Tag Archives: Denver

The One That Got Away

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The neon sign still looked good against the blue Colorado sky. November weather in Denver can be a crap shoot but we won that day. It was jacket weather but sunny and beautiful – ideal for the cowboy that looked like he might tip his hat from atop the Davie’s Chuck Wagon Diner sign.

I’m a sucker for vintage signs. And for diners.

Really, for anything that harkens to an earlier time. That’s the only reason we were there. To see an old diner with a gorgeous old sign.

I promised my friend that I would buy her lunch if our diner breakfast was bad. That’s another crapshoot. Diner breakfast is either delicious or your basic greasy grub. 

There’s little middle ground. 

Davie’s is the kind of place that sells cold cereal alongside pineapple by the slice and something called the Chuckwagon Breakfast. 

Our waitress was an older lady who called her regulars hon. It seemed like she had a lot of regulars. She neither approved nor disapproved of my veggie omelette but she brought it quickly and kept my Diet Coke topped off so I liked her. I don’t drink much pop but an early morning after a long day of traveling is one exception to the rule. 

Our corner booth was situated just inches from the table next to us where an elderly man studied a newspaper crossword puzzle. His pencil, slow and deliberate, scratched in the letters. He never erased and never looked up from his work except when a coffee refill was offered or when he took a bite of hot cereal.

I had an irrational desire to strike up a conversation with this stranger but it wasn’t as strong as his apparent desire to be left alone.

And so I did. 

Later, I stared at my reflection in the bathroom mirror and admired the tile work behind me. The wall tile was a mid-century pink but a closer look at the floor revealed some tiles featured images with a western theme. 

I wondered how long that man had been coming here. Does he not have cereal at home? Does he just enjoy the atmosphere? Does he have pleasant memories of bringing his children here to admire the cowboy sign out front? What does he think of the cowboy tiles scattered around the restaurant?

That man will always be like a good fishing tale to me. He was one that got away without telling me his story. 

Memories like this are etched in my mind’s eye. Like snapshots in a photo album, they flip through my consciousness and make me appreciate the pure delight of the places I’ve been and the near encounters I’ve had. 

Who needs a resort vacation when you can find neon, a great  breakfast and an intriguing character all in one place? 

Not me.

As Seen From The Road

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You just never know what you’ll see when you venture outside and into public. I got a kick out of this company’s creative marketing as we traveled somewhere outside Lakewood, Colorado.

Sleeping with a drip?

Humor is a terrific sales technique and it worked on me. I would absolutely give them a chance if I lived closer and needed their services.

Como, Colorado And Things That Aren’t In The Guidebooks

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The things I live for when traveling are rarely found in guidebooks. They’re typically not expensive either. The memories I hold dear are things like a special meal enjoyed in Utah’s Canyonlands National Park or a chat with the woman who runs an Indiana soda fountain. The unplanned, unexpected things that can’t be recreated are the very best experiences if you ask me.

We had a couple of those moments on this last trip that reminded us exactly why it’s so important to say yes when there’s opportunity.

We were headed down Route 285, a scenic route through the mountains we chose in lieu of the interstate when heading toward Durango. There was a sign for a Historic Railroad Roundhouse that pointed right. I asked “can we?” and Johnna said sure!

This choice took us to a spot-in-the-road called Como which I found positively enchanting. Less than a mile off the highway and in the Rocky Mountains, Como has the air of a ghost town. Yet, a handful of people do reside in Victorian era cottages and homes in this collection of dilapidated buildings.

There’s a restored train depot and an old hotel that operated until the owner became too ill to keep it open. The roundhouse is simply beautiful and is a hub for numerous restoration projects being undertaken by a band of volunteers who hope to transform the town into a tourist attraction.

Friends, it doesn’t look like much and you won’t likely find this place in any guidebook but Como is the source of some of my favorite memories of this trip.

First of all, it feels deserted but I got the sensation that if I turned quickly enough I might see some Wyatt Earp like person swagger by.

Plus, we met a man named Joey who showed us around and told us stories. Turns out, there were a few people working there to prepare for an event the following day so there was a lot of activity underway.

Joey took us inside, pointing out the holes in the ceiling where engine smokestacks would be positioned to release their smoke. He showed us an old rail car turned home that they fished out of a creek bed for restoration. He showed us another car that is the exact dimension of the boxcars Hitler used to transport Jews to concentration camps.

Meet Kate, a locomotive they are currently restoring.

Joey talked to us about the town which was a stop for the Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad. The Depot was built in 1879 to accommodate the railroad. It’s hard to believe but this was a bustling town with hundreds of people employed by the railroad.

For nearly sixty years, the train’s daily stop was a highlight for locals whose businesses benefited from these strangers passing through and who received delivery of goods from the city and from the Sears and Roebuck catalog.

Sadly, the last passenger train left town in April 1937 and the tracks were pulled up the following year.

The old hotel remains but closed recently when the owner fell into poor heath.

Over the decades, the town deteriorated and so did its buildings. In the last twenty years, efforts have been made to salvage and restore what’s left.

While we toured the inside, there was bustling activity outside as a train car was pulled onto the turntable so that it could be moved into the roundhouse. When we asked how it worked, Joey said “hold on a minute and you can see!”

And then he had us help him turn the car so that it could be moved into the fifth bay of the six bay roundhouse!

By then, an older couple from Colorado Springs had arrived and they were enthusiastically listening to Joey’s tales.

The cherry on the proverbial sundae was when my friend and I, along with Joey and that other man hopped on the pump car for a short trip up the tracks and then back down the tracks.

I won’t lie – the trip back was vaguely terrifying as we were going down hill but it was magnificent all the same.

These are memories I wish I could send you to do but that I could never recreate. The truth is, you must go find your own adventures.

Say yes to those random turns and to conversations with people who are passionate about the things they do. Get out of the car and go looking for something different than you already know, something more than you had planned.

That’s why we travel. That’s why we explore our own backyards. That’s where the magic happens.

Where We Wander

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Where will you wander today? Whether it’s close to home or to a far off land, there’s always something interesting to see. For example, this colorful message can be found on the back of a Denver, Colorado Goodwill store.

Incidentally, I found the placement of the no trespassing sign both unfortunate and ironic but the mural is great.

Found Antique and Vintage Mall

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Since it gets dark so early, we spent most of our Denver evenings perusing thrift stores, antique malls and bargain stores like TJ Maxx. We were pretty diligent about our retail therapy especially at Found Antique and Artisan Mall in Wheat Ridge.

They have about 65 vendors in 12,000 square feet of small rooms, nooks and crannies. It’s sort of a maze where every turn presents opportunity to find unexpected treasures like these rosettes made from old ties.

They have tons of handmade items and numerous vintage items that I had never seen before. From a mid century era baby monitor called the Baby Sitter to a sixties era Fred Flinstone/ Dino the Dinosaur toy, there are many interesting things to admire. That Flinstones toy is fabulous but comes with a $465 price tag. That was a bit out of my price range but they also have some eighties era Carebears like some I had as a child. Finding them marked vintage was a bit offputting (because I can’t possibly be old enough to call my toys vintage) but they were far more affordable than Fred.

Anyway, it’s a great store in a fantastic space and I highly recommend a visit if you’re in the Denver area. They also have a location in Wisconsin if that’s closer for you. Get the details here!

Barteldes Seeds in Denver

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Some people look for pretty flowers and beautiful works of art. I seek out the side door with its exposed brick, hand painted advertising and weird shadows playing off the fire escape.

Here’s one of many weirdo things I photographed with my phone in downtown Denver last year. I need to go through my camera pictures because there are some good ones to share but I just haven’t gotten around it. Perhaps this No Spend Month will provide time to do this.

Meanwhile, isn’t this an interesting building?

It’s the Barteldes Seed Lofts and Condos. I couldn’t resist looking up their website which provided far more historic perspective than I expected. In fact, their home page explains that the five story building was constructed at the turn of the 20th century to support 600 pounds of seed per square foot, a necessity for this wholesale facility.

It was transformed into office and residential loft space in 1987.

It’s high end and there are no vacancies so I guess I won’t be moving in anytime soon. It’s just as well. Even at 600 pounds per square foot, the building might not support my book and LP collections!

The proximity to Union Station would make getting around easy but the closeness to Tattered Cover Book Store wouldn’t help with the book collecting problem! These are two of my favorites stops in this neighborhood so I hope you will read these stories too.