Beef Yakisoba / Bandi's Smooth Jazz Sunset

 

Smooth Jazz Guitar BGM

YouTube Channel:  My Space Music Studio

As I had a pound or so of roast beef left in the fridge...

I decided to make beef yakisoba.

It is now my favorite beef and noodle dish to make at home.

When you go to an Asian market...

be sure to look at the Yakisoba bags closely.

Many do not include sauce...

just the noodles.

Always get the sauce with the noodles.

I find this brand to be very delicious and easy to make.

It comes in a three pack set...

and for a normal meal for me...

I will use two packets.

This meal is so simple and quick to make...

that I will be eating it far more often now.

Whenever I make roast beef...

I always make enough to last for several meals afterwards.

I just place the leftovers into the fridge...

and take out whatever amount of beef I wish to consume...

and then slice the meat into thin bite sized pieces...

and add them to any dish I wish.

For this particular meal...

just heat up a wok or large pan...

add about 2 -3 tablespoons of sesame oil to the pan...

and then add the meat slices to lightly sear them...

and then add the noodles and sauce packets.

In less than five minutes...

the meal is ready.

Beef Yakisoba is such a delicious and hearty meal.

You will want to stock up on the Yakisoba...

as they will keep unrefrigerated for months in your panty.

Although you may also use shrimp and or chicken with your noodles...

I found this particular dish to be the absolute best.

From slicing the meat...

and cooking everything up...

it is ready to eat in less than 10 minutes.

If you are a man...

you will want to use two Yakisoba packs...

and about a pound of roast beef.

----------------

As I was typing up this article...

I noticed the sun was just half an hour or so from setting.

So...

I opened up the third deck door in the loft...

I kept playing the above smooth jazz on my computer...

and kept an eye on the clouds for deepening colors...

and I just mellowed out in the computer chair.

As it turned out...

although the sunset was not spectacular...

it had a nice mellow amber and blue to it.

The temperature was somewhere in the 40s F...

and with a very light, but refreshing breeze.

Bandi loves to sit out on the third floor deck to bask in the overall ambiance...

to breathe in the fresh mountain air...

as well as to keep an eye on "her" property. 

I was sitting in the computer chair when I turned around to see Bandi

just enjoying the sunset as she lay on the third deck.

The clouds through the front cathedral windows looked nice.

I went out on to the third deck to enjoy some of the sunset with Bandi.

Bandi was just so mellow and relaxed.

We could hear the smooth jazz out on the third deck...

and it was all so nice.

With the light mountain breeze on my face...

and with Bandi laying there all content...

it all just made me so happy inside.

Bandi was just so happy being on the deck...

as she surveyed "her" kingdom.

After the colors faded...

I just came back in to finish up typing this article.

It is now almost fully dark...

but Bandi is insisting on continuing her enjoyment of the third deck.

Bandi just seems so happy...

so...

I'll just wait until she comes in on her own.

A Sunset Drive To Russ' Place

 

Song:  Willow's Song

Artist:  Aythis

Earlier today...

as sunset was nearing...

I had this strongest craving for a cheese burger.

My favorite place for burgers is in the town of Divide...

which is but 20 - 25 minutes away from home...

and worth the drive...

for they have the absolute best burgers there.

I just put on my music list...

and take a scenic country drive...

which in and of itself...

is one of my great pleasures in life...

just driving and admiring the countryside...

with the wind in my hair...

and singing my heart out.

I had just gotten on the main road towards my destination.

I decided to take the country cutoff in the evening and night hours from now on...

as it is far less crowded...

and as it is winding...

headlights are far less likely to be in my eyes.

I will still use the full scenic route during daylight hours.

Nearing the end of the country cutoff.

I was on the highway...

just less than a mile from my destination...

when I noticed the clouds turning colors...

and so...

I pulled off the highway to take some photos.

I never take beautiful sunsets for granted.

The richness of the colors...

the pure grandeur of a magnificent sunset

 fills me with such happiness that I simply cannot resist them.

Beautiful sunsets are part of life's great simple pleasures.

Always make time for them.

They are part of what makes life so wonderful.

This is Russ' Place in the town of Divide.

They have colored lighting on the outside of their establishment...

which change every few seconds.

The owner understands the importance of colors...

of how it entices people...

and of how it sets the mood for what is to come.

This is just another example of why Russ' Place is my favorite burger place...

and where I will go whenever I get a mad craving for the best burgers around.

This is my go to place for the rest of my life for burgers.

I have simply never tasted better.

I took this photo from inside while seated at my table.

Their outside seating is popular in warmer weather

(Pikes Peak in the background).

My favorite appetizer at Russ' Place is the battered mushrooms.

I tried (for the first time)...

their Double Swiss and Mushroom burger.

It was pure magic on a bun

(They bake their own buns every day).

I used thousand island dressing on it...

and it was so delicious.

This is a man's burger!

They make the absolute best burgers...

and it is but a short country drive from home.

I have found the holy grail of burgerdom. 

Russ' Place is now my place for great burgers...

for the rest of my life.

I then tried their Tiramisù...

which was so surprisingly light...

so supremely tasty...

that I would not have expected it anywhere but in a specialty bakery...

a niche coffee shop...

or a very high end restaurant.

I usually don't like Tiramisù...

but this I loved so much that I will be sure to get more every time I visit Russ' Place.

I loved this dessert so much.

What a delectable delicacy!

And...

it came in a man's sized portion...

and very reasonably priced.

A great quantity of great quality...

I can't ask for more than that.

The motto of Russ' Place...

I understand his flag now  :)

---------

Very few things in life gives me the feeling of great satisfaction

than that which a great meal provides.

And...

with my great hunger sated...

I will now tune up my 12 string...

and begin...

once again...

working on my next cover song

(of which will still take a long time to finish).

What another beautiful day...

just one of so many I have here.

By simplifying your life...

it greatly magnifies all of the magnificent simple pleasures within it.

Leave behind all sorrows...

look forward to the future...

so you may fully live in the now.

Love your life...

or change it.

You only have this one...

so make the most of it.

It is all worth it.

You will never tire of the great happiness which will naturally become the result.

2026 Cripple Creek Ice Festival

 

Song:  Long Train Runnin'

Artists:  The Dobbie Brothers

I went to...

the 2026 Cripple Creek Ice Festival...

at about noon today.

The day was clear and at just a handful of degrees below freezing...

and with but a light wind...

 it was just a perfect day.

I was just expecting a very small venue...

with but a handful of ice sculptures...

and just a couple of street vendors.

However...

I was pleasantly surprised once I got there.

On my way down my mountain towards the main road to the nearby town of Cripple Creek.

I was just down the road from home here.

Still just a short ways from home...

and going down my mountain here.

I was not even halfway down my mountain here.

I was not too far from the main road here.

I was just moments away from the main road.

 I first dropped off my trash at the community center...

and I then went up the main road to Cripple Creek...

which from the main road...

was just four miles away.

I was about halfway to Cripple Creek here.

I parked on an adjacent street and first walked down one part of the main street...

and I then turned around and walked past my entrance point and continued on up

the longer section where most of the vendors and food trucks were.

The ice carvers were still busy working on their ice sculptures.

Judging will take place tomorrow. 

Part way up the street...

they had this free warm up tent...

which had heaters and seats and tables.

The Two Mile High Club had taken a few of the Cripple Creek Donkeys

and set up a petting area for the festival.

The donkeys were very gentle and cute.

I will be visiting them in their winter pasture sometime later.

Almost 20 of them live there in Winter...

and near summer...

they are released in Cripple Creek to freely wander the mountains.

The head lady of this club (I am a member)...

is highly organized and ensures the donkeys are well looked after.

I had come across this Vietnamese food vendor.

She had a very happy disposition...

and I could tell she loved what she did.

I love seeing this in people.

She took pride in her craft...

and in spreading her culture.

But...

it was only after I had spoken to the Vietnamese lady cooking the food

that I decided to try her noodle with chicken and shrimp dish.

I could tell that she had spent a large portion of her life in Vietnam

by her hesitant English and native accent.

I was glad...

for I then knew that her food would be authentic...

and as it would turn out to be...

 so delicious.

It turns out that she is a part time chef at the below restaurant and boutique.

She only cooks from Thursday through Sunday...

and from about noon to four PM.

She only cooks about four dishes on a particular day...

and then switches the dishes every so often...

perhaps by day or by week.

She sometimes cooks Pho...

or a variety of noodle and rice dishes.

But...

so far...

no Banh Mi.

However...

I will be stopping in every so often to eat her delicious food...

and I will pester her to make Banh Mi part of her normal menu items

(I love Banh Mi).

This was their inside seating area.

This lady knows how to cook.

Her sauces and spices were so well balanced with the acidic ingredients.

The pickled veggies added so much to the dish...

as they had just the right amount of vinegar...

so their fresh taste and crunchiness added zest.

Her chicken and shrimp noodle dish was so flavorful.

I felt so happy that I now have some very nearby Vietnamese food...

of which is but a short and pleasant country drive away (15 minutes from home).

I can hardly wait to try her Pho.

I also got a root beer float...

which was also very good.

The lady who owns the boutique...

also cooks Southern Comfort food as part of the menu.

I will also try some of her cooking as well.

I was almost out of the town of Cripple Creek in this photo

(to the left is where the Cripple Creek Donkeys' Winter grazing home is...

and to the right, the road intersects the main road leading back home).

The day was just so perfect...

 I played the above included song all the way home...

as it just matched the buoyant and happy mood I was in...

and yes...

I sang this song all the way home...

with the windows open and with the wind in my hair...

and with my head and body bouncing to the lively rhythm guitar.

I felt so good...

a belly filled with delicious food...

and with the crisp and cold Winter air flowing throughout the car.

This is part of my view from my loft computer station.

Life is just so good here.

_____________

I have some work ahead of me.

But...

I will have to wait for the weather to warm before I can do any outside work.

A few days ago...

high winds ripped up some of my tacked down deck carpeting.

Some of the staples had not held...

and so...

I ordered some much longer and sturdier carpet tacks

so I may hammer them in at selected parts of the deck carpeting.

A few days ago...

the snow was blowing sideways...

and the highway from Divide to Woodland Park...

and from Woodland Park to Colorado Springs was closed for a short while...

as ice had formed on certain downhill sections which led to 

multiple car pile ups.

Whenever the roads get icy...

I just stay home.

It is a rare event though...

as the snow usually just compacts.

But...

when it snows...

and then the sun melts it...

and then the temperature suddenly drops soon afterwards...

that is when the roads can get icy.

But...

life is all good here at home.

If I had to...

I could easily stay at home without ever having to go food shopping

for a couple of years if forced to by any emergency.

I have hundreds of pounds of stored dry foods and frozen meats and such...

as well as dehydrated veggies and sprout seeds...

so I could ride out any emergency...

and do so in complete comfort and safety.