21 Hours in Denver

On a spur of the moment decision yesterday I decided to pack up in Aspen and head to Denver. I was able to get in touch with Kate, an old college classmate from my sophomore year. We had one sociology sex and gender course together, in addition to that we both lived in Akers Hall and we were both Yoopers. Kate and I always shared great conversation walking back from class. And here we had a chill time with some cool friends of hers at Club 404 (There aren’t many bars you can go to and find a waitress like Nonni who has been waitressing so long that a country band wrote a song about her.) and The Hornet. As for making it here things are always changing on the road, lots of last minute decisions and this one was meant to be.

I mentioned recently that I’ve been trying to read Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road.” Fate manages to find it’s way into little places on this trip. One instance was running into the Gigapixel photographer in Montana, another was running into Jake Burton at the X Game. Also, it just so happens, that only a few blocks from where Kate lives, is the original 120-foot scroll of “On the Road” on display at the public library. After spending about seven years on the road Kerouac finished his book in a 20-day typing frenzy, though it wasn’t published for another six or seven years later. To see such an artifact has a big place in my heart on this trip. I have to give a big hats off to all the wandering travelers of previous generations who have set out to discover the country, the people, and especially one’s own identity. Well if he spent seven years on the road and wrote his book in 20 days, I suppose I should be able to write about my yearlong trip in just 3 days. Not a problem, since mine is going to be full of photos.

Kerouac spent a lot of time in Denver and it makes me wonder where else my path has brought me where I’ve crossed the road of the greatest of travelers.

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them; disagree with them; glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.” - Jack Kerouac