Two Childhood Games

There are two neighborhood games that stand out to me from my childhood (1960's). The first, we called "Free Free Free". This game was played in the front yard of the house across the street. The front porch was the home base and it was 3 or 4 steps up to a concrete stoop. Whoever was it had to count to 20 while the rest hid nearby but out of sight. When done counting, whoever was it had to look for the others who were hiding. If he saw John, for instance, he would hold the porch railing and call "not free, not free on John". Whoever was hiding could run to the porch, grab the railing and say "free free free" to avoid being "not freed" by whoever was it. It was possible for the hiders to accomplish being free because whoever was it had to venture away from the porch in order to spy those who were hiding. It was often a foot race between the two players.

My favorite neighborhood game was called "flashlight tag". This required neighborhoods unhindered by fences to roam around in. Boundaries were defined such as a certain 3 yards, front and back but only back as far as the clothesline. This game was played, of course, after dark. Whoever was it had the flashlight. He would roam around the bounds looking for one of the hiders who were also free to roam around or hide as they saw fit. A tag was accomplish by shining the light on someone and identifying them. Then the flashlight changed hands. The holder of the flashlight did not have to keep it turned on so it was possible to get caught when it was unexpected.

Fences

If you look at the photo of the "Moose Tree" on an earlier posting of mine, you will see a house. That house is next door to the house where I lived. If you look closely at the picture, you will see three buildings. Our house is on the left side of the picture. The building on the right is the detached garage for the house in full view in the center of the picture.

What do you notice about this piece of neighborhood? No fence between the houses. In fact, there were very few fences in that neighborhood. The only people who had fences had either a dog or a swimming pool.

These were fairly large yards; they were almost 300 feet deep most of which was in the back yards. So, it would cost a lot to put in a fence all the way back. But even most yards with less depth had no fence.

The picture was taken about 30 years ago and I believe that there is a fence in this yard now. I can't tell you why because I don't know the people who live there now.

In many of today's neighborhoods, almost everyone has a fence. And it's not just because of a dog or swimming pool. It's the desire mainly for privacy but also for security.

I think the prevalance of fences is one of the reasons we don't know our neighbors all that well anymore.

Today's Fun

I decided to split my blog into two blogs leaving the original one as the storage place for topics about railroads since it is named using my railroad-related moniker (cajrrman).

This new blog is for other topics so I decided to name it cajotherman.

I got in a nice bike ride this evening over at Chatfield. The most interesting thing I saw was what I first thought was a very nice looking fox. He was running at a fairly fast clip and went across the bike path about 50 yards in front of me. He ran towards the nearby woods and stopped with the sun right behind him. He was going too fast to get a picture of him and then when he stopped with the sun behind him, there was no way to get a good picture. I thought it was a fox at first but upon further consideration, I have to conclude that it was a coyote. Too big for a fox.

Today's Bike Ride (and yikes, snakes)

(From 7/21/06 on my old blog)

After planning to do an after-work bike ride all week, I finally did one today. The late afternoon thunderstorms kept me inside earlier this week. I did the ride around the lake in Chatfield State Park. The ride was 17.5 miles so I now have 3049 miles on my bike.

One of the weird things that happens to me on this ride is that I almost always see a snake somewhere along the trail and today was no exception. So, when I got home I was able to say once again, "I saw a snake". It's gotten to be a bit of a joke to me.

But it is really weird. I have seen at least two different types of snakes on this trail - garter and bull. Today's was a bull snake. It was about 20 inches long with the first 16 inches about 1.5 inches thick with a quick taper off to a pointy tail. He was right in the middle of the trail and I almost ran over him stopping in the nick of time. I watched him for a minute to make sure he got off the trail. I didn't want him to get run over by another speedy bike. I try to keep a sharp eye out for snakes on the trail because I actually have run over two snakes on my bike thinking they were sticks until it was too late. The snakes I ran over did not seem to be hurt - or at least I could not find them when I went back to check them out.

The snakes I have run over were both garter snakes about 18 inches long and about as thick as a pencil. The largest snake I have seen was a bull snake, I think. It was about 6 feet long and 2 inches thick. This was along the trail along the South Platte River.

Goathead Plants

(From 8/23/06 on my old blog)

On my bike ride today I found just how plentiful the Puncture Vine plant is in Chatfield. These nasty plants are everywhere. They look like this:



Here is a closeup of the goatheads on one of the branches. The actual thorns are clearly visible especially on the head at the bottom. Once these plants die and dry up, keep your bike tires away from them!

Don't Take My Picture

(From 8/14/06 on my old blog)


This is one way to avoid getting your picture taken.

Marmots

(From 8/14/06 on my old blog)


I like marmots. This one got his picture taken in Yellowstone National Park in 2005.

Monty Hall Two

(From 8/14/06 on my old blog)

Read the posting below called “The Monty Hall Problem”

Now suppose that Monty does not know which of the doors is good and which are bad. You randomly pick one of the three doors and then Monty randomly picks one of the others and reveals what’s behind it. If he picks the good door, the game is over and you lose. If he picks a bad door, you get the choice of whether to switch or not. Should you switch?

Consider. The selected door is in caps. There are three initial possibilities.
GOOD bad bad
good BAD bad
good bad BAD

There’s a 1/3 probability of selecting the good door. This time, Monty does not know which door is good and which ones are bad. He randomly picks one of the doors you did not select. So for each of the original three cases, there are two possible doors that Monty can reveal. That means that there are now six cases.

For the "GOOD bad bad" case:
1. Monty could reveal the first bad door leaving GOOD and bad.
2. Monty could reveal the second bad door leaving GOOD and bad.

For the "good BAD bad" case:
3. Monty could reveal the good door - you lose.
4. Monty could reveal the bad door leaving good and BAD.

For the "good bad BAD" case:
5. Monty could reveal the good door - you lose.
6. Monty could reveal the bad door leaving good and BAD.


Of the six case, there are four where you don’t automatically lose. In two of them switching is bad and in the other two, switching is good. The probability is equal so it doesn’t matter whether you switch or not.

The Monty Hall Problem

(From 8/13/06 on my old blog)

Suppose Monty Hall offers you the choice of one of three doors. You get to keep whatever is behind the door that you select. However, only one of the doors has something good behind it – a new car! Behind the other two doors are goats.

After selecting one of the doors, Monty, who knows what is behind each door, reveals what is behind one of the doors that you did not choose. The door he reveals has a goat behind it. Now there are two doors left, the one you selected and the door that Monty did not show you. He then offers you the opportunity to switch doors. Based on probability, should you switch?

You might think that that since there are two doors left and one of them has the car and the other has a goat that it’s a 50-50 chance so it doesn’t matter if you switch or not. You would be wrong.

It is actually better to switch. There is a 2/3 probability that the unselected door has the new car.

Consider. There are three possibilities with your selection in caps:
CAR goat goat
car GOAT goat
car goat GOAT

Notice that in only one of the three cases you select the good door. So, there’s a 1/3 probability of selecting the good door. Since Monty knows which door is good and which ones are bad, it doesn’t matter which one he reveals when there are two bad doors left. Let’s reveal (eliminate) a bad door that you didn’t originally select in each of the cases. That leaves these possibilities:
CAR goat (goat)
car GOAT (goat)
car (goat) GOAT

We started with three cases and there are still three cases. In two of the three cases, switching results in a good door. This problem has been argued over and over again over the last number of years. Here is a link to a page with another good explanation.

Goat Heads

(From 8/12/06 on my old blog)

Goat Heads are the bane of many bicycle tires. They are little burrs that have two pointy stickers that will easily puncture a bicycle tube. They will also embed themselves in your shoes or feet (ouch).

I have ridden my bike many times in Chatfield State Park in Colorado and have acquired a collection of these burrs in my tires. Yet, I haven’t yet had an immediate flat tire from them. I have had cases where my tire was flat the next morning though. One time, when I got home, I removed 15 of them from my front tire alone. Most of the head part of the goat head had broken off leaving the nasty little thorn still in the tire.

To combat this problem, I have replaced my tire tubes with puncture resistant tubes. The rubber is thicker and the tubes add a couple of pounds to my bike. I have also put some gunk inside the tubes that will immediately fill a puncture with a little fibrous plug. These two things have kept me from needing to repair any flats for the last 1000 miles or so. In fact, I rarely even have to add air to my tires. They simply don’t leak. The other thing I am always sure to follow, is to stay on the path, stay on the path, stay on the path. Goatheads are usually just off the path in the weeds and grasses or on the plant they come from.

Goat Heads come from a plant that is actually called puncturevine. They are also called bullhead, Mexican sandbur, caltrop and Texas sandbur. The plant is native to the Mediterranean area of Europe but can now be found in most states in areas that are sandy, dry, or gravely. These nasty little burs are the seeds from this plant which is an inch or two high and as much as five feet across.

A couple of years ago, I was riding my bike along the Highline Canal and I came upon a fellow who was walking his bike. He had two flats and each tire was covered with goatheads – at least 20 in each tire. I asked him if he had gone off the trail and he said yes. The Highline canal trail ends just north of Acequia on the west side of Santa Fe Drive. Well, actually, the trail continues beyond but it is full of, you guessed it, lots of weeds including, obviously, puncturevine. That’s where he acquired his problem. When I found the guy, he told me where he was heading to. It was about 5 miles away. I offered to ride my bike to my home and get our van and then give him a ride home. He accepted. Turns out that he was from Switzerland working for a company in Highlands Ranch and it was his first time on that trail. I told him how I avoid the goatheads and now I have told you, too.

Next time I pick one up, I'll post some pictures.

Dora

(From 8/6/06 on my old blog)


This is our #2 cat, Dora. She strikes such interesting poses.

Sweet Corn

(From 8/4/06 on my old blog)

When I was growing up in Illinois, sweet corn was one of those things that we ate a lot of. Corn on the cob, that is. And the fresher the better. There were numerous “fruit stands” along the road within 10 miles of our home where we would visit to see if they had some nice fresh corn – supposedly picked earlier that day. Then we would eat the corn later that day. None of this cold storage stuff. And forget the “horse corn” with the big kernels. And stay away from gummy corn – that was the worst. It had to be preferably white corn, picked that day with fairly small kernels. We’d get a dozen ears. I was known to eat three or four of them.

Had sweet corn on the cob tonight. It was very good and fits the description above except it was most likely picked days ago, was probably grown here in Colorado, and we bought it at King Sooper. Nevertheless, I at two whole ears and considered a third. I’ll save it for tomorrow.

Relatives

(From 8/1/06 on my old blog)

Do you know what different types of relatives you have? Do you know what a second cousin is? How about a first cousin once removed? These are the most misunderstood relationships there are with relatives. Here are some definitions:

Father and Mother – most people know what these are. Everyone has one of each.

Brother and Sister – most people know what these are. I have one brother and two sisters.

Grandfather and Grandmother – parents of your parents. Everyone has two of each. I never met my grandfathers. I knew one of my grandmothers very well. The other died when I was very young.

Grand Daughter and Grand Son – children of your children. I don’t have any of these yet and I can wait a bit longer.

Aunts and Uncles – sisters and brothers of your parents. You usually count their spouses as well. My father’s sister is the only aunt on his side of the family. She had two husbands who were both uncles by marriage. My mother had two sisters and three brothers. They all got married once for a total of two additional uncles but only 2 additional aunts since one of my uncles married his brother’s widow. So my total is six aunts and six uncles.

First Cousins – these are children of your aunts and uncles. You and your first cousins have one set of grandparents in common. Usually, first cousins are referred to simply as cousins and usually you know who your first cousins are. First cousins are in the same generation with respect to the common ancestors. I have two cousins on my father’s side and twenty on my mother’s side. I have met them all but not all their spouses which I haven’t counted since they usually aren’t counted as cousins as far as I know.

Second Cousins – You and your second cousins have one set of great grandparents in common but no grandparents in common. It is not unusual for a person to not know the names of any of their second cousins. Second cousins are in the same generation with respect to the common ancestors. I didn’t feel like counting these up.

Third Cousins – You and your third cousins have one set of common great great grandparents but no common great grandparents. I’d be surprised if I know someone who knew more than one of their third cousins. Third cousins are in the same generation with respect to the common ancestors. I didn’t feel like counting these up.

First Cousins Once Removed – this is tricky because there are actually two types. Being removed means that you are in a different generation with respect to a common ancestor. For instance, your first cousin’s children are your first cousins once removed. And, you are also their first cousin once removed. Which means that your father’s and mother’s first cousins are also your first cousins once remove and you are also their first cousin once removed. For the generation that is younger than me (children of first cousins), I know of four of these on my father’s side and 33 on my mother’s side. There could be more that I don’t know about. I haven’t met more than 3 or 4 of them. For the generation that is older than me (parents’ first cousins), I know of 20 on my father’s side and 25 on my mother’s side. I have met a few of these. So, in total, I have 82 first cousins once removed!

First Cousins Twice Removed - The amount that you are removed is the number of generations different with respect to a common ancestor. So, an example of first cousin twice removed would be your grandparents’ first cousins. Or, stated in reverse, your first cousins’ grand children. I didn’t feel like counting these up.

Fourth Cousin Twice Removed – This is quite possible but I’ll leave this exercise to determine what it means. President Harding is one of these to me.

Grand Uncle and Grand Aunt – these are bothers and sisters of your grandparents. Sometimes called great uncles and great aunts. I had 16 great aunts and 12 great uncles. I have met some of them but it was a long time ago.

Nephews and Nieces – These are children of your brothers and sisters and you usually count the ones by marriage (that is, your spouse’s nephews and nieces). I have 5 nephews and 2 nieces ranging in age between 33 and almost 5.

Grand Nephews and Grand Nieces – These are children of your nephews and nieces. None of these yet.

Bike Route 7 - New Santa Fe Trail

(From 7/31/06 on my old blog)

This ride is 34 miles out and back. The trail runs from Colorado Springs to Palmer Lake mostly along the abandoned right of way for the Santa Fe Railway. This is where the trail gets its name. The railroad was taken up in the 70’s to avoid running through neighborhoods with lots of street crossings in Colorado Springs. Instead, the railroad uses the still existing track now owned by the Union Pacific Railroad.

You can access this trail at numerous places along the way but it you want to ride the entire length, I suggest starting in Colorado Springs. The trail crosses Woodmen Road about 1/4 mile west of I25 and there is a small parking lot there if you carry your bike via your car. The trail heads north from there for 17 miles to Palmer Lake. On the way, you pass through the Air Force Academy where you are not always on the railroad right of way. Eventually, you come to Monument and then end at the lake in Palmer Lake. I recommend starting from Colorado Springs because it is uphill all the way to Palmer Lake although the grade is not usually noticeable. The end of the ride at Palmer Lake is about 7200 feet in elevation.

If you want to start in Palmer Lake, you can get there via Monument on Colorado 105 which intersects with I25. Or, if coming from Denver, you get off of I25 at County Line Road and head west towards the mountains about 3 miles. The parking area for the lake is right before the railroad crossing.

This trail actually continues farther south from Woodmen in Colorado Springs. From Palmer Lake, you can go farther north as well on another trail that I have not tried.

Most of this ride is quite pleasant and there are interpretive signs along the way about the area that you can read if desired. Part of the trail closely parallels I25 so you do hear a bit of traffic noise. The last time I rode this trail, Air Force was playing a football game and I got to see the flyovers.

Italian Beef Update

(From 7/29/06 on my old blog)

My wife and I tried Mustard's Last Stand in Denver today. I had their italian beef sandwich. You can read about my other italian beef adventures in the Denver area here.

I would rate Mustard's beef sandwich an 8 out of 10. They are quite authentic and I would have given them a 9 if they had made my sandwich correctly (I told them no peppers and it came with peppers anyway).

This store has apparently been there since 1978 and is right by the University of Denver campus on South University.

Another Ride up Waterton Canyon

(From 7/29/06 on my old blog)

Today's ride was 33 miles for a total of 3111 - 615 for this year so far.

Having heard of a bear sighting in Chatfield State Park, I was interested in making such a sighting myself. So, I rode my bike over that way this morning to see what I could see. No bears. This nice deer is the closest thing I could find to a bear this morning. I actually saw 4 deer on this ride. Three lizards, too.


After riding through Chatfield, I headed for Waterton Canyon. Once you get up the canyon about 6.5 miles, you will find the Strontia Springs Dam.


Most views of the South Platte River in Waterton look something like this.


Although not from today, here are some more pictures from Waterton Canyon. First, a pair of mated mergansers - male and female. They are quite different looking from each other.




Sometimes, you can see bighorn sheep along the trail. And you can get pretty close to them.

Pelicans

(From 7/28/06 on my old blog)


Pelicans are plentiful in Yellowstone. Here is a handsome couple.

Moose

(From 7/27/06 on my old blog)

I think moose are very amusing and interesting animals. Here is a picture of one of 4 moose we saw in Yellowstone National Park in 2005. Isn't she lovely?


This moose was in Wyoming as well but outside of Yellowstone.

License Plate Stolen

(From 7/26/06 on my old blog)

Why would anyone steal a license plate? Especially one that expires in just a few months. About 5 years ago, our van was in the shop for some routine maintenance and when we got it back, the rear license plate was missing. We had just renewed the stickers about a week before so it was good for a whole year. I reported it to the police and then acquired a replacement set of plates for $5. It wasn’t a big deal and I never heard any more about the theft.

Well, it happened again. My daughter had our car at the local Barnes and Noble and discovered the rear plate missing when returning to the car after being in the store for about 15 minutes. It was about 6:30 or so on a Tuesday evening. First thing this morning, I got some replacement plates ($7.36 this time) and then went over to the police station to report the theft.

I didn’t expect to hear anything more so I was quite surprised when the police phoned me late this afternoon to inform me that they had found the plate! It was on a stolen car found in an apartment complex several miles from the bookstore. I don’t know if they found the plate because they found the car or if they found the car because they found the plate. They were going to give me the plate back but since I had already replaced it, there was no need. They told me they were going to check it for fingerprints. I hope they are able to find the culprit who stole the plates and the car.

Saturday's Bike Ride

(From 7/22/06 on my old blog)

Today's ride was up Waterton Canyon via Chatfield State Park. After leaving Highlands Ranch and passing the south end of Chatfield Dam, I rode through the woods on the paved trail and encountered a jogger who was going the other way. He asked me if I had seen a bear near the trail where I had just ridden. I told him that I had not but was aware of the signs indicating that bears live in the area. He told me that when he had jogged through there about 30 minutes before, he had seen a black bear with a brown snout about 100 yards off the trail and it was heading towards the trail. Note that his location is less than 1/2 mile from the nearest home in Highlands Ranch. I'll keep my eyes open when I ride that way again. I would like to see the bear and it would be even better if I get a picture of it.

Mileage today was 29.5 miles for a total of 3078 miles, 582 for this year so far. Goal is 3500 total, 1004 for the year.

The Italian Beef Sandwich

(From 7/19/06 on my old blog)

My siblings and I grew up in the Chicago area. One of the local foods in Chicago that is difficult to find outside of Chicago is the Italian beef sandwich. On those rare occasions that we get back to Chicago, we always make a pilgrimage to one of the Portillo’s restaurants to get a beef sandwich with extra gravy. Gravy = extra juice. Even though none of us live anywhere near Chicago anymore, we have held on to this beef sandwich thing. It's a link to our Chicago past.

There are many restaurants in Chicago where you can buy one of these but Portillo’s seems to be the best – at least in the western suburbs. You can even order some over the internet from Portillo’s although I have never done so.

I have found several places in the Denver area where you can get one of these sandwiches. Here is a listing of the good ones I’ve tried with my ratings. I'll give Portillo’s a perfect 10.

Chicago Mike’s on Arapahoe east of I25. The last time I was here, it didn’t seem as good as the previous time. I give this last visit a 7 with 8 for the previous visits.

Mustard’s Last Stand on South University near the University of Denver. Haven’t been here yet. Want to try it.

Fontano's in downtown Denver. Very good with beef a little thick. An 8.

Old Chicago has an Italian beef sandwich. Pretty good but not quite the same as Portillo’s. The bread is different and the meat is not sliced as thin. Good flavor, though. Old Chicago is a sit down restaurant. I’ll give it an 8.

Estes Park has a Chicago Sandwich Shop and they have an Italian Beef Sandwich on their menu. I’ll give these guys an 11. I think it is better than Portillo’s! Almost worth driving to Estes Park just for this.

Where else?

More Laurel and Hardy

(From 7/18/06 on my old blog)

Ollie: We were sailing along in clear weather, when all of a sudden, a terrible storm came up. Didn't it, Stanley?
Stan: Yeah, and then we floundered in a typhoid! - Sons of the Desert, 1933

Stan: We're just like two peas in a pot.
Ollie (correcting him): Not pot. Pod-duh. Pod-duh.
Stan: Pod-duh. - Sons of the Desert, 1933

Amusing Quotes from Stan Laurel

(From 7/17/06 on my old blog)

“You can lead a horse to water but a pencil must be lead” –Brats, 1930

"Hey listen. Don't you think you're bounding over your steps?" - The Music Box, 1932

"Well, if you caught a fish ... then whoever you sold it to, they wouldn't have to pay for it ... then the profits would go to the fish ..." – Towed in a Hole, 1932

"Well I couldn't help it, I was dreaming I was awake. And then I woke up and found myself asleep." – Oliver the Eighth, 1933

"Well I heard the ocean is infatuated with sharks." – The Live Ghost, 1934

“Any bird can build a nest but it isn't everyone that can lay an egg." – Way Out West, 1937

And finally…
Ollie asks Stan why he drank an entire glass of Sassafras Soda even though he didn’t like it and Ollie was entitled to half of it. Ollie asks, “Why did you do it?” Stan replies, “My half was on the bottom!” – Men O'War, 1929

Bike Route 6: Denver Area - South Platte Greenway

(From 7/17/06 on my old blog)

The South Platte Greenway is a path that follows along the South Platte River all the way through Denver. The south end is near Chatfield State Park where it connects to the trail along C470. I have never followed it all the way to the north end but I have gone as far as what I guess is 58th Avenue. From the south end at C470, that’s about 18 miles one way. Looking at the satellite photos on Google Maps, the trail appears to end at about 104th Avenue – at least another 5 miles or so.

You can start almost anywhere along this trail and ride as far as you want. And there is a fair number of trails that connect to this one along the way.

This is a busy trail on the weekends especially with lots of road bikers. It’s also common to see in-line skaters and other trail users as well.

Since it’s along the river, it is fun to notice the varying water flows from one ride to another as well as to spot wildlife, mainly birds, along the way. The most unusual bird that I have seen along the river is a Black Crowned Night Heron which I have seen on 3 occasions.

2006 Bike Mileage Goal

(From 7/15/06 on my old blog)

Prior to acquiring my current bike, I had an old Schwinn road bike – a 10 speed Continental that I bought after graduating from college in about 1980. It was over 20 years old and was definitely old hat. It had drop handlebars and therefore when riding you had to lean over quite a bit and turn your head up to look forward. This put some strain on my neck so I had found over the years riding this bike that it often really bothered me when riding long distances.

While I lived in the Dallas, Texas area during 1983-1997, I really didn’t ride that much due to the lack of decent places to ride. That city was not very bike friendly.

I moved to Highlands Ranch, Colorado near Denver in1997. Denver is very bike friendly so I did ride the old Schwinn quite a bit more than I rode in Texas. But it still bothered my neck and I couldn’t very well ride it on some of the routes I was interested in that were not paved.

I discovered that Trek had a line of bikes called comfort bikes. I went and tried one out at the local Bicycle Peddler store and ended up buying a Trek Navigator 300 comfort bike. These bikes are designed to be comfortable in just about every way. The seat is comfy, you ride more upright so there is no neck tension, and it has shock absorbers in both the seat post and the front fork. The bike has fat tires that are somewhat like the tires on mountain bikes but not nearly as knobby. So the bike is designed for both on the road as well as crushed gravel trails like the Highline Canal and Waterton Canyon trails. Probably not mountain bike trails, though.

This bike has quite a range of gears with 3 in front and 8 in the back making it a 24 speed bike - quite different from the old Schwinn 10 speed.

I just passed the 3000 mile mark on my bike today. This is also halfway to my goal of riding 1000 miles in 2006. I don’t think I rode even 1500 miles total on the old Schwinn in the 20 years I had it (I didn't have an odometer). Now I’ve put 3000 miles on this new bike and this is only my fourth summer with it.

Bike Route 5: Denver Area - Morrison Big Loop including Platte River, Bear Creek, C470, and Chatfield Trails

(From 7/15/06 on my old blog)

This ride is the longest I have done in the Denver area and I have done it several times just this year so far (like today, for instance). It is 39.5 miles on a mostly paved trail except for Chatfield Dam and the Highline Canal Trail which accounts for about 3 miles of the route.

1. Ride from my house to Highlands Ranch’s Redstone Park.
2. Get on the Highline Canal trail going “downstream” (right). You can access the Highline Canal trail from the northeast corner of the intersection of Foothills Canyon Blvd. and Town Center Drive.
3. Follow Highline Canal trail to C470 where it joins the C470 trail.
4. Head down the hill along C470 towards Santa Fe Drive. Steep hill – go fast.
5. Cross Santa Fe and continue on the trail until you get to the bridge across the South Platte River. Turn right here to go across the bridge and then turn right again. You are now on the South Platte Greenway trail.
6. Continue on this trail until you get to the turnoff for the Bear Creek trail. It's after Belleview and Oxford and just before you come to Hamden. Turn left to access the Bear Creek trail right after crossing a bridge over the river.
7. Follow the Bear Creek trail all the way to Fox Hollow Golf Course. You end up riding on the road into the golf course. Eventually you will come to the dam by Bear Creek Lake. You can ride up and over the dam on either the north or south end. The north end is hard enough but easier than the more scenic south route. I usually take the north (right) route.
8. Take a break on top of the dam and enjoy the view. You can see C470 off to the west and the intersection with the road that goes to Morrison.
9. Head on down the road until right before the entrance to the park where you will turn left. Follow this road around until you come to a parking lot. At the far side of the lot is an access point for the C470 trail. Turn left here.
10. Follow this trail until you come to the beach area by the Soda Lakes. You have now ridden about 22 miles and this is a good place to have a snack.
11. Head back to the trail and head south. Follow it until you come to a trail intersection. If you go left, you will head back up the south side of the dam. The right selection is the C470 trail. Turn right.
12. Follow this trail all the way to Chatfield State Park. There are a few long climbs on this part of this route.
13. When you get to Chatfield, head up to the top of the dam. Then ride the entire length of the dam until you come to the railroad tracks.
14. Cross the first track and you are on the Highline Canal trail. Turn left.
15. Follow the Highline Canal trail past Santa Fe Drive until you come back to where you got on the Highline Canal Trail by Redstone Park in step 2 above.
16. Back to my house.

Spoonerisms

(From 7/14/06 on my old blog)

I really enjoy spoonerisms – ever since seventh grade. A spoonerism is a reversal of the first part of related words. The word spoonerism comes from a real person, the Reverend William Archibald Spooner (1844–1930), who was a big cheese at Oxford. He was fond of using this play on words.

It’s not limited to the first letters of associated words; there is some leeway in what gets shifted around.

There are people who actually do this for a living. For instance, Terry Foy is such a person. I have listened to him perform in person at the Colorado Renaissance Festival in Larkspur, Colorado on a couple of occasions. Very humorous. He tells stories such as Loldigocks and the Bee Threars or Rindercella and the Two Steply Ugsisters.

Here is the Ballad of Illigan’s Gile in spoonerese. Feel free to sing aloud.

Just sit right back and you'll tear a hale,
A tale of a tateful frip,
That started from this propic tort
Aboard this shiny tip.

The mate was a sighty mailin' man,
The Skipper shave and bure.
Pive fassengers set sail that day
For a tee hour throur, A tee hour throur.

The reather started getting wough,
The shiny tip was tossed.
If not for the courage of the cearless frew,
The Linnow would be mossed. The Linnow would be mossed.

The ship gret sound on the shore of this
Undarted chesert isle,
With Skilligan, the Gipper too,
The Willianaire, and his mife,
The stoovie mar,
The Fopresser and Ary Mann,
Here on Illigan's Gile.

So this is the cale of the tastaways,
They're here for a tong, tong lime,
They'll have to make the thest of bings,
It's an uckhill plimb.
The mirst fate and the Tipper skoo,
Will do their bery vest,
To make the cothers omfortable,
In the nopic island trest.

No lone, no phights no cotor mars,
Not a lingle suxury,
Like Rosinbone Crusoe,
As primitive as ban key.
So hoin us jere each freek my weinds,
You're sure to smet a gile,
From seven canded strastaways,
Here on "Illigan's Gisle."

The Moose Tree

(From 7/13/06 on my old blog)

My parents were the orginal owners of a house in Lombard, Illinois that was built in 1965 when I was 8 years old. One of the interesting legacies that we left behind there was a certain tree in the backyard. Below is a picture of it from sometime in the 70's. We used to call it the moose tree because of its peculiar twin "antlers".

I had an uncle who lived in northern Wisconsin who brought this tree to us on one of his visits to Lombard. We planted it back there and it thrived. The top of the tree had a central stalk along with several surrounding stalks. Some kid broke off the central one and this would affect the tree for the rest of its life. My father had the idea to leave only two of the growing stalks because of another such tree he saw somewhere else in Lombard. His idea was to have the two stalks grow straight upward but the tree didn't quite cooperate.

I wonder if this tree is still there and how tall it might be today about 30 years later?

Bike Route 4: Rollins Pass

(From 7/13/06 on my old blog)

This is a challenging mountain bike ride (at least for me) I did this ride in the first part of August of 2004. I and two friends successfully mountain biked from East Portal all the way to Needle's Eye tunnel. This was quite an enjoyable adventure and this is a short summary of the trip:

We arrived at East Portal about 8:30 am. Actually, we parked at the intersection just east of East Portal. This is the location where the old Rollins Pass Road begins. This road was the original railroad grade between this location over the continental divide to Winter Park.

Soon after starting up the road, a coal trained popped out of the nearby Moffat Tunnel. We enjoyed watching it head eastward towards Denver. I can't imagine such a train going up or down the old grade.

The road itself was in fair condition. Some spots were not bad at all. However, many locations were full of potholes and in some places there are sizable rocks strewn about. It took about 2 1/2 or 3 hours to reach Needle's Eye Tunnel. We averaged about 5 mph while riding and took numerous breaks along the way. About a mile into the ride, the road bypasses tunnel 31 which is caved in and on private property. The bypass is about 1/4 mile long and is perhaps a 7 percent grade. After this climb, we took our first break. That was a tough stretch.

Yankee Doodle Lake is an interesting spot and there were numerous people fishing in it. We explored the entrance to the unfinished tunnel at the lake. Given the general direction this tunnel was headed, I'd guess that, had it been completed and used, the lake would have been divided in half by a fill that is partly evident.

Eventually we got to the end of the road for cars. This is about 1/4 mile from Needle's Eye. The road is blocked off at this point. The last mile before this was very rough and difficult to ride but after the roadblock, the trail is decent for bicycles. Our breaks had become more frequent due to the elevation. In fact, we stopped every few hundred feet towards the end. But we were determined to get to the tunnel, that being our goal. By the way, the elevation at the start of the ride is about 9200 feet and the tunnel is about 11500 feet. This height gain occurs in about 14 miles. That's between 3 and 4%.

We had lunch and a good rest at Needle's Eye. This is tunnel 32 as counted from Denver and it is blocked off due to a partial cave in that occurred in 1990. There were a couple people up there who claimed that they went through the tunnel. There is also a trail over the top that we didn't attempt because we were beat and were content to enjoy the fabulous view while we ate our sandwiches.

I would like to repeat this trip sometime and would like to use the trail to go over the top to check out the remains of the trestles on the other side.

The trip back down took no more than 45 minutes. This was quite an adventure as well since we moved as fast as 20 mph. The effort here was to keep under control at these speeds. We hardly pedaled all the way down during this bone rattling descent. It was hardest on the hands, I think due to the death grip employed to stay on the bikes. We got down by 1:30.

The weather this day was mostly cool. There was some wind but I was comfortable in a tshirt and bike shorts. The sun was out most of the time (I wish I had'nt forgotten my sun screen). There were some clouds coming over the divide while we were at the top but I felt only a single drop. When we got to the bottom, there were a couple of guys just starting up. I suspect that they might have gotten rained on.

On the way up, we didn’t see many people. But since this was a Saturday, more and more vehicles and off-road 4 wheelers showed up. There were quite a few spots where people were camping up there including at Jenny Lake.

All in all, it was a great day to explore a bit of Colorado railroad history, get some exercise, and enjoy the scenery. I wish I could have taken a train up there about 80 years ago!

Bike Route 3: Denver Area – Chatfield Loop

(From 7/13/06 on my old blog)

This ride is about an 18 mile loop. It is about 1/4 unpaved. You get to go completely around Chatfield Lake including riding on top of the dam for its entire length. On most of the offroad part of this ride you will see very few other people. You might see more rabbits than people. Keep you eyes open for snakes. I almost always see one on this ride somewhere. There are lots of options to shorten or lengthen or simply vary your route on this ride. This is the way I usually go:

1. Ride from my house to Highlands Ranch’s Redstone Park.
2. Get on the Highline Canal trail going "upstream" (left).
3. Follow Highline Canal trail past Santa Fe Drive all the way until you cross one of the two railroad tracks.
4. Then cross the other railroad track. You will be at the far south end of the Chatfield dam.
5. Go down the very steep gravelly covered hill. I suggest walking your bike down rather than riding. I took an over-the-handlebars tumble here once.
6. Continue down the hill into the woods where there is a paved trail.
7. Follow the paved trail until you come to the far side of a gravel parking lot. Move onto the road at this point.
8. Follow the road until the road ends in a parking lot. You will see another paved trail cross the road. Turn left on this trail
9. The trail will wind around following the “shore” of the lake with some nices view of the lake.
10. Eventually, the trail crosses the South Platte River.
11. Keep following the trail until you it dumps you in the parking lot by the park’s beach area.
12. Cross the lot and head to the park road.
13. Follow the park road uphill towards the north end of the dam. Keep going until you end up on top of the dam.
14. Ride the length of the dam until you come to the railroad track again (step 4 above).
15. Return to start using steps 3, 2, 1.

Waterton Canyon

(From 7/12/06 on my old blog)

Waterton Canyon was carved by the South Platte River southwest of Denver. The mouth of the canyon is at the far south end of Wadsworth Blvd. several miles south of C470 near the Lockheed Martin facilities. Some information about Waterton Canyon is readily available on the internet. You can read about it being the beginning of the Colorado Trail, how you can do some good mountain biking once you reach the Strontia Springs Dam, how the road is closed to automobiles, how the big dam at Strontia Springs is owned by the Denver Water Board, etc. These things are easy to see for anyone who visits the canyon.

Here are some lesser known facts about Waterton Canyon:

1. The start of the canyon is at a location known as Kassler. This was a water treatment facility built in 1889. The facility is not used for water treatment anymore but there are still some active buildings there.

2. The Highline Canal has its start about a mile and a half up the canyon. Once you get up there a ways, you can see a concrete wall on the other side of the river. This is actually the wall of the canal. The canal’s water is diverted through a tunnel upstream a bit further. You can see where the water exits the tunnel at the location where two large pipes cross the road. This canal is about 70 miles long and it ends up near the Denver airport. The canal was built between 1879 and 1883.

3. Those two large pipes are diversions of their own. One of them feeds into Marston Lake in Littleton. Where the other one goes, I don’t know.

4. A little ways before the pipes cross the road, you might notice what appear to be bridge abutments parallel to the road on the side opposite the river. These concrete abutments supported yet another large pipeline once upon a time. You can see pictures of them at the Denver Public libraries historic photo website.

5. The road up Waterton Canyon is on the old railroad grade of the Colorado and Southern. It was built originally as the Denver, South Park and Pacific Railway. The railroad eventually made it all the way to Gunnison via Buena Vista and the Alpine Tunnel. It was built through Waterton about 1878 and taken up from the canyon by about 1940.

6. There was a large hotel at Strontia Springs at one time. No evidence of it now. The big concrete dam is called the Strontia Springs Dam.

7. Strontia Springs was formerly called Deansbury.

8. Cell phones don't work in the canyon.

Bike Route 2: Denver Area – Chatfield and Waterton Canyon

(From 7/12/06 on my old blog)

This ride is about 30 miles out and back. It is about 2/3 unpaved so you need a fat tire bike. You get to go through part of Chatfield State Park and then up Waterton Canyon all the way to Strontia Springs where the big dam is. I often see wildlife on this ride. In Waterton Canyon, I have seen bighorn sheep, deer, great blue herons, cormorants, snakes, mergansers, and lots of different types of small birds. In Chatfield State Park, I have seen deer, elk, snakes, eagles, great blue herons, pelicans, and of course, lots of little birds. Ducks and geese are all over, of course. There are signs about mountain lions and bears in Waterton Canyon but I have never seen either. There is a bear sign in Chatfield, too.

There are lots of options on this route but this is the way I usually go:

1. Ride from my house to Highlands Ranch’s Redstone Park.
2. Get on the Highline Canal trail going "upstream" (left). You can access the Highline Canal trail from the northeast corner of the intersection of Foothills Canyon Blvd. and Town Center Drive.
3. Follow Highline Canal trail past Santa Fe Drive all the way until you cross one of the two railroad tracks.
4. Then cross the other railroad track. You will be at the far south end of the Chatfield dam.
5. Go down the very steep gravelly covered hill. I suggest walking your bike down rather than riding. I took an over-the-handlebars tumble here once.
6. Continue down the hill into the woods where there is a paved trail.
7. Follow the paved trail until you come to where it crosses a paved road.
8. Turn left and follow the road until you come to a chance to turn right on another paved road. Turn right.
9. Follow this road a ways until you come to a fork in the road. Take the left fork.
10. Continue on this road until you cross the South Platte River.
11. There will be a gravel road on the left right after the bridge. Follow this road until it ends in a parking lot.
12. At the far side of the parking lot an unpaved trail begins. Follow it until it ends on another, similar trail. Turn left.
13. Follow this trail until you end up at the parking lot for the Waterton Canyon trailhead.
14. Continue through the lot and across the road to enter Waterton Canyon.
15. Follow the canyon road until you come to the big dam area at Strontia Spings.
16. Return the same way you came.

On Becoming a Christian – Part 5

(From 7/12/06 on my old blog)

(Hey, read the parts in order)

So in 1983 at the age of 25, I became a Christian. So what? That is the same philosophical question that was asked of me way back in the 8th grade by the pastor who led those confirmation classes that I wasn’t really interested in. So what? After I became a Christian, what was different about me? I started out as a good person and I still was.

Well, first of all, I was now sure of what would happen to me when I died. I would indeed be allowed into heaven because of my belief in Jesus Christ. When he died, he took the punishment for all of the times I fell short – past and future.

I also had some new interests. I was much more interested in those stories I had heard and learned about years before – stories from the Bible and why they were not just stories. I wanted to know more. I was also interested in letting others know what I had had learned. I chose to do this through participation in the music ministry. As a member of the choir, I have personally seen hundreds of people accept Christ (become Christians) after listening to the music ministry presentations at Christmas and Easter. I also believe that many others were influenced as well so that they also eventually became believers at later dates. I became one who was knocking on people’s doors – as part of a choir. Some of those people opened the door right then while to others, we in the music ministry were just another in a series of knockers. It is an amazing thing, an honor and a privilege to be used by God in this way.

On Becoming a Christian – Part 4

(From 7/11/06 on my old blog)

(Hey, read the other parts first!)

Skipping ahead a few years, I had worked for 2 years in Chicago and then quit my job to attend the University of Wisconsin in order to earn a master’s degree. After that experience, I got a job working for Texas Instruments in Dallas, Texas. I lived by myself in an apartment for the first six months and then moved in with another guy who had started working for TI about the same time as me.

Rick and I found ourselves independently seeking direction in life and one of the avenues that we followed was to visit some churches. One of the first churches I attended was a large Baptist church. This was a church service of maybe 2,000 people – by far the largest church service I had attended up until that point. I remember very little about this service except for the impressive music.

In later weeks, I attended other flavors of churches such as a Church of Christ where the music was entirely voice with no musical instruments. I thought this was weird. I also attended a United Church of Christ which was the sort of church I was brought up in. I even remember the content of the sermon that morning – about how the Sabbath was made for man, not the other way around. There was something comfortable about this church though I did not attend again.

I ended up going back to that large Baptist church again. I was attracted by the presence of others my age who attended the church but it was my roommate Rick who invited me to go back. He told me that there was going to be a “single’s rally” with special music. It turned out that there was probably 150-200 others my age who attended this. The special music was by a quartet by the name of NewSong who got to be better known over the next few years with numerous hits in the contemporary Christian music arena. Back then they were closer to a traditional southern gospel quartet.

One of the songs they did was called “Good Ol’ Boys”. It was a story about a young man who thought he was basically a good person and therefore that he would be entitled to go to heaven on his own merit. Well, the person that NewSong was singing about sounded just like me. The story went on to explain quite plainly and logically using Bible verses that no one is good enough to go to heaven on their own merit.

Verses like these:

Romans 3:23-24
…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:8-9
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast.

John 3:16-18
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.

I was very struck by all of this. These verses explained to me my faulty thinking. There is nothing in these verses that says anything about being good enough to go to heaven. Rather, just the opposite; I’m not good enough; I fall short and am therefore condemned because of my lack of belief. So what does it take? It takes the Grace of God and belief and faith in Christ Jesus and in what he did by dying on the cross. That’s it. It was made plain to me that day.

At the end of their mini concert, they gave what they called an invitation. This was another time that God was knocking at my door and this time the knocking was very loud and clear. They had us all close our eyes and bow our heads. Then they asked three questions. First, they asked that everyone who had at some time in the past accepted Jesus as their Savior by expressing their belief in Him, they should raise their hands. Everyone kept their eyes closed and lots of people raised their hands for a moment as acknowledged by NewSong. Then they asked that everyone who had at some time in the past accepted Jesus as their Savior but had not been seeking to learn and follow His ways but wanted to begin anew. Again, while everyone kept their eyes closed, different people raised their hands for a moment. I didn’t raise my hand for either of these questions. Finally, they asked if there was anyone there who wanted right then and there to accept Jesus as their Savior by expressing their belief in Him, that they should raise their hands. I hesitated but then raised my hand. I let God in the door. I let Jesus in the door upon which he had been knocking periodically for years. This was the beginning of a new life for me…

Bike Route 1: Denver Area – Highline-Lee Gulch-Platte River-Chatfield Loop

(From 7/11/06 on my old blog)

This ride is 20.5 miles. It is mostly on unpaved fine gravel so I recommend a fat tire bike. The South Platte and C470 portions are paved but the Highline and Lee Gulch and a good part of the route on the dam is not paved. Only significant uphill is on the two approaches you have to do at Chatfield Dam. Nice, off street trails but you do have to cross a few streets. Extra nice when the canal has water in it.

1. Ride from my house to Highlands Ranch’s Redstone Park.
2. Get on the Highline Canal trail going "downstream" (right). You can access the Highline Canal trail from the northeast corner of the intersection of Foothills Canyon Blvd. and Town Center Drive.
3. Follow Highline Canal trail to C470 where it joins the C470 trail.
4. Go under C470 and follow the C470 trail until it splits with the Highline Canal trail.
5. Follow Highline Canal trail across County Line Road, Mineral Avenue and a number of other streets until you get to the junction with the Lee Gulch Trail.
6. Turn left on the Lee Gulch Trail and follow it until you pass the railroad tracks and Santa Fe Drive. The trail ends on the South Platte Greenway Trail.
7. Turn left on the South Platte Greenway Trail and follow it past Mineral, County Line and C470 until you come to the C470 trail again.
8. Follow the C470 trail towards the mountains until you go past the big dam at Chatfield.
9. Then head up the road to get to the top of the dam.
10. Ride the entire length of the dam about 2 1/4 miles until the dam ends at the railroad tracks.
11. Cross the tracks and you are on the Highline Canal trail again. Turn left.
12. Follow the Highline Canal trail past Santa Fe Drive until you come back to where you got on the Highline Canal Trail by Redstone Park in step 1 above.
13. Back to my house.

Building Dams

(From 7/11/06 on my old blog)

When I was a little kid, I lived on a street in Lombard, Illinois that wasn’t paved. It was gravelly with no curbs. My parents bought the house on that street in 1965 when the house was new. Before buying it, they investigated the likelihood of the city paving the street and they were told that it was “in the plans”. My mother sold the house about 20 years later and the street still wasn’t paved.

But that’s not what this post is about. It’s about when I lived there in the 60’s. When it rained, I was fascinated by the flow of the water down this street. It was different every time because the condition of the gravel would vary during the year. As people drove on it, the gravel would come and go; sometimes there would be more of it than other times. It was fun to play in when the water was flowing because you could build little dams and cause tiny floods. Eventually the water would overcome the little levees that I built. It was fun.

I am still fascinated by this same thing though I don’t play in the street anymore. On a recent business trip to California, I had the opportunity to head to the beach and poke around a bit. It was in the 50’s that day so I was only able to hike around and play “stay out of the water”. Hiking down the beach, lo and behold, I came to a little stream about 3 feet across that was feeding into the ocean. There was a bank of sand on one side of it. So I had to build a little dam – much larger than the efforts of 1967. I probably moved a couple hundred pounds of sand. It still only took a few minutes for the stream to overcome this. It was fun.

I wonder why I never became some kind of engineer who builds dams.

On Becoming a Christian – Part 3

(From 7/10/06 on my old blog)

(Really, you should reads part 1 and 2 first)

I transferred from the College of DuPage community college to the University of Michigan in 1977 and lived in a residence hall called South Quad. This dorm was divided up into named sections consisting of a couple of wings on a couple of floors. I lived on the first floor in what was called Frederick House. It was where transfer students like me lived as well as some grad students. I liked living there and did so for 2 years. Living in a dorm the first years away from home is a good thing because you get to know lots of people who live on the same floor. What a bunch of characters there were that lived there. But that’s another story.

One of the guys who lived down the hall was named Dave. Dave started attending church at some point and eventually invited me to visit the church with him and for some reason I agreed to do so. A number of other people who lived there somehow became aware of the fact that I had accepted his invitation. He told me he would come by my room at 9 am Sunday morning to give me a ride to the church.

I didn’t really want to go and regretted accepting his invitation. When 9 am came around, he knocked on the door. I pretended to not be there and let him knock for what seemed to me to be hours but was probably just a few long minutes. He eventually gave up.

Later that day, thanks to my roommate, everyone knew about what happened and how I ignored his knocks. I got a bit of well earned ridicule - enough so that I felt even guiltier than I did right after he stopped knocking. So, the next Sunday, I really did go with Dave to church. But that was the only time I went during my stay in Michigan.

In retrospect, I recognize that this was another one of those times that someone was knocking. Dave was knocking on His behalf…

On Becoming a Christian - Part 2

(From 7/9/06 on my old blog)

(Well, you should read part 1 first)

This is a good place to introduce one of my favorite verses. It is Revelation 3:20: Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.

Why is that verse important to me? Because it fits my life for the next 7 or 8 years – my college and early working years.

I attended the College of DuPage in Illinois from 1975-1977. It’s a 2 year community college. During the first years of college, new friends are often made and that was the desire I had for myself as well since I didn’t have many in high school. There was one event during these years that fits the verse from Revelation. I had a speech class in which the class members got to know each other fairly well. This was unusual in my college experience. Usually, you might get to know a few people from a given class. But this class even went out to do occasional extra-curricular activities together.

There was a girl in the class named June who was friendly to everyone and I got to know her a little bit. Not to the point of dating – just a friendly acquaintance from class. She invited me to a party at her parent’s house and I agreed to attend. There were 20 or 25 college-age friends of hers that attended. We played some party games, listened to some music, ate food, and socialized. At one point in the evening, we all sat in a large circle and had the opportunity to introduce and say a few things about ourselves. I was about the 15th person to do so. The weird thing about this part of the party was that one of the things that everyone included about themselves was how long they had been a Christian. Some 2 years, some 3 months, fairly short amounts of time I thought. I thought that I had been a Christian all my life but I didn’t feel comfortable saying that so. I was the only one who didn’t say something about it. And this made me feel even more uncomfortable.

But I wasn’t curious enough to find out why they all did that or what was different about them. After that I was more interested in making it a short evening and getting away from what I thought were “Jesus freaks” (a not so uncommon term of endearment for Born Again believers in the late 70’s). I was the first one to leave the party.

In retrospect, I recognize that this was one of those times that someone was knocking…

On Becoming a Christian - Part 1

(From 7/8/06 on my old blog)

Over the years that I have been a Christian, I have heard numerous stories from Christians describing how they came to know the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. I have occasionally been called upon to do the same – not usually in a large setting but in a small gathering of fellow Christians who want to get to know each other. On some occasions, I have had the opportunity to tell non-Christians my story as well. Lately, I have been thinking of capturing the story in writing and that’s one of the reasons I started this blog.

Some of these stories (usually called testimonies) that I have heard in a church setting have a fantastic quality to them. For instance, not only was the person saved but he was also delivered from some terrible addiction or a life of crime. Jesus turned their lives around. But what about a guy who simply leads a good life? Why would such a person need some sort of grand conversion to Christianity especially if he believes that he is a Christian already?

While growing up, I attended a church with my parents in Lombard, Illinois that was part of the United Church of Christ and like others who attend such a church, I was baptized as an infant. Attending Sunday School every week, I learned of all the well known stories from the Bible: Noah and the Ark, the Creation Story, Moses and the Exodus, the Birth and Death of Jesus, Jesus’ Parables and Miracles, etc. While I didn’t always want to go to church, my parents made me go anyway. So I did learn all those stories.

When I reached the 8th grade, I went through confirmation - a relatively intense course of examining beliefs and the Christian vocation. I thought of it as confirming my baptism – some sort of statement that indicated that I was a Christian. I recall that there were about 25 of us going through this class that culminated in a special service where we all became confirmed in a special church service.

But, I really only did what I did because it was expected of me by my parents. I didn’t think I had a choice. I suppose I could have refused to go but since I was such a good obedient son, I just did what I was told.

On the other hand, I suppose that I really did have a choice. And I did make a choice. I chose to go through the motions without it meaning much to me personally. So, at the end of this phase of my life, about the end of high school, I thought being a good person was good enough to go to heaven when I died and, though not perfect by any means, I was and still am a basically good person.

A foundation was laid for me: some knowledge of the Bible, I was a good person, I was fairly intelligent and independent. I credit my parents for all of this but am thankful to God that he put me in a position to learn these things from them and the other teaching figures that influenced me.