Too Close to See

Today it started, AND it occurred to me that between my job and the fact that I do not have TV, I have seriously no idea what happened today in the bigger picture. 

-I heard something about Obama picking a running mate. 

-I read that Bono was in town to do something with his pal Kanye (who is somewhere probably preparing to step onstage at Invesco Thursday and tell everyone why he is the one who should have gotten the Democratic nomination). 

-Someone said the Clintons are at the Brown Palace. 

-Melanie saw a few protestors downtown. 

-I saw a flash of John Legend singing some pie-in-the-sky-solve-all-the-world's-problems song from inside the Pepsi Center

-and I delivered directions to shuttle drivers, and proofread lots of route maps for the move to Invesco Field on Thursday.

This blur of moments is my experience at the DNC. The bus depot I live in right now is a hard-secured zone which means we have to be credentialed to get in, but we see and hear very little about what is happening outside our zone, and it's separate from the zone that the delegates are dropped into when they arrive. 

Furthermore, as a member of the Invesco crew, somehow I managed to make my way out of the T-zone today (yaaay!) and to my real leaders thus relieving me of bus-wrangling, loading, etc. duties and limiting interaction with the delegates/passengers to none. 

As a result, I have not a clue what happened today in Denver. I'm in the middle of it all with absolutely no view and no big picture. I couldn't be more insulated and isolated from the action. It's like a blurred vision version. 

DNC Training Day 3

Not much to report to day--I worked a shorter day today and drove there twice because certain streets were newly barricaded and I had to go almost all the way back home to find a new route.

My migraine finally subsided in the afternoon after I got home from work, and I learned hand signals for guiding buses into tight parking spots.

Today, my supposed supervisor "T" referred to himself at least 5 times in third person, as in "You're in the T-Zone" or "The T-Bird will take care of you," or "T-Man says..." My breakfast very nearly landed squarely in the T-Zone!

L to R: Quentin (my real supervisor) and someone else basking in the T-Zone.

Mid-day it occured to me that T was the only one who informed me that T was my supervisor, so I checked w/ the lady who hired me, and she informed me that the buck stopped with someone else named "Q." Seriously...

T had said to come in at 7am but I went to Q and he said 9am. Ha! Yaaay. I like Q better!

So, I have everything together for work tomorrow (at 9!) but I don't know if that's the same thing as being ready.

Small world news: I bumped into a law enforcement officer helping with crowd control/protestor duty who actually attended youth group with Randy in Illinois. Thankfully, there were fewer protestors today than expected and less than 10 arrests made. If only that would keep up!

Day 2 DNC Training

DNC Training Day 2:

Dry run for busses. 

My work schedule is out the window.

Drivers ate almost all the pizza.

Splitting migraine.

Tomorrow is another day.

Tomorrow is another day.

Tomorrow is another day.

The DNC Hits Denver

It seems like ages since Denver started buzzing about the Democratic National Convention hitting town, and now, like a big fat tidal wave, here it comes. Somehow it still seems to have sneaked up on us. Perhaps it is because so many details that directly affect our household have been left to the last minute...

The change of venue to Invesco Field (from the Pepsi Center) for the Obama speech Thursday puts the crowds less than a mile from our home. Road closures have been changed around us and our work schedules and job descriptions are daily redefined. 

My part-time job as a tour guide at Invesco Field for the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame will be traded in for full-time transportation coordination for the delegates, and Randy is Mr. Overtime and Mr. Overnight with no days off for about 11 in a row. Our friend Melanie is helping with concierge service for people leasing downtown lofts from her real estate firm and she will be camping out with us to avoid all the crazy commuting.

Some people say that Denver is ill-prepared for this convention and it's going to be a nightmare while others are assuring us that Denver is ready for it and all has been planned well. Today, I am acutely aware that when they say "Denver," they mean us: a law enforcement worker, an event worker, and a real estate administrative assistant. Our household of three this week is bracing to be part of the execution team that tries to make the second group of people right. 

Pray for us!

Winter in August!

After surviving a heatwave in Denver these past couple weeks, the weather finally broke and we enjoyed some Scotland-esque grey and gloomy rain. It was fantastic and it made me feel like heading outdoors again.

Yesterday, Randy's sister Julee (who has been visiting from Oregon) and I decided to drive up the Mt. Evans Byway...the highest altitude highway in the USA. It was a beautiful drive straight into winter, even if the road was closed at Summit Lake. Just as we hit snow, songs we had put on a mix CD from the Narnia soundtrack started playing...perfect!

We drove up past the treeline and saw marmots, deer, and on the way home, bison. Diego wasn't too sure about the leash laws but I think he had a good time too. 

The full set of photos is viewable by clicking HERE.

In Which I am Accidentally a Collector's Item...and A Collector

THIS MONTH IN MUSIC:

A cassette put out by the band I fronted in the late 80's (Otto Bootzman: The Legacy of No One) was listed on eBay as "Very Early Beki Hemingway!" and actually sold for $12.50 plus shipping. I think it was originally $5 or $6 so that's a good markup for our little ep recorded right here in Denver in 1989(?)

On 08/08/08 (a magical Chinese date according to my new friend Bill), Randy and I played at Solid Grounds in Littleton and had a good time trying out some new songs amidst a bunch of our oldies. Kathy took some pics of us and this relatively new location for SG:

Melanie and I went to see Newton Faulkner at an in-store performance at Bart's CDs in Boulder. It was a spur of the moment decision based on the fact that we both like his single "Dream Catch Me" and I happened to hear a KBCO Studio C performance/announcement as I was driving home from a job the other day. So...we didn't have a clue about Newton, but we were "Newton-curious." 

After all, I live on Newton Street, love Fig Newtons, and know lots of Olivia Newton-John lyrics. Anyway, off we went. 

It was well worth the trip. A very good time! As it turns out, Newton Faulkner is a UK pop star who has abundant dreadlocks. The store wasn't too crowded so we asked for a pic:

After getting our picture taken, we realized that this photo bore a striking similarity to one we had taken in November 2006 in an alley behind the Olympia Theater in Dublin with our good buddy Duke Special. 

Could it be that we have a penchant for dreadlocked UK pop stars? It seems we have started a collection. If anyone knows of more dreadlocked UK pop stars, please leave a comment here so we can add it to our list of people to get our picture taken with (Melanie stage left, and Beki stage right of course).

CD PURCHASE: BIG BLUE BALL (Peter Gabriel/Karl Wallinger/Various)  = AWESOME!