August 12, 2007: STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, CO Yes indeed. Still here. A quiet morning it has been as Shannon and Greg took Violet and Winni to the mountains for a camping trip this weekend. I decided to stay home to work on my syllabus. But I must say, I'm having so much fun reading through the literature and reviewing MLA format. Isn't that kind of sick? Well, among many other revelations I've had this summer, one of the biggest was that I am an English geek. Oh yes. Remember how you used to cringe at those grammar diagrams? I loved them. Secretly. That's why I was so quiet in grade school. I simply could not admit how much I loved graphing gerunds and dangling participles - both past and present. It was my way of breaking down the complicated art of communication into little neat forms and digestible pieces. Language quickly became much less daunting for shy, little me-O. I doubt I'll have my students graph their grammar (despite common college lore, this particular instructor does not have the desire to torture her students), but I DO hope to turn them on to the transcendentalists and Shakespeare. From what I hear...relating my subject matter to snowboarding and ski jumps will glean the most effective results. "Do you see how Shakespeare compares his love to a summer's day? No? Well, imagine then for a moment he is comparing his love to the biggest dump ever to hit Colorado! 'Shall I compare thee to a Winter's day?/Thou art more lovely and more white/Rough winds do shake the darling snows of November..." I've got some homework to do.

In between lesson plans, I'm acclimating to free concerts (Sam Bush and The Whailers to name two) at the bottom of Howelsen Hill, and perpetual sun at 10,000 feet up. I'll be working weekends at the local library, too. Hope to get the inside scoop on the town, knowing that everyone strange and story-full comes to the library. Should be very interesting. And finally, in September, Winni and I will be renting a room at the bottom of "the hill" in town. Because I don't have 4-wheel drive (I know, I have an SUV...I wonder what I was thinking, too), this will make a commute by snow shoe much easier.

A few shots of a a recent camping trip/hike to 11,500ft. The adventure continues...