Day 360 - Pumpkin Patch

Thought of the day: Boulder has a vibrant restaurant scene. There are many good restaurants in town drawing crowds all day long, all week long.  However, it’s also very competitive and we have seen many restaurants unfold, including ones that we really liked. For example, Orchid Pavilion used to be my favorite Chinese restaurant in town but it had been out of business for a while now. Its closure left a hole in Boulder food scene as there were really no other Chinese restaurants with the perfect combination of good location, nice ambiance and tasty food. Downtown’s Juanita’s used to serve affordable Mexican food with one of the best margaritas in town. It was closed to make space for an upscale restaurant. And today, I found out by surprise that Suki Thai Noodle House was also closed. Suki Thai made healthy noodle bowls and was a great place to grab a quick lunch with kids. There are many other closures that we know of and it is always sad to say goodbye to some of our favorite ones. Luckily, the vast majority of the restaurants we visit are still thriving and we hope it will remain the case for a while to come.

Photo of the day:

I visited Cottonwood Pumpkin Patch with three girls today. Kids had fun picking pumpkins, navigating the mazes and petting the farm animals. I love going to a pumpkin farm in this season as it's filled with vibrant colors, quaint equipments and happy kids - all of which make it a fun place to linger and photograph for a couple of hours. It's a visual feast that, hopefully, will never go out of business and one that I will enjoy year after year.

Day 345 - Chicago River

Thought of the day: I think I am in love with this city. The people, interesting; The street scenes, entertaining; The architecture, fascinating; The evening lights, dazzling. It’s a heaven for photographers of all kinds - portrait, architecture, street, night, and even wedding photographers can all find something to point their lenses at. After getting used to a place as quiet as Boulder, the vibrant night scenes of Chicago are particularly striking to me. The neon sign of Chicago Theater, the live broadcast of 7 News that can be viewed from outside of the tall glass walls, the watery reflections of skyscrapers on Chicago River, the magnificent night view of the entire city from the top of Skydeck of Willis (formerly known as Sears) Tower - all of these created an indelible memory not only on my camera, but also in my mind. I think one of the many benefits of living in a town like Boulder is that I can be completely in awe of a big city like Chicago whenever I have a chance to visit. Boulder provides a solid home base for me to explore and appreciate the magnificence of the rest of the world - it’s as indispensable as the rice in a Chinese meal or the bread in a western fare. At this moment I’m enjoying Chicago, thoroughly and without reservation, as I know that I will be happy when I get home too.

Photo of the day:

Night reflections on Chicago River.

Day 318 - Basket Stand

Thought of the day: We were invited to a dinner party tonight. Our host is a superb cook and her delicious Sichuanese banquet always leaves me speechless. I admire people who can do any one thing so particularly well as that requires both dedication and talent and is a good indication that I have something to learn from them which is often far beyond the specific skills that they happen to possess.

Photo of the day: 

A fair trade basket stand in Boulder Hometown Festival. There's always something going on here over long weekends and this weekend is no exception. Parties, festivals, meeting friends - all good reasons to keep us in town and enjoy the waning days of the summer.

Day 313 - Happy Face

Thought of the day: Tonight we went to a small event in Boulder where Nancy Pelosi gave a speech.  It was the first time we heard her speak in person.  The first part of her speech really surprised me as I was not expecting her to say what she said, at least not in tonight’s event.  She said that science is going to drive the future of this country and that “Science is the answer to our prayers!” How true, and how refreshing to hear it from a sitting politician. Beyond the muddy water of partisan politics, beyond the cycles of boom and bust, beyond everything, it’s science that will drive our future and it’s science that will save our world from the brink of a collapse. This morning, I read that only 35% of Iowa Republicans believe in evolution and only 21% in the same demographics believe that there is a man-made global warming. Over the general population, recent Gallup polls show that fewer than 40% of all Americans believe in evolution and fewer than 50% of Americans believe that global warming has a human cause. According to the same Gallup polls, the belief in global warming is becoming increasingly partisan. In the meantime, 99% of US earth and life scientists believe in evolution and 97% of climate scientists believe in man-made climate change. These dismaying disconnect between the public and the science is not only ludicrous, it’s outright dangerous as when we lose sight of science, we lose sight of our means of improving or even maintaining our collective standard of living and we lose sight of our future. As a nation, we are walking on a treacherous path. Pelosi’s speech tonight gave me hope that there are still people in our law-making chamber with a clear head. Only the future will tell whether they will prevail and whether we will prevail as a nation.

Photo of the day:

Izzy and Lila took the Tebo Mini Train on Pearl St this morning.  The train had been there all summer offering free rides to kiddos and their parents.  This is the last week for the train to be running.  Yes, summer is ending as the campaign season is  heating up.

Day 311 - Woman at Cafe

Thought of the day: I observed a bunch of outlandishly dressed people on west end Pearl today. It's not uncommon to see colorfully dressed people in this segment of downtown, but I can't recall another time when I saw a man dressed in a bright pink ballet dress with tutus. Something is going on. Sure enough, it's the weekend of tbe Boulder Fringe Festival!  The festival not only brings eccentric artists in town, it also brings out the fringe elements in the local populace. Other than that, it also brings in comedians to do family friendly shows. It’s one of the quaint events that makes up the cultural fabric of Boulder - an event not to be missed if you're ready for something that is not so mainstream.


Photo of the day:

A very nice woman in Trident Cafe and Bookstore.  I was there with Jasmine for one of our regular Saturday afternoon outings and we had the fortune of sitting at the table next to her and her husband.  I talked with them a bit - both were long term Boulder residents concerned about the rapid speed of change in Boulder. Small cafes and local shops were being gradually bought up and refitted into more luxurious and trendy restaurants and stores.  That's a concern for long term residents and newcomers like me alike. We sure hope that the city will keep its character and charm and be welcoming to people of all backgrounds. An old cafe like Trident and a festival like the Fringe Festival will hopefully both be part of the vibrant local scenes for a long time to come.

Day 306 - Jasmine

Thought of the day: Now that college has officially started, the sidewalks and cafes are getting noticeably busier.  It's harder to get a seat in your favorite local hangouts. However, when you do get a seat, you have the opportunity to eavesdrop on some pretty interesting conversations. Here are a few examples from the past hour... A guy dressed in work clothes was talking over the cell phone on the sidewalk about a solar installation deal. A small group of people were talking about something political. A young man in his early twenties, perhaps a new college graduate, was lamenting to his friend about the difficulty of finding a job. A middle-aged woman was asking a man sitting next to her who claimed to be an engineering professor at CU why he decided to move to Boulder and he replied with a big grin on his face: "You got sunshine and mountains - what else do you need?" Concise and to the point. I am often asked that same question and sometimes struggle to give a short answer that makes sense. From now on I'm going to borrow his line.  Of course, being able to eavesdrop on a wide range of conversations is another good one but I am not ready to quote that as a reason yet.

Photo of the day:

Fall semester has started but it's still summer here in Boulder.  We had dinner out on the patio tonight.  It was hot in the day but warm and comfortable at dusk. A thunderstorm came and passed when we had dinner outside. Jasmine snapped a few photos of the after-storm rainbow and the sunset and was happily reviewing them on her camera.