"Yes, it’s all a very big deal. =) My friend Katie that I’ve mentioned on Twitter and her fiancée Jon sublet their loft which is just three blocks from the convention center for the week (ours is more like ten), and are staying at her parents’ home in a nearby suburb, still having to commute into the city every day for work as they chose not to go on vacation during this week (Jon luckily telecommutes much of the time), so she’s having to fight her way into the city each day through all the mess and crowds and traffic. Katie says she saw Hillary and Chelsea exiting one of Denver’s most famous hotels, The Brown Palace, the other day. But as you know, I’m not really one to get star struck. These are just people, after all, and yes they’re very important people, but I don’t see the need to treat them like aliens or Jeebus or something. =) I’m not saying that’s what you are doing. I’m just always the first to kind of stay away from these big brouhahas and far prefer to observe safely out of the limelight. I made sure I got all my errands that would take me anywhere near where all this is happening done last week and over the weekend so I could happily avoid all the mess, and I must say it has been quite nice. One happy effect of the convention is that many people did leave town this week or are starting their commutes hours earlier than normal, so overall traffic has been very light unless you’re closer to the epicenter of everything.
I think people who have had a taste of what public scrutiny can be like tend to feel this way, only bathing in the limelight if they must, and although I was never anything like a superstar, in my own tiny microcosm at CCC I got very weary of all the constant attention, everyone wanting to be around me all the time, everyone hanging on my every word or action just to be close to the small level of fame I was experiencing because of my voice. It just always tended to wear me out, and so I never want to be the one to inflict that on others who really are famous. =) So, although I’ve been watching the coverage all week on our big screen in HD, I’ve completely avoided downtown entirely and as the routes I take to the boys’ school cut across the top of the city, I’ve been very successful in staying out of the masses. I thought Hillary gave a wonderful speech. I’m sure she’s really unhappy about not winning, but she was believable and that’s what mattered; I found her words inspiring. I also enjoyed Bill’s speech and still have Biden’s to watch which I plan to do later this afternoon (I recorded it).
Yeah, so the Kennedys are in town and Susan Sarandon has been spotted several times as have so many other important Democrat celebs and noteworthys; Rudy Giuliani is here too even though he’s a Republican, and so is Mitt Romney and pretty much anyone who is anyone, all stumping about all over the city I call home. But so what? =) I think it’s really cool and all and great exposure and a financial boon for our fair city, but I just don’t want to sit in traffic. They did move the speech event to a larger forum tonight – it’s being held at our football stadium, Invesco Field (we have that plus a baseball stadium, Coors Field, for the Rockies games), which I’ve been to several times. They’re also closing down entirely all the parking lots that surround Invesco Field to handle the overflow crowds and non-ticketed folks that want to be near the action; people will have to park elsewhere and shuttle or walk in.
Friends of ours are having parties; other people we know were actually able to get tickets to be inside the stadium. But N and I didn’t really want to bother with it, frankly. He’s out of town; it’s a school night, and our lives aren’t really stopping just because of what’s happening this week. Maybe they should; maybe this makes me lame; but both Nathan and I are pretty much “Well, BFD” about the whole thing. It’s cool; it’s exciting; it’s on prime time; the whole world is watching; it’s clogging the streets not even an eighth of a mile from my home with traffic and reporters and delegates and celebrities and demonstrators (we actually did get caught in traffic trying to get back from the boys’ beloved skate park in LoDo on Sunday because of a demonstration), and in general the whole thing is something of a hassle that I can’t really say I’ll be sorry to see end. The kids got a taste of what it was like when we got stuck on Sunday, and I’ve been having them watch bits of the televised coverage so when they grow up they can say they saw it. Overall, I think that’s enough.
After all, even if I did try to get close to the stadium, the security checkpoints cordoning much of the city creates long lines and there are already thousands of people ahead of me trying to get to the stadium even now as I write this, so I’d basically have to drop everything NOW and zoom off to pull the kids out of school and hurry down there … for what? To get stuck in traffic, probably, and even with the windows down I doubt I’d be able to hear much. I know it's an historic moment, but I’d rather just skip the crowds entirely, help the kids with their homework, have a quick dinner, and watch the whole thing from the comfort of my living room. =) At least that way I can guarantee myself the best view and the best seats in the house.
Does my attitude surprises you? Maybe this is just me being misanthropic, but that’s always been a pretty strong bent in my personality. ;) Or, perhaps I’m on overload – I mean, it’s really all anyone’s been talking about all year and even before that since when Denver was awarded the honor of hosting this auspicious event, so maybe some of us locals are just a bit sick of the whole thing. ;)"
So that should sum up my thoughts and feelings about all the excitement going on in my city all week quite nicely.
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