It has been a remarkable 10 days. I have survived not only the Colorado Floods but the hotel breakfast buffet. It all started on Friday the 13th. It had been raining for days. We were living up in Estes Park, Colorado in a relative’s vacation home loaned to us while our new home was under construction in Longmont, Colorado. Yep, both places were inundated by the rain and floods.
The cabin we were living in was about 50 feet away from a “brook” which was next to the dirt road we used to get to the main highway, 66. The brook turned into a raging river. The dirt road became its own river, the force of the water ultimately cutting deep gashes in it and toppling century old trees making it impassable. The noise from the rush of the water was deafening. There was no road out.
We then lost electricity, water and phone service. At this point we decided we needed to go seek out help and discover our choices for evacuation. We hiked out to the main road only to find the highway was fast eroding and the bridges were being over whelmed by rushing water. It was time to get out.
The escape was made by going up the mountain and using a fire route. The only road out of Estes was Trail Ridge. It is a windy mountain road that takes you up and over the Continental Divide. Quite a trek with two cars, two dogs, a daughter in a wheel chair and what ever we could stuff in the car of our possessions. Turns out I forgot my underwear in the rush to escape!
Several hours later we made it to Denver. Then we started a search for a hotel that was accessible and pet friendly. Many of the roads were closed due to the floods so the first hotel we found it ended up we could not get to. We had to start the search again for another hotel. This was done in the dark on the side of a soggy road.
Finally we found a hotel that would take us in. It was 11 o‘clock at night having started the journey at 3 o’clock in the afternoon. We were all exhausted.
The next morning we were faced with the breakfast buffet included in the price of the room. Buffets are always hard for people like me struggling with weight. At the buffet there are many fattening choices tempting me. Then there is the sinking hole of the “value” proposition: since the food is included you want to make sure to make the most of it. And when you are stressed you tend to go for foods high in carbs like the waffles. I was not so successful the first day. I succumbed to the waffle. But with a good night sleep and a little pre-planning, I faced the buffet with better success.
I started noticing the healthier choices like the fresh omelet station, the fresh fruit and the whole wheat bread for toast. To make it even healthier I asked for spinach, mushroom and onion in my omelet. I did not add cheese. I did add a dollop of corned beef hash, which amounted to two bites. The omelet, toast, fruit and dollop of hash all fit on one plate. I had not only successfully survived the Colorado flood; I had also survived the hotel breakfast buffet.
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