Stillwaters
Posted: Thursday, Nov 19th, 2009
The lights are on


Louise started it.
Shortly after she removed her Halloween decorations, my neighbor down the street and catawampus from my house put up her Christmas decorations. Her yard lights up the neighborhood every evening with seasonal decorations of every type imaginable.
Of course, I love it. My artificial Christmas tree is up in my ...more

Movin' on with Nellie
Posted: Wednesday, Nov 18th, 2009
Everyone should own a Mac!


Everyone should own a MacBook or an iMac. TSJC was wise to provide a Mac lab where breakdowns and screams are not heard as often as in the overheated PC labs on the second floor.
The commercial "I'm a Mac. I'm a PC" says it all. The Mac is a brilliant piece of ...more

As I see it
Posted: Tuesday, Nov 17th, 2009
Sunny days -- even in the middle of winter



I bought the 40 years of Sesame Street DVD pack last week, figuring it would keep the grandkids quiet for a while.
It did, but the biggest fans were my almost 30-something daughter and son-in-law, Lena and Derrick.
The two of them sat on the sofa with the ...more

Preserving Los Sauces area
Posted: Tuesday, Nov 17th, 2009
The announcement of a conservation easement on the Cross Arrow Ranch, a 3,200-acre cattle ranch at the confluence of the Conejos and Rio Grande Rivers, is good news. It means permanent protection, holding back change in long swaths of land along both rivers, extensive wetlands, riparian woodlands, pasturelands, wildlife, and birds in that beautiful area of the rural San Luis ...more

Native writes
Posted: Friday, Nov 13th, 2009
Due respect


Remembering Veterans Day as far back as I can go in my mind paints a number of very graphic pictures.
The first that comes to mind is of the late Juan Gomez stating -- and I paraphrase here -- that honoring one veteran honors them all and dishonoring one veteran dishonors them all.
Standing next to ...more

Stillwaters
Posted: Friday, Nov 13th, 2009
A foxhole promise is kept


Joe Trujillo may be one of the few men who ever kept his foxhole promise to God.
As an 18-year-old from the small town of Capulin, Joe was drafted into the U.S. Army in the final years of World War II.
The infantryman was trained in Alabama, far from home and family, and ...more

Movin' on with Nellie
Posted: Wednesday, Nov 11th, 2009
Suffering Succotash: a new reality TV show comes to the Valley


The economic wizards and state senators are telling us that Colorado is bouncing back faster than other state economies. I'm having a hard time believing them: groceries are higher than they were a year ago, gasoline prices are still rising, state budget woes and compromises still have ...more

As I see it
Posted: Tuesday, Nov 10th, 2009
No disasters allowed before the holidays


I noticed it Monday morning -- a strange noise coming from under the hood of my car.
I had been optimistically hoping the vehicle would last for another year, but that might not be the case.
It is not that I have ignored the car -- I gave it oil changes ...more

Rabbitbrush rambler
Posted: Monday, Nov 9th, 2009
The Old Adams Road


A primitive trail called the Old Adams Road, the original route to Summitville, has always intrigued me, although I never have been on it. It was heavily used by prospectors and miners in the early 1870s.
Roughly, traces of the Old Adams Road run south from Del Norte to Blowout Pass and then ...more