Otterocity!

Respite Care shares joy and happiness with families and children in Northern Colorado.

Respite Care, Inc. of Fort Collins, Colorado is is a nonprofit organization in Larimer County that provides short-term care for children with developmental disabilities, giving respite to parents and enhancing the quality of life for the entire family. Respite Care believes that a child with a disability is a child first and his or her challenges are secondary.

Today, Respite Care provides programs and services for over 130 families in Larimer County and delivers more than 49,000 hours of care annually. We provide before and after school care, enhancement programs, overnight, vacation and crisis care up to 14-days for families in need.

Each year respite care has an annual fundraiser in November.  This year is their 30th annual Respite Care Holiday Ball.  Come support this great organization.

WIN A FREE CAR!

Purchase your raffle tickets to win a 2012 Honda Civic LX provided by Markley Motors.  Car Raffle will be held at nine o’clock in the evening

To purchase raffle tickets visit:
https://respite.webconnex.com/12raffle

Please Join Us!

Saturday the seventeenth of November two thousand twelve

at six o’clock in the evening

Embassy Suites Loveland | Grand Ballroom

4705 Clydesdale Parkway

Loveland, Colorado 80538

Reservations

Individual: $150 | Couple: $300 |

For tickets please register at:
www.respitecareinc.org
or call 970.207.9435

Respite care shows Otterocity in bringing joy to others. Keep up the great work!

If you did not see theToday show about the baby Sea Otter found on the coast of California and taken to the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, check it out. It is a heat-warming story of these endangered animals.

Today Show: Shedd Aquarium Otter

Kayucos is a ten-week-old baby sea otter that was rescued from Southern California and sent to the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. She waighs roughly 13 pounds. The aquarium specializes in raising sea otters, since it started caring for otters caught in the aftermath of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spil.


Check out this other Shedd Aquarium Otter Video:

The Shed Aquarium has Otterocity

and the workers there

bring a joyful spirit to . . . Otters!

When I left for work this morning a brilliant sunrise greeted me:

It told me:

"Have a joyful day!"

I walked out of the coffee shop yesterday and saw this awesome green car parked out front. I thought, "Cool! What a neat car! How much fun would that be to drive around in this the whole day?" Next I decided thatwould be a good blog post for Otterocity so I snapped a few pictures.

If you find want to add some fun, joy, or happiness to your life, go buy, rent, or see if you can borrow a fun car like this one and drive it around for the day! It is a guaranteed way to attract some attention and add a bit of Otterocity to your life. If you don't have a car like this at your disposal, then find a local collectors or vintage car show and snap some good photos!

I am sure the people who drive this car have a lot of fun cruising around town.

Have Otterociy!
Drive a fun car!

Last week I was talking about different kinds of food with some co-workers and someone mentioned the massive cinnamon rolls at Vern's outside of LaPorte, Colorado.  For several days, the giant pastry in my mind was begging me to consume it.

So, here I was playing Mr. Mom this past weekend and I decided to take my two daughters for a little drive to Vern's.  It had been a long time since I was there last. The place hasn't changed much.  When you walk into the Western themed restaurant you are met with a, "Please Seat Yourself" sign and mounted and stuffed animals hanging all about the wooden paneling. On the far wall, near the kitcen, was an old style telephone/telegraph machine.

We sat down at a table near the window and was pleasantly greeted by the wait staff.  She had a multi-colored shirts and smile on her faces. I looked around and everyone who worked there seemed to have the same joyful attitude. It was a real down-home atmosphere.  We ordered drinks, a giant cinnamon roll, hashbrowns and a side of bacon and in no less than five minutes everything was on our table, hot and fresh. When we were done, we paid and walked around the gift shop and visited the back counter of their bakery.  I was really tempted to take a dozen cinnamon rolls home with me, but I resisted the urge.

So, if you are ever in Northern Colorado and want to go somewhere where the people enjoy thier job, and serve great home-cooking in a friendly atmosphere, then visit Vern's.

Their cinnamon rolls will bring

joy and happiness to your life! 

I decided to grab a quick salad at McDonalds yesterday afternoon. I pulled up to the sign, ordered my chicken bacon ranch salad and a water and pulled around to the first window.

I was behind a metallic grey/brown Chevy Tahoe and it seemed to take her a while to pay.  I was in no hurry, so I didn't think anything of it. (I was just chilling to music.) I pulled forward to pay and handed the man my debit card.

"You don't have to pay!" said the man.

"What?"

"You don't have to pay, the lady in front of you bought your meal."

"You are joking, right?"

"No, she comes in often and pays for the person behind her."

"Cool!"

Up until then, I was not having a good day. In this one quick moment, my spirits were lifted. I felt a rush of excitment and shock flow through me. I was curious as to who this lady was.  I pulled forward and stuck my head out the window and waived at her.  She looked back through her side mirror and I shouted.

"Thank you!"

"You are welcome!" she replied.

She took her food from the person in the window and drove off.  I never got her name or knew who she was.  She was a person who did random acts of kindness and spread her joy and warmpth to the person in the vehicle behind her.

All that went through my mind the rest of the day was, "That was too cool! I have to do that myself."

Not only is Otterocity about bringing joy to your life. It is about giving to others without the expectation of return. This lady showed me that she truly has Otterocty!

Thank you Tahoe lady! 

Keep showing your Otteroticy!

I have been going to Moxie Java for the last year-and-a-half.  It is where I have spent my mornings writing my forthcoming book titled, Otterocity. I find inspiration by sitting in the corner, listening to my ipod, and sipping my cup of quality joe. On occasion I enjoy watching the young ladies work and seeing the satisfied customers come and go.

Unfortunately, due to an unforseen circumstance, Moxie Java is closing its doors this coming Saturday.  No longer will I, and other Moxieites, be able to get a hot cuppa joe, milky beverage, or iced drink.

I am not writing this because I will no longer be able to get my coffee there. I am writing this because of the people that work at Moxie Java.  Every day for the last 1 1/2 years I have been met with the nicest, friendliest, and happiest staff I know.  They are always smiling, calling you by name, and genuinely interested in the thins going on in your life.  They are professional, courteous, and serve a wicked mocha latte.

What is it about them that makes them so special?

The young ladies at Moxie Java have Otterocity. Otterocity is about bringing a joyful spirit to your life, no matter what happens to you. Even though the staff has known, for the last two or so weeks, the store was closing they didn't waiver on giving a joyful experience to their customers. (Not one single minute.) Each day was met with the same enthusiasm and intensity as the first day I set foot in the establishment. It was their joy and care for what they did that made me come back.

(From left to right)  Jennifer Hunter, "Tia" Peck,
Sarahlynn McIntyre, Emily Henderson, Katie Weant
Isaac (Jennifer's son)
(Not shown) Alycia, Chelsea, Jillian,
Amy, Adina

Owner Jennifer Hunter should be proud for pulling together such a fine crew, instilling her ideals, and providing such great service. Tia, Saralynn, Emily, Katie, Alycia, Chelsea, Jillian, Amy, and Adina must know that it is because of their joy and enthusiasm for what they do that made Moxie Java the best coffee shop around!  They were the ones that provided supreme service and a top notch customer experience!  You all show great Otterocity in your life!

Know this; each and every one of you can take your Otterocity with you! If you believe that you can bring a joyful spirit to your life, in this time of uncertaity, you will find your way and new opportunities will come. Have perseverance, work smart, and your life will be great!

I will miss every one of you, and I hope I run into you in the future. I wish you the best in their future endeavors, wherever that leads you. I will be a sad Saturday when the "JAVA ON" sign reads "JAVA GONE" for good.

Go forward with Otterocity!

You don't need to do anything outlandish in life to have fun.  You can do something simple, like blowing bubbles!

The man in this video is having a good time making giant bubbles on the beach.  The kids are having fun watching the bubbles and popping them. They show the true definition of Otterocity with something as simple as making giant bubbles. They are bringing a joyful spirit to their lives!

Do something fun today!

Go to the beach, the park, or your back yard

 and blow some bubbles!

This is totally cool to watch. This YouTube video, of the 600th Anniversary celebration of the construction of the Astronomical Clock in Prague is lots of fun. It is interesting to see what can be done with lights, and sound, on the side of an old building.

The spirit of Otterocity is bringing a joyful spirit to your life. It is also about having fun. The people who created this must have had a lot of fun. From the sound of it, the people in the square had fun watching it.

Embrace Otteroicty in your life!

Enjoy life. Have Otterocity!

OTTEROCITY (Otter + ocity)

Otter: A small aquatic creatures that, despite their harsh living conditions or being hunted by predators, works hard and enjoys life to the fullest. They are big-hearted and energetic little animals that bring joy and happiness to their lives.

Ocity: Quality of.

Therefore, Otterocity is showing or possessing the qualities of Otters, to bring a joyful spirit to your life.

I dedicate this blog to those who show Otterocity in their lives. I will be on the hunt for people, organizations, groups, artists, writers, entertainers, etc. who display Otterocity in one form or another.

Who do you know that shows Otterocity?

Please e-mail me your story, video, article, poem, song, or link of Otterocity. Or, send me a story, video, article, poem, song, or link of someone you think displays Otterocity. I might just post it here.

I hope you enjoy.

Embrace Otterocity, and bring a joyful spirit to your life!

--T. A. Northburg