Oktoberfest On South Pearl Street

Oktoberfest celebrations began this past Saturday here in Denver, including both the Highlands Oktoberfest and Oktoberfest on South Pearl Street in the Platt Park neighborhood. I attended both festivals last September but only had time to attend one this year. The Highlands Oktoberfest takes place over a 4 or 5-block section of West 32nd Avenue in that popular neighborhood, and is always fun, while Oktoberfest on South Pearl is on a single block, but well attended and very lively. Since South Pearl Street is only a mile or so away from my condo across the street from the University of Denver, I decided to head there, and really enjoyed it. I noticed last year that many of the people attending were wearing traditional costumes, and it was the same this year, too, as seen in the photograph on the left.

Oktoberfest on South Pearl is sponsored by Platt Park Brewing, which is located on that block, and there were over 10 local craft breweries represented there this year. Not surprisingly, that was where the majority of visitors were hanging out. There was also live music, stein hoisting contests throughout the day, brat eating contests, not to mention costume contests, too, which probably explains so many people wearing lederhosen and dirndls. I took the photograph on the right of the men's brat eating contest (there was a women's contest right afterwards). There was quite a crowd surrounding the event, and so I wound up having to stand in the back, hold the camera up high, and hope for the best. Which turned out to work just fine.

My only complaint was that the music, at least when I was there, was all rock and roll, instead of more traditional German melodies. This is also true of the Oktoberfest on Larimer Street in Denver's Ballpark neighborhood, which will take place the next two weekends. The only Oktoberfest that seems to have exclusively traditional German music is Breckenridge Oktoberfest, which takes place this year September 25th through 27th. However, I was happy to see that Oktoberfest on South Pearl did host some traditional German dancing, which was very nice, even if the music they danced to was recorded and not live. All in all, a fun event to attend. With more to come in the next few weeks.

Back In Denver With Mark And The Colorado Spurs

Yesterday morning I went with my friend Mark, seen in the photograph above, to Esters Pub, located in the Virginia Village neighborhood of Denver, to join the Colorado Spurs in watching Tottenham play Everton in an English Premier League Soccer match. As usual, that Tottenham Hotspur supporters group was very enthusiastic, despite Tottenham currently being in 17th place in the standings. The two teams seemed equally matched, and the game ended in a 0-0 tie. This is the first time I have watched a Tottenham match since last year, when they finished one game away from being relegated to the English Championship League, which would be the equivalent of a major league baseball team being demoted to the AAA division. In other words, not a good thing at all. Tottenham has yet to score a goal during their first four games, but I'm sure they will get one by the time the season ends next May, especially since the team spent 380 million pounds during the off-season to beef up the team. But no matter - it is early in the season. There are still 34 games to go. And on the bright side, if you bet big on Tottenham to win it all and they actually do, you could make a fortune.

The Flight Home

My sister Susan and I flew back to Denver from Stuart, Florida this past Thursday, a fun-filled eight hour and five-minute experience, not counting the drive to President Donald J. Trump International Airport (I still can't believe they did that) and the rather pricey Uber ride from Denver International Airport back to my condo across the street from the University of Denver. The problem, of course, is that there are no direct flights between Denver and West Palm Beach during the summer, and so you have to change planes, either with a long layover or a very short one, desperately trying to get to the opposite end of the airport to make your connection. Frankly, I prefer driving, even if it does take 3 full days to get from Denver to Stuart. Much less pain and stress, and a lot of interesting places to visit along the way, with brewpubs now in almost every town. Perhaps just that happy fact is worth putting 4,000 miles on your car each round trip. It's all how you look at things, right?

A Final Visit To Stuart Beach Before Heading Back To Denver

It has been pretty damn hot and humid here in Stuart this summer, but then again, this is Florida, so what do you expect? The good thing about summer down here is that you do not have to fight the crowds to get a table at a restaurant, or, when visiting places like Palm Beach, having to wait in long lines to cross the drawbridge over Lake Worth in order to get back to reality. But best of all, when you are at Stuart Beach, as seen in the photograph above, or even along the St. Lucie River on the patio at Sailor's Return, you get a breeze off the water that makes August very tolerable. And definitely laid back. Sadly, since the tourists and the snowbirds are afraid to come down to South Florida this time of year, fearing they might melt, there are no festivals or events taking place. There used to be Dancing in the Streets every August here in Stuart, but that is long gone, and don't get me started about that 30-year tradition being killed off back in 2017. But no matter - things will start happening again down here around the end of October, including the 2026 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, the largest in-water boat show in the world. I definitely plan to attend that event and finally pick out my "forever" Superyacht. Can't wait. I am sure I can arrange an affordable payment plan. They are probably desperate for sales.

The September Issue Of Chicago Magazine

As I have mentioned (complained about) several times before on this blog, Chicago Magazine is no longer doing mail subscriptions, only delivering their magazine by newspaper carrier (the magazine is owned by the Chicago Tribune). And so, the only way for me to read it is the e-edition, which is just not the same, but not the end of the world, I suppose. In any case, I checked out the September issue online, and the cover story is "The Case for a Parking Revolt." Back in 2008, Mayor Richard M. Daley and the city council signed rights to 36 thousand parking meters to a group of investors for a term of 75 years for 1.16 billion dollars. So far, those investors have received a return of almost twice its investment, with 57 years still left on the contract, while Chicago faces massive deficits. Understandably, people are still upset about this deal. One local citizen is trying to get people to simply not pay for parking at those meters, and if they get a ticket, just pay it, since the City of Chicago gets all the ticket revenue. He claims it actually winds up costing less than feeding the meters. Also in this issue, the "City of Big Questions" column recounts the adventures of Lar "America First" Daly, who ran for office in Chicago from the 1930s to the 1970s, often wearing an Uncle Sam suit. He ran for the senate, governor, mayor, and many other offices, and never once won. His last campaign was in 1978, when he ran in the Republican U.S. Senate primary, received 15% of the vote, and died the next month. I remember this guy from back when I lived in Chicago but never gave him another thought from that last campaign until now. Not surprisingly, he was a pretty strange ranger.

And of course, there are lots of articles on restaurants, bars and other food places, including the Guillotine Bakery (owned by three French ex-pats), Kitty's Cosmopolitan Club, and All Well, which has fine dining but gives patrons the ability to choose their ingredients, which is evidently a revolution in dining. And no, the tavern in the photo on the right was not mentioned in the article. It is a tavern I used to walk past on the way to the "L" when I lived in Forest Park years ago. I took the photo back in 2010 when I last visited Chicago. I used to drink Old Style when I lived in Chicago and cannot for the life of me remember why. In the "Chicago Stories" section, there is an article by Meaghan Garvey titled The Torch Singer, which tells about her finding, when a teenager, a binder with 8 x 10 black and white photographs of Helen Morgan, all personally inscribed. Morgan started out as a singer at various nightclubs in Chicago before going on to Broadway and Hollywood, only to descend to Skid Row. Evidently both Garvey's father and grandfather were involved with Morgan, and her father was one of the pallbearers at her funeral. An interesting story of someone who became briefly famous only to come to a sad end. There is also an article titled "Seven New Reasons to Get Away this Fall," which includes Big Sur, which I get, but then also lists Bentonville, Arkansas to visit an art museum, Saugatuck, Michigan for a food and wine festival, the Wisconsin Dells for a medieval themed resort (I would pay big money NOT to go there), New Buffalo, Michigan for a wellness retreat, Indianapolis for its new biking trails (Indianapolis - my God!), and Reykjavik, Iceland in order to "embrace winter adventure." One word of advice for all you people looking to get away this fall - Big Sur or Bust.

Peacocks Are Running Wild In Fort Pierce, And Nobody Thinks It's Unusual

I drove up to Fort Pierce, Florida yesterday afternoon, and just for fun, I decided to drive over to the Peacock Arts District to see if I could spot a peacock. This arts district is centered around The Peacock House, built in 1926 and which Jackson Crain and his wife Mary Lee Steinhoff-Crain made their home. They also operated a travel agency out of it for 29 years. The Crains liked peacocks and brought 7 of them to Fort Pierce to put in their backyard. When they passed away, the estate was fully restored and is now the home of The Peacock House Art Foundation, which offers art education, exhibitions, and creative spaces for artists and visitors. They also have a half-acre dedicated garden space for peacocks, the number of which has grown substantially since those original 7. The estate is open for tours three days a week and charges a $6 admission fee. I have never toured the house but have occasionally seen a peacock or two in a park-like space across the street. Sometimes I didn't see any, but yesterday peacocks seemed to be all over the neighborhood. I took the photograph on the left of two peacocks, along with two babies, right around the block from The Peacock House.

What really got my attention was that people in the neighborhood pay no attention whatsoever to these birds. In fact, I got the feeling that some of the neighbors were surprised that I was actually bothering to photograph them. The photograph on the right is of two adults and one baby walking up the sidewalk to someone's house. They walked around that house and proceeded toward the greenspace behind it. After I got in the car and was driving away, I saw some other peacocks hanging around that grassy lot with a rooster, no less. We never used to see anything like that when I was growing up on the South Side of Chicago, and if someone did, they would be taken away for psychiatric evaluation. But it is just another day in Fort Pierce.

And just for fun, I took the photograph on the left of the male - I think - peacock walking along a wall The other birds totally ignored me and went about their business, but this one evidently did not want its photo taken and kept trying to avoid me. I was lucky to get the photo I did. What I want to know is whether these birds live in that half acre garden behind The Peacock House and just walk around the neighborhood during the day, or if they make their home in vacant lots, green spaces, or people's backyards. And do they cause problems for the neighbors, or do the people who live there just consider it part of life, like the weather? Questions, questions, and no answers. Unless I pay the $6 and go on the tour. I'll think about it.

A Roger Dean Baseball Tradition: Burgers And Beers Before The Game At Das Beer Garden

My sister Susan and I went to see the Palm Beach Cardinals play the Daytona Beach Tortugas at Roger Dean Stadium in the Abacoa neighborhood of Jupiter, Florida this past Saturday night, and as usual, stopped at Das Beer Garden, located just across the street, for burgers and beers before the game. This is Abacoa's neighborhood hangout and taproom, and is a very lively place, especially on Saturday nights. Inside, it was packed with a diverse group of patrons - young families, singles, seniors, groups of friends getting together, you name it. The outside patio was actually pretty quiet, given that it was hot and humid and the fans in the ceiling did not seem to reach the tables. It was no doubt hardcore natives who sat out there, braving the elements. We joined them for a brief time before Susan suggested heading inside for a bit of air conditioning. And as you can see from the photograph above of Susan, Das Beer Garden caters to the sports crowd, and there were plenty of television showing all the college football games going on. Lively, but also hard to hear what Susan was saying from across the table. But no matter - definitely a fun place to hang out before the game. If you happen to be in the South Florida area, I definitely recommend stopping by.