The Mayor's Spirit of the Springs

This looks like a good time! From the website:

OC meet?

Is anyone else here going? We could make it a mini-OC Meet.

I'm deciding on whether or not to carry a sack lunch/dinner in my hydration bag or if I should skip my bag and carry a water bottle and a portable chair or stool and stand in line at the concessions.

The weather's looking up! "Mostly cloudy. Patchy fog early in the morning. Slight chance of thunderstorms late in the morning. Chance of rain showers and slight chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs 69 to 77. Light winds becoming south 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation 30 percent."

I should probably bring a poncho, just in case.

Naturally, a video would be appropriate!



^^^ Click to see the video of everyone running in sheer terror at the sight of a lawfully-armed citizen...

Me and The Bird:

I would've loved to have been there, but I'm in the process of renovating a condo the wife and I found at a good price. It's occupying pretty much every hour I have outside of work and sleep.

Great Event!

I arrived on scene and headed to the nearest table, which was that of C.A.P.S. (community advancing public safety). I wasn't aware they'd been there, but I'd spoken with them a couple of times and and wanted to meet the coordinators in person. They were wonderful!

After about 20 minutes, I moved on in search of food, but the Air Academy Band marched on the scene and played a couple of numbers. Mayor Bach was busy with a couple of televised interviews, and I did find a barbeque stand, so I grabbed a sandwich and was invited to sit next to a couple who'd retired from the Air Force back in the mid-70s. It was interesting catching up with them! Turns out they'd moved to within 2 miles of where I used to live back in the '70s -- we actually knew some of the same people in the town!

They were finished, but were soon replaced by a fellow percussionist who'd been in the Air Force Band a couple of decades ago. He mainly teaches percussion these days and plays in various bands and symphonies.

I finished my own meal, found an ice cream stand and had some black walnut ice cream for the first time in my life before getting my picture taken with The Bird.

Following that, I wandered around for a while, shook hands with Mayor Bach (I'd met him before), and we exchanged pleasantries before I stumbled across a display from the University of Colorado where they teach grade schoolers in a unique manner about match and science. I spent about 20 minutes discussing some of their approaches with the good Dr. who was manning the display. Towards the end she invited me to volunteer with them, as they're in need of volunteers, and my background is well suited to the task.

The event began shutting down, but before leaving I stopped by the C.A.P.S. table for a few minutes to speak with the CSPD Officer in Charge of the Citizens Academy program.

M-Taliesin, I have you to thank for that! I'd applied last year but couldn't attend due to conflicts with work contracts. The Officer and I spoke at length about the program. He remembered my name from last year, and towards the end of our conversation, he encouraged me to apply again, which I did shortly after I arrived home.

All in all, this was a small, but fun event! I hope to see more like this in the future.