A Bloomer Girl on Pike’s Peak

To be called a “Bloomer Girl” was not a compliment in polite society. According to Victorian mores, proper clothing for proper women equaled an ankle-length skirt, regardless of its impracticality for many activities. “Bloomer Girls” donned dresses that reached slightly below the knee and were worn over a pair of billowing, loose-fitting pantaloons – a … Continue reading A Bloomer Girl on Pike’s Peak

Change

For weeks the unmistakable signs of approaching autumn have advertised the change in seasons, yet they coexist with vestiges of estival exuberance. Still, butterflies drink deeply of the sweet nectar of friendly flowers whose vital force continues to pulsate. Still, the sun warms the air and lights the days, though they are growing shorter. Birds … Continue reading Change

The Gift(s) of Guests

     Living far away from my childhood home, I don’t see family and friends from Europe nearly as often as I would like, excepting this year, when my husband and I were blessed with two rounds of visitors, resulting in multiple excursions to Denver’s airport. Our friend Susanne came for an impromptu stay in April, … Continue reading The Gift(s) of Guests

Garden of Eden

Of all the states in the Union, Colorado boasts the most 14ers (between 52 and 54, according to the source) and the highest mean elevation (6,800 feet), and lies therefore closest to heaven. It is a place of sunshine, natural splendor, and rarefied air, and with this in mind it should come as no surprise that … Continue reading Garden of Eden

Ancestral Puebloans-Part 4: Hovenweep

This is part 4 of a series.  Click here for part 1 (Overview), here for part 2 (Chaco Canyon), here for part 3 (Mesa Verde), and here for part 5 (Bandelier). Hovenweep National Monument was established in 1923. A lesser-known assembly of Ancestral Puebloan relics, it straddles the border of southwest Colorado and southeast Utah … Continue reading Ancestral Puebloans-Part 4: Hovenweep