I almost missed National Talk Like a Pirate Day! I was at the Meeker Library looking over Mike’s shoulder when a banner flashed across his screen. It read, “National Talk Like a Pirate Day, Sept. 19.” Yes, it was another one of those faux holidays. Thousands of these “National Days”[Read More…]
Tag: Guest Column
Building strong communities could be a team sport
I got to thinking about some of my small-town neighbors when I read that the Denver Broncos football team, which is just starting its new season, was sold for $4.6 billion. The principal new owners are Walmart heir Rob Walton and his daughter and her husband. Their ownership group also[Read More…]
Old-fashioned communication technology
In the movie “Independence Day” the disorganized pilots across the world were reduced to communicating with help of amateur radio operators using Morse Code. These “HAM” radio guys helped Bill Pullman, as president, with a counter attack that saved the human race from extinction. OK, that was a strange use[Read More…]
What to do when the water keeps dwindling?
It seemed inevitable that the dwindling Colorado River would be divvied up by the federal Bureau of Reclamation. On June 14, BuRec gave the seven states in the Colorado River compact just 60 days to find a way to cut their total water usage by up to 4 million acre-feet.[Read More…]
Back to the moon
Childhood heroes are getting scarce. Well, at least outside YOUTube and video games. Kids need heroes to grow. My heroes were my Dad, cowboys in white hats like Roy Rogers, knights in armor, and astronauts. The space race to the moon began with the Russians launching a satellite named Sputnik.[Read More…]
The Baby Survival Package ~ Part Two
This is part two of THE BABY SURVIVAL KIT. Years ago, I started a tradition of giving a gift basket to expecting parents. It was for the first-born child of couples we knew well. It started out as both practical guide and a source of humor for nervous new parents.[Read More…]
Big Tech is steamrolling America’s newspapers
Google and Facebook have enormous economic and political power in society – especially over the news industry. Many ask if they have played a role in the misinformation that erodes our free press and plagues our democracy. Google and Facebook have a duopoly of the distribution of digital news content,[Read More…]
What do you get from volunteering with the Historical Society?
We are currently working at the Milk Creek Battlefield Park. Those of you who have been there have seen our accomplishments. We have the only monument in the United States dedicated to warriors of the Ute Nation. Installed by Utes. A couple of years ago we put up signs that[Read More…]
Tips for a new Code of the West
It’s not always easy living in the rural West, with customs so entrenched that everybody takes them for granted. What makes it hard for the newest newcomers is that they’re caught up in a mysterious culture. Learning the Old West code was easy decades ago. Novelist Zane Gray’s “Code of[Read More…]
‘Yer aff yer heid’
You will hear many strange words across Scotland today. You will find English and Gaelic on many signs. What most Scots speak every day is Scottish English. Its many dialects can be very poetic and humorous in describing life, people and insults. I will try to give you a taste[Read More…]
Guest Column: Wheels
Americans have an infatuation with WHEELS, even beyond pulling out the TV tray and watching Vanna White and Wheel of Fortune. Motorized, rubber, wood, gears, water, rocket propelled, side by side, even lawn mowers, anything with wheels. We have it in our DNA, the need to make wheels turn ever[Read More…]
We need every tool to fight fires
We know now that the largest recorded fire in New Mexico history was started by an escaped “prescribed burn,” or rather by two. The Hermit’s Peak fire bolted away on April 6 when unexpectedly gusty winds blew sparks beyond control lines. Then the Calf Canyon fire raced off on April[Read More…]
