Columns

Several readers of this column have called me during the last month to tell me they have had a “real honest-to-goodness Eastern blue jay” at their feeders. This is an exciting event, which seems to be occurring with more regularity each fall. They stay for a day or two and then usually disappear. This bold, sassy blue jay has apparently worked its way west along the water courses over the past many years.

By Lesley Dahlkemper
The voters of Jefferson County knew it was time to step up for the future of students when they gave a resounding “yes” to ballot measures 3A and 3B last November.
Voters’ generosity ensured that Jeffco Schools would not have to make $45 million in reductions during the 2013-14 school year. These reductions would have resulted in the loss of 600 jobs and the elimination of important programs for our students.

On Jan. 25, 1998, all was right with the world. That was the day the Broncos won their first Super Bowl, over the Green Bay Packers. After the game, I remember standing at a Conoco on Wadsworth, filling the car with gas and listening to car horns joyfully puncture the crisp night air. It was, in a word, blissful.

About a week after the November election, I sat down to lunch with two friends from my days in the legislature, one a former high-ranking AFL-CIO officer, and the other a conservative former state senator.