Author: Tommy

… going through folders of shots today with the intent of wholesale deletion, and then I spotted this photo of a Great-tailed Grackle along with two others of it. Normally it would be a throwaway shot, but then I took a closer look and behold, it looked like a character out of Al Capp’s parody strip, Fearless Fosdick, of Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy with a hole in his head! The strip would appear in Al Capp’s Lil Abner. Yes I actually read all of those strips and comic books … we did not have a television set, but we did have comic books, listen to The…

Sedona News – The Sedona International Film Festival is proud to present the Sedona premiere of “On Swift Horses” showing May 16-22 at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre. How much would you gamble for love? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MW146Iezoo Muriel and her husband Lee are beginning a bright new life in California when he returns from the Korean War. But their newfound stability is upended by the arrival of Lee’s charismatic brother, Julius, a wayward gambler with a secret past. A dangerous love triangle quickly forms. When Julius takes off in search of the young card cheat he’s fallen for, Muriel’s longing for…

Verde Valley News – Yavapai College honored its graduates of the Verde Valley campus during the Verde Valley campus commencement ceremony on Sat., May 3 in Clarkdale. Associate Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students Tania Sheldahl opened the event by welcoming the graduates, their families, and members of the faculty and college leadership. Keynote speaker Meredith Dunlap-Sterrett, graduate of Yavapai College and Senior Vice President for National Bank of Arizona, addressed the graduates by reflecting on her time as a student at YC. “Yavapai was more than a college to me – it was a place where…

Sedona News – The Sedona International Film Festival is proud to present the Northern Arizona premiere of “We Were Dangerous” showing May 16-22 at the Alice Gill-Sheldon Theatre. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9C1eFs3Avu0 In 1954 New Zealand, rebellious teens Nellie (Erana James) and Daisy (Manaia Hall) make a daring escape from an institution for delinquent girls — only to be caught and sent to an even more remote facility on an isolated island. There, they are joined by Lou (Nathalie Morris), a well-to-do newcomer, and together they navigate a harsh new world under the strict rule of a devout and domineering Matron (Rima Te…

Hello my faithful followers, fans, and nosey neighbors… It is I, Allen Elfman — your ever-dedicated, occasionally caffeinated, and always dramatically passionate Verizon Manager for the Village of Oak Creek. Important News! Brace yourselves: I will be gone for three whole days (May 6–8) as I venture to the exotic land of California. No, not for a beach vacation (I wish), but for the thrilling world of Russell Cellular’s Manager Training — because apparently, my overwhelming charm and deep knowledge of phones still need fine-tuning. Yes, this is our semi-annual corporate ritual to ensure that we, as a Verizon Authorized Retailer under Russell Cellular, are polished, prepped, and packing…

By Amaya Gayle Gregory Throughout the years, we have been trained. Part of the training is to see others as trained, but not ourselves. Even though we are the others that others are trained to see as trained, we tend to miss that little nuance. The training says we must know what’s right and speak out when we see something that runs contrary to our understanding of rightness. We don’t stop to realize that what we see as right isn’t exactly right or it would be the right version that everyone in their right mind knew as right. There are…

Sedona News – The Sedona International Film Festival is proud to partner with the Sedona Artists Consortium to present the first-ever in-person Sedona Sculptors Symposium on Tuesday, May 13 at 10 a.m. at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre. Famed, award winning sculptors will discuss the bronze craft, their motivation, techniques and vision for the future market.  Attendees will also observe a narrated video showing the multiple steps taken when shaping clay into solid bronze pieces. Curator Linda Goldenstein will moderate the panel featuring James Muir, Ken Rowe, Susan Kliewer, Chris Navarro and Erik Petersen.  Questions from the audience are encouraged.…

Sedona News – The Sedona Women (TSW) are pleased to present the science behind energy healings and some  of the most effective treatments capable of addressing ailments inadequately treated by traditional medicine.  “The Power of Energy Healing Modalities” will be presented on Thursday, May 8th, at the Community Library Sedona, where TSW programs are scheduled monthly every second Thursday from September through May from 9:30 a.m. to noon. People often dismiss alternative medical methods. Some of the most misunderstood practices are energy healings. However, recent advances in physics are beginning to provide scientific evidence to support the effectiveness of these…

Yavapai County News – Yavapai County Attorney Dennis McGrane announced that on April 30, 2025, Bridget Marie Nelson, 60, of Cordes Lakes, Arizona, entered a plea of guilty in the Yavapai County Superior Court to premeditated first degree murder, aggravated domestic violence, theft, possession of drug paraphernalia, and three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Yavapai County Attorney Dennis McGrane stated, “This plea agreement follows an extremely thorough and all-around excellent investigation by the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office into the savage murder of an elderly man. This plea ensures Ms. Nelson will spend the rest of her life…

Verde Valley News – Northern Arizona Healthcare (NAH) is pleased to announce that Nancey Payne, LPC, has joined the behavioral health department in Cottonwood. Payne is a licensed, professional counselor who will be providing outpatient therapy services. She offers holistic, compassionate care to children as young as two and adults of all ages. She supports clients facing anxiety, depression, grief, trauma and/or ADHD through evidence-based therapies, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and trauma-focused therapy. Sessions are available both in person and via telehealth. Her services also include therapy at the…

… wow, another week in the history books for each of us … where were we, what did we do? Help someone? Smile? Find the humor in life? I hope so, because it is truly such a special place and the privilege of being here to enjoy all that is and to dream on what has been and what yet may come … each day we get to choose what kind of day it will be for us! I love the series of shots (several hundred} that I captured of the Crows as they frolicked in the backyard (11th tee box) that…

Sedona News – The Sedona International Film Festival is proud to present “Moon Manor” — the second film in a four-week ‘Heartful Living, Gentle Dying’ film series — on Thursday, May 15 at 4:00 at the Mary Fisher Theatre. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd6DpM5ex-g Join us for this thought-provoking journey and discover what it means to be alive and connected to humanity, and how we might die with grace and dignity on our own terms. This profound glimpse into life and death explores how we view our purpose, our relationships, and the possibilities inherent in the gentle dying process. Sometimes learning how to live,…

Arizona News – With Arizona Highways magazine celebrating its centennial, subscribers now can peruse every issue, photograph and article thanks to a new digital archive with robust search features. “Some of the original issues are treasures, and you’ll see people selling those copies for shocking amounts,” Editor Robert Stieve said. “Now that we have the digital archives, that gives people access to see all of that historical content.” Whether you’re exploring the original Arizona Highways edition from April 1925 or something more recent, the digital archive’s dynamic search function will pull issues, images and more according to your interests. Launching the digital archive is…

Verde Valley News – Verde Valley Medical Center (VVMC) earned an ‘A’ Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit patient safety steward that sets standards for hospitals. Leapfrog assigns a letter grade to hospitals across the country based on over 30 performance measures reflecting errors, accidents, injuries and infections, as well as the systems hospitals have in place to prevent them. VVMC joins well-known hospitals in receiving an ‘A’ grade from Leapfrog, such as Mayo Clinic- Phoenix, Cleveland Clinic Health System, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and New York-Presbyterian Hospital. NAH’s other hospital, Flagstaff Medical Center, was also recognized with an…

Flagstaff News – On Saturday and Sunday June 7th and 8th the sixteenth annual Flagstaff Hullabaloo returns to Wheeler Park in downtown Flagstaff, AZ. Hullabaloo is a community festival and a celebration of summertime. Hullabaloo has been voted “Best Annual Event or Festival” ten times by Arizona Daily Sun and Flagstaff Live readers. Flagstaff Hullabaloo has raised over $175,000 for local non-profits since 2010. This year Hullabaloo will raise funds for Habitat for Humanity of Northern Arizona, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Flagstaff and Boys and Girls Club of Flagstaff. The Hullabaloo will kick off with the Flagstaff Athletic Club Bike Parade…