Never mind milk and cookies, this year leave Santa a chocolate-chip cookie dough cone

The local ice-cream shop is ready for Christmas!

There's something unusual about an ice-cream parlour being not only open in December, but also decorated in such a festive manner. What flavours do we think are a big hit at this time of year? Candy Cane Swirl? Cranberry? Ice-creamy potatoes and gravy? What would you sell if you were an ice-cream purveyor?

Deer on the Porch

This was a few weeks ago, but not an uncommon occurrence

"I opened up my eyes to see
A land of sunny rocks and funny trees
I guess (Yes,) I'm on the moon again
A heavy earth exchange a lighter breeze
Got no coat and got no money
A pair of tennis shoes to last through May
A crater for an outdoor pool
A few good cats to help me pass the day"

Porch by Widespread Panic (a band I've never heard of before)

The deer down here are Mule Deer, not White-Tailed Deer. From my super scientific observation, the Mule Deer have slightly chunkier bodies, big long donkey ears, and of course, no cute white flag tail. To me this gives them a more ungainly and dopier appearance. Which makes them both more and less cute at the same time.

Mr. King, I understand you so much better now.

I think these storm sewers could inhale anything they wanted from us.

I can totally picture a creepy clown lurking under there, can't you?
*Shudder* I know I'll be hovering very far above the toilet seat when peeing for the next little while.

Garbage

One of the stranger notions I have encountered here in lovely Colorado Springs is how one's trash makes it from their house to the landfill and/or recycling depot. Back home, you pay some taxes, and once a week or so, someone shows up and takes your garbage and recycling away. You don't consider it too much, until you have a giant something-or-other that needs to be hauled to the dump.

Here, you have to pay someone yourself to do it. A quick search in Google shows us that you have your choice of no fewer than nine (9!) waste removal companies, ten if you count "Hauling by Steve." So, on our street, Wednesday is garbage day for some people, Thursday for others. Some cans are fetched in the back alley, some in the front lane. Some take recycling, some don't. I still can't wrap my head around it.

Love privatized liquor, not so crazy about privatized waste removal.