Insult to Injury

Denver -Evan and I drove in last night. We're staying at a hotel with a very strategic location advantage, as it has several things nearby that we don't have in Grand Junction, and tend to enjoy when we are here.

I have been fighting what is becoming a nasty upper respiratory issue since just after Christmas. It was nearly gone during our Chicago trip, but came back with a vengeance after two evenings at work. I go back again on Monday, and if it flares up again I'm headed to Employee Health with some definite concerns about airborne organisms.

I have been trying to beat it (and a periodically nasty sore throat) with over-the counter cold meds, Ibuprofen, and tea with honey. Last night's drive over the mountains left me with pressure in my ears that had taken away a good part of my hearing. It's better today, but not completely gone.

Our primary objective for the trip was to cheer on the Pittsburgh Penguins as they took on the Avalanche this afternoon. It was heartening to see so many Penguins fans at our hotel and riding the light rail to the Pepsi Center. I think that the marketing staff for the Avalanche was kind of perturbed by the sheer numbers of Pens fans in the stands today.

The Pens scored three goals, and each of them were accompanied by quite the roar and applause from their fans, kind of uncharacteristic for an out of town venue but LOTS of fun while it lasted. Listen to the cheers for the Pens' best highlight of the day:



Unfortunately, the Avs scored five times, and the Pens have lost 7 of their last 8 games. I saw some trends today that I found disturbing, most notably the general lack of physical play on both sides. There was only one penalty called relating to on-ice contact the entire game. The Pens' defense appeared anemic at times, and the Pens' two big stars, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, seemed more intent on trying to storm in against two or three defenders, or pass one too many times before a shot. They each scored once, but too little, too late.

It was lots of fun nonetheless, and now we are going to leverage our strategic location to take in some of what Denver has to offer that Grand Junction does not. Most notably, dinner at Benihana, some shopping and movies in the Cherry Creek area this evening, some shopping at Whole Foods tomorrow, and maybe a stop into one of the local Steeler bars to catch some of the game before heading back tomorrow afternoon.

Hopefully the Steelers will enjoy better luck at home against the Chargers tomorrow. In any case, should they win they get the upstart and always-tough Baltimore Ravens next week. Ouch...

Enjoy the rest of your weekend. I will hopefully be able to keep the crud at bay long enough to do the same.