It's New Year's Eve!

Today is New Year's Eve, and ironically enough, even though I am considered "King of the Hipsters" in some quarters (thanks for that, Bill and Renee!), this is usually a very low key evening for me.  And so, as I have done on previous New Year's Eves, I am featuring a photograph of my mother Mary (on the left)  and her cousin Marie (the live wire of the family, as can be clearly seen in the photo), welcoming the coming of the New Year.  I have no idea what year this was, but I suspect it was taken some time in the 1950s in the basement of the two-flat Marie and her husband Ed owned in Evergreen Park, Illinois.  Tragically, Marie died of cancer at a fairly young age.  Marie's parents, Al (a Spanish-American war veteran, no less) and Irene (my mother's aunt), who lived on the top floor of the two-flat, were given 30 days to move out of their apartment not too long after Marie passed away.  This was a very sad episode in my mother's family, and they never forgave Ed, who evidently wanted to sell the place and get away from such tragic memories.  In any case, it is a truly good thing we cannot see the future, and fortunately, on this happy New Year's Eve, it was not a concern.  As the old song featured not too long ago in a Woody Allen movie goes, "Enjoy yourself, enjoy yourself, it's later than you think."

What's The Deal With Holiday Dragons?

I went for a walk in the neighborhood yesterday, and found out that several houses have holiday dragons in front of their places,such as the one with the Santa cap in the photograph on the left. I recently learned that holiday hippos were quite popular, and that there is actually a Christmas carol titled "All I want for Christmas is a Hippopotamus," but this is the first I have ever head of Christmas dragons. New Year's dragons yes, but those dragons celebrate Chinese New Year's, which isn't until February 5th this year, and I assume nobody would be that early with their decorations, right?

I thought the first dragon was just the holiday decoration of some weird eccentric (I can identify with that, of course), but then I'll be damned if I didn't see another holiday dragon, this one without a Santa cap, as seen in the photo on the right. Therefore,  I googled the subject and found that others have also put up holiday dragons this year.  One woman, an author, actually put up three holiday dragons, which have some connection to the Game of Thrones, but I do not know how they relate to Christmas.  In any case, this person received a nasty letter complaining about the decorations, and so she promptly added two more.  I don't think we have those types of controversies here in Denver.  We are, after all, a "blue" state. Or as I like to say, "whatever floats your boat."

The Animals At the "Living History" Farms

As I mentioned last week, I spent an afternoon touring the "living history" farms at the Littleton Museum, located about 10 miles south of Denver, Colorado.  What I didn't mention was that these "living history" farms actually have animals, just like a real farm.  The above collage shows some of the animals I encountered there, most of them very friendly and amenable to being petted, although signs throughout the grounds strictly prohibited it.  In any case, it was a great place to visit, and I have to commend the City of Littleton for providing such a wonderful space for not only the citizens of Littleton, but for whoever cares to visit.

Waiting For The 2019 CTA Historical Calendar

It is a mere 4 days until New Year's Day, and as usual this time of year, I am waiting for the 2019 Chicago Transit Authority Historical Calendar to arrive.  It is produced annually by the CTA to either keep on your computer or print out the pages and put on your wall, and each month has really great historical photographs of Chicago (transit related, but great none the less).  I find myself checking their web site daily to see if it is there yet (https://www.transitchicago.com/historicalcalendar/), but so far only the 2018 calendar is there.  In any case, they have a flicker account with many of the photographs from the calendars on display.  Be sure to check it out at https://www.flickr.com/photos/ctaweb/sets/72157628053998640/.  The photograph above, by the way, is of a South Side Rapid Transit train, probably taken around the time I was growing up back there.  No wonder I feel old.

Celebrating Boxing (aka Calendar) Day!

Yesterday was Boxing Day, and since all my servants are taking care of the villa in the South of France, I wasn't able to personally give them their gifts (hopefully they will all be happy with a cheery post card). Therefore I had some free time to buy half price calendars at Denver's Cherry Creek Mall. Since it now charges for parking, I was forced to park a few blocks away and walk to the mall along a bike path running past Cherry Creek, the mall's namesake.  It was a very pleasant stroll, despite the cold temperatures, and a nice contrast to the frenzied crowds searching for post-Christmas bargains inside.

After making my purchases I decided to walk around the mall and do a bit of people watching in that bastion of the elite.  I also ran across a McLaren sports car on display, a racy little number with a sales price of $192,000.  However, I have never heard of a McLaren before.  I have no idea how reliable it is, and so I think I will stick with my Hyundai Accent, at least for now.  The saddest part of the day, however, can be seen in the photograph on the right - Santa has left the building.

The Lights Of Fort Collins

I have to say, each year I am very impressed with the Christmas decorations and lights in Old Town Fort Collins.  It is a truly beautiful to walk around the area, and really puts you in a Christmas kind of mood, even old curmudgeons like me.  My only complaint - and you just knew I had to have one, right? - is that you cannot find a damn parking space in downtown Fort Collins, Colorado.  And why is that?  Classes at Colorado State University are over for the fall semester, and so who the hell is occupying these spaces?  Of course, regular readers of this blog know what I suspect the answer is: Californians, who have sold their homes in the land of fruits and nuts and moved here to live the good life and bask in their good fortune.  And no, I am not jealous.  Just miffed, which is entirely different.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

I was very happy to wake up this morning and find out that it was indeed Christmas Day.  The spirits were able to do all their work in one evening, thank goodness, which is not a surprise, since they visit me every Christmas Eve.  There are three of them, the spirits of Christmas past, present, and future, always trying to convince me to stop being a curmudgeon, and embrace the true spirit of Christmas.  I admire their tenacity, since every year they fail, and yet the very next Christmas Eve they are back, giving it another try (and by the way, I can be seen in the above photograph with the ghost of Marley, a former University of Denver executive, who was a very good man of business).  In any case, I am used to these ghosts now, and actually look forward to seeing the shadows of the past, present, and future each year.  See you next year, guys! Merry Christmas everybody!

It's Christmas Eve!

This is, of course, Christmas Eve, and today I am featuring the photograph of my family that I used as the front of my Christmas card last year.  It features my parents Nelson and Mary (not to mention our dog Irma) sitting on the floor of the enclosed back porch of our house in the south side Chicago Brainerd neighborhood back in 1964, with my brother-in-law George, sister Susan, their two dogs, and myself photoshopped in. Sadly, George passed away this past August, leaving just Susan and I remaining, and so the message this Christmas Eve is to enjoy your family and relatives while you can.  Have a great Christmas Eve!

More About The Littleton Museum Grounds

As I mentioned in yesterday's blog, I spent this past Friday afternoon (the Winter Solstice) wandering around the two "living history" farms surrounding the Littleton Museum, located in the heart of Littleton, Colorado (about 10 miles south of Denver).  It is a very pretty place, and is adjacent to Ketring Lake.  I took the photograph on the left of one of the tributaries that lead into this lake, which seems to have about 10,000 geese hanging out on it, even in late December.  Once geese find a good spot to hang out, they never leave, and more and more show up every year, just like Californians - buying property here, driving up the cost of living for Coloradans.

But once again, I digress.  While I was wandering the museum grounds, I also took a photograph of the one room schoolhouse where the children of these pioneers were educated.  This particular one room schoolhouse was from the 1860s, and it would seem like schoolhouses like this are a relic of the past, but that is not true at all.  The last time our University of Denver Bookstore gang got together, Jim - the husband of Chris, the former DU Bookstore Accounting Assistant - talked about how he was educated in just such a one room schoolhouse while growing up on a farm in Nebraska.  Jim is now a successful bank executive, and so that might very well be an argument that such schoolhouses were actually a pretty good form of education.  On the other hand, growing up in Nebraska is a big price to pay for it.

Celebrating The Winter Solstice At The Littleton Museum

I checked the Denver Post yesterday morning to find out where Winter Solstice celebrations were taking place in the Denver area, but found that they were either charging pricey admission fees, or else sounded too weird, even for me.  And so instead, I drove down to Littleton (a community 10 miles or so south of Denver and settled back in the 1860s), and spent the afternoon wandering around the two "living history"  farms surrounding the Littleton Museum.  As can be seen in the photograph on the left, the farm house from the 1860s was pretty tiny.  I can't imagine how a large family could actually live in such close quarters, but they did.

I am very glad that I wasn't living back then, because living in a cabin like that would have made me pretty damn crabby.  For me, staying at a Motel 6 is as close to roughing it as I want to get.  And therefore, if I had to have a choice, I would have preferred to live in the 1890s farmhouse, seen in the photograph on the right.  Not only did it seem more comfortable, but by then Littleton was becoming a fairly good sized town, and it would have been just a short horse ride to the local brewpub. And I must say, Littleton, Colorado is a really pretty, very quaint town, with lots of homes and commercial buildings from the late Victorian era.  Of course, being so close to Denver, it is now a well established suburb, and as I have stated many times, I hate suburbs.  Even quaint ones.  Sorry about that, Littleton - nothing personal.  But you are a great place to visit.    

Bittersweet Nostalgia

I know I have used this photograph in the past, but have decided to use it again, since it is of my sister Susan and myself (at my charming best) in the backyard of our house in the south side Brainerd neighborhood back in Chicago.  This photograph was taken before we built the enclosed back porch on the back of the house, where my sister had to sleep after I took away her bedroom.  She is still bitter about that, but it has only been 60 years or so.  In any case, looking at this photo kind of makes me sad, because now that Susan's husband George has passed away, it is now just the two of us left, Susan up in Fort Collins and me in my condo in Denver.  It will be a very subdued Christmas, I'm afraid, but I am still glad to have all the photographs we took over the years.  It definitely helps us remember all the good times.

Talk About Lazy

I took the above photograph on a recent walk through Denver's Washington Park.  Perhaps it is just me, but I think it is pretty lazy to put on your skates and have your dogs pull you through the park, as opposed to just walking them.  I have also seen people on skateboards being pulled by their dogs, not to mention people riding their bicycles with their dogs in tow.  At least on a bicycle you are pedaling to keep up with them (I would hope), and get some exercise at the same time, as opposed to just being pulled by them.  In any case, from my recent experience with walking dogs, I would have to say it must get pretty messy for these people when their dogs have to do their business.  I'm just sayin'.

A Sad Day For Illinoisans Everywhere...

I went with my friend Stuart to the Old Chicago Restaurant on South Colorado Boulevard here in Denver for dinner and beers last night.  The televisions were showing Northern Illinois playing UAB (the University of Alabama - Birmingham) in the world famous Boca Raton (mouth of the rat) Bowl.  It was 27 to 10 in favor of UAB by the time we left, and so the handwriting was on the wall.  The final score was 37 to 13, and as you can see from the above photograph, as a loyal Illinoisan, Stuart was inconsolable about the impending loss.  I only have to say that Stuart better get prepared for an even bigger disappointment, when Northwestern (my father's Alma mater) plays the Utah Utes in the Holiday Bowl Christmas Eve.  Sports Illustrated Magazine says Northwestern is highly overrated and will lose big, but then again, it is an effete Eastern publication that disses all Chicago or Chicago area sports teams.  The old joke (incorporating in it the interstate highway going past Evanston, home of Northwestern)  was Interstate 94, Northwestern nothing, but those days are long gone.  So cheer up, Stuart.  They might actually win.

Christmas Is One Week Away - Time To Start Shopping!

Christmas is a mere 7 days away - it is definitely time to start your holiday shopping.  And I must say, people here in Denver are definitely getting into the spirit of the holidays.  I am featuring a couple of photographs today I took while walking down the 16th Street Mall to put everyone in a Christmas mood.  In any case, I went to the Dollar Store the other day, the one next door to Casa Bonita (a world famous tourist destination, at least here in Denver) and found when I checked out that the previous customer had paid two dollars toward the next two customer's purchases.  This is a pretty poor area of the city, where people who don't have much money shop to give their families gifts, and so that was a truly generous gesture.

Walking around this store, not to mention the Arc Stores here and up in Fort Collins, makes me realize how many truly poor people there are in this country, and how they deal with that situation the best they can, without complaint, trying to do their best to support their families and make the holidays as happy as they can for them. Many, but certainly not all, are Hispanic, and it just highlights how cruel it is to demonize immigrants who have come here to try and improve their lives, and most importantly, the lives of their children.  It makes you realize how warped the values of so many of our countrymen have become.  That's my two cents worth for today, anyway.

A Visit To CSU

After over 30 years, I finally decided to visit the Colorado State University campus up in Fort Collins, Colorado.  I needed to kill some time until I had to pick up my sister Susan after her hair appointment, and so thought that might be fun.  And I must say, I was very impressed - lots of trees, old historic buildings, and a very vibrant student center.  The student center, where the bookstore, food courts, and "Ramskeller" are located, was filled with students, teachers, and staff, far more so than the Driscoll Center at the University of Denver.  But then of course, CSU is 5 times bigger than DU, which makes quite a difference.  Still, the Ramskeller has something like 30 different  beers on tap, compared with DU, which I suspect has 0.  Not a criticism, of course, just an observation.  But an important one.

A Hippo For The Holidays?

I had lunch with my friend Mark - who works at the University of Denver's Anderson Academic Commons (the library, in plain English) - yesterday afternoon, and afterwards, when I dropped him off at his home, he pointed out his new Christmas decoration in the front yard - a hippopotamus. Yes - that's right. A "Holiday Hippo."  Mark tells me that he has always liked hippopotamuses, and that his favorite Christmas song is "All I want for Christmas is a Hippopotamus." I myself have never heard of this Christmas carol. I was, after all, born and raised in the State of Illinois, where I suspect this song was banned from the airwaves, along with Muskrat Love.  And I must say, Illinois legislators have been truly underrated in this country because of actions they have taken like this.  Thank God they were there to preserve the sanity of their constituents, such as me.  But I have to ask: Why was nothing ever done about "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus?" A truly important question that I think needs to be answered.  Is impeachment still a possibility for this?

The December Mutts Of The Month

The December Mutts of the Month are none other than my sister Susan's dogs Tutu (on the right) and Blackberry (on the left), seen staring up at my sister adoringly in the adjacent photo.  My sister objects to calling them mutts, since she says they are purebreds, but it is hard to get the proper alliteration with the word purebreds.  In any case, these dogs are completely devoted to my sister.  And ever since I drove them to Santa Fe, New Mexico and back, they are totally distrustful of me.  Blackberry is especially convinced I am going to whisk them away on another 7 hour car trip at any moment.

Lately when I am up in Fort Collins I have been taking Blackberry for a walk (more like a run) in the evenings, and have found that everybody in the neighborhood knows her, since she greats everyone like a long lost friend she hasn't seen in years.  One fellow out walking his own dog referred to her as a black ball of energy.  Tutu, on the other hand, refuses to go out when it is cold, and shivers when out for even a minute. Coming back from Santa Fe, we stopped in Taos and walked around the plaza, where a local referred to Tutu as a "rodent on a rope."  That made my sister extremely angry, and she absolutely hates the City of Taos because of that.  Even I have to admit that it didn't seem like a very dog friendly place.  Probably due to a severe coyote problem or something.

The Christmas Tree Dilemma

I used to host Christmas dinner every year, until my brother-in-law George began to lose his eyesight and couldn't make the drive from Fort Collins any more.  Back then I would always put up my Christmas tree to make the place look at least a little bit more festive.  In fact, when I was a kid back in the south side Chicago Brainerd neighborhood, I used to love sitting in the chair and looking at the tree all lite up with lights, as seen in the above photograph.  And now once again I will be hosting Christmas dinner, and that tree is buried somewhere in my storage locker, behind years of floatsum and jetsum.  Do I go in there, finally clean the place up at the risk of serious back injury, find and put up the tree, or just skip it this year?  To put it in terms of a Victorian Christmas, do I want to be Old Fezziwig, who always knew how to celebrate Christmas, or maintain my usual role as Scrooge? As Jack Benny once said when approached by a thief who told him "your money or your life," I'm thinking, I'm thinking.

Christmas Arrives on The 16th Street Mall

I took the above photograph on one of my walks from the Tattered Cover Bookstore (where I used to work as the bookkeeper) to Denver's Union Station, where I can take the light rail train back to my condo.  I have to say that the City of Denver does a good job of decorating the downtown area for the holidays, and it always gives me a lift to walk down the 16th Street Mall this time of year.  I don't say "bah humbug" even once during my walk, so you know that the lights must truly be something special.

Running Into Joe On The Light Rail Train

I ran into Joe, my friend and former University of Denver Bookstore colleague, as I was going home on the light rail last night.  Joe was on his was to teach an art class through an outreach program at one of the Denver Public Library branches.  Joe teaches at the Art Students League of Denver, works on his own artwork as well, and also still works one day a week at the DU Bookstore.  He even has his own website at http://www.joehigginsmonotypes.com/.  He says that things are the same at the DU Bookstore, and they are preparing for the start of classes next month.  The University of Denver is famous for it's winter break, which goes from the Wednesday before Thanksgiving to the week after New Year's, thanks to it's being on the quarter system.  When it was proposed that the school switch to the semester system a few years ago,  there was a huge outcry from both students and faculty demanding that the quarter system remain. The official reason: a greater variety of classes for students. The unofficial reason: keeping the long winter break.  Makes sense to me. Good seeing you Joe!

The Patio At Dos Santos - Perhaps Next Year

I walked past Dos Santos - a hip taco bar located on Denver's 17th Street - a few weeks ago and realized that it will probably not be warm enough to sit on the patio and try the place out until next year.  I have always wanted to get together with some friends there, but never did, and now it is probably too late. Of course, we could always sit inside, but this seems like an outdoor kind of place, where you can sit and watch your fellow hipsters pass by on their way to other hipster hot spots.  Ironically, this street is just two blocks north of Colfax, where if you sit outside on a patio, you watch the homeless and down and out pass by instead.  One of the ironies of life in Denver.

Wally and Linda Visit Stuart Florida!

My friends Wally and Linda went down to Stuart, Florida (where my sister Susan and I own a condo inherited from our mother Mary) this past weekend for a wedding, and visited three of the town's top sites: Old Town Stuart, The House of Refuge Museum, and the Hoyt Condo.  I told them to knock on the door of our condo and tell my renters they were there to inspect the place (and also to feel free to use the facilities if necessary), but I suspect they decided to pass on that suggestion.  In any case, Wally called me on the phone to say they were having a great time and that they had breakfast at Maria's, which is located in Old Town Stuart and where Wally is sure I have eaten since it is so reasonably priced.  And Linda was kind enough to send me a photo via her cellphone (it only took me two hours to figure out how to transfer the picture to my computer) of Wally at the House of Refuge Museum.

And then the next day I got another photograph from Linda of Wally frolicking in the surf in Jensen Beach, the town just north of Stuart, where they are staying.  It just makes me want to head down there ASAP.  Of course, my sister and I have rented our condo down there through July, and so I am pretty sure my renters would not enjoy seeing me on their doorstep with suitcase in hand, even if I was only planning to stay a few weeks. And if we decided not to renew the lease, that would mean a pretty big expense to assume.  But I digress once again. I did recommend that Wally and Linda skip the wedding so they could fit in more sightseeing, but I suspect that since they are staying in the same hotel as the wedding party, it would be hard to sneak out.  Regardless, I hope you guys had a good rest of your time down there!

More On First Friday

As I mentioned in yesterday's blog post, I went down to Santa Fe Boulevard here in Denver Friday night for the monthly First Friday Art Walk.  And I must say, I was pretty disappointed in the art this month. Most of it seemed pretty amateurish to me.  At the Center For Visual Arts (operated by Metropolitan State University of Denver), the BFA Thesis Exhibition was on display, and much of the art was just plain weird.  Do these students really believe there is a market for this stuff?  Plus, there was very little photography on display, which is not a surprise now that the John Fielder Photography Gallery has closed it's doors.  Is the art scene in Denver fading, or is December just not a good month for art exhibitions?  Time will tell.

In any case, I decided to focus on photographing the lights out on the street, which I found far more artistic than the works inside.  The photograph on the right was near a shop called The Room of Lost Things, which I have found to be one of the weirdest stores in Denver.  I have looked around that store on previous First Fridays, when the place was wall to wall people, but this past Friday, since I was walking around pretty early in the evening, the place was empty, and I did not want to be alone with just the staff.  God knows where they get their inventory, and I didn't want to wind up becoming part of it for First Friday January.  Just kidding guys!  I think.

Luminarias On First Friday

I drove down to Santa Fe Drive last night for the First Friday Art Walk that takes place there every month. I read in the paper that the street would be decorated with luminarias, and so thought that would make for some good photographs.  I have to say, however, that the luminarias scattered around Denver's Santa Fe Drive were not quite as impressive as the ones that decorate the plaza in Santa Fe, New Mexico the day after Thanksgiving, but let's face it - Santa Fe Boulevard is no Santa Fe, New, Mexico.  However, I was able to take the photo on the left from the curb, promptly getting honked at by the passing cars.  That NEVER happens in Santa Fe.

Santa Fe Drive is a commercial street, and many, if not most, of the storefronts are not very picturesque.  A number of them are vacant, too, and I have never found vacant stores especially pretty, even with luminarias in front of them.  John Fielders's old photography gallery, also still vacant, had a number of unlit luminaries in front of it - no doubt some sort of message from the neighborhood organization.  I did not see many people out and about last night, but then again I went early, so that I could find a parking space, and left just a little after 6:00, long before the hipster crowd would arrive. Although the temperature was pleasant enough during the day, once the sun sets in Denver in December,  it gets damn cold, which is one thing the city does have in common with the real Santa Fe. I was able to take the photo on the right on the way back to the car, however.  As Flip Wilson often famously said, "what you sees is what you gets."

Santa Claus Is Back!

I don't tend to hang out at the mall very much, but on recent trips to both Cherry Creek and Park Meadows (Denver's two upscale shopping venues) I noticed that Santa Claus has returned and is doing big business in the middle of the mall, and that the tradition of having your photo taken with Santa lives on.  However, now that I look at the photographs taken of both my sister Susan and myself with Santa back in the day, I can't help but have the feeling I was ripped off.  Take a look at the photo on the left.  Santa isn't even looking at the camera, seems zoned out, and there is a ticket with number 28,420 in plain view.  Was I the 28,420th child to visit him that day?  No wonder he seems so out of it.

On the other hand, the photograph of my sister Susan and Santa is much more engaging. Santa is looking directly at the camera and actually looks like the real Santa.  Plus, there is a pleasant "Seasons Greetings" message on the bottom of the photograph.  The photograph of me was taken in the 1950s, and Susan's was taken in the 1940s.  Is that the difference - a different era, a different attitude on the part of Santa?  Personally, I feel I deserve a redo, but if I drove over to Park Meadows or Cherry Creek with the photos and demanded to sit on Santa's lap have have a replacement photo taken, they would probably call the mall cops.  And I've already had dealings with them, so forget it. Season's Greetings from the Grinch!

A Visit To Old Chicago Requiring Photoshop

I drove out to beautiful, exotic, but very strange Lakewood, Colorado, Tuesday night to have dinner with my friend Stuart at the Old Chicago Restaurant there.  We shared a Chicago 7 Pizza, and I have to note here that the political meaning of the original Chicago 7 has been reduced to 7 pizza ingredients - but I digress. Stuart and I discussed the Trump Presidency, the Broncos, and for some reason the origin of phrases.  The "cat's pajamas," by the way, means the best that can be, and was coined in the 1920s. It combines a slang expression for flappers with a brand new fashion of the time (pajamas), all this courtesy of the Internet, which as everyone knows is always correct.  In any case, I took the above photograph of Stuart as we were leaving, and it wasn't until the next day that I realized my flash had washed out important parts of the photograph. I therefore had to spend several hours trying to figure out how to fix it in Photoshop, using a hellish tool called pain bucket.  I fixed the photograph to a point where I said the hell with it, and the above photograph is the result. I have also noticed that I am beginning to say "the hell with it" sooner and sooner these days.  Surprise!

The Bosler House

When I was in the Highlands neighborhood last week, as mentioned in yesterday's blog, I decided to stop and check out the Bosler House, which was built in 1875 and is therefore one of the oldest homes in Denver. It was a featured site during Open Doors Denver Weekend, but since there was a $10 charge for the tour, I decided to skip it.  In any case, I parked right in front of the place and took the photographs seen in the above collage.  The house is truly beautiful, and fronts on Highland Park, making for a truly nice location.  Of course, since Highland Park is right off Federal Boulevard in northwest Denver, there are often a lot of people wandering around talking very loudly to themselves, without the benefit of a cellphone, but no place is perfect, after all.  The Highlands is a really wonderful neighborhood, and although the couple who bought the place - Steve and Jan Davis - only paid $375,000 for it, it was open to the elements for 6 years, and it is estimated they spent a cool 2 million dollars to restore it.  Since it is on the National Register of Historic Places, that is a truly good thing.  By the way, while I was taking the photos, I spotted Jan Davis in front of the house, and thought about telling her that I paid for the tour but missed it, and could she give me a tour now, but decided against it.  Social Security is still 3 months off, and bail can be pricey.

A Return To The Highlands

Last week I drove to the Highlands neighborhood, around 32nd and Lowell, to walk around and see what's new. I have to say, Denver has countless neighborhoods that are all pretty unique and very walkable, and the Highlands is no exception.  No wonder so many people are moving here - if they can afford it, that is. However, recent surveys have found that they increasingly cannot.  The number of people moving to Denver has decreased dramatically.  And what will happen now?  The economy will suffer, housing and rent costs will decline, and the whole process will start over again.  It has been that way since 1858, and will probably stay that way forever.

Free First Saturday

I decided to drive down to the Denver Art Museum (the DAM) this past Saturday for free First Saturday. Fortunately, since I am a member of the DAM, I was able to get inside immediately, as opposed to the rest of the general public, who had to stand out in the cold in long lines before being able to get inside, as seen in the photograph on the left.  And I must say, it is pretty inspiring to see so many people, many of them immigrants and first generation Americans, taking their children to the art museum when the opportunity allows, hoping to expand their horizons as best they can. Donald Trump would be amazed.

The main reason I wanted to visit the museum was twofold.  First, visiting on Free First Saturday means that there is a huge crowd, taking advantage of being able to enjoy this art for free, and the energy exuded by this crowd is just a fun experience.  Also, I wanted to take the guided tour of the Rembrandt: Artist and Printmaker exhibit taking place at 2:00 P.M.  Why it is that now that I am retired, I still have trouble getting places on time?  Regardless, I was able to make the tour on time and thoroughly enjoyed it. Not only was I able to enjoy the art, I learned many things about Rembrandt, including the fact that he loved making self-portraits (selfies in today's lingo), and that he was such a spent-thrift that he had to file bankruptcy and wound up having to give up all his printmaking plates to creditors.  The docent that gave the tour was extremely knowledgeable (seen expounding on a point in the photo on the right), and I strongly recommend that anyone who is able to take a tour of the exhibit while it is still here (through January 6th) certainly do so.

As I was leaving the museum, I couldn't help but notice that there was a long line of people waiting to get into the Dior: From Paris to the World exhibit.  Personally, I don't think this even approaches the level of art, but I can't deny that the exhibit is wildly popular.  On the other hand, even though it really isn't art, the sheer number of people willing to pay big bucks to see it means that the museum will be able to continue exhibiting truly great art like Rembrandt: Artist and Printmaker.  And so I shouldn't complain, although I must say I find complaining enjoyable now.  The end result will be the ability to see an exhibit like Claude Monet: The Truth of Nature, which will be here in Denver this coming October.  A small price to pay.

The Lights At The City And County Building - Minus The Parade

Every year Denver's City and County Building is lite up for the Christmas season, and it is a tradition for Denverites to drive past it and enjoy the lights throughout the holiday season.  My ex-wife Lisa once told me that she thought it was pretty tacky, but to me, I think it is a beautiful thing, as seen in the photograph above. Perhaps I just like tacky.  In any case, last night and the night before was Denver's annual Parade of Lights, which winds through the streets of Denver and past reviewing stands right in front of this building.  It starts at 8:00 P.M. Friday and 6:00 P.M. Saturday.  However, no matter the year, it is always cold as hell out there. As I recall, the past few years I have taken photographs of this parade and posted them on this blog, but this year decided to skip it.  I am getting pretty tired of the cold these days, and so this year am posting the above photo minus the parade.  Am I getting to be an old foggy, or what?

It's December!

Today is December 1st, and that means the holiday season is now in full swing.  As I mentioned in a previous blog, I walked to Denver's Union Station the other day from the Tattered Cover Bookstore (my former employer), and when I got there I took photographs of all the decorations, including what I believe is the City of Denver's official tree, as seen in the photograph on the left.  It is certainly nothing like the one at Rockefeller Center in New York City, but it is still pretty nice.  My only complaint is that Union Station - not to mention the "official" Christmas tree - is completely surrounded by a Christmas Market, consisting of tents that remind me of an Arab caravan camped out for the night. Fortunately I was able to maneuver around so that none of the tents are showing in the photo, but the lesson here is that the commercialization of Christmas is still in high gear. Surprise!