For Colorado Springs.  Luckily not in my neighborhood yet anyway.

Colorado Halloween 2009

It’s Halloween again and as every year in Colorado the temperatures tend to drop. We just had a storm come through and this morning it was 14 degrees when I started my truck. But the forecast for Saturday evening doesn’t seem as bad. You never know here though.

We’ll make the walk around the neighborhood and hopefully get back in time to see some of the other costumed children. That’s the fun part for me, scaring the kids. Hey, I’m not talking about terrifying them just a little scream..

Dropped below freezing

I knew this morning I would need my jacket.  I headed to the Gym around 5:45.  As soon as I raised the garage door I felt the chill.  The temperature gauge on my truck read 29 degree.  Now that’s not real cold and I know we will see much colder mornings soon but ouch.  It’s a shock to the system.   Luckily I wasn’t running outside so it wasn’t a big deal. 

Now as I look forward to winter 2009 I can’t help but think of how miserable it can be to spend those few freezing moments scraping ice from my windshield before heading to the gym or work.  I’ve been doing this for thirteen years now in Colorado and while it’s generally not as cold as Alaska was for me it’s still not fun. 

I expect this weekend I’ll spend some time breaking out the winter gear, preparing the vehicles and trying to find new ways to save heat in the house.  Unfortunately most homes these days are just horrible on energy savings.   The insulation factor is cheap and low.  Over the years we’ve improved what we could, changing windows, adding European shutters, and seals on the doors it’s still apparent lots of cold gets in.  I live in a tri-level which is even worse on energy efficiency.

I expect this little cold snap will have the local Lowes, home depot and Wal-mart filled with people stocking up on winter items.

Soccer season is here

Soccer season is here again. This last Saturday my son had his first game of the season. I was surprised to see how many people showed up for the many games going on that day. The fields were packed. We actually have 17 teams playing this year. No, they were not all the same time or day.

Our game was pretty exciting since it was the first game and we were all wondering how the play would go. Would they remember how to play? These are first and second graders so no one never knows how that first game will go.

The parents all cheered their children and often cheered for the other side’s children when they did well. It was nice to see and really makes going to these games more enjoyable.

It was a very close game and both teams had great moments. It’s fascinating how you could spot the standouts and those that just weren’t into the game. One young boy began on defense. He seemed to have no idea what to do when the ball was kicked to his area. It was frustrating to watch. In the second half he was moved to offense where something kicked in and he was a star. He moved the ball up the field often and nearly untouched.

Of course the key in kids’ soccer is the goal. They all have a tendency to slow up at the goal and go easy. This was with both teams.

In the end the game was tied and we were all happy. Not a bad start.

Touch of winter hits Colorado

It seems winter has made an early appearance. A storm front moved in Tuesday evening with high winds and a dropping temperatures. Tonight there is a chance of rain and even snow in the higher elevations.

My son had his first Soccer practice on Tuesday. We arrived knowing the day was getting colder and were prepared for the most part. My son had a full work out suit with long underwear and hat and gloves. This wasn’t our first time out for a cold soccer practice. We also had some hot tea and warm coats for us the parents.

As they kids practiced we noticed a lot of them were a bit unprepared for the cold. We talked with one very nice mother who felt bad the she hadn’t thought of a hat and gloves although her son was pretty well dressed in extra clothes. Being the first real cold day of the summer (still had one day of summer left) it was understandable that many were caught off guard.

In many ways it was good that the temperature had dropped on the practice. This was a great reminder that in Colorado the temperatures can drop dramatically and we should always be prepared. This is especially true in the fall when the weather is very unpredictable.

I like the fall and the changes in weather so it’s fine with me. But, it does appear time to start getting the winter clothes out and making sure the cars are full of emergency gear.