Tripping Through Life

On the day we were leaving CO Springs, they had the first day of the 2009 Colorado Balloon Classic, with (reportedly) 100 hot air balloons to be set up and launched.  We went over to the park at sunrise, and only one balloon was inflated at that time, which made for some really nice photos.  We had had a week of clear skies while we were in the Springs, but this day was cloudy, and perhaps a bit windy, as the balloons didn’t launch (at least not while we were there).  We left a bit after 8 a.m., with many balloons inflated on the ground at that time.

While leaving Denver two days later, we drove south through CO Springs and saw that the balloons had launched that day.  We could see them towards the south end of the city.  We were looking towards the sun so we could not see them clearly, but it was exciting nonetheless.  Sure wish we could have seen them launch the day we were there!

While driving across western Texas on I-10, we saw a curtain of rain up ahead.  You could tell that it was moving south and that we would be driving through it very soon.  I was expecting some moderate to heavy rain for a short period, but nothing too severe.  As we got into it, the wind starting blowing very hard and had many gusts that were very strong.  We had RainX on the windows so I didn’t think we’d need the wipers, but as the rain got heavier we turned them on.  The wind was so strong that it was picking the wiper arms up away from the windshield.  The wiper blades were still on the window, though (sticking to the RainX??).  It was pretty freaky, and I was sure that the wiper arms would be torn off completely, so we turned the wipers off and just went with the RainX. With the high wind, it kept the windshield very clear.  Thank goodness that it didn’t last very long.  I was happy to be out of it, but of course, my hubby thought that it was great fun to go through!

While traveling, we were told of a stretch of I-10 in western Texas where the speed limit is 80.  That happened to be the way we were going, so yesterday we spent most of the day on I-10 in Texas, driving 80 mph.  At that speed, you don’t even feel the need to break the law and go even faster!  The miles melted away pretty quickly, and made a long trip a bit shorter.  We have heard about places where the speed limit is 80, but until yesterday, we had not been on one.  Of course, since you are traveling through country with almost nothing around, it makes things a bit safer.  The road was well-made and in great condition, so that made it even better.  Go Texas!  :o)

As we were leaving the hotel in Colorado Springs last week, a magpie (bird that is on the bigger side, and quite eye-catching, with its black, deep blue, and white coloring) decided to play “chicken” with us.  Is that term “chicken” too old and unknown now?  I think it is from the 1950s and I remember it from 50s movies where two drivers aimed their cars at each other and took off, with the “chicken” being the driver who turned away from the other car first.  Well, that is just what this magpie did:  it was flying right towards us on a level with our windshield.  I really thought it was going to hit us, but at the last minute, it flew off to the side.  That’s good, after all, we were much bigger than it was, and we would have won that bout!