Denver and Boulder,CO

Dear Diary, aka, Imaginary Friend,
Wow, what a meal we ate tonight at Mizuna, the best restaurant in Denver. Our fave dishes: Carlo had a beet salad with goat cheese tortellini, and I had the famous lobster macaroni and cheese with mascarpone. The more expensive the restaurant, the smaller the portions. But so tasty! Great house bread with 3 different butters. Our wine was from Willamette Valley: a Pinot Noir called Siduri. YUMtastic! But pricey.
To make life even better, I trekked to Broomfield and Boulder, where I had lunch at The Kitchen, very gourmet crab salad. AH, thanks, Barbara, for taking me there! If you travel to Boulder, check out the Pearl Street mall shops, and be sure to go into The Peppercorn. SO many kitchen items, foods and things culinary. The biggest cookbook assortment I have ever seen.
AS for aesthetic delights, the Denver Botanical Garden just slayed me with so many blooming flowers and water features, abloom with so many kinds of water lilies. It was bejeweled with 20 Henry Moore sculptures, which were beautifully integrated into the landscaping. A true visual treat. The sculptures are a temporary exhibit, so run, do not walk.
Our first day in Denver, we drove up into the Rockies, to Georgetown, a charming Victorian town where we snacked at the Happy Cooker. {sic} We east-coasters are accustomed to our tap water tasting of refreshing chlorine. Nope, here it smacks of minerals, that make your iced tea taste like it has artificial flavoring. Alas, there is no getting around the fact that the mountain water, although fresh, tastes like swill.
Small matter. The air is clear and the skies beautifully blue.
What is Colorado famous for? Healthy thin people, who ride bikes, recycle, are deeply invested in preserving the environment, and import homeless from other states, so as to educate them and release them back into society. Shux, Denver, you guys are nice.
Your liquor bill will be reduced if you move here, because you will get twice as drunk on half the liquor, due to the altitude. But you will spend all that surplus money on sunscreen. The sun here is surprisingly direct and strong.
What's hard here is breathing when you have not yet adjusted to the altitude, baking potatoes and cakes and cookies (takes forever), and driving up the mountain roads without getting the shakes. A small price to pay.
More awesomeness: the Denver Museum of Art, housed in boldly striking architecture, with magnificent sculptures luring the viewer in. What a great collection of contemporary paintings and sculpture! Wow. And don't forget to visit Cherry Creek Mall.
I am so glad I visited. Denver, you are a refreshing change from Washington, DC.
Your new buddy,
Patsie

My Very First Blog

Dear Diary, aka, Imaginary Friends,
I think I should be smelling the scent of a new box of crayolas right about now: such is the raw newness and my lack of education in all things technical. Me, a blog? Hard to believe that I could master the technology. Thanks, Google, for making this so easy, relatively speaking.
I am writing a blog because two of my friends told me that I really need to!
I am going to post about the three things that most interest me, outside of family.
First, making art! Cannot live without it.
Second, good food. Hey, I am from New Orleans, where the conversations all revolve around one's last meal, and one's next meal.
Third, travel. I cannot travel to enough interesting places in the forty or so years left on this planet, because the budget would implode. But I travel as much as I can, so as to eat the FOOD and see the ART. And photograph the sights so that I can remember the trip and have something to paint. SO, you see, it really is all the same thing.
Stay tuned: Carlo and I are heading to Denver, Colorado for the very first time with new fascinating restuarants and museums to explore. I promise to report back, as well as to post some of my work.
Your imaginary friend,
Patsie