What happens when you put friends of Grant on a plane, ship them to Denver for a three-day weekend, and Grant helps plan the weekend? The answer a really great time, full of laughter, food, and a lot of single dollar bills. On January 7th, Grant turned 36. Just for record-keeping purposes—I (Luke) am only 34 so this makes Grant 2 years older than me. He is now in his late 30’s and I am still pathetically clutching on to the fact that I am still able to consider myself in my early 30s. Grant wanted me to clarify that it will only be for two more months then I am officially old like him.
The trip started with the first batch of friends, Kelsey, Chris, Allison, Louis, Erica, and Lara traveling bright and early (6:00am) from San Diego to Denver. There were a few more people originally going to come, but due to COVID they had to pull-out. We understand completely and judge those people a lot and do not have any hard feelings. Frontier only allows a back-pack for free so there was a slight hiccup with Chris and Kelsey attempting to check a bag. A large plastic bag provided courtesy of Frontier’s poor customer service was provided free of charge and so they were able to bring everything aboard. I personally think it was because Chris attempted a new way of getting around the backpack only rule by creating a head garment that stored clothes. It worked!
The plane landed two-hours after takeoff, so we loaded our rental van, then realized that van had issues, turned around and grabbed the real rental van. The number one issue as to why large groups have issues is because of hunger so that was dealt with right away. Kelsey found a great little spot called Stowaway Kitchen that had food for everyone’s dietary restrictions. My sandwich was particularly good, and I scarfed that down fast. Grant made up his own sandwich by combining two that they had on the menu, so he got exactly what he wanted as well.
After wandering around the area a bit and getting Lara her diet coke, we hit the road for our first nights shelter at Indian Hot Springs. Located approximately 30 miles outside of Denver, this hot spring pushes heated mineral water to various relaxation areas including pools, hot-tubs and caves. We couldn’t check in just yet, but we were able to enjoy the heated pool. Following our dip in the pool, we made our way over to the outdoor hot tubs. This was like a Goldie Lock’s situation with the pool not being hot enough and the hot tub being to hot. We ended up hoisting snow on the ground into the tub to try and cool it down. Imagine a 4-person hot tub being gingerly entered into by 8 grown adults….too hot…too hot…too hot. After having the tub open, and with enough snow, the hot tub was just right.
After our assigned hour, we were able to check into our respected accommodations. Some people stayed in the inn, others in the lodge, but we stayed in a cabin. The cabin itself was quaint and had everything that we needed. After our scheduled downtime of 30 minutes, we packed up everyone and drove to Hamburger Mary’s. Of course, RuPaul/VH1 blessed Grant with the gift of having the new season of RuPaul’s Drag Race premier on his birthday. The premier party was hosted by Jessica La’Whore and it was spectacular. The episode itself was interesting and during breaks the host would tell us interesting behind the scenes trivia and facts about the show. Like how she slept with some of the former contestant’s boyfriends and what outfit was stellar versus junk. Campy, not classy stuff.
The show ended and we raced back to the hotel for our evening entertainment. Grant had joked for years that he was going to order a stripper and so he finally ordered one for the evening. Note to self-- always always always review the photos before you purchase. If you don’t see photos – do not buy. Allison joked that she wanted Danny DeVito to be our stripper (ala Friends) and she got what she wanted. “Lion” called right before he arrived to let us know that a “stripper in training” was going to join us. We got a two for the price of one special. When the 5-foot 2 inch tall “Lion” arrived— I think everyone knew that this was going to just be funny, and boy was it hysterical. After showering them with way too many $1 bills they packed it up, snapped a few photos with us, and everyone went to bed.
The next morning, Best Dad of the Year candidate Chris volunteered to cook breakfast for everyone. Everyone slowly made their way over to our cabin where Chris cooked to order eggs, bacon, and sausage when they arrived. The timing couldn’t have been better as Holly, Chris D., and Erica arrived to join in the festivities. Following breakfast, we all made our way back over to the mineral caves. I forgot the locker key, so I went back to retrieve it. Evidently, I missed the memo that we were staying in our bathing suits, so I entered the cave in my birthday suit. After heating up, we made our way back outside to the outdoor hot tubs to cool down.
12 people surrounding a 4-person hot tub in the snow is only doable because of the drinks that were being passed back and forth. After an hour, our time was up so the entire group packed up for lunch. It was quite impressive that all the adults were able to collaborate and coordinate these transitions seamlessly. Beau Jo’s served Colorado style pizza, which I personally never had before. What made it unique was that it had a puffed-up crust that you pour honey over. It was different and I’ll have to try it again to give my final thumbs up/down verdict.
The general consensus was that the beds were super uncomfortable at the Hot Springs, so everyone was thrilled when we left and checked into our super comfy Sheraton in Downtown Denver. I think once everyone plopped down on their beds the desire to get back-up was a struggle. Apparently, Sheraton is known for their plush beds; so much so that you can purchase them. So you can imagine how welcomed these magical clouds were to us. Plus they had hairdryers and were not locked in a file cabinet stored under “H.” However, with the night just beginning there was no time to rest. Everyone got up and slowly met at Earl’s Kitchen and Bar off the 16th Street Mall. Everyone grabbed a drink and a small bite before heading off to Meow Wolf Denver.
Meow Wolf is like an acid trip without having to take any drugs. It’s visually stimulating, doesn’t make any sense, but everywhere you look there is something new and random to see. From the indoor castle to the pizza slice with 6-arms, if you could think of something weird it probably was in a room here. My favorite room, and I believe some others, was the whack-a-mole room where you had to crawl and pop your head out to see what was happening. While none of us were whacked in this room, Louis had an unfortunate run in with a door on his way out of Meow Wolf. It seems to be worse as I write this than at the time and I hope that it’s going down.
The final stop for the day and what turning into the beginning of Sunday was a trip to BoyzTown. It wasn’t quite a dive bar but it was far from classy; exactly what Grant wanted. The plan was to stay for 1 drink and then head back for a good-night’s rest. The main attraction was the live “go-go boys” who were performing sets throughout the night. The performances were “interesting” and even included a performer in an M&M costume. I feel like if there is ever a dollar bill shortage the first place to check is this place. We all went through so many single dollar-bills that evening! By hour three, it was clear that everyone had really gotten into it and was having an amazing evening. After some personal onstage entertainment for one of our group members (and not Grant surprisingly), we slowly began to trickle out of the venue and return to the hotel room.
I played DD the night before, so I was rested and woke up early. I wanted to wander around downtown Denver and see the big blue bear that was at the convention center. We made the Delectable Egg, a breakfast joint nearby, as the rendezvous point for everyone to regroup and get a game plan for exiting Denver. Denver’s airport is far from everything, but we made it with everyone in plenty of time. On the way back it was nice because those that didn’t go allowed those that did to have more space.
There was chatter about this being the best birthday party for Grant and I must agree that it was for me! Anything besides Palm Springs, am I right? This day would not have been as special if not for his amazing friends. We love each one of you guys! Here is to growing old with one and other!
P.S. Thank you Emily for you-know-what ;)