Having A Drink With Wally and Susan At A Place With No Name

I had a happy hour drink yesterday afternoon with my friend Wally and sister Susan - seen in the photograph above - at a place with no name. Seriously. There was no sign outside telling what it is, except for a poster advertising free happy hour spaghetti between 3 and 6. I have driven past that storefront a number of times, and have occasionally seen people going in and out, but had no idea what it was until Wally showed me a mailing he received promoting it as a quiet neighborhood spot, and suggested we try it. It is located in the University of Denver neighborhood near the corner of University and Evans. This spot was formerly occupied by Asbury Provisions, and before that by Renegade Brewing Company, which is the last time I visited that space. It is indeed a nice quiet place, with an old wood bar, and seems to be frequented by locals, many of whom the bartender knew by name. And yes, we all tried the spaghetti, in addition to having drinks. It did not have much sauce on it, but was still tasty, and best of all, free. My favorite price point. Wally is doing well, and he and his wife Linda are making frequent trips out to the Bay Area to visit their son and daughter and their families. On their next trip they will be celebrating the 1st birthday of one of their grandkids. Hopefully they will have a little time left over to roam around that beautiful city for a bit. Great to see you, Wally!

Let The Baseball Spring Training Games Begin!

All is quiet at Coors Field here in Denver today, as is the case at all the other major league stadiums across the country, but down in Florida and Arizona, baseball spring training games have begun. Down in Arizona, my South Side heroes, the Chicago White Sox are playing their North Side rivals, the Chicago Cubs, at Sloan Park in Mesa, while my adopted hometown team, the Colorado Rockies, are playing the Arizona Diamondbacks at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Scottdale. I am especially interested in that White Sox-Cubs contest. It is possible that neither team will win today, since during the spring extra innings are not played if the game is tied at the end of the 9th. Now THAT would be a sign of things to come. But why be pessimistic? Time to get that bet down on a White Sox-Cubs World Series. Anything is possible in the spring, right? Except probably that, of course.

Lunching With Stuart At Old Chicago

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

Celebrating Fat Tuesday At New Terrain!

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

Fat Tuesday!

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

President's Day Weekend!

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

The February Issue Of Chicago Magazine

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

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

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

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

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

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

The View From The Wynkoop

My sister Susan and I stopped into the Wynkoop Brewing Company in Lower Downtown Denver (LoDo) for a beer the other day, where I snapped a photograph of the view out the window, as seen above. During the summer, I love to sit on the outside patio after attending a Rockies game and watch the crowds stroll past on their way home (Coors Field is just two blocks away), but during the winter, it is best to just take a seat in the bar area and avoid pneumonia. The Wynkoop is pretty quiet this time of year, especially on a weeknight, but a great spot to hang out and enjoy its1890s vibe. In any case, just across the street on the left side of the photo is the Icehouse Lofts, which was originally constructed in 1880 or 1903, depending on which website you look at, and was home to Littleton Creamery and Beatrice Foods Cold Storage Warehouse before being converted into lofts back in 1998. Currently there are two units for sale there - a 1-bedroom, 1.5 bath unit on the 2nd floor selling for $550,000, and a 2-bedroom, 2-bath unit on the 6th floor selling for $1.3 million. Both of which seem to me a bit pricey. On the other hand, the Rodizio Grill Brazilian Steakhouse is located on the first floor of the building, offering its sampling of a dozen rotisserie-grilled meats for $51.95, easily affordable to someone who can afford to live in that building. Or, if you are on a tight budget due to your 1-million-dollar mortgage, you can always just cross the street and have a $6 happy hour IPA at the Wynkoop. I myself intend to just skip the $1.3 million unit and continue to drive the 20 minutes to the Wynkoop from my current residence. No matter what the price of gas is.

The February Mutt Of The Month

I took the photograph above of the February Mutt of the Month the Sunday after New Year's Day on the patio of New Terrain Brewing Company in Golden, Colorado. As you can see, that dog was happy to pose for the photo, no doubt bored out of its mind while its owner and her friends were relaxing and having a couple of beers. And yes, that group, as well as everyone else, was hanging out without jackets at the beginning of January in Colorado. Having occasional warm days during the winter is not unusual here in the Denver area, but this year, except for maybe a day or to, we have not yet had winter weather. Flowers are beginning to bloom, the snowpack is at an historic low, and there is great fear that Colorado will have severe drought conditions and a high risk of wildfires this coming summer if conditions don't change. Which is why everyone is praying for a very snowy March and April, which are traditionally the two snowiest months in Colorado. Pleasant patio weather is all well and good, but not at the cost of endangering the state.

Spring Training Begins At Last!

Pitchers and catchers report to their spring training ballparks in Florida and Arizona this week, with the rest of the team arriving five days later. This is a wonderful time of year for baseball fans. Every team in major league baseball has a chance to win it all, no matter what the experts predict. My South Side heroes, the Chicago White Sox, report to Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona today, anxious to get started with their climb back to respectability. Meanwhile, their North Side rivals, the Chicago Cubs, are having their pitchers and catchers report to Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona tomorrow, no doubt confident they are destined to finish first this year in the NL Central and move on to the playoffs. My adopted hometown team, the Colorado Rockies, are waiting until Thursday for pitchers and catchers to report to Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Scottsdale, Arizona. As Rockies fans will remember, the pitching staff put up a 6.65 ERA last season, the worst in major league baseball since 1901, and the starting rotation tied a modern-era record with 93 losses. The Rockies missed tying the White Sox for the worst record in the history of baseball by 2 games, finishing with 119 losses. Perhaps management wants to put off seeing that pitching staff back in action as long as they can. Thursday doesn't work? How about next week instead? And yes, the photograph above is still another that I took at the late, great Municipal Stadium in West Palm Beach during spring training back in March of 1996. Since I haven't been to a spring training game since then, I have a very limited number of spring training photos to show. Perhaps that's for the best.

Super Bowl Sunday! Time To Finally Take Down That Xmas Tree!

Yesterday was Super Bowl Sunday, the day I finally decided to take down my Christmas tree, seen in all its glory in the photograph on the left. I was originally going to take it down February 2nd, which is day on which the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ, also known as Candlemas, is celebrated, since I read on the internet that it was the day many Christians took down their trees, thus giving me an excuse for leaving it up so long. But then February 2nd rolled around, and I thought about having to take the hundreds of framed painting and prints out of my storage locker (all belonging to my sister Susan, I might add) to make room for the box containing that massive tree, and then having to put all those paintings and prints back in front of and on top of that box. And then decided that since I wasn't religious, I would do something more traditional in America - take down the tree while watching the big game. Which used to be the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day, but now, I firmly believe, is the Super Bowl. Makes sense, right? And by the way, Americans ate 1.5 billion chicken wings yesterday, and the Seattle Seahawks beat the New England Patriots 29-13. Now you know everything.

Goldens In Golden 2026

Yesterday was Goldens in Golden Day, the largest gathering of Golden Retrievers in the world. It takes place in Golden, Colorado and attracts over 10,000 people and 3,500 dogs in celebration of International Golden Retrievers Day. I drove to Golden for this event last year, just as it was ending. The main events, including a group photograph of thousands of owners and their Golden Retrievers taken in front of the Golden Welcome Arch on Washington Avenue, were long over, although there were still a lot of people with their dogs wandering around, as seen in the above photograph. And, of course, there was not a parking space in sight. Golden has made virtually every residential street around the 12th Street Historic District "residents only" parking, leaving very few spaces for visitors, especially 10,000 of them. But what I most remember was the traffic, which was at a standstill for what seemed like hours. Afterwards, I think there were a lot of complaints, and so this year, Golden instituted a shuttle from an off-site parking lot. However, I decided to skip the festivities this year. For one thing, waiting for a shuttle to take you downtown and then waiting to catch one on the way back takes a lot of time. Which, despite being retired, I don't seem to have a lot of these days. Plus, those buses get very crowded, not only with people but with all those dogs, too. And for another, I was not sure I wanted to be in a one-block area with 10,000 people and their 3,500 Golden Retrievers. Does that mean I have turned into an old fuddy-duddy? Don't answer that.

Getting Together With The Leeds United Colorado Supporters At DNVR

My friend Mark (seen in the photograph above) and I got together yesterday afternoon with the Leeds United Colorado supporters at the DNVR Bar here in Denver. And I must say, I was impressed with the turnout. There were over 20 people there at 1:00 P.M. on a Friday afternoon to watch Leeds play Nottingham Forest in a Premier League soccer match. I like this group a lot. They are a friendly bunch and have members that actually come from Yorkshire. Which makes sense, because I really think you need to have a connection to Leeds and Yorkshire to root for this team, since Leeds United is not, as far as I know, a well-known team in the U.S. Mark, of course, has friends in Leeds, visited there a number of times, and has attended soccer matches at Elland Road, Leed's home stadium. The game started at 8:00 P.M. local time and it looked to me like it was pouring down rain the entire time (although I hear February in the UK is usually very lovely). In any case, Leeds came out strong, scoring 2 goals in the first half and 1 in the second to win 3-1, sending all those fans home happy, not only with the win, but also being here in Denver with sunshine and temperatures in the 60s instead of watching the game live in Leeds in the cold, pouring down rain.

The Final Weekend Of The Honest Eye: Camille Pissarro's Impressionism

This is the final weekend of the Camille Pissarro retrospective at the Denver Art Museum (The DAM). My sister Susan and I decided to tour the exhibit one more time yesterday afternoon in order to take a closer look at the artwork, since the last time we went was on a Sunday, and the place was packed, making getting close to the artwork and the explanatory labels very difficult.  Yesterday was a beautiful day here in Denver, sunny with a high of 66 degrees, making the walk from the car to the DAM's Hamilton Building, where the exhibit is being held and seen in the photograph on the left, very pleasant. And by the way, this building was designed by architect Daniel Libeskind, his first completed building in the U.S. Libeskind said was inspired by the state's craggy mountain peaks when designing the building, but also found Denver and its people very dynamic, and wanted lively architecture to let the public know that new things are going on in this building. Of course, I knew there had to be a reason for why it looks like that, but in any case, the building is indeed a great place to display art.

And happily, the exhibit was indeed a lot less crowded, as seen in the photograph on the right, allowing us to take our time and learn more about Pissarro and his work. I really didn't know anything about him before this show and was surprised to learn he was considered the "dean of the Impressionists," as well as a father figure to them. And I really like his work, especially his paintings of Paris. And so, if you want to see this exhibit, you have only three days left. It is definitely worth seeing. And if you are a DAM member, you and whoever you bring can get in for $5 each, which to me is one hell of a bargain.

Lunch With Stuart At Spanky's

I had a late lunch yesterday afternoon with my friend Stuart, as seen in the photograph above, at Spanky's Roadhouse, located just to the west of the University of Denver campus. And as you can see, being an alumnus, Stuart is proudly wearing his DU sweatshirt. Of course, just to be clear, 1864 is the year DU was founded, not the year Stuart graduated. In any case, we discussed a wide range of topics over lunch, including Donald Trump's latest antics, and a little baseball, too. Stuart was surprised to learn that the Rockies have actually hired a new president of baseball operations and a new general manager who actually know something about baseball, which gives hope to Rockies fans everywhere. Although I have to say, the Fangraphs projected 2026 standings show the Rockies finishing in last place with a 65-97 record. On the other hand, the Chicago Cubs, Stuart's team (he is from the North Side of Chicago) are predicted to finish in first place with an 86-76 record. As for my South Side heroes, the Chicago White Sox, Fangraphs predicts they will once again finish in last place with a 68-94 record, even with the Pope on their side. Still another losing season on the South Side? Say it ain't so, Joe!

Pitchers And Catchers Report Next Week!

Baseball season is almost here! Pitchers and catchers report next week to their spring training ballparks in Florida and Arizona. My South Side heroes, the Chicago White Sox, are heading to Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona, the Chicago Cubs to Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona, and the Colorado Rockies to Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, which is the first professional sports facility built on Indian land and also in Arizona. However, I have to admit that the only spring training game I have ever seen played by one of those teams was back in 1985 when the White Sox still trained at Payne Park in Sarasota, Florida, where I took the photograph above. This was the season after the White Sox traded my favorite player, LaMarr Hoyt - no doubt a distant relative - to the San Diego Padres. He was a great pitcher for the Sox, winning the American League Cy Young Award in 1983 and the first AL Championship game against the Baltimore Orioles the same year, but was traded to San Diego after the 1984 season. And sadly, after living a good, clean, simple life on the South Side of Chicago, was no doubt corrupted by the decadent California lifestyle and wound up being arrested four times on drug charges, which ended his baseball career. I guess it is probably a good thing that most of us can't afford to live in California these days. But as usual, I digress. Looking for a spring training photo for this blog post, I came to the realization that it has been exactly 30 years since I last attended a spring training game. Definitely time to attend another one. And so, when I head back to Florida this spring, I will do just that. And perhaps not even wait another 30 years to go to another one. At this time in life, time to just go crazy, right?

News Flash! An Early Spring In The West, Six More Weeks Of Winter In The East

Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow yesterday morning, which was, of course, Groundhog Day, and thus predicts six more weeks of winter. And in Boulder, Colorado, Flatiron Freddy, a top-hat wearing, stuffed marmot, did NOT see his shadow, and so predicts an early spring. Besides the fact that people in Boulder believe that a dead, stuffed marmot has the ability to see or not see its shadow, this makes perfect sense. In the Eastern half of the country, they have been experiencing massive snow and cold, while here in the West, we've barely seen any winter weather at all, and so there is no reason to believe things will be changing any time soon. And by the way, I obtained the photograph above of Flatiron Freddy appearing with an "Olympic curling-inspired entrance" at Boulder's Chautauqua Park off the 9NEWS website. They don't call Boulder "25 square miles surrounded by reality" for nothing.

Watching Tottenham Play Manchester City With The Colorado Spurs

My friend Mark (seen in the photograph above) and I went to Esters Pub here in Southeast Denver yesterday morning to watch the Tottenham Hotspurs play Manchester City with the Colorado Spurs supporters group. Since Manchester City is in 2nd place in the English Premier League and Tottenham is currently in 14th and struggling, I didn't expect much of a contest and thought there would not be a large turnout. But when the soccer match started, the room was filled with fans. Tottenham was a bit listless and down 2-0 at the end of the first half, but they came alive in the second half and tied up the game, to the delight of everyone there. There were a number of choruses of "When the Spurs Come Marching In," and the hardcore fans at the bar kept pounding it and shouting out various chants that I did not understand, especially the one where they pound the bar numerous times and shout "Yeats," who as far as I know was a 20th Century Irish Poet with no connection to the Tottenham Hotspurs. Let's face it - English soccer is weird, and English soccer fans are even weirder. I'm just sayin'. And oh yes - the game finished in a 2-2 tie.

Meanwhile, Back In The Sunshine State...

Thanks to an arctic blast moving into the South from God knows where, the State of Florida is experiencing record cold temperatures. Today, the high temperature in Stuart, Florida, where my sister Susan and I own a condo, will be 46 degrees, with a low of 31, compared with a high today here in Denver of 62 degrees and a low of 33. Tomorrow, both cities are forecast to have a high of 57. And so, while Denver is experiencing springlike weather and many people are wearing shorts, although also complaining about a lack of snow, down in Stuart the locals are bundled up in parkas and complaining about the bitter cold. I suspect not even the snowbirds, down there for the season, will be wearing their speedos and bikinis for the next few days, although it would be a great source of amusement for the natives if they did. I am just glad that Susan and I decided to head up to Denver from Stuart for a few months to get out of that cold Florida weather. And by the way, I took the photograph above on Stuart Beach this past December, right before we headed back to Denver. As you can see, it wasn't exactly beach weather back then, either. Even paradise can have cold snaps, although if you go there in August, you stand a good chance of staying warm. Until you head into the grocery store, of course, which they keep at a steady 32 degrees year-round.