Author: Tommy Acosta

By David Stephen  May is Mental Health Awareness Month for 2026. What has the study of consciousness contributed to the advancement of mental health research at any point? David Chalmers and Christof Koch are not good enough. Their refusal to get out of the way, given their lack of capacity to stoke progress, effectively stagnated consciousness into a useless problem. What exactly makes consciousness difficult to solve? There’s the brain. There are neurons involved in functions. There are electrochemical signals at work with neurons. If there won’t be a neural theory of consciousness because neurons are cells, then there can be…

When the buyers thin out and the math takes over, a town built on rising values faces a new reality: to sell, prices must fall—and the dream may cost more than anyone expected. A message from Bear Howard & Associates Sedona, AZ — There’s a certain kind of evening in Sedona when the light turns everything honest. The red rocks glow, the shadows stretch, and the town feels… still. Not empty. Just quiet in a way that makes you notice things you might not during the day. A man stands on a patio, looking out over a view he’s had…

Sedona, AZ– Keep Sedona Beautiful will hold its next Preserving the Wonder™ Speaker Series event on Wednesday, May 20 at 5:00 pm at KSB’s EcoHub, 360 Brewer Road, Sedona. This month’s speaker is Margaret Zhao, award winning author and teacher of Taoist Qigong.  Her topic is “Harmony in Motion: Qigong in the Keep Sedona Beautiful Garden.”  The event is free and open to the public.  Carpooling is encouraged. Doors open at 4:30 pm. Please visit the KSB website, www.keepsedonabeautiful.org for details. Margaret’s presentation will have both indoor and outdoor components.  She will start indoors with a discussion of how to experience…

Sedona, AZ — There are some nights in Sedona when the air itself seems to slow down… and May 10 promises to be one of them. Local Native American flutist Aaron White will be performing beneath the open sky at Bella Vita Ristorante, bringing with him a sound that feels as natural to this landscape as the red rocks themselves. The show starts at 6:30 p.m. and ends at 9:30 p.m. and it may be the most memorable three hours you have spent in a long while Aaron White is no stranger to Sedona audiences. An accomplished recording artist and…

(Sedona, AZ) Starting May 1, Defense of Democracy, a non-profit dedicated to protecting public education and the right to read, is proud to announce the launch of its 2nd Annual Teacher Thank-A-Thon. This month-long national campaign encourages community members to attend local school board meetings for one simple purpose: to publicly thank educators for their dedication to students and their commitment to inclusive education. This year’s event is hosted in partnership with prominent education advocate and social media influencer Reads with Rachel, whose platform reaches hundreds of thousands of viewers across TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. “Our educators are on the…

Trauma Awareness Month: Blood Donors Called to Action in May Vitalant donors can win $10,000  Sedona, AZ   — Accidents and other emergencies arise without notice and blood always needs to be ready for patients before they need a transfusion. This Trauma Awareness Month in May, nonprofit blood services provider Vitalant urges all eligible donors to give and help keep the lifeline of the blood supply stable.  Vitalant is thanking all donors who make an appointment and give May 1-31 with a chance to be one of the three who will win $10,000*. Brian Remington needed more than 20 units of…

Sedona, AZ — The Arts Academy of Sedona warmly invites the community to experience the creative process firsthand at a special open rehearsal of The Sweetest Fruits, an original play by Sedona playwright Sunday Larson. The event will take place on Friday, May 1, from 4:00–6:00 PM in The New Room at Sedona United Methodist Church (110 Indian Cliffs Road, Sedona, AZ 86336), as part of the Arts Academy of Sedona’s First Friday programming. Both humorous and deeply moving, The Sweetest Fruits is a work in progress that offers audiences a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse into the development of a new…

Yavapai County, AZ – MATFORCE, a primary prevention organization with a focus on stopping youth drug use before it starts, will be offering a Mental Health First Aid course in the Verde Valley. Mental Health First Aid Training in Camp Verde This 8-hour Mental Health First Aid training is open to the community and is ideal for anyone interested in helping an individual experiencing a mental health crisis. Participants will learn how to identify common signs and symptoms of mental illness and substance use, connect with those in crisis, and practice non-judgmental listening techniques. This free, in-person class is scheduled…

Sedona, AZ – May 4, Red Rock Quilters Love quilting? Got questions? Members of the Red Rock Quilters will be the featured guests for “Monday at the Museum” on May 4, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.  Perhaps bring a small project to work on and enjoy the fellowship of quilting by getting your questions answered or just talking about the joy of quilting. They welcome all levels of quilters, fabric lovers, guests, and traveling quilters. There is no fee for this demonstration. May 11, Verde Valley Wood Carvers  If you have a piece of wood and a wood carving knife, come…

Prescott, Arizona — The American Job Center at Yavapai College celebrated the grand opening on its Prescott Campus with a ribbon-cutting event on April 28, marking a significant milestone in expanding workforce and career support services for the Yavapai County community. Located in Building 1 on the Prescott Campus, the center brings together employment, education and workforce partners in a centralized location designed to support job seekers, students and employers. The center provides access to career guidance, job search support, training referrals and employer connections that promote economic opportunity and workforce readiness across the region “The American Job Center represents our…

Make this Mother’s Day one to remember on Sunday, May 10, with special dining experiences designed for the whole family: ●     Mountain Springs Mother’s Day Brunch Buffet ○     11 AM – 3 PM ○     $39.95 per person ○     A festive, family-friendly brunch featuring a wide variety of favorites ●     Storytellers Mother’s Day Dinner Special ○     5 PM – 9 PM ○     $65 per person ○     Includes: shared appetizer, choice of featured entrée with soup or salad and shared dessert along with a complimentary rose for every mother Cash Cyclone Promotion – Win Big Every Saturday in May Guests can get in on the action with the high-energy Cash Cyclone…

SEDONA, Ariz. — The city of Sedona seeks one applicant for a seat on the local Public Safety Personnel Retirement System (PSPRS) Board as one member’s term approaches expiration. The local PSPRS Board administers the pension system for the Sedona Police Department and follows the rules of the PSPRS system and Arizona Revised Statutes. Additionally, the board makes decisions for Sedona police officers on issues such as membership in the system and approving retirements and service purchase requests. Meetings are scheduled as needed and are required at least twice a year by state statute; those interested must live within city…

Twice Nice Fall Thrifty set for Oct. 3 in Camp Verde SEDONA, Ariz. — Easter weekend in Sedona was a hopping place with the famous egg hunt at Posse Grounds Park, giant rubber duckies randomly popping up across town and the second annual Twice Nice Spring Thrifty available to community members looking to listen to good music, have some food and donate some thrift store items for a cause. The second annual event was held April 4 and store manager Alicia Henson said it “went well.” “It was great to see everything come together smoothly and to feel that same…

By Tommy Acosta — Sedona, AZ – Journalists come in all kinds of different sizes, shapes, and colors. We have the journalist—the quintessential journalists, those journalists out there who will put their lives on the line to get the story. They brave hurricanes, floods, fires, natural disasters, and volcanoes. They put themselves in danger without any care or concern for their own lives, except that of getting the story out to the public. You’ll see them at wars, you’ll see them going after the mob, going after corrupt governments where journalists are regularly blown up and killed just for trying…

By Amaya Gayle Gregory Sedona, AZ — It’s so easy to get sucked into the insanity, but ask yourself, who or what gets sucked? That part of you who believes you’re right and that what’s happening is wrong gets sucked into the void of crazy town, not the present moment awareness in which that sucking sound appears, but the idea, the concept, the thought, the belief that something should be other than it is. That sucks. It’s the sucker, the suckee, and the sucked, none of which have any reality other than what thoughts (identity and it’s story) we assign…