Unity Party in LoDo

Last night, I went to a "Unity Party" hosted by a LoDo couple. My friends, Rick and Beth, invited me. It was the most interesting, eclectic group of people. When we got off of the elevator to go to the loft where the event was being held, I was startled by a life-size cutout of Barack Obama . . . because the light from the loft windows was behind him, I could NOT tell it was a cutout and was very . . . well . . . startled. There were probably 20 people inside, ranging from ages 23 to somewhere in their 70's. The husband-wife couple hosting were completely charming. She's from Brazil and holds citizenship in the U.S. and Brazil. He's from England, and is not able to vote in this country, but passionate about it's politics. There was an elderly woman from Germany who stated that she would obtain citizenship in the U.S. ONLY if Obama is elected president. She and the Englishman both gave impassioned speeches about the U.S.'s reputation in Europe. Apparently, 4000 "Unity Parties" were being held across the U.S. yesterday. The volunteer representative assigned to "our" party was 23 years old, graduated from Brown University and immediately joined the Obama campaign as a volunteer and moved from New York to Denver to stay through the election. She was the most poised, well-spoken young woman I've ever encountered in that age range --- she was so well-versed on the issues, fielded questions from all of us "older folks" . . . and none of them were "softball questions". Two precinct captains were there who spoke about Obama, and there was a video presentation. Very interesting evening, very grass roots. Afterwards, my friends and I joined one of the precinct captains and two of his friends for most wonderful margeritas and an excellent dinner at Tamayo, on the upper deck patio. Almost a 4-hour dinner outside under the stars, with a breeze, great conversation, lots of laughter . . . it was a truly wonderful evening.

And the best part of all . . . BUG'S HOME!!!!!!! I woke up at 5:00 a.m., walked the dogs, showered, and headed to Florissant to pick her up at Sanborn Western Camp. I think I was the first parent to arrive. LOL She grew exponentially at this camp. The skills she learned with a horse, alone, just amaze me. And I saw this horse, and he is HUGE!! And she saddled and bridled him all by herself. We had a wonderful Thai dinner tonight . . . she said she had not had Asian food in two weeks . . . lol . . . I suspect that's true! Lots of s'mores though. I will sleep easier tonight with my kiddo safe and sound at home. :)

Moon River . . . wider than a mile

Finally . . . I've started playing the piano again, and Moon River is my favorite song to play . . . and one of the few I can remember without going back to the sheet music.

My piano tuner, Dennis, told me the move from Arkansas to Colorado was VERY stressful (he said this often as though I was a bad piano parent) on the piano. Apparently, going from the humid climate of Arkansas to the desert of Colorado had a huge impact on all of its "insides". ??? I've had it tuned twice and worked on extensively, and now it sounds . . . okay. So I've started playing again.

In my house in Little Rock, I had a huge bedroom and had the piano in there with me and I loved it there. Could put Bug to bed upstairs at night, come down and go back to my suite, close the door, and play for long periods of time. It's very soothing to make music with your own hands. I use to play the flute as well, but "lost my lip" as well as my memory for the keys. But the piano is coming back to me. I'm working on Pachelbel's Canon and some other classical pieces. Would love to play jazz, but probably need lessons for that.

The past two weeks, being alone, have allowed me the time to focus on the piano again. . . . A little gift to myself. :)

Gearing up for the DNC

Excitement and anticipation continue to build as my fair city approaches the Democratic National Convention. I'm representing one of the police forces contracting with the city to provide additional security. Groups from around the city are starting to send out bulletins to the downtown businesses. My building is right in the "hot zone", between the Convention Center and the Pepsi Center, so I'm trying to get a satellite office away from the downtown area for the week considering they're predicting my usual 15-20 minute commute to work will be a minimum of 2 hours. The protest groups are ramping up. 5 groups have websites devoted to how they're going to disrupt the convention. Then we've been warned that other groups have announced their intended presence, including both Pro and Anti-abortion groups, Anti-war groups, All Nations Alliance, Earth Liberation Front, the Animal Liberation Front, and the Anarchist Movement (there's some irony there, that the anarchists are organizing . . . LOL). We've been given a list of the hotels where the delegates are staying and how many will be in each hotel, as the protesters will be targeting them there, as well as at the convention sites.

I lived in Little Rock and was standing in front of the State House Convention Center the night Bill Clinton was elected to his first term, and was there when he announced for the presidency as well. I remember all of the national news media and some of the protesters, but it didn't seem so large or involved as this convention. I just hope everyone shows respect for life, if not respect for opinion.

I did it . . . I rode my bicycle to work today . . .

It was National Bike to Work Day and, for the first time in my life, I participated. And it was really fun this morning, although there were goofballs out on the road that clearly weren't familiar with biking rules and fools without helmets . . . but overall a very nice experience. Channel 9 and some other sponsors had breakfast stations along the Cherry Creek path, which is the route I took into the city, but I was nervous about getting to work on time and being able to get one of the bike slots in my garage, so I pedaled through. The trip back home was more difficult . . . I was mentally drained from work, the backpack on my back seemed to have gained 10 pounds, I was pedaling against the wind, and it was hot. I'm not really use to Denver being so warm. But, the most important thing is that I did it.

I had 2 letters and a picture from Bug when I got home today. She sounds like she's having a blast. She has a favorite horse, Rafter, and has learned how to trot with him. She's also been digging for crystals and making candles. And . . . there was a dance earlier this week . . . and apparently the boys from the High Trails camp thought my Bug was great dance partner material. Hmm . . . not sure how I feel about those boys and dances . . . (would have loved to have been a fly on the wall though . . . LOL)

I had a very nice letter, too, from her counselor that detailed how Bug has been helping out and participating in all of the activities, and finally there was a letter from the directors that quoted Richard Louv and Graham Greene about the importance of children spending time in the natural world, away from cell phones, computers, and TV's. It was a wonderful letter. The quote from Graham Greene has stayed with me all evening, "There is always one moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in." How incredible is that? I wonder if Bug has had that kind of experience these past 2 weeks as she's been learning how entirely capable she is out in the natural environment. Although I'm always questioning whether I'm a good enough mother, or whether I given her the right opportunities, or have I hampered her too terribly by not having found "the guy" who will love us and share his life with us . . . but today . . . after reading her letters and the ones from the counselor and directors, and pondering Greene's words . . . I thought to myself, "you did good, Rhonda, by letting her have this chance to grow and find her strength, away from you". I'm hoping her door has opened and let the future in for her to embrace.

Where has the time gone?

I can't believe it's been almost 2 weeks since I've posted anything. It's been just a blur of activity. All of the last minute preparations (and anxiety) associated with getting Bug to camp on Sunday, June 15th. Then dates, dinners with friends, and lots of exercise to pass the time have consumed my time alone.

I officially have a new favorite restaurant in Denver. It's called Bang, in the Highlands area at 32nd and Lowell. Phenomenal food! Absolutely wonderful. And the sweet potato toast is incredible -- could have made an entire meal off of that, but the tilapia and cous cous were amazing too. So those of you coming to visit, expect a trip to Bang. It's funky and fun. :)

On Saturday, I was REALLY missing Bug. I mean . . . looking in her room, looking at her pictures, re-reading her letters, crying . . . ugh . . . major league missing her. My very best therapy is shopping, so off I went. Mostly, I bought things to send to Bug in a care package. But also, I decided I should treat myself as well. Here is my bounty:



The Nike sports head phones are for my iPod to use while walking and working out at the JCC. Actually, I've been using Bug's iPod because she has a Nano with the cool arm band. I have the big guy that shows movies . . . . not the best for working out. Although, I'll have to remove my music from Bug's iPod before she gets home from camp. She gets irritated when I download what she terms "inappropriate music" . . . yes, I know . . . big time role reversal in my house. Anyway, I have a couple of "explicits", Justin Timberlake's "Sexy Back", and "Nasty Girl" of which Bug would not approve, but boy are they fun to get down with on the elliptical trainer! LOL

The book in the picture is for my book club that starts up in July. We're reading Jhumpa Lahiri's "Interpreter of Maladies". I haven't read it yet, but loved her book "The Namesake".

The cologne is Armani's "Code". The commercial real estate developer/tennis player I went out with last week smelled better than any man I've ever smelled in my life. It was great --- I kept inhaling while in the car on the way to the restaurant . . . a very fun, fast ride in his new Audi TT. Then, over dinner at Lola (another great Highlands restaurant), the breeze and the candle kept his cologne wafting towards me --- I finally asked him what it was . . . Armani (another Armani guy, go figure). Anyway, I went to Macy's on Saturday to ask if Armani made something comparable for women. The British saleslady put 3 Armani's on me, in different areas, told me to go off shopping and come back in 30-45 minutes as "Armani needs time to settle, dahling, before you know which Armani is you". Wow . . . am I "an Armani"???. . . hmmmm . . . so off I went. I debated and debated (i.e., sniffed myself repeatedly as I was walking through Cherry Creek mall . . . I'm sure people wondered), and finally chose Code over Diamond and the other one which name escapes me. The Code has a bit of orange blossom in it and reminds me of a fragrance by Escada called "Ocean Blue" that I haven't been able to find in years. The Diamond seems more of a winter fragrance. As I made the purchase, British saleslady said "so, you look very sexy, now you smell very sexy . . . tell me, hot date tonight?" Sadly, I told her "no", that tonight I was on my own. To which she replied, "no, dahling, just walk around a bit, you look very sexy, men will respond." Seriously???? Seriously??? I'm supposed to walk around Macy's or the mall . . . and pick up a date? Seriously? I don't think so. Was the fragrance supposed to be that powerful? Hmm . . . maybe . . . I remember my reaction to my date, and I wasn't super attracted to him (we had way too many differences on BIG subjects), but boy he smelled HOT! It didn't work though . . . I remained dateless Saturday night . . . no pick-ups (as if I would).

The final treat in the picture that I gave myself are the cupcakes from "Lovely Confections" on Colfax. These cupcakes are SO GOOD!!!!! I bought a chocolate and a carrot cake with cream cheese icing. By nightfall, I'm embarrassed to admit, all that remained were a few crumbs, which meant I spent extra time on the machines and skipped dinner absent a handful of wheat thins. In an effort to test the Armani Code, I did shower, dress up a bit, and take Chloe for a walk through Cherry Creek North during the evening. (Cooper is aggressive with other dogs, so I can't walk him through CCNorth, but Chloe is guaranteed some attention with her perpetual smile and chubby little Boxer body.)

The next morning, I woke up early, jumped on my bike and headed downtown on the Cherry Creek Bike Path. My intent was to ride into the downtown area and treat myself to an omelet at one of the breakfast places. But it was such a beautiful morning that I just kept riding. I rode upon a fox about to have duck for breakfast. I took a picture as he was scowling at me for interrupting his hunt.




Then I snapped some shots of some artwork along the river . . .



And the wonderful "Dancers" sculpture outside of the Denver Performing Arts Center . . .



Here is my building. My office is on the top (14th floor) . . .



Here is the beautiful South Platte River area right downtown.. . .



After settling for a scone (over the intended omelette), I grabbed a chai latte from Starbucks and headed down to sit by the water. There were the cutest dogs playing in the river, a gorgeous German Short-Haired Pointer and a very large English Bulldog.

The Starbucks I went to is located in the R.E.I. (Recreational Equipment, Inc.) building on Platte Street.



It is a beautiful historic building . . . huge . . . there is even a climbing wall inside, along with every possible outdoor adventure product ever made or sold. Let me tell you, this is where all of the beautiful, fit people hang out on Sunday mornings in Denver. I needed a drool rag! Good grief . . . I've decided all men are sexy in bike wear, helmets, and sunglasses. And they ALL congregate at REI on Sunday mornings to meet their buddies, drink coffee, and organize rides. I've definitely got to spend more weekend mornings at REI.

I continued my ride up into the Highlands area, which was quite hilly. My quads still are feeling that part of the ride, even today. But it was great. I found another ice cream shop to take Bug as we continue our search for favorite ice cream store.

It really was a wonderful experience. The ride home was a little tough because I had ridden so much farther than I ever intended, and I was fighting the wind the entire way home. I got home, walked the dogs, and took a much needed nap. Still thinking of the cupcake consumption from the day before, I went back to the JCC for a workout before settling in to watch "Dan in Real Life" (isn't Steve Carrell the cutest thing in this movie???).

Yesterday found me back at the grindstone of work. Too tired last night to even work out except for a couple of walks with the dogs. I'm so ready for Bug to come home. She's my very most favorite person to spend time with, and I want all the time I can get before the sullen withdrawn teenage years hit. My plan is to be at the camp by 9:00 Sunday morning --- cant' wait.

Seeing the light at the end of the tunnel

It's 57 degrees in Denver. There is an amazing breeze coming in through my balcony doors and windows. Bug and I just returned from an hour and a half workout at the JCC. I actually feel good. . . . It's so nice not to feel overwhelmed or exhausted . . . which are what I've been feeling most of the month since Bug's accident. The casts come off Friday. We've purchased everything we need to for her camp, and we'll head to the mountains Sunday morning. (sigh . . . . ) There is light at the end of the tunnel. And . . . I actually have two dates lined up for the first part of the week. Hopefully, they'll both go really well. (fingers crossed) One is with the investment manager, who has been traveling in Sweden, Scotland, France, and about to head to Spain, but sends me interesting emails from each of his locations. The other is with a commercial real estate developer, who also happens to be a phenomenal, competitive tennis player . . . . who's offered to help me with my backhand. So . . . who knows . . . it will be nice to go out and not have to worry about babysitters and getting back home. :):)

Bug found two new specialty shops last night that I'm afraid we're going to be hooked on . . . one was an imported olive oil shop . . . oh my goodness . . . I'm being forced to cook in this city between the pasta shop and now the olive oil shop. The other shop was L'Occitane en Provence, where somehow the sweet little lady in the store managed to convince me that, indeed, I needed $78 of shea butter products for my feet. And I continued to thank her as I left the store because I was sure my feet would surely dry up and fall off of my body had I not encountered her and saved my very existence. She even had me promising to come back this weekend to try a body cream. So . . . I'm off to go exfoliate and slather my lower extremities in shea butter. I hope my Boxers (a/k/a sleeping buddies) notice my soft feet tonight.

Living a culturally diverse life . . .

A colleague of mine gave me one of the greatest compliments I think I could receive the other day . . . . he told me . . . Rhonda, you are a walking example of someone committed to cultural diversity . . . you talk the talk and you walk the walk. I don't know if I am truly deserving of these words . . . I really don't feel I "walk the walk" as much as I should or could . . . but diversity is so important to me . . . to society.

That's one of things I've enjoyed the most about this city. It is so incredibly rich with diversity. Even with our own little small existence . . . diversity exists . . . for example:
I'm a "Methodist" by training, my daughter attends a Catholic school (Episcopalian in Little Rock), and we recently joined the Jewish Community Center for sports and fitness activities, somewhere I feel completely comfortable thanks to my former fiance who is Jewish . . . We have friends who are African American, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, Middle Eastern . . . my daughter has been asked to play in a primarily Hispanic soccer tournament because we have Latino friends . . . In my daughter's class at school, she has classmates from Nigeria and China and classmates whose parents hail from Panama, Peru, England, Poland, Brazil, and Greece. She attended an incredible Chinese New Year's celebration with her friend from China. She's learned so much from her friends whose parents have the "interesting" accents and share their culture, dances, and dress. (She especially loves the head dresses of her friend's mom from Nigeria.) This wealth of interesting, diverse people has inspired my 10-year old to spend hours with her interactive "smart" globe my brother gave her to learn all about places I'm not sure she would have had an interest in otherwise.

I feel so lucky to have all of these people in our lives, and truly don't understand those who would close themselves off to a segment of society because of someone's color, race, national origin, or religion.

A dear friend of mine, a cardiologist from Syria, is about to go back there to visit his family. I hope he is able to return to the U.S. Our federal government has identified Syria, along with six other countries (Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Libya, Cuba, and North Korea) as state sponsors of terrorism. My brilliant friend, a Christian from Allepo, who works every day to save lives in the United States, would never be associated with terrorists or terrorism, yet the threat is very real that he will not be able to return to the U.S. at the end of his visit simply because of where he is from . . . it happened to one of our myeloma physicians . . . he's still in Syria, after more than a year . . . unable to return because the State Department will not grant his clearance. I will be very sad if I never get to see my friend again. I love his stories of Allepo. I love the way he says "good, good" as a response. (It sounds like "goo (d), goo (d)", long "u" sounds --- very cute.) I love the way he tried to incorporate "y'all" into our conversations . . . his imitation of Southern dialect is extremely amusing. He taught me to say his name the way it is pronounced in Syria, which is very different from the way Americans say it. (He and his colleagues from Syria all worked hard to assimilate after "9-11". He went with me to Razorback football games (would never call the hogs, but laughed hysterically when I did) and took me to meet the Syrian ambassador to the U.S., Imad Moustapha. When we went to dinner, he (a cardiologist!!!!) would eat hot dogs, meat pizzas, and steak . . . which always amazed me, and occasionally would slip into Arabic and realize it only when he noticed the puzzled look on my face. . . . lol . . . We were trying to plan a trip for him to come to Denver and catch a concert before he leaves for Syria . . . between both of our crazy schedules, I'm not sure he'll make it to see me. In any event, I will be praying for his safe return from Syria.

Walking through the neighborhood . . .

Bug and I just returned from a fairly regular walk we've begun to take every night through the neighborhood. Except for last night . . . after a few weeks of beautiful warm weather with pleasantly cool breezes, yesterday it was COLD. After many nights in shorts, last night when I walked the dogs I was in jeans and a polartec sweater, and I was still cold. But today, all was well . . . the sun was out full force . . . the pleasant breeze was back . . . all the tony restaurants were in full outdoor dining swing.

For those of you coming to visit us this summer (and you know who you are), I'm including a few neighborhood pictures. Later, I'll include more pics from around the city. As soon as I can get back out on my bike, I'm going on a picture taking quest of all the great sculptures in the downtown area.

Here is where we live. . .

I love this street. It's quiet and the flowers and plants smell great as you walk by.

Close by is the upscale mall. This is my daughter's favorite neighborhood scene . . .

She says the "red star of Macy's" just draws her in (sigh, 10-year old shopping drama).

Here are a couple of the great sculptures of children in the shopping area. The first is Bug's favorite . . . it's called Dorothy and Friends (the second friend is a caterpillar crawling on her book). The second is in the middle of a fountain area with benches for sitting and listening to the water in the pools.

The next is a gallery I always want to visit, but it's always closed by the time Bug and I make it on our nightly walks. Will have to make a run on Saturday. It has the greatest energy when you stop and look in at the wonderful art . . .

The local library . . . very cool place to hang out . . .

A strong contender for our vote of "Favorite Ice Cream Parlour" . . .

Bug's favorite place to get a cheeseburger and fries . . .

Our super cool tea hang out . . .

And . . . finally . . . the reason Bug and I walk to our favorite places, as opposed to driving . . .

(Not) wishing on a star

I just came inside from sitting out on the balcony. It's late and quiet in the neighborhood. I was contemplating the stars. I don't think I've sat still and watched stars in a very long time. And they actually twinkle here. I don't remember ever seeing a star twinkle (despite the nursery rhyme song).
. . .
Is it because I'm closer to stars here (5280 feet above sea level)?
. . .
Or is it because, in the chaos of my adult life, I've never taken the time to sit for as long as I did tonight and contemplate the stars?
. . .
Did they twinkle when I was little and I just forgot?

And though they were beautiful, for some reason the stars brought sadness to my heart tonight. I felt very lonely out on that balcony, even with my two trusty companions, Cooper and Chloe right at my feet. I think the stars reminded me that I had promised myself to make an effort to quiet my life, and I haven't done a very good job of that. Of course, when you get quiet with yourself, you are forced to examine your life . . . . and that's not always easy. Necessary, yes . . . but never easy.

I've made so many wishes on stars that have never come true. Tonight, I didn't even have it in me to make a wish. . . . another night perhaps.

I finally decided . . .

. . . who it is that is my favorite Colorado Rapids player. My eyes are constantly drawn to him. He's probably the oldest player on the team (at the ripe old age of 31), but he is so skilled on the field and gorgeous to boot. His name is Pablo Mastroeni.

He's from Argentina, and I think has been picked for the World Cup team twice. Soccer is such a great game. My other favorites include: Bouna Coundoul, who is out for the next month or so as he returned to play for his native Senegal in some national games. Bouna is an unbelievable goalee; Tom McManus, a recent recruit from Glasgow, Scotland, who's goal against Chivas was voted MLS Goal of the Week last week; Christian Gomez, another Argentinian hotty who's tremendous in the midfield; and two Colorado natives, Collin Clarke and Connor Casey.

Today, the Rapids beat FC Dallas 2-1. It was a fantastic game. Can't wait for the next one. My daughter will be at a camp taught by Rapids players for a week in July. Hope Pablo is one of her coaches . . . . I may just have to have some one-on-one parent/coach conferences! :):):)