Archive for May, 2009
Osha Fire 75% Contained
by John Weckerle
Firefighters from the Mountainair Ranger District and the Type 1 Mount Taylor Hot Shot Crew, with support from a severity engine from the Caribou/Targhee in Idaho, appear to have successfully fought a fire that grew to only two acres this week. As of yesterday, May 8, the Osha fire, which started in very rugged terrain was 75% contained, and District fire official Arlene Perea anticipated that the fire would be completely contained by last night. While the cause of the fire is as yet undetermined, the District suspect that lightning is likely the culprit, as there were confirmed strikes in the area during last weekend’s storms. Mop-up efforts will continue throughout the weekend.
We’d like to take this opportunity to remind everyone that this has been a relatively dry year thus far, and that means that fire danger may increase as time moves on. The warm weather and winds seem likely to dry the area more over the next week, with no precipitation predicted until next Sunday in the vicinity of New Mexico Central headquarters. Please take extra care to avoid starting fires, and if you must smoke, let’s keep those cigarettes in the car, and the butts in the ashtrays. If you’re worried about smelling up the car, try some smokeless ashtrays:
- Smoke Outlet
- Talon Outlet
- Smoke Eliminator
- The Distinguished Self-Extinquisher
- Smokeless Car Ashtray
Avoid using open flame outdoors whereever possible, and keep a fire extinguisher handy while using outdoor tools such as chainsaws.
Wildlife West Raptor Class
by John Weckerle
Did you know that the only birds in the world known to have any sense of smell are the kiwi and our own Turkey Vulture? This is just one of the many fascinanting facts attendees at Wildlife West Nature Park’s Bird Handling Class will learn. The Park will hold its Bird Handling Class on Saturday, June 13, 2009 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The cost is $20, which is an outstanding value for a great day of learning about native raptors. For more information, see Wildlife West’s Bird Handling Class page and our June 9, 2008 article.
On another note: I recently met with Park officials who told me that donations were down significantly compared to last year; they didn’t have hard figures, but thought it might be as much as 65%. I was shocked to hear that the Park is currently borrowing money just to feed the animals. Folks, Wildlife West is an asset that all of us can enjoy and that provides employment and educational opportunities for our young people – and the rest of us. We’d like to remind everyone that memberships can be purchased and donations of any size made via the Park’s membership page. We know that times are tough, but even small donations – $5, $10, $20, etc. – can help Wildlife West continue to be the asset it has become. The Park also accepts corporate, music festival, and habitat sponsorships (corporate and music festival sponsorships may be purchased online, and habitat sponsorships may be purchased through coordination with the Park). For more information, contact the Park at 505-281-7655 or toll free at 877-981-9453, or visit the Wildlife West web site, roll your cursor over the “Support” button, and choose the link that interests you. Wildlife West is recognized by the IRS as a tax exempt 501(c)(3) organization, so your contributions are tax-deductible. Checks can be sent to:
Wildlife West Nature Park
P.O. Box Number 1359
Edgewood, NM 87015
As always, we encourage people to visit the Park – your entry fee also helps, and we think you’ll find the visit well worth the price of admission.
Public Service Announcement – Credit Workshop
The New Mexico Small Business Development Center at the Albuquerque South Valley SBDC will be holding a credit workshop on May 26, 2009 from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. For more information, see the full announcement.
An Experiment…
by John Weckerle
While the economy is improving somewhat, unemployment is higher than any of us would want, so we’re going to run a little trial here at New Mexico Central. Once a week, we’re going to run classified-style employment ads free of charge. We’ll try this for a week or two, and then evaluate it to see if it’s worthwhile to continue. Employers seeking applicants may send the following information to editor@nm-central.com by Friday of each week and we will try to post it early the following week:
- Name of company
- Contact phone number and name
- Brief description of position (about 50 words)
- Address to which resumes, etc. should be sent (snail and e-mail)
We won’t be posting links to corporate/organizational web sites, as we’re trying to run a sort of free “classified jobs article” rather than create a link farm situation. We will consider posting links to specific job announcements or job descriptions on others’ web sites; however, we will not be posting detailed descriptions directly on the NM-Central.com web site. Announcements must be for real jobs that are currently available and employers must identify themselves, as we are trying to connect people with jobs and are not looking to facilitate corporate “fishing expeditions.” New Mexico Central accepts no responsibility for the veracity of the information provided in the ads or the employment practices of employers providing us with announcements.
Public Service Announcement – CNMEC Job Openings
by John Weckerle
We’ve received the following information from the Central New Mexico Electric Cooperative via the Estancia Valley Economic Development Association:
Central NM Electric Cooperative has one full- time and one part-time night dispatcher position open. Please send resumes to Workforce Connections or to the Moriarty or Mountainair CNMEC Office. Beginning pay is $11.63. CNMEC will accept applications until May 15th.
The addresses for the two CNMEC offices are:
Moriarty Office
Central New Mexico Electric Cooperative, Inc.
P.O. Box 669
810 1st Street
Moriarty, NM 87035
Mountainair Office
Central New Mexico Electric Cooperative, Inc.
P.O. Box 157
301 N. Summit Ave.(Hwy 55)
Mountainair, NM 87036
Public Service Announcement: Community Mural In Mountainair
Checking in on our friends at Mountainair Announcements, we find that there will be a Community Mosaic Workshop on Wednesday, May 6 beginning at 9 p.m. at Mountainair Clayworks. For more information, see the full announcement. We wish the Manzano Mountain Arts Council and sponsors Mary and Scott Childers good luck with this one; it sounds like a great way to add color and interest to the look of the community.
Bird-Watching
by John Weckerle
We love the fact that we live in a place with such a wonderful variety of wildlife, including birds. We sighted one of these in the sky recently; we don’t mind them flying over, but it’s murder on the trees when they try to roost for the night.
Grow Your Own – This Year’s Adventure Begins! Or Continues, At Least…
by John Weckerle
Earlier this week, we decided to pull the top off the “mini-greenhouse” on the south bed, take some inventory, prepare the bed for planting – and, well, plant. As we’ve mentioned previously, some of the salad greens and culinary herbs had made it through the winter. The thyme and sage never went dormant, and early Spring saw the emergence of a new crop of oregano. After tasting the salad greens – which had flowered and become bitter – we determined that we would be best off simply pulling them and planting some of the lettuce we started earlier in the season. As you can see, the herbs are looking fine and are ready for use. »» Grow Your Own – This Year’s Adventure Begins! Or Continues, At Least…