Denver Calling

Well folks I just wanted to throw in one of those “how am I doing” blogs and it seems like I am doing pretty well. I am trying to get out and learn the city more and more. I have been walking around about 3 times a week and I try to meet at least one person while I’m out and about. I am even learning which streets are where so now I don’t look too confused when people say “you know where so and so is”. I am meeting a lot of people in the building, lots of cool people live here. I am so bad with names so that’s killing me, any one know any tricks?

The weather here is great, right now it’s a nice dry heat very pleasant in the shade but the sun will cook you if you stand in it too long, lots of sun block. For some reason we are getting a lot of rain but we don’t mind it’s nice. Hannah and I have been having a lot of fun and getting in a lot of walking; we have been here a little over a month and still have not needed to get any gas for our car. We have enjoyed enough sunsets over the mountains to last a life time.

My online life has blown up and I can’t even count how many people I have met and it seems like everyone likes my work and thinks I should do very well here. Next month the art shows start and I can’t wait to see if they are right. If you are an artist and you are not meeting people online that live in your city you are losing out of what could be your biggest art fans and who knows they could buy some art, I mean they have money to buy computers! I have met some of the most coolest people on Facebook and Twitter, don’t be scared, try it.

Starting Over Update

Well if you have been to my site you would have seen that I started lining up the shows. We still need to add two more but the details aren’t clear yet but they will be by this weekend.

I got my first solo show here in Denver, at a hair salon called Vain we stopped by the other day to check out the show for the artist this month and I gotta tell you even though it’s something I normally would stay away from, this show was great. All the people in this place look so cool, crazy haircuts, lots of tattoos and loads of style. This is where Denver’s cool crowd hangs out. There were these two very cute models with crazy hair styles and only wearing bubble wrap (if you know me you know I love bubble wrap) carrying trays of jello shots and you know there’s always room for jello!



Yes, yes, yes, I know what you’re asking, “how did I line up such a cool place to show?” As you know, once I knew I was moving to Denver I started adding Colorado people to my myspace, facebook and twitter. Here’s the cool part, you’re going to think it’s crazy - I asked. I just asked if anyone knew of a place where I could show my art. I lined up 3 shows though 5 people that way. Chalk that up to “it’s not what you know it’s who you know” so get out there and meet some people.

I will blog about the show after it happens, which is on August 8th so if you are in Colorado and not at this show, better be dead or in jail, and if you’re in jail break out! (from the Simpsons)

New Art To Share With You

Here are a few new pieces I have been working on for my “cute critters” show I wanted to have but I think I might have to just sell them, I don’t know but I do know that if you play in my contest and tell me how far you live from me and tell me what picture you like then you can win a print. Tell all your friends over seas!

La Piazza Italian Chalk Art On Larimer Square

I left the house at 9am Friday morning to go help set up for the weekend; I was part of a 3 person group who had to measure out all the squares for the artists. I have never done so many squats in my life. I think I met just about everyone I could that had something to do with the set up and running of the event. It was I long day but we got a lot done and had quite a bit of free drinks. Hannah showed up after work and we had more drinks and went to eat at Rialto Cafe again. It rained a little but the few artists who started early didn’t get hit too bad.

Saturday morning I showed up about 7am with my heart template and got right to work, Hannah showed up about 9am and we grabbed some breakfast. I worked all day till the sun made the street way too hot to touch. I also tried to talk to as many people as I could and passed out my “custom art cards” to everyone who had a dog, so hopefully we see something from that.

It seemed like a lot of people really liked what I was doing but you know they could have just been being nice. I found that my style really translated well into chalk. My first time working with chalk was fun I never knew how many professionals there were and that they traveled the world making chalk art.

Sunday I started slow but got through it before the sun came up, grabbed lunch and was at home before the rain came. I heard on twitter that most of the art held up, I will walk by and see Monday morning. My whole body is in pain, I never worked so hard in my life at my art. If you’ve never done a chalk art event you should just to say you did.

Here are some pictures:

Rialto Cafe

Hello good folks out there in blog land and all you coming over from myspace facebook and twitter. Yesterday June 2nd, Tuesday at 6 o’clock found me at Rialto Cafe at 934 16th street, Denver Colorado 80202 with the group Denver Taste Casting which I just joined last week as a way to meet some Denverites.

I didn’t know what to expect when I walked into the place, I had wanted to go since I got here; their ads are all over the touristy magazines I read. It is a very nice place, very classy. It had been raining all day and it was a bit on the cold side. But they open the big windows in the front on better days. I loved all the big posters of those old wine and liquor ads. They had some nice bar seating up front which seemed good for those power lunches and early dinners and on a better day outside would have been nice to watch the people walking on the mall. There was also a lot of romantic seating in the back and side, nice if you want to be alone to talk. And some upstairs seating which over looked the bar area, that area seemed like the only place where a “Nemo” art show could take place. Plus there was a big star on the wall and that put this Texan right at home.

Hannah and I were shown to the taste casting area where I came face to face with a twitter friend Kyle and he looks just like his picture. Note to self must try to meet more twitter people face to face. Also met Chad another twitter friend and the person behind all the Rialto Café tweets. All in all about 16 people showed up and boy oh boy did they treat us good.

Then J. Allen Adams, the regional director, came out to talk about all the lovely food we were about to eat. J. Allen was the type of person who really loved his job. This food crazed man talked about everything from where the meat came from (happy cows), to what went into building a recipe to picking a recipe to go on the menu. He talked about how when the restaurant opened they wanted to bring back an old classic feel to Denver and although the times have changed with the food they still keep that old classic feel found nowhere else in Denver.

We started out with a few appetizers: bruschetta, empanadas and calamari. Both Hannah and I agreed that the calamari was the best we ever had, mmm I can still taste the calamari now and for 10 bucks I can see my myself eating that again real soon.

Then salad time - the “warm roasted chicken salad” was again both our favorite salad but the “baby spinach salad” was also well made and vegetarian (oh and to all you vegetarians out there almost everything on their menu can be made without any meat since they add the meat last, just go in and ask). The best cornbread came out next and they weren’t kidding it was the best. I wanted to take it home with me.

Then came out the main event oh yes this plate had a little bit of everything, grilled ahi, gorgonzola cannelloni, braised short ribs, petit filet mignon and seared salmon. I didn’t pick a favorite one, it was getting too hard to pick, everything tasted so good and everything, although in half size, was presented very well. Hannah’s favorite was the “filet mignon” and the “ahi” (which is tuna, don’t worry I didn’t know either).

And right when you thought it was all over and you had to leave such a perfect place to eat drink and be merry, they hit us with dessert: praline pound cake, chocolate mousse, cheesecake bites, bread pudding and tiramisu. We both liked everything about the dessert. So save room for dessert and have the sampler and try any 3 for only 9 bucks. Check out the menu and plan your meal ahead of time.

Also good stuff to note, they give 50% off any wine bottle on Mondays, they have 2 happy hours from 4:30 to 6 and from 9:30 to 11, it’s like every day something’s going on but my favorite one is the twitter special, on Fridays if you go in there and say you saw Nemo tweet about them your 1st beer is free, so grab a loved one and head down to Rialto Café, I’ll save you a seat.

Changing Towns, Changing Goals - Resolutions

1. Taking pictures - I am not really taking many pictures but here in Denver there’s a lot of really cool stuff, I need a smaller camera so it can be easier to take with me. So my new goal is to buy a camera then I can go back to my original goal of taking more pictures.

2. No more fast food - I am still trying to stay away from the fast food but you know it’s hard, at least now I am walking to go get it. The micky d’s is about 5 or 6 blocks down the street and about 2 blocks going the other way, but it is a really nice walk on Sunday mornings so at least I got that right? I am trying to share everything I get with Hannah or I am trying to only eat half of what I get. I find I still get as full and wonder how the hell I could eat the whole thing.

3. Only one beer or glass of wine - this one is easy since alcohol hits me harder being in this altitude. I would really like to try to stop drinking alcohol all together and also knock out coffee and soda. I drink about one cup of coffee everyday, which should be green tea, at about 3pm. I don’t drink much soda and when I do get some at a restaurant I never finish it.

4. Exercise - I am still trying to get in shape, so no doubt that it’s 1st on the list (which is funny because its last on my list here) Once I got here in Denver I weighed myself in at 235. It’s a lot easier to work out here; it seems like everywhere you look some one is running or riding a bike and if they are not doing it they are talking about doing it. People in Colorado move I tell you, so I gotta get moving too. I feel like I am already adjusted to the altitude and I don’t get tried as fast any more. I have been walking every morning for about 2 to 4 miles and I still lift weights here at the house and do 100’s of push-up and sit-ups.

Just gotta keep it up you know, tell me what your goals are, big or small I would love to hear about them. I hear the buddy system works because you have to answer to someone if you don’t reach your goals, so you end up doing what it is you wanted to do, not just for yourself but for everyone you told. That is why I blog this blog every month.