A Final Word On The National Western Stock Show

The National Western Stock Show here in Denver is part-rodeo, part livestock show, part-fair, and features events such as wild west shows, Xtreme dog Shows, draft horse, mule and donkey shows, and even dancing horses. However, the best part for me is to just walk around and look at all the animals, such as the ones in the photograph on the left. Are they alpacas? I think so. We very seldom saw creatures like that running around the South Side of Chicago when I was growing up. The important thing is that they are willing to have their photograph taken, as are most of the animals at the National Western. I suspect they were instructed to do so for the sake of public relations. These guys were in the Itty Bitty Acres area on the first floor of the Hall of Education Building.

I know for a fact that the two animals in the photograph on the right are baby goats. I took their photograph in the Petting Farm, also located in the Itty Bitty Acres area. And in keeping with National Western Stock Show policy, they too were willing to pose for photographs. It was kind of funny when I was there the other day - half the animals were approaching visitors to see if they had food to feed them (sold right at the entrance to the compound) and the other half were just sitting around watching the action, like the two in the photo. No doubt having thousands of young children pet you for 16 days straight can get a little tiring.

I think but am not completely sure that the animal in the foreground of the photograph on the left is a Miniature Zebu, a breed of cattle originating from off the coast of Southern India and also native to Southeast Asia and Africa. Miniature Zebu cattle first appeared in the United States at the Chicago's World Fair of 1893, which was way before my time, but I probably did attend it in a different life. I took this photograph in an area of the Sue Anschutz-Rodgers Livestock Center devoted to this breed, but if it is not really a Miniature Zebu, my bad.

And of course, the photograph on the right is of a sheep and a goat hanging out together back in the Petting Farm. Since there is also a goat in the photo, it cannot technically be called a "sheep shot," but it is damned close. In any case, the stock show runs through this Sunday, and if you have not yet visited it, I strongly recommend you do, despite the cold and snow that is forecast for this weekend. That is called "stock show weather" around here. And if you do go, perhaps you can make a deal to adopt one of those cute goats or Miniature Zebus and take it home to your apartment or condo. However, I would suggest that you wait until after midnight to bring it inside. You know how picky those damn HOAs can be.

A Return Visit To The National Western Stock Show

My friend Mark, sister Susan, and I paid the National Western Stock Show a second visit yesterday afternoon to see some of the things we missed the first time around. When we visited last week, a lot of the participants and their animals had not yet arrived, especially the cattle, and the Sue Anschutz-Rodgers Livestock Center was virtually empty. However, yesterday, the place was filled with people and their animals, and a judging event was taking place at the CoBank Livestock Arena, as seen in the photograph on the left.

Meanwhile, back in the livestock hall (aka the cattle barn), everyone was busy getting their steers ready the show - washing them, vacuuming them, giving them a trim, and God knows what else, as seen in the photograph on the right. As far as I can tell, it takes four people to get a single animal ready to exhibit. Hopefully they don't have to go through all that back on the ranch with their hundreds of heads of cattle. Now THAT could take some time. 

Meanwhile, back on the ground floor of the Hall of Education building, people were working to get their horses ready for competition, too, as seen in the photograph on the left. I am not sure what they have to do to get those horses ready, but it also seems to take three or four people to do it, too. And I must say, they do work hard to keep the floors clean at the National Western, but you still have to watch where you walk to avoid stepping in cow or horse manure. I guess it might be too hard to put diapers on those animals when are inside the building, but perhaps they should try. Just a suggestion.

What I find pretty amazing is walking through the cattle barn and seeing people leading those huge animals down the aisles on a leash, such as in the photograph on the right. I guess if you work with these animals every day, you don't think twice about it. When we first arrived at the Sue Anschutz-Rodgers Livestock Center, there was a long line of cattle being led to the shower areas, where the participants would wash their animals. Besides that, I assume many of those people were leading their animals to the arena where the judging events take place. Also, I suppose they could also just be taking them for a walk, just to give them a little exercise, much like you might do with your dachshund or poodle. Although taking a championship steer for a walk around the neighborhood would certainly draw a bit more attention.

Pray For Snow...

While much of the country is buried under snow, Colorado's snowpack is hitting record lows, and the near-term outlook is not good. I took the photograph on the left last week of the free trolly in Breckenridge, Colorado, which simply says "Pray for Snow" on its destination sign. In addition to ski resorts seeing fewer skiers, affecting all kinds of businesses who depend on those winter visitors for their livelihood, everyone in the state is also worried about the water supply, which relies on the snowpack, and about possible drought conditions and the danger of wildfires this coming spring and summer. 

Breckenridge has indeed received some snow, but not nearly enough. The local weather forecasters are all excited about snow this coming Friday and Saturday, with a trace to an inch in Denver, and perhaps 3 to 6 inches in the mountains, which will help, but probably not that much. Everyone is still clinging to the fact that March and April are the biggest snow months here in Colorado, and it is possible the snowpack might finish the season close to normal. That said, Breckenridge is still a great place to hang out, with or without snow, and so I encourage people to visit this charming mountain town and enjoy all it has to offer.

Watching Live Sports From Across The Globe With Mark

I watched Leeds United play Fulham in a Premier League soccer match this past Saturday morning with my friend Mark, seen in the photograph above wearing his Leeds jersey and magically transported to Elland Road Stadium in Leeds thanks to the wonders of Photoshop. I didn't get to Mark's house until the 75-minute mark of the game, but was in time to see Leeds score a goal and beat Fulham 1-0. We then watched the end of the Tottenham soccer match, seeing Tottenham fall to West Ham 2-1. Tottenham is bad this year, but West Ham is worse, currently in the relegation zone, but still able to beat the Hotspurs. Next, we watched Lens beat Auxerre 1-0 in a Ligue 1 soccer match. Ligue 1, by the way, is the top tier of French soccer. And then we watched the end of a cricket match in South Africa between the Joburg Super Kings and Pretoria Capitals, which Pretoria handily won. Later in the day, here in Denver, the Denver Broncos beat the Buffalo Bills 33-30 to advance to the AFC championship game, although the celebration in Colorado was tempered by the fact that the Bronco's quarterback, Bo Nix, broke his ankle in the final moments of the game. All of this to say that there is a hell of a lot of live sports that can be watched on television these days from all over the world. And evidently there is a big demand for it. The question is whether or not this demand is fueled by sports betting, which now seems to be very popular across the globe. I myself don't see the attraction, since any baseball team I ever root for always seems to lose, and betting money on them would just add to the pain. And I mean you, Chicago White Sox!

Celebrating Our Birthdays With Camille Pissarro!

Today is my 73rd birthday, and yesterday was my sister Susan's birthday (age withheld by request), and so we decided to celebrate these two earthshaking events by taking in The Honest Eye: Camille Pissarro's Impressionism, "the first major U.S. retrospective of Camille Pissarro, "known as the first Impressionist," in 40 years," and currently on display at the Denver Art Museum (The DAM). And yes, that is indeed me posing with Camille in the photograph on the left. Both Susan and I really enjoyed this art exhibit, which features 100 works from 50 museums and private collections from around the world. I was surprised to learn that Pissarro was born in the Danish West Indies to French Jewish parents, moving to Paris in 1855 and becoming not only the "dean of the Impressionist painters," but also a "father figure" not only to the Impressionists but also to the four major Post-Impressionists - Cezanne, Seurat, Gauguin, and van Gogh. 

The DAM did an excellent job in presenting this exhibit, but when we first went into the gallery, it was extremely crowded. And I think this was because each visitor was given an audio guide as they entered, resulting in everyone viewing and listening to a narration about the same painting as everyone else as they went through the gallery. Talk about a major traffic jam. Susan and I did not use the audio guides and so were able to maneuver back and forth among the art works instead of bunched together with the 200 others moving in a tight group from one painting to the other. As we progressed further into the exhibit, things seemed to open up, as seen in the photograph on the right. No doubt after a while many people just decided to say the hell with it, forget the audio guide, and simply looked at the art. This exhibit will be at the DAM through February 8th, and I highly recommend seeing it. I would also highly recommend seeing it on a weekday, unless you love big crowds. Although who doesn't?

My Sister Susan's Birthday!

Today is my sister Susan's birthday. She has now reached the point where she can't believe she is as old as she is, an age which I will not reveal in this blog post, except to say that I myself am much younger. Much younger. Years ago, Susan, her late husband George, and I would go to Santa Fe, New Mexico each year for Thanksgiving. Susan and George would spend the week down there, while I would drive down from Denver on Thanksgiving Day and join them for a turkey dinner at La Casa Sena, which was located in an historic building in a courtyard right across the street from St. Francis Cathedral. The following day we would walk around that historic city, and wind up on a hillside overlooking the area, which is where I took the photograph above of Susan feeling that Santa Fe vibe. And that night, we would walk around Santa Fe Plaza, where luminaries would be set up along all the walkways - a really wonderful experience. In any case, Happy Birthday Susan! And yes! You are indeed that old!

A Big Day For The Denver Broncos

Today the Denver Broncos are hosting their first home playoff game since 2016, the year the Broncos won the Super Bowl. After that win, quarterback Peyton Manning retired, and the Broncos did not return to the playoffs until last year as a wildcard team, losing to the Buffalo Bills by a score of 31-7. And this year, as the AFC's No. 1 seed, they will be playing - get ready for it - the Buffalo Bills. The local news has been all over this story, and everyone in the state seems to be on pins and needles, waiting for the game. People here are obsessed about the Broncos. They talk about them all year long, rehashing the season, discussing possible draft picks, following the training camps, you name it. Even during the middle of baseball season, the Broncos are usually the main story on the local television sports broadcasts. Of course, now the whole town is in the grip of Super Bowl fever. And as you can see in the photograph on the left, Denver's Larimer Square is well into the spirit of things, with Broncos jersey banners for every player hanging over the street and other banners urging the team to "climb higher."

And as the sun begins to set over Empower Field at Mile High this afternoon, will fans here in Denver be celebrating, or will there be "no joy in Mudville"? The Broncos and second year quarterback Bo Nix finished 1st in the AFC West, but I read somewhere that most of the teams they faced this year had key players missing. And Josh Allen, the Bills quarterback, is one of the best in the NFL. I am a baseball fan, and do not follow football all that much, except when the Broncos actually make it to the Super Bowl and everyone in the state is required to watch the game. And so I have no idea if they will win or not. But I do hope they win, because the entire state will go into a major depression if they don't. Which will last until the start of next season. And it is so unnerving to walk into a bar and see everyone, even the bartenders, sobbing uncontrollably, for weeks if not months on end. Go Broncos, for God's sake!