French Toast, Academy and Crutches

"You can start with 'I didn't get sent down the escalator in the wheelchair, but I was real close,'" said JG after he asked what I was chucking about.

About 15 seconds prior I was laughing, "there are just so many ways I can start this blog entry."

This morning we ate breakfast and Gunter Toody's - we split a strawberry smoothie and the French toast and the 'Big Rascal' - ham, bacon, sausage, pancake, eggs and hash browns. Then we went to the Air Force Academy - JG has now seen each of the military service's Academies. He was shocked I had never seen a photo of the chapel. It looked like it was going to transform in an F-22 any second.

After a few minutes admiring the beauty of the stained glass and gorgeous mural inside the chapel, we walked to the ledge that was about 50 feet above, looking over the parade field. More than a dozen flights in formation were waiting for something to happen. JG was ready to head back to the car but curiosity got the better of me. "I want to see what happens." 

After the band played the Air Force Song (trivia: the Air Force does not own the Air Force Song, I think we should buy it) a loud horn sounded and all the cadets in flights wearing BDUs (the old-school cammies) and yellow ball caps charged a little hill in the middle of the parade grounds. Then, as they left the ground the other flights, wearing ABUs, were marched towards the band.

Still wearing a leg brace and taking pain meds and really pushing myself, JG had asked a security forces Airman to drive me to our vehicle a few hundred yards away. When JG got into the car he said he had a helped a man in an electric wheelchair up the hill because his batter way dying. This wasn't the first time JG would be pushing a wheelchair today.

We met his friend Tammy for lunch in Denver. We ate at a really good barbecue place. It was fun listening to JG and Tammy talk about the adjustment to being in a relationship with someone who has kids. Tammy is a former lieutenant in the Air Force who worked at the AF Academy after she was force shaped. After we described the excitement on the parade field she said they only "take the hill" five six times a year. (I'd still like to know more about it if anyone would like to leave a comment.)

So then, we went to the nearest Barnes and Noble that was part of an outdoor mall. After we parked in a parking garage we surfaced to a chocolate shop. I got dark chocolate-covered strawberries decorated with white chocolate stripes. JG got the English Toffee covered with dark chocolate and nuts. We spent the next two hours at the bookstore catching up on email from the last few days.

On the way to the airport we passed a gorgeous shopping area - JG wanted to stop and buy a new suitcase as two we had traveled with were on their last legs and there were still a bunch of miscellaneous loose items inside the rental. Lucky for us there was a 50% off luggage sale at Macy's. 

Oh ... we're boarding now for Spokane. I'll finish this later ...