Syrian refugee finds home in Lafayette
• Classes start January 6
• Enrolling now for all levels at Boulder Ballet School • Opportunities to perform alongside Boulder Ballet's Professional Company • Excellent versatile dance training in a warm and welcoming environment
BY PATRICIA J. RETTIG
Imagine a best-selling, 900-page novel using “a sad, bewildered nothing of a river” as its centerpiece, connecting the earth’s geologic origin and dinosaur age to 1970s rural Colorado.
Now imagine that novel becoming a touchstone for its times, yet still relevant today, as our nation approaches its 250th anniversary. The book is James A. Michener’s Centennial, an unlikely novel
published a half-century ago. By creating a microcosm of the country, he explained America to itself in anticipation of the 1976 bicentennial.
That the Pulitzer Prize-winning Michener chose the West as his landscape — and the little-known South Platte River on Colorado’s northeastern plains — is surprising only in that this was his first epic novel related to the U.S. mainland.
DECEMBER 19, 2024
Volume 32, Number 18
PUBLISHER: Stewart Sallo
PUBLISHING CONSULTANT: Francis J. Zankowski
EDITORIAL
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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Rob Brezsny, Michael J. Casey, Natalie Kerr, Patricia J. Rettig, Dan Savage, Joseph P. Schacht, Alan Sculley
COVER: Natalie Kerr
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But ever since he briefly lived in Greeley, Colorado, in the late 1930s before his writing career began, the winding South Platte River stuck with him. As a young college professor, Michener recognized the wealth of stories resulting from the hardships of people surviving in an arid area.
After Michener’s service on a national bicentennial committee left him frustrated, he decided to return to the Centennial State, Colorado, which gained statehood in 1876. He hoped to tell a tale of the American experience, and in the opening chapter a character states, “If we can make the Platte comprehensible to Americans, we can inspire them with the meaning of this continent.”
As Boulder County’s only independently owned newspaper, Boulder Weekly is dedicated to illuminating truth, advancing justice and protecting the First Amendment through ethical, no-holds-barred journalism and thought-provoking opinion writing. Free every Thursday since 1993, the Weekly also offers the county’s most comprehensive arts and entertainment coverage. Read the print version, or visit boulderweekly.com. Boulder Weekly does not accept unsolicited editorial submissions. If you’re interested in writing for the paper, please send queries to: editorial@ boulderweekly.com. Any materials sent to Boulder Weekly become the property of the newspaper.
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Forgoing stereotypical Western stories of railroad builders and farmers’ daughters, Michener fictionalized selected histories of settlement and created relatable characters.
Native Americans, French trappers, Mennonite settlers, farmers of GermanRussian descent, English ranchers, Mexican and Japanese laborers — all depended on the South Platte River and its tributaries in the dry, inhospitable land. They also had to depend on each other.
By starting with the land’s formation, Michener depicts every character as an immigrant. He estimates human arrival in the region at about 12,000 years ago, and those Indigenous peoples and their descendants remain present throughout the story. As more people arrived and society evolved, everyone built lives in relationship with the river.
For many, the river provided a pathway to the West. For a few, it revealed golden nuggets, though the real wealth was the water itself.
Yet what Michener presents as progress gradually becomes recognized as unsustainable. The memorable Potato Brumbaugh has not only the innovative idea of irrigating crops but also the radical concept of digging a tunnel under the Rocky Mountains to import water from west of the Continental Divide. When this source is not enough, groundwater pumping increases, with dire consequences.
Such innovation — water-related and otherwise — is important to understand today, but also significant is knowing the history of how communities got built. Michener shows the conflicts that arose with each wave of newcomers bringing their own ideas about how to live.
He also demonstrates changing attitudes, including acceptance of racial differences and increasing dismay over environmental destruction. His story concludes in the early 1970s, referencing Watergate, international conflict and immigration. Characters face inflationary times and polluted air and water. They know they need to solve the coming water shortages.
Not much is different today.
The key difference is that as Michener’s characters decry the environmental damage caused by their ancestors and neighbors, they also recognize they need to know their history and honor their longstanding connections to the land and water.
This is what modern humanity has forgotten. Through the innovations of pipes, plumbing and chemical treatments, we have relegated our rivers to the background, as if they were merely an unending supply of water at our command. We have lost our connections to natural resources, to history, to each other.
As we now prepare for our 250th anniversary, Centennial, both the 1974 novel and the groundbreaking 26-hour television miniseries airing from 1978 to 1980, reminds us of the country’s strengths.
Nearly 900 pages in, a character skips a Colorado-Nebraska college football game to survey the South Platte by plane. As he nears the Nebraska state line, he says, “No one in Colorado will believe it, but this river is more exciting than football.”
Imagine if more people, in all states, felt the same way.
Patricia J. Rettig is the archivist for the Water Resources Archive at the Colorado State University Libraries.
Boulder Weekly received this letter from Downtown Boulder CEO Bettina Swigger in response to our story on empty offices and the impact to downtown restaurants (“Unoccupied and uncertain,” Dec. 12)
It’s been our honor and privilege over the years to serve you — providing gathering spots, great food and hospitality for your celebrations, family dinners, first dates and all of the magical, everyday moments in between. We love being a part of this vibrant community. We hope to continue serving you for years to come.
The last few years have been brutal for our industry. While it’s harder than ever to run our restaurants, it is still an absolute joy to be able to serve our community. With hospitality as our guiding light, we are dedicated to keeping the entrepreneurial spirit of downtown Boulder alive and thriving.
Your choices mean everything to our community. When you choose to dine at a local restaurant, enjoy a coffee on Pearl Street or bring a friend downtown, you’re investing in the heart of Boulder. Your support helps us strengthen our economy by creating jobs, supporting regional agriculture and keeping money circulating locally.
Every dollar spent in a local restaurant contributes more than double that amount to our economy. As small, independently owned businesses, restaurants fuel our collective growth and your support helps maintain downtown Boulder as the warm, thriving community we all cherish.
For us, every dish and drink we serve you is much more than a transaction — it’s a meaningful connection and a lifeline for our businesses.
During the holiday season and throughout the winter months, please keep our downtown Boulder dining (and shopping) community in mind when you are planning celebrations or just looking for a break from cooking. With
your support, we can keep our doors open, our tables set and downtown Boulder as lively and lovely as ever.
Thank you for being there for us. Together, we can keep the heartbeat of Boulder beating strong.
With deepest thanks, your downtown Boulder restaurant community:
Jon & Erin Banis, Japango
Jeff & Kristin Chayer, Silver Vines
Winery
Travis Christ, Avanti Boulder
Kevin J. Daly, Mountain Sun Pub & Brewery
Bryan Dayton, Oak, Corrida, The Colorado Club, Bellota
Stefano & Rachel Demartin, PASTA PRESS
Josh Dinar, Dan Asher and Chef Kevin Grossi, River and Woods Restaurant
Jay Elowsky, Pasta Jay’s
The Fetzer Family, Bitty & Beau’s Coffee - Boulder
Brad Heap, SALT Dustin Hillard, Rio Grande
Mexican Restaurant
Alexsys Irizarry, Ben & Jerry’s John Jenkins, Laughing Goat Coffeehouse
Peter Jones, Trident Booksellers & Café
Jess Liu, Creature Comforts Cafe
Jessica Luginbill, Cristos Coffee
Lenny and Sara Martinelli, Jerry Manning and all of our supporting team (The Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse and Leaf Vegetarian Restaurant)
Michael Mehiel and Brian Pierce, Gemini and High Country
Tony Milazzo, The Sundown Saloon Marcy Miller, Organic Sandwich Company
Craig Moelis and Mitch Arden, Foolish Craig’s Cafe
Michael Moore and Andy Crawford, Attic Bar & Bistro
Jake Novotny, Jungle
Armando Oseguera, Pedro’s Taco and Tequila Bar
Dan Polovin, Mustard’s Last Stand
Dave Query + Dana Faulk Query
Big Red F Restaurant Group
Vajra Rich + Cara Rich, Boxcar Coffee Roasters
Joe and Peggy Romano, Brasserie Ten Ten
The Team at Rosetta Hall
Dan Shaffer, Pizza Colore
Lindsay Shaw, Lindsay’s Boulder Deli at Häagen- Dazs
Jill and Eric Skokan, Bramble & Hare
Bistro and Black Cat Organic Farm
Jim Sonn,Pearl Street Pub & Cellar
Zdenek Srom & Angelie Timm, Bohemian Biergarten
Bobby Stuckey, Lachlan MackinnonPatterson and Peter Hoglund at Frasca Food and Wine, Pizzeria
Alberico
Aaron Thebault, Skratch Labs Cafe
Andrea Uzarowski, Süti & Co Cafe and Shop
Mark Van Grack, Hapa Sushi
Peter Waters, T/aco
Shelley Yates, The Post Chicken & Beer and The Velvet Elk Lounge
Artine Yapoujian, Brewing Market Coffee and Tea
Armen Madoyan, Kalita Grill
Greek Café
Sarah Morgan, Martini’s Bistro (Longmont)
Alec Schuler, Tangerine Restaurants (Boulder, Lafayette, Longmont)
Aaron Steinke, Estate Brands
Distributing Company and Colorado Vodka Company
Kelli Turner, Cold Stone Creamery in Boulder
Timothy E. Schiel, Subway Sandwiches of Boulder
I was intrigued to read Allen Best’s opinion piece, “A Climate Crisis, But Not a Catastrophe,” (Nov. 27) on the path to “decarbonize” Colorado.
As an advocate for a transition away from dirty fossil fuels AND protection of our biodiverse, carbon-storing forests, I’m personally doubtful of the statement from Aspen-based Holy Cross Energy that it might “achieve between 95% and 100% emissions free electricity by 2030.”
According to the Holy Cross Energy website, in 2023 35% of its energy came from coal, 9% from gas, and 6% from “market sources.” Of the 50% “renewable” energy, hydroelectric was 3%, solar 4%, wind 36%, while 7% came from burning trees and parts of trees from logging public forests, what the industry calls forest “biomass” energy.
Not only isn’t incinerating trees “emissions free,” biomass facilities — including Eagle Valley biomass in Gypsum, from which Holy Cross got electricity until the facility closed in April — spew “approximately as much CO2 per unit of energy generated as coal,” according to a December 2023 study of biomass emissions. Any increase in logging results in “a permanent increase in atmospheric CO2 concentration,” according to other peer-reviewed studies. That’s not to mention particulate matter, carcinogenic formaldehyde and benzene, volatile organic compounds and other toxic air pollutants.
Please don’t misconstrue pointing out these facts as an endorsement of fossil fuels. To the contrary, what I’m suggesting is we cannot “decarbonize” by switching out one climate-busting energy source for another that’s just as bad (or worse).
Ultimately, if a transition away from coal, gas, oil, nuclear and other polluting, industrial-scale energy is going to work at all, we must put equal (if not more) effort into curbing our everincreasing consumption of energy — and the natural world in general — that corporations, governments, our entire economic system and so many of us individually continue to demand.
— Josh Schlossberg, Nederland
What your local officials are up to this week
BY BOULDER WEEKLY STAFF
Due to the holidays, this is the last Gov’t Watch of the year. It will return in the Jan. 9 edition.
On Dec. 16, the city:
• Opened the online application portal for residents seeking appointment to fill the vacant Ward 2 seat on city council. The seat became available after councilwoman Marcia Martin, who has been living in New York and participating in meetings remotely since May, announced her resignation effective Dec. 31.
The application period will close on Jan. 8. Council will conduct public interviews of selected applicants in place of its open forum on Jan. 21 and vote to select a new Ward 2 representative after the interviews are completed. Apply: bit.ly/Ward-2application.
On Dec. 17, council:
• Gave a preliminary OK to allowing marijuana hospitality licenses in the city. If the ordinance is approved on second reading, up to four businesses will be able to allow on-site use of cannabis, such as smoking or infused massage oils. Outdoor consumption will not be allowed.
A second vote and public hearing is scheduled for Jan. 23.
• Approved plans for an In-N-Out Burger at 735 Harvest Moon Drive, near the Costco on Ken Pratt Blvd. The restaurant will have a drive-thru that can accommodate 29 cars.
“All roads adjacent to the subject property have sufficient capacity to accommodate any additional traffic this use may create,” city staff wrote in notes to council, “and the drivethrough is oriented on the site to minimize the risk of spillover stacking on adjacent roadways.”
• Appointed 26 board and commission members to fill 38 vacant seats. Boards welcoming new members inclue the Airport Advisory Board, Planning and Zoning Commission, Housing and Human Services and the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board.
On Dec. 17, council:
• Voted to increase the salary for City Administrator Kady Doelling to $250,450 following her one-year performance evaluation on Dec. 3. This includes a market-rate salary increase of $31,000 and a meritbased increase of 4.5%. Approval was also given to allow the title city manager to be interchangeable with city administrator.
• Approved a new contract with Axion Enterprise Inc, the current provider of body-worn cameras and services to the police department. The oneyear contract comes with the option for four annual renewals; renewals require council approval for funding. First-year costs are $197,234.
• Voted unanimously to update the city’s camping ban ordinance. The vote was initially scheduled for Dec. 3, but council postponed a vote over concerns that the language required immediate removal of camps.
New language clarifies that camping citations must include a date and time by which people must relocate. The ordinance also also specifies that municipalities cannot ticket or arrest people camping on public land without first issuing a written order to move and advising them of available shelter options. Exceptions allow for immediate removal if structures are in the public right-of-way or next to stormwater facilities, or if the city determines the camp poses a threat to lifesafety.
The changes come after the Grant’s Pass ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court, which allows local governments to penalize people for living in public spaces.
All agenda items subject to change. Karen Norback contributed reporting.
By Louisa May Alcott
Adapted and Directed by Jessica
Robblee
Bring your family to the Dairy this holiday season and spend some time with the March family. Relive their adventures, their passionate loves, their ups and downs and their joy in being together.
Dec. 5 – Dec. 29
Dairy Arts Center | Boulder
SUBSCRIPTIONS & TICKETS at BETC.ORG
BY BOULDER WEEKLY STAFF
Naropa’s Center for Psychedelic Studies (NCPS) will no longer be affiliated with the university, it announced Monday.
The new independent entity, renamed Memoru Center for Visionary Healing Arts, will expand the center’s offerings to include clinical care and research in addition to training in psychedelic-assisted therapies, according to a Dec. 16 release. The founding NCPS team is teaming up to launch the center with Boulder-based therapists and researchers who previously worked on Lykos Therapeutics and Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) clinical trials for MDMA-assisted therapy.
A Boulder-based clinic offering psilocybin and ketamine therapies will likely open in the first half of 2025, according to the center’s director, Joe Harrison.
“It creates a more overall robust program,” he said in a phone call with Boulder Weekly. “The clinical care, actually delivering the medicine and doing the practicums, was impossible to do under the university umbrella.
“Psilocybin is a federally illegal drug,” Harrison said. “So even though it’s legal in the state of Colorado, it would have put that federal funding in jeopardy for the university.”
The announcement comes after the university in November paused its psilocybin facilitator training, scheduled to begin January 2025, due to insurance coverage issues. Harrison said the center is now “reassessing” whether that program will happen.
“The market seems to be shifting toward more advanced trainings,” he said. “So we may replace the psilocybin facilitator training program” with more focused, high-level programs, such as for end-oflife care or veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The center’s foundational Certificate of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies program (CPAT) will continue and will also meet the state’s requirements for psilocybin facilitator certification, he said: a 40-hour practicum in addition to 150 hours of instruction.
The new center has inherited Naropa’s state license to offer psilocybin facilitator training, and is in the process of transferring the university’s Oregon certification.
All NCPS staff will now be part of the new organization, and current NCPS students “will not be impacted,” according to the release, with the exception of the Bachelor of Arts Psychedelic Studies Minor, which will remain at the university.
Boulder County announced $3.95 million in funding for 21 community, city and county programs addressing opioid use in a Dec. 16 press release from county officials. The funding is a chunk of the more than $30 million in opioid settlement dollars it expects to receive through 2038 — the county’s share of an award from Colorado’s lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies for the over-prescription and deceptive marketing of painkillers. Funding was available for programs in five different goal areas: substance use prevention and education, overdose prevention and response, harm reduction, treatment and recovery.
The county awarded $2.96 million in funding from opioid settlement dollars from 2023 to 2024.
Programs will receive funds for 2025 and 2026. Award recipients include the City of Longmont’s REWiND program, Boulder County Public Health’s Youth Opioid Overdose Response program and recovery facilities across the county. The funding also provides dollars for harm reduction vending machines, stocking with overdose-reversing Naloxone, to CU Boulder Boulder and Boulder Community Health.
• The historic Boulder County Courthouse has been designated a National Historic Landmark for its significance in LGBTQ+ history, county officials announced Monday, Dec. 16. Boulder County Clerk Clela Rorex issued the first same-sex marriage license in the nation there in 1975.
• CU Boulder cornerback and wide receiver Travis Hunter became the second Buff to win the prestigious Heisman Trophy on Monday, Dec. 16. Hunter also set CU’s single-season record for most touchdowns by a Buffaloes receiver (14) and last week was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.
• Participants in Elevate, Boulder’s direct cash assistance initiative, are more able to afford food, rent and utilities, according to a report on the eight-month old pilot program, along with experienced reduced psychological distress. Read more: bit.ly/ElevateReportBW.
“I’m going to use the bathroom, mom.”
Rohan Mesto jogged up the hill and ducked behind a tree, unaware those were the last words he would speak face to face with his mother. Moments earlier, Mesto had snuck his phone away from his father, who planned to try and cross the border into their home country of Syria in the coming days. But Mesto can’t go back.
In a split-second decision, Mesto decided to escape toward the Lebanese border. He ran away from his family, toward a Lebanese army that would have shot him on sight if he was spotted. He was 16 years old.
Today, Mesto is 22. He lives in Lafayette as a refugee through the
Welcome Corps program, a refugee sponsorship program established in 2023. His journey leaving the Middle East for the United States was long and treacherous, involving five American sponsors, two Boulder County nonprofits, four years in Lebanon and a painful estrangement from his parents.
“Every day, maybe you wake up and you say, ‘OK, I’m gonna do this tomorrow, and the day after, I have a plan to do that,’” Mesto said. “But for my case, am I going to wake up tomorrow?”
Lafayette is quiet compared to Beirut, Lebanon and Aleppo, Syria. Mesto misses living near the ocean, which was a source of calm when he was over-
whelmed. But he has filled his life with friends, family, work and hobbies.
Mesto works at Starbucks, attends Community College of Denver to earn his GED and plays guitar in his free time. He uses WhatsApp to message and video chat with his two younger sisters and brother, ages 9, 12 and 14.
It has been five years since he’s seen them, or his parents, who have refused to speak to him since his fateful sprint for the Lebanese border.
“They said, ‘How dare you run away from your family? We don’t want you anymore,’” Mesto says.
Mesto chose an uncertain and lonely life in Lebanon over one with his family in his home country. Though Mesto is a Syrian Arab, he is ethnically Kurdish, leaving him vulnerable to persecution by the Syrian regime and conscription into the armed Kurdish rebel forces.
“Even though I’m Syrian, if you’re Kurdish, you’re different,” Mesto said. “They treat you like trash.”
Syria has been in civil war since 2011 after widespread discontent with former president Bashar al-Assad triggered mass protests. Mesto’s family fled from Aleppo
to Lebanon in 2013 when he was 11 years old. Once there, Mesto stopped attending school to help support his family.
For seven years, his family lived in Lebanon. But the COVID-19 pandemic began, the Lebanese October Revolution broke out and Mesto’s father lost his job. He decided the family was going back to Syria.
“I said, ‘No, we can’t,’ but we went as a family,” Mesto said. “I’ve been forced by power to go to Syria.”
They crossed the Lebanese border with little trouble, heading toward the Syrian checkpoint with identification to prove they were Syrian citizens. But they were blocked from entering: The border was closed due to COVID-19 lockdown restrictions and no one was allowed in the country, even citizens like Mesto’s family.
“My dad said, ‘OK, let’s go back to Lebanon, let’s stay for a few more days until the border opens,” Mesto said. “So we went back to the Lebanese border, and they said, ‘You can’t go to Lebanon.’”
Stuck between the Lebanese and Syrian border, his family slept in the AntiLebanon mountains for four days with no fire or tent to protect them from the cold night air. They had hardly any food or water, besides what they could purchase from a truck that drove through the mountains each day. To stay warm, Mesto wore two pairs of pants and five shirts, his only belongings.
On the fourth night, the Lebanese army opened fire, hoping to push the family and a group of other stranded people toward the Syrian border. Mesto watched in horror as a little boy was shot in the arm, a man was shot in the leg and another man was beaten by soldiers.
He ran, holding the hand of his little sister, but a soldier struck Mesto on the head, knocking him unconscious and separating him from his family for hours. He walked through the night, eventually finding his family at 2 a.m. As he sat with them, watching the sunrise, he decided he couldn’t take it anymore.
“Even though the Lebanese army would shoot me and may kill me, it’s better than going to Syria,” Mesto said.
He swiped his phone from his dad, who had taken Mesto’s wallet, phone and ID to prevent him from leaving them, and he fled. He recalls running through
the mountains during his escape to Lebanon. Several times he spotted the Lebanese army. He feared they had also seen him, and that any second he would be dead.
Eventually, he made it to a highway in Lebanon. After days without electricity, his phone had just 2% charge. He used what was left of his battery to call a friend, who sent a car to pick him up.
Though finally safe, the loss of his family weighed heavily on Mesto during some of the most formative years of his life. He was only a teenager, having to make his way in an uncertain world without the help or comfort of his parents.
“I grew up lonely, and watching other families, like a mother with her son hanging out: ‘Oh, where’s my mom?’ Or a dad playing with his daughter or his son: ‘Where’s my dad?’” Mesto said. “I still have this gap in my heart.”
For four years, Mesto lived alone in Beirut. His multi-lingual skills — Mesto speaks German, Arabic, Kurdish and English — helped him get a job working as a travel guide and translator for tourists. He purchased a small apartment by the port, where he could see the blue waters of Saint George Bay from his window.
He enjoyed the hum and energy of the city and walking along the beach at night. The lapping waves helped keep thoughts of his tenuous status at bay.
Though he was protected by the United Nations as an official Syrian refugee, Mesto was also subject to Lebanese law, which in some cases could overrule the U.N. He worried constantly that corrupt forces in Lebanon would strip him of his residency and send him to Syria, where he expected to die.
The only way to prevent that was to get out of Lebanon. Mesto applied for visas in Germany, the U.K. and Switzerland. All were denied, he says. His faith that another country would accept him grew weaker with each rejection.
So when a woman told him about a new U.S. program called Welcome Corps, he assumed it was a scam.
“Thank you so much for trying to help, but there is nothing like that,” Mesto remembers saying to her at the time. “I know a lot of Americans, and I’ve never
heard of this before. She said, ‘No, it is true. Think about it.’”
That woman was Susan Bryant, a lawyer from Longmont who met Mesto while traveling in Lebanon in 2023. Weeks after she returned home, she was still thinking of the joyful and resilient man she met in Beirut.
“I was so taken with how he’s overcome the trauma,” Bryant said. He “just wants to lead a happy, safe life and be able to be productive, support his family and start a family of his own and get an education.”
She called Mesto and implored him to apply to the Welcome Corps with her and her husband Amine Tarhini, a LebaneseAmerican, as sponsors. But Mesto would also need three other people who live in or near Longmont to sponsor him as well.
Of the hundreds of people Mesto met each year through his job, he already knew at least one person from Boulder County: Kathy Hart. Mesto was her translator for several months during a volunteer mission in Lebanon, and during that time they became close friends.
Hart lives in Lafayette and has been helping refugees find asylum through her nonprofit, International Family Missions, since 2013. When she met Mesto on her travels to Lebanon in early 2023, she’d been struck by the positivity he maintained despite the severity of his situation. She could also sense his deep loneliness, so she kept in touch when she returned to the U.S.
“There’s just no words for the desperation,” Hart said. “It’s like, ‘We are trapped. You can’t go back, can’t go forward, and they don’t want us here, and we have no rights here.’
“Especially as a young guy, it’s like, ‘I have no future.’”
Hart agreed not only to help sponsor Mesto, but to find two additional sponsors for him: Steve Brooks, also a Lafayette resident, and his wife Susan Brooks. The executive director of Mesto’s thenemployer, Boulder-based nonprofit Christian ministry Horizons International, rounded out the group of five.
Only Bryant was familiar with Welcome Corps; the others were skeptical, but decided to undergo the required background checks, four hours of online train-
ing and 20-page application — and pony up the $2,425 in dedicated funding intended to support Mesto once he arrived.
The group submitted the application in summer 2023. Months ticked by with no update from the U.S. Department of State, which operates Welcome Corps. Hart encouraged Mesto and his sponsors to keep believing things would work out.
“It was a leap of faith,” Hart said. “I kept saying to him, ‘Trust God in this.’”
On Dec. 31, 2023 — the very last day applicants would be notified of their acceptance or rejection — the group received word: Mesto had been approved.
It was “the best New Year’s Eve present ever,” Hart said.
The good news came with a disclaimer. Processing Mesto’s application to come to the U.S. could take anywhere from nine months to five years — an unfathomably long time for the 21 year old.
“Five years? You know what, screw it,” Mesto said. “I want to leave tomorrow.”
Mesto couldn’t go back to Syria. The Lebanese government had stopped allowing him to renew his residency, and traveling without legal documents could get him arrested at a checkpoint. He felt stuck and completely out of options. He began making desperate plans, including one
that involved bribing smugglers to bring him to Russia. From there, he would sneak into Belarus, then Poland, then Germany, where he could claim asylum.
But in March 2024, a mere three months after his application had been accepted, Mesto received word that it had also been processed: He could come to the U.S. By June 13, Mesto was on a plane to Chicago, nose pressed against the small oval windows for the entire 12-hour flight.
“They advised me to use the aisle seat so you can use the bathroom,” Mesto says. “Screw the bathroom. I would sit by the window and just look.”
Mesto lived with Brooks, one of his sponsors, when he first arrived in Colorado before eventually moving in with Hart at her home in Lafayette. Brooks taught him how to drive so Mesto could get his license, and Bryant recommended he attend classes at Intercambio, a local language education nonprofit, to strengthen his reading and writing before he applied to colleges.
Though Mesto is fluent in English, “I really enjoyed it,” he said. “The teachers at Intercambio were so nice. They did their job well.”
An added benefit was the friends Mesto made from all over the world, he said. Brooks believes Mesto’s “delightful personality” helped him adjust quickly to life in the United States.
“We focus a lot on our relationships, that’s our main goal,” Gallo said. “The first step they take into Intercambio, we want them to feel heard, to feel that [they] belong to something. We’re always behind them, always talking with them, checking in with them.”
Intercambio’s staff and clients have been shaken by President-elect Donald Trump and his verbal commitments to conduct mass deportations. But the strong community they’ve built in Boulder County provides a feeling of safety, Gallo said.
Mesto and his sponsors feel confident in his legal right to be in the U.S. but there are frequent reminders of the scrutiny immigrants and refugees are under.
“At Thanksgiving dinner, someone brought up the topic that, with the new
On Nov. 27, Thanksgiving Day, Mesto celebrated his 22nd birthday at Brooks’ home, surrounded by friends and the sponsors who are now like family.
The same day, Syrian rebel forces
Mesto’s family. They used that money to purchase a van for their business delivering wholesale products to stores.
“[Mesto] was very pleased about that, because he feels like he bears some responsibility to take care of his family,” Brooks said.
“He is sensitive to other people’s needs, so it was easy,” Brooks said.
As an immigrant herself, Intercambio’s executive director Norma Fuentes Gallo knows firsthand just how important community is in helping people adjust to living in a new country. Intercambio helps people become proficient in English but also supports students and graduates in finding housing, employment and social events to connect with others.
administration, he’d probably be shipped off,” Brooks said. “There was silence around the table.”
As for Hart, she believes Mesto will be safe, but she feels nervous about the future for other refugees. She’s been attending information programs with the Welcome Corps to stay apprised of recent updates.
“In the refugee world,” she said, “everybody is nervous.”
began an offensive that would lead them to the capital city of Damascus in less than two weeks, forcing al-Assad to flee the country his family ruled for over 53 years.
Because so many of his memories from Syria are of pain, fear and violence, nothing would ever make him want to return, even if it was safe, Mesto said.
“I’m not a fortune teller, but based on my experience in Lebanon, and also in Syria and as a Kurdish and an Arab, I can say it is getting worse,” he said. “For me, there is no way back.”
Mesto’s family is currently living in Kurdistan, a Kurdish enclave in Northern Iraq, amid the ongoing violence between countries in the Middle East. From what contact he has with his family, he knows they are relatively safe, but they left behind a rich life in Aleppo with friends, family, careers and a comfortable home.
His father will always want to go back to Syria, he said.
Brooks helped organize a fundraiser through his church to send money to
Though his parents won’t speak to him directly, Mesto is relieved to know his family is alive and safe. He is still angry about how they cut him off when he escaped to Lebanon, but he is glad to have respectful, comfortable conversations with his siblings.
Mesto is grateful for his sponsors and considers them like family. Hart in particular feels like a mom to him — complete with nagging about mowing the lawn and cleaning up his room, he said. But without a close group of friends or relatives around, he often feels lonely, and has to cope with traumatic memories which sometimes make him feel depressed.
“When I get back from biking or driving, it’s only me,” Mesto said. “I feel like maybe I am the last one on Earth.”
Right now, Mesto is focused on his future: Applying for a green card next summer once he’s been in the U.S. for a year, getting his GED, eventually training as an EMT and possibly studying to be a nurse. He loves the view of the mountains from Lafayette, and has been hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park. He attends Flatirons Church on Sundays, and hopes to meet friends through the fellowship. He still finds time to connect with his sponsors, too. Just this month he biked to Brooks’ house to deliver flowers and say hello, Brooks said.
Mesto is comfortable with the fact that it will take time to be fully adjusted. Already having a bedroom to call his own and people who care about him makes Colorado feel like a place he can find happiness and peace.
“I can call Lafayette the home sweet home,” Mesto said. “It’s the warm home for me. It’s the shelter for me.”
Give the gift of music with box sets and reissues
BY ALAN SCULLEY
This six-CD set documents Costello’s fruitful, long-running partnership with producer T Bone Burnett, anchored by his 1986 album King of America. That excellent album marked Costello’s foray into Americana music before it was called that.
The set supplements King of America with unreleased solo demos and a full 1987 concert featuring the original tracklist and some cool covers performed by Costello and his backing band, The Confederates, including guitarist James Burton and bassist Jerry Scheff from Elvis Presley’s TCB Band, drummer Jim Keltner, keyboardist Benmont Tench of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and T-Bone Wolk on accordion and mandolin.
An additional trio of discs compiles released and unreleased songs from later Costello projects that fit stylistically with the King of America material, much of which was produced by Burnett. Taken together, this set suggests that Costello’s roots in blues, country and soul run considerably deeper than even his fans may realize. His command of these genres is every bit as strong as his signature talent for punk-forward pop rock.
This year hasn’t been quite as prolific for box sets and other special deluxe reissues, especially compared to last year’s bounty. But if you’re looking for the perfect holiday gift for that special music obsessive in your life, 2024 produced several good options. Here are some that stood out.
This three-disc reissue of Talking Heads’ debut album goes well beyond the 2005 reissue, adding a disc of alternative versions of songs from that early period of the band’s career and a punchy, previously unreleased 1977 concert at CBGBs.
As for the outtakes, most have been released on other packages. But the early versions of “Pulled Up” (supplemented with a lively horn arrangement) and an edgier, slightly extended version of “Psycho Killer” with a different second verse are new to this set. This is a good document of the album that introduced one of the most singular and inventive bands to the world.
Green Day’s most ambitious album is celebrated over four discs with this deluxe 20th anniversary edition of American Idiot. In addition to the original 22-song conceptual opus, it includes a concert at Irving Plaza in New York, 14 previously released outtakes, bonus songs, b-sides and 15 full-band demos.
There are some revelations among these outtakes, starting with alternate versions of the title track and “Letterbomb” (called “Cluster Bomb” in the demo stage) with notably different lyrics, along with a surprisingly different version of “Homecoming” that sounds even more like a Tommy-era Who track than the cut on the album. There’s also a trio of worthy tunes — the snappy “Everyone’s Breaking Down,” the anthemic “Just Another Year” and the amped-up “Lowlife” — that didn’t make the original album.
becoming one of Canada’s biggest bands gets quite the expansion on this comprehensive reissue via Universal Music.
In addition to the original album, this three-disc set yields a half-dozen solid songs that hadn’t surfaced before — including potent outtakes “She’s Got What It Takes,” “Rain, Hearts and Fire” and “Wait So Long,” alongside the full-band demos “When The Weight Comes Down” and “Hailstone Hands of God.” Topping things off is a full concert, Live at the Misty Moon, demonstrating that even at this early stage of their career, The Hip were a formidable live band.
The 1989 debut album that introduced The Hip’s taut, straight-ahead rock sound and launched the group’s rise to
This five-CD/Blu-Ray set explores Bowie’s creation of his Ziggy Stardust persona and the timeless music that sprung from his most iconic era. The set is bookended by a disc of demos, alternate versions and outtakes from various recording sessions, most of which were previously unreleased. You’ll find plenty of other shining moments across three additional discs compiling radio, TV and concert performances. If you’re a fan of the Ziggy era, this is a deep dive you’ll definitely want to take.
One of the most essential bands of the 1970s, The Faces made themselves a regular presence on BBC Radio, known for broadcasting some of the era’s defining live performances. This eight-disc set collects all the outfit’s various BBC studio appearances and concerts from 1970 to 1975, providing ample evidence of the songcraft and live swagger of the band led by Rod Stewart and Ron Wood.
MITCHELL:
Folk music icon Joni Mitchell continues to unpack previously unreleased material from the vault in this selection from the artist’s storied run with Asylum Records. Archives Vol. 4: The Asylum Years, 1976-1980 covers the productive period when she dropped the studio
albums Hejira, Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter and Mingus — on which Mitchell explored a fusion of jazz and her established folk sound. Heavy on live material, this set also includes a healthy number of solo demos and studio outtakes. It all makes for another excellent collection from Mitchell’s backpages.
The latest dive into the deep vault of Miles Davis concert recordings showcases the trumpeter’s newly formed “second great quintet” — saxophonist George Coleman, bassist Ron Carter, keyboardist Herbie Hancock and drummer Tony Williams.
The latest in the jazz legend’s Bootleg Series covers three concerts in 1963 and two more from the following year in Paris after Wayne Shorter had replaced Coleman. The ensemble showcases dazzling musicianship and a melodic sound that challenged audiences and set a powerful new blueprint for the artform.
This six-disc set includes The Police’s original hit album and a 1983 concert from Oakland-Alameda Coliseum. But the meat of this Synchronicity special edition is three collections of unreleased demos, alternate versions of the original songs, outtakes and bonus tracks. Highlights include a previously unreleased spin on “O My God” and a stinging and clever transformation of “Every Breath You Take” into “Every Bomb You Make.”
The world has turned, and Weezer remains. The beloved power-pop band’s breakthrough 1994 debut, known colloquially as “The Blue Album” hits the 30-year mark with a three-disc box set. Highlights include the original album and a disc of full-band demos including several songs that didn’t make the album (the frenetic “Paperface,” the scruffy “Thief, You’ve Taken All That Was Me” and the heavy and slightly chaotic “I Can’t Forget This Way”) — plus a slew of live cuts, some of which are surprisingly raw.
John Lennon: Mind Games (The Ultimate Collection)
This immersive six-disc set from Beatles legend John Lennon follows similar treatments of his Plastic Ono Band and Imagine albums, with multiple mixes of the songs, alternate takes from the recording sessions and more.
The Rascals: It’s Wonderful: The Complete Atlantic Studio Recordings
This seven-disc package includes every album released by The Rascals on Atlantic Records between 1966 and 1971 — the peak years of this underrated band’s career — plus a handful of outtakes.
The Yardbirds: The Ultimate Live at the BBC
This set compiles three discs of performances from the Jeff Beck lineup, while a fourth features Beck’s replacement, Jimmy Page. It serves as a pretty comprehensive alternate anthology of the Yardbirds output from 1965 to 1967 while illustrating the group’s growth as a live act.
Frank Zappa: Apostrophe (‘) (50th Anniversary Super Deluxe)
Zappa’s first album to hit the top 10 in the U.S. — featuring the famous single “Don’t Eat the Yellow Snow” — gets the deluxe treatment with session outtakes and two concerts from 1974. Looking for a companion gift for that special Zappa head in your life? Check out his daughter Moon Unit Zappa’s memoir Earth to Moon, featured in last week’s music book roundup from Boulder Weekly: bit.ly/MusicBooksBW.
Your New Year’s Eve guide
2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 29, Dairy Arts Center, Gordon Gamm Theater, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. $15-$20
Send off 2024 with a little magic at this family-friendly show from local illusionist Braden Carlisle. Developed with a “Pixar mindset,” the performance promises awe-inspiring fun for all ages.
Looking to ring in the new year in style? From a family magic show to local concerts, swanky speakeasy parties and a sweaty EDM festival, here’s your annual Boulder Weekly roundup of the can’t-miss NYE happenings coming to the Front Range this year.
2-6 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, Una Vida Meditation and Movement, 7960 Niwot Road, Unit B-12, Niwot. $71
Recalibrate for 2025 with this healing sound bath and heart-opening cacao ceremony hosted by Una Vida’s Brie and Bjorn in Niwot.
8 p.m. Mon.-Tues, Dec. 30-31, Boulder Theater, 2032 14th St. Resale: $115+
Genre-bending jammers Umphrey’s McGee bring their singular fusion of rock, funk, jazz and bluegrass to Boulder Theater for a special twonight run to ring in 2025.
5 p.m. to 2 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, License No. 1, 2115 13th St., Boulder. Sold out
9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, St Julien Hotel & Spa, 900 Walnut St., Boulder. $192
Party through the ages with this decades-themed blowout at St Julien. Colorado’s own Funkiphino will set the tone as you dance the night away and enjoy the premium open bar, passed appetizers, a dessert station and more.
Party like it’s 1920 with this speakeasy New Year’s bash at Boulder’s License No. 1. Dance the night away with live music from BLove and ring in the 2025 with a champagne toast at midnight.
8 p.m. Mon.-Tues., Dec. 30-31, Hi-Dive, 7 South Broadway, Denver. $25
Welcome 2025 with the gothic cowpunk of “Denver sound” pioneers Slim Cessna’s Auto Club, as they return to the Hi-Dive for their annual NYE run with locals Rattlesnake Milk and DJ Ryan Wong.
11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Apex Center, 13150 W. 72nd Ave., Arvada. Free
Want to ring in the new year with your little one without losing precious hours of sleep? This noontime celebration features music, games, a bounce house and a balloon drop at 12 p.m. to kick off 2025.
6:30 p.m.-2 a.m. Dec. 30-31, Colorado Convention Center, 700 14th St., Denver. $179+
One of the biggest electronic dance parties in America happens right here on the Front Range — and this year’s event features top-tier acts like Tiësto, Glitch Mob, Zeds Dead and more.
8 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, The Louisville Underground, 640 Main St. Free
New Year’s Eve can get expensive — how about some free fun? The Louisville Underground, a hub for local music and comedy, invites you to ring in the new year with Colorado blues outfit Johnny O. Band.
6-10 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, Bounce Empire, 1380 S. Public Road, Lafayette. $29
Let your inner kid run wild on New Year’s Eve at Bounce Empire. They’re wrapping up 2024 with a night of inflatable fun: 50 amusement attractions, live music and some grub at their farm-fresh Bounce Bistro is some of what’s in store.
5-10 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, Bricks on Main/ Miss Krissy’s Bistro, 471 Main St., Longmont. Free
Looking to keep it simple this time around? Look no further than Main Street in Longmont. NoCo prog rock and fusion ensemble AudioMedz is ending 2024 with a bang at Bricks on Main, with casual bites available at Miss Krissy’s Bistro.
6 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, Grizzly Rose, 5450 Lincoln St., Denver. $30+
Break out your nicest belt buckle and your boot scootin’ shoes — it’s party time at Denver’s premier cowboy bar. Indulge in a night of line dancing and live country music before the ball drops.
7-10 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, Left Hand Grange No. 9, 195 2nd Ave., Niwot. $135+
Niwot may very well be home to one of Boulder County’s best NYE events. Usher in the New Year in style at Niwot Hall with an all-inclusive ticket that gets you a welcome cocktail, open bar, charcuterie, tarot card readings, and much more.
8 p.m. to 1 a.m. Dec. 31-Jan. 1, Winner’s Circle, 2251 Ken Pratt Blvd., Suite A, Longmont. $160
Music, dancing, two buffets and latenight street food, a champagne toast and tons of attractions, all for one low price? Winner’s Circle seems like the place to be as we ring in 2025.
‘A Complete Unknown’ falls flat
BY MICHAEL J. CASEY
For Bruce Springsteen, it was the starting snare shot of “Like a Rolling Stone” that kicked open the door to his mind. He’s not wrong. And he’s not alone.
That iconic Bob Dylan song has and will stand the test of time. Sixty years later, it still crackles with energy and urgency — even if a sizable portion of Dylan’s audience back in 1965 wanted nothing to do with it.
One year after Dylan “plugged in” at the Newport Folk Festival in July, he went on a whirlwind tour of England, playing the first half of the concert acoustic and the second half electric. Audiences bought tickets just to boo him. They hurled insults and jeered. In one concert at Manchester’s Free Trade Hall, a fan screamed “Judas!” from the audience.
“I don’t believe you,” Dylan sneered from the stage. “You’re a liar.” And then, turning to the band, said: “Play fucking loud.”
That scene, transported from England to Newport, rolled back from ’66 to ’65, and missing the four-letter expletive, is recreated in A Complete Unknown. It is not an improvement.
Written by Jay Cocks and James Mangold, who also directs, A Complete Unknown adapts Elijah Wald’s 2015 book, Dylan Goes Electric! Newport, Seeger, Dylan and the Night That Split the Sixties and regurgitates a thin slice of Dylan’s early days. It opens with Dylan arriving in New York City looking for his hero Woody Guthrie (Scoot McNairy), hooking up with fellow folkie Pete Seeger (Edward Norton) and then meeting all the right people: Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro), Albert Grossman (Dan Fogler), Bob Neuwirth (Will Harrison) and Sylvie Russo (Elle Fanning).
Only Russo is fabricated. Based on Suze Rotolo, who was Dylan’s then-girlfriend immortalized on the album cover of 1963’s The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, Russo plays an aspiring artist in love with the cute boy with the floppy hair and funny voice. Meanwhile, Dylan (Timothée Chalamet, who does his own singing) ricochets off the gravitational pull of Seeger, Baez and Johnny Cash (Boyd Holbrook). They all love Dylan, but only Grossman and Russo realize he is different.
A Complete Unknown plays like a Wikipedia article. Dylan lands a record deal at Columbia and releases a disc full of standards. It goes nowhere. He comes back with a disc full of originals and explodes. He drifts from Russo to Baez and back to Russo. Chalamet plays these scenes timidly, vacillating between a Dylan caricature and a typical genius frustrated that everyone wants a piece of what he’s got. Skinny as a twig and with a great pile of hair, Chalamet cuts a profile similar to Dylan. But he spends too much of the movie playing Dylan as an actual person and not the character Dylan himself expertly crafted.
Born well before the age of hyperinformation, Dylan always was a slippery fellow. Where he came from, where he learned to play, what his name really was and what really happened in that hospital room with Guthrie are the stuff of Dylan lore. But six decades of archival recordings, books and documentaries have pulled back the curtain on the enigmatic troubadour.
Yet, he still seems inscrutable. Just look at 2019’s meta-documentary Rolling Thunder Revue, where Dylan and direc-
tor Martin Scorsese giddily toy with the truth. Sharon Stone fabricates a story of meeting Dylan as a young girl, while Scorsese inserts a completely fictitious character from another movie.
So, am I upset that A Complete Unknown takes a few artistic liberties or because it doesn’t take enough?
Honestly, as frustrating as it is to have the facts of the 1966 Free Trade Hall “Stone” performance applied like a coat of paint to the significance of the 1965 Newport concert, the fault of Unknown lies in the latter.
There’s nothing remotely interior about Dylan or his music in A Complete Unknown that comes close to Springsteen’s comment. Nothing as explosive as that English concert, which remains one of the most combative performances of the song ever set down. And nothing that kicks open the doors to anything.
ON SCREEN: A Complete Unknown opens everywhere Dec. 25.
HOLIDAY CAROLING
6-8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 20, Left Hand Brewing, 1265 Boston Ave., Longmont. Free
5-7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 20, The Collective Community Arts Center, 201 N. Public Road, Lafayette. Free
Feliz navidad y merry Christmas! Flex your memory for lyrics and your high school Spanish skills with this bilingual holiday sing-a-long open to carolers of all ages. Warm beverages and sweet treats provided.
FRIDAY NIGHT WEIRD: CARNAGE FOR CHRISTMAS
8:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 20, Dairy Arts CenterBoedecker Theater, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. $12
Returning to her hometown for the first time since transitioning, true-crime podcaster and amateur detective Lola faces off against an unhinged killer back from the dead in this trans holiday slasher by teenage filmmaker Alice Maio Mackay. “Naughty or nice, they all get …Carnage for Christmas.”
WINTER SOLSTICE AT WILD BEAR NATURE CENTER
Caroling, caroling now we go — Christmas bells are ringing at Left Hand Brewing on Friday. Grab an awardwinning cup of cheer and get ready to sing your heart out at this annual tradition celebrating the most wonderful time of the year.
DARKNESSCON: A SCARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS
Various times, Friday, Dec. 20-Sunday, Dec. 22, 7000 Church Ranch Blvd., Westminster. $20+
Does the sound of Mariah Carey blaring from the speakers of every store make you want to grab the nearest strand of tinsel and strangle yourself with it? Head to this three-day celebration of all things spooky. Dance, drink and dress up in your darkest costume with fellow fans of horror, anime and cosplay. Tickets: bit.ly/ DarknessConBW.
11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 21, Wild Bear Nature Center, 20 Lakeview Drive, Nederland. $5
Make the shortest day of the year feel longer by packing it with fun, familyfriendly activities and learning. Meet some local birds (and their handlers), see the stars in the astronomy room and learn about the science of the solstice.
WINTER SOLSTICE CELEBRATION & ASTRONOMY ON THE SIDEWALK
11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 21, Downtown Longmont, Main Street. Free
Head to downtown Longmont for a reminder that “the sun rises again even after the longest night, bringing new beginnings and brighter days.” This celebratory stroll features nature-based crafts, a solar scope and telescope to track the Sun, Jupiter, Saturn and Venus, and more activities hosted by local businesses.
5-7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 21, Wild Provisions Beer Project, 2209 Central Ave., Boulder. Free
There’s nothing like that big band sound this time of year. Join the Boulder Brassaholics sextet for holiday music, singalongs and a frosty pint at Wild Provisions. Turn those cheeks rosy with a barrel-aged ale and enjoy boisterous brass renditions of seasonal classics.
6-7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 21, Winner’s Circle, 2251 Ken Pratt Blvd., Suite A, Longmont. $32
Looking to impress at your holiday party? Stop in at Winner’s Circle and pick up some pointers from their master mixologists. Level up your festive libations and enjoy two cocktails while you learn. Class size is limited. Tickets: bit.ly/ HolidayCocktailsBW.
7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 21, Boulder Circus Center, 4747 26th St. $28
The season shines a little brighter under the big top. That’s why Frequent Flyers and the Denver Circus Collective are teaming up with the Boulder Circus Center for an evening of gravity-defying performances and holiday cheer. The fun kicks off with a student showcase, followed by professional aerial acrobatics and a community-building social hour.
10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 21 and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 22, Boulder County Fairgrounds, 9595 Nelson Road, Longmont. Free
Your friends and loved ones will never suspect that you left your holiday shopping ’til the last minute with gifts from over 150 Colorado vendors. Enjoy free live music and fun activities for the kids while you browse local art, crafts, toys, home decor, food and more at this event billing itself as the state’s biggest holiday craft fair.
4-6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 21, 4800 Baseline Road Suite D206, Boulder. $28
Why wait until the new year for a fresh start? This workshop will help you “connect with your inner flame and call back the light for a new year.” Start with a gentle, Kundalini yoga warmup followed by a special meditation “to reignite your inner light.” Tickets: bit.ly/SolsticeGong BathBW.
4-6 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 22, eTown Hall, 1535 Spruce St., Boulder. Free
Looking for a little live music with your holiday cheer? Head to eTown Hall in Boulder for a night of community, refreshments and local acts. It’s a great opportunity to reflect on the year with your neighbors and get a sneak peek at what’s ahead for the beloved downtown music venue. Admission is free, and RSVPs are encouraged: bit.ly/eTown OpenHouseBW.
FRIDAY • 12/20
THURSDAY, DEC. 19
CYCLES WITH THE JAUNTEE. 1:30 p.m. Roots Music Project, 4747 Pearl St., Suite V3A, Boulder. $15
WILD MOUNTAIN KESH WITH BLEED’N GREEN 6 p.m. Bootstrap Brewing Company, 142 Pratt St., Longmont. Free
THE SAINTS. 6 p.m. Bricks on Main, 471 Main St., Longmont. Free
IF MUSIC BE THE FOOD 6 p.m. Boulder Public Library, 1001 Arapahoe Ave., Boulder. Free
MEGAN BURTT WITH STURTZ. 7 p.m. eTown Hall, 1535 Spruce St., Boulder. $25
SATURDAY, DEC. 21
BEER & HOLIDAY BRASS WITH THE BOULDER BRASSAHOLICS. 5 p.m. Wild Provisions Beer Project, 2209 Central Ave., Boulder. Free
CAT JERKY. 5:30 p.m. Left Hand Brewing, 1265 Boston Ave., Longmont. Free
JOE COOL BAND 6 p.m. Bricks on Main, 471 Main St., Longmont. Free
NICHOLETTE ANDRES WITH GUESTS. 6 p.m. Trident Cafe, 940 Pearl St., Boulder. Free
JERRY JOSEPH WITH DEREK DAMES OHL 7 p.m. Roots Music Project, 4747 Pearl St., Suite V3A, Boulder. $24
FRESH FRUIT! WITH TINY TOMBOY AND AZI 7 p.m. Hi-Dive, 7 S. Broadway, Denver. $12
CASS CLAYTON BAND 7:30 p.m. Nissi’s, 1455 Coal Creek Drive, Unit T, Lafayette. $15
RADIO FLUKE WITH LIGHT THE LETTERS 8 p.m. Velvet Elk Lounge, 2037 13th St., Boulder. $17
FRIDAY, DEC. 20
HOLIDAY CAROLING. 6 p.m. Left Hand Brewing, 1265 Boston Ave., Longmont. Free
STEEL MONKEY 6 p.m. Bootstrap Brewing Company, 142 Pratt St., Longmont. Free
SONGS AND STORIES FOR THE LONGEST NIGHT. 7:30 p.m. Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. $20
THE GOONIES 7:30 p.m. Nissi’s, 1455 Coal Creek Drive, Unit T, Lafayette. $15
KINGS OF PRUSSIA 8 p.m. Velvet Elk Lounge, 2037 13th St., Boulder. $16
SUNGAZER WITH EVAN MARIEN AND DANA HAWKINS. 8 p.m. Bluebird Theater, 3317 E. Colfax Ave., Denver. $38
BROKEN RECORD WITH CURIOUS THINGS, REPLICA CITY AND THE GENTLYS. 7 p.m. Hi-Dive, 7 S. Broadway, Denver. $12 BW PICK OF THE WEEK
SILAS HERMAN WITH TORRIN DANIELS AND MORE. 7 p.m. The Caribou Room, 55 Indian Peaks Drive, Nederland. $25
FRANK ZAPPA CELEBRATION. 7 p.m. Muse Performance Space, 200 E. South Boulder Road, Lafayette. $20
JAKE LEG AND AWD. 7 p.m. Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. $20
REED FOEHL WITH MAX GOMEZ 7 p.m. eTown Hall, 1535 Spruce St., Boulder. $25
MOJOMAMA TRIO. 7 p.m. 300 Suns Brewing, 335 1st Ave., Unit C, Longmont. Free
FROSTIANA. 7:30 p.m. First United Methodist Church, 1421 Spruce St., Boulder. $30
HOLDFAST. WITH HIGH STREET JOGGERS CLUB 8 p.m. Bluebird Theater, 3317 E. Colfax Ave., Denver. $32
Local “stadium emo” sweethearts Broken Record bring their huge sound to Denver’s tiny Hi-Dive for a headlining show with Curious Things, Replica City and The Gentlys on Dec. 21. The band performs weeks after the release of their split EP with fellow Front Range act A Place for Owls, featuring a selection of Jimmy Eat World covers by each band with proceeds supporting the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund See listing for details
THE GOOD KIND 8 p.m. Velvet Elk Lounge, 2037 13th St., Boulder. $20
SHAWN CUNNAN. 8 p.m. Longs Peak Pub, 600 Longs Peak Ave., Longmont. Free
SUNDAY, DEC. 22
ROCKY MOUNTAIN BRASSWORKS
1:30 p.m. Broomfield Library and Auditorium, 3 Community Park Road. Free
LOCO UKULELE JAM 2 p.m. Bootstrap Brewing Company, 142 Pratt St., Longmont. Free
MORPHEUS DREAMING 4 p.m. Bootstrap Brewing Company, 142 Pratt St., Longmont. Free
HOLIDAY HO-DOWN (VARIOUS ARTISTS) 6:30 p.m. Roots Music Project, 4747 Pearl St., Suite V3A, Boulder. $15
CODY QUALLS 7 p.m. Nissi’s, 1455 Coal Creek Drive, Unit T, Lafayette. $35
LIONEL YOUNG DUO. 8 p.m. Velvet Elk Lounge, 2037 13th St., Boulder. Free
MONDAY, DEC. 23
FAMILY HOLIDAY MOVIE SING ALONG. 11 a.m. Louisville Underground, 640 Main St. $13
TUESDAY, DEC. 24
LIVE MUSIC 7 p.m. Rosetta Hall, 1109 Walnut St., Boulder. Free
THURSDAY, DEC. 26
ANDY EPPLER. 6 p.m. Bricks on Main, 471 Main St., Longmont. Free
TONY CRANK 6 p.m. Bootstrap Brewing Company, 142 Pratt St., Longmont. Free
Want more Boulder County events? Check out the complete listings online by scanning this QR code.
BY ROB BREZSNY
ARIES (MARCH 21-APRIL 19): If you worked eight hours per day, seven days a week, it would take you 300 years to count to the number one billion. I don’t recommend you try that. I also discourage you from pursuing any other trivial tasks that have zero power to advance your long-term dreams. In a similar spirit, I will ask you to phase out minor longings that distract you from your major longings. Please, Aries, I also beg you to shed frivolous obsessions that waste energy you should instead devote to passionate fascinations. The counsel I’m offering here is always applicable, of course, but you especially need to heed it in the coming months.
TAURUS (APRIL 20-MAY 20): In 1951, minister and author Norman Vincent Peale was working on a new book. As he wrote, he would regularly read passages to his wife, Ruth. She liked it a lot, but he was far less confident in its worth. After a while, he got so discouraged he threw the manuscript in the trash. Unbeknownst to him, Ruth retrieved it and stealthily showed it to her husband’s publisher, who loved it. The book went on to sell five million copies. Its title? The Power of Positive Thinking. I hope in 2025, you will benefit from at least one equivalent to Ruth in your life, Taurus. Two or three would be even better. You need big boosters and fervent supporters. If you don’t have any, go round them up.
GEMINI (MAY 21-JUNE 20): I love how colorfully the creek next to my house expresses itself. As high tide approaches, it flows south. When low tide is on its way, it flows north. The variety of its colors is infinite, with every shade and blend of green, grey, blue and brown. It’s never the same shape. Its curves and width are constantly shifting. Among the birds that enhance its beauty are mallards, sandpipers, herons, grebes, egrets and cormorants. This magnificent body of water has been a fascinating and delightful teacher for me. One of my wishes for you in 2025, Gemini, is that you will commune regularly with equally inspiring phenomena. I also predict you will do just that. Extra beauty should be on your agenda.
CANCER (JUNE 21-JULY 22): The richest 1% have commandeered half of the world’s wealth. Even worse, those greedy hoarders are usually taxed the least. How is it even possible that such a travesty has come to pass? I also wonder if many of us non-billionaires have milder versions of these proclivities. Are there a few parts of me that get most of the goodies that my life provides, while other parts of me get scant attention and nourishment? The answer is yes. For example, the part of me that loves to be a creative artist receives much of my enthusiasm, while the part of me that enjoys socializing gets little juice. How about you, Cancerian? I suggest you explore this theme in the coming weeks and months. Take steps to achieve greater parity between the parts of you that get all they need and the parts of you that don’t.
LEO (JULY 23-AUG. 22): Anthropologist
Robin Dunbar theorizes that most of us have limits to our social connections. Typically, our closest circle includes five loved ones. We may also have 15 good friends, 50 fond allies, 150 meaningful contacts and 1,500 people we know. If you are interested in expanding any of these spheres, Leo, the coming months will be an excellent time to do so. In addition, or as an alternative, you might also choose to focus on deepening the relationships you have with existing companions and confederates.
VIRGO (AUG. 23-SEPT. 22): Uncle Tom’s Cabin was the best-selling novel of the 19th century. It was written by a Virgo, Harriet Beecher Stowe. Her story about the enslavement of African Americans in the U.S. was not only popular. It awakened many people to the intimate horrors of the calamity and ultimately played a key role in energizing the abolitionist movement. I believe you are potentially capable of achieving your own version of that dual success in the coming months. You could generate accomplishments that are personally gratifying even as they perform a good service for the world.
LIBRA (SEPT. 23-OCT. 22): According to my reading of the astrological omens, you will be teased with an abundance of invitations to grow in 2025. You will be encouraged to add to your current skills and expertise. You will be nudged to expand your understanding of what exactly you are doing here on planet Earth. That’s not all, Libra! You will be pushed to dissolve shrunken expectations, transcend limitations and learn many new lessons. Here’s my question: Will you respond with full heart and open mind to all these possibilities? Or will you sometimes neglect and avoid them? I dare you to embrace every challenge that interests you.
SCORPIO (OCT. 23-NOV. 21): Scorpioborn Rudolf Karel was a 20th-century Czech composer who created 17 major works, including symphonies and operas. His work was interrupted when Nazi Germany invaded and occupied his homeland. He joined the Czech resistance but was eventually arrested and confined to Pankrác Prison. There, he managed to compose a fairy-tale opera, Three Hairs of the Wise Old Man. No musical instruments were available in prison, of course, so he worked entirely in his imagination and wrote down the score using toilet paper and charcoal. I firmly believe you will not be incarcerated like Karel in the coming months, Scorpio. But you may have to be extra resourceful and resilient as you find ways to carry out your best work. I have faith that you can do it!
SAGITTARIUS (NOV. 22-DEC. 21): What is the perfect gift I could offer you this holiday season? I have decided on a large square black box with nothing inside. There would be a gold ribbon around it bearing the words, “The Fruitful Treasure of Pregnant Emptiness.” With this mysterious blessing, I would be fondly urging you to purge your soul of expectations and assumptions as you cruise into 2025. I would be giving you the message, “May you nurture a freewheeling voracity for novel adventures and fresh experiences.”
CAPRICORN (DEC. 22-JAN. 19): One of my paramount wishes for you in 2025 is this: You will deepen your devotion to taking good care of yourself. You will study and learn more about the sweet secrets to keeping yourself in prime mental and physical health. I’m not suggesting you have been remiss about this sacred work in the past. But I am saying that this will be a favorable time to boost your knowledge to new heights about what precisely keeps your body and emotions in top shape. The creative repertoire of selfcare that you cultivate in the coming months will serve you well for the rest of your long life.
AQUARIUS (JAN. 20-FEB. 18): To fulfill your life mission, to do what you came here to Earth to do, you must carry out many tasks. One of the most important is to offer your love with hearty ingenuity. What are the best ways to do that? Where should you direct your generous care and compassion? And which recipients of your blessings are likely to reciprocate in ways that are meaningful to you? While Jupiter is cruising through Gemini, as it is now and until June 2025, life will send you rich and useful answers to these questions. Be alert!
PISCES (FEB. 19-MARCH 20): Mysteries of the past will be extra responsive to your investigations in 2025. Persistent riddles from your life’s earlier years may be solvable. I encourage you to be aggressive in collecting previously inaccessible legacies. Track down missing heirlooms and family secrets. Just assume that ancestors and dead relatives have more to offer you than ever before. If you have been curious about your genealogy, the coming months will be a good time to explore it. I wish you happy hunting as you search for the blessings of yesteryear — and figure out how to use them in the present.
I’m a 45-year-old cis woman. I’ve been married to a cis man for almost 20 years. About a year and a half ago, I made out with a woman at a party, and everything clicked. I started exploring my attraction to women with my husband’s blessing.
I met a wonderful woman, and we dated for over a year. While I was with her, I realized I’m gay.
BY DAN SAVAGE
I love my husband dearly, but our relationship is platonic, and we’ve stopped being intimate. We have three amazing young children, and our lives are deeply intertwined emotionally, financially and where our families are concerned.
While I feel I need to live authentically as a lesbian, I’m terrified of the fallout — hurting my husband, my family, blowing up my life, etc. My husband has a girlfriend now, and I’m happy for him. He wants to stay married. What should I do?
— Wanting To Live Authentically
It’s totally fine that it took you decades to realize you’re a lesbian: Lots of queer people don’t figure themselves out until later in life. And it’s totally fine that you wanna stay married. Companionate marriages are valid marriages!
If you end your marriage, you’re staring down some very real fears: fear of judgment, fear of rejection, fear of losing people you care about. Your family might not understand at first — mine sure didn’t — but if all the gays and lesbians who came before you waited for our families to somehow magically “get it” before we started coming out, no one would’ve come out at all, ever.
If you want to be who you are — if you want to live authentically — you have to be willing to make some people uncomfortable, WTLA, and that includes your husband.
How do partnered-but-monogamish people identify each other and get things going?
I have a crush on my neighbor, who is 10 years my senior. She is married to a man, and I’m pretty sure she’s bisexual.
However, I’m not really friends with her, and I don’t know how I would go about approaching this.
I don’t want to make her feel uncomfortable in any way. Would it be wise to test the waters for potential by asking a third party to feel her out in some way?
— Need Expert Insight Getting Hot Babe Over Regularly
Even if your neighbor is in an open marriage — and even if she’s bisexual and even if she’s into you (and that’s a lot of ifs) — sending someone to ask her if she might wanna mess around doesn’t say, “Your neighbor is a mature adult woman that you might enjoy fucking.” It screams, “Your neighbor has the emotional maturity of a second grader and people like that are risky fucks.”
Unless the sexual tension is off the charts and the signals are unmistakable, NEIGHBOR, sensible people don’t hit on their next-door neighbors. Because if it turns out that person isn’t interested in you — or if they are interested but things end badly — your backyard will become almost unbearably awkward.
Here’s how sensible partnered and monogamish people find each other: They go places — online and off, separately and together — where partneredand-monogamish people gather. They get on a dating apps and hookup apps like Feeld and #Open, they go to local swingers’ clubs and sex parties. And if they run into their neighbor in one of those places — Yahtzee!
Email your question for the column to mailbox@savage.love or record your question for the Savage Lovecast at savage.love/askdan. Podcasts, columns and more at Savage.Love
What closed, what opened and what’s coming next year
BY JOHN LEHNDORFF
Depending on where you ate in 2024, the Boulder County dining scene either seemed to be the best ever, or like it was suffering a slow, steady decline. While Boulder’s top restaurants took home many national awards, other much-loved eateries closed, citing rising costs of labor and ingredients, decreased foot traffic downtown and still-empty offices. Meanwhile, the restaurant scene in East Boulder County is booming. It’s worth noting that in 2024, Longmont Restaurant Week was successfully relaunched while First Bite, Boulder’s dining week, was cancelled.
The best Boulder dining news of 2024 was the return of chef Johnny Curiel, who had previously wowed palates at Centro Mexican Kitchen. He opened Cozobi Fonda Fina in the former Walnut Street location of Masas & Agave, Supermoon and Arcana. The Mexican fine dining restaurant is a sister to Curiel’s Alma Fonda Fina, which took home Colorado’s only new one-star winner in the 2024 Michelin Awards. Curiel also earned Michelin’s Young Chef Culinary Professional Award. Kelly and Erika Whitaker, owners of Basta and Dry Storage, were named the best restaurant operators in the nation, taking home the 2024 James Beard Award in the Outstanding Restaurateur category.
Bobby Stuckey, co-owner of Boulder’s Frasca Food and Wine and Pizzeria Alberico, was named one of the Robb Report’s 50 Most Powerful People in American Fine Dining in 2024
Boulder-born Jax Fish House was included in FSR Magazine’s Top 50
Independent Restaurants in America, while 10-year-old Blackbelly Market retained its Michelin Green award status and opened a second location in Denver.
Boulder’s most celebrated chef, Eric Skokan, was able to relaunch dinners at his Black Cat Farm
For what it’s worth, Guy Fieri dropped by Boulder repeatedly in 2024 with his Food Network shows: Diners Drive-Ins, and Dives and Triple-D Nation. He stuffed his face at Aloy Thai, Audrey Jane’s Pizza Garage and Bohemian Biergarten (and Cracovia in Westminster).
Other notable downtown openings in 2024 included the Boulder Spirits Tasting Room, 1428 Pearl St., Pedro’s Tacos and Tequila Bar, 1125 Pearl St., High Country, 1117
Pearl St., and The Colorado Club, 1043 Pearl St.
Busaba expanded its Thai eatery group to a new location, 1035 Pearl St., while Tiffins Momo Corner opened nearby at 1911 Broadway.
Some favorite spots relocated and reopened. Zoe Ma Ma, Edwin Zoe’s award-winning Asian street food eatery, relocated to a larger space at 919 Pearl St. with an expanded menu. North Boulder’s beloved Logan’s Espresso Cafe found a new home at 2490 Junction Place. Two years after a fire shut down the tacos, Wapos Cantina reopened at 4929 Broadway.
East Boulder became home in 2024 to the Ironwood Bar and Grille, a new pub-
lic restaurant at Flatirons Golf Course. Also open: The Cafe at the J inside the Boulder JCC, 6007 Oreg Ave.
Other Boulder openings include Lotus Moon, a Vietnamese vegan eatery, 2770 Pearl St.; Cheba Hut, 1346 Pearl St.; Mother’s Greek Food at Naked Lunch, 3301 Arapahoe Ave.; Boulder Swim Club, 555 30th St.; and Nopalito’s Mexican Restaurant, 1805 29th St.
No matter how you tabulate the meals, 2024 was a banner year for dining in Longmont.
The city’s first food hall, Parkway Food Hall opened at 700 Ken Pratt Blvd., with stalls offering everything from Japanese street food to barbecue. Longmont’s second food hall, Granary Food Hall, will open in 2025.
Johnson’s Station, a must-see historic dining destination, debuted in Longmont’s New Prospect neighborhood. Nearby, Longmont Social opened as a community cafe with a bar and games.
The Den on 11th opened at 1111 Francis St. and was voted Best New Restaurant in the 2024 East County Best of Boulder awards. Longmont is also now home to Colorado’s only freshly churned cultured butter bar, Bella La Crema Butter Shop, 931 Main St.
Elsewhere in Boulder, Shreddy’s Tacos opened at 2690 Baseline Road, as did Ruzo Coffee, 3980 N. Broadway, Loving Cup, 1101 13th St., and Oxytocin tea room at 1925 Glenwood Drive.
Boulder also witnessed the closing of some favorite restaurants in 2024, including Le Peep, which had served brunch for 41 years, and Mateo Restaurant Provencal, open since 2001.
In Table Mesa, Under the Sun — sister eatery to the Mountain Sun and Southern Sun brewpubs, was shuttered. Maine Shack opened with a burst of attention but served seafood less than a year before closing.
Other Boulder shuttered eateries include Thrive, Meta Burger, Whole Sol Blend Bar, The Local, Dedalus (the downtown food and wine shop), Black Pepper Pho Restaurant, Ruthie’s Boardwalk Social, BOCO Cider, the Finkel & Garf Brewing Co. tasting room and the Rusty Melon in Gunbarrel. Coming to Boulder in 2025: Kura Revolving Sushi Bar, 1710 29th St.; Yakitori Gareji, 2250 Pearl St., and C Bar and C Burger at 921 Pearl St.
Restaurant openings by cuisine have included Mediterranean (Red Cedar Bistro, 516 Main St.), Guatemalan (Chí Kapé, 1680 Main St.), Latin American (Restaurant and Bar Yisel’s, 900 S. Hover St.), Mexican (Teocalli Cocina, 460 Main St.), Italian (Antonio’s Real New York Pizza, 325 Main St.), and Thai (Busaba Thai, 2343 Clover Basin Drive, and Thai 303, 1751 Hover St.) After extensive renovations, Longmont’s 32-year-old La Mariposa Restaurant reopened.
Other Longmont openings include Oskar Blues CHUBurger at 3rd Shot Pickleball, 20 S. Bowen St.; Winner’s Circle, 2251 Ken Pratt Blvd.; Big Bear Baked Potatoes, 1640 Pace St.; Spruce Cafe, 600 S. Airport Road; Amazin Glaze Donuts, 1801 Hover St.; Luminous Tea, 624 Main St.; and Juniper Goods, 659 4th Ave.
Roots restaurant at the Dickens Opera House was reopened as The Passenger 2024 saw the closing of Tortugas Restaurant which had served Caribbean and Cajun seafood for 30 years.
CYCLHOPS Bike CANtina was shuttered after 10 years at 600 S. Airport Road. Other Longmont 2024 closings included JP Cuisine, 1631 Pace St.; Wonder Press, 1139 Francis St.; and Cantina Lunada, 1225 Ken Pratt Blvd. While Longmont already has many fine burger joints, some fans are looking forward to the opening of Longmont’s In-N-Out Burger. Also coming in 2025: Pelo’s Deli & Provisions, 630 Main St.; and Hot Pot City, 800 S. Hover St.
Chef Marco Monanni opened Bucatino Trattoria Romana at 1265 S. Public Road, formerly Ting’s Chinese Restaurant. Sanitas Brewing Co. opened its third taproom at 400 W. South Boulder Road., formerly Front Range Brewing Co. Mono Mono Korean Fried Chicken closed at 599 Crossing Drive, but that space will be filled by Saigon District One Vietnamese Restaurant 95a Bistro closed at at 1381 Forest Park Circle. Kismet Cafe is serving Middle Eastern fare in a portion of that space. Delicious Z’s, open since 2017, closed at 802 S. Public Road. Pita Grill now fills that location.
Other notable Lafayette closings included the James Beard Awardnominated Casian Seafood, 211 S. Public Road, and Reelfish Fish & Chips, 2770 Arapahoe Road.
Coming in 2025: Bee’s Thai Kitchen, 418 E. Simpson St., and Kalita Grill Greek Cafe, 801 S. Public Road.
Louisville: Notable openings included Shin Yuu Izakaya, 917 Front St., King Dumpling, 316 McCaslin Blvd., and The Jasmine Bar at 836½ Main St. Louisville will see two major attractions added in the next year or so: Ironton Distillery & Crafthouse, 2026 at 1303 Empire Road, and Relish food hall and pickleball facility, 550 McCaslin Blvd. Superior: Kwosson, a tiny new bakery, opened at 2250 Main St. in the new Downtown Superior, dishing first-class French breads and baguettes. Also recently opened: The Stable Bar and Grill. Coming soon: A second location of Boulder Baked Hygiene: Cafe Fritz opened at 7502 Hygiene Road.
Niwot: 1914 House restaurant closed in 2024. Love Ice Cream opened at 240 2nd Ave.
Lyons: Indian Bites II recently opened at 432 Main St.
John Lehndorff hosts Radio Nibbles on KGNU. Podcasts: kgnu.org/category/ radio-nibbles
BY NICOLE LEE THE CONVERSATION
After the fall of the al-Assad regime in Syria, large stockpiles of the illicit drug captagon have reportedly been uncovered. The stockpiles, found by Syrian rebels, are believed to be linked to al-Assad military headquarters, implicating the fallen regime in the drug’s manufacture and distribution.
Captagon was once a pharmaceutical drug, similar to some of the legally available stimulants we still use today for conditions including attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Captagon is the original brand name of an old synthetic pharmaceutical stimulant originally made in Germany in the 1960s. It was an alternative to amphetamine and methamphetamine, which were both used as medicines at the time.
The drug has the active ingredient fenethylline and was initially marketed for conditions including ADHD and the sleep disorder narcolepsy. It had a similar use to some of the legally available stimulants we still use today, such as dexamphetamine.
Captagon has similar effects to amphetamines. It increases dopamine in the brain, leading to feelings of wellbeing,
pleasure and euphoria. It also improves focus, concentration and stamina. But it also has unwanted side effects, such as low-level psychosis.
The drug was originally sold mostly in the Middle East and parts of Europe. It was available over the counter (without a prescription) in Europe for a short time before it became prescription-only.
It was approved only briefly in the United States before becoming a controlled substance in the 1980s, but was still legal for the treatment of narcolepsy in many European countries until relatively recently.
According to the International Narcotics Control Board, pharmaceutical manufacture of Captagon had stopped by 2009.
The illegally manufactured version is usually referred to as captagon (with a small c). It is sometimes called “chemical courage” because it is thought to be used by soldiers in war-torn areas of the Middle East to help give them focus and energy.
For instance, it’s been reportedly found on the bodies of Hamas soldiers during the conflict with Israel.
Its manufacture is relatively straightforward and inexpensive, making it an obvious target for the black-market drug trade.
Black-market captagon is now nearly exclusively manufactured in Syria and surrounding countries such as Lebanon. It’s mostly used in the Middle East, including recreationally in some Gulf states.
The U.S. and U.K. governments placed numerous sanctions on individuals and groups trafficking captagon because drug sales were believed to be a significant source of funding for the Assad regime.
“Trade in the drug is a financial lifeline for the Assad regime,” the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office wrote in a March 2023 press release. “It is worth approximately three times the combined trade of the Mexican cartels.”
In a March 2024 release, the U.S. Department of the Treasury wrote, “The Assad regime continues to employ a variety of schemes to evade sanctions and sustain its longstanding campaign of repression against its own citizens, including trafficking in illegal drugs.”
Captagon is one of the most commonly used illicit drugs in Syria. A recent report suggests captagon generated more than $7.3 billion in Syria and Lebanon between 2020 and 2022 (about $2.4 billion a year).
Assad fled Syria as rebel forces entered the capital city of Damascus on Dec. 8, just days after beginning an offensive attack. He had been in power since 2000, succeeding his father Hafez alAssad, who was Syria’s president from 1971 until his death in 2000.
Generally, any seizures or crackdowns on manufacturing or sale have a very limited impact on the drug market because another manufacturer or distributor pops up to meet demand. In all likelihood, given the size of the captagon market in the Middle East, these latest drug discoveries and seizures are likely to reduce manufacture only for a short time.
Nicole Lee is an adjunct professor at the National Drug Research Institute at Curtin University in Melbourne, Australia. The Conversation is a nonprofit, independent news organization featuring academic experts. Shay Castle contributed reporting.
