Finally, Phyllis and I both had a day off where neither of us had plans. We could do something other than obsess over how impossible it is to lose weight, despite the fact that we have cut ice cream down to once a day. The Health Department wasn't threatening us, nor Animal Control or the Department of Vehicles, so we had none of those crisis pending immediate action. Other items could be postponed: laundry, my weekly pedicure, Phyllis's laser treatment to permanently remove facial hair. We were ready for a drive to Evergreen!
Evergreen is nestled in the Rocky Mountain foothills at 7220 feet. It is not high enough to make my ears pop, but it got us clean out of Denver's air pollution. Phyllis is a pleasant traveling companion. She doesn't complain much about the music selection (classic 60's and 70's) or the fact that I have used the Miata as a waste recycler, where fast-food wrappers refuse to decompose. Nor does Phyllis complain about my taking the long and winding road on two wheels approaching blind curves. Can't waste time dawdling on a relaxing mountain get-away!
First, we went to Evergreen Lake, intending to rent paddle boats. The Paddle Boat Gods were against us that day because, come to find out, the lake had been reserved for a group of special-needs children. I had hoped that Phyllis would rise to the occasion and pretend to have special needs, whereupon I would act as caretaker, and we would be able to rent paddle boats. But if Phyllis had the thought, she kept it to herself, probably assuming, and no doubt correctly, that I would drop her when lifting her special-needs body into the paddle boat.
Undeterred, we drove to the main street and browsed a gallery where Phyllis found a puzzle made out of iron bits. The puzzle is meant to drive you insane as you try to untangle it without a hack saw. Trying to pry her hands loose of it was like trying to strip green off grass. I waited, ever the patient partner, ever the Old Faithful Fountain of Tolerance for Petty Foibles, until it was time for all-you-can-eat pizza and salad at Beau Jo's.
After lunch, a bit of shopping was due, where we met a clerk who seemed 30-ish and unabashedly claimed she had only been to Denver four times in her life. "Too many people," she said. "And you never know who you're going to meet up with at night." Phyllis and I were understandably taken aback. Denver is only 15 miles away! It has roughly a million more people than Evergreen, true, but doesn't one want to explore? All we could do was wonder at the nature of mankind, and upon personal reflection, I questioned whether humans and apes really have a common ancestor. Even apes like to explore.
A couple of miles back down the mountain was a park named "O'Fallon," where we waded in an ice-cold mountain stream, as if, after feasting and foraging, it was time to celebrate!
