Strasburg Rocks!

Celebrating Strasburg, Colorado, a small, friendly town in the plains east of Denver...

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All the Way from New Zealand!

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Tecsun PL-880 tuning in a ham radio operatorI don’t know how many more Fridays there will be before it is too cold, but Augie and I spent the night in the tent again (and I am not sure who looks forward to or enjoys it more :-)). Although it doesn’t fix it 100%, being away from all the electromagnetic interference in the house means both AM & shortwave listening are better, so I live tweeted what I found again (as I did last week). Reception last night was amazing. I think the best since I started the hobby back up a couple months ago.

Before I put the stream of tweets below, I wanted to share the most exciting part of the evening, tuning in Radio New Zealand International (transmitting from New Zealand). The clip plays a few selections…and at the end has proof it is Radio New Zealand (they do a station id). This morning they had replied back on Twitter (also below) and I actually picked them up again! (Albeit, on another frequency.)

I didn’t get enough sleep last night, but I am still jazzed from all the neat, and often very distant, stations I picked up! Here is what I heard:Continue Reading

Chad and a Duchess

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Chad with Knights of ColumbusAugie and I grabbed breakfast at Taco Bell in Bennett, and on the way back I wanted to snap a picture of whoever was manning the Knights of Columbus Tootsie Roll Drive in front of the Strasburg Convenience Store today to remind people it was going on.

And that was Chad. 🙂

Augie and the DuchessSo you have two chances to help great causes…all day in front of the Strasburg Convenience Store or from 12-6 at Love’s Travel Stop (for the local Cub Scouts).

But Chad wasn’t the only person we ran into at the store…Augie was able to snap a selfie with Byers High School Homecoming Duchess Tailor (my apologies to the Duchess if I spelled it wrong). Congrats to her for being the homecoming duchess, and hopefully all will have a great, safe (that’s the dad in me speaking) time in Byers today!

Riley Young Memorial Service

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I just received this e-mail from the Riley Young Memorial Fund:

Riley Young memorial service

If you click through the image you can donate to the fund and read the full message about today’s service:

A memorial service and Celebration of Light will be held for Riley tonight, Friday October 9th at 7:00pm in the Strasburg High School gym. Please join his family, friends and neighbors in honoring his life.

Whether or not you can make it to the there tonight, please continue to remember his family and friends in your prayers.

What I Saw this Week

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Rich Guzzi flyerThe job that allows me to live in the great town of Strasburg means I do have to travel, and I spent the last couple days in Pasadena, California with the management team for our new consolidated department. One of my peers suggested we catch a comic hypnotist who was in town at the same time. I entered The Ice House Comedy Club not knowing who I was going to see only to find out that one of my favorite comedians, Gabriel Iglesias (“Fluffy Guy”) was hosting it (and he did some standup himself).

Alan with Alfred RoblesBut that wasn’t the only good news…the opening act was another tremendously talented comedian, Alfred Robles. I should note two things: (1) I never saw or heard of him before and (2) he was the first standup comedian I saw live.

And he was great…one of the best performances I’ve seen recently. Really impressed. If he isn’t already, he should be headlining.

Now…after Alfred…and after Gabriel (who was also great)…Rich Guzzi took the stage and I’ve got to say, he was an amazing combination of humor, caring, and hypnotic skill. I’ll be up front and say that I had (and still have) concerns with hypnotism (even some religious ones), but if anyone could convince me that there is nothing nefarious with it…Rich is probably the guy. He is either a practiced liar or someone with genuine concern for the participants and who is committed to using hypnotism for positive purposes.Continue Reading

Knights of Columbus Tootsie Roll Drive

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UPDATE: Alan received a reply when he tweeted Tootsie Roll Industries about the local Tootsie Roll Drive:

Mike with Knights of ColumbusAfter Augie and I finished breakfast at The Patio Cafe, we quickly went over to the Strasburg Convenience Store where we met Mike.

There was something strange about Mike. Maybe it was the large, warm smile on a cold, cloudy day. Maybe it was the bright yellow vest with huge red lettering. Maybe it was the unsolicited offer of Tootsie Rolls. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it…

🙂

Mike is a Knights of Columbus volunteer for the annual Tootsie Roll Drive to help people with intellectual disabilities. Someone from the group will be in front of the Strasburg Convenience Store from 7AM-5PM every Saturday in October. All funds raised will remain within the corridor (Bennet to Agate).

Kudos to Mike and the Knight of Columbus for their good work…and to the Strasburg Convenience Store for letting them stand out front!

Late Night DXing/SWLing

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Kaito KA1103Kaito KA1103 at nightLast night’s backyard camping excursion with Augie gave me an opportunity to do some shortwave and long distance listening on my Kaito KA1103 hooked to a Sangean ANT-60 antenna. I live tweeted what I found:

https://twitter.com/AlanCult/status/650159245741158400

https://twitter.com/AlanCult/status/650160398457536512
Continue Reading

Cub Scouts Popcorn Schedule

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Cub Scouts selling popcorn in front of Hank's HardwareStill don’t have your Cub Scouts popcorn?! You haven’t missed out! Here is where they’ll be the next couple weeks:

Now…if you can’t make it in person, you can still order online through Bear Scout Augie.

P.S. Thanks to all the business who have supported the Pack by allowing the to sell in front of their establishment. (The picture in this post is in front of Hank’s Hardware.)

Happy Friday! (Thanks Strasburg Convenience Store!)

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Happy Friday everyone! I worked from home today…which means I started by dropping the munchkin off at school…worked a little…and then had lunch with the greatest company ever…

My beautiful wife Michelle!

Strasburg Rocks! MugsI’m a big fan of the Strasburg Convenience Store‘s sandwiches (and it’s relatively close to where I live), so that’s where we buzzed over to…and guess what we saw?

These!

Thanks to Gary, the store’s manager, for being willing to carry Strasburg Rocks! 15 oz. Mugs! (I should also mention that he is selling them at almost $3 less than they cost in our Zazzle store.) If they do well we may come up with some other merchandise to help us celebrate this great town we live in.Continue Reading

On a Bicycle Ride to Byers (FIRE!)

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Fire equipmentOne of the greatest appeals of Strasburg is its small town nature…but contrary to what some people think, small town does not equal boring. 🙂 Today I decided to be more ambitious with my bicycle ride and visit downtown Byers (about a 12 mile round trip I figured). However, a bit west of Byers I had to stop to call 911 for two brush fires…a small one where I was and a larger one back even further west that I could see. Here’s a video I grabbed riding back to the second one:

Although I had been near both of the brush fires, I didn’t know what caused them…and chatting quickly with one of the firefighters…found out that they are pretty common, caused by someone driving a vehicle dragging something that creates sparks. Makes me very appreciative of our local fire departments.

Continuing back to Strasburg I passed a third one…so assuming it was a car or truck throwing sparks, it caused a bit of local havoc. Stay safe folks, and make sure nothing metal is ever dragging from you vehicle driving around our area. 🙂

P.S. Not bad video wise riding uphill and holding an iPhone 6 Plus with one hand, eh? 🙂

P.P.S. In case you are interested, a few more picture. Not sure what happened…I thought I had snapped pictures of the first fire I saw…but didn’t have any on my iPhone or cameras.

Popcorn!!! Translation: Support Your Local Cub Scout Troop :-)

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Cub Scouts selling popcorn in front of Hank's HardwareIt’s that time of year again…time to satisfy that natural, healthy urge for popcorn…

And not just any popcorn…Cub Scout popcorn! 🙂

Although we’ll try to post where they are selling here on Strasburg Rocks! or our Facebook Page, you can also order on-line by visiting Bear Cub Augie’s popcorn page. Yes, that means Augie will get the credit but (a) there does not appear to be a generic link for his pack and (b) he really is a great kid…and I’m not just saying that ’cause I am his dad. 🙂

So, please support your local Cub Scout Pack by buying popcorn from them in person or on-line…and don’t forget to like their page on Facebook.Continue Reading

Seal Training Begins!

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Augie aiming a rifleAugie learned to fire a rifle today thanks to the training and mentorship of our good friend Leo. Sadly, I messed up recording his first shot, but did get his second one…and his first use of a pistol. Another advantage to living in Strasburg…you don’t have to go to a firing range for target practice!

R.I.P. Mosquito and Happy Retirement Galaxy Gold

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Estes MosquitoAs promised, below is a video from yesterday’s Strasburg Rocks! Rocket Club rocket launches. Sadly, we had two casualties…

The Estes Galaxy Gold (first rocket fired off) popped its bottom off when the charge for the parachute exploded. With a little glue to make it whole, the Galaxy Gold will start retirement after a short career (this one flight).  Also…and I didn’t get a video of it (operator error on my part)…but the Estes Mosquito was never found (it is what is pictured on the launchpad in this post). My friend Leo and I watched its flight very closely, but never saw it return to earth. I suppose it is more M.I.A. then R.I.P. 🙂

The Estes Mosquito is a classic rocket…basically a way to stick fins to an engine. 🙂 I’m sure we’ll buy another one.

It wasn’t all bad news (and the Galaxy Gold’s flight was kind of cool even with its permanent injury); the Estes Summit and the Galaxy Planet Probe both returned to earth unharmed. The Planet Probe is the last one in the video…it’s become one of my favorites. (It is meant to use an engine without a parachute charge, but I didn’t have any…so as it approaches the ground you’ll see the Estes C6-5 engine suddenly slow it down a tiny bit.) Without further ado, the video:Continue Reading

The Alan Zone

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Alan looking at you...Doing some shameless personal self-promotion here…

I just threw up a new web site that aggregates some of my other sites (including Strasburg Rocks! Check it out?:

The Alan Zone

Also, if you live in Strasburg (or one of the close towns), please friend me on Facebook. It is good to stay in touch with neighbors!

Who Would Have Thunk…?

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Airplane overheadLate this afternoon, I headed over to a friends to fire off some model rockets with Augie (I’ll upload a video tomorrow) and we were hanging out afterward. I’ll admit I did not expect to see this in the backyard at his house in Strasburg…

Another reason Strasburg Rocks!

P.S. Be sure to watch through the end…you’ll get to see the plane right overhead as it takes off…

“The Birds” – Strasburg Edition

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Have you ever watched the Alfred Hitchcock movie, “The Birds”?

Did it freak you out?

Then you may want to avoid visiting the Strasburg Convenience Store at dusk in the summer… 🙂

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The sole purpose of Strasburg Rocks! is to celebrate Strasburg, Colorado, a small, friendly town in the plains east of Denver. It does not exist to make money. However, should Strasburg Rocks! produce any net income, it will be donated back to the Strasburg community.

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