Meet Bree Halax!   “I’m a sustainable designer, but I also work in fashion. I like creativity and freedom in jobs and Boulder is a great place for that.”  Read More

One of the most common pieces of advice a Boulderite will give to a new resident is “Go check out the Dushanbe Teahouse,” but what’s so special about a teahouse? Well, ours was handcrafted in Tajikistan during the Cold War, and kindly shipped by our sister city of Dushanbe. The rebuilding of the teahouse in Boulder was an awesome accomplishment which nearly did not happen. The idea of a sister city or twin town developed from the Cold War following WWII. The point was to form legal and social bonds between disparate cultures, and even promote relationships between former enemies.... Read More

Through a combination of nostalgia and legend, some pieces of Boulder never fully disappear. Maybe the best example was an ordinary building in the middle of the Hill known as Tulagi. On walking inside, you were hit with the smell of decades of beer being poured, consumed, and spilled. Past the Tiki-ish foyer, you were deposited into the venue, with an open dance floor as simple as the stage at its head. On either side were raised sitting areas with built-in benches and stacked-stone walls, under-lit to give the feel of a cavern-come-club. Surrounding was a mural with various scenes—all sun-drenched... Read More

A Boulder resident in the 1940s remarked that Pearl street is “a good place to buy a pair of socks.” I think this adage holds true today, and that Pearl offers Boulder exponentially more to go along with those socks. Pearl Street is supposedly named for one of the wives of the original 54 founders of Boulder. However, I have also heard whispers that “Pearl” was a madam of a brothel once located near what is now Pearl Street. The first explanation is more likely, though I find the second more provocative and appealing. If I had to describe Pearl Street, I would say it’s an intermingling... Read More

FDGD is USA Today’s #5 Cultural festival in the country as of 2015. With a Facebook following around 12k and an annual turnout that consumes 50k in merchandise, 100 kegs, 100 cases of beer, and 9k in liquor drinks, things can get wild. We’re here to help you navigate the festival like a pro and get the most bang for any buck you spend. Many of the best events are free anyway! So why should this festival be on your bucket list? We asked a few people at former FDGD events to find out: “I’m from Kansas and my buddies in Colorado said I had to cone this year. They told me... Read More

The history of rock climbing and bouldering had its genesis with mountaineering and alpinism in the late 18th century, although climbing rocks had been a feat accomplished long before. In the 14th century, a Native American tribe called the Anasazi drilled holes and carved stairs into rock cliffs in Chaco Canyon, but it wasn’t until 1786 with the first ascent of Mont Blanc, that the ‘modern era’ of climbing truly came into being. The history of Boulder’s rock climbing and bouldering history began a little over one hundred years later in 1896 when a group of Boulder Hikers formed the Rocky... Read More

Meet “Buddy Boulder,” the mascot proving that even the gleaming citizens of Boulder sometimes make bad decisions. Or eerie ones at the very least. How was this grinning stone created? Well, in 1984 the Boulder Hotel and Motel Association had a “Mascot Mania” event whereby people were allowed to submit mascot ideas for the city of Boulder. The winners received cash prizes. You would think money would be incentive to create something inviting and recognizable. Sure, Buddy has the Flatirons on his head, but we just can’t stop looking at his cold, shifty, doll eyes. The... Read More

Have you ever looked at the Hill and thought “I would totally ride a giant slip and slide down that.” Well you are’t the only one. Is 1000 feet going to be long enough for you? That’s 3 football fields. July 18, 2015, a Guinness World-Record holding waterslide comes to Boulder, and will carry thousands of sliders down the landmark Hill. The slide will be placed on 13th street and will open at 9am. Sliders are organized into waves due to the sheer number of them—23,000 people are “Going,” according to Facebook. Unfortunately for those just hearing about it, the event is sold out, but... Read More

When oddly specific things become public problems, local legislation steps in to help. Today we will look at a few odds and ends Boulder city laws had to smooth out over the years. Hopefully we will boost today’s water cooler conversations. Nobody Owns Fifi Dogs in Boulder do not have “owners” according to any public ordinances. You can only be the “guardian” of a dog. This law requiring all public signage to call dog owners “guardians” is the result of animal rights activist calling for reform in the rhetoric surrounding pet relationships. It’s... Read More

You may hear Boulderites referring to a “greenbelt,” but what is that and why does Boulder have one? There was huge population growth in Boulder between 1950 and 1970. This growth was due to the presence of the University of Colorado, the intellectual diversity surrounding the university, and a strong local economy. At an annual growth rate of about 6%, the population of the city was set to double every 11 years or so. Being all about sustainability and preserving local culture, the citizens of Boulder took action against the human tsunami threatening to wash out the city. In 1967... Read More

Sometimes, getting lost leads to finding your new favorite trail. Sometimes, getting lost even leads to finding two of your new favorite trails. That’s precisely what happened last weekend, when my roommate and I stumbled upon some beautiful trails at the end of Flagstaff road. The first area we stopped to see was the Walker Ranch area. It was a pretty dry, expansive fields were filled with the charred remains of trees. A fire had struck Walker Ranch back in 2000, and it’s fascinating to look at how nature has rebuilt itself in the last fourteen years. While the area looks... Read More

As you may have heard, Boulder County’s most recent emergency warning systems test was Monday evening. Boulder’s flood season stretches from April through August, and that means the emergency warning systems need to be tested regularly. Flash floods are no joke, but neither are the 30+ sirens of Boulder County’s outdoor warning system. Following World War II most cities and towns in the United States incorporated siren alarm systems for civil defense. These were originally intended to warn civilians of impending air raids, hence the colloquial term “air raid sirens”.... Read More

In a recent study in Boulder, it was found that the city is leading the nation on gender equity. Currently, the national average for women’s wages are 84% of what men make. In Boulder the average is 88%. Boulder is obviously a special city, leading the nation in multiple avenues from preventative measures for climate change to progressive gender equality. This got me thinking about famous women in Boulder and the steps they have taken to catalyze change in their city and nation. If you were lucky enough to visit the Pioneers: Women Artists in Boulder exhibit last year at the Art Museum at... Read More

With the holidays over, we figured we should refresh our minds with something different today. Boulder has a very interesting architectural history, especially the university campus. We will touch on some defining Boulder architectural projects which you have probably seen around town. Next time you’re out and about, maybe you’ll encounter some of these oh-so-Boulder building projects. The University Campus Of course we cannot skim Boulder’s architectural past without bringing up the University of Colorado campus. It began with the all-brick Old Main and soon grew into several... Read More

Some of you have heard that Boulder is “25 square miles surrounded by reality”. Which is one way to say that the character of the city of Boulder is extremely different from other nearby cities. Today we will discuss how intellectualism has helped to create this unique reputation. There is a huge focus on anti-intellectualism in the United States. Many folks, especially politicians, discredit Education, Literature, Philosophy, Art, and Science as pursuits which are mostly impractical. None of these subjects seem vital for the “common man” to know. None of them will help... Read More

Recently, walking around Boulder and taking in the sites, I’ve noticed an ample amount of street art, most notably drawn/painted/stenciled by SMiLE, an anonymous Boulder artist. SMiLE’s repertoire ranges from portraits of Jack Kerouac and Brad Pitt, to a menagerie of animals, most especially cats. A little less than a year ago SMiLE had an exhibition in Boulder titled ‘Streets to Canvas’, and made a profound statement on the website promoting the event. SMiLE states, “Art has always been in the vanguard of the worlds changing consciousness, and Street Art is the contemporary form of this... Read More

Most of the West was divided up into straight-edged, boxy regions and subdivisions (take a look at poor Yuma County). Boulder County escapes the purely rectangular form of other counties in Colorado, and today we will tell you why. Plus, we will tell you why it’s named Boulder (but we bet you can guess). The need for Colorado to become a territory coincided with the secession of several southern states from the Union in 1861. Colorado applied for statehood that year, and offered the Union secure access to precious mineral deposits. Boulder County was one of the original 17 counties of... Read More

There is an argument to be made that architects don’t get their due. For every household name, such as Frank Lloyd Wright, there are thousands of people who spend their careers under the radar. Yet even lesser known architects literally and figuratively shape people’s lives by influencing the built environment in which they take place. Charles Haertling is a perfect example of such. His name is one many won’t recognize, but over the course of his life he left an indelible mark on our region. Born on October 21, 1928 in St. Genevieve, Missouri, Haertling joined the Navy in 1946, straight out... Read More

In the news yesterday, a UK based research team reported that a massive iceberg weighing more than one trillion tons broke off from western Antarctica. It is bigger than the state of Delaware, and surprisingly (and thankfully) scientists do not believe it will impact sea levels or coastal regions. The ice shelf was already floating before it broke off and therefore there will be no water displacement or sea level rise. Recently, students and professors at the University of Colorado, Boulder have been studying the effects of black carbon on ice and snow in ecosystems around the world. Black carbon... Read More

The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, based in Missouri, found that Boulder Colorado had the highest density of start-up companies per capita in the United States. Most of these sprouting businesses are technology-based, and many start and eventually settle in the city. But what is it about Boulder which makes it a breeding ground for new business? First of all, Boulder’s culture spans the distance between nature-loving outdoorsy people and highly-educated tech creators. To the west are the glorious Flatirons and innumerable natural wonders, meanwhile the university is researching more... Read More