I rolled through Wyoming and south into Denver. I was to stay, while in the Mile-High City, with my friend, LeeAnn. She's a transplanted Oklahoman who's been in Denver a little longer than I've been in New York. I didn't have big plans for my stay here; rather, I relaxed a bit, catching up on the Olympics, doing some writing and tooling around Denver. I hadn't given LeeAnn much advance notice of my arrival so her schedule was somewhat full, but we drove around town Saturday afternoon, enjoying some fine pizza at the Bonnie Brae Restaurant and browsing through a little boutique called Cry Baby Ranch. This kitschy little store features antiques and not-so-antiques with a cowboy theme. They have some great stuff but their prices are pretty steep. Send me here with $2,000 in my hand and it'd be gone pretty fast. Still, it was fun to look and fantasize about being able to spend $125(!) on a small throw pillow.

Saturday evening, I was on my own. I took in a film at a cool old theatre that's been restored, the Mayan. The theatre is beautiful, the alterations it received not too disturbing (they converted the balcony into two small theatres, leaving the main auditorium as it was) and the film was enjoyable. All the Vermeers in New York is an arty little low-budget number about a handful of lost and confused types in New York: a stockbroker who seeks total control in every area of his life, including his romantic relationships (he compares his wished-for lover to a painting by Vermeer and tries to buy her as one might a painting); a manipulative young French woman who is in New York to pursue acting; and her trust-fund roommate who resents her rich father but can't refuse his money. It's an interesting piece, very slowly paced but worth a look.

I also went to the Denver Museum of Art but, alas, the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist works I had hoped to see were unavailable for viewing due to ongoing renovations. I settled for the museum's American collection and was treated to several delightful O'Keeffe's.

I enjoyed Denver, it was fun to see LeeAnn but come Sunday morning, I was on my way again.

Continue on the American Odyssey.
Return to BRETTnews.
Email us at: mailroom@brettnews.com.