Tuesday, October 28, 2008

choices

You know how some days you wake up and you feel like a new person? You know that whatever choices you make that day will be the right one's. All consequences will be righteous and life-changing. The path less traveled will be the scenic route.

I had a really great weekend with my kids. Ups and downs - a really fantastic time. It occured to me how lucky I am. That I am a good parent. That every step I have taken in the right direction has led me to this exact moment. Each choice a good one. The good, the bad, and the ugly - my kids are stellar and I am one lucky bitch.

When I first got divorced I was sure I had made a mistake. When I moved to Colorado, I wondered - would this work out. When I moved ...again... I thought, you should have just stayed in the affordable condo. But, as the years creep by, I see every step was a conscious one for the benefit of each of my children.

Thank you God!

Sunday, October 26, 2008

What is wrong with the town of Morrison?

The RedBull Soap BOx Derby - what a great idea?
Fun times!
Costumes - a great pre-curser to Halloween, and a free event for the whole family!
Right?
Wrong!

I drove around red rocks and Morrison for 2 hours with my kids in the car trying to get - 1st to the free parking/ shuttle stop they promised at the Bandemere speedway which did not exist b/c the Denver Popo had the exit to the speedway closed, and, 2nd - to any exit close enough to Red rocks to walk up to the event.
After being detoured to the next highway exit (285), after being blocked out of the Morrison exit, and heading towards the mountains, the next exit for Morrison (also closed to the public now), I was forced to drive towards Evergreen where I finally got off at some dirt road and headed back towards what I thought was a back road for red rocks.
At this point... I am in a caravan of dumbasses who were all now on a mission to get into this stupid f'n shit-race.
Somehow after driving another 35 mins or so through the woods (deer and sheep and horses were a distraction for my kids, along with the incredulous amount of McCain Palin signs in trailer park/ farm house yards) we end up right in the backyard of red rocks again, where the Denver police, once again were not permitting any cars into the town of morrison or near the stadium.

Bullshit- So we turn up another dirt road, and somehow I get tossed back onto I-70, where I continue to roll with half the caravan, like Chevy Chase on Vacation trying to get into Wally World, b/c my vacation isn't over til I say it's over.

Then we get off the highway, again at the red rocks exit, where tons of people are walking, so we think, "we can do it". We are forced to park on the side of the highway on an on-ramp - how safe is that? and walk down towards the main street where you usually drive up into red rocks for the parking (before you walk another f'n mile up stairs and hills into the actual stadium).
By now tons of people are passing us saying "it sucks, don't go - it's a 3 mile walk, blabh blah blu blah", and my kids have to piss and we're all tired and grumpy, and finally surrender to the fact that whoever organized this shit is a fuckwad, and I will never support any of their events again - red bull dumbasses and the town of morrison.I'm still pissed.
Who lets kids down like that?
But, let me tell you how I really feel...lol!

Thursday, October 16, 2008

The Great American Beer Fest - GABF


The 2008 Great American Beer Fest. I will admit, I had heard of this event, but never really even considered going. I had this pre-conceived notion of boring convention-goers who had a unique desire to taste beer. I was so wrong.

This event not only showcased breweries from all over the world, but invited connoisseurs and just plain, old beer lovers like myself to gather and embrace the sights, sounds and all the tastes of great beer.

Located at the Convention Center in downtown Denver, aisle after aisle of booths, set up quite like any other convention, showcased countless tasty and delightful beers. The background was the stage for thousands of festival-goers to taste and share their love for beer. I met people from Minnesota, Canada and even the city of my alma mater, Boston. I can't remember a more happy, friendly group of people gathering in one place.

Now, Denver has been the home of quite a few outstanding events lately, including the Democratic National Convention in September. The Great American Beer Fest has been held here for many years now, and I will say, I will be back.
The commemorative glass which is given out at the Members Only tasting is a daily reminder of what a fantastic event this is. As you enter the convention center each patron is handed a glass, or plastic cup I am told, which they are able to move from stand to stand, booth to booth and taste to their hearts desire. A 1 oz serving is poured by the wonderful volunteers of the festival.

We had the pleasure of sampling a diet beer from Coors, a local favorite, and some fantastic, smaller, hometown breweries like Great Divide. There were favorites which stood out (because the lines were so long) like the Alaskan brewery and Leinenkugel's. Leinenkugel's has the best Berry Weiss beer you will ever taste, in my opinion, and one of the volunteers who noticed my love for their product gave me some Leinenkugel's Sunset Wheat lip balm. I'm in love. The selection is amazing. I think I tried over 30 tastes, and none was quite like the other. I even had to taste PBR because in my lifetime I have never...now I have. I also tried a Watermelon beer which I can honestly say, I can do without, but it was interesting and unique.

Whatever you do, don't forget your pretzel neckace. Everyone will find themselves needing a snack at some point and a pretzel comes in handy while drinking beer. My friends and I had the opportunity to spend the afternoon tasting beers, eating pretzels and finding out one more great thing about our city. We love great beer here in Denver. Join us next year!


Friday, October 10, 2008

skateboards and no fear


Remember what it felt like to be 7?
To have no worries and no fear?
To jump off ramps on your bicycle and skate as fast as you could downhill, with no helmet or knee pads?




Remember life before responsibility?

Watching my son at the skatepark today reminded me of what life was like 30 years ago, when summertime never seemed to end. My bike was the only thing I had to worry about and I had a chain to keep it safe from thieves when I sat in the library for hours on end getting lost in Nancy Drew books.


The skatepark today has so many things nostalgic of youth. There were kids of all ages, young and young at heart. Now as I sat and watched my son enjoy his (yet to be) nostalgic days, I just pondered my responsibility. Even a small break in the day or the weekend still lends itself to contemplation of all things accountable for. Difficult to escape under any terms.



Kids of all ages, cultures, and skill levels skated around the park just being.


Today I wanted to get on a skateboard and just skate as fast as I could - catching air and not worrying about a broken bone or spraining a knee or my back. I wanted to drop in to the bowl and feel the wind against my face. Then I wanted to get on my bike and just ride. Ride all day like I used to when I was 10 years old. My only worry then was being home before dark.


I didn't think about how much insurance cost and if it would cover more than one trip to the hospital if I had already sprained my knee skiing this year.
I didn't think about other kids suing me if I accidentally kicked my board into their face and they required stitches.


I didn't think about anything except the freedom of my wheels.



Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Landlords and Thieves

Usually my commentary revolves around current events, my kids, what's going on in my town, etc. Fun, light issues or hot topics so to speak. Today, I am venturing away from this because I have had the most horrific experience with an individual that I am at a loss for polite conversation.
History: I have been renting condos/ homes for about 20 years now. I am a conscientious person and very aware of other peoples property. I like doing artistic things in my home, even when I rent, and am very careful about re-painting and cleaning when it's time for me to check out. I have never had a security deposit withheld for any reason and have actually had landlords tell me the place looks better than when I first moved in.
Recently: My most recent rental, I did nothing to, no paint, no art, simply because I knew this was a transition space and I felt I would be moving at the end of the lease. So I maintained everything as close to move in as possible.
This home I rented had a few issues - clogged sinks, slow draining plumbing in every bath and kitchen, poorly maintained appliances, worn and torn flooring. The unit is at least 50 years old, and has not been renovated in the last 49 years. The vinyl on the laundry floor was literally peeling up from every crack. But, it was a cute duplex in a cute neighborhood. Can't complain - my kids were safe.
I was never given a check-in sheet when I moved in. I was charged a non-refundable pet deposit, above my standard rental deposit, which is totally normal. During the course of my stay in this home, the landlord decided she would try and sell the property, so I would need to move possibly earlier if she could seel. Times are hard, this seemed reasonable.
Then my neighbors began to tell me that she does this every year or so : gets rentors in then puts a for sale sign up. Red Flag #1. They had seen the price point for the unit and thought she needed some guidance due to the market and the quality of what she was trying to sell. Basically, asking top dollar for a dated, small unit with no extras (ie garage, W/D, etc).
A couple people stagger through to see what she's offering, and hmmm imagine this; the comments we hear are "no garage?", "a laundry in the master closet", "the flooring is dated".
Next red flag - she begins to call and send emails stating that the unit isn't tidy enough to be shown on a regular basis. That I, in fact, was the cause of her not being able to sell her over priced piece of shit during this "buyer's market". Open the window and smell the economy honey.
Anyone who has been to my house, knows it is tidy. The windows may not be cleaned from the outside, but my home is tidy.
A number of other wak-assed events happened, alerting me to her disillusionment with the real world, but I realized that moving was a blessing and just go with the flow.
So, I prepare to move into my new home and spend 2 weeks preparing the duplex for my check -out process, and looky looky she shows up with a 2 page check-out sheet. Where was this when we checked in I wonder, but fuck it - just follow the process and get your money back.

Note, house was not clean when I moved in. Huge dust bunnies under the heating units. Childrens toys in the yard and wedged between heating units. Broken window treatments. The storage closet on the main level was actually full of shit from the previous tenant and I carted all that shit to the goodwill and dump. No worries...cause you trust people will treat you fairly.

I clean, I weed, I paint, I have all my bills transferred. Mind you the unit is empty for a full month. Then she bills me a fake water bill, which she will show my no proof of. Then deducts a fee for half a month's electricity. Once again, the unit was empty - no water, no electricity. The amounts of the bills were 2 to 3 times the normal amounts of bills when I was actually living in the unit, and I compared the electric "fake bill" she gave me to my 1st electric bill at my new home and here are the results:
Duplex: 1700 sq ft, regular usage=$76 per month, no usage=$180 per her calculations (she charged me $90 for the 14 days I had it turned off prior to the end of my lease albeit I had moved out 30 days prior and thought 15 days was plenty of time to get any cleaning done that would require electricity- oh and the house has hard wood flooring throughout).
New home: 2400 sq ft, 1st bill with full usage including central A/C=$165 for full month
Hmmm
The water bill is far less exciting - she simply doubled what I normally paid and refused to show documentation.
At first, I was very upset and frustrated because if there is one thing in life I hate it's a common thief. I realize she has seen hard times, as have we all. But she had the audcity to send me a conjured up receipt that my 13 year old could have produced using Microsoft Word for the costs of new flooring for her stairwell (citing strange odor), therefore, I need to recarpet her 40 yr old carpeted stairwell - NOT clean professionally - REPLACE. Other items such as failing to remove cobwebs from the front porch, and various other bullshit was on this list as well.
If I had not spent so much time cleaning and painting and taking care with her home, this might be something easy to blow off, and I realize my anger and the desire to spraypaint her home and car with the words "SLAG CUNT" are a knee jerk reaction to being taken advantage of by the less integrious.
So, I will meditate and wait for karma to take effect.
I know people like this do shit like this because their miserable little lives are so inadequate and the only pleasure they get in life is taking advantage of others to make themselves feel a tiny bit better.
I hope the $1000 was worth it Kathy Whitrock/ Landlord & Thief.

Friday, October 3, 2008

Since When...

Did we become so judgemental. So stingy. So dependant on being at the top of the hierarchy?
Ultimately driving us from one of the best nations in the world to one of the worst. Economically, technolgically and socially.
When did we stop caring about our neighbor?
When did it become such a bad thing to pray together?
When did it become ok to shirk our responsibilites, relying on tax dollars and the government to soak up our bills?
When was it ever ok NOT to take care of your own children?
It seems as if every law that is passed now is one more step away from personal responsibility. Why is that OK?
When did we stop being accountable?

I just read an article in regards to the safehaven law allowing parents to drop off their kids at a hospital, firehouse, police station, etc, someplace safe, if they felt they could not take care of their kids. Well, apparently in the state of Nebraska, there was no age limit, so parents wee driving from all over the midwest to drop off their unruly teens.
Really?
Now, everyone has hard times, but this a pure example of what has happened to our society since we have grown so self absorbed, and so unaware of our neighbors. It does take a village to raise a child, and the further we get away from acknowledging our neighbor, the further our kids get away from being raised with the community values which inspire independence and success.
My 13 yr old gets on my nerves sometimes. I'm sure I get on her nerves. Would I ever think of dropping her off at a safehaven? Hell no.
I'd get 3 jobs, a british nanny, and some percoset before I ever turned my kids over. BUT, that said, if my neighbor came to me and said, "I can't do this, could you help me with my kid(s)." I would say "Yes", because that's how we are supposed to take care of each other. It starts at home. With YOU.