By Paul Chevalier Sedona AZ (March 10, 2014) – Wouldn’t it be great if all problems were black and white, and wouldn’t it be even better if solutions were as well?Once we’re out of elementary school, most of us quickly realize life just isn’t that simple even though films about cowboys clung to the black hat/white hat idea. Many of us locals have heard that the Sedona Campus of Yavapai College is going on the sales block. This could have been one of those black or white things but it isn’t. So, here’s the gray we learned after elementary school;…
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By Merilee FowlerExecutive Director of MATFORCE Verde Valley AZ (March 10, 2014) – Senate Bill 1389 will educate Arizona’s kids on the consequences of non-medical marijuana use, much as was done with tobacco. But some are objecting to the bill. I have to ask: Why would anyone object to educating our kids about the harms of using marijuana?
By Ted Grussing It was a pleasant weekend … time with friends … time with One and time alone. A number of projects completed, walks taken and church on Sunday. It is still a strange feeling to be able to go where and when I want and memories flood my mind … but it is good and life continues and forever is still forever and forever beyond that there will always be love.
By Steve HammonsTranscendent TV & Media Phoenix AZ (March 9, 2014) – In the 1977 movie “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” the character of French researcher Claude Lacombe (based on Jacques Vallee), played by director and actor Francois Truffaut, tries to explain to a U.S. Army Special Forces officer why several civilians were brought to the secret temporary base at Devils Tower, Wyoming. Lacombe says to the officer, “Major Walsh, it is an event sociologique.” That is, it is a “sociological event” and the civilians are somehow part of it, Lacombe tells Walsh.
By Ted Grussing I had to construct a wooden crate today to ship a painting and then take it into to town to ship it. Seemed pretty natural to continue down the road and head to the ponds and see what was going on down there and as I was walking out by the first pond I saw Sam, Eric’s birding partner and we had a nice chat. Sam let me know that not only does Eric Photoshop the owls in, but he uses an owl that has made a trip to the taxidermist; Eric says he got the stuffed…
By Ted Grussing After dropping the 95 Van off at the good family Anderson’s place of business Eric and I headed down to the ponds to see what was there; first stop was Lo Lo Mai Springs to look for Woodies and an Owl; Owls are conspicuously absent when I am along with Eric and soon I will be thinking that he is photoshoping those great owl shots of his … like taking an owl shot and putting it into a hole in the tree. Oh well, we tried and he played the happy sounds of an owl on his…
By Virginia Volkman, Library Director Sedona AZ (March 4, 2014) – March is full of events for all ages at Sedona Public Library. We kicked off the month on a rainy day, which was fitting weather for the installation of a new exhibit, “A River Runs Through Us.” The star of the show is the Verde River, a free-flowing, nationally designated wild and scenic river; a gem to be showcased, appreciated, and preserved.
By Ted Grussing Every once in a while you will see an aircraft come in for a landing and kind of screw it up and apply power and head back up and try it again … we call it a go around … more so at Sedona than many other airports … gliders of course by definition do not do go arounds :+) I also have several photos of planes that should have done go arounds. In flying it seems that power pilots do practice landings by doing touch and goes … this is where they fly the pattern and…
By Ted Grussing … for me to hit the road again; been going through a lot of photos today and finished up with photos I took on a respite break to Southern California last summer. The beach is calling again and it would be fun to take it from the southern beaches all the way up to Point Reyes and beyond. We have friends all the way up the coast from San Diego to Seattle and beyond so perhaps a month or so in a motorhome would be a fun trip for One and I to do … and it…
By James Bishop, Jr. As soon as I enter the door of a tavern, I experience oblivion of care, and a freedom from concern…there is nothing which has yet to be contrived by man, by which so much happiness is produced by a good tavern.— Samuel Johnson, London, 1777 Sedona AZ (March 3, 2014) – The news spread faster than a Tea Party Lie. In legendary London, and in villages nearby, 7000 pubs are being closed—forever leaving local quaffers and boozers to face a dreaded, dryer future: No local community gathering place to have a nip, hear the gossip and…
By Ted Grussing … those of the natural world and those which we create so that we too can join in the experience of being high above the earth and bathe in the freedom of flight. I got this shot of a Heron who really did not want to fly today and can’t say I blame him as it was very windy down at the ponds and he was happy enjoying the sun and waiting for food to swim close to him. I wanted him to fly as he let me get so close to him and I was concerned…
By Virginia Volkman, Library Director Sedona AZ (February 28, 2014) – There are so many ways that the Sedona Public Library enriches and impacts our community. The Library has 9,500 card holders and close to 200,000 visitors per year. Behind these numbers, though, are the people and organizations that we partner with to make Sedona a better place to live. One story in particular that has inspired this week’s column is one of collaboration and non-profit partnerships. In addition to offering a variety of materials, including DVDs, print, audio, and digital books, as well as public computer access, the…
By Henry Twombly, Sedona Resident(February 26, 2014) Last week the tremendous turnout to the City Council’s meeting on smart meters sent a clear message to the Council: we don’t want smart meters here in Sedona. Whether or not the Council heeds the will of the people remains to be seen. Some are not convinced that the radio-frequencies of the smart meters pose any health risks, though there is overwhelming evidence that states otherwise. At least two spokespeople at the meeting shared their experiences of ill health due to the meters. Smart meters are due to be installed in Sedona beginning…
By Ted Grussing Short final and short missive tonight as I worked on some projects way too late. I got this Heron down at the ponds late afternoon just as he was coming in to a tree branch for a landing. Actually I got a bunch of shots in the sequence before this, but he was a long way off and it is tough to track a small object with a spot focus against a background like this this; off even the slightest and there is no focus … at least of the bird. Akin to taking a shot from…
It is the Outcome, Not the Process Sedona AZ (February 25, 2014) – I would be the first to admit that the excruciatingly slow pace of government progress makes me crazy. As a businessman, I know that if decisions took as long to implement in private business as they do in government, businesses would not be able to survive. After serving in the Sedona government for eight years, I have come to realize that the slow pace of government is not necessarily because of the inefficiency of the structure of city administration. Instead, it has to do with the inherent…