Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Just Another Day in Denver

When I moved to Denver, some locals still referred to it as a "cow town." I didn't realize they meant literally ....

Today, Beanie and I met up downtown to check out the Stock Show Parade. It was short but loaded with cowboys and horses - my favorites. Funny, I grew up as an urban beach bunny and had no interest in such things - skipped clean over my mandatory adolescent pony phase - but now I can't seem to get enough. I turn into a seven-year-old when I get anywhere near the equine culture.

I found myself jumping up and down today, clapping my hands and yelling "YAY!" with alarming sincerity. And when Miss Rodeo America waved? Yeah, that's right, I waved back. Meanwhile, Beanie quizzed me, "What breed is that horse?"

"Um, the cute kind?" I offered, weakly. I was never good at pop quizzes.

Check it out - the dude on the right? On the gorgeous Palomino? He's got quite the day job as the Governor of Colorado. Goes by the name of Bill Ritter. Folks like him, I think. The parade was over but he was heading back to the Governor's Barn or whatever and he gifted me with a gubernatorial smile

The parade was very Western-focused but there was this 'Equine Theatre' group that somehow slipped in. They looked a tad Medieval and I believe one of them even sported a jester's hat. Funny, I consider myself an actor but I get uncomfortable when I see troupes wearing deliberate 'acting clothing.' Rainbow suspenders give me immediate hives.

Despite my own hang up, I was highly impressed with this get-up. First of all, this horse was GIANT. Beanie said it was a Friesian but I coulda sworn the breed was actually BadAssMotherfucka.

Seriously, this guy was 18 hands and fashioned like a dragon - tail and everything. Gotta hand it to 'em, they looked very cool together - like they could have run right over Miss Evergreen Rodeo and left nothing but a pile of rhinestones and a fake eyelash or two.

Speaking of big, check out these Longhorns strolling down 17th Street:

They were very pointy and all business.

So, I LOVE the image of old transportation alongside the new(ish) - the fantasy-in-action of horses mixed with city life sends my mind whizzing back through time. Remember, there were several transitional years in American history when horses and cars had to co-exist in our cities, and not always peacefully. Car horns, for example. Horses are not big fans and have no current plans of evolving around that.

I'm telling ya kids, when we run out of oil - or even before when it's $25 a gallon - this is what we'll have left. Horses. Bicycles. Shoes. And then, every day will be a parade.

10 comments:

Kath said...

Awesome!! Thanks so much for the commentary and the pix.

My very first crush btw? The Lone Ranger. Cool dude. Cool horse.

Heather Clisby said...

Ooooooh! A worthy crush, indeed. Mine was 'The Galloping Gourmet.' Weird.

Kath said...

AAAKKKKK!!

The GG was my 2nd crush (hums Twilite Zone theme)

hotdrwife said...

I used to ride one of the horses (either Brandy or Robin) into town on Saturday's for donuts. It was a little over a mile each way. I'd tie the horse up to the north of the shop, go in, get my order, climb back on and trot home .
Yay for small towns.

Heather Clisby said...

I am so envious of that experience. There is nothing I'd like more than to run errands on my trusty steed.

Heidi's heart said...

Makes me think of my buffalo-roaming-free-in-San Francisco fantasy.

Heather Clisby said...

Ah, yes! I should never have corrected you in that fantasy ...

Anonymous said...

Whoa. This happens in Denver? For real? I thought this was like ND-only territory...or maybe Oklahoma, too.

Felicia the Geeky Blogger said...

WOW that looks alot like Ft. Worth on Rodeo day!!! I knew Colorado was big cattle country too just guessed Denver was a little to city-fied to have it going on there.

PS> I grew up in West Texas and couldn't identify the different kinds of cows/horses that there are!!!

Heather Clisby said...

Flea: Yeah, Colorado prides itself on rodeos, cowboys and all things livestock. I'm thrilled about it.