Strombo's Mom

It pains me to have to say that this latest random and coincidental reference to my home town comes thanks to a certain quarterback's extended 15-minutes of fame by turning pigskin play into pulpit preaching. Nevertheless, it was this sweet Tweet treat from CBC's George Stroumboulopoulos concerning his Mom...

For the record, there shall be NO Tebowing here as a result of this latest co-in-key-dink!

Need a Shark Tank or Lap Pool?

After catching the Denver Broncos come from behind win over the Chicago Bears, I decided to venture out in the cold to grab some artery-clogging kibbles at Dangerous Dans, chocolate and Coke.

Nursing a nasty chest cold, Wes stayed back at the loft. Not wanting to start watching The Simpsons Christmas episode without me, he flipped over to CTV to mindlessly watch a show featuring architecture and a renovated building in Vancouver. So it's a Canadian network, a Canadian show about a Canadian city and Canadian architects.

One of the amazing features of this building is that the rooftop lap pool doubles as the skylight for the penthouse suite. Click on the YouTube link and I'll let the video pick up at this point...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMXEaVRrOos&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Of course, the only source in North America is, where else??!

Former Toronto Mayor Tweet

Quick check of my Twitter feed today and this one caught my eye as it mentioned a familiar city.

Are you seeing a pattern here - these things happen almost daily.

American Dad

Sunday night TV viewing...The Simpsons, Family Guy, American Dad, Shannon Sharpe. Shannon Sharpe??! Are you serious?! A character on American Dad playing an alien hunter for Stan's office in the C.I.A?!

Not Bob Costas...
Not Bryant Gumbel...
Not Jimmy Johnson...
Not Howie Long...
Not Greg Gumbel...
Not Terry Bradshaw...
Not Marv Albert...
Not Al Michaels...
Not Curt Menefee...
Not Cris Collinsworth...
Not Phil Simms...
Not Don Crique...
Not Jim Nantz...
Not Dan Diedorf...
Not Dan Fouts...
Not James Brown...
Not Dick Enberg...
Not Pat Summerall...
Not John Madden...
Not Dick Stockton...
Not Jerry Glanville...
Not Joe Buck...
Not Troy Aikman...
Not even John Lynch (a former Denver Bronco.)....
Not even Howard Cosell from the grave!

NFL Hall of Famer and former Senver Bronco Shannon Sharpe!

The only consolation is Stan's fantasy mountain ski lodge wasn't mentioned as being in Colorado.

Goodhandy's Sodom Jock Party

How I missed seeing this given how involved I am at Goodhandy's and even with the set-up while twinksitting for the decorating for the monthly Sodom Party, I'll never know. Nevertheless, as I was looking at all the posted pictures from the Sodom Jock Party from 19-November, it didn't take much for this picture to grab my attention. So now the question is...did someone already know my connection to the Mile High City, thinks of me in a "Daddy"-sense and thus figure this was a subtle hint that I qualify as a "DILF" or are there really no notable cities in all of Canada that begin with the letter "D?"

As we think about it...the first option seems more likely than the latter believe it or not! Go ahead...feel free to comment with the name of a 'notable' Canadian city beginning with the letter D. Until then, yes, we have to include this as a coinkeydink.

Four Square Mayorship

In my daily effort to give my Entourage and stalkers a fighting chance to get a glimpse of their idol, I make the effort to check-in pretty much everywhere on FourSquare. Of course the competition between Wes and I over point totals and Mayorships doesn't play a role at all.

But, i digress so, imagine my reaction and instant "yet another co-ink-a-dink" exasperation when I discovered the mayor of this check-in earlier today!

Toronto Diary: Toronto's gay blog on Xtra.ca

So the wicked sexy Jeremy Feist pens this blog on one of our local queer websites associated with the printed publication Xtra. Jeremy also has the title of Porndoggy...a position previously held by Goodhandy's co-owner extraordinaire Todd Klinck. I first met Jeremy while he worked at the club and I was doing the latest renovation. Are you getting all this kids?? There will be a test later!

So during my frequent feeble attempts to flirt with him, I'm surprised this hasn't come up earlier, but as I was catching up on his blog and specifically his entry about Remembrance Day, there was yet another coincidence staring me in the face. Jeremy's uncle...a member of the Canadian Armed Forces...is being treated for battle injuries, in where else?

Denver

CBC Daily Arts News Email

I subscribe to the CBC daily email news briefs - Toronto local, National and the Arts. Having already read about it during my usual perusal of other news and information websites, I knew the details, but it still amazed me that it ranked the second top storey in the Arts brief. Tells me this is a bigger deal than I imagined.

And guess what city is at the core of the details...

Denver, CO - home of the future Clyfford Still Museum.

Perez Hilton - Video Game Insanity

So, Wes and I are perched in our typical spots on each end of the couch, laptops whirling away as we're decompressing and mindlessly surfing. Mr. Completely-Connected-And-In-The-Know over there clicks on one of his regular serious news and information sources (PerezHilton.com) and I hear the all to familier exasperated sigh followed by "really?!" As the audio from the website begins emanating from the speakers, I hear a familier voice and theme and blurt out "that's Mark Mark Koebrich!"

Wes goes on to explain that he clicked on the headline: Man Arrested For Allegedly Threatening To Blow Up A Best Buy Over Sold Out Video Game! Sure enough, it happened in...

Aurora, Colorado (a neighbouring suburb of Denver.)

BONUS DOUBLE WORD SCORE FOR WES! He said he recognized the 9News logo almost immediately!

Tosh.O - Tebowing

Leave it to Danny Boy to bring us this latest coinkeydink concerning the Fifty-two-eighty. It was probably a given that he'd have to reference the part reverence, part mockery of the Tebowing phenom.

Ellen Show - Halloween Show

So a few days behind, but finally have some time to catch up on shows while cleaning. Neil Patrick Harris is a guest so of course my attention is higher towards the TV than paperwork, but I'm pretty sure even if it wasn't, I still would have caught the latest addition for this blog. The winners of today's contest win a trip to...

...Denver (and then Estes Park) for a weekend stay at The Stanley Hotel.

Eat St.

Okay, so it's the first time we tune into the Food Network's "Eat St" program. What kinda freak uses liquid nitrogen to freeze food and sell it out of a truck. Guess he can blame the thin air, cause you gots it. He's in...

Denver, CO.

Toronto P.A.T.H. TV monitors

So after catching a taping of the Steven & Chris Show at the CBC Broadcast Centre, we head down into the PATH to grab lunch and what should happen to be one of the international headlines on the info screens in the food court?

See for yourself.....

Trivial Pursuit App

So Wes and I are laying in bed winding down with our iPhones. I'm catching up on Facebook and brainiac next to me decides to pursue some trivia. For an orange triangle (sports & leisure) he's asked some bike race question or something. First, imagine my surprise that he answered a "sports" question. And second, the correct answer...

Purgatory, Colorado.

Oprah - Final Season

Getting all caught up in the hoopla around Oprah Winfrey's final shows after 25 years, Wes was doubly-engrossed in the heavily promoted show featuring an interview of Ralph Lauren.

Wes has had a long respect and admiration for fashion and specifically Mr Lauren's work and success. As I'm working at one of my handyman clients, I get a text asking something about what the name is of one of my favourite places in Colorado. Turns out Lauren's 17,000-acre Double-RL ranch is just outside, you guessed it...

Telluride, Colorado.

http://www.oprah.com/showinfo/American-Icon-Ralph-Lauren-and-His-Fascinating-Family_1

2012 Shen Yun Commercial

Wes and I come home from a wondering, window-shopping on a rainy day and turn on CTV Montreal to catch The Ellen Degeneres Show and on pops up a commercial for the Shen Yun production at the Place des Arts next months.

As Wes is making some funny quip about them needing a better seamstress who does better cuffs I interrupt his moment of witty banter to ask him to rewind the PVR.

Yup. One of the critic reviews noted on the spot...

"Extraordinary costumes" - Denver Post

Eaton Centre

Not officially a coincidence, but reminds me of home and missing my sister in Estes Park.

Xtra - Toronto GLBT newspaper

Headline in the 20-October 2011 Xcetera section: Out gay National Guardsman runs for office. And where has Brian Carroll decided to run?

28th House District in Colorado.

Golden Globes 2010

Watching the 2010 Golden Globes and Claire Danes is announced as the winner for Best Performance By An Actress In A Mini-Series (the first of numerous awards including an Emmy nod.) Her honours well deserved for her portrayal of Temple Grandin in an HBO production. Ms. Grandin was present at the awards in what I would later learn is her trademarked western shirt and bolo tie. This of course sent Wes and I too Google to find out more about it when we discover that Temple is in fact a noted and respected autism activist as well as animal behaviourist and professor at...

Colorado State University.

Stuck in nightmare traffic...

But of course the pick up in front, a reminder...

Best little balls in denver...

Casually watching Guy on the Food Network's "Diners, Dives & Drive-ins".... While posting on Extreme Home Makeover.... And yes yes one of the three restos featured were of course in Denver... Not the Cherry Cricket burger but close!

PBS Documentary: Pearl Jam 20 From Seattle

As I'm typing away the last entry here, Wes is flipping through the guide and says "wow, here's an interesting documentary for PBS."

Watching band members testify before a congressional hearing on the monopolistic and iron-fisted practices of TicketMaster (Clear Channel) and Wes all of a sudden chimes in: "that's Red Rocks!"

Sure enough...Denver's amazing and famous natural amphitheatre.

Extreme Makeover Home Edition

So Mr. Happy Go Lucky Ty Pentington is at it again with his gang of hundreds and nearly unlimited expense account off to make the world and home a better place for yet another well deserved and needy family.

So before the bulldozers doze and sledgehammers hammer this family from Pennsylvania aren't whisked away to the magic of Disneyland or World or the beaches of Florida or Mexico, this family and the paraplegic wheelchair-bound son are basking in the beauty of....

Colorado and The Broadmoor Resort.

P.S. after showing Wes has informed me The Broadmoor will be hosting our wedding and/or rehearsal dinner there.

Ellen

In the never enduring pressure to be bigger than Oprah, our favourite lesbian puts her generosity and promotion machine on the road in a decked out tour bus plastered with the exclamation: SWAGGIN' WAGON!

Loaded with her cheery, cheeky intern, billions of balloons and over-sized, non-negotiable uber-sized foamcore cheques, where would you imagine is our next lucky viewer in need. You guessed it!

Denver, Colorado

Antiques Roadshow Canada

So, we're tuning in looking for the 'oh my gawd!!" and "seriously, it's worthless" reactions and any guess what the guy with the antique gun or whatever was wearing?

A bright orange Denver Broncos sweater!

South Park

Based on the fact there really IS a South Park, Colorado (even though it's technically a county in the state rather than a town,) episodes of this show are exempt from consideration as a coincidence mention.

Although seeing Wes's reaction and fun he had experiencing the real Casa Bonita's gawd-awful food, the particular odor of Black Bart's cave and the dynamic mix of chlorine, CheezeWiz and soapapia honey hovering in the air, was so worth the visit a few winters ago.

Cool Tools

One of my favourite shows running heavily here in Canada on DIY and a few other networks is "Cool Tools.". As I was watching it, I couldn't help but recognise the neighbourhood and background of the host's house.

Yup. Filmed and produced in Denver.

http://www.diynetwork.com/cool-tools/show/index.html

Modern Family episode

Mannie is having a discussion and causally mentions "it's not like we're packing for a trip to Denver!"

Just A Coincidence?

As a native of the Mile High City of Denver, Colorado USA, I have great pride for this amazing city. Five years ago, I found myself leaving the city of my birth and my home for just over 40 years so begin a new life in Canada. While I moved over 2500km away from this Rocky Mountain gem, my love for it remains strong. So strong, maybe this love is the reason I seem to consistently experience moments of subtitle and not so subtitle mentions of my native birthplace.

This has extended to my partner Wes, a Canadian by birth which makes us both wonder why they seem to appear so frequently.

Coincidence? Or are these messages with a meaning? We'll have to see, but until then, I've decided to stat this blog as a way to document them as they happen.

Of course, the first several entries are catching up on previous incidents, but going forward, we are planning to note each of them here.