While we weren't participating in the many events of the Rolling Hills Stampede, Margy and I managed to find many other fun things with which to fill our time.  In the five days that I was taking up space in her beautiful house, we hiked several different places.  We took her dog, Banjo with us twice. 

Banjo is an enormous Rhodesian Ridgeback.  With her short golden hair, long slim legs and a barrel chest, she is genetically engineered to chase lions for miles and miles across the African grasslands.

It apparently renders her incapable of strolling along an asphalt path for two miles.

The first time out, we walked a few miles down the Greenway, a lovely, shady path along the creek on land that belongs to the Coors family but which is open to the enjoyment of the nature minded public.  It was lovely and everyone, even Banjo, enjoyed it.

But the next day we took her to a very pretty, recently refurbished park around a lake and walked around it.  Banjo had had enough.  She flopped down in the shade of every tree we passed, causing Margy to strain, pull the leash and cajole the big, lazy bitch to move.  Banjo just looked at us as if to say "no, no.  You go on.  I live here, now."

We finally made it around the lake and hoisted her big tired butt into the suburban and brought her home, where she laid on the front hall floor for the next two days.

We went up to the cabin without her.  Jeff inherited a beautiful bit of mountain land with an A frame he and his dad built back in the seventies.  It's a fun, lovely, quiet spot, less than an hour from home.  It would be the perfect getaway to write that novel you always thought you had in you.

Or to go crazy and start tying fishing lures made out of your own hair.

Either way.  Nice place.

We spent a second afternoon in Golden, this time not hiking and sweating in the hot sun but trying on dozens of dresses, skirts and tops in our new favorite little clothing shop.  Margy found a dress for Bill and Jen's wedding and I bought a shirt.  I tried on many dresses but either they didn't look as good on me as I hoped, or they looked good but exactly like a dress I already own.  The shirt is super cool, very pretty, can be worn all year round, casually with jeans or dressed up with jewelry and instead of sky blue like the vast majority of my clothes, it's navy.

So it's a completely new look for me.

I almost did get it in light blue, since that's the only one I could find in my size.

"That color looks great on you!" Margy said. "How many tops do you already have in it?"
"Well, I have a linen tank top, a linen short sleeved shirt, a long sleeved shirt, two dresses and the tunic you saw me in last night.  But they're all summer weight.  I could wear this one in winter."
"Get it."

Then I found one in my size in navy.

I should have gotten them both. 
Mumzy Lang would have.