Archive for June, 2008
It’s like finding home. When I thought of home I thought of Aspen. We spent a lot of summers here, and came out for Christmas. Smoo was larger than life. My parents didn’t say: “Do you know who your grandparents are?” We didn’t have an inflated sense of who we were. It wasn’t up for discussion. I was so oblivious as a child of the [Smoo] myth, not the myth, the whole persona, and part of who she was. To me we were going to Aspen and it was this great space. We got to ski for free. I would nod my head. I knew there was a park, an auditorium with her name on it. Now we spend three or four months a year here. Every school break, spring break, winter break, and part of the summer. Nick wants to spend the whole summer here. And Emma, when we bring her back to school, she takes a leap every time.
Continue Reading June 30th, 2008
Last Thursday, the United States Supreme Court (USCS) decided the thirty-two year old, Washington D.C. gun ban is unconstitutional.
Take two things from this decision:
1. The 2nd Amendment is not inextricably linked to the concept of "militia."
2. The right extended by the 2nd Amendment is—like speech—not unlimited or unqualified.
The USSC rejected D.C.’s legislative attempt to impose a total ban on guns. The ban failed the Court’s Constitutional metric. Read more into this at your own peril...
Continue Reading June 30th, 2008
The Con Man goes from Aspen Mayor Mick Ireland, to the false god of flip-flopping, to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to allow individual ownership of handguns.
Click here for the complete "Con Games with Michael Conniff" for Monday June 30, 2008.
June 30th, 2008
The Burling-Blame Game Explained Learn the rules of the game in two minutes or less and you too can play. A brief primer; In 2005 City Council got a FIXED Bid to build Burlingame Phase I for $150 a square foot which included infrastructure inside the site. This contract got executed successfully with minor changes. At the time, city staff was responsible for estimating additional external infrastructure and future changes to the project. At the time the total cost estimate for Phase I was about $39 million. The original cost increased by $20.1 MILLION (per city staff memo) by mainly discretionary changes to reduce cost of units, add park, trail, buses, green improvements etc. Additionally the infrastructure estimate by city staff was wildly off, the total cost appears to have increased $18.4 MILLION more than the original estimate (per city staff memo). Essentially the cost of Burlingame Phase I DOUBLED due to Council discretionary decisions and a terrible cost estimate of infrastructure by city staff. It was NOT due to construction inflation since it was a fixed bid. It was NOT due to a delay in starting Burlingame in 2005 instead of 2002, since the city’s cost to produce housing per square foot was less in 2005 than what the city paid in 2002.
Continue Reading June 30th, 2008
I liked the freedom of setting my own hours. Working for the club was like working for myself. It enabled me to finish school. I had to finish it up at Regis University and finished through their online program. But I definitely found my niche. I was driven to learn, I had passion for the knowledge I was gaining, particularly the study of physiology. I really liked the clients. I like the relationships I was developing. I really enjoyed it. I was sure I’d be passionate about it, though working with people might ruin me liking the exercise thing. But that ended up not being the case. Working with really athletic people is absolutely an advantage to being in Aspen. You’re dealing with performance and not obesity, and it’s one of the better places to be.
Continue Reading June 30th, 2008
Mayor Mick Ireland of Aspen and City Manager Steve Barwick meet the Con Man with controversial results.
Click here for the complete "Con Games with Michael Conniff" for Thursday June 26, 2008.
June 30th, 2008
We have a good box for you this week and some new recipes, let's
hope! We have Cherries, Potatoes, Onions, Salad Mix, Tomato,
Cilantro, Garlic, Kale, Romaine Lettuce, Sugar Snaps and Snow Peas.
Wahoo! It's looking like summer! I think it will be one more week on
one size box and then next week we will have enough food to split
into half and full size. I may change my mind on that during pack
out, we will see.
Continue Reading June 29th, 2008
Taco Bell my favorite fast food place has decided I as a customer need to know all about their hiring practices in Glenwood Springs. Give me a break right on the counter when I order my food I need to know all about your hiring practices with this big document right on the counter that states we E-Verify? Great you want us all to know your staff is legal.
Continue Reading June 28th, 2008
When I was in sixth grade we took a field trip to the Lake Worth Community Pool. I had just purchased a new bathing suit for the occasion. A Quicksilver, checkerboard number that matched very nicely with my checkerboard shoes. I believe I even wore a checkerboard hat, which would have been logical.
Every sixth grade class in the district was at the pool that day, so it was important that I make a statement. And I did. I was the dumb ass checkerboarded from head to toe.
Continue Reading June 28th, 2008
Aspen Mayor Mick Ireland was yelling at me as he was walking out of the KNFO studio after his live appearance with City Manager Steve Barwick on "Con Games" Wednesday morning and I was yelling back.
It would have been better all around if Mayor Ireland had been so kind as to scream at me on air, just as it would have been better if he had blown his top at the City Council meeting after, instead of before, they turned the cameras on. But such overt displays of pique would not be in keeping with the kinder, gentler politician promised during the election campaign just past.
Not that Mayor Ireland did not have good cause to be angry as he climbed on his bike and left the station for adventures unknown.
Continue Reading June 26th, 2008
Previous Posts
Editor-in-Chief: Michael Conniff
Bloggers
Most Popular Posts
Home And Away
