Dear Joanie,
Somehow, December 2021 swept right on by, dry as it could be and pretty warm. In Colorado, this kind of weather in December is unsettling. We love the snow and the cold (well, not the bitter cold, such as we had two nights ago), and we love the seasons. Most of us scan the ten-day weather report with furrowed brows, frowning and shaking our heads when we look for snow in the forecast and see none.
Finally, on New Year's day, we had about four inches here and even more in the mountains and now everyone is out running and walking, sledding and skiing. There must have been 50 kids sledding at Scott Carpenter Park this morning when Shelby and I took our walk. Everything seemed normal.
Except. On New Year's Eve, Boulder County had a fierce windstorm with gusts up to 120 miles per hour. A small little grass fire started in a field and exploded into a full-blown fire devastating two towns, burning down almost 1.000 buildings, and leaving about 10,000 people without electricity or water. Most people whose homes did survive are still waiting for water and heat. The high on Saturday was 12 degrees. Such a tragedy. People are now searching for places to live, clothes to wear, cars to drive. Mostly everyone is in shock. Usually little grass fires can be put out easily. When we think of fires in Colorado, we think of forest fires. But this one was on the plains, with hardly a tree in sight. Dougie and I watched the flames from our 6th floor window as they topped the hill just outside Boulder. Climate change. I know I keep bringing it up, but here it is. We are living with it now.
Our Christmas was family. Your great uncle Andre had his birthday on December 24. We were able to keep our long-standing tradition of sushi, eating at Hapa on the downtown mall, outside, in 30-degree weather. COVID has made innovators of all kinds; we had heated seat cushions and propane heaters overhead. Here we are on his 44th birthday:
Speaking of COVID.
We have a new, high contagious variant, Omicron. As of right now, everyone I know knows someone who has had COVID. And several of my friends and relatives have had COVID themselves, with varying degrees of sickness. At the Carillon, the restaurant is closed, and food is delivered to our apartment. We must wear masks in all public places. We're tested for COVID twice a week. Hospitals in many states are beyond capacity, with most patients being those who refused to get vaccinated. It's shameful. People are once again putting traveling on hold, and some countries are on a "no travel" list. We are almost in our second year of COVID, and we realize now that it will likely become part of our lives, like the flu, when the pandemic is over, whenever that might be.
The good news is always about you. Your mother posted a picture of you in your "No!" mode last week. You are approaching what we call "The Terrible Twos," but really you are beginning to realize that you are an individual apart from your mother, and the best way to express that is to say "No!" In fact, when your mother was turning two, your grandmother Coco and I were on the phone trying to have a conversation, but I could hear you in the background crying and saying "No!" I asked Coco what was wrong, and Coco said, "I just made brownies and gave one to Brett so I could talk on the phone. She's saying "No!" to getting the brownie, but crying because she really wants it."
Finally, I'm going to post my spaghetti sauce recipe pretty soon. I'm famous for it.
Until next time,
GG Katie
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