Big Bend Gazette

From the Dept. of Shameless Self Promotion...

Big Bend Gazette — Fri, 02 May 2008 12:15:58 -0500

WHERE CAN I SEE MORE GAZETTE PHOTOS?
Why Texas Monthly, of course!

Texas Monthly’s online edition has a multimedia essay, “Mountain Man,” featuring photos taken exclusively by Gazette Publisher John Waters. The photo essay accompanies S. C. Gwynne’s feature article “This Land is His Land” about Texas General Land Office Commissioner Jerry Patterson. Gwynne, Patterson and Waters spent two days this January touring the Christmas Mountains and hiking in Big Bend National Park when the photos were taken. Click here.

Beyond Yard Signs: conversations with candidates running for Mayor of Alpine

Big Bend Gazette — Fri, 02 May 2008 11:04:00 -0500

Alpine’s four candidates for mayor recently sat down with Dallas Baxter to discuss their reasons for running and what they think they can do as mayor of the Tri-counties’ largest city. Alpine’s mayoral election is held May 10. Early voting has already begun, and ends May 6. by Dallas Baxter

Our MAY 2008 issue is out

Big Bend Gazette — Fri, 02 May 2008 09:46:25 -0500

Look for it on newsstands at fine vendors throughout West Texas.

To open a larger version of our cover page, click on the cover photo at left. Check back later in the month for a handful of individual stories and photos from the current issue.

We are in the process of migrating to a new web host and having to redesign the whole site. Please bear with us as we make the transition.

Many back issues are available here: scroll down the left column to "archives of past issues."

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To read individual articles from previous issues, search our site by key word, geographic area, author, or month (via "search" box in left column). Sometimes the content of an article we have posted mysteriously and suddenly disappears. We have no idea why. If you encounter this or any other glitches, please do not hesitate to let us know, so we may correct the error as promptly as possible.

Thanks so much for your interest.

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FEED YOUR SOIL COMPOST

Big Bend Gazette — Fri, 02 May 2008 09:10:00 -0500

Instead of sending organic materials to landfills and paying the city for the service, compost your yard clippings and kitchen vegetable scraps. As much as 1/3 of city waste comes from yard clean-ups and 1/10 from kitchen garbage. Composting is nature's way of building soil. by Sandra Harper

Jeff Davis County Humane Society looking for good homes for wide array of cats and dogs

Big Bend Gazette — Fri, 02 May 2008 07:21:47 -0500

On April 19 in front of Ringtail Records in Alpine, Carrie Branum, Adoption Coordinator for the Jeff Davis County Humane Society in Fort Davis, was seeking a good home for this fine pooch. The humane society has a number of great cats and dogs looking for homes, including Joe, a domestic medium hair black cat, and June, a Catahoula Leopard dog. When we spoke to...

The Man-Woman Communication Gap

Big Bend Gazette — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:33:00 -0500

Now, I’m a born romantic. I cannot help it. After such a touching remark communicating my overall appreciation of her beauty even in her present unkempt state, I figured she would swoon into my arms, and favor me with a kiss. Instead, I got an icy stare and a cold shoulder. by Smokey Briggs

Patterson Tells Park Service: No Guns, No Deal – Create a National Preserve

Big Bend Gazette — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 10:18:30 -0500

exas General Land Office Commissioner Jerry Patterson has responded to the National Park Service’s proposal to acquire the Christmas Mountains in Brewster County. His answer: No guns, no deal: create a National Preserve and we can talk. by John Waters

Letters to the Editor - April 2008

Big Bend Gazette — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 09:21:58 -0500

I enjoyed Blair Pittman’s account of the humanitarian rescue of a cow from Santa Elena Canyon in 2007 [“Cow in the Canyon: a true story with a twist,” March 2008], but his statement that the event was the first time that a cow had been through the Rockslide is incorrect by almost 30 years.

Health Tips: Over-the-Counter Supplements Vary in Usefulness

Big Bend Gazette — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 08:24:36 -0500

It is absolutely amazing to me how much people spend on herbal remedies and supplements over the counter, when they can barely meet their bills. Some folks cannot afford prescription medications even at Wal-Mart prices of $4 a month for most generics, but will pay good money for moderate- to high-priced supplements. Maybe it’s the idea of making one’s own decisions about what to take for each ailment, but sometimes... by JoAnn Lister

Happenings

Big Bend Gazette — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 07:28:08 -0500

Want your happening for next month listed? Just get the information to us by the 22nd of this month: info@bigbendgazette.com. Meantime, find out what's coming up this month...

TCEQ: OPEN FOR BUSINESS

Big Bend Gazette — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 06:45:05 -0500

While the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) affirms in its mission statement that it “strives to protect our state’s human and natural resources,” that protection has a qualifier: “consistent with sustainable economic development.” In any showdown between profit and health, profit usually wins out. In Texas, the regulatory agency for the environment is open for business. Following are four recent examples in which business interests were dominant over public and environmental health.... by Fran Sage

Sage Views: Welcome to Texifornia!

Big Bend Gazette — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 10:47:30 -0600

To make a long story short, it turns out he decided to buy a couple of the new gasoline cans, found a supplier on the Internet, and ordered them – only to receive an email informing him that the company could not legally sell him the cans because they were not CARB compliant, and Texas was now a CARB state. What is CARB? by Smokey Briggs

Nothing new under the sun? How about cooking in a solar oven...

Big Bend Gazette — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 10:38:34 -0600

Last spring, while browsing on eBay, I found and bid on a solar oven. I secretly hoped I would not win the item, but I did. Upon first inspection when it arrived, it seemed well built and was portable. Included were directions for how to prepare whole wheat bread, millet cake, beans, potatoes, onions, sweet corn, chicken, meat, fish, vegetables, and cheeseburger pie, whatever that is. It seemed that you could cook just about anything in the solar oven. I was skeptical yet optimistic. by George Pitlik

Letters to the Editor - MARCH 2008

Big Bend Gazette — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 10:35:54 -0600

After reading Smokey’s article [“Sage Views: The Girls Discover Inflation,” February], I would like to print up bumperstickers that read “Smokey for President 2008” and put them on every car in West Texas....

“Oh, my gosh!” – The Eureka! moment for two botanists in the Trans-Pecos

Big Bend Gazette — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 10:06:08 -0600

When a friend from North Texas told her how great the hiking was around Alpine, his home town, Manning came out to hike the Big Bend and, as has happened to so many before and after her, the desert cast its spell. “I wanted to learn all about the desert,” Manning said. by Dallas Baxter

Presidential candidates voted in favor of border fence in 2006

Big Bend Gazette — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 10:04:04 -0600

Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, John McCain and Ron Paul have something in common they all voted for the Secure Fence Act of 2006. This bill authorized the construction of 700 miles of barrier between the United States and Mexico – what regionally we call “the border wall.” by John Waters

Cow in the Canyon: a true story with a twist

Big Bend Gazette — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 09:48:04 -0600

Following a flood, many a rafter or canoeist has found a stranded cow, horse or burro stuck in the mud. Ropes may be needed, or you just get in there, waist deep in mud, and wrestle it to safety. Keep in mind the animal can kick, bite or gore you, depending on its fear factor. You can’t expect a thank you from these critters. by Blair Pittman

The Red Blouse: a short story

Big Bend Gazette — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 08:52:47 -0600

Lupita sighed as she stood to greet them. She’d already made a large batch of dough for tortillas and had instructed her oldest daughter to start a big pot of soup. Hadn’t Carlos told her after the last visit that he was bringing five men? Five at 150 pesos a day for two days would have meant a good increase in the stash of money she had set aside for the trip to Chihuahua to have the baptism. The baby was already a year old and still without a name. by Jackie Siglin

Train derailed in Alpine; hazardous cargo contained and cleanup underway

Big Bend Gazette — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 10:24:13 -0600

We await further updates from the Brewster Co. Sheriff Dept. regarding a Union Pacific train derailment west of Alpine which occurred at approximately11:50 pm last night near Hwy 90 and FM 1703 (Sunny Glen Road). Meantime, shortly before11 am today, Brewster County Judge Val Beard told The Gazette that the scene of this morning’s train derailment in Alpine is “safe” and has been given an “all clear.” Residents near the derailment who were evacuated have been told they can return to their homes.

A letter from Texas General Land Office Commissioner Jerry Patterson.

Big Bend Gazette — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 11:10:28 -0600

I continue to be amused by some of the comments regarding the Christmas Mountains found on various websites. Before discussing the Christmas Mountains I would encourage all to read all the information that is found on the GLO website www.glo.state.tx.us.... In any discussion on any public policy issue, credibility is essential. Comments made or written by those who haven't "done their homework” only serve to advance the cause of those who have the opposing view. I find that most of the negative comments made about the GLO/Christmas Mountains...

A visit to the Christmas Mountains and Big Bend National Park with Jerry Patterson

Big Bend Gazette — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 12:51:20 -0600

On a stunningly clear mid-January afternoon Texas General Land Office Commissioner Jerry Patterson pilots his 90-horsepower Citabria aircraft from San Marcos to land at Terlingua Ranch’s 4,000-foot dirt runway, at 1:30 pm. On board with Patterson is a chilled Sam Gwynne, writer from Texas Monthly, who has endured the three-hour flight in the back of the small aircraft, sitting behind Patterson where the aircraft’s heat does not reach. Patterson is in Brewster County to explore the Christmas Mountains and Big Bend National Park by air, foot, truck and all-terrain vehicle. by John Waters

National Park Service makes bid for Christmas Mountains

Big Bend Gazette — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 11:58:00 -0600

The Texas General Land Office has made public the National Park Service’s proposed management plan for the Christmas Mountains. Under the proposal, the Christmas Mountains would be added to Big Bend National Park and managed as a backcountry area of the park. The Park Service proposal cites several advantages of NPS management including permanent protection and preservation, public access and participation in the planning process, NPS expertise in management of backcountry environments.

Editorial: The Christmas Mountains should become part of Big Bend National Park

Big Bend Gazette — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 11:57:26 -0600

The National Park Service has submitted a management plan to the Texas General Land Office for the Christmas Mountains. The Park Service is proposing it acquire the Christmas Mountains and incorporate it into the park. It is an excellent plan.

Terlingua Ranch annual members meeting marked by spirited discussion of hot issues and new directors elected, despite lawsuit

Big Bend Gazette — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 09:53:26 -0600

Attendance was notably lower than at some other annual meetings, and the number of ballots cast for new directors decreased from last year’s elections, perhaps more fallout from a lawsuit that has hobbled the association for a year and half. The lawsuit, instigiated by a collection of property owners against others on the board at the time the legal petition was filed, stems from the core allegation that... by Marlys Hersey

letters to the editor Feb 2008

Big Bend Gazette — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 08:37:00 -0600

It was with great interest that I read the articles by Jason Hennington [“Sul Ross students visit Topolobampo to study La Entrada”] and Fran Sage [“La Entrada: the fight goes on”], in the January 2008 issue. As an owner-operator [of commercial trucks], I have loaded out of Laredo, TX off and on for years and have never even heard of such a proposed route [La Entrada al Pacifico, linking the Pacific port of Topolobampo, Sinaloa, MX with Midland-Odessa, TX]. I have no real insight into the situation, but I checked into it a little bit....

The Back Story: an essay about a chronic challenge – with a happy ending

Big Bend Gazette — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 16:57:34 -0600

It was just a cough as I leaned over the sink brushing my teeth – and suddenly I was on the bathroom floor, with my back in such pain that I could hardly move. When I stood up, the best I could do was a forward tilt like a bowler who has just released the ball. Straight up was out of the question. I had no idea what had happened to me. That was 20 years ago—20 years of on-again, off-again pain, incapacity, and discouragement. It’s almost hard to remember those times, now that I am finally pain free. by Sarah Bourbon

An open letter to the community from the new Pres. & CEO of Lajitas Resort

Big Bend Gazette — Sat, 22 Dec 2007 11:47:03 -0600

In the coming months you will see many changes at Lajitas, the first of which will be making the resort a public resort not only for the benefit of everyone in Texas, but also everyone in the community.

El Paso Saddleblanket Saturday Writers & Artist Showcase Series

Big Bend Gazette — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 14:33:16 -0600

El Paso Saddleblanket Company’s first WEEKLY "Saturday Artist Showcase Series"...

Scenes from Alpine's Gallery Night 2007 Artwalk

Big Bend Gazette — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 17:58:44 -0600

On Friday, Nov. 16, at Alpine’s Gallery Night Artwalk, featured artist James Evans showed a collection of his photos, “Of Missing Persons,” residents of the Big Bend... by Marlys Hersey

Sage Views: a trip to give thanks for

Big Bend Gazette — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 07:52:48 -0600

And then we found it. The bus is a 1968 International Harvester and is nearly mint. Much to my great joy, it was already nicely converted much as we had planned to do, and even better, it was four-wheel-drive. Now, that is just cool (and will probably save me no small amount of digging in the future). Driving a bus is not at the top of the cool ladder, but driving a four-wheel-drive bus… The bus lived in Idaho. by Smokey Briggs