Freezing at the Ballpark

On April 11, I went to a Sky Sox baseball game with Bev and her neighbors, Roger and Carla. The Sky Sox are the farm team for the Rockies. Since I had not been to a Sky Sox game yet, I thought it would be fun to go check it out. I found there are some major differences between going to a ball game in AZ in April and going to a game in Colorado in April. #1-- It's too darn cold to be playing or watching a ball game!! We're talking about 30 something degrees with the wind blowing like crazy, and starting to drizzle. We were bundled up with coats, gloves, hats, long johns, and heavy socks, and I still froze. #2 -- You take blankets to sit on so you won't freeze your bottom on the seats. In AZ, you take blankets to sit on so you won't burn your bottom. #3 -- The pitchers wear long sleeves if they're smart and can't pitch as well as they would like to because their hands are FROZEN. I think they're actually relieved when they get pulled from the game because then they can thaw out. #4 The seats are almost empty because only a handful of people are stupid enough to sit outside for 2-3 hours and freeze to death. We lasted until the 7th inning and then left. We were ahead and I think they were probably ready to call the game anyway because it was starting to rain...or snow? I'm sure I will go to another Sky Sox game, but I'll wait until June or July when it's at least 70 degrees, thank you. The ballpark is really quite nice, and I think the team could be fun to watch, if I wasn't so concerned about my feet getting frost bitten!

Celebrating April 15th - Tax Day

Throughout the year, we celebrate various holidays...Christmas, Easter, Halloween, 4th of July, Valentine's Day, Groundhog Day. These days are usually happy, joyous occasions filled with wonderful family traditions. Then there's April 15, Tax Day. How do we celebrate Tax Day? By sharing what little money we have left from the year before with the IRS. Kinda reminds you of Robin Hood in reverse...instead of robbing the rich to give to the poor, the government is robbing the poor to give to the rich-the large corporations-so they can pay for their poor decisions and/or bonuses. I usually don't complain too much about paying taxes. After all, we do live in the greatest country in the world. However, this year I really don't appreciate how my taxes are being spent. That being said, I must reflect on tax preparation day in the Leavitt home. I have used Turbotax for years, so it does alot of my work for me. I still usually manage to spend a good majority of an entire day gathering info. and putting the numbers into the program, and then redoing some part of it before I'm done. Over the years, the program has changed. I miss the little automated persons with the annoying voices explaining where to put my numbers. Now I just have to read...very carefully. If you check the wrong box, then you have to go back and do it all over again. Now that we are older, have fewer deductions, and are mainly self-employed, we usually have to pay instead of getting a refund, so I wait longer to prepare the taxes. Just don't bother me on tax prep day, because I'm usually not in the best of moods. Last Friday was the long awaited day. I waited too long to get started, so I was up until 4 AM doing the stupid taxes. I was in a terrific mood when I went to bed, but at least nobody had to talk to me at 4 AM. So, how am I going to celebrate Tax Day? Maybe I will jump up and down with the realization that I don't have to do this again until next year, or may I will take all of my old herbal tea bags that I don't particularly care for and flush them down the toilet. By the way, even though we are having to pay federal taxes, we are getting a small refund from Colorado...imagine that!

Happy Easter or Merry Christmas???

So just when the rest of the world is celebrating Spring and a renewal of growth and green grass and flowers, here in Colorado we are getting snow and singing Christmas carols. It seems like every Easter, we get a huge snowfall. Yes, I am thankful for the moisture because we desperately need it, but it would be nice if it could come in the form of rain instead of snow. Fortunately, the snow does melt quickly this time of year. We are beginning to see a little green grass and the tulips are poking their heads through the ground in the background, even though it still gets chilly at night. After attending church on Sunday, we had a nice Easter dinner with Paula, Eddie and the girls.

I am grateful that on an Easter morning many years ago, Mary went to the tomb where they had laid Christ's body, only to find the tomb empty. After His tremendous suffering in Gethsemane and on the cross, Jesus Christ had broken the bonds of death and was resurrected as promised. What a glorious day! I am thankful to know that we too can be resurrected, as well as our loved ones who have passed on...what a wonderful reunion we will have!