2010 Denver NYE

 
This year, while Dobmeier was once again hosting Baltimore’s best New Year’s Eve party at the Pub Dog, I decided to see why everyone seems to be flocking to Denver as of late. Amy and I took off from Indy just before disaster struck, played Scrabble on her Kindle to pass the time in the Kansas City airport (did you know that quey is a word?!), and touched down in Denver on Thursday afternoon.

From there, much of what we’ve all come to expect from UD mini-reunions: drinking by noon, listening to Sas’ iPod in a hotel room, Brennan spending 15 minutes on a pointless story that he’s told 20 times. But despite all that, a great time was had by all. Here are some highlights:

Brennan’s Gumbo

Thursday night, Amy and I stayed at Brennan and Haley’s place. Their new neighbor Sas came by too. Sadly, we brought the snow from Indy with us and so Ben and Tory weren’t able to partake in the gumbo goodness. But don’t worry. It wasn’t a completely adult dinner party. Brennan still told the popsicle dick story, even though everyone but Amy had already heard it (and no one wanted to hear it again). Here’s the delicious gumbo recipe, patent pending:

1/2 white onion
1 bell pepper
3 pieces celery
3 cloves garlic
1 1/2 TBS butter
2 TBS flour
1/2 tsp sea salt
black pepper 10 twists
32 oz chicken stock
1 can diced tomatoes 19.5 oz
2 bay leaves
2 tsp Old Bay seasoning
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1 1/2 cup water
1 link Andouille sausage
1 link hot Italian sausage
1/2 lb crab legs
1 lb shrimp

The Plumber’s NYE party

Friday morning, we awoke to standing water in the kitchen…then we waited 4 hours for a plumber…then the plumber had to knock a hole in the wall…then Brennan handed the plumber the keys to his apartment and a beer from the fridge…then we left the plumber in the apartment alone for the remainder of New Year’s Eve. Roto Rooter – a name you can trust!

Rooftop

Ben used his plethora of soon-to-be-expired travel points to get a couple rooms at a downtown Denver hotel, and thanks to some detective work by Sas and Brennan, we were able to gain access to the roof just in time to see the fireworks, which were launched from the building next door. We were 8 floors up in -8 degrees and it was totally worth it.

Sas’ Walk Home

We went to a bar called the Ginn Mill (which we insisted on calling the Gin Blossoms) and it was packed to the brim, which encouraged our quick departure not long after midnight (also encouraging our quick departure – Brennan puking in the alley). But soon after we got outside, Sas disappeared. When we got back to the hotel, he was nowhere to be found…until he called. And for the next 30 minutes or so, I screamed “What intersection are you at?” while he would give me intersections like “18th and Chili’s” or “15th and Wells Fargo” until he’d forget he was talking to me altogether and put his phone in his pocket without hanging up. You’ll get his recap in the video below.

UD Basketball

Ugh. Is there anything more frustrating than watching the Flyers? When it went into the 2nd overtime, I opted to pack my suitcase rather subject myself to another 5 minutes of watching us suck slightly less than New Mexico. But, at the end of New Year’s Day, we were 1/5 of Sportscenter’s Top Plays.



So, fellow Denver attendees, what did I forget?

And what was everyone else’s NYE like?