Denver-Biscuits and Books

We knew we needed to pack ourselves full of energy for our active day ahead, so we stopped to grab some breakfast at The Denver Biscuit Company. 

The Denver Biscuit Company is hip, but not in a pretentious way. More in a, wow, I am so in love this place, way. 

It's the cool spot that beckons you to call your friends and ask them to meet you for breakfast/brunch. 

I greatly appreciated the self-serve coffee area. You grab a mug.

Fill it up. Put in your fixins', and head back to your table. 

You can head on over and fill up your mug as much as you want. No waiting for a busy server to come over for a refill. It was a damn fine cup of coffee. I wish more restaurants would adopt a self-serve coffee station. 

We agonized over the menu. There were so many tempting choices.

I tackled my choice with the effort that many devote to large life choices, like choosing a college, or a house. I first narrowed things down to a sandwich. I spent time breaking down the individual elements of each sandwich, then ranked said ingredients from the one I wanted to most stuff in my face, to the least. Sausage Gravy was number one on the list. The housemade pickles ranked second. In the end, I chose The Franklin, and ordered a side of housemade pickles. 

Shannon also ordered The Franklin, which included buttermilk fried chicken, bacon, and cheese, smothered in sausage gravy, sandwiched inside of a biscuit. I know, it's not a health food. It's like food sky diving, don't think, just go for it. 

After our sandwiches arrived, we sort of just basked in their enormity for a minute.

At this point, I could spout off a bunch of eating descriptions, but I'm not sure they would do The Franklin justice. Trust me it was amazing. 

We weren't having an eating contest, but if we were, Shannon was the winner. 

I did not fare as well, but I did find enough belly space to eat every last bite of the perfectly spiced, perfectly fried, buttermilk chicken (I know that's bacon left on my plate, I'm really sorry, I promise I tried my best).

After getting properly caffeinated, and filling up on the ultimate comfort food, we stopped by Denver’s famous Tattered Cover Bookstore.

The inside of the bookstore was inspiring. It was a sea of dark wood shelves and books. 

There were places here and there where you could cozy up with a good read if you so desired. 

The windows were absolutely gorgeous. Interesting lights dangled from the ceiling, and the staircases were beautifully constructed.

And if I didn’t already love the store enough, I became convinced that it had been designed just for me. When I entered the lower level, I found that the Young Adult and Travel sections were right next to each other. 

Speaking of the travel section, it was super exciting to find a book written by one of the members of the South Jersey Writers’ Group , Peter N. Milligan, on Tatter Cover’s shelves. 

Spoiler alert, this book will make my favorite reads of 2016 list. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Even if you have no inclinations to run with the bulls, if you like travel, or food, you will like Bulls Before Breakfast.  

I felt like I couldn’t leave the store without getting something, but I certainly didn’t need another book to read, so since my little cat notebook that I’ve carried around to record my meals and other travel details is almost full, I got a new notebook.

I could have spent hours in The Tattered Cover Bookstore, but alas, we had more things in Denver to see. 

My High Altitude Simulation Test Experience

When I looked up information on having a High Altitude Simulation Test (HAST) completed, the information was vague, brief, and clinical. I couldn't find anything about what the experience of having the test done would be like. I thought I'd post my experience for anyone who might be looking for a little more than the clinical explanation.

When I met with my pulmonary hypertension specialist, one of the first questions asked was when did I first experience symptoms. Of course I couldn't tell that story without it being revealed that I travel quite a bit. Because I fly in airplanes several times a year, my specialist thought it would be a good idea for me to have a HAST completed. The test would mimic conditions in an airplane and would evaluate my oxygen saturation levels to see if I needed to bring supplemental oxygen with me when I fly. 

I arrived at Penn's Perelman Center for advanced medicine bright and early. This is my second visit to the center. It feels a little like visiting a fancy hotel. There are staff everywhere offering to help you, directing you where to go, there is even someone who coordinates the elevators. It makes you feel kind of special. 

I reported to Pulmonary Diagnostic Services and was greeted by Michael, who would be administering and evaluating my test. 

Michael was awesome! He was extremely friendly and very funny. I sat down on something that was halfway between an examination table and a chair. It was kind of like an examination throne.  

After getting some basic information, Michael explained in detail, step by step, exactly what the test would entail. I then had to sign a consent that said I wouldn't hold anyone responsible if I passed out or had a heart attack during the testing. 

The set up process took some time. I had sensors put in place to hook me up to an EKG machine. Another sensor was then placed on my forehead, and then my forehead was wrapped in a headband. The forehead sensor measured my oxygen saturation. I was informed that the forehead sensor is more accurate than using a finger clip. I was cool with that because the finger clip always makes me fidgety. I looked quite the sight. 

Next, Michael inflated a giant bag with a mixture that included only 15% oxygen.

The final step was for Michael to put nose clips on my nose, and for me to put the breathing register, that was connected via hose to the bag, into my mouth. 

The timer was then set for 20 minutes. 

For the first 15 minutes, I just had to sit and breath normally. Michael was great. He was talkative so I got to hear about his daughter wanting to attend college in Japan, he talked about the plane ride to Disney World, and a whole array of subjects. He kept what could have been a very boring and slightly awkward 20 minutes, interesting. At specific intervals, Michael would record my oxygen levels, my heart rate, and print out my EKG readings. Actually he said he was printing out more than the usual EKG readings because it had been a while since he had seen such beautiful heart rhythms. They were so perfect, I was clearly created in a lab by the government. Yes, that was my backstory. I must have escaped and I no longer have any memory of my time in the lab, but soon, according to Michael, I will discover that I can move things with my brain. Did I mention how great Michael was?  

After 15 minutes, I had to get up and walk. Some people are fine when just sitting, but when they get up and say, walk to the bathroom in the airplane, that's when they have troubles. This would explain why Betty in the Sky with a Suitcase (podcast) always has stories of people passing out on the plane. 

Michael started out walking with me, and then he broke out some entertaining dance moves. After walking for 5 minutes, the test was complete. It ended up being easy. Probably the worst part was that there's a growing saliva issue as the test progresses, and by the time you dislodge the breathing piece from your mouth, well it's sorta gross. 

Two things that could have happened during the test that didn't happen for me-  

- If they had trouble getting good readings, they would have to check my blood gas levels. Michael stated this is always avoided if at all possible, because getting your blood gas level checked is an unpleasant experience. 

- If my oxygen levels dipped under a certain number during the test, Micheal would have hooked up an additional tube into my breathing register. He would then start to pump in oxygen increasing the amount until my levels were at a safe range. This would have determined how much oxygen I needed on the plane. 

Fortunately neither of these events were necessary during my testing. 

Micheal unhooked me from everything. I joked about keeping the headband so that I could cosplay Eleven from Stranger Things. Michael happened to be watching Stranger Things so we geeked out together about the show. 

The good news, my oxygen levels never fell below the mid-80s, so at least for now, I don't need oxygen when I fly. Yay! 

Due to the nature of pulmonary hypertension, I'll probably have to repeat the test at some point in the future, but as long as Michael is there, I don't mind.

Because I'm a child at heart, and firmly believe that one should always be rewarded when having to endure medical tests, we stopped by Federal donuts.

Guess what they have? A churro donut! We ended up getting three donuts. I got the churro donut, Shannon got the blueberry pancake, and we split a tres leches. 

They were all really good. The churro donut however, was magical. 

The Franklin Institute-Science After Hours-Wizard School

From the moment we entered the Franklin Institute's main lobby at 7 pm, I knew it was going to be a fun night.

There were so many activities going on, and only three hours, so I had to make my choices carefully.

Only a few days before the event, Science After Hours revealed an added surprise, Harry and the Potters would be performing in the Planetarium. I've always regretted never seeing a Wizard Rock band play live when Wizard Rock was at the height of popularity, so I was ecstatic over the idea that I would get to see the most famous of Wizard Rock bands play. 

Before entering the Planetarium, we grabbed a beverage. Science After Hours is a 21+ only event. There are bars set up around the museum.

Pumpkin Juice - Juice + Butter Beer - Butter = Pumpkin Beer 

There were also at least two places with free alcohol tastings, but the lines were super long, so we skipped them.

Seasonally approved beers in hand, we stepped into the Planetarium. It was already very cool, and the concert hadn't even started yet. 

The Franklin Institute really knows how to throw an event. 

They changed the ceiling a few times during the concert. The moon was especially fitting during the My Teacher is a Werewolf song. 

The concert was amazing! They are really good musicians. 

Harry Potter, Harry Potter, and the ghost of Cedric Diggory had a ton of energy and really knew how to work a crowd. 

There was quite a bit of running through the audience and a little audience participation as well. 

I was so excited and had so much fun. Seeing Harry and the Potters live = Life Goal Complete. 

I saw people during the concert holding up their light up wands. I knew making a wand was what I wanted to do next. Unfortunately wand making proved to be so popular that they quickly ran out of supplies, so no wand for me. 

Since I wore my Hogwarts Express outfit, I wanted to get a picture in Franklin Institute's train room. 

The entrance was decorated. 

It was the perfect place to get a picture. 

I still feel strange about asking people if I can take a photo of them, but I did manage to get a few.

One of best things about being at The Franklin Institute at night was getting to go to the roof to see the giant telescope. 

It was an extra cloudy night, but we were still able to see the star Vega with the telescope. It was neat. 

After the telescope, there was only a little time left before the big finale, so we wandered into the Quidditch room, but all of the matches were over. There were tables where you could make origami snitches, but it looked a little too involved for the time that we had left. 

We did have time to try the dragon's breath. It involved graham crackers in liquid nitrogen. 

We were instructed to chew the graham crackers quickly and to not let them adhere to our tongues or to the inside of our mouths. The effect was a lot of fun.

The big finale took place in the lobby. Everyone gathered, and with wands held high (those who were able to make their wands before the unfortunate wand shortage that is) began the count down,

then a shout of INCENDIO!!!

The finale was spectacular. The fireball could have burned the eyebrows off of at least fifty Seamus Finnigans. 

It was a great night. I was extremely impressed by how organized the event was and by how many activities there were. Small touches and details really made the night. It was well worth the $15.00 admission. 

The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia hosts Science After Hours events every month. Each has its own, unique theme. I can't wait to attend another one. They sent me a survey and in the comments I suggested a Doctor Who night, fingers crossed.