The Highlands Street Fair

After being canceled last year due to the coronavirus, I am happy to report that the Highlands Street Fair returned this past Saturday bigger and better than ever. This is one of the largest neighborhood festivals in Denver, and featured booths selling food, as well as a variety of merchandise. The event was very dog friendly, and there were a number of booths catering to dogs, not to mention their owners, since dogs don't usually carry credit cards.

The Highlands neighborhood is just a short distance from downtown, and has become very trendy over the years. When I first moved to Denver, it was touted as a lower cost alternative to Washington Park, one of the city's  most desirable neighborhoods. These days, don't even think about looking for affordable housing in the Highlands. If you want to enjoy living there, you will have to ante up. But I have to say that the booth for Nostalgic Homes - which specializes in property in that neighborhood and has offices in a large Victorian home there - was doing a land-office business, so to speak. Probably still more Californians wanting to move here and live the good life. Also very popular was the classic blue Cadillac seen in the photograph on the right, which I assume the Nostalgic Homes people use to take clients on home tours. Nice tail fins!

Visiting With Joe At The Summer Art Market

I visited with Joe, my friend and former University of Denver Bookstore co-worker, at the Art Student League of Denver's Summer Art Market yesterday afternoon. In addition to working at the bookstore, Joe teaches printmaking at ASLD, and is also a very talented artist. I took the photograph above of Joe in front of his booth at the art fair, which he has participated in now for over 25 years. The festival was canceled last year because of the pandemic, and delayed this year until August, but I am happy to report that it appears to be as popular as ever. Be sure to check out Joe's website at https://www.joehigginsmonotypes.com/.

It's Almost September - Time To View The Aspens!

September is almost here, which is when the Aspen trees in the Colorado mountains change color, motivating thousands of Denver area residents to head up I-70 to those mountains to sightsee and take photographs. Last year I drove up Boreas Pass, just south of Breckenridge, to view the Aspens, but when I got to the top, most of the trees had already lost their leaves. This year, I plan to pay more attention when the newscasters on TV announce what weekend the trees will reach their peak colors. Photographs of leafless trees never seem to have the same cachet. The photograph above, by the way, is of my sister Susan and late brother-in-law George, taken at Rocky Mountain National Park back in September of 1994. As you can see, we hit the mountains just at the right time that year.

The Cayo Hueso Maze

I just finished reading the Cayo Hueso Maze, the latest Alex Rutledge Key West mystery by Tom Corcoran. I really like this series. It is not so much the story lines as the local characters, the Key West ambiance, and the descriptions of life on that island paradise that I really enjoy. Reading these books, you learn that many of the Conchs (Key West natives) can no longer afford to live there anymore, and have left the island for Northern Florida cities such as Ocala and Lakeland, which are much more affordable. This time, in the Cayo Hueso Maze, there are two murders that make a reporter friend of Alex Rutledge - a local photographer - and his girlfriend Beth - a city police detective - the chief suspect, and both of them work to find the real culprit. There is also a second unsolved murder related to a string of house burglaries. It sounds to me like Key West is becoming a pretty dangerous place these days, but I digress. In any case, I enjoyed this story, although this series, once issued by a major publisher, is now self published by Corcoran, and available only on Amazon. Go figure. Those publishing houses are probably too busy releasing books about recent political horrors, which we all desperately crave.

Another Baseball Update - Can The White Sox Really Go All The Way?

There are 6 weeks left until baseball playoffs begin, and as of today, the Chicago White Sox, my Southside heros, are in first place, 9 games ahead of their closest rival, the Cleveland Indians. However, like all White Sox fans, I am still worried. I have watched a lot of Sox games recently, and although they play well against mediocre teams, they seem to have trouble when they play contenders. Just this week they lost 2 out of 3 to the Tampa Bay Rays, the defending American League champions, and the one game they did win was a cliffhanger. Thank God they start a 3 game series tonight against the Chicago Cubs, their Northside rivals, who are absolutely awful this year. Let's hope they stay awful for the next 3 days. As for the Colorado Rockies, they are playing well at home, and horrible on the road. They were predicted by baseball experts to be the worst team in major league baseball this season, but right now there are 6 teams even worse than they are. Here in Denver, we consider that a successful season. And by the way, the photograph above is a self portrait I took after I teleported myself to Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago this past week. It's a learned skill.

Fort Collins Colorado - One Of The Top 10 Hipster Cities In The US?

Yes! It's true! There was an article in the travel section of last Sunday's Stuart News (now part of the USA Today newspaper chain) that featured the top 10 cities in the US for hipsters. Amazingly enough, Fort Collins, Colorado was one of them. And why Fort Collins and not Boulder, or even Denver? I don't know, but if it is in the paper, it must be true. I decided to reexamine some of the photos I took a few weeks ago on Odell Brewery's patio, and realized that I missed some significant details. In the photograph above, taken at that Fort Collins brewery, a woman at the table on the right is wearing a knit cap, even in the heat of summer, and the guy next to her has a man-bun. Also, the dog seems to have it's own place at the table. All proof positive that the USA Today article is absolutely correct. Fort Collins is indeed a haven for hipsters. And by the way, the other top ten hipster cities are Seattle, Portland, Oregon; Berkley, California; San Francisco, Tempe, Arizona; Minneapolis, Madison, Wisconsin; Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Washington D.C. Be sure to write them all down for when you start planning your next vacation, fellow hipsters!

The August Issue Of Chicago Magazine

Even though I have lived in Denver for 40 years, I still subscribe to Chicago Magazine, to keep up with what is happening in my old home town. Evidently, the magazine has foregone the annual Best of Chicago issue this year, and replaced it with "The Best of the New Chicago," as seen in the photograph on the left of the magazine's front cover. This article features the "58 people, places, foods, and finds" that emerged from the pandemic. None of which was very impressive, in my opinion. Much more interesting were several other articles, one of which was about how the city hosted the Bassmaster Classic back in 2000, the most prestigious fishing tournament in the country. The only problem was that none of the contestants could find any fish in Lake Michigan.

The other article was about the time back in the 1990s that MTV decided to set their hit reality TV show "The Real World" in Chicago's Wicker Park neighborhood. For years, the neighborhood had been populated by working class Poles and Hispanics, and it later became a center of art, music, and theater. This was the neighborhood where Chicago author Nelson Algren once lived. Back in April of 1972, I took a number of photographs around the area for a city planning course that I was taking at the Illinois Institute of Technology, one of which can be seen on the right. Those homes look pretty damn nice to me.

Naturally, by the 1990s, the neighborhood was undergoing gentrification, and artists and struggling residents were being forced out by rising rents. When that trendy TV show, which I think was an early version of Big Brother House, decided to film the show at a house in the neighborhood, it triggered protests and demonstrations, making for an exciting time for one and all. I never heard about this incident at the time, and it was really enjoyable for me to read about it now. And by the way, the area is now super trendy. So much for the power of protests. On the left is a photograph I took of one of the younger Wicker Park residents back in 1972. Hopefully, he and his family actually owned their house, and were able to continue living there. If so, that house would be worth a fortune by now. In which case, a victory for all of us.

Golden City Brewery

I was happy to see that Golden City Brewery seems to have survived the pandemic in fine fashion, and was packed with patrons this past Saturday when I attended the Golden Fine Arts Festival. It is the second largest brewery in Golden, Colorado after Coors, and is located in the backyard of the owner's 1870s era home. The carriage house is now the brewery, and located just half a block from Golden Historical Park and Clear Creek.

In fact, the beer garden is so successful that they have expanded into the side yard of the house, as seen in the photograph on the right. That guy must have an extremely understanding wife. However, after they expand into the front yard, the next logical move would be turn the first floor of the house into a restaurant, with the family living on the second floor. As a matter of fact, that was how a lot of businesses operated back in the 19th century, and so it would be an historically realistic move. Of course, by that time, the brewery owner's wife would probably have banished him to the brewery itself, making him sleep on a cot.

The Golden Fine Arts Festival

This past weekend, the Golden Fine Arts Festival took place in Golden, Colorado, after being canceled last year due to the coronavirus. The festival takes place on a street bordering the Golden Historical Park (which contains many original pioneer structures) and Clear Creek, a hotbed for river tubing. This year, there seemed to be a lot of photography on display, which made the show especially enjoyable. Golden is most famous for being the home of the Coors Brewery, although after a number of corporate moves with Molson and Miller, Golden is no longer the headquarters for the firm.

There was musical entertainment at the festival, too, including the bluegrass band seen in the photograph on the right. Golden, by the way, was founded in 1859 and was the territorial capitol of Colorado from 1862 to 1867, before political shenanigans led to the capitol being moved to Denver. I suspect some of the guys in that bluegrass band were around back when that outrage occurred. I even think they sang a song about it.

The Golden Fine Arts Festival features really high end art, but is a pretty laid back affair, as befits a place that, because it is separated from the rest of the Denver metropolitan area by two mesas, still feels like a small western town. The place is filled with houses and commercial buildings from the 1860s and 1870s. As a matter of fact, the original territorial capitol building is still around, doing business as the Old Capitol Grill and Smokehouse. The legislature used to meet upstairs, and then would head down to the bar on the first floor after their business was completed. The bar still has a glass fronted room for ladies, who were not allowed into the bar proper back then. I am pretty sure that policy has changed by now, but you never know.

Thoughts On Retirement

I took the above photograph of my father Nelson at Hobe Sound Beach back in June of 1979, while my sister Susan and I were visiting our parents down in Stuart, Florida, where they had retired to from the Chicago area three years earlier. My father was a dentist, basically forced by his parents to follow that career path, and he always hated doing that work. It is therefore no surprise that he couldn't wait to retire and head down to Florida. He thought Stuart was Camelot, and just loved living there, as did my mother Mary. My father was 70 years old back then, two years older than I am now. Sadly, he passed away four years later at the age of 74. That fact has made me think seriously about how to spend the rest of my retirement years going forward. My sister and I still own their condo, but rent it out to pay the expenses, and so we never get to use it. I keep wondering at what point I should stop worrying about expenses and start enjoying what we have, while we can. I still have no answer to that one.

Back To Normal For Denver's RTD?

Since I have retired, I have been using RTD, Denver's Regional Transportation District's system of trains and buses, quite a bit. As a senior citizen, I can buy a 3 hour pass for $1.50, and if I need more time, I can anty up and buy an all day pass for $3.00. During the heart of the pandemic, I was often the only person in the car, since the CDC said riding public transportation was a death trip. However, these days, with vaccines available, people are starting to ride it again, especially during rush hour, and for sports events. The agency has plans to expand 4 of its current lines, one as far as Boulder and Longmont, but after the losses caused by the pandemic, I suspect they will not be completed for years, if ever. However, Amtrak is proposing a train going from Trinidad, Colorado - near the New Mexico border - to Cheyenne, Wyoming, thanks to the quadrillion dollar infrastructure bill being considered by Congress. Hopefully, they will use steam locomotives and old time passenger cars to add a little Western flavor to the trip. I, for one, am definitely on board.

Campaigning With Blackberry For Top Dog

I took the photograph on the left of my sister Susan's dog Blackberry at Odell Brewery's patio/beer garden in Fort Collins, Colorado a few weeks ago. My sister Susan and I have been stopping there several times a week this summer after I get done taking her on her errands. I have entered Blackberry in the brewery's Top Dog contest, and Blackberry has been doing her best to win the title by trying to greet every person there. She loves adoration, and no doubt feels it is only her just due. However, the top 15 finalists invited to the judging on Odell's patio September 25th will be chosen by the most money they raise for the Northern Colorado Wildlife Center. I don't think Blackberry has a chance of doing that, but there will be a 16th dog chosen for being a social media standout, and I think Blackberry is smoozing at all the tables in hopes of being that dog. One suggestion Blackberry: visit a hairdresser and touch up that gray. Check out Blackberry's profile at https://www.mightycause.com/story/Za9abg.  

Little Man Ice Cream

Every time I am in Denver's Lower Highlands neighborhood, I pass by Little Man Ice Cream, which is a neighborhood icon. On weekends, the line to get ice cream winds around the block. It has been such a success that the owners opened up a branch in the now trendy Sloan's Lake neighborhood, and also opened an ice cream shop called the Old Town Churn in Fort Collins. I took the photograph above at the Lower Highlands location on a weekday, when things were a bit slow. In the background can be seen the rooftop deck of Linger, a very popular restaurant located in the former Olinger Mortuary (Get it? Olinger? Linger? But I digress). I myself have only been there once, checking out the view from the rooftop and having a beer underneath the Olinger Mortuary sign. I have to say, however, that to me, locating a restaurant in a former mortuary seems like very bad karma indeed. And people still insist on going there after sunset. Amazing.

Hipster Hangouts - Everything Old Is New Again!

I went for a walk in Denver's Lower Highlands neighborhood (LoHi) this past Friday afternoon and ran across a pretty attractive bar and restaurant, the entrance of which is seen in the photograph on the left. In addition to all the flowers and vegetation in front, it features a large, rustic patio with fire pits to sit beside, and even has a stream running through it.  I looked all over, but could not find a sign telling me the name of the place. And what's the deal with that? After I got home, I looked at a google map and learned it was called Forest Room 5, a popular spot for LoHi hipsters. And in fact, I remember this place - it used to be a dive bar that catered to Denver Bronco fans, and was purchased and rebranded back in 2003. And it only took me 18 years to learn this. I'm definitely getting better, not older. The place looks great, but if you've had a few drinks, can you ever find your way out again?

On the way home, I walked though Larimer Square in Lower Downtown Denver (LoDo). And yes - every damn neighborhood in the city seems to have an acronym these days, which is starting to get very annoying. In any case, Larimer Square, seen in the photograph on the right, is filled with commercial buildings from the 1870s and 1880s, and was saved from the wrecking ball by local developer Dana Crawford. It too is attracting it's fair share of hipsters. I myself tend to avoid hipster hangouts these days, and prefer places like Spanky's, on East Evans Avenue, just to the west of the University of Denver. What it lacks in hipsters it makes up for in happy hour specials. We older hipsters have our priorities, after all.

The Palio di Siena

Yesterday, The Palio was held in Siena, Italy's central piazza. The Palio di Siena is a horse race that takes place twice a year, on July 2nd and August 16th. It features 10 horses and riders, bareback and representing 10 of the city's 17 wards. I have seen this race on Rick Steves PBS travel show, and it looked like thousands of people were in that piazza watching the race. My sister Susan and I visited Siena back in May of 2019, where I took the photograph on the left of the central piazza. However, it was long before those horse races took place, which is why I had to add a couple of horses from Fort Collins, via the magic of Photoshop, to create the proper atmosphere.

Even though it was still a month and a half away from the July 2nd race, there was a huge parade in the neighborhood where we were staying, the locals cheering on their entry in the upcoming contest. I took the photo on the right out of my hotel room's window late in the afternoon, just before we headed out to dinner. As you can see, there were a LOT of people marching down the street. Hours later, as I was about to go to sleep, I heard some banging on pots and pans and various cheers, and was surprised to see that the parade was still going on, although with a lot less people. Talk about enthusiasm. I wonder if alcohol was involved?

Getting Together With The Old DU Bookstore Gang

I got together with some of the old University of Denver Bookstore gang and their spouses last night in the clubroom of my condo building, just across the street from the University of Denver. All but two of us are now retired. As for the DU Bookstore, the university outsourced it to Follett Higher Education Group (aka The Evil Empire) in 2012. In the photograph above, from left to right, are Wally, one of the former Operations Managers for the store; Renee, wife of Bill; Bill, the former Operations Coordinator; Linda, wife of Wally; Jake, husband of Valarie; Valarie, also one of the former Operations Managers; Chris, the former Accounts Payable Assistant, and Jim, Chris' husband. Only Renee and Jim are still working. The rest of us are living the good life here in Denver. Bill and Renee are planning a trip to Switzerland, and Linda will soon be heading to Cape Cod, and then off to Lake Tahoe for a class reunion. I myself have them all beat - I get to spend two days a week up in Fort Collins, which a number of people who have lived abroad have told me is the best possible place to be. So there. Great to see you all again, guys!

It's August! My Favorite Time Of The Year In Florida!

August was always my favorite month to visit Stuart, Florida. Yes - it is indeed hot and humid, but there is always a nice breeze coming off the ocean at Stuart Beach, and you can get there without suffering through bumper to bumper traffic. Plus, you can go to a Florida State League baseball game and watch the Jupiter Hammerheads play ball from a front row, infield seat, at a fraction of the cost of a major league baseball game. There is no waiting for a table at restaurants, and since it is daylight savings time, you can dine along the water while it is still light out, and take a walk along the beach afterwards. How great is that? And by the way, the above photograph was taken of my mother Mary and sister Susan in front of The Ashley, a popular restaurant many years ago in Old Town Stuart. The building used to be a bank, and was brazenly robbed by the Ashley Gang back in 1915. I myself don't remember that incident, but my sister Susan probably does.

Key West Luck

I just finished reading Key West Luck, one of Laurence Shames Key West comic mysteries. Years ago, Shames began writing these humorous stories, starting with Florida Straits, and some were New York Times best sellers. Eventually, he moved from Key West to Ojai, California - I suspect to do scripts for Hollywood - and stopped writing the series. However, a few years ago, I discovered that Shames had started writing these Key West mysteries once again, and is selling them on Amazon. I am gradually buying and reading them one by one, and working my way up to his most recent release. In Key West Luck, through no fault of their own, two newcomers to Key West get in over their heads with a local con artist and gangsters smuggling a document out of Cuba. They are helped out of this jam by some friendly locals, including Bert the Shirt, an old, eccentric, but friendly and well-meaning ex-Mafia guy. I really love this series, and heartily recommend it. But don't count on getting these books from your local library. I think Amazon is the only place that sells them these days. Go figure.

The Final "Meet In The Street" Of The Year

This year, now that Covid-19 restrictions have been lifted (at least for now) in Colorado, the City of Denver has been trying to lure people back downtown with a festival on assorted weekends called Meet in the Street, the last of which took place this past weekend. It featured artificial turf set up with chairs on the 16th Street Mall (as seen in the above photograph), assorted bands playing up and down the street, and various games, such as bean bag and what looked like throwing soccer balls into trash cans. I have biked past these festivals several times now, but nothing seemed very interesting to me. I suggest that if the city really wants to attract people back downtown, they should offer free beer. That should bring back the crowds. Including me!

In And Around Washington Park With Stuart

My friend Stuart and I picked up takeout food and dined at a picnic table in Denver's Washington Park yesterday afternoon. Afterwards, we walked around the park a bit. It was still pretty hot - at 96 degrees -  and smoky on Wednesday, and so the grounds were not nearly as crowded as usual. Then we headed to the Bonnie Brae Ice Cream Shop, which is still doing a box office business, and where I took the above photograph of Stuart. And by the way, on this same corner are located the ice cream shop, the Bonnie Brae Tavern (which serves great pizza), the Bonnie Brae Liquor Store, and the Eugene Field Branch of the Denver Public Library. If you lived near here, you would never have to leave the neighborhood for the rest of your life. I guess that is both good and bad. I'm just sayin'.

The Smoky Mountains

No - not those Smoky Mountains. I am referring to Colorado's smoky mountains, not to mention Colorado's Front Range, with Denver recording 37 straight days of poor air quality. On some of those days, Denver has suffered the worst air pollution of any city in the world. Number one at last! Most of the smoke is coming from the Dixie Fire in California, but there are many more fires across the West right now. Just a year ago, those fires were burning in Colorado, and the Cameron Peak fire was dangerously close to Fort Collins. This year, in Colorado, the problem is heavy rainfall, which has triggered mudslides at the site of those burn scars that have caused destruction in both Glenwood and Poudre Canyons. Let's hope they put out those damn fires across the West soon.  And by the way, I took the above photograph as I was driving back to Denver from Breckenridge, my favorite mountain town in Colorado. Still pretty despite all that smoke.

A Fun Afternoon In Breckenridge

As I mentioned in yesterday's blog, I drove up to Fairplay, Colorado this past Saturday to see the South Park City Museum, which I really enjoyed touring. Afterwards, I drove half an hour north on Highway 9 to Breckenridge, which is my favorite mountain town in Colorado. It is filled with buildings from it's days as a mining town. However, unlike places like Leadville, which actually look like old mining towns and give you an idea of what life was probably like back then, all of Breckenridge's historic buildings have been restored and turned into upscale restaurants, shops, and homes. It is what a mining town would have looked like back in the 19th Century if it was occupied by wealthy hipsters.

Breckenridge is a world-class ski resort, but it is also a very popular summer resort, too. Not only does it have a quaint main street and lots to see and do, it also has a very pretty riverfront, as seen in the photograph on the right. And when the leaves turn, it is truly beautiful. In the fall, I try to leave enough time after viewing the aspens along nearby Boreas Pass Road to stop in town, preferably during Oktoberfest, a very popular festival up there.

Years ago, my then wife Lisa, sister Susan, brother-in-law George and I were invited by Father Bob, a friend in charge of music at St. Thomas Seminary in Denver, to spend the weekend at a condo in Breckenridge with him, some seminary students, and someone named Sister Carla. A friend of Father Bob let him use that condo whenever he wanted, which is a nice perk when you have taken a vow of poverty. He also got to drive his friend's sports car, too. I was nervous about bringing beer along, afraid it might offend Sister Carla, but I needn't have worried. She was standing in the driveway, wearing bib overalls, with a beer bottle in her hand, when we arrived. And I must say, we saw a lot of Breckenridge's nightlife that weekend. It was a lot of fun, and Breckenridge seems to be just as much fun as ever.

Visiting South Park City

I have visited Fairplay, an old mining town in the mountains southwest of Denver, a number of times. It has a nice old hotel, an Italian restaurant with great pizza, a few old buildings housing a variety of shops, and South Park City, a collection of 44 historic 19th century buildings from the mining era. Seven of those structures are on their original sites (such as the 1879 brewery in the photo on the left), while the rest were moved to the site from around the area. I never cared much for Fairplay, but I have never visited that museum until this past Saturday, and was very impressed. It was definitely worth the nine dollar admission fee.

All of the buildings at this museum have been carefully restored, and filled with period furniture and artifacts. Saving these buildings was the idea of a lawyer from Colorado Springs named Leon Snyder, who used to come to the area for recreation. He noticed that many of the buildings in the area were neglected and deteriorating, and if nothing was done, they would be lost forever. Back in 1957, he organized a group to save them, and began moving these historic structures to Fairplay.

Today these buildings are arranged on a dirt street, complete with wooden sidewalks, that recreates a typical mining town from the 19th century. There is a saloon, a drug store, blacksmith shop, other commercial buildings, and a number of pioneer homes, going from the very rustic to the quite posh. I definitely think it is worth a visit, and the staff are very friendly and helpful. It is a shame I was too cheap to visit the museum sooner. But, as a confirmed skinflint, very understandable.

Biking Chicago's Lakefront In the 1970s

Back in the 1970s, my sister Susan, brother-in-law George, and I would put our bikes in the car, park by the Shedd Aquarium, and then bicycle along Chicago's Lakefront to Hollywood Beach, where the bike path ended, and where I took the photograph on the left of Susan and George back in April of 1973. Those were fun times, and the bike ride along the lake was great. Chicago is a truly beautiful city, and nothing can compare with that lakefront.

The Oak Street Beach was especially nice, although I am not sure that was where the photograph on the right was taken. The Drake Hotel was right in front of that beach, and is where Susan and George had their wedding reception back in 1969. The Drake, of course, is one of the fanciest hotels in the city. It was at that wedding reception that I learned that there are such things as restroom attendants, and that they actually expect a tip. A massive shock for a poor young teenager from the South Side of Chicago.

One of these days, I hope to go back to Chicago, rent a bike, and ride along the lakefront once again. I would stay at the Drake, but have a strong loyalty to the Motel 6 organization, as well as to the South Side of Chicago, and feel I would be betraying a sacred trust if I stayed anywhere but at a Motel 6 on the South Side of the city. Plus, there will never be any worries about washroom attendants around there.

Attending The Rocky Mountain Book And Paper Fair With Wally

Yesterday, I drove down to Colorado Springs with Wally, my friend and former University of Denver Bookstore co-worker (seen in the photograph above), to attend the Rocky Mountain Book and Paper Fair. This event was canceled last year due to the Covid-19 outbreak, and during the interval, it's long time home, the Denver Merchandise Mart, was permanently closed, resulting in the move to Colorado Springs. Wally is a big Churchill fan, and I myself like mysteries, but the show mainly featured books on Western history and old postcards, and so neither of us made any purchases. We saved our cash for dinner back in Denver at the Campus Lounge, which has gone through a number of owners over the past few years, but has now been renovated and is doing a good business, with roughly 200 television screens in a fairly small space. And all of those televisions were showing the Colorado Rockies with a big lead over the Miami Marlins. The perfect end to a perfect day.

The August Mutt Of The Month

I took the above photograph of the August Mutt of the Month, sitting by it's owner side, on the patio of Odells Brewery up in Fort Collins, Colorado a few weeks back. The patio is very dog friendly - most of the patrons seem to have a dog or two with them - and Odells is even sponsoring the Fort Collins Top Dog Contest, which will feature 15 dogs competing to win that title on September 25th. I have entered my sister Susan's dog Blackberry in that contest, but it is a charity event, and the dogs who collect the most money are the ones chosen. One dog, however, will be chosen as the social media standout, but it would be tough to teach Blackberry how to operate a computer, create a Facebook page, use Twitter, and otherwise develop an online presence in such a short period of time. Best just to sit on the patio and drink beer. A life lesson that took a long time for me to learn, but none-the-less is an important one.

Attending A Rockies-Cubs Game With Mark

I went with my friend Mark to Denver's Coors Field to watch the Colorado Rockies play the Chicago Cubs this past Tuesday night. People here are crazy about the Cubs, and most of the fans were rooting for them to win. However, the Cubs just traded away their top three stars, signaling the start of a rebuilding period, and they looked absolutely awful. The Rockies beat them 13-6, and the Rockies are not a very good team. I took the photograph of Mark (on the right) and myself right before the game. We were sitting in the pavilion section in left-center field. I used to sit there a lot when Coors Field first opened. It was the most reasonably priced section on the lower level, which was important, since back then I went to a LOT of games. Not so many these days, but I am, after all, getting old and jaded.

I took the photo on the right as the Cubs relief pitchers were heading for the bullpen in the outfield before the game started. It turns out they would get a lot of work Tuesday night, but despite the lopsided loss, Cub fans were not deterred. As I was walking along the 16th Street Mall yesterday, a full three hours before Wednesday's game time, the street was filled with people wearing Cubs paraphernalia. Before they won the World Series in 2016, the Cubs were known as "lovable losers," and so perhaps all those Cubs fans are just happy to have those lovable losers back. And by the way, the Cubs won Wednesday night's game 3-2. Will miracles never ceases?

Visiting With My Ex-Wife Lisa

I had coffee with my ex-wife Lisa yesterday morning at Kaladi Coffee Roasters on East Evans Avenue. Lisa, who lives in San Francisco, is in Denver to go through her late mother Jackie's things, which are stored at her brother's home here. The last time I visited with Lisa was in San Francisco back in January of 2012, just before the University of Denver outsourced the DU Bookstore, where I worked as the Finance Manager, launching me on an exciting 7 year adventure before being eligible to receive full social security benefits. Lisa was kind enough to bring me some wedding photos taken back in October of 1982, including the one on the left featuring my parents, Mary and Nelson, standing next to Lisa and myself. I did not take a photo of Lisa yesterday, since neither of us has changed a bit since that photograph was taken. Remarkable but true.

Lisa is doing well, and getting ready to start teaching music again at the elementary school in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco where she works. As ususal, Lisa is keeping busy all the time, singing in choirs, working summers at Muir Woods, and preparing lesson plans for the fall. It was great to catch up with her, both of us updating each other on what has been happening in our lives over the past 9 years. Lisa also gave me the photograph on the right. In the back row, from left to right, are my father Nelson, brother-in-law George, sister Susan, myself, and my mother Mary. In the front row, in the center, is Father Bob Klimek, a friend who directed music at St. Thomas Seminary here in Denver, and who we sadly never heard from again after he left the priesthood. The guys on either side of him are either seminary students, or wedding crashers - I can't remember which after all this time. In any case, it was great to see you again, Lisa! Don't be a stranger the next time you come to Denver!

Another Major League Baseball Update

It's August - crunch time for baseball teams hoping to make the playoffs - and I am happy to report that the Chicago White Sox, my South Side heros, are still leading the American League Central Division by 9 games, although the team has suffered from a number of injuries and are 4-6 over the last ten games. Ironically, their North Side rivals, the Chicago Cubs, as well as the Colorado Rockies (seen in the photo above on the giant screen at Denvers McGregor Square) are also 4-6 over their last 10 games, although both of those teams are well out of the running for post-season play. I do have to say, however, that the Rockies, predicted to be the worst team in baseball this year, are not nearly as bad as forecast. Mediocre, yes, but here in Denver, mediocre as far as the Rockies are concerned is not a surprise. Or, for that matter, as far as the Cubs are concerned, either.

The Splendid And The Vile

I just finished reading The Splendid and the Vile, Eric Larson's latest book about Winston Churchill and the UK during the Blitz. Larson writes non-fiction history, but in a style that makes it seem like a novel, which I really enjoy. When I first started this book, it seemed to drag on a bit, with a large section devoted to a new German radar system that accurately located bombing targets. However, once the book began to focus on the Blitz, the story became very engrossing, and a real page-turner until the end. The book not only focuses on Churchill, but on his family and acquaintances, the English people's lives during the Blitz, and the heroes behind the scenes, who were vital to the nation's survival. I have never heard of Lord Beaverbrook, but he was appointed by his good friend Churchill to head the Ministry of Aircraft Production, which he made instrumental in providing the planes that helped save Britain. It took forever to get this book from the Denver Public Library, but it was well worth the wait. I definitely recommend reading it, no matter how long it takes to get a copy.

Remembering Long Ago Visits To Miami Beach

Back when my mother Mary lived in Stuart, Florida, my sister Susan and I would often visit, and sometimes I could persuade them to drive with me down to Miami to check out the action. We would visit Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, and Miami Beach, where we would walk along Ocean Drive and admire the old Art Deco hotels lining the street. At one time, Miami Beach fell out of favor as a tourist destination, thanks to cheap flights to the Bahamas and other Caribbean destinations, and those old hotels filled with elderly retired people. Once the area became trendy, they were quickly evicted, and the hotels restored, the area becoming hipster heaven. My mother and Susan and I once took a guided Art Deco tour of the area, and one of the buildings we went through, well away from Ocean Drive, still catered to the elderly, most of whom were sitting in the television room, fans running at full blast. I have to wonder if that place is still occupied by senior citizens, or if they are all long gone. Miami Beach is fun during the daytime, but these days, the sidewalks of Ocean Drive are crammed with hipsters after sunset, which is now my signal to get the hell out of there. And by the way, I took the above photograph of my mother Mary back in 1988 in front of the Cardozo Hotel, where you can still get a room for $250 a night, at least in the middle of summer. Unforrtunately, there is not a Motel 6 in sight around there.