Coming Soon: The Denver Tool Library

There are some super wonderful places and things right here in Barnum. That said, there seems to be an exploding volcano of awesome erupting precisely 2.5 miles in any direction from the center of our neighborhood. I'm starting to sound like a broken record, constantly repeating, "Such and such is only 15 to 20 minutes by bicycle!" for all the cool shit in West Denver. I can't decide if we're crazy unlucky and operating like a 2.5-mile-strength repellent to neat stuff, or if we're crazy lucky to be at the precise epicenter of all of these various areas of awesome. I guess it depends on how willing you are to ride a bicycle for 15-20 minutes at a time.

The newest 2.5 mile news is the Denver Tool Library, which will be opening its doors at 5th and Santa Fe in the near future. (That is 2.5 miles in the exact opposite direction from the Belmar ice rink that just reopened for the season 2.5 miles to the West.) It is precisely what it sounds like: a library to check out tools so you don't have to clutter up your 800 square foot Barnum house with a bunch of purchased tools you'll only ever need once or twice. You buy a $60 membership and BAM! borrow away. Check out their website here. Read an article about the Denver Tool Library in the Denver Post. And, if you're feeling as excited as I am about having them as a 2.5m neighbor, feel free to donate to their IndieGoGo campaign here.

Speaking of bicycling, have you heard the awesome news for Barnum bicyclists?! I'm gonna leave that as a teaser and make you tune in next time to find out more...

Earth Friendly in Barnum!

Now that we've been rid of our gross dumpsters in Barnum and Barnum West, it's easier than ever to recycle.

I'll be honest, but please don't hate me: I've been pretty rotten about recycling for a few years now. Spoiled by the dumpster in the alley, I found it impossible to either remember which day was recycling day or else to muster up the energy to drag the bin out and back into my yard at the designated time. I know, I'm a terrible person. Or, at least I was. Now I'm not! Now that I have to be mindful about trash day, I'm finding it rather easy to remember to put out my recycling bin. In fact, recycling has decreased our trash enough that we put out both bins every other week -- and the trash bin is nearly empty. Huzzah!

If you don't yet have a recycling bin, sign up online. Visit Denver's recycling website to see which items can be recycled. And, if you're having a tough time remembering to get your bins out, try signing up for reminders! And if, like many of my neighbors, you've been on the recycling train for ages, here's a celebration jump for you!

Barnum Handmade Christmas

Do you dread the mall scene this time of year? Skip it! Go shopping right here in your own neighborhood at the Barnum Handmade Christmas Craft Show! The Barnum Rec Center is hosting a holiday craft show on December 6th, 10:00-3:00pm. Pop in for some lovely little treasures to put under your Christmas tree -- without the traffic. Plus, handmade gifts are far more baller than factory-made, mass produced stuff.

Charlie's Barnum art shop, Barnum's Winter, will be at the Horseshoe Holiday Market, December 13-14 at the Highland's Masonic Center, north on Federal (3550 Federal Blvd.). There are so many great opportunities to shop local this holiday season for unique finds from Denver artists and craftsmen!

Farewell Autumn, Hello New Stuff

What a lovely autumn we had in Denver this year. I took this photo a couple weeks ago before winter descended. Now that winter has officially arrived, I thought I'd take this opportunity to give our new neighbors a heads up: Beware of Barnum hills on snowy days! Cars go up... and then they don't go up anymore... then they come back down. Backwards. Into other cars. It took me a full 30 minutes of bumper to bumper traffic to leave the neighborhood during our first snowstorm last week all because of stupid hills on Knox. Yikes! Take the flat roads if you can and leave plenty of room between cars!

In other news, I've added another page to the blog:  Neighborhood Services, Artists, and Musicians. It's a mouthful, for sure, and it's a work in progress. It's been simmering for a few months since Danyell of Zoologie Pet Services moved into the area and inquired about listing her awesome services for folks on the blog. Shortly after, I discovered A Shoreline Dream, a band whom you might know from CPR Open Air or the South by Southwest festival, also lives in our 'hood. The Nextdoor Barnum website occasionally explodes with requests for local roofers, tree trimmers, and lawn services. My inner librarian screamed, "THERE MUST BE A WAY TO ORGANIZE ALL OF THIS DISPARATE INFORMATION!" So, here's my first attempt at presenting the various talents, services, and home-based businesses that live right here in Barnum. Check it out, yo.

Barnum Market Days Meeting Announcement

BARNUM MARKET DAYS:

A DIY Farmer’s Market for Barnum

• Would you like to see a Farmer’s Market in Barnum next summer?

• Would you like to make money from all of your extra zucchini and peaches?

• Do you dream of raising chickens or of buying eggs from your neighbors?

• Would you like to help Barnum become even more interesting, friendly, and sustainable?

Come join the discussion and find out how you can be involved in this awesome new community adventure!

Barnum Market Days Meeting

Sunday, 02 November 2014

3:00pm

at the Barnum Community Garden (2nd and Lowell)

Rain, snow, or shine!

All interested neighbors are invited!

Questions? Comments? Email: welcometobarnum@gmail.com

Help spread the word! Tell your neighbors! Print this awesome flyer and paper your block!  Spanish translation is in the works and will be added shortly.

Next Barnum Market Days Meeting!

Dude. We have a logo. We're totally legit.

Howdy neighbors!

Here is an online poll that will help us to find the best day and time for the next Barnum Farmer’s Market meeting: http://doodle.com/8kfdha9b42bh4c4s

Please fill it out as soon as possible so that we can all spread the word once we get it scheduled. The deadline for filling out the poll is Oct. 1st. The meeting location will be announced with the final date/time selection -- but it will probably be the library, if the library is open and available during the chosen time.

At this next meeting, I think that the main goals will be:

1. To get a better idea of how many neighbors are interested in actually having farm stands on the market days. Is this worth our time? Are there enough people at the meeting to justify going forward?

2. To get a better understanding of how we can each contribute our efforts to make the market a success for the neighborhood. Who wants to be the contact person for the farm stands? Who wants to create and update the maps for each market day? Who wants to distribute flyers? Who wants to lead meetings or take notes during meetings? Who wants to contact/communicate with local organizations? Etc. There’s a lot to do and no one person can do it all! Are there enough helpers to make this possible?
3. Create a timeline for the market days going forward.

If there’s anything else you’d like to discuss at the meeting, please bring your ideas with you! RSVP for the meeting is not required, but would be helpful! welcometobarnum@gmail.com

PS. I'm still trying to recruit more contributors for the Welcome To Barnum blog! Want to post photos, articles, or reviews regarding your 'hood? Want to share your thoughts with your neighbors? Want to show off cool shit you've found nearby? Send me an email, yo! Even if you're super new to Barnum, you're still welcome. welcometobarnum (at) gmail.com

Barnum Farmer's Market!

Howdy neighbors,

Good news! It looks like Barnum might be getting a Farmer's Market next summer! That's right, we're making our own farmer's market, and it's going to be awesome. If you want to buy or sell homegrown produce, eggs, or cottage foods right here in Barnum, or if you're interested in contributing some skills or ideas to the endeavor, or if you're merely curious and/or want to meet some cool neighbors, stop by the Mean Bean next Saturday, September 6th, 10am for a introductory meeting. Remember, this can't happen without you, so don't be shy! Spread the word, invite your neighbors, and hopefully I'll see you there. Keep being awesome, Barnum!

Barnum Garden Tour: The Barnum Community Garden

Today's Barnum Garden Tour comes from the Barnum Community Garden, located on Lowell between 1st and 2nd Ave.

I met with my neighbors for a neighborhood plant and seed swap, enjoyed some delicious cider (thanks, Wendy!), and had an opportunity to meet Jack, one of the Community Garden's regular and long time gardeners.

Jack gave us all a tour of what's growing this year and filled me in on the garden's policies: the very generously sized garden plots are $40 for the entire season to cover watering expenses (this fee might be waived if you're unable to afford it). To reserve your plot for next year, send me an email for the number to contact, or get the number from Denver Urban Gardens. Otherwise, talk to Jack if you see him in the garden!

This was the perfect time of year to see the Community Garden in all its bounty. It was bursting at its seams with sunflowers, potatoes, tomatillos, squash, corn, cosmos, and a bagillion other sorts of lovely things to eat and admire. Be sure to wander through to see for yourself before the weather turns! For more information on seed/plant swaps and other meetups, join NextDoor Barnum -- an online neighborhood forum.

While there, I also heard a rumor that a Community Orchard is in the works for the adjoining vacant lot. I'm waiting with baited breath for more details. 

And, one final bit of news: The Barnum Neighborhood is in the early stages of planning for a Barnum Farmer's Market next summer! If you're interested in helping to make this a reality, please email welcometobarnum(at)gmail.com to get on the email list and/or come to our next planning meeting!

Barnum Garden Tour: "Barnum House" Front Yard Garden

Today's garden tour looks at the so-called Barnum House front yard garden. The Barnum House is named after the story that P.T. Barnum once lived here (he didn't). Currently enjoyed by only the second family to live there, the original family, the Failings, built the house in 1872 and moved it from 6th and Knox when the 6th Ave. freeway was built.

Our Names: Wendy Lu, Scout and Eva

Edible flowers and some veg - a salad garden!

Garden Style: Mish-mash, xeriscape cottage garden

How Long We've Been Gardening Here: 3 summers

What's New In The Garden This Year: This year, inspired by neighbor Kaye, I installed drip irrigation and what a difference in yield and time spent watering!

A passerby told Wendy Lu this vase was found by
P.T. Barnum in Africa, but the stamp inside reads "New York."

What We Love To Grow: Drought-tolerant perennials, especially flowers, and vegetables. There are also baby fruit trees (peach, green gable plum, service berry bushes) and raspberries. Just added blackberries from the Barnum plant swap, so looking forward to more berries next year!

What We Cannot Grow: Since adding in the irrigation, and because I favor plants with low watering needs, we've done pretty well. I do need to start growing melons earlier, because we often just barely harvest a tiny watermelon in early September.

Biggest Battle: We mulched the entire yard two years ago and since, weeds have been minimal. That said, the so-called "tree of heaven" is constantly trying to stage a hostile takeover.

More edible flowers & kale, tomatoes peaking out.

Our Advice To New Gardeners In The 'Hood: Use mulch, drip irrigation, amend the soil and plant ever square inch to grow food and flowers!

Mini-pumpkin patch.

Favorite Nursery/Supply Shop: I have to stay away from City Floral, but it is coming up on the annual 50% off perennials sale, so I'll be grabbing a few plants to put in before it gets cold.

Bees & other pollinators heart the hollyhocks.

Do you garden in Barnum or Barnum West? Send your pics into the blog! Selected gardens will be featured throughout the summer. Pics can be emailed to welcometobarnum (at) gmail.com. 

High five, Athmar!

Our neighbors to the southeast, Athmar Park, have opened a brand new shiny microbrewery, Chain Reaction. Located at Lipan and Mississippi, this is nowhere near close enough to walk to from home, but a victory for westside beer lovers nonetheless. Apparently, the corridor between Santa Fe and Federal is the place to be if you want to open a Denver microbrewery. Mmmmm...beer.

I had a Belgian Rye Stout. It was deliciously non-bitter, and about as sweet as you can get without being a milk or chocolate stout -- just the way I like it. Cheers, Athmar!

Coffee at The Mean Bean

Let me start with this: I'm a little shallow. I admit it. Aesthetics are unreasonably important to me, especially when it comes to coffee houses. I have a coffee pot. I like Folgers. When I visit coffee shops, it's normally for the atmosphere rather than the coffee in particular. Give me charming coffee or I'll just stay home. Or go to a bar.
 
The Mean Bean opened about a year and a half ago at Stuart and Alameda. This weekend was my first visit. I naturally avoid things that are salmon colored but are not fish. I purposely don't patron businesses that lay asphalt all the way up to the building (unless it's industrial on purpose). And, like many others in the world who care about typeface, I loathe Papyrus font. I'd never even thought of stopping into the one coffee shop actually within walking distance of my house, for no other reason than because it's ugly. Until now. They painted murals. It's a step in the right direction. So I stepped in for a cuppa.

And, it was really good coffee.

The inside of the building is pretty inoffensive. The coffee-lady was nice. They had real flowers on the tables and local art for sale on the walls. They've tried to jazz up the exterior a bit by adding a table and three potted plants. I appreciate their efforts and totally dig that Westwood and Barnum at last have a coffee shop. A coffee shop with some of the best drip coffee I've ever had at a coffee shop.

Still, I really hope that someday they take a jackhammer to all that asphalt and put in some trees and plants. And a real patio. And better paint colors. And a sidewalk so I don't get run over for having walked there. And a bike rack. And awnings. And did I already say trees and plants? Cause I really mean it. Plant some mother fucking trees, yo. Asphalt is not a landscaping material.

Whatever. It's ugly but it tastes good so go there. Because you're probably not as psycho/snobby/shallow as me. The end.

Boba Tea!

Let's take a moment to talk about boba tea, shall we? It's positively silly to live in Barnum and not take advantage of the culinary delights and curiosities of our bit of Federal Blvd. Those delights and curiosities include boba tea, which is available at most Asian restaurants on Federal between Alameda and Florida.

Technically, boba is Chinese for big boobies, at least according to Wikipedia. But, it's also apparently slang for the balls of tapioca that are added to milk tea, or fruit smoothie, or whatever sort of drink you're getting. Heck, it doesn't even have to be black tapioca: I've had weird jelly pearls too and they're also delicious. There's a lot of variations. And, there's a lot of different names for essentially the same thing: Bubble Tea, Pearl Milk Tea, Boba Milk Tea, etc. Though it was invented in Taiwan, it's pretty popular at Vietnamese restaurants and cafes. Like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, this is one of those weird things that was created in the 1980s that is strange and maybe a bit immature but still quite rad.

So, boba tea. It's a fancy cold drink of various flavors with big balls of black tapioca or colorful jelly at the bottom. You drink it through an uncomfortably large straw. It tastes good and adds a touch of whimsy to your day. Is it a little weird? Sure. Yes. It is a little weird. But it's also awesome. Just like Barnum.

Nearby Farm Stands

Eggplants from Gabrielle's Garden website! Mmmm...

I still haven't heard of any farm stands or farmers markets within the Barnum borders, but I have stumbled upon a couple of nearby farm stands to add to the list of Farmers Markets and CSAs nearby.

Gabrielle's Garden: A farm stand at 832 Kalamath St., open Saturdays from 9:00-noon and Wednesdays from 5:00-7:00.

Sprout City Farms Community Farm Stand: Farm stand at Mountair Park, 5620 W. 14th Ave. Lakewood (on 14th, four blocks West of Sheridan). They're open Fridays 4:00-6:00 mid-August through Halloween.

Trader Joe's is coming...3 miles away.

Photo from 5280 Magazine

Yesterday, Trader Joe's announced that it is opening its second Denver location 3 miles from our doorsteps. It's headed for 7th and Logan. And, because it's off 6th Ave, Google Directions estimates it's but a 5-10 minute drive, even during morning rush hour.

I can't decide if I'm super happy or super bummed. Trader Joe's is crazy popular but it's still not quite close enough to call our own. In fact, it completes the circle of large grocery shops 2.5 to 3 miles in any direction from Barnum/Barnum West. We have King Soopers to the North at Sloans Lake, King Soopers to the South in Mar Lee, King Soopers and Whole Foods to the West at Belmar. Now, with Trader Joe's to the East, we've formed a perfect perimeter of not-close-enough-to-walk-to large chain grocery stores.

Oh well. At least we have all our little local grocery shops for walking trips. And at least Trader Joe's is closer to us here in Barnum than they are to the Highlands. Hey Highlands! You like apples? How you like them apples? Cause you have to drive past Barnum to buy them from Trader Joe's. Here's a link to the 5280 article about the new Trader Joe's.

Barnum's View of Denver

Sunrise Barnum Park, Denver Time-Lapse [One Day in Denver Campaign Raw Footage] from Ryan Dravitz on Vimeo.

I'm so glad to have discovered this awesome video capturing a sunrise over the city from our glorious Barnum Park. Nicely done, Ryan Dravitz. Huzzah for having one of the best views in Denver!

Barnum Garden Tour: Charlie's Charming Cottage Garden

This hill took FOREVER to dig up. Totally worth it,

Remember when I said I have zero journalistic objectiveness? Yeah, here I go again. Today's garden tour is my very own. I'm rather proud of myself for waiting this long to post it.

When we first moved in, the entire front yard was sun-baked dust and weeds. The backyard was worse -- 12" of sand that even the weeds refused to grow in. And, of course, no trees. Each summer, we fill in a little more empty space with something either pretty or delicious.


Our Names: Charlie and Keegan

Garden Style: Cottage Garden and kitchen garden

How Long We've Been Gardening Here: 6 years

The internet tells me this is feverfew.

What's New In The Garden This Year: We just planted a little hedge of Coralberries beside our front door. I'm pretty excited to see them festooned in pink this fall. And, I'm hoping to extend my flower garden a little later in the summer -- maybe a row of delphiniums, hollyhocks, and foxgloves behind my peonies.

What We Love To Grow: My favorites are normally whatever is blooming or fruiting at the moment. If I had answered last month I would have said lilacs, strawberries, and peonies. But, right now, I have to say I'm in love with my Pink Grapefruit yarrow. Also, there is a volunteer feverfew growing behind my blackberries that is charming as hell.

What We Cannot Grow: I'm originally from the East Coast, so when I first started planting six years ago, I learned the hard way that in Denver, rhododendrons and azaleas need more attention than I'm willing to give them in the winter. We also have one of those little hills in the front yard that I tried to keep grass on for four years. Last year I finally gave up, dug it all out, and covered the hill with mulch. I planted some cotoneasters that I'm hoping will grow up to take over the whole thing.  

Biggest Battle: Bindweed. I fucking hate bindweed. And squirrels.

Our Advice To New Gardeners In The 'Hood: Lots of plants are pretty, but how and where you plant them matters too. Step back across the street and look at your garden as a whole.

Favorite Nursery/Supply Shop: O'Tooles is wonderful, but Echter's in Arvada also rocks.

Do you garden in Barnum or Barnum West? Send your pics into the blog! Selected gardens will be featured throughout the summer. Pics can be emailed to welcometobarnum (at) gmail.com.