Denver, CO

Today’s blog is geared to get the word out about an
UPCOMING TOWN HALL MEETING set for June 27th, 2007.

The purpose of the Town Hall Meeting is to gain insight from Colorado Voters on “Constitutional Reform.” Several issues will be discussed in trying to untangle the state budget from constitutional provisions.
Directing this community conversation will be House Speaker Andrew Romanoff and Debbie Benefield, House District 29 Representative to the Colorado Legislature.
I have been asked to put the word out about this Town Meeting; a large attendance is encouraged and desired. This is a great first step to become actively involved in our political process, so please plan on attending.
The meeting will take place from 5 - 7 pm at
Westminster City Hall Council Chambers
4800 W. 92nd Ave., Westminster
again, that’s on June 27th, 2007.
Please make an effort to be there and become involved in Denver and Colorado! It is our citizen duty!
click here for more information or click here to read an article about this upcoming meeting

Happy Father’s Day to all the Dads in Denver, in Colorado, and the U.S.A. We all know how hard you work so take some time to relax! I’m taking my dad out for some tennis matches right now, and I think I might actually let him win - just today.
Also, and importantly, Happy Father’s Day to all the men serving overseas right now. Whether you support the war or not, no one wants to be so far away from home and their families. Our thoughts are with you. Come home safe!

Two experiences brought about the creation and topic of this blog entry:

#1 I was in South Dakota this past weekend and stopped for food in Wyoming where nearly everyone in the restaurant was kind enough to light up and smoke out the entire facility with cigarettes
#2 I was at a Denver Health Campus yesterday and noticed several signs declaring the entire campus, including the outdoors area, as a SMOKE-FREE CAMPUS.

Ladies and gentlemen, I have no issue with you or anyone if you choose to fill your lungs with smoke from what I call ‘death sticks.’ Just don’t do it in a way that puts your bad habit and poor decisions in my lungs. Please, please don’t do that.
This brings me to the theme of today’s blog entry: Three Cheers for Colorado for going SMOKE-FREE in indoor facilities! Finally, I feel as though I can actually breathe when I’m inside enjoying a meal at a restaurant, and this is great and much preferred compared to the smoke-filled environments I experienced in South Dakota and Wyoming.
Bravo, Colorado, Three Cheers!

I, myself, have two chocolate labrador retrievers that I take on all my outdoor adventures throughout Colorado. I’ll be heading out the door shortly to take them to the dog park. A friend of mine has also asked me to watch her golden retriever for awhile, so I have three dogs in my care.
This got me to thinking, what kind of pets do About-Denver readers have? How many? Leave a comment with your answer!

Dogs (what kind how many)
Cats (what kind how many)
Fish
Rodents
Reptiles
Birds
Horses or other farm animals
Small children (tee hee, just kidding)
other exotic pets

Lets try to determine the most popular pets in Denver!

Here’s one of the top five reasons to live in Denver, and the explanation of which can be summed up better within the picture than my own words…

A fantastic place for a fun family meal or a hot date (where I am headed tonight), is the Yard House Restaurant. Situated at the Colorado Mills Mall, your party will have plenty to do before, while you wait for a table, and/or after your meal.
Every time I go, the menu overloads me (well, almost anyway) with a tremendous selection of amazing entrees. And if you’re a beer connoisseur, this may be the only place that you can buy a yard size glass of beer, any beer you have ever heard of before.
Since I can’t decide out of all the delicious items, I usually end up ordering the swordfish and something else as a carry-out item that I will then take home with me for lunch tomorrow. The food is that good and the swordfish has yet to have been beaten, in my book. And I’ve eaten swordfish on the coast in California, but it wasn’t the same as Colorado Yard House swordfish!

What types of Parks do About-Denverco.com readers most enjoy? Listed in parentheses are examples of the types of park

1) Parks for walking, those with open trails (Martin Luther King Jr. Park)
2) Parks with lakes for fishing (Sloan’s Lake)
3) Parks with playground equipment for the kids (Washington Park)
4) Any dog park (Berkeley Park)

Reply to this poll by leaving feedback! Thanks and have a good weekend at the parks!

Part one of my blog entry detailing the day I spent with
Debbie Benefield Colorado House of Representatives District 29:

Just a few of the topics I discussed, in detail, with Debbie Benefield were:
youth voter turnouts
public education in Colorado
partisan politics
giving Lobbyists a good name

In no particular order, here are some of the things Debbie described.
I agree with Debbie - and I think that most would - that politics needs to be more about the issues, not who belongs to which party. Debbie Benefield pointed out that most of the bills passed in Colorado are actually bi-partisan, not partisan one party bills, and this was something for our state to be proud of.
Debbie also explained that, despite Lobbyists being portrayed in a negative light by main stream media and entertainment, that they are an integral part of understanding legislation. Our representatives do not understand how every bill will affect every industry, every business, every sector, or every person - no one does, thats a lot of information! The main job of a Lobbyist, then, is to inform how the particular bill will affect different areas. An example Debbie used was myself, as a college student. I understand what is happening and how college students feel at my campus better than the elected representatives do; what is important to note is that the representatives want to know how my fellow students feel and this is where lobbyists come into play. In fact, you could say that I was a volunteer lobbyist for the day, lobbying on education in Colorado.
Education: In Debbie Benefield’s words,
“Public schools are the foundation. To make a great nation, you must educate the entire nation. Public schools accept anybody, no matter what, every child. This is something we have above other nations who do not educate everyone.”
We also discussed the disconnect found in youth voter turnouts. Many youth are registered to vote, but getting them to the polls is something else. There is a dramatic decline from the amount of youth registered to those who actually vote. This could be, in part, explained by youth not yet understanding the system, so the politicians do not talk to them, and in turn the youth become distant from the system and aren’t motivated to participate.
My conversation with Debbie Benefield was enjoyable and informative. I learned so much about our government in just one day, and I hope this blog entry has helped readers to do so as well.
A great opportunity for others to participate in Colorado government and to meet with our Colorado House of Representatives District 29 Debbie Benefield will be this summer. Debbie is planning to host a Community Meeting, or forum, to discover what people want with education. She describes it as ‘have a conversation’ with the citizens to learn of their ideas of where our education system needs to go. This blog will keep readers informed on when and where the meeting will take place, or visit Debbie Benefield’s website at:
ttp://www.debbiebenefield.org/

If you’ve seen a building from one angle, it is usually fair to assume that you’ve seen the building from all angles.
Well, that’s just not true with this recent addition to the Denver Art Museum. This picture can create a strong impression of the design of the overall building but, from another angle, you might be surprised by what you see.

The geometric, titanium-clad angles, were built to reflect the nearby Rocky Mountain peaks and rock crystals. When I look at this building, it reminds me that problems in life sometimes need to be viewed from a different angle, or a different perspective. Corny analogy, I know But what are your thoughts when you view interesting building designs such as this? Let me know, comments and feedback are greatly appreciated . . .

As the summer days get hotter, a great way to cool off is going to Water World! Water World is open Mon-Fri from 10am to 6pm and is fun for the whole family, a date, a daycare, or a group of friends. Located at 88th Ave. and Pecos Street, 15 minutes north of Downtown Denver, there is no excuse not to check out this water park this year.

This last Saturday, June 2nd, I took the time and opportunity to volunteer at a local Kids Fishing Derby in Northglenn. Those of you new to this blog and the Denver area, the city of Northglenn is north of Downtown Denver, about a 15 minute drive.
This event saw about 200 hundred kids cast out into a neighborhood lake and test their luck against pre-stocked fish. All participants received a thank you prize package, were entertained by music, provided snacks, and were able to enjoy some pleasant sunshine on the lake. The grand prize winners (kids who caught the biggest fish) were awarded trophies and their own, brand new fishing pole!
Going into this event I knew that fishing required patience, and volunteer work is usually in that same ‘boat.’ My experience with this event, however, was extremely pleasant, fulfilling, and relaxing. Another helper there, a paid girl in high school, was not able to understand why I was working the event without pay. But for those of us who have contributed time and effort for worthy volunteer causes, the reason to do so is difficult to describe.
In my experience, volunteer work gives a sense of accomplishment and that, at least for that day, you really helped out some people and the community.
As author of About-Denverco.com and as a human being, I strongly encourage readers to actively participate in volunteer efforts this summer. If nothing else, it is a nice change of pace from the daily grind.
This Fishing Derby was put on by the City of Northglenn and for me to volunteer, all I had to do was pick up the phone and call. They were eager to have the volunteer efforts of myself and some friends from our FusBoxe Martial Arts Volunteer program. If you’re looking for volunteer work in Denver-area this summer, think about what would be most enjoyable to help out with, then start making the calls.
I really do think everyone, and I mean everyone, could stand to benefit from some volunteer efforts. Its a community service to the community we are all responsible for.

Part one of my blog entry detailing the day I spent with Debbie Benefield, Colorado House of Representatives District 29:

The most interesting part of this blog has to do with the wording of the title. The word ‘day’ is used to accurately describe the time I was privileged to spend with Debbie Benefield, more importantly, the time that is privileged to anyone seeking an active role in our democratic system of government.
Most people would not expect their government representatives to spend much time with them or to even give their concerns much thought. But Debbie Benefield willingly spent the better part of a day - a full three and a half hours - with me sitting in her office, asking her question after question. This is one representative that does not tire nor lose enthusiasm!
In addition, Debbie personally led me on a grand tour of our State Capitol building describing, in detail, the areas of historical significance and how our officials go about their business.
It was clear to me that Debbie was genuinely happy and enthused to have me, a young college student, actively asking questions and attempting to become involved in the political process. Debbie truly believes that the government is for the people and the people should actively be involved. Voting is the main and primary means for being involved. But if you feel as I do, and seek more involvement, a trip to the Capitol is also a great start. Or visit your District Representatives website and send them an email. There are lots of opportunities to have a say in our government here in Colorado; most people just overlook them.

more of this trip will be recorded next week…

While my car does provide the fastest mode of transportation to and from my home to Denver, I do so love to park far from my destination, get out, and slowly meander to my final destination. This allows me to take in all the sights, the flower beds, the architectural designs, the landmarks, statues, and so much more.

The first thing that strikes you about this restaurant is that it is not your typical restaurant. Don’t get me wrong, everything about the Mercury Cafe was great, but you may be surprised if you show up without an open mind…
The Mercury Cafe is on the corner of 22nd and California in a slightly run-down area of Downtown Denver. Despite the outer appearance of the neighborhood, the inside of the Mercury Cafe is quite homely. The best way for me to describe the interior is its kind of like being inside a tree. What I mean is that all of the windows are covered with vines, bushes, and other assortment of growth so even in complete daylight, all you see is green! I thought that was pretty cool!
Depending on when you go, there is a main stage and a smaller area for live musicians to perform
As far as food goes, you better go hungry. Everything I ate was remarkably delicious and, more importantly for me anyways, nearly everything on the menu was organic!
All in all, the Mercury Cafe is a great place to go for food, atmosphere, and even to spend a little free time!

Here is what the future of www.about-denverco.com blogs will feature in the upcoming weeks

A people of Denver post featuring Colorado House of Representative Debbie Benefield

Building tours of the EPA building and their new green roof, the NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory), the RMI (Rocky Mountain Institute in Golden). Detecting a theme here? I have a deep interest in renewable energy sources, etc.

Restaurants in Denver: Some of the best places to eat, including the Mercury Cafe, Maggiano’s Little Italy, the Melting Pot, and more!

What to do in Denver: Guide for camping trips in CO, the only place to go in Denver for a Venice-like and gondola-like creek boatride, the local museums and theme park attractions, etc.

Don’t forget there will be a Top 50 Reason to Live in Denver every week, complete with a full-color, incredibly detailed image of our beautiful state!

My experience with Metropolitan State College and the Auraria Campus as compared with CU Boulder, this one will surprise you…

New and ever-changing Denver polls!

If you see something above that does not completely catch your interest, then suggest something that will! Please! There are hundreds of thousands of people in Denver, so I realize that my blog about Denver cannot possibly cover every interest for every individual. With suggestions, I feel I can better serve and meet the public’s general interests!
Just leave a comment or email me to suggest a restaurant, a place of business that is outstanding, a person who should receive recognition, or a fun way to pass the time here in Denver, and I will make sure to blog about it! Thanks everyone!