Submitted Without Comment

Seen on the car ahead of mine a few days ago while waiting for a traffic light to turn green. I like everything this person has to say.

Garden of the Tourists

I decided it'd be nice to go for a little hike in the Garden of the Gods today with Frodo. Bad idea! It's the day after Christmas, there are plenty of out of towners here visiting family for the holidays, and where did they all convene today? You guessed it. To compound matters, there is a lot of road work going on inside the Garden of the Gods, which basically meant that I was stuck in bumper to bumper traffic almost as soon as I entered the park. Not so relaxing and nature-y. We did eventually battle our way to the High Point, where there was exactly one parking spot coming available just as we pulled up. In the end, though, we had a nice little hike and even chatted with a few people along the way (some of them from as far away as Colombia!), since Frodo is The Friendliest and Cutest Dog on Earth. All's well that ends well!

This family (a much larger group than what you see here) was snapping pose after pose in front of the view when we started our hike, and they were still at it when we returned to the parking lot.

February 2024 Theme Day: Street Corners

Today is Theme Day for City Daily Photo bloggers, since it's the first day of a new month. This month's theme is street corners. I give you... a former street corner, now the opposite of a street corner: a traffic circle, or a roundabout as they call it in most other parts of the world. Until recently, the main entrance to the Garden of the Gods was a typical T-shaped intersection, but since this city has gone traffic circle mad in the last few years, the powers that be decided that it should now be a circle. Sigh. Not that I mind traffic circles, mind you -- I just don't have much faith in the terrifying drivers of Colorado Springs to navigate them well!

Below is what that intersection looked like in November of 2021, while the traffic circle was under construction. It took ages to complete (maybe even over a year) and it really screwed up traffic on 30th Street for the duration. I'm so glad this roadworks project is finished at last and you can drive on 30th Street again -- if you dare.

For more interpretations of street corners by CDP bloggers all over the world, click HERE. Enjoy!

A Familiar Dilemma

Why does this only happen when you're in a hurry? In this case, the train was literally at least a mile long. It was endless! In fact was so long that the driver in front of me finally made a U-turn and went back the other direction, and I followed suit.

Round and Round (Or Not)

In mid-November I mentioned that they're putting in a traffic roundabout at the entrance to the Garden of the Gods. I was at the overlook last week with my mom, so I took another picture. 30th Street is still closed north of there and it doesn't look like they've made much progress. If anything, it actually looks worse. I guess it's going to be a while before they finish this project. Sigh.

And now, for your listening (dis)pleasure...

The Road Less Traveled

Actually it's not a road, it's a street -- 30th Street, that is, and what you're looking at is the main entrance to the Garden of the Gods Park. This city has gone bonkers for traffic circles (or roundabouts as they're called in other parts of the world). They're everywhere now, and honestly I question the wisdom of that since many Colorado Springs drivers seem to be a little unsure of how exactly to navigate them! The entrance to the park can definitely get congested during tourist season, but why not just put a traffic signal there? Instead, they are tearing up the road and putting in a traffic circle, which means that this section of 30th Street is going to be a hot mess for months. As you can see, a big chunk of it is completely closed off for now.

Close Encounters of the Wacky Kind

Pat had a truly weird experience last week. He was driving west on Pikes Peak Avenue where it intersects with Chelton Road when he heard a loud screech and saw a GMC Yukon plow into a small white sedan. Car parts flew everywhere. Ever the concerned citizen, Pat pulled over his car to make sure that everyone was all right. A man emerged from the passenger seat of the white car, staggered around for a moment, then suddenly started running straight toward Pat. Of course this was very puzzling for Pat, but puzzlement soon gave way to alarm when two police officers rounded the corner on foot, chasing after the guy! Only a few feet from Pat's car, they tackled the fleeing man in someone's front yard and handcuffed him. Crazy! Pat came home pumped full of adrenaline and told me the whole thing, so naturally we drove back over to the scene of the accident so I could get pictures for the blog. I got a couple of snaps through the car window as we cruised past. It turns out there was a third small car involved and it was just as crushed as the white car (the ginormous Yukon definitely fared the best), but I didn't get a picture of it. It looks like no one was hurt but I'm sure it ruined everyone's day -- especially the guy who's sitting in the pokey right now.

Christmas Cheer -- in the Middle of the Street

Pat and I drove through Manitou yesterday and I managed to grab a few snapshots from the passenger seat. These musicians were playing Christmas songs in the middle of the traffic circle on the main drag, as appreciative motorists and pedestrians passed by. It was uplifting and charming! What a great idea!

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A snap of Sacred Heart Church taken on October 24th while I was waiting at a red light. I hardly ever get it from this angle -- the lack of traffic in that moment worked in my favor.

Iron Indian

I haven't been getting out into the world as much as I'd like to lately, so I've been mindful to bring a camera whenever I do get a chance to leave the house, because you never know when you're going to see something interesting. Shooting through the windshield while stopped at a traffic light doesn't exactly yield the most artistic photos, but I don't have the luxury of being choosy these days! This 1955 Pontiac Star Chief Catalina had the words "Iron Indian" written on the trunk in magic marker. I wonder what the significance of that is. I do think that if the owner ever decides to restore this car, it'll be a beaut.

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I took this photo over a year ago, on April 5th of 2017, then forgot all about it. I thought it deserved to see the light of day. I like random street scenes like this. I just happened to have a good camera sitting on the car seat next to me as I waited for the traffic signal to change, and these people walked into view and for a moment were framed just so between the cars.

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234 West Colorado Ave., the cool old building that sits just under Colorado where it meets Conejos. I think it houses our city's traffic engineers (the people who program our traffic lights, etc). I just really like the faded old brick.

It's coming along

Have you ever driven past a brand new building or skyscraper in your city and thought, "When did they build that?!?" Especially if it's in a part of town that's not in your usual orbit. It's like buildings pop up overnight! This happens to me all the time. On the other hand, if it's a construction project that's going on in your immediate neighborhood, it seems to drag on FOREVER. Like this apartment building that's been slowly coming along on the corner of Wahsatch and Colorado. It feels like they've been working on it for decades. In fact, it's probably been less than a year (see THIS post for some perspective). I took this picture from the parking lot of the building behind it. I must say that it's progressed quite a lot in the past few weeks, but I can't wait for it to be finished so I won't have to drive through a cone zone anymore.

Repeat performance?

I saw this '57 Chevy in traffic the other day and grabbed a shot while we were stopped at a light. It sure looks a lot like THIS car, and I think they may be one and the same. But it doesn't matter if I've photographed it before, because whenever I see an old car I have to take a picture! What a beaut!

[ December 7, 2017 edit: One of my eagle-eyed readers correctly pointed out on the CSDP Facebook page that this is a '55, not a '57. I stand corrected! ]

Stuck in traffic... sigh.

I was stuck in traffic on Woodmen Road the other day (and I mean really stuck), when I looked to my left and saw this. They are doing a major roadworks project on this stretch of Woodmen, and it looks like these trees are set to be planted along the side of the road. That should give some respite from the traffic noise to the people who live in the little unincorporated neighborhood north of Woodmen. BTW I had no idea that you could plant dormant trees in winter like this. I'm a gardener but not an arborist. I guess you learn something new every day. 😺

P.S. Sorry if this photo looks a little blurry. I think I may have broken that lens again. Oh well. It was good while it lasted.

City Floral

Yesterday I got to spend a little time and money at one of my favorite small businesses, City Floral. It's a Denver institution and an annual pilgrimage for me. I could spend all day there! Unfortunately I was on a tight schedule, compounded by frustrating Denver traffic (which has lately approached Los Angeles proportions), so I had to hurry. But still, I enjoyed every moment! City Floral is hands down the best place in Colorado to buy roses. They have a huge selection every spring. And that's what I bought: three large rose varieties, plus a gorgeous clematis and a raspberry bush. I can't wait to plant it all tomorrow!

The cause of all the commotion

Pat and I were running errands on Wednesday when we found ourselves stuck in a traffic jam on Academy Boulevard. Things were moving at a snail's pace, and to make things worse, it was rush hour. When we finally came upon the cause of all the drama, I snapped a photo from the passenger seat. What a mess! (There was another smashed up car too, blocking the left lane entirely.) Academy Boulevard is one of our busiest streets, if not the busiest. I avoid it as much as possible, but if you have to drive on it, it's a good idea to pay close attention or you might end up like this guy.

Hurricane force winds in Colorado Springs

If you live here, I don't have to tell you that yesterday was obnoxiously windy. And when I say obnoxious, I mean Category 2 hurricane, record breaking kind of wind. There was a 101 MPH gust recorded at Cheyenne Mountain. Tens of thousands of people in our city, including my brother Chuck, have gone without power for most of the day, with utilities crews unable to repair the damage because the high winds were too dangerous to work in. On Facebook, my friends are reporting damage to their cars and homes. I've seen photo after photo of tree-flattened vehicles, torn roofs, broken windows, even itinerant trampolines! At some point during the day, the Colorado Department of Transportation declared a ban on all high profile vehicles, so all the school buses in town were grounded and parents scrambled to pick up their kids. There were multiple traffic snarls because of overturned 18-wheelers. (I'm hearing that up to 36 semi trucks flipped over in the wind. I can't confirm that number but holy mackerel!) Roads were blocked off around town as emergency crews dealt with downed trees and/or power lines. The county courthouse was evacuated because part of the roof was torn off. KRDO posted a video HERE of some of the madness. You should watch it, it'll "blow" your mind. (Pun intended!) And HERE's another crazy video of shingles flying off a building on the south side of town. In short, this windstorm can only be described as catastrophic.

As for me, I had a doctor appointment in the morning, and I decided to drive around afterward to try and document the windstorm in progress. This was a terrible idea. It felt like I was either going to be blown off the road or that at any moment a tree would topple over and flatten me inside my car. Heck, I drove for over a mile before I even got to a working traffic signal (and the drivers here are baaaaad -- trusting their judgement at a major intersection with a non-functioning traffic light is nerve wracking). I took most of these pictures from my car, because I didn't want to get out of it for fear of getting brained by a flying branch or road sign or poodle. Downtown was nearly deserted (this made it very easy to take pictures from my car, I must admit -- I could simply stop in the middle of the road with total impunity). I've never seen so many empty parking spots! Even the ever present panhandlers were absent. I did get out of my car for a few minutes, to pick up a sandwich at Wooglin's, and while I was there I dashed across the street and took a picture of the giant trees whipping in the wind on the CC campus, and I made a little video too. I'm happy to report that I made it home in one piece after that. So far no tree has landed on my car, our roof is still attached to our house, and our fence is leaning dramatically but it didn't fall over (at least not yet), so that's good. It's supposed to be very windy for the next few days. Hang on to your hats, Colorado Springsians! It's gonna be a long week!

Pikes Peak and Wahsatch.

A downed fence and some random debris at the outdoor ice skating rink in Acacia Park.

In the Near North End, Tejon at about Dale Street.

On the Colorado College campus, looking north from Cache la Poudre Street.

At Wooglin's Deli. Glad she didn't blow over -- I nearly did, just trying to get back to my car!

Cache la Poudre and Wahsatch. Notice the TV news truck in the background.

This guy braved the wind to deal with a giant tree that had fallen (shown at the top of this post), also at Cache la Poudre and Wahsatch.

An enormous tree blew over at Help of Christians Roman Catholic Church on Cache la Poudre just east of Institute. It was huge. Poor tree! And as you can see, this man was not wearing a coat. Even though the winds were gusting continuously at 70 to 80 MPH, it was weirdly warm outside, around 55°.

You can get a better idea of it from this shot. I'm sad to see such a beautiful old tree lost!

The sisters at Help of Christians kindly brought water to the men who were working to clear away the downed tree. I thought this nun was going to take flight! (Remember that TV show? It was silly but I loved it when I was a kid. )

A few blocks west of my house, this minivan on Bijou Street had a close call. Look at that huge tree! It actually blocked the eastbound lane. Somehow it missed both the minivan and those power lines. Whew!

Close call indeed! The owner of this vehicle must be so relieved.

Last but not least, here's a little video I made at CC. It's shaky because I was getting blown about. Turn up the volume to get a better sense of what it was like. Look at all the flying debris. I had to wear eye protection. Crazy!

For more pictures of storm madness taken by citizens all over town, click HERE and scroll down to the bottom.

Happy New Year!

I took this picture the night before Christmas, but it's not Christmas lights you're seeing, it's simply taillights and traffic signals. We were in search of a good display for my Christmas day post (which ended up being the Edelweiss restaurant, HERE), and as we were driving around I accidentally took this picture! I debated on whether or not to use it for the blog, but in the end I decided that it's cheery and sets a nice tone for the new year.

Hope you enjoyed all the wonderful Photo of the Year pictures from us City Daily Photo bloggers yesterday! I look forward to many more great images from my blogging buddies in 2017!

Leftover Halloween shenanigans

I spotted this car in traffic yesterday afternoon. A dog napping peacefully in the rear window when there's obviously a corpse in the trunk? What kind of sickos are these people, anyway? ;^)