Beep. We’ve Found Metal

We caught the treasure hunting bug from a friend who had collected civil War shell casings and other miscellaneous finds. The metal detector was a gift four years ago and my honey has never used it. We decided to test our luck maybe finding odd change at the community park.

We set out once we figured out the settings and set it for neutral, the ground. I carried the trowel for digging and my honey wielded the detector.

“Shouldn’t this be longer? I’m all hunched over.”

We spend three minutes finding and adjusting the telescoping rod.

Beep. Beep. I was excited. Treasure waited. The towel sank into the soft earth. I scooped up a bottle cap. Granted the cap was old, corroded and filled with dirt, but not the kind of treasure I expected.

In six-inch swaths we worked. My honey ran the detector over the bleachers just to test the sensitivity. Thirty minutes and we found three bottle caps, two pop tops and a random length of wire. We turned off the detector and walked back. My honey found $0.11 in the parking lot without even trying. Like other treasure hunters we aren’t giving up.

THE END

Half-Naked Hiking

Ever feel the need to use romance as a form of protest?

We were protesting conformity when we went hiking on a Wednesday afternoon in bathing suits. Those serious hikers we met wearing their boots, khakis, bush hats and frame packs for a day hike looked askance at us. The two women in the group sneered at my bikini. “The sun is hot, you’ll get burned.”

I’m just snippety enough to suggest jealousy. On occasion I enjoy exposing extensive portions of my skin for the sake of good ol’ fashioned reckless sun worship. When I’m in just such a mood, I tend to not follow along with the unspoken rules created by enthusiasts of a sport.

I’m certainly not pretending I eschew the use of proper precautions like sunscreen, instead I believe sometimes the view even in majestic nature is infinitely better when not fully clothed. I dare to suggest with the right partner, the right time and the right choice of trail, hiking in a bathing suit (yup better with a skimpy bikini) is romantic. Our choice of trail was described in the brochure as ‘steep, strenuous, exposed with little shade’.

Park rangers and other safety professionals offer support and advice to make sure hikers stay safe whatever the choice of hike. We are responsible and carry enough water, wear sunscreen, take along a change of clothing and some food. My honey and I live by an additional caveat; life and love are serious, sometimes we make an effort to be silly and spontaneous. Even so, we know our bodies’ limits while enjoying pleasure of skin and flesh.

THE END

Kissing Bridges

The bridge curved above the rapids of the rafting park. Water gurgled against rocks and over the dam. Rain splattered against my midnight blue umbrella and sparkled in the aura around glowing lamps. Night curtained LoDo with a black velvet backdrop for the frenetic colors and sounds created by the energy from the trendy bars in the art’s district.

Parking fills early and the simplest way to navigate in the area is by public transport or a stroll. We had made our way along the sidewalks and paths to the bridge through the park (before the 11pm curfew) headed home. A group of teens practiced acrobatic jumps and scurrying on the rocks.

I’d only once before felt a similar romantic moment. We stood still. I felt transported to Paris in a warm drizzle and pulled the umbrella a little closer for privacy. Nature beckoned. My honey was with me. I offered an invitation. My honey kissed me long, tender, matched the mood.

Always be ready to take the time when a random moment just becomes a romantic moment.

THE END

Classifying an Enviro-Friendly Date

My honey and I have been asked one question on a semi-frequent basis. “How do you decide what is an eco-friendly date?” Our answer is simple; we have four parameters we judge.

What would make IT romantic? – Sometimes just chatting about the experience is enough of a connection, but we like to share the experience, maybe hold hands, get a chance to say ‘I love you’, sneak a smooch and just know we can reach out and touch if we like.

In the many shades of green, is IT sustainable or can IT be made more environmentally friendly? While I prefer non-motorized, high action sports and events, my honey enjoys horsepower of the non-four-legged kind. We compromise because awareness and innovation are great companions in all aspects of life. To eschew all pleasures for a cause leads to frigid (yes we mean cold) fundamentalism. Happy people spawn invention and creative thought. We would encourage anyone to enjoy any sport as long as you consider the impact and think of possible ways to make it better for the future.

Will IT be something to hold our interest over time? Will we do IT more than once? This might qualify as a two-for in our parameters. We have tried activities that aren’t for us with rented equipment, just to see if we might like the activity. We consider this the best way to start something new instead of buying all the latest gear and then deciding we’d made a poor investment. Most often we try out a sport or activity and then we try to scrounge the equipment. If that fails, we purchase used at yard sales or second-hand stores. Since my honey is an experimenter he loves to design, repair and retrofit (the hobby feeds the romance).

Is IT able to be enjoyed by individuals with different skill levels and abilities? Activities we enjoy in our twenties should be adaptable for our sunshine years. We believe grit leads to gratification and we want a lifetime of romance and activities in agreement with our ideals.

No matter what an individual’s commitment to being environmentally conscious, activities can be adapted for romance and to be environmentally friendly. If you are passionate about an activity, find a way to share it with someone you care about and impress that person with your concern for the future too. Happy dating.

The End

Ideas for Hybrid Love and Environmentally Conscious Dates

This list of ideas ranges from personal heart thumping to the ooh-aah feeling invoked by social responsibility. Not only should these ideas pump the heart but satisfy the green conscience. For those who prefer a real thrill of adrenaline rush maybe the additive effect of doing multiple of these activities at the same time will suffice or convince your date to accompany you on a challenge.

Kissing and snuggling – no matter where done, the thrill entices and the environment unharmed

Massage – find a favorite massage oil (almond is my personal favorite) and let the fingers soothe

Reading aloud to each other – the choice of reading material leads to romance unknown (for a decadent daily treat try reading in bed for a few minutes each night)

Kissing Tag and Scavenger Hunts – games recalled from youth can be updated with romantic and environmental themes

Cooking Together or Picnicking – who can resist the urge to feed the need for romance

Hiking and walking – for all skill levels from a nature path in the city or to the summit of a Fourteener in the Rockies

Tastings (Cheese, Wine, Olive Oil) – feed the mind, feed the palate, share your thoughts

Cleaning or Shared Chores – so maybe duties and responsibilities aren’t inherently romantic, but having someone to share them with and make it a game or race does make the chores easier.

Canoeing – in solitary, with paddles and silence enough to hear the ripple of the water when a fish splashes

Photography – whether you want to be the model or try your hand at nature photography, bone up on the basics by reading a photography magazine. Some people earn extra income from photos.

Tours - Maybe visiting an organic farm or touring a factory. Might even include adventure or green vacation packages or guided sports, the activity level is easy to personalize.

Shared Learning – geared to personal interests whether you’d like to learn more about renewable energy or take a yoga class. Learning together means sharing thoughts aloud and having something to talk about later.

Volunteering – have you always wanted to participate in trail maintenance or clean up (my favorite site is Volunteer.gov – many of these opportunities are longer duration)

THE END

Tubin’ the Creek

Romance must float in particles on the air during the spring. Couples hold hands, kiss in the park and wrap arms around each other for a stroll. The balmy 78° F degrees on a lazy Friday afternoon in May beckoned the adventurous romantics to the creek. Even with the icy water we followed other up the path to the landing to splash our tubes in the river. Thanks to spring runoff the water level rose several inches and swifter water created whitewater for a challenge

We shared the creek with kayakers enjoying the rapids while we made our lazy float downstream. Saying the water was ‘refreshing’ understated how much I needed to warm up in the sun afterward. Hot tea on a warm day didn’t go amiss either. My honey and I dried off in the sun and perched our collapsible loveseat on the bank. From this vantage point we could watch others revel in the urge to splash triggered by spring.

Tubing the creek in itself is eco-friendly, but is the tube? Most are made from either PVC (vinyl) or Neoprene both from petroleum products. I found mine at a used-goods store perhaps keeping it from a landfill. In my teens, I had first dibs on the inner tubes from tractor tires to patch up and use for water sports. We figured this was eco-friendly because we were reusing. Each person must make the decision.

THE END

Crash without a Video Camera

Alternative commuting in one of my favorite exercises; I can run my errands and stay fit. My honey encourages using the bicycle but only tolerates my decision to inline-skate six miles. I understand the concern I might get hurt. We headed to the library on the exercise path. My honey rode the bike and I skated along. We matched for speed and made it a scenic jaunt. We saw rabbits, Canadian geese, stopped at the waterfall, shared a bottle of water in a grove.

The path wound along the creek and into the mountains. I brought running shoes for the possibility the path might become too steep. We were fine until the trip home. I over-rated my skate’s ability to handle speed. The way to minimize getting hurt is to fall correctly.

I fell, rolled and quickly sat up to assess damage. I’m sure the event would have looked amusing on a video. My honey turned back and rode to me to make sure I didn’t need emergency assistance. I wear protective gear and sustained only road rash on my leg, arm and side. Without the wrist guard I might have broken the wrist. And wouldn’t you know when we got to the rest stop, the park rangers asked if we’d be willing to fill out a survey about our experiences in the park that day.

THE END

A Visit to the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL)

The visitors’ center at NREL South Table Mountain Facility in Golden, CO is an excellent starting point for an introduction to renewable energy. Research at this facility has won numerous scientific awards. The interactive exhibits and models provide easily understandable application of principles.

Our visit was educational, but romance is what individuals add to an experience. My honey and I made our experience a real date by talking about each exhibit and discussing what take-back-to-our-lives messages we learned. Whenever an exhibit was hands-on, we took turns and then pitted our brains against each other’s for the quiz at the end. We admit the questions could be answered by attentive elementary school students. We each got one wrong, because we over-thought our answers. We returned to the exhibits to make sure we understood.

Romance is more than snuggles and love; it’s shared experience and learning new things together too. For a similar experience in any area, check local listings for companies specializing in renewable energy (solar, wind, geothermal, hydrogen, biomass, ocean and hydropower). Ask if the company offers tours or workshops. Remember options through the electrical energy supplier as well.

THE END

Pilgrimage to Red Rocks

Mention Red Rocks to most musicians and they’ll conjure a dream of playing at the outdoor amphitheater in Morrison, CO. The acoustics make the venue a natural for music and in the early part of the last century the then owner brought opera singers to the natural setting to perform.

During the 1920s as part of the Civilian Conservation Corps projects, the infrastructure was built by young men who were required to sent home most of their wages to support their families. Before that the area was sacred to the Native Americans and to go into pre-written history at Dinosaur Ridge and view where dinosaurs left tracks and fossils as evidence of having lived in the area.

I felt a chill of entering a sacred place when we drove up the hill and through the arch carved into the rock. We went to the visitors’ center first and enjoyed the video on the history and concerts at Red Rocks. Then we explored the amphitheater. My honey stood on the stage and sang a love song for me while other visitors exercise running the steps or the benches.

In deference to the part of us that requires frequent exercise, we hiked the 1.4mile Trading Post Trail (sometimes it felt like a longer distance). The hike was easy with minimal challenging sections; stone steps made the steep climbs easier and we were careful of loose gravel on stone surfaces. Along the trail we saw evidence of restoration efforts where the trail has been changed to protect the soil and native plants. At one point we shared the trail with two rabbits.

Remember no matter how short the hike, be a responsible hiker and dress appropriately, carry drinking water and stay on marked trails or in areas intended for recreation.

THE END