Chrysler Building

My photo taken on 43rd next to Grand Central Station. Standing 1,046 feet (319 meters) high, it was briefly the world's tallest building before it was overtaken by the Empire State Building in 1931. It still remains the worlds tallest brick building to this day. After the destruction of the World Trade Center, it is again the second tallest building in New York City.

The Chrysler Building was designed by architect William Van Alen to house the Chrysler Coporation. When the ground breaking occurred on September 19, 1928, there was an intense competition in NYC to build the world's tallest skyscraper. Despite a frantic pace (the building was erected at an average rate of four floors per week), no workers died during the construction of this skyscraper.

Prior to its completion, the building stood about even with a rival project at 40 Wall Street designed by H. Craig Severance. Severance increased the height of his project and then publicly claimed the title of the world's tallest building (this distinction excluded structures that were not fully habitable, such as the Eiffel Tower). In response, Van Alen obtained permission for a 125 foot (58.4 meters) long spire and had it secretly constructed inside the frame of the building. On October 23, 1929, the spire was hoisted onto the top of the building in about 90 minutes. Like the building's cap, it is clad with silvery "Enduro KA-2" metal, an austenitic stainless steel developed inGermany by Krupp and marketed under the trade name "Nirosta".

At the time of completion, the added height of the spire allowed the Chrysler Building to surpass 40 Wall Street as the tallest building in the world and the Eiffel Tower as the tallest structure. It was the first man-made structure to stand taller than 1,000 feet (305 meters). Van Alen's satisfaction in these accomplishments was likely muted by Walter Chrysler's later refusal to pay the balance of his architectural fee. In less than a year after it opened to the public on May 27, 1930, the Chrysler Building was surpassed in height by the Empire State Building.

Say Cheese!

Well here we all are on the lower tip of Manhattan. It's a lot of DNA, which includes from left to right, me, Larry, Susan, Joe, Baby Joey, Eitan, Diane, Diane's new boyfriend Kenny (former Abercrombie & Fitch model and now geologist) and Katie's new boyfriend Jeremy (former world traveller and now Asian Expert, Deloittes), Katie, Madeleine, Sonnet, Grace and Marcia. Our evening ends at the Oyster Bar (again) then Bronxville and bed by 10PM - or the same hour Katie and Jeremy hit the Blue Note in the West Village to see jazz legend Charlie Hayden. Woo Hoo!

Susan Lee on her bowl of ice cream: "I need this like a hole in my head."

Joey

Joey, here pictured with his creator Susan, will turn One in September. How time flies. His father Joe (and grandfather Joe and great-grandfather Joe) spends the weekend with us - otherwise, Joe has taken over the family business in South Carolina, which is now in its fifth generation. Joey is one cute kid and always has a smile or a cheerful goo-ga for us adults who ourselves are goo'ing and ga'ing. Since Thursday I have not heard the kid complain or cry once. This makes me think that Sonnet and I were derelect.

Tonight Madeleine happily tells the dinner table how "when I was two or three I took a black marker from Daddy's office and scribbled on the walls and on the bed and on the furniture and on the lamp. And when daddy found me, he said: 'stop that! that's my pen!' and chased me around the room."

Big Apple

Did you know that the "Big Apple" is a nickname or alternate toponym for NYC used by New Yorkers since the 1970s? The name comes from a promotional campaign by the New York Convention and Visitor's Bureau. Its earlier origins are less clear.

One explanation cited by the New York Historical Society and others is that it was first popularized by John Fitz Gerald, who first used it in his horse racing column in the New York Morning Telegraph in 1921, then further explaining its origins in his February 1924 column. Fitz Gerald credited African American stable-hands working at horseracing tracks in New Orleans: "The Big Apple. The dream of every lad that ever threw a leg over a thoroughbred and the goal of all horsemen. There's only one Big Apple. That's New York.'

Wunder Kid

Here is my cousin Diane - pictured. Diane has always sought the public eye and her talent was obvious from Day One when her lungs filled with air and let out a scream. I recall seeing her in the leading role in Anything Goes performed at Bronxville High circa 1991. In HS she was selected to the NY Girls State and played Varsity field hockey for three years. After Bronxville, Diane attended the Medil School of Journalism of Northwestern University. Today, she is the morning co-anchor for Fox News in Albany covering 0500 to 0830h (yes, that is the AM). The market is (guessing) 500,000 people and her day begins at 1AM.

Sail

From the Empire State Building, Katie then organises a sail-boat ride off the Southern tip of Manhattan around the Stature of Liberty (Eitan's toy well chosen). Our moving circus heads down-town and we meet London friends Tim and Kitty who join us for a sunny afternoon. We are treated with spectacular views of lower New York, which is oddly remiss with out the WTC. The sad debri-holes are clear and the Freedom Towers will eventually go up - contemplated completion by 2011 at 1776 feet. Eitan puts up a fight about his life preserver but Gracie prevails - is there any doubt?

Bedroom View

Saturday starts with a massive ground assault beginning in Bronxville (Larry and I chuckle that D-Day was comparatively easy). Sonnet, the kids and I head by train for Grand Central Station. We stroll to the Empire State Building to meet Moe, Grace and Katie. Marcia, Larry, Susan, Joe and Joey (in baby-stroller) arrive by car to join us for a very looong line to security, ticketing and, finally, the Up Up Elevator. The wait is worth the effort and we are treated with a 25 mile view with nary a cloud in the sky (Jersey still looks pretty bad). Eitan and Madeleine beg for a Statue-of-Liberty or Empire State Building snow ball. We give in finally and Madeleine scores a faux diamond ring and Eitan takes The Lady.

My photo taken from the 79th Floor, where construction work allows for an interesting frame of the sky-line. I love the window-locks to keep out any burglars!

I ♥ NY

Here is the crew before the Natural History. Madeleine jumps to see the Boop-Pooper and tantalised Moe with her pony-tail. This morning Eitan goes for a full-on time-trial up-and-down the five flights of stairs to Katie's apartment. He does this 14X. Madeleine joins for 10X. That's 70 floors by my math ! and the stair climbers are beat red and raring to go afterwards. Never under-estimate the energy of a 5 or 6 year old.

Madeleine on her bad dream last night: "There was a very stinky water slide and somebody grabbed me and took me to the top of the water slide and pushed me off the water slide. I went down the water slide with my eyes closed and hit the water. It was very scary, but I liked the water slide. So it wasn't a bad dream really."
Grace: "See Madeleine, sometimes it is ok to be afraid."

The Whale And The Squid

We arrive at JFK Wednesday evening and head straight for Bronxville. Driving our enormous SUV, I get lost in Westchester which brings back many memories of before most notably an unauthorised, pre-Brown return trip from Manhattan with Dan Duane at 4AM... but that's another story.

In Bronxville we re-union with Marcia, Larry, Susan and Joe and Joey for a Big Dinner. The kids are wired to the Big Apple and finally fall asleep at 11PM. Friday is wet and humid and we randez-vous with Moe, Gracie and Katie in Manhattan at Katie's flat. After hugs and kisses for us and the grand children, we go straight for the Museum of Natural History and the Dinosaurs. On IMAX, we watch their recreation and Madeleine tells me "they are quite big, daddy." Glee's are heard all around when a brontosaurus poos and the narrator says: "we have many ways of learning from the Giant Creatures." From there we explore the museum to the blue whale where I take my photo of the giants battling beneath. Somehow this exhibit captures the spookiness of the depths. The family has dinner at the Grand Central Station Oyster Bar then catches the White Plains train to Bronxville.

Moire

Cousin Moire stops by the hotel bringing presents, home-made pie and magazines, God Bless Her. Sonnet and she catch up the last year since her wedding to Turk - this summer the honeymooners honeymooned in Tuscany. We are forever indebted to her when she miraculously arrived in London in October 2000 and saved our bacon following the boy's arrival. Those were sleepless times but all the more dear because they were so.

Liebeskind

Bill and Susan insist that we see Denver's newest museum - pictured. I learn that the the original Denver Art Museum was designed by Gio Ponti and local fellow James Sadler in 1971 and completed in the early 1980s. It is a 28-sided, 7 story construction whose exterior is clad in bespoke gray tiles designed by Dow Corning. In 2006, the Frederic C. Hamilton building extension was completed following the design specs of Studio Daniel Liebeskind and Brit Probst. It opens October 7, 200 and is clad in titanium and glass. It 's pretty cool to look at though Sonnet and I agree that it somehow feels oppressive. There is no denying that it is impressive in scale and imagination.

Next to the museum is a lush grass lawn where I try to catch the kids and vice-versa. It's good exercise and Denver's altitude hurts. Afterwards we wrap it up with a smoothie and drive to our hotel near DIA for an early flight to New York and Bronxville.

Bill

We visit Sonnet's uncle Bill and his lady friend Susan, who writes a bi-monthly column for the Denver Post and is involved in Denver's City Counsel. Bill is a Venture Capitalist and a founder of the Centennial Fund back in 1981. Centennial today is one of the largest between New York and California. Bill's other efforts have been equally successful and his Silver Creek Ventures has returned 10X - easily one of the Great And The Good. Today Bill is pulling back from the investing business to concentrate on local activities including God and Country. On the latter, he testified in front of Congress last week regarding private equity and taxes - he believes they should be higher which is perhaps a unique view in the industry but consistent with his views for the six years that I have known him. During testimony, Senator Orin Hatch asks whether investors may flee the US to which Bill calmly notes that among his reasons for staying are Utah's many lovely mountains. Touche!

Good Bye, Montrose

My photo taken at a picnic stop alongside Route 70 (I need to check the peak's name, which is on a scrap paper somewhere in the SUV which BTW after two weeks is a Waste Land). I do recall the height: 14,229 feet according to the sign post making what's-its-name the 14th highest in the Rockies (according to Wikipedia). Today we say our sad good-byes to Stan and Silver, leaving Montrose around 10AM heading for Denver and the airport. Tomorrow we fly to NYC to see Gracie, Moe and Katie and the Lees - my Aunt Marcia and Uncle Larry. The kids are amped and look forward to The Empire State Building and a private boat-ride around Manhattan, which Katie has arranged for us. Look out, Big Apple!

Madeleine on the highway: "Are we on the runway?"
The kids chant over-and-over-and-over: "Are we there yet?"
Me to them: "I want SILENCE in the back!" I threaten to put a tape-line separating the two, and am reminded Moe's 540 and similar back-seat skirmishes.
Eitan: "This is the best holiday ever."

m'stache

I pose for Eitan. I'm quite proud of my moustache BTW. I take it from Sonny Crockett (Colin Farrell) in Miami Vice, the movie. A further bonus: if I move my lips in and out, it looks like somebody doing push-ups. I tell Sonnet that this is not the last time she will hear this joke.

Ouray

We leave the kids with the grand-parents and split for Ouray which is in the San Juan Mountains and 40 miles south of Montrose. Ouray's rocky splendor and mineral hot springs offered mystic healings for the Ute Indians who lived in southwest Colorado for 1000s of years. Then the white man arrived in the 1840s in search of San Francisco and gold. Ouray's inhospitable terrain was not colonised until the discovery of ore and silver in the 1860s and in 1877, the Chief Ute Ouray was forced to sign papers turning over the land otherwise shared peacefully in and outside his tribe. In 1887, the Denver & Rio Grande Railway arrived and the town grew to 2,600. Within five years, however, silver's value crashed and the town would have disappeared - if not for Tom Walsh, who discovered gold. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Sonnet and I stay at the recently redone Beaumont Hotel, which was built in 1886 and hosted Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Hoover. We are up in time for a morning hike along the Uncompaghre then head to the Hot Springs for a 5-star message and spiritual soak.

I learn that in Ayn Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged the protagonist's secret headquarters in "Galt's Gulch" was inspired by Ouray.

Kung Fu Fighter

Sonnet takes the kids to Mike's Farm this AM to see the agriculture while I do some work and mess around with this blog. Upon their return, we go for a dip and Eitan discovers the Power Of The Force. Wearing his (over-sized)bath robe, we practice Kung Fu ("Master Eitan we are wise in the ways of the Kung Fu warrior" I say). He loves this and we goof around the otherwise empty hotel. This afternoon we will drop the Little Shakespeares with the Grandparents and head for the Beaumont Hotel in Ridgewood - an award winning, restored Victorian that has been serving the Rockies since the late 19th century.

He Must Be A Republican

Rep. Don Young, Republican - Alaska, is under federal investigation along with Senator Stevens, also from Alaska. Further discrediting himself and the state, Young was forced by House GOP leader John Boehner to apologies to his Republican colleague Scott Garrett from New Jersey. Garrett had the audacity to oppose an appropriation for Native Alaskans which may have included the Bridge To Nowhere. Said Don: "There is always another day when those who bite will be killed, too, and I am very good at that. Those that bite me will be bitten back." Though their families are not related, Stevens and Young share the same gene pool. Go figure.

Uncompahgre

Sonnet, Marcus and I drive through the Grand Mesa and the Uncompahgre National Forrest in a day that starts early and ends at Ouary, a small town famous for its hot springs. In the middle, we go off-piste taking Route 97 at Naturia which eventually becomes gravel then dirt. The countryside is red and orange and dramatic before it comes to a Dead End, to our surprise. We drive by Telluride, Placerville and Ridgeway which offer different vistas of the Rockies. Eitan and Madeleine spend the day with Mr. And Mrs. Stanfill, who reports that "the children behaved wonderfully." The main stop on the day was the Russel Stover chocolate factory - which strikes the kids bug-eyed. As for the Ouary natural baths: think "dangly bits."

Corn competition!

The corn eating competition kicks off at 1430 sharp in two heats: ten men and ten women, head-to-head. With eight minutes on the clock, eaters showcase various styles from the famous "type-writer" to the more modern "shear". A corn cob must be picked of all kernals and contestants are not allowed to collect a corn pile, ie, they must eat the corn. The ladies share a three-way tie of 13 corn, while the men are dominated by Tiny, a 400 pounder who apparently has won as long as the competition has been held. Tiny devours at least 20 corn but it could be more as several ears are disqualified as "incomplete." His shearing technique strips the vegitable bare and nobody has a chance against him. Tiny competes.

Corn!

The Olatha festival began sixteen years ago and now draws people from far and wide (all hotels in Montrose are full). Last year, 90,000 ears of corn were eaten on the day and this year the goal is to break 100,000. The corn is field-to-mouth in 30 minutes and is pretty damn good. I take notes of what I see and I see a lot of smoking, fat (obesity), baseball or cowboy hats and thongs. No beer or alcohal though due to insurance and family-values, I learn. The folks next to me consume french fries, nachos, syrupy donuts and smokes -- all before 11AM. The younger kids check each other out and the girls show mid-section, sans bra (I notice). There are some great t-shirts: "Kickin' bass", "Gun Control is Using Both Hands" and "Ain't No Red Neckin' Here."

"If I swore you were an angel, would you treat me like the devil tonight?"
Own lyrics by The Vigil Brothers Band, on the Big Stage today

Summer Fair

The Olathe Sweet Corn Festival is today and we make tracks for the Big Show. Olathe is a small town surrounded by, yes, corn fields and ten minutes down the road from Montrose. The day kicks off with the local banks pancake breakfast then transitions over to the football field for the main action. The grounds open at 10AM and some 25,000 people will pass through the welcome gates. The Big Draw this year is country singer LeAnn Rimes, who has soled 37 million records since her debut album "Blue" when she was thirteen. She's now 24 and smokin'. Free BBQ and boiled corn is on offer from sun-up to sun-down and we find a spot on the main field under a sun umbrella but near the main stage. Food stalls, games and commercial stalls surround the turf. The Army has a visible presence hosting a wall-climb and recruiting booth. Madeleine pigs out on a double scoop of strawberry.

Silver

Sonnet's mother received her nick-name, so the story goes, during her birth when Mary D yelled "Hi-Ho Silver!" and the rest is history. She tells me that her outfit includes the two words in the english language which do not rhyme: orange and silver. Sonnet joins Silver for her Friday Ladies-That-Lunch in downtown Montrose. This is a power-center of the community, as far as I can tell, and offers a liberal oasis in an otherwise gun toot'n, Republican vot'n Colorado which BTW otherwise went Demo in '04. I take the kids to - you guessed it! - the p-0-0-l. We get some adult time with Marcus this evening as Stan baby-sits and we go to the movies. Hoo-ray!

Uncle Marcus

Marcus is in from Seattle to see family and regard his fast growing nephew and niece. During the past several years, Marcus has lived in Kathmandu and Kabul, Afghanistan, where he built grade schools for women. This results in a general discussion on Interesting Jobs and Marcus enjoyed a Whopper: transitioning to Seattle, he drove Ronald McDonald, in complete costume, around the state for $16 an hour. Ronald was unable to drive because of his Red Shoes and his contract required him in costume. Plus their Honda had McDonald's decals on the sideboards. The duo would pull into a (small) town and were usually greeted by loud cheers from screaming children packing into a restaurant. On occasion, the franchise owner would not promote the ticket so on entrance adults would turn their heads to see -- what? their strangest dream come true? Now Marcus is a graphics designer and living the good life in WA.

Phil Moyers reports that 45% of Americans support the impeachment of George Bush for wiretapping.

Rockies

My photo at Ralph Lauren's ranch.

Geology

The Rockies are a broad mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than 4,800 kilometers (about 3,000 miles) from northernmost British Columbia in Canada, to New Mexico. The highest peak is Mount Elbert, in Colorado, which is 14,440 feet (4,401 meters) above sea level. Mount Robson in BC at 3,954 meters (12,972 feet) is the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies. The Rocky Mountain System within the United States is a U.S. phsiographic region. Though part of the Pacific Cordillera, they are not to be confused with the Pacific Coast Ranges which are located immediately adjacent to the Pacific Coast and where our family has a cabin in Big Trees National Forest.

I'm watching the Giants and waiting for Bonds to hit the Big Number 755.

Telluride

We drive to Telluride with Marcus or about 45 minutes from Montrose on the scenic route. Once there we catch a gondola up the mountain where a friendly ranger tells us that half the bowl was formed by volcanic activity and the rest by plate movement. From our spot, we see the range familiar to every Coors drinker and on each beer can. Nice. I decide to jog from top to town or 10,500 to 8,750 feet. Even downhill its a challenge and my legs are screaming by the time I re-connect with the kids, happily eating ice cream cones. Madeleine asks: "did you see a badger?"

"However, I only applied to one college, the University of Colorado, and I think MIT was the perfect school for me. Maybe that was a mistake."
Steve Wozniak, co-founder Apple Computer

Swim!

The ConocoPhillips USA Swimming National Championships continued with fast swims on the second day of the meet. Superstar Michael Phelps broke the U.S. Open and National meet record in the 200m backstroke (ho hum for Phelps- though interesting because backstroke is a weaker stroke for him), while Dara Torres earned her 14th national title at the age of 40. Yes, 40. I remember her first Olympics in 1984 and she is now on pace for 5 in Beijing. This is unheard of in a sport where burn-out and funding end careers by college's senior year. My swimming days stopped at the Eastern Seaboards, 1986, when I swam for Brown. In high school I completed the distance events, clocking 4:36 and 1:44 for the 500 and 200 yard freestyles, respectively, and 16:02 for the 1650. My 500 was good enough for All American status but swum at Jr Nationals so I missed that trophy. Now, I am content to remember those cold wet mornings and ten mile days. From a chair. Ps thanks for driving us Dad.

Blow dry

We hit the local country store and Sonnet buys some jeans. The kids load up on dirt kickers (red and brown), western shirts and various themed accoutrements (I no can do the cowboy motif). We then hit Walmart to take care of the back-to-school basics (a Montrose Target will open in September). Ain't retail cheap? Otherwise the kids have their swimming lessons followed by some swimming and after that more swimming.

He Must Be A Republican

We know that Senator Ted Stevens from Alaska, a Republican, had his house searched yesterday by the FBI as part of a federal investigation. Stevens is also (in)famous for his pork barrel projects like the $453MM Bridge To No Where linking Ketchikan (population 8,900) with its airport on Gravina Island (population 50). But did you know that Mr. Stevens is a linguist? His explanation of the Internet, extracted from public record and Wired Magazine in October 2005, sheds new terminology - and insight - into the In-tur-net.

"I just the other day got, an internet was sent by my staff at 10 o'clock in the morning on Friday and I just got it yesterday. Why?

Because it got tangled up with all these things going on the internet commercially.

So you want to talk about the consumer? Let's talk about you and me. We use this internet to communicate and we aren't using it for commercial purposes.

We aren't earning anything by going on that internet. Now I'm not saying you have to or you want to discrimnate against those people

The regulatory approach is wrong. Your approach is regulatory in the sense that it says "No one can charge anyone for massively invading this world of the internet". No, I'm not finished. I want people to understand my position, I'm not going to take a lot of time.

They want to deliver vast amounts of information over the internet. And again, the internet is not something you just dump something on. It's not a truck.

It's a series of tubes."

Baconator

Bacon is a Big Deal at the hamburger joints in Montrose and Wendy's proudly promotes The Baconator: "Six strips of hickory smoked bacon piled high atop two 1/4 lb. patties of fresh, never frozen, beef. Complete with two slices of American cheese, mayo and ketchup for a mountain of mouth-watering taste. Go on, obsess a little." We head straight for McDonald's. The kids get chicken nuggets and fries while Sonnet and I defer for home-made sandwiches at our hotel.

"It is the Americans who have managed to crown minced beef as hamburger, and to send it round the world so that even the fussy French have taken to le boeuf hache, le hambourgaire."
Julia Child

“It requires a certain kind of mind to see beauty in a hamburger bun.”
Ray Kroc, creator McDonald's

Black Canyon

We visit Black Canyon this afternoon and my photo from the chasm's south end. Black Canyon is about 12 miles outside of Montrose in Gunnison County, CO.

Geology

The Gunnison River drops an average of 43 feet per mile (8 m/km) through the entire canyon, making it one of the steepest river descents in North America. In comparison, the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon drops an average of 7.5 feet per mile (1.4 m/km). The greatest descent of the river occurs in the park at Chasm View dropping 240 feet per mile (45 m/km).

The Black Canyon gets its name on account of its steepness. This steepness makes it difficult for sunlight to penetrate very far down the canyon. As a result, the walls of the canyon are most often draped in shadows, causing the rocky walls to appear black. At its narrowest point the canyon is only 40 feet (12 meters) across at the river.

The area was established as a U.S. National Monument on March 2, 1933 and made into a National Park on October 21, 1999.

Red Letter Day

It is just possible that today Barry Bonds will break Hank Aaron's all-time home run record, New York Mets starter Tom Glavine wins his 300th game and New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodrigues becomes the youngest player (32) to hit his 500th homer. What are the odds of all three on the same day? It boggles the fan's mind. Photo by Thomas Ciszek of Atlantic City Surf pitcher Lincoln Mikkelsen who was the 2006 Sport Ticker Independent Baseball Pitcher of the Year.

Madeleine to Eitan: "You just want a hang nail so you can have all the attention!"

Pretty in Pink

Madeleine at the Stanfill house, Montrose. The BIG plan today is... wait for it... The Simpsons! Both kids wake up with one thing on their mind as they have been promised the movie. Otherwise, I give them chores to do around our suite in return for cash-dollars. Madeleine is eager to have some disposable while Eitan a bit more reserved: "Aw, dad, you can't really be serious!" says he. Strong work ethic in this family clearly. Today we're all excited to see Marcus and perhaps visit the Black Canyon national reserve.

Eitan, two inches from my face, 7:01AM: "Dad will you fix my Spider Man Watch?"

Eitan to me: "Mom said not to disturb you until after 7AM"

Madeleine about a sparrow's nest at Stan/Silver's: "Look at the bird apartment!"

Eitan has some of Stan's cherry pie. Yum. Sadly Bill Walsh is lost to cancer at 75. The Genius took over the ailing San Francisco 49ers in 1978 at about the time I was really getting into football. The 49ers were 2-14 the season before Walsh arrived and 2-14 his first year. Then, in 1979, he drafted a quarterback from Notre Dame named Joe Montana. The 49ers went on to dominate the league with Super Bowl titles in 1981, '84 and '88. Along with Joe, my heroes were Ronnie Lott, Jerry Rice, Gene "Hacksaw" Reynolds and Brent Jones, whose end-zone grab in the final minutes of the '81 NFC Championships sent the Cowboys home. That was an era to be a part of.

He Must Be A Republican

Is there anybody dumb enough not to believe that Gonzales is serving as a shield for Bush? You can just hear the conversation: "Common Alberto, take one for the team. Heck, if it goes wrong I'll just give you a pardon."

Poolside

Surprise! The kids up at the crack of dawn. We arrive yesterday evening and have dinner with Stan and Silver while admiring the mountain views especially pretty at sunset. Eitan and Madeleine have a tour of the Stanfill house and marvel at Silver's flag collection which includes Yugoslavia, Alaska, California and Britain - places where she has taught or studied (women's) literature. Tonight Uncle Marcus arrives from Seattle.

Gunninson

From La Veta yesterday we drive through beautiful country including Gunninson, which ain't much of a town but tucked inside the Rockies. We cruise by the Gunnison River, whose three dams make the Blue Mesa Reservoir and form the heart of Curecanti. The Blue Mesa is Colorado's largest body of water, and is the largest Kokanee Salmon fishery in the U.S. Morrow Point Reservoir is the beginning of the Black Canyon, and below, East Portal is the site of the Gunnison Diversion Tunnel, a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. It's pretty cool stuff but we power on to reach Montrose in time for dinner. Photo from Estes Park.

Notes From the Road

This morning I talk to Jo, a neighbor at the La Veta Inn. Initially Sonnet had difficulties with Jo for smoking and late night drinking with her husband and 25 year old son who are in town to play golf and party. Otherwise she is from a small town outside Denver where the newest VA hospital is being built. Her brother served three tours in Viet Nam before being hit by a semi on a Florida inter-state (he survived and is in a wheel chair). "He was treated horribly on his return" she says. Our discussion turns to Iraq and the Bush government. She once supported the war and would have been proud to see her son there. No more. On Queda and Iraq, she says: bullshit. "We should have stopped in Afghanistan or maybe Pakistan" and "I can see my house on the Internet. Why can't Bush get Bin Laden?" She believes we should have gone in and done it right or "get the hell out of there." She also connects Iraq's failure to Iran, which could have nukes. "I cannot believe that I would see Viet Nam again. It (Iraq) is becoming the same thing." On the next President? She hates Hillary Clinton and says what our country needs is a black woman: "now she would kick some real ass."

When I See An Elephant Fly

We end the day in front of Dumbo. Remember that crazy scene when Dumbo's water is spiked and he and the rat see pink elephants dance? And the hobo negro crows who find them in the tree-tops? And of course the climatic finish when Dumbo tears around the Big Top. Eitan complains that the movie is too short and feels cheated. When it comes to cartoons, it would appear that quantity trumps quality.
Image from Disney.

The Ranch

Madeleine and Eitan have spent this week with Martine and Bill re-acquainting themselves with some old friends. This evening Martine prepares dinner for a Stanfill family reunion including Sonnet's aunts Beecher, Martine and Robin and their husbands Bill and Ray, cousins Whitney (and husband Frank) and David and their children Tess and Thea. David is in from New York to help Beecher and Frank add an extension to Beecher's already big house. David is a writer and carpenter and lives on B Street in Alphabet City with his girlfriend Nicole who owns a vintage clothing store. Way cool.

"I had a great time doing Vegas. It's just that it takes a lot of time."
John Elway

H-2-O

We drive to Walsenburg to hit the waterpark. On hand are two three story water slides, one of which requires an inner-tube and is enclosed for darkness. Cool! Eitan and Madeleine are rightly scared but Madeleine bunches up her courage and goes for it: "whoopie dad! This is totally rad!" (OK, I gave her the expression). Eitan gets into the action and soon we are racing up the stairs umpteen times to ride the curves. The lifeguards are bemused by the accents and ask what football clubs we support (Eitan: Manchester United of course. Madeleine Chelsea and me Arsenal). Afterwards Sonnet and I sunbathe while the kids splash about. Tonight: BBQ at Martine's ranch. Rad!

"I don't know if I like being the sentimental favorite."
John Elway, Denver Broncos

Dawn Patrol

Eitan and I go for a walk as the sun rises over the mountains. We are the first up accept for the church-goers who prepare a $5 pancake breakfast on the High Street. Bacon and coffee included. According to Robin, the evangelicals have arrived in La Veta and are preaching their tupper-ware to the influencables. A main recruiting ground is the public Middle School where community pressure has allowed the congregation to prosper. This being the United States where Church and State or supposedly separated, a 16 year has taken it upon herself to write the only (so far) dissenting op-ed in The Pueblo newspaper.

Madeleine I find by our door step this morning shooing her ant "Polly" from her cage. Madeleine captured Polly last night, entrapping her in a clear-plastic crayons case complete with grass, dirt and food-stuff. Fast friends from the start, Madeleine showed Polly to the locals (who would listen). As for Polly's release this morning: "I want her to be free" says Madeleine.

Beecher

Beecher with her grand gal Thea. After spending a morning in Cuchara, we return to La Veta so Eitan and Madeleine can get a cone at local grocers Charlie's. At $1 a scoop, a bargain. Afterwards we visit Aunt Robin and Ray, who have recently completed their home and work studio nearby. Robin is an artist who focuses on large and small stones, beads, feathers and crafts. It is never boring. Her work is sold locally and in places like Taos, Telluride and Santa Fe. I try on several pendants but she is now focused on women, so I will have to wait.

I ask Madeleine if life is good or bad. "Well, it is both" she says.
Me: "Why is it bad?"
Madeleine: "Because people die."
Me: "And why is it good?"Madeleine: "Because the sun is shining."

Red Neck

I practice my look for the summer in this self-portrait. We spend the morning in Cuchara with Beecher, Whitney and her kids Tess and Thea who is now about one year old and just begging to walk. Cuchara is 8,600 feet altitude and we are happy and dehydrated by morning's end, which includes hide-and-seek, tag, swings and other outdoor mountain activities. Beecher's cabin was a gift from a wealthy Texas family. It is nestled in the firs next to a brook, open fields and of course mountains.

Sharon

Sharon is one of Katie's best friends from Harvard. She famously travelled with us along the Karakoram Highway (KKH) in 1997 which took us from Islamabad, Pakistan to Kashgar, China and beyond. Here Sharon is with her daughter in a more natural habitat - New York City where she was born and raised. At school, Sharon was a scholar-athlete and played some mean stick - she represented the USA on several international field hockey teams.
Katie's picture taken in Central Park.

La Veta

Here is where we be. The Inn was built in 1876 (photo from the Inn)

History of the town

Colonel John M. Francisco (1820 – 1902) and Judge Henry Daigre (1832 – 1902) formed a partnership and purchased land under the Vigil-St. Vrain Land Grant in 1868. The land was located on a Native American trail used by the Ute tribe (and earlier the Comanches). They built a plaza known as Francisco Fort to supply the Denver mining camps with products from ranching and farming. Ranches and farms like that of the Bela and Fain families were located nearby.

In Spanish, La Veta, translates as “the mineral vein”, which is apropos, given the town's association with mining claims; like the abandoned mining camp of Ojo which is located a few miles from the town. The concrete foundations of the camp can still be seen upon close inspection. Hiram Vasquez said that the town was named by Mexican settlers from a vein of white mineral which they called “La Veta Tierra Blanca”.

By 1876 the Denver and Rio Grande Railway Company -- later theDenver & Rio Grande Western Railroad - built a narrow gauge railroad through a right-of-way to the plaza and 200 acres for a town site donated by Francisco and Daigre. The tracks continued over what is known today as “Old La Veta Pass”, completing a trek up to an elevation of 9582 feet to a depot built by1877 in a place known as “Uptop”.

Wayward Bound

Here we are in Chicago, on our way to Colorado for July and August. The day starts with an 0530 pickup and ending at 1400 in Le Veta. Please note that the time difference is +7 hours, making this a looong trip. We and the kids hold it together and when compared to earlier travels at sub 3 years, this seems like a snap. Both Eitan and Madeleine proudly keep their back-packs and "buddies" closely held in the Tesco bag. We stay at the Le Veta Inn. The town has a population of 900 or so including local cowboys and urbanite yuppies. While I'm not able to buy the New York Times, there is excellent coffee at the local bakery (open four days a week) and the Denver Post gives me the baseball scores. Today the kids go to Martine and Bill's horse ranch to see their pals Praline, Buckwheat, Charlie and others.

Jump!

Madeleine checks out the turbo-trampoline and we can see she is in capable hands - not. The kids beg for a go and the thing catapults them 30 feet in the air. The more advanced do loops and summersaults while show-boating for their (girl)friends. Eitan tries first and while not so daring, has a blast. Madeleine is surprisingly timid and requests to come off after several moments. Usually it is she that thrives on this kind of thing - no fear, grrr.

Summer UK

My faithful five: apologies for being offline for the past week. I write from Le Veta, Colorado, in the Colorado Rockies. But more on this later.
This photo taken in Brighton-By-Sea, where I return with the kids last week. We lucked out with good weather as the summer has otherwise been the wettest in 75 years. Flash-flooding across England has left 1,000s without water, electricity and home. The worst towns are where the Thames and Severn Rivers meet, unable to absorb the hillside run-off. Earlier this month we saw Sheffield, home of the Arctic Monkeys, washed out. But back to us: Brighton was once the seaside town for which these Brits pined before modern travel whisked the wealthy (and now the pint drinking, cigarette smoking) set to Southern European locals setting in motion the the second British colonisation: low-cost, beach-front condominiums. God bless the herd mentality of this people. Our day otherwise is unspoiled following a train-ride from Clapham Junction to Brighton station. We enjoy the rocks, eat greasy chips and vinegar and check out the boardwalk. A fun day spent while Sonnet prepares for the summer Bon Voyage.

This one makes me (and Wayne) proud - from IHT

Devanand's eyesight and livelihood were saved through the efforts of an innovative microfranchise program developed by the Scojo Foundation, a nonprofit social enterprise based in New York that uses market solutions to distribute inexpensive corrective glasses in the developing world (picture and story from the IHT).

Worldwide, according to Scojo, more than 700 million people who make less than $4 a day suffer from presbyopia, limiting their ability to make handicrafts, read a newspaper or find insects on crops and separate seeds. Sufferers face the dark prospect of diminished productivity and greater poverty.

Scojo does more than just sell glasses. Operating in six countries, the foundation has trained more than 1,000 people to become microfranchise owners, or "vision entrepreneurs," who conduct basic eye exams, sell affordable prescription glasses and refer those who need advanced eye care to clinics and hospitals. According to Scojo, many of the microfranchise owners have doubled their income, and thousands of farmers, craftspeople and merchants have been able to return to work.

Using 5 percent of profit from the for-profit luxury eyewear company Scojo Vision, and grants from organizations like Open Society Institute of George Soros and the Acumen Fund, the Scojo Foundation addresses the most basic eye-care needs of local communities. It also trains its entrepreneurs to refer those in need of serious medical treatment to organizations like Orbis, the global anti-blindness charity.

In Ghana, Fan Milk has sold 8,000 people the bicycles and dairy products to become distributors, and in India, Hindustan Lever has trained nearly 31,000 women in its "Project Shakti" network to sell consumer products like coffee, laundry detergent and toothpaste.

Since its inception in 2002, Scojo has joined forces with more than 20 private companies and nongovernmental organizations in Bangladesh, India, Ghana, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico to train microfranchise owners, often linking up with existing networks of health workers, peddlers and shopkeepers.

In April, Scojo began collaboration with the nonprofit health organization Population Services International to distribute glasses throughout sub-Saharan Africa. In five years, Scojo has sold more than 70,000 pairs of eyeglasses to the poor across the globe.

That Hat

A photo from the archives - this one taken November 2003 at three years old. The flapper was a Christmas present from me to Sonnet when we lived on the Upper West Side. "Flapper" referred to a "new breed" of young women from the '20s who wore short skirts, bobbed their hair, listened to unconventional music and flaunted their disdain for what was then considered "decent" behavior. The flappers were seen as brash in their time for wearing excessive makeup, drinking hard liquor , treating sex in a more casual manner, smoking cigarettes, driving automobiles, and otherwise flouting conventional social and sexual norms. God how we miss 'em.