Durango Telegraph - November 27, 2019

All about that baste

­elegraph­ the­­­­durango

FREE Nov. 28, 2019

Vol. XVIII, No. 48 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

Food for thought Dishing up cultural perspectives on Thanksgiving p8

L I N E

The Quill is back Animas High revives school paper p11

O N

D U R A N G O

&

B E Y O N D

Bone appétit Wait! There’s plenty of life left in that turkey carcass p16

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lineup

8

4 La Vida Local

Food for thought What one of the country’s oldest holidays means to its longest inhabitants

4 Thumbin’ It

by Donna Hewett

5 Word on the Street

10

6-7 Soapbox

City unveils treatment plant, Polis’ plan for rural Colorado and trail closures

10 Quick ’n’ Dirty

Open for business

by Missy Votel

15 Day in the Life

15

16 Flash in the Pan

Ties that bind

17 Top Shelf

A trip down the forgotten tracks that unite two states photos by Stephen Eginoire

18 On the Town

16

20 Ask Rachel 21 Free Will Astrology

No bones about it Luscious turkey soup might arguably be better than the bird itself

by Ari LeVaux

22 Haiku Movie Review

17

On the cover: The Animas River carves its way through an idyllic early-morning preThanksgiving landscape earlier this week./ Photo by Stephen Eginoire

Father son bonding Nothing beats a bird in the bush for quality family time

by Chris Aaland

boilerplate

EDITORIALISTA: Missy Votel (missy@durangotelegraph.com) ADVERTISING AFICIONADO: Lainie Maxson (lainie@durangotelegraph.com) RESIDENT FORMULA ONE FAN: Tracy Chamberlin (tracy@durangotelegraph.com)

T

he Durango Telegraph publishes every Thursday, come hell, high water, beckoning singletrack or monster powder days. We are wholly owned and operated independently by the Durango Telegraph LLC and

22 Classifieds

STAR-STUDDED CAST: Lainie Maxson, Chris Aaland, Clint Reid, Stephen Eginoire, Jesse Anderson, Ari LeVaux, Tracy Chamberlin, Zach Hively, Donna Hewett and Shan Wells VIRTUAL ADDRESS: www.durangotelegraph.com

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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 shwag, booze and flattery.

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Ear to the ground: “All of a sudden, it becomes a life-ordeath mission to find eye drops.”

– Local discussing the dangers of being one toke over the line

Riding Hi

thepole

RegularOccurrences

Durango’s Oh Hi Beverages is breaking out the champagne glasses. The locally made THC-infused seltzers took home first place in the edibles category for their pomegranate flavor at the 2019 High Times Cannabis Cup, held Nov. 21 in Denver. The Cannabis Cup’s edibles category is the largest category in the competition.

This fruity bubbly water, which is enhanced with 10mg THC, is carb-friendly as well, with only 20 calories and 5 grams of sugar per can. The pomegranate is the top-selling of Oh Hi’s line, which also includes lemon lime, grapefruit and ginger basil lime.

Founded in 2018, Oh Hi was the first to market a canned THC seltzer in Colorado. It was the brainchild of Aaron Miles and Jonny Radding, co-owners of Durango Organics, and Matt Vincent, co-owner of Ska Brewing and founder of Ska Fabrication.

Coincidentally, the Cannabis Cup recognition came the same week that Oh Hi began canning its CBD seltzers, which come in all the same flavors. The drinkables can be bought at dispensaries across town and Colorado. For a location near you, go to: ohhibev.com/storelocator.

Please, Mr. Postman While the rest of the world is singing fa-la-lala-la, Snowdown fans are singing fa-la-la-la-follies. That’s right, Durango’s annual bawdry lampoon of all things sacred is only a few short months away. Which means it’s time to start scheming about how to get tickets.

To alleviate the all-nighter sidewalk squatting of years’ past, the Follies will once again be holding its mail-in lottery, this year on Sat., Dec. 7 (which means you need to get your entries in the mail no later than Dec. 2 to be safe.)

About 400 tickets will be available by mail.

Folks can buy up to four per entry (12 per household). Although you can enter as many times as you’d like, your name can only be drawn once.

Tickets are $20 each and must be paid by check or money order (photo copies of checks, cash or credit cards will not be accepted.) Checks that are not chosen will be returned via a self-addressed envelope (no stamp necessary) that you supply. And this should probably go without saying, but the name on the form must be a live, adult human, 18 years of age or older.

Mail-in order forms may be found at snow downfollies.org and must be received at P.O. Box 2342, Durango, CO 81302 by 9 a.m. Sat., Dec. 7.

If you miss the boat, don’t fret. There will be more chances to score tickets, including box office sales Jan. 18 and “Marketplace” tickets starting Jan. 21 at Bank of the San Juans’ downtown location.

“A Rockin’ Snowdown 2020” will take place Wed., Jan. 29 – Sun., Feb. 2. For more details, visit: snowdownfollies.org.

Nov. 28, 2019 n

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opinion

LaVidaLocal Running on empty Many people set New Year’s resolutions to burn off all the gratuitous food they ate over the holiday season, which currently extends from Valentine’s Day clear through to Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. I, however, am opposed to setting myself up for failure on the first day of the year with such a resolution. That’s why I set myself up for failure well before the first chestnut was roasted and the first egg was nogged. I took up running.

Now I am not new to running. I have run before. Most recently, I ran a mile in gym class my freshman year of high school, which was not so very long before this year’s seniors were born.

The important thing for my resolution’s purposes is that I ran that entire mile without stopping for more than five minutes or so at a time.

I am reasonably certain that, as a grown man with much more life experience of sore muscles and joint pain, I’ll be able to stop for 10, even 15 minutes at a time.

Those recovery breaks will be essential if I am to kid myself into believing I can accomplish something I have not yet done –not even cumulatively – in my entire life, which is to watch “Game of Thrones.”

Just kidding! I never watch television shows in progress until the public reacts to the show’s finale; I learned my lesson from “Seinfeld.”

No, what I’ll be accomplishing is my nonNew Year’s resolution, set back in October, to run for 30 whole entire minutes.

To the seasoned athletes out there, 30 minutes of running likely sounds as simple as, I don’t know, eating a grapefruit. But what the seasoned athletes out there need to realize is that eating a grapefruit is REALLY HARD for those of us with English degrees and a lack of access to steroids.

Turns out there’s a proper technique for eating grapefruit to prevent injury and fatigue, which feels completely alien. You never know if today’s grapefruit will be blissfully flavorful or painfully tart, except that you always, always pick the tart ones. And you end up getting squirted in the face until you cry, you throw away your little serrated spoons in disgust, your whole body hurts, you can’t breathe, you might even vomit a little, you lose your appetite, you wake up the next day with calves so tight you can hardly limp to the bathroom, and you regret ever publishing in the news-

paper that you would eat 30 whole entire grapefruits because you will be publicly humiliated if you give up now.

But, being the champion fighter you are, you still get out of bed four or five days later and go eat another grapefruit, because this gargantuan effort really doesn’t take too much time out of the day. Plus, if you can keep this up through Christmas, you can eat anything you please with absolute diplomatic immunity.

Let’s be frank: it really is the food that keeps me going. No point in failing to burn off all those visions of sugarplums come January when I can eat double the candied yams in December. My intention to take a jog will likely burn off at least some quantity of the calories that an actual run might require. I never hurt anyone else’s feelings by saying no to their cookies, and I never hurt my own with well-deserved guilt. I cannot conceive of a scenario with more winning.

Still, it is true that I make some space between meals for physical exertion. I found a running plan, called “Couch to 5k,” that I had printed out the last time I made this non-New Year’s resolution. It’s a clever concept – over five weeks, any ol’ couch potato can build incrementally from zero running at all to dropping out of the program entirely.

For instance, Week One suggests a brisk fiveminute warmup walk, followed by eight repetitions of jogging for 60 seconds and walking for 90 seconds, three times that week, each one followed by a large green chile pizza. Week Two elevates the challenge to 90 seconds of jogging, two minutes of walking, and a side of cheesy breadsticks. Out of nowhere, the end of Week 5 pounces with 20 minutes of nonstop running. I had the foresight to read ahead on the schedule, however, so I knew which dates to book myself doing absolutely anything else.

Yet now the moment of reckoning is nigh. The beginning of the culmination of the true holiday season is upon us, when the only out-of-place seasonal items in retail stores are decorations for next Halloween. Come the day after Thanksgiving, I will know if all my calorie-chowing intentions have succeeded, or if I am doomed to carry around my failure until, like everyone else, I correct course with a proper New Year’s resolution.

On a hunch, could someone teach me how to eat a grapefruit?

This Week’s Sign of the Downfall:

Thumbin’It News that skiing on “the beach” at Vallecito’s Nordic trails could return this winter under an agreement that entails a fee, part of which would go toward grooming The Durango-La Plata County Airport receiving $2.5 million in federal funds to help acquire land for a much-needed expansion Tri-State voting to allow member coops, including LPEA, to add community solar projects that would not be subject to the current 5 percent cap on renewables

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– Zach Hively

Yet another Romaine lettuce e. coli scare, with local stores pulling heads off shelves just days before the Thanksgiving feast The season’s first big storm expected to snarl traffic and travel throughout Colorado and much of the country on the biggest travel weekend of the year More dire warnings on climate change, with a new U.N. report declaring the world is headed toward catastrophe, with global greenhouse gas emissions growing 1.5 percent a year over the last decade

telegraph

Times New Conman Apparently, Trump has an assistant of his print out unflattering articles so he can write comebacks in all-caps next to the annoying parts – his favorites are “BAD WRITER” or “OH REALLY.” The reason Trump doesn’t type the comebacks is that he got his first computer in 2007 (even though he “knows more” about computers than anybody), so he relies on shorthand. BuzzFeed got a hold of the annotated articles, and they created a font that readers can download for free, and, of course, it’s called “Tiny Hand.”

WordontheStreet

Q

With Thanksgiving Day upon us, the Telegraph asked: “What float would you like to see in Macy’s iconic parade?”

Brooke and Pippa

“One devoted to the environment and wildlife.”

Patti

“A big house where everyone can just get along.”

Josh

“I’d like to see a ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ float.”

Tom

“A gigantic inflatable motorhome.”

Nick

“An enormous goblin or orc balloon.”

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Nov. 28, 2019 n 5

SoapBox

ReTooned/by Shan Wells

Double-dipped at the doctor’s To the editor, I want to add to recent complaints about charges by the supposedly nonprofit corporation Centura Health for services received at Mercy Medical Center. On Sept. 9, I had a routine visit with a physician’s assistant in one of Mercy’s offices.

Medicare was billed twice for this visit, which hasn’t happened before. I talked to someone at Centura and was advised that the first charge of $387 was to see the PA. The second charge of $308.92 was for the privilege of setting foot in this office, what Centura now calls a “facility charge.” So the total charge for this routine office visit was almost $600!! That’s obscene! Medicare is being ripped off, as is anyone who gets service at Mercy, especially if they have to pay full price!! We see one of the reasons the U.S. has the highest per capita health care costs in the world.

On Nov. 5, I had an office visit at another provider on the Mercy campus. So Medicare will probably get two bills for this as well.

This “facility charge” is new. It almost doubles the cost of each visit. Is it in effect at Mercy’s outlying offices as well? How does this price gouging jibe with Centura’s nonprofit status? Anyone who gets services at a provider in Mercy might want to look for an alternative if one is available.

– Carole McWilliams, Bayfield

Shop local heroes this Saturday To the editor, Small Business Saturday, which takes place the day after Black Friday (Nov. 30 this year), has slowly become an American tradition following the Thanksgiving 4

This one goes to 11

(Issue 11 is landing soon.)

Wherever you find the Telegraph or at www.gulchmag.com.

To find out about advertising opportunities, email: steve@gulchmag.com 6 n Nov. 28, 2019

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holiday. Brick-and-mortar businesses across the country promote their best deals of the year in hopes of luring shoppers from online purchases. It was not so long ago that Americans would visit locally owned small retailers in a downtown area to purchase all of their gifts. Business owners would decorate their shops with lights and ornaments, or create elaborate window displays, to grab the imagination of a passerby to lure them inside. The holiday shopping season was a magical time of year, and many of us still hold on to those memories today.

Given the dramatic shifts in the retail environment over the last 20 years, those holiday scenes and traditions are in danger of passing into the realm of nostalgic folklore. Recent surveys show that over 80 percent of Americans make regular online purchases throughout the year.

Many locally owned businesses struggle to find new ways to compete with mega online shopping sites. In order to better compete, small business owners have become very innovative in the way they sell and promote their products and services. Some are bringing back the retail traditions of the past by providing personalized one-on-one assistance to customers and the selling of niche items found nowhere else in town.

Although online merchants have driven many retailers into closing their doors, small business remains the one stable job creator in most communities across Colorado.

Here at home, Colorado’s 631,000 small businesses continue to generate two of every three net new jobs and deliver essential goods and services in both rural and urban communities. They employ more than 1.1 million Coloradans, and make this state a better place to live in. As the voice of America’s entrepreneurs, the U.S. Small Business Administration celebrates the nation’s 30 million small businesses that still ignite our local economies and enrich our communities throughout the year.

In 2018, Small Business Saturday provided a huge boost to the overall U.S. economy when 104 million consumers shopped or dined small and generated nearly $18

billion in reported spending. With increased consumer confidence in the economy, this year’s Small Business Saturday looks to be even brighter.

American workers continued to see higher wages and paychecks over the last several quarters. In October, an incredible 128,000 jobs were created nationwide, blowing past all expectations. The unemployment rate remains historically low at 3.6 percent – its lowest point in nearly 50 years. This translates into great news for small retailers and restaurants across the country because consumer spending during the holidays is expected to remain strong at 2.9 percent as a result of our growing economy.

These positive numbers have helped small businesses, the backbone of Colorado’s economy, to thrive and grow.

Economic prosperity is good news not only for America’s small businesses but for society as a whole. In so many ways, small businesses act as the glue that holds our communities together. They fund the local tax base, finance local nonprofits and charitable organizations, and create good jobs that boost the overall marketplace. By backing our locally owned small businesses, you support thousands of jobs and the families they sustain. Small businesses are the backbone of our democracy, and the future solution to our most pressing economic problems.

On Nov. 30, Small Business Saturday, please join us in making at least one purchase from a locally owned small business in your city or town. These business owners are the true heroes of our community, and they deserve our appreciation.

– Dan Nordberg, administrator, Small Business Association Region VIII and Frances Padilla, district director, SBA Colorado District

Sick over the cost of a flu shot To the editor, Take advantage of City Market’s offer to get your free flu shot – it’s good for you, and good for our community.

Do not, on the other hand, be duped into paying for

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a flu shot from your local physician. I made this mistake. I very clearly do not have an ACA plan, and yet I was offered (and not advised of the cost for) a flu shot which turned out to cost $120. Health providers should be watching out for their patients, not just ripping them off. I am appalled, and hope you’ll be more careful than I was.

– Anne Markward, Durango

Tipton blinded to CORE values

To the Editor: I am a newer resident to Colorado, attracted by the natural beauty and wildlife of the area. I also am a firm believer in holding our legislators accountable for their voting record.

On Oct. 31, Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Colo., voted NO to the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Economy Act (CORE), a bill that aims to protect some 400,000 acres of public land from resource exploration. A bill that would protect our ability to hunt, hike, camp and ski.

I understand Rep. Tipton has deep Tea Party roots and heavily favors government DEregulation. I also understand a “deregulation” political ideology favors the extraction industries, giving them more free rein to profit from gas and oil leases on public land. I also understand that Tipton receives financial support for re-election from that industry. (ex: SG Interests, a Texas-based energy company and its lobbying firm). Tipton’s focus on deregulation has blinded him to his responsibility of public protection.

The CORE Act represented a decade-long effort from ranchers, environmentalists and sportsmen to stop new energy development in prime wildlife habitat and headwaters for many river systems. Tipton does not represent my values of clean air, water and land.

– Suzanne Motsinger, Dolores

Nov. 28, 2019 n 7

LocalNews

Dishing up cultural perspective Area residents weigh in on the myths and realities of Thanksgiving

by Donna Hewett

I

haven’t any family close by to celebrate Thanksgiving with this year (except my darling husband), but I still have my friends, and I greet the day with an attitude of gratitude. Gratitude, after all, is the key that unlocks fullness in life. It turns what we have into enough (and more); it turns a meal into a feast; a house into a home; and a stranger into a friend.

Speaking of strangers, it’s sad to admit that people can live parallel lives in the Four Corners – and throughout the country – without truly knowing anything about their neighbors. We can say hello and goodbye in Spanish or French but not generally in Navajo or Ute. Can you tell someone “thank you” in her own language?

I decided to break my own barriers with a prickly question: How (or do) Native Americans recognize Thanksgiving?

Each time I asked someone, it was enlightening for us both.

“Like any other American,” Oliver, a Vietnam vet, shot back over the noisy hum of the slots at Sky Ute Casino. I liked his answer and asked if I could take his picture. He declined and turned away.

“It is kinda hard to talk about,” Tallias Cantsee, 41, director of education at the Southern Ute Museum and Cultural Center in Ignacio, shop at the Museum, said. said. “A lot of us do celeCantsee said the meaning of Thanksgiving is misconbrate (a traditional) Thanksstrued. “When you look at media and what we have been giving, but I think it’s more provided in public education, it’s that the natives were unaligned with our elders who able to care for themselves,” he said. “The pilgrims had a were forced into boarding dinner and invited the natives, but in reality, it was the schools. They were more or other way around. The first charters that came across – a less brainwashed out of lot of them perished because they didn’t know what the their culture and shown foods were about here.” more non-native holiday And while still other Native Americans use Thanksgivcelebrations.” Elders like ing as a day of mourning or fasting in honor of their anCantsee’s father and grandcestors, the overwhelming number of folks I talked to use Cantsee mother, who were Christhe day off to cook and feast with precious family and tianized and Anglicized in friends. For the Utes, the main dish is deer or elk stew. For boarding school starting at age 5 or 6. the Navajo, it can sometimes mean horse.

“The main idea in the boarding school was to kill the “Horse has a good old texture. You have to experience Indian and save the man. Every generation has tried to deal it for yourself,” Chris Chavez, a Navajo American, said with what they call the ‘Indian probwhile at the Nizhoni (Beautiful) lem,’ coming up with remedies to deTrading Co. in Farmington. The construct the Native American, which store is owned by Meridee has led to this kind of inculturaliza(Tweedy) Walters and Priscilla tion,” he said. “For me, personally, I’d Saltwater, who act more like sisters say it’s a celebration of survival if anythan business partners. thing. I certainly wouldn’t say it’s a cel“Thanksgiving was a tradition ebration of the original Thanksgiving.” in a good spirit, with good intenIt’s about heritage and kindness for tions, sharing gratitude,” said most of us and has nothing to do with Walters, an Anglo whose family the buckle-hatted Pilgrims and kindhas been trading with the Navajo hearted Indians. But for some Native for more than a hundred years.

Americans, it’s like being asked if Amer“Those our age just adopted what icans celebrate Osama Bin Laden Day. was good, with not a lot of That’s what happens when people are thought about the history,” robbed of their real world. When their added Walters, a Baby Boomer. land, social structures, sovereignty and Priscilla Saltwater and Tweedy Walters “The Navajo people have always cohesion as a people are demolished. borrowed from other cultures.

It’s devastating to try to put the shards of one’s culture back They’re practical. The younger generation wants to reinto a workable tradition, let alone being “forced” to honor think it.” the festive days of the foe. It’s hard to over-estimate the However, the American holiday is similar to something damage caused by invasion and cultural annihilation. the Navajo already had going. Traditionally, a religious “I used to celebrate it in a traditional way, but when I feast day was held every November before the winter hunt. got older and more educated, I stopped. For us it’s a day at It was a celebration of the bounty of the earth, much like the movies. That’s it,” Sky Dawn, who works in the gift

8 n Nov. 28, 2019

telegraph

Abraham Lincoln envisioned when he proclaimed on Oct. 3, 1863, the fourth Thursday of November to be a federal holiday filled “with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies.”

To its credit, Thanksgiving is the most unadulterated of holidays in this country, uncontaminated by desperate marketing ploys (Black Friday is Christmas’ fault, not Thanksgiving’s). It was never meant to be shut up in one day, however. All of us should try to live gratitude every day, points out Priscilla’s husband, Larry Saltwater, who, along with his wife, is Navajo.

“We’ve always had a celebration of harvest that’s linked to Thanksgiving. We would gather and store food that would take us through the winter,” Larry Saltwater said.

“We’ve always done thankfullness and gratitude.

Grateful for the four sacred mountains. Grateful for surviving. It’s a teaching.”

Larry Saltwater speaks to the undeniable duality of the tradition across cultures. “I consider myself a Christian but I have to respect my culture as well,” he said. “It’s like two worlds. Nobody’s going to change it.”

Yet, there are some unmistakable similarities, he notes. For example, he comLarry Saltwater pares the designs in a Native American basket, which are seen as prayers of wisdom, to the Bible. “The teachings are the same. In prayer and song; in the old and new testament; and in the stories ‘read in’ the basket,” he said.

But there’s no sincerer love than the love of food. One of the things we can’t live without unites us like nothing other. The Navajo phrase shit tikan means “it tastes good – I like it!” That’s a cultural concept that has no boundaries.

Gobble gobble. n

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Nov. 28, 2019 n

9

Quick’n’Dirty Putting the plant gets pieces together Sewer down to business is my passion.

It’s time for Durango to take

Let me help you with the real estate puzzle.

Gillian Arnwine 970-749-3704 gillian@wellsgroupdurango.com

the sniff test. The City’s new wastewater treatment facility is officially open for business, if you’ll pardon the pun. Residents are invited to check out the City of Durango’s new Santa Rita Water Reclamation Facility on Wed., December 4, starting at 12 noon. The day’s events will include a ribboncutting followed by speeches from local dignitaries and members of the design and construction teams. After the ceremony, tours of the new facility will be available on a first-come-first-served basis. Lucky attendees can also grab commemorative Santa Rita Reclamation Facility coffee mugs while supplies last.

The nearly $59 million facility was the most expensive public- Local residents can now flush freely. The City’s new wastewater treatment plant is officially funded project in the City of Du- up and running. An open house and ribbon-cutting will be held Wed., Dec. 4. There will also rango’s history. Construction be tours on a first-come-first-served basis for those so inclined. /Photo by Stephen Eginoire began in the spring of 2017 after Durango voters OK’ed the City to take on $68 million in debt in Those caught in violation will be issued citations and fines.

The CPW notes there are plenty of other local trails that remain 2015 for the project. The new plant was needed in order to meet open during the winter, including Horse Gulch proper, the Mounmore stringent state standards requiring lower levels of phosphorous and nitrogen in treated wastewater, pollutants that can lead tain Park and lower loop of Animas City Mountain. Or, better yet, the trails at the ski area. to algae blooms.

The new state-of-the-art building is expected to serve the city for at least the next 30 years and was built to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, accommodate future growth and protect the quality of the Animas River. And, hopefully, reduce untoward odors with the use of larger, covered settling ponds and carbon air filters.

The project was originally slated for completion last May, but that date was postponed until the end of October. Durango City Council has raised sewer rates in recent years to pay for the new plant, with the average city resident now paying $51.43 per month. Rates may go up yet again, with the City Council recently giving tentative approval to a 3 percent increase in sewer rates.

Winter wildlife closures start Dec. 1 Locals are advised to get their last kicks on some of the area’s trail by Sat., Nov. 30, if the snow doesn’t get to them first. Colorado Parks and Wildlife has announced its annual winter wildlife closures will go into effect Dec. 1 – April 15, 2020. The closures, which are primarily on BLM and CPW lands, are meant to protect vulnerable big game herds during the precarious winter months.

“Winter is a tough time for big-game in this area,” Matt Thorpe, area wildlife manager for CPW, said. “They migrate to lower elevations, and it’s important that we don’t disturb and stress them with our outdoor activities. If they are forced to move to avoid you or your dog, they burn calories unnecessarily. And they need every spare calorie to make it through the winter and to give birth to healthy fawns and calves in the spring.”

Trails and areas closed Dec. 1 – April 15 include: • Bodo State Wildlife Area (Smelter Mountain Trail is open to foot-access only from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. but dogs are prohibited); • Perins Peak State Wildlife Area (areas east of La Plata County Road 208, near the Tech Center, are closed through July 31); • Big Canyon and Sale Barn trails; • South Rim Trail, including portions of Sidewinder and Cowboy trails on BLM property accessed from Carbon Junction or Crites Connection; • Grandview BLM trails accessed from Three Springs; • Animas City Mountain upper loop trails; • Twin Buttes upper trails Public access into those areas is prohibited during the closure (and all closures will be well marked with signs, so no excuses.)

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telegraph

‘Blueprint’ tackles rural Colorado issues Governor Jared Polis is mapping out a plan to help Coloradans thrive “no matter where they live.” On Fri., Nov. 22, Polis released his “Rural Economic Blueprint” in Montrose to an audience that included local, regional and state dignitaries, including members of his cabinet and Sen. Don Coram, R-Montrose.

The plan outlines ways to address concerns and challenges in rural communities, including high health-care costs, renewable energy and transitioning away from coal, road and bridge repair, broadband connectivity and diversifying local economies.

“I ran on ensuring a Colorado for all, where everyone in our state has the opportunity to thrive,” Polis said. “We are excited to unveil our rural economic blueprint, which we believe will lead to more prosperity all across our state from the Eastern Plains to Southern Colorado to the Western Slope. With true collaboration between rural communities and the state, we can truly build a Colorado for all.”

Polis also highlighted his successes thus far, including a plan to lower the cost of health care in rural areas and providing free, fullday kindergarten.

Although the plan does not include any major new funding or programs, he noted it will be accomplished by leveraging existing assets, programs and efforts.

The plan was based on more than 155 meetings and listening sessions held throughout the state.

“I’m proud to welcome Governor Polis back to Montrose,” Barbara Bynum, Montrose Mayor Pro-Tem, said. “It’s fitting that the Governor would make this important announcement in our community where we are innovating, investing in our future, ensuring our outdoor economy continues to thrive and our rural quality of life is protected.”

Polis also said the blueprint is not a one-size-fits-all scenario, noting the state’s various rural areas face different economic situations.

“There are communities that are growing and thriving. There are communities that have declining populations,” he said. “It’s not always the same solution for both.”

For areas losing population, he said the answer could lie in “location independent employment,” such as call centers or telecommuting opportunities.

– Missy Votel

Animas High School

animasquill.org

November, 2019

The Quill is Back! Animas High Journalists Resurrect Student Media

By Annabelle Mick In an era of constant turmoil in the political sphere, from the impeachment of a president to foreign interference in our elections, the work of journalists is as crucial as it has ever been. “As they say, journalists write the first draft of history,” stated Jessica McCallum, AHS journalism teacher and advisor of The Animas Quill. “There’s never been a more important time to be studying journalism in a democratic society. It prepares young people to critically read their world and express the issues important to them. As we all watch the media landscape transform, focusing on the pursuit of truth and clear communication is of paramount importance.”

The Quill originally started in the Spring of 2011 and was published monthly for five years until the Spring of 2016. That next

Photo courtesy of Jamie Wanzek

school year, Jessica turned her attention from teaching journalism to Spanish, at which time the Quill went on hiatus. When asked what inspired her to revive the newspaper, she said, “Quite simply, I wanted to bring it back because it was missing. At a project-based high school rooted in adult world connections and engaged learning, the lack of a student media organization left a hole in our programming.”

Thanks to the benevolent collaboration of The Durango Telegraph, the Quill will be featured as a periodic insert in everyone’s favorite local indie paper. When we asked editor Missy Votel what motivated her to work with the Quill, she said “I think it’s important to give budding young writers a taste of the exciting world of journalism! Even though the means of delivering news is changing, newsgathering, uncovering the truth and telling the oft-neglected

December Exhibition Preview

side of the story are more important now than ever. And who better to give a voice to than teens, who will (hopefully) grow up to be the vanguards of the so-called Fifth Estate.”

The student news organization has rebranded itself Quill Media in an effort to branch out to various platforms. The reboot of the Quill will not be simply focused on print journalism because as Jessica explained, “the media landscape in the world has changed, and so must we.” In addition to the insert in the Telegraph, Quill Media will deliver multimedia content via social media platforms and its website: animasquill.org.

Additionally, Quill Media has absorbed the broadcast news program formerly known as the “Friday Show.” Senior Robbie Patla is leading the effort to integrate more video journalism into the fold.

Patla, who is also an intern at Durango TV, said, “It’s very important to convey information through visual storytelling, and in this day and age video journalism has the power to inspire others and create change.”

Despite the diversification of media, print journalism will still be a focus of Quill Media. Beyond the newspaper, the Quill’s editors are looking at more creative ways to get student voice out to the general public through small paper magazine features called “zines.”

Just as national journalists are taking advantage of writing an important part of our country’s history, so will the “Quillspreys,” as Jessica affectionately calls them, a play on the AHS mascot, the osprey. “The Quillspreys are contributing to the documentation of our school’s history and evolution: this is the real work of journalism,” Jessica reflected.

Keep an eye out in The Durango Telegraph and check animasquill.org regularly for new stories about our school, our community, our nation, and our world. You can also follow Quill Media on Twitter (@animasquill), Instagram (@animasquillmedia), and Snapchat (@animas_quill).

Advanced Digital Arts

11th Grade Humanities

9th Grade Humanities

Students in Roxy McKnight’s Advanced Digital Arts elective will host an art opening and holiday market featuring original designs printed on a variety of items ranging from stickers to t-shirts. Pick up some holiday gifts and support student art!

Original Art by Joe Rioux

Juniors Trevor Harms, Nicholas Gilmore, and Abbey Shepard record a podcast about how automation might impact the job market in America.

The 11th graders will exhibit original student discourse in a variety of genres exploring some of America’s most pressing political and social issues.

Photo by Ava-Kadence Jennings

Freshman Za Barrett puts the finishing touches on her mask in Stephen Sellers’ Humanities class. Join the freshpeople as they present their handcrafted masks and personal essays that reflect what they’ve learned about the powerful forces of socialization on the formation of their identities.

Photo by Mya Oyler

What: Noel Night Graphic Design Expo and Holiday Market When: December 6th, 4-6pm Where: The Good Fight gym, Main Mall

What: Rhetoric, Ideology, and the Future of Work When: December 9th, 5:30-7:30pm Where: Fort Lewis College Ballroom

What: Socialization and Identity Project When: December 12th, 5:00-7:00pm Where: Durango Coffee Company

Welcome to the Renaissance!

Horoscopes By Steve

Editorial Staff

Greetings, dear readers! The Animas Quill has arisen from hibernation to deliver you the content that really matters: horoscopes by our illustrious star-gazing Chemistry teacher and ongoing coverage of the teacher-student meme wars. We, the triumvirate of editors, are thrilled to stuff you like a turkey with our journalistic prowess and pun power.

Animas High School values real-world application and community connections. On behalf of the Quillspreys, we would like to express profound gratitude for the opportunity to collaborate with The Durango Telegraph; we are honored to be a part of their out-of-the-box print journalism empire.

We are also thankful for our incredible Tech Goddess, OG Quill editor and Animas alum, Jamie Wanzek, who showed up to lead us out of the darkness that is Adobe InDesign. We are also

By Steve Smith, Aspiring Astrology Scholar Aries Aries, Aries, look over here.

Taurus Be very, very thoughtful on your choice of color.

Editorial Triumvirate Ava-Kadence Jennings, Billie Brand, and Mya Oyler

vehemently grateful to Jessica for fussing hard over everything we write. We graciously look forward to the celebratory editors’ feast we will be having after this issue is published.

We hope everyone has a safe and yummy holiday! Give thanks for the little things: coffee, snow, and the First Amendment.

Take it in, kids!

World News Haikus

Chile in chaos Bolivian president ousted Governments will fall

The Animas Quill Staff

Roses

2

Biden in first place Warren is right on his heels Who will face Donald?

Climate change is real It will kill us very soon But oil is money

Roses and Thorns Finance Director Christine Imming and her army of love selling candy for Osprey Week scholarships.

Cancer You will probably get hungry this week.

Leo Can you touch your toes?

Celebrate the small victories.

Virgo Don’t forget that one thing.

By Bryan Gnehm

Trump is in trouble Impeachment is moving fast White House clapping back

Gemini You’re really special...even your mom thinks so.

Israeli crisis Netanyahu indicted Vultures are circling

Libra You will have a chance encounter with a stranger.

Follow this stranger. You have much to learn from them.

Scorpio Your fears hold you back.

Sagittarius Remember that nursery rhyme you loved as a kid?

Follow its advice.

Thorns The walk from the lower lot is getting colder and more miserable everyday.

Capricorn You will find yourself reading a horoscope sometime this month.

AHS students showing up at City Hall last week to advocate for the plastic bag ban.

College application season is breathing down seniors’ necks like a dragon from hell.

Aquarius Be on the lookout...something interesting will happen.

Susy Raleigh and her French class opening the hallway café Crepes not Vapes to fundraise for their fashion show.

Teachers proofreading student memes, turning up the heat in the meme wars.

Pisces You will find true love, but probably not this month.

Triumvirate of Editors

Ava-Kadence Jennings Billie Brand Mya Oyler

Social Media Manager

Olivia Gilden

Photo Editor

Jacob Pinkerton

Webmaster

Sierra Holiday

Advisor

Jessica McCallum

InDesign Guardian Angel

Jamie Wanzek The Animas Quill

November, 2019

Reporters

Jack Dominick Bryan Gnehm Serra Kimsey Alex Kolter Flynn Kruchell Annabelle Mick Landon Moranty Diego Pagan Robby Patla Gretta Stahl Billie Brand Ava-Kadence Jennings Xavier Tyler Jackson Vaughn Payton Vaughn Olivia Gilden Mya Oyler

Website

animasquill.org

Social Media

Instagram @animasquillmedia Snapchat @ animas_quill Twitter @animasquill

Email

quill@animashighschool.com The Animas Quill strives to be an exceptional and relevant source of news and student perspectives, connecting the Ospreys of Animas High School to the Four Corners community and the world beyond.

Ospreys in the Wild: AHS Students Break in New Gear

By Diego Pagan

AHS Ospreys love it when their curriculum takes them outside into the wilderness. And thanks to the generous sponsorship of Colorado-based recreation company Kelty, our outdoor experiences are now supported by state-of-the-art camping gear.

Kelty, a company based out of Boulder, has donated over $3000 worth of tents, sleeping bags, canopies, and camping chairs to help Ospreys get outside in style.

This partnership was orchestrated by Digital Arts teacher and outdoor enthusiast Roxy McKnight, who first reached out to Kelty in 2018 when the freshman class took a three-day field trip to Biosphere 2 in Oracle, Arizona. While planning the excursion, Roxy realized that not all kids have camping equipment of their own. She was motivated to collaborate with an organization that could fill this gap. According to Roxy, “Kelty was stoked to be able to sponsor a small town rural school like Animas. Their mission aligns pretty well with our vision of getting kids out of the classroom and into nature as often as possible to fully take it in!”

Kelty rep Melissa Clymer shared, “Kelty chose to partner with AHS because we feel that your goal to get out and enjoy our beautiful wilderness is important.” Kelty started an initiative called Cure for the Common Kid that seeks to expand access to outdoor recreation to people who may otherwise lack opportunity.

“As a team, we spent a lot of time debating what Kelty’s cause should be. In the end, we agreed that it starts with the youth.

We want to help families, kids, schools, and organizations get

outside for any kind of adventure, breathing in the fresh air, and grow up appreciating the outdoors,” Clymer explained. “The fact that you live in Colorado, and [did] not have the assets to comfortably get outside for day trips, overnights, or more, hit home for us. Our world is a playground and everyone deserves to get out there.”

Ospreys have already put the equipment to great use during fall semester. The sophomores broke in the gear during their camping trip to Junction Creek in September. This experience gave students an opportunity to get to know each other better and bond with their teachers through fun activities such as rappelling, fly fishing, and mindfulness art.

Beyond just fun in the woods, teachers often like to connect their project-based curriculum to outdoor experiences. Advanced Digital Arts students used the gear to camp in the fall colors of the Santa Fe Mountains while exploring the art scene, including Meow Wolf and a variety of other graphic design exhibits. In October, seniors went to Chaco Canyon to learn more about the effects of fracking on the land and the people as a part of their Environmental Justice project. The Kelty gear makes trips like this easier to plan and execute, giving teachers and students more equitable access to outdoor experiences.

On behalf of the Animas community, the Quill extends an enormous thank you to Kelty for their sponsorship and support.

We look forward to many more amazing recreational and educational experiences in Colorado’s natural beauty.

Seniors Sarah Voss, Toby Aten, and Clara Wolf stay warm in the Santa Fe Mountains on the Advanced Digital Arts field trip.

Photo courtesy of Roxy McKnight

Senior Sierra Holiday catches some shade under the new canopy during her paddleboarding X-block. Photo courtesy of Roxy McKnight

Sophomores Elliot Smith, Sophia Flannery, Kenzie Galloway, and Sam Sturm bond and relax during the sophomore camping trip in September.

Photo by Jacob Pinkerton

November, 2019

The Animas Quill

3

Animas Teacher Wins Best Educator

By Billie Brand Lori Fisher is among the best and brightest of the human species, so it was no surprise to the Animas High School community when she won the award for Best Educator in the 2019 Best of Durango awards.

Lori felt humbly honored by the recognition. “To win that, people had to vote for me,” she commented. “To get recognized as a teacher is rare.”

She has been with Animas from the beginning, even counting the heads of the first graduating class of 2013 when they were freshmen to make sure they had enough funding to be a school. She found our wonderful teaching community in a Google search of “project-based charter schools Colorado.” She felt the forces align when she found Animas, which was closely modeled upon the school where she was working at the time, High Tech High in San Diego.

Lori started her journey when she was growing up in Homer, Alaska, and she had to create fun with her friends by going to abandoned factories and sliding down wood chip piles or by rappelling down water towers.

She left her small town in order to pursue her BA in Peace and Conflict Studies from the University of California, Berkeley. After graduation, she found a job as a fundraiser and lobbyist for YouthBuild USA. There she discovered she did not like writing grants at all, so she broke up with her boyfriend of six years and went on a trip to Nepal by herself. After exploring Southeast Asia, she found herself in Thailand and became a divemaster.

Lori planned to live in Thailand indefinitely to revel in her love of water and Thai food, but falling in love with one John Fisher threw a wrench into her plans.

She had traveled back to the U.S. to sell all of her belongings but found herself applying to graduate school at the Stanford Teacher Education Program and pursuing love instead. Although her favorite activity back then was wearing her Berkeley shirt on the Stanford Campus, she claims that the biggest influences to her teaching methods were her mentors at Stanford.

Sam Wineburg, Stanford professor of Education and History, responded to Lori’s talent and success:

“From the moment I met Lori, I knew she was going to be a superstar teacher. She was open-minded and understood the Social Studies curriculum in a global context, at a time when many still did not. It is no surprise to me that she is being recognized for her talents. It’s about time!”

Lori commented on the effectiveness of her teaching: “The first thing you have to do is know your students. If you don’t do that you’re flying blind. Support comes with experience and time.

A lot of times what you’re doing for struggling students is helping The legendary Lori Fisher, founding AHS Humanities teacher everybody.”

Lori has been cracking the code Photo by Jacob Pinkerton of teaching since 2006, and many will forever be better writers and humans because of her. It isn’t hard to see how many of her students have dubbed her an ‘iconic teacher.’ She has found a way to bring fun and engagement into her classroom while balancing the core conflicts of teaching. Lori started her career thinking that she “could be an okay teacher.” She has shown all of us that she’s not just “okay.” She’s the best.

Reduce, Reuse, Rethink

By Mya Oyler

The Pacific Ocean, once filled with thriving marine life and crystal clear water, is now home to a garbage patch twice the size of Texas. It weighs an outstanding total of 80,000 tons, which is equivalent to the weight of 500 commercial jets.

Within this mass, there are roughly 3.6 trillion pieces of trash with 1.8 trillion of these being various types of plastics. This would average out to 250 pieces of plastic for every human on Earth.

Humans’ crippling dependence on plastic is overtaking not only our everyday lives, but also our beaches, oceans, and cities. Plastic takes roughly 1000 years to decompose, meaning it will remain on Earth long after us.

Animas High School juniors are taking a deeper look at plastic by learning about the journey our waste goes through. Chemistry teacher Steve Smith said, “I hope [my students] want to create a large scale exhibition where people come and learn about the single-use materials (mainly plastics) in their lives and where all of that ends up.”

Although some types of plastic are recyclable, only 20% of that is actually recycled. The majority of it is ultimately discarded because of contamination.

Steve explained, “Aluminum is very easy to break down back into its original components which is why it’s mostly recycled. Plastic is not as easy to break down into its original pieces so it is less likely to be recycled even if it is put in the recycling bin.”

The types of plastic that are not recyclable are often single-use plastics. This includes plastic grocery bags, plastic straws, food packaging, and plastic lids. Alongside these single-use materials, there are single-use recyclable plastics that are often not recycled like water bottles and coffee cups.

These items have become incredibly convenient for us, and we are highly dependent on them for the ease of our day. I encourage you to look at your own consumption of these items and try to switch these out for more eco-friendly alternatives.

4

The Animas Quill

November, 2019

Juniors Riley Douglas, Darby Voorhees, and Lindsay Levine tour the Durango Recycling Center on a Chemistry field trip. 11th graders are tracking the different pathways our waste takes as part of their study of plastics.

Photo courtesy of Jessica McCallum

Instead of flimsy plastic bags at the store, buy a few cloth bags that can be kept in your car and used at any time. Instead of a single-use plastic bottle, buy a reusable water bottle that you can bring with you everywhere and refill it when you’re thirsty. This will actually be cheaper over time because you’re not constantly having to buy water. On average, an individual American will spend $100 per year on plastic water bottles which could so easily be cut down.

Instead of your plastic coffee cup, lid, and straw, invest in a portable mug. This one comes with a few added benefits: One being they often keep your drink hot or cold for longer. You can also save money in the long run. A lot of coffee shops even offer a discount for having your own cup.

One of the hardest things to combat is food packaging waste. This one is often out of our control as our favorite foods have already been wrapped in plastic. Although it’s not always as convenient or inexpensive, try to buy from sustainable sources, take advantage of bulk foods and go to a farmers’ market.

As our world is facing catastrophic changes, it is important that we reflect upon our own actions so we can preserve the beauty of our earth. Steve expressed, “Climate change is one of the most, if not the most pressing issue of our time and it will continue to be so. I can’t control this directly unless I can afford to put solar panels on my roof. But, I can decide not to use single-use plastics and make more conscious decisions of where I buy my food from.”

If we all begin to make these seemingly inconsequential decisions, our ocean, land, and cities will greatly benefit, and we will be able to preserve their beauty for years to come.

dayinthelife

Ties that bind

by Stephen Eginoire

F

rom 1902 until the mid-1960s, the railroad line between Farmington and Durango was busy hauling everything from agricultural supplies to oil drilling equipment up and down the Animas River corridor. Today, its grade is all but grown over, camou-

telegraph

flaged by cactus, brush and 50-plus years of retirement.

In some places, neighborhoods have popped up around rickety trestle bridges where an interesting juxtaposition of past and present can be found. Here’s a look at a few sites that are hidden in plain sight.

Nov. 28, 2019 n 15

FlashinthePan

Bone appétit

by Ari LeVaux

T

hanksgiving marks the start of the holidays, and a parallel season of enhanced leftovers consumption. It can be a freewheeling, chaotic time, when pieces of feasts and roast beasts are combined and reheated. But amid improvisations like refried mashed potatoes and microwaved kale salad, the most sacred act of leftovers season remains constant: bird bone soup.

The process begins when the table is cleared. As the uneaten sides and desserts are wrapped for the fridge, the motivated host will cut the remaining meat off the carcass, pluck leftover turkey bones from the returned plates, and add the bones and sinew to the stock pot. If you get started like this before the dust settles, that’s one less large object to cram into the fridge.

The first step in cooking bird bone soup is to prepare a stock from the carcass, herbs and aromatic vegetables.

What you do with that stock is up to you. I recommend turkey noodle soup.

For me, bone broth soup isn’t just a holiday ritual. It’s a literal way of life.

Whether it’s from a deer, cow, pig, fish or a rotisserie chicken in a plastic bag from the supermarket, I’m loath to throw away a bone without simmering it first to extract its goodness.

If you have a pasta pot with a removable insert drainer, I recommend using it. That way you can keep simmering your bones in the soup for as long as possible, even after you’ve added veggies and meat and other ingredients that will be in the finished soup. If you don’t have a pasta pot, use a colander to strain the finished stock before making soup.

When I make bone stock, I try to cut, break, smash and otherwise reduce the size of the bone pieces as much as possible. This facilitates the release of marrow and other beneficial bone particles.

But going to such lengths, admittedly, is not absolutely necessary. If you aren’t up to bone breaking, don’t sweat it. And definitely don’t hurt yourself. There is, in fact, a decent argument against breaking the bones: leaving them intact creates a more clear and delicate stock.

But we are making leftover turkey noodle soup, which

like leftover season itself is a raucous affair. It may be clouded by dissolved roast potatoes. There may be little bits of stuffing. Everything suspended in a glorious semisolid matrix of bird-broth-bloated egg noodles.

If you can make this recipe without a single trip to the store, do it – even if it means skipping the parsnips, mushrooms or hoisin sauce. If you don’t have wine, use a little vinegar for the acid. But, if you don’t have onion,

carrot and celery, then you are going shopping. Ditto for the noodles.

Turkey Bone Soup With noodles 1 turkey (or other bird) carcass 6 sticks celery: 3 chopped finely (about 2 cups), 3 cut in half, plus the leaves 6 medium carrots: 3 chopped (about 2 cups), 3 cut in half 2 onions: 1 chopped finely (about 2 cups), 1 sliced in half 4 sprigs fresh thyme 4 sage leaves 1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes (or rough equivalent in other tomato form) 2 cups mushrooms, cut into quarters 1 parsnip, chopped

Leftover veggies and pan drippings if available 1 cup wine ½ cup soy sauce Salt Pepper Egg noodles 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce 3 cloves garlic, minced Fill a pasta pot or stock pot ¾ full of water and place on high heat.

Pull apart the carcass, bones and everything in between, yanking off the bits of cartilage and connective tissue while stripping any remaining good pieces of meat. Keep meat in the fridge.

Cut the bones and connective tissues into as many small pieces as you can with a pair of kitchen scissors, including the soft ends of the long bones. Smash what you can’t cut if you are up to it, but don’t hurt yourself.

Broken or not, add the bones, along with all of the cartilage, skin, onion halves, large sections of celery and carrot, thyme and sage to the pasta insert or stock pot. Simmer for as long as time permits, up to 10 hours.

When it’s time to make the soup, remove the bones – if using a pasta pot, do so slowly and set the insert in a container to catch further drainage. If not using a pasta cooker, strain the bones in a colander.

Add the chopped celery, carrot, onion, tomato, mushrooms, parsnip, wine, soy sauce, pan drippings, leftover veggies and meat, cut into bite-sized pieces, to the pot, on medium heat. If using a pasta boiler, and if space permits, put the bones back in the soup while it cooks. Sip the broth every half hour or so to check the seasoning, and adjust the salt and pepper and wine as necessary.

About 30 minutes before serving time, add the celery leaves, hoisin sauce and garlic.

Now it’s time for the noodles. You can either add them directly to the soup, or cook them separately and add them. Neither is a perfect solution, as cooking the noodles in the soup means leftovers will be soggy, while cooking the noodles in water deprives them of the opportunity to get bloated by bone broth.

If using a pasta boiler, you don’t have to choose, because you can dump the bones and use the insert to cook the noodles in the soup, and then add them as needed to each bowl at serving time.n

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16 n Nov. 28, 2019

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TopShelf

Fathers & sons (or musings from the land of Bud Light)

by Chris Aaland

M

y buddy Elwin Johnston texted me last week to drop by his house and pick up a deck of sports trivia cards to help pass the time on my annual pheasant hunting trek to Kansas. He thought my son, Otto, and I could pass the miles by testing each other’s deep knowledge of football, basketball, baseball and hockey. Unfortunately, I’d already crossed the state line when I received his message.

I called Elwin back to thank him, and he apologized in jest for not committing my itinerary to memory. Then he told me how jealous he was that I’d be spending a week in the field hunting with my son.

Five or six weeks ago, Otto took his hunter safety class and passed with flying colors, beating even the adults in the room with a near perfect score. He’s accompanied me in the field for the past several years, both in western Kansas and the San Juan Mountains. My younger son and Otto’s little brother, Gus, died in 2011. I was on a hunting trip in Kansas when he got sick the day before Thanksgiving. In each of the seven years since, Otto has joined me, carrying his BB gun and helping us find downed birds.

But the 2019 season would be different. A few days before departure, I purchased our Kansas out-of-state licenses online, printed them out, and tucked them inside the pouch that holds our hunter safety cards.

Last Friday morning, we packed my Toyota Tundra with our hunting gear, warm clothes, coolers of food and our trusty German shorthair pointer, Jesse. We backed out of the driveway at 8:45 a.m. with hopes of arriving in southwestern Kansas by sunset. Slushy, snowpacked and icy roads over Wolf Creek and La Veta passes added a couple of hours onto our drive time and the sun had already set by the time we crossed the state line … right about the same time Elwin’s text came through.

We met up with our hunting companions Friday night in Colby, where my college roommate Bill Deter had booked us rooms for the night. Our annual pre-hunt supper of medium rare rib-eyes, German fried potatoes and Rocky Mountain oysters at Twister’s Bar was as good as ever. As always, it was the local color that stole the show.

First, a drunken teabilly pestered me about politics in the men’s room. “Are you a Democrat or Republican?” he asked as I drained three pints of Boulevard Wheat from my bladder. Knowing that my ponytail and affinity for craft beer in Bud Light country were dead giveaways of my liberalness, I skirted the question and said that I’ve yet to meet a politician who has done anything to help working folk like us. My new men’s room BFF muttered something to the effect that he really hated Trump, but will never vote for a Democrat. I said I needed another beer.

Then, the line cook came out to help the waitress with our order, as the kitchen was closing in a few minutes. He complimented our choices, with the exception of Otto’s rather odd

order of a chef salad. My boy likes his greens on occasion, but aside from trips to Twisters, I’ve never seen him order a chef’s salad. He did gulp down a couple perfectly fried and filleted bull testicles, though, which earned praise from the cook and bathroom tweaker, who had now sat down at the end of our table.

I asked for hot sauce for our bull fries. The waitress smiled and said they have Heinz 57, Tabasco and A-1. I didn’t have the heart to inform her that two of those choices were not, in fact, hot sauces. I settled for Tabasco, and she presented me with an unopened bottle of what was surely the first they’d ever served at Twisters.

At the end of the meal, Deter tipped the waitress nearly 30 percent, winking at her that he was keeping the bottle of Tabasco for our road lunches later in the week. She seemed confused. I felt like the hero in Charlie Daniels’ “Uneasy Rider,” counting my blessings that we were able to get out of Twisters without having to kick old Green Teeth in the knee.

The next morning, we packed our gear and drove northeast to the tiny town of Lenora, where there were several walk-in hunting spots, which allow the general public to hunt on private land without the landowner’s written permission. The county roads were slick from the melting snow that fell the day before … slick enough to limit our hunting to fields that bordered gravel or paved county roads and state highways.

This limited access meant we only bagged one pheasant and one quail on Saturday. Sunday wasn’t much better … the roads were still greasy, and my Tundra fishtailed even on flat ground at 5 MPH. But in one draw on Sunday morning, Deter and his 16-yearold boy, Dalton, each knocked down quail. Their Labrador retriever, Bobbie, brought each bird to hand. Fathers and sons, just like Elwin said.

Later that day, the roads dried out enough that we were able to finally get to a long draw that a farmer friend of ours, Greg Sumner, owned. I dropped our hunters off at the northern end of the draw and was already moving my truck to the southeast corner to block when I noticed Jesse go on point. I stopped and watched Dustin Mackle, my late little brother’s best friend, raise his gun at a pair of rooster pheasants. Dustin killed the first clean but missed his shot on the second.

Otto pulled up his Harrington & Richardson single-shot 20guage and took aim. It was a 35-yard left-to-right cross. The shot rang out and the pheasant fell from the sky.

In 1981, I took aim at my first pheasant with that same Harrington & Richardson. I missed. In fact, I missed quite a few before finally bagging a bird. My old man didn’t make his first shot on a pheasant. Neither did Uncle Billy, Deter, Dalton or Dustin.

Watching my boy chase after his first downed rooster brought tears to my eyes.

Fathers and sons.

Happy Thanksgiving! Email me at chrisa@gobrainstorm.net. n

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Nov. 28, 2019 n 17

onthetown

Thursday28 Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot, featuring 5-mile race and 1-mile fun run, 10 a.m.-noon, Fort Lewis College campus. www.du rangorunningclub.org.

Community Thanksgiving Dinner, 11:30 a.m.1:30 p.m., La Plata County Fairgrounds.

Tim Sullivan performs, 5:30 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave. Robin Davis performs, 6 p.m., The Office, 699 Main Ave. Open Mic Night, 6-8 p.m., Eno Wine Bar, 723 E. 2nd Ave. Red Eyed Djinn performs, 7 p.m., 11t Street Station, 1100 Main Ave. Open Mic & Stand-Up, 8 p.m., El Rancho Tavern, 975 Main Ave. Karaoke, 8 p.m., Wild Horse Saloon, 601 E. 2nd Ave.

Submit “On the Town” items by Monday at noon to: calendar@durangotelegraph.com

Plursday featuring DJ Hakan, 9 p.m., Starlight Lounge, 937 Main Ave.

Friday29

Loki Moon, 6-8 p.m., Durango Coffee Co.

loon, 699 Main Ave.

Live music, 6-9 p.m., DJ Hakan 9 p.m.-close, Starlight Lounge, 937 Main Ave.

Joel Racheff performs, 6 p.m., The Office, 699 Main Ave.

Gary B. Walker performs, 6:30-8 p.m., Jean-Pierre Restaurant & Wine Bar, 601 Main Ave.

Open Mic Night, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Hermosa Coffee Roasters, 738 Main Ave.

Karaoke, 7 p.m.-close, VFW, 1550 Main Ave.

Saturday30 Drop-in Tennis, 9 a.m., Durango High School, 2390 Main Ave. Henry Stoy, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Jean-Pierre Restaurant & Wine Bar, 601 Main Ave. VFW Indoor Flea Market, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., 1550 Main Ave. Adam Swanson performs, 5:30 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave. Matt Rupnow performs, 6 p.m., The Office, 699 Main Ave. Jim Belcher Duo performs, 6-10 p.m., Seven Rivers Restaurant at Sky Ute Casino Resort in Ignacio.

Live music, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Hermosa Coffee Roasters, 738 Main Ave.

Monday02 Yoga Storytime, 9:30-10:45 a.m., Smiley Building Studio 10, 1309 E. 3rd Ave. Watch Your Step class, 10:15 a.m., Durango Senior Center, 2424 Main Ave. Joel Racheff performs, 5:30 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave. Public Meeting on Marijuana Hospitality Establishments, 5:30 p.m., Durango Rec Center. www.duran gogov.org.

La Plata County Civil Dialogue meets to discuss homelessness, 5:30-7 p.m., conference room at Manna Soup Kitchen, 1100 Avenida del Sol. sanjuandrive@fron tier.net.

Rob Webster performs, 6 p.m., The Office, 699 Main Ave. Trivia Night, 7 p.m., Blondies in Cortez.

Durango Early Bird Toastmasters, 7-8:30 a.m., LPEA, 45 Stewart St. 769-7615.

DJ Side Affex, 9 p.m.-close, Starlight Lounge, 937 Main Ave.

Contiki Party with the Aussies, 9 p.m.-close, Starlight Lounge, 937 Main Ave.

Free yoga, 8:30-9:30 a.m., Lively Boutique, 809 Main Ave.

Sunday01

Tuesday03

Durango Flea Market, 8:30 a.m., La Plata County Fairgrounds.

Zumba Gold, 9:30-10:15 a.m., La Plata Senior Center, 2424 Main Ave.

Veterans Breakfast, 9-11 a.m., La Plata County Fairgrounds. 946-4831.

Terry Rickard performs, 5:30 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.

27th annual Toy Run, benefits Mercy Foundation, Volunteers of America and Project Merry Christmas, features silent auction, prize drawings and more, 11 a.m., VFW Hall, 1550 Main Ave.

Leah Orlikowski performs, 6 p.m., The Office, 699 Main Ave.

Zumba Gold, 9:30-10:15 a.m., La Plata Senior Center, 2424 Main Ave. Spanish Speaking Parents & Littles Fridays, 4-6 p.m., Durango Café au Play, 1309 E. 3rd Ave., Room 201. durangocafeauplay.org.

Monthly Climate Strike, supported by SASCO, Indivisible Durango and the FLC Environmental Center, 4:305:30 p.m., across from 11th Street Station.

Dustin Burley performs, 5:30 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave. Singing with Santa, caroling, pictures with Santa, hot chocolate, cookies and more; starts 6 p.m., TBK Bank parking lot, 259 W. 9th St., from Main Avenue to Buckley Park. 375-5067 or www.downtowndurango.org.

Sean O’Brien performs, 6 p.m., The Office, 699 Main.

Henry Stoy, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Jean-Pierre Restaurant & Wine Bar, 601 Main Ave. Free Books, hosted by Durango Book Rescue, noon-4 p.m., 923 Narrow Gauge Ave.

Rotary Club of Durango meets, presentation from Compañeros Executive Director Matt Karkut, 6 p.m., Henry Strater Hotel, 699 Main Ave. 385-7899.

Trivia Factory, hosted by Ben Bernstein, 6:30-8:30 p.m., The Roost, 128 E. College Dr. DJ Crazy Charlie, 6:30-10:30 p.m., Billy Goat Saloon.

Traditional Irish Music Jam, 12:30-4 p.m., Irish Embassy, 900 Main Ave. Blue Moon Ramblers, 5:30 p.m., Diamond Belle Sa-

Dan Gailey performs with FLC’s Jazz Ensemble, 7 p.m., Community Concert Hall at Fort Lewis College. www.durangoconcerts.com.4

"

18 n Nov. 28, 2019

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!$

!

Latin Dance Night, 8 p.m., Wild Horse Saloon, 601 E. 2nd Ave. salsadancedurango@gmail.com.

Open Mic Night, 8 p.m.-close, Starlight Lounge, 937 Main Ave.

Wednesday04 Free Kids Yoga Class hosted by Chloe Dudley, for ages 3-7, 9-9:45 a.m., Pediatric Associates of Durango, 1199 Main Ave., Suite 205. 259-7337.

Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony for the Santa Rita Water Reclamation Facility, noon, 105 S. Camino del Rio. www.durangogov.org/santaritawrf.

Senior Communication Design Exhibition: “We are designers: it’s in our bleed,” opening reception, 4:30-6 p.m., show runs thru Dec. 21, Art & Design Gallery at Fort Lewis College. 247-7167.

Donny Johnson performs, 5:30 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave. Thank the Veterans potluck, 5:30 p.m., Peter Neds performs, 7-8:30 p.m., VFW, 1550 Main Ave. 828-7777.

The Electoral College or the National Popular Vote Compact: What is right for our community? panel with La Plata County Clerk Tiffany Parker and more, 5:30-7 p.m., Center for Southwest Studies at Fort Lewis College, Lyceum Room 120. kadams@mcw.edu.

Terry Rickard performs, 6 p.m., The Office, 699 Main Ave. Winter Pub Run, 4-6-mile run (bring headlamps) followed by post-run beers, hosted by the Durango Running Club, 6 p.m., Dec. 4, meet at Animas Brewing, 1560 E. 2nd Ave. www.durangorunningclub.org.

Snowdown Follies Auditions, 6 p.m., Henry Strater Theatre, 699 Main Ave.; Chorus Line Auditions, 12:30-5 p.m., Dec. 7, Smiley Building Studio, 1309 E. 3rd Ave. www.snowdownfollies.org.

Loki Moon – Raw Experiments, 6-8 p.m., Eno Wine Bar, 723 E. 2nd Ave.

Well versed: Poet Laureate Bobby LeFebre visits Durango What: Colorado Poet Laureate Bobby LeFebre, presented by the Durango Creative District When: 7:30 – 8:30 p.m., Wed., Dec. 4 Where: Durango Arts Center, 802 E. 2nd Ave. Tickets: Free event Prepare to be slammed. Colorado’s newest poet Laureate Bobby LeFebre comes to Durango next Wednesday. LeFebre, 38, is the youngest and first Latino and person of color to be named to the four-year honorary position. He was named from a field of 20 prospectives last April

by Gov. Jared Polis.

“Bobby LeFebre has an amazing ability to empower and connect communities through the wisdom of his words,” Polis said in a statement. “That is why we are confident he will make a fan- Bobby LeFebre tastic poet laureate. He embodies the spirit of a ‘Colorado for All’ where everyone is included. I know he will be a strong advocate for the arts and art education as a way to bring us together.”

A native of Denver, LeFebre is an award-winning writer, performer and cultural and social worker with “indigenous roots in the San Luis Valley that pre-date statehood.” He also founded the nonprofit Sacred Voices, formerly Café Cultura, which aims to promote literacy education and cultural awareness through poetry.

In addition to being a two-time Grand Slam Champion, a National and World Poetry Slam Finalist, and a two-time TEDx speaker, LeFebre is also an acclaimed playright. Last spring, he premiered his play “Northside,” which addresses the gentrification of the traditionally Hispanic Denver neighLeFebre, presented by the Durango Creative District, 7:308:30 p.m., Durango Arts Center, 802 E. 2nd Ave. www.duran goarts.org.

Karaoke, 8 p.m., Blondies in Cortez.

Pub Quiz, 6:30 p.m., Irish Embassy Pub, 900 Main Ave. 403-1200.

A Night at the Opera, performed by FLC students, 7-8 p.m., Roshong Recital Hall at Fort Lewis College.

Open Mic Night, 7:30 p.m., The Roost, 128 E. College Dr. An Evening with Colorado Poet Laureate Bobby

Karaoke with Crazy Charlie, 8 p.m.-close, Wild Horse Saloon, 601 E. 2nd Ave.

Ongoing Works from Dina Herrmann, thru Dec. 7, Olio in Mancos. 533-1381.

“My Beloved West,” solarplate prints by Louise

borhood where he grew up, also known as the Highland neighborhood. The play premiered at Su Teatro Cultural & Performing Arts Center in June and sold out an unprecedented 30 shows, with over 10,000 people attending.

According to LeFebre, “Northside” served as “an unapologetic celebration of cultural preservation and permanence & a eulogy to things lost.” He called it “an urban-colloquial story of power and privilege, unflinching love & the innate human need to belong somewhere.”

In addition to all this, he sits on the Denver Commission on Cultural Affairs and is a National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures fellow and an Intercultural Leadership Institute fellow.

In 2015, he was named one of Colorado’s Top 100 Creatives by Westword magazine.

LeFebre’s duties as poet laureate include advocating for poetry, literacy and literature by participating in readings and other events across the state.

“I believe that my ability to impact and/or shape culture lives most authentically through my connection to people through art,” LeFebre said in a statement. “I am invested in cultural change. Poets are always at the forefront of influencing and changing culture, and before we see large-scale social or political change, it is the heart and soul of issues that change first.”

LeFebre’s Durango presentation will be followed by a Q&A. Attendees are encouraged to show up early to peruse the DAC’s Winter Solstice Market.

Grunewald, exhibit runs thru Dec 21, Art Library upstairs at Durango Arts Center, 802 E. 2nd Ave. www.durangoarts.org.

Winter Solstice Market, featuring works from 30 regional artists, Nov. 23-Dec. 23, Durango Arts Center, 802 E. 2nd Ave. www.durangoarts.org.

The Polar Express, thru Jan. 2, Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. www.durangotrain.com.

“Inside Out: Visions from the Artist’s Mind,” thru April 2020, Southern Ute Museum, 503 Ouray Dr. www.southernutemuseum.org.

More “On the Town” p. 234

Tis the season to be grateful, come see our gift selection.

telegraph

Nov. 28, 2019 n 19

AskRachel Interesting fact: The early version of farolitos were actually little bonfires with 3-foot stacks of criss-crossed piñon branches. Makes a live candle in a paper sack sound pretty fire-savvy, doesn’t it?

Dear Rachel, I think I could be a stand-up comic. I’m always the guy holding court at company dinners and family holidays. I mean, with Thanksgiving coming up, I’m going to kill it. I don’t even have to script jokes ahead of time. I just read a room and the jokes come pouring out. Durango seems like a small-time spot to start a career in comedy, but hey, gotta start somewhere. I wondered, could you ask your readers to submit stuff they want to hear me make fun of?

- Next Top Comic Dear Funny Guy, If Durango was big enough for Jack Dempsey to fight in, then it’s big enough for you to get up there and crack some funnies. In fact, here’s a great idea. Go to the Ranch – the same Ranch where Dempsey’s fight is memorialized on the wall – and try telling folks how Durango is too small and how you want to make fun of it.

You may not kill it, but something’s going to die there that night.

– Heckle me Elmo, Rachel

Dear Rachel, I’ve been in love with a woman for almost three years now. We had a short-lived romance that ended only because of “life circumstances”

20 n Nov. 28, 2019

on her end. We’re still great friends, and I still hold out hope of rekindling that flame. Well, of course I met another woman about a month ago, and the way the world works, now my original love has decided she wants to be with me. What do I do, Rachel? Pursue new love, or seize onto my dream come true?

– When It Rains

Dear Pours, Frig. You’re going to take the word of a smart-alecky advice columnist to make a life-changing decision?

These things are so much less pressure when people want to know about waffles vs. pancakes, or how best to light flaming bags upon neighbors’ doorsteps. But, here goes: stay single, my friend. It’s really a pretty sweet gig, once you get used to it. The best part is that you never again have to make life-changing decisions about sexytime partners.

– All the single ladies, Rachel

Email Rachel at telegraph@durangotelegraph.com

Dear Rachel, I’m from the East Coast, and I’ve just recently discovered the tradition of lighting candles inside of brown paper bags at Christmastime. Outdoors. Dozens or hundreds at a time. In a part of the world where forest fires happen, doesn’t this seem asinine? Please tell me this is just a mindless thing New Mexicans do, and it doesn’t actually happen here … right?

– Up in Smoke

Dear Firebrand, What, would you rather people light farolitos in a part of the world where it’s wet all the time? That wouldn’t work, Karen. You couldn’t light candles in brown paper bags when it’s raining. They’d get soggy, and the candles would go out. And that would not be pretty at all. I wish MORE people would light farolitos around here. They’re gorgeous. And if people caught their houses on fire, at least that jackass earlier would have something to laugh about.

– Light up, Rachel

telegraph

FreeWillAstrology

by Rob Brezsny ARIES (March 21-April 19): Humans invented the plow in 4,500 BC, the wheel in 4,000 BC, and writing in 3,400 BC. But long before that, by 6,000 BC, they had learned how to brew beer and make psychoactive drugs from plants.

Psychopharmacologist Ronald Siegel points to this evidence to support his hypothesis that the yearning to transform our normal waking consciousness is a basic drive akin to our need to eat and drink. Of course, there are many ways to accomplish this shift besides alcohol and drugs. They include dancing, singing, praying, drumming, meditating and having sex. What are your favorite modes? According to my astrological analysis, it’ll be extra important for you to alter your habitual perceptions and thinking patterns during the coming weeks.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): What’s something you’re afraid of, but pretty confident you could become unafraid of?

The coming weeks will be a favorable time to dismantle or dissolve that fear. Your levels of courage will be higher than usual, and your imagination will be unusually ingenious in devising methods and actions to free you of the unnecessary burden. Step one: Formulate an image or scene that symbolizes the dread, and visualize yourself blowing it up with a “bomb” made of a hundred roses.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): The word “enantiodromia” refers to a phenomenon that occurs when a vivid form of expression turns into its opposite, often in dramatic fashion. Yang becomes yin; resistance transforms into welcome; loss morphs into gain. According to my reading of the astrological omens, you Geminis are the sign of the zodiac that’s most likely to experience enantiodromia in the coming weeks. Will it be a good thing or a bad thing? You can have a lot of influence over how that question resolves. For best results, don’t fear or demonize contradictions and paradoxes. Love and embrace them.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): There are Americans who speak only one language, English, and yet imagine they are smarter than bilingual immigrants. That fact amazes me, and inspires me to advise me and all my fellow Cancerians to engage in humble reflection about how we judge our fellow humans. Now is a favorable time for us to take inventory of any inclinations we might have to regard ourselves as superior to others; to question why we might imagine others aren’t as worthy of love and respect as we are; or to be skeptical of any tendency we might have dismiss and devalue those who don’t act and think as we do. I’m not saying we Cancerians are more guilty of these sins

than everyone else; I’m merely letting you know that the coming weeks are our special time to make corrections.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): “Erotic love is one of the highest forms of contemplation,” the sensually wise poet Kenneth Rexroth wrote.

That’s a provocative and profitable inspiration for you to tap into. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, you’re in the Season of Lucky Plucky Delight, when brave love can save you from wrong turns and irrelevant ideas; when the grandeur of amour can be your teacher and catalyst. If you have a partner with whom you can conduct these educational experiments, wonderful. If you don’t, be extra sweet and intimate with yourself.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): In the follow-up story to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, our heroine uses a magic mirror as a portal into a fantastical land. There she encounters the Red Queen, and soon the two of them are holding hands as they run as fast as they can. Alice notices that despite their great effort, they don’t seem to be moving forward. What’s happening? The Queen clears up the mystery: In her realm, you must run as hard as possible just to remain in the same spot. Sound familiar, Virgo?

I’m wondering whether you’ve had a similar experience lately. If so, here’s my advice: Stop running. Sit back, relax, and allow the world to zoom by you. Yes, you might temporarily fall behind. But in the meantime, you’ll get fully recharged. No more than three weeks from now, you’ll be so energized that you’ll make up for all the lost time – and more.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Most sane people wish there could be less animosity between groups that have different beliefs and interests. How much better the world would be if everyone felt a generous acceptance toward those who are unlike them. But the problem goes even deeper: Most of us are at odds with ourselves. Here’s how author Rebecca West described it: Even the different parts of the same person do not often converse among themselves, do not succeed in learning from each other. That’s the bad news, Libra. The good news is that the coming weeks will be a favorable time for you to promote unity and harmony among all the various parts of yourself. I urge you to entice them to enter into earnest conversations with each other!

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Poet Cecilia Woloch asks, “How to un-want what the body has wanted, explain how the flesh in its wisdom was wrong?” Did the apparent error occur because of “some ghost in the mind?” she adds. Was it due to “some blue chemical rushing the blood” or “some demon or

god?” I’m sure that you, like most of us, have experienced this mystery. But the good news is that in the coming weeks you will have the power to un-want inappropriate or unhealthy experiences that your body has wanted. Step one: Have a talk with yourself about why the thing your body has wanted isn’t in alignment with your highest good.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Sagittarian composer Ludwig van Beethoven was inclined to get deeply absorbed in his work. Even when he took time to attend to the details of daily necessity, he allowed himself to be spontaneously responsive to compelling musical inspirations that suddenly welled up in him. On more than a few occasions, he lathered his face with the 19th-century equivalent of shaving cream, then got waylaid by a burst of brilliance & forgot to actually shave. His servants found that amusing.

I suspect that the coming weeks may be Beethoven-like for you, Sagittarius. I bet you’ll be surprised by worthy fascinations & subject to impromptu illuminations.

What Kate & Nate wear on their day off

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): During the next 11 months, you could initiate fundamental improvements in the way you live from day to day. It’s conceivable you’ll discover or generate innovations that permanently raise your life’s possibilities to a higher octave. At the risk of sounding grandiose, I’m tempted to predict that you’ll celebrate at least one improvement that is your personal equivalent of the invention of the wheel or the compass or the calendar.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): The only thing we learn from history is that we never learn anything from history.

Philosopher Georg Hegel said that. But I think you’ll have an excellent chance to disprove his theory in the coming months. I suspect you’ll be inclined & motivated to study your own past in detail; you’ll be skilled at drawing useful lessons from it; & you will apply those lessons with wise panache as you re-route your destiny.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): In his own time, poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807– 82) was acclaimed and beloved.

At the height of his fame, he earned $3,000 per poem. But modern literary critics think that most of what he created is derivative, sentimental and unworthy of serious appreciation. In dramatic contrast is poet Emily Dickinson (1830–86). Her writing was virtually unknown in her lifetime but is now regarded as among the best ever. In accordance with astrological omens, I invite you to sort through your own past to determine which of your work, like Longfellow’s, should be archived as irrelevant, & which, like Dickinson’s, deserves to be a continuing inspiration as you glide into the future.

telegraph

... and you can too.

(Even if your name isn’t McKinnon. Or MacKinnon.)

In a variety of sizes for all your exploits on and off the red carpet.

(Also available in muscle T to show off your pipes.)

T-shirts: $15 Tanks: $12 Hats: $20 (plus shipping and handling)

Order yours today at: durangotelegraph.com or stop by our Tele central: 777 Main Ave., #214, Durango

Nov. 28, 2019 n 21

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 classifieds@durango telegraph.com n 970-259-0133 n 777 Main Ave., #214 Approximate office hours: Mon., 9ish - 5ish Tues., 9ish - 5ish Wed., 9ish - 3ish Thurs., On delivery Fri., 10:30ish - 2ish please call ahead: 259-0133.

Announcements

voice lessons with Pete Giuliani. Call 970385-6713 or email info@petegiuliani.com What Can I Do for You? Give us a call or email We can help.

Shopping, errands, repairs etc. Fair prices. Kim & David Librande 36du rango@gmail.com 970-259-9286 BPX Durango, Inc, prepares books, payroll, taxes and does representation work with IRS issues.

There are currently limited openings through the end of the year to discuss tax planning. Come by the new BPX office on the fourth floor of the West Building downtown!

Lowest Prices on Storage!

Inside/outside near Durango and Bayfield, RJ Mini Storage. 970-259-3494

Himalayan Kitchen 992 Main Ave., 970-259-0956, www.himkitchen.com. Bringing you a taste of Nepal, Tibet & India. Try our allyou-can-eat lunch buffet. The dinner menu offers a variety of tempting choices, including yak, lamb, chicken, beef & seafood; extensive veggies; freshly baked bread. Full bar. Get your lunch punch card – 10th lunch free. Hours: Lunch, 11am-2:30 p.m. & dinner, Sun. Thurs., 5-9:30 p.m., Fri. & Sat. ‘til 10 p.m.

Closed 2:30 - 5, daily.

The Perfect Gift for your favorite dirtbag. Literature from Durango’s own Benighted Publications. The Desert, The Climbing Zine, The Great American Dirtbags, American Climber, Climbing Out of Bed and Graduating From College Me are available at: Maria’s Bookshop, Pine Needle Mountaineering, the Sky Store, or on the interweb at www.climbingzine.com.

Wanted Cash for Vehicles, Copper, Alum, Etc. at RJ Metal Recycle, also free appliance and other metal drop off. 970-259-3494.

Services Give the Gift of Music Lessons Gift certificates for guitar, bass, and

22 n Nov. 28, 2019

Harmony Organizing and Cleaning Services Home and office 970-403-6192 Bookkeeping Services 1099s, bank and credit card reconciliations, payroll, sales tax, HR, sales & marketing, problem solving& support cowaterfalls39@gmail.com

PT Ranch Work to trade (or rent for $420/mo.) for private, off-grid cabin. 4WD, hot springs, 970-422-2622.

Classes/Workshops Tai Chi Class - Yang Style 24 Form Tai Chi is good for health, balance, coordination, focus & stress reduction.

Class includes Tai Chi principles, applications, meditation & Qigong. December 3 - ongoing. Tues & Thurs. 9-10 am & 4-5 pm. At: Durango Recreation Center. Instructor Denise Lane, certified & teaching over 25 years, is a former national & international champion. (970) 403-5406 www.SageMtnHealth.com Peace and Balance for Holidays Tame Inner Critic & Work With Difficult Emotions & Relationships two Saturdays: December 7 & 14 – 9:00am– 5:30pm Myah Lee, Certified Mindfulness Teacher location: Myah Mindfulness Studio, Durango, CO registration fee: sliding scale - $200 - $300 (scholarships available.) To register, contact MyahMindful ness@gmail.com or 970-946-5379.

Advanced Duct Cleaning Air duct cleaning specializing in dryer vents. Improves indoor air quality; reduces dust and allergens, energy bills and fire risk. 970-247-2462 www.advanced ductcleaninginc.com

Mommy and Me Dance Class Come join the fun! Now registering for classes. Call 970-749-6456. mom myandmedance.com.

HelpWanted

BodyWork

FLC Office Manager - Mental Health Fort Lewis College is seeking applications for our Counseling Center Office Manager. For detailed job information and qualifications, competencies and online application process please visit www.fortlewis.edu/jobs and go to the Employment Opportunities page, exempt listings and click on the job link. FLC is an AA/EEO employer.

Relieve Pain with Bowenwork Bowenwork is a gentle hands on therapy that can be deeply relaxing and help with back, neck, shoulder pain, sleep and much more! Denise Lane is licensed, certified by American Bowen Academy and NCBTMB. (970) 403-5406. www.SageMtnHealth.com

Ski for Free This Winter Ski for free this winter! Purgatory Resort is now hiring for multiple positions including line cooks, lift ops and more.

Apply online at skipurg.com, email hr@purgatoryresort.com or call 970-3852162.

telegraph

HaikuMovieReview ‘Little’ 13 Going on 30 plus The Devil Wears Prada equals Big – Lainie Maxson Massage with Kathryn 20+ years experience offering a fusion of esalen style, deep tissue massage with therapeutic stretching & Acutonics. New clients receive $5 off first session. To schedule appt. call 970-201-3373.

ForSale Red Cliffs Pottery Holiday Sale Local handmade pottery, lg selection!

Come see us at 1375 Florida Rd. Wed-Sat, 9-5. Call 970-764-8229.

String Instruments 1/2” violin $200 (RV 400+) / 14” viola $300 (RV 625) 970-764-5799 Barely Used Snow Tires $200 sz 205755R1691T NITTO (SN2) 385-6706 Reruns Home Furnishings Cozy furnishing! Gorgeous Chinese cabinet, lamps, rugs, art, night stands, writing desk. Cool vintage dishes – Pyrex & Fiestaware. New great stuff and daily markdowns. 572 E. 6th Ave. 385-7336.

RealEstate Radon Services Free radon testing and consultation.

Call Colorado Radon Abatement and Detection for details. 970- 946-1618.

ForRent Holiday Massage Gift Certificates Meg Bush, LMT 970-759-0199 massageintervention.life Voted best massage in Durango 201819. Couples, cupping, local CBD. Reviews on FB + Yelp. 970-903-2984

In Town House for Rent 800 sq. ft. fully furnished, utils/wifi incl. Quiet neighborhood, back yard borders Animas Mountain. No pets, refs. required. Avail. Jan. 20 – July. $1110/mo.

970-799-2258.

flower Theatre in Cortez. www.sunflowertheatre.org.

OntheTown from p. 19

Karaoke, 8 p.m., Thur-Sun, 8th Ave. Tavern, 509 E 8 Ave. th

Upcoming Baby Meetup with Durango Café au Play, 9:3011:30 a.m., Dec. 5, 2307 Columbine. 749-9607.

Thursday Afternoon Social Club for veterans, their spouses and supporters, 4-6 p.m., Dec. 5, VFW, 1550 Main Ave. Writers’ Workshop, 5 p.m., Dec. 5, Ignacio Community Library.

4th annual Winter Art Show by the Looking Glass Art Collective, benefit for Local First, opening reception, 5-7 p.m., Dec. 5, exhibit runs thru Jan. 30, Smiley Café, 1309 E. 3rd Ave. The Assortment performs, 5-8 p.m., Dec. 5, Ska Brewing, 225 Girard St. Pine Needle’s 18th annual CAIC Fundraiser, all proceeds donated to Friends of Colorado Avalanche Information Center, 5-9 p.m., Dec. 5, Ska Brewing, 225 Girard St. Sitting Meditation, 5:30-6:15 p.m., Dec. 5, Durango Dharma Center, 1800 E. 3rd Ave. “The Thin Man” screening, 7 p.m., Dec. 5, Sun-

Free Legal Clinic, 4-5 p.m., Dec. 13, Ignacio Community Library. 563-9287.

Ye Olde Fashioned Christmas event, featuring Rudolph Run, carolers, gallery walk, Winter Holiday Popup Market, Santa and Mrs. Claus, and more, hosted by Mancos Creative District, 5-7 p.m., Dec. 6; 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Dec. 14, downtown Mancos. 9466507 and www.mancoscreativedistrict.com.

Animas High School Information Nights, 5:30-6:30 p.m., Jan. 14, Animas High School, 271 Twin Buttes Ave. 247-2474.

The Met: Live in HD, featuring Berg’s “Wozzeck,” 10:55 a.m., Jan. 18, Student Union at Fort Lewis College, Vallecito Room. www.durangoconcerts.com.

Noel Night with photographer Tony Stromberg, artist reception on 5-9 p.m., Dec. 6, show runs thru Dec. 31, Sorrel Sky Gallery, 828 Main Ave. www.sorrelsky.com.

A Rockin’ Snowdown 2020, winter festival featuring activities, games, music, parade and more, Jan. 29-Feb. 2, around Durango. www.snowdown.org.

Taste of Christmas Community Event, featuring carriage rides, gingerbread house contest, photos with Santa and more, 5:30-8 p.m., Dec. 6, ELHI Community Center in Ignacio. 563-4100.

15th annual Durango Independent Film Festival, March 4-8, around Durango. www.durangofilm.org.

“Twas the Week After Christmas” and “Oliver,” opening night, 7 p.m., Dec. 6, shows also run Dec. 13-14 and 2 p.m., Dec. 7-8, 14-15, Durango Arts Center, 802 E. 2nd Ave. www.durangoarts.org 2592606.

San Juan Symphony Youth Orchestra’s Spring Concert, 7 p.m., April 28, Community Concert Hall at Fort Lewis College. www.sanjuansymphony.org.

JP Harris performs, 8 p.m., Dec. 6, Dolores River Brewery.

The Dolores River Brewery Holiday Arts and Crafts Show, featuring pottery, arts, live music and more, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Dec. 7, Dolores River Brewery.

Deadline for “On the Town” submissions is Monday at noon.

To submit an item email: calendar@durango telegraph.com

Season’s 25th Anniversary Community Event, benefit for Women’s Resource Center, 6-9 p.m., Dec. 10, Seasons Rotisserie & Grill, 764 Main Ave.

NewspaperOrigami

Don’t take it out on the moose – we warned you.

We will be on vacation starting 12/18/19, returning to the office Mon., 12/30/19.

Happy Holidays!

A tom turkey telegraph

Nov. 28, 2019 n 23

24 n Nov. 28, 2019

telegraph