Cinema Cindy Reviews Mockingjay, Part 1
By CYNTHIA BIDDLECOMB“The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1” is the third installment in the Hunger Games trilogy – at least it is a trilogy in the book version. Did the third novel have enough in it to make into two movies? Surprisingly, yes it did; at 123 minutes in length, this one kept our interest and sustained its intensity.
The focus in Part 1 is on Katniss Everdeen’s struggle to trust the rebel faction and become its’ spokesperson—the Mockingjay. The bulk of the story takes place in District 13, totally underground, a district the public had been told no longer existed. Its’
TALES OF OUR TIMES: Value Variable Weather, Politics
By JOHN BARTLIT
New Mexico Citizens
for Clean Air & Water
Value Variable Weather, Politics
People wander among natural joys – sun, food, shelter, canyons, the night sky, ripples of ideas, sand dunes, and getting your way some of the time. Keeping your own list is part of the fun.
A gem that gets overlooked is the variety of weather. The plum is not “weather,” but “variety.” Everyone likes sun. Everyone wants rain. Snow has fans and critics. Nature’s variability is its virtue.
Imagine a “weatherstat” that you set to your favorite weather. You dial in Read More
Solo Traveler: Prehistoric Man, Part I
Prehistoric Venus Figurine. Photo by Sherry Hardage 
Reconstructed woman’s face from skull found in the L’Abri du Cap Blanc burial. Photo by Sherry Hardage 
Solo Traveler: Prehistoric Man, Part IIn Paris there is a famous museum, dedicated to all that is human, called Museé du Quai Branly. It has a collection of art and useful objects from around the globe, created by humans since the dawn of our species.
On a recent trip to France, there was simply too much else to see. That museum will be one of many enticements to lure me back. Read More
How the Hen House Turns—Focus on Turkeys
How the Hen House TurnsThanksgiving week. Time to consider the mental peculiarities of turkeys.
In the early days in California, my brother and I would hike down the hill behind our house, across the creek, and up the other side. At the end of Pa’s acreage, way beyond the fruit trees where we found some old bones and a skull, was a huge fenced field filled with turkeys—white feathered turkeys.
We would holler “gobble gobble gobble,” and they would all answer. The chorus of gobbles would rise to a crescendo of various tones then fade to scattered Read More
What Is Living Down In My Water Meter?
PEEC Amateur NaturalistA number of streets in the western area of Los Alamos have been rebuilt during the past two years. Part of the rebuilding has involved putting canisters into the ground and then placing water meters in them.
The canisters are about 18 inches across and go down about two feet into the ground. The depth means that water pipes will not freeze because the temperature of the surrounding soil is relatively warm and insolates pipes from cold air above. Moisture may be present in some cases if water seeps from around the pipe couplings Read More
Letter to the Editor: Response To ‘Live Exponentially, Not!’
By VICKI BARNETTJulie, I’m confused. Is Los Alamos a “friendly, comfortable, beautiful place” or are we “stuck in the racist, classist 1950’s”? (See letter.)
I think you need to decide if you are ranting against the new slogan or just telling all of us Los Alamos folks how awful we are before you send a letter to the editor. I know I quit reading halfway through your tirade even though I feel as strongly as you do against the Live Exponentially slogan.
I’m just tired of being told I am a racist, elitist, classless person just because Read More
Sierra Club: Be A Hero
Be A HeroWhat if you were offered a quick, easy, inexpensive way to clean up litter, lower chemical pollution, and reduce endocrine disruption affecting sexual development and obesity?
What if I told you that this action contributes to a healthier, cleaner future for you and your kids? And that it’s quick, cheap and easy? What is this tiny action? Just bring your own shopping bags wherever you go
and forego those flimsy disposable plastic shopping bags. I can hear huffs and see eyes rolling as some of you quickly reject what you thought would be a heroic, Read More
