Come and get it

I don't do this often, even though the invitation is always there. However, some folks (Todd Creek residents) have already sent me some e-mails angry about an article I wrote last week about their frustration with plans by the community board of directors to raise water rates. I'm giving any Todd Creekers the opportunity to come on my blog and have it out with me, share their gripes. Let's have a dialogue. Maybe I can understand your position better.

Go, granny, go

One of my biggest pet peeves is folks who show up at protests and have no reason for being there. Exhibit A: this photo from the Rocky Mountain News website of folks protesting a fee for skiers using Interstate 70. Pay special attention to grandma on the right with the "Tolls are for Trolls" sign. Listen up, CDOT, nobody, I mean nobody, is going to make Grandma pay extra for "shredding it" on the slopes. Go home,granny, bake us some cookies or knit us a quilt! At least the dork next to you, dressed up as spelunker, appears to have some reason for being there.

Finding the real drips

First, an admission. I don’t drink coffee. I tried it once but never inhaled. My parents, however, did once catch me sucking on charcoal briquettes as a child so I do consider myself an expert in disgusting, albeit addictive tastes.
So when I spend the next 500 or 600 words railing against the world’s most popular coffee shop and its ambitious plans to end slumping sales, remember I know nothing about coffee.
I’m also not a businessman. Although I did con my parents and several other suckers into buying hundreds of dollars worth of crappy chocolate in the late ’80s so I could win a pencil.
Last week, the Starbuck’s CEO, who I was disappointed to know isn’t named Kimi, unveiled a five-fold plan to give the struggling chain a shot (yes, we’re using ironic puns here and if you don’t like it, go find another column about coffee).
Among those ideas is a loyalty rewards card that gives customers perks (yeah, shut up, you just wish you were this witty) every time they buy a cup of coffee. This could mean free Wi-Fi time, an extra cup of soy milk (if you don’t pack your own like I do) or even free refills on drip coffee. Not included, but obviously needed, are ear plugs the next time they release a special CD where Kenny G. plays Bob Marley songs on the kazoo.
They’ll bring back a ground fresh in-store drip coffee eliminated because baristas became far too busy writing really long names on cups. But the coup d’état came when the aforementioned CEO, Howard Schultz (no relation to Snoopy) unveiled the new
espresso machine, the Mastrena.
Not since Willy Wonka (Gene Wilder, not the creepy, Johnny Depp version) unveiled the Everlasting Gobstopper have I seen someone survey such a creation with such a sense of unblemished pomposity.
Apparently, the Mastrena is a foot shorter than the current Versimo model. This means it will be easier for customers to see the snotty 18-year-old barista sneezing in your drink because you copped an attitude. Baristas also will be able to experiment with different types of shots like ristretto shots (less water) and long shots (more water). Funny, bartenders never needed such fancy machinery.
There is also a website where jittery coffeeholics can share their thoughts with the coffee kings; i.e., it’s 2:30 in the morning and I wish I could sleep.
Starbucks is also going to be more environmentally friendly, teaming with Conservation International to examine the issue of global deforestation. This is apparently a problem because coffee beans are grown in the shade. I say give all the coffee bean farmers gigantic souvenir Starbucks umbrellas to protect the beans.
These ideas are all super. But you know what? It’s like me finding a giant hole in my roof and, instead of fixing the hole, just getting a bigger tarp to collect all the rainwater.
Starbucks is missing their biggest problem. Their own professed goal of wanting at least two coffee shops on every corner has led to oversaturation. There is nothing unique about Starbucks any more – you can and will find them anywhere.
Plus, the competition has caught up. Was there any doubt they would? We’ve got a group of coffee maestros in my office every morning determined to blend the perfect cup. Wouldn’t all the other businesses long with their throats stuck under the foot of Starbucks do the same?
Starbucks is trying to solve their flagging business but they’re looking in a completely different direction. Even I can look over a tall espresso machine and see that.

The pain, the pain

The end of my fast food fast was supposed to come with joy, but instead my return to the happy land of grease and fries is marked with sadness. Apparently, Denver Broncos wide receiver Brandon Marshall seriously injured his right arm when he allegedly slipped on a fast food bag and severed arteries and tendons in his arm. Full disclosure: there are conflicting reports that Marshall injured the arm wrestling with a family member – possibly over the last cheeseburger.
Nevertheless, Marshall is out for up to three months, Bronco coach Mike Shannahan is hooking the suspect bag up to a lie detector and I can't think of a more haunting reminder of how dangerous fast food really is.
Cartoon characters can stop slipping on banana peels, we've got a new culprit in town!

We did it!

We did it. We made it through the whole Lenten season with no fast food! Thanks to all of you for your support. And, by the will of the people, I won't be eating fast food today, at least not for lunch. See, I listen to the Knowmers.

These chicks are causing a stir

We'll you've read it and, if you haven't, read it at www.metrowestfyi.com. Then let me know whether you think the Mercantile's sale of colored chicks and ducks for Easter is morally reprehensible or not?

Fire district: get developers to help or soak them

Lost in the Standard Blade a couple weeks ago, amidst the ongoing shenanigans of a certain local charter high school, was an article about the Brighton Fire District’s plans for future stations and, more specifically, Fire Chief Mark Bodane’s belief that developers, not taxpayers, should pay for the facilities.
I foolishly thought the article might inspire some positive feedback or maybe even perhaps a small parade through the streets of town.
Instead, maybe readers were inclined to think, “I’ll believe it when I see it” or “this guy sure isn’t from around here.”
After all, while the idea of developers pitching in a buck here or there might be germane to Bodane’s native Prairie State (Illinois for all you poli-sci majors), here it is akin to poor Bob Cratchit begging the miserly Scrooge for a plinckett or thrickel (whatever the going currency was in the times of Dickens).
So residents, the veritable Tiny Tim when it comes to footing the tax bill, can be understood if they take a wait-and-see approach to any assertions they won’t be left on the hook to pay for new development in the fire district.
However, because an article titled, “Chief vows to ‘stick it to poor saps again’” would have not only made the front page but undoubtedly inspired a tumult of letters on our opinion pages, I think it is fair to give Bodane and the district credit for, at the very least, floating the idea that developers pay for what they wrought. It beats the alternative – immediately shaking an empty tin can in front of voters.
Of course, the long, winding road from words to actions is dotted with potholes including an Interstate 25-sized gully that prevents mandatory impact fees on developers.
With that in mind, the other obstacle standing between any local entity and over-taxed residents getting a fair share from developers is what people in some places would call a lack of testicular fortitude. That coming from not only asking developers that they help out but, when they turn their pockets inside out and feign poverty, still demanding their assistance or, in the fire district’s case, dousing them with a high-pressure hose.
If the fire district needs a model where developers have been willing to help, it would be School District 27J where the Capital Facilities Fee Foundation has wrangled some dough from developers even though the totals seem puny compared to the transformations new growth has caused the school district.
But while the fire district can be commended for looking first to developers, it is also obvious Bodane is a quick study, realizing that this same community turned down a major mill levy increase several years ago that included money for new stations and only more recently agreed to a smaller tax increase.
Voters, aside from the fact that they experienced unease at seeing firefighters at the grocery store (call it a love of gaunt and scrawny firefighters) collectively decided that having their house burn to the ground was easier to take than forking over the money for a new fire station down the street.
That’s a frightening indication of how much voters really hate the thought of any new taxes.
So a wise fire district knows it can’t necessarily count on the voters being in a giving mood the next time around and must study another options.
Logically, there is no reason developers wouldn’t want to chip in especially when it comes to something like a fire station. Proper fire coverage equals a better department ISO rating and that equals lower insurance premiums for homeowners.
However, the district also must fear that the ongoing economic downturn and development slowdown will spurn the prevalent theory of developer contribution and lead us back to offering yams and fruit baskets and a ceremonial key to the city to burden taxpayers, add traffic and pollution and take away its identity.
If the fire district is able to get developers on board with its future plans, good for them.
Until they do, I’d save those plincketts.
And thrickels, too.
Kevin Denke’s column Spare Change appears weekly in the Brighton Blade and every Wednesday here at his blog. Contact him at kdenke@metrowestnewspapers.com or 303-659-2522, ext. 225.

Here we go

Didn't even have to know what time of year it is right now, just a scan of a Denver daily headline titled "Quest for Columbine secrets" let me know it is springtime and April 20 will be upon soon. My first reaction beyond that, "secrets?" What secrets could possibly be out there after the way this story has been drilled into our brains month after month after month. I think I mentioned in a previous blog or column about how I am numb to this story – frustrating when I remember the pain and helplessness I felt when it first happened. Columbine is a tragedy, it will always be a tragedy and to most here, not even a decade has made it any less fresh. But there have been other school shootings since – notably the Virginia Tech shooting which had a much higher death total than Columbine and the Illinois University shooting too. What I don't like seeing now is a seeming pissing contest by the Denver media to argue why Columbine is still important even though we can no longer call it the "deadliest school shooting in U.S. History." We've built the Columbine Memorial and don't get me up on my soapbox about what self-aggrandizing project that was. Hopefully, with the 10-year anniversary next year, this will become an event remembered most prominently on the major years 15, 20, 25, 30 and not be dragged through the mud every year!

No words

We're working at a breakneck speed here in the ol' newsroom to provide you with all of the news fit to print and, I'm not one to brag, but Wednesday's paper looks to be chalked full of good stuff. A tease, you want a tease?
How about a story involving chickens and not necessarily about the charter school?
There u go.

Personally, we'd rather they don't learn the alphabet at all

We're taking away letters from the cheerleaders next. In another politically correct triumph, this means all grades are now completely subjective. Welcome to Dr. Phil academia! No concrete right or wrong

ADAMS COUNTY - A Colorado school district plans to stop giving "As" to its students. It will also stop giving "Fs."

Adams County School District 50 is replacing letter grades and grade levels with a new evaluation system. The district says students will be required to meet new skill levels in order to pass a course.

The director of secondary schools for the district, Copper Stoll, says students would learn more from a hands-on approach, applying what they've learned, as opposed to barely passing a class with a "D" for a letter grade.

"That means they are able to show what they know and are able to do it at a proficient level, the way that we taught it to them," said Stoll.

The district has yet to determine how the new skill levels would be measured, but the transition process is already beginning in some classes.

Stoll says changes would take place across the district for students from pre-K through eighth grade in the fall of 2009, and for students in grades nine through 12 in the fall of 2010.

According to Stoll, with the new evaluation process, students would be able to learn at their own pace.

"It could mean graduating earlier, it could mean graduating later. But if they graduate early, we're not saying we want 15- or 16-year-olds going off to college. What we want them to do is start accessing college level classes," said Stoll.

The director of admissions at the University of Colorado Denver, Barbara Edwards, says without letter grades, students applying for college would then be defaulted to a grade point average of 3.3, the state average.

Edwards says admissions offices would then place more emphasis on ACT or SAT scores.

"In this situation, the students wouldn't have letter grades, nor would they have class rank. So we would have to heavily look at test scores and the kind of courses they took," said Edwards.

Edwards also says without a grade-letter system, it could become more difficult for students applying for merit-based scholarships that include a GPA as part of the application process.

The district says parents have already been notified about the impending change through meetings and newsletters.

Forgiveness easily spoken, hard to give

There are better people in this world than I. This I know.
And every so often, because of my job, these people are thrust in front of me and I’m forced to not only acknowledge that simple fact but ponder whether I can reach the standard they have set.
I caught myself wondering that last week when Scott Hinshaw, the state trooper injured in a horrific car crash in October, and his wife, Susan, addressed the courtroom at the sentencing of the defendant in the case, Cody Loos.
The greedy part of me as a newspaper reporter infatuated with headlines wanted fire and brimstone. I wanted Scott to get up there and let this kid have it.
“How could you do this to me?” that would have been a worthy start.
“You destroyed my life,” … ooh even better.
But from the moment Susan started speaking, I knew I would have to look elsewhere for that kind of fury.
“Cody, may the Lord bless you and keep you,” she said. “May the Lord make his face shine upon you,” she continued.
Then she started talking about his life, about how she hoped he could do so much more, how valuable he was. She called him “a child of God.”
This isn’t how this is supposed to go. You’re supposed to be vengeful at the pain you must see your husband endure. You have to be angry at the nightmares of that terrible day that awake him in the middle of the night.
Nothing. She even thanked him for being responsible for his actions.
Surely, Scott would offer that rage. After all, it’s his life that was dramatically changed because he couldn’t pass a motorist in need and just go home for his anniversary.
He recounted the details of the accident, the constant pain, that terrible guilt.
It was building up, about to boil over.
Then he turned to Cody and gently called him “bro.”
Huh?
I don’t know Scott. Maybe he calls everyone that. But that’s not what you say to someone who caused this much devastation. You call him a million names but that.
Then he offered him life advice, encouraging him to strive to be the best person he can possibly be, never to be satisfied with what he is.
Then he even offers hope that they can work together some day to educate kids about the importance of safe driving.
And then, when the court proceeding was all said and done, they embraced Loos’ family members.
For that matter, even the Templeton family offered incredible compassion. I wondered whether I could stand up like Doug Templeton and tell a judge that prison wasn’t the best option for the person who took the life of my child.
I decided maybe it was the lack of aggravating factors in this case that made the sheer thought of forgiveness imaginable. There were no drugs, no beer cans strewn on the truck floor. This, despite being an immense tragedy, was truly a terrible accident.
But there was still a life lost even if it was an accident.
Then I realized what it was.
Maybe in the face of such pain, there isn’t room left to hate.
Even Scott said the anger would consume him if he let it so he has to forgive.
Maybe trying to rise above that hate and pain is our only choice.
I still don’t know if I could. I hope I never have to decide.
But at least I’d have a place to look for a start.

You get to decide

Look for a poll question coming soon. As we come to the end of my fast food fast, (Monday, March 24, provided I can hang on a couple more weeks) it's time to consider how I properly celebrate its successful conclusion. Vote early, vote often!

Shaken and stirred

The people (all four of you) have spoken and the fast continues. Remember your input matters, please fasten your seatbelts and put your seats and tray tables in an upright position.
I know you all look to me to provide some kind of common ground on current events like the controversy involving the naughty New York governor. I'm stunned and can offer no words other than to say my faith in the common goodness and decency of politicians is ruined.

Heya, we gotta a problemo

Two weeks to go in my fast food fast and we have controversy. Saturday, I enjoyed some delicious pizza from Sbarro at Cherry Creek Mall. As the weekend crept on, I began to wonder whether I had cracked. Sbarro, while not having a drive-thru even though that would be really cool in a mall, does have combo meals. I did not, however, have a combo meal, just a stromboli and a drink. When I brought this up to co-workers today, there was a seeming split decision on what eating this food meant. I decided it be left in the hands of the very capable Knowmers to decide if my fast came to an abrupt and premature end. I await your decision.

It's about time

A house finance committee has approved a proposal to allow for liquor sales on Sunday. moving it one step closer to the Governor's desk. Thank goodness, those football fans deliriously imbibing on hot chocolate and soda are one step closer to real, actual liquor! Yea. Drinking and driving, however, will remain illegal on Sunday. I worry about how this changes everything. Up until this point, no one has ever drank on Sunday in Colorado. This is just going to open up a can of worms.

Could Ghandi turn down a gordita

This is old news for the Knowmers but, hopefully, still a good read!
Readers of my daily blog (shamelessly plugged at the end of each and every column) know I have been on a semi-spiritual journey for more than a month now since I vowed to give up fast food for the Christian season of Lent.
Originally, it was meant as an empty challenge designed to keep my blog readers (better known as Nomers) entertained. I had no intention of following through on my pledge to steer clear of drive-thru lanes from Ash Wednesday (Feb. 6) through Easter Sunday (March 23). In fact, I thought it would be really funny to post a picture of myself, the first day of my fast, chowing down on a McDonald’s hamburger.
Still, we implemented rules that have evolved from day one with one standard: all restaurants with drive-thrus and combo meals are off limits. But convenience stores (high class junk food dealers) and ice cream distributors (provided I don’t fall victim to the lure of the crispy chicken finger basket) are OK. It is also not against the rules, no matter how painful, to buy fast food for others as I have done several times.
Now, we’re past the midway point of this journey and how have I done? Surprisingly well.
There have been trying moments. More than once, I’ve called a co-worker to talk me out of the drive-thru. It’s a conversation that usually ends with the definitive question, “Kevin, can you tell me why you need the taco?”
There was also one awkward incident where I asked a fast-food restaurant employee if I could feel his buns? Needless to say, he got very upset and I was asked to leave the premises.
This fast-food fast has also taught me lessons. I’ve learned that fast food, much to my surprise, is not so much a necessity as it is a convenience. Already, it has occurred a couple times, where my wife and I ponder what to do for dinner but, unable to grab something quick and not wanting to go to a sit-down restaurant, just decide to have leftovers.
But the biggest surprise?
I’m embracing this change. I’ve worried for some time about the long-term dangers of eating fast food on a regular basis. While I have a heart-healthy family history, I began to wonder if that was because my ancestors just didn’t have access to the same amount of garbage we have today and instead ate healthy square meals. In today’s society, where waistlines are rapidly expanding, it takes a little more self-will to be health conscious.
So, what started as a joke might actually turn into a complete lifestyle change.
For now the focus is on whether I can actually finish this task. My wife has been incredibly supportive and my co-workers have eaten more fast food over the past month than I’ve ever seen them consume. They won’t let a challenge go without holding your feet to the fire.
Originally, I thought I’d be a glutton come March 24 and launch a citywide tour of every fast-food joint I could find.
Now, I’m not sure if I’ll want to.

Post-traumatic

My dear Knowmers,
I'll be sporadic in my blogging this week as I sit trapped inside an Adams County Courtroom covering a trial. Just know, I miss you all and I'm still skipping the fast food.
Talk to you soon,