The Durango Telegraph, April 11, 2024

April

Days of beauty

Notes on Hozhoni Days and finding your way home

Mano y mono

Keeping monoskiing alive one GNAR point at a time

April show(ers)

Meltdown, iAM Music Fest bookend musical month

10 April show(ers) Bluegrass Meltdown, iAM Music Fest bookends music-filled month by Stephen Sellers

Winning and losing at the Climate Change Game by Pepper Trail / Writers on the Range On the cover Ahhh, spring in Colorado can be so cruel. Here, some sunny crocuses try to peak their heads out from a recent snowfall in town./ Photo by Missy Votel

TEar to the ground:

“My problem is that I have AB – alcohol abuse.”

– Uh, you also have a spelling problem

BYOPFD

Grab the sunscreen, SUP, wetsuit and … life jacket. Lake Nighthorse opens for the season this Fri., April 12, with new rules requiring personal flotation devices and sound-signaling devices, like whistles, on paddle crafts.

The new rule is in accordance with Colorado boating laws, which require all adults to carry a PFD on paddleboards (of course, it's much safer if you actually wear it.) Kids 12 and younger are required to wear PFDs at all times when on the water.

In addition, the lake’s entrance will be undergoing work throughout the spring and summer to improve traffic flow and install a new boat decontamination station.

The lake will be open for nonmotorized activities 9 a.m.- 4 p.m. Fridays-Sundays, April 12 – May 5. Daily operations will begin May 10, and you can get the surf boat or fishing skiff out starting May 15.

Still no word on when the Wibit goes up.

For more details or to buy a pass, go to: DurangoGov.org/LakeNighthorse.

Tie on the feedbag

If you’re famished from all your water sports this weekend, check out Durango Restaurant Week, April 12-21 (actually 10 days.)

Sponsored by Visit Durango, the event is meant to showcase Durango’s wide array of eateries while giving restaurants a bump in the arm during what tends to be a slower time of the year (and hey, maybe you’ll be able to get a table without waiting an hour!)

Restaurant Week will feature specialty item pairings priced at $15, $25 or $50. Here are but a few examples to whet your appetite (what does that mean anyway?)

• Primus - Bison filet tartare paired with a blackberry ginger vodka martini ($50).

• Durango Diner - Buttermilk pancake with homemade caramel sauce and side of bacon ($15).

• Seasons - Puff pastry with brie, caramel, berries, apples and ciabatta plus choice of one bottle of wine from the 2023 list ($25).

• Steamworks - St. Louis ribs with blue cheese mashers and seared kale and a pint of Backside Stout. ($25)

• Carver Brewing - Housemade gumbo paired with a pint of Carver’s beer. ($25)

• Mahogany Grill - Classic French fish meuniere with a glass of sparkling rosé. ($50)

• El Moro - Signature scallop dish paired with glass of pinot grigio. ($50)

To see the full list of offerings visit: Durango.org/restaurant-week

LaVidaLocal

May we all return home

When we write, we are always writing to an unknown future. I don’t care much for linear time, but it’s important to know that I am always writing to an Indigenous future.

It’s a Saturday afternoon in the spring, and I’m on my way to the Hozhoni Days Pow Wow at Fort Lewis College. Earlier this morning, I received a text message from my grandfather Calvin. The text from shicheii read: “Hello grandson, I’ll be at Fort Lewis College today for the Gourd Dance.” He then invited me to attend it with him. I don’t think I’ve been to a pow wow with my grandfather since I was a child. Now I can transport myself back to childhood this afternoon with my grandfather at the Whalen Gym on campus. This is one reason why I advocate for living non-linearly.

Since 1966, Indigenous students at Fort Lewis have been organizing the Hozhoni Days Pow Wow. By the mid-1960s, Indigenous folks were reclaiming sovereignty and proudly celebrating our heritage. Red Power was on the rise, especially on college campuses. “Around that time, you see a lot of Native students going to school to be Americans, without the Indian attachment,” Clyde Benally, an FLC alumnus and the “Father of Hozhoni Days,” said in a video released by the college. The pow wows were meant to reconnect Native students to their Indigeneity, resulting in the longest-running cultural celebration at Fort Lewis.

few more gourd songs left for us to watch. “The drums are a little too loud in here,” my grandfather says. “I like to hear the singing.” He says something about how the words are medicine, and it’s all medicine, really, but I can’t entirely hear him because the drums are giants stomping the floor. The dancers mostly remain in place, holding feather fans and rattles, moving gently in rhythm to the music. To witness a gourd dance means listening. You’re listening to the dancing, to the chanting and drumming. You’re listening to the colors, you’re listening to the earth.

In Diné, the word “Hozhoni” means “beautiful,” so the pow wow’s name translates to “Days of Beauty,” and that is exactly what you see from the mesa that holds the campus, with Durango and the La Plata Mountains in view. Beauty is blooming all around, the blue and green shine brighter, and the sun takes her time these days, admiring the season’s return.

Inside Whalen Gym, Native folks from different Nations walk around in shawls and ceremonial regalia; it’s a swirl of sky blue, sunset orange and earthy red. I am home within a home. The drums are pounding, and I scan the bleachers for my grandfather. I see him seated up at the top, his faded cowboy hat prominent. He’s reclined, like he’s been attending Hozhoni Days since it started. While he’s been to many pow wows in Indian Country throughout his life, this is actually his first time at the college event.

Usually, the gourd dance introduces the pow wow’s grand entry, and there’s a

Thumbin’It

Girls rule, boys drool (or in this care, dribble.) Thanks in part to super-phenom Caitlin Clark, the Women’s NCAA championship drew 18.9 million viewers on Sunday, as opposed to the men’s game, which drew 14.8 million.

The EPA set tough new drinking water standards for PFAS, aka “forever chemicals.” The family of chemicals have been linked to cancer, immune diseases and other ill-health effects.

Well, if lawmakers won’t do anything about gun control, maybe the courts will. Parents of Michigan school shooter Ethan Crumbley were sentenced to 10-15 years in prison for ignoring blatant warning signs about their son and buying him a gun.

My grandfather drove from Arizona to be here, and in the crowd on the gym floor, I see one of my cousins with a feather fan and gourd, chanting along. He drove from Albuquerque to be here. And all around me I know other Indigenous folks traveled from other Nations, other states to be here. I like the way a pow wow brings different Nations together. We move through these cities in this land like they’re different rooms in a giant home we have always lived in. When the gourd dance ceremony ends, my grandfather is ready to head back to Arizona. I tell him I’m staying for The Grand Entry, so we say bye; he tells me he loves me in that Navajo way with a strong hug and words of affection in Diné, and I am a child again: borders are meaningless, and time is non-linear.

And then, The Grand Entry starts. The drums rise up. The dancers start moving in through the gym doors. Colors of sky and earth decorate the dancers’ outfits. The singing and drumming greet the dancers, a mixture of young and old, all moving with grace. I watch the dancers, and there are moments when the procession feels endless, generations of Indigenous people returning in one room, and that makes me smile. It feels like we will live forever. When I say I’m writing to an Indigenous future, this endless flow of Indigeneity is what I’m thinking about.

The dancing comes to a pause, letting the master of ceremonies say a prayer; they are words of grace about resiliency and sacrifice. Near the end of the prayer, the emcee says, “May we all return home.” And after I leave the event, I’m still thinking about those words. I want those words to reach Gaza. I hope our prayers talk to theirs in Palestine, in all occupied territories, and I hope someday we find the answer because we all dream of liberation and healing. At the end of the day, I am only bones and prayers. My heart is drumming, singing: May we all return home, may our songs never end.

– Kirbie Bennett

SignoftheDownfall:

Where does all the Colorado River water go? Well, according to a new analysis, nearly half of water that’s diverted for human use goes to produce alfalfa and hay to feed cattle. Is there something wrong with this picture?

In the latest blow against women’s reproductive rights, Arizona just reinstated an 1864 law that bans nearly all abortions. Thank you, Donald Trump.

NOAA says new CO2 records were set in 2023. The less-bad news is that growth of carbon emissions slowed slightly last year. However, emissions need to reverse to keep Earth cool enough for humans. Or any other living thing, for that matter.

Lego My Ego

The Police Department in Murrieta, Calif., between L.A. and San Diego, is just as addicted to Facebook as the rest of us, and they post mugshots there because doing so gets the most “community engagement” (aka “likes”). But a new law stopped the practice because some people in mugshots end up being innocent, so the MPD started covering suspects’ faces with Lego emojis to keep the “likes” coming. Then the Lego company got pissed because Legos are always innocent, so they sent a cease-and-desist order to the cops for trademark infringement, which is against the law, meaning that the cops ended up being the true blockheads.

WritersontheRange

Roll the dice

The winners and losers in the climate-change game

by Pepper Trail

Let’s play a game, the climatechange game that every living thing on Earth has no choice but to play, starting ... now. The game is called “Adapt/Move/Die,” and the rules are simple. The object of the game is not to die. And the winners, well, the winners get to keep playing the game.

You may say wait, what about Solve? Isn’t solving the climate crisis an option? Yes, of course, and a worthy goal.

But even if humanity somehow musters the now-lacking resolve to rapidly phase out fossil fuels, greenhouse gases already in the atmosphere are higher than at any time in hundreds of thousands of years. The effects on climate will continue to unfold for centuries.

“Adapt/Move/Die used to have another name: Evolution. But Evolution was played without a time clock over centuries or millennia.

“Adapt/Move/Die” is customized for our fast-paced world. Every round is a lightning round, and there are no time outs.

Let’s get started! Who’s on Team Adapt? You already know some of them well, because they are all around us – pigeons and rats, cockroaches and coyotes, dandelions and thistles. No matter how the climate changes, these adapters will find a way, and a place, to survive.

Under the old evolution rules, most species belonged to Team Adapt. But the pace of the new game has changed everything.

Just take a look at your local forest. Its trees were once adapted, attuned to the temperature, soil, patterns of rain and snow, and natural pests.

But now, every forest is full of dying trees. A report from the Forest Service estimates that more than 36 million, yes, million, trees died in 2022 just in California.

For many plants facing rapid climate change, their only choices are Team Move, or Team Die. It is an unanswered and existential question whether the plants that support the biosphere can move fast enough.

And what of people? As befits our huge numbers and our great cleverness, it is likely that no species on Earth will show such complicated game play.

Team Adapt will mostly be drawn from the global North, where climate extremes may (repeat, may) be some-

Trees and other vegetation that once slowly adapted to climate change are now dying due to rapid warming./ Courtesy

what buffered, and where great economic resources can be brought to bear in the name of adaptation.

Here, we hope, coastal cities can be protected behind seawalls and levees. Infrastructure can be strengthened or moved or repaired. Some emergency assistance will be available for victims of “natural” disasters.

Tragically, none of these fixes will be available, or be enough, for huge numbers of people. The United Nations estimates that extreme weather caused 2 million deaths in the past 50 years, but that pales in comparison to what’s coming.

The World Health Organization predicts that climate change will cause an estimated 250,000 additional deaths per year between 2030-50 from disease, starvation and heat stress.

If true, Team Die will claim 5 million members over that 20-year span. Many of those deaths will come from the poorest countries, where people lack even the resources to join the last team: Team Move.

“Move” will, in fact, be the most disruptive play in the game. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that between 2008-16, an average of 21.5 million people per year were displaced by climate-related events like floods, storms and wildfires.

But again, that is just a mild preview

of what could be coming. The same report concludes that 1.2 billion people, or over 10% of the world’s population, could be displaced globally by 2050.

When playing “Move” involves crossing national borders, it often has another name: illegal immigration. From the United States to Europe to Australia, illegal immigration is already considered to be a crisis, and has been a key factor in the rise of right-wing political parties. Given the harsh response to the existing level of illegal immigration, it is frightening to imagine what the future flood of climate refugees could face.

There is only one way to win the game of “Adapt/Move/Die.” That is to recognize that we all share this critically damaged planet. To succeed, adaptation will require cooperation. To survive, those who must move will require help and compassion.

We can play the game together and win the right to keep playing, that is, to live. Or we can enlist in Team Die by choosing isolation and conflict.

Anyone want to roll the dice?

Pepper Trail is a contributor to Writers on the Range, writersontherange.org, an independent nonprofit dedicated to spurring lively conversation about the West. He is a conservation biologist who has written widely on evolution and climate change. He lives in Ashland, Ore. ■

photo

SoapBox

Protect Social Security, Medicare

I am a 71-year-old rural Coloradan politically registered as Unaffiliated. I’d like to ask my fellow seniors a question: Why vote against your own self-interest?

Republicans have vowed to cut Social Security and Medicare. Democrats have vowed to protect both.

The GOP 2025 budget proposal raises the age for collecting Social Security and ends Medicare as we know it, replacing it with a “premium support model,” changing it from its current efficient, successful form to something resembling the rest of our failed healthcare system.

The GOP budget would cut $1.5 trillion from Social Security, repeal Medicare’s ability to negotiate drug prices, and end the $35 out-of-pocket cap on insulin.

On March 11, Trump, responding to a question from conservative CNBC news anchor Joe Kernen, said, “There’s a lot you can do in terms of entitlements, in terms of cutting (Medicare and Social Security).”

By contrast, in Biden’s proposed 2025 budget are the words, “The budget upholds the President’s commitment to protecting Medicare and Social Security for this and future generations.” He plans to pay for Social Security by raising the payroll taxes on the ultra-rich –those making over $400,000 per year.

Right now, write out a note and put it in on your refrigerator to remind yourself: In November 2024, I will vote for my own self-interest. I will vote Democratic.

–Philip Riffe, Hesperus

NearMiss:

For those lucky enough to have clear enough skies and be near the path of totality for this week’s solar eclipse, the show was reportedly spectacular./Photo by Baxter Moore

EV assumptions flat-out wrong

Russ Andrews, a candidate for Lauren Boebert’s vacant seat, recently wrote in the Telegraph that “Electric vehicles are a non-starter in rural America.”

Specifically, he challenged Gov. Polis to make a comparison roundtrip from Cortez to Denver first in a conventional SUV and then return “in his choice of EVs … in the dead of winter, then report back!”

As a coincidence, I did just that. In late-January, I drove from Hesperus to Denver in a Toyota RAV4 SUV and returned in a Rivian R1T (410-mile range), a four-wheel drive electric pickup truck more muscular than a Ford F-150. The EV leg had better traction, a smoother ride, more power and cost less. I stopped just once to recharge; the dash screen told me to charge in Salida for 9 minutes, but it took me 15 minutes to eat my lunch, so I charged for that long. The charge cost $12.79. I reached Hesperus with 80 miles of charge remaining, and I could easily have reached Cortez had I wanted to.

But EV tourists might want to avoid Cortez, as the town’s city fathers recently rejected Tesla’s free offer of installing and maintaining superchargers there. Unlike nearby tourist towns like Bluff, Monticello, Moab, Farmington, Durango, Telluride and Ouray, visitors to Cortez have no place to get a fast charge. No reason to spend the night in Cortez. To compound this self-inflicted wound to the Cortez economy, Andrews would apparently like to accelerate our aridification by rejecting common sense and cost-saving actions to preserve water supplies for agriculture, the other engine of Cortez’s economy.

Andrews supposes that driving an EV costs extra money. Actually, all analyses suggest that the lower cost of fueling an EV lowers a driver’s transportation costs. For example, the Washington Post recently computed that an average pickup truck driver in the Four Corners states wastes $47.25 every time they fill up a conventional pickup truck rather than an electric one. And the more miles a user needs to drive in a year, the greater the savings from EV driving. The long distances between destinations in rural America are the best possible justification for going electric.

–Gordon Rodda, Hesperus

The meat of the climate crisis

Humanity has not evolved to think long term. With the advent of agriculture 10,000 years ago, the species was forced to start thinking at least a year ahead, but most of us today don’t think much beyond the daily or weekly cycle of life. This is why solving the climate catastrophe is so difficult. Research scientists and scientific writers, however, can help build our awareness of the long-term effects of our current shortsightedness, and Greta Thunberg’s “The Climate Book” is an important reference manual for this goal.

This book is a compendium of the most current and accurate articles from these writers as well as numerous chapters written by Greta herself. She has many quotable lines and distills the issues down with

a sometimes brutal but simple honesty, like when she says, “If the bathtub is overflowing, we don’t just put towels on the floor, we first turn off the tap.”

But my favorite line of hers is when she talks about how many people ask the question, “What can I do to help stop climate change?” Greta goes on to say, perhaps the question itself is wrong, and what people should be asking is, “What can I STOP doing?”

At this point, it’s fairly clear what we need to stop doing: stop flying, stop driving so much, drastically reduce concrete use, stop mining for Bitcoins, stop single-use plastics, stop the endless, insatiable consumption of unnecessary garbage. But, the singlegreatest thing we in the privileged global North can do is stop eating beef, lamb and goat. Dairy products, of course, have a significant impact on the environment, but it is orders of magnitude less than actually eating the meat itself.

– Paul Larson, SW Colorado

“We’ll print damn near anything”

The Telegraph prides itself on a liberal letters policy. We have only three requests: limit letters to 500 words; letters must be signed by the writer; and thank-you lists and libelous, personal attacks are unwelcome. Send your profundities by Monday at noon to telegraph@durangotelegraph.com

Mano y mono

Local ripper keeps retro sport alive and proves one ski is all you need

by Missy Votel

There’s a long-running joke in mountain towns: “The last one on teles, please turn off the lights.”

Well, if this axiom applies to monoskiing, then the lights – really more of a flicker – went out right around the time of mullets and one-piece suits (the first time around, that is).

Or so one may think. That is until they meet Cal Neff, a 20-year-old all-around Durango dude who is trying to, uh, single-skiedly keep the sport alive. At least in our enclave of Southwestern Colorado. In fact, not only is he keeping the mono light on, he’s blaring it like a beacon on a cold, blustery, sideways-snowing day.

Which is exactly the conditions we experienced on a recent spring day when we met up for a ski-terview at Purgatory. So much for my mono ski visions of zinc lips, neon headbands, goggle tans and slush bumps to a Van Halen soundtrack.

“I’ll be wearing brown pants and a black jacket,” Neff informed me prior to our rendezvous at the Six Pack. OK, so much for the flashy onesie as well.

As a lifelong skier who regards the very rare sight of a monoskier as an anomaly, sort of like a skiing unicorn, I had so many questions for this young buck. Namely: how and why? I needed to delve to the bottom of the deep psychological pinnings that would make a perfectly healthy, capable young person decide to strap both feet together, facing forward, and gyrate down the mountain like a jibbering windsock.

“It’s just about having fun,” Neff confided on our tell-all chairlift session. “It’s about doing what you love and doing what you enjoy. And that’s what I enjoy.”

OK, so he got me there: fun, the main incentive in almost any twentysomething’s motivational cortex … duh.

But what about the “how” – especially when all his friends are snowboarding, skiing, tele-ing and enjoying the freedoms of two-legged mobility, for the most part?

Well, I was about to get an education. Seems it all goes back to “GNAR the Movie,” a 2010 cult classic, which I must have missed when it played in the theaters. An homage to the late, great extreme skiing icon Shane McConkey (who

I actually have heard of), the film epitomizes the spirit of freestyle skiing and the irreverent culture surrounding it. All of this I lifted directly from the internet, so it must be true.

Without getting too into the weeds, the film was the work of another freeskiing pioneer and McConkey bro-bra, Robb Gaffney, who died of cancer in 2023. But before he moved on from this Earthly realm, he left us the “Game of GNAR,” aka “Gaffney’s Numerical Assessment of Radness.” The game scores skiers on a series of challenges that are as much about showmanship and humor as they are about skill.

“In the game of GNAR, you get 1,000 points for monoskiing the whole day at Squaw,” said Neff, referring to the Tahoearea ski resort now called Palisades. “I said, ‘I want to try that. It looked so fun.’”

Ah, the McConkey effect, so now

we’re getting somewhere.

Also, for the record, Neff – whose friends call him Mustard, but more on that later – did not just wake up one day and decide to mono ski. A native of Sacramento, he said he’s been skiing “practically since he could walk.” In fact, his parents, FLC alumni, met on the slopes of Purg, so skiing is basically in his DNA. As a kid, he spent summers and winter breaks in Durango or at the family’s cabin, in the Cimarrons, near Montrose. When he was 18, Neff moved to Durango to follow in his parents footsteps at FLC. However, he decided college “wasn’t for me,” and instead took a job at Backcountry Experience, which allows plenty of time for climbing (another passion of his) and eventually, monoskiing.

We say “eventually” because, as you can imagine, monoskis are a bit hard to come by these days. Fortunately, after

months of internet and thrift store scouring, Neff’s dad (who incidentally graced the cover of Ski Magazine in the 1990s) found one on Craigslist.

“It was a 1985 Dynastar Kevlar monoski,” Neff said. “It was old school and kind of terrifying.”

And, despite the old bindings cracking on its maiden run, Neff was smitten from that day forward by the mono bug (but not that mono bug.) “I said ‘OK, I’m all into this. I don’t really see a reason to go back to skiing,’” he said.

As luck would have it, Neff’s dad had a monoskiing friend from his Purg days, Prima Zip (real name, I was assured), who took the fledgling under his wing. (Prima, if you’re out there – call us!)

“It was nice to have some kind of mentorship,” said Neff. “He said, ‘You’re talking to the right guy for this deal.’ He was stoked to help me.”

Cal Neff with his Faction monoski at Purgatory during a break in the weather and ski action./Photo by Missy Votel

Neff said he still has the Dynastar, but fortunately has moved into a modern monoski made by Faction, a Swiss company.

“Monoski-ing is a very European thing,” he said. “It’s still a big thing over there.”

And while other European tastes have (thankfully) yet to catch on in the States, like Speedos, smoking while you eat and David Hasselhoff, Neff thinks it may be on the upswing here.

“I went to Tahoe and saw two in one day,” he said, which we suppose is sort of like seeing two unicorns. “I saw another one at Purg not too long ago, and my friend says he sees them all over.”

Neff said one of the draws may be that the monoski is actually the true quiver-killer (unless, of course, you need a split monoski – which they make – for the backcountry.)

“I used to have six pairs of skis and I thought, ‘What am I doing?’” he said. “Now, I only really need one.”

Neff also said modern monos have more sidecut, allowing for snappier turns. “It turns on a dime – in a reboundy [*totally a word], bouncy kind of way.”

jacked knees and the like. That said, his DIN is cranked to a stout 13 to avoid any unintended ejections. But best of all, even at a place like Purg known for its, shall we say, abundance of horizontal, Neff gets around just fine on one ski, thank you very much. In fact, on our character-building day of flat light and graupel on crust, there was nothing the mono couldn’t handle, from the giant icy bumps of lower Hades to airs with questionable landings under the Six Pack.

Then there is the whole safety third consideration (after fun factor and GNAR scores, of course).

“It just feels safer to be locked in, there’s no way for your legs to twist up on each other,” he said, adding that many of his friends who ski have suffered torn ACLs,

Dare I say, we had fun over the course of our two-hour ski outing? In fact, Neff even got catcalls of “Mustard!” from the lift, which made me feel like I was skiing with a local celebrity.

(Which reminds me I promised the origins of the Mustard name. Apparently, a friend named “Jack” decided Neff’s previous moniker of “Mono Man” was lame and came up with “Mustard Man,” which stuck. Neff has no idea why – he likes mustard but not “outrageously.”)

So for now, Mustard the Mono Man will continue his trajectory in local monoskiing lore. And who knows? Maybe one day, he will become the Shane McConkey of monoskiing – which by then will have become all the rage just like in “Hot Dog...The Movie” – and we can say we heard about him here first.

“It’s all about pushing boundaries, finding the limits and living my best life in the game of GNAR,” he said. ■

Neff gets a mini air on Lower Wapiti. He says there is virtually nowhere he can’t ski./Photo by

Missy Votel

Cal Neff

BetweentheBeats

Festival season sprouts up Meltdown, iAM Music Fest bookend jam-packed month of music

by Stephen Sellers

Greetings, dear readers! Ahh, breathe it in, baby. Festival season is here! We’ve got a lot of excellent indoor and outdoor events sprouting wings in Durango this April and early May. Here are some of my recommendations to help you shake off those winter blues and get your toes back in the grass. See you on the dancefloor!

• Devin Champlin, Toast Records and Bakes, Thur., April 11, 5 p.m. - Northwest-based songwriter Devin Champlin returns to Durango for an intimate in-store appearance at Durango’s beloved Toast Records and Bakes. Known for his work with dream-tonk troubadours The Sons of Rainier, Champlin jumps over genres and expectations while staying rooted in a humble, lo-fi approach to recording and performing.

• Mark Farina, Posh Josh, Spark Madden, Animas City Theatre, Fri., April 12, 8 p.m. - A proper secondwave legend of Chicago house music, Mark Farina returns to the Animas City Theatre. Big win. Maybe, like me, you prefer dancing to a DJ who doesn’t insist on being worshipped for their track selection, who is a true master of their craft, who maybe even actually mixes real records and tracks instead of playing pre-recorded sets. This is your night, dear reader! Farina has been DJing approximately since the time that we were all beating a toy drum around the Christmas tree. This is a huge booking for the Durango dance music community. Expect a sold-out crowd for Farina’s signature blend of Chicago house and trippy, experimental dance music.

• The Durango Bluegrass Meltdown Fri-Sun., April 19-21 - For more than 28 years, the Durango Bluegrass Meltdown has acted as the clarion call for Southwest Colorado festival culture. Enlisting more than 500 bands and serving more than 15,000 festival go-ers, the Meltdown is an institution. If Snowdown is our town’s dark-night-of-the-soul carnival, the Meltdown is its luminescent counterpart. There’s hope in those high-lonesome bluegrass sounds. Head over to www.durangomeltdown.com to check out this year’s truly phenomenal lineup! And don’t sleep on the Old Time Barn Dance on Sat-

Bluegrass band Missy Raines & Allegheny will be hitting the stage for this year’s Durango Bluegrass Meltdown, April 19-21./Courtesy photo

urday night! I heard there’s a halfway decent old-time band with a tall bass player!

• Yikes Ski Presents Baked Boogie Campout, April 20-21, 11 a.m.- 2 a.m. - Any kind of underground music culture at its core is really just a group of friends who are trying to do cool things with others. One of Durango’s most persistent DJs, Squoze, is joining forces with the Yikes Ski family and having all of their DJ friends out to Tico Time for a day and night of dancing in the sand. Check out Red, Young Daniel, BabyDel and many more just south of the border on what is looking like a balmy, beachy Saturday.

• Ray Bonneville, The Lightbox at Stillwater, Sat., April 20, 7 p.m. - Calling all blues and Americana enthusiasts! Ray Bonneville spent decades as a touring and studio musician before shifting gears into writing his own material, which blends the musical influences of his native Quebec as well as New Orleans and Texas. If you haven’t experienced the Lightbox yet, this will be a wonderful show to take in all the light you can!

• Grieves, Mouse Powell, Influsense, Animas City Theatre, Tues., April 23, 7 p.m. - Two of indie rap’s finest will most definitely sell out the Animas City Theatre for a special Tuesday night cypher. Notably, local MC Influsense will be opening the show with one of Durango’s most unsung DJ

heroes, DJ Tones. It’s not often we get such talent in the hip-hop world willing to stop in for a visit, so be sure to get out and show some love for this booking.

• iAM Music Festival, Animas City Theatre, Thurs. - Sat., May 2-4 - The ever-eclectic iAM Music Festival returns with a stacked lineup of local heavy-hitters like The Stillhouse Junkies, ORA, Desiderata, The Quarks, Carute Roma and many more. As always, expect a cross-pollinated lineup of Denver and Tucson-based indie, jazz and funk to add a little taste of what’s happening in the indie music scene. Spanning three days, this festival is plenty of bang for your buck and a guaranteed party in the streets and venues of Durango.

• Dandelion Festival, Rotary Park, Sat., May 4, 1-9 p.m. - If you’re looking for a family-friendly event with an excuse to take your shoes off and dance around a May pole, look no further than the Dandelion Festival! The good folks at Turtle Lake Refuge are throwing their annual spring party in Rotary Park with all of the dandelion beer you could hope to sip upon. Six Dollar String Band and The Salamander Collective will be kicking things into high gear later in the night with other music and organic land stewardship offerings throughout the day. Bonus points for walking or riding your bike to this not-to-miss party in the park. ■

EndoftheLine

by Paul Pennington

With its two summit blocks, it looks like a dragon, mouth open waiting to catch neolithic insects. The spine and tail are a sheer 1,500-foot rocky drop to Blaine Basin below. Through the arch of my legs, I see the gnarly Uncompaghre pinnacles 3,000 feet below. I’m above 13,000 feet on 45 to 60 degree boilerplate ice. Thunk, thunk, thunk is the sound of me chopping footholds with an ice axe. I’m doing this for the college kid in white Converse tennis shoes with no ice axe or crampons. A Converse traverse. Crazy!

It’s June 10, 1991, and we’re climbing Dallas Peak in San Miguel County, rated one of the hardest climbs in Colorado. For us, it requires a long, 13-mile roundtrip hike and daredevil climb. There is at least 5,000 feet of elevation gain, including roping up for a chasm crossing that drops 1,500 feet straight down. At the base of the summit is a class 5.4 climb up 180 feet of sheer rock, and then the finale, a 100-foot rappel down the northeast face.

The interesting thing is we all don’t know each other or each other’s ability. In college, you do spur-of-the-moment adventures, and this is quite the deathdefying one. We unfortunately have two leaders: Bear, 24, is a self-taught climber who is working on climbing all 741 of the highest peaks in Colorado. I have climbed some intense peaks with him. Seth is a NOLS instructor with whom I’ve climbed several hard San Juan mountains. Justin has been climbing with Bear his whole life. And the other two dudes, whom I just met that morn-

Converse traverse

ing, are neophytes and in way in over their heads.

As we ascend the intense and unforgiving east ridge route, I know I have pushed my limits well beyond my comfort zone. I am completely exhausted from chopping steps in the concrete ice. I didn’t want to see “Converse Dude” slide to his death.

Wisdom teeth-shaped clouds are swirling all around the summit and the chance of lightning is becoming very real. The route starts up the south side of the mountain and hooks up to the east ridge. You then have to gear up for safety across the north-facing couloir. Seth stops to pull gear out of his backpack: ropes, hardware and a helmet. I stay back with the two neophytes as the

others start their slow, methodical crossing of the snowy couloir to the base of the summit block. I am reassured to know that Seth has the knowledge and gear to help guide and lead the team safely across the chasm and up the massive block.

Seth summits first to experience a round of applause from a dark, looming cloud over Gilpin Peak. Our laissez faire start is causing problems. Seth feels the hair on his arms stand up; Justin sees golden sparks emanate from his figure 8. With St Elmo’s glow, it is pure terror. There is no time for awe and wonder or photos.

Bear watches his glove float down into the abyss and can’t find the anchor needed to rappel off with. He uses his

other gloved hand to rake the snow where the anchor should be. A good guess on his part reveals the ring that ensures escape. Two more lightning strikes!

Sequentially, all three rappel down the lichen-blazed block. It is a slow process of hauling gear up and down, adding to the intensity of the situation. Once down, they are adrenally charged and rush past us, stepping at first and then glissading on their bums to get down as fast as possible, away from the lightning. We follow but much slower, as we never saw or heard the lightning or thunder.

When we catch up to them, an eagle spreads its wings across our field of vision, almost as a calming omen. We’re lucky to be alive!

Many mistakes were made on this trip: a late start, the battle between two very different leadership styles. Seth being very safety-oriented and Bear with his fast-and-light approach. Expensive gear was left behind in the couloir crossing. The loss of Bear’s glove almost caused frostbite to his hand. And to top it off, Justin left his backpack below the summit and has to go up to retrieve it.

After a deep posthole up, he comes down around the corner of the rock we are protected by, and an avalanche crashes close by.

Instead of going home, we camp out another night on a cold, snowy ledge and climb more of the Telluride numbered peaks. We are young, naive, cocky and seemingly invincible.

Thirty years-plus later, after interviewing the core party of the expedition, no one knows the names of the two neophytes. One theory is they were either guardian angels or grim reapers. ■

Photo by Paul Pennington

Stuff to Do

Thursday11

Career & Internship Expo, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., FLC Student Union Ballroom

Gallery Night at FLC,opening of “Coloradans and Our Shared Environment in Times of Challenge and Change,” 4:30-6 p.m., Center of Southwest Studies. Exhibit runs through February 2025.

Live music by Rob Webster, 5-7 p.m., Ska Brewing, 225 Girard St.

Professional Women’s Network happy hour, 5-7 p.m., Durango Winery, 900 Main Ave, Suite E

Live music by Leah Orlikowski, 5-8 p.m., El Rancho Tavern, 975 Main Ave.

Live music by Tim Sullivan, 5:30-10 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

Bluegrass Jam, 6 p.m., Durango Beer & Ice Co., 3000 Main Ave.

Live music by Andrew Schuhmann, 6-9 p.m., The Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.

Live music by Yes No Maybe, 6-9 p.m., Durango Hot Springs, 6475 CR 203

Drag Trivia Night, 7:30 p.m., Starlight Lounge, 937 Main Ave.

Friday12

Silverton Splitfest, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Kendall Mountain, Silverton.

Piano music by Gary B. Walker, 10:15 a.m.-12 noon, Jean-Pierre Bakery & Restaurant, 601 Main Ave.

Live music by Leah Orlikowski, 5-8 p.m., El Rancho Tavern, 975 Main Ave.

Forest Health Symposium, hosted by CSU Extension, 5:30-7:30 p.m., La Plata County Fairgrounds

Talk with Neo-Western Artist Jared Reed, 5:30-7:00 p.m., Stillwater Music, 1316 Main Ave., Ste. C

Live music by Pete Giuliani, 5:30-8:30 p.m., Mancos Brewing Co., 484 E. Frontage Rd, Mancos

Live music by Jack Ellis & Larry Carver, 5:30 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

Live music by Dustin Burley, 6-9 p.m., The Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.

Dark Sky Celebration, 6-8:30 p.m., The Powerhouse Science Center, 1333 Camino Del Rio

Earth Day Screening of “Fashion Reimagined,” 6-9:30 p.m., Durango Sustainable Goods, 1259 Main Ave.

A Night of Improv, 7-9 p.m., Durango Arts Center, 802 E. 2nd Ave.

Friday Dance! 6 p.m. West Coast swing lesson; 7 p.m. dance-of-the-month lesson; 8-10 p.m. open dancing, VFW, durangodancing.com

Wildwood Dance Project film premier, 7 p.m., Move Studio, Smiley Building 1st floor, 1309 E. 3rd Ave.

Grease Sing-A-Long, 7:30 p.m., Community Concert Hall at FLC

Mark Farina with Posh Josh & Spark Madden, 7 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Dr.

Aria PettyOne presents Aria’s Pizza Party, 8:30-9:30 p.m., Father’s Daughters Pizza, 640 Main Ave.

Fresh Baked Fridays: house, techno and electro, 9 p.m., Roxy’s, 639 Main Ave.

Saturday13

Silverton Splitfest, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Kendall Mountain, Silverton

Red Bull Grand Prix King of the Baggers Viewing Party, 9 a.m., Durango Harley-Davidson, 750 S. Camino Del Rio

Bike Commuting Class: Smart Cycling 2, 12-2 p.m., Transit Center, 250 W. 8th St.

“The History of El Moro,” 1 p.m., in person at Animas Museum or via Zoom animasmuseum.org/events

Big Lebowski End of Season Party, all day, The Nugget Mountain Bar, HWy 550 North

Blue Moon Ramblers, 6-9 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

Live music by Joel Racheff, 6-9 p.m., The Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.

Round Robin Euchre Tournament, 5:30-8:30 p.m., Union Social House, 3062 Main Ave.

Live music by Mike Ippolito, 6 p.m., EsoTerra Ciderworks, 558 Main Ave.

Live music by Matt Rupnow, 6-9 p.m., The Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.

Ladies only night! Clothing swap, hair tinsel and more, 6-9 p.m., The Subterrain, 900 Main Ave.

Lawn Chair Kings live album recording, 7-10 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Dr.

Joseph Haydn’s “The Creation,” 7 p.m., Community Concert Hall at FLC

Sunday14

Silverton Splitfest, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Kendall Mountain, Silverton

Pond Skim, 12-3:30 p.m., Purgatory Resort. Last day of daily operations – open Fri.-Sun thru April 28.

Irish jam session, 12:30-3 p.m., Durango Beer & Ice Co., 3000 Main Ave.

Durango Food Not Bombs mutual aid and potluck, 2-4 p.m., Buckley Park

“Escape Tesla’s 1893 Power Plant,” escape room, 3-9 p.m., The Powerhouse, 1333 Camino Del Rio

Durango Palestine Solidarity Rally, 4 p.m., Buckley Park, 12th St. and Main Ave.

Poetry Fest, 4-6 p.m., Marias Bookshop, 960 Main Ave.

Monday15

Meditation and Dharma Talk, 5:30 pm, in person at The Durango Dharma Center, 1800 E 3rd Ave, Ste 109 or online at durangodharmacenter.org

“Purging Plastics With Progression, Not Perfection,” with Crit Salaz, of WeFill, 5:30-7:30 p.m., Durango Public Library, 1900 E. 3rd Ave.

“Living with Alzheimer’s,” 6:30 p.m., Animas Valley Grange, 7271 CR 203

Tuesday16

Cowboy Tuesdays, 12 noon, Strater Hotel/ Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

AskRachel

Leftover wood, universal signs and gifts that keep giving

Interesting fact: The phenomenon where you keep noticing something over and over once you become aware of it is called the “frequency illusion” or the “Baader-Meinhof phenomenon.” Now you’ll start seeing “Baader-Meinhof” wherever you look.

Dear Rachel,

Family debate here. How much firewood should be left over from one winter to the next? My spouse says none, that if we have any left it’s an eyesore, and we bought too much. I say leftover wood will be good and dry for next winter, and firewood never gets any cheaper, so a surplus is gravy. We agree to go with your answer here.

– Woody and Buzzkill

Dear Phat Stacks,

The correct answer is right in the middle: Bonfire, baby! Light up those leftovers one perfect summer evening and have the pagan party of the year. Of course, you should do so in keeping with relevant fire restrictions and general common sense. Do not burn the forest down. Do not burn your house down. Do not burn anyone else’s house down. Basically, do not try this at home. Also do not try this anywhere else. It’s a terrible idea.

– Burn baby burn, Rachel

Dear Rachel,

I know that there’s a psychological phenomenon for when you keep noticing

Slow Bluegrass Jam, 5:30-7:30 p.m., General Palmer Hotel, 567 Main Ave.

Live music by Jason Thies, 6-9 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

County Treasurer Ann “Moni” Gruskin, Rotary Club of Durango, 6 p.m., Strater Hotel, 699 Main Ave.

Live music by the Lisa Blue Trio, 6-9 p.m., Durango Hot Springs, 6475 CR 203

Live music Randy Crumbaugh, 6-9 p.m., The Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.

EGGY, 8 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Dr.

Wednesday17

Mary Oliver Book Club, 10-11:30 a.m., Durango Public Library, 1900 E. 3rd Ave.

something over and over, once you become aware of it. I can’t argue that it’s crazy how much the thing shows up. For me, it was hummingbirds. A guy I’m into from somewhere in South America said he’d never seen hummingbirds until he moved here, and now I see hummingbird pictures and products all over the place. Couldn’t these still be Signs from the universe and not just brain tricks?

– Hummingbird Humdinger

Dear Ho Hum,

Darn right they can be signs from the universe. Except that you just have to remember that the universe is a vast, incomprehensible collection of particles and waves that we really don’t understand. So even if the universe was sending you signs, the odds of you being able to translate them are inconceivably slim. But here’s a sign from the Rachel: just get after that guy already.

– Sign here, Rachel

Email Rachel at telegraph@durangotelegraph.com

Dear Fantasy Man,

Dear Rachel,

With graduations coming, I have been invited to attend a few parties. Do you think it would be OK to give a gift card from Kroegers hardware? Things at the store can be used for years to come and the gift keeps giving and may be remembered in a good way or bad. Your thoughts?

– Real Life Dude

Young Professionals Happy Hour, 5 p.m., Public House 701, 701 E. 2nd Ave.

Live music by Jason Thies, 5:30-9 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

Musically Speaking with the San Juan Symphony, 6-7 p.m., The Powerhouse, 1333 Camino Del Rio

Word Honey Poetry Workshop, 6-7:30 p.m., The Hive, 1150 Main Ave., Ste. A

Open Mic, 6:30 p.m., EsoTerra Ciderworks, 558 Main

Geeks Who Drink Trivia, 8 p.m., The Roost, 128 E. College Dr.

Ongoing

“Emergence,” exhibit by local art collective The Art Squirrels, thru mid-May, Smiley Cafe Gallery, 1309 E. 3rd

Sure, you could give a gift card from Kroegers. But are you a representative of Kroegers? Is this your attempt at getting free product placement in print? It’s working, because I have a sudden hankering for some Kroegers. But if you want to give the gift that really keeps on giving, I recommend you hand out leftover firewood. Whatever’s left come graduation, you can dole out one log at a time. Sure beats yet another copy of “Oh, The Places You’ll Go!”

– Go forth, Rachel

“The Return of the Force,” art exhibit exploring the influence of “Star Wars” on Native artists, FLC’s Center for Southwest Studies. Thru August 2024

Upcoming

Trail Crew Brew Release Party, Thurs., April 18, 47 p.m., Ska Brewing

“Unveiling Histories: Boarding Schools and the Southern Ute Tribe,” presented by the Southern Ute Cultural Center, Thurs., April 18, 1-2 p.m., Durango Library, 1900 E .3rd Ave.

Durango Film Monthly Movie "The Big Lebowski,” Thurs., April 18, Durango Arts Center. Tickets at www.durangofilm.org

KBong and Johnny Cosmic with Boostive, Thurs., April 18, 7 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Dr.

FreeWillAstrology

by Rob Brezsny

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Now is a favorable time to make initial inquiries, and enjoy window shopping. But it’s not an opportune time to seal final decisions or sign binding contracts. Have fun haggling and exploring, even as you avoid making permanent promises. Follow the inklings of your heart more than the speculations of your head, but refrain from pledging your heart until lots of evidence is available. You are in a position to attract and consider an array of possibilities. For best results, you should remain noncommittal.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Author Betty Bender said, “Anything I’ve ever done that ultimately was worthwhile initially scared me to death.” Painter Georgia O’Keeffe confessed she always harbored chronic anxiety – yet that never stopped her from doing what she loved. Philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Anyone who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life.” I hope these testimonials inspire you to bolster your grit. You may not have any more or less fear than usual, but you will be able to summon extra courage and willpower as you render the fear at least semi-irrelevant.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Richard the Lionheart (1157–99) was a medieval king of England. How did he get his nickname? Scholars say it was because of his skill as a military leader. But legend tells an additional story. As a young man, Richard was imprisoned by an enemy who arranged for a hungry lion to be brought into his cell. As the beast opened its maw to maul the future king, Richard thrust his arm down its throat and tore out its heart, killing it. What does this tale have to do with you? I predict you will encounter a test that’s equally solvable by bursts of creative ingenuity. Though there will be no physical danger, you will be wise to call on similar boldness. Drawing on the element of surprise may also serve you well.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Adventures heading your way may be unusual, amusing and even unprecedented. You could encounter plot twists you’ve never witnessed or imagined. You may be inspired to dream up creative adjustments unlike any you’ve tried. These would be very positive developments. They suggest you’re becoming more comfortable with expressing your authentic self and less susceptible to the influence of people’s expectations. Every one of us is a unique genius in some ways, and you’re getting closer to inhabiting yours.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): At least for now, help may not be available from the usual sources. Is the doctor sick? Does mommy need mothering? Is the therapist feeling depressed? My advice is to not worry about the deficiencies, but shift your attention to skillful surrogates and substitutes. They may give you what you need – and even more. I’m reminded of “The Crystal Cave,” a novel about the Arthurian legend. The king, Ambrosius Aurelianus, advises the magician Merlin, “Take power where it is offered.” In other words: not where you think or wish power would be but from sources that are unexpected or outside your customary parameters.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): The rest of the story is not yet ready to emerge, but it will be soon. Be patient just a while longer. When full disclosure arrives, you will no longer have to guess about hidden agendas and simmering subtexts. Adventures in the underworld will move above ground. Missing links will finally appear, and perplexing ambiguities will be clarified. Here’s how you can expedite these developments: Make sure you are thoroughly receptive to knowing the rest of the story. Assert your strong desire to dissolve ignorance.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In coming weeks, you can ask for and receive more blessings than usual. So please be aggressive and imaginative about asking! Here are suggestions about what gifts to seek: 1. vigorous support as you transform two oppositional forces into complementary influences; 2. extra money, time and spaciousness as you convert a drawback into an asset; 3. kindness and understanding as you ripen an unripe aspect of yourself; 4. inspiration and advice as you make new connections that will serve your future goals.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Read the two help-wanted ads below. Meditate on which appeals to you more, and treat this choice as a metaphor for a personal decision you face. 1. “Pedestrian, predictable organization seeks humdrum people with low-grade ambitions for tasks that perform marginally useful services. Interested in exploring mild passions and learning more about the art of spiritual bypassing?” 2. “Our high-octane conclave values the arts of playing while you work and working while you play. Are you ready and able to provide your creative input? Are you interested in exploring the privilege and responsibility of forever reinventing yourself? We love restless seekers who are never bored.”

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): What is a gourmet bargain? What is a discount marvel? How about an inspiring breakthrough that incurs no debt? Themes like those are weaving their way into your destiny. So be alert for the likelihood that cheap thrills will be superior to the expensive kind. Search for elegance and beauty in earthy locations that aren’t sleek and polished. Be receptive to the possibility that splendor and awe may be available to you at a low cost. Now may be one of those rare times when imperfect things are more sublime than the so-called perfect stuff.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): “There is always one moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in,” novelist Graham Greene wrote. For me, it was near the end of third grade when I wrote a fairy tale about the unruly adventures of a fictional kid named Polly. Her wildness was infused with kindness. Her rebellions were assertive but friendly. For the first time, as I told Polly’s story, I realized I wanted to be an unconventional writer when I grew up. What about you, Capricorn? When you were young, was there a comparable opening to your future? If so, now is a good phase to revisit it, commune with your memories of it, and invite it to inspire the next stage of its evolution.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Even when you are your regular, ordinary self, you have a knack and fondness for irregularity and originality. And these days, your affinity for what’s unprecedented and uncommon is even higher than usual. I am happy about that. I am cheering you on. So please enjoy yourself profoundly as you experiment with nonstandard approaches. Be as idiosyncratic as you dare! Even downright weird! But also try to avoid direct conflicts with the Guardians of How Things Have Always Been Done. Don’t allow Change Haters to interfere with your fun or obstruct the enhancements you want to instigate. Be a slippery innovator. Be an irrepressible instigator.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Below are truths I hope you will ripen and deepen in the coming months. 1. Negative feelings are not necessarily truer and more profound than positive ones. 2. Cynical opinions are not automatically more intelligent or well-founded than optimistic opinions. 3. Criticizing and berating yourself is not a more robust sign of selfawareness than praising and appreciating yourself. 4. Any paranoia you feel may be a stunted emotion resulting from psychic skills you have neglected to develop. 5. Agitation and anxiety can almost always be converted into creative energy.

Deadline for Telegraph classified ads is Tuesday at noon. Ads are a bargain at 10 cents a character with a $5 minimum. Even better, ads can now be placed online: durangotelegraph.com Prepayment is required via cash, credit card or check.

(Sorry, no refunds or substitutions.) Ads can be submitted via: n www.durangotelegraph.com

n classifieds@durango telegraph.com

n 970-259-0133

n 679 E. 2nd Ave., #E2

Approximate office hours:

Mon-Wed: 9ish - 5ish

Thurs: On delivery

HelpWanted

LoLo Bike Rack

Fri: Gone fishing; call first HaikuMovieReview

Announcements

2024 Durango Wine Experience

April 26 - April 27. Hundreds of wines, Colorado artisan spirits and craft beer. Features a Friday night Walkabout at 10 locations, a Saturday afternoon Grand Tasting, and educational wine seminars and dinners. Tickets & info: durangowine.com.

Friday 6pm Dancing Lesson at VFW

Go to DurangoDancing.com to get on notification list.

KDUR is Celebrating 50 years of broadcasting in 2025. Staff is on the hunt for past DJs who have a fond memory, story or even some recorded material! If you do, please email station manager Bryant Liggett, Liggett_b@fortlewis.edu or call 970.247.7261

Wanted

Books Wanted at White Rabbit! Cash/trade/donate (970) 259-2213

Cash for Vehicles, Copper, Alum Etc. at RJ Metal Recycle. Also free appliance and other metal drop off. 970259-3494.

Retiring Teachers! HR People! Riverhouse Children’s Center is looking for someone with experience in management and education, and budgeting expertise, to be their new Executive Director. (No fundraising) Supervise a staff of 25, and be responsible for a quality program serving infants, toddlers and PreK children. 35 hours a week, 47 weeks/yr. $52-$57 K + benefits. College degree in relevant field required. Email: riverhousedirector@gmail.com

Massage Therapists Needed

Amaya is hiring massage therapist part-time positions, must be available weekends Email triciagourley13@ gmail.com or drop off resume to apply

ForSale

Be Ready for Rivertrippin!

16’ cataraft package: 2 Star 24” PVC tubes; 47” x 75” oar frame with seat; 44” x 69” cargo frame; 3 Carlisle 10’ oar shafts; Cambridge premium welded alum drybox, 38” x 15.5”; 18” x 72” wood top foldable kitchen table; large River Sombrero bimini. All in great condition$2900. 970-946-1545

2-bike bike rack kit for back of van made by Lolo Racks brand new never used, retails for $350 yours for the low price of $199 call 970-749-9037

Reruns Home Furnishings

Get ready for spring entertaining. Beautiful servingware, glassware and baskets. Patio sets, bistros, chaise lounges and yard art. Also furniture, art, linens and other housewares. Looking to consign smaller furniture pieces. 572 E. 6th Ave. Open Mon.-Sat. 385-7336.

Services

Boiler Service - Water Heater

Serving Durango over 30 years. Brad, 970-759-2869. Master Plbg Lic #179917

Lowest Prices on Storage!

Inside/outside storage near Durango and Bayfield. 10-x-20, $130. Outside

For

‘The Accountant’ Ben Affleck is glib and grim but this is not a documentary – Lainie Maxson

spots: $65, with discounts available. RJ Mini Storage. 970-259-3494.

Electric Repair Roof, gutter cleaning, fence, floors, walls, flood damage, mold, heating service.

BodyWork

Massage by Meg Bush

LMT, 30, 60 & 90 min., 970-759-0199.

Lotus Path Healing Arts

Esalen massage, deep tissue & Acutonics, 24 years of experience. To schedule call Kathryn, 970-201-3373.