March 22 by vibr8 Blog entry

Blog: Morning and Evening Walk
by vibr8

March 22

strolling in Denver's Capitol Hill

Date: 3/23/2006 5:22:09 PM ( 18 y ) ... viewed 2372 times

Wow! Unexpected circumstances gave me the opportunity to go for a walk in my old neighborhood. I lived in this city, Denver, so long ago it truly seems like another lifetime. This neighborhood, Capitol Hill, right next to downtown, is where I lived when I was in college, and for a few years after that. It was a nice place to come into adulthood.

So much has happened in Denver, in this neighborhood, in the ensuing years. Drugs such as crack cocaine and methamphetamine and heroin have profoundly affected
everything about life in Capitol Hill. Stuff like prostitution and p 0 r n shops and such have always been here. I suppose the drugs have too. I was only aware of the pot (marijuana) during the time I lived here. And of course, alcohol is a drug, too. But I won't get into that tangent, other than to say that alcohol is a drug that affects everyone's life in one way or another, as it is legal and easily available anywhere.

So, on to my walk. I stayed at a castle that's become a Bed & Breakfast, located just next door to what used to be the Ashram where the teacher/guru who first taught me meditation lived when he was in America! There was a warning about an impending snow storm, with big thick flakes already coming down, on Tuesday night and I didn't want to risk the 40 mile drive home, as the weather person on the TV was showing pictures of accumulating snow in a neighborhood right near my home.

I left my car parked by my daughter's apartment, and my daughter, her partner, and I walked from her place to the castle B & B on Tuesday night. That's actually the first walk. But this blog is mostly about my morning walks.

I enjoyed the night at the B & B and the luxurious vegetarian breakfast fit for a queen. Not vegan and certainly not raw, but I'm a work in progress when it comes to that. Going raw is still my eventual goal, and I will get there.

After finishing breakfast and checking out of the B & B, I went for a walk around my old neighborhood. I had actually lived on the block where the B & B is located. The building I lived in was apparently torn down to make way for a parking lot. Didn't Joni Mitchell write a song about that?

It was a gorgeous building, too, with incredible stained glass windows, and the place I lived in was round in the front with amazing windows. I could see the Ashram from my windows, as a matter of fact. I could also see Colfax, which is a main thoroughfare in Denver.

I wasn't quite feeling brave enough to actually walk down Colfax. People are loud and often obnoxious and rude these days there. I did walk across Colfax. On the corner where the Aladdin Theatre used to be (and a grand building it was!)is a 24 hour drugstore. I guess the Aladdin wasn't historic enough to keep the building preserved. That saddened me.

Although I could observe many signs of gentrification in my old neighborhood, the old sense of friendliness and comfort I used to feel there was for the most part gone. It's wacky to see that an apartment I once paid $300 monthly to rent is selling as a condominium for $250,000. But every block offers at least 2 for sale signs for condos and 4-5 for rent signs. Maybe it's because we're nearing the end of the school year and students from many of the different colleges in Denver live in this area.

All the same old sidewalks seemed to be in place, from a few centuries ago. This is one of Denver's oldest neighborhoods. There are still posts for hitching horses on many of the blocks.

I walked south to one of the large parks that is central to this neighborhood. I hear that there is a burial ground beneath this park. Here's more info about that:

http://www.prairieghosts.com/cheesman.html

Mostly, I walked cautiously in this park, as I am older now, and although I had heard that the Guardian Angels (from New York) and the Denver law enforcement people had the major drug issues under control, walking in a park in this neighborhood is a riskier proposition than it was in my youth.

Mostly, the park was quiet and peaceful. A few older people were actually in the park walking their dogs. They were friendly.

I guess the neighborhood really has calmed down, from how it was reported to be in the 80s and 90s. Like I said, it was great in the 70s. At least in my humble experience.

So I strolled in the park for awhile, and then walked back several blocks to my car. I walked for 45 minutes or so.

Got pretty deep in thought about the past.

Past boyfriends, mostly.

Not quite as much oxygen in the big city air, but it was a good walk.