Whoa! This year marks the first full calendar year I’ve been a denzien of the Denver area. So much stuff happened! Art! Politics! Music! Hobos!

So here are my musings on some of my favorite events and activities and sights from the year. I’m sure I’ll leave out plenty, so don’t be sad if your event/self is not on there. My brain isn’t what it used to be and I’m sure I loved whatever it was or is. Feel free to add your own “Bests” in the comments!

1.) b.sous and Chewbacca Bukkake Shows.

These guys are super. Whether punching out cute electropop ditties about Mondays or rocking our worlds with their Chewbacca sound, it’s been great to see them take the stage. My favorite show was probably their performance at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver, but the Meadowlark one was a solid contender as well. Catch them around town and in San Francisco in January!

2.) The Denver Art Museum.
I came to the DAM at 4AM on the night the new Libeskind-designed Hamilton Building wing opened, and little did I expect that it would be one of my most-frequented places in 2008. With free admission on the first Saturday of every month, I got the chance to see some great exhibitions, like the Daniel Richter show (up until January 11th!), a hilarious and thought-provoking video installation that pieced together bits of old Star Trek dialouge by an artist who’s name is escaping me at the moment, the Clyfford Still gallery, and lots of other great shows and events. It seems like so long ago my friends and I were hoofing it out of there and staying away in fear after my friend J.Money impulsively unplugged one of the electronic artworks on the Hamilton Building’s opening night…

3.) Rhinoceropolis
This City of Rhinos over on Brighton Boulevard just west of town has had a wealth of great underground and local bands this year, along with some fun shows. I was a particular fan of their photo showcase by various artists early this year, and seeing Milton Melvin Croissant play is always a kick. It’s smoke-filled and comfortable, and a great place to spend a late night.

4.) City O’ City

I’m there so often it feels like a second home. But in my home, I don’t have 2-for-1 Genny Cream Ales, nor do I have vegatarian buffalo wings. I’d never tasted buffalo sauce before (the heyday of the buffalo wing boom came after I’d switched to being an herbivore) and now I crave it constantly. They also have pretty spectacular tequila and whiskey nights, and the staff is great (big shout out to server Neal TePaske, who is a champion knuckles player.) Music and art are ever-present at City O, with their rotating shows (I think the Horndribbles right now are adorable) and Johnny DeStefano DJing on Thursday nights. I will likely be there to mark the new years, as I did last year.

5.) Biking
It’s great to get out and feel the wind in your hair. Thanks to my darling KellyRae, who is now off in New York, I actually have a grown-up bike (I had a kids bike from the 1970s previously, which is still great but takes a lot of legwork. No DUIs, no fear of getting a ticket at an expired meter. In the new year, hopefully organizations such as Bike+Ped will help us all make biking even better and safer in Denver

6.) The Laptop Store by Justin Beard

Justin Beard had plenty of great shows this year, highlights being his Messenger bike at the Arvada Center, his photos at Rhinoceropolis, a display at the Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design, but my favorite was hs Laptop Store set up at the 11th Avenue Gallery. Hoping to get a real-life laptop and enter the digital age, Justin created 150 laptops out of wood and paper that were true masterpieces. He sold them for only $10 each at the gallery for opening and closing night. And guess what? He just got his new laptop!!!

7.) Bingo

My obsession with Bingo took strong hold this year, and now I never want to be without a dauber in hand. Barry’s Bingo provided the lure of huge cash prizes and a serious game, and although I have yet to win there, I feel good things are in the balls for ‘09. At Sputnik, Brandi Shigley’s Blingo nights were a great way to start the week. Heck, this last Monday, Brandi even let me call a round of Bingo, and I was so giddy with excitement I didn’t even sleep that night. Yay for Bingo!!!

8.) The DNC
Now that Obama is safely elected, I can finally relax and enjoy the memories of the DNC. It was a fun-filled, at-times-trying week where delegates and supporters and visitors crushed in on our fair city. The art shows were spectacular, with our own Denver artists such as Laurie Lynxx-Murphy taking to the road in a mobile gallery, Anne Hamilton celebrating the power of the human voice with O, DJ Spooky mixing music to the wonders of Antarctica, Shepherd Ferry getting arrested for wheatpasting posters around town in conjunction with his Mainfest Hope show, and plenty of other great events. Watching the nomination speech by Obama was moving, even though I was in a bar instead of at nearby Mile High. Yes, it was quite an event.

9.) FM Magazine Parties
FM Magazine celebrations were some of my social highlights. The after-hours shindig at the Denver Art Museum was stylish and made me feel swanky, capped with an amazing fashion show, and the Office Party at Andenken was a blast simply to see all the outfits. The recent holiday gala at the Lab at Belmar was grand, and I even got my tarot cards read there! The magazine itself is pretty nifty, too.

10.) The Bluebird Equation

Hilarious and often disturbing lyrics (“I Want To Wear Your Skin” is one of my favorite of their “romantic” songs…) and comedic stage banter made this high-voltage nerd rock band a must-see this year. The BE’s Halloween show was a blast, if only to see all the band members dressed up as dead historical figures, and their recent Xmas Storytellers special at the Mercury Cafe was full of laughs (and made us all really, really uncomfortable) as lead singer Tyler sang his Xmas wish in the song “All I Want For Christmas is Two More Inches.” Their album is great, too.

11.) Fashion Denver Markets
Seeing all that local talent in one place is awe inspiring at these Fashion Denver events. These quarterly events are always on my calendar. Local designers all bring out their surpringly affordable wears, and the fashion shows always give me new ideas. I got some really great earrings shaped like rubber duckies there, and have been wearing them ever since.

12.) LOLcats.

I love them so much. I even got the I Can Has Cheezburger compilation book of LOLcats for Xmas.