Carpe Diem

Microadventure #81: Virtual Reality and Birthday Fun with Diego

For the past few years, I have been having a lot more 1:1 parties than big parties to celebrate birthdays. I started this with my 60-until-60 project and, like virtual parties, they became even more trendy during Covid.

I’ve especially enjoyed having individual birthday celebrations with my grandchildren who both have summer birthdays. The other day, we celebrated Diego’s 13th birthday! He’s officially a teenager!

My tradition for the past few years has been to take them to lunch and shopping at the Flatirons Mall where we go on a little shopping spree for their birthday presents.

This year Diego picked Illegal Burger for the lunch portion of our celebration. This was a burger joint I’d never been to before… always an advantage for a Microadventure!

Another tradition is to pig out and have the silly pig-out picture!

Speaking of traditional pictures, we also have to get the silly photo booth pictures in the mall.

Photo Booth pictures from last year and this year

I have my “Carpe Diem” journal where I record the birthday boy’s “favorites” (foods, songs, hobbies, etc.) and when I opened up my book, I found our photo booth pictures from last year!

In previous years, Diego would head right to Game Stop for his shopping, but this year, we went to Dick’s Sporting Goods first where he checked out the Avs T-Shirts and caps. The Colorado Avs won the Stanley Cup this year and Diego is both an Av’s fan and a hockey player himself!

Diego still had enough money for a video game, but instead he wanted some skateboarding shoes.

“Shoes?” I asked. “Don’t your parents buy your shoes? Are you sure you want to spend your birthday money on shoes?” I remember Scotty, even as an adult, adamantly being against getting clothes or shoes as gifts. But then, it shows in Scotty’s ragged wardrobe and shoes full of holes that clothes and shoes have never been a priority for him. It’s good to see that Diego is pickier about his appearance.

Diego picks out some cool new checkered shoes.

The next portion of our adventure is the most unique.. something neither of us had done before: A Virtual Reality Roller Coaster!

I actually had only experienced Virtual Reality one other time — with Scotty at an Escape Room convention. It really is extremely cool how realistic everything looks after you put on the special headset.

Once we put on the headset, you could pick from a variety of experiences, and Diego, being the birthday boy, picked an Alien Roller Coaster. It was amazing! It really felt like we were going up and down and from side-to-side while all these aliens were jumping out.

I highly recommend experiencing Virtual Reality, but beware of this: Motion Sickness! I’m prone to motion sickness anyway and rarely go on amusement park rides – especially those that spin. I didn’t think I could be so affected by a simple 10-minute VR ride, but I was sick for about 4 hours after the ride. I still am amazed by the VR technology, but just like real-life amusement rides, I’m going to stay away from those that can cause motion sickness.

Diego and I tried a little pickle ball after the mall, and getting out in the fresh air helped a little, but we soon called it an afternoon, with the promise of playing more some other time.

I’d been worried that 13 would be the start of the “It’s not cool to hang out with Grandma”years. But Diego kept telling me that he was having so much fun and he seemed to truly enjoy the afternoon. And for me, celebrating Diego’s birthday – just the two of us – is a tradition that I treasure!

Microadventures #79 and #80: Celebrating National Ice Cream Month

I’m not usually tempted by ice cream since my internal temperature seems to run lower than everyone else’s. I gotta say, though, even I have been hot lately! Not hot enough to complain about it, but hot enough to want ice cream! Mmmm. Nothing like that soothing, creamy, sweet cool comfort on a hot day.

During these hot summer days, I’d been looking forward to July 17, National Ice Cream Day! I invited my friend, JJ, to join me since he often humors me in celebrating these wacky holidays. I suggested Reis & Irvy’s, this very futuristic looking place in Superior where a robot prepares your frozen yogurt.

It was quite disappointing that the robots were out of commission.

Luckily, the place next door did have ice cream (the old fashioned type) so we were able to celebrate after all!

Microadventure #79: Celebrating National Ice Cream Day with JJ

But that’s not the end of the celebration!

Darcy, a leader from the Boulder Ramblers, planned a whole ice cream extravaganza Meetup event for July 23! She led a group of walkers all through Boulder to 11 different ice cream shops!

Check out this itinerary:

Start – ice cream shop 1: 10:00 am, right when Sweet Cow South Boulder opens. We’ll be the first customers! Stop by and say hi, and maybe even join me for the 3.5-mile hike to Chautauqua Park.
Ice cream (or coffee!) stop 2: 11:45 am, Chautauqua General Store. We’ll leave a little after noon for the short (0.8 mile) walk to Sherry’s.
Ice cream stop 3: 12:30 pm, Sherry’s Soda Shoppe on The Hill. Join in for the 1-mile walk to Gelato Boy, leaving at 12:50 pm.
Ice cream stop 4: 1:15 pm, Gelato Boy on West Pearl St. Take a leisurely stroll with us down Pearl Street to Ben & Jerry’s or Haagen Dazs – just 5 minutes away. We’ll leave Gelato Boy at 1:35 or so.
Ice cream stops 5 & 6: 1:40 pm, Ben & Jerry’s or Haagen Dazs on Pearl St. (I’ll check in at both – choose your favorite!). We’ll leave Ben & Jerry’s at about 2:05 pm for the 15-minute walk to Sweet Cow.
Ice cream stop 7: 2:20 pm, Sweet Cow North Broadway in the Community Plaza Shopping Center. Join in for the half-mile walk to our second Gelato Boy stop, leaving at 2:45 pm.
Ice cream stop 8: 3:00 pm, Gelato Boy at 14th and Pearl St. This will be a quick tasting stop only – we’ll leave at 3:15 pm for the 1.4-mile walk to 29th St.
Ice cream/food stop 9: 3:45 pm, Shake Shack at the 29th St. Mall. We can hang out here for a little break – maybe even a burger and fries! – and some social time. We’ll leave Shake Shack at about 4:15 pm for the quick, 6-minute jaunt over to Ripple.
Ice cream/frozen yogurt stop 10: 4:25 pm, Ripple Frozen Yogurt in the King Soopers plaza at 30th & Arapahoe. This would be a great place to come celebrate with us, as we’ll stay as long as people want to socialize! Come ask questions about the Boulder Ramblers, meet and greet, and give high fives to the long-distance walkers!
And finally, we’ll walk the last 3.5 miles back to Sweet Cow South Broadway, arriving by about 6:00 pm – but who’s timing at that point? We’ll be so sugar-infused, we might just want to keep going! 😉

Darcy invited people to meet up at any of the stops along the way, so Scotty and I met them at stop 10: Ripple Frozen Yogurt.

Scotty picking out his Frozen Yogurt at Ripple

It was a fun frozen yogurt place that had plenty of flavors and lots of toppings! Yum!

Soon Darcy arrived with her big group of walkers! They’d had a full day of walking and tasting.

Darcy at Stop #10 of the Boulder Rambler Ice Cream Extravaganza Tour

Microadventure #80: Frozen Yogurt at Ripple with the Boulder Ramblers

Even though we didn’t walk with the Boulder Ramblers, Scotty and I had logged about 5 miles of walking on our Randonauting adventure that day, so our frozen yogurt was enjoyed without guilt.

Darcy hadn’t even been aware that July was National Ice Cream Month when she set up such a fun themed event! What a very cool idea for a hot summer day!

Microadventure #78: Randonauting with Scotty

I subscribe to a lot of interesting newsletters and eZines including one called “Experience Magazine.” Last week, I read an article which described an activity that had come about during the pandemic: “Randonauting.”

“Harness the power of quantum computing to bring adventure and meaning to your life! That’s the experience hawked by Randonautica, the app-slash-trend that has enjoyed success amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Randonauting promises a weird and novel method to explore your neighborhood by way of that venerable American tradition: quasi-scientific mystical mumbo-jumbo.“

I downloaded the free app with the intention of trying it out with Scotty while he was in town. Scotty has always been my best “Sure, I’ll play along!” buddy since he was a little kid!

So we both thought of our “intentions” (mine was “love”) and generated points in the neighborhood. This was kind of like geocaching.. another activity Scotty and I had done together several times over the years. Rather than a looking for a hidden cache (as we’d do for geocaching), we’d go to the designated point and see if we could find something representing our “intention.”

Purple “diamond” found at my “love” point through Randonautica

I was quite impressed with what I found at my waypoint: A purple diamond! I had seen similar diamonds and the artwork that was part of the Superior ARTery project that had been going on over the past few years, but I’d never found this particular diamond. And purple is my favorite color!

The Rainbow Road leading to the purple diamond.

I do love these art installations that help make my community so colorful and unique!

We went on to Scotty’s waypoint which ended up being a pond behind our local Safeway.

I don’t know what Scotty’s “intention” was, but this was a peaceful spot and we decided to keep walking through Superior.

Scotty felt nostalgic as we walked through the streets and parks that he’d biked through and played at as a kid. We moved to Superior when he was 4 years old and a couple of weeks ago, he turned 28.

The neighborhood went through terrible fires last December and many houses were burnt to the ground. But rebuilding efforts are happening and it was heart-warming to see that there was new growth and restoration underway.

I have often felt very grateful that I live in such a beautiful place. When we moved here in 1999 there was no landscaping. Our house was being newly built and the neighborhoods were full of porta-potties and construction.

Everyone got their skinny little new trees and planted their fledgling gardens. And now.. 23 years later, the trees and gardens are mature and gorgeous. The fires were tragic, but the town survived.

Yes, the randonauting exploration was successful. My heart felt full of gratitude and love as we took this microadventure through these sweet spots of Superior.

Side note #1: The article from Experience Magazine that turned me on to randonauting was written by Glenn McDonald, a writer based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Matt & Stella just moved to Chapel Hill, and I’ll be visiting them in the Fall. Wouldn’t it be cool to meet Glenn McDonald? (If that happens, there will be a future Microadventure blog post about that!)

Side note #2: During Scotty’s visit, we saw the movie, Everything Everywhere All at Once, went to Meow Wolf – Convergence Station, and now went radonauting. Coincidentally (or is it?) all of these had to do with quantum-sci-fi-multiverse exploration! Is that woo-woo or what?

Microadventure #77: Meow Wolf with Scotty

Meow Wolf - Denver — Meow Wolf with Scotty in the “game room.”

It’s been the month of visitors and this week I had a visit from my youngest kid, Scotty, here from Washington D.C.!

Scotty’s birthday was July 8th, and I’d suggested going to Meow Wolf as the “birthday experience.” I’d been to the Santa Fe Meow Wolf with Matt & Stella a few years ago, but this was the first Meow Wolf experience for Scotty. The one here in Denver is called “Convergence Station.”

If you’ve never been before, it’s really quite different from a typical “tourist attraction.” It’s artsy, bizarre, surreal, creative and kind of a cross between a fun house and a Disney attraction.

There are a lot of “hidden rooms” as well as big alleyways filled with lights, music, and colorful structures. It really can put you on sensory overload as you maneuver through the various pathways and rooms.

There’s no ‘map’ (and if you ask for one, the attendants dutifully stay in character, letting you know that maps aren’t available in an alternative dimension.)

There’s some kind of “back story” and for an extra few bucks, apparently, you can get a QPASS that gives you some extra clues to help you figure out exactly what’s going on. I was kind of surprised that Scotty (escape room enthusiast that he is) didn’t seem too interested in unraveling any back story. Admittedly, I didn’t want to spend too much time myself with back story and was satisfied just observing the weird, wacky, sparkly, and colorful oddities.

I took lots of pictures, so this is just a small sampling.

This colorful glass castle was probably my favorite structure. I always prefer “fairy-tale” like atmosphere to “darker” art, like these barbie dolls with alien heads.

I was so enamored with Santa Fe’s Meow Wolf, partly because of the novelty. It’s hard to replicate that feeling. A lot of the art here was just more “messy” (or perhaps more “contemporary” for my taste) and left me feeling a little more disturbed than joyful.

We were about to leave when we discovered another big auditorium that had organ music playing and where people were walking around in the dark, seemingly dancing.

It seemed that we could “make art” with are feet on the floor and with our arms on the walls. This room was different from anything I’d seen before, even at the other Meow Wolf, and I was glad we didn’t leave without seeing it.

Overall, it was a little bit of a let-down compared to Santa Fe, but still creative and worth seeing. I wish we’d prepared a little more ahead of time – I’m not even sure we saw everything. Scotty also was not too excited by it and the crowds and noise were a little much, so.. not exactly the best birthday experience. In hindsight, maybe Kaleidoscape would have been better. But still, it was unique and will be a fun memory for both of us.

Microadventure #76: Pearl Street and Gilded Goat with Steve & Lisa

Lisa, Steve, and me on the Pearl Street Mall

Similar to my last microadventure, this one involved visitors! My friends Steve and Lisa from Minnesota were in Colorado to attend Steve’s daughter’s wedding in Ft. Collins, and they combined it with a visit to my house!

The day they arrived, we relaxed with some ice tea and talked on my patio and went out for a delicious sushi dinner. I broke out my special “Yvette” liquor and Lisa and I toasted to our friendship!

The next day was a big family day for Steve! His four sisters and several of their family members were all arriving for the wedding in Ft. Collins. Steve told me all about everyone in the family and even invited me to come down to Ft. Collins for the get-together at the Brewery that was being planned.

I love big families (The Waltons, The Partridge Family, and The Brady Bunch were 3 of my favorite TV shows as a kid) and I was very interested in hearing all about everyone!

Lisa, Steve, and I hung out on Pearl Street in Boulder for a couple of hours where an art show was happening. When we sat down for a bit, Steve found a 2022 Maya Angelou quarter in the grass! I had been wanting one of those for my 2022 Time Capsule and he said I could have it! So thoughtful!

Steve found a 2022 Maya Angelou quarter in the grass and gave it to me!

We soon headed up to Ft. Collins where Steve’s family were all starting to come in for the wedding. The plan was to meet up at the Gilded Goat Brewery.

Even though I’m not a beer drinker, I loved being able to meet all these family members that Steve had been telling me about.

Steve’s family was very welcoming and friendly. Everyone was excited and in a celebratory mood. I enjoyed hearing about all of their adventures, especially from the sister who was actively working on her bucket list, finishing up the last of traveling to all 50 states.

I had met Steve’s sister, Patty, once before, and this time I got to meet her husband, Paul (I think) too. They’re also Florida snowbirds, so maybe we’ll see each other next year in Florida. They have a place in Naples, and that’s where Becky’s friend Georgette lives, too, so I can definitely envision a Naples Microadventure!

Steve (modeling the coordinated colors), Lisa, and Paul at the Gilded Goat

It was a real treat for me to get to be a little part of this family celebration. Weddings are such happy occasions and it’s so nice that all of Steve’s siblings were able to make it. I could see how much they enjoyed one another.

What a fun weekend with Lisa and Steve! And next month, I’ll get to see them again, when I take my annual trip to Minnesota!

Microadventure #75: Backyard Busaba with Neal

This microadventure was an unexpected surprise! My brother, Neal, sent me an email saying he was in town for business and asked if anyone was up for dinner on him!

Oh! Oh! Me! Me! (I responded immediately.) In fact, I said, I was happy to host at my house. I told him I could cook or we could get take out. He opted for Thai take-out (Busaba), which was perfect!

It turns out I was the only one who responded to his email which almost caused Neal to want to rethink the whole plan since he only had gotten 3 hours of sleep the night before. Wait. What? You mean.. not coming? Unacceptable!

I laid on the “But you haven’t been to my house in 14 years!” guilt trip and it worked, because despite his exhaustion, Neal drove up and we enjoyed a lovely dinner out on my patio – one of my favorite places to eat!

Even though it would have been nice for others to have been available, I preferred getting a one-on-one dinner with my brother… something that’s a rarity.

We enjoyed the evening breeze and catching up.. Neal remembered that last time he was at my house (for Megan’s wedding) he fixed the fountain pump and did other handyman chores for me. He’s very handy, that’s for sure!

But this time, he just relaxed a little and noticed how much the yard and neighborhood had matured over the past 14 years. I really am so grateful that my house survived the fires and that my back yard is so pretty, thanks to John, my housemate who does all the yard work.

I don’t know how much longer I’ll be living in my big, beautiful house, but while I’m here, it sure is nice to have visitors, so I’m very glad Neal made the effort!

Even though we didn’t go anywhere too exciting, having a no-fuss take-out dinner with my brother on my backyard patio is an experience to be savored, for sure!

Microadventure #71-#74: Embrace Your Geekness Day in Boulder with Seth

When I saw that Seth (who I’d met in Mexico City) was in Boulder, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity for another Microadventure!

Being the Boulder-area expert that I am, I suggested about 43 different activities ranging from hiking, to tubing, to karaoke. (I won’t include the full summer schedule spreadsheet, but believe me, I was impressive.)

Seth was appropriately awed by my vast knowledge of Boulder events and places.

I also informed Seth that it was Embrace Your Geekness Day since it’s always a bonus to stick with a theme when planning a Microadventure.

Seth downplayed his geekiness: “The extent of my geekiness would be talking about agile!” he humbly claimed. (Actually, anyone who can talk about Agile at all scores major geek-points in my book. I know, I know… not everyone (including Seth) is looking to score geek-points.)

He said he was curious about The Rye Society, a Jewish Deli in the Avanti building on Pearl Street.

We agreed to meet up for lunch there, hang out on Pearl Street, and see what the day would bring. Since I fancy myself an event-planner and ultimate geek, I felt confident we’d find just the right microadventures for the day.

Microadventure #71: The Rye Society

Microadventure #71: Eating at The Rye Society

The “18+1” and Dr. Brown’s Black Cherry and Cel-Ray Sodas

Seth ordered an 18+1. (I have no idea why it’s called that “18+1” but that’s a mystery to investigate.) Here’s how it’s described:

18+1

Steamed pastrami OR turkey pastrami, slaw, Russian dressing, swiss, griddled rye bread

I normally skip lunch, but, of course, wanted to sample some of the Rye Society’s fare. I had a bit of the sandwich and it was OK. (Not worth the $16 price in my opinion, but what do I know about Jewish Deli?)

However, the highlight of the meal for me was trying Dr. Brown’s Cel-Ray soda. I’d never heard of this soda, made with celery! I was expecting something odd-tasting, but it tasted very sweet like ginger-ale or cream soda. I’m even less of a soda-drinker than a Jewish-Deli-eater, and my taste-buds thoroughly enjoyed the novel opportunity of sampling this unusual soda.

I asked Seth to dribble some food to play along with geek day, but he didn’t want to be so stereotypical. I mean, what next? Toilet paper out the back of the pants?

Then he said he knew a very geeky place we could go: The Media Archaeology Lab!

Dubbed “The Computer Lab of your Dreams” this was the Mama of all Geek Museums! Epic! And it was less than a mile away and open!

WOW!

I can’t believe Seth found the most perfect Microadventure and the absolute geekiest museum when he doesn’t even live here and didn’t even know it was Embrace Your Geekness Day! It’s like he has some sort of Microadventure Superpowers!

Microadventure #72 Media Archaeology Lab

Even though Seth and I share a common lack of sense of direction, we navigated to MAL using Google maps. It almost looked like a residential property as we approached it from behind, so we weren’t sure we were in the right place, but as we rounded the building, we were pleased to see we’d found the right place.

It was not a typical museum, but more like a basement filled with old computers, working software (dating back to floppy disks) and devices (Remember Palm Pilots?), phonographs, typewriters, adding-machines, cameras, printing presses, gaming systems… all kinds of gadgets!

Some of the old (working!) computers and software housed at MAL

Seth giving Zork, an old text-based-adventure game, a try

There were so many games and devices that brought back memories of my computer-obsessed life. I have always LOVED computers and technology! (Playing a little Zork makes me appreciate how far the gaming technology has progressed!)

Microadventure #73: Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art

Stopping at BMoCA was a bonus microadventure and a bit anticlimactic after the Wow factor of being in computer-heaven. (We actually just stopped here while we were waiting for our table at the Dushanbe Teahouse.)

Though the pieces were thought-provoking, contemporary art is something I’ve never quite understood.

For example, the art piece pictured just looks like a weirdly-colored, huge mess to me. This looks way messier than Scotty’s room ever was at its worst! At least Scotty didn’t have pool noodles haphazardly sticking out helter-skelter! And this was my favorite piece in the museum! At least it was whimsical!

There were other art pieces that looked like body parts..primarily intestines. Kind of freaky. Stuff of nightmares.

But it’s good to be exposed to everything. I think it’s fairly typical for geeks not to fully appreciate art, and the museum was free today, so Yay for new experiences. (Please, God, no body part nightmares tonight.)

Microadventure #74: Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse

Trying the Swiss Raclette Fondue at the Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse

Our final stop on this fun-filled day was the iconic Dushanbe Teahouse. I have to admit, since I’ve been here quite often, I didn’t take photos of the impressive decor, but I absolutely recommend it as a must-see stop for Boulder visitors.

Once again, Seth, despite being the out-of-towner, rattled off his knowledge of the history of the teahouse. (It’s like Seth’s brain is wikipedia! I don’t care if he does think he’s cool, he’s a geek of major proportions!) I, on the other hand, can’t even seem to remember how to pronounce “Dushanbe.” But, for those who don’t have access to Seth’s encyclopedia-like brain, here’s a blurb about the history from their Website:

In 1987, during his first visit to Boulder, Mayor Maksud Ikramov announced that Dushanbe planned to present our city with a Teahouse to celebrate the establishment of sister city ties. From 1987 -1990, more than 40 artisans in several cities of Tajikistan created the decorative elements our Teahouse, including its hand-carved and hand-painted ceiling, tables, stools, columns, and exterior ceramic panels. Often these skills are handed down from generation to generation within families. Lado Shanidze served as chief architect.

I tried a dish I’d never had before, the Swiss Raclette Fondue – very delicious! I like the name (Raclette rhymes with Yvette, after all) filled with ham, apples, and cucumber pickles.

So there you have it! A whirlwind Boulder-Area Geek-Filled set of Microadventures on this Wednesday afternoon in July! Despite my “Boulder expertise,” Seth introduced me to MAL – a place that I didn’t even know existed! I tried a new drink, new cheese, and viewed new weird art! And, as always, the real treat was being able to experience it all with someone else. Seth is definitely a unique character and was the perfect companion for Embrace Your Geekness Day!

Microadventures #58-70: Summertime Fun

Today’s series of Microadventures, similar to the last post, are “typical” summertime activities – going to summer concerts, get-togethers, or going out to eat. I have to admit, I didn’t make much effort with the pictures (and I’m certainly taking the easy way out with the blog post). In a way, this feels a little like “cheating”.. I need to get back to a dedicated blog post for each Microadventure.

Even though I’m taking the lazy way out with a quick blog post, I don’t want to take my friends or any of these fun experiences for granted.

Microadventure #58: Celebrating my birthday (a few months late) at Panera with tons of purple / flamingo gifts from Michael B!

Microadventure #59: Hosting GGG (Girls Gathering Greatly) at my house on National Sunglasses Day!

Microadventure #60: Dancing at Nissis with “Q”

Microadventure #61: Reneya’s Idea: “Hey Grandma! I know what we can do for your next Microadventure! IHOP!”

Microadventure #62: Dancing at St Julien’s to VooDoo Lily with Susan and Mark

Microadventure #63: Listening to the Long Run (Eagles Cover Band) at Louisville Community Park with Cathy, Q, Jaka, Susan, and Mark

Microadventure #64: Girl’s Poker Night with Tina and some of her friends

Microadventure #65: Listening to “Francis and the Wolf” (and chatting with lead singer) at the Superior Community Center 4th of July BBQ.

Microadventure #66: Fourth of July Party and Fireworks from the Balcony thanks to Rebecca R. and her friends.

Microadventure #67: Open Mic Night at Niwot Wheel House with friends

Microadventure #68: Niwot Tavern and Dancing Under the Stars in Niwot with Jill

Microadventure #69: Wildflower Hike in Nederland with Steve

Microadventure #70: Retirement Party for Karen at Lafayette Whitetail Park

Microadventures #51-57: Boulder Area Hiking

I’m not nearly as attentive to my “Microadventures” when I’m home in Colorado as I am when I’m traveling. I just get so wrapped up in errands, house projects, cleaning, and every day life, that I forget to get out and do something special.

But wait a minute. Hiking in beautiful scenery is special! I guess the fact that I do it so often has made me downgrade its “specialness.” I realize it’s something I’ve been taking for granted!

One of the things that I enjoy most about Colorado in the summer, is hiking and seeing the colorful wildflowers. I feel so grateful that I’ve been feeling healthy and I’ve been able to get out and hike quite often this month!

So here are pictures of the June hikes I took that were made even more special because I did them with Meetup groups and friends.

**Microadventure #51: June 11: Land Listening Walk at Coot Lake with Kelly Mullen**

**Microadventure #52: June 14: Foothills Community Park Walk with Boulder Ramblers**

**Microadventure #53: June 23: Fitness Walk with Boulder Ramblers**

**Microadventure #54: June 26 NCAR / Skunk Canyon Trail with Ursula**

Microadventure #55: June 27 – FourMile Canyon Creek / Old Kiln Trail with Glenn

**Microadventure #56 – June 28 Coalton Trail with Bonnie. (Oops, we didn’t get a selfie!)**

Microadventure #57: June 30 – Chautauqua with Scott

Microadventure #50: Art of Data Class with Diego and Reneya

It’s always a treat for me when I get to spend time with my grandkids, Diego and Reneya. When I saw a class offered at the Boulder Public Library called the Art of Data, I thought it would make the perfect microadventure.

Diego and Reneya are both very analytical and artistic. This class was about taking a data set – quantitative or qualitative – and creatively mapping that data into some kind of art project.

Since my son-in-law, Chris, was about to have a birthday, I thought this might be a good opportunity for us to make birthday cards for him.

I was very impressed with the teacher, Heather Schulte, who put together a very informative presentation with a lot of creative examples. Heather, herself, is involved in a number of interesting and creative projects.

Reneya working on her card for her Dad’s 39th birthday

I’d wanted to try and collect some kind of data from Chris that we could use, but that proved a little difficult. The best I could do was print out pictures. We focused on the qualitative data of Chris’s interests and hobbies for our data. Heather provided plenty of craft supplies that were just fun to experiment with.

This class was lots of fun and a great activity for all of us!