Man's Best Friend

Cali has been my dog since about 3 months after she was born. I got her when I was a freshman at Arizona State University in 1999. She has lived with me in Arizona, California, Texas, and now Colorado. When I was first trying to think of a name, my brother suggested Cali. (Although he'll tell you that he wanted it to be Kali.)




Cali is probably the best "apartment" dog. From day one, she has always been really calm inside the small confines of apartment living. She's very content to just follow me around all day, switching from the family room to the bedroom and back.





This is a photo shot from right behind our apartment complex. It shows the John F. Kennedy Golf Course, a public 36-hole course here in Denver. I haven't played it yet, but I really want to.





So every day I take Cali out to a group of softball fields called Kennedy Ballfield. She loves to chase after her frisbee called the Aerobie.










Cali does this really funny thing whenever we go play with her frisbee. She'll chase it down, and bring it back and then flop on the ground and roll on top of it. I think it's to scratch her back, but she only does in when we play with either a ball or the frisbee. It's very funny to watch!





Being a black lab, I really enjoy seeing the gray coming in on Cali's face. Her chin has been gray for a while, but now it's starting to spread to her cheeks and near her eyes. She just turned 11 years old! But she still is very athletic and loves to play outside.





The great thing is that a dog will always let you know when they're tired. After playing for a half hour, Cali lies down on the ground and enjoys the nice grass. Back in San Angelo, where it seems like it's always over 90 degrees, there aren't very many places that have nice grass. I think Cali enjoys the grass here in Denver. I can't wait to see how she reacts to the snow. By the way, we are forecasted to get some snow anytime between tomorrow and Sunday.





Had to end it with a funny picture of Cali. 11 years, and still going strong. She's the best dog.

Engaged!

Ashley and I got engaged yesterday! I took her up to the Rocky Mountain National Park near Estes Park, CO, which is about 75 miles north of where we live in Denver. I tried to keep it a surprise for as long as I could and all I would tell her was that we were going on a "magical adventure". Before we got in the car at our apartment, we saw this really cool insect sitting on the rear of an adjacent car. COOL!!





So we drove the hour and a half up to Estes Park, CO and were immediately amazed by the beautiful colors inside the Rocky Mountain National Park. It was mostly cloudy, but the Fall colors were in full effect.








Our first stop after entering the park was to Sprague Lake. It has a 1/2 mile trail around the lake, and when we first got there it was raining but it stopped soon after. Here's Ashley and I near the lake.




During a small gap of sunshine, there was a beautiful reflection of a nearby mountain on the lake.




Tripods are always good for not wanting to take the shot where one of us is holding the camera. You have no idea how many photos we have where I'm holding the camera up high and it looks like I have a double chin!




Then we moved on over to Bear Lake where we had lunch. A tiny little squirrel-like animal was pestering us at first but soon after we moved, we were able to enjoy a little picnic with a view.







Back on the main road, we saw a bunch of cars pulled to the side and we soon saw what all the fuss was about...a HUGE elk was grazing on nearby grass. It was amazing to see such a big animal up close!




My whole plan was to propose at the top of this mountain we were going up on Trail Ridge Road, but that was foiled when, at two miles above sea level, it started POURING snow! It was so cold outside I couldn't bring myself to make Ashley go outside while the wind was howling and the snow was pouring down.




So back down the mountain we headed and I soon found this small trail and knew this was the spot. As we were walking another herd of elk showed and and for a moment, I though I was going to have to find another spot. But they stayed far away and left us alone.







This is the view of the site I asked Ashley to marry me. I think she new something was coming but still she was very surprised when I got down on my knee.




Here's a photo of us soon after I popped the question. Oh by the way, she said YES!!!




After the proposal we went to this amazing restaurant called Flagstaff House in the mountain overlooking Boulder, Colorado. An amazing night to cap off a perfect day. The view from the restaurant was gorgeous.







So now you are up-to-date with our happenings here in Denver. We are so excited to get planning with our next phase of our lives. We are still continuing our job hunt, and we both hope something cool will come along for both of us soon!