I Found a Treasure!

 It's been so cold and snowy the last few days — we wanted to get out for awhile. I suggested we drive to Kiowa, a tiny town 30 miles south of us, and have lunch in one of the two restaurants we've seen there. We enjoyed Kiowa on previous trips. It's reached by partly paved and partly gravel roads which today had a light coating of snow and ice. In Kiowa all the streets have Indian names and it is an attractive town of perhaps 700-800 people, established in the 1800s as a stage stop. Here we are parked in front of the Kiowa Creek Cafe´,

 I made my way back to the women's restroom and in there I was intrigued by this old fashioned style tin, six inches high, used as part of the western decor. Now, here is something I've never done before — I came out and asked the waitress if I could buy the old tin, since it had the Wilson name on it and some cute kitties. She said she'd check with the owner, and a couple of minutes later she presented me with the tin, saying they didn't need it and I could just have it! Wow! I was amazed! We finished up our very good hamburgers and fries, and gave the ladies a super big tip for their great service and for their gift to me. I probably won't put my yarn and thread in there, but will think of something useful for it. I definitely found a treasure in an unexpected place, in the ladies' restroom!

On our drive the road turned west for a few miles and we were treated to the usual prairie view of a long straight road with the Rockies in the distance, only this time everything is covered with snow. The tree lines around here always signify a usually dry-looking creek bed. We're told the water runs under the surface. I assume that sometime in the spring all these gullies start running with water above the ground as well. It would be a pretty sight to see when the trees turn green, but we'll be gone from Colorado too early to see that, I'm guessing.