2016-07 5enses by 5enses

ALAN DEAN FOSTER breaks the second traffic law of robotics P.10

HELEN STEPHENSON directs & projects the Prescott Film Festival P.20

Delisa Myles hits the road & dances, naturally P.19

Reva Sherrard sanctifies & sacrifices midsummer mythos P.11

JULY 2016 | VOLUME 4, ISSUE 7 | 5ENSESMAG.COM

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5enses

July MMXVI Volume IV, Issue VII

In which:

Bill Perry

4 18 5 19 6 20 7 10 11 12 + 14 8/9 16 22 Paolo Chlebecek

pines after a seedy dispersal system that’s a conical collaboration

recycles (legally acquired) software and reconsiders renewable alternatives

DeeDee DeLorenzo

Delisa Myles

Peregrine Book Co. staﬀ

Helen Stephenson

searches high and low (but mostly high) for a noisy summertime neighbor

COVER IMAGE: Agate Quartz. Photo by Sailko, Creative Commons 3.0.

counts ﬁve hundred and ninety-seven thousand million sheep while (not) driving

Reva Sherrard

sets ablaze a midsummer night’s glean of knowledge about midsummer knights

Robert Blood

discusses gems, minerals, and gem and mineral shows with Maggi Lieber

Ty Fitzmorris

Left Brain/Right Brain

whets your summer appettites with new wildlife news from the wilds

James Dungeon

Antiques • Household • Estates • Buy • Sell • Consign • Transport

928-443-0911

lights cameras’ action and focuses on the 2016 Prescott Film Festival

keys in on a healthy vegetable that’s important to dishes around the world

Alan Dean Foster

Reuse, recycle, re-make-money

moves, emotes, and dances for dance, emotion, and movement’s sake

(again) travels near and far to broaden the proverbial vistas of your mind

Kathleen Yetman

JACY’S AUCTION

Discover events around Greater Prescott via a pop-sci metaphor

-No Usage Limits-No Contracts Required-Free Install Options-Fast Local Support-

We will work with you.

Argentine Tango w/Earl Duque & Delisa Myles

Thursdays 7-8 pm Class 8-9 p.m. Practica Cost: $10 Discount packs@ www.flyingneststudio.com/tango

Oddly Enough

converges on Phoenix with family and friends and gets his nerd on

Smart, quirky comics about the strange-but-true by Russell Miller

Visit flyingneststudio.com & Facebook for more

| info@flyingneststudio.com | 928-432-3068 | 322 W. Gurley Street |

Adorn Your Lifestyle Buy | Sell | Trade •

UNIQUE APPAREL & EXOTIC GOODS

928-776-8695

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5ENSESMAG.COM • JULY 2016 • CONTENTS • 3

Plant of the Month

Pinyon Pines A Pinyon Pine cone. Photo by Mara Kack.

Saturday, August 20, 2016 9 am - 5 pm

All events are FREE with general paid admission!

1403 Heritage Park Rd.; Prescott, AZ 86301 • www.HeritageParkZoo.org Phone: 928.778.4242 501(c)(3) non-profit organization supported by the community.

By Bill Perry ne of the pricier ingredients in the foodie universe, but essential to a good pesto, is a handful of pine nuts (pignolias). They usually arrive in little plastic bags from China or the Mediterranean. But if you grew up around here, you may know that, with work, you can also get them from our two local Pinyon pines (Pinus edulis and P. monophylla). And we aren’t the only species that eats pine nuts. Many animals rely on them for actual survival. Even more interesting, the pine trees themselves, to thrive in this environment, rely not only on the hunger of the Western Scrub-jay, but its forgetfulness as well. To prevent competition between parents and oﬀspring, nature creates the imperative to spread new progeny as widely as possible. This is a relatively easy task for animals, which have legs, ﬁns and wings to take them away from their origins. For plants, which are mainly rooted and sedentary, though, scattering is a more challenging problem. Still, it’s been solved in a wide variety of ways called “dispersal mechanisms.”

W 4 • FEATURE • JULY 2016 • 5ENSESMAG.COM

ind is an eﬃcient dispersal mechanism, wafting specialized seeds like cottonwoods and dandelions often miles from home. Other species rely on furry mammals to encounter clinging seeds which, like

Velcro, stick to the animal and ride to some new distant turf. Still other seeds get the less scenic route of passing through the gut of an animal to soften sufficiently to germinate when they’re finally deposited on the ground away from their parent. Our two species of Pinyon pine grow their seeds in impervious pitch-covered cones until they’re fully mature, probably to preclude early consumption. Finally, come autumn, the cones dry and split open to reveal the nutritious seeds inside. Scrub-jays, among others, arrive to pick them out of the cones and store them for the winter, often burying approximately 6,000 seeds in a season. But do they remember where they buried them? Ornithologists have performed numerous experiments to see how many of these buried seeds jays actually find and eat, and the results vary widely. A good rule of thumb may be one-third. Fortunately for the pines, the ones they don’t find have been conveniently and efficiently planted and yet another generation of trees is off and running. This dispersal mechanism seems to work very well for both the jays and the pines. ***** Prescott resident Bill Perry has a university degree in international relations but prefers to write about the wonders of nature. Visit the Highlands Center for Natural History at 1375 Walker Road, 928-776-9550, or HighlandsCenter. Org.

Bird of the Month

Yellow-breasted Chat A Yellow-breasted Chat. Photo by John West.

By DeeDee DeLorenzo et’s play “Name That Bird.” The bird I’m thinking of has white spectacles like a vireo, the bill of a tanager, the yellow breast of an oriole, and is the size of a brown-headed cowbird. Need more clues? It mimics like a northern mockingbird with a song that contains lots of whistles, gurgles, rattles, burps, squeaks, scolds, mews, and “chacks.” You’ll probably hear it before you see it, which can drive you crazy because it’s so loud and obnoxious. It is quite good at hiding toward the top of trees among leaves and branches. Quite a tease, I must say. Alright, one more clue. It’s the largest wood warbler species. Seriously, a warbler. Give up? It’s the Yellow-breasted Chat. You were thinking that, weren’t you? And yes, it has a name that is actually accurately descriptive.

ach spring, I expectantly wait for this bird to arrive from its wintering grounds in southern Mexico and Central America. For some time now my FOS (First of Season) chat has been heard and then spotted in mid-April on Old South Dike in the Havasu National Wildlife Refuge. It certainly

can’t be missed because its noisy, boisterous song just about drowns everyone else out. Soon after arriving in the area, the female chat has the responsibility of building a bulky cup-shaped nest. When the nest is completed, she lays three to ﬁve eggs and incubates them for about 12 days. (My guess is that, during this time, the male continues to play hide-and-seek among the trees and bushes driving local birders crazy.) Approximately eight to 11 days after hatching, the young leave the nest. By late August, some chats begin heading south and by early October most of them will have disappeared from Arizona. The sound of silence will once again return to the refuge — well at least until the geese begin arriving from the north.

Bringing Wild Birds To Your Backyard! www.jaysbirdbarn.com

1046 Willow Creek Rd, Suite 105 Prescott

(928) 443-5900

***** DeeDee is a retired elementary school teacher, Prescott Audubon Society Board Member, and active member of Friends of the Bill Williams River and Havasu National Wildlife Refuges. Email her at VerdiND3@Yahoo.Com. Visit Prescott Audubon Society at PrescottAudubon.Org. Contact them at Contact@PrescottAudubon.Org.

5ENSESMAG.COM • JULY 2016 • FEATURE • 5

Peregrine Book Co.

Staff picks Catered by Reva Sherrard Highlands Center Natural History Highlands Centerforfor Natural History

Nestled in the Lynx Lake Recreation Area, two minutes from Costco, The Highlands Center for Natural History invites you to experience the wonder of the Central Arizona Highlands.

The Highlands Center’s F.U.N. camps are a wonderful way for children to spend a week of their summer while learning to wonder, discover, explore, and play. Registration required. Visit our website for dates and details!

NATURALIST WALKS - NEW THURSDAY WALKS. FREE!

Thursday, Saturday and Evening walks are both at the Center’s own Lynx Creek Site, and a special Wednesday Walk is every first and third Wednesday at select city trails.

EVENING FOREST WALK - Friday, July 15, 7:00 PM. FREE! MUSHROOM MADNESS- Saturday, July 30, 9:30 AM

Dive into the fungi kingdom with NAU mycologist, Eric Nelson. Pre-registration required. $15 (10% discount for Members)

928-776-9550 • highlandscenter.org

www.highlandscenter.org

Prescott’s finest submarines since before downtown traffic 418 W. Goodwin St., 778-3743 M-F 10:30-2:30, Weekends closed

6 • FEATURE • JULY 2016 • 5ENSESMAG.COM

“On Inequality” By Harry Frankfurt On average, women make about 78 cents to every dollar a man makes. Same jobs, same duties. Is this right? Of course it isn’t. But is equal pay the right way to go? Is this where we should start? If men and women make roughly the same amount but neither make enough to stay above the poverty line, does it even matter? Read on to see what the book has to say on this relevant topic. — Jon “The Picture of Dorian Gray” By Oscar Wilde Pictures have the ability to capture moments, people, and places as timeless memories. However, what would happen if such captivation was used incorrectly or even maliciously? This book is haunting and thought-provoking and has stayed with me for many years. — Emma “Beauty is a Wound” By Eka Kurniawan This Indonesian novel knocked my socks oﬀ. Eka Kurniawan carries the mantle of magical realism beautifully here. If you are a fan of Borges, Garcia Marquez, Murakami, or Rushdie this book will ﬁt nicely in your collection. It reads smoother to me than all the aforementioned, and is the best book I’ve read so far this year. — David

“All Tomorrow’s Parties” By Rob Spillman With incredible clarity, Spillman looks back on being an only child of divorced parents, the eccentric life he led with his father in Berlin, and the homesickness he felt until he returned after moving back to the States. Incredibly perceptive even at a young age, Spillman remembers witnessing a shifting Berlin at the edge of a cultural renaissance and the cultural diﬀerences he observed on trips he took with his father from West Berlin to East Berlin to visit his father’s favorite music shop. Spillman’s constant search for beauty, inspiration, and identity in All Tomorrow’s Parties creates an intimate coming-of-age tale. — Lacey “The Almost Nearly Perfect People” By Michael Booth A funny, tonic, and enlightening riposte to the image of Nordic perfection. Booth, a British journalist residing in Denmark, skewers Scandinavian quirks and failings while providing a primer on the region’s recent economic and political history- and occasionally admitting what they do get right. Scandiphiles and connoisseurs of human folly will delight in this litany of northern weirdness. — Reva

***** Visit Peregrine Book Company at PeregrineBookCompany.Com and 219A N. Cortez St., Prescott, 928-445-9000.

Vegetable of the Month

Garlic Photo by Kathleen Yetman.

By Kathleen Yetman arlic (Allium sativum) is a bulbous plant native to central Asia whose cultivation started more than 5,000 years ago and is popular in cuisines around the world. It is closely related to onions, leeks, and shallots — all of which share the same genus, Allium. The ancient cultivation and use of garlic both as food and medicine was widespread and well documented. Garlic was commonly used in ancient China, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Garlic is rich in sulfur-containing compounds that give garlic its

strong odor and are also the source of its many health beneﬁts. These compounds have been proven to decrease the synthesis of cholesterol, inhibit inﬂammation, and act as an antioxidant. Research suggests that these compounds help prevent cardiovascular diseases. Garlic also has antimicrobial and antibacterial properties.

n Northern Arizona, garlic is planted in the fall, between September and November, and left to grow all winter and spring. In addition to the mature “cured” garlic found in stores, other parts of the plant are also

edible. Farmers may choose to pull immature garlic to sell as “green garlic.” Green garlic looks similar to green onions and has the same taste as mature garlic, but with less spiciness. As garlic plants approach summer, they often send up stalks in order to produce seeds. These “scapes” are harvested in order to allow the plant to put all of its energy into the bulb below the soil and can be added to dishes for flavor. Mature garlic is harvested in June and requires a few weeks of curing before the bulb is ready to be broken into cloves for cooking. Garlic is a fantastic addition to meals of all kinds and is a key ingredient in dishes around the world. Freshly harvested garlic has the best health benefits and the best taste. July is the best time to find fresh garlic, so take advantage of this peak season. ***** Find out more about the Prescott Farmers Market at PrescottFarmersMarket.Org. Kathleen Yetman is the managing director of the Prescott Farmers Market and a native of Prescott.

5ENSESMAG.COM • JULY 2016 • FEATURE • 7

Left Brain: July’s mind-full events Events

30 & 31

“Star Hopping” • 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 6: Marilyn Unruh discusses how to navigate through the sky and ﬁnd objects without a telescope/mount. A monthly Prescott Astronomy Club meeting. (Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Building 74 Lecture Hall 107, 3700 Willow Creek Road, PrescottAstronomyClub.Org)

DiBuduo, Eisenbise, & Barone • 2 p.m. Saturday July 30: Local authors Joe DiBuduo, Arlene Eisenbise, and Sam Barone discuss their work. (Peregrine Book Co., 219A N. Cortez St., 928-445-9000)

“Board Game Night” • 5 p.m. Thursday, July 7: Open game night enthusiasts of all ages and orign stories, facilitating all tapletop, card, and board games. (Peregrine Book Co., 219A N. Cortez St., 928445-9000)

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Highlands Center bird walk • 7:30 a.m. Saturday, July 9: Monthly Prescott Audubon Society bird walk. (Highlands Center for Natural History, 1375 S. Walker Road, 928-7769550) “Golden Age of the Cowgirl” •1 p.m. Saturday, July 9: Cheri Raftery discusses the women brought up in the early American West, who lived by diﬀerent standards than the strict Victorian principles of the East. (Phippen Museum, 4701 Arizona 89, 928-778-1385, $5-$7) “Aw-Thum: Don't Get Your String Wet” • 2 p.m. Saturday, July 9: Royce and Debbie Manuel talk. A Second Saturday Lecture Series event. (Smoki Museum, 147 N. Arizona Ave., 928445-1230, $6-$7)

“Wildlife of Tanzania” • 2:30 p.m. Monday, July 11: Walt Anderson gives a photographic tour of the Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Mt. Kilimanjaro, and Lake Manyara, including dazzling sunbirds, starlings, eagles, falcons, and ostriches.

Stricklin Park bird walk • 7 a.m. Wednesday, July 27: Local, guided bird walk at Stricklin Park with Bonnie Pranter. (Jay’s Bird Barn, No. 113, 1046 Willow Creek Road, 928-443-5900, RSVP)

Mushroom Madness • 9:30 a.m. Saturday, July 30: Northern Arizona University mycologist Eric Nelson discusses local mushroom varieties, as well as which ones are tasty and which ones are deadly, plus ﬁeld trip depending on weather conditions. (Highlands Center for Natural History, 1375 S. Walker Road, 928-776-9550, $15, RSVP)

“Telling It Like It Was: Interviews with Arizona Pioneer Women” • 5 p.m. Thursday, July 7: Awardwinning author Dr. Barbara Marriott tells the stories of original Arizona pioneers using materials collected during the Depression by the Federal Writers Project. An Arizona Humanities lecture. (Prescott Public Library, 215 E. Goodwin St., 928777-1500)

Kendall Camp bird walk • 7 a.m. Friday, July 8: Local, guided bird walk at Kendall Camp with Eric Moore. (Jay’s Bird Barn, No. 113, 1046 Willow Creek Road, 928-4435900, RSVP)

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Watson Woods bird walk • 7 a.m. Saturday, July 23: Local, guided bird walk at Watson Woods with Eric Moore. (Jay’s Bird Barn, No. 113, 1046 Willow Creek Road, 928-443-5900, RSVP)

Iris Rhizome Sale • 10 a.m. July 30 & 31: Annual iris rhizome sale featuring hundreds of iris varieties in all colors of the rainbow. Planting and care instructions provided. A portion of the proceeds beneﬁt Prescott Area Iris Society outreach and educational programs at public schools. (Yavapai Title, 1235 E. Gurley St., 623-980-6627) PHOTO: Visitors peruse the Irish Rhizome Sale. Courtesy photo. A Prescott Audubon Society Lecture Series event. (Prescott Public Library, 215 E. Goodwin St., 928777-1500)

“Blind Date With a Book” •5 p.m. Wednesday, July 13: Launch party for the event with a mystery book wrapped in brown paper tagged with clues in a night of fun, mystery, and romance. In partnership with the Coalition for Compassion and Justice. (Peregrine Book Co., 219A N. Cortez St., 928-4459000, $10)

Cottonwood Peninsula bird walk • 7 a.m. Thursday, July 14: Local, guided bird walk at Cottwood Peninsula with Ryan Crouse. (Jay’s Bird Barn, No. 113, 1046 Willow Creek Road, 928-443-5900, RSVP)

8 • EVENTS • JULY 2016 • 5ENSESMAG.COM

“Death Cafe” • 5:30 p.m. Thursday, July 14: People gather to eat cake, drink tea, and discuss death with the objective “to increase awareness of death with a view to help people make the most of their (ﬁnite) lives.” (Peregrine Book Co., 219A N. Cortez St., 928-445-9000)

“The Secret Knowledge of Water” • 9:30 a.m. Friday, July 15: Discuss “The Secret Knowledge of Water,” by Prescott College alumnus Craig Childs. A monthly Natural History Book Club meeting. (Prescott College Natural History Institute, 312 Grove Ave., 928-350-2280)

Highlands Center forest walk • 7 p.m. Friday, July 15: Monthly evening forest walk. (Highlands Center for Natural History, 1375 S. Walker Road, 928-776-9550)

“Happy Birthday, Harry Potter!” • 10 a.m. book goes on sale, 1 p.m. birthday cake, 1:20 p.m. potions class Sunday, July 31: Celebration of Harry Potter's birthday and the eighth Harry Pottery story, “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” including treats, movies, activities, and surprises. (Peregrine Book Co., 219A N. Cortez St., 928-445-9000)

Multi-day Zoo Camp • 8:30 a.m. July 1, 11-15, & 18-22: Annual summer zoo camp with weekly themes. (Heritage Park Zoological Sanctuary, 1403 Heritage Park Road, 928-778-4242, $150-175, RSVP) Prescott Area Boardgamers • 5 p.m. Wednesdays, July 6 & 20: Play European-style board games. (Prescott Public Library, 215 E. Goodwin St., 928-777-1500) Prescott Farmers Market • 7:30 a.m. Saturdays: Enjoy local organic produce and goods from local farmers. (Yavapai College Parking Lot D, 1100 E. Sheldon St., PrescottFarmersMarket.Org) Drop in chess • 2 p.m. Saturdays: Play chess, all ages and skill levels welcome. (Prescott Public Library, 215 E. Goodwin St., 928-777-1500)

July’s art-full events :niarB thgiR

6 11

Events

Poetry Discussion Group • 1 p.m. Wednesday, July 6: Monthly poetry discussion. (Prescott Public Library, 215 E. Goodwin St., 928-777-1500)

“World of Inkjet Paper” • 10 a.m. Monday, July 11: Beginner through advanced workshop. (Milagro Arts Center, 126 N. Marina St., MilagroArtsCenter.Org, $60-$75)

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• From July 12: Photography exhibition featuring the work of Mark Hendrickson. (Prescott College Art Gallery at Sam Hill Warehouse, 232 N. Granite St., 928-3502341) Lewis • Through July 13: Oil paintings by Judy Lewis. (Mountain Artists Guild & Gallery, 228 Alarcon St., 928-445-2510) “Oriona With Love” • Through July 14: Found object and mixed media creations by Sheri Oriona Meadows. (’Tis Art Center & Gallery, 105 S. Cortez St., 928-775-0223)

“Digital Inkjet Printmaking” • 10 a.m. Monday, July 11: Advanced clinic. (Milagro Arts Center, 126 N. Marina St., MilagroArtsCenter.Org, $45-$60)

13 23

“David & Tony are in the Mezzanine!” • From July 15: Paintings by David Van Gorder and wood turned creations by Antonio Leal. (’Tis Art Center & Gallery, 105 S. Cortez St., 928-775-0223)

Open mic poetry • 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 13: Monthly poetry jam presented by Decipherers Synonymous. (The Beastro, 117 N. McCormick St., 971340-6970)

Gunter • From July 15: Oil paintings by Alice Gunter. (Mountain Artists Guild & Gallery, 228 Alarcon St., 928-445-2510)

“Art for Youth Art Rummage Yard Sale” • Saturday, July 23: Yard sale. All proceeds go toward art for youth programs via Mountain Artists Guild & Gallery. (Mountain Artists Guild & Gallery, 228 Alarcon St., 928-445-2510) “Where Is My Progressed Moon?” • 2 p.m. Saturday, July 23: Moses Siregar hosts an astrology presentation. Bring your time of birth. (Peregrine Book Co., 219A N. Cortez St., 928-445-9000) Contra Dance • 7 p.m. lesson, 7:30 p.m. dance Saturday, July 23: Contra dancing. Via Folk Happens. Calls by Kari Usher, music by Scrub Oak. (First Congregation Church, 216 E. Gurley St., 928-925-5210, $4-$8)

27 29

Open mic poetry • 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 27: Poet Dan Seaman emcees monthly open mic poetry. (Peregrine Book Co., 219A N. Cortez St., 928-445-9000)

“The Art of Cattle Track Press” • 5 p.m. Friday, July 29: Mark McDoweel and Brent Bond talk and reception. (Milagro Arts Center, 126 N. Marina St., MilagroArtsCenter.Org)

Multi-day “Shakespeare Abridged” • 7:30 p.m. July 8, 16, & 24; 2 p.m. July 29: A tale of madcap lunacy by Adam Long, Daniel Singer, and Jess Wingﬁeld. Directed by Bruce Lanning. (Stage Too, North Cortez Street alley between Willis and Sheldon streets, 928-445-3286, $12-$17) Prescott Indian Art Market • 9 a.m. July 9 & 10: 19th annual art sale featuring more than 100 Indian artists and vendors with native-crafted items, plus a juried show in more than 12 artistic categories. (Sharlot Hall Museum, 415 W. Gurley St., 928-445-2133)

“Les Femmes de Montage” • 10 a.m. July 9, 11 a.m. July 10: 12th annual group show featuring artwork by Cindi Shaffer, Patricia Tyser Carberry, Jo Manginelli, Connie Barnett, Carolyn Dunn, Abby Brill, Barb Wills, Leslee Oaks, Anne Legge, and guest artist Tony Leal. 10 percent of proceeds go to the Highlands Center for Natural History. (Hassayampa Inn, 122 E. Gurley St., LesFemmesDesMontage.Com)

“Inspiration to Creation: The Hidden Life Behind Bronze” • Through July 17: Artist and bronze specialist Erik Petersen and photographer Willie Petersen, cater behind-the-scenes images of the making of bronze sculptures. (Phippen Museum, 4701 Arizona 89, 928-778-1385, $5-$7)

“Movies That Move You!” • July 17-24: 7th annual Prescott Film Festival including screenings, workshops, and more. Visit PrescottFilmFestival.Com for a full schedule of events. (Yavapai College Performing Arts Center, 1100 E. Sheldon St., 928-776-2000, screening times and ticket prices vary) PHOTO: Patrons enjoy the Prescott Film Festival. Courtesy photo. “The Rainmaker” • 7:30 p.m. July 9, 22, & 30; 2 p.m. July 22: A laughed-packed treatment of Anton Chekov’s plays by Neil “Doc” Simon. Directed by Paul Epoch. (Stage Too, North Cortez Street alley between Willis and Sheldon streets, 928-4453286, $12-$17)

Social dance classes • Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, & Sundays: Learn the Argentine tango, West Coast swing, tribal belly dance, Lindy hop swing, ﬂamenco, and Latin dance. (Flying Nest Movement Arts, 322 W. Gurley St., 928432-3068, prices vary)

“The Good Doctor” • 2 p.m. July 10 & 31; 7:30 p.m. July 15 & 23: A tale of poetic magical realism in love and humor by N. Richard Nash. Directed by Catherine Miller Hahn. (Stage Too, North Cortez Street alley between Willis and Sheldon streets, 928-445-3286, $12-$17)

Mindfulness meditation • 7 p.m. Tuesdays: Meditation group open to people of all faiths and non-faiths. (First Congregational Church, 216 E. Gurley St., PrescottVipassana.Org)

“The Little Shop of Horrors” • 7:30 p.m. July 14-16 & July 21-23; 2 p.m. July 17 & 24: The deviously delicious Broadway and Hollywood sci-ﬁ smash musical. Directed by Jim Pyduck. A Teen Summer Stock Ensemble production. (Prescott Center for the Arts, 208 N. Marina St., 928-4453286, $12-$17) “Jungle Book” • 7 p.m. July 15, 16, 22, & 23; 2:30 p.m. July 16, 17, & 23: Children’s Theater production adapted from the Mowgli stories of Rudyard Kipling. (Prescott Valley Performing Arts Center, 2982 N. Park Ave, Suite G1, 928-583-4684) Yoga classes • Mondays, Tuesdays, & Thursdays: Yoga classes including Ayurveda, over-50, mindful, and dynamic ﬂow yoga. (Flying Nest Movement Arts, 322 W. Gurley St., 928-4323068, prices vary)

Performance dance/movement arts classes • Wednesdays & Thursdays: Learn contemporary dance, movement for life, and normative movement. (Flying Nest Movement Arts, 322 W. Gurley St., 928-432-3068, prices vary)

Art Krol • From July 1: Bronze sculpture and jewelry by guest artist Natalie Krol. (That New Gallery, Gateway Mall near Dillard’s, 3250 Gateway Blvd., 928-445-0788) “Monsoon Magic” • From July 1: Art show featuring monsoonthemed art. (Mountain Artists Guild & Gallery, 228 Alarcon St., 928-445-2510) “Three Visions/One Place”

“The Eyes Have It” • Through July 19: Annual summer group photography show. (’Tis Art Center & Gallery, 105 S. Cortez St., 928-775-0223) “Hey, Did You See That?” • Through July 20: Macro photography by Christy Garavetto and Jody Miller. (Arts Prescott Gallery, 134 S. Montezuma St., 928776-7717) “Black & White With a Splash of Color” • From July 21: Annual group art show featuring black and white pieces with, of course, a splash of color. (’Tis Art Center & Gallery, 105 S. Cortez St., 928-775-0223) “Immanence of the Ordinary” • Through July 22: New sculpture by Edie Dillon and photography by James Henderson depict “the ordinary.” (Yavapai College Prescott Art Gallery, 1100 E. Sheldon St., 928-776-2031) “Street Photography: People & Their Attitudes” • From July 22: Traditional photography by Vahé Kazandjian. (Arts Prescott Gallery, 134 S. Montezuma St., 928-776-7717) “All Creatures Great & Small” • Through July 23: Animal-focused art. (Prescott Center for the Arts Gallery, 208 N. Marina St., 928-445-3286) “Artist’s Visions” • From July 25: Vision-focused art. (Prescott Center for the Arts Gallery, 208 N. Marina St., 928-445-3286) “The Art of Photography & the Handmade Book At Cattle Track Press” • Through July 29: Western-themed show featuring artwork by Rob Kendrick, jay Dusard, and Brent Bond. (Milagro Arts Center, 126 N. Marina St., MilagroArtsCenter.Org) Hold Fast Tattoo • Through July 31: Annual Hold Fast Tattoo exhibition. (The Raven Café, 142 N. Cortez St., 928-717-0009)

An uber Simpson’s couch gag (sort of)

How automatically mobile automobiles may automatically mobilize

“

By Alan Dean Foster That’s a nice looking car.” “Thanks. I bought it for the tech. I would’ve bought it even if it had looked like a Pontiac Aztek.” It’s at this point in the conversation that I start to get funny looks. But I’m being entirely truthful. This doesn’t mean I’m utterly indifferent to the look of an automobile. Only that to me there are now far more important things than its appearance. I know. Sacrilege to those of you who lust after Corvettes and Maseratis and Ferraris and such. But cars are a separate conversation. What I’m talking about when I respond to the aforementioned compliment is not cars — it’s transportation. When you’re in your twenties and thirties, not to mention teenage years, cars are important. They’re signs of status, of taste, of independence, and they make a personal statement. When one becomes … older … the general (although not exclusive) tendency is for one to focus more on getting successfully from one place to another as opposed to looking flashy when you arrive there. I’m at that point. And that’s why I’m looking forward to a future where the appearance of transportation is far less important than how efficiently it performs its intended function. Already we’re seeing predictions that no one who currently owns a car will bother to own one in the near future anyway. Why? Because it will be cheaper and easier for Uber and Lyft and related companies to do the buying and shuttle us all around in the vehicles they own. A fair number of folks are going that route (no pun intended) right now, especially in metropolitan areas. After all, by using such services all of the expenses of car ownership disappear. There’s no maintenance, no monthly payments, no insurance costs, and someone else does the driving. And forget about obsessing over keeping a car clean and sharp looking. Such services are a practical option for many. But not the ultimate option.

Alan Dean Foster’s

Perceivings

or … just take a nap. No matter what auto purists say, that makes up a lot for how the vehicle you’re riding in might happen to look. Think of the other advantages. The legally blind gain instant mobility. So do the inﬁrm and the elderly. No matter how severely you may happen to be handicapped, if you can get in your car it can get you to wherever you want to go. Don’t think that Uber and Lyft aren’t equally aware of the same possibilities. Call on them in the near future and that car you don’t have to wash, pay for, insure, or fuel arrives at your doorstep — sans driver. You don’t have to tip a robot, they can work 24/7, and they never argue with dispatch. No more road rage. You can’t get angry with a driverless

hat will come with the advent of selfdriving vehicles. It’s a technological development that will give rise to a sea change in social habits. You buy the car but never drive it. You just tell it, via verbal or keyboard input, where you want it to go. Utilizing its own technology plus GPS or some similar guidance system, the car hums oﬀ (for it will surely be electric) on its way. You are no longer a driver; you are now a passenger. You sit back, kick oﬀ your shoes, maybe recline your seat, and watch TV or mess with your pad or computer

10 • COLUMN • JULY 2016 • 5ENSESMAG.COM

car. Much more efficient use of freeways because speeds will be relatively constant and self-driving cars can follow much more closely than those driven by imperfect, impatient, sometimes hysterical human beings. Interiors will be redesigned to be, not airplane uncomfortable, but cozy. Everyone will get around in First Class. I mentioned reclining seats. Reverse those in front and you can have a proper conversation with those in back. Or play cards, or entertain the kids. No more horrific accidents due to drunk drivers. Pile tipsy Uncle Phil into the car, program a destination, lock it in (and maybe lock Uncle Phil in, too) and the car delivers him safely home. Nor will self-driving be limited to personal transport. We’re already seeing the first experimental self-driving big rigs on the road. And imagine a self-driving school bus (okay, maybe that’s a bit premature).

he day is on its way when you won’t care what a car looks like because it will have reverted from a symbol of status to a pure mode of transportation. Or will it? As sure as there’s an American consumer there will be self-driving cars featuring self-contained kitchens, full-size beds (for long trips, for long trips, you sly-eyed readers), hot tubs, and probably everything from aquariums (featuring robot ﬁsh?) to solariums. At which point your grandkids will ask you, with a straight face, “Grandpa, what’s a ‘driver’s license’ and why did everybody need one?” ***** Alan Dean Foster is author of more than 120 books, visitor to more than 100 countries, and still frustrated by the human species. Follow him at AlanDeanFoster. Com.

Images public domain. Illustration by 5enses.

By Reva Sherrard

Blood & Fire

man was “king” of the grove for a year, to be killed by a successor bearing mistletoe from one aldr, son of Odin and Frigg, was of the sacred oaks on the next summer solstice. fair and radiant, and invulnerable The old king’s body was then ritually burned. to weapons of every kind. The gods The ancient Celts had an oak-king too, albeit not of the North made a game out of a human one: He ruled the light-filled, burgeonthrowing spears, axes, and arrows ing half of the year from Midwinter and died at Baldr and roaring with laughat Midsummer when his strength ter to see them bounce harmlessly was at its peak. The mistletoe that off his shining skin. His mother grew on the boughs of his sacred Frigg had once used her great tree, feeding parasitically on its powers of magic to persuade evhealth, held a place of central relierything in the world, every rock, gious importance. At Midsummer, plant and tree, to swear an oath the holly-king of darkness and never to harm her son — all save waning killed the oak-king and the pale mistletoe which, being ruled until his own death when too weak to live without a strong the year began again — hence tree to grow on, could not pose a our Christmas boughs of holly. threat. These seasonal king-deities ruled Loki, an old god with knowledge in tandem with a goddess who and magic of his own, plucked a presided over the cycles of death sprig of unsworn mistletoe and and rebirth. fashioned it into a sharp dart. A similar theme dominated Baldr had a brother, Hodr, as the old Scandinavian year, with dark and blind as Baldr was priestesses presiding over seasonal bright. When the gods were gathsacrifices of animals and human ered in their game, drunk on ale men for the community’s conand mead and hurling weapons tinuance. Baldr represents such a at their hero, Loki put his hand sacrifice. In Norse myth, his death on Hodr’s shoulder and offered to is intimately bound up with the help him play the game. world’s approaching destruction at “Take this dart,” he said, “and Ragnarok and subsequent rebirth, aim it where I point you.” as well as with the more mundane Glad to join in, Hodr took the yearly cycle; his vulnerability to mistletoe and flung it with all his mistletoe and death at the hands strength. The dart pierced where of a dark twin connect him to the the hardest ash and steel could Midsummer oak-kings. The sacred not. Baldr fell dead. pyre that sent him to the next Full of grief, the gods built a world is relit throughout Scandifuneral pyre and laid Baldr on it. navia every summer to mark the Loki had fulfilled a seeress’ prophmoment when the year burns its ecy that Baldr must die by Hodr’s brightest and turns again towards hand before Ragnarok, the inevithe dark. table Doom of the Gods, in order As the days shorten with the to be reborn in the new world afapproach of the autumn equinox An illustration from an 18th century Icelandic manterwards. Just before they kindled in September, think of the cycles uscript depicting the death of Baldr. Public domain. the pyre, Odin bent to his dead of endless life that imbued our anson’s ear and whispered a secret cestors’ world with meaning- and for his soul to carry on its journey. consider the possibility that Loki is or a general awareness of the northern half of the No one knows what he said. So the world turned still out there somewhere, drinking all the mead planet tilting back towards the sun, its summer on towards its destruction and renewal. while the other gods are at the funeral. counterpoint is largely ignored in the modern English-speaking world. Not so in Scandinavia, ***** ***** the last corner of Europe to abandon its native While I aim for themes of general interest, my he death of Baldr by Loki’s cunning is religion, where long winters make summer all the focus in this article is on the myths of Northwesta late version of a Scandinavian myth more sweet. Every Midsummer, bonfires blaze ern Europe because they are what I study. The with echoes throughout Europe. To and people eat, drink, sing, and dance all through world is full of other rich, complex, and somemodern eyes, it looks like a straightthe year’s briefest night in a celebration at least as times contradictory traditions I omit because of forward tale of murder. Yet its imagery important as Christmas. my lack of sufficient knowledge, not through a links it to ancient practices of human sacrifice at lack of appreciation and respect. the summer solstice. ou may be familiar with the MidsumJune 20 was this year’s solstice or Midsummer, mer sacrifice of the king of the godReva Sherrard works at Peregrine Book Comthe longest day of the year in the northern hemidess Diana’s sacred oak grove at Nemi pany, studies Old Norse religion, and is writing sphere. While we still observe the winter solstice in Italy, recounted in “The Golden a novel. through the proxies of Christmas and Hanukkah Bough,” a classic on early religion. This

Myths of Midsummer

5ENSESMAG.COM • JULY 2016 • FEATURE • 11

ROCK (& mineral) SOLID

Art & science form strata in Prescott Gem & Mineral Show & Sale By Robert Blood [Editor’s note: The following interview was culled from conversations between the reporter and Maggi Lieber, co-chairman Life member and newsletter writer of the Prescott Gem and Mineral Club, whose annual Prescott Gem & Mineral Show & Sale runs Aug. 5-7 at the Prescott Valley Event Center.] How did you get involved with the Prescott Gem and Mineral Club? We moved out here from New Jersey in 2005 and the ﬁrst weekend we were here was the county fair. At the time, the club had a display at the fair. As newbies, we were all oohs and aahs. One of the founding members, Keith Horst, said that if we liked that, we should go to the gem and mineral show in two weeks. At the time, we’d never even heard the term lapidary, so you can imagine our surprise. That was during the ﬁrst few years of the show. I

imagine it was quite a bit smaller than it is now. It was in an animal barn out at the fairgrounds. It was two weeks after county fair, so the remnants of the livestock were still there. The flies were more than prolific. Pretty much anyone that came in was given a flyswatter. They were fumigating at night, so you could smell the insecticide in the morning. There was just one row of vendors, maybe 25 total. So you didn’t stay for the atmosphere. I’m assuming it was the people. Yeah. I joined there on the spot. They’re strong independent people with a wide variety of talents and interests. There are hobbyists just doing it for fun, but there are also professional lapidaries and silversmiths who make their living this way. It’s a welcoming, encouraging club. I never felt like an outsider. The first field trip I went on, people said come over here, here’s what you’re looking for and here’s a good place to hunt for it. It never felt like proprietary interests were kept secret. People shared and encouraged each other. It seems a show like this might only attract hardcore rockhounds. A lot of people have told me, ohh, I’m not really interested in gems and minerals. What they don’t realize is what a wide variety of things that covers. You don’t have to be a geologist or a mineralogist or something like that to appreciate the show. What they don’t realize is the variety of things that can be made and how beautiful and varied polished specimens are. When I first went I had no idea what the show was about. I thought it was just a bunch of rocks which, I guess it is, but it’s much more varied and beautiful than I expected. And this year’s show? It’s the 13th annual show. The club formed and started doing the show a year or two after that, and it’s been going ever since then. We’re up to 60 vendors now with a larger variety. One of the things that’s we’ve always been very cognizant about is the variety. The show is by invitation only, so it’s not just send a check and set up your spot. There aren’t 30 vendors all

12 • PORTFOLIO • JULY 2016 • 5ENSESMAG.COM

selling the same thing. There’s everything from fossils to meteorites to roughs and slabs, to jewelry and wire wrapping. Last year, there was a person who was added who just sold specimens and petrified wood. I thought, yeah, that’s nice, but when I saw what was there, it was amazing. All the different colors and patterns possible in petrified wood just blew me away. ... The event grows about 20 percent every year. Last year we hit 4,000 attendees for the first time, and this time we’re hoping for 5,000. We’re starting to draw more than just the Tri-City area and Sedona and Flagstaff. People are coming from Utah and Montana and making a weekend of it. Obviously the hobby took. What was so appealing about it for you? Well, rock and gem collecting out East isn’t the same. There aren’t the same open spaces as out here. Because of the glacial formations, there’s more Ice Age stuff there and out here there’s more volcanic stuff. There’s a lot more variety in the Southwest. There’s a lot more things you can self collect. There are beautiful pieces and specimens that you can find yourself and just clean up a little bit. … You’re constantly finding new things, new deposits that have slightly different mineral compositions, so the patterns and colors are different. It’s a treasure trove here. What’s the draw for someone who’s already into the hobby and maybe been to the show before? Well, when you’ve been in the hobby for a little while, you tend to gravitate toward specific stones or minerals. They become, for lack of a better word, your mantra. I, for instance, love petrified Texas Palmwood. I’m always on the lookout for it, and the show is another place to find some. I also enjoy Indonesian Coral and petrified coral polyps. When they’re polished up, they make the most beautiful jewelry. I put them together freeform, so I’m always looking for tight patterns. The show is an opportunity to find more of these things and to find some surprising. … You never know when you’re going to be surprised. Last month, I went to a show in Sedona that had slabs of dinosaur bones. Those are something that’s disappearing from the trade because you’re not allowed to collect new specimens anymore. They only come up when people put older collections on the market. So, I’d taken this nice

IF YOU GO … WHAT: 13th annual Prescott Gem & Mineral Show & Sale WHEN: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Aug. 5 & 6 & 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Aug. 7 WHERE: Prescott Valley Event Center, corner of Glassford Hill & Florentine roads, 928-772-1819 WORTH: $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, veterans, & students, & free for children 12 or under w/paid adult WEB: PrescottGemMineral.Org drive to Sedona and not intended to buy anything, then come home with $160 worth of dinosaur bones. That’s the kind of thing that can happen. You’ve used a few terms people may not be familiar with. What’s some of the gem and mineral jargon people are going to hear? You start out with a piece of rough, a boulder, or a rock. Next you have a slab, that is, you slice it up so you can see what’s inside it. From there, you make a cabochon, which is a shaped, polished, usually semi-precious gemstone. From that people make jewelry and pendants. It’s not that any one is less finished than another, though, and some people collect slabs without ever doing anything with them. I have enough slabs that if I cut a slab every day for the rest of life, I probably wouldn’t even make a dent in them. It’s like that dinosaur bone. I wasn’t looking for it, but when you see something of that quality, you have to get it because you don’t know when you’ll ever see it again. So you might have roughs or slabs that stay roughs and slabs after you buy them. What kinds of things can you find in Arizona? We have a lot of obsidian because of our volcanic origin, especially around Flagstaff. It’s not an easy stone to work with because it fractures easily. It can be infuriating because you think you’re just about to get a nice polish and then you get a flat spot. It’s a love-hate relationship. We have a lot of agates around here, again because of the way the land was formed. There’s a wide array in our own backyard here. In Mayer, there’s Mayer Onyx, which is honeycomb-like and red and brown. It’s mined there,

taken to Ashfork and cut and made into countertops and sinks that are shipped all around the world. And in the Southwest and West at large? It’s a lot of volcanic stuff. If you go north to Wyoming, Montana, and Utah, you get dinosaur bone and coprolite, which is actually petrified dinosaur poop, which is gorgeous. It’s fun when kids go to a booth and pick it up and you ask them, “Do you know what you’re holding?” They act like they’ve suddenly got something hot in their hands. What kind of demonstrations are at the show? There’s one member who’s cutting cabochons constantly for all three days. You can see the piece cut from a slab, to pre-forming all the way to the polished piece. There are people there who do the wire wrapping, so you can see how to set a stone without having any jewelry equipment. Wire wrapping is done with manual tools, so there aren’t any torches or anything. What activities are there for children? It’s a family-friendly event, and there’s a large activity area for kids. Someone will be splitting geodes all weekend, and kids can spin a wheel to win prizes. There’s a junior rockhound division in the club, and the kids have a display cases you can see what they’re collecting and finding out there. The geodes are always fun. You take this ugly rock, open it up, and it’s like Christmas. They’re not all hollow, you know. Some of them have pretty striations inside. Can you share a little background about the club? The club was started with approximately 30 members in the early 2000s. Now we run about 225 to 250. We usually sign up 50 to 75 new members at the show. People just say, “Wow, I could do this? You’re tell me I could learn how to do this?” and they get hooked. We have field trips once a month through the more temperate months, that is, we don’t run them in June, July, or August because it’s too unstable and too hot. Usually, we go somewhere within an hour’s drive, sometimes three or four hours, then we usually have at least one out-of-state field trip a year — maybe to Utah, Montana, or Wyoming. Even if you don’t want to cut a stone, it’s an opportunity to get out into the country and see things you’d never be able to see otherwise, including right in your own backyard. … You’re always finding critters, antelope, gila monsters, and rattlesnakes. When you’re new here, you don’t realize how fortunate you are to be here until you get out in the outdoors. This is a way to do that. The club, itself, meets at 9:30 a.m. the first Saturday of the month at the Moose Lodge in Prescott Valley. There’s usually a small business meeting, then some type of program.

What’s the diﬀerence between a gem and a mineral, anyway? Now you’re getting in over my head. A gemstone is anything that’s been polished, you know, made pretty, from a precious or semi-precious stone. A mineral is more like a specimen, something found and just cleaned up, whether it’s a crystal cluster, or something like that. The mineral tends to be the specimen piece that doesn’t get made into anything. You can take a mineral, say an amethyst cluster, and grind it down and smooth and polish the surface, and then it’s a gem. There are mineral collectors, though, who just want specimens and want to enjoy them for themselves without making them into anything else. What are some of the common misconceptions about the hobby? That it’s a limited interest. It’s not. It really appeals to anybody who can appreciate something gorgeous in nature. You don’t have to be a lapidary to appreciate what you’re seeing. You don’t have to be a mineralogist to appreciate an amethyst. You don’t have to be in the trade, or even the hobby, really. Come because it’s interesting. Come because gems and minerals are beautiful. ***** Visit the 13th annual Prescott Gem & Mineral Show & Sale 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Aug. 5 & 6, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Aug. 7 at the Prescott Valley Event Center, corner of Glassford Hill and Florentine roads, 928-772-1819. Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, veterans, and students, and free for children 12 or under with a paid adult admission. Robert Blood is a Mayer-ish-based freelance writer and ne’er-do-well who’s working on his last book, which, incidentally, will be his ﬁrst. Contact him at BloodyBobby5@Gmail.Com.

FROM LEFT: Members of the Prescott Gem & Mineral Club enjoy an outing; the annual Prescott Gem & Mineral Show & Sale commences; fluorescent minerals and rocks; Maggi Lieber. Courtesy photos.

News From the Wilds Skyward

• July 4: New Moon at 4:01 a.m. • July 9: Conjunction of Moon and Jupiter. The waxing crescent Moon is 0.81 degrees from the largest planet in our solar system, between the constellations of Leo and Virgo. • July 19: Full Moon at 3:57 p.m. • July 28: Delta Aquarid Meteor Shower peaks after midnight while the Alpha Capricornid Meteor Shower grows in intensity toward the end of the month as well. The overlap of these showers should produce extraordinary meteors, and the nearly new Moon won’t rise until 1:50 a.m. leaving dark skies. The Capricornids are characterized by slow meteors, most moving at no more than 15 miles per second, and can produce brilliant ﬁreballs, while the Aquarids are faster, and generally brighter. Interestingly, the Capricornids are increasing in intensity every year, and by the 24th century will be the brightest meteor shower of the year.

Chrysina gloriosa, the most stunning of our monsoon beetles. During the day, these beetles communicate via circularly polarized light and are among the only natural sources of this type of reflected light. Photo by Ty Fitzmorris.

By Ty Fitzmorris uly in the Mogollon Highlands of Arizona growls with the rumbling of the afternoon clouds and rings with the first drops from the monsoon storms. After the high temperatures and low relative humidity of June, the plants and animals of the wild areas are at their most stressed and are at high risk of death from extreme temperatures and lack of water. But during this time, many species gave birth to their young, provisioned nests, and lay eggs in anticipation of a coming time of abundance and growth. Though this is a gamble, the first, massive raindrops near the beginning of the month, and the first flush of monsoon flowers that follow, prove it to be well-founded, and so the second grand flush of life begins. Though the climate of the Central Highlands can be harsh for part of the year — dry and firescorched in early summer, cold and snowy in the winter — these tough times are typically followed by some of our most exuberant seasons. So it is with the annual drought of June, which is followed by the coming of the monsoon rains in July. Especially in drier years such as this one (Prescott’s 2016 total so far is just over 72 percent

of the average), the July showers are a real cause for celebration. They are, however, something of a mixed blessing — they’ll bring a second wave of growth and ﬂowering, but in the short term they bring lightning, which, when combined with the low fuel-moistures from a dry June, might lead to a proliferation of new ﬁres.

uly is the most reliable month in terms of rainfall, and only once in our recorded history have we received no rainfall at all during this month. It’s this predictability, in fact, that allows many of our plants and animals to survive the year in the Highlands, serving as a strategic infusion of vitality. Even the unusual climatic patterns in El Niño years, such as this one, do not affect July rainfall or temperature in any measurable way in the Mogollon Highlands. When the rains come, we enter the second massive proliferation of life in the region, which will continue until September. Birds fledge their young while reptiles hatch, and some mammals, such as the bats, give birth, while others begin their mating seasons, as do the Badgers. A second “spring” of flowering happens now, led by the deep purple four-o-clocks (Mirabilis spp.), varicolored penste-

14 • FEATURE • JULY 2016 • 5ENSESMAG.COM

mons, golden columbines, clovers, and monkeyflowers. But most noteworthy is the explosion of insect life during this time, especially at night. Beetles fly in huge diversity, from the massive Grant’s Hercules Beetle (Dynastes granti) to the Glorious Scarab (Chrysina gloriosa), considered to be the most beautiful beetle in North America. Thousands of species of moths, from giant Saturn moths to small bird-dropping mimic moths to beautiful Cecrops-eyed Silkmoths (Automeris cecrops pamina) are also flying now, and can be drawn to porch lights for close observation. During the daytime butterflies, dragonflies, damselflies, and cicadas abound, while the ants launch their nuptial flights. The dazzling diversity of life in the Mogollon Highlands in July is extraordinary, and is one of our most wonderful times of the year. ***** Ty Fitzmorris is an itinerant and often distractible naturalist who lives in Prescott and is proprietor of the Peregrine Book Company, Raven Café, Gray Dog Guitars, and is co-founder of Milagro Arts, a community arts nexus, all as a sideline to his natural history pursuits. He can be reached at Ty@PeregrineBookCompany.Com.

News From the Wilds, too A very brief survey of what’s happening in the wilds ... By Ty Fitzmorris High mountains • Ravens teach their young to fly, waiting for the approach of monsoon storms and flying in the rolling blasts at the leading edge of the storm system. Ravens are unusual in that they fly preferentially in storms and perform extraordinary aerobatics in gales and high winds. • 1-month-old Elk calves begin travelling with their parents and start to lose the spots that have helped hide them during the first few weeks of their life. • Badgers (Taxidea taxus) begin courting and will soon form pairs and mate. • Orange Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa) flowers, attracting fritillary, checkerspot, and, most notably, Monarch butterflies. Visit: Maverick Mountain Trail, No. 65. Ponderosa Pine forests • Bergamot (Monarda menthaefolia) flowers. The beautiful lilac flowers of this plant draw in native bees in large numbers, giving it its other name, Beebalm. The flowers of Bergamot are edible, and spicy to taste, used in salsas, while the leaves are fragrant, and often used as a mint-like spice.* • Several species of ants have their annual nuptial flights within days after the first rains. Some species are so consistent that they fly almost the same day every year. These very small snapdragon-like flowers are bright iridescent yellow, but change color to orange and then to red after they are pollinated. Their yellow appears bright to us because it includes ultraviolet pigment, and human vision sees just barely into the ultraviolet spectrum. Visit: Miller Creek Trail, No. 367. Pine-Oak woodlands • Young Western Screech Owls begin to lose their down and molt into their adult plumage, during which time they stay near their parents and hunt with them just after sunset. • Longhorn Oak Borers (Enaphalodes hispicornis), large, lumbering black beetles with long antennae, emerge from their underground pupae and begin looking for mates.

about its ecology or biology. • Dragonﬂies abound above creeks and lakes. Look for Giant Darners (Anax walsinghami), Flame Skimmers (Libellula saturata), and Twelvespotted Skimmers (L. pulchella). Visit: West Clear Creek Trail, No. 17.

River Otter pups take a break from learning to fish from their father along Oak Creek. Family groups stay together for another two to three months before the pups start traveling alone. Photo by Ty Fitzmorris. These beetles are harmless, though they are large and somewhat alarming. Visit:Little Granite Mountain Trail, No. 37. Pinyon-Juniper woodlands • Juniper berries proliferate on some trees while other trees have none. This is because some of our species, such as One-seed Juniper (Juniperus monosperma) and Alligator Juniper (Juniperus deppeana) have their male and female flowers on separate plants, while others, most notably Utah Juniper (Juniperus osteosperma) have both on the same plant. These berries are actually cones surrounded by fleshy tissue. Visit: Tin Trough Trail, No. 308. Grasslands • Young Sonoran Mountain Kingsnakes (Lampropeltis pyromelana) hatch after the first rains come. These snakes are harmless to humans, though they somewhat resemble the venomous Sonoran Coralsnake (Micruroides euryxanthus). Their identities can be determined by the simple rhyme “Red on yellow kills a fellow; red on black is a friend of Jack.” Either way, all of our Prescott snakes like to be left alone, and move away from people given the chance. • Bluestem Pricklepoppy (Argemone pleiacantha), also known as “tissue-pa-

per flower” for obvious reasons, blooms. • Parry’s Agave (Agave parryi) seed pods begin to grow by the end of the month. Visit: Mint Wash Trail, No. 345. Riparian areas • As the monsoon rains arrive, our intermittent creeks, such as Granite, Butte, Aspen, and Miller creeks, begin running, sometimes in flash floods. • Young Common Mergansers are nearly grown, though still unable to fly. They’ll stay with their mother and learn to fish for several more months. • Arizona Blackberry (Rubus procerus), which is, in spite of its name, not native to Arizona, begins bearing its delicious berries along the perennial streams of the Verde Valley.* • Golden Columbine (Aquilegia chrysantha), one of our most beautiful flowers, appears now. • Grand Western Flood Plain Cicadas (Tibicen cultriformis) emerge at night from their larval homes in the roots of cottonwoods, sycamores, and willows. These alien-like creatures climb up trees and buildings in the thousands and slowly shed their larval skins, as the winged adult breaks through. Once their wings harden, the cicadas fly into the treetops. This is by far the most conspicuous insect in the Central Highlands, and very little is known

Deserts/Chaparral • Prickly pears, mesquites and mimosas bear their seeds and fruits, while Western Pipistrelles and Western Mastiff bats bear their young and horned lizard eggs hatch. • Couch’s Spadefoot Toads (Scaphiopus couchi) emerge at night, sometimes in the hundreds, to eat, mate, and lay eggs after the beginning of the monsoon rains. The tadpoles can mature in as few as eight days, a crucial adaptation, since pools rarely last long. • Tarantulas emerge, sometimes in large numbers, with the rains. These spiders are harmless to humans but shouldn’t be handled due to stinging hairs on their abdomens. • Rainbow Hedgehog Cactus (Echinocereus pectinatus) and Buffalo Gourd (Cucurbita foetidissima) in flower. Visit: Aqua Fria National Monument. *Always consult with a trained professional before ingesting any part of a wild plant. This information is not intended to encourage the attempted use of any part of a plant, either for nutritive or medicinal purposes.

Weather Average high temperature: 89 F (+/-2.8) Average low temperature: 57.8 F (+/-2.8) Record high temperature: 105 F (1925) Record low temperature: 34 F (1912) Average precipitation: 2.89” (+/-1.71”) Record high precipitation: 8.8” (1908) Record low precipitation: 0” (1993) Max daily precipitation: 2.96” (July 24, 1970)

Set your phasers to fun

A highly biased, incomplete guide to ﬁnding family fun at Phoenix Comicon

By James Dungeon e love our 2-year-old. OK, maybe that’s a defensive way to start a column about attending a science fiction convention with a child, but that needs to be stated at the outset. My wife and I love our 2-year-old, and we wanted her first experience at a science fiction convention to be as memorable and magical as our own (which, granted, were at much older ages). We decided on Phoenix Comicon, an annual event my wife first attended four years earlier. “What’s there for a little kid to do at a con?” I asked her. Quite a bit, it turns out. In addition to the myriad things for kids of all ages, crafts, structured and unstructured play, and several large drop-in areas — all documented in the program and on the con’s official app — simply walking around and looking at people’s costumes provided endless entertainment. (A pink Chewbacca? Wait, our daughter knows the name Chewbacca?! No, honey, that’s not The Little Mermaid. See the teeth and claws? That’s an angler fish mermaid.) We thought there’d only be programming for older kids, but we were wrong. Our 2-year-old, who has the attention span of, well, a 2-year-old, was entertained from door to door, and, after each day, had rarely slept so soundly at a hotel. Anyway, we’re glad we took her. We had a great time and plan on returning next year, though our daughter will be 3, so she’ll need her own ticket. The following tips reflect our

own experience at Phoenix Comicon — things we wished we would’ve known or stumbled upon — and may not yield the same fun-filled results for you. Still, they’re good ideas to keep in mind when planning for next year. Enjoy. ... Do: Plan an extra trip home to pick up the vital items you’ll inevitably leave behind. You’ve planned, made checklists, packed, and double checked. And you’re still going to forget something. You’ll be halfway between Prescott and Phoenix before a joke triggers the memory of the envelope with your tickets and spending cash on the kitchen counter. While you’re there, grab some extra cleaning supplies, because your child will trash the hotel room like a rock star and you have to do a passable job cleaning up the hotel’s terrycloth robe if you don’t want to take it home. Do: Brings stuff to transport your kid. And be prepared to use none of it for its intended use. That stroller? It’s transformed into some sort of monster, apparently, and your child will refuse to let you give her a ride/feed her to it. It is, however, a handy surrogate shopping cart when you’re perusing the 100-plus vendors in the exhibition hall. It also nets you a mobility pass, which means it’ll be easier for you to use elevators and get around. That baby carrier? Ditto on the monster front, but when she nods off for a nap, it’s a handy way to carry her handsfree while you play video games in the free arcade or buy too many T-shirt shirts with chibi versions of your favorite characters on them.

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The author’s family. Courtesy photo. Do: Use the official PHX Comicon app. But don’t count on attending half of what your’e interested in. You’ll fill the “My Conquests” list with a bazillion overlapping activities. It’s a great reference, but your child will have a meltdown right before that thing you wanted to do or, if you manage to sneak in the back of an alreadyin-progress panel, begin singing the ABCs at the top of her lungs despite only knowing the first four letters and the ending. Our solution: Plan one thing for each adult to do while the other one visits more open-ended, kid-centric stuff like the drop-in coloring and LEGO areas. (I attended a lively kaiju/Godzilla panel and my wife took in a super emotional, inspiring panel about Sir Terry Pratchett.) There are paper programs, too, and they make sensible souvenirs.

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Do: Plan family costumes for cosplay, but make sure they’re modular and easy to alter on the spot. Choose something easy like Mickey and Minnies Mouse. They’re ridiculously easy costumes to assemble and require almost no maintenance. (There was even a Mickey Mouse ears craft event at the con, though we didn’t make it to that.) Another easy one is Ugly Americans in Space. You probably already have most of the tourist garb, and the immaculately conceived stains on your daughter’s close after lunch fit the theme. (There was at least one cosplay for kids panel, but we missed that, too.) Do: Pack extra snacks. There are plenty of places to eat at the con but waiting in line is pretty much a given. Your kiddo may normally be patient, but this is the one time she’ll be so ravenous she’ll begin chewing on plastic tables for sustenance. If you plan on venturing out, it might be a good idea to scout out a destination ahead of time. There are plenty of restaurants in all directions, but it’s easy to get overwhelmed in the heat. Incidentally, the convention center’s AC is fantastic. Do: Invite friends. You can, and probably will, make friends at the con, but it’s nice to see some familiar folks, too. And, let’s face it, when you’re wife’s away at a panel or in line getting food, your kiddo’s not going to appreciate that hat-on-a-hat cosplayer with a costume of Beaker dressed up as Indiana Jones clutching a golden Prof. Bunsen Honeydew idol the same way your friends will — to say nothing of the oddly ubiquitous crossplayer princesses with beards. Don’t: Be afraid to ask the staff for help when things go wrong. This is a more serious anecdote. While waiting in line with friends on the second day of the con, a woman in a motorized wheelchair knocked our daughter over, then scooted up to ask if she was OK while parking her chair on our child’s foot. My wife couldn’t get the chair off of her. (Meanwhile, I was in the restroom cleaning literal spilt milk off my shirt and prop camera, naturally.) Thankfully, an eagle-eyed staff member picked all of this out of a crowd, ran over, immediately pushed the wheelchair off of our child, radioed someone for ice, and asked if she needed emergency medical attention. We couldn’t have asked for a quicker and more thorough response. Our daughter’s foot and toes were swollen, not broken, but it looked like she was going to lose a toenail or two. Thankfully that didn’t come to pass.

FROM TOP: The author’s family and friends, the Bowsers, pose for a photo at Phoenix Comicon; the author’s daughter enjoys coloring in one of the con’s many activity areas for children; courtesy photos.

Don’t: Keep to yourself. Some of the best moments you’ll have at Phoenix Comicon are unplanned conversations withs strangers. While waiting for food, you might meet a guy whose homeschool kids started their own business, saved money for tickets, and held a official board meeting at the con. While people watching, a woman who sells LulLaRoe leggings might strike up a conversation with you because of the snazzy space tights your wife bought for your costumes. And a kid may, with no provocation, show you the cool action figure he scored, tell you about the character and how rare that variant of the coloring is, and forget to tell you his name. Most people were really, really nice. Having a cute kid probably helped. ***** Find out more about Phoenix Comicon at PhoenixComicon.Com. James Dungeon is a figment of his own imagination. And he likes cats. Contact him at JamesDungeonCats@ Gmail.Com.

Installation nation

Diagnosis: Technology

By Paolo Chlebecek icture this: You get a new computer and it doesn’t have your beloved, and sometimes hated, Microsoft Word. What do you do? How do you know when it’s time to buy software or not? Will the free ones work just as well? What if you’ve already bought it but your computer crashed and now you want to reinstall it again or on another one? Is that even legal? Years ago, the software you needed to be productive usually came with the computer. Some software suites like Microsoft Oﬃce were purchased but pre-installed with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook, etc. Then, to browse “the Interwebs” you had Internet Exploder — ahem, I mean Explorer. And those were the main-

Hard talk about software

stays for most people. But that hasn’t been the case for many years. Now there’s a diﬀerent story.

f you need to reinstall Microsoft Office, you’re allowed as long as you have a software key. But there are limits to how many times you can reinstall it and how many computers you can install it on. You’ll have to look at that boring EULA (End User License Agreement) that came with the software to find out specifics. There’s a lot of variation therein. For some people, free alternatives are effective and simple. For example instead of buying a Microsoft Office subscription for $70-$100 per year or $150-$400 outright, there are good free alternatives. My favorite two are OpenOffice and LibreOffice. They

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install and look very familiar to the ol’ beasts we’re used to. But let’s not forget Google Docs. As long as you don’t require HIPPA privacy (that’s the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act that was passed by Congress in 1996), Google Docs works quite well.

hat if you need to edit some photos? Try Adobe Photoshop alternatives like Inkscape and The Gimp. They have amazing capabilities and, as long as you’re already somewhat familiar with that type of software and layering and such, they really fit the bill — pun intended. Otherwise, there’s Google Picasa, which has been around for years but is being replaced by Google Photos. It has many of the features of Photoshop elements with none of the cost. What about editing videos? Here’s where it gets a bit tricky. There are plenty of free options out there, but they are often limited in some way by time or feature, or they have what’s called a watermark that’s visible in the background unless you buy the full version. However, there are some programs that seem to do just fine and don’t have those pesky limitations. Windows Movie Maker or Windows Live Movie Maker is good if you have any Operating System Windows 8.1 or below. VirtualDub and Avidemux are similar, but the latter is much more plain. ZS4 Video Editor and Lightworks are awesome but very technical. Some may find it hard to use their interfaces. Finally, Movica seems to have the most rounded out features.

he one piece of software I get asked about most is free antivirus software. I’ve written about this before but, in brief, you get what you pay for. Much like the other free programs above, without payment you seldom get support for when things go wrong. Sure, there are online tech forums or a FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) section, but you rarely have the option to call someone. This is especially a problem with antivirus software. While I have had good, but not great, results with programs like Microsoft Security Essentials, Avira, Avast, Bitdefender, and my favorite Malwarebytes, nothing seems to be as good as buying an antivirus proper. I prefer ones like Comodo, and/or a paid version of Malwarebytes. The company that produces Malwarebytes also has a very comprehensive Security Suite, but it’s not free. I haven’t forgotten about you Mac users. Many, but not all of the software above have a Mac version. Some of the productivity and creative software comes bundled with the Mac OS, actually. Most people are OK with it. If not, at least there are choices, for now.

***** Paolo Chlebecek is founder and owner of PaoloTek, which he started in 2003. He loves dogs of all sorts and oddly ﬁnds himself driving around town between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. every weekday. Wave hi when you see him or contact him at Paolo@PaoloTek. Com.

The beauty we love Reﬂections on living, loving, & dancing

By Delisa Myles ast month at the end of the semester and also the end of my twenty-two year teaching career at Prescott College I took a road trip north to Colorado traveling with good friends Liz Faller, my colleague at Prescott College, who also retired from teaching dance at Prescott College this year, and Paul Moore a long-time creative collaborator. We were headed to a dance retreat hosted by former student Nathan Montgomery. His family owns what they call The Mesa, 150 acres of high desert pinon/juniper forest and sandstone rimrock, protected by a conservation easement, just outside of Ridgway. We were met there by five other dance artist friends coming from around the country. When we arrived to the land, we were met by students of Nathan’s who blindfolded us and led us on a sensory trek up to where we would be camping. We stopped along the way to listen to songs from our guides and prompts for us to dance from the inspirations of what we sensed around us. We traversed unseen pathways, each of us with a personal guide, winding our way through rocks and grasses, through forests of shadowy trees. Finally we were seated on thronelike rocks where the blindfolds came off. Then we saw that we were sitting at the edge of a rocky mesa with a hundred foot drop off, a wide green valley between us and the Sneffels Mountain Range in all its snow-capped glory. The sudden shift from blindfolded and internally focused one moment to taking in vast space the next, set off a jolt of flight inside me. It reminded me of the words of Isadora Duncan, the mother of modern dance, when she said: “The wind? I am the wind. The sea and the moon? I am the sea and the moon. Tears, pain, love, bird-flights? I am all of them. I dance what I am. Sin, prayer, flight, the light that never was on land or sea? I dance what I am.”

his began our week of dancing together in the open air, on the earth with wide views of mountain peaks, the rush of snow melt and the riot of life renewing itself all around. Mornings were spent sharing group practices of opening the body and senses. We were solo in the afternoons, time to

Delisa Myles. Photo by Andrew Vartabedian. wander and explore the land and watch what came. On the first day I found myself deeply tired. I would walk for five minutes then just want to lie down, feel the earth beneath me and smell the sweetness of sunwarmed pine needles. I did that repeatedly, walk and stop, lie down and take a little nap. Watch the chipmunks dart, pause, and chase each other. Watch the swallows diving and flirting, catching bugs and showing off their aerial dexterity. When I really listened and followed what I was drawn to, I wanted to look at things from a slower and lower perspective. To lay on my belly and see the way the sunlight shined through the lupine or the way colors of the lichen look like a neon walkway for the ants daily work. I wanted to let go and be in my lazy body with nowhere to go. Time to observe Nature and feel my own nature reflected back to me. There was time to sit around the campfire at night and watch the mesmerizing dance of flames. To feel the flow of emotions and thoughts rise and dissolve. To see one thing become another; to watch a large pile of dry wood be consumed in hungry flames then disappear into pulsing red coals and the next morning, into a flat pile of cold ash. Time to feel the connectedness and transitions; spring becoming summer, day becoming night, hot becoming cold, sorrow becoming joy. This waking and sleeping on the land was a reminder of the larger dance, the cycles and seasons of rising out of and falling into the earth. It was a needed respite from the day to day routines and time to feel all that I am and all that I am connected to, as one continuum.

t the end of our week we shared our dance oﬀerings to a small gathering of locals. These were not heavily rehearsed dances, they were more an act of listening and responding in the moment, allowing the dance to move through the

body as ﬁre, wind or water. The dances were given in the spirit of gratitude to the land and to the animals and plants that we were lucky to have lived among for a week. The place I gravitated to for my dance was a large fallen pine tree at the edge of the rim. The sideways roots of the tree were exposed and still gripping stones that had once held to earth. Roots had shaped their growth around stones making a muscular sculpture of rock and wood, and a space just the size of me in a fetal position. My dance moved from that cocoon out to the windy rocky edge of the rim in a dance of foundation and freedom, something long-held let go of. Each person’s dance was a concentrated signature of energy, a one of a kind physical and energetic prayer. I give to you dear reader a window in to our magical journey and a reminder of the healing powers of dance, the potential of personal and communal ritual that we have in creating with our bodies, and with the many ways we have to acknowledge gratitude for our lives and our earth home. I leave you with words from Rumi and a reminder to keep making your particular form of beauty. “Today, like every other day, we wake up empty and frightened. Don’t open the door to the study and begin reading. Take down a musical instrument. Let the beauty we love be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.” ***** Delisa Myles is a dancer, choreographer, and professor of dance who’s been central in creating Prescott College’s dance program since 1994. She is founder and creative director of Flying Nest Movement Arts in downtown Prescott. Find out more and contact her at FlyingNestStudio.Com, DelisaMyles.Com, and Info@FlyingNestStudio. Com.

5ENSESMAG.COM • JULY 2016 • COLUMN • 19

Lens ﬂare

A look at (and behind) the 2016 Prescott Film Festival

By Helen Stephenson h-ch-ch-ch-changes. ... David Bowie’s 1971 song “Changes” is pretty much the unofficial theme for the behind-the-scenes organization and running of the Prescott Film Festival this year. And change is definitely good. When the Prescott Film Festival started with a monthly series in 2009, high quality digital projection didn’t exist in Prescott. And that was bad news for an indie film fest. However, the fest was given the use of the old Frontier Village 10 Cine, a space to store equipment, and voila — Digital projection in Prescott! And look where we are now, in the midst of a land of digital plenty. Before digital came along, festivals had to order prints of films to screen (you know, those heavy metal movie cases) and pay shipping both ways. If the film broke, there was no back up. Exhibition format is only one change to the film industry. Digital distribution direct to consumers has been taking off like a rock the last few years (err, like rockets used to take off before NASA’s space shuttle program got the ax). That’s great for filmmakers, who have more opportunities for monetizing their creations, as well as for viewers, who have a wider range of film choices. However, one of the negative side effects of this change is that the window for film festivals is quickly narrowing. For the Prescott Film Festival, programming, which starts with viewing and rating films, used to begin in January. Last year, the fest discovered that many of the films the volunteer movie reviewers had watched, scored, and chosen for

the fest were no longer available. This is wonderful news for filmmakers. The digital world is now starving for content, and with lower production costs filmmakers are stepping up to create more. However, this means that filmmakers are more apt to shorten their festival runs and instead opt for an early VOD (Video on Demand) sale to, say, Netflix or Amazon. (Heard of them? Thought so.) This meant a shorter programming window for the Prescott Film Festival The proverbial Bottom Line: For high quality films, it’s a seller’s market. (Emphasis goes on high quality films.) So, what does the Prescott Film Festival look for in a high quality film? First, focus on story. At a recent talk at the Peregrine Book Company in Prescott, screenwriter/ author Jeb Rosebrook said he approaches writing with three steps: inspiration, character, and story. Inspiration is what sparks the idea of a story. Character is the person, i.e. your link to the story. Story is what draws you in, what keeps you interested. Ideally, you become a part of the world the writers and filmmakers created. If the movie doesn’t “move you” in some way, it’s not going to make it into the fest. And by “move you” the festival means emotionally and intentionally. Films, (done right) are a powerful form of communication. If films don’t take audience members on some sort of emotional ride they are struck down by what I call the “So what?” factor. Programming stories that are important, entertaining and have a good core are very important to the fest. When people attend a film festival they expect the unexpected and aren’t as likely to be passive audience members. They experience a film in a

20 • COLUMN • JULY 2016 • 5ENSESMAG.COM

festival setting. Ted Hope, from Hope for Film, has said something insightful on that topic: “Movies create a shared emotional response amongst strangers. Good cinema compels us to discuss it afterwards. A movie can create empathy amongst folks who have only previously felt differences. How incredibly powerful is that?” The Prescott fest has a slate of films lined up for this year — actually, as of this story, not all films are confirmed — that are funny, inspiring, quirky, eye-opening, and fascinating. ***** Here’s a sneak peak of some of the likely titles you can see. ... “Growing Up Smith” (aka “Good Ol’ Boy”) In 1979, an Indian family moves to America with hopes of living the American Dream. While their 10-year-old boy Smith falls head-over-heels for the girl next door, his desire to become a “good ol’ boy” propels him further away from his family’s ideals than ever before. “Lives Well Lived” (sneak peek) What is the definition of a “life well lived”? These filmmakers asked 40 people ages 75through 100-years-old with a collective life experience of 3,000 years who shared their secrets, wit, and wisdom. … The Lives Well Lived project captures the images, ideas and ideals of those who are proving that aging is something to cherish, not dread. That retirement doesn’t mean you retire from life. And that growing older doesn’t mean growing silent. “A Light Beneath Their Feet” A high school senior must choose between enrolling in the college of her dreams and remaining at home to take care of her bipolar mother.

“The Surgery Ship” A team of volunteer doctors and nurses are on board a unique ship. Crammed with medical supplies and volunteer medics, this ﬂoating hospital sails to the poorest nations on earth. This year they sail for Guinea on the West African Coast. On arrival they will face the most severe of medical issues, not seen in other parts of the world. But the medical challenges are only half of the story. They will confront ethical decisions as they decide who will be helped and who will not. This is a searing, complex journey for the volunteer medics, as they deal with life and death cases and balance the fates of these patients in their hands.

Kim Kapin Yavapia College marketing director presents “Using your Filmmaker Skills in the Real World.” Larry Sakin “Being George Clooney” as the launching pad for a ﬁlm ﬁnance discussion. ***** The Prescott Film Festival closes with a special event, “Film Noir and Pinot Noir.” It’s a screening of the Orson Welles noir classic, “The Lady from Shanghi.” The screening is hosted by Yavapai College humanities professor Dr. Suzanne (Suki) Waldenberger. *****

“Fanarchy” Fanarchy uncovers a subculture of die-hard fans who risk life, limb, and ﬁnancial bankruptcy in their quest to pay homage to the ﬁlms and stories they love.

Colin Glenn “RED Warrior” for RED Cinema Camera presents the RED camera.

“Being George Clooney” A documentary that delves into the creative, often humorous world of audio dubbing a Hollywood motion picture for the international market.

Jeﬀ Wood FMA Screenwriting Instructor presents “Planting the Seed of your Film: Writing an Eﬀective Log Line.”

“Jeff Lowe’s Metanoia” From the top of the world to the end of the line, this film follows the life and climbs of legendary alpinist Jeff Lowe, through his visionary ascents around the world up to his current dance with a terminal disease. Metanoia: A fundamental change of thinking; a transformative change of heart. Jeff ’s “unimaginable” new route, Metanoia, up the North Face of the Eiger in Switzerland, changed his life forever and prepared him for the greatest adventure he’s ever been on — the climb of his life as he slowly loses all of his physical abilities and faces his own mortality.

Noah Blough Retired studio sound and sound editor (“Independence Day,” “The Exorcist,” and “Mission Impossible 2,” to name a few) presents “The Sound of Fear.”

***** Plus, there are amazing short films. This year we’ll continue our student film presentation, sponsored in part by Arizona Humanities and the Yavapai College Film and Media Arts Program. Come out to support these young filmmakers. ***** The Yavapai College Film and Media Arts Program are also sponsoring more free workshops this year. Here are a few presenters and topics. ... Bob O’Neil The Retired Universal executive talks about film preservation.

Ticket and pass prices vary. Visit PrescottFilmFestival.Com for more. ***** Helen Stephenson is the director of the Yavapai College Film and Media Arts Program and executive director and founder of the Prescott Film Festival, where her thirst for independent cinema is quenched.

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Not-asholy days

dds are you’ve already got plans for the month’s ﬂagship holiday. Still, there’s no reason to anchor the party boat for the rest of the month. Consider celebrating ... July 2: World UFO Day • Watch the skies. July 7: Chocolate Day • AKA every other day, too. July 8: Video Games Day • Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, start. July 12: Diﬀerent Colored Eyes Day • Take that, Mendel Squares. July 14: Pandemonium Day • Pan-demon-ium. July 14: National Nude Day • It’s the naked truth. July 20: Moon Day • With apologies to David Icke. July 22: Hammock Day • Put your feet up. July 24: Amelia Earhart Day • The sky’s the limit. July 27: Take Your Pants for a Walk Day • Pant-/law-suit warning.

enerally circuses are considered jolly places bearing witness to feats of human strength and precision, daredevil acts, raucous clowns, and exotic animals performing tricks. Such was the case on Sept. 11, 1916 during a parade advertising the “Sparks World Famous Shows,” when newly hired hobo Red Eldridge, riding atop Mary the elephant, poked her behind the ear when she stopped to nibble some watermelon. Enraged, Mary grabbed Red in her trunk, slammed him onto the ground and stomped on his head. The horriﬁed witnesses, the citizens of Kingsport, Tennessee, immediately called for the death of this rogue pachyderm. ODDLY ENOUGH … Mary was lynched from a rail-car crane in front of a crowd of 2,500 to 5,000 people (mostly children) the next day. The ﬁrst chain snapped, dropping Mary and breaking her hip. The next hoist proved fatal. The elephant was buried alongside the railroad tracks.

*****

ady Betty was a single mother whose son, Padraic, fleeing the crushing poverty of Ireland and his mother’s often violent tendencies, found passage to America where he joined the Continental Army in New York. Years later, he returned, well dressed, bearded, and unrecognized. She invited him into her hovel and knifed him to death as he slept in order to steal his belongings. Those ill-gotten possessions contained some of her letters. Betty went nuts! Being sentenced to hang along with several others at Roscommon jail on the day the executioner fell ill, Betty offered to hang everyone herself for a commuted sentence. The sheriff agreed, and for the next three decades, Lady Betty was the official hangman, and woman in charge of public floggings. When she died, she was buried at night in a secret unmarked location. ODDLY ENOUGH … When the prison officials went to clean out her cell, they found hundreds of charcoal drawings of her victims … hanging. ***** Russell Miller is an illustrator, cartoonist, writer, bagpiper, motorcycle enthusiast, and reference librarian. Currently, he illustrates books for Cody Lundin and Bart King.

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