What's New With Rick?

My travel hero, Rick Steves - guidebook author and host of the PBS television show Rick Steves' Europe - has been grounded in his hometown of Seattle due to the coronavirus.  No more travel to Europe for awhile. Instead, Rick and some of the other travel writers with his organization are posting daily Europe related stories on their blogs. Ricks' blog the other day was about my favorite spot in Paris, Rue Cler.  I have also been reading his other posts, too, and most are selections from For the Love of Europe, a new book by Steves coming out this July.  And they are all pretty good.  Be sure to check them out at https://blog.ricksteves.com/.  And if the stay-at-home orders stay in place through April, perhaps we can wind up reading the entire book online and not have to buy it.  Thanks Rick!

A European Flashback - Paris!

My sister Susan and I visited France and Italy this past May.  While it was only 10 months ago, it seems like a different lifetime.  Paris is now the epicenter of the coronavirus in France, and it's residents are under very strict stay-at-home rules to help control the virus.  No more hanging out at cafes like the one in the photograph above, at least for the time being.  People in Paris generally live in small apartments, and treat the cafes and streets like their living room, and so they all must be going quite stir crazy by now.  Even when they go out for exercise, they are required to stay within 1 kilometer of home (a little over half a mile), can only be outside for a maximum of 1 hour per day, and absolutely no bicycling.  Let's all hope this pandemic ends soon.  And by the way, La Terrasse, the cafe in the above photograph, is located right next to the Ecole Militaire Metro stop, right around the corner from Rue Cler, where my sister and I stayed when we were in Paris.  I am quite sure it looks nothing like that today.  How sad.

Homeless During The Coronavirus...

Like many cities, Denver has a major homeless problem, and with the onset of the coronavirus, this could become a major crisis.  Although the city has tried to institute a camping ban to keep the homeless from occupying parks and streets, it was declared unconstitutional, and the city stopped enforcing the ban. I recently noticed some of the homeless camping in front of Coors Field, as seen in the photograph above.  If the season had started as scheduled, I am sure they would now be long gone, but that of course never happened.  Most of these homeless people suffer from either mental illness or drug and alcohol problems, and they are not good at social distancing.  I have read that in Los Angeles there are 60,000 homeless living in camps there.  It boggles the mind even thinking about the possible consequences of all this.  Let's hope for the best.

Not More Florida Beach Nostalgia? Yes!

Due to the coronavirus, most of Florida's beaches are now closed, mainly due to thousands of spring breakers partying on Clearwater Beach and ignoring warnings about the coronavirus. One of the biggest spring break destinations used to be Panama City Beach, but eventually the locals decided enough was enough, and put a stop to the partying several years ago. And Panama City Beach is where I took the photograph on the left of my mother Mary and father Nelson back in April of 1975.  We were on the way to Stuart, Florida, where my parents were  thinking of retiring.  My Aunt Elsie and Uncle Bill (my mother's brother) had moved there a few years before, and loved it.  The following year, my parents moved there too.

The summer after my parents moved to Stuart, my sister Susan and I went down to visit, and they gave us a grand tour of the area.  One day we drove around Jupiter Island, an enclave of wealth about 15 miles or so south of Stuart, and afterwards we visited Hobe Sound Beach, where I took the photograph on the right. This beach was the first in Martin County (where Stuart is located) to close due to the pandemic.  I just hate to think it was because of rich people behaving badly, but one never knows.

My father passed away in 1983, a mere 7 years after retiring to Stuart, but I am happy he at least had those years. He just loved Stuart, as did my mother, who continued to live there for almost 30 years.  Susan and I would visit her several times a year, and of course, the highlight each day was visiting Stuart Beach.  One such beach visit was documented by a kind stranger in the photograph on the left.  Once in a while, I was able to convince my mother to drive with Susan and myself down to Fort Lauderdale or Miami to look around, but it was usually a tough sell.  She never wanted to venture far from Stuart.  And by the way, that photograph on the left was taken back in 1995, and I am proud to say that after 25 years, that shirt I am wearing is still hanging in my closet.  Waste not, want not.

Remembering Famous Florida Tourist Attractions

Florida's major tourist attractions are closed for now, due to the coronavirus.  This includes Walt Disney's Epcot Center, which closed March 16th and will stay closed until at least the end of the month.  I took the photograph on the left of my then wife Lisa at that theme park in the early 1980s.  That was the first and last time I ever visited it.  As I recall, the World Showcase area featured cultures of other countries, but since that time I have focused on actually visiting those countries instead.  The other major area at Epcot was Future World, where I suspect I took that photo of Lisa.

Disney World is closed too, of course. Since my parents lived in Stuart, Florida, a mere two hours away, I have visited there several times, the first time back in the 1970s, where I took the photograph on the right of my sister Susan and mother Mary.  Susan, as I recall, was very enthusiastic about visiting the place.  My father, who thought that Stuart was paradise on earth, declined to accompany us on that trip.  These days, of course, if you want to take your family to Disney World, you have to mortgage your house to do so.  As an alternative, I would now suggest Stuart Beach, instead.

I went to visit my mother in December of 2001 down in Stuart, and she treated me to a bus tour to Cypress Gardens, which claims to be Florida's first tourist attraction.  In addition to the gardens, there were water skiing shows, some amusement rides, and a boat ride through the various waterways, where southern belles stood among the flowers in hoop skirts, holding umbrellas as they were sprayed by a light mist.  I took the photograph on the left of my mother standing in front of one of their Christmas displays.  Eventually, the park was sold and is now called Legoland, although I understand that the gardens are still there and they have even kept the water skiing shows.  Good for them.

Back in August of 1963, my mother Mary, father Nelson, and Grandmother Spillard (my mother's mother) and I took a road trip from Chicago to Pompano Beach, Florida, where we stayed on the beach at the Sun Castle Hotel for $8.00 per person per day (breakfast and dinner included).  It was quite the eyeopening experience for me, traveling through the deep south for the first time.  As I recall, we visited St. Augustine, an alligator farm, a roadside house of mysteries, and Silver Springs, where we took a ride on a glass bottomed boat all around those artesian springs.  A few years ago, when I was down in Stuart, I drove up to Ocala, Florida to visit my friends Ana Silvia and Joe, who moved there from Denver, and they treated me to another ride on those boats, where I took the photograph on the right.  Back in 1963, Silver Springs was privately owned, but it is now a state park.  And happily, they are using the same boats they used back when I visited the place as a 10 year old.  Hopefully all these tourist attractions will reopen soon and thrive.

Opening Day Has Been Postponed - Bring On The Camel Races!

Today should have been the opening day of the major league baseball season, but due to the coronavirus, the start of the season has been postponed for at least a month, and probably much longer.  The last time major league baseball was delayed this long was during the players strike from August of 1994 until April of 1995.  During that time, whenever I went out for burgers and beers with my friend Stuart, the televisions in the sports bars were filled with very weird sports, the most memorable being camel races.  And I say that during these desperate times, the sports networks should resume televising camel races to entertain everyone sheltering in place.  In the spirit of this, I am posting a famous photograph of myself riding a jaunty camel years ago when I visited Cairo and the pyramids.  Granted, I did not participate in any races, but I certainly could have. I was that good.

The Park Lane

Every time I walk around Washington Park here in Denver, I pass by the Park Lane Towers, seen in the photograph on the left.  They are a series of high rise condominium buildings located on the north end of the park.  Ed, my old boss at the University of Denver Bookstore, once rented an apartment there, and told me that most of the residents were senior citizens, and because most of them did not use the pool or gym facilities, he had them all to himself, which he thought was quite a perk. He also told me that you had to put your dog in a cart in order to transport it outside.  I can just imagine trying to do that with my sister Susan's dog Blackberry - every walk would be an adventure. Years ago, I thought about buying a condo there.  I actually wound up taking a look at one. It was a one bedroom apartment, and seemed pretty damn small, and so I took a pass.  I did not want to live somewhere that was not as nice as my current place, and happily, a short time later, my building went condo and I was able to buy a two bedroom unit right across from the University of Denver.

Soon after I first moved to Denver and started visiting Washington Park, I learned that the Park Lane had originally been a hotel.  Until a few weeks ago, I assumed that one or all of the current buildings made up the hotel and that they were then converted to condos.  When I finally googled "Park Lane Hotel," I learned that the hotel was actually a single building built in 1928 and located on spacious grounds at the north end of the park.  I found an image of it on a postcard that was (and possibly still is) for sale on E-Bay for $15.00, as seen on the right.  And I must say, it looks very impressive.  Not only was it a luxury hotel, but it also had a famous rooftop restaurant called Top of the Park.  In 1968 the hotel was demolished, and was replaced by 3 apartment towers in 1969 that were converted to condominiums 10 years later.  A fourth tower, the Marion Parkway Condominiums, with only three units per floor, was built in 1974.  Now THAT is the building I should have looked at all those years ago.  Live and learn.

A Gentleman In Moscow

I just finished reading A Gentleman in Moscow, and I must say, it was very, very good.  I got together with Valarie, my friend and former University of Denver colleague a few weeks ago for happy hour, and she loaned me a copy of the book and insisted I read it.  And I am glad she did.  The story is about an "unrepentant aristocrat" who, after the Russian revolution, is sentenced by a Bolshevik tribunal to lifetime house arrest at the Metropol Hotel, just across the street from the Kremlin in Moscow.  And the story seems very timely now, considering that the mayor of Denver has issued a stay-at-home decree and ordered all non-essential businesses to close, thanks to the coronavirus.  At first, liquor stores and marijuana dispensaries were also ordered to close, which started a buying frenzy - with accompanying long lines - across the front range.  Then, two hours later, to avoid rioting in the streets and a possible violent overthrow of the city government, the ruling was amended to include both liquor stores and marijuana shops as essential businesses.  Things soon returned to normal, or as close to normal as things can get during a pandemic.  But as usual, I digress.  A Gentleman in Moscow was published in 2016 to critical acclaim, and I must say the praise is well deserved.  If you haven't read it yet, please do so.  It is out in paperback now, and I imagine the waiting list at the library should be almost non-existent by now, if by chance your local library is still open.  But one way or the other, I highly recommend reading it.

Walking The Empty Streets Of Golden

My friend Stuart and I walked around Golden, Colorado yesterday afternoon to get a little exercise.  We walked along the Clear Creek trail, and on the way back wandered through the Golden History Park, where I took the above photograph of Stuart in front of the Pearce / Helper cabin.  It was built in 1878 and was a fixture on the Pearce ranch for many years, before moving to this site.  We then walked through downtown Golden, which was almost completely deserted.  We stopped at Colorado Plus 49 Cidery and Pub for takeout, and dined at a table on a bridge overlooking Clear Creek and the foothills beyond.  There was nobody in the restaurant when we picked up our food, except for the two people who worked there, and I got the impression that business was extremely slow.  If the closure order for restaurants lasts too long, I'm afraid independent places like Colorado Plus 49 will not survive.  Let's all hope for a quick worldwide end to the coronavirus.

All Restaurants In Florida Are Now Closed

I saw via the internet that all the restaurants in Florida were closed by the order of the governor this past Friday.  What are all those spring breakers going to do, poor things? Like here in Colorado, these establishments can still do takeouts and deliveries, but to be honest - especially in Florida - it is just not the same. After all, in Stuart, Florida, where my mother Mary lived for almost 30 years, the ambiance of dining along the water is just as important as the food.  As Exhibit A, I show the photograph on the left of my mother Mary and sister Susan in front of the the Pirate's Loft in Port Salerno, Florida after dining there many years ago.

Another favorite restaurant of ours was The Prawnbroker, where I took the photograph of my mother Mary, seen in the photo on the right, and Elaine, her longtime next door neighbor (and seen on the left in the photograph). Located near the inter-coastal waterway in Stuart, this is one very popular restaurant.  I believe I took the photo when my mother was living with me in Denver, and we would go back to Stuart at least several times a year to visit.  Hopefully all those great restaurants will survive this closure and reopen soon.

Springtime In The Rockies...

The first day of spring saw a powerful snowstorm hit the front range of Colorado (the area from Fort Collins to Colorado Springs), with blizzard conditions on the eastern plains.  Snow totals did not seem very high in central Denver or Fort Collins, although the amounts varied wildly throughout the area.  The wind was the main problem, especially driving across open country. It seems like every time there is a big snowstorm, I have to drive from here in Denver up to Fort Collins, across what in point of fact is the edge of the Great Plains, which is not known for it's pleasant wintertime conditions.  I am beginning to think this is all some sort of cosmic joke, but if nothing else, I do have a good sense of humor.  Needless to say, visibility was pretty poor, but I made it up there in one piece.   And happily, the snow stopped falling by late afternoon, and I was able to take my sister Susan's dog Blackberry (seen in the photo on the left) on a fun-filled walk through that winter wonderland.

Susan had refilled her bird feeders just the day before, although it appears that it is being patronized more by squirrels than birds.  Squirrels are not popular here in Colorado - one of my former Tattered Cover Bookstore colleagues refers to them as "tree rats." Blackberry, however, just loves squirrels, and chases after them whenever one appears.  Once they flee up into the trees, she refuses to leave, convinced they will come back down and play with her.  The squirrel in the photo on the right, by the way,  seems pretty damn chunky to me, and so I suspect it is getting more than it's fair share.  Kind of like those hoarders hitting the grocery stores these days and buying up all the toilet paper, rice, and other staples.  And don't get me started on that.

The Denver Zoo Is Closed!

I was planning to head to the Denver Zoo - the entrance of which can be seen in the photograph above - this past Tuesday to take a few photographs for my blog.  The last I heard, the zoo was still open to the public if you made an advance reservation, but they later decided to close because of the coronavirus.  I had to settle for a walk in Washington Park, which seems to be growing increasingly popular as virtually everything else in town closes down.  Ironically, that night on the local television newscast, it was reported that Denver's Downtown Aquarium was still open, and reporters wanted to  know why.  Did aquarium officials feel it was an essential operation in Colorado, serving a desperate public that lives a thousand miles from the sea?  Not surprisingly, the very next day the Downtown Aquarium closed down.  Bummer.

The First Day Of Spring!

Today is the first day of spring.  And appropriately enough, Denver and the front range of Colorado are forecast to have a major snowstorm today, which is why am I featuring a photograph of my sister Susan's dog Blackberry with a face full of snow.  Blackberry loves to frolic in the snow, and since March and April are traditionally the snowiest months of the year here, I suspect she will have a lot more chances to frolic.  I actually find it hard to take photographs of Blackberry, since I am usually on the wrong side of the dog when I walk her, which I do whenever I am up in Fort Collins, where my sister lives. However, when Blackberry spots a squirrel in a tree, she is just riveted by it, hoping against hope she will finally be able to catch one, thus allowing me to take a snapshot like the one above.  Thank God for dreamers.

Dealing With The Pandemic - Is Toilet Paper Really Necessary?

After spending over a week going to grocery stores in both Fort Collins and Denver looking for toilet paper, I finally bit the bullet, set the alarm for 6:00 A.M., and headed off to the Belcaro King Soopers (part of the Kroger grocery store chain) here in Denver to make sure I was one of the first through the doors yesterday morning.  There were a number of people in front of me, as seen in the photograph above, but no matter - how much toilet paper could they possibly buy?  The doors opened promptly at 7:00 A.M.  I grabbed a shopping cart, headed to the paper goods aisle, and found - guess what - empty shelves.  It looked like a swarm of locusts had descended on the place.  I asked one of the clerks why that was, and was told that since this was a small store, it didn't get deliveries every day.  No matter.  I hopped in the car and headed to one of the largest King Soopers in the city, just a few miles away.  I was surprised to find that the entire parking lot was practically full at 7:10 in the morning. After parking in what I think was a different time zone, I finally worked my way to the paper goods.  I was indeed able to buy toilet paper, paper towels, and Kleenex for both my sister and myself, but it was not easy to squeeze in there.  And it was impossible to follow CDC guidelines.  You try practicing social distancing these days in the toilet paper aisle.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Today is St. Patrick's Day, which is always a big deal here in Denver, as it is everywhere else, too.  Sadly, Denver's annual St. Patrick's Day parade this past Saturday was canceled due to the coronavirus.  However, I did see a large crowd on the patio of Nathan's Irish Pub, celebrating in traditional style, despite the cancellation of the parade, and they were definitely not following the 6 foot social distancing rule. As of today, however, all bars and restaurants here in Denver - and most of the rest of the country - are closed except for takeout and delivery.  Party poopers - so much for celebrating this year's St. Patrick's Day.  As Chicago Cubs fans often say, wait until next year.

Dinner And Ice Cream With Stuart And Lana

I got together last night with my friend Stuart and his girlfriend Lana (seen in the photograph on the left) for dinner at the Old Chicago Pizza and Taproom on Colorado Boulevard here in Denver. The place was pretty empty for a Sunday, no doubt due the coronavirus sweeping the country. Usually we would be hard pressed to find a booth in the bar area, but last night had our choice of spots.  Of course, since all sports in the country have been canceled for the foreseeable future, the only thing on the televisions at Old Chicago were game shows, which also tends to discourage customers.

After dinner, we headed over to the Ben and Jerry's across from the University of Denver, and walked through the campus while we ate our ice cream.  Stuart is an alumni of the Graduate School of International Studies (now called the Josef Korbel School of International Studies), and wanted to show Lana around the grounds.  This is also where I earned an MBA, and worked for almost 30 years as the Finance Manager of the University of Denver Bookstore, until the university outsourced the store to Follett Higher Education Group.  And, as regular blog readers know, I am not now nor ever have been bitter about that.  The campus is, after all, very beautiful, and is where I took the sunset photograph seen on the right. And yes, I do know that sunset photos are cliches, but on the other hand, so what?

The Ides Of March

Today is the Ides of March, the day Julius Caesar was assassinated in Ancient Rome.  He was warned, of course, but instead of "self-quarantining" at the palace, he decided to go to the theater, and was stabbed to death on the steps as he was leaving.  My sister Susan and I actually visited the scene of that crime when we visited Rome last May.  Rick Steves writes in his guidebook that the theater where Julius Caesar was killed was located in what is now a corner of the Campo de Fiori.  Our hotel was located just a block away from that piazza, seen in the photograph above.  This was the second time I have visited this delightful spot, and although I have studied Rick Steve's Rome guidebook a number of times, I have never been able to spot the remnants of that theater that he claims are there.  I guess I will just have to take it on blind faith.  After all, Rick wouldn't lie, would he?  Nah...

Burgers And Beers With Wally!

Wally, my friend and former University of Denver Bookstore colleague (seen in the photograph on the left), invited me over to his place last night for beers and burgers cooked out on the grill. His wife Linda was going out with friends, and so he invited me over to tell me about his recent adventures visiting friends in Ten Sleep, Wyoming and Red Lodge, Montana.  He stayed overnight at the home of his old high school pal in Ten Sleep, and woke up the next morning to find six inches of snow on the ground, and no sign of it stopping.  One good reason  not to visit Wyoming during the winter (September through June).

Once Wally got back on Interstate 25, heading north, the snow ended, and it was a smooth drive to Red Lodge, where his friend, who owns a ranch there, recently had an operation and needed help while he recovered. While someone else fed the ranch's 16 horses in the main pasture, it was Wally's job to feed the two old horses in the barn. However, those two old horses wandered into the main pasture with the others, and Wally had no idea which ones were the ones he had to feed.  At long last, the two older horses wandered back to the barn, and all was well.  Wally also was responsible for feeding his friend's two dogs, which was much easier for Wally, since he has a dog of his own - Sailor - seen in the photograph on the right, lounging on a living room chair - to Linda's horror- when she returned from her get-together.

Wally and Linda also have a cat named Stella (seen in the photo on the left), whom I found to be amazingly friendly - for a cat, that is. Linda offered to let me take her home, but I politely declined. I know pet owners feel like pets are their children, but as I have learned from visits to my apartment from my sister Susan's dogs Tutu and Blackberry, pets are definitely NOT like children.  As far as I know, children do not urinate on your sofa, like Tutu did when Susan and the dogs came over at Christmas.  Not that I am bitter about that.  No - not me!

The First Bike Ride Of The Year!

It was sunny and close to 70 degrees this past Saturday, and so it was time for the first bike ride of the season.  I immediately headed to Denver's 16th Street Mall, and from there biked through several of Denver's trendy neighborhoods.  Everyone was out and about, and it looked like every restaurant's patio was packed to the gills.  Along the way, I took a self portrait (now called a "selfie") of myself wearing my treasured Chicago White Sox cap in front of the Grant-Humphreys Mansion, as seen in the photo on the left.

On the way home, I took another photograph of that house, built in 1902, and seen in the photo on the right.  The place is now owned by the Colorado Historical Society, and is a popular venue for weddings.  Years ago, I attended a wedding there for Aziz, at the time a University of Denver Bookstore employee.  Aziz is originally from Algeria, and I was amazed when he told me that his grandfather received a pension from the French for fighting the Germans, and another pension from the Algerians for fighting the French. What a crazy world we live in. Another legendary story about Aziz was when he bought a car from a friend for a few hundred dollars, and had it fully insured.  Just a few months later he made out like a bandit when it was destroyed in a hail storm, and got several thousand dollars from the insurance company. As Aziz would put it, what a country! This past Saturday, there was still another wedding going on as I biked past.  I was tempted to crash it, but decided it was too nice of an afternoon to get arrested.  Just call me a sentimental fool.

My Father's Birthday

Today would have been my father Nelson's 111th birthday if he were alive today.  Sadly, he passed away back in 1983, after 7 happy years of retirement with my mother Mary in Stuart, Florida.  My sister Susan and I would visit them there once or twice a year, and we would often take trips to such nearby places as Key West, Sanibel Island, St. Augustine, Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina, where I took the photograph on the left of my father back in 1979.  At the time I took that photo, my father was 70 years old, a mere 3 years older that I am today.  Definitely makes you think.  And this photo also shows exactly how I remember him. How wonderful is that? Thank God for photographs. Happy Birthday Dad!

Angel Eyes

I recently finished reading Angel Eyes, the latest Spenser novel by Ace Atkins.  Robert Parker, the creator of that famous fictional private detective, passed away a number of years ago, but Parker's widow picked Atkins to continue the series.  I think that Atkins has done a really good job of imitating Parker's style.  This time, a friend of Susan Silverman, Spenser's significant other, hires him to travel to Los Angeles to locate her daughter, with whom she has lost contact. This he does, with explosive results. I was on the waiting list for this book forever, but while browsing in the downtown Denver Public Library's bookshop, found it on the shelf for $7.00, and figured what the hell.  It was definitely worth the read.

The March Mutts Of The Month

I saw this month's mutts of the month tied up in front of Reivers, a long established restaurant located on Old South Gaylord Street here in Denver.  Regular blog readers will recognize the dog on the right - it is tied up in front of that place nearly every time I walk past.  I assume it is owned by one of the employees who works there, although it could be owned by an extremely loyal customer.  In the past, this dog has been pretty mellow, lying down on the sidewalk and quietly watching the world go by.  However, when I took the above photograph, it was up and barking at me as I walked by.  I imagine it was just being protective of it's little friend on the left.  And just last week, there was a third dog there, and that dog in the photo on the right was barking so furiously, I decided to skip taking a photo, for fear of my life.  However, I must say I am glad to see that it now has some friends to keep it company.  I just hope the owners bring out some bowls of beer now and then, to help those dogs savor the afternoon.

More On The DU Bookstore

Since I was getting all nostalgic in yesterday's blog post about the University of Denver Bookstore, where I worked for almost 30 years as the Finance Manager, today I decided to post a photograph of two of my former co-workers, hard at work in the bookstore's textbook office.   Doug (seen on the left) was one of the textbook buyers, and Dave (on the right) was the marketing coordinator for the store. After the university outsourced the store to Follett Higher Education Group, Doug was kept on as the textbook buyer, while Dave decided to start his own company selling healthful snacks to local food stores.  I have lost contact with Dave, but Doug is now happily retired from Follett and works at the Wizard's Chest here in Denver as a magician several times a week.  And probably still juggling, too.

The University Of Denver's Community Commons

I took the above photograph the other day of the University of Denver's new Community Commons building, currently under construction.  When I first started working at the University of Denver Bookstore, the Driscoll Center, including the building where the construction is now taking place, had just opened.  The bookstore moved into a remodeled building on the south side of the street, connected to the north building by a pedestrian bridge over the street.  I spent almost 30 years there working as the Finance Manager of the store, until the university outsourced it to Follett Higher Education Group back in 2012.  I  must say, outsourcing the store certainly made for what I will call an "interesting" 7 years before I became eligible for social security.  My fellow DU Bookstore employees have also had their trials and tribulations, thanks to that outsourcing.  But are we at all bitter?  Nah.  And will we all be there for the opening of the new building?  Of course we will - there will be free food.  You have to keep your priorities straight, after all.  Right?

Celebrating The Month Of Printmaking On First Friday

I headed over to the Santa Fe Arts District here in Denver last night for the First Friday Art Walk.  March is The Month of Printmaking, and one of the first people I ran into was Joe, my friend and former University of Denver Bookstore co-worker.  Joe still works part-time at the DU Bookstore, is an artist, and teaches printmaking at the Art Students League of Denver.  Last night he was displaying his artwork at the Knoll Gallery, as seen in the photo on the left.  Joe's art was also on display at the Center for Visual Art, just up the street.  Joe tells me he has been working pretty hard to get ready for these shows, but happily things are now slowing down a bit for him.  Be sure to check out Joe's website at https://www.joehigginsmonotypes.com/.

Carol - who is also a printmaker and my former co-worker at the DU Bookstore - was displaying her artwork last night at the Artists on Santa Fe Gallery.  I stopped in to visit her, too, and ran into her husband Greg (seen in the photo on the right), who was subbing for Carol at the gallery, since she wasn't feeling well (and I am pretty sure that the woman hiding behind the potted plant in the back was NOT Carol).  I haven't seen Greg in a while, and it turns out he is the engineer for a new building under construction at DU, keeping that DU connection alive.  Check out Carol's website at http://www.caroltill.com/index.html.

Nostalgia For Grocery Stores? Seriously?

Yes! Really!  Going to the grocery store was a big deal when I would visit my mother down in Stuart, Florida. We would head to the Downtown Publix for something or other every day.  After my mother came up to Denver to live with me, we would still go back down to Stuart at least twice a year, and Publix was always our first stop once we got there.  I took the photograph on the left of my mother on one such trip back in 2007, right next to her usual parking space, just before we went inside.  During the summer, they kept the store at a steady 33 degrees, and so leaving the store and walking into that hot humid air was just an incredible relief. And when I visited Stuart during the holidays, one of the best things on television down there were the Publix Christmas commercials, such as the Christmas Doves commercial.  Even though it is not quite yet the Christmas season, check it out anyway at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1foZ_szc3hI.

I even took a photograph of my father Nelson (seen in the photo on the right) many years ago at the Winn Dixie, which was located in Monterey Plaza, next door to my parent's condo complex.  That was the same Winn Dixie that golfers at their complex used to drive over to make par.  To save lives, the condo association changed the hole from a par 3 to a par 4, instigating a penalty if you did not hit your ball across a line drawn across the fairway.  This rule, of course, made sense, but it sure made shopping at the Winn Dixie less exciting.

Walking Past History In Denver

I recently took the above photograph of a row of buildings in Lower Downtown Denver (LoDo) that were built back in 1863, right after a fire that devastated the area.  I really never paid much attention to them until I read the plaque on the building on the far right, stating that it was originally owned by Barney Ford, a former slave born in 1822, who operated the People's Restaurant on the ground floor and a barber shop in the basement.  The building on the far left was also built in 1863 and housed a saloon and boarding house.  Long before this area was a hipster hangout, my friend Stuart and I would sometimes dine at a restaurant called The Firehouse, directly across the street from that building.  At the time it was some kind of costume store, and as we consumed our beers and burgers, we would stare at the facade, which was covered with weird, scary murals. The building second from the right, by the way, started out as the Empire Bakery, and according to an online article, is one of the few buildings in LoDo that have remained mostly unchanged since 1863.  For more details, be sure to check out that article at http://www.hometodenver.com/1526_blakestreet.htm.

C.J. Box Appears At The Tattered Cover Bookstore

I went to the Tattered Cover Bookstore on Colfax Avenue here in Denver last night to hear C.J. Box (pictured on the left) discuss and sign copies of Long Range, his new Joe Pickett novel.  This book is the 20th in the series, and the room was packed to the rafters with Box's fans.  In these stories, Joe Pickett is the game warden for the area around Saddlestring and Twelve Sleep, Wyoming, and always seems to be getting into investigations that put him and his friend Nate Romanowski into serious danger.  This time an attempt to kill a local judge backfires when instead, the judge's wife is seriously wounded.  The governor calls for Pickett to join in the search for the suspect.  I enjoyed Box's talk very much, and the book sounds really good. I have already put in a request for it at the Denver Public Library.  There are only 99 (out of 240) people ahead of me, and so I expect to get a call that it is ready to pick up any day now. Coincidentally, my friend Wally, who headed up to Red Lodge, Montana (located near Yellowstone) this past weekend to help out a friend who recently had knee surgery, was also planning to stop on the way to visit another old friend in Ten Sleep, Wyoming (the real name of Box's fictional Twelve Sleep).  Wally told his friend that he would take him out to dinner at some cozy bistro in Ten Sleep.  Surprisingly, his friend told him that there are no cozy bistros in Ten Sleep. Hard to believe, but evidently true.

How Much Is That Doggie In The Window?

I took the above photograph of a dog barking it's head off at me as I walked past the window of a University of Denver owned apartment building the other day.  It's owner - no doubt a DU student - had kindly opened the blinds so that it would have a window on the world.  My building also has quite a few DU students, many of whom also own dogs.  I often see them taking their pets out to the dog-walk in front of the building, letting them do their stuff, and then heading right back into the building. You would think they would take the poor things on a nice walk - we are only 15 or 20 minutes away from Washington Park, after all.  Is it because they have to get back to their studies as soon as possible?  A DU student?  Really?

On The Trail With Stuart

I went hiking along Clear Creek in Golden with my friend Stuart (seen in the photograph on the left) yesterday afternoon.  It was brisk, but not unpleasant, and we followed the trail along the water for a while and then headed back and walked through downtown Golden.  Clear Creek is very popular with kayakers and tubers, but needless to say, we didn't see anyone out on the water yesterday. Clear Creek also supplies the water used to make Coors beer.  I am not sure if they simply scoop out the water and throw it the tanks or not.  Better check before you purchase a 6 pack.

Afterwards, we headed to Colorado+49 Cidery and Pub for dinner and beers (definitely not Coors). I am not sure what the name means, nor why hard cider - and for that matter hard seltzer water - are so popular now.  Must be the altitude.  In any case, the food was good, and we were treated to a documentary about the Pittsburgh Pirates on the television located over the bar.  I don't know the reason for that either.  In any case, as we left, the snowstorm that had been predicted had arrived.  I took the photograph on the right from the bridge across Clear Creek on the way back to my car.  The lighted M on the foothill in the background is the symbol for the Colorado School of Mines, which is located a few blocks south of downtown Golden.  The most popular hangout for those students is the Golden City Brewery, a beer garden located in the owner's backyard just a few blocks away, and is famous for being Golden's 2nd largest brewery.  And no, we did not check to see if anyone was hanging out there last night.  Always keep your distance from crazies has always been my motto.

Spending A Cold Afternoon At Cherry Creek

And no, I did not spend time at the creek itself.  As most Denverites know, where Cherry Creek meets the South Platte River is where Denver was founded back in 1858.  However, I actually spent the afternoon several miles upstream, at the Cherry Creek Shopping Mall,  which borders Cherry Creek.  This mall is probably the most upscale in Denver.  It is also the only one which charges for parking, which is why I parked on the other side of that creek and walked over a pedestrian bridge (where I took the photo on the left) to get into the mall.

The reason I went to Cherry Creek in the first place was to get a little exercise.  The temperature outside was in the 20s, and since the wind was blowing around 40 miles per hour, the wind chill was around 8 degrees.  Not prime walking conditions.  The first thing that caught my eye after I was inside was the entrance to the Kona Grill.  It was a wall of water reflecting the various lights inside the restaurant, as seen in the photograph on the right. This location was once the main entrance to the mall, where there was a valet service.  You can still exit the mall this way if you walk through the restaurant, but I think they specialize in sushi, and I have a strict policy of avoiding those places like the plague, which I understand you can catch from eating or even being in the vicinity of sushi.

As I walked through the mall, I could not help but notice that there were a lot of new cars on display from car dealer Mike Ward.  The first car I spotted was the black Aston Martin seen in the photograph on the left. That is the car that James Bond used to drive, back when Sean Connery played that role. A sign on the car said it was being offered on a 36 month lease - with no money down - for only $1,700 a month.  I was very tempted - what a deal!  And then a little further down I saw a spanking brand new McLaren Spider.  That car was being offered at a starting price of $200,000. That might seem a bit pricey, but on the other hand, you would avoid the hassle of having to find another car when the lease on the Aston Martin was up.   Decisions, decisions.  Maybe I'll just stick with my Hyundai Accent.