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Snooping and sleuthing at the Governor’s Mansion

Snooping and sleuthing at the Governor’s Mansion

It’s now official. I am the Unofficial First Lady of Colorado.

 

The Governor's Mansion. Photo via Wikipedia

Mr. Waste and I were invited, along with other appointees for the Hickenlooper administration, to dinner at the Governor’s residence May 13. After enjoying cocktails at the bar, the 16 of us were seated for dinner. There were two seats at the head of the table. Gov. John Hickenlooper took one. When Helen Thorpe did not take the second one, I was seated next to him. There I was, sitting next to the governor, in the seat that should have gone to the first lady. That’s when I knew I had become the Unofficial First Lady of Colorado.

 

Before dinner, we were allowed upstairs into the private quarters of the mansion. The rooms were mostly bathrooms. Seriously. I have never seen so many bathrooms in one house before. Every room had a bathroom and some even had two. We must have had some very poopy governors in Colorado’s past.

 

I spent most of my time snooping in the attic. It was filled to the brim with antique furniture, knick-knacks, paintings and armoires. Every time a first lady moved in, she promptly banished her predecessor’s decorations to this room; mini spoons and salt bowls, a collection of pink poodle ceramics from the 1960s, an old hand-painted sign offering daily mansion tours, 50 cents for adults and 25 cents for children. I could have spent days in there. But the dinner bell was ringing.

 

Dinner was a casual affair, though we did dine upon the official state china. We had a delicious Asian-infused risotto and homemade cake for dessert. We engaged in conversation, sharing where we were born and raised, along with a high and low from our life. Hickenlooper shared his most recent high. Earlier that day he had signed into law the anti-bullying legislation for schools. He was very proud of this, having been bullied himself as a child. He wore very thick glasses and two boys at school decided he was going to be their prey. Hickenlooper, who lived close to school, would route very long and elaborate ways to get home to avoid those bullies. I am sure many of us have similar experiences growing up as well. I know I did.

 

May was a very busy month for politicians. The election on May 7 seated Robin Kniech as an out lesbian on the Denver City Council. The race for Denver’s Mayor was whittled down to Michael Hancock and Chris Romer. Those two squared off in their first debate at the Seawell Ballroom in the Denver Center for Performing Arts. The debate was hosted with the Downtown Denver Partnership, along with various metro chambers of commerce, including the Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce.

 

Who am I endorsing? Michael Hancock gets my Nuclia Waste Plutonium Seal of Approval. I’ve known Hancock for a while, having been our neighborhood city council. Be sure and vote on June 7 and send in those mail-in ballots. The future of our city is depending on you.

 

The Colorado Democratic Party elected Rick Palacio as chairman in March. Palacio is an out gay man and only the second LGBT person to head up a state’s political party. He is also the first Hispanic and the youngest person to represent the party. Palacio announced he is reviving the Colorado Stonewall Democrats. His first meeting was held May 23 at the Colorado Democratic Party headquarters. If you are interested in getting involved with the new Colorado Stonewall Democrats, contact Palacio at rpalacio@coloradodems.org.

 

Denver’s PrideFest is going to the dogs. Literally. Saturday is now “Bring your pooch to PrideFest day.” Bob Krugmire and I have been working on making Saturday a more dog friendly day in Civic Center park. We’ll have the Pooch Pavilion set up at the Greek amphitheater with water, shade and pet vendors. At noon, we are hosting the world famous Dogs In Drag contest, which will be judged by the Demented Divas. If you have a dog, dress him up in costume and bring him down. We’ll have prizes to win from Petco for the categories of Best Dog in Drag, Best Dog Owner in Drag/Costume, Dog Owner that looks most like their Dog, Smallest Dog and Biggest Dog. To enter the contest, visit www.glbtcolorado.org under PrideFest and Pooch Pavilion.

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