Columns

Solo Traveler: The Soloists

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Rocky Mountain Park scene. Photo by Momo Vuyisich
 
A stream in Rocky Mountain Park. Photo by Momo Vuyisich
 
Solo Traveler: The Soloists
By SHERRY HARDAGE

I was in high school when I read Isabella Bird’s famous book A Lady’s Life in the Rocky Mountains.

She was a 19th century British explorer who supported herself with writing. She traveled alone most of the time, and found that “pluck” was rather admired in the American West.

Most people were filled with too much admiration for her solo travel and independent spirit to do her any harm. Her adventure articles (and books) were published Read More

Food on the Hill: Party Meatballs

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This week’s recipe: Party Meatballs

Ingredients:

2 pounds beef (90% or more)
1/3 cup dried parsley flakes
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 cups Rice Krispies
2 eggs
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/3 cup ketchup
3 tablespoons very chopped onions
 
Sauce:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup ketchup
2 teaspoons Worcester sauce
pepper
2 teaspoons hot sauce
2 tablespoons grape jelly
1/4 cup vinegar
1 can tomato sauce

Directions:

Meatballs: Combine all ingredients and mix with hands.

Photo by Sue York/ladailypost.com

Form into walnut size balls and place on baking sheet with short Read More

Yang: More Spice In Group Life: Multicultural Working Groups

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More Spice In Group Life: Multicultural Working Groups
By ELENA YANG

I have said it before and I will repeat it as often as my chosen topic calls for it: Cross-cultural issues, or diversity issues, are very personal, and therefore potentially emotional. The illustrations in last week’s entry (A Brit Insulted An Asian Woman In Germany) were “minor,” superficially, but the impact was long lasting. As US working environment grows more multicultural and the world more interconnected, it is fairly common these days to have colleagues from different cultures, be them foreign nationals or of different Read More

Education 101: It Can’t Be That Bad; What About the $8 Million in Federal Funding?

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Education 101: 
It can’t be that bad; What About the $8 Million in Federal Funding?
By Save Our Schools Los Alamos

Los Alamos Public Schools have received supplemental funding from the federal government for operating expenses since the town was created in the 1940s. The federal government fully funded the schools until 1950, when the schools became part of the New Mexico system. From 1950 to 1997, the federal government contributed 35 percent of operating costs; which had risen to $8 million by 1997. Since then, under various federal laws, the schools have received a flat $8 million Read More

Column: Valles Caldera National Preserve Suspends Open Hiking

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‘Temporarily Closed’ signs atop barb wire fences greet the public at the top of hiking areas on Pajarito Mountain. Photo by Greg Kendall

Column by GREG KENDALL

Los Alamos Daily Post

It was incredibly disheartening news to read that the Valles Caldera National Preserve Trust Board had suspended open hiking before it even began. I looked forward to hiking up to the Caldera Rim of Canada Bonito without having to stop at the sharp barbed wire fence that carries the “Valles Caldera National Preserve – Temporarily Closed” signs. Alas, it is not to be. The staff and Trust

Read More

Pain Free Athlete: Posture Alignment on Aerobic Machines

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Pain Free Athlete
BY JESSICA KISIEL

Posture Alignment on Aerobic Machines

When exercising on an aerobic machine (elliptical, treadmill, bike, stair stepper, etc.) our intent is to condition our cardiovascular system. We are concerned with our heart rate, breathing and fatigue. It is all about our heart and lungs. Seldom do we consider the biomechanics needed to reach our workout intensity. Consequently, people are hunching over the machines, leaning forward and getting hurt.

Six posture related injuries from aerobic machines:

1. Ligaments are permanently stretched
Common in the pelvic Read More

How the Hen House Turns: Routine Equals a Cure-all

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How the Hen House Turns: Routine Equals a Cure-all
Column by Carolyn A. (Cary) Neeper, Ph. D.

How do you restore a hen lost in what seems like depression—not eating, not getting enough calcium to lay an egg, not returning to the pen with the others for the afternoon treat?

Expensive mealy worms were not working. I tried melon rind laced with crushed calcium pills and sprinkled onto fresh corn husks.

No worries. There seems to be relief in routine—the magic required when caring for domestic animals. Americia becomes her old self when the time comes to forage outside the pen.

Anticipating the daily Read More

Solo Traveler: Traveling With Friends

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Solo Traveler: Traveling With Friends
By SHERRY HARDAGE

My mother has a friend who has traveled the world alone for the last 40years. When mom hinted she’d love to go on a trip, her friend diplomatically answered, “I wouldn’t want to jeopardize our friendship.”

Traveling with other people can certainly change a relationship. I have known of a few couples who started out as friends on a trip and ended up getting married later on. It’s also not unusual for an extended trip to seriously strain a marriage.

From personal experience, I can attest to being surprised at how a person I knew before traveling Read More

Food on the Hill: Fettuccine Alla Puttanesca

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This Week’s Recipe: Fettuccine Alla Puttanesca
 
Photo by Sue York/ladailypost.com
 
Ingredients:
 
1 pound of spaghetti, cooked and drained
5 tablespoons of olive oil
3 cloves of garlic pressed
1 to 2 ounces of anchovy fillets
½ to 1 teaspoon red chili flakes
6 Roma tomatoes cut up or 10 oz of good canned chopped tomatoes
1 cup of black olives, pitted and chopped in half
½ cup Kalamata olives, pitted and chopped in half
2 tablespoons of capers
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Chopped basil, for garnish
 
Directions:
 
Fry the garlic in the olive oil for 30 seconds.
Read More

How the Hen House Turns: Dogs Can Taste That Stuff

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How the Hen House Turns: Dogs Can Taste That Stuff
Column by Carolyn A. (Cary) Neeper, Ph. D.

Have you ever tasted dog food? Wow. Bland. I had to learn the hard way that dogs can taste that stuff. I wondered, because DeeDee and Scooter have always snarfed the dry biscuits down as if they’d never see food again.

Now I know why. It was because they probably survived on their own for a week at age two or three months (after the fire in 2000) by eating whatever—or whenever a kind person responded to their big eyes and smudgy black and white spots would give them.

Once, when I wanted to see if they would self-limit, Read More