A Year of Change

Yesterday we (mostly Lori) worked on getting ready for the party. Ty worked and was home around 5. His friend from college, who is a good kid and a social media promoter/ influencer, was coming up to promote some DJ playing last night at Chasing Rabbits. That’s the hot club in Vail.

Kareem, his buddy, was going to spend the night. During the day, Ty called and asked if a couple girls could freshen up here after skiing as they were friends of Kareem’s. We said sure. By 7:30 last night, they were still in Frisco so they ended up not coming over before going to the club. Ty took off around 8:30 for town.

I woke up around 3:17 am and noticed Ty’s truck wasn’t in the driveway. Being a dad, I called him and he answered with his usual, upbeat, hi dad! I could tell he didn’t drink by his tone. I told him not to if he was driving when he left. I asked where Kareem was and he said about 10 miles behind him. So, Ty rolled in around 3:30am. I asked what happened to the girls and he said, they were a hot mess and left with some guys or something. Then ten minutes later, he opened our door (we had it shut to keep Harley in our room), and said Kareem isn’t coming. Apparently the girls got kicked out of somewhere and Kareem turned around at 3:30am to go get them. I asked if they were going to get a hotel, or what. Ty said, he didn’t know, maybe they’d sleep in their car, ha. Now it’s like 4am. We tried to get back to sleep and eventually did 30 minutes later for a couple more hours. Super proud of Ty for not partying and then driving in the snow.

Speaking of snow, we have about an inch outside. When Ty got home at 3:30, he shoveled the driveway for me! I guess more snow is coming this morning, but no way were getting the foot or more they forecasted. Maybe the ski mountain will, time will tell.

Jag had a great trip. They were going to drive up last night but we told him to just stay home and take it easy for the weekend. We’ll see him soon. He had a great trip. We’ll see what kind of offer he gets and if he’ll accept it. He now has some other people pursuing him too.

Tonight we’re having enchilada’s, homemade tamale’s, that I picked up yesterday afternoon in Gypsum from our sweet older Mexican lady, tortilla soup, and all kinds of sides. Looks like the whole crew will make it, except James who is still in Qatar. He might make my birthday party which will be round two! Lori made her famous Basque Cheesecake, we have Christmas cookies, coconut and pistachio stuffed cream puffs, cupcakes and more. Everyone will show up around 5:30. Marty and Mel might spend the night, depending on the weather.

It’s not that cold out right now, actually pretty nice. Traffic on the news at the tunnels shows I-70 moving pretty well. I think a lot of people were scared off by the forecast. 7:35 am now, time to get moving. Lots to do. Have a great December 6th and Go Broncos and God Bless.

Yesterday at 1, our new cleaners showed up. We weren’t sure what to expect but heard good things from our neighbor. Boy, we had no idea! Marta and her crew of 3 other ladies or girls were here for a little over three hours. It cost a whopping $455, but it was worth every penny!

Our house has never been so clean. I don’t think it was this clean when we moved in. They did everything you could think of. They even took off all the window screens and dusted them while they cleaned ALL the windows inside and out. If we hired a window cleaner on our own, they cost $800 to $1000! The somehow managed to get all the water spots off the boy’s showers, glass and tile. I told Lori, we should just move now. They hand cleaned the oven, (not using the self-cleaning feature on the oven) and all the racks, and just about anything else you could think off. It won’t be this expensive next time as this was a deep clean to get things started.

I was in Denver in the morning. The roads were a little dicey on the way down if you were from out of State and don’t know that when it’s 15 degrees, roads are dry in the sun, and icy and slick in the shade. Lots of rental cars and out of State plates in the ditch, and in the shade!

I got my haircut at 10 and then went to pick up the goodies for the party tomorrow before heading home. I made it here by 1:30 or so.

Snowing in Vail right now, with heavy snow and big winds tonight. We’ll hunker down at home tonight. Might end up with some people spending the night tomorrow. They say 1 to 2 feet with big winds. Hope it’s a dry snow and not real wet. That’s easier to shovel.

That’s it, have a great December 5th, 20 days until Christmas! We have lots to do. Time to get busy. God Bless.

Well, I went o the doctor yesterday afternoon, and my ear is fine, but apparently, I had a little vertigo. Our friend, the ENT doctor, checked my ears and said they don’t look that bad. When he asked how it happened, and I told him how I bent over a few weeks ago, and got dizzy, he said, let me check you for vertigo. I laid back and he twisted my head a specific way, and boy, I was instantly super dizzy. It went away pretty quick when he had me sit up, but Jared (my doctor) said my one eye was jumping around a bunch. He then said, let’s treat this. He had me lay back, twisted my head left and right, then had me wait a minute or so, then sit up, and voila, it was pretty much gone. I was kind of loopy though when I stood up and he said I would be like that for the rest of the day.

I walked out of his office, still sort of loopy, like kind of drunk, and made it to the truck in the snowstorm. I probably should have sat in the truck for 30 minutes or so before driving, but with the snow coming down heavy, off I went. Jared said not to lie flat for 48 hours so the crystals in my right ear settle back into place. This made for an uncomfortable night’s sleep. So, this morning, I’m not really dizzy, but man, my neck is sore!

I’m off to Denver in a little over an hour. I have a haircut at 10 and have to pick up some desserts for the party. Jag’s flight to Chicago takes off around 7:30. He’s at the airport now. He’ll land back in Denver around 6 tomorrow night. Big trip for him.

Ty works from 7 until 10 this morning and then is headed to the mountain. Lori is home today and hopefully will take it easy.

Things are looking up for us, knock on wood. I’m drastically changing things at work and although they are some bumps, (which is expected), it’s needed and going well. We’re like a 24-year-old start up. Most of my Team doesn’t know it yet, but the first week of January, I’m letting 60% of them go, and telling them they need to reapply for their jobs. Part of this is helping them understand that their job next year, is not the job they have this year. It’ll also let me see who can and will do the things needed in the Company’s new roles, in 2026. All my people have been with me at least 12 years (one guy) and the others over 20 years. While I appreciate the loyalty and history, things have changed in the world, and we need to change, to succeed, and I’m doubtful that all of them are still a good fit. It’s nothing personal; it’s all business. I, as the head of the Company, have to do what’s best for the Company, our shareholders and me. Tough times require tough decisions. Before I took over sole control July 1st, the Company wouldn’t make the tough decisions. One thing about me is that I will make decisions. Most are right, (knock on wood), but if wrong, I’m a fail fast guy, meaning I’ll recognize its wrong, and make another decision or pivot fast. Hopefully everyone can adapt and will be here, but if not, it is what it is. What I do know is doing the same thing over and over and hoping for change, doesn’t work.

Time to get moving so I can be on the road within the hour. Have a great day, be well, stay safe and God Bless.

21 days until Christmas Eve, WHAT? Are you kidding me? That doesn’t work for us, it’s too soon. Time to hit the pause button on the month. What? You’re saying I can’t? Holy crap, time to get busy. Might have to call in the elves to help.

Not a whole lot of snow up here, maybe 2 or 3 inches. Hard to tell as Ty and I shoveled last night and there’s really nothing new here at 5:30am. Denver looks like it’s worse than up here.

Ty had a great day boarding at Keystone yesterday. He showed us a video of him going off a jump that was cool and it looked like a great day. He and three or four buddies from Denver had a great time. We cooked up some steaks on the grill when Mom got home from work.

I have a call at 7 this morning and then will head to the gym. Lori works in Vail. She was there all day yesterday which was a bit too much. She needs to take it easy, but we all know she probably won’t.

I need to get plane ticket for Paris in early February. Wine Paris is probably the largest wine show in the world. I can send a guy that works for me, but the owners of my most important estate really want me to come. I’ll see if Lori wants to go. It starts the day after the Super Bowl which means I’d be there for the game. That’s not going to work if the Broncos are in the big game! Don’t laugh, could happen, you never know!

Time to go. Have a great day, stay safe and warm, if you’re in Colorado, and God Bless.

Well, that’s what they say, snow tonight. I’m sure we’ll get some, but how much is the question. Does say 4 to 6 inches down in Denver. I’m not in Denver until Thursday and all should be good by then. Jag flies to Chicago Thursday and is back Friday. I have to pick up some stuff I ordered for our annual cigar party Saturday night.

Ty went to Denver yesterday and is snowboarding at Keystone today. HE stopped and saw Uncle Tommy on the way down. He works tomorrow through Sunday. Lori went back to work yesterday and worked until around 2. Dr. B took x-rays of her neck to make sure all is good, which it is. He did tell her to be compliant though as it takes 3 months for things to settle in. She’s going in again today but will probably head home early again. She also needs to wear tennis shoes, or other flat soled shoes, no high heels! With all the stuff she’s been doing, she’s lucky all looks good.

I’m still waiting on a bunch of stuff to arrive from UPS and Amazon. Seems like things are taking longer to get here these days. I like shopping in person, but there are some things you can only get online. I do have a bunch of wrapping to do. Also need to clean the house for the cleaners who come on Friday. I hate cleaning so I can pay someone to clean!

6:30 am now. Time to saddle up and head to the gym. Have a great day. God Bless

Here we go. December is a great month. It’s full of holiday cheer, good times and good friends and lots of birthdays in our family. Then when it’s over, comes January which is a fresh start, a rebirth and a chance to change things for the next year. Buckle up cowboys and cowgirls, the ride begins today.

Yesterday we ended up with maybe 2 inches of snow. Nothing to write home about, but it sure is pretty. Hard to believe that it took until the first of December for us to have our first measurable snowfall. I think tomorrow night into Wednesday we could get some more. All good, bring it on. It’s like we had a two-month delay to the start of winter which means only 4 months of snow at most, which is definitely manageable.

Big win last night. The Broncos just keep figuring out how to win. On a weekend where lots of favorites lost, we won again. It’d be nice if the Patriots lose tonight. Ty and I had fun watching the game together. He might go to Denver today after snowboarding, weather permitting. He’s seeing a new girl down there.

Lori is heading into work. This is her first day back since her surgery. She’ll probably only work a half a day but needs to go in to get things back on track. I have a big week and month at work. Lots going on. Time to get some more Christmas shopping done too. I’m waiting on a bunch of things I ordered a couple weeks ago. Companies don’t ship as fast as they used to.

7:15am now, time to break out the shovel! It’s my first official shovel day of the year, whoo hoo! God Bless.

Last day of the holiday weekend, and the last day of November. Things are going to start moving pretty fast now. I made it to Aspen and back by 12:30. The town wasn’t as packed as it should be, but there were a fair amount of people. With little to no snow, most visitors were shopping and walking around town. When I arrived, it was 46 degrees but there was a chill in the air. Not your typical end of November weather.

After I made it home, I did a few things around the house and then texted my doctor through the Patient Portal as I’ve had a clogged-up ear or ear infection for a couple weeks. I was trying to get an appointment for Monday. 30 minutes later, Eric, the PA, called me and said they were in Vail today at Urgent Care, if I wanted to run down. So, I decided to head out and get it out of the way. Turns out I have a bunch of fluid behind my ear drum so I’m on antibiotics and nasal spray now. I’ll call Dr. Seibert tomorrow (our ENT doctor friend) and see if he can see me. Might need to have it drained. Always something.

Ty is planning on going down to Denver today. Not sure he’ll make it, if we get the snow they say we’re going to get. Oh well, you can’t talk a 21 year old out of much, once they make up their mind.

6:30 now, time to go. Have a great Sunday and Go Broncos! On to December 2025! God Bless.

Happy Birthday, Annette!
Wishing you a beautiful day filled with love and joy. We’re so grateful for you and all the light you bring. May your birthday be as wonderful as you are, and may the year ahead be full of happiness, health, and amazing moments.

No snow in the backyard this morning, and just a dusting out front. I’m running over to Aspen to a store this morning. I should be back around 12:30. Ty works and is getting ready now at 5;50am. He needs to stop texting Mom at 5:30 asking if she’ll bring him some clothes!

Grace, Ava’s cousin, heads back to Chicago today. Yesterday I called Jag and had him go to the little liquor store next to his place and grab us a case of champagne. We had it with Thanksgiving and had bought us and the kids a bottle a few weeks ago. It was priced really well, and really good. We’ll throw it down in the basement. Always good to have good champagne on hand.

Ten days from today is Dad’s birthday, 18 days until Jag’s birthday, 20 until Tommy’s birthday and a month until mine. Hard to believe it’ll soon be 2026! If you think about it, that’s crazy!

James landed in Doha Quatar yesterday. He was on the second longest flight there is which was 17 hours! I’m sure the plane had its own little cubicle with tons of room. But still, 17 hours on a plane, ugh. I guess the airport there is rated the best in the World. Think he’s out of there in about a week. He’s on one of the Sunday morning talk shows tomorrow doing some sort of interview.

Lori, who of course we all know doesn’t listen, climbed on the roof yesterday, and strung Christmas lights along the front of the house. When I left to go to Edwards, I told her not to hang the big ornaments we bought in the morning, and she said she wouldn’t. When I got home and saw the lights up, she replied that I didn’t say anything about lights and that she didn’t hang the ornaments! Naughty girl. It does look nice though.

A week from today is our annual Fellowship Christmas Party. Lori wants to have another party on my birthday, but we’ll see how it goes. She’s already getting ready for the party next Saturday.

Time to move and groove. I need to put the neighbors’ trash out along with ours this morning as they’re down in Castle Rock (by Denver) for the weekend. With their four kids, I’m sure they have a ton. They always do!

Nice day yesterday, 55 degrees, but it did cool down in the afternoon. Looks like more snow down by Lookout Mountain than up here. Doesn’t seem like the big storm they predicted, so far.

6:15 am now, have a great Saturday. It’s Small Business Saturday, so go support a small business. Big Bronco game tomorrow night. God Bless.

What a nice day. The food was great, good football and a fun time. Ty, Lori and I had lots of laughs and hung out all day. He and I watched all three football games and they all turned out the way we wanted them to. The only thing we need now is a Bronco win and a Charger loss!

Ty’s off to work. Snow coming in tomorrow. Not sure how much as most of it should be above 9000 feet. Cold temperatures will roll in no matter where you are. I’ll warm the house up later today to season it for the incoming cold snap.

Jagger cooked all day, and their duck looked amazing. Both boys are really good chefs! Lori and Ty had champagne yesterday with our dinner and little Lori was in bed before the third game started at 6pm! I think she slept almost 12 hours, which is good. She needed it. It’s been a tough three weeks since her surgery. Thank God it was a resounding success.

Sadly, the Country is still fighting with each other. I wish that the Dems would spend more time trying to talk to the Republicans instead of literally trying to kill them. There are countless stories of people on the left who didn’t spend Thanksgiving with their families because they supported Trump. I couldn’t find any stories, and I looked, of anyone on the right, who wouldn’t go spend time with their family as they were on the left or hated Trump. That should tell you all you need to know right there. How could you disown your family over who they voted for? I feel bad for these people as they’re so consumed with hate and rage that its become the main focus of their lives. Politics should not be anyone’s priority in life. A congresswoman who recently resigned, noted how both parties are using the people and pitting them against each other. Yet, people, especially on the left, are too stupid to realize it. Politician’s rhetoric influences these misguided people, yet when something bad happens, the politicians, decry the violence which they themselves advocated for with their own words. Take the poor 20-year-old female National Guardsman who just died after being shot in Washington D.C. by a 29-year-old Afghan that was let in during the Biden administration and wasn’t properly vetted. He shot two people yelling Allah Akbar. For months the Dems have blasted the National Guard whose only job has been to stop crime in cities, calling their actions illegal and saying they themselves are criminals and telling the left to resist and protest and even saying violence can be justified, which directly incites violence against them. Then when this happens, and someone dies, they all say there’s no place for violence and to pray for their families. What hypocrites. Someday they will be judged. Then you have all the old school 80-year-old Dems, who pandered to the far-left progressives with their lunatic ideas like men in women’s sports, drag shows in kindergartens, and so on, trying to save their jobs and their power, who are now getting forced out by the progressives anyhow. None of them care about you or the people, they only care about their position, money and power. One day, the people will wake up and realize this. Sadly, for those on the far left, who have been indoctrinated with years of manipulation, this will take some time, and some will never come back. We all need to turn off our computers, phones and tv’s when politics are on! Oh well, all you can do is trust in God and hope he has a plan. The Bible says good people will be persecuted before evil will fail. You see this already with actors in Hollywood that stood up for what’s right and didn’t succumb the left’s talking points. Many were ostracized and lost jobs due to standing up for what’s right. This is a good sign. People standing on principal above self-preservation is necessary. In other words, at some point, you need to stand up for what’s right and say so. That’s all for my rant today. I’ll try to stay away from politics as I too am turning off all social media and news when crap pops up. Still, it’s everywhere and that’s part of the problem. Trust in God to save us.

Now to the important stuff, I’m up 5 pounds from yesterday’s meal! Time to head out to the gym. I need to get to Costco today too. We have a football game at 1 and then the Nuggets are on tonight. Hope everyone had a great day and a good three-day weekend, God Bless.

The turkey is ready to go! It’s cooling down in the fridge after Lori hand rubbed her mixture of herbs all over it. She’ll start cooking it around 10:30 or 11. That way, it should be done by 2:30 to 3:30.

Ty went to pick Sonny up at the Eagle Airport around 8:30 last night as he flew in from Bozeman for the weekend. Then he, Sonny and Will were going into Vail last night. Around 3am, my phone rang, which always worries me thinking something happened. Turns out it was Ty needing me to unlock the door from the garage to the house. I thought he was staying at Sonny’s as they were going to the bars last night, so I locked the garage door, but he didn’t drink and decided to come home. I asked what happened and he said he ran into Madi (his ex) at the bar last night and didn’t feel like drinking. They broke up a little over a week ago after 3 years or so.

Glad he made it home safe but waking me at 3am was no bueno. I couldn’t get back to sleep for at least an hour, maybe more, ugh.

Earlier in the day, after some calls, I went to Edwards to pick up the dry cleaning and ran a few other errands, including the post office and florist to pick up Lori a centerpiece for her table today. She decided to clean some more of the basement, (bad idea) and was, you guessed it, sore again last night. Who doesn’t listen? Lori doesn’t listen! She’s better this morning but won’t be doing much today.

Snow is coming! Should arrive along with cold temps by Saturday. It’ll last through Monday and then warm up a bit next week. Jag goes to Chicago next Thursday and is back Friday. He and Ava and her cousin Grace, from Chicago, who flew in last night, are celebrating Thanksgiving together down in Denver today. They’re cooking duck I think, yum. Jag cooks a good duck. Last night, Ava went to pick her up at 9, as Jagger had some stock on the stove that was cooking.

I’ll work a bit tomorrow but be getting ready for the cold and snow too. Davy and Abbey and the kids get back from Florida early tomorrow morning. Her dad fell, so they went down Monday. Marty and Mel get back from Hawaii on Tuesday.

Hard to believe it’s almost December. It’ll be 2026 before we know it. We’re planning a two-week family trip to Europe, I think for next June. Think we’re going to go to southwest France, staying at the Monastery, going to Biarritz on the ocean, and hitting San Sebastin Spain, that has the most Michelin Star restaurants in the World. Probably should do a few days in Paris too as long as we’re there so the kids can experience some of the sights and museums. I’m trying to find five business class tickets at a good deal, but it looks like $30K no matter when we go. It’ll be a great trip. These days, especially with flights, you need to plan way ahead.

Today, we all have lots to be thankful for. The way I look at it is, if you’re alive, you should be thankful! Funny how age changes your priorities. Enjoy the day, count your blessings and may God bless and watch over you! God Bless the Broncos too!