, 2025 – That’s All Folks!

    November 2, 2025 – That’s All Folks!

    Today was the last day of work in Los Angeles, I can finally go home! This started off as only being a one day trip out, two days of work, and one day of travel back. Then… the phenomenon of “while you are out there” hit. Turned out to be one day travel out, 4 days of work, and one day travel back. Yeh, I could have predicted that, in fact I did when I packed enough clothing for the extra days.

    The claim I had to do today sort of annoyed me. The last technician who was assigned to it backed out of it because of a loose dog in the yard (the worst she would have done is lick you to death if she had even moved), not to mention that to get to the electric meter one didn’t even have to go into the yard. Then, the whole reason a Technical Field Manager was being sent was that the 1099 technician said that PPE (personal protection equipment – read, “Tyvex body suit and N-95 mask”) was needed. On the way out stopped at the local Home Depot and got the supplies. Turns out wasn’t even needed. Yup, house was damaged, but no place as bad as the other technician said. He just didn’t want to do it. Anyways, it’s done.

    Got back, went to the grocery store up the street from the hotel. I do that frequently while traveling, especially on weekends, because sometimes the weekend cooks at the hotel restaurants are really bad as was proven again last night. Went up got some really good roasted chicken, cheese, crackers, and fruit for a snack later today. As I was looking at cheese the gentleman working the “good cheese” area offered me a sample of their specialty cheese for the season. OK, I didn’t know it existed but Pumpkin Spice cheese is a thing, and a damn good thing! I didn’t get any as it would have been difficult to bring back to Aurora, but I did find out Ralph’s is part of Kroger and they all carry the same products. Yup, Jesse is going to go find me some Pumpkin Spice cheese.

    We all get into routines. When I finish an out of town work trip, I have some of my own routines, I catch myself doing the same thing each and every time:
    1) I stop in the first parking lot I come across as I leave the last loss location and re-pack all of my tools in the tool suitcase. I also search under all of the seats and anyplace else where things could have rolled.
    2) I make sure that all of my receipts are entered into Concur so that I do not have to deal with them after I get home.
    3) Back at the hotel, pack all of the dirty clothes into the laundry back, make sure I have accounted for everything. Get it all into one place.
    4) Search my backpack and make sure that there is nothing hiding in there the TSA won’t like and steal.
    5) Rest and relax. Tomorrow is a travel day, the airline Gods, the TSA Gods, and the ATC Gods willing.

    Time for the remaining part of my “Rest and Relax”!

    Finally! Just to say it again: :LA Drivers SUCK!!!

  • November 1, 2025 – Almost done in Los Angeles

    November 1, 2025 – Almost done in Los Angeles

    Interesting day today. Started off this morning with a wildfire related inspection in the Pacific Palisades area. It’s sort of depressing, the signs of fire are still all over the hill-sides. We are going on a year in January and most of the demolition has been done. Most buildings that are left have their power back on, and most services have returned. But, the empty foundations serve as a reminder of what is done, as well as what is not done.

    Real Estate signs are sprouting all over the place, many people are selling their lots rather than re-building. And it appears the heavy metal contamination is the topic of conversation. Then, to make matters worse, some of the remediation contractors that came into peoples homes to do cleanup may have (for lack of better terms) – half-assed what they did. One home I was in yesterday I still found signs of soot and ash in places that had already been cleaned.

    The hills are starting to show signs of vegetation but Los Angeles is going into it’s rainy season so mudslides right now are a real threat as the heavy root system of established vegetation is part of what holds the hills in place.

    Look at the burnt mailboxes standing next to the plants that somehow survived.

    Then my afternoon appointment was not part of the LA wildfires, but rather a garage fire. I always knew it would happen, but I had met the insured before. I am not sure if he recognized me, and to keep it professional and fair for all, I did not remind him that we had met before. He is someone that I met in the mid 1980’s who made an impression on me when I was involved in the fight for LGBT rights before the rest of the letters were added. We were fighting for people to be alive rather for everything that followed. I did not realize what a life he has made for himself until I nosed around on Google and IMDB when I got back to the hotel. Damn, he also lost a lot in the fire they had, I really wanted to give him a hug he desperately needed, but I couldn’t as I had to remain professional as a 3rd party. But it is so hard to put a value on sentimental loss.

    Fire is such a scary thing. It’s why when we moved into our new house the first thing I did was had an electrician come in and replace our breaker panel and install Arc Fault Circuit Interrupt (AFCI) breakers for all the circuits in the house. These breakers are designed to trip and cut off power with any signs of an arc (spark) that can happen with a broken wire, faulty insulation, and critter damage to wiring. They can prevent fires. If you have older (really any) electrical in your house, I believe it is well worth it to try and have AFCI breakers installed. Take it from someone that has seen a lot of damage.

    I re-entered the Facebook community today as I stayed away for the month of October, but for November I think I am going to write my thoughts here and share them on Facebook as a link to the pages here. I still don’t trust the Facebook algorithms and AI and I would like to keep control of my posts.

    One more day and then I head home. I hate Los Angeles.