First impressions of Denver. Yeah, it's flat alright. Pretty much. I mean, there are slopes and hills, but it's no Pittsburgh by any drug-induced imaginings. Maybe mid-Michigan-type slow roll/slopes kind of thing. And yeah, the mountains. Them foothills are right there, and practically glow in the mornings. Quite impressive, whether it's clear or weather-y. And yes, there's been weather. Got to tease the locals about it, too, a bit, which was fun.

Roads. Look at a map, and you can see that except for *downtown*, Denver's a big grid. Straight roads, some freeways, and it's flat. Of course, it's all a giant grid, except when it's not, which is the part that really throws me.

Driving skills, well, it's true that there is a certain advantage to having mostly dry and straight roads -- you can go fast! Assuming the traffic lights aren't mal-timed along your route, of course. And watch for the three cars cruising through after the light turns red at half the intersections... Whee. When it does rain, though, expect clue deficiency on the roads; apparently, stopping distance is not a working concept here. I mean, with low visibility, flash-flooding/standing-water issues, and loss of friction, why leave not keep tailgating in rush hour traffic like we always do, right?

Mexican food. Lots and lots and lots of it. Definitely not Pittsburgh. (Thank God on this count, at least!) This is probably something to do with the nearly 25% Hispanic ethnic composition of the metro area, of course. If we're here awhile, a cc course in conversational/business Espanol might be in order. (Things I never thought I'd take, working for an E.Asia mission agency...)

The compartment is certainly shaping up better than I, at least, had hoped. And a correction is in order: It's not a beige box inside a beige box; it's an eggshell box inside a pale yellow box. Apologies for any ensuing confusion.

Due to our traffic patterns, and the places we know how to get to and from, we've been around the suburbs a lot. Suburbs continue to scare the living nasal fluids out of me. I mean... yeah, just creepy. I mean, Pittsburgh has a lot of stuff close early, but the suburbs... Ghostly. Next task is to find the heart of the city, and turn our faces from the suburbs (yes, we expect the stab in the back...)

However, and this surprises me, Asian foods of various types are much in evidence here. Even in the fast-food genre, there are a couple of options. And there's "WORLD OF SUSHI", which I mistrust, though the name is lots of fun...

Finally, I can say that my job has been meeting my hopes, which is such a pleasant surprise (me = pessimist!) that I can't begin to say how thankful I am. Again, I've been waiting for the other shoe to drop for two weeks now, but nothing... Today's prayers at the start of the workday were for Japan, which was a minor joyous milestone for me. Also set the agenda and ran the meeting for my IT Steering Group, so I felt vaguely managerial (dredged up khakis for the occasion, too!). Didn't exactly run a tight meeting, but we hit the things I wanted to, and covered everything else and then some.

In God we trust. All others, cash on the barrelhead.