A Visit To The Columbine Memorial

Yesterday, the folks visited the Columbine Memorial.  On April 20, 1999, two students opened fire in their high school.  They killed 12 students and one teacher.  24 were injured.  The gunmen killed themselves.  Mom said she remembers that sad day very well.  If you would like to read more about the shootings, here is a link that gives you a detailed description of what happened.  Columbine High School Massacre

The memorial is in a park that is very close to where the shootings occurred.

"Never Forgotten"

Each person that was killed has a section that is dedicated to them.  It tells what they were like and their hopes and dreams.

This section on the wall has quotes from people who were at the shootings or knew the victims.

Even after all these years, there was a nice crowd of people at the memorial.

Looking down on the memorial.

The view from the memorial.

Saturday, the folks drove back to Celestial Seasonings so that Mom could stock up on tea.  She says it is cheaper to buy it there than in the store or online. Also, there are some flavors that Mom has not seen in stores.  They did some other sightseeing in the area, so the trip was not just for tea.  They stopped at the Rib House for dinner.  It is a BBQ place that is located in a residential area. They ate their dinner outside since the weather was so nice.  Mom said the ribs and the chipotle corn bake were great. The coleslaw was not very good.  Dad brought us home some beef ribs.  We didn't get very much because Mom said it would make us sick.  It was so good. Yum!

BBQ Pork Ribs with Chipotle Corn Bake and Colesalw

On their way to the Columbine memorial, they stopped at Biker Jim's for lunch.  Biker Jim's Their food truck had come to Dad's work and he wanted Mom to try it.  They serve brats made from reindeer, rattlesnakes, elk, etc.  What did Mom choose?  She chose a beef frank wrapped in bacon.  Dad at the rattlesnake/pheasant and said it was good.  Mom said her frank was good.

Frank wrapped in bacon.  The side item is fried mac and cheese. Dad said it was the best he has ever had.

Scout and I have been enjoying our yard when the weather cooperates.  It is going to be too hot this week to sit out much.

Here we are eating frosty treats.

We have met some really nice people this week.  There was a couple here who are just starting out being full-timers.  It sounds like this was their first time camping.  They had a lot of questions to ask us and we were more than happy to answer them.  There is also a nice couple next to us who have been full-timing a year longer than us. They are from here and are here visiting family.  They have talked to us quite a bit.

There are two people leaving today that we are happy to see leave.  One guy doesn't like dogs.  We were warned about him from another person.  He told us the guy threatened to shoot his dogs if they stepped foot on his site.  The folks said "hi" to the dog hater and he just turns his back.  His wife said "hi" though.  Mom said she should have put some fake poop in his yard.  BOL!  Another guy has three little dogs on flexi-leashes and he lets them pee everywhere.  Mom couldn't believe when she saw him let his dogs mark another guy's RV. That is rude!  Unfortunately, he does it all the time.  Most people are nice, but there are always a few "jerks" around.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Almost Stepped On A Rabbit Yesterday

Tea Time

Another weekend, another tour.  Yesterday, the folks took a tour of Celestial Seasonings.  Mom has really been trying to cut back on her drinking of Diet Pepsi and she has been trying out some iced brew teas, but hasn't been able to find anything that she really liked yet.  She decided it might be fun to tour the Celestial Seasonings.  It is where they make tea!  They have 75 teas that you can sample and she figured if she didn't find one that she liked there, she wasn't going to find it anywhere. 

All the tea that Celestial Seasonings makes is here in Boulder, CO.  It is their only location. The company started in 1969 by a small group of young people.

Outside of Celestial Seasonings

The tour begins with a short video showing the history of the company.  It is then time to tour the factory.  If you take the tour Monday - Friday, you actually get to see people working.  Tours are offered on Saturday and Sunday and while you are still allowed to tour the factory, the only people you see are maintenance workers.  Even though nothing is going on in the factory, the folks still had to wear hairnets. 

Everyone walking to the factory.
 

The first thing you notice when you enter the factory is the smell of tea.  It is quite strong.  The tour begins in a room with large tubs of herbs.  Next, visitors are taken to the tea room. The tea room has a door on it that remains closed so that the tea does not pick up other odors.  There are three types of tea; green, black and white.  The next stop is the peppermint room and this room also has a door that remains closed.  When you walk into this room, the smell will about knock you over.  Visitors were told not to wipe their eyes.  Mom said they were told that it will feel like their eyes had dried out and they should just blink a few times.  She said the peppermint smell was really strong.  Dad said it was like having a lot of Hall cough drops in your mouth.  Mom said they sell a magnet in the gift shop that says "I survived the Peppermint Room".  :::snicker:::   The next stop is the packaging area.  They just looked at the machinery and used their imagination.  :::snicker:::  Mom said even without seeing production taking place, it was still a lot of fun and educational.  The tours ends in the gift shop.

The folks decided to go back to the tea tasting room and try out some teas.  Mom found several that she liked. The people working there were very nice and more than happy to talk about tea.  Mom asked if she could turn just about any hot tea into a iced tea and the employee said "some of our hot teas are actually much better cold".  Mom admitted that she had never tried their tea before.  They told her it was okay, she was there now.  LOL

Sleepytime Bear

The folks were given free samples of tea to take home, but Mom wanted to visit the gift shop and purchase a few of the ones that she sampled and liked.

The gift shop is quite large.  That is tea all along the back walls and even some in the middle.

The gift shop sold lots of things besides just tea. 

This is everything that Mom brought home.  She bought more than she expected, but she is pretty excited about it. 

On the way home, the folks stopped at a restaurant called The Sink.  It was on Diners, Drive-In and Dives. Robert Redford worked there as a janitor in 1955 while he attending the university. They were seated at the Presidential table. They didn't understand at first, but were told that President Obama sat there when he visited.  I asked Mom what she thought and she said we don't discuss politics on our blog and the food was good. 

Their table was covered with photos of the President.



Fried Mac & Cheese - good but not worth $8

Guests are allowed to write on the ceilings.  It is a college town.

 

Mom's burger and onion rings.  She said it was good. She would have preferred a bun over sour dough bread. She ordered wrong.
 

Outside of The Sink.

 The folks then did a "drive-by" of Mork and Mindy's house.  Remember that show?  They didn't film there, they just showed the outside of the house.  It has become a tourist attraction.

Told you it was a drive-by.  The house is the one with a person with a blue shirt standing in the yard.  It is a private residence, so the folks didn't want to stop. They thought the person in the yard might be a tourist because she seemed to be taking photos.  Rude to go through the fence, don't you think?

One more try from Mom's side.  That person is still there.

The folks said the drive to Boulder was beautiful!

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is Having A Fun Sunday With His Folks