Standing Into Danger: April 2014

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

April 2014 Scavenger Hunt: Central City and Black Hawk

Hey Everyone!
Goodbye April ~ Hello May!

This month friends of ours
visited from San Diego,

and we were off to the mountains

to visit the historic gold-mining towns

of Black Hawk and Central City.

These towns are a wonderful place

to explore with a camera,

and explore I did!

Looking Down Main Street

Toward Eureka Street

Central City, Colorado, U.S.A.

Looking Down Main Street

Toward Eureka Street

Central City, Colorado, U.S.A.

Source: wikimedia ~

by Kilburn, B. W. (Benjamin West), 1827-1909

For several shots I had to

dip into my photo library.

I hope you have had fun

with April's Scavenger Hunt too.

April's List

 1. A is for Art

One of the fun things to do

at the Ameristar in Black Hawk

is to look at its displays

of historic photographs and

Western paintings.

The Ameristar's Star Club has a wonderful collection of Old West paintings.

Jon Prud'homme is the artist,

and his paintings and murals

can be found on display

throughout the United States.

Whenever I look at paintings such as these

I try to imagine what it was like

to live in Colorado so long ago.

  2. 11 a.m.

In the Eleventh Hour

At that time,

I was standing outside Annie Oakley's

and trying to imagine what it would be like

to walk inside and make a legal purchase.

Annie Oakley's, Central City

 3. Smooth

Ameristar Suite

It's always wonderful

to slip between the smooth sheets

on a bed in the Ameristar,

especially after a soak in the jacuzzi.

4. Scale

Each Scale on This Dragon is Colorful!

This category was tough!
I had to dip into my Chinese New Year's Photos.

And look what I found
after a lot of hunting
in the "archives."

Scale

An antique scale for measuring gold in a photograph I took in the "old"

Gilpin County Court House.

 5. Tile

Chandelier and Tin Ceiling Tiles

6. Logo

The Bonanza is a fun place
to play blackjack in Central Central.

7. Scrap

A Steam Shovel Tears into Scrap Metal

Black Hawk has a new hotel under construction,

and it began with removing the old

to replace it with the new.

 8. Match

The Top Windows on This Historic Building
Are a Perfect Match.

Central City Mayor John C. Jenkins,
elected in 1896,
owned this hardware store with partners
D. J. McKay and David Henderson.
They carried hardware, roofing materials,
plumbing, and gas-fitting supplies.
Source: Portrait and Biographical Record of Denver and Vicinity, p. 1263

9. Path

Rough Path Along Hillside

If you climb the stairs

in the Opera Garden between

the Teller House

and the Central City Opera House,

you will find a rough path along a hillside

leading to great views of the surrounding area,

including St. Mary of the Assumption Church.

10. Layers

Black Hawk, Colorado

The adventurous can climb stairs

up the layers of the city of Black Hawk ~

elevation 8,537 feet or 2,602 meters.

11. Carry

This Steel Carries
the Load of the
New Extension to the
Mardi Gras.

This little burro carries a young Bob Farrell

outside the Central City Opera House in 1932.

12. Truck

This truck symbol means a very steep hill
on the way into Central City ~
so much fun when it's icy.

Trucks go up and down the switchbacks

in and out of Black Hawk all day long ~

something to watch from the windows

while walking/running on a treadmill

at the Ameristar Fitness Center.

May's List

L is for ? ~ Not M ?????
7 p.m., Left, Gadget, Puzzle, Letter, Reflection, Fresh, Tiny, Hidden, Demolition, Antique

Thanks to Jill and her Made with Love blog for setting up the hunt.

Blog: http://suzzie43.blogspot.com/

Hunt: http://suzzie43.blogspot.com/p/scaerngera.html

Bonus Match

Two Good Buds Having Fun

in Matching Blues ~

the Ever-Patient Terry and Jon

Monday, April 28, 2014

Monday Morning Music Break ~ A Little Wang Dang Doodle with My Koko Koffee Break!

There's just something about the blues!
It's raw.
It's real.

But the blues is not always blue.
Sometimes it's downright fun and funny.

Some mornings I just have to get up and play
Koko Taylor's recording of Wang Dang Doodle.
It gets me hopping and happy.

Source: You Tube ~ ThomShelford

And what is a Wang Dang Doodle?

About.com/Blues defines it as
"An African-American slang term for a party."

But I think Urban Dictionary
captures the essence of the term best:

"To a pitch a wang dang doodle
is to have a good old fashioned Saturday night
filled with drunken revelry,
which may include but is not limited
to fighting, dancing, singing and the like."

Sounds like some Saturday nights I enjoyed
in Westport, White Bay, Newfoundland!

Source: Amazon ~ Koko Taylor

Koko Taylor was known as the Queen of the Blues.

Daughter of a Tennessee sharecropper,
Koko arrived in Chicago
with her truck-driving husband in 1952.
A few years later Koko began singing in Chicago blues clubs.

Willie Dixon discovered her in 1962.
This led to her signing with Chess Records in 1965,
where she recorded Dixon's song Wang Dang Doodle.
It became a hit on the R&B and pop charts.
Her career was off and running!
Source: Wikipedia

I discovered Koko Taylor

while watching Blues Brothers 2000.

Koko performed
with B. B. King,
Eric Clapton,
Clarence Clemons,
and other blues greats
in the supergroup
Louisiana Gator Boys
(created for the movie).
Source: wikipedia

Blues Brothers 2000
has a ridiculous plot,
but I found it
irresistibly funny,
and the music was awesome!

And it introduced me
to Koko Taylor!
Source: Wikipedia

The lyrics in Wang Dang Doodle
are colorful and authentic.
I would have shared them
in a writing lesson with my third graders
had they been age-appropriate.
Here's a brief sample:

"Tell automatic Slim
Tell razor totin' Jim
Tell butcher knife toting Nanny
Tell fast talking Fanny
We're gonna pitch a ball
Down to the union hall
We're gonna romp and trump till midnight
We're gonna fuss and fight till daylight
We're gonna get your wang dang doodle all night long"
~ Willie Dixon

If you have time
(I'm making time!)
for a second cup of Koko Koffee,
here's a short clip
from the Blues Brother 2000 movie.

It features the Louisiana Gator Boys
and the Blues Brothers
performing New Orleans
in an infectious Battle of the Bands.

Koko is on the left in a red and white dress.
The music begins at 2:21 minutes.

Source: You Tube ~ sotirisgorgogetas

I double dare you
to sit through the blues jam
without moving a muscle!

I'm going for a third cup this Monday morning!

Friday, April 25, 2014

Reunited and It Feels So Good!

"Reunited and it feels so good!"

That song has been stuck in my head
since yesterday afternoon
when the Ever-Patient Terry
met me at our favorite bar
and told me my FedEx package had arrived.

FedEx to the Rescue!

Source: wikimedia

Finally!
Thank God!

I had been sitting at Parkway
nursing a glass of merlot
and kicking myself
for locking myself
out of the house
four hours earlier.

Source: Google ~ cheezburger

One can only kill time for so long

~ wandering up and down the aisles
of Walmart and Sam's Club
while trying to remember
what was on the grocery list
locked in the house ~

before consoling oneself
with a little red.

Source: Google ~ jokideo

Do you lose things?
Misplace things?
Forget things?

I could blame my predicament
on increasing age,
but honestly,
I've had a talent for this
all of my life:

~ Lost my car keys in Halifax's Victoria General Hospital.
~ Locked myself out of my car in the hot Nevada desert.
~ Left my purse on a plane in Newark, New Jersey.
~ Locked myself out of the house at 40 below in Sioux Lookout.
~ Left my wallet in a Las Vegas hotel safety deposit box.

Oh the joys of being distractible and forgetful!
I could go on, but you get the idea.

Source: Google ~ crlncxn-quirkyworks

So, Monday I left my computer in a restaurant
an hour's drive from home.
Along with my
house keys,
car keys,
camera computer cord,
backup external hard drive
(with tens of thousands of photos),
iPod shuffle,
and earbuds.
I don't recommend this.

It's been a rough week
of reliving that moment
of walking away from the restaurant table
without picking up my briefcase.

"I was a fool to ever leave your side.
Me minus you is such a lonely ride."

I never realized
how attached I was to my technology!

Source: Google

I've been coping.
And I've remembered not to
automatically lock the door
behind me when leaving the house.
Until I didn't.

Oops! No cell phone either!

Source: Google ~ cheezburger

A nice man at Parkway lent me his cell

so I could call the Ever-Patient

as soon as he got home.

The E-P came to my rescue

and told me my computer et al.

had arrived via FedEx ~

finally.

And then he bought me dinner and a second glass of wine.

I may have issues with distractibility and forgetfulness,

but I sure know how to pick a one-of-a-kind husband!

Back to the blogging world tomorrow ~

unless I discover

another iteration of screwing up! LOL!

Warning!

Play this video only

if you want to share my brainworm!

Reunited Performed by Peaches and Herb

Source: You Tube ~ mafiacorinthiana

Note: Quoted lyrics are from the song Reunited cowritten by Dino Fekaris and Freddie Perren.

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Yikes ~ Missing My Computer!

Usually my computer and I are at loggerheads
over its refusal to do what I want it to do.

Soure: Google ~ lico-choco-tea

But this time my frustrations

are entirely my own fault!

Source: Google ~ Google ~ jokephotos

No I didn't lose my power switch.

I lost my computer!

Actually, I left it behind on a chair

in the Fireside Kitchen at the Ameristar.

Arrggghhhh!!!!!

And realized it as we pulled into the driveway

after an hour long drive.

Arrggghhhh!!!!!

Fortunately, Ameristar Security has it,

and is Fed Ex-ing it back to me

the slow way.

I didn't really want to spend $150

to have it delivered overnight.

Source: Google

It took Security some time to search in their warehouse
to find a box that fit, but finally Security did!

Source: Google

In the interim,

I've managed to get my old Mac up and running

with its way behind operating system.

And of course, my backup external drive,

along with my car keys and house keys,

are in the briefcase with my computer.

Arrggghhhh!!!!!

That means no photos either ~
or at least none newer than 16 months ago.
Arrggghhhh!!!!!

I never do anything half way!

I've got to go overboard!
That's what the Ever-Patient calls me:
Overboard Louise!

Just letting you know,
in case you happen to notice
I'm behind on visiting, commenting, and posting.