Aman in Grand Junction

Cruising the downtown of Grand Junction, I chanced into The Lonely Toy Store where I met Aman. Raised in a 52-passenger school bus as the son of a Rainbow Family, in his teens he grew tired of traveling throughout the U.S. and Mexico and began hitch-hiking around.

A protege of the World Champion Yo-Yo-er, Aman gave a spectacular demonstration which, if you're lucky enough to be in his neighborhood, is worth the stop. 

The store is at 650 Main St. He's a tattooist and has his "parlor" inside the store. Find him on Facebook as: Apex Professional Body Piercing.

The toy store features an eclectic collection of art and objets d'art and is a comfortable space to just hang out.

Western Colorado Center For the Arts - Erin Holscher Almazan

The Center had several shows. Nothing knock yer socks off, but well worth the $3.00 entrance fee.

First up Ms. Erin Holscher Almazan. The ones I photographed were bounded on each side as shown in this first photo. The images were so bland I didn't bother. Curious about how/why they chose to hang them the way they did, I left a message for the Curator, but have yet to hear back.

Discount Tire - Grand Junction, Colorado

My geology being minimal, all I know is it's pale, fractures into polyhedral slabs, some very thin, and takes no prisoners.  

Descending, I could feel the steering getting mushy. At the bottom, in the DOT area, I skipped my usual response -- Let's make coffee! -- and just did it, like brushing my teeth.

A loyal Discount Tire (American Tire in Idaho and other places up there) customer, I've ALWAYS bought their Certificates of road-hazard-protection (RHP). But noooooootttt last time...or so I discovered.

At just under $600.00, the buying experience was a bit traumatic, apparently enough that I just THOUGHT I'd gotten the RHPs. But I've enjoyed the increased traction of the Goodyear Wrangler Trailrunner ATs. 

I often wonder what prompts people to kindness. In this case, my adamance around having bought the RHPs and subsequent chagrin at discovering I HADN'T (sure enough, there on the receipt next to CERTIFICATES was a zero) may have had something to do with it. Maybe our buying history, which goes back decades (ahhhh, databases!), had some influence;  both the 2008 and 2015 Honda FITS have been "shod" by Discount. Still, I was surprised when they said it could be filed under the Manufacturer's Warranty.

There was some magic involved. I bought five certificates at $15.25 each to cover the three from the original purchase, one for the new tire and, I think, one for the one that died. The bill came to $82.92. The tire had to be ordered from Denver and is slated to arrive today; it seems I'm the only one still running fifteen-inch wheels. 

Although we usually buy from the store near us in Albuquerque, I bought the Trailrunners in Anthem, Arizona. Regardless of location, I've been impressed by the salesmens' (they're all men) knowledge and helpfulness. This time I looked 'em up online.

Bruce Halle, founder, alleged to be the wealthiest Arizonan, died last year (2018) at the age of 87. 

The description of his ethics is interesting; and though his politics don't jibe with mine, his customer-oriented attitude was the key to success...and happily, appears to be fully extant.

Thanks Justin and T.J. and, actually, to all at the North Avenue store.

Discount Tire

2820 North Ave

Grand Junction, CO 81501

(970) 242-0444

Colorado National Monument

As everyone knows, National Monuments are special places. Thus, the discovery that I was in the vicinity of Colorado National Monument immediately inspired enthusiasm.

The enthusiasm blossomed into awe as I piddled my way along the rim drive.

Watch for "Monument Drive" as you approach the entrance. It's a local road that parallels the face of the escarpment where you'll see all the "lovely" homes clustered like lice around the canyons' entrances.

Eggbert's odometer recently passed the 200,000 mile mark. And although he's doing fine, maintenance is an ongoing need. I added the Paypal Donate button in the upper right in hopes some of you might have enough to share a bit. Alms, we cried...Alms for the poor.