July / August issue of Alamodoso Connections Magazine

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The magazine for Otero and Lincoln County. New Mexico

Alamodoso Celebrating World Photography Day August, 19th, 2019 See Page 6 for details

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UNTITLED

by Gloria Marie All the footnotes in my book tell a tale all their own Of what they gave an what I took from all those I have known.

They also tell a bit about things I lost and what I found; Some of hope and lots of doubt on my journey homeward bound.

Going on my crooked path with all its turns and bends I gave a tear or shared a laugh...What else is there to spend?

The stories written on those pages is the story of my life.

It covers all the different stages, the times of ease the times of strife.

I always took what I could get.

Nothing wrong to want to take From the people that I met, for my life I had to make.

My riches come from all of you, whether I took or if you gave, Sometimes many, sometimes few. They are things I'll always save.

If I never win a race or never sail the seven seas, Even if I loose my place, still I'll keep my memories.

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CACTUS COOKIES INGREDIENTS Cookie Cutters ● Thick gloves ● Ruler ● Craft knife ● Cutting mat ● Print-out of your desired cookie shape ● Scissors

Cookies ● 1 1/2 cups butter, softened ● 2 cups white sugar ● 4 eggs

Continued page 25 Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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Avoid These Mistakes When Selling Your Home

Selling your home—especially if you've never done it before—can be surprisingly time-consuming and emotionally challenging. Strangers will come into your home and poke around in your closets and cabinets. They will criticize a place that has probably become more than just four walls and a roof to you, and then, to top it all off, they will offer you less money than you think your home is worth.

With no experience and a complex, emotional transaction on your hands, it's easy for first-time home sellers to make lots of mistakes, but with a little know-how, you can avoid many of these pitfalls altogether. Read on to find out how you can get the highest possible price for your home within a reasonable timeframe—without losing your mind.

Mistake No.1: Being Emotionally Involved Once you decide to sell your home, it can be helpful to start thinking of yourself as a businessperson and a home seller, rather than as the home's owner. By looking at the transaction from a purely financial perspective, you'll distance yourself from the emotional aspects of selling the property that you've undoubtedly created many memories in.

Also, try to remember how you felt when you were shopping for that home. Most buyers will also be in an emotional state. If you can remember that you are selling not just a piece of property but also an image, the American Dream and a lifestyle, you'll be more likely to put in the extra effort of staging and perhaps some minor remodeling to get top Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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dollar for your home. These changes in appearance will not only help the sales price but also help you create that emotional distance because the home will look less familiar.

Mistake No.2: Setting an Unrealistic Price Whether you're working with an agent or going it alone, setting the right asking price is key.

Remember the comparable market analysis you or your agent did when you bought your home to determine a fair offering price? Buyers will do this for your home, too, so as a seller, you should be one step ahead of them.

Absent a housing bubble, overpriced homes generally don't sell. Don't worry too much about setting a price that's on the low side because, in theory, this will generate multiple offers and bid the price up to the home's true market value. In fact, underpricing your home can be a strategy to generate extra interest in your listing. And you can always refuse an offer that's too low.

Mistake No.3: Expecting the Asking Price Any smart buyer will negotiate, and if you want to complete the sale, you may have to play ball.

Most people want to list their homes at a price that will attract buyers while still leaving some breathing room for negotiations—the opposite of the underpricing strategy described above. This can work too and will allow the buyer to feel like he or she is getting good value while allowing you to get the amount of money you need from the sale.

Mistake No.4: Not Preparing for the Sale Sellers who do not clean and stage their homes are throwing money down the drain. Failing to do these things will not only reduce your sale price but may also prevent you from getting a sale at all. For example, if you haven't attended to minor issues like a broken doorknob, a potential buyer may wonder whether the house has larger, costlier issues that haven't been addressed either.

Have a friend or agent, someone with a fresh pair of eyes, point out areas of your home that need work. Because of your familiarity with the home, you may have become immune to its trouble spots.

Decluttering, cleaning thoroughly, putting a fresh coat of paint on the walls and getting rid of any odors will also help you make a good impression on buyers.

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Before the railroad tracks reached the site of present day Carrizozo in August, 1899, as far as the eye could see there were few signs of human habitation. There were just a scattering of cattle ranches established in the 1870's and a lonely stagecoach road that crossed the landscape from the booming gold-mining town of White Oaks.

The town grew quickly when the railroad made it a terminal town. As Carrizozo began to flourish, White Oaks began to decline.

Many of its former residents moved their homes and businesses (some quite literally converted to galleries & studios) to the new town as railroad employees moved in.

Carrizozo had grand dreams for its future.

As a result, its buildings and homes were built well and meant to last, thanks in part to Frank English whose legacy is everywhere.

Between 1908 and 1925, Mr. English built about 30 houses and commercial buildings, many of which are still in use today. 12th Street became the town core of Carrizozo.

Today it is experiencing a resurgence as these buildings, true to their historic roots, have attracted a growing arts community.

Many have been converted to galleries & studios.

Several movies have been filmed in Carrizozo, including the highly successful 'Book of Eli' when 12th street was completely transformed into a post apocalypse wasteland.

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Story by Julie Lloyd of Tularosa

MY MEMORABLE CARRIZOZO TRIP It was in the mid to late 1950s. My teenage sister's boyfriend was confined in the Carrizozo hospital for some reason and she insisted that she had to go visit him. After all, he was, at the time, her boyfriend. The world would surely end if she could not go to visit him. So being a good sister, I acquiesced to the forty-five-mile (90 mile round trip) drive to the hospital.

One summer afternoon, she and I climbed into my new red and white 1955 Belvedere Plymouth that would pass anything on the road except a gas

station. Everything went well all the way to Carrizozo and Sis was able to make her visit. It was late afternoon by the time we started our return trip to Tularosa.

Just outside the Carrizozo city limits, immediately past that wicked curve and heading into the highway straight-away, we passed a parked car along the side of the highway with five young men lolling around it. Heads went up as we drove by and a few whistles and wolf calls reached our ears while passing.

In the rearview mirror, I saw the men hurriedly pile into their car and turn to follow us, easily Story continues next page Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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closing the distance between our vehicles. I had an uneasy premonition so I accelerated my speed slightly, but the distance between our cars continued closing. I pressed the accelerator farther down and the Plymouth shot forward like a bullet.

The car behind me kept pace. With the long stretch of that skinny two-lane asphalt highway, pockmarked with potholes, empty and desolate in front of me, panic began to set in.

Whether the panic was warranted or not, the thought of two lone young females pursued by a vehicle filled with five young males so late in the day disturbed me. I pushed the accelerator down and the Plymouth shot forward like a bullet. The vehicle behind me kept pace.

As I raced ahead, I hoped for some sign of traffic. Any kind of traffic would be a welcome sign, even a cop, but none was there. I pushed the accelerator further down as the speedometer climbed higher to the triple-digit speed.

I was hitting the high spots, sure that even the Tasmanian Devil could not catch me. Desert scenery whizzed by in a blur, indistinguishable at my rate of speed. I think once I passed the carrion of an unfortunate rabbit that didn’t make it out of the lane before becoming a roadkill feast for hungry vultures.

Just past the historic sign of Temporal, just 8 miles from Tulie, I sighted the one and only vehicle traveling in my direction. Relief flooded through me. I lessened the pressure on the accelerator, relaxed my grip on the steering wheel, dropped my shoulders an inch or two, passed the vehicle and pulled in front of it. There I remained the rest of the way into the village limits.

In a short while, the vehicle that had pursued me all the way from Carrizozo turned around and headed back north. Silently I chalked a mark up in my favor.

For years I recalled that Carrizozo trip in minute detail. Even now, after all these many years, my heart beats just a bit faster when I think of it.

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Courtesy of Legends of America com

WHITE OAKS Originally discovered by a man named John Wilson, allegedly an escapee from a Texas prison, Wilson shared his find with two friends by the names of Jack Winters and Harry Baxter. Though Winters and Baxter were ecstatic, Wilson had no interest in gold and soon moved on, leaving his find to his friends.

Word soon spread of the gold find and within a year, a new mining camp, filled with tents was born.

The camp was called White Oaks after a small stream near the community that was lined with white oak trees. In 1880 a post office was established and permanent buildings began to replace the tents and rambling shacks. The boom town quickly grew, supporting some 50 different businesses, including four newspapers, two hotels, three churches, a sawmill, a bank, an opera house, livery stables, and a number of the ever-present saloons and gambling houses.

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In the meantime, prospectors Winters and Baxter founded two claims called the Homestake Mine and the South Homestake Mine. The mountain where the gold was found was called Baxter Mountain.

Eventually, the two gold miners sold their claims for $300,000 each.

Like other booming mining camps of the day, White Oaks is filled with legends and lore, including that of a “lady” by the name of Belle La Mar, who was more familiarly known as “Madam Varnish.” Hailing from Missouri, La Mar, made her way to the New Mexico mining camp that was “hungry” for the sight of women. There, she soon established the Little Casino Saloon, where she dealt faro, roulette, and poker. Quick to take the gold of the many miners in the area, she earned her nickname when the miners said she was as “slick as

varnish.” Though many lost their hard earned gold at the Little Casino, it was the reigning saloon in town. Other popular stops for the miners were the Star Saloon and Opera House.

During White Oaks early days, the town was also frequented by none other than the infamous Billy the Kid. Though Billy’s main stomping grounds were in Lincoln, some forty miles to the east of White Oaks, the Kid was known to hang with other roughnecks in the thriving mining camp filled with saloons, gambling parlors, and prostitutes.

After the Lincoln County War was over, Billy and his gang of “Rustlers” often targeted cattle in the White Oaks vicinity and after one attempted theft, the citizens of White Oaks rose up in protest, Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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gathered up a posse, and went after the gang.

Though they caught up with the outlaws and a gunfight ensued, the thieves were able to get away.

Though White Oaks citizens had made it known they wouldn’t tolerate the likes of Billy the Kid and his cohorts, three of the outlaws, including Billy, Dave Rudabaugh and Billy Wilson returned to White Oaks the very next evening. Flaunting themselves, Rudabaugh took a shot at deputy Sheriff James Redman, just for fun.

The shot missed and Redman ran for cover. He was soon joined by a crowd of over 30 men who were determined to run the outlaws out of town, which they did. The posse then tracked the rustlers to a ranch some 40 miles distant, where, yet another gunfight ensued, resulting in the death of an innocent man. The outlaws once again were able to escape and soon a reward was placed on Billy the Kid’s head.

The early and rapid growth of the settlement soon demanded the need for a stage line, which linked White Oaks to Fort Stanton, San Antonio, New Mexico, Roswell, and other destinations.

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By 1885, most of the seedier elements had left White Oaks, and the town settled down into a community of law-abiding citizens. Tragedy struck White Oaks in July 1891 when a fire erupted at the South Homestake Mine, claiming the lives of two miners. However, mining continued and for the next five years both Homestake mines prospered.

By 1890, the town’s population had grown to more than 2,000, but at about the same time, the Homestake Mines were about to peter out. However, White Oaks was saved when another mine, called the “Old Abe” was developed, which employed large numbers of men and was immensely profitable. The town population soon reached its peak of about 2,500 people.

In 1893, Watt Hoyle, one of the owners of the Old Abe Mine, built a two-story Victorian brick home for his fiancée. However, when the young lady wrote him that she was not coming to White Oaks, the mansion, with its stately gables and sharply-pitched roof, became known as “Hoyle’s folly.” He never finished the inside of the home and later, legends would abound that he was so heartsick that he leaped to his death. However, that was not the case. Hoyle actually lived in the house with his older brother and his wife. Hoyle reportedly sold the home in the 1890’s and moved to Denver.

In March 1895, tragedy struck again when a fire in the Old Abe Mine took the lives of eight men.

However, the mine continued to operate until shortly after the turn of the century when the deposits became less profitable. When the mine developed a problem with the timbers in the shaft, it was finally shut down.

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Of the many mining operations, the Old Abe Mine was the largest, employing some forty workers yielding between forty-five to fifty tons of gold ore per day. Other operations included the Robert E. Lee, the Smuggler, the Rita, Lady Godiva, Little Mack, Silver Cliff, Miners Cabin, and others. All told, the mines of White Oaks yielded around $20 million dollars worth of gold and other minerals.

With its precious minerals depleted and the railroad having bypassed the settlement in favor of nearby Carrizozo, the town declined dramatically.

By 1910, White Oaks had only about 200 residents.

Though greatly reduced in size the town continued as a small trading center until the 1950’s.

Today, White Oaks is called home to just a few remaining residents. However, many of its historic buildings continue to stand including Brown’s Store, the Hoyle House, the 1895 brick school house, and many old residences.

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C

arrizozo was born with the dawn of the 20th Century. Before the railroad tracks reached the site of present day Carrizozo in August, 1899, as far as the eye could see there were few signs of human habitation here at the upper end of the Tularosa Basin. There were just a few scattered cattle ranches established in the 1870's and a lonely stagecoach road that crossed the landscape from the booming gold-mining town of White Oaks 12 miles to the northeast.

The town grew quickly when the railroad made it a terminal town, and many jobs were soon readily available. The surrounding land opened for new homesteads. After becoming the county seat in 1909, incorporation followed in 1916 As Carrizozo began to flourish, White Oaks began to decline. Many of its former residents moved their homes and businesses (some quite literally) to the new town as railroad employees moved in and the land surrounding Carrizozo quickly opened for homesteading.

Carrizozo, like the new century, had grand dreams for its future.

As a result, its buildings and homes were built well and meant to last, thanks in part to Frank English whose legacy is everywhere here. Between 1908 and 1925, Mr. English built approximately 30 houses and commercial buildings, many of which are still in use today. They are solid, durable and comfortable, and several have been included on a brochure tour of the Town available at the Carrizozo Chamber of Commerce Visitors Center

Rolands Drug Store; one of Frank English’s commercial buildings still standing here Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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Archive where selections from this year’s New Mexico Film Foundation’s Indie Screenings will be shown and a writer’s workshop will be held for those interested in exploring the creative side of writing.

For those interested in history, maps for a self-guided historical home tour will be available and the owners of the Lyric Theater and MoMAZoZo will open those spaces for glimpses of historic businesses and their now refurbished uses.

Wine tasting and a beer garden courtesy of Tularosa Vineyards will be available and many of Carrizozo’s restaurants will be open.

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he 5 th Annual Carrizozo Arts Weekend will take place August 17 and 18 from 11 am to 4 pm. A preview party will precede the weekend on Friday, August 16 from 5 pm to 7 pm at the Tularosa Basin Gallery of Photography located at 401 12 th Street in Carrizozo. All events are free and open to the public.

Carrizozo is located approximately 40 miles northwest of Ruidoso and 75 miles southeast of Socorro. The county seat for Lincoln, Carrizozo has a varied and colorful history as a railroad town, its Craftsman-like houses built by Frank English, a center for several celebrated ranches and mining claims and as a jumping off point for smaller and equally notable towns such as Ancho, White Oaks, Capitan and Nogal.

Carrizozo currently has just under 1,000 residents, many of whom have moved to the area from across the country to take advantage of the dry air, stunning vistas, including Valley of Fires and rimmed by several mountain ranges and laid back lifestyle, resulting in an artist colony that is rarely publicized or open except for this weekend.

Forty-one artists are participating with experts in media ranging from glass, tile, ceramics and painting to batik, wood and metal, painted copper, sculpture and print Maps and more information can be found making at 18 sites, all conveniently located in at www.carrizozoarts.com. and around Carrizozo.

Local musicians will be playing at some studios and several artists will be doing demonstrations.

Art galleries on 12th Street will also be open. Lectures will take place at the Carrizozo Community Public Library and Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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AUGUST BIRTHSTONE PERIDOT

Though peridot is widely recognized by its brilliant lime green glow, the origin of this gemstone’s name is unclear. Most scholars agree that the word “peridot” is derived from the Arabic faridat, which means “gem,” but some believe it’s rooted in the Greek word peridona, meaning “giving plenty.” Perhaps that’s why peridot was, according to lore, associated with prosperity and good fortune.

Peridot is the rare gem-quality variety of the common mineral olivine, which forms deep inside the Earth’s mantle and is brought to the surface by volcanoes. In Hawaii, peridot once ymbolized the tears of Pele, the volcano goddess of fire who controls the flow of lava.

Rarely, peridot is also found inside meteorites.

Rarely, peridot is also found inside meteorites.

Peridot’s signature green color comes from the composition of the mineral itself—rather Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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than from trace impurities, as with many gemstones. That’s why this is one of few gemstones that only comes in one color, though shades may vary from yellowish-green to olive to brownish-green, depending how much iron is present.

Peridot jewelry dates back as far as the second millennium BC. These ancient Egyptian gemstones came from deposits on a small volcanic island in the Red Sea called Topazios, now known as St. John’s Island or Zabargad.

Ancient Egyptians called peridot the “gem of the sun,” believing it protected its wearer from terrors of the night. Egyptian priests believed that it harnessed the power of nature, and used goblets encrusted with it to commune with their nature gods.

Some historians believe that Cleopatra’s famed emerald collection may have actually been peridot. Through medieval times, people continued to confuse these two green gemstones. The 200-carat gemstones adorning one of the shrines in Germany’s Cologne Cathedral were long believed to be emeralds as well, but they are also peridots.

This gemstone saw a revival in the 1990s when new deposits were discovered in Pakistan, producing some of the finest peridots ever found. Some of these “Kashmir peridots” measured more than 100 carats.

The most productive peridot deposit in the world is located on the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation in Arizona. An estimated 80 to 95 percent of the world’s peridot supply is found here.

Thanks to these rich gemstone deposits, the modern demand for peridots can now be met easily, giving people born in August affordable options for wearing this beautiful green birthstone.

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Leo Monthly Horoscope for August 2019 This month you will focus more on the career as predicted by the August 2019 Leo horoscope. There is a high chance that you will grow immensely in the workplace. You are an independent individual; therefore, you will be able to achieve most of your goals on your own The Leo personality will rely on family happiness and closure. Insecurities may crop in as the month progresses, but you are advised to keep your cool and takes things as they come your way. this month singles will not enter into love relationships because they are not interested. Those in relationships with have disagreement almost all the time, but after the 23rd of this month everything will go back to normal, and their love for each other will be restored.

According to the August 2019 horoscope for Leo, this month singles will not enter Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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into love relationships because they are not interested. Those in relationships with have disagreement almost all the time, but after the 23rd of this month everything will go back to normal, and their love for each other will be restored.

Your health will be delicate this month until after the 19th of this month when you will have started making efforts to restore your health. The Leo 2019 horoscope foretells that you will need proper rest for your health to go back to one hundred percent.

At the beginning of the month, you will experience some challenges at the workplace since you have a new boss.

However, as the month progresses, the Leo will do well. The new boss will be pleased with your hard work, determination, and commitment.

Leo astrology prediction for August 2019 is predicting that finances will be short this month. You will, however, get help from friends, social contacts and family members in catering for expenses.

Leo education this month will mostly be focused on matters science and technology. You want to expand your knowledge to other things that interest you.

August 2019 Leo horoscope reveals that traveling this month will come with gains and benefits. These will be local, and they will be work-related.

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If you do this long enough …YOU’RE GOING TO LOSE SOMEONE YOU KNOW. The Fallen Wings Foundation is an all volunteer Nonprofit dedicated to gathering support and awareness for United States Air Force (USAF) aerial mishap aircrew.

Our mission is immediate and continued support to USAF aerial mishap aircrew. We were formed in the small desert oasis of Holloman Air Force Base by a group of active duty USAF pilots and spouses.

Our vision is to mobilize monetary resources to the first-of-kin in the event of an aerial mishap.

If there’s one thing we’ve all seen, and know, is that the Bro Network (both male and female aircrew) is very strong, but has more often than not been isolated.

The Fallen Wings Foundation is here to unite the Bro Net, and enrich any and all namesake foundations of bros past.

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That Bro Network Though From the start of all of our careers in the military, we are exposed to challenge and adversity. It is through this adversity that tactical skills are earned and a brotherhood is formed among the victors.

This brotherhood is affectionately known around the military, specifically the aviation community, as the Bro Network, or Net for short. This Bro Net allows the youngest of Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps cadets bond through the tough years of junior high and high school.

It fosters deep friendships that build up the youngest of our nations leaders to build a path to success at the United States Air Force Academy, ROTC cadets in our universities, Officer Training School recruits, and Guard/Reserve hires.

Spreading through our Basic Military Training and onto the follow on Technical Schools for the enlisted aviator aircrew that each crew mission would be incapable of completing without their combined strength.

The Bro Net allows one aviator to high-five his crew chief, ask how his brother is doing in high school back in his hometown, while telling an unforgettable story about ‘this old instructor once…', and then being able to call/message that ‘old instructor’ after the mission, who now teaches in the Simulator Instruction, or major airline business and catch up.

The Fallen Wings Foundation is uniting any and all Bro Nets, and removing the individuality out of their efforts to form a very simple and common line of mutual effort to benefit all aircrew. Male, female, officer, enlisted, pilot, weapon system officer, combat system officer, load master, flight engineer, any and all aircrew… You are the Bro Net, join us in bringing all of our supporters into our fold, becoming the assistance force we all deserve in our greatest time of need.

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The Nuts and Bolts of Our Operation 100% Volunteer, 90% minimum annual revenue directly towards our mission (signed into our bylaws), 4 person staff (as for right now), a world of contacts.

The Fallen Wings Foundation, with your help, will fill the gaps that things like life insurance and the federal government cannot. For example, as a rough hack (estimate), when a fatal aerial mishap happens the Air Force will immediately mobilize around twenty thousand dollars towards the first of kin almost immediately. This works well to help with immediate travel, or grieving events such as burials or funerals.

If the aviator has somewhere around the basic life insurance that most aviators possess, the beneficiary (hopefully first of kin/spouse) will have 4-5 years worth of a living wage to possibly relocate, reeducate, possibly become employed or search out more lucrative employment, and form a new ‘normal life’ without the loved one they no longer have around.

Place yourself in the shoes of a late twenties wife, mother of one maybe two children under the age of three, in a foreign country or clear across the U.S. from your family, and this terrible event changes your life forever‌ We will fill the shortfalls. We will maintain legacies of our bros. We will stand with anyone through their darkest hours and personally support where needed to bring light back into their lives.

Every instance will be different, no need will be identical, but The Fallen Wings Foundation is going to help our Bros and their families until we fiscally cannot continue.

For more information please visit our web site at www.fallenwingsfoundation.org/

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"A SENSE OF HUMOR"

By Junior thurman, Artesia, NM

We can help you with Private party transfers

Remember "Billy Bass" the fish on the plaque who sang "Take me to the River" when you walked by? Yep, I had one, thought it was funny, we had many great laughs together, but my wife finally got sick of it and gave it away to a new neighbor, or a distant cousin, or coulda threw it in the dumpster, or maybe it was a garage sale, I can't remember now.....

A sense of humor is handy in a marriage, but, unfortunately my wifes' sense of humor and my sense of humor are vastly different. She didn't think much of "Billy Bass" my good friend at one time, how could you not laugh at "Billy Bass" the first few times you walked by him? Strange!

The good thing is, she does seem to have a sense of humor, I've heard her chuckle while reading thru

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Facebook. I've actually made the mistake of asking, "What's so funny?"

She then shows me what tickled her funny bone, what? Dang, I think, that's not funny, but I give her a small "courtesy laugh" anyway, wondering who was this person I married.

"What are you doing Thursday?" She asks.

Hmm, this ain't my first rodeo, she's fishing, trying to line me up with some annoying little job, commit me to a visit to who knows what. Wisely, being a cautious, experienced husband, I don't take the bait.

"Don't you remember, I'm running in that marathon Thursday, and right after that I've got that sky diving thing scheduled. Maybe a zip line if time permits. Then, I've got my evening escort duties.

Nope, sorry, but I'm tied up all day Thursday."

Ha, not even a smile, she only rolled her eyes at me. See, I told you, no sense of humor.

I remember working in the flower bed one day, in my back yard, when a small friendly snake stuck his head out from under a rock, and flicked its little black tongue at me.

"What's all that screaming about, and those terrible cuss words?" my wife asked, running out the back door. "I thought you were hurt bad."

Ha, screaming?, "I beg your pardon, I wasn't screaming, I was singing." I said while massaging my neck. "Come look at this," I said with a smile on my face.

"What is it, a little baby bird?" She bent over, the snake stuck his head out, flicked its little black forked tongue........she screamed, turned a couple of flips, surprising for a woman her age, and headed back in the house muttering something I couldn't quite make out.

Probably a good thing. I'm telling you the woman has absolutely no sense of humor!

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● 1 teaspoon vanilla extract ● 5 cups all-purpose flour ● 2 teaspoons baking powder ● 1 teaspoon salt ● Royal Icing ● 2 egg whites ● 3 cups powdered sugar ● 2 drops leaf green food gel ● 3 drops green food gel ● 3 drops pink food gel

INSTRUCTIONS Cookie Cutters ● Draw out your cactus cookie shapes and set aside ● Carefully cut out the base of your aluminum baking tray using a craft knife or Stanley knife.

Aluminum is sharp, so it’s best to always work on a scratch-resistant surface. Using a cutting mat is a great option. ● Use a sharp craft knife to cut the aluminum sheet into 2″ strips. ● Fold the aluminum strips over four times (letterfold style) to create a sturdier, long rectangle to work with. If you don’t think that your aluminum strips are strong enough, you can fold them over again. ● Use a ruler to press down on the edges, which will make them sharper and flatter. ● Next, fold the aluminum strips into shape by following the outline of your printed shape.

For sharp corners, fold the aluminum strip down all the way and then gently open up the fold. To get smooth curves, try shaping the aluminum over a piping tip. If you need to make a trickier shape, a pair of long-nose pliers will help. Some shapes may Continues page 111 Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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The Waterboss

A Historical Fiction Novel

By Julie Lloyd

CHAPTER 21 RANDY COMES HOME The grapevine in a small town spreads its vines of gossip and news exceedingly fast. Betty Jo heard about Randy’s return from the military almost faster than his arrival. She smiled as his old memory flitted across her mind, seeing the quick wink and slow smile he would give her when they passed in the crowded high school hallway during changing classes.

It had been more than two years since he had joined the military the day after graduation, leaving the little village of Rosita and his childhood behind, saying nothing to anyone before he left. Even the village grapevine had little or nothing to say about his departure. Betty Jo often wondered about him, casually asking his brother, Able, on occasion if he

Tularosa Invites You to Visit

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had any word from him. The last thing Able had told her was that Randy had been shipped to Korea.

The same grapevine that was so silent about Randy’s leaving was buzzing with excitement now that he was coming home again. He was a local boy returning from his military tour and that made him news. Her thoughts about him whirled, bringing up the image of the slow smile and quick wink he would give her in those high school hallway encounters. To her knowledge, he had never told anyone of their experimental experience that day so long ago in the irrigation ditch.

Perhaps even he had forgotten about it over the years, but she remembered it with clarity. After all, he had escaped his remote hometown and had been to other places, other countries, and probably met many other girls.

He had no reason to remember her and their childish foray into the world of adulthood experimentation. Meanwhile she had continued on in the same place, graduated high school, and was still stuck here working in the same cotton field, right next to the same irrigation ditch that held the vivid memory of that special day. It still evoked pleasant memories and erotic feelings deep within her.

Betty Jo shook her head as if to rid her mind of him and the near total recall that made her body tingle as she remembered what had happened between the two of them during what seemed an eternity ago. She looked out over the field where she stood, surveying the open bolls of white cotton on the part of the field that still needed picking. The cotton trailer at the east end of the field was halfway filled with picked cotton.

By the end of the day when all the pickers had emptied their sacks, cotton would be reach the top of the sideboards and it would have to be tromped down to make room for more cotton.

She sighed and began walking to her unfinished row, dragging her cotton sack up a row that had

been picked clean, leaving only stalks with some straggly leaves and sharp empty burrs, along with a few unopened bolls that would be picked in a few more weeks when the last Story continues next page Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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picking would take place.

The Winkler family had been gone almost a week. Betty Jo thought of them often. She missed seeing and talking to the boys picking cotton in the field while she continued to work.

She tried her best every day to pick one hundred pounds of the fluffy white cotton from its sturdy brown stalks, and the open bolls that it spilled from, but her best always seemed to fall short by a pound or two.

Betty Jo was still busy picking after all the other workers had left. She was nearing the end of her last row of cotton before going to weigh out her last sack when she saw Able drive along the top of the field in his Dad’s old green pickup. She kept her head down to avoid being noticed.

She and Able had not been on speaking terms since he and Lenora had wed. Since the wagon was piled quite high with cotton, she figured he was coming to tromp down the day’s picking.

She concentrated on the open bolls spilling their white bounty, repetitiously picking one and then another and another and another, endlessly.

It wasn’t until she had to stand and shake down the cotton in her sack that she saw the pickup driver at the end of her row picking toward her leaving piles of cotton in the middle of the row for her to pick up when she reached them.

Her heart lurched into her throat and her stomach flipped a perfect somersault when she realized it was not Able, but Randy, helping her finish her row.

They stood up at the same time and looked at each other. A slow smile spread across his face and he spoke in the same quiet voice that sounded so familiar to her.

“Hi, Betty Jo. Whatcha doing out here all by your lonesome?”

“Just finishing up my row,” she answered. The quaver in her voice surprised her, as did her increased heartbeat, the flush in her face, and the excitement that ran throughout her mind and body.

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Experience the Difference

Restaurant and Gift Shop

CHAPTER 22 RANDY COMES HOME He looked much the same as she remembered him, except that the youthful boy she knew had filled out. The person who stood before her now was muscular, mature, and definitely handsome.

She felt the urge to embrace him but restrained herself, afraid that he would think her brazen. She heard her voice blurt, “I thought it was Able who drove up. I didn’t know it was you. When did you get home, Randy?”

There was that smile again. Betty Jo slipped the strap from over her shoulder and let the cotton sack drop behind her to the ground. She didn’t wait for his answer before she threw restraint to the wind, rushed to him, put her arms around his body and hugged him.

“It’s so good to see you again,” she said, pulling back to see him smiling at her as his arms circled her waist, pulling her close. He lightly kissed her cheek.

“It’s good to see you again, too, Betty Jo.” She thrilled at his touch and his lips upon her face. She wished she could stay wrapped in his arms like this forever. She was surprised at the warmth of her feelings. She let her arms slide from his neck, but he did not loosen his hold on her until she spoke.

“I better get this row finished,” she blustered, motioning toward the last few feet of unpicked cotton and the small piles he had left lying in the row for her to pick up. “Thanks for the help.”

Reluctantly she bent to get her sack .

“Here, let me help you finish up,” he offered, taking up her sack from the ground and began packing the cotton he had picked inside it.

35 St. Francis Dr | Tularosa | 575-585-3494 Mon - Thur 11-8 | Fri & Sat 11-8:30 | Sun 10:30-8

Together they finished the row, making small talk as they worked. When they reached row’s end, he picked up her full sack and carried it to the wagon for weighing.

“Oh, my!” Randy exclaimed as he slid the pee along the scales to determine the weight inside the Story continues next page

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cotton sack. “Fifty-five pounds. That’s a lot of cotton for a gal like you to be dragging behind her.”

“It does get a little heavy after I’ve packed it full,” Betty Jo admitted.

She climbed into the wagon and waited while he took the sack from the scales and then threw it up where she was standing. She bent to pick it up to shake the packed cotton from the long bag onto the pile of picked cotton already in the wagon. Randy leaped onto the wagon bed, reached out and took the bag from her.

“Oh, no,” he protested as he began shaking the cotton out, spilling it onto the cotton in the almost full wagon. “You picked it and packed it tight in there. I’ll empty it.”

Betty Jo sank down into the soft cotton, thankful for the rest.

She watched him, marveling silently as his powerful arms easily shook the cotton she had so painstakingly stuffed into the bag.

He’s not that young boy I remember seeing years ago in the irrigation ditch. She smiled at her thought and the recalled memory. He’s not the same boy I remember who left to join the service right after high-school graduation either. She felt a flush of warmth surge through her body and a tingling down her spine that she hadn’t felt in a long time. She liked it. Being in the military has changed him. He’s not a boy at all anymore. No, he’s a man now… and I like the looks of the man he has become.

Randy shook the last bit of cotton from the sack, and then he threw the empty sack from the wagon to the ground below. He stood a moment looking down at Betty Jo, smiling all the while, before taking a deep breath and sinking down into the cotton beside her. Though it was near sunset, the day was still quite warm and there were beads of sweat on his brow.

“Hey, how about you and me go into town and get a hamburger and an ice cold mug of root beer at that new place that opened up since I been gone?”

He reached out and squeezed her leg just above her knee as he spoke, and left it there.

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Betty Jo was acutely aware of his hand on her leg. Normally, she would have removed it had it been anyone else but Randy. She didn’t know what it was about him that captivated her, but she left his hand right where it was and smiled up at him.

CHAPTER 23 RANDY COMES HOME GREEN CHILI CHEESEBURGER “The new place you’re talking about is Bob and Joe’s. They just opened up a couple of months ago,” Betty Jo said. “Sounds great. What time do you want to go?”

“Right now,” Randy answered. “I’m famished. Iced root beer would hit the spot, too.” He stood, grabbed her hand to help her up, pulling her quickly, throwing her off balance as she stood. She reached toward him for balance and he caught her with his other arm to pull her close. She stood back quickly.

“You did that on purpose,” she said, smiling.

His only response was a big grin. They climbed into the pickup and Randy patted the seat, inviting her to sit close to him. She scooted halfway across the seat.

“Have you eaten at Bob and Joe’s yet?” she asked.

“No, I just got here yesterday evening,” Randy explained. “I noticed it on the way over here today.

Have you been there?”

“A couple of times. They have a really good burger they call their Green Chili Cheeseburger. It’s not very hot, but has a good taste if you like chili.”

“Love it,” Randy exclaimed. “You forget that I’m from here. Grew up on beans and chili. Really miss having chili with my meals when I’m stationed away from here.”

“You’re out of the military now, aren’t you?”

“No. Have six more months to go, then I’m free.”

“What are you going to do then? Are you coming back here and help your Dad?” “Don’t know yet. Not much around here in the way Story continues next page Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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of jobs. Able is working with Dad and there’s not enough income to support another mouth, so I’ll probably move on.”

Betty Jo asked no more questions. She didn’t want to hear his answers. She just wanted to sit in the pickup with him, listen to the purr of the engine moving the pickup down the road, and enjoy the moment. They rode in silence the next couple of miles until they arrived at Bob and Joe’s Café.

Randy parked the truck under the corrugated tin awning in front of the newly constructed cinder block building. Even before he cut the engine, a brown haired, slender, curvaceous young girl about fifteen years old, came up beside the vehicle. She held a pencil in hand poised to write on a green paged receipt pad.

“Yes, sir,” she said nervously, “can I take your order, sir?”

Then she looked up and saw Betty Jo in the cab of the pickup and smiled.

“Oh! Hi, Betty! I didn’t recognize you at first. ” She immediately relaxed.

“Hi, Josie,” Betty Jo responded. “When did you start working here?”

“Just this morning. I’m still getting used to the job.”

She looked at Randy and motioned to a blackboard sign affixed on the side of the wall of the building.

Someone had scrawled a Special of the Day on it.

“Do you need a menu?”

“No, but you can bring us a couple of large root beers,” Randy said. “Betty Jo said you have good green chili burgers.”

“Yes, sir. Everybody who ordered them has said they like them.”

“Good. Add two green chili cheeseburgers to the order.”

Josie scribbled down the order before asking, “Do you want fries, too?”

Randy looked at Betty Jo who nodded a “yes” with her head.

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“Two fries with that,” he said. “That’s all.”

“Thank you, sir. It will be a few minutes. I’ll bring the root beer right out.” She smiled again at Betty Jo, turned, took a few quick steps and with the natural sway of her hips, disappeared into the building.

She returned a few minutes later with a tray holding two large, frosty mugs filled to the brim with root beer.

Josie fitted the tray to the window, with the words, “Your cheeseburgers will be here inin another few minutes.” She turned and went back into the building.

“Is that Angelita Roman’s little sister?” he asked Betty Jo as he handed her one of the frosted mugs.

"You know… the gal in my class who ran off and hid from her Dad for three days. Remember? They finally found her hiding in one of the little caves along the creek.”

Before she answered, Betty Jo took the mug, finding it refreshing to her hands, chafed from the day’s work in the cotton field. She sipped the icy root beer, letting it trickle down her throat, soothing away the dryness.

“Mmmmm, that tastes so good.” She glanced at Randy and smiled. “Yes, Josie is one of Angelita’s younger sisters. She helped smuggle food to her while she was hiding out.”

CHAPTER 24 RANDY COMES HOME ANGELITA ROMAN “There’s a phone booth around the corner of the building, Randy. Do you have an extra dime I could borrow? I should call Mom and let her know I’m getting a burger with you so she won’t worry when I don’t come in from the field… or hold supper up for me.”

“Sure,” he replied, digging into his jeans pocket, bringing out a small handful of coins.

Story continues next page

She smiled when he handed her the dime. “I’ll pay you back from my cotton picking money,” she said, and then added, “I promise.”

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Josie had brought the cheeseburgers by the time Betty Jo came back.

Randy had his unwrapped and was already devouring it.

“Hey, you were right. These really are good. I could make a habit of eating them.” He picked up the ketchup bottle from the tray, dousing the French fries until they were covered in red. Using his fingers, he stuffed a couple in his mouth to mingle with the cheeseburger he was chewing. After swallowing, he quaffed the last of his root beer just as Josie returned with another full mug.

“Did you want another?” he asked Betty Jo before Josie left.

“No, thanks. One is plenty for me.”

Randy watched as Josie hurried back inside, and then remarked, “She looks a little like the way I remember Angelita. But she seems smaller with darker hair and skin. Wasn’t Angelita ‘s hair almost blonde?”

Between bites, Betty Jo answered, “Oh, yeah.

Angelita almost looked Gringo. Until she said something, that is. Then her Spanish gave her away.

She spit out that lingo right along with the best of them.”

“Whatever happened to her?” Randy swigged down half the root beer in his second mug. “Is she still around here?”

“No, she left here. She met and married some military guy from Indiana a few months after graduation. She was more than ready to get away from here.”

“I can’t blame her,” Randy said after he finished off his burger and fries. “I think she’d left sooner if she could have. I think she would have gone farther than a cave in the creek that time she hid out.”

He smiled wryly at the memory. “I remember when that was all taking place. My Dad was furious.

I’ve never seen him so mad as when he heard that Angelita was hiding in fear.

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Dad’s always been extra nice to the Roman family, but when that happened, he even threatened to beat hell out of RoRo. I heard him say, ‘I ought to just kill the sonofabitch and get him out of his misery... and everybody else’s, too. Somebody needs to take a pole and knock him in the head, and then swear to God they didn’t see him standing there.’” Randy shrugged and shook his head. “Never did figure out why Dad felt so strong about the situation.”

Betty Jo finished her burger and fries, crumpled the wrapping, put it on the empty plate, and handed it to Randy.

“She had the whole town in an uproar, that’s for sure. I was glad she was safe and not hurt when they found her.”

“Me, too,” Randy agreed. “Do you want anything else, or are you ready to go?”

Handing her empty mug to him, Betty Jo announced with a pat to her full stomach, “No more for me. I’m ready when you are.”

Randy flashed his headlights to let Josie know he was ready to leave. She appeared almost instantly to give him his ticket and to remove the empty tray from the window. He paid with a ten dollar bill, almost double the total amount he owed.

“Keep the change,” he said and watched a huge smile spread across her face.

“Thank you, sir! You come back again.” She looked at Betty Jo, gave her a wink, and said, “You come back with him, too.”

As Randy turned the pickup onto the highway, he asked, “Now what? I need to go back to the field and tromp down that cotton. Do you want to go home or to the wagon with me?”

“My extra set of feet and legs will help you get the job done faster. I’ll go with you if you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind at all.” He glanced at her with a smile as he reached over and placed his hand over hers. “I like your choice. To be really honest with you, I was hoping you’d come keep me company this evening.”

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Photograph? I don’t Need to take a photo!

Three Rivers Petroglyph Site

World Photography Day August 19th

The Three Rivers Petroglyphs are outstanding examples of prehistoric Jornada Mogollon rock art.

The basaltic ridge rising above the Three Rivers Valley contains over 21,000 petroglyphs, including masks, sunbursts, wildlife, handprints, and geometric designs. The number and concentration of petroglyphs make this one of the largest and most interesting rock art sites in the Southwest. A rugged 0.5-mile trail begins at the visitor shelter and links many of the most interesting petroglyphs. Another short trail begins on the east side of the picnic area and leads to a partially excavated prehistoric village.

The Three Rivers Petroglyph Site is one of the few locations in the Southwest set aside solely because of its rock art. It is also one of the few sites giving visitors such direct access to petroglyphs.

The number and concentration of petroglyphs here make it one of the largest and most interesting petroglyphs sites in the Southwest. More than 21,000 glyphs of birds, humans, animals, fish, insects and plants, as well as numerous geometric and abstract designs are scattered over 50 acres of New Mexico's northern Chihuahuan Desert. The petroglyphs at Three Rivers, dating back to between about 900 and 1400 AD, were created by Jornada Mogollon people who used stone tools to remove the dark patina on the exterior of the rock. A small pueblo ruin is nearby and Sierra Blanca towers above to the east. A detailed petroglyph guide is available at the Three Rivers Petroglyph Site.

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The Ranney Ranch has been in our family since 1968, but was first homesteaded back in the 1800’s.

A number of cabins, cisterns and water catchment structures can still be found on the ranch testifying to the greater population that the land supported in earlier times. There are even outlines of bean fields and the ruins of an old school house. Before that we know that Pueblo Indians settled in this area around 1100 A.D. We often find arrowheads, pottery shards and even a turquoise bead or two on the old pueblo sites. Up on a high mesa ridge you can still spot the petroglyph of a coyote keeping watch over the valley below.

In 1968, George and Nancy Ranney bought two adjoining ranches along the Gallo Canyon near the town of Corona, New Mexico. They built a new headquarters and family home and experimented with different breeds of cattle on the rugged landscape.

In 1983, Melvin Johnson took over as manager and nurtured the development of an Angus/Black Baldy herd, gaining a solid local reputation for fine replacement heifers and breeding stock bulls. The mid 1990’s witnessed an ominous shift to drier Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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times and by 2002, when the next generation took the reins, the ranch could no longer sustain the livestock numbers of the lush 1970’s and 1980’s.

A new management program, “planned rotational grazing”, was implemented under the guidance of Kirk Gadzia, Resource Management Services and in short order, even during extreme drought years in the Corona area, we witnessed a remarkable resurgence of native grassland species and the recovery of our soils and pastures.

The good news is that not only have we been able to increase our livestock carrying capacity and to establish the Ranney Ranch Grassfed Beef program, we have also come to appreciate that these practices have the potential to regenerate soils across the American West, thereby increasing water retention potential and storing large quantities of soil carbon.

We are committed to the ecologic, financial and family health of the Ranney Ranch and to the health of the Corona ranching community. Ranchers and landowners in the Gallo Canyon have worked together over the past decade on ranching enterprises and on alternative energy development.

The Ranney Ranch sponsors ranch tours, workshops and offers guidance to a new generation of ranchers and land managers.

We still gather our herd on horseback from the rough canyons and open, rolling grasslands of the ranch. Our animals, and our family members thrive on the open range and under the vast skies of our high mesa grasslands.

The limestone-capped mesas stand sentinel above our canyon grasslands and harbor populations of mule deer, wild Barbary sheep, fox, bobcat, coyote and mountain lion; over fifteen species of bats and fifty species of birds inhabit our woodlands, and the occasional Bald and Golden Eagle graces the winter skies.

Once a blue grama grass monoculture, our pastures now boast over forty-five species of native grasses, both warm and cool season species, and the increased biodiversity has brought health to our soil, increased resilience in the face of Southwestern drought and the opportunity to market our unique New Mexican Grassfed Beef.

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The earliest setters in the area were Spanish ranchers who raised sheep and cattle on the open rangelands surrounding Corona. In the 1850's a stage line was established from Las Vegas to White Oaks and Fort Stanton, transporting passengers, mail and supplies for the army from Ft. Union to Ft. Stanton. Amoung the stage stops were Pinos Wells and the Red Cloud Post office area of the Gallinas Mountains, it proved to be unprofitable because miners had to haul their ore by wagon to smelters in Soccoro and El Paso. With the establishment of rail lines through Corona, increased ore production became possible. At the peak of mining production, approximately 300 people were employed in the industry.

Corona was established as a railroad town in 1903 with the building of El Paso and South Western Railroad from Carrizozo to Santa Rosa where it connected to the Rock Island Line. This brought many homesteaders and farmers to the area and initiated the growth of Corona as a trade center, enabling farmers and ranchers to ship their products to market. In the 1950's, natural gas transmission lines were laid through the area, company housing was built, and some thirty families were employed.

Recognized as one of the best in the state, the school has long been the focal point of the community.

The School District encompasses parts of three counties and serves an area of 2061 square miles.

The stage lines are now gone, the mines are closed; farming is minimal; the railroad depot has been moved; trains no longer stop here and natural gas lines have been automated. Corona is still the trade center for the area; school is still the heart of the community.The Corona Museum showcases the area's history and culture, dating from the first Spanish settlers to the 1850's stage line and the arrival of the railroad and establishment of the Village of Corona in 1903. Displays track the daily home, business and civic life of the pioneers who ranched, farmed and built a community together in historic Lincoln County, in the very heart of the state of New Mexico.

Railroad through Corona, 1940

The Museum was established, and is still maintained, by a team of volunteers who give of their time, belongings passed down over the generations and, mostly, their love of the community.The Corona Museum will be open most weekdays for the summer season on May 1, 2019.

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fascinating facts about sleep ● Babies steal 1,055 hours from their parents – According to data from Medical Daily, new parents lose an average of 44 days of sleep per year from their beautiful, sleepless newborn. ● Humans can sleep with their eyes open – Yes, you can sleep with your eyes open, which makes it truly impossible to tell whether someone is really sleeping or not. ● Some people dream in black and white – Studies show 12% of people dream in black and white. Surprisingly, this number was 75% before color TV. ● You can’t sneeze while sleeping – Humans are more prone to sneezing while asleep, but since we aren’t moving to stir up dust particles, the reaction doesn’t occur. ● It’s common for the deaf to sign in their sleep – Just like talking in your sleep, the hearing impaired communicate via sign language while sleeping. There are many recorded instances of people who have reported seeing their deaf partner or child signing while snoozing. ● You grow .3 inches while sleeping – But the growth is temporary as you shrink back down to normal after you’re awake for a few hours. ● The strangers in your dreams, aren’t strangers – You might know them personally, but you’ve seen everyone in your dreams before. The brain can’t create people, so it uses registered faces.

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The Galaxy Song written by Eric Idle and John Du Prez of Montey Python's Flying Circus SHARED by Gloria Marie of Globug Whenever life get you down, Mrs. Brown, And things seem hard or tough, And people are stupid, obnoxious or daft, And you feel that you've had quite enough...

Just remember that you're standing on a planet that's evolving And revolving at nine hundred miles an hour, That's orbiting at nineteen miles a second, so it's reckoned, A sun that is the source of all our power.

The sun and you and me and all the stars that we can see Are moving at a million miles a day In an outer spiral arm, at forty thousand miles an hour, Of the galaxy we call the "Milky Way".

Our galaxy itself contains a hundred billion stars.

It's a hundred thousand light years side to side.

It bulges in the middle, sixteen thousand light years thick, But out by us, it's just three thousand light years wide.

We're thirty thousand light years from galactic central point.

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We go 'round every two hundred million years, And our galaxy is only one of millions of billions In this amazing and expanding universe.

The universe itself keeps on expanding and expanding In all of the directions it can whizz, As fast as it can go, at the speed of light, you know, Twelve million miles a minute, and that's the fastest speed there is.

So remember, when you're feeling very small and insecure, How amazingly unlikely is your birth, And pray that there's intelligent life somewhere up in space, 'Cause there's bugger all down here on Earth.

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Traditional New Mexico Tamales ● 1 -1 6 ounce package dried corn husks ● ½ pounds pork loin ● 1 medium onion, chopped ● 2 cups water ● 2 tablespoons vegetable oil ● 2 cloves Garlic minced ● 1 tbsp flour ● ½ cup ground dried hot Hatch, New Mexico Red Chile (not chili powder), preferably New Mexican ● Salt to taste ● ½ tsp Mexican Oregano ● Dough ● 6 cups masa harina (corn flour for tamales) ● 1 ²/³ cups Snowcap Lard ● 5 cups water, or more as needed ● 2 teaspoons salt

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● Preheat oven to 350° F. Place pork and onion in a medium-size baking dish and cover with water. Bake for approximately 1½ hours, or until pork is cooked through and pulls apart easily. ● Remove pork from liquid, reserving both.

When pork is cool enough to handle, pull it into fine shreds. When liquid has cooled, strain and skim fat from surface. If liquid doesn’t measure 2 cups, add enough water to equal 2 cups. ● Warm oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat.

Add garlic and pork. Sprinkle flour over mixture and stir for 1 minute as flour begins to brown. ● Add chile, cooking liquid, salt and oregano.

Continue cooking for 20 to 25 minutes, until most of liquid has evaporated but pork remains moist. Watch carefully and stir in last few minutes to avoid burning.

Dough ● Mix masa harina, oil, water and salt with an electric mixer. Mix till well-blended and smooth, like a very soft cookie dough. Add more water if needed for correct consistency.

(Fresh ground tamale dough, or masa, is often available around the holidays in communities with a Latino population. You may need to order it in advance. About 3 pounds can be used in place of the dough.)

Corn husks ● Place corn husks in a deep bowl and cover with hot water. Let soak until softened and pliable, about 30 minutes. Separate husks, and if there is any grit or brown silk, rinse them under water.

Husks can stay in water once softened while you form the tamales.

Assembly ● Each tamale will require about 2 tablespoons of filling and dough and 1 large corn husk. Hold a corn husk flat, smooth side up. With a large spoon, spread a thin layer of dough across the husk, not quite to the edges.

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● Top with filling spread more thickly through dough’s center, stopping short of dough’s edges. Fold one-half over the other, enclosing the filling within the dough. Fold up the bottom third of the corn husk, so that the tamale becomes something of a package. Repeat procedure until all dough and filling are used.

Steaming ● Arrange a vegetable steamer in the bottom of a large stockpot and fill with hot water. Place tamales in steamer, standing them on the folded ends. Leave enough space among them for steam to rise effectively. ● Cover pot and cook over simmering water for about 1 hour, until the masa is firm and no longer sticks to husks. Check one tamale for consistency. If still doughy, rewrap and return to the pot, and continue steaming for a few more minutes. Tamales should be eaten warm.

The husks are usually removed by each guest before eating but can be removed ahead of time, if you prefer. ● Makes 2 Dozen tamales

Ingredients ● 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons cornmeal ● 1/2 cup chopped ripe olives ● 1 cup New Mexico green chile* (roasted, peeled, and chopped)optional ● 1 cup New Mexico red chile* ● 1 3/4 cups grated sharp, cheddar cheese ● 1 clove garlic ● 1 pound ground beef ● 1 teaspoon salt ● 1/4 pound ground pork ● 1/8 teaspoon pepper

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● 1/2 cup chopped onion ● 2 cups diced tomatoes ● 2 cups water

Instructions ● Fry ground beef and pork in a medium-sized skillet at medium heat until beef is browned. ● Add onion and garlic to meat mixture and cook until onion is tender. Drain. ● Add tomatoes, olives, green chile, salt, and pepper to mixture and cook for approximately 20 minutes. (Water may be added to the mixture if a thinner consistency is desired.) ● Add 1/4 cup of cheese and 2 tablespoons of cornmeal to mixture, cook for 2-3 minutes, and set mixture aside. ● Place remaining cornmeal and water in a medium-sized saucepan. Cook cornmeal mixture, stirring occasionally, until cornmeal is thick. ● Spread half of cornmeal mixture in bottom of a greased 9×13 inch baking pan. Place meat mixture over top of cornmeal and spread remaining half of cornmeal over top of filling.

Top with remaining cheese. ● Bake in a 350°F oven for 20 minutes.

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Sacrament of Gold

We Invite You To Get High!

Shop, Stay and Play Stress Free in Cloudcroft And the High Sacramentos

By Edward Woten Chapter One - Spanish Ghosts

Harsh alkali dust from the salt-pan playas further irritated his red-rimmed eyes and clogged his nostrils even through the sweat-stained bandana covering most of his face. With his Stetson pulled down low on his forehead, only the barest slits of his eyes were visible.

He could only imagine what Buttercup must be thinking of these conditions as she trudged across the seemingly endless miles of the Tularosa Basin.

Luckily, the wind was behind them and not blasting, full-force, in their faces. But the Sacramentos rose up to the east, just visible behind the swirling billows of white powder, and Buttercup was a sturdy mare who loped along at a even pace, eating up the weary miles as they headed for the comfort of home and a much-deserved rest.

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He was not a big man, but his lean whipcord frame belied the power of someone comfortable in his body, who could hold his own with either man or beast. The dusty miles had disguised his true coloring, that of a ruddy, sunburnt complexion, with dishwater-blond hair and moustache. The hazel color of his eyes were not noticeable because they were slitted against the sun glare.

Jim Stark had worked for a few years for various outfits in the Mesilla Valley and around DoĂąa Ana. He even did a little time as a wrangler for a small garrison posted at the ruins of Fort Fillmore. The last couple of years he had worked as top hand for Gene Rhodes whose place covered three or four miles of the San Andres foothills.

Gene was a good man to work for and learn from, and when Jim decided to strike off on his own, Gene was there to offer up a small stake and few head of cattle, on loan of course, to help Jim get established.

Jim had a small spread nestled in the western foothills of the Sacramentos and had made the trip to Mesilla to file a claim on a rocky defile upslope from his ranch. He needed to secure the small spring there which afforded his place with a slow but steady trickle of life-giving water, so crucial to making a go of it in an otherwise arid landscape.

The spring was not big enough to attract the attention of a big-time rancher such as Oliver Lee to the south who had tapped the abundant flow out of Dog Canyon for his larger holdings.

The March weather had been pleasant enough on the outward trek, but the west wind was kicking up a fuss on the return leg. Occasional dust devils could be seen swirling columns of sand a thousand feet or more into the air.

The diversion of an overnight stay in Mesilla had afforded him some time to visit a few old acquaintances, savor a good meal at La Posta and enjoy one night in a soft feather bed, plus the chance to pick up a few odds and ends not to be had in the small general store in the village of La Luz to the north of his place.

His legal business at the courthouse had been surprisingly easy to deal with, his improvements to Story continues next page Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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the area confirming his ownership. James Elias Stark.

That was a name seldom seen or heard, but it now graces the property deed nestled in his saddlebag. The filing taken care of, Jim pointed Buttercup’s nose towards the pass at San Augustine and the old wagon road across the Tularosa.

Driving winds abated some as they made the slow rise up the broad alluvial fan on which his property perched. The modest ranch house and outbuildings hove into sight, giving horse and rider the easy satisfaction of homecoming.

He could usually appreciate the view back across the lowlands to the west, but airborne sand still obscured both the Organs and San Andres Mountains. However, he was home and it felt good.

After Buttercup got a bellyful of good spring water from the trough, Jim led her to the tack shed, removed saddle and bridle and gave her a thorough rubdown. She made quiet work of a bagful of oats during the process. Buttercup was a trusty mount and deserving of rest. He left her to it.

As the sun dropped towards the western ridges, Jim contemplated the small flow of water which fed into the horse trough. It was carried downslope from the spring by an ingenious pipeline/aqueduct arrangement which Mr. Lee had helped him engineer. The spring was now filed for legally and was his. Secure in this knowledge, he turned in and quietly drifted off to sleep.

Feeling fully rested, Jim set about his morning chores, but Juanito Lara, an old family friend and neighbor, had kept an eye on the place and there was very little to do on this fine, clear dawn.

However, he had been thinking about his newly acquired water source, and considered various options for increasing its flow. He decided to hike up to the spring box and survey the surrounding area.

Packing a few dry biscuits and some jerky in his pockets, Jim started up the canyon. The way was narrow and rocky. The cleverly designed pipeline/aqueduct arrangement was a bit tricky to install, but luckily, it was only a short distance between the spring and the ranch.

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the spring from below. A few arrowheads and other artifacts testified to the fact that Apaches had visited and hunted in this recessed alcove in the past, but no traces of more recent use were evident.

Like most sources of water on the edges of the Tularosa Basin, what liquid did trickle down inevitably disappeared underground to collect and create one of the largest aquifers in the Western United States. Unfortunately, the underground water soon turned brackish from the overburden of mineral salts and was unusable. It was only on the margins of the basin that you could find clear, sweet water. That’s what made Jim’s small discovery a few years ago so precious.

He made short work of the trip and, while the climb was not so difficult as to be strenuous, Jim took a moment to catch his breath. There was very little leakage around the spring box, but he did notice another small trickle of water several feet higher up the cliff face that he had not noticed before. Just a few feet back brought him to the opposite wall. He looked up and traced the meager flow coming over the lip of a horizontal cleft in the face of the rock about twenty feet up.

The wall at his back was easier to scramble up, and when he was level with the slit opposite, he was surprised to see that the cleft was actually the opening to a low cave in the cliff.

What was even more intriguing was the steel head of a Spanish halberd lying at the opening of the cave. The pike-like steel head would have been hafted onto a wooden shaft to be used as the weapon of choice by a mounted horseman of several centuries ago.

Jim recalled his history of the territory. He knew that Francisco Vasquez de Coronado led an expedition that had trekked through part of New Mexico, the first Europeans to do so, in the 1540s looking for Cibola, the fabled Seven Cities of Gold.

Sixty years later, Don Juan de Oñate had brought Spanish colonists up the Rio Grande to establish the first European settlements in the Southwest.

Jim also knew from talking to some of the old timers that the occasional piece of Spanish armour had been found buried in the sands or hidden away in some remote recess. Could one of those intrepid Story continues next page Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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Spanish conquistadores have come this way looking to slake his thirst? Jim needed to investigate.

Scrambling backwards down rocks presents a little more challenge than climbing up, but he was soon down and started up the opposite wall. These hand- and footholds proved a little more awkward.

He was positioned below the cleft and reached up to grab the edge when he heard the distinctive sound and felt the lightning strike of a rattler! The instinctive reaction to pull his hand away carried one of the reptile’s fangs imbedded in the fleshy side of his palm.

He almost lost purchase on the rock face which would have resulted in a serious sprain at best and a dangerous fracture otherwise. The instant wash of adrenaline through his blood made him dizzy. He made it down and clutched his right hand to his chest. Pulling the fang out did little to alleviate the sharp, stabbing pain seizing his hand and starting to spread down his arm.

He took short, careful steps through the rocky defile, but they became hesitant and staggering. His breathing became short and shallow. His vision blurred. Nausea set in.

Jim was surprised to find himself beside the water trough. He plunged his hand into the cool water, but found little relief. Cramps seized his stomach and brought him to the ground. He needed to rest. He leaned his back against the trough.

Images became indistinct, but he began to see vague shapes in the dimness. Were they ... were they? Conquistadores? On horseback? He could see them riding slowly past. First one, then another. He caught glaring flashes of sunlight on their armour, could hear the hoofbeats of their horses and the rattle and clink of their accoutrements. Even faintly hear their words. What were they saying, in whispers?

His vision was fading to darkness, but his mind had one last image to show his fevered consciousness. A spilt-second before the diamondback struck, Jim caught a fleeting glimpse into the black mouth of the cave and saw ... just before the blackness closed in ... a tiny glint of gold ...

Next Edition: Cold Steel and Hot Lead Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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It Rains on the Sun (Just Not the Way You Think) Astronomers have detected "plasma rain" pouring down over the solar surface, which may explain why the sun's outer atmosphere is so much hotter than the star's surface.

Recent NASA observations revealed coronal rain in a smaller, previously overlooked kind of magnetic loop on the sun, according to a statement from NASA. This rain consists of large droplets of hot plasma that fall from the sun's outer atmosphere (the corona) down toward the star's surface.

Compared to rain on Earth, plasma rain on the sun is millions of degrees Fahrenheit hotter. Also, plasma, which is an electrically charged gas, doesn't pool like water on Earth. Instead, the plasma traces the magnetic field lines, or loops, that emerge from the sun's surface.

In addition, the researchers found that plasma where the magnetic loops attach to the sun's surface is superheated, reaching over 1.8 million degrees Fahrenheit. This superhot plasma expands up the loop and gathers at the structure's peak. As the plasma cools, it condenses, and gravity pulls it back down the loop, creating coronal rain.

Apache Point Observatory Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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AN ACTOR FROM CLOUDCROFT Daniel Ronald Cox, the third of five children, was born in Cloudcroft, New Mexico, July 23, 1938; the son of Lounette and Bob P. Cox, a carpenter who also worked at a dairy. He grew up in Portales, New Mexico. Cox met his wife Mary when she was in the fifth grade and he was in the seventh grade, and they married in 1960.

Cox graduated from Eastern New Mexico University in 1963 with a double major in theater and speech correction. Mary died in 2006, 50 years to the day of their first date. Cox often talks about her during his music performances.

Cox received positive reviews in his first film role for his portrayal of ill-fated businessman Drew Ballinger in the terrifying backwoods thriller Deliverance (1972) with Cox featuring in the entertaining "Duelling Banjos" sequence of the film.

Following this promising start, Cox was regularly guest-starring in numerous television series, before scoring the lead in the short-lived family drama Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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Apple's Way (1974) and grabbing the critics attention again with an excellent performance in the Emmy nominated telemovie A Case of Rape (1974).

Interestingly, Cox was often at his best playing rigorous authority figures usually in law enforcement or military roles including as a detective in the telemovie Who Is the Black Dahlia? (1975), alongside Charlton Heston in the submarine drama Gray Lady Down (1978), an Los Angeles detective pursuing cop killers in The Onion Field (1979), and alongside then-rising stars Tom Cruise and Sean Penn in the powerful Taps (1981).

The 1980s was a high profile decade for Cox with strong supporting roles in several blockbusters playing strong-willed figures on both sides of the law. Cox starred alongside box office sensation Eddie Murphy in the mega-hit Beverly Hills Cop (1984) and its sequel Beverly Hills Cop II (1987), as well as portraying sinister company executives in the futuristic sci-fi action films RoboCop (1987) and Total Recall (1990).

Throughout the 1990s, Cox was again prolific, appearing in many television series, feature films and high-caliber telemovies - He took control of the USS Enterprise for two episodes as Captain Edward Jellico in Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987), and Cox contributed entertaining performances in Murder at 1600 (1997), Early Edition (1996), Forces of Nature (1999) and the chilling tale Perfect Murder, Perfect Town: JonBenĂŠt and the City of Boulder (2000).

Cox has continued to remain busy with more recent performances in Stargate SG-1 (1997), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999) and the highly popular Desperate Housewives (2004). \ However, when he's not in front of the cameras, Cox can be found touring and demonstrating his musical talents at various music festivals and theatre shows and, to-date, he has released five CDs - an eclectic mixture of jazz, folk and western tunes.

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A MOVIE PARTLY FILMED IN CLOUDCROFT PG-13 | 1h 49min | Drama, Thriller October 1997 After a husband is accused of driving his third wife to suicide, his first wife Hedda, a troubled woman who can't hate or hurt others even if they had wronged her, is subpoenaed to testify on his abusive behavior during their marriage. ● Robin Wright Penn as Hedda Amerson ● William Hurt as K.D. Dietrickson ● Amy Madigan as Brett Amerson ● Anthony Lucero as The Defendant ● Paul Dooley as Leo Amerson ● Lucinda Jenney as Kate Amerson ● Joanna Cassidy as Elenore Amerson ● Sean Penn as Michael

Cloudcroft Lodge, circa 1909, prior to fire that totally destroyed it.

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O

ne hundred years or so ago, the railroad was completed between Alamogordo, New Mexico and El Paso, Texas. The railroad’s owners were intrigued by the majestic mountains to the East of Alamogordo and soon sent a survey party to the summit. They discovered untouched wilderness — a wonderland of wildlife, plants, and trees. They were also impressed with the way the clouds blanketed the ground because at 9,000 feet above sealevel, Cloudcroft was literally in the clouds.

The name Cloudcroft is a term related to an English description of a clearing covered in clouds.

S F

oon after, an excursion train was established to the top of the mountain and the village of Cloudcroft was born.

or the first half of Cloudcroft’s existence, the train was the only means of travel to the village (except possibly by pack mule). In the mid-1940s, the first highway to the village was opened — taking away much of the train’s logging and excursion business. The train discontinued service to the village in 1948.

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On January 18, 1855, Captain Henry W. Stanton was ambushed and killed by Apache warriors.Here is the official report filed by Captain Richard Ewell, 1st Dragoons, of Stanton’s death and the engagement.

Maj. W. A. Nichols, U. S. Army Feb 10 1855 I made two night marches on a small Indian trail on the Pecos, which we then abandoned because it was older than we thought, then continued my march to meet the troops from Fort Fillmore.

After combining the two commands I moved south toward the Guadalupe and Sacramento Mountains and then on January 17th, 1855, encamped on the Penasco, a fine stream running from these chains toward the Pecos. Up to this time we had seen no Indians or signs, though constantly on the trail of the cattle, now six weeks old and few in number, which had been stolen by the Indians.

This night the camp was attacked by the Indians with arrows and firearms and at the same time they tried to burn us out.

Next morning the Indians seemed in force with every mark of defiance and during the whole day opposed our march, disputing every ravine at times under cover within arrow shot.

A body of skirmishers, first of Infantry, under charge, at different times, of Lieutenant Danels and Walker, and then of mounted and dismounted Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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dragoons, under Lieutenant Moore, was engaged the whole day in clearing the line of March. The country was broken into high hills, with deep ravines crossing the line of march. Lieut. Moore, with some of the best horses, gave chase to some Indians on the open ground but a winter march of 450 miles had reduced the horses too much to catch the Indians on their fresh animals.

The Indians gave the impression from their boldness that they were trying to keep us from their families.

Hoping to bring on a close fight, we kept up the march as rapidly as possible. During the day some 15 of them were shot from their horses and carried off by their comrades, leaving the ground marked with blood and at one time, after the fall of the boldest, they collected on a high hill and set up a lamentation, afterwards becoming even bolder in their attacks. None of my guides had ever seen the country I passed through after reaching the Penasco.

About 3 PM on the 18th of Jan, I came to the first of their abandoned camps where thy command was halted for the night and Captain Stanton was directed to take his company, with some additional men and examine a small open valley to the right where were some more abandoned lodges, about 500 yards distant, and endeavor to find the direction taken by the Indians when they left.

This officer, after reaching the place designated, charged after some Indians he saw in front and in following up the steep hillside in the ardor of the chase, became separated from some of his men, badly mounted, who were unable to join him when he sounded the rally.

After rallying about a dozen men he proceeded up the valley until he became satisfied that the Indians had not retreated in that direction, then he started back, leading his horses. About three-fourths of a mile form the camp the valley narrowed with trees, and here he was ambushed and fired into, the first fire killing one of his men.

He ordered his party to take to the trees, but the Indians being in too great force, he mounted and ordered his party to retreat, remaining in the rear himself, firing his Sharps carbine, when he received a shot in the head and was instantly killed.

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The History

of Mayhill In the early 1850’s the U.S. government was having problems trying to maintain peace between the Mescalero Apaches and the white settlers who had recently begun homesteading in the area.

The Indians would leave their reservation to steal horses, cattle, and sheep in order to survive. The settlers, fearing the Indians, asked the military for protection.

Capt. Henry W. Stanton, for whom Fort Stanton was named, and a party of soldiers were dispatched from San Patricio to search for Apaches.

On January 18th, 1855, the Indians suprised the party as they traveled up the Penasco River. Stanton and several others were killed in the vicinity of present-day Mayhill. This historical incident is recorded on a marker in the village.

The village of Mayhill is situated on the eastern slopes of the Sacramento Mountains at an elevation of 6,500feet. It is located at the forks of the Rio Penasco and James Canyon, about 17 miles east of Cloudcroft on US Highway 82, at its junction with US Highway 130 to Weed.

Albert Coe, who had come to new Mexico in 1867 and whose brother Frank and cousin George were involved with Billy the Kid in the Lincoln County Wars, arrived in the Rio Penasco area in 1873 and settled on what is now the Jim Mahill ranch, about 1/2 mile east of the present village. One of the log cabins he built still stands on the homestead.

Soon, other settlers began coming into the area, including Charles Arthur (1884), Teen Clayton (1883), Joe Curtis (1880), John Gardessler (1880), Ben Henry (1882), Aled & Kim Hunter (1884), John James (1879), Henry Kepler (1884), Robert McGee (1878), W.C. Warren (1878), and John G. White (1878).

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In 1881, Albert Coe returned to his former home in Missouri and married his childhood sweetheart Mary (Molly) Mahill. They returned to the Penasco for their honeymoon. One year later, Molly’s parents, John and Sara Mahill and their family joined them.

John Mahill bought the land covering the present village site from John James, for whom James Canyon was named, for $300 in December of 1882 and built an adobe house, which is still standing and occupied by family members.

The first post office, called Upper Penasco, was established in 1885. It was located in the Coe residence and Molly Coe was the first postmaster. In 1904 after several moves, the post office was permanently located and the village was officially named Mayhill, rather than Mahill, apparently through an error by the Postal Department. Attempts to correct the misspelling have been in vain.

Over the years, more people have settled in the fertile valley and Mayhill today continues to thrive with its farming and ranching industries. The lumber business is another activity in the area. Tourists are attracted to Mayhill in the summertime to enjoy the cool clear atmosphere, and each fall hundreds of deer hunters invade the region to enjoy the sport in the wide-open spaces of the Sacramento Mountains.

Grave of Albert Coe Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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Clean Refrigerator Coils If your refrigerator stops working on a hot day, suspect the coils. Service pros find this problem on half of their refrigerator calls. On many fridges, you get to the coils by removing the front grille. Then push a coil cleaning brush (sold at home centers) into the coils, pull it back and vacuum it clean. If the coils are located on the back, pull out your fridge to clean them. Bonus: The clean coils will cool more efficiently and save you money on your utility bill!

Avoid Overloads You may think you’re saving time, water or energy by cramming more clothes into your washer and dryer. But overloading any washer or dryer causes damage to motors, belts and other moving parts. Some of the repairs are so expensive that you’re better off buying a new machine.

Heat Up a Lukewarm Dryer If your clothes dryer isn’t heating properly, first make sure the machine isn’t set to ‘fluff air’ — a Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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non heat setting. If that’s not it, the lint filter may be clogged. Even if the filter looks clean, it may be covered by a nearly invisible film caused by dryer sheets. Test your filter by pouring water into it. If the filter holds water, it’s past time to clean it. This film reduces airflow and forces the thermostat to shut off the heat before the clothes are dry. Pull out the filter and scrub it in hot water with a little laundry detergent and a stiff kitchen brush. Also check the outside dryer vent for any lint that may have built up there.

Don’t Slam the Doors!

If you continually drop or slam the lid to your washer or dryer (top or front load), you’re going to break the lid/ door switch. That’ll cost you at least $100. Avoid this repair by lowering the lid and gently closing the door.

Clean Up Stove Spills If a stove burner won’t come on, the likely culprit is spilled food. Use a toothbrush to clean off food spills from the igniter. On an electronic ignition stove, it’s a little ceramic nub located either on the stovetop or under the ceramic seal strike plate. Also make sure that the round ceramic seal strike plate is properly seated on the burner.

Clean Out Disposer Crud Your disposer will smell better if you clean the splash guard. Lift the flaps and scrub them (especially the under side) with a toothbrush and grease-cutting cleaner.

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S

easoned by a rich and cultured past, The Lodge Resort beckons you with alluring promises of intrigue. But more than that, this magnificent Cloudcroft New Mexico hotel and resort possesses a quality unlike any other retreat.

601 Corona Place

From the turn-of-the-century fire that destroyed the original structure to its ghostly inhabitants to its storied past, our resort offers a haunting presence that can be felt to your very core. Inside its halls, magic moments live again and again – making this a place that never completely leaves your heart.

Towering 9.000 feet above sea level, this prestigious New Mexico resort offers leisure and business travelers an entrancing location.

Cloudcroft, NM 9,000 feet above stress level

575.682.2566

A Brief History of The Lodge Originally constructed in 1899 by the Alamogordo and Sacramento Mountain Railway as a byproduct of the railroad’s search for timber and railway ties, the resort of Cloudcroft became immediately successful mountain retreat…a cool reprieve to thousands of overheated Texans.

(Remember that New Mexico, Oklahoma and Arizona were not states at the time.)

Owned and operated by the railroad, the resort’s initial building was a pavilion, now The Pavilion Bed and Breakfast at The Lodge with reception and ballrooms.

You deserve a break! Call us Today to book your massage, Facial or relaxing body service.

As the actual log-constructed Lodge neared completion in 1899, an article in the Albuquerque Journal-Democrat reported, “This beautiful building will be known as The Cloudcroft Lodge and its interior will be furnished with a lavish hand, yet in keeping with the character of the place. Fireplaces, with wide, hungry mouths, will sparkle, crackle and dart forth welcome tongues of flame to hundreds of merry guests, who will find a new pleasure in life during the long, sultry summer.”

Let Us Help Make Your Wedding A

In 1908, the El Paso and Southwestern Railroad System, the resort’s new owner, advertised that the hotel, restaurant, dancing pavilion, tennis court, golf links, bowling alley, billiard parlor, burro trips and children’s playground were accessible for weekend rates of $3.00 round trip. Lodge rates were $12.50 and up per week.

To Remember!!!

On June 13, 1909, a disastrous fire destroyed The Lodge. But by 1911, The Lodge had been Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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rebuilt and reopened on its current, more scenic site. Since then it has undergone numerous renovations, but the initial appearance remains almost unchanged.

Over the history of The Lodge, thousands of Southwestern families have called The Lodge and Cloudcroft their second home.

The Lodge has entertained and hosted hundreds of politicians, artists, entertainers and business leaders, including such notables as Pancho Villa, Judy Garland and Clark Gable. Gilbert Roland was known to frequent The Lodge.

Both U. S. and Mexican government officials have long visited the historic hotel.

Military leaders, scientists and astronauts from all over the world have made The Lodge a retreat during their visits to White Sands Missile Range, Holloman AFB and Fort Bliss. And, in fact, the most famous hotelier in the world was once associated with The Lodge, with Conrad Hilton as its manager in the 1930’s.

In January of 1986 the historic Lodge was purchased by Great Inns of the Rockies, Inc., a small privately held corporation. They operated the property successfully for 29 years.

As of March 2015 The Lodge entered a new era of ownership by New Mexico Adventures, LLC a company owned by Lanna & Joe Duncan of Fort Davis, Texas, who have a 25 year history in historic hotels ownership & preservation in West Texas.

They are committed to The Lodge tradition of friendliness, hospitality, outstanding food & unique lodging.

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Grown-Up Birthday Party Ideas to Celebrate Another Year of Life Birthdays are like seasons—some are welcomed with open arms, and others may take a little warming up to. But really and truly, you should be doing something fun for every milestone you hit because what better excuse is there to get all of your favorite people in one room and reminisce about the past year (or years) you’ve spent together? ● Get into board-game bliss. Have everyone come in their pj's and bring their favorite board game from way back when. Dream Phone and Guess Who? are required. And as a throwback, have goody bags for the winners. ● Host a pampering party. Indulge in DIY facials (or sheet masks), massage trains, and at-home mani/pedis while watching a movie marathon. ● Have a cake swap. Is it worth getting a year older without the frosting and candles? We think not. Ask each guest to forego gifts and bring their favorite cake—and then taste them all. (Side note: This may be our favorite adult birthday party idea ever.) ● Cook the night away. If you don't want to ask everyone to bring their own food, create a menu of your favorite homemade meals, and then cook it all together. ● Host a wine tasting. We all have so many questions about wine from the grape variety to the flavor and wouldn't you just love to be an expert? Well, Winc has a new wine-tasting 101 kit that is perfect for parties and everyone will leave as sommeliers in the making. ● Have a movie night. You could even theme it and watch romantic movies all night or 90s favorites.

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● Host a casino night at home. You could even hire someone to be the card dealer and use pennies for gambling or fake money. ● Throw a Great Gatsby–themed party. Get out those flapper dresses or old-school suits, and learn how to do the Charleston together. Or pick your favorite decade as a theme. ● Have a margarita and margarita party. Most parties are all about the food, and this one is no exception. Make homemade margarita pizzas together—and blend margaritas (alcoholic or not). The dress code? Something with drawstrings. ● Plan a murder mystery soirée. Each guest is assigned a character to dress up as ahead of time; we’re partial to those pre-planned by Night of Mystery. Simply download everything you need in advance and you're good to go.

Hollywood, the rodeo, and royal mysteries are all theme options! ● Pick a sport to plan the day around, from attire to baked goods. You could head to the bowling alley, beach volleyball court, rock climb, take a group dance class or even learn how to trapeze. ● Theme it around your favorite destination. You could go to Italy (in your own home) and have everyone dress up as their favorite Italian celebrity or musician, while you play Italian music, eat Italian food, and sip on classic Italian drinks like Negronis. ● Use a letter as your theme. We recommend using the letter of your first name and have everyone come dressed up as something that begins with that. ● Have a star-gazing party. Ask everyone to meet outside under the stars and pick out their favorite constellations. Guest favors? Name a star after each of your friends ● Have a karaoke night. This is fun at home or at a local karaoke bar, but nothing beats belting out your favorite tunes with friends. ● Host a DIY night. You could choose any theme but we personally love those DIYs that aren't too challenging to make and everyone goes home with something for their house.

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CEDAR CREEK RECREATION AREA Conveniently located just off Mechem Drive (Hwy 48), Cedar Creek is one of Ruidoso's popular recreation areas. With a picnic shelter and three group campsites, the recreation area is ideal for an outing in Lincoln National Forest.

Hiking and biking are among the most popular activities here, with options like the T90 Fitness Trail and the T121 and T121A biking trails. The fitness trail extends for 1.3 miles, and includes exercise stations where visitors can do pull-ups and similar workouts.

TWO RIVERS PARK This park is located behind the Chamber of Commerce on Sudderth Drive at 100 Robin Road at the junction of the Ruidoso River and Carrizo Creek. Over 27 acres of open space, picnic tables, grills, and benches, including a paved trail that Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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meanders along the Rio Ruidoso, and includes the Ruidoso River Trail, a 1.25 mile paved path.

The park is open seven days a week from dawn to dusk. Overnight parking is prohibited without a permit.

WINGFIELD PARK This park is located near the Midtown Shopping District on Wingfield Street. Park is open 7 days a week from dawn to dusk. No overnight parking allowed without a permit. ● 1/2 mile gravel walking path. ● Playground - Ages 4-12. ● Restrooms. ● Picnic Tables. ● Near Midtown Shopping District. ● 8-acre open space available for special events, weddings, festivals, reunions, craft shows, etc.

Special Event Application ● Parking available to accommodate large events.

Park use is based upon a first come first use basis, park amenities can be reserved for a fee.

Call 575-257-5030 for additional information or assistance.

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THE LEGEND OF LA LUZ

A

LL ROWLAND G. HAZARD III WANTED TO DO was dry out, get away from East Coast business pressures, and escape the scorn of his blueblooded Rhode Island family.

It never occurred to him that he might reinvent himself as the hand-thrown pottery magnate of New Mexico. Take a long drive to California—that was pretty much the best idea he had. He’d already tried therapy with Carl Jung in Europe and hadn’t yet met the group of men who would inspire the creation of Alcoholics Anonymous.

That explains why he was on the road, but nothing explains how he got so far off a reasonably reliable east–west route that his car broke down in La Luz, then a town of barely 140 people in the foothills of the Sacramento Mountains, between Cloudcroft and Alamogordo.

He booked a room in La Luz Lodge while waiting for parts, and something about the place infected him. He couldn’t kick it even after a mechanic sent him on his way. The next year, 1929, he went back. With a compulsion that, perhaps, replaced his martini glass, he began buying land.

And buildings. And more land. A farm. A ranch.

Water rights. Even La Luz Lodge. He mapped out Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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construction plans that required roofing tiles similar to those he’d seen in California Mission–style buildings. He found favorable-clays around La Luz, and he remembered those three Rodriguez brothers back in California. They knew a thing or two about turning pots.

So they struck a deal: He’d bankroll a factory for them in La Jolla, California, and they’d work every summer at the one he was building in La Luz. What happened after that blends obsession, craftsmanship, fate, mystery, tragedy, and the flatout weird. Left behind are some hard-to-find pots and the haunting ruins of one man’s beautiful but brief grasp at salvation.

One story goes that the village of La Luz (“the Light”) got its name from the lamps its first residents, in 1866, lit every evening to assure their families in Tularosa, some seven miles away, that they were safe from Apaches, bears, and mountain lions. Other legends credit 18th-century Franciscans. Or a spooky light that bobbed ahead of travelers.

In the 1880s, the nation began flipping for American art pottery, with makers like Hull, McCoy, Van Briggle, and Roseville racking up admirers whose successors in recent decades have turned fanatical. Those giants focused largely on dining and decorative pieces with elegant designs and expertly painted glazes. La Luz never matched that production fever.

Because its work was hand-thrown, it looks more rough-hewn than those brands. Mainly, though, its major output was those tiles, which won the ardor of architect John Gaw Meem, who helped enshrine Pueblo Revival style as a New Mexico archetype.

You can see them at places like the Albuquerque Little Theater and Los Poblanos Historic Inn, in Los Ranchos de Albuquerque. (They used to top St. Joseph’s Mission Church, in Mescalero, but were removed in a recent renovation.)

Hazard himself apparently never found the ultimate cure. Accounts vary, but most say he succumbed to subsequent binges or lost time to an overworked liver. Either way, the halcyon days faded fast. In 1945, Hazard died in Connecticut, just 64 years old. The factory changed hands a few times and pumped out more roofing tiles. In 1955, it fired a final batch. The kiln went cold.

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The First Lincoln County War MARCH 1, 2014 , True West Magazine

To track the Horrell boys of Lampasas, Texas, you can follow the trail of dead—including their own.

During their nearly six years raising hell in Texas and New Mexico, they killed at least dozens and wounded others. All because Sam, Mart, Ben, Tom and Merritt Horrell took umbrage with just about anybody not named Horrell.

Soon after killing four state policemen in a saloon shoot-out, the Horrells moved their cattle to a ranch near Ruidoso, New Mexico, in the fall of 1873. They found a war zone. The Hispanics were at odds with the whites, led by L.G. Murphy and Co. (yep, the same ones involved in the Lincoln County War five years later).

On December 1, some of the clan and their friends went into Lincoln to pick up their mail—and to hurrah the town. As the boys got drunker, Constable Juan Martinez confronted them, and one of the Texans shot and killed the officer. Other members of the police force—all Hispanic—jumped in to fight.

Dave Warner was killed in the first volley.

Reports state Ben and his pal, Sheriff Jack Gylam, tried to surrender. Gylam ended up with 13 bullets in him, while Ben was shot nine times.

Lincoln’s justice of the peace and the probate judge left town. Without anybody who could issue arrest warrants, people were left to take the law into their own hands, and the Horrells gladly obliged.

On December 20, approximately 25 Horrell forces raided a wedding baile. One Texan reportedly said, “We’ll make them dance to our tune.” They were seeking Juan Patron, who would become a territorial leader in his own right within a few years.

The Horrells blamed him for brother Ben’s death.

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He hadn’t been at that fight, but no matter. The intruders opened fire, killing four men (including Patron’s father) and wounding three other people.

On January 7, 1874, Territorial Gov. Marsh Giddings put a $100 reward each on the heads of Tom, Sam and Merritt, as well as two of their compatriots.

On January 25, Sheriff Ham Mills led a posse of some 60 Hispanics on a raid of the Horrell ranch.

Finding nobody there, they burned the house to the ground and stole the harvested crops from the storage sheds.

Within two days, Gov. Giddings tried to calm the situation by recalling the warrants on the Horrells.

Too late. The boys had recruited an estimated 50 Texans, and they killed three Hispanics as they prepared their attack on Lincoln.

Yet when the Horrell camp realized that troops from nearby Fort Stanton would be called to Lincoln to protect the town, they began heading back to Texas. En route, they ambushed a wagon train and killed five more Hispanics.

By February, the Horrells were gone. But their New Mexico war resulted in at least 29 deaths, according to Frederick Nolan’s Bad Blood—maybe more. Tom, Mart and Merritt were later shot to death in Texas. Only brother Sam died with his boots off, in California, in 1936.

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Seven Rivers

Warriors Courtesy of Legends of America

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he Seven Rivers Warriors were made up mostly of small-time ranchers from the Seven Rivers area of southeastern Lincoln County, New Mexico that operated in the 1870s.

This gang of rustlers began their life of crime out of their frustration with the cattle barons, specifically John Chisum. The warriors felt that Chisum’s more than 100,000 head of cattle ate up most of the grazing land in the area. In retaliation, several small-ranchers grouped together, forming Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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the Seven Rivers Warriors and began to steal Chisum’s livestock. When Chisum supported the Tunstall/McSween faction against that of Dolan and Murphy in the Lincoln County War, the “Warriors” quickly joined up with Dolan-Murphy to oppose Chisum’s friends. They often rode with the Jesse Evans Gang and the John Kinney Gang, both of which were employed by the Murphy-Dolan faction.

Led by Henry M. “Hugh” Beckwith, the gang had influential connections with local law enforcement, which assisted in their being able to carry out cattle rustling without interference. Bob Beckwith and Wallace Olinger were deputies for Sheriff William J. Brady, while gang member Bob Olinger was a US Deputy Marshal.

The Lincoln County Regulators were formed to counter the gunmen on the side of the MurphyDolan faction. Including some 40 men, some of them included Billy the Kid, Richard “Dick” Brewer, Charlie Bowdre and Doc Scurlock.

Several of the gangs’ members were killed in the Lincoln County War and afterward, they began to turn against each other. Gang member Bill Johnson was killed by Hugh Beckwith on August 17, 1878, and John Beckwith was killed by fellow member John Jones on August 26, 1879. On November 23, 1879, gang member Tom Walker was killed in a saloon gunfight in Seven Rivers. Gang member and U.S. Deputy Marshal Bob Olinger was killed by Billy the Kid on April 28, 1881, during a jail escape.

Afterward, the gang fell apart, with some members working as cowboys and ranchers, other becoming lawmen, and some continuing their outlaw ways.

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LINCOLN Where the Old West Lives

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incoln Historic Site is unique in that it manages most of the historical buildings in the community of Lincoln. This most widely visited state monument in New Mexico is part of a community frozen in time—the 1870's and 1880's. Through a gift from the Hubbard Family Trust, the historic site now includes 17 structures and outbuildings, 7 of which are open year round and 2 more seasonally as museums. Most of the buildings in the community are representative of the Territorial Style of adobe architecture in the American Southwest.

Lincoln is a town made famous by one of the most violent periods in New Mexico history.

Today's visitors can see the Old Lincoln County Courthouse with museum exhibits that recount the details of the Lincoln County War and the historic use of the "House" as store, residence, Masonic Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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Lodge, courthouse, and jail. Walk in the footsteps of Billy the Kid, Pat Garrett, and other famous and infamous characters of the Wild West. Trace the events of 1878 through the Courthouse and the Tunstall Store, with their preserved 19th-century atmosphere.

Remarkably, the Tunstall Store contains displays of the original 19th-century merchandise in the original shelving and cases! Continue your walk through history by visiting El TorreĂłn (a defensive tower built by native New Mexican settlers in the 1850s), the San Juan Mission Church, the Convento, Dr. Woods' House, the MontaĂąo store and other historic structures throughout the town. The Anderson-Freeman Visitor's Center & Museum features historical exhibits in a timeline starting with American Indian prehistory and ending with the Lincoln County War. A 22 minute video about the Lincoln County War and the community is shown every half hour.

The importance of this community and the significance of the Bonito Valley in the prehistory and history of the Territory of New Mexico are interpreted within some of the 17 structures that comprise Lincoln Historic Site. These historic adobe and stone buildings are preserved as they were in the late 1800s and represent the factions involved in the Lincoln County War, 1878-1881.

Visiting Information Open 9:00am to 5:00pm 7 days a week. (7 of the 9 buildings begin closing at 4:30).

Closed New Year's Day, Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas Day. 22 min. video at the Visitor's Center every half hour.

Admission Prices: Adults - $5.00 Children 17 and under - Free New Mexico Senior Citizens (60+) - Free on Wednesdays New Mexico Residents - Free the 1st Sunday of Every Month] Blue Star Program for Active Duty Military Families (up to 5 family members) - Free Memorial Day through Labor Day Phone: 575-653-4025 Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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Dia de Muertos Celebration in Historic Lincoln

Saturday, November 2, 2019

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on't miss this lively annual community Day of the Dead celebration in Lincoln, NM, honoring the stories, lives, and legacies of those who passed away.

Come and join the fun with live music, dance, family activities, face painting, altarofferings, arts and crafts, and food and drink.

This community event is free to the public.

For information, please call 575-653-4045 Dia de los Muertos — the Day of the Dead — is a holiday celebrated on Nov. 1.

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Although marked throughout Latin America, Dia de los Muertos is most strongly associated with Mexico, where the tradition originated.Dia de los Muertos honors the dead with festivals and lively celebrations, a typically Latin American custom that combines indigenous Aztec ritual with Catholicism, brought to the region by Spanish conquistadores.

Dia de los Muertos is celebrated on All Saints Day and All Souls Day, minor holidays in the Catholic calendar. Assured that the dead would be insulted by mourning or sadness, Dia de los Muertos celebrates the lives of the deceased with food, drink, parties and activities the dead enjoyed in life. Dia de los Muertos recognizes death as a natural part of the human experience, a continuum with birth, childhood, and growing up to become a contributing member of the community.

On Dia de los Muertos, the dead are also a part of the community, awakened from their eternal sleep to share celebrations with their loved ones.The most familiar symbol of Dia de los Muertos may be the calacas and calaveras (skeletons and skulls), which appear everywhere during the holiday: in candied sweets, as parade masks, as dolls. Calacas and calaveras are almost always portrayed as enjoying life, often in fancy clothes and entertaining situations.

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Billy the Kid movies are a Hollywood western favorite. The Left Handed Gun, Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid, Billy the Kid, Young Guns, Billy the Kid Returns, The Kid from Texas, Young Guns II, Chisum and Billy the Kid vs.

Dracula are among the top films.

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Henry McCarty (1859-1881) – a.k.a. William H. Bonney, Henry Antrim and Billy the Kid – remains one of the Old West's mythic outlaws. In 1911, the first movie based on his life was released by the General Film Company. Titled Billy the Kid, this early, silent effort was directed by Laurence Trimble and starred Tefft Johnson in the title role.

The Left Handed Gun (Warner Bros., 1958)

Old Fashioned, Home Style Meals

Handsome, blue-eyed Paul Newman stars as Billy the Kid in this well-received western. Also on hand are John Dehner (Pat Garrett), Lita Milan (Celsa), Hurd Hatfield (Moultrie), James Congdon (Charlie Boudre), James Best (Tom Folliard), Colin Keith-Johnston (Tunstall) and John Dierkes (McSween). The movie, centered in New Mexico Territory during the Lincoln County War, provides a sympathetic portrayal of Billy the Kid, who after his mentor is murdered vows revenge against the killers.

Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (MGM, 1973)

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826 Calle La Placita | Lincoln | (575) 653-4670

www.thedolanhouse.com

Visit Our Gift Shop!

Kris Kristofferson plays Billy the Kid opposite James Coburn's Sheriff Pat Garrett in this violent oater. Set in New Mexico Territory in 1881, the movie centers on Pat Garrett's attempt to bring in the escaped Billy, who was once the lawman's saddle buddy. The final confrontation comes at Fort Sumner, where Billy falls to Garrett's gun. Richard Jaeckel (Sheriff Kip McKinney), Katy Jurado (Mrs. Baker), Chill Wills (Lemuel), Barry Sullivan (Chisum), Jason Robards (Governor Wallace) and Bob Dylan (Alias) also grace the production. "How's Jesus look to you now, Bob?" the Kid asks, aiming a loaded shotgun at R.G. Armstrong's Ollinger character.

Billy the Kid (MGM, 1941) A rather mature-looking Robert Taylor stars as Billy Bonney, a budding gunslinger who seeks revenge when his beloved employer is killed in New Mexico Territory. Also on hand are Ian Hunter (Eric Keating), Brian Donlevy (Jim Sherwood), Mary Howard (Edith Keating), Gene Lockhart (Dan Hickey) and Lon Chaney Jr. (Spike Hudson). Billy the Kid earned an Oscar nomination for Best Color Cinematography. The movie ends with the epilogue: "Thus, as the ways of law came to the last frontier, the last of the men of violence found his peace."

Translation: Crime doesn't pay.

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Young Guns (Twentieth Century-Fox, 1988) Emilio Estevez plays Billy the Kid, the leader of a band of "young guns" who are out to avenge the murder of their benefactor in New Mexico Territory.

Riding with Billy are Kiefer Sutherland (Doc Scurlock), Lou Diamond Phillips (Jose Chavez), Charlie Sheen (Dick Brewer), Dermot Mulroney (Dirty Steve Stephens) and Casey Siemaszko (Charley Bowdre). Also on hand are Terence Stamp (John Tunstall), Terry O'Quinn (Alex McSween), Jack Palance (Lawrence G. Murphy) and Patrick Wayne (Pat Garrett). Western movie fans will love the shootouts in this picture, along with the great New Mexico scenery.

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Billy the Kid vs. Dracula (Embassy, 1966) Chuck Courtney plays Billy the Kid opposite John Carradine's Count Dracula in this camp classic filmed at the Ray Corrigan Ranch in Simi Valley, California. Also on board for the Old West/Gothic bloodbath are Melinda Plowman (Betty Bentley), Virginia Christine (Eva Oster), Harry Carey Jr. (Ben Dooley), Bing Russell (Red Thorpe) and Roy Barcroft (Sheriff Griffin). This one was doublebilled with another far-out Embassy Pictures entry, Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter (1966), starring John Lupton and Narda Onyx. Gunslingers, vampires, lawmen – can't we all just get along?

AT THE SPENCER

The Kid from Texas (Universal, 1950) Audie Murphy, America's most decorated soldier of World War II, plays Billy the Kid in this fictionalized version of the Old West legend. Gale Storm (Irene Kain), Albert Dekker (Alexander Kain), Shepperd Strudwick (Roger Jameson), Will Geer (O'Fallon), William Talman (Minninger) and Frank Wilcox (Sheriff Pat Garrett) are also in the mix. The baby-faced Murphy's a bit uncomfortable before the cameras, but he carries off the role as well as could be expected Billy the Kid Returns (Republic, 1938) Roy Rogers has a dual role in this one, playing himself and the reincarnated double of Billy the Kid. The storyline has Wade Boteler's Sheriff Pat Garrett, who just disposed of the real Kid, asking Roy to take the deceased's place in a range war pitting homesteaders against fat cat ranchers. Roy's sidekick Smiley Burnette as Frog Millhouse is along for the Story continues page 88 Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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ride, with the two singing a few western tunes, including "Trail Blazin'," "Sing a Little Song About Anything," "Born to the Saddle" and "When the Sun Is Setting on the Prairie." Billy the Kid Returns premiered at Los Angeles' Orpheum Theater on September 5, 1938, with Roy Rogers himself in attendance.

Young Guns (Twentieth Century-Fox, 1988) Emilio Estevez plays Billy the Kid, the leader of a band of "young guns" who are out to avenge the murder of their benefactor in New Mexico Territory.

Riding with Billy are Kiefer Sutherland (Doc Scurlock), Lou Diamond Phillips (Jose Chavez), Charlie Sheen (Dick Brewer), Dermot Mulroney (Dirty Steve Stephens) and Casey Siemaszko (Charley Bowdre). Also on hand are Terence Stamp (John Tunstall), Terry O'Quinn (Alex McSween), Jack Palance (Lawrence G. Murphy) and Patrick Wayne (Pat Garrett). Western movie fans will love the shootouts in this picture, along with the great New Mexico scenery. Young Guns won a Bronze Wrangler from Western Heritage Awards for Best Theatrical Motion Picture.

Young Guns II (Twentieth Century-Fox, 1990) In this sequel to Young Guns (1988), Emilio Estevez reprises his role as Billy the Kid, with Kiefer Sutherland and Lou Diamond Phillips also returning. In this outing, Billy sets his two cohorts free and they head to Mexico with the law hot on their trail. "Just remember, Pat. You'll never be me.

You'll always be the man who shot Billy the Kid!" Estevez tells William Petersen's Pat Garrett.

Chisum (Warner Bros., 1970) Geoffrey Deuel – in his motion picture debut – plays Billy the Kid in this big western starring John Wayne in the title role. Wayne as John Chisum gets caught up in New Mexico's Lincoln County War, hooking up with both the Kid and Glenn Corbett's Pat Garrett. Also on hand are Forrest Tucker (Lawrence Murphy), Christopher George (Dan Nodeen), Ben Johnson (James Pepper), Andrew Prine (Alex McSween), Bruce Cabot (Sheriff Brady) and Patric Knowles (Henry Tunstall). "I made you a promise, Mr. Tunstall. Now I'm making myself a promise. It says in the Bible, 'The candle of the wicked shall be put out.'" a vengeful Billy the Kid declares. And that means gunplay, pardners.

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How Brushy Bill stole BILLY THE KID s identity

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ost old west outlaw enthusiasts have heard of Brushy Bill's, 1948 claim that he was Billy the Kid.

He was born Ollie P. Roberts in 1879 according to the family bible, which was two years before Billy was killed. Regardless of all the other overwhelming proof that he wasn't Billy, some diehard Brushy believers still say he was, how else could he have known so much about the Kid? It's like he was there during the Lincoln County War. The proof to Brushy's knowledge about Billy was found in this photo. It connects him to one of the people that knew Billy the Kid personally, and survived the Lincoln County War, Susan McSween.

Susan's husband, Alexander McSween, was killed in the Lincoln County War in 1878. Susan Story continues next page Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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took another chance on life in 1880, and married George Barber, a young law clerk and later attorney.

George did some surveying work for cattle baron John Chisum. In return, Chisum gifted 40 head of cattle to Susan worth about $400, all she needed to start her ranch.

Around the mid 1880's, she divorced George Barber and increased her holdings by buying a ranch on the west side of the Sierra Blanca mountain range, at Three Rivers. She called the ranch, Three Rivers Land and Cattle Company.

The White Oaks Lincoln County Leader, reported that in 1888, Susan "designated the location of the fences, corrals, and all the necessary works of this character, at the same time overseeing the cowboys, masons, carpenters and farm hands."

By 1890, Susan ran around 5,000 head of cattle and employed several cowboys. By the mid 1890s her ranch was one of the largest in the territory, and she was known as the "Cattle Queen of New Mexico." In 1902, Susan sold her ranch holdings to Monroe Harper and moved into White Oaks. In order to secure the cattle and horses, Monroe had to register Susan's ranch brands in his name.

Imagine all the interesting stories Susan could tell about Billy the Kid and the Lincoln County War, she would have had all the young cowboys attention. So how is Brushy Bill connected to Susan Barber, he is riding a horse with Susan's brand on the hip, S U E. Dating the photo The patented cast iron steel stirrups are a late 1890's style called "Turner", the 'Buldge A-fork' style of saddle was a new design created after 1900.

However, the earliest the photo could be is 1902, the same year Susan sold out to Monroe. The "War Eagle" cardboard signs on the building was a brand name of tobacco and cigars sold by Roth, Brunner & Feist, of Cincinnati, Ohio, which started in 1902.

Brushy may still of had a job if he agreed to work for Monroe Harper, which could date the photo even later.

Brushy believers, always change the facts to suit their theories. Now they say that Brushy's 1879 birthdate in the family bible was actually a cousin, and Brushy was really born around 1859, the same as Billy.

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If the cowboy photographed was Billy the Kid, he would be around 43 in 1902. Due to a harder life, lack of medicine, unsafe food preparation, and other reasons that would age a person beyond their

years, a middle aged person usually looked around ten years older than they actually were. This cowboy doesn't look 53, or even a healthy 43 if he was born around 1859, he looks like he is in his early twenties. Even if you believe he is in his early thirties...the math doesn't work, Brushy was not Billy the Kid. If all the facts that we know today about Brushy Bill and Billy the Kid were analyzed and put into a probabilities analysis, Brushy's results would be so low, his claim would have never been published.

End

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he following list of clever, tricky questions will have you and your friends scratching your heads and wondering just how intelligent you are. They are fun to use at a party, with your colleagues at work, or in a classroom. Teachers, camp counselors, and entertainers will love our list of tricky questions. ● Question: What is always coming, but never arrives?

Tomorrow ● Question: What can be broken, but is never held?

A promise ● Question: What is it that lives if it is fed, and dies if you give it a drink?

Fire ● Question: What word would you use to describe a man who does not have all his fingers on one hand?

Normal, because people usually have half their fingers on one hand. ● Question: What can one catch that is not thrown?

A cold Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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New Mexico ghost town attracts regulars Albuquerque Journal

The No Scum Allowed Saloon in the White Oaks, New Mexico, pulls in people from around the state and sometimes tourists from overseas because of its reputation and catchy name, the Albuquerque Journal recently reported .

Saloon owner Karen Haughness, one of the nine people who live in White Oaks, said the saloon’s regulars often exceed the town’s population. She says the saloon cultivates civil discourse among visitors.

“We are different. We come from different places. We are different politically. We have extreme liberals and extreme conservatives,” said Haughness, who also works as a school psychologist and sells antiques on the side. “But we can state opinions without getting into arguments.

We have dialogue.”

Rick Virden, 66, a former Lincoln County sheriff who has a ranch between White Oaks and

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Carrizozo, said there are quite a few people who come to the saloon on a regular basis.

“And some of them are from quite a ways away,” he said.

The town was founded after gold was discovered in the region in 1879. Outlaw Billy the Kid is said to have visited White Oaks often looking for a good time.

People moved out as gold mining evaporated, with the last mine closing in 1930. Today, the No Scum Allowed Saloon’s regulars make up to about three times the town’s single-digit population.

Jackie Keller, 56, a former State Highway Department employee, lives just east of White Oaks.

She is known for her green chile salsa and bakes cakes for saloon birthday parties.

“You can’t beat the people here,” she said. “We help each other out. It’s desolate here.”

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WHAT’S GOIN’ ON AT WHITE SANDS NATIONAL MONUMENT?

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The Full Moon Hike takes place the night before a full moon, and is led by a park ranger. This is your chance to explore the dunes at night when the local wildlife are most active.

The combination of the full moon and reflection off the white sand means you don’t need a flashlight. In fact, they restrict the use of artificial light so everyone can maintain their night vision.

In addition to entrance fees, there is an additional $8 per person fee. Make your reservation up to a month in advance on Recreation.gov or by calling (1-877-444-6777). There is a maximum of 40 participants, and guests are strongly encouraged to carpool due to limited parking at the trailhead.

The Full Moon Hike takes place on the Dune Life Nature Trail. Make sure you arrive with plenty of time. Check-in starts 30 minutes before the schedule departure time. The hike itself covers roughly a mile in an hours time. Don’t forget to wear closed-toe shoes

The festivities for Full Moon Night are included with your entrance fees. Cultural performances include a combination of live music, ranger programs, and other presenters. Head to the Amphitheater an hour before the scheduled start time above Story continues next page Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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Each evening, weather permitting, a park ranger leads an easy walk through the sand dunes as they cover topics such as geology, plants, wildlife, and any other questions you have about White Sands monument.

The Sunset Stroll is included with your entrance fee, and is a wonderful way to cap off your day. The hike is timed to coincide with sunset and offer excellent and photogenic views as the sun retreats behind the mountains.

To join the Sunset Stroll, head to the Sunset Stroll Meeting Area roughly one hour before sunset.

The one hour hike covers a mile and traverses a few, small sand dunes. See above for the approximate timeframe for your visit.

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ALTO LAKE Located at 854 State Hwy. 48, Alto Lake is open seven days a week from 5 AM to 11 PM. Overnight parking is prohibited without a permit.

A scenic. crushed rock trail circles the Alto Lake (approximately 0.5 miles) with picnic tables and benches situated along the shoreline. Picnic tables and shelters are first come first serve. An additional 2 mile natural surface trail loops East beyond the Dam with benches and two separate bridge crossings which take you to beautiful waterfalls as well as possible wildlife sightings.

Non-motorized bikes and dogs on leashes are permitted. Below the lake, Eagle Creek trail offers an additional 1.5 miles of hiking. Parking and restrooms are available.

Cell phones should work on the trail. Dogs on leashes are allowed.

The lake is regularly stocked with rainbow trout, and on occasion catfish and smallmouth bass.

Anglers love this lake due to the fact that it is one of two public waters in the area in which you can put a non-motorized boat. Due to it being one of few lakes in the region, the shoreline can get fished pretty heavily especially around holiday weekends.

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Wibit Water Park at Grindstone Lake RUIDOSO Made up of giant slides, towers, trampolines, ramps, wiggle bridges and other play features, the Wibit Water Park at Grindstone Lake is the hottest thing to hit Ruidoso this summer. An inflatable, onwater obstacle course, the water park provides people of all ages hours of high-energy fun as they bounce, slide, climb, jump and splash on the water.

Officially opening June 19, 2019, the Wibit Water Park at Grindstone Lake is amongst a popular growing trend of active, on-water entertainment and recreational activity at public facilities across the USA. The Ruidoso Wibit is suitable for all ages with passes available for purchase at Grindstone Lake. Group tickets, private events and birthday party packages are also available.

The Wibit Water Park at Grindstone Lake brings a unique, family-friendly recreation attraction to Ruidoso, unlike anything the area has seen before with the thrills and excitement of a water park and added amenities such as picnicking, fishing, disc Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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golf and more. The Wibit Water Park is truly a oneof-a-kind experience that offers visitors of all ages the chance to enjoy Grindstone Lake located in the heart of Ruidoso.

A season pass for locals is available which includes residents of Ruidoso, Village of Ruidoso licensed business owners, or those employed by a Ruidoso licensed business owner. Daily visitor passes are $20. Parking is $5 a day. Residents can buy an annual pass for $20. The lake offers several amenities such as a concessions stand, restrooms, a boat dock and two ramps.

Guests will be required to follow rules when using the water park. Among them are: ● They must wear a life vest that will be provided by staff. Personal life vests will not be allowed. ● Guests between 36 inches and 45 inches tall must be with an adult to be allowed on the Wibit. Children under 36 inches tall are not allowed on the Wibit. ● A lifeguard will be on duty and guests will be required to follow their instructions. ● The VRPRD will have signs posted regarding rules that must be followed at all times while visiting the lake. ● The Wibit will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Wednesday through Sunday. ● Guests are responsible for cleaning up after pets and removing trash. ● No open flames are allowed at any time at the lake. This means NO CAMPFIRES. ● Violators may be cited.

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DOG PARK

The Ruidoso Recreation and Park Commission has public dog park at the White Mountain Sports Complex as an off-leash dog area for you and your pet. Please help preserve a pleasant experience for all park users by keeping these areas neat and clean and following our new Village dog policy. Thank you!

This park is located at the White Mountain Sports Complex at 685 Hull Road and is open daily from sunrise to sunset.

RULES & REGULATIONS ● Dogs must be leashed until safely inside the off-leash area and must be leashed upon exiting. ● Collars and rabies tags must be visible. ● Owners must clean up their dog’s waste and dispose of it in the provided trash receptacle. ● Owners must be present in the park while their dog is unleashed. ● Owners must carry a leash and remove their dog from the dog park at the first sign of aggression. ● Puppies younger than 4 months, unhealthy dogs and those in heat must be left at home. ● Limit of 3 dogs per owner. ● Food is not allowed. ● Children under 14 years old must be supervised by an adult. ● Please be sensible in supervising your children.

If there are dogs present which are unknown to you, please consider changing your plans. ● Be considerate of others. Ensure your dog’s interaction is welcome.

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ABANDONED ANCHO HOME

“...In 1906, the Ancho Brick Plant supplied several tons of bricks which were shipped by railway to San Francisco to help rebuild the city after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.”

About 23 miles north of Carrizozo, New Mexico is the ghost town of Ancho, a former railroad and ranching community. The settlement was established at the turn of the 20th century when families began to settle the fertile valley, followed by a number of homesteaders who became the area’s first sheep and cattle ranchers. Miners also roamed the area of gypsum hills in search precious metals.

In 1902, a gypsum deposit was discovered and the Gypsum Product Company plaster mill was established. That same year, Ancho got a post office Story continues page 102 Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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with Frank J. Bush as the first postmaster. When a settler by the name of Bosque came to the area from Iowa, he saw opportunity in the fire clay in the region and established the Ancho Brick Plant in 1905. That same year, the railroad pushed through town and the depot was built.

In 1906, after the devastating earthquake and fire in San Francisco, Ancho was busy shipping plaster and brick to the ravaged city.

In 1917, the brick plant was sold to the Arizona based Phelps Dodge Corporation, who built a new sixteen-kiln plant at a cost of $150,000. However, this move proved to be unprofitable, as the plant went bankrupt in 1921.

Though this was a devastating blow to the small community and several people moved out, the town survived, supported primarily by the railroad and ranching industries.

During the Depression years, Ancho’s population increased as a number of destitute families moved in trying to make a living mining for gold in the nearby Jicarilla Mountains. However, once the economy improved, people moved out once again.

In 1930, Ancho’s one room school house burned down and was replaced by the brick school that continues to stand today. At its peak, the school had five teachers and 140 students.

The town also supported two stores. However, Ancho’s life was on a downhill trend. In 1937, though the brick plant had long been closed, the property was sold to Abilene Salvage Company, who dismantled it.

When the new U.S. Highway 54 was paved in 1954 between Carrizozo and Corona, it spelled a death knell for Ancho, as the small community was bypassed by 2 ½ miles. The following year, the school was closed.

The final blow for Ancho was when the railroad discontinued the depot in 1959. The building was sold and in 1963 became a museum called “My House of Old Things.”

That same year, the town’s combination store and gas station closed. Five years later, the post office also closed and the town was left with only a few people. Today, the depot sits abandoned and silent.

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Today, it appears that the town has been abandoned entirely, with the exception of a small sign on the side of the school that indicates it may still be utilized as a church. Further indication that the building is still being utilized, is its good condition, including replacement windows. There are a number of abandoned buildings that continue to stand in various stages of disrepair, including the depot and several homes. A cemetery is located about ½ northeast of town.

Ancho is located 21 miles north of Carrizozo on US 54, then east on NM 482, 2 ½ miles. A forest road runs loops southeast of Ancho that continues to the ghost towns of Jicarilla and White Oaks, before rejoining US 54.

OLD ANCHO SCHOOL HOUSE

ANCHO RAILROAD DEPOT

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WHITE SANDS MISSLE RANGE AND MUESUM Established in 1945, White Sands Missile Range is America’s largest overland military test range. At White Sands the world entered the Atomic Age when the first atomic bomb was tested at Trinity Site on July 16, 1945. Less than a year later, America entered the Space Age at White Sands when V-2 rockets roared into space from America’s first launch complex carrying test instruments and biological experiments.

V2 Missile Test White Sands, NM

The Museum tells these stories and many more. In fact, the Museum’s coverage of the Missile Range’s 3,200 square miles looks back to prehistoric times, when, for centuries, hunter-gatherers collected mesquite pods and killed now extinct camel, mammoths and horses for food. Their campsites, bedrock grinding stones, pottery and rock art are found all over the missile range. During wet cycles Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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these people were able to establish more sedentary lifestyles. They built permanent pueblo structures, farmed the edges of the Tularosa Basin and traded goods with groups in Mexico and Central America.

Europeans arrived first as Spanish explorers and missionaries at the end of the 16th Century. Their "Royal Road," the Camino Real, ran along the Rio Grande to the west of here.

Friction between the local Apache tribes and European settlers erupted into violence many times on what is now White Sands. In 1880, Buffalo Soldiers from the 9th Cavalry clashed with Chief Victorio’s Apache followers in the Missile Range’s Hembrillo Basin.

Once Victorio was defeated, pioneering ranchers and miner flooded the area. On these dry, marginal lands, ranchers managed to make a living raising cattle, goats and sheep. Miners found a vast variety of mineral in the mountains but never the bonanza strike.

Agriculture ruled the area until World War II. At the close of the war, White Sands was established to test the new-fangled rocket technology emerging, especially fro9m Germany. Since 1945 the Missile Range has conducted more than 42,000 missile and rocket firings. In addition to examining new weapon systems for the Army, Navy or Air Force to see if they work properly, the Range also conducts purely scientific research. NASA rocket payloads are regularly launched to collect data about the sun and stars or conduct microgravity experiments.

Today, White Sands continues to test the most advanced technologies. Many missile like the THAAD don’t even have explosive warheads anymore—they must actually strike the target to destroy it. Also, powerful lasers are being used to bring down planes and missiles.

At the same time the military shares the Range with a huge assortment of plants and animals in almost pristine natural condition. Recently, wildlife biologists studied mountain lions found in the White Sands mountains. Other scientists are currently conducting research on one of the world’s largest herds of African Oryx which freely roams the Missile Range.

At the White Sands Missile Range museum you Story continues next page Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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can trace the origin of America's missile and space activity, find out how the atomic age began and learn about the accomplishments of scientists like Dr. Wernher von Braun and Dr. Clyde Tombaugh at White Sands. Displays also include the prehistoric cultures and the rip-roaring Old West found in southern New Mexico.

Outside the museum is a missile park displaying a variety of missiles and rockets tested at White Sands. These include everything from the WAC Corporal and Loon (U.S. version of the V-1) to a Pershing II and Patriot. More than 50 items are on display.

To get to the museum, enter either the Las Cruces or El Paso gates and tell the guard you are going to visit the museum. He or she will direct you.

The Museum is open year-round. Hours on weekdays are 8 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. Closed on Sundays and Holidays.

The missile park is open everyday from sunrise to sunset. There is no fee for either. For more information concerning events call the White Sands Missile Range Museum (575) 678-3358

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O

rogrande,nestled short of the hills of the Jarilla Mountains along US-54 midway between El Paso and Alamogordo, cut its teeth on one of the biggest con games ever pulled off in the Southwest.

Known through its early history as Jarilla Junction it was turned into a hustler's delight when a nugget the size of a man's finger was found in the nearby mountains. Thus Jarilla Junction in 1905 was dubbed Oro Grande — "big gold."

Almost overnight, a hundred homes were built to house only a fraction of the influx of people. Some were forced to live in hastily erected shacks and tents. Overnight, the sleepy railroad heading blossomed into 3,000-plus population community with Chicago suckers" herded daily through the nearby hills to "discover" planted gold.

Lots, according to one slick land salesman turned honest, were sold five and six times.

There was also a scheme to bring much-needed water to the town from the nearby Sacramento Mountains, but just when the project supposedly was about to be completed the promoters disappeared.

Perhaps the omen of things to come was established early in the history of the area by a hunchback, S. M. Perkins, who prospected the Jarillas in the 1870s.

He survived a threat from the Apaches after finding gold but for some unknown reason gave up his claim for two barrels of water.

Story continues next page

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The Southern Pacific rail line, which still runs east of the village, was originally constructed to meet the demands of the cattle barons of the Southwest. One of the most notable of the area was Oliver Lee, who was tried along with two others in 1898 for the murder of Col. A. J. Fountain and his 9-year-old son.

Lee's ranch once sprawled almost the entire basin.

When the mining operations were at their height, the now ghost town of Brice (4 miles east of Orogrande) was the major population center, not Oro Grande, and a railroad spur was constructed to haul the ores out.

Brice, in fact, had the first school in the area, and youngsters from Oro Grande (which has since been turned into one word) attended school there until the 1930s.

While gold captured the imagination of the prospectors, it was iron, turquoise and some silver which actually keep the towns alive.

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" FRIED TATERS" "Fast food." We've eaten so much of it in our small town in Southeastern New Mexico, frankly we're tired of it. Most of it don't even sound appetizing anymore.

Unfortunately, the alternative is cooking your own meal, a task we seniors are at times still able to accomplish, but most no longer possess the energy to attempt full time.

My wife is a pretty good cook, and although cooking has never been one of her favorite things to do, she can turn out a great meal at times. I do most of the cooking for myself, my daughter Jill and my wife, I should say, what little cooking is done. Most of the time it's eat out, a bowl of soup or a quick sandwich.

Yes, we go to the lodge a couple of times a month for meals, taco night, which my daughter Jill loves, or steak night, a big T-bone with baked potato and trimmings. A great meal...

Still, one of my favorite meals has to be, a meal mama cooked, inexpensive, yet filling and delicious.......yep, I'm talking about, fried taters, a pot of beans, some cornbread and green onions on the side.

Even now, sixty years later, I can still smell the beans cooking, thru the steam emitted from the pressure cooker, the taters frying in the pan and cornbread baking. A big T-bone steak and baked potato can't even compare to the fried taters, beans and cornbread meal mama put together.

Fried taters.......yum, a treat I still love to this day.....ever slice potatoes real thin, drop in the hot skillet, frying to a golden brown, salted and delicious.

Mmmmm, mmmm. Mm. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it, problem is in today's world we are told to watch our cholesterol, back in the old days, there was no such thing as cholesterol, so we didn't have to worry about it, "hey, bring me the lard can, I'm frying taters here."

"Cholosto-what??????"

It's early now, still dark outside, but, for some unknown reason, I'm getting hungry for breakfast, "anyone out there ever had fried taters for breakfast?" I think I'll pick up a five pound bag of taters as soon as the market opens, and fry em up. I can chase them with 1 percent milk, or sugar free tea, in an effort to watch my cholesterol levels..........hey, life is good....... won't my wife be surprised, waking to the sizzling smell of frying taters.......‌ Story by Junior Thurman, Artesia, NM Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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"BACK IN THE SADDLE" (A Short Saga of Blackjack Thurman)

"I was born a hundred years too late," I told my wife, "I could be out right now, ridin the range, pushin a herd of cattle, or ridin with a posse, chasin outlaws, enjoyin the wide open spaces, where seldom is heard a discouragin word, out on the trail, campin out, sittin by the campfire, eatin beans out of a can, listenin to the tall tales of the old cowboys."

"Well, go carry out the trash", my wife said, "that'll give you a little outdoor adventure, cowboy."

Obviously, my desires and memories of the wild and wooly west are not shared by my wife, who never had to take a bath in a number 2 wash tub, or scrubbed clothes on an old washboard. Her idea of "roughin it" is showerin without any hair conditioner. A pampered kid..........

I can hear the music playin in the saloon across the street, an old timer beatin out the notes to an old forgotten song on the piano, as I step out into the dusty street, decked in my black shirt, black pants and black hat, a holster hangin low on my waist, "gunfighter style", that's right, "Blackjack Thurman," a man to be reckoned with, my spurs jinglin as I mount my Paint stallion, headed out after a face in a wanted poster, dead or alive, my badge saddle tramp, ridin the range. (Before my sheriffing catchin a glint off the morning sun, several pretty days). town girls wavin and smilin, ......many an outlaw has challenged me, and many are now pushin up In my dreams, A drifting cowboy, single, ridin daisies on "Boot Hill." thru Lincoln, NM, often, with a young William Bonney ridin along beside me, not to be bothered "Are you gonna sit there in your recliner all day with the triflin chores of a married man, (like I said, or carry out the trash? You need to get around, no discouragin words) nope, not a married man, we've got that birthday party for your grandson to often trapped in a cabin in a small village, but, a go to this evening, we need to run to Wallyworld cowboy, ridin alone on the trail, no "discouragin and pick up a card and a gift! Have you fed the cat words." A gunfight now and then, but, fishin, yet?" huntin, and enjoyin life, without the shackles, pausin only to rescue damsels in distress.

Embarrassing, my wife's knowledge of the old west is indeed limited, and askew in many areas, us Think I'll saddle up my pony, or, uh, gas up my real Cowboys don't work in mercantile stores, carry truck and head to Cloudcroft, camp out in the out the trash or feed cats.......back in those days we mountains, in my motel room, shower, shave, watch had our macho reputations to uphold, there were a little TV, get a good nights rest and hit the trail to standards we had to live up to. the wilderness, after I stop by Allsup's and get a hot The poor girl don't realize it but, my minds a million miles away, or maybe a hundred years back in time, hopelessly trapped in some old cowboy town, livin the carefree life of a drifting cowboy or

cup of coffee and a biscuit and sausage sandwich.

A rough life, a hard life, unfortunately not everybody's cut out to endure.

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need to be longer in which case you can use a stapler to staple two pieces together. You’ll also staple the finish shape together. Use a pair of scissors to snip off the end. Set your cookie cutters aside and move onto the cookies.

Cookies ● In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight). ● Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with your DIY cactus cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets. ● Bake for 12 minutes and allow to cool completely. ● Royal Icing ● Add the powdered sugar and egg whites into a large mixing bowl. Mix until well combined. ● Add 1 tbsp of the white mixing into a piping bag fitted with a Wilton #2 piping tip. Set aside. ● Split the remaining mixture into three small bowls. Colour one leaf green, the second green and the third pink. Mix until well combined. ● Add the leaf green into a piping bag fitted with a Wilton #1 piping tip. Add the green to a Wilton #4 piping tip and the pink into a Wilton #3 piping tip. ● To frost your cookies pipe a permitter of the leaf green around the cookies and then flood or fill the cookies using the green icing. Pipe lines of the leaf green icing to add detail to your cacti. ● Add little spikes using the white icing and a pink flower on top of the snowman shaped cactus cookies. ● Allow to set for 3 hours before serving.

Overnight is best though.

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The History Behind Famous Tongue Twisters Tongue twisters have been screwing up speaking abilities around the world for centuries. As entertaining as tripping over tricky terms can be, early English twisters were also used to teach pupils proper speech. In a note to teachers in his 1878 book Practical Elocution, J.W. Shoemaker reminded them of the "higher motive" of these confounding sayings: "To The Teacher—While many of the exercises ... may create amusement in a class, a higher motive than 'Amusement' has prompted their insertion. Practice is here afforded in nearly every form of difficult articulation."

Whether it's selling seashells by the seashore or buying Betty Botter's bitter butter, some of these difficult phrases go way back to when elocution was practiced as routinely as multiplication tables. Come along as we untangle the history behind a few familiar phrases. Fittingly, many tongue twister origin stories are just as knotty as the expressions themselves.

PETER PIPER Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers; A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked;

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If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?

Peter and his famous pickled peppers first appeared in print in 1813 in John Harris's Peter Piper's Practical Principles of Plain and Perfect Pronunciation.

But as is the case with many classic tongue twisters, the rhyme itself may have already been in common use by that time (the book offered similarly formatted phrases for each letter of the alphabet, and Peter clearly got top billing).

Several spice enthusiasts have also suggested the Peter in question was based on 18th century French horticulturalist Pierre Poivre, though that connection should probably be taken with a grain of salt (or pepper, in this case).

Much like Mary Anning and her rumored seashore seashells (more on this later), Poivre's ties to the poem, while feasible, aren't necessarily rooted in concrete evidence. Poivre is French for "pepper," Piper was both Latin for "pepper" and a typical British last name, and the man was known for smuggling cloves from the Spice Islands in his day, so the supposed link makes sense. As a renowned gardener, Poivre may very well have pickled peppers with those stolen cloves, but we don’t actually know for sure.

HOW MUCH WOOD WOULD A WOODCHUCK CHUCK? How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, If a woodchuck could chuck wood?

While it likely predates her, Vaudeville performer Fay Templeton is credited with putting the woodchucking woodchuck on the map. “How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood?” was the chorus of a number Templeton sang in 1903 in the Broadway musical The Runaways (not to be confused with the musical Runaways).

Robert Hobart Davis and Theodore F. Morse wrote Templeton’s "Woodchuck Song," and a few years later “Ragtime” Bob Roberts covered it on his 1904 record, boosting its popularity. The tonguetripping refrain stuck around and even inspired the Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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title of director Werner Herzog’s 1976 documentary "How Much Wood Would a Woodchuck Chuck: Observations on a New Language" about the 13th International World Livestock Auctioneering Championship.

More recently, scholars have focused less on the origin of the phrase and more on the answer to its central question. In 1988, a fish and wildlife technician for the New York Department of Environmental Conservation made national headlines when he posited if a woodchuck could chuck wood (because they actually can’t) it would be able to chuck about 700 pounds of the stuff—but that little detail must not have fit into the linguistic flow of the original rhyme.

SHE SELLS SEASHELLS She sells seashells on the sea shore.

The shells she sells are seashells, I'm sure.

And if she sells seashells on the sea shore, Then I'm sure she sells seashore shells.

The story behind "She Sells Seashells" has gotten perhaps the most attention in recent years. Legend has it the rhyme is a tribute to 19th century English paleontologist Mary Anning.

Anning was an impressive fossil hunter who is thought to have been responsible for scientific achievements from discovering the first articulated plesiosaur to being among the first to identify fossilized poop—though her male contemporaries had a frustrating way of swiping credit from her.

Anning is known in scientific circles (Charles Dickens even wrote about his admiration for her after her 1847 death) but the idea that she’s also the muse behind the tongue twister has given the general public a nice way to honor her as well.

Of course, as Stephen Winick of the Library of Congress’s American Folklife Center pointed out, we don’t actually have anything that proves the rumored connection between Anning and the tongue twister.

Many outlets cited the 1908 Terry Sullivan and Harry Gifford song that includes the phrase in its lyrics as the birth of this particular tongue twister, but Winick found a handful of earlier instances of Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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its use (similar versions were included in Shoemaker’s elocution book and published in an 1898 issue of Werner’s Magazine, for example).

The first known suggestion that the verse was related to Anning seems to be a 1977 book Henry De la Beche: Observations on an Observer, though it was only raised as a possibility and there was no source offered for the reference.

I SCREAM, YOU SCREAM I scream, you scream, We all scream for ice cream.

Tongues didn't get particularly twisted with this one, but they did get cold.

There’s some disagreement on who first came up with this ditty about everyone’s favorite frozen treat.

Throughout the 19th century there were many jokes and comments about how similar “ice cream” and “I scream” sound.

But in 1905 a company selling ice cream freezers in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, advertised “I Scream, You Scream, We all Scream for Ice Cream! This is certainly Ice Cream Weather. Have you a good Ice Cream Freezer?”

While unlikely the first usage of the phrase (something very similar appears in Wisconsin a few months earlier), the rhyme probably became famous thanks to Howard Johnson, Billy Moll, and Robert King, who wrote the phrase into a song of the same name in 1927. Waring’s Pennsylvanians recorded the song, and it became a jazz standard in the '40s.

It’s been making people hungry, and haunting ice cream truck drivers, ever since.

PAD KID Pad kid poured curd pulled cod Not yet as recognizable as some other more traditional rhymes, this short sentence was developed by MIT researchers in 2013 as the world’s trickiest twister. The phrase is deceptively harder than something like the "I Scream" song or even the woodchucking woodchuck.

Because of the phrase's alliteration and words with similar sounds, the brain makes it difficult to repeat quickly without a mistake.

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Patrons Hall and Heritage Gallery is a Bistro/Cafe with delicious coffees, teas, ice cream and serves breakfast and lunch Monday-Friday

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THE BASIN FEED THE BASIN, LLC. Is a Non-Profit New Mexico corporation, with one simple goal / Mission Statement..... “no child goes hungry in Tularosa”. And with sights on “no child goes hungry in Otero County”. With the final goal being “no child goes hungry in New Mexico.”.

After discovering that between 20% to 40% of the 700 +/- children enrolled in the Tularosa Municipal School System are likely to only have meals at the School provided

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Breakfast and Lunch Programs, when school is in session.... I knew there was a crisis that had to be addressed.

Please take a minute and think about what I just said. ● Ten meals in a five day period, during a seven day week. When the schools are in session.

It is maddening to me to think our Future is deprived of such a Basic Human need.

Even more disgusting is the simple reality of this situation when the schools are not available to help in this situation. When the schools are not open for scheduled closings, seasonal breaks, holidays, teacher work days, and even worse Summer Vacation.

Thankfully, during Summer Vacation....

The Village of Tularosa has a “Lunch In The Park” program that provides a meal for the lunch hour. This is when the Village Office is open. But, there is nothing available when the Village Offices are closed for holidays, or on the weekends. Five meals in af ive day period, during a seven day week. When the Village Offices are open.

FEED THE BASIN, LLC. Is the bridge to fill these massive voids in the lives of the children of Tularosa. And we need the help of the community, and the help of every single person that is reading this article.

FEED THE BASIN, LLC. Is a multifaceted corporation that includes; FEED THE BASIN-Eatery, located at 1108 St Francis Street, Tularosa, is a pizza ,wings, pulled pork (the Best west of the Mississippi), brisket, salads, and fine deli sandwich shop with eclectic sides and most in house made sides and the “Best BBQ Sauce” you can ever imagine. With all Net Proceeds funding the Feed The Children program.

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PAT COGHLAN, LILY KLASNER and the 1866 COMANCHE RAID

By Joe Ben Sanders 2017 For years the old trunk sat forgotten in the old adobe house on the storied Hondo River, a score or more miles from Ruidoso, NM. Time passed and old ones died and memories survived. In time, common ordinary knowledge of the frontier settling of Lincoln County was buried in some two thousand graves of its original inhabitants. But in a manuscript lying in an old trunk forgotten was still a record of the things and people that had passed.

Three Rivers, NM and Tularosa , NM where Casey Klasner whose trunk we specifically speak. Lily came to Lincoln County in the fall he built a ranching and retail empire. of 1866 with her family and settled on the But some seven years earlier, in 1866, Hondo River, downstream from Lincoln, and Comanches raided within two miles of the San Patricio. fort and killed Lily’s grandfather and badly wounded her Aunt Clara. Of course, Lily Eve later wrote a book based on Lily’s remembered that raid all her life. manuscript. It is a valuable historical document and must be read if one is a serious In 1867, Lily moved to the Hondo River student of history of southeast New Mexico with her family and settled near where Casey or in quest of knowledge. I heartily Canyon flows into the Hondo River. It was on recommend it— top ten best books ever this family place that the trunk was found

Fort McKavitt, Circa 1890

Writer Eve Ball heard tell of Lily Casey Klasner who was born 1862, and of her manuscript in a trunk in an adobe house on the Hondo River. Eve Ball found it with the help of others and family members of Lily

written about our land and people. The title in many years later with this interesting story. a minute, a word about Custer now.

Lily’s grandmother, widowed in the Comanche raid, recalled that Pat Coghlan General Custer was told in the Wolff Hills went in pursuit and having followed the (a bit southeast of the Little Big Horn) that if Comanche war party a ways stated, “ There he proceeded with his attack, he would find are so many Indians that if we should more Indians than he could handle. He did overtake them, they could eat us for breakfast not listen. and still be hungry.” There were no soldiers to help and the chase was wisely abandoned.

Pat Coghlan knew an awful lot by 1866.

He came to America in 1845 as a 23 year old.

There had been over 300 in the Comanche He served on the 1850’s Texas frontier as a raiding party that Pat Coghlan followed. Had soldier- stationed at Fort McKavitt, over near the San Saba River and near Menard, Texas. it not been for Pat Coghlan cool judgement, and others listening to him, it could have been He later settled a real nice place and farmed and ranched at a place called Cherry Springs, a lot worse. in the same general area.

Then, about 1873, Pat Coghlan moved to the Block Ranch near Lincoln, NM then on to

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History of Weed ( The town , not the herb In December of 1885, a post office was established at a wide spot in Agua Chiquita Canyon, which was somewhat central for the area and a natural crossroads. The post office was named for W.H. Weed, a prominent White Oaks merchant, born and raised in New York City who had come to that mining town about 1882. There is no evidence that he ever visited the Agua Chiquita, but he set up a branch store there which became Weed as others built around it. The post office changed locations eight times in the next ten years The exact date of settlement in the Weed area is difficult to pin down. Scouts and hunters had entered the southeastern canyons of the Sacramentos as early as 1875. Cattle companies, looking for new water and grasslands, began running cattle into the mountains by 1880. The attractive qualities of the area were noted and the word was carried out by early visitors back to Texas and other states.

Albert Coe, who scouted for the Army, saw the Weed area in the 1870s and tried to settle on the Rio Penasco at the time. He soon left, got married and returned to the area in 1881, moving to Weed in 1887. In 1881, William O. Robertson scouted the region. Upon his return to San Saba, Texas he described the mountain to his neighbors and friends and the exodus began.

Most Weed settlers had traveled by wagon to the vicinity of Carlsbad, up the Pecos to the mouth of the Penasco and went west to Agua Chquita Creek.

Some, however, took roundabout routes to the mountains. Thomas Day and James Wayland had both tried California before settling in the Sacramentos. Thomas W. Jones made the trip from the east to Weed via Arizona. Jesse de Prado MacMillan came to the Agua Chiquita from Scotland in 1903, stayed a few years near her cousin, Mary Tod Westlake, from Canada, and moved to California. The Munson and Calkins families traveled about before settling in the Weed area.

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Truman's Story I rescued Truman from a no-kill shelter in 2011. He was about to be transferred to a high kill shelter with a hold of 24 hours before he would be euthanized.

Fortunately, a friend at the no-kill shelter alerted me of his availability before the transfer and we rescued him. He came into our lives like all rescue dogs, thrilled and loving to be in his forever home.

What set Truman apart was his ability to sense my seizures. He has made my life with epilepsy much less frightening. He knows by a pheromone that is released before a seizure, alerting me so I can prepare myself. Truman has saved my life on several occasions.

He’s my angel. In honor of my best friend, we decided to name our furniture store after him.

-Tina Pavelka

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When is it time to replace

your pillow?

As a general rule, bed pillows need to be replaced after 18 months. Memory foam pillows typically last longer, up to three years. Natural pillows tend to last longer than synthetic pillows. And higher quality pillows will last longer than inexpensive ones. If you’re using pillow that’s five or six years old, you’re not getting the support you need—and you’re not sleeping as comfortably as you could.

It may seem like a short life, but think about it: your pillow gets used about 7-8 hours a night—that’s more than 2,500 hours a year! Like your mattress, your pillow is an investment in high-quality sleep, which pays dividends across your waking life.

If you’re not sure whether your pillow has life left in it or not, you can do some simple tests: First, take off the pillowcase and over, and examine your pillow. Does it have stains from sweat? Is it torn? Does it smell? These are all signs of a pillow that needs replacing. Pillows collect dead skin cells, mildew, mold, fungus, and dust mites (as well as their feces). Over time, as much as half the weight of a pillow can be attributed to these unwelcome organisms, which can trigger allergies, interfere with breathing during sleep, and put out odors that make it harder to sleep well.

If your pillow passes the sight and smell test, it’s time to do the fold test: Fold your pillow in half. If it just lies there folded, rather than springing back to its original shape, that is a dead pillow. With natural fill pillows, you can do this test over your arm. Does your pillow drape and hang down over your extended arm? That’s a pillow that’s exhausted its useful life.

With synthetic pillows, fold in half and add some weight to the top—a sneaker or shoe works well.

Take the weight away, and if your pillow doesn’t spring back to its original shape, it’s time for a replacement.

With large, king-size pillows—whether natural or synthetic—you’ll want to fold into thirds, rather than in half.

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Located in Jack Rabbit Flats, just outside Tularosa. An upstart Organic Operation that will eventually take up the 2.5 acres designated for this project... with a select variety of tomatoes, peppers ( Green Chile' (to rival the world famous Hatch Chile') jalapeno, Ghost, Scorpion and Reaper ) that when harvested will be available for sale to the public. With all net proceeds funding the Feed The Children program.

Let me introduce myself to you....

My name is Rudy Jones. I am a ten year resident to the Tularosa area.

I am the Founder of FEED THE BASIN, LLC.. Head cook at FEED THE BASINEatery, and Master Gardener at FEED THE BASIN-Farm.

After realizing the need for the children in Tularosa, I left my career to find a way to make the difference needed to help overcome this problem. I have to admit, it is the best Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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career change I have ever made. It is not a career, it is a passion.

This program is barely out of the ever evolving planning stage, and is so vital to the betterment and growth of the Tularosa, Otero County and New Mexico community. I can do this with those that have joined me in this effort. But, Results are important immediately. I am asking your help in joining this organization, and make a difference and impact now.

My immediate Goal is Tularosa. With your support , we can expand throughout Otero County, and eventually the entire State of New Mexico. Not only for the Children, but also the Seniors of each described area.

I ask you to do two simple things. â—? Imagine only 5 meals a week, for the rest of the summer. And being blessed with 10 meals a week when the school door are open. â—? Imagine that feeling of knowing you helped a child enjoy a 2 meals each day of the week.

Be the difference in the life of a child

Rudy Jones Feed the Basin Read our magazine on line @ issuu.com/alamodosomagazine

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