I was
finally able to get to know Rhett’s fiancé, Haley, during our week-long stay in
Colorado Springs. It felt like a vacation from a vacation staying at their
home. They have spent so much time painting and updating it since they
purchased it last year, and the time has paid off. We felt cozy and welcomed
the entire time we were in their home. They showed us around their city, fed us
delicious Gyros, taught us to play Sequence, and cooked us yummy meals – all
while celebrating the upcoming arrival of their baby! Chase loved wrestling
with their two dogs, Panic and Wookie. I think I finally met two individuals
with more energy than Chase! We hiked a few trails while we were exploring the
area, each of which made us love Colorado a little bit more.
After an
incredible week, we left Colorado Springs and headed North to Denver. The night
before, we had watched Bizarre Foods: Denver with Andrew Zimmerman and he had
gushed over the authentic Mexican restaurant, Chubby’s for their infamous
green-chili smothered burritos. We took it as a sign that we were meant to dine
at Chubby’s and sat down with hungry bellies. Now, the green chili sauce was
okay, but the overall burrito experience was nothing like Mr. Zimmerman
promised. The sauce tasted thick with flour and the bean burrito was salty as
the sea.
Our time
in Denver greatly improved after the burrito as we wandered through the art
museum and the gardens that surround the capital. With our parking meter
ticking away, we visited our friend Laura at Wazee and 16
th to check
out frames on the Warby Parker school bus. As we all know, the world
is incredibly small and I had actually seen the founder of Warby Parker, Neil
Blumenthal, speak at the Chicago Innovation Fair in 2012. I was able to briefly
speak with him after the presentation and was motivated by his drive for the
type of success which is defined by both financial and social profits. He wants
to make money and he wants to do good in the world. His company,
Warby Parker,
designs and sells prescription glasses through their online store. For every
pair that is sold, Warby Parker works with non-profits across the developing
world to fit blurry-visioned individuals with proper eyewear. Warby Parker has
also differentiated itself in the eyewear industry with their $95 price point –
which includes both frames and lenses. Yes, you read that right, I did not miss
a 3, 4, or 5 in front of the $95. The prices of eyewear have been artificially
high for years, edged upward by the almost monopolistic grasp that the company Luxottica
has on the industry.
Luxottica manufactures almost all eyewear available on the
market, then slaps one of their many brands on the frame – Ray-Ban, Oakley,
Vogue to name a few. They also own the distribution channels –LensCrafter and
Pearl Vision, as well as the insurance company EyeMed.
Warby
Parker’s classic frames are well-made pieces of art that have been gracing the
faces of the trendy New York crowd for years. The cross-country bus tour that
is sweeping the nation promises to expand their market and ease the pocketbooks
of all who step out of their comfort zone and make the switch to buying glasses
online. I know it sounds strange at first, but Warby Parker makes the process
as painless as possible. After entering the website, you simply select a few
pairs of frames that you might like and the next thing you know they arrive at
your door ready for you to try on in the comfort of your home. Warby Parker
covers the shipping costs and you are under no obligation to purchase the
frames
– just make sure you remember to
return them. When you do find a pair that makes you look great, Warby Parker
works with your eye doctor to ensure the proper prescription and fit. All of
this for only $95! For a girl who has worn glasses since first grade, which
were splattered with a pastel rainbow of ugly colors, paying $95 for glasses is
a savings of over $200. Hopefully that didn’t sound too much like a commercial.
We just had the best time trying on frames and taking pictures in the Warby
Parker bus and I want you all to save money! The
bus will be rolling through Uptown
in Minneapolis August 9 – September 2.
Chase’s
good friend from Brainerd, John, lives in Denver with his wonderful wife,
Brittany. They recently purchased a home just 10 minutes from downtown Denver
and they asked Chase to make a new piece of art for their new walls. We
delivered the artwork and went to a local bar in the Highlands neighborhood for
good beer and even better company. They opened their home to us for the night
and we were honored to be the first guests to sleep in their guestroom. Knowing
that such a great couple lives in Denver makes us love the city even more – we
are keeping it on our short list of places to live in the future.
Early the
next morning, we said goodbye to our friends and drove towards Morrison, CO to
see the Red Rocks Amphitheater in all it’s geological glory. We have not yet
been able to catch a concert here, but Chase did try to test the acoustics of
the place with his flute, only to be told that no one can perform on the stage
unless you are asked to perform. Such a setback did nothing to diminish the awe
of Red Rocks and only made us want to return and witness a concert in such a
magical setting.
Our next
stop of the day was the city which is now on the top of our “next home” list –
Boulder. We have come to the conclusion that we do not want to live in too big
of a city, but we do realize that jobs are more plentiful in cities and
Boulder’s population of 100,000 seems just right. We meandered down Pearl Street,
wishing we had just a little more than nothing in disposable income, but were
entertained by the handful of musicians, magicians, and robots that performed
for audiences up and down the street. In fact, as many times as we wish we
could buy some artwork or cute clothes, we know that if we had the money to buy
these things, we probably wouldn’t have the time that we have to just see
everything and anything we want. The rain seemed to hit all Boulder-ites with
surprise and we realized how rare a heavy rainstorm is in this part of the
country. One little boy seemed outraged when his parents wanted him to walk
home in the “cold, wet rain!” Next, we met up with a fellow “Girl’s Weekend
Out” friend, Blair, who works at a wonderfully progressive advertising agency
in Boulder. She served us beers from the company bar and we caught up with one
another in oversized, plush couches that are meant for employees to brainstorm
in.
You would
think our day might be complete, but alas we were only just beginning. After
spending a few hours in Boulder we continued north to the town of Estes Park,
which borders the Rocky Mountain National Park. We didn’t have a clue where we
were going to sleep the night and every place we drove through was full.
Finally, with the sun close to setting and the cold beginning to creep in, we
found a small campsite at the end of road. Literally, the road felt like a
highway until it abruptly ended at the campsite. It was approaching 9:00pm when
we finally found a campsite and began to get organized. Our growling stomachs
someone managed to set up the tent and get dinner started. This campsite is the
first where bears have been a concern and I wasn’t taking any chances. Chase
loves his late night snacks and when I saw him going in for the granola, I
couldn’t help but worry that he was going to be some lucky bears snack in the
middle of the night. So, he cleaned up the crumbs as best he could and we slept
with bear spray next to us all night. As we climbed into our tent, we could see
our breath, white and cold, and I hoped my sleeping bag would keep me warm
throughout the night. This was the first night that we had actually worried
about being too cold and I wasn’t ready to let the cold win. I layered on two pairs
of socks, two pairs of pants, two long-sleeve shirts, a fleece jacket, a hat
tied tight on my head and snuggled into my sleeping bag. Since I tend to be
uniquely week when it comes to cold, I did wake up shivering a few times but
managed to get back to sleep quickly after cuddling up with Chase. However, he
informed me this morning that all of the times I thought I was cuddling up with
him, I was really pushing him off of the air mattress and onto the cold, hard
ground.
This
morning Chase crawled out of the tent, while I was still trying to open my
eyes, and told me to get up and out of the tent fast – there was something
incredible for me to see. Just behind our tent, only 5 feet from where we were
standing, was the biggest, most beautiful buck deer I had ever seen. His
antlers were wide, covered in velvet and he was happily munching on the grass
that surrounded our campsite. After we took all the pictures we thought we
could take, a doe and her two fawns emerged from the woods. We could almost
touch their noses we were so close and they just kept eating grass and looking
up at us if we made too much noise. Our welcome to the Rocky Mountain National
Park could not have been more stunning and as we leave our campsite today, we
are sad to say goodbye to our lovely deer family.
