Hey, crew!

What's new?  Obviously, Charlotte and I have been a bit side-tracked lately with schoolwork.  However, it's Thanksgiving break, so prepare to be bombarded by blog posts as we catch up!  Or, in the alternative, prepare for at least one feeble blog post to remind you that this blog still exists!  That said, while we've been busy with schoolwork, we have managed to undertake a few fun projects, as well.  To wit, these have included:

1) Making homemade tomato sauce from garden tomatoes!  This was a bit of a trick, since frost returned to Laramie before our tomatoes ripened fully.  However, with a bit of online research, we learned how to ripen our roma tomatoes indoors, and the resulting sauce was delish!

2) Roasting Laramie-grown chile peppers!  After getting to know some local farmers, and visiting them at their backyard in-town, we came into possession of quite a few yummy peppers.  Charlotte roasted them up, and my lunchtime sandwiches have been benefiting from a delicious, spicy kick ever since!

3) Brewing beer!  This is one hobby I haven't quite been able to kick since moving out West, and so Charlotte and I brewed a pumpkin ale earlier this fall.  The results have been pretty yummy!  However, there's always room for improvement (and product-testing!) with this hobby, so I'm guessing I'll be at it for a while to come!

4) And (nerd alert!) participating in CoCoRaHS (Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network). Since the the record Colorado floods/Wyoming rains this September, Charlotte and I have been taking daily precipitation measurements in Laramie.  We're among thousands of others nationwide who do the same every morning, so if you're feeling skeptical someday about what you're seeing on the Weather Channel, head to the CoCoRaHS website and see what's actually happening in your neighborhood.  Our station is "Laramie 0.2 SE."

Alright!  We've been busy outdoors lately, as well, so assuming that we get around to another blog post this break, we'll update you on that front, too!  In the meantime, have a very happy Thanksgiving!

Vertical Dance at Vedauwoo

Remember how a couple months ago I mentioned that we'd be posting shortly about an amazing vertical dance performance we attended near Laramie?  Well, here it is!  To expedite the typing portion of this post, I will present tonight's installment in an informal, FAQ format.

Q1: Where did Vertical Dance at Vedauwoo occur?
A1: The event was held at Vedauwoo, an amazing rock formation near Laramie.  We arrived with many other people, claimed a comfy spot to watch, and settled in for the show!

Q2: I imagine you'll be discussing the dance component of "Vertical Dance" shortly, but was there any music?

A2: Yes!  And, amazingly, the band that accompanied the dance performance perched itself on the rock face, well above the crowd (see them up there on the right?).  Fun fact: Mike has occasionally played Irish music with the man playing the Moldovan pan flute (far right).  

Q3: What is "vertical dance"?
A3: Well, from what we witnessed, vertical dance is an amazing acrobatic performance.  Dancers harness themselves into climbing gear, and then "dance" on the side of a sheer rock face, accompanied by music.  The dances emulated aspen trees, the grandeur of the Western landscape, and even the pine beetle that is currently decimating many forests in our region.  We were particularly excited to watch, because Charlotte's undergraduate mentee, Sierra, was one of the dancers!

Q4: That sure seems pretty unique/interesting/awe-inspiring/trippy.  Were there any other elements contributing to the atmosphere?
A4: It was definitely unique!  And great question-yes.  We weren't able to capture a photograph, but there was a storyteller/poet from Australia who was narrating beautiful poems throughout the entire performance, interspersed with the music.

Q5: Will you be returning next year?
A5: We haven't found any other place in the world that combines beautiful music and scenery, amazing acrobatic and athletic feats, and a cool guy narrating in a smooth Australian accent, so yes!

Yesterday and Today

Hi everyone-we're back!  September turned into a very busy month, but it's October now, and here we are!  Here's what we've been up to during the past two days.  Yesterday, we saw that there was quite a bit of snow in Laramie's forecast, so we headed to Pole Mountain to check out the fall foliage while we could!  It was spectacular (and also pretty uncrowded).

Since it was in the middle of our workday (and a big paper assignment), we multi-tasked, and had a picnic lunch!  Hard to believe a forecast for snow, right?

Well, after lunch, we headed to our Laramie garden for a bit of clean-up and final harvesting, just in case.

And then, today, guess what?  The meteorologists got it right!  Hopefully fall will return for at least a bit longer, but in the meantime, happy winter!

Curt Gowdy State Park

After getting back to the West, Charlotte and I took on a bit more exploration.  Among our outings was a trip to nearby Curt Gowdy State Park, where we hiked along the Crow Creek to some Hidden Falls.  We were treated to lots of water (by SE Wyoming standards), interesting scenery, and even a few trees to shade us from the sun!

We also found the trail to be very nicely engineered.  For example, even when there were impressive rocks to scale, there would be a very nice bridge leading up to them, sort of like the park designers were apologizing for all the craziness Mother Nature wrought ("yeah, we don't know what she was thinking, either, but yes, you have to go over it").

All in all, it was a great hike, and if you ever find yourself in our neck of the woods with $4 burning a hole in your pocket, we strongly recommend paying the park entrance fee and taking this hike.  We sure enjoyed it!

Best of all, the end of the hike rewards you with a priceless view of the beautiful Hidden Falls!

See 'em?  Right there behind me?  Well, no you don't.  After all, they're hidden.  Charlotte and I waded through some surprisingly deep (and surprisingly cold!) water shortly after taking these photos to investigate, and we can confirm that they are very nice.  We just didn't bring our camera.  Sorry!

On the bright side, we did bring our camera along on the rest of the hike, so we can show you the second-best part of the hike: Martian rock formations!!!  Is that the official terminology?  I'm not sure.

Aren't they cool, though?  Well, speaking of rocks (and cool things involving rocks), we hope you'll tune in for our next installment, when we share something you've probably never seen before!  Can you say "Vertical Dance?"  See you then!

New York!

Well, Charlotte and I have enjoyed exploring the West, for sure.  But we'd be lying if we didn't say that, often, our vagabond shoes are longing to stray right to the very heart of (Upstate & Downstate) New York, where we're from!  For the first 11 days of August, our wish was granted!  We began our journey by returning to Oneonta, NY (and Hartwick College), for a wedding.  If you didn't already know, Charlotte and I both attended college there, and so it was a great chance to see some places we haven't visited for over four years!

After a wonderful time in Oneonta, we headed to Latham to visit Mike's family and hometown.  The yard was looking lush, so we spent lots of time playing lawn games with the family and enjoying the outdoors!

In between games of ladderball, croquet, bocce, and playing with the neighbor's cat, we found time to visit some of Mike's old stomping grounds, including: the Mohawk-Hudson Bike Trail (which passes just down the hill from La Casa Angstadt)...

...Lock 7 on the Erie Canal (a little further down the same bike path)...

...Siena College, where we visited some parents during their workday...

...and even Hoffman's Playland, Mike's childhood amusement park!

After our tickets for rides at Hoffman's ran out, we headed to Otisville, where we kept ourselves similarly occupied with fun things.  As we began some of the prep work for our wedding next summer (at least the fun parts), everyone was busy helping!

Almost everyone, that is...

Fortunately, despite the "hard work," we found time to head out and enjoy the surroundings, including a wonderful hike at the "Basha Kill," a large wetland preserve near Charlotte's house!

After such a great time, it was hard to say farewell to the places and people we love.

We'll be back before long, though!  In the meantime, stay tuned, because in our next installment, we're going for a hike!