The Durango Telegraph, July 28, 2022

Making your hair stand on end since 2002

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FREE July 28, 2022 Vol. XXI, No. 30 durangotelegraph.com

inside

T H E

O R I G I N A L

I N D I E

W E E K L Y

L I N E

O N

D U R A N G O

&

B E Y O N D

Sacrifice zone

A real gold mine

Herbalicious

Touring N.M.’s graveyard of abandoned oil & gas wells p7

Colorado questions multimillion dollar Gold King settlements p9

A condiment for all seasons straight from your garden p11

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2 n July 28, 2022

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lineup

4 La Vida Local

Home on the range Voyeuring into the past along the Road to Oblivion

4 Thumbin’ It

by David Feela

5 Word on the Street

7

6 Soap Box 7 Land Desk

Blast from the past Trying to reckon with northwest New Mexico’s abandoned wells

9 Top Story

by Jonathan Thompson

Ear to the Ground: “What are you doing?”

“Becoming the greatest guitarist in the world.”

– #DadsWhoRockOut

Bambi on board

thepole

4

RegularOccurrences

Alright, here we go: Why did the elk cross the bridge? Well, because it was extensively studied and verified that it and other big game use the area as a migration corridor, and with vehicle collisions on the rise, wildlife and transportation officials built a highly effective wildlife crossing. Ba dum tss!

This week, the “Highway 160 Wildlife Crossing Project” between Durango and Pagosa Springs, near Chimney Rock, officially opened for business. It’s being hailed as a win-win: promoting safer travel, not just for drivers, but wildlife as well. The project includes a wildlife underpass just west of the Highway 151 intersection; a wildlife overpass over Highway 160; a 2-mile exclusion fence; and earthen escape ramps and deer guards along the length of the fencing.

11 Flash in the Pan

9

12-13 Stuff to Do 13 Ask Rachel

Down the drain Colorado questions multimillion dollar Gold King settlements with N.M.

by Jonathan Romeo

14 Free Will Astrology 15 Classifieds

11

15 Haiku Movie Review

Secret sauce

On the Cover Dark and stormy skies have (thankfully) returned to Southwest Colorado.

Just make sure to get your hiking in early./ Photo by Alex Krebs

A killer condiment you can probably source from your garden

by Ari LeVaux

boilerplate

EDITORIALISTA: Missy Votel missy@durangotelegraph.com ADVERTISING SALES: ads@durangotelegraph.com STAFF REPORTER: Jonathan Romeo jonathan@durangotelegraph.com

T

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We’re only human. If, by chance, we defame someone’s good name or that of their family, neighbor, best

friend or dog, we will accept full responsibility in a public flogging in the following week’s issue.

Although “free but not easy,” we can be plied with schwag, booze and flattery.

telegraph

Wildlife collisions are a huge issue, not just in the U.S., but around the world, and manmade crossings are seen as a highly effective solution. The concept was first developed in France in the 1950s and has since caught on on nearly every continent, for everything from squirrel gliders, elephants, salamanders, turtles and crabs (though as someone deathly allergic to crab, not sure how I feel about that one).

Even New Jersey – the state where you are most likely to have a bagel thrown at you in the streets (Source: Durango Telegraph) – has one!

For years, Southwest Colorado has ranked as one of the worst regions for wildlife collisions in the state, a product of prime habitat coupled with an increasing number of drivers speeding because they really need to save 10 seconds on their drive. In fact, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation, more than 60% of crashes along this particular 2-mile stretch of HWY 160 were wildlife-vehicle collisions. This project, CDOT says, will reduce those incidents by at least 85%.

How do we know wildlife will use the shiny new crossings? Well, to start, it’s pretty clear where most roadkill is located along the highway. In addition, big game were collared with GPS devices by the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and tracked to monitor their movements.

CDOT and Colorado Parks and Wildlife also mapped the areas where wildlife are known to spend summer in the high country to the north, and at which points they must cross HWY 160 to get to winter range to the south.

The newly constructed overpass is the third of its kind in Colorado. And plans call for two more underpasses and 32 small mammal underpasses along the $100 million realignment of HWY 550 south of Durango.

July 28, 2022 n

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opinion

LaVidaLocal The road to oblivion Combined with my nearly illegible handwriting, putting directions on paper can’t help but get the anxious traveler hopelessly confused. Just go north of Morgan’s Tower along the Devil’s Highway to Crying Creek, and then straight toward oblivion. It sounds fairly simple to me.

The wanderer is probably unfamiliar with my geographical references and has no context to build an accurate mental map. Unfortunately, GPS is also useless, because many of these locations truly represent oblivion, for they’ve been obscured by time.

Even if I try to be more precise – Head north from Cortez (the town first settled at an old stage stop and ancient ruin complex called Mitchell Springs, where Morgan’s Tower once stood, described by archaeologist Lewis Henry Morgan as a 10-12 foot mound, which was bulldozed by pot hunters in 1977) along Highway 491 (formerly referred to as “The Devil’s Highway,” partly due to its superstition-inspired 666 route designation, just a spur off the infamous Route 66 that attracted a wave of American tourism) where you’ll encounter an agrarian community known as Dove Creek (fictionally renamed Crying Creek in Jack Kisling’s 1966 novel “The Crow Flies Crooked,” which at the time of its publication was not appreciated by local residents) – you’ll wish you’d headed toward oblivion and skipped the encounter with me.

Time is like an unrelenting wind unraveling a shroud of sand, erasing any tracks, leaving the surface smooth and apparently untraveled.

What I love about the route northwest from Cortez to Monticello is the sheer number of tiny deserted houses that populate its roadside horizons like drowsy withered sunflowers originally seeded by an early-to-mid-20th century agricultural push that populated this stretch of land with families. These days, a driver flying along at 65 mph has to really scrutinize the roadside horizons in order to notice the tiny houses. In tallying these lost hopes, I’ve arrived at more than I could count on my fingers and toes.

A portfolio of black and white images, ambitiously titled “North of Cortez on the Way to Oblivion,” would provide a fascinating history – each abandoned house telling its own little story.

But after two decades considering such a project, I’ve given the idea up. The knowledge of the families that lived in these rickety residences has frayed like cob-

webs against the hands of unrelated generations. The houses are mostly decrepit crumbling artifacts, often isolated in the middle of a farmer’s field where trespassing is especially verboten, a word that still resonates with the impact a gun’s hammer makes after being cocked and pointed in my direction.

Another detail that strikes me as arresting is the size of these “family” houses. North American females and males in the past century have gained on average 1-3 inches in height, but their house size has nearly tripled since 1950. It won’t be helpful to discuss how our breadth has also increased, an obesity index ticking upward since 1950 from 10% to 35% of the population, so I’m not going there, because we’re all heading toward an oblivion of our own making. The journey, after all, will always be my official answer to the eternal question, “What is the meaning of life?”

Besides, there’s an enormous difference between examining old photographs and encountering the actual shambles of our collective history. The past has so often been a straightforward “thanks for the memories” and a glance over the shoulder on its way out the door. True appreciation, however, is like a favorite shirt you’re afraid to wash, because somehow you just know it will change, shrink, fade, wrinkle or unravel in a horrible, irrecoverable way. And it will; count on it.

Sometimes I just pull off the highway, sit on the shoulder with my hazard lights flashing and simply pause for what Paddington Bear calls “a hard stare” or “a long view.” With my spotting scope zoomed and focused, my eye approaches the broken front door to ask permission, and when not even a shadow answers, my magnified eye slips around to the side of the house. Then, I examine the openings where window glass used to hold out the rain. I’ll take a sweeping tour around the yard to count the trees and flowers before I put the scope away and move along. When I stop, it’s a comfort, like a visit with neighbors I seldom get to see.

One spring I spotted a pair of fruit trees in full blossom outside the backdoor at one of these abandoned houses, and I swear I could hear the bees swarming, buzzing in their frantic effort to harvest and stockpile a cupboard full of nectar.

Then the sound merged with the traffic, which I had so completely forgotten as it sped past my idle car. In that instant, there was no difference between the bees and the motorized scurry of constant change. I should have closed my eyes and visited oblivion, but it was late, and I had to be getting home.

SignoftheDownfall:

Thumbin’It

4 n July 28, 2022

– David Feela

All this beautiful rain knocking out wildfires and making everything lush. We were going to ask for new pair of handerpants (pants for your hands) for our birthday, but we think we made the right call asking for rain.

The thus far fruitless search for a 22-yearold man from Salt Lake City who went missing in the Weminuche Wilderness on July 16. Emergency rescue teams have been combing the San Juans for the past week to no avail.

The City of Durango offering free transit in August to get cars off the road and cut emissions. As an added bonus, there’s a greater likelihood of spotting someone chasing after a departing bus, always an uplifting sight.

A fungus that causes white-nose syndrome, a disease deadly to bats, detected for the first time in Colorado. The disease has killed more than 90% of exposed populations of three bat species in less than 10 years.

The Mega Million jackpot reaching $1 billion. At 1 in 302.5 million odds, we’re thinking our chances are pretty good.

Pretty soon we’ll have a lifetime supply of handerpants and maybe be able to afford a home in Durango.

Reports that monkeys in Japan are breaking into nurseries to snatch babies and have attacked nearly 60 people since July 8, targeting children and the elderly.

We’re anxiously awaiting the Planet Earth episode on this one …

telegraph

Big Kaput Larry Sanders, of Oklahoma, killed his fishing partner Jimmy Knighten, because he tried feeding Larry to Bigfoot. In Larry’s affidavit, he said that Jimmy invited him to go “noodling” (sticking one’s arm into catfish holes to pull them out by hand), but the whole thing ended up being a “trick” so Larry “could be eaten by sasquatch.”

So, after strangling Jimmy by the river, Larry went home to confess to his daughter, who was dating Jimmy’s son. Larry was reportedly “on something” when arrested, and he had two outstanding warrants related to drugs, yeti still stands by his story.

Q

WordontheStreet

TSA IS NO OW HIRING

With the dog days in full swing, The Telegraph asked: “What’s your favorite summer reading?”

Transportation S Security Officerrs

Positions sta arrting at $19.44 4 per hour*

Renaud

“‘Harry Potter.’

Definitely ‘The Order of the Phoenix.’”

Gennys

“‘1Q84’ by Haruki Murakami. It’s one of his best and easiest to get through.”

TSA Durango

Julie

“‘The Idiot’ by Elif Batuman.”

Event Recruiting E at Durango Durango – La La Plata Plata County Co Airport

Earn a $1,000** sign-on bonus Wednesday, y, August 3 Terry

“I’m not generally a war stories person, but I loved ‘To the Uttermost Ends of the Earth’ by Philip Keith and Tom Clavin. It was amazing.”

10 a.m. – 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.

Text “DRO” to 95495 for more information and to RSVP

Patrick

“‘Cutting for Stone’

by Abraham Verghese. It’s a great read.”

Learn more at

jobs.tsa.gov/ v/events U.S. citizenship required. Equal opportunity employerr.. *Pay rate varies by location. **Some conditions applyy.

telegraph

July 28, 2022

n

5

SoapBox

D-Tooned/by Rob Pudim

Keep it in check

Spinning a yarn

If we’ve learned anything from the Jan. 6 hearings so far, it’s that former President Donald Trump and his allies will go to any lengths to gain and stay in power. The hearings have proven that they planned, promoted and paid for a months-long criminal conspiracy to overturn the election they knew they lost – and which ultimately ended in a violent attack on our country.

They must be held accountable in the courts, and we must hold them accountable at the ballot box.

Right now, more than 100 right-wing extremists have won Republican primaries across the country, pushing the “Big Lie” that the 2020 election was stolen. All Americans should be alarmed by these victories.

Should these candidates win during the general election, they’ll continue their criminal conspiracy to overturn our elections.

Casting doubt about our elections and working to overturn them when you don’t win is how we start the quick slide into fascism. Stopping this threat is about protecting the freedom to vote, to have our votes decide elections and to rely on elections to keep our leaders in check.

This year, it’s up to us to do our civic duty and cast a ballot for democracy champions at all levels of government in the midterms on Nov. 8. It has never been more important to exercise our freedom to vote while we still have it.

– JoAnn Lynch, Bayfield

As someone who follows local and national news reports, I must tell you I am worried about the recent extreme heat and wildfires raging across the country. I feel for people who lose their lives and livelihoods to extreme weather, and I’m scared that it’s only a matter of time until it directly hits me and my community.

Seeing headlines in local news outlets covering these climate disasters made me realize that most news stories show no connection between them and their main cause: fossil fuels. This is dangerous, because many people will continue to refuse to see that longer, hotter and deadlier summers are caused and perpetuated by the disastrous coal, oil and gas projects – and the fossil fuel industry.

The science is clear – the longer we allow coal, oil and gas companies to dig and burn, the worse the impacts of the climate crisis will be. With every fraction of a degree of warming, we’ll see and suffer more extreme heat, droughts, floods, wildfires and hurricanes. But the fossil fuel industry continues to ignore these alerts and undermine our chances for a safer future, and CO2 emissions keep rising. We all know this is causing global heating and resulting in extreme weather events, yet they keep digging, burning and profiting with zero accountability.

Climate impacts disproportionately affect people and communities who are already marginalized and disadvantaged.

6 n July 28, 2022

People who did the least to cause the climate crisis suffer the worst from its impacts – they lose livelihoods, hope and worse: their lives – while oil companies continue to hit record profits. This is wrong on so many levels.

Local, regional and national media have an important role to play – and a moral obligation to tell the whole truth.

It’s time to make one thing about extreme

telegraph

weather very clear: it’s not a “crisis” that just happens to us – it’s a crime, and the fossil fuel industry is to blame. And saying it once isn’t enough. Media has an important job to do to turn the tide of public opinion and help the world avoid the worst of the climate impacts.

Please tell the real story about the climate crisis.

– Matt Cornell, Durango

LandDesk

A trip through a sacrifice zone In northwest New Mexico, hundreds of wells are in limbo

by Jonathan Thompson

I

t’s mid-June and Don Schreiber is holding court behind the wheel of his ranch truck as he pilots it along a county road west of Farmington. Schreiber is a talker but comes up short of words as he tries to describe the grandeur and beauty of the place we’re headed, a sort of plateau from which one can see the ominous form of Tsé Bit’a’í, or Shiprock, the backside of Mesa Verde and the Carrizo Mountains. “It’s like … kinda like a cathedral,” he says.

Then we’re all left speechless as we come over a rise and our vision is filled with the hulking shape of the San Juan Generating Station and its four smokestacks. Schreiber steers onto a gravel road in front of the coal-burning power plant and heads westward, climbing up and through one of the sandstone ridges that makes up the Hogback, a geological formation that marks the boundary of the San Juan Basin. From up here it does, indeed, feel like a sacred place, albeit one despoiled by pumpjacks, well pads, rusty pipes, pvc tubing and other industrial detritus.

“It’s like someone went into a church and vandalized it,” Schreiber says, finding the words easily – and emphatically – this time.

Schreiber – along with Robyn Jackson, interim executive director of Diné CARE, and David Fosdeck, a Farmington solar advocate, ditch rider and surveyor – are taking me on a tour of the Horseshoe Gallup oil and gas field. The field epitomizes one of the vexing problems facing advocates and regulators: How to tap federal funds for abandoned and orphaned well cleanups when the wells in question are in a state of limbo. Schreiber calls it the “orphaned/non-orphaned well syndrome.”

That is, the wells are defunct and their operators bankrupt – but regulators still consider the facilities to be active, indefinitely delaying cleanup.

Schreiber stops the truck, and we climb out to inspect an iron post indicating where a well had long ago been plugged and abandoned. He is a wiry guy, his mustachioed face shaded by a white cowboy hat. The silver buckle on the belt holding up his Wranglers is inlaid with turquoise-like stones that spell “Schreiber Insurance,” the business he ran for years. In the late 1990s, he retired, and he and his wife, Jane, bought the Devils Spring Ranch, east of Farmington, where they intended to run a holistic, sustainable ranching operation.

Plans were interrupted, however, by the drilling frenzy on and around the ranch during the George W. Bush/Dick Cheney administration, and Schreiber slid into a new role as one of the region’s most persistent and outspoken oil and gas watchdogs. Which is why, several months ago,

Don Schreiber inspects a plugged and abandoned well in northwest New Mexico./ Photo by Jonathan Thompson an official in Washington, D.C., contacted him, looking for orphaned or abandoned wells that might be eligible for part of the $4.7 billion in cleanup funds in last year’s congressional infrastructure bill.

You’d think finding it would be like shooting fish in a barrel. Some 40,000 wells have been drilled during the past century in the San Juan Basin – a 10,000square-mile geological dish rife with hydrocarbons laid down during the Cretaceous era. And more than 100 wells pockmark Schreiber’s ranch and surrounding lands. But to Schreiber’s chagrin, he could not come up with any that fit the bill. When he asked around, a friend who runs a local well service business pointed him toward the Horseshoe Gallup, a collection of some 800 wells that sits a distance from major throughways in an area of overlapping jurisdictions.

That Schreiber had forgotten about the field was a bit embarrassing. He grew up in

northwestern New Mexico, after all, and was a child when Farmington was transforming from an agricultural center into an oil, gas and coal hotspot. He remembers the smell of burning orchards that had been cleared to make way for oilfield worker housing. “I have such a clear image of the mounded trees and the smoke,” he says. “They were building Apple Valley subdivision.”

Companies had been drilling for oil and gas here since the 1920s, but El Paso Natural Gas’ 1950 construction of a pipeline to carry San Juan Basin methane to California sparked the transformative boom. The flames were fanned by a flurry of oil finds in 1956-57, including the Horseshoe Gallup, where Arizona Exploration drilled the Horseshoe Canyon B#1 well, which had an initial production rate of 120 barrels per day, according to local historian Tom Dugan.

Fosdeck directs Schreiber to turn down a

telegraph

dusty two-track, and we pull up near a tank smeared with an almost artistic rusty patina. This well originally was drilled by Standard Oil Co. of Texas in 1960, during the Horseshoe Gallup’s initial boom. Standard’s drill made it down 1,735 feet, but the hole was dry, so workers plugged what was called the Navajo 82-1-1 well and moved on. Two decades later, Raymond E. Sitta, Jr. took over the lease and applied for a permit to “move in cable tools, clean out cement plugs and open hole to 1735 and test for oil production.” When oil came bubbling out, he named it State Senate #2, most likely for his father, who was a New Mexico state senator up until his death in 1979.

Even from a distance, it’s clear that State Senate #2’s glory days are behind it. The relatively diminutive blue and yellow pumpjack is motionless, and tumbleweeds have gathered around the once-moving parts. An old garden hose that probably carried well gas or methane from the well to the pumpjack’s engine has rotted away. Indeed, the “poppin’ Jonny,” as the well-gas-powered engines are known, is long gone. According to state records, the well last produced oil semi-regularly in 2007, and even then, it was only at a rate of about 25 to 50 barrels per year – not exactly a cash cow.

Sitta died in 2008 and, in 2011, his estate sold the State Senate #2, along with other wells in the field, to BIYA (which supposedly stands for “Boot in Your Ass”), which at the time was registered in Aztec under Richard and Debbie Baldwin. They tried to revive the old well, coaxing a whopping six barrels of oil from the ground in 2012. It hasn’t produced anything worth recording since, even though another obscure company, Diversified Resources, purchased BIYA and its wells in 2014.

It seemed as if Schreiber had found at least one well for his contact in D.C. Or maybe not. When Schreiber and company went to check the state oil conservation division’s records, they were astonished to find that the State Senate #2 is an “active” well. The Bureau of Land Management classifies it as “shut-in,” which supposedly means that it’s temporarily idled, and the operator plans to bring it back into production soon. It also means the operator doesn’t have to plug the well, clean up the site or give up whatever bond or financial assurance it may have posted.

The BLM’s designation is especially odd given that in 2016, the agency’s Farmington office sent a letter to BIYA regarding the State Senate #2 and another nearby well, saying the leases “… must contain a well capable of producing hydrocarbons in paying quantities … or they will be considered to have expired … If you consider the above-mentioned wells incapable of production in paying quantities, the subject leases will terminate and you should make plans to plug and abandon these July 28, 2022 n 7

wells.” State records stop there, so it’s not clear if BIYA responded. What is clear is the BLM never followed through.

Even more mystifying is that BIYA entered Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2019, filing an intent to abandon its oil and gas leases, including the State Senate #2.

If the State Senate #2 were an anomaly, it could be excused as a simple oversight by regulators. But as we continue our journey along the spiderweb of roads, passing one dilapidated well after another, it becomes clear that in the Horseshoe Gallup, neglect is the norm. As long as no one makes too much noise about it, regulators will apparently take an out-of-sight, out-of-mind approach.

“How did they let them get away with this?” Schreiber says as he points to pipes snaking across the dirt and sandstone.

“There is no one sticking up for this place.”

That’s changing, though. A powerful team, which includes Schreiber, Jackson, Fosdeck, San Juan Citizens Alliance’s Mike Eisenfeld, Earthworks’ Kendra Pinto and others, has coalesced to document the Horseshoe Gallup’s wells and bring them to regulators’ attention.

But it’s no easy task. Literally hundreds of wells out here are in orphaned/non-orphaned limbo. Some haven’t produced in nearly 20 years. Others have produced exactly one barrel per month for several consecutive years, an indication that the operator goes to the well one day each month and pumps a barrel of oil to make it look like the well’s still producing.

Records are spotty, enforcement and inspections apparently even more so. In

2017, three leaks were discovered coming from BIYA’s pipelines in the Horseshoe Gallup field. The company filed reports and hired a company to clean it up. But the paper trail ends there, and satellite imagery shows a gaping, open hole where the cleanup was supposed to take place.

Meanwhile, the facilities out here tend to be owned by small, obscure companies, some of which no longer exist or are in their own limbo.

As the sun climbs higher into the sky, and the mercury shoots into the 90s, Schreiber pilots the truck down an especially nasty road that criss-crosses an arroyo at the bottom of a shallow canyon. This area feels even more blighted than the other places we’ve visited, as though someone went on a drunken bulldozer rampage.

We stop at a collection of infrastructure sticking up from the earth and take a gander at the rusty fittings, a gathering system for oil or produced water – the briny, hydrocarbon-laden, occasionally radioactive waste that accompanies oil and gas. It may be associated with a nearby injection well, where the wastewater is shot back into the ground along with some sort of prayer that it doesn’t contaminate aquifers, wreak havoc on hydrology or stir up seismic activity – or if it does, that nobody finds out.

Given the decrepit condition of the equipment, we assume it is no longer in use and has been flushed clean. But just for kicks, someone turns one of the valves: A hiss emanates from the pipe’s open mouth (most likely methane), followed by a sick sort of gurgle and an ejaculation of shiny, black fluid. The valve is slammed shut.

We hurriedly climb into the truck and continue on to today’s star attraction: Two rows of big tanks, a broken down yellow truck, a pile of old pumpjack parts and miscellaneous equipment in a clearing scraped into the dirt. This one is odd in that it doesn’t appear on the state’s well map or list of facilities, but it is clearly associated with an adjacent well owned by Chuza Oil Co. Fosdeck, who has a knack for digging through arcane well records and other data, explains that Chuza’s CEO is Bobby Goldstein, the creator of a reality television show called “Cheaters.” It turns out Chuza was pushed into bankruptcy by its creditors in 2018. The case has yet to be wrapped up.

Again, this well’s status is officially “active,” even though the electricity that powered the pumpjack was pulled long ago. Big plastic chemical bins sit out in the open; some still have eerie looking liquid inside. And, most egregious, a big stock tank oozes oily water that sits pooled on the ground around it.

“I’m disturbed,” Jackson says in a measured tone while she inspects the leaky tank. “I’m disturbed by industry being allowed to do whatever it wants.” Jackson gestures toward the smokestack of the Four Corners Power Plant in the distance and tells us her father, Leroy Jackson, worked at the plant for a while as an engineer. He liked the work, and it paid well, but after watching operators shut down pollution control systems at night and otherwise cut corners at the expense of the environment, his conscience prodded him to quit. Later, Leroy, along with Diné CARE, led a successful fight against log-

ging in the Chuska Mountains.

“This place may not be pristine or lush,” Jackson says. “But for our people, it is sacred. It has significance.”

As the heat inches into unbearable territory, we continue on through the wreckage. I’m starting to imagine that we’re driving through a “Mad Max” movie set, not a real oil field, when a guy pulls up on a neon-green dirt bike. He may not be clad in Road Warrior armor, but his presence is startling nonetheless, as he’s the first person we’ve seen since morning. Even more startling is that when he sidles up next to the truck, he immediately rattles off a bunch of oil and gas industry lingo: P&As and shut-ins; water-flood and EOR. “You looking around for acquisitions?” he asks.

“Nope. Just checking things out,” Schreiber replies cautiously.

The dirt biker tells us he’s a petroleum geologist working on his PhD and looking for a thesis topic. He thinks maybe the Horseshoe Gallup is a good candidate; he thinks the old wells could be perked up with carbon dioxide captured from the stacks of the San Juan Generating Station.

“What do you think?” he asks.

“Wouldn’t know anything about that,” Schreiber says.

Then the guy says farewell and rides off into the distance. Schreiber fires up the engine, and we do the same.

The Land Desk is a newsletter from Jonathan Thompson, author of “River of Lost Souls,” “Behind the Slickrock Curtain” and “Sagebrush Empire.” To subscribe, go to: www.landdesk.org

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n July 28, 2022

telegraph

TopStory

A real gold mine Multimillion-dollar settlements raise questions among Colorado officials

by Jonathan Romeo

W

ith the recent news that the Environmental Protection Agency agreed to pay New Mexico and the Navajo Nation more than $63 million for damages related to the Gold King Mine spill, some Coloradoans are asking: What about us?

“I just always question, should we have been louder, because holy smokes, that’s a lot of money,” La Plata County Commissioner Matt Salka said. “And it is concerning when $60 million-plus goes to communities at the end of the river, yet (Durango and Silverton) were the most heavily impacted.”

On Aug. 5, 2015, Southwest Colorado made national headlines when an EPA-contracted crew conducting remediation work at the Gold King Mine north of Silverton dug too far into a mound of debris at the mine’s entrance. The breach released more than 3 million gallons of water laced with heavy metals into the Animas River, which eventually reached the San Juan River and Lake Powell.

The immediate response was one of fear and chaos, as no one knew exactly what was in the water. Moreover, the river had turned a shocking, acidic Kool-aid orange.

The river was shut down to recreationists, water taps were closed off and irrigation fields went dry. Slowly but surely, however, it became clear that while the spill was a jarring sight, it did not have lasting environmental impacts on the waterway. Just 10 days later, the EPA declared the river was back to pre-spill conditions.

However, the legal frenzy was just getting started. After the plume passed by, the communities closest to the headwaters – Silverton and Durango – decided not to pursue litigation against the EPA. Instead, they chose to push for the cleanup of mines that pock the mountains around Silverton and have degraded water quality in the Animas River since the heydey of mining in the late 1800s, early 1900s. And indeed, in fall 2016, a collection of historic mines in the area, including the Gold King, received a Superfund designation with widespread local support.

Downstream communities in New Mexico and on the Navajo Nation, however, went a different route. New Mexico sued the EPA in May 2016, with the Navajo Nation following suit a few months later. The $63 million settlement,

The Animas River as the orange plume from the Gold King Mine spill hit town Aug. 6, 2015 – a day that will live on in local infamy./ Courtesy photo announced in June, is now under question by upriver elected officials.

“Those are funds I would have liked to see go to the actual source of the issue,” Salka said. “We should be addressing the Superfund site, making sure water quality is good and preventing another mine blowout.”

Addressing the bigger issue From the beginning, the reaction to the Gold King Mine spill was vastly different in Durango and Silverton compared to New Mexico and the Navajo Nation. In Southwest Colorado, the issue of inactive mines leaching heavy metals into the Animas River has been well-studied and the focus of cleanup for decades.

While the sheer sight of the spill alarmed even the most involved members of groups such as the Animas River Stakeholders Group (a now-defunct organization of volunteers dedicated to protecting the health of the river), the fact that a mine blew out

near Silverton wasn’t a shock. It has happened many times over the years. Looking at the long view: roughly 5.4 million gallons of acid mine drainage leaches into the Animas each day, compared to 3 million in the one-time Gold King blowout.

The spill, however, was the catalyst that finally secured a Superfund designation for the mines draining around Silverton. In the past, some community members objected that a Superfund declaration carried a stigma that would imperil the town’s tourism economy and destroy any possibility of reviving the local mining industry.

But after the Gold King blowout drew national attention, there was no stopping the momentum, and the Bonita Peak Superfund site was established. It’s composed of 48 historic mining sites around Silverton that are the biggest culprits of metal loading.

“We wanted to address the bigger issue and fix our entire watershed as opposed to

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taking advantage of the situation and making wild claims about damages and filing a lawsuit,” Dean Brookie, who was mayor of Durango at the time, said.

Julie Westendorff, a La Plata County commissioner also at the time, said if not for the spill, it was unlikely a Superfund site would have ever been declared. Seven years later, she feels “100% confident” the right decision was made to forgo a costly and time intensive lawsuit. “(The spill) was a major blow to our community, no doubt about it, but the silver lining is a Superfund was created,” Westendorff said. “Having the problem addressed is the best bang for the buck we could have done, and we’re fortunate we were successful.”

Anthony Edwards, San Juan County (CO) liaison to the EPA, said a lawsuit could have delayed serious cleanup efforts for years.

“This is a positive outcome when you don’t know what would have happened if

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July 28, 2022 n

9

GoldKing from p. 9 litigation took place,” he said. “Time will tell, but we’re hoping we will move toward meaningful activity in the watershed.”

An economic boon To win a lawsuit, of course, a party has to prove damages. While the sight of the spill was certainly unsettling, there wasn’t any die-off of aquatic life or long-term health or environmental impacts. Hence, many Southwest Colorado officials question what damages New Mexico, namely Farmington and San Juan County (NM), suffered to justify a more than $30 million payout.

“For New Mexico, I don’t know how they could have proved (damages),” Westendorff, an attorney and former judge, said.

“There was quite a bit of politics in who sued and who didn’t sue, to be frank.”

On June 16, the day the settlement was announced, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said the blowout destroyed farmers’ crops, shut off water headgates and impacted tourism. New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas added the state knew it would have to “get in a fistfight” with the EPA to recover damages.

“While the San Juan and Animas rivers have healed from the spill, it’s time for communities like Farmington, Bloomfield and Aztec to do the same,” Lujan Grisham said. “This is an economic development boom (sic) for this entire community.” Most of the settlement money will go to San Juan County (NM) for outdoor recreation, and proposals for projects could start as early as August, Lujan Grisham said.

“How does (outdoor recreation) help the water quality?” Salka questioned.

It should be noted New Mexico also reached an $11 million settlement with Sunnyside Gold, the last operating mining company in Silverton, and is still pursuing a lawsuit against the EPA’s contractor.

Sacred waters On the Navajo Nation, a different case was made about the Gold King Mine spill.

From a Native American cultural perspective, waters are sacred, and the disturbing sight of a bright orange San Juan River had a traumatic impact on tribal members (not to mention the history of environmental injustice on tribes throughout North America). According to media reports, some

EPA workers on Aug. 15, 2015 visit the portal that unleashed 3 million gallons of acidic mine waste into the Animas watershed./ Photo courtesy EPA farmers on the Navajo Nation refused to use San Juan River water for years after the spill.

In a prepared statement at the time the settlement was announced in June, Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said that when the spill occurred, the tribe went to the Gold King Mine site and saw firsthand the environmental impacts to the land and water.

“I am thankful that the Biden-Harris administration acknowledges the devastation that it caused and took the steps necessary to reach this settlement,” Nez said (though the spill happened during the Obama administration). “This important settlement reflects the EPA’s recognition of the suffering it caused the Navajo Nation and our people.”

The Navajo Nation’s statement did not specify how the settlement money would be spent.

(As an aside, Utah filed the largest claim at a whopping $1.9 billion. Utah later agreed to drop its lawsuit in exchange for $220 million dedicated to the Bonita Peak Superfund cleanup as well as other mine sites located in Utah.)

Remediation, not litigation That’s not to say Silverton and Durango were shorted. Both governments received some reimbursement for dealing with the

spill itself. The EPA built a $1 million water treatment plant that continues to operate at a cost to the EPA of $2.5 million a year.

And, the agency has spent about $100 million to date on the Superfund site and expects to spend significantly more in the coming years.

“The EPA continues to focus on the completion of site activities that will benefit downstream Colorado communities and the watershed,” EPA Spokesman Alfred Basile said. “Recent cleanup work, including efforts to stabilize mine waste and reduce contaminant releases to surface waters from source areas, have improved environmental conditions and will inform the development of future cleanup remedies for the entire site.”

Speaking to La Plata County commissioners in June, Christina Progess, the Bonita Peak Superfund site manager, said the EPA always prefers to spend money on cleanup, not litigation.

“The concern why downstream communities are getting so much money ... is a valid concern I’d have if I were you as well,” she told commissioners during a board discussion session. “But we’re trying to spend money we have to improve water quality.

And we hope the settlements allow (New Mexico and the Navajo Nation) to do similar things on their lands.”

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telegraph

Seven years in, the Bonita Peak Superfund site has only slightly improved water quality in the Animas as the EPA continues to research the problem on the ground and come up with the best solution. Peter Butler, a co-founder of the Animas River Stakeholders Group, said he believes that now that the EPA has settled the lawsuits, the agency will ramp up cleanup efforts.

“Now that it’s settled, hopefully the EPA can talk more openly about their plans,” Butler said. “I don’t think people regret (going the non-litigation route), but there is a fairness issue. We didn’t file a suit and didn’t get anything. And they got a pretty good settlement.”

The greater good Since the Gold King Mine spill happened, a lot of money has been exchanged (and not exchanged: the EPA, for instance, denied liability for $1.2 billion in private damages, such as rafting companies that took a hit during the river closure, lost wages for the tourism sector and alleged damage to crops and livestock). EPA’s Basile added a separate lawsuit settlement will have Sunnyside Gold pay $41 million to the federal government and $4 million to Colorado, all to be used on top of the federal government’s $45 million for the Bonita Peak site.

When The Durango Telegraph contacted the Colorado Attorney General’s Office this week to ask why the state decided not to pursue litigation against the EPA, Lawrence Pacheco, spokesman for the office, wrote in an emailed response: “The Colorado Department of Law is currently in negotiations with the federal government regarding natural resources damages related to releases from the Bonita Peak Mining District.” Pacheco declined to comment further.

At the end of the day, however, local officials say the best payout of all would be improved water quality in the Animas River watershed. Yet, Brookie said it does sting to see the dollar amount going to a New Mexico community that may not necessarily have a case for claiming they were impacted by the Gold King Mine spill.

“With New Mexico, it’s upsetting, because they just wanted to take advantage.

What’s that saying? ‘Never let a good crisis go to waste,’” Brookie said. “But we saw (the spill) as a bigger problem rather than a single community victimized. We just wanted to get on with the cleanup.”

FlashinthePan

Got herbs?

Condiments are a tour de flavor using what’s in your garden

by Ari LeVaux

S

ome of the best chefs I know are vegetable farmers, preparing their own produce in their home kitchens during the heat of summer. With a hungry crew grumbling in the fields, time is of the essence, but the rush won’t diminish the farm cook’s determination to serve fresh, high-quality produce at its absolute best.

Cooking for a large group, preferably with as much free food as possible from the farm, means a deluge of vegetables. It means lots of chopping. Nonetheless, most farm recipes come together quickly. There is enough to squash all appetites and leave the eaters nourished as well as satisfied. While preparing such meals, a farm cook can go head-to head with any line cook. And the menu planning, recipe development, leftovers utilization and inventory awareness required of farm cooks puts them on the level of an executive chef.

Cua Grogan is one such chef. A Montana farmer of Hmong descent, her ancestors came from the rugged hill country around Vietnam, China, Myanmar, Thailand and Laos. Her parents fought alongside the Americans in the war, where Hmong fighters specialized in rescuing downed pilots from the steep jungle. When the war ended, the U.S. government resettled the Hmong fighters and their families. Many chose to live in Montana, where the farming is good, the people are nice, and the mountains remind them of home.

Most vegetable lovers have a special appreciation for herbs, and Cua is no exception. This time of year, she prepares

“Pepper,” a condiment that combines garlic, onion and herbs with Asian ingredients like fish sauce, Thai chili peppers and lemongrass – which Cua grows in a greenhouse and sells at market. Any herbs can be used, she says, including mint, basil, cilantro and parsley. As the season progresses, the lineup of ingredients in Pepper change. In early summer, she uses garlic scapes. In late summer, she uses fresh chilies rather than dried.

“We scoop Pepper onto whatever we are eating,” she told me. “Even plain rice.”

Cua then leaned in conspiratorially.

“When I’m eating alone, I just mix Pepper with cucumber.” Sometimes, instead of mixing it in, she said, she slices the cucumber and scoops it up like chips and salsa.

I took a load of the requisite ingredients back to the lab, where I was able to confirm that Pepper goes marvelously with whatever you scoop it on. And, as promised, it makes the most humble bowl of rice taste like an exotic meal. Pepper is not very salty but is full of strong flavors that interact with what you eat, making anything it touches more interesting.

Then I tried adding cucumbers, per Cua’s suggestion. It was a spectacular combination, and I can understand why somebody would want to hide away and eat it privately. The watery, crispy cucumber almost completes the Pepper experience. But I felt something was missing, to my taste. I wanted vinegar with my herbs and cucumbers. I wanted Peppered Pickles.

So I added white wine vinegar and let it sit for a few minutes. It was amazing. The next day, even better. Crisp, aromatic and

refreshing, the whole family fell in love with these Peppered Pickles.

And moving forward, I’ll be prepping Pepper whenever I have fresh herbs. Adding it to your meal is a glorious way to eat.

Here is Cua’s recipe for Pepper. Scoop it onto whatever you are eating, and enjoy the aromatic whirlwind of flavor. It serves a lot of people, unless one of them is Cua, who might just eat it all.

Pepper 2 stalks lemongrass 1 bunch basil 1 bunch cilantro 1 bunch mint 1 bunch parsley 1 bunch spring onions, white and green parts 5 garlic scapes, or 5 cloves of garlic Crushed hot pepper flakes, to taste 2 tablespoons fish sauce Mince all ingredients but the fish sauce. Stick to one ingredient at a time, and keep chopping until it’s finely cut.

The chopping can be an intimidating task, but it’s worth it.

Combine the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Add the fish sauce. Taste. Add more if necessary. If you want it saltier, but have limited tolerance for fish sauce, use salt.

If you want to make Peppered Pickles, you don’t need to mince the herbs as finely. A coarse chopping will be fine.

Then add cucumbers, also chopped coarsely, and enough white wine vinegar to cover everything.

Alternatively, substitute yogurt for the vinegar for a tangy, creamy, cooling snack with pizzazz aplenty.

telegraph

July 28 2022 n 11

StufftoDo

Thursday28 Spanish Conversation Hour, 11:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m., Pine River Library, Bayfield.

Durango Green Drinks, 5-7 p.m., 11th Street Station.

Ska-BQ with The Casual Fridays, 5 p.m., Ska Brewing, 225 Girard St. Bingo Night, 5 p.m., Fenceline Cider, Mancos.

Dustin Burley plays, 5 p.m., Fur Trappers Steakhouse, 701 E. 2nd Ave. Live music, 5 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

Larry Carver & Jack Ellis play, 6 p.m., Derailed Pour House, 725 Main Ave.

Larry Carver & Jack Ellis play, 6 p.m., Fur Trappers Steakhouse, 701 E. 2nd Ave.

Ru Paul’s Drag Race Watch Party, every Friday, 68 p.m., Father’s Daughters Pizza, 640 Main Ave.

Rim Trio plays, 6-9 p.m., Union Social House, 3062 Main Ave.

Bo Depena plays, 6 p.m., Fox Fire Farms, Ignacio.

Community Yoga, 6-7 p.m., Yoga Durango, 1485 Florida Rd. Donations accepted.

Ben Gibson plays, 6 p.m., Fur Trappers Steakhouse, 701 E. 2nd Ave.

Ragged Oak plays, 7-10 p.m., 11th Street Station.

You Knew Me When plays, 6 p.m., Fenceline Cider, Mancos.

The Mysto Really Big Magic Show, 7:30 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Dr.

Movies in the Park Series: “Encanto!” movie begins at dusk, Buckley Park. In Spanish with English subtitles.

Kirk James Band plays, 8 p.m., Tico Time Resort, near Aztec.

Silent Disco, 10 p.m.-1 a.m., 11th Street Station.

th

Live music, 5 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.

Sunday31

Ali McGuirk plays the free Concerts in the Park series, 5:30 p.m., Buckley Park.

The Mysto Really Big Magic Show, 7:30 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Dr.

Wild Roses play, 6 p.m., Union Social House, 3062 Main Ave.

Bat Walk & Talk, learn about bats and the environment, 8 p.m., Powerhouse Science Center, 1333 Camino del Rio.

Ice Cream Social & Garden Party, 1-3 p.m., The Gable House, 805 E. 5th St. Proceeds benefit the Animas Museum.

Saturday30

Reeder & Spencer play, 1-4 p.m., 11th Street Station.

Maddy & Kev play, 6 p.m., James Ranch Grill, 33846 Highway 550.

Alex Forsthoff & Friends play, 6-9 p.m., Durango Hot Springs.

Trivia Night, 6:30 p.m., Powerhouse Science Center, 1333 Camino del Rio. Deadline for “Stuff to Do” submissions is Monday at noon. To submit an item, email: calendar@durangotelegraph.com

Chuck Hank & Friends play, 7-10 p.m., 11 Street Station.

Matthew Marcus McDaniel plays, 7-10 p.m., 11th Street Station.

The Mysto Really Big Magic Show, 7:30 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Dr. Geeks Who Drink Trivia, 8 p.m., The Roost, 128 E. College Dr. Comedy Show, 9 p.m., Olde Tymers Café, 1000 Main Ave.

Friday29 San Juan Nature Hike, meet at Andrews Lake upper parking lot at 9 a.m., hosted by San Juan Mountains Association.

Gary Walker plays, 10 a.m.-12 noon, Jean-Pierre Bakery & Restaurant, 601 Main Ave. Giovanina Bucci plays, 5 p.m., Nugget Mountain Bar, 48721 Highway 550.

Durango Flea Market, 8 a.m., La Plata County Fairgrounds, 2500 Main Ave.

Durango Farmers Market, 8 a.m.–12 noon, featuring music from Daniela Chávarro, TBK Bank parking lot, across from the Transit Center.

Pete Giuliani plays, 1-4 p.m., Hillcrest Golf Club.

“Cheers for Children,” a fundraiser for Riverhouse Children’s Center, 4-8 p.m., River Bend Ranch.

Transportation will be provided by Mild to Wild.

Tickets: cheersforchildrendurango.com.

Bayfield Farmers Market, 8 a.m., 1328 County Road 501.

Community Art Market, 11 a.m., Hermosa Café, 738 Main Ave.

Open Mic, 5 p.m., Fenceline Cider, Mancos.

Pine River Festival, 12 noon-8 p.m., Bayfield.

Featuring music by Marty O’Reilly & the Old Soul Orchestra, Elder Grown, Liver Down the River, High Country Hustle, Blue Moon Ramblers and others. Food, drink and craft vendors. pineriverfestival.com Pete Giuliani plays, 4-5 p.m., Buckley Park. Benefit for JP Pritchard Charitable Foundation.

Live music, 5 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave. Live music, 5 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave. Hammers & High Heels, a fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity, 6 p.m., Ska Brewing, 225 Girard St. Open Mic Night, 6-8 p.m., 5:30 sign up, Mountain Monk Coffee, 558 Main Ave.

Flyin’ Dirt Band plays, 5 p.m., Nugget Mountain Bar, 48721 Highway 550.

Woodland Remedy plays, 5 p.m., Mancos Brewing Co. Live music, 5 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

Comedy Show, 6:30 p.m., Olde Tymers Café, 1000 Main Ave.

Monday01 Live music, 5 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

Live music, 5 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave. Live music, 5 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.

Live music, 5 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

Authors in the Parklet: Phil Brown, 5:30 p.m., Maria’s Bookshop, 960 Main Ave.

Live music, 5 p.m., The Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.

Nu Bass Theory plays, 6 p.m., Fenceline Cider, Mancos.

The Lost Boys String Band plays, 5:30 p.m., Mancos Brewing Co.

San Juan Mountain Boys play, 6 p.m., Weminuche Woodfire Grill, Vallecito

Drinkin’ & Thinkin’ Music Trivia, 7 p.m., Weminuche Woodfire Grill, Vallecito

Tuesday02 Twin Buttes Farm Stand, every Tuesday, 3-5:30 p.m., 165 Tipple Ave.

Summer Special: $599 Annual Membership Unlimited classes for a full year!

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12 n July 28, 2022

telegraph

AskRachel

In a pickle, not norm & going postal Interesting fact: Pickleball’s popularity is growing more than 20% a year and is the fastest-growing sport in America. Maybe the U.S. Postal Service should get involved.

Dear Rachel, Garage sale… yard sale… We need money for pickleball. So. We have people using the public right-of-way to sell junk from the trunk. Garage and yard sales. So how about the city sell signage that looks great and the moneys go to the parks and rec dept. This will give a lot of money to the city. They would be required to remove the signage that city workers have to remove. After all, they are using our land to make money and pay no taxes. Hey, we have all kinds of rules to live in the great outdoors. SO PAY UP OR SHUT UP. When you get charged with littering by not removing your signs after the sale, after all your address is on the sign… DA… HELLO. – Penny Pincher Dear One-Cent Squeezer, See, this is why I don’t go yard-saleing. I’m certain there are plenty of perfectly good people, with perfectly good junk, in their perfectly good trunks, available at perfectly discounted rates. But I just have this disposition to presume that everyone at yard sales thinks and talks exactly like this letter. You lost me at pickleball, and yet I was held hostage the whole way through, without even a roll of quarters to pay my ransom.

– I’ll take the lot, Rachel Two Wheel Toosday, 5-8 p.m., annual competition for scooter and BMX, Durango Skate Park. DM Instagram @kai_lamont_benton

Dear Rachel, How do we come up with social norms? They can’t be innate to humans because they’re different everywhere you go. Like Europeans, in my experience, don’t care so much about BO. Americans would rather cut off their own arm than risk a stinky pit. I wonder if climate change will also change our socially accepted odor levels?

– Stinky Pete Dear Smelly Peter, Well, for one thing, climate change is causing 100 degree weather in England (That’s American degrees, thank you very much). I can’t imagine sitting on the first deck of a double-decker bus in those conditions with people sweating out bangers & mash. And another thing: we’ll all be underwater in 20 years anyway, so what’s it matter?

– Get a whiff of this, Rachel Dear Rachel, Well Amazon uses the U.S. Mail for a great cause: making money. Trump wanted to privatize it and put De Joy as head. Well, we used to have three postal centers in Durango, and now one. But do you know we have two mail boxes at 11th St. and E. 2nd Ave.? And one at each City Market and one hidden behind the gas station across from Star Liquor? Hidden gem. Can you tell me how many postal boxes we have in the city? Or is this a Trump plan to stop the vote if he is not in jail in 2024. Just asking.

– U.S. Male Lisa Blue Trio plays Community Concert Series, 5-7 p.m., Rochester Hotel, 726 E. 2nd Ave. Benefit for 4CORE. Live music, 5 p.m., Diamond Belle , 699 Main Ave.

Live music, 5 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave. Live music, 5 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave. Songbird James plays, 6 p.m., James Ranch Grill, 33846 Highway 550.

Open Mic Night, weekly 7:30-9:30 p.m., Starlight Lounge, 937 Main Ave. Comedy Open Mic, weekly, sign ups start at 8:30 p.m., show at 9 p.m., 11th St. Station.

Wednesday03 Big Brothers Big Sisters Monthly Meeting, 8-9 a.m., Durango Joe’s, 732 E. College Dr. Learn more about the organization, ask questions and meet matches. Plus, grab a cup of free coffee.

Morning Serenity: Small Group Meditation, 8-9:15 a.m., Durango Dharma Center, 1800 E. Third Ave, Suite 109.

Free but donations welcome.

Live music, 5 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave. Ben Gibson plays, 6 p.m., Fur Trappers Steakhouse, 701 E. 2nd Ave. The Mysto Really Big Magic Show, 7:30 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Dr.

Ongoing

Email questions to telegraph@durangotelegraph.com Dear First Class, Just for you, I dropped everything I was doing to comb the city and tally the mailboxes. But I was foiled again by the sheer audacity of businesses using the Postal Service to ship their goods – for money, no less!

I’m no Amazon-stroker, but of the Post Office’s 99 problems, bulk-rate customers ain’t one. Maybe we should host a trunk-junker for the USPS. We could set up miniature stations at each secret drop box. A sale for the mail.

– Eau de joy, Rachel

Upcoming Four Corners Jam Festival, Aug. 4-7, Tico Time Resort, near Aztec. ticotimeresort.com.

Durango PlayFest, Aug. 4-7, four days, four plays. More info at durangoconcerts.com Community Playwright Blossom Johnson will read from her play, “monster SLAYer” Aug. 6, 4:30 p.m., at the Festival Tent at FLC. Presented by the Durango Playfest.

Robert Kent Voss plays, Aug. 7, 4-7 p.m., at the Powerhouse Rockin’ on the River Concert Series.

Music in the Mountains, thru July 31, info and event listings at musicinthemountains.com.

Jeff Solon plays Community Concert Series, Aug. 10, 5-7 p.m., Rochester Hotel, 726 E. 2nd Ave. Benefit for Great Old Broads for Wilderness.

Women’s Resource Center Scavenger Hunt Fundraiser, self-guided through July, more info at https://bit.ly/3benos9 or call 970-247-1242.

Asleep at the Wheel plays, Midnight Backhand opens, Aug. 12, 8 p.m., La Plata County Fairgrounds, 2500 Main Ave. durangoconcerts.com

Shock Wave Drag Night, first and third Friday of every month, 9 p.m., Father’s Daughters Pizza, 640 Main Ave. 18+

Badly Bent plays Community Concert Series, Aug. 17, 57 p.m., Rochester Hotel, 726 E. 2nd Ave. Benefit for Mountain Studies Institute.

The Hive Indoor Skate Park open skate and skate lessons. Waivers required. For schedule and online waiver, go to www.thehivedgo.org

telegraph

Four Corners Christian Festival, Aug. 18-21, Tico Time Resort, near Aztec. ticotimeresort.com.

July 28, 2022 n 13

Enough to make LeBron smile.

FreeWillAstrology

by Rob Brezsny ARIES (March 21-April 19): Fiction-writer John Banville tells us, “There are moments when the past has a force so strong it seems one might be annihilated by it.” I suspect that’s sometimes true for many of us. But it won’t apply to you Aries anytime soon. In fact, just the opposite situation will be in effect during the coming months: You will have more power to render the past irrelevant than maybe you’ve ever had. You will wield an almost indomitable capacity to launch new trends without having to answer to history. Take full advantage, please!

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Researchers have proved that lullabies enhance the health of premature babies being cared for in hospitals. The soft, emotionally rich songs also promote the wellbeing of the babies’ families. I bring this to your attention, because I believe you should call on lullaby therapy yourself in the coming weeks. Listening to and singing those tunes will soothe and heal your inner child. And that, in my astrological opinion, is one of your top needs right now. For extra boosts, read fairy tales, eat food with your hands, make mud pies and play on swings, seesaws and merry-gorounds.

A new shipment of Telegraph T’s has arrived (Also available in muscle T if you wanna show off your pipes.)

In a variety of mens & womens sizes for all your exploits on and off the hardwood.

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14 n July 28, 2022

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Dancer and singer-songwriter FKA Twigs has taken dance lessons since she was a child. In 2017, she added a new form of physical training, the Chinese martial art of wushu. Doing so made her realize a key truth about herself: She loves to learn and practice new skills. Of all life’s activities, they give her the most pleasure and activate her most vibrant energy. She feels at home in the world when she does them. I suspect you may have similar inclinations in the coming months. Your appetite for mastering new skills will be at an all-time high. You will find it natural and even exhilarating to undertake disciplined practice. Gathering knowledge will be even more exciting than it usually is.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Cancerian author Laurie Sheck writes, “So much of life is invisible, inscrutable: layers of thoughts, feelings and outward events entwined with secrecies, ambiguities, ambivalences, obscurities, darknesses.” While that’s an experience we all have, especially you Cancerians, it will be far less pressing for you in the coming weeks. I foresee you embarking on a phase when clarity will be the rule, not the exception. Hidden parts of the world will reveal themselves to you. The mood will be brighter and lighter than usual. The chronic fuzziness of life will give way to a delightful acuity. I suspect you will see things that you have never or rarely seen.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): It’s always advisable for you Leos to carry on a close personal relationship with mirrors. I’m speaking both literally and metaphorically. For the sake of your mental health, you need to be knowledgeable about your image and monitor its ever-shifting nuances. And according to my analysis of the astrological omens, you are now authorized to deepen your intimate connection with mirrors. I believe you will thrive by undertaking an intense phase of introspective explorations and creative self-inquiry. Please keep it all tender and kind, though.

You’re not allowed to bad-mouth yourself. Put a special emphasis on identifying aspects of your beauty that have been obscured or neglected. By the way, Leo, I also recommend you seek compassionate feedback from people you trust. Now is an excellent time to get reflections about your quest to become an even more amazing human.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): At your best, you are a flexible purist, an adaptable stickler for detail and a disciplined yet supple thinker. Maybe more than any other sign of the zodiac, you can be focused and resilient, intense and agile, attentive and graceful. And all of us non-Virgos will greatly appreciate it if you provide these talents in abundance during the coming weeks. We need you to be our humble, understated leader. Please be a role model who demonstrates the finely crafted, well-balanced approach to being healthy.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In my Astrological Book of Life, your life purposes as a Libra may include the following: 1. to be beautiful in the smartest ways you can imagine and smart in the most beautiful ways you can imagine; 2. to always see at least two sides of the story, and preferably more; 3. to serve as an intermediary between disparate elements; 4. to lubricate and facilitate conversations between people who might not otherwise understand each other; 5. to find common ground between apparent contradictions; 6. to weave confusing paradoxes into invigorating amalgamations; 7. to never give up on finding the most elegant way to understand a problem. P.S.: In the coming weeks, I hope you will make extra efforts to call on the capacities I just named.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Author Clive James loved the Latin term gazofilacium, meaning “treasure chamber.”

He said that the related Italian word, gazofilacio, referred to the stash of beloved poems that he memorized and kept in a special place in his mind. In accordance with astrological omens, Scorpio, now would be an excellent time to begin creating your own per-

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sonal gazofilacium: a storehouse of wonderful images and thoughts and memories that will serve as a beacon of joy and vitality for the rest of your long life.

Here’s your homework: Identify 10 items you will store in your gazofilacium.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22Dec. 21): Tips to get the most out of the next three weeks: 1. Keep your interesting options open. Let your mediocre options shrivel and expire. 2.

Have no regrets and make no apologies about doing what you love. 3. Keep in mind that every action you perform reverberates far beyond your immediate sphere. 4. Give your fears ridiculous names like “Gaffe” and “Wheezy” and “Lumpy.” 5. Be honest to the point of frankness, but not to the point of rudeness. 6. Don’t just run. Gallop.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Capricorn poet Richard Hugo wrote, “It doesn’t bother me that the word ‘stone’ appears more than 30 times in my third book, or that ‘wind’ and ‘gray’ appear over and over in my poems to the disdain of some reviewers.”

Hugo celebrated his obsessions. He treated them as riches, because focusing on them enabled him to identify his deepest feelings and discover who he really was. In accordance with astrological omens, I recommend a similar approach to you in the coming weeks. Cultivate and honor and love the specific fascinations at the core of your destiny.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Author Violet Trefusis (1894–1972) and author Vita Sackville-West (1892–1962) loved each other. In one letter, Violet told Vita, “I want you hungrily, frenziedly, passionately. I am starving for you. Not only the physical you, but your fellowship, your sympathy, the innumerable points of view we share.

I can’t exist without you; you are my affinity.” In the coming weeks, dear Aquarius, I invite you to use florid language like that in addressing your beloved allies. I also invite you to request such messages. According to my reading of the planetary omens, you are due for eruptions of articulate passion.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): I’d like to honor and pay homage to a past disappointment that helped transform you into a beautiful soul. I know it didn’t feel good for you when it happened, but it has generated results that have blessed you and the people whose lives you’ve touched. Would you consider performing a ritual of gratitude for all it taught you? Now is an excellent time to express your appreciation, because doing so will lead to even further redemption.

classifieds

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: 9ish - 5ish Tues: 9ish - 5ish Wed: 9ish - 3ish Thurs: On delivery Fri: Gone fishing; call first

landscape. First Southwest Bank is a locally owned, independent community bank currently seeking staff for our Loan & Deposit Services departments. High starting pay, strong benefits & career growth opportunities. For details and to apply, visit fswb.bank/who-weare/careers. Member FDIC. Certified CDFI. SBA Preferred Lender. EOE. EHL.

Announcements

Free

Make America Great Again Jail Donald Trump and abort the Supreme Court.

Free: 45” Samsung TV in good condition and working. 970903-4420

Lost/Found

ForSale

Lost: Scott Spark Mountain Bike Black, lost off a bike rack in Durango.

970-749-1589.

Reruns Home Furnishings New inventory including patio sets, bistros, garden pots, nightstands, lamps, bookcases and lots more … Come in today! 572 E. 6th Ave. Open Mon.-Sat. 385-7336.

Found: Sport Watch Crater Lake Trail, 7/16. Call to identify and claim. (970)764-7388.

HelpWanted Part-time Housekeeper Position at Country Sunshine B&B; prepare guest rooms for check-ins; kitchen help; laundry; maintain common areas of B&B; $15/hour. Call 970-247-2853 and/or upload resume via email durangocountry sunshine@gmail.com SJMA is Hiring Operations Director San Juan Mountains Association is in search of a full time Operations Director.

Please see our web page sjma.org/jobs for more information. No phone calls please.

We’re Hiring!

Join our award-winning team dedicated to supporting rural Colorado’s nonprofit, agricultural and small businesses working to grow and enrich our communities. We put customer deposits to work to improve southern and rural Colorado’s social, environmental and economic

Marketing Small & Local Businesses Media, website building and content editing, copywriting and editing, newsletters, blogs, etc. for small, local, independent or startup businesses. Go to our website at www.forwardpedal.com or send an email to jnderge@gmail.com Harmony Cleaning and Organizing Residential, offices, commercial and vacation rentals, 970-403-6192.

Lowest Prices on Storage!

Inside/outside storage near Durango and Bayfield. 10-x-20, $130. Outside spots: $65, with discounts available. RJ Mini Storage. 970-259-3494.

BodyWork

ForRent 1-Bed Cottage Downtown Offered to mature, quiet, FT worker.

No smoking, no pets. $1,000/mo. + sec., elec., gas. 1-yr lease. Refs req. 970-3171018, please text.

Lotus Path Healing Arts Now accepting new clients. Offering a unique, intuitive fusion of Esalen massage, deep tissue & Acutonics, 24 years of experience. To schedule call Kathryn, 970-201-3373.

Massage by Meg Bush LMT, 30, 60 & 90 min., 970-759-0199.

HaikuMovieReview ‘Senior Year’ ‘Mean Girls’ meets ‘Heathers’ and post-coma Rebel who doesn’t have a clue – Lainie Maxson

CommunityService “Empty the Shelter” The Farmington Regional Animal Shelter is offering $10 adoptions through July 31 thanks to the support of the Bissel Pet Foundation. For more info., go to: fmtn.org/173/Animal-Shelter.

Durango PlayFest needs volunteers to help at this year’s festival, Aug. 4-7.

We need ticket-takers for the play readings and hospitality helpers at the annual gala, among other assignments. When you volunteer to work at a specific play, you get to attend that reading for free. To sign up go to: tinyurl.com/mumcxj7h

NewspaperOrigami

A blowfish

Wanted We are in hell!

We’re a young couple who has lived and been gainfully employed in Durango since 2015 (hey, one of us is a writer for this fair publication), but decided now was the perfect time to start looking to buy a home, because we’re idiots. But, if you are selling your home and would rather sell to people who have been here long enough to know what the Arc of History is, please shoot us an email at san.juaner1122@gmail.com Cash for Vehicles, Copper, Alum, Etc. at RJ Metal Recycle. Also free appliance and other metal drop off. 970-259-3494.

Services RSE Handyman Service Home repair - yard work - odd jobs 970-903-0449

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July 28, 2022 n 15

Save on n fuel

Appl pp y for o your electric vehicle loan today!

Contact your friendly lender for o rates and terms.

fsw fs wb.bank bb k 970.375.1100 | inffo o@fswb.c w om 600 E 2nd Av Ave, Durango o, CO 81301

16 n July 28, 2022

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