Monday, May 21, 2012

Inside the new Elephant Passage at The Denver Zoo


The Denver Zoo is about to open up Asian Tropics on June 1st. (Technically its name is Toyota Elephant Passage, but Toyota didn't pay me a dime, and it was going to be called Asian Tropics until a few months ago when somebody wrote a check.) As a donor (Jen wrote a check), we got a sneak peak of it this past Sunday. It's pretty cool, I must say. That long tusked gentleman at the top of the page is Groucho, one of two new elephants at the zoo thanks to Asian Tropics.


If that bridge looks sturdy enough for an Elephant to walk across, you're getting the idea. No elephants were taking a bridge stroll on Sunday, but I hope to see it someday.


Apparently, the Denver Zoo now worships Ganesh.


There is cool Elephanty type signage everywhere. They went nuts with the Elephant Artwork.


Everybody loves an Elephant Statue!

Even the bathroom signage is getting in the act.

You can also try on a pair of elephant ears to see if they improve your hearing...

...or your looks.

There is a new Gibbon Island with an area that kids can practice their hanging...
...or their falling.



They do have lots of cool signage, although, I'm not entirely sure what this one is about. As far as I can tell, this sign means no stacking rocks, playing Tetris, simulating Rainbows with your arms, No cat mating, No number 60s, No Dynamite, No kicking wildlife, No Hile Hitler salutes, and no surrounding yourself with very small blocks. Good safety information, there.




This sign makes more sense.




In the spirit of unity and brotherhood, I refrained from collecting firewood.




The new home seems so much nicer than their old one. Mimi and Dolly must be in heaven.




More elephant artwork. They did a good job with the art, I must say.




Elephants!




They have a cool kiosk where if you donated to the project, you can pull up your name...




...or declare your love for elephants.




All in all, it's a pretty cool place!



Saturday, May 19, 2012

Vertically Striped Radio - Episode 163 - 05-19-12 - Preakness Fever



It was Preakness Saturday, and Craig and Elevation were on hand to scream at a horse race on TV.


Beyond just cheering on Triple Crown hopeful I'll Have Another, we also managed to get in a Local TV Commercial Duel, introduce The Worst Movie Role Replacement Game, and feature a double dose of "Something to Think About" with Face and the Whale. Even Nalax called in to vent about his bad sports day. 


We wrapped things up with a music recommendation from Blind Pilot of the song "New York".


Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Vertically Striped Socks...an introduction:



Greetings and Salutations, people. Did you hear me on Dave Dameshek's NFL podcast, and decided to come check out the site to see what I'm all about?


1. Thanks.
2. Sucker.


So, who am I?


Well, Dave had me on his NFL.com podcast to be an NFL expert and represented me, this website, and my weekly podcast as YOUR source for Denver sports. While I am a hard core Broncos fan, I can't claim in reality to be that big of an expert, and Vertically Striped Radio is hardly a hard core sports show...


While we do talk a lot of sports on Vertically Striped Radio we're just as likely to discuss my persistent belief that New Hampshire doesn't exist, The theological implications of Admiral Ackbar, or spend an entire episode discussing The Mighty Ducks 2. (No seriously, we once did an entire episode on The Mighty Ducks 2.)


So, you might say I'm an odd duck, but I'm mostly harmless. I'm the kind of guy who puts a Lego representation of the Village People at my desk at work just because the weird looks from others amuse me.
As you may have deduced, I'm a pretty big Denver Broncos fan, and a fan of all the Denver teams, really. While I'm a huge sports fan, I also dig movies, indie music, and posting with the fellas over at the Dave Dameshek message board. (You should definitely go there, sign up, and start posting with the good people over there...if you aren't already.) www.Dameshek.com


If I appear to be the kind of odd that you could enjoy getting to know, you can check me out in a few different ways.


1. Subscribe to Vertically Striped Radio on iTunes. 
(Search for Vertically Striped Radio and subscribe to the LCS Hockey Show feed. You'll get VSR along with The LCS Hockey Show, The Ed Show, The No Name Show, and The Super Great Internet Show...lots of great programming each week.)


2. Follow me on Twitter. @socnorb777


3. Check out Craig Explains the Universe (The official Tumblr of Vertically Striped Socks)


Anyhow, thanks for stopping by, and until we meet again on the interwebs, Shalom and Good Evening to you all...



Friday, May 11, 2012

Vertically Striped Radio - Episode 162 - 05-11-12 - Laker Hatred is Good and Natural


Feel the Laker hate flow through you! If only you knew the power of the dark side! Craig gives in to his feelings and gives a Magnificent Seven of why everyone should hate the Los Angeles Lakers. Also, he celebrates mothers and makes an odd music recommendation based on the theme of the show.

Saturday, May 5, 2012

Vertically Striped Radio - Episode 161 - 05-05-12 - I'll Have Another



Cinco de Mayo was in full effect, so naturally VSR celebrated by honoring Barney Fife, as if that made any sense whatsoever. (We wait until very late in the show to honor him, but it DOES happen.)


Mostly what went down on Episode 161 was a whole lot of sports talk. Face couldn't make it to the show, but The Whale called in early and we yapped a bit about the Kentucky Derby, and Craig and The Whale announced the horses they were supporting along with the horses they would cheer against...based almost entirely on the horse names, of course.


Elevation called in after the horse talk, and we began a long discourse on the NBA playoffs with brief interludes about Mad Men and The Walking Dead. We take a small break from that chatter to watch a rather exciting Kentucky Derby. After the horse race, we put in a call to Bruce Dodge who helps us break down the NBA a bit further.


 Craig wraps up the show with a music recommendation from The Faces of "Ooh La La" and then follows it up with a remake of the same tune. (Then the Barney Fife spectacular at the end.)


Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Grizzlies Basketball is FANtastic!


The excitement of Grizzlies Basketball cannot be overstated. Also, I love this kid.