Well, I am back in Colorado Springs. The weather is great. I just hope that I get some hiking time in while I am here.
Harry Delugach’s Wine Tasting
Harry Delugach invited Karen and I to his wine tasting this past Friday. We had never been to a wine tasting. We are glad we went, because we had a great time. And, we got a meet Harry's sister Allison, too.
Harry had selected a set of wines from various regions of Spain. And, a number of the guests provided food. We brought a multi-layer dip with chips.
Harry had a form for everyone to take notes on what they thought of the wines as the tasting progressed. It was neat to compare what we all thought about a give wine. Someone may think of the wine as being too sweet while someone else thought it was dry. I think I would have been better prepared if I knew how to taste wines. I saw “Teach Yourself Wine Tasting
It was suggested that Karen and I host a beer tasting given how much we enjoy trying beers.
Village of Providence's Saturday Market
Karen and I are going to walk up to Village of Providence's Saturday Market. They had one of these Saturday Markets last year and now they are having them every 2nd Saturday from May 13th through October 14th.
It includes a farmers market and artists. During last year's event, the artists worked in all mediums to include painting, printmaking, sculpture, jewelry, tile mosaic, drawings, photography and mixed media.
The event runs from 7-am to 3-pm.
Hanging at Kenny Mango's Listing to Larry Woellhart
Karen and I headed downtown to Kenny Mango's Coffee Shop and Gallery. We had just finished a great workout at HAC so we headed to Kenny's to listen to Larry Woellhart, a friend, playing music. Kenny Mango's is located on North Side Square in Huntsville, Alabama. The crowd is not too small or too large. Kenny promises that he will get me a WiFi connection some day soon, but you may be able to pickup a nearby business' signal. (Not that I am suggesting you hijack a WiFi.)
Karen enjoyed the chamomile teas while I had cappuccinos and chai teas. The feeling of hot caffeine rushing through you helps you relax at 10 o'clock at night. Not!
Mother's Day Just Around the Corner
Well, I hope that you have been thinking about your mother. Mother's Day is this coming Sunday. It is a good day to remember what our mother's have done for us.
For some, it is a day of reflection of things past. For others, it is a time to call our mothers or spend some time together.
Many of us have memories of past Mother's Day. Some of us are just starting to build memories.
Were ever you find yourself in this list of possibilities, I hope that you stop and remember your mother for all the sacrifices she made for you.
Hiking in the Huntsville Land Trust in the N&S Section
Karen and I got out and did some hiking today.  The weather was great with the temperature around 74º.
If you haven’t hiked the Land Trust trails, you are missing out on some great trails.  The trails are primarily located on Monte Sano Mountain in Huntsville, Alabama, but there are others located throughout Madison County and north Alabama.  The Land Trust has over 3,400 acres of land.  The trails include many levels of difficult from easy on up.
We hiked all over the area between the Land Trust Parking lot and Cleermont Drive.  I highlighted our hike on the map.  It is a beautiful area with a creek running between the Fagan Spring Trail and Wildflower Trail.  We found a lot of wild life on the hike.  I saw a large black snake that was over three foot in length, but it move to quickly for Karen to catch up and see it.  Soon after the first snake, we saw smaller two foot long black snake similar to the first.  The snake did not move.  I guess warm of the sun was to good to leave.  The under growth was jumping with life, too.  We saw chipmunks, squirrels, and lizards frequently.  Karen spotted a pool of tadpoles.  They were too young to see any legs or arms.
If you are interested in hiking the area, I have provided a link here to the trails in PDF format.
Cinco de Mayo
Karen and I headed out after work today to celebrate Cinco de Mayo at Bandito Burrito.
If you don't know about Cinco de Mayo, I can give you a quick answer. From Wikipedia, “Cinco de Mayo (“The Fifth of May” in Spanish) is a national celebration in Mexico and widely celebrated in many parts of the United States. It commemorates the victory of Mexican forces led by General Ignacio Zaragoza over the French expeditionary forces in the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. It is a common misconception that Cinco de Mayo is Mexico's Independence Day.” To learn more, I would suggest reading here.
I had a blast today and even collected some swag. Karen got a cool Dos Equis XX t-shirt which she proceeded to put on, because she was getting cold. While, I got a Corona hugger to keep my beers cold.
To crank up the fun at work, I hung a piñata in the my lab. and I had Mexican music playing all morning backed up by a mix of salsa.
Selling Blueberry iBook on eBay
Karen and I have put her original iBook up for sell on eBay.
If you are looking, I should you click over to eBay to take a look at it.
It works great, but the battery doesn't hold a charge. (But, you can buy a new battery for it.) We have included all the original equipment plus we have a matching blueberry carrying case and airplane power adapter.
The power adapter works in cars, too.
Garmin GPSMAP 60cs is SOLD!
Well, the bidding got exciting today as the auction came to a close on our Garmin GPSMAP 60cs. During the last twenty minutes, the price ran up another $40 to close at $305 excluding shipping.
I had only expected a closing price around $275. So, this all goes to lower the cost of our new GPS which is on already being shipped as I type this entry.
I am looking forward to trying out the new GPS which is a Garmin GPSMAP 60csx.
Date Set for Southern Brewer's Festival
Joy Johnson of Gordon Biersch Brewery dropped me a line the other day to let me know that they had selected a date for these year's festival.
They have moved the festival back to the Saturday prior to the Labor Day weekend. The festival falls on August 26th, 2006.
Last year, the festival had been move down to the edge of the Tennessee River at Ross's Landing Park. Joy indicated that they are going to use the same location this year.