Randomness In Perfect Order

I would like to blog about three totally unrelated things today, but in an effort to keep my blog entries cohesive, I plan to build some rickety bridges in between my thoughts: Random Thing #1 – Happy Birthday! To: Me, From: Me (A month early!) My tickets for the sold out Jack Johnson show at Red Rocks in Colorado arrived this weekend. I really love Jack’s music, he seems to speak to a pace of life I wish I had and I have yet to see a concert of his. I have also always wanted to attend a concert at Red Rocks and it turns out he’s playing there on my birthday. They call that “kismet.” Sadly, I connected all these facts long after the tickets went on sale and after they had started trading at quite a premium on the net. Nonetheless, it was worth every dime and I can’t wait to see one of my favorite musicians at such a beautiful place.

For those that don’t know, Red Rocks is a beautiful natural geological formation in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. The 300-foot red rocks that surround the amphitheater make for amazing scenery and supposedly perfect acoustics. I am looking forward to everything about the show except the inevitable bugs. It never ceases to amaze me how frightened I am of things that are less than a tenth of my size, case in point… Random Thing #2 – Attack of the Killer Squirrels I was standing in my backyard this afternoon when I heard the pitter-patter of footsteps in our side yard. Always a skittish one (especially when it comes to unexpected footsteps), I quickly turned my head to see a squirrel climbing a tree in our backyard. I realize this is a normal thing for most of the U.S., but I live in fenced-off, heavily trafficked Albuquerque and haven’t seen squirrel since my wilderness hikes of yore. (An interesting and unintentional link to Random Thing #3.) The squirrel and I made eye contact and then the squirrel did a peculiar thing, it charged me. I stood and stared for a second and then quickly realized that the distance between us was shrinking and momentum was on the squirrel’s side. I ran for the indoors just praying the squirrel wouldn’t beat me into the house. We once had a hummingbird in the house for about three hours, it was hell. Thankfully, I was able to beat it inside and now I will probably not enter the yard again for a few days. I know the squirrel could have out run me since I run a little slower these days with a few extra “first-year of marriage” pounds. (No, it’s not a baby!) It appears I am not the only one in the country with this issue… Random Thing #3 – It’s a Slightly Larger World After All I heard a news story today that actually came out several months back. Apparently, Disneyland had to take the ride, “It’s a Small World” down for a ten-month rehab in January. The primary reason being that the boats for the ride, originally constructed in the 1960s, were getting consistently stuck. It has been suggested that the boats might not be the problem, we are. I guess we are all a little heavier, on average, than the folks back in the ‘60s and the original ride can’t handle the increased weight. That was a disturbing factoid to me and I can’t wait to see what our increasing waist lines do next. When’s the last time they increased the standard size of doorways? I type this all while snacking on a beer (non-light) and white corn tortilla chips. After all, it would be a shame if they rehabbed the ride for nothing!