Sometime during week six, the cadets passed the one quarter mark of their training. One of the cadets is paying attention and mentioned it to the class. Week six was notable for being yelled at, having to do extra PT, and a four mile run on Friday. The academy began filling up with troopers from across the state, preparing for the DNC and everyone is on edge. Jay and another cadet moved to the bomb shelter in the basement, giving up their beds in the dorm for incoming troopers and other security personnel. Being a bomb shelter, cell phones don’t work there and there is no internet connection and it is a lot further to the showers. Jay is in a room with 14 beds (6 bunkbeds). Jay was the first to move in, so he got first pick of the beds and did not pick a bunk bed. This week was more classroom time, no fun driving or shooting guns, etc, and a chance to recover from the trauma received in arrest control. This week while practicing searching each other, some cadets had weapons hidden on their persons. It was an unexpected event. Jay said the first weapon he found, was a knife in the back waist of his guy’s pants, but that wasn’t all. One of the women cadets had a knife hidden under her breast, but the cadet found it. They did get first aid and cpr training and crowd control. Jay liked the crowd control and the instructor, who he said was really fun. After some classroom instruction, they went outside to a staging area and the instructor had some really neat songs that he sang to keep the beat while they ran. The cadets have to run from spot a to spot b, whenever they are outside the building. The crowd control work, among other things, included how to put on your gas mask while behind a protective shield, how to make formations with the shields, like a wedge, and move into a crowd etc. Then they got to practice everything all over again, while another squad threw water balloons at them. They learned how to take turns protecting each other when putting on gas masks under water balloon fire, etc. None of the cadets will have to use these techniques next week during the DNC, but there is concern that the troopers will. In a demonstration the balloons could be filled with urine or caustic solutions, doesn’t that sound nice? Not!

In a session at the end of the week, the Captain was discussing the DNC and how momentous this event was for Denver and the Patrol, etc. He told the cadets, “In 50 years you can look back at this event…. except Printz, because he will be dead, and be able to say you were part of history.” Everyone laughed, and Jay felt that this was a positive joking around with him and was ok with it, because in reality, there are at least 2 other cadets in their 50s and statistically they won’t be the only ones not around to look back in 50 years. So he didn’t take it personally.

Their week of DNC duty started on Friday evening. Security was posted around Camp George West, the night crew was on duty, and life is different. Jay got to come home last night, but had to be back at the Academy early this evening. We had just enough time to get his laundry done and a few chores around the house, and he left right after lunch. Jay is on the night shift, their job will be to secure the entry and perimeter and to gas up and clean the 60 VIP / security cars, which are black tahoes or escalades… some type of SUV. We thought they might be washing the cars, but now it appears it is just refilling the gas tanks and straightening the interior. His work schedule is 10 pm to 6 am. Being in the bomb shelter might help him sleep during the day, with less distractions. Some cadets will be working at the metal detectors at the State Capitol, some will be couriers in unmarked cars and plainclothes, and some will be security at the compound gates. Jay said when he came in tonight, he had to show photo id to his classmates at the gate to get in, per the orders of the Secret Service. Everyone, including the Captain and the Chief, for example, have to show ID. As I have stated previously, CO law enforcement is very concerned about the potential for disruption by dissidents, radicals, terrorists, etc. So they are planning for the worst and hoping for the best. TheTV and media will show the rest of us how the DNC will play out, I’m sure we all hope for a peaceful convention. I wonder if the Republicans have the same concerns for Minneapolis-St. Paul?

Week 5 is up on the Cadet Scrapbook. There is a link on the right column Blogroll. When you look at the driving pictures, note the cadets looking in their mirrors. This is the going backward at 60 mph or in the serpentine pattern that Jay mentioned last week. Troopers don’t turn around when backing up, they just use their mirrors.

So, when you are watching the convention this week, if you see a string of black SUVs escorting people around, you can know that Jay put the gas into at least some of those vehicles the night before.

August continues to be a busy month for me. I have gotten involved in promoting bowling in our community as a Director of the women’s bowling association. We had my first board meeting on Aug 2, then Jacquie arrived the same day. I arranged to host a bowling clinic for women league bowlers up here in Westcliffe. We have one clinic tomorrow, Mon. the 18th, and one Sunday the 24th with a professional bowling coach. I went to Pueblo for the League Secretary’s Meeting on the 13th, and picked up the Westcliffe files. I have arranged a secretary’s meeting here on Wed. the 20th. The Wright Team, Betty Lee and I with the assistance of a sub bowler for JB, came in first place for the summer league which ended Aug 13th. We won first place by 3 pins! It was a very close season. I have presented two articles to the newspaper to try to get more bowlers for the winter leagues and arranged the league meeting for the Monday AM league, Gutter Hussies on the 25th. The Olde Schoolhouse Quilters is having their annual quilt show over Labor Day weekend and we had a meeting last Tuesday and I signed up to help set up and work the show. I plan on putting Grandma Rosie’s quilt in the show. It was on Shirley’s brass bed for years, is cross stitched embroidery and hand quilted and also probably one of my wall hangings. The other quilt group which I belong to, Westcliffe Contemporary Quilters and Fiber Artists is also having a display and boutique on Labor Day weekend and I plan to spend some time with them as well. Western Days is coming up, which is a cowboy music festival in the field near the bowling alley, and I signed Jay and I up to work on Sunday morning, Aug 31st. I’ve left some time for myself to go the music festival and enjoy the music. This past Thursday and Friday, I took the AARP Safe Driving class offered here for the discount on my automobile insurance. I was the youngest person in the class! In addition, I bowl and volunteer at the library weekly. Red Hats meets next Tuesday and we are going to a Tea Room in Canon City.  And I took Jay’s place on the AccountablityCommittee for the Custer County Schools, and their first meeting of the year is Aug 25th. Whew!

The weather here has been rainy for the last three weeks. Tuesday I was up early and caught this ribbon of fog in the valley. The garage is slowly taking shape. Friday a cold front came through, with more rain. I took pictures of the rain clouds over our hill on the way home. Our house is slightly below and to the right of the two white roofs you can see in the distance up on the hill. Jay and I stayed in yesterday, it was cold and rainy. Between Thursday am and today, all the precipitation brought new snow to the Sangres mountains. There had previously only been small streaks of white in a few crevices, now the mountain tops are dusted with snow.

Julia’s school is over for the summer. She took four classes in two sessions. She is now working as a waitress in a sports bar on W. 7th St in Fort Worth, near the Museum District. It is called BoomerJack’s Grill & Bar. Her neighbor works there and recommended Jewls. They will work with her school schedule. This is the first time Jewls has worked in the restaurant business. No reports yet on how she likes it, she was still in training last time we discussed it. She went to Austin this weekend to visit Wallace, Jen and Matt. She drove down with Mike, who used to work at BoomerJack’s and is a friend of the neighbor that recommended her. They played scrabble (see Wallace’s hand), took a nature hike and climb up Mt. Bunnell to an overlook of Austin, and had a nice visit by all reports. Happy Birthday to Rebecca B. also in Austin.

Ted is still not working, but he is gradually getting paid for the work he did in June and July. Not much news on Ted, I see him when he needs money, food, or a ride.

The fall/winter bowling leagues start right after Labor Day. I expect to bowl in at least 3 maybe 4 leagues and as many tournaments as I can. Jacquie reports that she contacted the bowling center near her home and hopes to join the league there. I also hope to get started sewing on some quilt projects starting in September.

Congratulations and Best Wishes to cousin John K. and his fiancee Laura K., who got engaged last weekend. We’re looking forward to the summer ‘09 wedding.

I’m going to describe week 5 in Jay’s words and I remembered the part I forgot on week 4. Sorry, no pictures in this blog.  This week continued accident reconstruction, driving, shooting and arrest control.

TUESDAY: Just got back from driving. It was a hoot. After the precision driving this morning, we did high speed serpentine. The order was to go as fast as you can safely. Well, we hauled ass. After that, we did high speed backing. I didn’t know you could actually back up at 60mph. Because our group was so far ahead of the other groups, we played chase on a closed  in track with obstacles. If you squeal your tires or not shuffle steer, you had to stop where you were for a second or two, giving the other car a chance to catch you. It was really fun.

WEDNESDAY: I shot ok. It was pretty cool. We did close range, medium range, and long range shooting. We learned how to clear clogged guns (miss fires, etc).  At the end of the day, we shot balloons by squad. My squad did well, I was probably in the top 5 or 6. We shot the balloons from 25 yards, a very hard shot with the guns we have. We had a bet with the instructor, who turned out the lights and snuck a shot gun in to shoot his balloons. He lost anyway b/c he didn’t load enough bullets. He was supposed to do 50 push ups, but of course we didn’t make him do it. He had his puppy today who was really cute.

THURSDAY: You missed Mexican hamburgers tonight: it was Monday’s hamburger wrapped in a flour tortilla with last night’s refried beans and Tuesday’s chili.

In Accident Reconstruction classes, the cadets learn how to investigate an accident and figure out what really happened, not what they are told happened or when the victims can’t say. One thing they do, is to drag a sled along the ground to determine the friction on the road. The sled is heavy and a scale, similar to a fish scale (for comparison) is attached to the handle, sled dragged on the ground and a coefficient of friction is obtained. That number goes into a formula which includes the distance of the skid marks and maybe some other math stuff, to obtain the speed the car was going. When they were doing this in week 4, a staff member used the radar gun while the cadets figured out the speed with the sled, skid marks, formulas, etc. The thing that was neat and that I wanted to tell you last week, was that the result the cadets got with their formulas was within one mile per hour of the radar gun. I thought that was really cool. In week 5, the formulas got more complicated, adding the braking capacity of the vehicle and the slope of the road. The cadets will get to make their very own permanent sleds at some time during the academy, which will ride in the trunk of their patrol cars. 

Arrest control is continuing to be a very physically demanding class, with cuts, bruises, swellings, etc. No punches are pulled and sometimes a kick misses the protective pad and connects to a body part. Jay is learning how to find pressure points, which will make the biggest bully collapse and become compliant with the correct pressure applied. I hope the media center updates the scrapbook soon, so we can peak into the classroom.

The CSP is getting ready for the DNC (Democratic National Convention) and only those students (9) who do not live close enough to live at home and attend class, will be staying at the academy for the next two weeks. This week should be regular classes and next weekend the DNC duty begins. Jay is on the washing the VIP cars from midnight to 6 am detail. More about that later.

Let me know if you want to hear this weekly update or if it is too much stuff!

As many of you know, Matt left for UT Austin a single person. When he came home, he arrived with a menagerie of reptiles and a ferret. When he moved to Israel, the reptiles found new homes, and I kept the ferret, Lylah, thinking she would emigrate to Israel after Matt got settled. However, Matt returned from Israel and bought a companion for Lylah…. Lavon. For those of you who have never met ferrets, they have a definite personality, are rambunctious, like to find things and then hide them, are curious and playful, and all around cute. They kind of bounce around when playing and can run very fast. They do have a musky odor, but it’s not oppresive. All in all, they make excellent companions, don’t take up much room or make much noise.

Lavon died in July two years ago and was buried on the grounds of our Pond House in Alba. I had the honor of being with Matt during that sad time. Matt and Lylah carried on, comforting each other and making the transition to a new home in Austin. It is with new sadness, that I must report that Lylah died this morning. Lylah had been sick for a while, if she didn’t eat on a regular schedule, her blood sugar could drop suddenly and she was prone to seizures and extreme lethargy and dehydration. But Matt and his vet had been managing that illness. But last night Lylah began having seizures again and despite the care at the emergency vet overnight and her regular vet this morning, it was clear the seizures weren’t stopping and the decision was made to put Lylah to sleep. Matt was with her, he buried her in his yard in Austin, in a similar manner to Lavon.

Those of us who loved Lylah will miss her and we join Matt in his sorrow at losing a good friend and companion. Ferrets have an average life span of 5 to 7 years of age and rarely live past 11 years even with excellent care. I forgot to ask Matt how old Lylah was, but by my rough calculations she should have been close to 10 years old. Matt took excellent care of her. We love our animal companions, sharing their lives and yet we know without doubt that we will outlive our pets, but the unconditional love is worth the pain at their eventual loss. It doesn’t make it any easier at the time, however. Our thoughts and love are with you tonight Matt. Lylah, we will miss you.

Week four at the Academy was eventful. This was the first week of instruction outside of the classroom (besides PT). The class was divided into thirds each day and rotated through the instruction on T, W, and TH. On Tuesday, Jay’s group had handcuffs and takedowns. The correct technique for applying handcuffs and dealing with persons resisting arrest was the order of the day. It was very physical, lots of scratches and swollen wrists, etc. Everytime the instructor saw an infraction in the way the cuffs were handled, he gave the group 20 pushups. By the end of the day, the class had done 200 pushups, in addition to their regular workouts. But apparently loose handcuffs flying around while trying to restrain someone is very dangerous to the Trooper and his face. Sounds like a good lesson to learn, protect yourself!

Wednesday was driving class. There was one instructor /trooper for each pair of cadets. The troopers drove the cadets around the track first, at high speeds, making sharp turns, showing the cadets what the cars can do and the skill of the well traineed Trooper. Jay thought it was pretty cool. The CSP teaches the troopers to do a style of steering called “shuffle steering“. This webpage describes it, the CSP uses the Bobby Ore Method. I have been practicing what Jay has shown me, and I like it. I figure if the CSP thinks it is a worthwhile technique, it would be good for me too. Jay said the instructor would give them a task to do, they would try it and not do so well, then the instructor would give them the techniques, skills and tips needed, and they could be successful, cut minutes off their times, etc. He liked the driving instruction very much.

Thursday, he bonded with his gun. His previous experience with his gun was to take it apart and clean it, then it got locked up in the armory. Again there were quite a few instructors for the group, all of whom were patient and helpful. Jay’s previous gun experience in NOPD and personally was primarily with revolvers, but the CSP carries .40 caliber automatic weapons. (I just went to the Academy webpages to check on that, and had a good time making the instructor do jumping jacks.) Anyway, by the end of the class Jay was doing well with hitting the target and handling his gun. But this was just the tip of the iceberg, the cadets have 100 hours in firearms training before they are finished.

I’m going to have to take notes when Jay comes home. He told me something interesting this weekend and I asked if I could put it on the blog, and now I can’t remember what it was! If I remember, I’ll add it later. But I am pleased to report that the media staff has been busy and there are now pictures from week one, two and three and week four in the scrapbook. I added the cadet scrapbook link to the Blogroll on the right column also, so you don’t have to go searching for it in the body of the blogs. Now you can play “Where’s Jay?”

Friday was my birthday, and thank you for all the well wishes and birthday songs. Jay brought me a big bouquet of flowers, which I can enjoy all week. Saturday evening we went to a very nice restaurant for dinner. It was Main Street Grill, which I mentioned in the blog about Jacquie’s visit. Our friend, Betty Lee, joined us and her birthday was yesterday. So we had a double celebration and all shared a brownie sundae with a candle in it for dessert. The food was excellent by the way.

We got up early on Sunday and headed in to Cliff Lanes, to help with the certification of the bowling lanes before league play starts. It was really cool, we got to walk on the lanes because the oil had been stripped off, crawled under the pin machines and used levels and several other measuring tools to check the width of the lanes and depths of the gutters back in the pin “pit”, the level of the lanes, depressions, etc in three places along each lane. I think there were 16 different measurements taken on each lane. Thank goodness there are only 8 lanes at our center. There were two minor adjustments to be made, but all 8 lanes were within USBC guidelines. We worked with one of the Directors of the men’s bowling association and his wife, who is a new Director in the women’s bowling association with me. Ted joined us for lunch and then Jay headed back to school.

Sunday night I headed back to Pueblo and B’nai Or. The service for my dad at the end of the Tisha B’Av service was short, basically the three prayers I listed yesterday, but the support of the community was terrific. Marlene S. read along with me, because my voice was not strong enough by myself. If you know me, you can imagine. Jay and I recently made a donation to the Wet Mountain Valley Medical Clinic and purchased a brick engraved in memory of Dad, which is mounted on their Wall of Honor. Have a good week!

 May his memory be a blessing.

Today is the one year anniversary of my father’s death, in Judaism it is usually referred to as the Yarzheit, a yiddish word used for the anniversary of a person’s death. Today also happens to be Tisha B’Av, a Jewish holiday commemorating the destruction of the Temple in Jerusualem. Our synagogue, B’nai Or, is having a service for Tisha B’Av and is also recognizing my dad’s yarzheit. I’d like to share the prayers that have been prepared for this service, because I find them to be beautiful and meaningful.

YIZKOR   11 MONTHS

Our first remembrance is our parents’ hands: the tactile sensations of being held,
Cradled, cherished – comforted in their love.
Our parents’ hands were always ready to guide us on our first tentative steps;
To catch us before we could fall.
Their hands held ours over the years and reached out to us even before
We reached out to them time and again, and now-
As we reach out we realize that we were never truly orphaned.
The Holy One of Blessing still connects our hands to our parents’ hands in death as in
life, Just as the Holy One of Blessing has always done, generation after generation
So that in reaching out we touch the hands of our parents, grandparents,
great grandparents  – a continual chain of all who have gone before us
And we realize that we too are a link in that chain, connecting the memory of our loved
ones who have gone before us with all who have yet to come.

PRAYER

Adonai, today is a day of memories for me, a day of great sorrow and of hope.
I still feel a sense of loss at the absence of my beloved parent
Who gave me the gift of life and guided me along its early paths.
As I remember the events of his life, I am grateful to you, Holy One of Blessing,
For having given to me such a good parent.
I take delight in the memories of the good times we shared even as I recall
The tears on that day of death.

My parents were my most important teachers, and my father’s last lesson for me
Was about how to find peace with You.
May this prayerful remembrance make me diligent in living a good and holy life.
On this anniversary I celebrate his life and, as part of life’s eternal web,
I feel the presence of my parent beside me now,
Just as I experience Your Divine Presence.

Adonai, Hanun v Rachun, may my parent and all the holy dead live forever
In the splendor of Your divine light and life. And let us say Amen.

FINAL PRAYER

God of Compassion, grant perfect peace in Your Sheltering Presence among the holy and pure who shine in the brightness of the firmament, to the soul of Paul Doyle, who has gone to his eternal rest. God of Compassion, remember his worthy deeds in the land of the living. May his soul be bound up in the bond of everlasting life. May God be his inheritance. May he rest in peace. Amen

I am very thankful for the community of friends at B’nai Or, for my siblings, their spouses and children and my Mom, and for Jay, Wallace, Jen, Matt, Julia and Ted. Together you brighten my life and bring meaning to my days, especially days such as today. Thank you.

I don’t have the provenance of all these prayers, one is from The Jewish Travelers Prayerbook, one is a traditional blessing, and one was sent to Marlene S, of B’nai Or, and adapted by her. If I get further details, so I can give credit to the authors, I will update this blog.

Jacquie arrived on Aug 2nd, Saturday afternoon. On our way back to Westcliffe, we ran a few errands, particularly looking for a storage case for the gun cleaning kit that Jay received at the academy. We finally found the perfect case at Michael’s in the art department. We had a lovely dinner at Red Robin restaurant, a first for all of us. It’s always good to try new places. It was late when we got home, so we settled in for the night and got ready for Sunday. We met Ted in town for lunch and then Jay left to return to the Academy. It was a short visit with Jay, but Jacquie got to hear some of his stories first hand. Jacquie and I visited the craft fair benefitting the library and then headed home.

Monday was bowling with the ladies in the morning. We picked Ted up at his house and fed him breakfast at the bowling center, he borrowed some money and was on his way. After lunch with the ladies, Jacquie and I headed to Bishop’s Castle and then to the Royal Gorge, our usual tourist stops. Jacquie wasn’t sure why we went to Bishop’s Castle until she saw it. It is impressive and continues to grow, as Mr. Bishop continues to work on it. He is building the dungeon now. Jacquie was very brave walking through it, as she sometimes has a fear of heights.

Tuesday we visited some sights that I had not been to before. We went to Seven Falls, which is a waterfall in South Cheyenne Canyon Park. It was a nice waterfall, the interpretive materials were very good, the setting was great. It is lit up at night, which we did not see, and there are hiking trails around, which we did not take, so a younger crowd could have been more up close and personal to the waterfalls, but we had a good time. We brought a picnic lunch, but it started raining, so we ate in the car. We have had rain almost every afternoon for two weeks. It almost feels like the Pacific Northwest around here. After Seven Falls, we went to Garden of the Gods Park, and started at the Interpretive center. We saw a short movie about how the rock formations were created and how the area was used by Native Americans and the pioneers of the west. We drove through the park and were awed by the massive rocks and the nature of the park. We drove through some heavy rains on our way home, and I was about ready to head home for a grilled cheese sandwich, but by the time we got to Florence, the sun was shining, so we had dinner at Main Street Grill and Bakery and then home to visit the puppies.

Wednesday was an In Town day. I had League bowling, then we had lunch at Poague’s. Ted stopped in while I was bowling for his usual breakfast. He rode a bike from his friend’s house on the other side of town, just to come visit and eat. While I was shelving books in the library, Jacquie did the tourist thing and visited the shops on Main Street. I got my hair cut, then we visitedWells Fargo Bank to visit Jay’s former co-workers. We ended the day back at the bowling alley, where I met with the manager, Linda, to discuss plans for our fall leagues and promotions to entice more bowlers to join. We had a nice, though not necessarily low cal, dinner of wine, home made guacamole,  and cheese, bean, and black olive nachos, with chocolate for dessert. I made a cd of all of the pictures Jacquie took, she has an interest in nature, so there were many pictures of mountains, rocks, hummingbirds, critters, etc, as well as more pictures of our travels.

PS Ted is on a step above me, he hasn’t grown THAT much! We were off early on Thursday to catch an 11 am flight to DFW. Despite more rain, we made good time and Jacquie’s flight to Dallas was uneventful. We had a good time with Jacquie here and she had a good time with us, although she did seem to have some difficulty with the altitude and catching her breath.

I spoke to Maggie, my sister in law, on Thursday evening. She provided the following testimonial: “We enjoy looking at the pictures on the blog, but the pictures don’t do justice to the reality. Everyone should come and see for themselves how majestic and grand the view is.” Jay and I couldn’t agree more, we love having company… so what are you waiting for? Come on up!