We finally got an entire week of decently warm weather with no snow, so I decided to take full advantage of it. On Monday, rather than go to the monthly field trip signups at the Senior Center, I put my bike on the car and went down to the Platte River Trail. There weren't too many people on the trail at 9am, but by the time I came back at noon, the trail was like a freeway. I think I was the only person wearing long sleeves; most of them were in shorts. I stopped off at Nixon's Coffee and ordered a raspberry mocha. OMG, it was delicious!
On Tuesday, I decided to do a little maintenance on my bike (cleaning and gear adjustments). I had ordered new tires, but when I compared them to the ones already on my bike, they didn't look that worn. So, I decided to keep the old ones on for a few more miles. I didn't do such a great job on the gears, so I made an appointment for a tune-up at the bike shop. Luckily, they're having a 30% off sale this month.
On Wednesday, the Bike Club rode up to Fika Coffee. We haven't done a group ride since Winter Solstice. It was nice to see the "hardier" members of our club again.
I dropped off Charlie at the groomer before my bike ride. His hair had grown so long, it was getting really difficult to brush out all the tangles. I told the groomer to cut it short, but I didn't realize she'd be quite so ruthless with her shears. He doesn't even look like the same dog in these before & after photos. But at least, he's a lot easier to brush now.
On Thursday, I went on a field trip with the Senior Center. First, we had lunch at Pint's English Pub. I've been reading a lot of British mysteries lately and the characters always have a Ploughman's Platter for lunch. When I saw it on the menu, I decided to try it out for myself. It's basically like a turkey sandwich, but with all the ingredients spread across the plate. I especially liked those big hunks of cheese.
Afterwards, we toured the Colorado Women's History Museum. It's located in one of the few surviving mansions downtown, completely surrounded by modern high-rises. We learned a lot of interesting facts on the tour, like Colorado being the 2nd state to give women the right to vote 27 years before the 19th amendment was officially passed.
I thought the tour was nice, but it tended to focus a bit more on the interior of the house rather than Colorado women. Walking through the mansion reminded me of our old Central West End house, especially this ceiling in the parlor (just like the ceiling I wallpapered in our CWE entry hall, only this ceiling was hand-painted).
On Saturday, Courtney and I did another one of our online painting sessions. This time we painted a winter scene using cerulean blue, carmine red, and yellow ochre. Most of the painting used blue, but there were a few touches of red and yellow. My interpretation is below. That's supposed to be a wood pile in the center covered in snow (not easy to tell). I have no idea what the yellow thing is. Next week, we'll try our hand at a desert scene.
