Author: Tommy Acosta

Tommy Acosta is the publisher, editor, and lead opinion writer of Sedona.biz, the hyperlocal cyber magazine known as "The Voice of Sedona and the Verde Valley." He writes on local issues, politics, national affairs, culture, and personal reflection, often with a provocative or satirical tone.In addition to his work as a writer, Acosta is a working musician and reflexologist. He has written extensively about the challenges Sedona's musicians face, noting their low pay despite the town's vibrant music scene.Acosta describes himself as a "political actualist," rejecting strict party affiliations and instead focusing on how people are manipulated by political processes. His coverage spans local Sedona issues, tourism, short-term rentals, cultural events, community building, as well as national commentary and critiques of political figures, sometimes through imaginative pieces like "What Would Tommy Do?"Acosta is deeply engaged in Sedona's cultural and spiritual community, advocating for local musicians, artisans, and businesses, and writing about Sedona's unique identity as a spiritual and artistic hub.

By Ted Grussing… a long final for R21 at KSEZ … no monitoring or squawking on the CTAF 123.00 or checking weather on the AWOS 118.525, this guy just lines it up and goes for it! The supposition is that he really is going for the runway and not Oak Creek which is meandering below hidden from view in the lush green ribbon running from lower right through the center and along the east side of Airport Mesa until in the distance it merges with the Verde River. The fish in the river are fresh and at the restaurant they…

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By Ted Grussing… a somewhat unusual event to be in the air early morning and have the sun more or less on my back as I shoot looking towards the southwest which really helps reduce the effect of haze in the air. I took this Saturday morning and I was approximately over Grand Falls on the Little Colorado River when I took the shot and maybe around 7,000’. The near volcano center right is Roden Crater in the Painted Desert and it is the ongoing art project of James Turrell. You can learn more about this amazing project at: http://rodencrater.com/…

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New production from Stratford-Upon-Avon makes debut at Mary D. Fisher TheatreSedona AZ (June 28, 2016) – The Royal Shakespeare Company’s extraordinary new production of “Hamlet” makes its Sedona big-screen debut on Sunday, July 10. The Sedona International Film Festival hosts the high-definition premiere of William Shakespeare’s renowned play from its home in Stratford-Upon-Avon. There will be one show at 3 p.m. at the festival’s Mary D. Fisher Theatre.Hamlet has the world at his feet. Young, wealthy and living a hedonistic life studying abroad. Then word reaches him that his father is dead.

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Sedona AZ (June 28, 2016) – The Sedona Fire District (SFD) gratefully announces the end of formal fundraising for the 9/11 Memorial. Due to the tremendous generosity of our community and donors from around the country, the commitments and funds already received have allowed us to exceed our goal to fund the Memorial. Any future donations received will be used for project enhancements, such as landscaping, signage, dedication ceremony, etc. Donations of $911 or more will be recognized on a donor plaque at the site, and the cut-off date for any further donor recognition is Friday, July 15th, 2016.

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Prescott AZ (June 28, 2016) – A free 3-day Motivational Interviewing training will be held in Prescott Valley from July 20 through July 22, 2016.  The class is designed for professionals working to improve treatment outcomes for clients with substance abuse and other disorders.  This is a great training for anyone that wants to learn new tools to work with their clients.  This class is sponsored by Yavapai County Adult Probation in conjunction with MATFORCE.

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Sedona AZ (June 28, 2016) – July is National Parks and Recreation Month, and to celebrate this occasion the city of Sedona Parks and Recreation Department will offer Wet Wednesdays at Sunset Park. In the month of July, every Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. come play on the grass of Sunset Park with the inflatable, dual-lane SlipN’ Slide. Additionally, pack a picnic, play on the playground, run in the water at the Splash Pad or relax in the shade under a tree.

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By Ted GrussingSaturday a friend and I scrapped plans to do Sunset Crater and headed to Desert View at the Grand Canyon and hit the various overlooks and points as we worked our way up to The Village. Seemed like a great idea and the car was washed several times as we drove up SR89. Quite a bit of smoke in the GC and likely that was the cause of not that many visitors compared to other times I have been up there … still it was beautiful and if you looked up the canyon with the sun on your…

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New documentary featured in special premiere event at Mary D. Fisher TheatreSedona AZ (June 27, 2016) – The Sedona International Film Festival is proud to present a special premiere of the acclaimed film “Australia’s Lost Gold” showing one day only: Thursday, July 14 at 4 and 7 p.m. at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre.The intriguing documentary “Australia’s Lost Gold” sets out to get to the bottom of the legend of Harold Lasseter, a prospector who died of starvation in the harsh Central Australian desert in 1931 shortly after purportedly discovering the mother lode in a quartz reef that has never…

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Sedona Lit is a series by Dr. Elizabeth Oakes, an award winning poet and former Shakespeare professor. A Sedonian of three years, she will highlight the literature, written or performed, of Sedona, past and present.By Elizabeth Oakes(June 27, 2016)Like many who visited Arizona early in the 20th century, Maxfield Parrish was born into privilege on the east coast. Most of his adult life he lived on an estate called The Oaks in New Hampshire, which was one of the finer homes in the country at the time. He was used to museums, symphonies, travel to Europe.This changed when Parrish came…

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Free Workshop for Parents and EducatorsPrescott AZ (June 27, 2016) – MATFORCE is offering a free workshop to help parents, educators or anyone working with children to understand what lies beneath a child’s negative behavior.  The workshop will explore addictive behaviors such as alcohol and drug use, pornography, perseveration, stealing, self-mutilation, circular thinking and much more.

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Information & Perspective by Warren Woodward(June 25, 2016) As I mentioned in the last update about my Public Records lawsuit against the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC), the judge had released to me all the unredacted documents that he got from the ACC. That put the ACC lawyers into a tizzy.A word about the ACC lawyers: One of them is the ACC’s new “ethics officer.” Seems to me if he had any he never would have taken this case on and tried to defend the indefensible. The other two lawyers are from an outside firm the ACC hired because I guess the…

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