Kim and I spent the weekend up in the mountains with a rotating cast of others.   One of our friends rented a three bedroom condo that we filled with seven to eight people throughout the weekend.   We took advantage of a nice spring storm that hit us on Friday, and headed out to Vail on Saturday morning.   This was our first time there this season, so we stayed until closing to take full advantage.   We met up with a few of our other friends out there and took to the slopes in a mass mob of nine boarders and skiers.   After a few runs we split into smaller groups, and the group we were a part of decided to go straight out to blue sky basin.

It takes a few runs to get all the way out to blue sky, but we eventually made it around noon.   We were quickly able to find all kinds of powder in some tree runs near Pete’s Bowl.   We tried some of the other more open bowls, but found the snow to be too crusty and hard.   So we did a few more runs over near Pete’s and then decided to start heading back towards the front side of the mountain.   This is always a challenging task, as it takes a number of runs to get anywhere around the massive grounds of Vail.   Eventually we made it back to the area where we had started the day, found the rest of our large group, and called it a day.

We all drove back to our condo in Frisco and had some food and drinks at the divey Moose Jaw restaurant.   From there it was wine, socializing, and games back at the condo.   Kim and I got another early start on Sunday, along with a few others, and headed out for a half day at Keystone.   Kim hadn’t been back to Keystone since early in the season, and conditions have vastly improved since then.   It still is nothing like a couple of years ago, but at least most of the mountain is open.   We had a couple of icy runs to start things off, but quickly found some better runs on the front-side of Dercum Mountain, Frenchman being our favorite.   We tried a few runs on the backside slopes, but found it to be mostly icy out there as well.   We were able to get ten runs in before 1:30 and decided to call it a day.

I’m not sure if we’ll make it out again anytime soon.   The closing dates for the resorts are quickly approaching, with most of the last days in mid April.   With that said, I’m sure we’ll have another couple of spring days at Arapahoe Basin and potentially some closing day fun at some of the other resorts.   I still have a long way to go to reach twenty days this season, but that can be blamed on the worse than usual conditions.   I was glad to have another weekend in the mountains, especially with a really good day at Vail and a typical day at Keystone.   Even after seeing so much snow recently, spring is still coming on strong.

Frisco on Dwellable

I wish I could say I forgot to write because I’ve been watching so much basketball. But I’ve actually been so busy at work and away from an Internet connection all afternoon. The new group I’m a part of had two servers that should have been delivered early in the week. Well they didn’t show up until four yesterday. We only have until tomorrow afternoon to get them setup before they are shipped away. So I’ve been logging some extra hours the past couple days. At least it won’t interfere with the weekend though. Plus I’m actually enjoying the challenging work.

Over the weekend I found my new favorite little Italian Restaurant in Denver, the Saucy Noodle Ristorante. It’s not even two miles from our house, but it’s not in an area of town that we regularly visit. I guess there are too many other places nearby for us to venture too far out very often.   Kim and I played a round of racquetball after work on Friday, and afterward decided to get some food.   We thought about grabbing something close to the University of Denver, where we workout, but an upcoming hockey game had packed all the restaurants.   So we headed north on University Boulevard and ended up in the Bonnie Brae neighborhood.

We found a parking spot directly outside the Saucy Noodle and headed inside.   The restaurant was actually bigger than I was expecting it to be, and it was pretty well packed.   We were told it would be up to twenty minutes for a table.   We decided to stick around and ordered a couple of drinks from the small bar.   We were seated before finishing our drinks, so the wait wasn’t too long.   Kim decided that she wanted to have pizza and ordered one with their spicy hot Arrabbiatta Sauce.   I decided on the Stuffed Shells Florentine, which are filled with a creamy Mixture of Fresh Cheeses, Parsley, and Spinach. Both dishes were excellent, as was the side salad that came with my meal. The Arrabbiatta sauce was definitely spicy and delicious, but I’m glad that I also got to sample their equally delicious and famous garlic marinara sauce. We will absolutely be back!

Saturday was the day for our now yearly ritual of watching the Denver St. Patrick’s Day Parade. I originally thought it was the largest St. Patrick’s Day parade west of the Mississippi. This is true, but after reading it again I think it’s actually the largest parade for any event west of the Mississippi.

The Denver St. Patrick’s Day Parade bears the reputation as the largest parade west of the Mississippi River and one of the largest in the United States. Over 230 individual units mass together in a parade of 10,000 plus participants. Winding through the streets of Lower Downtown Denver on the Saturday before St. Patrick’s Day, over 200,000 spectators enjoy a three hour plus parade.

Either way, it’s a fun way to kick off a typically great Saturday afternoon in Denver.  As with years in the past, the weather was great.  I was telling our friends that it’s usually the first day of the year for people to get a nice sunburn.  Standing around outside for over three hours can easily do that will all of the sunshine.  Once again the parade entries were as strange as ever.  The Hare Krishnas were back, and a large group of Star Wars characters joined in this year as well.  The longhorn cattle made an appearance, along with lots of drunken float riders.  The best part is that we  finally brought a camera along to capture some of the experience.

Last week some members of OARfans.com had a discussion about miles traveled to see O.A.R. concerts.   At some point I decided to calculate my estimated miles traveled using both Google Maps and this WebFlyer calculator.   I already knew that I wasn’t traveling for shows as often as I used to, but when I do travel now it tends to be larger distances.   Currently I’ve been to 90 shows in 15 states (CO, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MI, MO, NY, OH, PA, TN, VA, WA, WI), thanks oarsa.org.   I quickly realized that my longest road-trip was likely the spring break trip back in ’03 that I took with three others.   Nearly 2,000 miles roundtrip to see seven shows.

Despite a couple of wins thrown into the mix, my hockey team continues to lose most games.   Since a win three weeks ago, we’ve gone on to lose 9-1 and 9-5 in the last two weeks.   Even with our 5-11 record, we are only a couple of points from moving out of last place.   Fortunately our last two games are against the second and third worst teams in the league.   We actually have a chance to improve in the standings before heading into the playoffs.   We all realize that the playoffs are what really matters, but if we can move out of last and get a better seed for the tournament we might actually stick around for awhile.   It wouldn’t be the first time my team has miraculously improved heading into and through the playoffs.

On Saturday afternoon, I headed up to the small mountain town of Nederland, Colorado for their annual Frozen Dead Guy Days festival. This event is a celebration for the towns allegedly cryogenically frozen dead guy.   It costs $25 to go see “grandpa” so I cannot actually vouch for his existence. A group of six of us made the hour-long drive up to Nederland, and arrived just as the Parade of Hearses was taking place. We lucked into a couple of parking spots within a block or two of the main street, so we were able to catch most of the parade. After that was over, we explored the few little restaurants and bars in town, before heading down to a little pond for the Polar Plunge.   They had cut a small square out of the frozen surface of the pond, and people took turns jumping into the icy water.   Safety crews were on hand to assist when needed.

After the plunge was over, the Coffin Races began.   In this event, teams of seven people race through an obstacle course as quickly as possible.   Two teams race at a time, with six of the participants carrying a homemade coffin through the course, while another person rides in the coffin.   It was an exciting event to watch.   From there we stopped for some pizza and headed back to the main (perhaps only) street in town.   Here we stumbled upon Ice Turkey Bowling.   For $5 a person, you could take three turns launching an originally frozen turkey toward six bowling pins.   As this even went on it became increasingly disgusting.

Many in our group also attended last years trip to the ski joring event in Leadville.   So for us, this was just another of those crazy events that happen in the various little mountain towns of Colorado.   More information on the Frozen Dead Guy and the festival is available on Wikipedia, for those interested in learning more.   Below are some pictures I took while enjoying the festivities.

Nederland on Dwellable

While starting to write this review, I’ve realized that I’ve eaten out quite a bit recently.   This was especially true over the weekend, where we dined out on Friday evening, Saturday afternoon and evening, along with Sunday afternoon.   We made up for it by grilling out on Sunday night, and cooking a bunch early in this week.

Anyway, back to our dining out experience on Saturday night.   We decided late in the evening to go out for dinner and after tossing around some of the usual suspects, I suggested we try India’s Pearl.   I quickly made a reservation at OpenTable and we were on our way down to the restaurant.   It’s a very quick drive from our house, so we arrived just before our scheduled reservation time. The restaurant said that they hadn’t received my reservation, but we were seated right away. I only made the reservation 10 or 15 minutes earlier. We were seated at a table against one of the front windows.

Our server arrived soon enough to take our drink order and to drop off the complimentary appetizer. We also ordered a vegetarian sampler appetizer, as it was our first time there. The Samosa’s (fried dough filled with spicy potatoes and peas) were really good, as were the vegetable Pakora (seasoned vegetables dipped in gram batter, then fried to perfection). The Paneer Pakora was a little bland though, which is the same as the vegetable pakora but with homemade cheese instead of vegetables. For entrees we had the vegetable curry and chicken Tikka Masala. Both were very good, though the curry was a little different than expected, as we are used to Thai curries. Overall, I would definitely go back to taste more of Denver’s best Indian food.

This past Friday night I headed to a new eatery near to our house called The Walnut Room.  They’ve had a location on the north side of downtown for as long as I can remember, but I’ve never been to it.  This is surprising as it combines two of my favorite things: pizza and live music.  The new venue does not have any live entertainment, but the menu is completely the same.  A group of four of us arrived a little late in the evening and immediately found a table.  On first impression, the restaurant is not nearly what I had anticipated.  Food and drink is ordered from the counter, but I was expecting to have wait staff.  They only have one beer on tap, PBR, but they make up for it with a good selection of Great Divide brews.

Three of us split the largest pizza they had, while one of our friends decided he wanted some meat and ordered a meatball sandwich.  The wait for the food wasn’t long, and the pizza arrived hot and fresh from the oven.  Overall I would say that it’s a very good pizza.  It reminded me a little bit of LaRosa’s back in Cincinnati, but that may have just been because of the crust along with the way it was sliced.  Overall, it was a good experience despite our higher expectations.  I believe that they should stay open even later than they already are, as the restaurant could capitalize on all the hungry people emptying from the many neighboring bars.

Please keep Kim and her family in your thoughts and prayers.   Her last surviving grandparent passed away over the weekend at the age of 84.   As Kim often said, I wish I could have met her before she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.   From what I’ve heard, she lived a wonderful life, which was even evident to me in the few years I knew her.

DIERSING Lucille (nee Vetter), beloved wife of the late Elmer Diersing, dear mother of Jim (Susan) Diersing, John (Diane) Diersing, Mary (Chuck) Hais, Jerry Diersing, Carol (Joe) Ransick, Joe Diersing, Jay (Denice) Diersing, Betty (Mike) Tepe and Jeff (Sarah) Diersing, dear friend of Maury Drummey, grandmother of 27, great-grandmother of 7, sister of the late John Vetter and Betty Nolte. Died Saturday, March 06, 2010 age 84 years. Visitation will be held at Bayley Place Wednesday 12 noon until time for the Mass of Christian Burial at 1 PM. Burial St. Joseph Old Cemetery. In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, 4420 Carver Woods Drive (45242) or to Bayley Place, 990 Bayley Place (45233). Condolences may also be expressed to the family online at www.rebold.com.