Month: June 2021

I was cleaning up some files today and stumbled across an ancient gem: bonus bucks. These were little Monopoly-based bills that I’d printed, which we’d give to the kids when they did something good.

It could be as simple as being nice to their siblings, or helping with the dishes, or doing their homework without being asked. They could then spend their bonus bucks on “prizes” which ranged from staying up 15 minutes extra to having dinner out as a family. It was actually a pretty good system, and I remember the kids really enjoying it. It promoted good behavior, taught them about saving, and was a good mix of serious and silly. Good times.

It continues to be fun to see the wildlife that roams around our property. After our recent bear sighting (still a little too close for comfort) we’ve seen bears wandering into the courtyard several more times. One of them batted around an Amazon package sitting by our door, and then peeked into our bedroom window!

Well, we finally caught some elk on video:

Here’s the full clip of mommy and her little fawn:

A few days later, a moose was poking around the back yard!

We have multiple clips of this guy as he went around the house. We watched from inside. He’s definitely not full-grown; I figure he’s a couple of years old at best. Adult moose are considerably larger, although this guy was plenty large anyway.

I’m not sure what other animals we can expect to see. Most people tell us there aren’t any moose in this forest, but clearly there are…

Today I learned about Signalman Jack, a chacma baboon who was employed by the Cape Town Railway Service in South Africa. He was the assistant of James “Jumper” Wide, who was a switch operator until he jumped between two moving railway cars (hence the nickname) and lost both his legs. James taught his baboon Jack how to operate the switches, and everything was going great until a railway passenger reported to the company that a baboon was switching the tracks. After a brief (and I’m sure hilarious) investigation, it was determined that Jack did, in fact, know what he was doing. He was then officially employed by the railway and paid 20 cents a day, plus a half-bottle of beer each week.

In nine years of working for the railroad, Jack didn’t make a single mistake.

The other day, Kyra and I were talking about how amazing tardigrades are. I thought of an earlier conversation where we’d discussed how sports teams only have certain animals as mascots… large predators, vicious rodents, birds of prey, and so on. I commented how hilarious it would be if a team’s mascot was a tardigrade.

This afternoon, I put together a t-shirt just for that.

When people ask me what retirement is like, this is probably a good answer.

Bill and Ted had it right. The world needs a little more of this…

Our drive back from Aspen to Montana involved some crazy roads through northwest Colorado into the wasteland of Wyoming. At one point, we were driving miles and miles on gravel, wondering if this was the right way.

Notice the complete lack of… anything. This dusty gravel road stretched to the horizon, in the midst of sagebrush and a few lonely cattle. No houses, no gas stations, not even other cars. It was kind of eerie, but also kind of cool.

When we finally reached pavement again, there were thousands– maybe millions?– of little dark specks all over the highway.

This went on for mile after mile. I thought they were perhaps leaves or something that had blown from the surrounding plains, but we could see them moving on the road. We stopped in the middle of the highway (hey, there weren’t any other cars) to take a look.

Grasshoppers. By the thousands. Many were squished from the occasional car, and the others were kind of feebly crawling around (not hopping, strangely enough). I don’t know if it was a migration of some sort, or if a plague is descending on southwest Wyoming…

I brought Chronium on our trip and gave it a first couple of playtests with family and friends. Here I’m explaining the cards to the crowd:

Someone had the bright idea that we should look like those cheesy board game boxes from the 80’s. Well, except for Aaron in the middle, who doesn’t seem as enthusiastic as the rest of the gang.

The consensus from two groups was… it isn’t completely awful. I got some good feedback, and the work continues.

Hiking through the forests around Aspen was magical. There were so many aspen trees it was amazing. I couldn’t help taking a bunch of shots of the gorgeous white trunks.

In the fall, these hillsides are breathtaking with their mix of dark green pine and brilliant gold aspen.

I miss you, Colorado.

In a whim, we decided to visit a ghost town up in the mountains near Aspen. Apparently for a time, Ashcroft was a bustling mining town, but it gradually faded into oblivion and now remains only as a half-dozen crumbling buildings. Still, it’s very picturesque with the nearby hills and mountains (peppered with aspen trees, of course).

It was interesting to wander the fields and poke around the old structures. A quick peek on the internet taught me that Colorado has over fifty ghost towns still standing!

After our Utah trip, we figured we were halfway to Colorado anyway, so we met up with friends and hiked the Maroon Bells. It’s been a few years since I was in that area, and it was just as breathtaking as I remember. Here’s the iconic scene– the photo everyone takes when they visit:

It’s obvious why: the quiet lake, the beautiful aspen, and the stark granite and snow are a great combination.

Here’s the crew– our friends the von Niederhauserns and Pattersons:

And here’s my beautiful bride:

As we walked the trail up to Crater Lake, a storm brewed behind us.

Continuing up the trail, we were able to see the familiar peaks from slightly different angles.

As the grey clouds continued to roll in, there were really cool mixes of sunlight and shadow on the hills.

The sky had clouded over by the time we reached the lake, but the view was still awesome.

It was a great day for a hike, and great to put some miles on my shoes in good ol’ Colorado.