spotlight ep news december 4, 2009 no. 303

www.spotlightepnews.com

Published by E.P. MASS MEDIA ADVERTISING INC. Vol.IX No. 303 December 04, 2009

Al Borrego

SPOTLIGHT#303. DEC 4_Layout 1 12/2/2009 7:36 PM

SPOTLIGHT EP NEWS DECEMBER 04, 2009 PAGE 2

In October of

2008, Dr. Stephanie Han,then attending radiationoncologist in New YorkCity, decided to come toEl Paso, TX. After trainingat Yale under some of theworld’s most renowned on-cologists, and after years

of service in both acade-mia and in the private sec-tors in Manhattan, Dr. Hanthought she could neverleave the city, until, shevisited El Paso for the veryfirst time.

While looking for a newrole in an underserved

area, she soon found her-self drawn to the greatneed for improved cancercare that exists just acrossthe border from Cd.Juarez, Mexico. She dis-covered that in a city thatis approaching one millionpeople, there were veryfew specialized cancerservices, despite a highrate of cancer and a fast-growing, aging population.The need for top-qualitycancer care at the Border-land was enough to con-vince Dr. Han to leave herdistinguished post in NewYork.

“One of the things that ap-pealed to me was thechance to help build acancer center from theground up, to set things upin a way that you think isreally in the best interestof the patients” says Dr.Han.

The other thing that Dr.Han wanted to emphasizein her practice is patient-centered, multidiscipli-nary care. Cancer is not asingle disease, but rather,a family of diseases thatrequires the expertise ofmany different oncologyspecialists. Her special in-terest in breast cancer, gy-necological andgastrointestinal malignan-cies...Continues on p. 4

NY Radiation Oncologist Brings RadiationOncology Expertise to El Paso

Dr. Stephanie Han



An Artistic Renaissance Comes to San Elizario, TexasBy Joe Olvera ©, 2009

The Artistic Ren-

aissance that artist/busi-nessman, Al Borrego,wants to bring to SanElizario is a great idea, butit’s going to take manypeople to make it work,said an artist who hasmade his home and studioin the small community forthe past 30 years.

Gaspar Enriquez,who has had his art studioat a home in San Elizariothat was built in the 1700s,and just a stone’s throwfrom where Borrego isplanning his San Eli re-vival, said more than anart renaissance, he wantsfor the plans to trigger eco-nomic development. “Weneed for *many people toget involved if we are tomake it work,” Enriquezsaid. “We need politicians,

grants writers, business-people, and, of course,artists. I’m all for it, be-cause San Eli is like OldMesilla, the perfect spot foran artists colony. I hope itworks.”

Borrego, whosefamily has lived in the area

since 1873, has majorplans for almost every as-pect of San Eli’s Plazita,where most of the art ren-aissance is taking place. Healready has rented outthree art galleries to a vari-ety of artists, includingGabriel Gaytan, AlbertoEscamilla and GeronimoGarcia, and is planning onopening a fourth gallerysometime soon.

“We’ve got a lot ofactivity going on here andwe plan to do as much aswe can to bring attentionand people to our beautifulcommunity.” Borrego said.“We’ve taken over theAdobe Horseshoe Theaterand plan to introduceplays that originated onBroadway, as well as localproductions. We’ve got theVeterans’ Plaza, the Los

Portales Museum, our his-toric San Elceario CatholicChurch; we’ve got afarmer’s market, arts andcrafts, music. You name itand we’ve got it, or soon

will have it.”The renaissance

that Borrego and Enriquezare hoping for will impactnot only the population ingeneral, but, will also help

young people to better un-derstand their place in thecommunity, and will instillpride in who they are.Continues on next page



I hope yourThanksgiving holiday wasblessed with happinessand health. We can nowwork on the last month ofthe year to make it a greatyear.

Our open areasin the east county aresome of the most beautifulareas in Texas. We havehigh plains, valleys, moun-tains and many arroyos.And in this area, one canprobably uncover manyvaluable historic items leftbehind over hundreds ofyears.

Just recently Iwas informed that thereare many ancient NativeAmerican campsites thathave yet to be uncovered.Perhaps we need to getour great university towork to uncover thosesites.

Even though wehave such beauty and his-tory, pollution is what

most people see in theopen areas. In the past,the biggest problem in ourdesert was dumping bycounty or city residents.Now the problem is exac-erbated by businessdumping on a grand scale.

Just prior toThanksgiving, my officereceived a call from a re-sponsible resident who in-formed us about the scaleof dumping just east of theClint Landfill. It is ratherpathetic that just threemiles from where thetrash was dumped, theproper facility for dispos-ing of waste is located.

My chief of staffphoned our state agency,the Texas Commission onEnvironmental Quality(TCEQ), to ask that an en-forcement agent accom-pany him on a drivethrough the area. Theydid the following morningand pretty much con-firmed what the caller haddescribed. Then theyspotted a truck loadedwith about forty tires driv-ing on a dirt road. Theyfollowed the truck expect-ing the driver to pull overand dump the tires. In-stead the truck pulled intowhat appeared to be a res-idence.

Both my stafferand the enforcement

agent were astounded tosee that the lot uponwhich the residence waslocated contained up-wards of 20,000 improp-erly (perhaps evencriminally) dumped tires.Not only was this a bigdump, it was also going tobe a very big cleanupalong with some majorfines. As you know, youpay a certain tire disposalfee when you get a new setof tires. The fee is to fi-nance the proper disposalof the tires. This opera-tion may have been pock-eting the money you payand just dumping thosetires on the premises.

That was a majordump site. There aredozens of smaller tiredumps throughout thearea. Unless the tire in-dustry takes true responsi-bility for the safe and legaldisposal of tires, this maynot stop.

Tires are not theonly problem. Perhapsthe second biggest blightin the east desert is roof-ing material. We were in-formed that somewhereoff the main roads exists ahuge roofing dump. Wewill investigate that verysoon as well. Unscrupu-lous business people areaccumulating wealth atthe expense of our beauti-

ful deserts.Tire businesses

must be the ones whomake sure their disposedtires are taken to the landfill or deposited with li-censed tire dumps. If not,you can be sure that wewill pass legislation impos-ing more administrativepaperwork on those busi-nesses.

Homeownerswho have roof repairs orreplacements done needto make sure the materialthat is disposed goes tothe dump and not thedesert. You can make thedifference. Perhaps pay-ment can be withhelduntil you confirm that theold roof tiles and tar buck-ets are taken to the land-fill. We must all dosomething to discouragethe illegal dumping.

Every day I drivefrom the farthest part of ElPaso County to my officeor into the city. Thedesert I see is beautiful.Not far behind that is thedesert that too many peo-ple consider a free dump.That is an detestable wayto reduce business costs.Let's keep El Paso Countybeautiful.

Chente QuintanillaState Representative

East El Paso County Environment

Continued from page 3

Ramon Holguin, 68, a long-time activist and life-longresident of San Elizario,

said he envisions bigthings happening.

“Al Borregostarted the ball rolling,and, now, there’s a lot of

interest inSan Elionce again,”said Hol-guin, a re-tiredmilitary vet-eran. “Ourkids aregoing tolearn even more abouttheir history and aboutSan Eli’s history. In thelate 1970s, early 1980s, wereceived an influx of peo-ple. Yet, hardly anybodyknew about San Eli orwhat it represents. Oursmall community was oncea military post, it was oncethe Seat of El Paso County,and it once jailed the infa-mous Billy the Kid. Whatcan be more historical

thanthat?Thekids arelearningto takepride intheircommu-nity.”

Borrego’s bigplans will continue, notonly through the theatricalproductions at AdobeHorseshoe, but, throughan upcoming event thissummer. “Stay tuned forthe Billy the Kid Festival,which will take place June11, 12, and 13, 2010,” Bor-rego said. “So, come onover to our beautiful SanEli. You’ll be surprised and

pleased by what you see.”

Continued from page 2.... causes her to work collaboratively on a dailybasis with physicians from various disciplines.“Everything is a team approach,” she says.

Her goal is to make a direct and rapid impact oncancer care in the El Paso community. “We arebuilding a cancer care program of several disci-plines that can handle the complexity that the dis-ease brings to the table, including investments inthe latest technology,” said Dr. Han. Thanks to herdedication and commitment, cancer patients in thegreater El Paso region now have a whole differentlevel of services from what was available in thepast.

Dr. Stephanie Han

Artistic Renaissance



Just Say No To Border Fence?

It didn’t work did it?by Joe Olvera ©, 2009

Mexican people

are so resilient and intelli-gent. Now comes a storyfrom San Diego, CA. thatsix Mexican men werecaught and arrested forstealing and trying to sellbits and pieces of the infa-mous Border Fence asscrap metal. There you go,that’s the answer, that’sthe ticket. Don’t like thefence? Why, just tear itdown and sell it for scrapmetal. Jokes aboundedwhen the fence idea firstmaterialized.

Some wags were sayingthat if the U.S. built a 20-foot fence, Mexicanswould build a 22-foot lad-der. I’m not joking. Mexi-cans are that inventiveand resilient. Decades ago,when talk was making therounds that the U.S.planned to build an elec-tricity-charged fence tokeep out undocumentedpeople, I joked in my col-umn that the electrifiedfence would be welcomedby those who were think-ing of making the trek tothe U.S.For one thing, they couldalways find a way to plugin such sundry items as anelectric razor – you know,for shaving while waitingto make the trip. Also, thefence could be tapped forheating a coffee pot, or forwarming over a cold batchof burritos – you know,papas con chorizo y fri-joles refritos? So, yes, thatfence would’ve been wel-comed by one and all.Would it keep out the

Mexicans, and the OtherThan Mexicans? Doubtful,but, the U.S. was desper-ate.

Well, the U.S. didn’t buildthat fence not wanting togive Mexicans free elec-tricity, but, the U.S. cameup with another idea.When plans were firstbeing formulated to buildThe Great Fence of Mex-ico – a steel-reinforcedbarrier that would stretchacross the 2,000 miles ofthe southern border, manyof us here in El Pasoscoffed because we nevertruly believed that itwould happen. Not whenthe Border Patrol was put-ting on its Dog and PonyShow.

The D and P Show meantthat the BP was solicitingcomments on building thewall. The agency went asfar as to hold a meeting ofsorts to allow those of uswho opposed El Muro (thewall) to make our con-cerns known. The D and P

Show consisted of tellingus how much the wallwould cost, why it’sneeded, and to accomplishthis, the BP even hadsome staffers recordingour comments on taperecorders. All this, you un-derstand, so that theycould tell the Bigs in D.C.about how borderdenizens felt about thewall.I even had the temerity toask if they – the onesholding the meeting –were authorized to takeour comments back to theBig W and make themknown to those in power.Of course, the head Migraassured me. “This is thereason why we’re holdingthese informational meet-ings,” the head Migra said.“We want to let everyoneknow that we’re being sys-tematic about this. Yourconcerns will becomeknown.”

Well, so much for that bitof b.s. from the BP. See,the deal was already done.Maybe the six guys in T.J.(Tijuana) had the rightidea. Don’t like the fence?Tear it down and sell it offfor scrap metal. Of course,I would never encourageanyone to do somethingsimilar because theywould be breaking the law.And, everyone knows thatwe U.S. Mexicans are law-abiding. Orale y Simon!Sin Fin



When you’re a meteorologist and start pre-dicting snowfall in El Paso, you’d better get itright, or at least get close to what you predict.The public certainly has a way of letting us knowwhen we do blow it and most of the time it’s thekids who really get disappointed.

So, after seeing the official snowfall re-port at the El Paso International Airport, Ibreathed a big sigh of relief! I anticipated 2 -5inches. In fact, the snow began falling Mondayand by the time the day came to an end we set a

record snowfall of 2.5” for November 30, 2009. The old record was 2”back in 1931. In addition to what we had on Monday, we also picked up a3” Tuesday morning which brought us to a grand total of 5.5”. This is themost snow we’ve seen in a single storm since November 24, 2007 whenwe picked up 7.7” on the east side. Since we are in an El Nino, I wouldcertainly expect more to come this winter (in fact, it’s not even officiallywinter until December 21).Here are some other snowfall amounts across the area for last Monday

and Tuesday:

The Snow Came as Predicted!

By: “Doppler” Dave Speelman

“Doppler" Dave Speelman is the chief meteorologist at KVIA-TV in El Paso. You canwatch his forecasts at 4, 5, 6 and 10 pm on ABC-7 (channel 6 cable). If you wouldlike Doppler Dave to address (explain) any weather issues you can email him [email protected].

El Paso Airport: 5.5”Ruidoso: 9”Ski Apache: 16”Cloudcroft: 20” (nearly 2 feet!)Alamogordo: 8”Las Cruces: 1”Van Horn: 12”Dell City: 2”NE El Paso: 5”Sierra Blanca: 6”West El Paso: 1”



Sharon Mosley

It's time to lighten up and do some partying,guys. So, put your best blazer on and get back into theswing of dressing up again. You know you're tired ofthat same old navy blazer and khaki routine. But first,you might need to do some holiday shopping — andbuy a few things for yourself at the same time.

"With the economy stabilizing, expect customers toloosen their purse strings for some long overdue holi-day shopping," says Tom Julian, a menswear industryexpert and author of "The Nordstrom Guide to Men'sStyle" (Chronicle Books, $19.95).

"The holiday 2009 season takes a slight departure fromthe seriousness of the fall runways," adds Julian, "butcustomers are still looking for intrinsic value and qual-ity in investment pieces that can carry them throughthe winter season."

So guys, here are some "must-have" fashion trends toput on your holiday wish list:

— At the top of the debonair holiday fashion list formen, according to Julian, is a cashmere blend or plush-touch, velvet, two-button black blazer. "It can work forproper black tie or creative scenarios," he says. Layer avelvet blazer over a sweater and trousers or a trimdress shirt in a dark color like smoky gray. Oh yeah,Johnny Depp has this look down in an all-black TomFord ensemble at a recent Museum of Modern Art trib-ute to Tim Burton.

— While black may be one of the most sophisticatedchoices for celebrities on the party circuit, a rich shadeof wine, claret, russet or merlot is another festive wayto drink in the season. "For fall, purple was the pre-dominant color on the runways," says Julian, "but forthe holidays, it takes a warmer turn. Wine adds a depthto traditional winter fabrics and provides an under-stated pop of color to any holiday wardrobe." Try pair-ing a deep merlot blazer over a camel sweater or amerlot patterned shirt with a burgundy tie.

— Another must-have on Julian's holiday list for men?A half-placket pullover. This makes a great gift, too,girls! "From wools to cashmeres, this pullover works forany man," says Julian, "and age appropriate options canbe found everywhere at retail." So, Grandpa, get ready

to party! You can dress it up with tailoredpants or dress it down with jeans.

— The quilting trend also steals the spot-light in holiday menswear. "Quilting is theperfect graphic accent to add a touch ofluxe to a man's wardrobe," says Julian."Whether it's a minimal nuance likequilted elbow patches or a standout piecelike a quilted tuxedo, this trend can bevery versatile and classic." Julian suggestslooking for everything from quilted hunt-ing jackets and knits, as well as a varietyof quilting in accessories, such as bags,shoes, belts and gloves.

Tweed is another way to make the holidaysbright ... and this isn't just for Grandpaanymore. "Tweed is not just for college pro-fessors," Julian says. "Look for tailored cutsthis season, such as mandarin collar tweedsuits or slimming belted trenches, as well astweed accents on shirts and sweaters." And hey,don't forget those tweed caps! Makes a very dap-per gift!

OK, so you want to get the favorite man on your holi-day gift list a new coat. No problem, says Julian. "Forthose who value performance and value, consider thetrench coat, the car coat or a down puffer," he says."For those who look for style, a washed leather motor-cycle jacket or a military canvas coat can be great op-tions." Make sure to look for extra details like zip-outlinings and waterproof fabrics that can make a big dif-ference in cold temperatures. And you know after allthe parties, those bone-chilling days are ahead!

Sharon Mosley is a former fashion editor of theArkansas Gazette in Little Rock and executive directorof the Fashion Editors and Reporters Association.

COPYRIGHT 2009 CREATORS.COM

A new coat is a holiday must-have gift for men this

year. Photo courtesy of Banana Republic,

www.gapinc.com.



DEAR ABBY by Abigail Van Buren

MAN'S STUBBORN SILENCE CAUSESFAMILY TO PANIC

DEAR ABBY: I have beenmarried to "Mick" for 22years -- most of themhappy. My problem is hiscommunication skills. Ihave always had a hardtime contacting him. Hehas a cell phone, but won'ttake it out of his vehicle.

Recently, ourdaughter came home fromcollege. We had planned togo to dinner with her andher boyfriend. When Mickdidn't show up, I triedwithout success to contacthim. My daughter triedand then my son did, too.This went on for an hourand a half. We were wor-

ried sick, so we startedcalling his friends and co-workers -- anyone whomight know his where-abouts.

Abby, I have a se-rious heart condition thatcould send me to the hos-pital at any time.

Mick finally calledback and said he had got-ten distracted talking withan old friend. He acted likewe were crazy for beingconcerned, and insists hedid nothing wrong.

All I have everasked is that my husbandand kids give me a quickcall to let me know ifthey're going to be late so Iwon't worry. My son anddaughter do it, but Mickrefuses. He says he's thebreadwinner, and heshould not have to answerto anyone. I have put upwith this for years, butnow I have had enough.What do you think? --SICK AND TIRED OF IT,IN SOUTH CAROLINA

DEAR SICK AND TIRED

OF IT: Candidly, I thinkMick is acting morelike a rebelliousteenager ratherthan a caring hus-band. Because hehas been this wayfor 22 years, I seri-ously doubt he iscapable of change.That's why I alsothink you should talkto yourattorneyabout adding another fam-ily member to your Ad-vance Directive for HealthCare, in case you have amedical emergency andyour husband is -- as usual

-- un-reachable.Please givethis theseriousconsidera-tion it de-servesbecauseyour lifecould de-pend on it.

**DEAR

ABBY: I married "Marge"18 months ago. It was asecond marriage for bothof us. We agreed to sell ourhomes and buy somethingtogether. Mine sold andnow I'm in her house.

Things were goingfine until Marge's daughterand son-in-law movedback in. It was supposed tobe a three- or four-daystay, but it's now into thefifth week. They alwaysclaim to be right on theedge of leaving.

Marge enjoys hav-ing her daughter near her,but this is stressful for me.They sleep until noonevery day and stay up late.They enjoy all that wehave earned throughoutour lives, and offer nothingin the way of rent.

I am not allowedto complain. I have beengiven the option to say"Go," but I know it willcause hard feelings fromthem and Marge. I am tothe point where I'm readyto move out. -- TRAPPEDIN THEIR HOUSE

DEARTRAPPED:Moretroublingthan thefact youappearto havebeen in-vaded byfreeloaders

is that yousay you are "not

allowed" to voice your feel-ings about it. Marriage issupposed to be a partner-ship of equals, and if onepartner is not happy,healthy couples work outan agreeable solution to-gether. Because you havebeen unable to do this, Irecommend marriagecounseling before youpack your bags.

With counselingI'm hoping you and Margecan form a united front intelling "the kids" they havea deadline to be out in-stead of you being forcedinto the role of "bad guy."Moving out should be yourlast option, because onceyou do, the move may bepermanent.

**Dear Abby is written byAbigail Van Buren, alsoknown as Jeanne Phillips,and was founded by hermother, Pauline Phillips.Write Dear Abby atwww.DearAbby.com orP.O. Box 69440, Los Ange-les, CA 90069.

**To receive a collection ofAbby's most memorable --and most frequently re-quested -- poems and es-says, send abusiness-sized, self-ad-dressed envelope, pluscheck or money order for$6 (U.S. funds) to: DearAbby -- Keepers Booklet,P.O. Box 447, Mount Mor-ris, IL 61054-0447.(Postage is included in theprice.)

**COPYRIGHT 2009 UNIVERSAL UCLICK

Dear Abby

Khmu Tribe's Homemade Bags Carry International Hope

Home Zone

Maggie Reed

It's handmadewith heart and has human-itarian goals. The NatureBag, a multipurpose bagonce known only to a smallgroup of people in thehigher elevations of South-east Asia, is now availableall over the world.

Nature Bags are stretchableand expandable, light-weight yet strong, but theyare not your generic bags.These totes have an ap-pearance that is somewhatshiny, like silk or satin,and have colors that rangefrom a very light tan tomedium-dark brown.

The walls have consider-able stretch and formaround the items inside, sofragile items, such as fruitsand vegetables, are lesslikely to be bruised. Theunique mesh design of thebag also permits airflow.

For thousands of years,these bags have only beenmade in the homes of theKhmu ethnic group ofLaos, a landlocked countryin Southeast Asia with oneof the lowest per capita in-come levels in the world.Aimed at reducing povertyin this region, the NatureBag is the brainchild ofBounsou Keoamphone, astudent and son of a poorrice farmer in the remote,mountainous OudomxaiProvince in northern Laos.The startup funds camefrom a retired Iowa philan-thropist.

By placing the bags online,Bounsou has developed the

concept of linking theprimitive Khmu with themodern world. Thispoverty reduction projectis designed to strengthenthese links, giving the tra-ditional a means toprogress technologicallyand economically whilepreserving the ancientways of the Khmu.

Since all bags are hand-made by the Khmu tribemembers in their homesand not in a factory, notwo are identical.

Nature Bags are made fromwild-growing, organic trop-ical Kudzu, which is nowcalled JungleVine. It is anaturally growing, heartyperennial vine with a deepspreading root that growsquickly during the rainyseason and can be found invarious regions in South-east Asia. JungleVine islightweight, but nearly im-possible to break. It is alsobiodegradable and virtually

resistant to mold.

Nature Bags range in sizefrom 10 inches by 6 inchesto 24 inches by 12 inches.Prices range from $10 to$76.

For more information, call515-244-8909 or visitwww.naturebag.org.

WASH WELL

Even without the currentflu situation, washinghands properly is always agood practice.

Kids tend to be on the runand fail to follow the rulesfor washing, but not withthe Healthy Hands DisneyMusical Hand Wash Timer.When the pump is pusheddown to dispense soap, ittriggers music to play for20 to 25 seconds — thewash time recommendedby the Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention toeliminate germs.

The timers fit the tops ofany liquid soap pump dis-penser and feature kids' fa-vorite Disney characterswith music and flashinglights; they encourage kidsto wash longer and moreoften.

Common advice says toteach kids to sing "HappyBirthday" twice or to saytheir ABCs twice whilethey wash their hands. Tohelp them from rushingthrough these melodies,the timers ensure theyspend enough time scrub-bing for the best hygiene.

Continues on next page

Make a difference around theworld with the multiuse NatureBag, which is made by mem-bers of the Khmu tribe inSoutheast Asia. Photo cour-tesy of Nature Bags.



Décor Score

Rose BennettGilbert

Q: I have always liked liv-ing with calm, neutral col-ors, but lately, I've decidedall that beige may just betoo bland. Without gettingall new furniture (not theyear for that!), what can Ido to punch up my colorscheme (taupe, cream, andbeige-beige-beige)?

A: Contrast. It's an eight-letter word for adding zestto a color scheme.

See what we mean in theup-market pictured sittingroom. New York designerWilliam Sofield casts agolden glow over hisGreenwich Village pied-a-terre with a palette ofmostly neutrals. It's the ex-ceptions — the black arm-chair, strong artwork anddeep-toned wood furniture— that give the space itsvisual energy. And withoutruffling the overall calmand luxury feeling, thosedraperies are made ofcashmere, the better toward off the winter chills,

says the designer.

"Real glamour is rooted inpracticality," Sofield toldMichael Lassell, author of"Glamour: Making It Mod-ern," the new book pub-lished by Filipacchi, fromwhich we borrowed thisphoto.

Sofield's touches of gold onaccessories like the drap-ery rods, candlesticks andmirror don't downplay theglamour. But all that glit-ters does not visual inter-est make: hence thosestrokes of black for gravi-tas. You can easily follow

the de-signpro'sleadwithoutjetti-soningyourcurrentfurni-ture.Adddark-toneddecora-tive pil-lows toa beige

sofa. Change white picturemats for black ones. Paintthe inside back of a book-case charcoal gray ... youget the idea.

While we're on the subjectof neutral color scheme,listen to the advice of TheTrend Curve, a marketinggroup that tracks the latestin decorating ideas. Theyidentify four categories ofneutrals you should con-sider:

1. "Whisper-Light Pales" —from cream to muted oliveto a purple so faint it maylook brown or pink

2. "Pliable Mid-tones" —think of the variations in abouquet of dried multicol-ored roses

3. "Metamorphic Mid-Val-ues" — greenish brownsand grays with splashes ofmauve, beige and deepblues

4. "True Deeps" — tonesyou might find on a denseforest floor: greens,browns, grays and theblues of evergreen needles,accented with golden mossand light mineral tones

A far cry from your same-old beige, yes? Who saysneutrals are boring?

Rose Bennett Gilbert is theco-author of "ManhattanStyle," "Hampton Style,"and five other books on in-terior design.

COPYRIGHT 2009CREATORS.COM.

Continued from page 8Popular tunes are ties toclassic characters, such asthe Disney Princess Arielof "The Little Mermaid"("Under The Sea") or race-car Lightning McQueenfrom the Disney/Pixarmovie "Cars" ("RealGone").

Since the tops fit all stan-dard brands of liquid soap,parents can continue touse the brand of soap theytrust and kids have theirfavorite Disney charactersto teach them a healthyhabit for life.

Disney Musical Hand Wash

Timers from HealthyHands retail for $4. Formore information, call847-220-4000 or visitwww.gethealthyhands.com.Maggie Reed may bereached [email protected].

COPYRIGHT 2009CREATORS.COM

Home Zone

Give Namby-Pamby Neutrals the Color-Punch of Black

Dark accents add life toa calm,cool and luxurioustownhouse sittingroom.Photo byLauraResen,courtesy of Filipacchi Publishing



For Kids of All Ages 1 to 100 Years Old

FOCUS ON THE FAMILY with Dr. James Dobson

Question: My husband andI struggle around the holi-days. Everywhere we lookwe see images of happychildren. We love kids, butwe lost our young son sev-eral years ago and it'ssometimes hard to manageour emotions. Do you haveany insight?

Dr. Dobson: I amso sorry for your loss.There are many otherswho have experienced sim-ilar tragedies. For you andthe others who have lost aprecious child, the entiremonth of December isfilled with its own peculiarvariety of sorrow. Cherubicfaces and toys and tele-vised cartoons only serveto intensify indescribablelongings.

Hearing of yourpredicament, I'm remindedof a letter I received yearsago from a man who hasreason to understand thisperiod of vulnerability. His

words, written to the mem-ory of his daughter, re-vealed a father's brokenheart of love. But the notealso contained a certainsense of triumph and bless-ing. Apparently his littlegirl had sufferedfrom an ex-tended ill-ness andtogetherthey hadendureda longseasonofsor-row.He

wrote,"Bristol,now you arefree! I look for-

wardto

that day, according toGod's promises, when wewill be joined together,completely whole and fullof joy. I'm so happy thatyou have your crown first."

To this father Iwould say, "Thank you, sir,

for sharing thismost intimate

note toyour pre-ciousdaugh-ter. It

madeusfeelthat wehavewalked afew stepsdown the

lonely roadyou have trod.

Your indomitablespirit will

strengthen and inspire oth-ers who harbor their ownprivate sorrow during thisseason of celebration.There are millions whowould identify with yourtravail, I'm sure."

Because of whatwe celebrate at Christmasand later, Easter, death hasno permanent victory overthose who believe. Thegrave has lost its sting. Thetrials and tribulations ofthis life are but momentarysetbacks in light of an eter-nity of joy and bliss. This

is the truemeaning of theseason, and Ipray that de-spite the un-avoidablesadness of thisbroken world,that assurancemight provideyou with somemeasure ofcomfort.**

Dr. Dobson is founder andChairman Emeritus of thenonprofit organizationFocus on the Family, Col-orado Springs, Colo. 80995(www.focusonthefamily.org). Questions and answersare excerpted from "Com-plete Marriage and FamilyHome Reference Guide"and "Bringing Up Boys,"both published by TyndaleHouse.

COPYRIGHT 2009 JAMES DOBSON INC.

HOLIDAYS ARE HARD ON THOSE WHO'VE EXPERIENCED

TRAGEDY



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Mobius strip?

Walt Mooves

Plano, Texas

August Ferdinand Möbius1790-1868

Mr. Möbius was an astronomer who lived in what is now Germany. He looked at what happens to lines as they

� � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � �complicated mathematics. This led him to study the � � � � � � � � � �� 5 � � � � 5 � � � � � � � topology � + 0 ' � � � � � * � � ( ( � 5 4 7 6 5 4 7 3 2 1 0 / 4 . 6 * + ( 4 - 2 * 0 + 4 - 4� � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � 5 � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � �� * + 4 1 + / 4 , - ) ( 5 4

We now know it was first described by another ) - + ' ( ) - + 1 � 1 - , 4 , - ) ( $ 4 � * ' - , , 4 � ( , ( $ 1 � + 4 � 1 / + 1 , � � 4 . ' * 4

is the Not-So-Famous4 # 0 " 4 , 4 � * � * & * � " 5 4

WHAT YOU NEED: strips of paper 11 to 12 inches long - tape - scissors - pencil - felt-tip pen

WHAT TO DO:Make a simple loop with the first strip of paper. Use your scissors to cut the loop down its middle where the dotted line is. Cut all the way around the & * * � 5 4 ! * . 4 ) - , " 4 6 1 , � / 4 $ * 4you end up with? ( � + � 4 ) - ( 4 - , * + ' ( 6 4 & * * � � 4 2 0 + 4� 0 + 4 - 4 ' - & � � + . 1 / + 4 1 , 4 + ' ( 4 / + 6 1 � 4 2 ( � * 6 ( 4" * 0 4 + - � ( 4 1 + 4 + * � ( + ' ( 6 5 4 � * * 4 - + 4 + ' ( 4 � � � 4 ) - 6 / 4 1 , 4 + ' ( 4 & * . ( 6 4 $ 6 - . 1 , � 4- , $ 4 ) - + � ' 4 0 � 4 + ' ( 4 � � / 4 - , $ 4 + ' ( 4 � � / 5 4 � * 0 4 � 0 / + 4 ) - $ ( 4 - 4 7 3 2 1 0 / 4 / + 6 1 � 5 4� 0 + 4 1 + 4 � 0 / + 4 & 1 ( 4 " * 0 4 � 0 + 4 + ' ( 4 � 1 6 / + 4 & * * � 5 4 ! * . 4 ) - , " 4 & * * � / 4 $ * 4 " * 0 4 ( , $ 4up with?MORE STUFF TO DO:Make another Möbius strip. Use a pencil to draw a line down the ) 1 $ $ & ( 4 * � 4 + ' ( 4 / + 6 1 � 5 4 � ( ( � 4 $ 6 - . 1 , � 4 0 , + 1 & 4 " * 0 � % ( 4 � * , ( 4 - & & 4 + ' ( 4 . - " 4- 6 * 0 , $ 5 4 � ' ( , 4 ) - 6 4 + ' ( 4 ( $ � ( 4 * � 4 + ' ( 4 / + 6 1 � 4 . 1 + ' 4 - 4 � ( & + � + 1 � 4 � ( , 5 4 # * 4 - & & 4+ ' ( 4 . - " 4 - 6 * 0 , $ 5 4 � 6 " 4 + ' ( 4 / - ) ( 4 + ' 1 , � / 4 * , 4 - 4 / 1 ) � & ( 4 & * * � 4 * � 4 � - � ( 6 5WHAT IS GOING ON:� 4 7 3 2 1 0 / 4 / + 6 1 � 4 1 / 4 - , 4 * 2 � ( � + 4 + ' - + 4 ' - / 4 * , & " 4 * , ( 4 ( $ � ( 4 - , $ 4 * , & " 4 * , ( 4/ 1 $ ( 5 4 � % ( , 4 + ' * 0 � ' 4 " * 0 4 + ' 1 , 4 " * 0 � 6 ( 4 � 0 + + 1 , � 4 1 + 4 1 , 4 + . * � 4 " * 0 4 � - , � + 4 $ * 4� � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � 4 � �

Dear Walt,Where we are and where things are is pretty important stuff. We can keep track of that by looking at comparisons between things and by comparing different parts of the same thing. We call that orientation (or-e-un-TA-shun).A Möbius strip is a special object. It can be oriented to other objects, but parts of a Möbius strip cannot be oriented to its other parts. There is no left- or right-hand side. There is only 1 edge. Only 1 side. It's kind of spooky and pretty fabulous.

Google: umlaut or umlot

�5�54�6*)4�(- )-,� �'(4/")2*&42('1,$4�-��/4&(++(641/4,*+4-473210/4/+61�54 +�/46(-&&"4+'(4/")2*&4�*641,�1,1+"54 ,�1,1+"41/4+'(4)-+'4*�4�*6(%(64-,$4ever.

Video Game Reviews

Everyone's a Target in 'Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2'Jeb Haught

DEVELOPER: InfinityWardPUBLISHER: ActivisionSYSTEM: Microsoft Xbox360 (PS3)PRICE: $59.99ESRB RATING: MatureREVIEW RATING: 4 stars(out of 5)

If you have been hearingpiercing gunfire comingfrom multiple houses onyour street, don't bealarmed. It's just the latestfad that is sweeping the na-tion, and it's even morepopular than Tickle MeElmo! That's right, themuch anticipated shooter,"Call of Duty: Modern War-fare 2," has arrived, andany sense of realism isMIA.

While the single-player campaignin the originalwas terrific, thisone is too shortand the storyline is unexcit-ing. But theworst part is theinclusion of alevel where theplayer goes un-dercover toprove his dedi-cation to asadistic terror-ist. What com-mences isnothing short of a tastelesscelebration of violencewhere the player joins agroup of terrorists that lit-erally gun down severaldozen innocent bystandersin an airport. Fortunately,this level can be skipped,but its inclusion is com-

pletely unnecessary anddoesn't even make sense ifthe ultimate goal is avoid-ing bloodshed.

Multiplayer builds uponthat of its predecessorsomewhat, but still offerspretty much the same ex-

perience. Players can cus-tomize their cyber-soldierswith a robust set of Perks,which are handy benefitslike the ability to shootthrough walls, run faster orstay invisible to radar. Nowit's even possible to cus-tomize the rewards from

kill streaks, whichlets the developersadd deadly new ones,such as the SentryGun and PredatorMissile. Very cool.

This series still offersexcellent shootingmechanics and greatlevel design, butsadly, every area isso small that playersend up runningaround in circleswith enemies spawn-ing on all sides. I alsocan't understandwhy noobs have to

play against high levelplayers because their addi-tional perks, weapons andweapon upgrades put newplayers at a huge disadvan-tage.

"Call of Duty: Modern War-fare" is nothing like real

modern warfare, but thefast-paced combat is sureto satisfy our short-atten-tion-span generation.

REVIEW SCORING SYSTEM5 stars = Must Have4 stars = Very Good3 stars = Above Average2 stars = Bargain Bin1 star = Don't Bother

RATINGS KEYEntertainment SoftwareRating Board (ESRB)

E: (Everyone)

E10-plus: (Everyone 10and older)

T: Teen (13 and older)

M: Mature (17 and older)

COPYRIGHT 2009 CREATORS.COM.



Human stupidity (from the cat’s point ofview, that is) in misreading orignoring body language earnsmore than a few cat lovers ascratch or bite from time totime — the result of misinter-preting a cat’s “I’ve hadenough” signs.The classic exam-

ple of this phenom-enon is the catwho, while being petted, “sudden-ly” grabs thehand that petshim with teethand claws, tothe shock andsometimesanger of thehuman doingthe petting.In fact, these

“out of theblue” attacksrarely are.Before the bit-ing or clawing,a cat gives outsubtle (subtle to

us, anyway) signs of diminished tolerance.Primary among them: an increase in the stiffness andtwitching of the tail.Often, the problem starts

with petting your cat’stummy, a very vulnerablearea for any animal. Your catmay even offer his belly out of

love, but after you start to pet,he may become increasingly un-comfortable with the attention.Most cats just don’t like tummyrubs, although exceptions to thisrule certainly do exist. Watch your cat’s body signs: If

he’s tensing or that tail starts twitch-ing, stop petting immediately.Not only does doing so saveyou claw and teeth marks, butstopping before your catstrikes also slowly builds uphis trust inyou and his tolerance for physical attention.

— Gina Spadafori

A flicking tail isone sign of anannoyed cat.

THE SCOOP

Stop the bite: Watch felinebody language

Tips to help feline friends stay active longerKeeping cats healthy and active is key to helping them act younger for longer.

Keeping old cats young

By Dr. Marty Beckerand Gina SpadaforiUniversal Uclick

The common wisdomused to be that wedidn’t “own” cats.

We fed them, admiredtheir beauty and enjoyedtheir company. We let themin and out of our homeswith a degree of goodhumor, and we grieved forthem after they left us,sometimes without ever re-ally knowing what hap-pened to them.

While we wouldn’t sug-gest telling your cat thathe’s “owned” — because hestill doesn’t think so — wecan do a lot better by ourcats than we ever have be-fore. And that’s really truefor older cats. The popularity of cats

has led to an explosion inknowledge of how to carefor them at all stages oftheir lives, and geriatriccare is no exception.Barring accidents, cats canlive healthier, happier livesyears longer than they ever

have before — 10, 12, 14years. Protected from theoutside world, cats can liveeven longer, with 16, 18and even 20 years — ormore — a possibility.But longer, happier lives

do require effort on the partof cat owners. Sadly, studyafter study shows that catsaren’t seeing that effort: Petowners dedicate more timeand money into keepingtheir dogs healthy thantheir cats. Continues on next page

Never let a puppy grow upunguidedQ: I’m a college professor, which means I

have time off over the holidays. My kids aregrown and gone with their own families faraway, and my marriage is a thing of the past. Ihave done my homework, and I know “the ex-perts” say Christmas isn’t a good time to raise apuppy. I get the reasons why, but I’m not ex-pecting company and I have time to get thingsoff to a good start. I have a dear friend who’s a veterinarian, and

she knows of a litter by a good breeder, a long-time client. The breeder shows and does all thehealth tests, and it’s a breed I had growing up —a cocker spaniel. I’m going to get my puppymid-December. Your best advice? — W.P., via e-mailA: My problem with Christmas puppies is

twofold, neither of which applies to you. Continues on next page

Q&A



Continued from page 13...You love your older cat, right? So

change that. Why throw away goodyears you could share? The place tostart: a visit to your veterinarian.Regular physicals — for geriatrics,

twice a year is best — are even moreimportant as your cat ages. Theseneed to be more extensive than whenyour cat was younger: Your veterinari-an may suggest blood and urine tests,for example, to determine what’s nor-mal for your cat so that subsequentchanges in the test values are moreapparent.Work with your veterinarian to ad-

dress chronic health issues, or thosethat can lead to them. Key amongthem:Don’t let your cat be fat. Obesity

shortens a cat’s lifeand makes the time they have less en-joyable. You’ll need a plan, though, because

you can’t starve a cat thin withoutrisking serious health problems. Sotalk to your veterinarian and take itslowly. Once you and your veterinarian

have addressed all the health prob-lems, you’ll wantto keep your cat active and comfort-able. Play is important, even to older

cats, but especially to indoor ones.You don’t have to spend a lot ofmoney on toys to come up with waysto keep your cat busy. Cats can chase,hide, climb and explore with an end-less variety of toys, many of them re cycled household objects. Keep

your older cat active, but avoid theflying leaps of youth. Shoot for low-impact play more often.

You’ll also want to make rest easi-er. Your cat may have problems get-ting up on to high beds or cat trees,so make sure there are plenty of low-level spaces for your cat to enjoy agood nap. Make litter boxes easier toget to as well, perhaps by addingthem on every floor, even if your cathas been used to using stairs overthe years.

The bottom line: Look at youraging cat in a new way, and do whatit takes to accommodate thechanges brought on by aging, withthe help of your veterinarian. You and your cat will both be hap-

pier for it!

OLD CATS Continued from

page 13

First, a lot of thepuppies sold atChristmas comefrom puppy millsor small-scale,quick-buck breed-ers who eitherdon’t know ordon’t care what ittakes to develop ahealthy, well-so-cialized family pet. Yourbreeder doesn’t fit into this category, it seems. My other concern is that

the holidays can be just toomuch stress for getting apuppy started. Too muchnoise, change, company —not your situation, so it’s allsystems go. My best advice: Forget

everything you ever heardabout starting training at 6months. Your puppy startslearning the moment he’sborn. And by the time youget him, he’s as absorbent asa bath towel, taking in thesights and sounds of hisworld and trying to figureout his place in it. The position he decides

he has may be quite differ-ent from the one you wanthim to have, which is whyyou need to be involved inthe process as he learns tolive with his new family.It’s not that complicated,

really. Your puppy wants tobe part of your family, andhe craves loving leadership.Just keep a few things in

mind as you enjoy youryoungster:• Bond with your puppy.• Socialize your puppy.• Never let your puppy do

anything you wouldn’t wanta grown dog to do.• Teach your puppy using

positive methods; maketraining fun. (Sign up for agood puppy class now, evenif you don’t start until nextmonth.) • Realize your puppy will

make mistakes, and don’tget angry when he does.• Remember always that

preventing bad habits is eas-ier than fixing them later. Every minute you spend

with your puppy is not onlydelightful but also an invest-ment in the future. Bestwishes and enjoy every mo-ment. As with children,puppies are grown beforeyou know it! — Dr. MartyBecker

Do you have a petquestion? Send it [email protected]

puppy

Pet Care-A-Van Schedule

December 2009 Date

Thursday, Dec. 3, 2009

Monday, Dec. 7, 2009

Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2009

Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2009


Monday, Dec. 14, 2009

Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009

Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009


Place Name

Clint

El Paso Saddle Blanket

Nations Tobin Park

San Elizario

211 Shelter

Socorro

White Spur Park

Montana Vista

Veterans Park

Address

200 N. San Elizario Rd.

6926 Gateway East

8831 Railroad

1325 Beverly Ann

211 Shelter Place

910 Rio Vista

4800 Love Road

14618 Greg Dr.

5380 Salem Dr.

Location

Town Hall parking lot

Back parking lot

Parking lot by swimming pool

Centro Ayuda Parking Lot

Parking lot at gate

Community Center parking lot

Next to Fire Station

Community Center parking lot

Recreation Center parking lot

For more information about the Pet Care-A-Van program, call (915) 842-1000.

Friend/relative: 39 percent

Stray/found: 34 percent

Shelter/rescue group: 22 percent

Owned mother: 13 percent

Private party: 8 percent

Cats just seem to show up, at least a lot ofthem do. According to the American PetProducts Association’s 2008 pet ownerssurvey, more than a third of all pet catsadopted their owners. Here are the topreported sources for getting a cat (multipleresponses allowed):

BY THE NUMBERS

Many catlovers saytheir petadoptedthem, notthe otherwayaround.

Where’d you get that cat?


George Varga

The new Traveling Wilburys? The new Crosby,Stills, Nash & Young?

There are few better recent examples of lazymusic journalism than the repeated publishedreferences that hail the indie-rock band Monstersof Folk as this year's answer to the above two leg-endary supergroups. Beyond the fact that each ofMOF's four members work with their own bands,as solo artists or both, when it comes to musicand the magnitude of their success, MOF is nomore the new Traveling Wilburys or CSN&Y thanThe Fray is the new Beatles.

"I think the words lazy and journalism go to-gether quite well," said My Morning Jacket front-man Jim James, one-quarter of MOF.

Those sentiments were echoed by Mike Mogis,fellow MOF member.

"I've never bought a Traveling Wilburys record, soI don't know what they sound like," Mogis said."It's an easy, cheap comparison and lazy journal-ism, but I don't care."

But Matt Ward, James and Mogis' MOF bandmate,isn't bothered by the misguided references toCSN&Y or the Traveling Wilburys (the late 1980sband that teamed Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison,George Harrison, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne).

"I love the Traveling Wilburys and I like Crosby,Stills, Nash & Young, so it's not anything I'm an-noyed by at all," said Ward, who has made sixsolo albums as M. Ward and recorded with BrightEyes' leader Conor Oberst, the fourth member ofMOF.

"When people hear or see something they haven'tseen or heard before, their first impulse is tocompare it to something they know," Ward con-tinued. "I do the same thing. It's human nature tocompare things and there's no harm in that."

What is more notable about MOF, whose musicdoes reference everyone from Johnny Cash andJohn Lennon's solo work to The Beatles andSimon & Garfunkel, is that this is its first concerttour in five years — and only its second ever.

The ad-hoc group traces its roots to a tour in2004, when the four musicians would sit in witheach other to form what Mogis slyly describes as"the best Bright Eyes cover band" in the world.

"Mike is the busiest guitar player in indie-rockand I'm always in the studio working with BrightEyes," Mogis said. "Between our first tour and thisone, Matt put out three albums, Jim did two withMy Morning Jacket and his solo EP, and Conordid two with Bright Eyes and one on his own. I'msurprised it didn't take longer for us (MOF) to getback together. But this is the most fun I've everhad making a record."

Continues on page 17



By Roger Ebert

Four starsRyan Bingham ..... GeorgeClooneyAlex Goran ....... VeraFarmigaNatalie Keener ... AnnaKendrickCraig Gregory .... JasonBatemanJim Miller ....... DannyMcBrideJulie Bingham .... MelanieLynskey

Paramount pres-ents a film directed byJason Reitman. Screenplayby Jason Reitman andSheldon Turner, based ona novel by Walter Kirn.Running time: 109 min-utes. MPAA rating: R (forlanguage and some sexualcontent).

**Ryan Bingham is the Or-ganization Man for the2000s. He never comes tothe office. Technically, hedoesn't have an office; hehas an address where hisemployer has an office. Hislife is devoted to visitingother people's offices andfiring them. "Up in the Air"takes the trust people oncehad in their jobs and pullsout the rug. It is a film forthis time.

Bingham de-scribes himself as a "termi-nation facilitator." He firespeople for a living. Whencorporations need todownsize quickly but hatethe mess, he flies in andbreaks the news to thenew former employees. Inhard times, his business isgreat.

This isn't a com-

edy. If it were, it would behard to laugh in these lastdays of 2009. Nor is it atragedy. It's an observantlook at how a man does ajob. Too many movie char-acters have jobs involvingruling people, killing themor going to high school.Bingham loves his work.He doesn't want a home.He doesn't want a family.He gives self-help lectureson how and why to unpackthe backpack of your life.

George Clooneyplays Bingham as one ofthose people you meet butnever get to know. They gothrough all the forms, and

know all the right movesand you're "friends," but --who's in there? Sitting in afirst-class seat one day,asked where he lives, Bing-ham says, "Here."

He likes his jobbecause he feels he per-forms a service. Nobodylikes to fire someone.Someone has to. He hasprotocols. In a curiousway, he's like the twoArmy men in "The Messen-ger," who notify the next ofkin after a soldier is killed.Jason Reitman, the direc-tor, auditioned real peoplewho had recently beenfired to play some of thefired employees (othersare played by actors). Heasked them to improvisetheir words on learning thenews. Would you want thejob of listening to theirpain?

There are twowomen in Bingham's life.Alex Goran (Vera Farmiga)is also a road warrior, andfor some time they've beenmeeting in dreary "suite"hotels in East Moses,Nowhere -- having meals,making love, play-acting at

being the happy coupleneither one will commit to.Natalie Keener (AnnaKendrick) is a bright, am-bitious new graduate whohas taken a job with Bing-ham's company becauseit's near her boyfriend.Bingham takes her on theroad to teach her theropes. Alex is him now;Natalie is him then.

Farmiga is one ofthe warmest and most at-tractive women in themovies, or at least sheplays one. You may notguess all she's thinking.Kendrick's Alex is so brim-full of joy at the dawn ofher career that it shineseven on ending those ofothers. Nothing better thanmaking your boss happy.

The isolation ofthe road life is threatenedby the introduction of fir-ing by Web chat. This is in-sourcing, if you will. Itmay not be warmer thanfiring someone in person,but it saves a lot of moneyon air fare. Notice how Re-itman likes to start withthe way corporations jus-tify immoral behavior andthen apply their rationali-zations with perfect logic.That method was at thecore of his brilliant debut,"Thank You for Smoking"(2005).

Reitman alsomade the great "Juno." Stillonly 32, the son of theCanadian producer-direc-tor Ivan Reitman ("GhostBusters"), he grew up be-hind the counter of thefamily store, so to speak.With these three films atthe dawn of HIS career, wecan only imagine whatcomes next. He makessmart, edgy, mainstreamfilms. That's harder thanmaking smart, edgy indies.In a pie chart he compiledof questions he's askedtime and again during in-terviews, "How does yourfather feel about your suc-cess?" ranks high. Burstingwith pride, is my guess.

**COPYRIGHT 2009 THE EBERT CO.

“UP IN THE AIR”CINEMARK CIELO VISTA

Gateway West Blvd/Cielo Vista Mall

CINEMARK 14 - EL PASO

West side of El Paso at Mesa & I-10

*NO PASSES-NO SUPERSAVERS

Las Palmas i-10 @ Zaragosa

*NO PASSES-NO SUPERSAVERS

2012 11:20am 2:45pm 6:15pm 8:15pm

10:00pm

A CHRISTMAS CAROL 3D (PG)

11:20am 2:00pm 4:30pm 7:00pm

9:30pm

*ARMORED (PG-13) 11:40am 1:55pm

4:25pm 6:45pm 9:05pm

*ARMORED - XD (PG-13) 12:30pm

3:00pm 5:30pm 7:55pm 10:20pm

*BOONDOCK SAINTS II, THE: ALL SAINTS DAY (R)11:15am 2:05pm

4:50pm 7:35pm 10:20pm

BLIND SIDE, THE (PG-13) 11:25am

12:25pm 1:20pm 2:25pm 3:20pm

4:25pm 5:25pm 6:20pm 7:25pm 8:35pm

9:25pm 10:25pm

*BROTHERS (R) 11:50am 2:30pm

5:10pm 7:55pm 10:30pm

*EVERYBODY'S FINE (PG-13)

11:50am 2:30pm 5:10pm 7:35pm

10:15pm

*FANTASTIC MR. FOX, THE (PG)

11:55am 2:25pm 4:55pm 7:15pm

9:35pm

*NINJA ASSASSIN (R) 12:10pm

1:30pm 2:50pm 4:00pm 5:15pm 6:30pm

7:45pm 9:00pm 10:15pm

*OLD DOGS (PG) 12:20pm 1:45pm

2:55pm 4:05pm 5:15pm 6:25pm 7:40pm

8:45pm 9:55pm

PLANET 51 (PG) 11:30am 12:45pm

2:00pm 3:05pm 4:35pm 5:40pm 7:00pm

*TRANSYLMANIA (R) 9:35pm

TWILIGHT SAGA, THE: NEW MOON (PG-13) 11:30am 12:30pm 2:35pm

3:30pm 5:35pm 6:30pm 8:35pm 9:30pm

TWILIGHT SAGA, THE: NEW MOON DIGITAL (PG-13) 1:30pm 4:30pm

7:30pm 10:25pm

Schedule good for Friday December 4thARMORED*(PG-13) 1:00pm 2:05pm3:30pm 4:35pm 6:05pm 7:15pm 8:35pm10:00pm INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS *- CinéArts (R)12:05pm 3:35pm 7:00pm 10:30pm THE BOONDOCK SAINTS II: ALLSAINTS DAY*(R) 1:50pm 4:45pm 7:40pm10:35pm 2012 (PG-13) 2:00pm 5:40pm 9:20pm 2012 - DIGITAL (PG-13)12:15pm 3:50pm7:30pm A CHRISTMAS CAROL - 2D (PG) 12:10pm 2:40pm 5:15pm A CHRISTMAS CAROL - REAL D 3D (PG) 1:40pm 4:25pm 7:20pm 10:05pm

AN EDUCATION - CinéArts (PG-13)1:35pm 4:20pm 7:05pm 9:45pm COUPLES RETREAT(PG-13) 1:20pm7:25pm NINJA ASSASSIN*(R) 1:05pm 2:25pm3:45pm 5:05pm 6:25pm 7:45pm 9:05pm10:20pm PARANORMAL ACTIVITY*(R) 7:50pm10:25pm THE FANTASTIC MR. FOX*(PG) 2:15pm4:40pm 7:10pm 9:35pm THE MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS -CinéArts (R) 4:15pm 10:15pm WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE (PG) 1:25pm 4:05pm 6:55pm 9:40pm

Tinseltown

ARMORED* (PG-13) 10:30am12:45pm 2:55pm 5:15pm 7:30pm9:50pm BROTHERS*(R) 12:05pm 2:45pm5:15pm 7:50pm 10:25pm EVERYBODY'S FINE*(PG-13) 9:40am12:10pm 2:40pm 5:10pm 7:40pm10:10pm 2012 (PG-13)9:45am 12:50pm 4:15pm7:20pm A CHRISTMAS CAROL - REAL D 3D (PG)11:20am 1:40pm 4:05pm 6:30pm 8:50pmNINJA ASSASSIN*(R) 9:50am12:15pm 2:30pm 5:00pm 7:25pm8:00pm 9:55pm 10:30pm OLD DOGS (PG) 9:55am 10:45am12:05pm 1:00pm 2:25pm 3:15pm

4:40pm 5:30pm 6:55pm 7:45pm9:10pm 10:00pm PLANET 51 (PG) 10:00am 12:00pm2:35pm 4:55pm THE BLIND SIDE (PG-13)10:25am11:15am 1:35pm 2:10pm 4:35pm5:05pm 7:35pm 8:15pm 10:35pm THE FANTASTIC MR. FOX (PG)11:55am 2:15pm 4:25pm 6:40pm 8:55pm THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON(PG-13) 12:20pm 3:10pm 6:00pm9:00pm THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON -DIGITAL (PG) 10:35am 1:25pm4:20pm 7:15pm 10:05pm

*BROTHERS- DIGITAL R 10:45a1:45p 4:40p 7:30p 10:15p *CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE 3D-DIGITAL (PG)11:10a 2:00p 4:20p6:45p 9:05p *CREPUSCULO: LUNA NUEVA- 35MM (PG-13)10:30a 2:00p 5:30p8:45p *EVERYBODY'S FINE- DIGITAL (PG-13)10:50a 1:35p 4:35p 7:15p 9:50p *OLD DOGS SUBTITULADA EN ESPANOL- 35MM (PG)10:25a12:45p 3:10p 5:35p 8:40p *OLD DOGS- DIGITAL (PG)10:15a 11:15a 12:35p 1:35p 2:55p3:55p 5:15p 6:15p 7:35p 8:35p 10:00p *PLANET 51- DIGITAL PG11:15a12:50p 1:50p 3:20p 4:20p 5:55p 7:00p8:15p 9:35p

*THE BLIND SIDE- DIGITAL (PG-13)10:25a 11:25a 1:40p 2:40p 4:55p 6:05p 9:05p *THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON- DIGITAL (PG-13)10:00a 11:00a 11:50a 1:15p 2:30p3:30p 4:30p 5:45p 6:30p 7:40p 9:00p9:40p*TRANSYLMANIA- DIGITAL R11:30a 2:10p 4:55p 7:30p 10:15p LAW ABIDING CITIZEN- DIGITAL (R)10:00a 12:45p 4:00p 6:45p 9:45p THE BOX- DIGITAL (PG-13)10:35a1:30p 4:20p 7:15p 10:00pTHE FOURTH KIND- DIGITAL (PG-13)10:10a 12:30p 2:55p 5:20p 7:45p10:10p

* -- denotes Pass Restricted features

Premiere Cinemas 6101 Gateway West S.15

9 (PG-13) 1:05 | 3:10 | 5:20 | 7:35 | 9:20 ALIENS IN THE ATTIC (PG) 12:50 | 2:40 |4:40 | 7:00 | 8:50 ALL ABOUT STEVE (PG-13) 2:50 | 7:45 CIRQUE DU FREAK: VAMPIRE'S ASSIS-

TANT (PG-13) 12:10 | 2:30 | 4:50 | 7:10 |9:25 DISTRICT 9 (R) 12:45 | 3:00 | 5:10 | 7:20 |9:35 FAME (2009) (PG) 4:15 | 9:15 FINAL DESTINATION (R) 12:25 | 2:35 |4:45 | 6:55 | 9:10 G-FORCE (PG) 12:15 | 2:15 | 7:05

ICE AGE: DAWN OF DINOSAURS (PG)12:30 | 2:55 | 4:55 | 6:50 | 9:00 SHORTS (PG) 12:05 | 2:20 | 7:15 SURROGATES (PG-13) 12:00 | 2:25 | 5:00| 7:25 | 9:30 THE INVENTION OF LYING (PG-13) 4:20 | 9:05

WHIP IT! (PG-13) 12:35 | 5:25 | 9:50 WHITEOUT (R) 12:40 | 3:15 | 5:30 | 7:40 |9:45 ZOMBIELAND (R) 12:20 | 2:45 | 5:05 | 7:30 | 9:40

EAST POINTE MOVIES 12

I-10 & Lee Trevino Schedule good for 12/04 - 12/10

Schedule good for Friday December 4th

Schedule good for Friday December 4th

Schedule good for 12-04-09




Fifteen songs strong,MOF's self-titled debutalbum boasts an earthy,folk-rock-tinged flavor onsome of its songs. It wasrecorded first at Oberstand Mogis' studio inOmaha, then at Malibu'sShangri-La Studios,where Bob Dylan, NeilYoung and The Band haverecorded.

The MOF album alsofinds the band's memberstrading off on an array ofacoustic and electric in-struments, with virtuallyno outside musical assis-tance.

"We all tried a lot of in-struments we were not fa-miliar with," Wardrecalled. "Jim brought insome synthesizers I'dnever seen before. I don'tnormally play bass, but Idid on this record. Every-one was stretching out."

One of the most unex-pected stretches comeswith the opening song,"Dear God (SincerelyM.O.F.)."

A soul-inspired ballad, itfeatures James crooningin a falsetto that falls mid-way between Lennon athis most tender and R&Bpioneer Curtis "Superfly"Mayfield, whose harp-dominated orchestrationsthe song also references.

"Curtis Mayfield is likethe Buddha for me,"James said. "His orches-tral arrangements and useof harp really blow mymind. I think about himand John Lennon all thetime; their importancecannot be overstated. Weusually try not to copy, soI hope we come through(the music), too."

MOF's first tour in half adecade also stands out for

a reason unre-lated to music di-rectly. In everycity the band per-forms in, a dollarfrom each ticketsold will benefit anonprofit organi-zation in thatcity.

James, in turn,credits Air TrafficControl, an Oak-land-based socialjustice organiza-tion that connectsmusicians andtheir managers

with community activists,advocacy organizationsand issue advocacy cam-paigns. Several years ago,he attended an Air TrafficControl retreat in NewOrleans, designed to helpvictims of Hurricane Kat-rina.

"That was a real eye-opener for me," Jamessaid.

"I've never wanted to be areal preachy kind of per-son or ram things downpeople's throats, becauseI think people are prettysmart. At the same time,if we're lucky enough tomake a living from ourmusic and have peoplelisten, I'll do everything Ican to use music to helpinform people about im-portant events or organi-zations in theircommunity that they canhelp."

COPYRIGHT 2009 CREATORS.COM

Monsters of Folk

BROTHERS (R)

11:00-1:35-4:15-7:10-9:50

(12:20A.M ON FRIDAY AND

SATURDAY ONLY)

TRANSYLMANIA (R)

10:50-1:00-3:15-5:30-7:45

10:00(12:20A.M ON FRIDAY

AND SATURDAY ONLY)

ARMORED (PG-13)10:50-

1:00-3:10-5:10-7:30

9:40-(12:00A.M. ON FRIDAY

AND SATURDAYS ONLY)

EVERYBODY'S FINE (PG-13)

11:15-1:45-4:30-7:00-9:30

(12:00A.M FRIDAYS AND

SATURDAYS ONLY)

BOONDOCK SAINTS (PG-13)

10:50-1:40-4:35-7:20-10:00

PLANET 51 (PG)11:15-1:45-

4:35-7:05-9:30(12:00 ON FRI-

DAY AND SATURDAY ONLY)

A CHRISTMAS CAROL 3D

(PG)12:30 - 2:50-5:10-7:30-

9:50 (12:05AM FRIDAYS AND

SATURDAYS ONLY)

NEW MOON (PG-13)

11:00-1:00-2:00-4:00-5:00

7:00-8:00-9:50 (10:45PM

AND 12:35AM ON

FRIDAY AND SATURDAY

ONLY)

2012 (PG-13)12:50-4:10-7:30

(10:50PM ON FRIDAY AND

SATURDAY ONLY)

THE 4TH KIND (PG-13)

11:10-1:45-4:35-7:10-9:40

(12:00AM ON FRIDAY AND

SATURDAY ONLY)

(This movie will NOT play after

7:00 on 12/07/2009)

THE BLIND SIDE (PG-13)

11:00-1:25-1:55-4:20-4:50-

7:10 8:05-10:00(10:50PM

ON FRIDAY AND SATURDAY

ONLY)

THE FANTASTIC MR. FOX

(PG)10:50-1:05-3:10-5:15-

7:20-9:30 (11:55P.M FRIDAY

AND SATURDAY ONLY)

(This movie will NOT play

for7:20and9:30 on 12/10/2009)

NINJA ASSASSIN (R)11:00-

1:25-3:50-7:15-9:45(12:10A.M

FRIDAY AND SATURDAY

ONLY)

OLD DOGS (PG)

10:50-1:00-3:10-5:20-7:30

9:40(12:00 FRIDAYS

AND SATURDAYS ONLY)

THE NUTCRACKER (N/A)

7:00P.M ON 12/10/2009

CREED CONCERT (N/A)

7:30P.M 12/07/2009

Schedule good for Friday Dec 4th- Thursday December 10th.

PREMIERE

MONTWOOD 7

2200 N. YarbroughSchedule good for

Dec 04 - Dec 10

ALL ABOUT STEVE (PG-13)*(12:25p

2:45p) 5:00p 7:20p 9:30p

G-FORCE (PG)*(12:30p 2:40p) 4:50p

6:50p 9:00p

SHORTS (PG)*(12:00p 2:15p) 4:35p

6:45p 9:15p

SURROGATES(PG-13)

*(12:40p 2:50p) 5:00p 7:10p 9:20p

THE VAMPIRES ASSISTANT

(PG-13)*(12:05p 2:25p) 4:55p 7:25p

9:45p

WHITEOUT (R)*(12:10p 2:30p) 4:45p

7:05p 9:25p

ZOMBIELAND (R)*(12:50p 3:00p)

5:10p 7:15p 9:25p

*___ONLY DEC 5, 6 & 8


sPotliGht eP neWs DECEMBER 04, 2009 PAGE 18

Calendar of upcoming events for El Paso/ Southern New Mexico are from December 4th thru December 10th. 2009If you want your upcoming event listed in SPOTLIGHT’S Out & About section, please send all your relevant data by e-mail to: [email protected]

Central/

northeast

‘Navidad de Las Lu-minarias’— The Chapelat Loretto Academy pro-vides the elegant Englishcathedral setting for theBruce Nehring Consort’sannual holiday concertsDec. 4-6. The program ofsacred Christmas musicranges from Renaissanceto contemporary, includinginternational carol andmelodies with the ConsortSingers, organist LesterAckerman and the Quin-tessential Brass. Nehringconducts. The Chapel,1400 Hardaway at Trow-bridge, will be decoratedwith luminarias, poinset-tias and white lights.

El Paso Gem and

Mineral Show — Theannual show is Dec. 4-6 atEl Maida Auditorium, 6331Alabama. Hours are 10a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday andSaturday, and 10 a.m. to 5p.m. Sunday. Admission:$3 ($2 for seniors, mili-tary; free for children 12and younger with adult ad-mission). Information:Gem Center USA, 533-7153, 1-877-533-7153 [email protected].

Magoffin HolidayOpen House — Theannual holiday seasonevent at the MagoffinHome State Historic Site,1120 Magoffin, is 10 a.m.to 4 p.m. Saturday andSunday, Dec. 5-6. Enjoythe holiday decorations,refreshments, piñatas andother activities amid theauthentic art and furnish-

ings of this historic home.Music will be provided bylocal school choirs. Admis-sion: $3 (free for children).Information: 533-5147 or585-4344.

Danzas Españolas —The dance troupe underthe direction of NinaGomez celebrates its 25thanniversary with the Fla-menco cafe dinner show“Touch the Silver Lining”at 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5,at La Tierra Cafe, 1731Montana. Doors open at 6p.m., dinner served at 7p.m. Admission: $32. Seat-ing limited; reservationsrequired. Information:533-8890.

Legend of the Poin-settia’ – Kids-N-Co. pres-ents the original regionalholiday play by Carol Vi-

escas Nov. 28-Dec. 20 atKids-N-Co. PerformanceSpace. 1301 Texas. Addi-tional performancesplanned in December atChamizal National Monu-ment. Performances are7:30 p.m. Fridays and Sat-urdays and 2:30 p.m. Sun-days. Tickets: $5-$7 at thedoor. Information: 351-1455.

‘Seussical Jr.’ — ElPaso High School TheatreDepartment presents themusical celebrating thestories and rhymes of Dr.Seuss Dec.4-6 at El PasoHigh School Auditorium,800 E. Schuster. Informa-tion: 496-8300 or [email protected]. lower valley

Oñate Trail DogFanciers Dog Shows— The association’s inau-gural all-breed dog show is9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdayand Sunday, Dec. 5-6, at ElPaso County Coliseum,open to the more than 150breeds and varieties ofdogs recognized by theAmerican Kennel Club.Admission is free. Informa-tion: 626-9975, 241-2641or otdfa.org.

El Paso Rhinos — ElPaso’s Junior League icehockey team home gamesare at the Sierra Provi-dence Events Center, nextto the Coliseum, 4100 E.Paisano. Regular gamestimes are 7:30 p.m. Fridayand Saturday, and 5:30p.m. Sunday. Ticket infor-mation: 479-PUCK (7825)or elpasorhinos.com. Dec.4-6 — San Antonio Diablos

eastside

Christmas for Chi-huahuita Motorcy-cle Run— The 25thannual motorcycle and carrun and parade is Friday,Dec. 4, beginning at theQuick Stop Store, 7301

North Loop (at Hawkins).Decorated bikes and carswill be on display begin-ning at 10 a.m. followed bybike and car judging at11:30 a.m. The parade be-gins promptly at noon, ledby Mr. and Mrs. Santa andtheir elves on motorcycle.All motorcycle groups andindividuals as well as carsare invited to participate.

Westside/

doWntoWn

‘Seasons Greetings’– El Paso Wind Symphonypresents a begins its 2009-2010 “It’s All About theBand” season with a holi-day-themed performanceat 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 4at UTEP’s Fox Fine ArtsRecital Hall. Tickets:$12.50 ($7.50 students).Information: 760-5599.The El Paso Wind Sym-phony, directed by Dr. RonHufstader, includes wood-wind, brass and percus-sion.

Luminarias by theLake — Thousands of lu-minarias will line the walk-ing paths at KeystoneHeritage Park and El PasoDesert Botanical Gardens,4200 Doniphan, 6 to 9p.m. Friday and Saturday,Dec. 4-5, featuring musicalentertainment and holidayrefreshments for sale. Pro-ceeds benefit the park. Ad-mission: $4 ($3 seniorsand military, $1 children12 and younger). Informa-tion: 584-0563, [email protected] orkeystonepark.org.

San Jacinto PlazaChristmas TreeLighting — The 74thannual “Christmas inLights” continues the holi-day tradition of the plaza’sspectacular Christmas treeand displays beginning atSaturday, Dec. 5, at SanJacinto Plaza downtown.The ceremony begins at4:30 p.m. with live enter-tainment. The lighting of

the 55-foot Christmas treeby Mayor John Cook andCity Council members isat 5:55 p.m. followed bythe 12th annual lightedChristmas parade at 6 p.m.Information: 541-4331 or544-5436.

‘The Gift of Christ-mas’ choir concerts —The musical holiday cele-brations, presented by theEl Paso Choral Society, areDec. 4-6 at Trinity-FirstUnited Methodist Church,801 N. Mesa. The Young Ladies Choirand harpist Sage Po willperform with the GirlsChoir and El Paso Brass at7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 4.Tickets are $10 ($8 seniorsand military, $5 students).

Franklin High Gui-tar Concert — The an-nual winter concert is 7p.m. Friday, Dec. 4, at theFranklin High School FineArts Theater, 900 N.Resler. Led by instructorStefan Schyga, one of ElPaso’s best-known gui-tarists, Franklin guitar stu-dents will perform musicby such artists as Al DiMeola, Paco De Lucia,Strunz & Farah, Stevie RayVaughn and more includ-ing classical, jazz, Fla-menco and rock styles.Students will also performoriginal music they arecomposing for their 2010Recording Project. Pro-ceeds benefit the guitarprogram and its students.Admission: $5. Informa-tion: 832-6600 or franklin-guitar.com.

‘It’s Beginning toLook A Lot LikeChristmas’ CraftFair — Pebble Hills Ele-mentary School, 11145Edgemere, hosts its 13thannual holiday arts andcrafts fair Saturday, Dec. 5.Sponsored by the PebbleHills PTO. Continues on page 20


SPotLiGht eP newS DECEMBER 04, 2009 PAGE 20

Continued from page 18...

Christmas’ CraftFair ..Vendors areneeded. Information:Donna, 434-5613.

Barron craft fair —The Barron PTA will hostits first arts and craft fair 9a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday,Dec. 5, at Barron Elemen-tary, 11155 Whitey Ford,featuring handmade items.Admission is free. Informa-tion: 849-4220.

Desert CrossingHoliday Market — Ar-dovino’s Desert CrossingRestaurant and BanquetFacility will host its 5thannual market Sunday,Dec. 6, in the Sunset Hall.Limited vendor space stillavailable, goods must beproduced locally. Informa-tion: (575) 589-0653.

Harlequin HappyHolidaze OpenHouse — The Hal Mar-cus Gallery, 800 N. Mesa(top floor), hosts its 35thannual Happy Holidaze

Open House arts and craftfair 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sat-urday, Dec. 12, with 15booths selling homemadeteddy bears to handcraftedjewelry, organic soaps andmore. Also shop for prints,calendars, mugs, miniatureart and the largest selec-tion of local cards in ElPaso. All-day entertain-ment includes live music,magic and belly-dancers.Admission is free. Informa-tion: 533-9090 or halmar-cus.com.

‘Christmas Is...’ —The Woman’s Club of ElPaso presents the holidaymusical revue at 7:30 p.m.Saturday, Dec. 5, at theWoman’s Club clubhouse,1400 N. Mesa. Social houris 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tick-ets: $15 ($25 for two);available at the clubhouse.Information: 532-6131.

EPSO ‘ChristmasTour of Homes’ — ElPaso Symphony Orchestrawill feature five Upper Val-ley El Paso homes deckedout in holiday cheer duringits first home tour

fundraising event 10 a.m.to 6 p.m. Saturday and 1to 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 5-6.All homes are within a 6mile radius.Information: 532-3776 or

epso.org.

UTEP Men’s Basket-ball - Home games are atthe Don Haskins Center.Game time is 7:05 p.m.Tickets: $9-$25. Informa-tion: 747-5234 or utepath-letics.com.• Saturday, Dec. 5 — Uni-versity of the Southwest

Southern

new Mexico

Spencer Theater forPerforming Arts —Airport Hwy 220 in Alto,N.M. (about 12 miles northof downtown Ruidoso).Free public guided toursare 10 a.m. Tuesdays andThursdays (except showdates). Information: (575)336-4800, (888) 818-7872or spencertheater.com.• Ronnie Kole Trio Christ-mas — 8 p.m. Dec. 4.

Tis the Season’ —NMSU’s Dance Depart-ment’s holiday perform-ance is 7 p.m. Saturdayand 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 5-6, Oñate High School’s Per-forming Arts Center in LasCruces. Ticket informa-tion: (575) 646-2070.

Las Cruces Sym-phony – The symphony,under the direction of Lon-nie Klein, performs Dec. 5-6 at the NMSU’s AtkinsonRecital Hall with guestartist Stefan Jackiw, violin.Information: (575) 646-3709 or lascrucessym-phony.com.

Lincoln County Commu-nity Theater presents thefamily holiday presenta-tion “ChristmasStory” Dec. 4-6, and 11-13 at Ruidoso School Per-forming Arts Center, 125Warrior Drive. Showtimesare 7 p.m. Friday and 2p.m. Saturday and Sunday.Call for admission.The annual “Parade ofLights” is 5:30 p.m. Satur-day, Dec. 5, in downtownRuidoso (fromSudderth/Mechem to PizzaHut), featuring floatspacked with seasonal deco-rations and lights. Specialevents are planned all dayat Wingfield Park in mid-town including musicians,carolers, children’s ridesand more.The Annual ENMU-Rui-doso Community ChoirConcert is 4 p.m. Sunday,Dec. 6, at the SpencerTheater.A Gingerbread housecompetition is Nov. 30-Dec. 4, at Inn of the Moun-tain Gods on the MescaleroApache reservation. Infor-mation: 1-877-277-5677.

Walk through Beth-lehem — Angus Churchof the Nazarene in Ruidosowill host 45-minute inter-active walks through arecreated village of Bethle-hem 6 to 8 p.m. Friday andSunday, and 2 p.m. Satur-day (with reservations)Nov. 27-29 and Dec. 4-6.The guided event featuresa cast of more than 60 ac-tors and live animals. Visi-tors can interact with taxcollectors, Roman soldiers,innkeepers, merchants,dancers, strolling minstrelsand more, and learn about

the world in which Jesuswas born. Wheelchairfriendly path. Admission isfree. Information: (575)336-8032 orangusnaz.com.

Christmas in Cloud-croft — The SacramentoMountain community’sholiday season events in-clude the 27th annual PetParade is 2 p.m. Saturday,Dec. 5, on Burro Avenue.Information: Gloria, (575)

921-1122.

NMSU Library Holi-day Open House —The New Mexico State Uni-versity Library hosts a hol-iday open house,“Celebrating Past, Presentand Future,” 2 to 4 p.m.Friday, Dec. 4. Tours willbe given of space refur-bishments in both Zuhland Branson libraries,starting in the Zuhl Li-brary lobby. Refreshmentsserved at the end of thetours. Admission is free.Information: Kristina Mar-tinez, (575) 646-3642.

City of Las CrucesChristmas TreeLighting Ceremony— The annual ceremony is6 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, Dec.4, at Albert N. JohnsonPark, corner of Main andPicacho in Las Cruces. Thecity has 100,000 lights inthe trees at Johnson Park.The celebration includesmusic, refreshments and avisit from Santa Claus. In-formation: (575) 541-2000.

Luminarias on ThePlaza — The City of So-corro, N.M. will host its 6thannual arts crawl 5 to 8p.m. Friday, Dec. 4, on thehistoric plaza and severalsurrounding shops in So-corro. The event features,live music artwork, foodand beverages. Admissionis free. Information: (575)835-8927.

‘TGIFF’ in SilverCity — Several of historicDowntown Silver City’srestaurants, shops and“Red Dot” galleries willstay open late the first Fri-day of each month begin-

ning Dec. 4 as part of themonthly “Thank God It’sFirst Friday” shoppingevent. Information: 1-800-548-9378 or silvercity-mainstreet.com.On Saturday, Dec. 12,participating Downtownbusinesses will host side-walk sales and otherChristmas events throughthe day during the annualDowntown Holiday Cele-bration.

‘Amazing MagicalMusical Adventures’— Las Cruces Friends ofChamber Music and NoStrings Theatre Companypresent a monthly series ofchildren’s programs at 2p.m. selected Saturdays atthe Black Box Theatre, 430N. Downtown Mall, in LasCruces. Material is aimedat audiences age 4-10, butall ages welcome. Admis-sion: $5. Reservations rec-ommended: (575)523-1223 or no-strings.org.The Dec. 5 performanceis “Ludwig van B’s Birth-day Bash” celebrating the239th birthday ofBeethoven. The celebra-tion features music, games,guest artists, birthdaycake, party favors, and avisit with the man himself,played by Daniel Sandino-Malloy.

‘Christmas in theFoothills’— The historicBlack Range town of Hills-boro, N.M. invites Christ-mas shoppers for a holidaystudio walk 10 a.m. to 4p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5. Thecelebration includes openhouses at art galleries andhistoric homes as well asholiday activities, and artsand crafts shows. Admis-sion is free. Information:(575) 895-5797.To get there: Take Inter-state 25 north from LasCruces to the NM 152 exitat Caballo, and go west 17miles.

‘Night of Lights(Noche de Luminarias)’ —Southern New Mexico’slargest luminaria display is6 to 8:30 p.m. Sunday,Dec. 6, on the New MexicoState University Campus.Information: (575) 646-3200 or nmsu.edu.


VICIOUS CIRCLEMAYA HOME ENTERTAINMENT

12/08/09

Set on the streets of modern day Venice Beach, CA, "Vicious Circle" is a

tragic punk rock Latino love story; a

raw, edgy, teenage Romeo and

Juliet with a murder mystery twist.

We first see 18 year-old RJ (skate-

board star, Paul Rodriguez Jr.) run-

ning through the streets of LA with a

blood stained shirt and a gun in his

backpack, leaving us to wonder,

"What happened?" An artist and

skater with a heart of gold, R.J.

dreams of moving to New York City

to pursue his dream of to creating

comic books. His hand-made

sketchbook demonstrates his

unique talent and acts as a portal

between fantasy and reality. A

strong influence of the game of

chess from RJ's incarcerated father

permeates his art and life; RJ lives

by the rules of the game and knows

the repercussions of one bad move.

Soon, RJ meets Angel (Emily Rios),

a rebellious singer in a local

teenage punk band. Their unex-

pected story of true love causes the

tides to turn in both lives, and RJ reveals a secret that could cost the life of his new

love.



ACROSS

1 Alumns to be

4 Happy

8 "The Beale Street Blues

Boy"

14 Slangy name for a

stranger

15 ___ Ridge

16 Sick

17 Timetable abbreviation

18 "The doctor ___"

19 Removes a diaper, old

style

20 Chicken

23 Trustworthy

24 Gastropods

29 Son of Tantalus

33 Pang

34 ___ rule

37 Lawyers' org.

38 Military command

39 Bashful one

43 Two of a well-known

threesome

44 ___ Paulo

45 Old Tokyo

46 Mature

47 Book in a pew

50 Schedule again

52 Numbers game

56 Overly optimistic

60 Just talk

64 European capital

65 Exist

66 Tell, e.g.

67 ___ Cassini

68 Old NYC subway line

69 Hair preparation

70 Rational

71 Orchestra-

leader Brown

DOWN

1 Aroma

2 Proportio

3 Squamous

4 Auto front

5 Actress Virna ___

6 Tel ___

7 Hamlet, e.g.

8 More depressed

9 Marauders

10 Olympic-champion

Keino

11 ___ Amin

12 Sister

13 Certain AMA members

21 Chatter

22 Some NFLlinemen

25 Kojak, to friends

26 Clerical garment

27 Beat at the wire

28 Look after

30 Ladd co-star,in "This

Gun for Hire"

31 Sash

32 Mammy Yokum

34 " ___ Is Born"

35 Specter

36 Certain cloud

38 Stratford's river

40 "___ be a cold day..."

41 Deposition takers

42 Shapely leg

47"...___ a jolly good fel-

low"

48 Aver

49 London john

51 NL MVP in'71

53 Follow

54 ___ Haute, Ind.

55 "The Country Girl" au-

thor

57 Cupid, to the Greeks

58 Soft drink

59 Portent

60 Deli favorite

61 Spanish gold

62 Coll. in Fort Worth

63 Sighs of relief

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You don't really need to im-prove. There are plenty of people who love, accept and ad-mire you just as you are. But that's not the point. You enjoygrowing and developing your interests. And that's what willdrive you to endeavor a new program this week. You will geta thrill just signing up for the challenge.

It is always important to do what you say you are going todo, and this week drives the point home. Our word is oneof the most meaningful things we can give. To honor one'sown promise is a deed of strong moral character. Mercury,the communication planet, and Pluto, the mysterious mas-ter of transformation, align in the highly responsible realmof Capricorn, reminding us of what we intend to do andhelping us to follow through.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). Loyalty is a quality you give toyour loved ones, and they depend on you this week to honorthe relationship with your faithfulness. You'll be appreciatedand praised for your loyalty, though it's not difficult for youto give. In fact, it is both your pleasure and a path to en-hanced self-esteem and a sense of purpose.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Even though you've been doinga certain task for years, you have yet to master the endeavor.Your training was probably spotty from the beginning, andyou had to teach yourself. This week you'll get the opportu-nity to learn how the pros do it. A few tips and tricks are allit takes to up your game a few notches.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). You'll be attractive to all, includ-ing some you'd rather not be attractive to. Create barricadesso you'll be invulnerable to insidious time wasters. Your timeis the most precious commodity you have. One who stealsand squanders your attention is a thief. Categorize them assuch. Know your purpose and stay on it.

CANCER (June 22-July 22). The events of this week will havestaying power. You'll hold on to the emotional charge. Writea letter to the person who is on your mind in the early week.If it turns out to be an angry letter, then you'll be glad yougot those emotions out. And you'll also be glad if you destroythe letter instead of mailing it.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). High energy is your trademark. Whywalk across the street when you can do a back-handspringinto a somersault and finish with a roundhouse kick? Well,at least the "inside you" will be doing this while the "outsideyou" merely looks confident, vital and ready. Someone newis attracted to your vibrant presence.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). You have many positive experi-ences associated with a certain person. You may be in lovewith these memories and the way you feel around this personinstead of the actual person. Your relationship will furthergrow and deepen when you make an effort to know and un-derstand your object of affection.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). This will be an easygoing week, assoon as you make that your intention. Though you'll be chal-lenged by unforeseen events, it's nothing worth stressingover. Furthermore, if you choose not to take offense to theweird suggestions and requests made of you, you'll find some-thing of great value in the experience.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). There is someone you shouldforgive. Not forgiving this person may seem easier, but itkeeps you from moving forward with your life. It's probablethat you don't even have to have a direct communicationwith this person in order to forgive him or her. You can for-give alone. Create a ritual to make it official.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). You will be ablaze with bril-liant ideas this week, and you'll generously offer them up.Your contributions are of great value — perhaps more helpfulthan what other people are bringing to the conversation. Justremember that nobody likes to be interrupted. Attention toyour tone and delivery will help you be heard.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). When you know someonewell, you can find that person the perfect gift. The questionthis week is: How well do you know yourself? Are you enjoy-ing and using what you get for yourself? If not, it's time toget to know yourself a little better. The process will be as de-lightful as getting to know a new best friend.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). From your shoes to the diningroom chair to the wallpaper on your computer, your choiceis your style. You'll spend a lot of time making decisions thisweek because you realize that your choice will communicateto the world who you are. But don't agonize over things. Whoyou are is, after all, always changing.


‘Life x 3’ — No StringsTheatre Company pres-ents Yazmina Reza’s cleverhumorous play throughDec. 6, at Black Box The-atre, 430 N. DowntownMall in Las Cruces. Di-rected by Ceil Herman.Showtime is 8 p.m. Fri-days and Saturdays, 2:30p.m. Sunday, Nov. 29 andDec. 6, and 7 p.m. Thurs-day, Dec. 3. Tickets: $10($9 students and seniorsover 65, $7 all seatsThursday).Reservations/information:(575) 523-1223 or no-strings.org.

‘Seussical’ – AmericanSouthwest Theatre Com-pany presents the musicalhit by Lynn Ahrens andSteve Flaherty based onthe works of Dr. Seussthrough Dec. 6, at the Her-shel Zohn Theatre. Infor-mation: 1-800-525-ASTC(2782).

‘A Christmas Story’— Lincoln County Com-munity Theater andENMU-Ruidoso presentsits “Youth Onstage” work-shop performance as partof Ruidoso’s Festival ofLights Dec. 4-13 at Rui-doso School PerformingArts Center, 125 WarriorDrive. Showtimes are 7p.m. Friday and 2 p.m.Saturday and Sunday. Ad-mission: $8 ($6 studentsand seniors). Information:(575) 257-9507 [email protected].

‘Charlie and theChocolate Factory’— Las Cruces CommunityTheater, 313 DowntownMall, presents the familyplay by Richard R. Georgebased on the book byRoald Dahl Dec. 4-20.Gala opening night is Dec.4. Tickets: $7-$8. Informa-tion: (575) 523-1200 or lc-ctnm.org.

‘Christmas Con-cert’— AlamogordoMusic Theatre presents its4th annual Christmasshow at 7 p.m. Saturday,

Dec. 5, at Coffee & Morein the Tularosa Dry GoodsBuilding, 308 GranadoStreet, in Tularosa, N.M.The AMT Star Chorus per-forms holiday music, witha special performance byEarl & the Dynamics.Bring a canned good forthe local food bank. Tick-ets: $12.50. Reservations:(575) 585-4575. Informa-tion: (575) 491-5972 orzianet.com/amt.

Las Cruces Muse-ums holiday sale —The City of Las Cruces’smuseums will host afundraising holiday sale ofMata Ortiz pottery, carvedOaxacan wooden animalsand Zapotec rugs 10 a.m.to 3:30 p.m. Friday and 9a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday,Dec. 4-5, at the LasCruces Museum of Art GiftShop, 490 N. Water Streetin the Las Cruces Down-town Mall. Information:(575) 571-5894 orflcm.blogspot.com.

Old Fashioned Holi-day La Casa Bazaar— The annual holidaybazaar featuring regionalvendors is 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 4p.m. Sunday, Dec. 5-6, atDickerson’s Auction Barn,3900 Picacho, Las Cruces.Admission: $3. Informa-tion: (575) 526-2819.

Holiday Classic FunRun/Walk — The an-nual walk begins at 8 a.m.Saturday, Dec. 5, at theFamily Recreation Center,1100 Oregon, Alam-ogordo. Events include a 1mile run/walk for ages 12and under and a 5K and10K for ages 13 and up.Information/registrationpackets: (575) 439-4159.

Snowman 5k — The3.1 mile race begins at 9a.m. Sunday, Dec. 6, atthe NMSU track, Williamsand Gregg on the NMSUcampus, Las Cruces. On-line registration(active.com) is $12, race-day entry is $15. Informa-tion: (575) 202-5877.



THYME-SCENTEDROASTED

VEGETABLES AND BEETS

Makes 4 servingsPreparation time: 15 min-utesCooking time: 30 minutes

1 (16-ounce) jar wholepickled beets, drained andhalved1/2 pound baby carrots1 medium onion, cutthrough core into 1/2-inchwedges6 to 8 ounces shallots,peeled, halved if large2 teaspoons olive oil1 teaspoon dried thyme1/4 teaspoon coarse salt1/4 teaspoon freshlyground pepper

Continues on next page

THE RECIPES by Susan Nicholson

Thyme-Scented Roasted Vegetables and Beets. Photo courtesyof Aunt Nellie's Beets (Seneca Foods Corp.).




Heat oven to 400 degrees.Scatter beets, carrots,onion wedges and shallotsin a 10-by-15-inch shallowbaking pan. Drizzle withoil and sprinkle withthyme, salt and pepper.Toss to coat. Roast, uncov-ered, 30 minutes.

Per serving: 129 calories,3 grams protein, 2.7 gramsfat (18 percent caloriesfrom fat), 0.4 gram satu-rated fat, 26 grams carbo-hydrate, no cholesterol,191 milligrams sodium, 4grams fiber.

**

RAVIOLI WITH ALFREDO SAUCEAND ARTICHOKES

Makes 4 servingsPreparation time: 15 min-utesCooking time: less than 10minutes, plus pasta

1 (9-ounce) package re-frigerated light four-cheese or whole-wheatravioli3 cups fresh broccoli flo-rets1 tablespoon olive oil1 clove minced garlic1 (6-ounce) jar marinatedartichoke hearts, drained

and sliced1 cup red or yellow bellpepper strips2 tablespoons dry whitewine or vegetable broth1 (10-ounce) containerlight Alfredo sauce (suchas Buitoni)

Chopped parsley for gar-nish if desired.

Cook pasta according todirections. Add broccolithe last 3 minutes of cook-ing. Heat oil in a largenonstick skillet onmedium. Add garlic; cook1 minute. Add artichokes,

bell pepper and wine.Cook, stirring occasion-ally, 2 to 3 minutes. Addpasta, broccoli and Al-fredo sauce. Cook, stirringoccasionally, for 1 minute.Garnish with parsley if de-sired.

Per serving: 377 calories,18 grams protein, 17grams fat (39 percentcalories from fat), 7.1grams saturated fat, 41grams carbohydrate, 43milligrams cholesterol,803 milligrams sodium, 5grams fiber.

**SHRIMP

TORTELLINI MARINARA

Makes 5 servingsPreparation time: 15 min-utesCooking time: about 10minutes, plus pasta

1 (16-ounce) package re-frigerated five-cheese mul-ticolor tortellini (such asMonterey Pasta Companyor another brand)1 tablespoon extra-virginolive oil1 pound medium or largeuncooked peeled and de-veined shrimp, tails re-moved1 1/4 cup no-added-salt orregular marinara sauce1/2 cup dry white wine4 ounces sliced mush-rooms1 cup grape tomatoes,halved1 teaspoon Italian season-ing1/4 teaspoon each coarsesalt and pepper

Cook tortelliniaccording to directions.Meanwhile, heat oil in alarge nonstick skillet onmedium until hot. Addshrimp; cook 2 to 3 min-utes or until shrimp areopaque. Add marinarasauce to shrimp; stir inwine, mushrooms, toma-toes, Italian seasoning,salt and pepper. Cook 4more minutes or until hot.Drain tortellini; add toskillet and mix. (Adaptedfrom Publix Super Marketrecipe.)

Per serving: 447 calories,29 grams protein, 11grams fat (23 percentcalories from fat), 3.8grams saturated fat, 53grams carbohydrate, 169milligrams cholesterol,903 milligrams sodium, 5grams fiber.

**Susan Nicholson is an At-lanta-based cookbook au-thor and registereddietitian.

COPYRIGHT 2009 UNIVERSAL



Knowing why yourball flies the way itdoes gives you the

power of intervention, so ifyou don’t like the ballflight, you can change it.

The spin on the golf ballcomes from its rotationaround its axis — you candraw an imaginary linethrough the center of yourgolf ball at 90 degrees andthat’s your axis. When youhit the ball with a clubfacethat is not perfectly squareto the path of your club,the axis of your ball tiltseither to the left or right asthe ball leaves the face. Itis this tilt that causes yourball to curve.

If your clubface is opento the path, it’s a slice. Ifit’s closed, you’ll hit ahook. A square clubface atimpact causes no axis tilt

so the ball rotates withbackspin only, and theshot goes straight with nocurve.

So if you’re slicing orhooking, you can fix thecurve by fixing your club-face. Below are some ofthe most common causesof an off-line clubface, butsince the causes vary de-pending on the player, Isuggest an appointmentwith a good teacher whocan show you the specificadjustments you need tomake.

The SliceActions that open the

clubface:1. Failure to rotate your

forearms through impact2. Spinning your shoul-

ders at the start of thedownswing.

Slices andHooks

IT’S GOOD FOR YOUR GAME

Why your ball

An open clubface here causes the ball to curve to myright.




GOLF SPOKEN HERE

The United States Golf Association isthe national governing bodyof golf in the USA andMexico. The USGA an-nually conducts theU.S. Open, U.S.Women’s Open, U.S.Senior Open, 10 nationalamateur and two state team champi-onships. And it helps conduct the WalkerCup Match, Curtis Cup Match and WorldAmateur Team Championships.

Those busy beavers in Far Hills, N.J.,also write the Rules of Golf, conductequipment testing, provide expert coursemaintenance consultations, fund researchfor better turf and a better environment,maintain a Handicap System, and admin-ister an ongoing “For the Good of theGame” grants program, which has allocat-ed more than $65 million over 13 years tosuccessful programs for kids from disadvantaged backgrounds and peoplewith disabilities.

USGAQ-SCHOOL

A prettyprice to paySince when does PGA Q-

school cost $95,000 to enter?It does if you’re Troy

Matteson’s caddie, who took theweek off when Matteson won theFrys.com Open, thus missingout on a $95,000 payday (10percent of the winner’s check).Chris Mundorf, a good player inhis own right, was at Q-school,trying to qualify for the PGATour. In a very cool move,Matteson softened the blow a bitby paying Mundorf’s entry fee of$5,000. Mundorf made it to the final

stage, shooting 69-64-73-74, butit wasn’t easy.He started the day tied for sev-enth at Callaway Gardens, inPine Mountain, Ga., but was 3over on his round and onestroke outside the number whenhe birdied the par-4 17th, ad-vancing to the final stage. We’ll keep you posted on how

he does.




3. Arms that are too slow4. Hips that are too fast5. A miss-fit club6. Ball placed too far forward7. Excessive frontfoot flare

8. Too weak a grip

The HookActions that close the clubface:1. Over-rotation of your forearms2. Shoulders that don’t rotate properly3. Arms that are too fast4. Hips that are too slow5. A miss-fit club6. Ball placed too far back7. Too little front foot flare8. Too strong a grip

Dr. T.J. Tomasiis a teachingprofessional inPort St. Lucie,Fla. Visit hisWeb site attjtomasi.com.

ABOUT THE WRITER

If the face is closed,

the ball will curve left.

Slices and Hooks QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“It’s a cross betweena discount moteland a beachsidenursing home.”— Jose Lambiet

The Palm Beach Post columnist recentlyblasted Tiger Woods’ new $44.5 millionhouse under construction on Jupiter

Island, Fla. You think Jose will be at thehousewarming?



DON’T MISS IT

Christmas is coming and if you needsomething cool for your littlest golfer, Don’tMiss The Littlest Golfer, a clothing line thatoffers a wide assortment of quality golfclothing, accessories and toys for newborns,toddlers and children up to age 12.

The specialty line includes seersuckerknickers, polo shirts, golf dresses, windshirts, performance wear, T-shirts, golf hats,plush toys, backpacks and club head cov-ers.Check it out at www.thelittlestgolfer.com.

Cool threads for tiny golfersTEEING OFF

Duane is a golf student who never makes thesame swing twice because he is always tinkeringwith his swing. Teaching him is like teachingDuane and his other brother Duane: When I seehim in my lesson book, I’m never sure who isgoing to show up.

Duane is looking for perfection, and he’ll try any tip no matterhow wacky. He’s tried cross-handed, eyes closed, holding hisbreath, and screaming like a banshee at impact — and those aresome of his more modest experiments. At one point, he wrote in-structions on his shirt so he could read them just before his swing.When that didn’t work, he proposed to me that he was going to riga pair of glasses with a video screen so he could read his swingcues while he swung. That’s where I put my foot down.

Power of RepetitionThe problem Duane has when it comes to learning is a major

one: For the “Duane clan,” repetition means one-in-a-row. This isnot a good approach when reps are such a key element in learningthe golf swing. But there’s good news for Duane. Scientists at the University of

California, Berkeley, led by Jose Carmena, taught monkeys to usetheir own brain signals to move a computer cursor to various tar-gets using a prosthetic device (not a golf club, but who knows inthe future). After they understood the task, the monkeys learnedto wield a robotic device using repetition and practice to entrainthe motion. “When your own body performs motor tasks repeatedly, the

movements become almost automatic,” said Carmena. “Beyond itsclinical applications … this line of research sheds light on how thebrain assembles and organizes neurons, and how it forms a motormemory to control the prosthetic device.”Now if Duane can just channel these monkeys, he’s got a

chance.

Neurobiology of PerformanceExperiments at the National Institute of Health by Dr. Douglas

Fields explain why practice and repetition are so important. Thereis a substance produced in the brain called myelin that acts as aninsulator. It wraps around your neurons and prevents the electricalcurrent that energizes your networks from leaking into the periph-ery. Brains that have thick layers of myelin think and act faster.

When Albert Einstein’s brain was disected,glial cells were found in much higher con-centration than in a normal brain, andthat was about the only difference be-tween his brain and a normal one. Andwhat do glial cells do? They manufacturemyelin. In an e-mail to me, Dr. Fields explained

what triggered the brain to make myelin:“Different signals released by axons (a partof a brain cell) in response to impulse firing regulate the growth,proliferation and differentiation of myelinating glia, and myelina-tion of axons.” In other words, when you repeat the same golf swing, it sends a

signal down the pathway, and it is that signal which prompts thebrain cell to generate a wrap of myelin. Do this enough and youhave yourself a neuro-template of how to swing the club. And themore you wrap it, the more efficient the performance. Of course, you can learn a bad swing perfectly — perfectly

wrong — so it’s the job of the learner to make sure the techniquebeing repeated is the correct one.Next week we’ll see how Duane did when I instituted a new

learning rule based on the role of myelin.

Learning like abroken record



By RICK MINTER / Cox Newspapers

Points separating Delana Har-vick (left), the winner, and run-ner-up Billy Ballew, in the finalCamping World Truck Seriesowner points

73DAYTONA 2010 SCHEDULE: Daytona Shootout, Feb. 6 (Fox); Daytona Duels, Feb. 11 (SPEED); Daytona 500,Feb. 14 (Fox)

Even though his 2009championshiphopes were

derailed by threepoor finishes — onedue to a driving mis-take and two moreto mechanical fail-ures — Denny Ham-lin establishedhimself as one ofthe leading candi-dates to give JimmieJohnson a run forthe money in the2010 season.

Hamlin remainedpoised and positiveeven when thingswent wrong under the hoodof his No. 11 Toyota, and hewas publicly — and from allindications privately —supportive of hiscrew.

Itpaid off in theend, in a way, as hewas able to get his fourthwin of the season and hisfirst ever at Homestead-Miami Speedway, a victorythat should give his team aboost heading into the 2010season.Hamlin pointed out in his

winner’s interview at Home-stead that even in the threebad races he’d had one of

the fastest cars.

“It looks like the trendhas been

you

get one bad race if you wantto be a champion,” hesaid. “The second-through-12th-place[drivers] have had mul-tiple bad races. Buteach one of those raceswhere we blew up, wewere leading, and if wehad just averaged sev-enth or eighth in thoseraces, then we’re out onthe front stage celebrat-ing right now.”But he also acknowl-

edged that it was hisdriving error that puthim in the garage earlyat Auto Club Speedway.“Even though we had

some parts failures in the

Chase, the driver still madea mistake, which can’t hap-pen in the Chase nextyear,” Hamlin said.

“There are some things Ineed to do to get better. I

feel like through the seasonI’ve gotten better. I’m figur-ing out what I need to makemy race car better. [Crewchief] Mike [Ford] is start-ing to figure it out. We’regetting on the same page

now, figuring out what weneed to be good at racing.

“One thing we’re going tohave to improve on nextyear is qualifying," he said.Continues on page 31

Denny Hamlin’s team feels well prepared for 2010

Ready to take the

Next step“I think everyone is fo-

cused and everyone is firedup about next year know-ing that we’re one of thefew guys that can run

with [Jimmie Johnson]every single week.”— Denny Hamlin

Photos by NASCAR

P 915.564.9797

F 915.564.9796



IS Convertible adds passion – and fresh air - to Lexus lineup.Most of us know

that Lexus makes good, orbetter said, great, cars.They are all about qualityand reliability, and yearafter year, they win awardsin both categories. Butone would have to ques-tion if the Japanese luxuryautomaker can make carsthat drivers are passionateabout. A car like a BMW 3-Series. The Lexus IS se-ries (IS250 and IS350)come very close, and for2010, a new model in theIS lineup might have BMWlooking over its shoulder.

The Lexus IS250 C andIS350 C are convertibleversions of the current ISmodels, which have beenaround since 2006. Andsince both the IS250 C andIS350 C use a retractablehardtop, Lexus has essen-tially killed two birds withone stone by being able tosay the IS is now availableas both a coupe and con-vertible – all in the samevehicle.

If you like the way the ISsedan looks, as I do, you’llappreciate what Lexus hasdone with the IS C. Everybody panel except thehood is new, proving thatLexus didn’t simply chopthe top off the sedan. In-stead, the IS C was builtfrom the ground up with amore robust unibody. Theresult is a car that is easilyrecognizable as a Lexus IS,but with some added style.

That style has to do with

the roof being up or down.With the roof up, the IS Cmakes for a nice, conserva-tive coupe. The roofseams are bit more notice-able than I would like, but

the IS C takes on a look ofits own.

But the IS C is really about

going topless. The 3-piecetop uses an impressive 15motors and 37 sensors todo its thing, which takesjust 20 seconds and a pushof a button. Tucked away,

trunk space remains rea-sonable, able to carry acouple of duffle bags – justenough for a cozy weekendgetaway.

The drivetrain of the IS Cremains unchanged fromthe sedan models. As be-fore, the model name indi-cates the engine size. Bothuse DOHC 24-valve V6 en-gines, the IS250 C being2.5 liters in size and mak-ing 204 horsepower whilethe larger 3.5 liter enginein the IS350 C makes animpressive 306 horse-power. The IS250 C comesstandard with a 6-speedmanual – probably the lastmanual shifting Lexus wewill ever know, with a 6-speed automatic availableas an option. The IS350 Conly uses the 6-speed auto-matic, which was how myMatador Mica Red tester

arrived.

Inside, the IS Convertibleuses the same basic inte-rior as does the IS sedan.High quality materials areused throughout, and thecabin is quite impressive.Everything that you wouldexpect to be standardequipment is, like Smar-tAccess with push buttonstart (no key required),dual zone air-conditioning,and power seats. Optionsare equally impressivewith heated and ventedseats, a navigation system,Park Assist with front andrear sensors, and an im-pressive Mark Levinson12-speaker audio systemwhich automatically ad-justs to the change in con-ditions when the top is upor down.

Driving my IS350 C withthe top both up and downproved to be extremely fun– easily the most fun I everhad behind the wheel of aLexus excluding the superpowerful IS-F. Power fromthe 3.5 V6 was more thanenough; in fact, even thesmaller engine is peppyenough to move the Lexusaround. The ride wassomewhat stiff and maybe

a little startling at first, es-pecially if you are used tohow other Lexus vehiclesride. But that stiff ridespays dividends when the ISis thrown into sharp cor-ners where it remains flat.With the top down, cowlshake – the vibration feltthrough the steering wheelcaused by the flexing ofthe body due to a lack of aroof – was nonexistent inthe IS350 C, proving Lexushad done their homeworkwith the convertible top.Top up, you will neverknow you are in a convert-ible.

While the new IS-C is im-pressive and fun to drive,it’s not without faults. Thebackseat, although usable,is tight for adults. And agripe that I found surpris-ing was the lack of storagebins up front. There is asingle cup holder in theconsole – if you open thecenter console storage bin,you get another, but loosestorage room. The doorpockets also seemed smallfor CD cases, phones andsuch.

Minor faults aside, theIS250 C and IS350 Cmarks a new direction forLexus. And while theymay still not deliver thethrilling driving experienceof a BMW 3-Series, the ISC makes up for it in excel-lent quality, superior re-finement, and impressiveinteriors with plenty ofamenities. The IS250 Cstarts at $38,940 and theIS350 C starts at $44,390and are available now atyour local Lexus dealer.

-- Christopher A.Randazzo

By The Numbers:

2010 Lexus IS350 C

Base Price: $44,390.00Price as Tested: $52,260.00Layout: front-engine / rear-wheel driveEngine: 3.5 liter V6Transmission: 6-speed automaticHorsepower: 306 hpTorque: 277 ft/lbEPA Fuel Economy:18 city / 25 highway mpg

[Questions/Comments/Suggestions can be sent viaemail to [email protected]]



Continued from page 29"There are some things

we need to do to be better,and I think this Chase hasjust made us stronger, be-cause now I think every-one is focused andeveryone is fired up aboutnext year knowing thatwe’re one of the few guysthat can run with [John-son] every single week.”

Ford, the veteran crewchief, said that the matur-ing of his driver and thedevelopment of a feeling ofunity among the crewmembers have been bigfactors this year. He saidHamlin has learned thathe needed to take a lead-ership role with the teamand work through issuesrather than stomp his feet,walk away and be frus-trated when things don’tgo his way.

“Being able to workthrough issues came along way, and that to me isthe difference,” Ford said.“I think the strongestpoint of our season wasgaining that unity.”Ford also said that in

previous seasons, his teamhas peaked too soon andthen had its performancedrop off once the Chasestarted. But he said thatwasn’t the case this year.

“We continued to learnthroughout, but we putourselves in a good posi-tion to start [the Chase],”he said.

Hamlin said another bigfactor this season is thatnow that he’s the seniordriver at Joe Gibbs Racing,he can help steer the waycars are built to his liking,instead of having things

done to suit Tony Stewart,who left the team at theend of 2008.

“You start setting upthese different depart-ments working on thethings that I feel is themost important, maybenot somebody else,” hesaid.Another thing in Ham-

lin’s and Ford’s favor goingforward is that their latestwin came on a bankedmile-and-a-half race track,which hasn’t been one oftheir stronger types ofrace tracks in recent sea-sons. Previous successescame mostly at shorterand flatter tracks like Mar-tinsville, Richmond andPocono.

“We’ve been a reallygood race team on all dif-ferent types of racetracks,” Hamlin said. “Wefelt going into the Chaseour stronger suit was goingto be the bigger racetracks, the mile-and-a-halfprogram. I said sevenweeks ago that’s our bestsuit right now, and thatused to not be the case acouple years ago simplybecause I had more expe-rience on the short tracksand just didn’t have a goodfeel for the bigger tracks.

“But once you’re suc-cessful one time, it helpsout a lot, because thenyou search for that feel atevery different race trackthat’s similar," he said."And I think it just showsthat we’re starting to comeinto our own as a raceteam and perform welleverywhere.”

Denny Hamlin

15

13

7Drivers who ran all 35 Nationwide Series races this sea-son

DNFs [Did Not Finish] forColin Braun (right), the mostof any driver this season inthe top 10 in the CampingWorld Truck Series

BY THE NUMBERSDrivers who ran all 25 of the Camping World Truck Series racesthis season

NASCAR


spotlight ep news december 4, 2009 no. 303

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