Last night I forgot to watch GLEE. Thanks to HULU I could watch it on my computer tonight.
Why do I like GLEE? After almost 40 years in the education business, it reminds me of some of the infighting, kids and their relationships, certain administrators, and basically how much I enjoyed being a teacher with with a great clientele. GLEE has the same problems, etc., but with better music. I admit I don't have a clue as to whom this generation of students is infatuated with but it's the same old stories. That's why I like GLEE particularly the cheerleader sponsor. A lot of it is a life I was part of.

I am about to enter my annual bout of "Baseball Withdrawal." When I lived in Casper, it began with the end of the Casper Ghosts (originally Casper Rockies) when I had no other choice than to watch football. This year it began last night when the Colorado Rockies all but eliminated themselves from the postseason. I did go to one football game in Laramie last weekend but it wasn't like going to the Rockies-Giants game on Sunday. I do have the Minnesota Twins to root for and the New York Yankees to root against but it's just not the same. I had planned to go to Minneapolis and see the new Target Field this year but didn't make it. In Casper I miss my fellow season tickets holders because all of us sat together for nine years although I did see five Ghosts games this summer. We get most of the Rockies games on TV or I enjoy falling asleep listening to the radio and it gives me a reason to get up early for the newspaper and get the final score.
I get excited when spring training starts and can't wait for opening day. Someone told me I should apply for a job with the Rockies but I don't want to drive downtown for home games. I guess I'll have to watch football and basketball until next April. There are worse things.

Son-in-law Eric and went to the Rockies-Giants baseball game this afternoon. I saw something I had never seen before. Althought the Giants' pitcher took a no-hitter into the 8th inning, that wasn't it although I've never seen a major league n0-hitter. Nope-one of the Giants hit a ball that landed fair just outside the first base bag making it a fair ball. It then rolled into foul territory but it was still a live ball. One of the on-field usher/ball boys who wasn't paying attention thought it was just a foul ball and he ran over and grabbed it. The giant hitter was awarded a double but may have had a shot at a triple. Think of what would have happened if there had been a runner on first (which fortunately there wasn't). The rules cover the situation but it shouldn't have happened in the first place if the guy had been following the game. He spent much of the rest of the afternoon with his head down looking for a hole to crawl in. Fortunately the Rockies broke up the no-hitter in the eighth or I would have seen two new experiences.

Went to Laramie today for the Wyoming-Air Force football game. It seemed strange to be driving north to Laramie via Cheyenne. I used to drive from Casper to Laramie via the Medicine Bow cutoff. On the cutoff if someone asked what did you see, and you said nothing that would have been a good description. Of ninety miles on the cutoff often the only thing seen in early fall would be antelope and deer or an occasional hunter dressed in camouflage because the season hadn't opened and they were just scoping out the game animals. Later in the fall the hunters returned clad in hunter orange and the game were smart enough to stay far from the highway. At the opening of hunting season I was always a little nervous driving the cutoff for fear that some hunter from New York City or other urban area would mistake my van for an antelope. Anyway I always enjoyed this morning drive into Medicine Bow, home of the famed Virginian Hotel (for Owen Wister fans).

This morning as I was driving east on I-70 a car was on fire and three highway patrolmen were trying to put it out. The rest of the trip to Cheyenne produced no more excitement. My brother and I drove from Cheyenne to Laramie along I-80 (the highway had been closed last night) and saw a trailer full of cans had burned in the other lane and they were still trying to clean up the mess and get the trailer from the side of the road. Although Wyoming got beat, I enjoyed the game. Driving back to Cheyenne they were still trying to clean up that same mess. I visited my mother and ate dinner with her at her independent living residence.

On the way back to Denver from Cheyenne-just short of the Colorado border-a car with its front bashed in was pulled off to the side of the road and the highway patrol was trying to clean up the mess and someone was tending to a deer or antelope on the side of road. Apparently the animal and the car went head to head. Neither fared well. North of Fort Collins there were more highway patrol assisting a wrecker that was toting a car that had been in an accident but unfortunately the damaged car rolled off the side of the wrecker and closed an off ramp. Just north of Denver two cars were pulled off to the side of the road with more highway patrol surrounding them. Apparently the trail car ran into the back of the lead car.
I have to admit driving up from Denver is certainly different from the Medicine Bow cutoff.

The twins turned 5 months old yesterday.

Went to the Home Owner's Association meeting last night. Kind of boring. They discussed a lot of financial and procedural stuff. No one showed up to complain. One of the agenda items was the definition of a commercial vehicle. With the economy as it is, we certainly wouldn't want anyone who has a job to drive his truck/etc. home at night.
The HOA is based of the premise of ratting out one's neighbor and neighborhood snooping. The guy two houses down from me sometimes drives a COORS beer van. No way am I going to rat out a guy with connections like that.

Went out to eat last evening at a place called Gunther Toody's, 50's/60's hamburger place. Wednesday is 5 cent hamburger night (buy one-$6.96-$10.00 range) and get the second for 5 cents. They have great fries and milk shakes also. I had a shake the first time we went there-also a Wednesday-but decided to forgo this time.
The servers were all dressed as Star Wars characters and Star Wars music blared in the background-you don't get that at the Golden Arches. Good meal, good prices-we saved $6.50-fun atmosphere. Ironically the clientele consisted mostly of families with small children and senior citizens. We seniors know a good deal and besides most of us can't hear the music that well.

Yesterday Kathy and I were shopping a little farther north on Wadsworth than we normally do. We decided to take a different route home. As we pulled out of the parking lot, there was a field across the street with federal signs stating "Do Not Trespass". We went further up the road and there was still quite a bit of clear land that would make for prime development. Not much farther up the road we found the reason for all the undeveloped land-there is a huge federal prison there. It had the towers, razor wire, and all the other things that distinguish a prison. It was an interesting drive. Further up the road was another large building but it had all the markings of a high school. We couldn't read the letters on the front of the building. I didn't want to stop and pull out the binoculars I keep in the van because I was sure some federal vehicle would pull up and wonder what we were doing.

Good news: last night was the opening episode of GLEE.