Lunching With Stuart At Old Chicago

I had lunch yesterday with my friend Stuart at the Old Chicago Pizza and Taproom in Lakewood, Colorado, a suburb just to the west of Denver whose heart and soul revolves around West Colfax Avenue, which is itself one of most soulless stretches of asphalt in not just this country, but the world. But is nonetheless its sole claim to fame. But happily, you can't see Lakewood from the bar at Old Chicago, where I took the photograph above of Stuart. Over lunch, we discussed a number of topics, including the fact that baseball spring training games begin tomorrow. I reminded Stuart that his favorite team, the Chicago Cubs (he grew up on the North Side of Chicago, which explains his misguided loyalty) are projected to finish first in the National League Central. Which he was disappointed to hear. He believes that prediction will curse them for sure, and they are now doomed to finish last. And, of course, I am an expert in teams finishing in last place, having grown up on the South Side of Chicago and therefore a lifelong White Sox fan. On the positive side, I read that the White Sox have signed and traded for some very promising players this year, as well as having the number one pick in the MLB draft, so things are looking up these days on the South Side. As for our adopted hometown team, the Colorado Rockies, who lost 119 games last season and had the worst starting pitching in the history of baseball, they now have new management, people who actually know something about baseball. Last year, the Rockies loaded their roster with rookies from the minor leagues, most of whom were not ready for the big leagues, with obvious results. This year, the team is adding veterans to the lineup and keeping rookies not ready for the big leagues down on the farm until they are indeed ready. What a concept!

Celebrating Fat Tuesday At New Terrain!

My sister Susan and I stopped by New Terrain Brewing Company up in Golden, Colorado yesterday afternoon to celebrate Fat Tuesday. I expected a live Dixieland band, people in costumes dancing and throwing beads at everyone, and just pure craziness before Ash Wednesday arrived at midnight. And surprisingly, there was none of that. In fact, the crowd seemed pretty laid back, as seen in the photograph above. Nobody present looked like they were planning to give up alcohol for Lent. In any case, it's turned a bit nippy here on the Front Range of Colorado lately and so only a single couple was out on the patio, which is famous for its views of Table Mesa and North Table Mountain. All seemed to prefer having a pint in the warmth of the taproom and view the scenery from inside. Good beer, nice view, friendly people. Perhaps that's the best Fat Tuesday celebration of all. Take that New Orleans.

Fat Tuesday!

Today is Fat Tuesday (Mardi Gras in French), a big day in New Orleans, which celebrates with parades, street parties, music, costumes, and feasting. Here in Denver, nothing nearly so exciting. As for down in Stuart, Florida, last year Terra Fermata, a live outdoor music venue located in Stuart's downtown entertainment district and seen in the photograph above, celebrated Fat Tuesday with Lefty Hathaway's Dr. John Tribute. This year it celebrated Fat Tuesday on Sunday (is that even legal?) with a Mardi Gras Show- Dixieland Jazz and Jam with Michael and the Fluid Band. The interesting thing about Terra Fermata is that as far as I know, it is the only live music venue located in Stuart's entertainment district. And last year, not too long after Fat Tuesday, neighbors annoyed about the sound levels there prompted the Stuart City Commission to consider a change to the city's noise ordinance, which would have probably put Terra Fermata out of business, basically leaving Stuart's entertainment district with no entertainment. Fortunately, wiser heads prevailed, and they left the noise ordinance alone. I wonder if they have the same problem in New Orleans? I suspect not.

President's Day Weekend!

This is President's Day Weekend, and here in Denver, winter has yet to arrive, and so what seems like the entire city is taking advantage of the springlike weather and getting outdoors. Denver had a high of 69 degrees on Sunday, while today is forecast to have a high of 68. I drove past Washington Park yesterday, and it looked like one long line of people walking the 2-mile path circling those grounds. I was headed up to Golden, and when I got there, found that every parking space in front of the Golden History Park - the gateway to the trails along Cleer Creek - were taken. And the streets of downtown Golden were packed, as seen in the photograph above. For one long weekend, it was finally time to stop thinking about the record low snowpack, the dwindling reservoirs, and the extreme fire danger, and just enjoy the weather. Time enough to worry about all that later. But there is some hope. The weather forecasters are predicting a snowstorm in the Colorado mountains this week, which has the possibility of easing the crisis somewhat. While Denver and the Front Range will remain dry and relatively warm, the accumulation of snow in the mountains will help the entire state. And if that snow doesn't materialize, I suggest the State of Colorado hire experienced Native Americans to do some traditional North American rain dances. Can't hurt, right? And it would provide great entertainment, too, if they did those dances at places such as the 16th Street Mall. Have a nice rest of the weekend everyone, and as they say up in Breckenridge, pray for rain.

The February Issue Of Chicago Magazine

I just finished reading the February issue of Chicago Magazine. The cover story is titled The Savvy Parent's Guide to Raising Kids in Chicago, which, not having children, did not sound too interesting to me. However, I did enjoy reading about Chicago's Best Bar for Babies, which turns out to be Rockwell's Neighborhood Grill, located in the Ravenswood Gardens neighborhood on Chicago's North Side. The article was written by a new father in the first days of parenthood, and tells how he and his wive, along with their 2-month-old baby in a stroller, found Rockwell's, with its large patio filled with screaming kids running around, strollers parked to the side, and "exhausted parents silently chugging craft beers." The 312 section's Listing of the Month is an 8,360 square-foot Evanston mansion built in 1912, five blocks from Lake Michigan, which comes with a 2-bedroom coach house, for sale for just under $2.5 million. This when here in Denver a modern 3-story house on the east side of Washington Park just went on sale for $9 million. What's wrong with this picture? There is also an article about Chicago's $40 billion debt, and how the city has been kicking it down the road each year through refinancing, risking dropping the city's credit rating down to the point its municipal bonds will be unsellable. I also enjoyed reading speculation in The 312 section about who might run for mayor against current mayor Brandon Johnson, whose popularity is currently in the tank. And surprisingly, there are a number of possible candidates who sound quite competent, including Susana Mendoza, the current Illinois comptroller, who reduced the state's backlog of unpaid bills from $16.7 billion to under $3 billion. Does she sound like a possibility or what? All in all, another pretty interesting issue.

When In Golden, It's Hard To Miss The Coors Brewery

Coors Brewery has been in Golden, Colorado since 1873, and is the largest single-site brewery in the world. And when you are in Golden, it is hard to miss. It starts right beyond Washington Avenue, the town's main drag, as seen in the photograph above, and seems to go on eastward for miles. When I was first married, my then wife Lisa directed the choir at a local church in Golden, and virtually everyone I met back then either worked at Coors or the Colorado School of Mines, also located in Golden. Hard to believe, but at that time Coors had a century-old policy of providing free beer on the job to employees during breaks, lunches, and the half-hour after work, although as far as I know, the Colorado School of Mines did not. That policy ended in 1994 for obvious reasons. These days the company is called Molson Coors and is headquartered in both Chicago and Montreal, with the Coors and Molson families well-represented on the Board of Directors. And yes, you can indeed tour the Coors Brewery up in Golden for $20, after which you get three samples of - wait for it - Molson Coors products. Yum!

Historic El Rancho - Soon To Be Riding Into The Sunset?

El Rancho, seen in the photograph on the left, has been a landmark in Evergreen, Colorado since 1948, when it opened as a cafe and trading post. It quickly became a beloved dining spot, famous for its views of the Colorado mountains. President Dwight D. Eisenhower was a frequent guest. In fact, I read somewhere that Eisenhower was friends with the owner, and thanks to a U.S. Post Office opening in the building in 1956, El Rancho was able to get its own exit off Interstate 70. Having your own exit sign off busy Interstate 70 definitely did not hurt El Rancho's business. I remember having Thanksgiving dinner there once with my sister Susan and late brother-in-law George and admiring that wonderful view. I also remember having a drink in their bar area several times, too. The walls were made of logs, a fire was lit in the fireplace, and it was like being in a rustic mountain lodge.

In any case, after changing hands several times, it was purchased out of bankruptcy to save it from demolition, but after a dispute with the celebrity chef about the future direction of the restaurant, the owners sold the building to Quik Trip, who will build a gas station on the site. There has been a proposal to move the building across the street where a new development called The Observatory will be built, and a local bicycle shop called Evergreen Bicycle Outfitters agreed to buy the relocated building and move their shop into part of the space, as well as reinstate the original brewery and upstairs lodgings. However, to offset the high cost of this proposal, local developer Observatory Holdings made a request to the Jefferson County Commissioners to approve a metro district for El Rancho to help finance public infrastructure, such as roads, utilities, sidewalks, etc. However, the application was denied 2-1 by the Board of County Commissioners, citing uncertainty about the financial viability of the district. And so, if that ruling stands, El Rancho is toast. So much for saving one of Jefferson County's landmarks. Is there still a chance the building still might be moved, anyway. Only if someone with deep pockets takes an interest. We'll just have to see.