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Janet Day – Watch for falling rock – no, really, it’s springtime in the Rockies

Janet Day / Talk of the Valley
Fraser Valley, CO Colorado

Welcome to the Weekend: No, this isn’t Monday and the weekend didn’t pass you by without your knowing it. The Talk of the Valley column will now appear on Fridays in the hopes of giving you something to do, something to talk about or something to think about for the weekend and coming week.

Lookout Below! Springtime in the Rockies means sunny and near 60 degrees one day, wind and snow the next. Those changes wreak havoc on the hillsides, often loosening mud, rocks and dead trees to send them tumbling down.

The “Watch for Falling Rock” highway signs used to amuse me by making me wonder what I’m supposed to do if I see one. Duck? But having driven through Glenwood Canyon recently, I’m reminded that it’s no laughing matter. The rock that closed Interstate 70 thrugh the canyon punched a scary-looking SUV-sized hole in the highway.



Berthoud Pass isn’t immune to falling rock. Some may remember the bus accident in the 1980s. I kept thinking about it as I drove to and from Denver this week and watched golf ball- to basketball-sized rocks roll down the hillside near the summit and bounce off the back of the tractor-trailer in front of me. The driver either didn’t notice or didn’t care.

Who’s Here? Ever-thoughtful Eileen Waldow points out that my comments last week about residents leaving the valley didn’t go far enough in pondering the long-term effects. With people moving out, fewer people are filling out the 2010 Census forms that were due yesterday, and that means fewer people are being counted to determine how much federal funding comes our way for the next decade. If you didn’t receive or haven’t returned your form, you can still do so and be counted.



Who’s Still Here? A great way to help local businesses, which in turn helps the entire community, is to adopt the philosophy of the 3/50 Project. Just pick three businesses that you don’t want to see close. Then budget $50 per month to spend with these businesses (overall, not at each business). It can be a restaurant, shop, service provider or any other business.

Project organizers report that if just half the employed population in the U.S. spent $50 each month in locally owned businesses instead of national chains, it would generate $42.6 billion in revenue for the local operations. Grand County’s small business group, Business Without Borders, is supporting the initiative. For more details, go to http://www.3/50project.net.

BWB’s 5th Annual Speed Networking Event is back and it’s a great way to learn about local businesses and spread the word about your own. The event, in which businesses have just a couple minutes to make their pitch to each other, will be held May 19 at Fontenot’s Seafood and Grill from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. For more details, contact info@gcbwb.com.

Art Business: Local artists, are you trying to get images or your work in shape for the summer arts show season and beyond? Attend Monday’s meeting of Art Out of Thin Air, our county’s visual arts group, where Corrine Lively will show you step by step how to bring out the best in your digital images. The group will meet at the Grand Lake Elementary School arts room from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Bring your own images, on a disc or in a camera. For more information, go to artoutofthinair.blogspot.com.

Keep in Touch: What’s got your attention around the area? Let me know. I’ll try to find the answer or spread the news. Send it all to JDayQuilts@msn.com. Follow me and local tidbits at http://www.twitter.com/DayJan or friend me on Facebook.


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