Durango, Colorado, USA

Defining Main Street: The Hotel. Lucky is the town with an historic hotel on Main Street. The rail lines, the regional economy (in this case mining), and local entrepreneurial ambition were usually the three factors that sustained such operations in the late 1800s. [2013]

Frisco, Colorado, USA

What becomes of one-room school houses? Some become museums or historical society headquarters. In fact, a community is lucky if their school has survived the ages to remind up-coming generations of scholars what is used to be like to get an education. [2013] 

Rifle, Colorado, USA

"Ride our trails": This ersatz mural is an attempt to expand the town's economic base: from cattle ranching into tourism. What's it got going for it? Scenery along the Colorado River, an extensive system of trails and parks, and access from an Interstate that leads to Denver. What works against it? A rather threatening name. [2013]

Greeley, Colorado, USA

February is all about the number two, and 2/22 is a palindrome too! She is not in New York Harbor but on a courthouse lawn in Colorado. She was one of perhaps 200 that originated as a BSA project in the euphoria over winning World War II. BSA? That's Boy Scouts of America. Be sure to see tomorrow's post. [2013]

Manitou Springs, Colorado, USA

It's only a row of storefronts along the town's main street. What sets it apart? Its physical geography. Not every town has such a dramatic backdrop, the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. Not every town can be home to the North Pole, either. Oh, wait, the North Pole in Manitou Springs is an amusement park! [2005]

Roggen, Colorado, USA

An abandoned motel: There is little left of the lodge and little left of the town. Yet, Roggen is located near an Interstate highway interchange. The initial thinking about Interstates was that they would breathe new life into small towns. The reality has turned out to be just the opposite: They draw people away to larger urban centers (like Denver). [2019]

Denver, Colorado, USA

Today, the State of Colorado is 145 years old. Yet, that is only two generations. Any native Coloradan who was born in 1876 has undoubtedly passed on, but, if he fathered a child at the age of fifty, that child could be a spry 95 this year. In those 145 years, however, an entire era of human geography has closed: See the statue? [2019 and 2005]

Wellington, Colorado, USA

It is far too late to hand those ballots to your letter carrier now, especially if you live in Colorado which ranks as one of the worst states for on-time mail delivery. Did you know, though, that 40 million ballots have been cast by mail already this election year? [2019]

Denver, Colorado, USA

 Bigger Spider: Let's hope a spider this big doesn't invade your home this Halloween season. As colorful as a trick-or-treater, he is. Or, as colorful as a peacock. Or, maybe, a black widow dressed up as a peacock spider for trick-or-treating. Maybe he will show up at your door! [2019]

Julesburg, Colorado, USA

 

American Gun Culture ~ Exhibit B: The gun-slinging 'Old West" lives on in rural Colorado! It even serves as an attractive decoration for your home: "We Don't Dial 911." [2019]

Commerce City, Colorado, USA

Here is what all drive-by signs used to look like. They had to: The idea was to attract attention with their size and quirkiness. Today, size has increased and quirkiness has decreased. Maybe, though, we are ready for the second coming of Roadside America. [2019]

Denver, Colorado, USA

It's gone. First vandalized, then removed. It happened just last week. In Colorado, no less. A Union soldier, no less. Yes, Colorado's Union forces fought against the Confederates, but then went on to perpetrate the Sand Creek Massacre in which hundreds of native peoples were slaughtered. What kind of public art do you want to take its place? [2019]

Manitou Springs, Colorado, USA

By the late 1800s, germ theory began to replace the miasma theory of disease. So, up from the mists of time, she arose: Hygeia, goddess of hygiene and daughter of Asclepius, the god of medicine. She was exactly the brand you wanted to sell bottles of Manitou Mineral Water in Colorado Springs in the 1890s. [2005]

Keenesburg, Colorado, USA

Some mail travels by surface transportation, and some mail travels by air. So, why not have two mail boxes? And, why not serve the community by having a fire hydrant, not for fires but "for dogs only"? [2019]

Denver, Colorado, USA

Like Nostradamus (yes, think Russia), we know the outcome of the impeachment and trial (if it happens at all), so all we can do is look forward to the elections next year and hope for a President (and a Congress) we can be proud of again. [2019]

Denver, Colorado, USA

When quotes appear on the landscape, literature becomes public art and contributes to the spirit of place. Wrote Jack Kerouac: "Practice kindness all day to everybody and you will realize you're already in heaven now." [2019]

Loveland, Colorado, USA

This love offering not only greets you on your way into Loveland, it also sets the stage for the annual sweetheart festival. Bring your sweetheart and a love-inscribed pad lock, and you can add your names to the letters' backside. The two other sculptures on the site are totally forgettable, but one provides an orifice for framing. [2019]

Fort Collins, Colorado, USA

Public art or private art? It's on private property but it is visible to the public. Professional art or vernacular art? Vernacular art affixed to the landscape by a professional knitter. Yarn bomb or sock bomb? One of each. Or, is it a scarf bomb? Either way, you probably got some new ideas for your own trees. [2019]

Cañon City, Colorado. USA

Play hard. It's the end of summer, the pools are closing, a new sports season is beginning, and the hours of daylight are diminishing. Whatever you didn't get done this summer, do this week-end! Then, say thank you to at least one person who made your summer so much fun. [2005]

Vail, Colorado, USA

Logs and lumber: As pioneer settlers spread across the continent, these were probably the first building materials they chose for their barns. Then, as agriculture prospered, more substantial materials were sought from the local environment. In the mountain West, however, crop farming rarely prospered and wood remained the preference. [1983]