You could stick around Denver for fireworks tonight, but if you go to Black Hawk, you’ll get a noteworthy spectacular as well as a sweet post-show scene. To see the display (more than 7,000 firecrackers), snag a seat near Stroehle Square.

Afterward, drop into a casino: As of Thursday, gambling in Black Hawk went big, with increased betting limits, new games like craps and roulette, and around-the-clock hours.

Sat, July 4. 8:30 p.m. Free.

Black Hawk, Gregory and Main streets

The 96th edition of the Tour de France has begun, and this year’s event promises to be a classic, with nine American riders in the field (including four on Boulder’s Garmin-Slipstream squad); the best stage racer in the world (Alberto Contador, who missed last year’s Tour); and the return of a guy you might have heard of named Lance Armstrong.

Follow the progress of local boys Garmin-Slipstream–in particular, general classification hope Christian Vande Velde–at 5280.com daily. For those early risers, television coverage began this morning at 7:30 AM on Versus.

Looking for an alternative to the typical First Friday art gathering? Tonight, hometown chamber-pop songsmith Ian Cooke is playing his low-key and infectious tunes at the six-month-old One Eyed Jacks (self-advertised as the “world’s best dive bar”), in a show that is part music, part First Friday art-and-fashion show. The captivating Cooke is a classically trained musician who accompanies his mellifluous, emotive voice with a cello.

Fri, July 3. 10 p.m.

One Eyed Jacks, 475 Santa Fe Dr.

It’s been a busy few months for the Chicago-based alt-country band Wilco. In April, the group released its first concert DVD, Ashes of American Flags. In May, lead singer Jeff Tweedy was sued by a former band member. And, just days ago, at the end of June, the band released its much-anticipated Wilco (The Album). With the drama presumably over now, the band will take the stage at Red Rocks–its first post-CD-release show–tonight to showcase its unique brand of countrified rock ’n’ roll.

Fri, July 3. 8 p.m. $36.75-$39.50

Red Rocks Amphitheatre, 18300 W. Alameda Pkwy., Morrison, 720-865-2494

Shells & Sauce, an Italian restaurant perched on the corner of 12th Avenue and Elizabeth Street, has carved out a comfortable niche for itself. And soon, with its new rooftop patio opening any day, the Congress Park restaurant will become even more of a draw.

During the week, residents pack the tables for stuffed shells, lasagna, and ravioli. And on weekends, the brunch menu keeps its Italian flair (eggs Benedict gets a slice of prosciutto, and the Vesuvio country omelet is a jumble of eggs, mozzarella, hash browns, and marinara) while also offering breakfast staples like vanilla-bean French toast and breakfast sandwiches.

Brunch, while not life-changing, is completely serviceable and fun. Bloody Marys are spicy, the dishes satisfying, and the waitstaff friendly and cheerful. But the kitchen can get overwhelmed by the weekend crowds. If you’re in a hurry, tell your server when you sit down. This is especially true if you’ve brought the kids, who eat for free at brunch.

2600 E. 12th Ave., 303-377-2091

Sports Illustrated released its sixth-annual “Fortunate 50” list yesterday, which ranks the 50 top-earning American athletes in salary, winnings, endorsements, and appearance fees. Two Denver-based athletes made the cut.

Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony came in at No. 25, having earned $19.4 million in 2008-09 season. He slipped a little from the 2008 report, however, when he was ranked 18. Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton (pictured) tied for No. 37, raking in $16.75 million.

The No. 1 highest-paid American athlete? Golfer Tiger Woods, who brought in $99.7 million, nearly double the No. 2 athlete, fellow golfer Phil Mickelson, who had to settle for just $52.9 million.

Pity Seattle–or don’t. It depends what you think about Denver’s rapid growth. Seattle has fallen behind Denver when it comes to the nation’s largest cities in terms of population, as the Seattle Post-Intelligencer writes of new Census Bureau estimates. Denver, with a population about 1,300 people shy of 600,000, is now the nation’s 24th largest city and one of the fastest growing, too.

Denver–sandwiched between Seattle and Milwaukee, at 23rd largest–is also 25th in terms of fastest-growing cities, according to the Denver Business Journal. Ranking slightly faster than Denver in terms of pace of growth were Thornton and Aurora, making the region an expanding metro area. New York is still the largest city in the nation, with 8.36 million people, and New Orleans is the fastest-growing.

Denver International Airport officials have announced a plan that would bring a rail station and remake the Great Hall under the tent. The downsides? It will cost $1 billion, and the Great Hall would be off limits to everyone but ticketed passengers, writes The Denver Post. Currently, visitors to the airport’s Jeppesen terminal wait for arriving family and friends at a fountain and are able to dine and shop in the Great Hall.

Airport revenues would pay for the plan, which would have to be approved by Denver’s city council. The area south of the terminal would also get a Westin Hotel and an open-air plaza above the rail station, reports Aviation News Today.

Nestle, the massive food company responsible for the ongoing cookie-dough recall, is looking to tap 65 million gallons of natural spring water each year along the Arkansas River for Arrowhead brand bottled water, leaving officials in Chaffee County trying to figure out whether the deal is good or bad for the local economy.

That’s according to the Colorado Springs Gazette, which reports that the proposal by Nestle Waters North America is the first of several in Colorado in which the company is seeking to woo skeptical politicians like Commissioner Tim Glenn, who said during a meeting yesterday, “Nestle has made a decision not to create a lot of economic benefit in Chaffee County. They are coming in. They are taking a valuable resource out of the system and they are giving very little back in the way of utilizing that resource.”

Other commissioners, though, feel they don’t have the right to stand in Nestle’s way, and the county’s staff was ordered to draft a list of conditions for a water permit that would address concerns such as dry years and environmental issues. As for Nestle’s cookie-dough recall, the toll of the ill continues to mount: 51 people have been confirmed with a strain of E. coli O157:H7 in 30 states, according to CNN.

Larry Seastrom founded the New Frontier Bank in Greeley in a double-wide trailer a decade ago and grew its assets to $2 billion by lending to local businesses and farmers. But New Frontier lent recklessly in recent years, and its assets were essentially “a financial mirage,” Fred Joseph, Colorado’s banking commissioner, recently told The Wall Street Journal of the bank’s sudden collapse and closure by regulators in April.

Now the Congressional Oversight Panel will travel to Greeley for a hearing on credit markets and how federal money might prevent farms that relied on the bank–the largest lender in northern Colorado–from going into foreclosure, according to the Fort Collins Coloradoan. The hearing is at 10 a.m. Tuesday in the Weld County Centennial Center in Greeley, 915 10th Ave.

Seastrom isn’t listed among those who will testify, like Mike Flesher, executive vice president for Farm Credit Services of the Mountain Plains, and Marc Arnusch (pictured), owner of Marc Arnusch Farms, among several others, writes the Northern Colorado Business Report.

Meanwhile, the feds are preparing to auction off “three-quarters of a billion dollars’ worth of agricultural loans left behind by failed New Frontier Bank–the biggest sale of its kind in decades,” reports The Denver Post. Colorado banks declined to purchase the loans.

With a holiday weekend upon us, you’re likely to be spending some time in the sun, and in Denver’s high elevation you’re also likely to experience some sunburn.

Rather than splurge on aloe vera gels, I discovered a somewhat strange solution for sunburn relief: white vinegar. Apply it with a towel, spritz it on, or just douse yourself to provide a cool, soothing effect on your lobster-colored skin.

I came across this remedy while I was searching for confirmation that I could use vinegar to help prevent swimmer’s ear. (I recently started swimming laps at the Wash Park rec center.) I first heard the idea at summer camp when I was a kid, and sure enough, some white vinegar mixed with an equal amount of rubbing alcohol can help eliminate bacteria growth in the ears.

These two quick fixes are just a few of the numerous and cost-effective ways you can put vinegar to good use. Besides its traditional cooking purpose, it also comes in handy for cleaning, health remedies, laundry, gardening, and pet care.

Plus, vinegar is easy on the wallet, especially when used as a substitute for pricey cleaning agents and supplies. A rather large bottle can generally be purchased for less than $10, and if you really want to stock up, check out grocery store bulk aisles to ensure you won’t run out any time soon.

Just days after a Denver Police officer was accused of intimidating a slow-moving McDonald’s worker by flashing a gun (via Fox 31), the department’s officers are mired in yet another case rife with sensational allegations of abuse. This time, the accusers (five men) say officers punched and kicked them, slammed their heads on the ground, and even kept beating them after the handcuffs were on (via 9News). Photos show men with blackened eyes, bloody mouths, and chipped teeth.

The men have filed lawsuits alleging excessive force, and attorney Doug Romero, who is representing them, says the department has a “disturbing pattern of practice.” In April, for instance, after 28-year-old James Watkins admittedly told officers “you suck” outside the Lodo Bar and Grill, he claims they followed him to his car and then attacked him.

“I had my hands up and was crying, you know. And then they got on top of me on the ground and were torturing me,” says Watkins, who was initially charged with felony assault on an officer. Video shows his head being slammed to the ground. Denver officers have received 149 complaints of unnecessary force, and 58 were investigated by the department’s Internal Affairs Bureau. No allegations were sustained.

When absinthe became legal in the United States in 2007 (95 years after its prohibition), bartenders served up the herbal liquor traditionally–with water and burned sugar–as well as in cocktails like the Sazerac, a nose-tingling concoction of rye whiskey, lemon, bitters, and absinthe.

Soon after legalization (although not without frustrations), chefs were making absinthe cakes and ice cream, and today, foodies are applying creative twists using the pungent drink. My favorite so far is Wen Chocolates‘ Rue Royal truffle.

Released a couple months ago, the elegant dark-chocolate candy is inspired by the Sazerac, and appropriately flavored with absinthe, rye whiskey, lemon peel, and bitters. Unlike the cocktail, the truffle, tempered by its rich chocolate, is a soft blend of its signature ingredients, and makes for a trendy dessert at home or at a dinner party.

Wen Chocolates, 1541 Platte St., 303-477-5765

The Colorado Avalanche landed a new No. 1 goalie yesterday, but it isn’t Swedish superstar Jonas Gustavsson.

Instead, the Avs signed Craig Anderson, a 28-year-old who most recently played backup for the Florida Panthers. He put up some good numbers last season, posting 15 wins, seven losses, and five ties, The Denver Post notes. Anderson (pictured) also put up a 2.71 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage, which was good enough for third-best in the National Hockey League. He’ll be the starter next season, ahead of Peter Budaj, who may never start again after his poor performance for the Avs last time around.

NHL free agency hasn’t been all peaches and cream for the Avs, though. Fan favorite Ian Laperriere, known as much for his bruising fights on the ice as his giant heart in the community, is now a member of the Philadelphia Flyers. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported yesterday that Laperriere signed a three-year, $3.5 million contract. The Avalanche had offered him much less, which is understandable considering they are pushing up against the salary cap. Nevertheless, it’s a tough loss for Avs fans.

It’s summah time, and even though there are no palm trees or beaches in Denver, when the king of the Hawaiian luau croons sweet songs like “Blue Hawaii” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love With You,” a romantic night on a sandy beach doesn’t seem far away.

Lannie’s Clocktower Cabaret hosts the Elvis impersonator, Jonny Barber (a.k.a. Velvet Elvis), every Thursday night in July. Barber’s cool voice and breezy songs help beat the heat and invite us to bask in the season’s lighthearted sensations.

July 2, 9, 16, 23, 30. 8 p.m. $15.

Lannie’s Clocktower Cabaret, 1601 Arapahoe St., 303-293-0075

Ward Churchill was in Denver District Court yesterday, fighting to be restored as a University of Colorado professor, the next step in a protracted legal battle. In his last court appearance, jurors found that Churchill was wrongly fired in retaliation for a controversial essay about the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

“Political interests–whether internal or external to the university–do not have the prerogative to remove professors or to silence them because of disagreements for their beliefs,” Churchill testified (via The Denver Post).

CU has long maintained that Churchill was fired for academic misconduct but clearly lost ground on that argument yesterday as Churchill’s attorney David Lane grilled Todd Gleeson, the dean of the university’s College of Arts and Sciences, asking him to “point to the party that has ignored and trampled on the First Amendment to the United States Constitution,” (via Boulder’s Daily Camera).

The dean stammered and then told the court “the university was found to have violated Churchill’s rights,” a reference to the jury trial earlier this year that awarded Churchill just $1.

Judge Larry J. Naves will decide what to do–perhaps as early as next week–including the options of giving Churchill back his job, a monetary award, or doing nothing. See a photo gallery of the day at the Daily Camera.

There’s no shortage of news about how much of a bummer the Fourth of July will be in some places. Cash-strapped cities are scaling back the big celebrations, or even canceling them altogether, as is the case in Colorado Springs (via The Associated Press). But there are still good places to be–or go. Take Loveland, which is billing its display–at 9:17 p.m. on Saturday over Lake Loveland–as the largest in northern Colorado, writes the Fort Collins Coloradoan.

If Loveland seems out of the way, The Denver Post provides a long list of fireworks displays and other activities taking place throughout the state. Just don’t try to put on your own show in Denver. Police and paramedics, tired of seeing mutilated arms and burned hands and faces, have zero tolerance for anything that ignites or explodes.

“The only things that are legal are non-ignitable items such as paper-wrapped, small poppers,” Denver Police technician Dean Christopherson says (via the Post.)

John Quintana never thought he’d be dealing blackjack. But when he was laid off from his telecommunications job, he tells CBS4, he was glad the casinos were expanding–for the sake of his mortgage. At the stroke of midnight tonight, Amendment 50, passed overwhelmingly by voters last November, takes effect, allowing bettors to plunk down $100 wagers in Colorado’s three gaming towns.

The Colorado Springs Gazette notes the job boom has been in the making for a while: Two of Cripple Creek’s casinos collaborated with Pikes Peak Community College to host a series of dealer classes, netting about 150 graduates. In all, across the state casinos have hired more than 750 employees, according to the Colorado Gaming Association.

Of course, with the higher stakes come fears of the downside, including an anticipated “surge in cheaters,” writes The Denver Post. That would be a change from the past three years, for example, when just two of 13 cheating complaints led to arrests. (more…)

Free agency began last night in the National Basketball Association, and Nuggets fans will undoubtedly be thinking about what their team will do to improve on the court. Can they re-sign Chris Andersen? Will they attract a free-agent scorer like Grant Hill? How far over into the luxury tax is owner Stan Kroenke willing to go? All legitimate questions, but a couple of big ones remains about J.R. Smith, who spent yesterday in a different kind of court.

Smith was sentenced to 90 days in jail yesterday, with 60 days suspended, for causing a car crash that killed his friend (via The Denver Post). Smith drove his SUV through a stop sign in his native New Jersey in June 2007, colliding with another car in the process. Andre Bell, one of Smith’s best friends and a passenger in the car, later died from the injuries. The Associated Press notes that Bell’s family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Smith.

So, how will Smith’s 30-day jail sentence impact him? Will the NBA choose to suspend him heading into next year? It’s hard not to be frustrated with Smith, who shows so much potential on the basketball court, but more often acts like the poster child for spoiled, over-privileged athletes, who seem to always find ways to shoot themselves in the foot.

Carol Burdick, the woman who accused her property management company of evicting her because she decorated her door with Peeps Easter candy, will likely appear on The Colbert Report, a show that in recent years has joked that Easter is under attack.

Burdick’s attorney, John Pineau, says Comedy Central producers called this week to see if his client would appear on the satirical show, writes Boulder’s Daily Camera.

While Pineau says Burdick has turned down offers to appear on some national network shows, such as Fox News, The Colbert Report, “is something I actually watch,” he says.

“We’re certainly going to talk to them,” Pineau adds–although with some hesitation regarding the abrasive style of Colbert (pictured). “I can’t imagine any attorney is eager to put his client in those crosshairs.”