Mile high, so high

We made it to Denver just around midnight, worn out, emotionally exhausted, and (for me at least) out of my head.  I was numb.  I felt like just a little ghost of myself, shrunken in, lost, and disoriented.  It took me a while to process information and I would find myself just staring at the person addressing me.  And so, in this state, we reunited with Scott's brother, Vann and his girlfriend, T, who had stayed awake long enough to meet us.


We carefully avoided the situation that we faced, making light small talk, catching up on life in general and our trip.  Vann has this dog, Watson, that kept me together.  Dogs are therapeutic and I now understand why they use them in elderly care and therapy sessions.  Watson:

Yeah, he's awesome.  When he "works", he sits on your feet, warming them up.  T has this funny little sketchy dog that Vann nicknamed Shakes.  Her real name is Sophie but he said she reminds him of a character on Muppets from Space.  Sophie is sweet, super smart, extremely fast but very skittish around anyone but T.  I won her over eventually with treats and frisbee tosses.  Watson was less interested in the frisbee but took me up on every treat I offered him.  


We took the next day to recoup from the shock and the quick turn around from Utah with plans to head to Oklahoma that evening when it cooled down.  Vann took us around Denver to show us the new sites that have sprung up.  We ate lunch at Heidi's Brooklyn Deli.  They have a killer egg salad sandwich and some pretty good potato salad there should you stop in.


One of the newer issues that has cropped up in the years since we left Colorado is the medical marijuana industry.  Although the state began accepting and processing medical marijuana registry applications in 2001, initiatives have passed allowing it to proliferate the markets there.  The "Green Mile" has dispensary after dispensary along it.  Some interesting facts about CO and the medical marijuana registry (according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Colorado Medical Marijuana Registry, as of Nov. 2009):

• 30, 919 total number of patients who currently possess valid Registry ID cards
• 74% of approved applicants are male
• The average age of all patients is 40
• Patients on the Registry represent all the debilitating conditions covered under Amendment 20. Severe pain accounts for 91% of all reported conditions; muscle spasms account for the second-most reported condition at 30%
• Over 900 physicians have signed for patients in Colorado