Stayin' Alive

Yesterday we left Golden, Colorado just outside Denver. The evening before we had dinner at a bar called Wrigley Chicago which claimed to be an authentic Chicago style bar serving Chicago style food (I'd heard about it from another RV park resident). The food was amazingly authentic - we had a Chicago style hotdog and a Maxwell Street Polish. However the decor was more Brighton Park / Comiskey Park than Wrigley Field / Wrigleyville. I can only imagine that they took the Wrigley name as the White Sox were so money driven that they sold their soul and allowed the stadium to be renamed US Cellular Field - doesn't really lend it itself to be used as a bar name. The owners claimed to be from Chicago. When I asked where they said Waukegan. Well I hate to get started on one of my absolute pet peeves but Waukegan isn't Chicago any more than Palos Hills is Chicago or Lake Forest is Chicago. Every time someone in Switzerland tells me they are from Chicago and I ask where I get a response like those listed above. Clearly Waukegan doesn't have the same recognition as Chicago but it really isn't Chicago. The couple also were more like the Southwest Siders I grew up with. They reminded me of people that you would have seen in Captain's Quarters which used to be located at 39th and Western - a place I used to frequent with friends. Still we enjoyed ourselves.  We stopped for lunch in Bailey, Colorado at a place called the Cutthroat Cafe. Simple food and a friendly environment. There was a conversation going on there about why men liked shows like "Mad Men" It seems that men prefer life the way it used to be before feminism. No kidding, not hard to imagine why. A younger woman said that women her age don't even realize that life was so different before. Well in my opinion equal rights doesn't necessarily equal feminism or I believe what they perceive as militant feminism. Isn't it better that both share the load? In the evening we checked into an RV park in Buena Vista, Colorado - possibly one of the most beautiful and coolest places I have ever been. We managed to find a dog friendly bar (it's called funnily the "Colorado State Highway Department") and truly enjoyed chatting with the owner and his partner. If you ever come through here, this bar is an absolute must, very cool people.

I am becoming addicted to satellite radio which has its pluses and minuses. I heard the news about Arnold Schwarzenegger fathering a child with an employee that lived in his home and was shocked and really disappointed. When he was running for governor there were quite a few letters to the editor in Swiss newspapers deriding the fact that an actor could run for office. So I wrote and defended his right to do so and mentioned how he was truly living the American Dream where anyone can aspire to do anything. I really felt he was a person to be admired and now this. It was a rude awakening for me. Also on satellite radio I happened to come across a Glenn Beck program. Mr. Beck is entitled to his opinions as we all are. However he was playing an interview which had taken place in Arabic and making fun of the person speaking because of his language. Does it get any more juvenile? How does this guy keep a following? In my opinion he had / has the perfect right to challenge the content but making fun of a language is idiotic and actually shows a lack of respect for the intellect of the people who follow him.

Lastly as I was doing a last load of laundry at the Golden RV park a man started chatting with me. He said he was 62 and both he and his wife had just been laid off. They had decided to sell their house and live in their RV to save money and be flexible in terms of relocating for possible new employment. It was sad to hear this as I do see more and more how people are struggling in this economy. I really hope things turn around.