Film on the rocks Tuesday night - Princess Bride - woohoo!

I love Film on the Rocks! Such a great night of entertainment!

They have bands and comedians and just a great time!!

The beers are the normally over priced deal.

Everyone brings pillows and blankets and turns it into a big giant living room floor!

See you there!

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Yesterday I took two of my kids plus two friends to the Buchanan Rec Center in Evergreen.  They all wanted to climb on the climbing wall.  The rec center has a two story climbing wall right in the center of a circuit of workout equipment.  So, while I worked up a sweat on a stationary bike in the exercise room (incidentally, it is a great exercise room with lots of aerobic equipment as well as free weights, etc.), my kids scrambled up and down and all around the climbing wall.

After I worked up a good sweat, I moved over to the circuit training and continued my workout while I watched my kids pretend to be spiders on the climbing wall.

The rec center is an excellent facility.  It also has a great pool and spa.  Well worth the price of admission.

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This morning I woke up early to go watch the Shining Stars 8th Grade Girls Team play at Manual High School.  I used to watch these girls play almost every weekend, but my daughter recently left the team.  I missed watching them play so I drove down for the early game in the MAYB tournament this weekend.

After watching the game, I am more convinced then ever that youth basketball is a great thing for our kids.  The girls on both teams looked like they were in great shape and they are obviously learning important skills as well as teamwork.  If you are wondering what to do with your kids over the summer, get them involved in youth basketball or some other organized sport.  They will benefit now and in the future in many different ways.

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If you, like Roger Ebert, have heard about the intensely indie oddball feature-length animation Sita Sings the Blues, then you don’t need me to tell you what “the greatest breakup story ever told” is all about or why it’s such a phenomenon.

And if you’ve been sighing over the unfortunate copyright circumstances that make this film the most intriguing piece of Flash cinema you’ll never get to see, rejoice! Nina Paley has a plan to give her astonishing cartoon gem the distribution it deserves, the upshot of which is, you get to see at the Starz Film Center.

This isn’t its first time playing at the little theater under the Tivoli smokestack on Auraria. But it’ll definitely be my first time seeing it. I’ll be there tonight at the 7:00 PM showing. Say hi if you’re there!

If you can’t make it tonight, you’ve got most of the nights of this week until the final showing on Thursday, July 2. Pick a date and buy your tickets online!

And, while you’re at it, if you’re so inclined, become a supporting member of the Denver Film Society. Members get discounted tickets to any film ($6.00), occasional opportunities to attend free screenings ($0.00), and the warm fuzzies of knowing that you’re playing a part in keeping independent cinema alive in Denver (priceless).

Besides, Starz got beer! Mmm, beer. Can yer ol’ AMC and Century Theaters say that? Didn’t think so.

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Sunday morning myself, the husband and couple friends headed out to explore RiNo - north!  (the north side of the tracks!)
We started at Ironton Studios and Gallery.  They were churning out the pancakes with smiles and jokes!
The outside seating area was gorgeous! All the art, the gardens, the sculptures! The studio areas were really neat too!

Our next stop was across the street at Weilworks.  Tracy the proprietor and his dog silo was great!

The house and studio spaces was amazing! The “watch tower” had great views of the city and the surrounding area.

We hopped on our bikes and headed across Brighton to the ZWick Place. An amazing old building manned by Susan Wick.

The gardens were beautiful with a tea house hidden in the corner. The main bathroom had amazing tile work. The artists in house were all super friendly, fun and very talented. We heard that this location was rarely fully open as it was today! Yeah!

Further south we popped into Plinth gallery and met jasmine the short haired pointer guarding the gate!

The space was really neat. I drive by this location every time we head to the 70 and finally got to go inside! We didn’t get to see the studio space in the back, but hopefully some time in the future we will.
We criss crossed back to the bike path north to 47th to visit Blue Silo Studios. The space was really cool, lots of fantastic artists including Sara Ashford. She has some amazing stenciled large panel peices and some great snacks to boot!

Our final stop was at the Taxi area. This is a super cool area on the other side of the river! We saw Katy Tartakoff’s fantastic photographs and other art.

Tried out the goodies at Fuel - can’t wait to come back for happy hour. Saw the folks at Blue and Yellow logic and heard about the cool things they are up to.  Chatted with the gals at Pilates Aligned -can’t wait to try them out!

It was a fabulous day! The sun was shining and the art was great!

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*updated 5/21/2009 with video*

If you’re curious about what today at the Colorado Capitol Building looked like, see this link for photos.  Around 250 Iranian Americans showed up to show support for the people of Iran, not the government.

Here’s my ten minute long youtube video:

Link to cbs4denver’s report here.

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Recently i have had the pleasure of enjoying the bike path from the reservoir to downtown as my commute home as often as i can!

One would think riding your bike is no big deal…  but it is.
The basic thing is - have respect for your fellow man!
Here are my thoughts and suggestions on how to enjoy the bike path (let me re-iterate - BIKE path

1. You are not the only one on the bike path, and you don’t own it.
2. NEVER ride side by side - there is no room, biking is a solo sport. You cannot carry on a long term conversation, don’t try. Get to where you are going and then have a converations.
3. Hearing is vital. If you like to enjoy your music, make sure to leave one ear able to hear your surrounding environment.
4. Passing  - getting as close to the person you are attempting you pass is rude and stupid. There is no guarantee that that rider will continue on the staight and narrow, the could swing wide at any momoent.
5. Passing - if there isn’t room to pass, then don’t. That means you will need to slow down and wait for there to be enough room to safely pass. Don’t make me slow doesn
6. Announce Yourself - if you will be passing announce yourself. “On your right” is a recongnized phrase and beneficial to those on the right - riders, walkers, runners. or others.
7. It is not a play ground - if you happen to be lucky enough to live on the lovely bike path see rule 1 - you don’t own it. Don’t leave your toys on the trail.  Don’t block the lanes. People ride the entire route and don’t need your personal items blocking it.
8. Just cause you dress like lance armstrong doesn’t mean you are!
9. Runners - you are on a bike bath. You are not alone. See headphones, passing, etc.
10. Dog owners - if you can’t control your dogs i can’t help but run them over.

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We went for a hike this morning at Meyer Ranch Open Space.  The entire area is now a lush green and full of wildflowers.  At the bottom of the trail we walked past the field which was very green - I’ve gotta believe that they are gong to hay it as soon as the rain stops.  In addition to all the grass, we saw whole sections of yellow wildflowers.  It reminded me of the foam from ocean waves - except that it was yellow on green.

We saw wild irises, wild columbine, wild flox, wild yarrow, wild strawberries and many more wildflowers.  Get the idea…

We saw lots of yellow, white, blue, purple, and violet flashes throughout the abundant green.

We went early and made it through the upper and almost the entire lower loop before we ran into any other hikers.

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After much careful thought and deciding that my anger at 9news was misdirected, I’m withdrawing this post.  I’ll simply do strike through to ensure the post remains as a record of my writing.

Why?  After talking with Damon over at the original Game On! I came to the conclusion that my attempt at trying to poke 9news into actually responding to me/the social media world was two things.  One is that it was filled with a bit too much vitriol and probably soaked in a bit of bitterness.  And two is that it was probably hopeless.

9news has reached out to me once in regards to a news story via DM on twitter.  I responded and then gave the person some ideas on how they could be involved with the twitter/social media world.  I received no response back to those overtures.  They were not filled with ill intent.  I simply gave ideas.

No response.  Therefore (and based on others in the twitter world I’m not alone) I’m giving up on trying to reach them through the means of the social media world.  It’s become quite clear they don’t (at least at this time) intend to use the tools and services that are in the here and now.

My apologies to 9news for the chip in my shoulder feeling the below article featured.  It was not something I’m particularly proud of as a writer/blogger.

Thanks,

Aaron DeLay

Denver, be the judge. See the following blog posts about a name situation that’s come up between two stores. One is Game On, recently founded by a young man who lost his mother to tragic circumstances. 9news covered this story for their news broadcast and promoted the store.  Read the below blogs to get the full, complete and total story before you read my opinionated reaction.

Damon’s Blog about the issue and Game On!’s blog about it.

In the other corner is Game On! a store founded seven months ago and has been working aggressively in putting their image out into the community. They’re online, they’re twittering, facebooking and everything else you should be doing in the social media world.

In the middle of this is 9news. A station which has not uses twitter in a effective manner and for the most part ignored the social media (as far as I can tell). I have a simple question for 9news. Did you google “Game On” and “Denver”? Cause I did and guess what I found?

This. What research did you do on this story? I understand the underlying emotional impact this young man has experienced and the point of this story. I’m not upset about that. What I am upset about is for all the claims you make about being the best in the business, award winning, most watched and everything else…you couldn’t have one person verify that indeed this is the only store with the name “Game On”? Took me five seconds.

I don’t want to jump the shark (I’ve done that far too many times in my lifetime) but I’d like to know that someone thought this through or at least knows about the long and arduous journey Game On! has been on to make it where they are.

Maybe I’m writing this in anger (there’s a very good chance) but I’d like to see 9news exhibit better skills and talents in running a story.

Hopefully 9news has a opinion on this.

The other issue that I’m leaving alone for now is the name issue. The stores share near exact logos and names. This will need to be solved, but I’ll leave that up to the management at both locations. Hopefully something can be worked out.

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A local legend passed away yesterday.  Norton Frickey.  He was 84 years old and he leaves behind five children and nine grandchildren.

Norton was a trailblazer.  He was one of the first lawyers in the country to run personal injury advertisements on TV.  His law firm grew into a huge success after he started advertising and he soon took the next step and started an advertising agency that syndicated personal injury ads to lawyers throughout the US and Canada.  That company - Network Affiliates, Inc., later spawned a host of other advertising and marketing businesses including The Media Team, Blue Onion, Page 1 Solutions, DoctorDirect and several others.

Norton’s philosophy was to fight for “the little guy” who previously didn’t have a place in the legal system.  He used contingent fee agreements to even the playing field and ensure that “the little guy” could afford a lawyer to fight against the big insurance and manufacturing companies.  Because he led the way in legal advertising, many “traditional” lawyers didn’t like him.  As the leader, he was the one with the arrows in his back, but he didn’t care.  Although he was very successful, he lacked pretense.  He was honest and he always told you what he thought.

All of us in the Denver area were fortunate to have had Norton in our midst.  We will miss him.

The memorial service will be this Friday, 10:30 am at Holy Shepherd Lutheran Church, 920 Kipling Street, Lakewood, CO 80214.

Following are a couple of blog posts about Norton Frickey:

http://www.netaff.com/legal/2009/06/norton-frickey-great-man_15.html

http://www.page1solutions.com/blog/2009_06_01_archive.html#5021961737547013276

http://www.page1solutions.com/Blog/Bill/2009/06/lasting-message.html

Denver Post Article about Norton Frickey

Article about Personal Injury TV Ads produced by Network Affiliates, the Advertising Agency Norton Frickey founded.

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We enjoyed an excellent hike today at the Elk Meadow Park, a Jefferson County Open Space Park.  Although the park was a little busy, we found that the higher we went, the fewer people we saw.  We ended up hiking a total of seven miles in about three hours.

The snow and rain over the last couple of months has really done its job.  Everywhere we looked was green and moist.  It almost makes you wonder if you are still in Colorado.  We saw a number of wildflowers and flowering bushes.  Lots of yellow, white and blue to highlight the green.  In addition, we were amazed by the amount of white quartz.  Some huge specimens that almost glowed.  In some places, it looked like snow was still holding on the hill.  One of the most beautiful pieces of quartz that I found had veins of red and even some of the white quartz looked a little cloudy with the red.

And the views were tremendous!  We were watching the whole time as the clouds moved in, but it made the views look even more dramatic.  Unfortunately, the thunder and impending storm kept us from getting to the top of Bergen Peak, but it still was an excellent workout.  The good news is that we had made it back to the bottom just as the rain really started to come down.

We are so lucky that Jeffco has spent the money and resources to develop the open space system.  Do yourself a favor - take advantage of it!

Mountain View from near the Top of Bergen Peak

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When: Saturday, June 13^th & Sunday June 14^th

Time: 10am-5 pm

Location: 200 Grant Street,  Denver, Colorado 80203 (2 blocks south of Speer on Grant in historic West Washington Park)

More information:

- Buy original art from more than 260 local artists!

- Paintings,  drawings,  sculpture, book art, screen prints and more!
Live music,  food & drinks, art demonstrations, kids’ activities

- Visit the website for more info: http://www.netnewsdesk.com/Artists_eNews/index.cfm?PID=1137&ID=5494,0,0&S=ejfhm and a parking map.

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Thursdays are CSA Pick-up Days! Abbondanza Organic Seeds & Produce is a local CSA, or “Community Supported Agriculture” farm. CSA membership fees in the winter and spring help support the farm, and members pick up a share of the produce each week during harvest.

That’s CSA 101. And this is CSA Week 2!

(What happened to Week 1? I was out of town. Oops.)

Click over to the Abbondanza web page and take a look at the upper-right-hand corner of the page: “What’s in the Box?” This is updated every week to give members an idea what to expect when they come pick up their veggies. This week, Week 2, a lot of the produce was damaged by hail, particularly the lettuce and the arugula. That’s farming for you - stuff happens. But there were plenty yummies to be had regardless. Here’s what I brought home today in my partial share (full and individual shares vary):

CSA 2009 Week 2

• Garlic “scapes” (stems)
• Spinach
• Radishes
• Mizuna
• Hon Tsai Tai

There was also cilantro, from which I abstained.

Hon Tsai Tai is a new one on me. Monday I got to meet it in the field when a team of us were out there weeding (wanna volunteer? click here!). They pointed it out to us as we unrolled the hail-protective covers from several rows of lettuces and Asian greens. “See that one there? That’s a great crop. It’s kinda like broccoli. You can just eat it raw in a salad–the flowers, too.”

Some of everything, except the garlic scapes, went into tonight’s salad, which accompanied my first grilled cheese sandwiches since de-rusting, cleaning, and re-seasoning my grandmother’s old cast-iron skillet. Bliss. And now I’m looking forward to stir-fry.

Recipe: Very Simple Basalmic Vinaigrette

• 3 tbls balsamic vinegar
• 3 tbls olive oil
• 1 tsp or 3 stems chives
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 hard boiled egg yolk, mashed

Combine all ingredients. Chill overnight. Shake thoroughly when you think about it.

(Next batch will have a garlic scape instead of the chives.)

Note! Abbondanza are still taking membership applications! Also, you can find them at the farmer’s markets in downtown Boulder and I do believe in Longmont too.

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Direct from email, here’s an event announcement especially for women in the Denver/Boulder area:

Microsoft Office and Office Live are partnering with social media platform, Kirtsy, to organize and host a series of free training sessions for women who are looking for an introductory crash course in social media and tech. The sessions will take place in Boulder on Friday, June 12 at The Cup at 7pm and in Denver on Saturday, June 13 at The Curtis Hotel at 9am.

Called “Hands on Social Media,” these seminars will focus on online sharing services, software for creating great-looking documents and presentations, as well as social media and networking tools - such as Twitter, Facebook and Flickr. Women can sign up to attend and learn more at www.handsonkirtsy.com

The events are free, but registration is recommended. Click the links above to visit the registration page for each event.

Bring your laptop if you’ve got one!

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The final day of the Piazza del la Arte ended on a sad note!

A friend and I hoofed it from the People’s Fair to Larimer to catch the chalk art before the clouds got any darker!

The mass of people crowded down Larimer was intense! The weather was thankfully not as hot, since the clouds were threatening! As we started to view the mostly finished works of arts the first drops of rain started…

We walked faster and faster and tried to take in as much of the beautiful works of art as possible!

Again - I was amazed by all the hard work, and amazing results.

After, we headed into Samba Room and grabbed a seat in the bar to watch the devastation that was about to ensue…

And ensue it did…

The rains came. The rains came hard and fast and were ruthless. The chalk disintegrated in a blink of an eye.

It was the saddest thing to see. I realize these works of art were fleeting at best and that the following morning’s rush hour traffic would have turned everything beautiful into smudge. But to have it taken in it’s prime, so quickly and so permanently. Sigh.

The rain stopped as quickly as it came - about long enough for a Cuban sandwich and a bowl of lobster bisque to be inhaled into my belly!

It was a wonder to see and I look forward to see the amazing sights next year!

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