Something's Missing

 For the ump-teenth time today I have driven from Denver to Pueblo to attend my school's yearly get-together/training. Working at a statewide, online school can sometimes present challenges and one of those is finding the money and time to get us all together in the same place. Well, this is that time and this is that place.

Each year they put me up in a hotel of their choosing somewhere within Pueblo. I don't mind being here, there's not much to do but I'm not here to be a tourist anyway.

One of the first things I do when checking into a hotel is open all the drawers - anyone else do that?!?! I'm also curious to see what they keep in there, extra blankets or extra pillows (yes, please!), and sometimes some tourism info. This was maybe one of the first times where it dawned on me that the last few times I've been in hotels, something is missing.

I'm not much of a Bible reader, but expect a Gideon's Bible to be discreetly placed inside one of the numerous drawers in a hotel room. When looking through my room this evening I didn't find one, which led me to think back to previous hotel stays. I do not remember seeing one recently, so is this a thing still? Did Gideon give up on trying to convert the masses?

Secondly, this hotel has no little informational booklet. Not a word about their own property or what to do in this small town. Do you need ice? Well, too bad, we're not going to tell you where it is! We have a pool, but you've got to wander the halls to find it or call us at the desk and we'll give you the info. I am a borderline millennial and I do not want to pick up the phone, so I want that book to give me all the information I need.

Maybe I'm getting too old fashioned and just plain old, thinking about the bygone days of finding the Bible or reading through the hotel's info booklet.

Spring Break - Texas Road Trip Day 1

This has easily been the weirdest day ever!

Me, thckblckglsses, and my mom left our house this morning at 5am with intent to be in Wichita, Kansas by nightfall. During the night it had started snowing, and unbeknownst to us the highway between our major city, Denver, and the state line was closed. In theory, this trip should have taken us around 9 hours to complete (including stops). In reality, we are not there, not even close.

We hung out at a local fast food joint called Del Taco in order to pass the time and hope the highway opened up again. After 2 hours we realized this would not happen, and started to discuss our options. It was finally decided that instead of driving east to Kansas, we would drive south directly into Texas (our final destination for this road trip). An hour later we were on the road, and by Noon we were ready to stop for lunch. 

Although, it was still snowing the roads were passable and the goal seemed to be a possibility. 

By 2pm our hopes dwindled. Diverted from the highway due to a multi car pile-up, we picked our way through the small town of Fountain. Emerging back on the highway around half hour later, only to find ourselves at the back of the line of cars stuck behind the pile-up. My mom made the brave decision to drive through the median (thoroughly covered with snow and a bit slick) in order to pop us back out on the opposite side. A short drive back to our exit point allowed us to follow a side road an hour down the road to Pueblo.

After stopping for a quick bathroom break (ok, not quick, as everyone else on the road was there!), we were back on the highway and happily headed toward the border. Roads were intermittently slick and wet. A mere 8 miles from the border we were again diverted off the highway!!! So frustrating!!!

Someone did not want us to make it out of the state today. Cozily snuggled in beds at the local hotel we wait for sleep and pray for better weather tomorrow. Texas is our final destination, and, as I told my sister on the phone today, we will get there even if we have to walk.

Pueblo, CO - Days 1 & 2

Okay, so I'll admit, when the school announced that this year's professional development was to take place in Pueblo, Colorado I was not too excited. I decided to make the best of it and take along my camera and Pepe to tell the story of our trip.

We came into town on Monday night and settled into the hotel room. Pepe didn't mess around:

We had this huge room to ourselves - one bed for Pepe, one for me:

Tuesday was spent in training all day with a short dinner at Ruby Tuesday - ha - that was totally coincidence! Many of my co-workers had driven down that morning and were ready to "hit the hay" for the evening so I wrapped up my night early. I did manage to catch a glimpse out my window to see my view:

Yeah, not really the best view, but I did find out that one of my co-worker's uncle owns the liquor store - Loco!

Pepe and I settled in and watched a bit of TV before wrapping up the evening:

Wednesday was, again, full of training. I tried to snap a picture of Pepe working hard, but the camera was acting up. He was fully engaged - take my word.

The evening was full of a paid dinner and $1 drinks at a local bar. Pepe took a peek over the railing into the Pueblo river walk and said river:

We walked down the street to the bar and it was cool! The place was called Phil's Radiator and looked exactly like an auto shop. Seems like a great concept for a place - although the owner sometimes has clueless people wander in with car parts, set them on the bar, and ask if he can repair it! Hilarious! "No, but here's an ice cold beer"

I decided to leave the bar early - 9ish - before the "crazy" comes out of everyone. I'm thinking that co-workers and $1 drinks are not a great idea. So far our trip has been fun and we learned a little bit about Pueblo. Tomorrow is our last day, so we'll see what kind of adventure comes our way!