Yard Arteology: The study of neighbors through lawn decorations… A recent walk through the West Barnum neighborhood has revealed that west Denver is a sanctuary for yard angels. The bare ground around the angel pictured above indicates that she has powerful snow-melting capabilities. However, the Kwanzaa deer angel shown below…
Kenny Be takes a look at Governor John Hickenlooper’s political life to date. Each golden moment also serves as a draft for what he may have on tap for Colorado’s future. John Hickenlooper, Colorado’s Dome-Brewed Governor…
The cowboy and cowgirl figures seen in the photograph above have “cut out” from the National Western Stock Show and have been seen in multiple locations in and around the Globeville neighborhood. The shadowy characters seem to enjoy hanging out in garden settings near barbecue pits. While the cutouts appear…
The word “JAIL” painted over the entry of the playhouse pictured above suggests that this is the backyard play area of children who may be playing a little too rough. That the structure lacks doors hints at the high volume of pretend incarcerations, and the closed blind intimates at the…
Denverites pay a lot of money to vacation abroad. With the new service reductions going into effect, overcrowded RTD buses will make the trip from Park Hill into downtown seem like an exotic adventure in Budapest or Mumbai. Below, see how crowded buses are perfect for people who need both…
The open matchbook that is pictured above is my contribution to twelve-year-old Augusta Dexheimer’s Wedding Pillow Project. Gus and I go way back: Her parents are former Westword staff writers Eric Dexheimer and Robin Chotzinoff. So when Gus called and told me that she was celebrating her bat mitzvah year…
The neighborhood icon pictured above was inspired by the original logo used by Perl-Mack Homes Inc. to market its newest housing development in 1966. After the success of building Northglenn and Southglenn (now Centennial), Perl-Mack developed a suburban-style housing development east of then-Stapleton International Airport. Cut off from the city…
If you are planning a New Year’s party for sixty or more of your best friends who each drink two or more bottles of wine apiece, you will have enough booze bottles to make a beautiful garden border similar to the one shown in the picture above. Below, see how…
Prediction #1: Unable to stop the increasing incidence of slope rage, Colorado ski resorts begin to promote Spring Break pay-per-view broadcasts of Ultimate Ski-Fighting® to help generate revenue. Below, see how the stoner vote affects the Denver Mayor’s race…..
The backstory of Christmastime in a consumer culture always plays out in the alleys of Denver. This is where yesterday’s must-haves are temporarily tethered to trash bins in an effort to make room for a glut of new holiday gifts. The kiddie clunker pictured above waits to make its final…
The photograph above features a decorative dead end in the Reunion subdivision of Commerce City. The center of the picture looks out into the future of planned suburban expansion. Until then, the nearly identical homes face off in a duel of nearly identical holiday decorations. Below, Santa Homer goes head…
The Christmas tree shape and Santa Claus color of John McEnroe’s sculpture at the base of the Highland bridge almost demands that “National Velvet” be decorated for the holidays. Inspired by the sculpture’s similarity to a pile of Italian sausages, this year’s “National Velvet” holiday theme pays tribute to the…
There is only one thing people love more than Christmas gift shopping, and that is after- Christmas gift-return shopping! As seen below, It’s also the one time of the year that Josh McDaniels and Carmelo Anthony can return what they’ve been handed, and ask for exactly what they want…..
The pampered beast shown on the TallGrass billboard in the photo above is this season’s proud vision from the Evergreen hair- and skin-care coven endorsed by the cult of Oprah. Perhaps the gift cards advertised by the swanky spa will offer an “Elk Tune-up” to ease the trauma of holiday…
Yard Arteology: The study of neighbors through their lawn decorations… By day, the white electrical cords that power the lights of the holiday yard display pictured above look like an alien plant species that has slithered across the yard to strangle Santa Claus and consume a child’s tricycle. Christmas looks…
Although the illustration above looks a lot like me showing off the big muscle of my cartooning arm, it is actually a detail of my comic contribution to the Harvey Pekar tribute on the Scholars and Rogues website…..
In an effort to promote tourism in Aurora, officials have organized a new group called VisitAurora.com. While most people associate Aurora with cheap hookers, pawn shops and Republican fund-raisers, there are so many other ways to attract tourists to Aurora by marketing vacation packages that showcase the city’s cultural identity…
The graffiti painted on the train engine in the photograph above is not remarkable for its quality, but for its incredible timeliness. Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is Google trending across the world as this is being written, and yet some brash news junkie found the time to sum up the…
Wedged between commercial and industrial development south of West Sixth Avenue, the Baker neighborhood contains the city’s largest assortment of middle-class Queen Anne houses and the widest variety of eclectic oddballs…..
Yard Arteology: The study of neighbors through their lawn decorations… Fairies, pixies, sprites: Call them what you will. But the stone castle mini-mansion pictured above is proof that small, elusive beings with a capricious nature have moved onto a rock pile in Sloan Lake. There goes the neighborhood…..
The holiday lights of Denver’s City and County building will stay on through Big Air, but the statues of the nativity scene will be replaced with edgier characters that appeal to snowboarders. A “Living Extreme” decorative theme will focus attention on Denver’s mile-high attitude with the snow angel pictured above…
From the angle in which the above photograph was taken, it appears that the hanging skeletons warn of dire consequences for scofflaws who disobey the Denver Fire Department’s “no parking or storage allowed within 50 feet of this building” sign…..
