On Valentine's Day, redneck zombies need loving too

Zombies live amongst us.

Zombie wannabes, anyway.

Filmmaker K. Harrison Sweeney wants you for roles in his feature film, “From the Trailer to the Grave.” The film is set in a post-apocalyptic Wyoming. It’s being billed as a “redneck zombie romantic comedy.”

So it’s “redneck zombies” that he wants.

Many of the principle roles have already been filled. But Harrison, a Worland, Wyoming, native and UW grad, says that several supporting roles will be open to Wyomingites. He will be holding auditions in Casper, Cheyenne, and Laramie during Valentine's Day week, which seems strangely appropriate.

He says that most of the roles that are available “will be for zombies and people who turn into zombies. We are looking for people from all walks of life – oil tycoons, teachers, children, roller derby dames, politicians; all are encouraged to try out.”

What about aging state workers? He doesn’t say.

As a Wyoming guy, Harrison says that it’s important to shoot his film in Wyoming. He’d like to help kickstart the state’s film industry. Many films that are set in Wyoming's great wide open (“Brokeback Mountain,” "An Unfinished Life," "Did You Hear about the Morgans?") end up being shot in Wyoming stand-ins -- British Columbia and New Mexico. He wants to change that. Wyoming seems to have better luck starring in sci-fi films. Witness "Starship Troopers," its creepy off-world scenes filmed at Hell's Half Acre, and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," partially filmed at Devils Tower because no stand-in exists for this distinctive national monument, not even in Canada. So perhaps Harrison is right on target with this alternative reality film. Who would know alternative realities better than someone who grew up in Worland?

Auditions in Casper will be held on Sunday, February 12, at the Wagon Wheel Roller Skating Rink at 305 Van Horn Ave. There will be a workshop on "Zombie Behavior & Movement" from 10 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Auditions will then be held from 10:30 a.m. to noon. 

The Cheyenne workshop from 3-3:30 p.m. at the Atlas Theatre on Wednesday, February 15. Latecomers will not be admitted. Auditions will commence immediately thereafter from 3:30-5 p.m.

The Laramie workshop will be held later in the week (his press release didn’t specify a date) and will go from 5-5:30 p.m. at the UW College of Agriculture auditorium. Auditions will be held from 5:30-8 p.m. UPDATE: Date for Laramie event is Sunday, Feb. 19. 

Zombie wannabes cast for the film need to be available for shooting during the last three weeks of September and the first week of October.

My wife Chris and I attended the screening of Harrison’s short film, “Undead Lovers,” last August in Laramie. The short is basically a teaser for the larger film project and was filmed at the Wyoming Territorial Prison in Laramie and at The Virginian Hotel & Bar in Medicine Bow. It features a variety of Wyoming talent, including a bevy of Naughty Pines Derby Dames and a title song by Jalan Crossland of Ten Sleep.

As is the case with most up-and-coming filmmakers, Harrison has tapped into a variety of sources to raise funding. He’s done successful online campaigns on Kickstarter and IndieGoGo. He’s probably maxed out his credit card (if he has one) a la Kevin Smith and has hit up everyone in his orbit. He’s a working actor, too, getting small film and TV parts to finance his habit. His good ol’ boy persona has appeared in “Rizzoli & Isles,” in commercials for Foster’s and Prius, and is one of the voices in the Wild West video game “Red Dead Redemption." He has a small part in an upcoming Eddie Murphy film.

Get more info on Harrison and his films at www.fromthetrailertothegrave.com.

Good Mule Student Conference on Social Justice Feb. 11-12 in Laramie

"Inside Job" movie party Feb. 12 at Laramie County Library in Cheyenne

In the Academy Award winning documentary, Inside Job, director Charles Ferguson breaks down in a clear and comprehensible way how the housing and economic collapse happened—and names the politicians and Wall Street bankers who are responsible.

The Cheyenne screening of Inside Job will be held at the Laramie County Public Librasry in Cheyenne at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 12. It’s free and open to the public. After the film, we'll discuss how to keep the 99% movement strong in communities across the country.

Sign up at http://pol.moveon.org/event/events/attendees/index.html?event_id=126886&id=-1460962-8KUfFcx

For environmental writer Edith Cook, "tomorrow is today"

Cheyenne writer Edith Cook writes about many issues, but her hot topics concern the environment and sustainability. These are hot topics everywhere, but overwhelmed in Wyoming by the huge energy industry. The mere mention of "global warming" can get you run out of town. Edith's writing won a Frank Nelson Doubleday award from the Wyoming Arts Council in 2011. You can read her columns regularly in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle. A particularly good one is posted here (click on to read). She also posts her work on her web site and is an active blogger.

Change in line-up announced for Nellie Tayloe Ross banquet

I posted on Jan. 24 that Colorado Zen Cowboy Chuck Pyle was performing at the Wyoming Democratic Party's Nellie Tayloe Ross banquet March 3 in Cheyenne. I learned today that Chuck Pyle's schedule has changed and he won't be performing at the banquet. The night's keynote speaker remains Chip Forrester, Wyoming Tennessee Democratic Party Chair. FMI: http://www.wyomingdemocrats.com

The Vagina Monologues & The Wyoming Monologues Feb. 24-25 in Laramie

From my prog-blogging pal Meg Lanker-Simons in Laramie:

The Vagina Monologues is returning to the University of Wyoming on Feb. 24-25 at 7 p.m. at the Education Auditorium on campus. This is marvelous, but there’s something even more fantastic: It will also feature the premiere of The Wyoming Monologues on February 25 at 9 p.m. 

I’m sharing this for two reasons: It’s awesome, and I HAVE A FEATURED MONOLOGUE! It was one of ten chosen. My monologue, “Going Hungry,” is fifth on the list. 

I’m wicked excited and would like to invite my followers to attend. It’s at the University of Wyoming Education Auditorium. You can view a campus map here or a Google map here. The other monologues are incredible. Several deal with GLBTQ issues and body image. I encourage those who can to attend. If you have a question or are attending, email me at meglanker@gmail.com. I’ll post my monologue after the production. 

Please, if you can, come attend The Vagina Monologues at 7 p.m. and The Wyoming Monologues Feb. 25 at 9 p.m. It’s going to be spectacular. If you can’t, please share. The proceeds from this event will benefit 93.5 KOCA FM in Laramie (a bilingual, community station -- and the one that houses my radio show) and Albany County SAFE Project. 

Break a leg, Meg!

Just to be clear -- "The Wyoming Monologues" will be performed only once, on Saturday, Feb. 25, after "The Vagina Monologues" performance.

Citizen Lobbyist Training Feb. 15 in Cheyenne

Register at http://equalitystate.org

Clint Eastwood Chrysler ad as American as Detroit (and apple pie)

In your face, Karl Rove!

Habitat for Humanity of Laramie County seeks entries for "Salvage Art Show & Auction"

I was on the first board of directors for Habitat for Humanity of Laramie County. That was way back in the early 1990s and it's gratifying to see the gains made by the local Habitat unit. I visited the ReStore last summer looking for replacement fittings for my outdoor hoses. Since I'm not the most handy guy on the planet, I sought out a ReStore volunteer who got me the right stuff. It's good to see that the place is expanding to bring even more revenue to a great cause. And Habitat promotes recycling and reuse and the arts! You local creatives might want to enter this:

Habitat for Humanity of Laramie County will be hosting a Salvage Art Show & Auction in conjunction with Habitat’s ReStore Annex grand opening in late spring and you are invited to participate! The Salvage Art Show & Sale will focus on pieces made primarily of recycled, salvaged and found objects. If chosen to participate, artists will receive a $15 voucher to use to buy items from the ReStore. If you would like to be a part of the show or have any questions, contact Elizabeth Williams at elizabeth@cheyennehfh.org or 307.637.8067 by Wednesday, February 29.

Survey results show that Wyoming residents support a multitude of gas wells and scenic vistas

Foundation Coal's Eagle Butte Mine in Campbell County

Wyoming Public Radio had a news item this week about the results of a survey of Wyoming residents conducted by Colorado College. Here are the results, in a nutshell:

Most Wyoming voters view the state’s national parks, forests and wildlife areas as an essential part of the economy. That’s according to a bipartisan poll conducted at Colorado College. 

The survey found that Wyomingites support a broad range of environmental protections but also support energy development on public lands. 

Bob Budd with the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust says that’s not a contradiction.“Wyomingites really do believe that we can have it all,” Budd said. “I think our track record is pretty good that way. We’re bullish on development to some degree, and at the same time we’re very protective and bullish on our natural resource heritage.” 

Budd says surveys like this are important in helping policy makers plan for the future. “Wyomingites really do believe we can have it all.”

Beliefs are one thing, reality another. Air pollution in Sublette County, water pollution in Fremont County, fracking disruptions in Goshen and Laramie counties, oil-and-gas drilling on public lands all over the state, uranium and precious metals mining in northeast Wyoming, fights over the viewsheds for transmission lines, coal-fired power plants that are some of the worst polluters in the U.S., battles over locations of wind farms, gobbling up of Campbell County for more open-pit mining, millions of beetle-killed trees due to global warming caused by the burning of Wyoming’s carbon products, and so on.

We Wyomingites may believe that we can have it all. It’s not true.

When you’re an energy colony like Wyoming, there is no escaping the effects of energy extraction. And when you have an economy almost wholly dependent on severance taxes on oil, gas and coal, you can never escape those effects. This is a real quandary when the state’s second-largest economic generator is tourism. In 2010, tourists spent $2.6 billion in Wyoming and the industry generated $108 million in state and local taxes. A good chunk of that money was spent in Jackson and at Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, with its 3 million tourists annually. Jackson Hole is relatively free of commercial energy development. But there is a lot more to Wyoming than its very scenic Northwest corner.

But what are we to do with the state's Energy Sacrifice Zones? Those places with lots of coal/gas/oil but without tourist-pleasing scenic vistas? 

Campbell County, for instance.

No mountains in Campbell County. Plenty of buttes, mesas and wide-open spaces. The landscape features huge open-pit coal mines, some of the biggest in the country, and hundreds of coal-bed methane gas wells. The city of Gillette is perched out there in Powder River Country, located at the junction of I-90 and U.S. Hwy. 59. Summer tourists from Chicago and Milwaukee and Minneapolis have just visited the Black Hills and Devils Tower and now are wondering how far it is to the next scenic vista -- the beautiful Bighorn Mountains. That's just about the time they arrive in Gillette. Visually, Gillette offers nothing to write home about. If you were writing home about it on Facebook while holed up in the Holiday Inn Express during a March blizzard, you might say, "Help -- I'm stuck in Siberia." Or "Gillette is butt ugly."

Gillette still life (coal mine in background)

True, Gillette as seen from a Holiday Inn Express window during a March blizzard is a depressing site (been there!). Some ("some" meaning "me") have proposed erecting noise barriers along I-90 so that tourists don't have to actually see the city as they move westward, forever westward, toward Yellowstone. You've seen those barriers in every big city, erected to muffle the eternal racket of the interstate, an effort to spare the delicate hearing of suburbanites. Denver's I-25 noise barriers were made to resemble rock cliffs embedded with fossils of ancient flora and fauna. Very clever.


With Gillette, we're talking more "visual barrier" than noise barrier. I envision a 30-foot-high wall along both sides of I-90, from one end of the county to another. Local artists could limn scenic vistas on the wall. They'd be busy for years, generating millions for the local economy. We could also try to Denver approach and embed Powder River fossils (allosauruses, pterodactyls, state legislators, etc.) in the barriers. The idea is to spare motorists the sights and sounds of 21st century energy development.


Alas, what looks good on paper runs into the realities of real life. Gillette earns millions providing services for tourists. For that, they have to go into town and face the forest of motels and fast-food joints. And Gillette also is one of the most exciting arts towns in the state. It's home to the AVA Center, an old municipal building that's been turned into a place for arts classes and exhibits and gatherings. Its exterior now features a mural by local artist Christopher Amend. Chris is known more for his nudes and surrealist paintings.

Chris Amend's mural at the AVA Center

Gillette has an active public art program, "Avenue of Art," initiated by former Mayor Duane Evenson, who now sits on the Wyoming Arts Council board of directors. On the eastern fringes of town is the CAM-PLEX Center, known more for rodeos and monster truck rallies than art exhibits and concerts -- but it does all that. U.S. Sen. Mike Enzi was on the CAM-PLEX board and now sits on the U.S. Senate arts caucus. He buys books by Wyoming authors and actually reads them. Beneath Sen. Enzi's Gloomy Gus exterior beats the heart of a diehard arts supporter.


Gillette is home to the Powder River Symphony and the Donkey Creek Jazz Festival and a cool library and an active writers' organization and a slew of dedicated art teachers and....

See how complicated this is? An Energy Sacrifice Zone yearns to break free of stereotypes. Its residents don't want to be sacrificed. We want good jobs, many of which are in the energy industry, and we also want pretty mountains and pristine streams. For the most part, those two facets of Wyoming life don't exist in the same place.   

Forget the visual barrier idea. We'll have to figure out other ways to hide our Energy Sacrifice Zones while promoting our scenic vistas. Any ideas?

Wyoming's historic struggle: preserving vs. trashing its environment

We heard from Kate Wright of Wyoming Conservation Voters at a house gathering last night in east Cheyenne.

Kate talked about the WCV's 2011 Conservation Scorecard for the Wyoming Legislature. As expected, most legislators of both parties came up short when it comes to voting to preserve and protect one of the most beautiful environments in the world. Not surprisingly, the big money wielded by the energy speaks very loudly in the halls of the State Capitol. Severance taxes on coal, oil and gas pay Wyoming's bills. Legislators know it. When they forget, lobbyists from Encana and Peabody are there to remind them.

This will always be the case until Wyoming figures out alternative ways to pay the bills.

Tourism comes close. And tourism depends less on scenic oil wells and open pit mines than it does on towering mountains, crystal clean trout streams and waist-deep powder.

This is a traditional struggle in Wyoming. We're an "energy colony" for the U.S. and, increasingly, the rest of the world (coal for Australia and China). Tourists from China now make Wyoming a destination. A new housing development in China, located two hours north of Beijing, is called Jackson Hole and is based the the cute little Alpine village of Jackson, Wyoming. Or some sort of re-imagined version of Jackson. Isn't it fun to imagine a Wyoming-coal-fired suburb in China filled with people who can't wait to go to the Wyoming-coal-and-natural-gas powered village of Jackson, Wyo. While in our quaint energy colony, these tourists might want to take a side trip to the open pit coal mines of Campbell County. Industrial tourism is a growing trend. I know a number of people who've taken the coal mine tours and have been down into the deep trona mines of southwestern Wyoming. As a curious human being, how can you not be interested in the origins of the material that powers our laptop computers. I'm typing on one right now!

For the most part, tourists want scenic vistas. When they travel to scenic Sublette County, they want to ogle the Wind River or Gros Ventre Mountains, fish in Fremont Lake, hunt elk in the Upper Green River Basin. They also want to be able to breathe, which hasn't been easy with air pollution caused by oil and gas development in the Pinedale Anticline. Last winter, air pollution levels in Pinedale topped those in L.A.

Back to the Wyoming Conservation Voters. Check out its web site at www.wyovoters.org. Get a copy of the scorecard. In the Senate, some Repubs such as Tony Ross (Laramie), John Schiffer (Johnson/Sheridan) and Leland Christensen (Teton/Fremont) top those of Democrats Marty Martin (Sweetwater/Fremont) and Chris Rothfuss (Albany). In the House, however, Dems lead the way. You can't find a sorrier, more anti-environment group of Tea Party Republicans than those in Natrona County, home of Casper, "Oil City." These Natrona County Repubs are regressive in almost every imaginable way, so this is no surprise.

WCV will again be keeping score as the 2012 Legislature rolls into town. The org also will lobby for upcoming legislation, including the Aquatic Invasive Species Act, increased funding for the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust, and bills promoting Public Records and Public Meetings.

WCV is a 501(c)4 and works for all of us. It also has an education arm, a 501(c)3.

Go to the web site and contribute. You'll be glad you did.

Glass Art Celebration at Botanic Gardens sheds light on the winter gloom

I’m always amazed at what artists can do with glass. Fused glass, stained glass, blown glass, cast glass, slumped glass, recycled glass art, etc. Artist and art teacher Marianne Vinich and her students are creating fused-glass pieces as centerpieces for the Governor’s Arts Awards gala Feb. 24 in Cheyenne.  If you like glass in all of its art forms, plan to visit the Glass Art Celebration at the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens. While in the CBG building, think about how great it will be if voters approve the list of sixth-penny tax proposals on the ballot later this year. A spacious new Botanic Gardens building is on the list.

Winter Farmers' Market Feb. 4 at the Depot in downtown Cheyenne

Cheyenne Winter Farmers' Market

Inside the Cheyenne Downtown Depot

Saturday, Feb. 4, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

The Winter Farmers’ Market offers products grown, raised or crafted within 150 miles of Cheyenne. It will provide an opportunity to purchase locally grown all-​​natural beef, lamb, turkey, bison, farm fresh eggs, honey, along with locally crafted artisan breads, jams, jellies, tamales, empanadas, tortillas, soup and chili, jewelry, natural skin care, baskets and much more.

Come and stay for lunch. I do.

For more information, call 307-649-2430.

Planet JH News: "Don't get sick...if you're poor in Jackson"

Artist and writer Aaron Wallis writes about his experiences seeking affordable care in Jackson in Don't get sick...if you're poor in Jackson. Funny, and not so funny.

I'm just a border guy in Wyoming

I live in Cheyenne, Wyoming, area code 82009. My house is located less than ten miles from the Colorado border. It might as well be a million miles.

In 2008, Wyoming voters went for John McCain over Barack Obama by a 65-33 percent margin. This was the lowest percentage of “blue” voters in any state, outdoing even neighboring Utah and Idaho (34 percent). In 2010, Republican Matt Mead was elected governor by a 3-to-1 margin. All five elected offices were swept by Republicans and the GOP-dominated Legislature upped its “R” margin to 76 out of 90 seats.

In Colorado in 2008, voters voted for Obama 53.5% to 45 percent for McCain. Five of Colorado's seven U.S. House seats went to Dems as did the open U.S. Senate seat. In the 2010 Tea Party tide, four of the seven House seats went to Repubs, including the seat in Larimer County that Betsy Markey won in 2008. Another Democratic Governor was elected in 2010.

Despite the set-backs in 2010, one never knows what will happen in Colorado, especially in the northern counties of Larimer and Weld. The state overall trends blue but really is closer to purple.

Wyoming, on the other hand, is reliably red.

So, in 2012, us Red-State Dems will be crossing the border to convince Coloradans to vote for Pres. Obama.

It irritates me. I want Wyoming to be more liberal in its outlook but that will never happen. It may happen, but I won't be around to see it. I'll be retired in Colorado. Or just retired, period.

Last night at the Laramie County Democrats meeting, we heard from the new director of Obama for America/Wyoming, Bob Vernon-Kubichek. Bob is a Casper native and UW grad. He worked on Democrat Gary Trauner's 2006 campaign which came within 1,012 votes of unseating wacko Repub Barbara Cubin in the U.S. House race.

"That still stings," said Bob.

That definitely still stings. I worked on that campaign. Trauner walked the state while Cubin didn't. Gary Trauner was ahead on early returns but then came the rural votes in northern Wyoming, always reliably ultra-conservative.

Sting, stang, stung.

Bob will be bringing some high-tech weaponry to our battle against the Republicans. OFA/WY will have new and improved databases, mailing lists, strategies, phone-banking, training techniques.

In the end, though, here's his mission:

"We're here to build volunteer structures to help northern Colorado," he said. "We're not going to win Wyoming."

Ouch!

I'll be down there in Colorado, working for Obama for America/Wyoming in northern Colorado. It will make a big difference. We need Colorado to put Obama over the top and keep us from the clutches of the eventual Republican candidate (probably Romney).

We will win. Obama will be re-elected.

And Wyoming stays red.

Robin van Ausdall to Laramie County Democrats: "Remember who you are"

We had an extended meeting of the Laramie County Democrats last night at the IBEW Hall in Cheyenne. A reception began at 6. We welcomed the new executive director of the Wyoming Democratic Party, Robin van Ausdall, and the new Wyoming coordinator for Obama for America, Bob Vernon-Kubichek of Laramie.

It's an election year. A biggie. A presidential year in which the Republicans will be throwing every crazy arrow in their quiver at President Obama. They already rounded up all the most extreme candidates they could find to run in the Repub primaries. Today we find out the results from Florida, the state that made me what I am today. The Sunshine State has its own set of nuttiness, which I have neither the time nor inclination to go into here. Back to Wyoming...

To be a Democrat in The Equality State already makes your sanity suspect. We're radically outnumbered, you see, and can't seem to get anyone elected. When we do, as with Dave Freudenthal, he has to campaign and govern like a Republican. So what's the point, right? Van Ausdall puts it simply: "People vote for Democrats because we're right on the issues." Our stances for working people, health care, a living wage, universal equality, education, the environment, etc., put us on the side of the angels.

None of us is advocating (as are Republicans) that Medicaid and Medicare be severely cut or eliminated, Social Security should be privatized, children should work as school janitors, the rich are job creators so it's OK that they pay lower taxes than the middle class, teachers are overpaid and the root of all of our education problems, Obamacare is a socialist plot, there should be no gays in foxholes (or on aircraft carriers or in fighter jets), college liberal arts degrees are a waste of time and money, public workers are bums, fracking chemicals are yummy and are not a hazard to the environment, and moon bases must be established immediately so Luna can become our 51st state.

You can see how rational we are when compared to Republicans. However, once Rush and Fox News commentators filter our message, it's the Democrats who sound like loonies. Van Ausdall encourages Dems to speak out loud and proud and not be afraid to show our true selves. "Remember who you are," she said. "If the only thing people know about Democrats comes from Rush Limbaugh and Fox News, of course they're not going to vote for Democrats."

Noting that "Wyoming hasn't always an overwhelmingly Republican state," she urged us to "stand up, push back and connect" with those around us.

The "connect" part is probably the most important. This native of Basin, Wyo. (pop. 1,238) guessed that many of us were known by our Fox-watching neighbors as the first one on the block to bring over a casserole when someone was in need. What if they knew us as those nice Democrats next door who care for their neighbors?

That may seem silly but we are all known as good or bad neighbors. I have good neighbors. I share gardening tips with the Mormons to the north -- and they bring us treats each Christmas. Our neighbor to the south is a public school teacher who likes dogs. Our neighbors to the east are fundamentalist Christians from India -- we play bocce ball with them in the summer. Our neighbors to the west work for the school district and their grandson is a nice kid who is learning how to drive in the jalopy that gramps bought him. Most of them are Republicans or Indies. Whenever I get walk lists for registered Democrats, only one-half of one of those households is on them (just Grandma across the street). They should know my loyalties by now by my yard signs. We still say hey when we meet.

Van Ausdall calls herself a wonk and she may be. She also cares deeply about her home state (as a good Democrat should) and plans to bring some life to the moribund party. You can contact Van Ausdall at robin@wyomingdemocrats.com or by calling her at 307-473-1457. Connect with Robin on Facebook. Check out the Wyoming Democratic Party web site for more info.

Update (and new graphic) for "Defy the Hate" photo shoot Feb. 14 at LCCC in Cheyenne

You are invited!

Laramie County Democrats hold reception for new state director Jan. 30

From Linda Stowers:

The Laramie County Democrats will be meeting on Monday, January 30, at the 
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Union Hall, 810 Fremont, Cheyenne. There will be a reception at 6 p.m. for the new Executive Director of the State Party, Robin Van Ausdall, with the 7 p.m. business meeting to follow. Everyone welcomed.

Tropical heat wave strikes Cheyenne

I got tomatoes out the ying-yang and it's only January 28!

I exaggerate. But not by much. Cheyenne is now officially in a warmer zone in the USDA's "Plant Hardiness Zone Map." Our high-and-dry-and-cold climate once was in zone 4, which could be described this way: "Don't put your mater plants in the ground until after Memorial Day. And be prepared for frost the day after Memorial Day. And raging hailstorms the day after the day after Memorial Day."

Now we're in zone 5. Planting before Memorial Day is now permitted, even encouraged. Not so fast, says Shane Smith at the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens. This is from the CBG web site: 

Cheyenne used to be solidly in zone 4 is now one full zone warmer, zone 5. “Because this map is mostly based upon temperature, it doesn’t account for Cheyenne’s extreme winds and lack of winter snow cover. Therefore, I would caution people to not jump blindly into growing zone 5 plants and instead look at what is proven to do well here,” said Cheyenne Botanic Gardens Director Shane Smith. Cheyenne gardeners should instead stick to following the colder, zone 4 designation especially when selecting trees and shrubs, stated Smith.

I trust Shane's judgement. High Plains gardeners have to be cautious. However, as global warming continues -- and if I live long enough -- outdoor tomatoes in January may be possible.

New from Bruce: "We Take Care of Our Own"

Open Mic Night at Paramount Cafe Feb. 3

Open Mic Night at The Paramount Café, 1607 Capitol Ave., in downtown Cheyenne, will be held on Friday, Feb. 3, 6-9 p.m. If you would like a slot that night, call the café at 307-634-2576!

Some info from our pals at the Paramount:

“The café lacks a PA system but our acoustics sound great and the sound carries well. We are so excited to hear some local artists! Our only request is no profanity or vulgar language!”

Wyoming Tribune-Eagle: Downtown "hole" plan gets mixed reviews

Eight years and counting for downtown's "hole" (WTE photo).

Build a spec building at the hole site in downtown Cheyenne? The idea is to add the building's cost to the sixth-penny tax vote later this year. Not everyone likes the idea, but who's got a better plan? Anyone? Anyone? Read the WTE story: Downtown "hole" plan gets mixed reviews

Latest fiction manuscript off to the publisher

Sent my latest short-story manuscript off to the publisher this morning. The publisher is reviewing the manuscript to see if it merits publication. After reading each story 20 times looking for continuity breaks and sneaky typos and awkward punctuation, I have my doubts about its readability.

But who can tell? I would reveal the name of the publishing house but that could spell doom. So many things can curse a manuscript. Talking about it before it's finished. Talking about it on your blog. Reading it aloud to your spouse or other loved one. Reading it while drunk. Not writing it in the first place.

If you feel compelled to read one of my previously published stories, you can go here or here. Alas, you'll have to buy a book. To read one of my essays in a new anthology, go here. And feel free to read anything on hummingbirdminds. A little bit of snark, some humor, ruminations on the state of our disunion, and a few videos thrown in for fun.

Wish me luck with my book, dear readers!

Is it art or is it Occupy -- or both?

On Sunday, The Denver Post's Ray Mark Rinaldi reviewed some of the first alarming outbreaks of Occupy-themed art in the city. An excerpt:

"As an artist you have a responsibility to be relevant, to put something out there that has meaning," said Denver hip-hop artist Molina Speaks, explaining why he feels connected to Occupy. 

Molina talked at a community forum Monday [Jan. 16], at RedLine gallery/studios in downtown Denver, an event that literally brought art and Occupy into the same room. The afternoon of speeches, performance and workshops, coinciding with Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday, was a smashing success, at least in spirit. 

More than 300 people showed up, and many had never stepped into the high-end gallery before. The Occupiers brought their message, the artists had their work on display, and the two meshed quite naturally. 

One workshop, about using music as a community-organizing tool featured Dee Galloway of the Spirituals Project and Jonny 5 from Flobots. Music met politics, and the singing could be heard down the street. 

"We are really beginning to break down those artificial walls between art and community," said RedLine's executive director, P.J. D'Amico. "Art has the power to radically reframe the conversation." 

--snip-- 

OCCUPY ART: View excerpts from the Civilians' cabaret show "Let Me Ascertain You" at thecivilians.org. The Lockerpartners have posted "The 99th Problem" on their website, lockerpartners.com (see video above). 

Read more: Rinaldi: The fine art of the Occupy movement shows stripped-down, naked anger.

Zen Cowboy Chuck Pyle performs March 3 at Nellie Tayloe Ross banquet in Cheyenne

Chuck Pyle, Colorado's "Zen Cowboy," will provide the music and humor at the Wyoming Democratic Party's Nellie Tayloe Ross banquet March 3:

Chuck Pyle has won high praise from both fans and peers alike throughout an inspired performance career of over 40 years. When reviewers first gave him the "Zen Cowboy" moniker, he decided to, as he says, "Always ride the horse in the direction it's going," and took the nickname to heart, shaving his head and blending his upbeat perspective with old-fashioned horse sense. He mixes infectiously hummable melodies with straight-from-the-saddle poetry, quoting bumper stickers, proverbs, world leaders and old cowboys.  

An accomplished songwriter, Chuck's songs have been recorded by John Denver, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and Suzy Bogguss. Country fans know him best for writing, "Cadillac Cowboy", recorded by the late Chris LeDoux, and "Jaded Lover," recorded by Jerry Jeff Walker. 

Clip from Chuck’s song about Wyoming, “Wide Open:” http://www.chuckpyle.com/audio/the_spaces_in_between/wide_open.mp3

New Wyoming varieties of spring flowers

Something to look forward to, here in Wyoming. More info here. 

Who increased the debt?

DNC Chair: "Mitt Romney's campaign is cratering"

From a Wyoming Democratic Party press release:

Tonight, DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz released the following statement on the results of the Republican primary in South Carolina: 

“If tonight proved one thing, it's that the central rationale of Mitt Romney’s campaign is cratering.  He came into South Carolina  with a 20 point lead -- a state where jobs and the economy is the number one issue -- and the candidate who hung his entire candidacy on these issues, Mitt Romney, saw his support collapse.

“Why?  Because Mitt Romney's been exposed as being out of touch with the middle class, and voters are seeing that he lives by another set of rules. He’s refused to level with voters, and now he’s in trouble.  Anyone who goes into a state with a significant double digit lead yet ends up losing that support in a week, is someone who is failing to connect.

“Voters in South Carolina saw that Mitt Romney has no core values, and that he will say anything to get elected.  He’s been exposed as having plans and policies that would keep his taxes low, and make them even lower, while doing nothing for the middle class.  The people of South Carolina also began to see what Romney’s brand of free enterprise really is: destroying companies and jobs to enrich himself while working families suffer.  Tonight, they rejected it.  At the end of the day, voters want someone they can trust, who shares their vision and who understands their plight.  And they are finding that Mitt Romney is not that person.

“Regardless of who becomes the Republican nominee, all of the candidates in the race support the failed policies of the past that drove us to the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.  That’s not what the American people want, and that’s why they know that the clear choice in this election is President Obama.”  

Okie from Muskogee will perform at Cheyenne Frontier Days

Here's some good news -- and get-well-soon wishes from fans in Cheyenne (from the Casper Star-Tribune):

Country music legend Merle Haggard plans to play Cheyenne Frontier Days this summer. 

Event organizers said Haggard would play July 22 with Chancey Williams and the Younger Brothers Band, of Wyoming, as the opening act. 

It will be the second time Haggard has played at Frontier Days. The first was in 1979. 

Tickets go on sale on Friday. 

Frontier Days runs from July 20-29. Other performers who are set to appear include Hank Williams Jr., Reba McEntire and the Zac Brown Band. 

On Wednesday, Haggard's publicist announced the singer is being treated for pneumonia in a Georgia hospital and has had to cancel the rest of his January concert dates. 

Read more: http://trib.com/news/state-and-regional/merle-haggard-to-perform-at-cheyenne-frontier-days/article_b58cfbf2-6373-57e5-9a80-

New UW speaker series honors contributions of Harriet Elizabeth "Liz" Byrd

Sen. Liz Byrd looks on as Wyoming Gov. Mike Sullivan signs law authorizing Martin Luther King, Jr./WY Equality Day at a 1990 ceremony in the State Capitol.

On Monday, we commemorated Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday with events around the country. The one held in Cheyenne featured a march by several hundred people from Depot Plaza to the State Capitol. Leading the parade were African-American leaders accompanied by Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead and his wife Carol, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Cindy Hill, State Auditor Cynthia Cloud, and Cheyenne Mayor Rick Kaysen.

Love & Charity Club organized the day’s events. The club’s Rita Watson was emcee. She introduced the state’s elected officials who made non-memorable speeches. They are all Republicans. On a daily basis, their policies seek to undo gains in social justice made by Dr. King and others in the Civil Rights movement. Inside the Capitol, Republican legislators were celebrating MLK/Equality Day by drafting legislation to roll back pensions of state workers, curtail social programs, destroy public education, and gerrymander voting districts to dilute the state’s minority vote which tends to be urban and Democratic. “Urban” you say? Wyoming is rural! “Minority” you say? Wyoming is white!

Take a look at the current redistricting maps and tell me why they look so funny. Why are the votes of city dwellers being watered down by the votes of dispersed rural populations. Cities tend to be more moderate and even liberal. There does seem to be an exception, and that’s Casper. What’s the matter with Casper? But overall, this holds true. Show me a Democrat in the state legislature who isn’t from a city or the Wind River Reservation and I’ll eat my hat.

Martin Luther King, Jr./WY Equality Day march in Cheyenne.

On Monday, Rita Watson mentioned the contributions of Harriet Elizabeth “Liz” Byrd, former state senator who was ill and couldn’t attend the festivities. Liz Byrd worked for almost a decade to pass legislation for a Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday. Seems odd that it would take a decade for The Equality State to honor a champion of equality such as Dr. King. In the end, the legislature named the holiday “Martin Luther King, Jr./Wyoming Equality Day. We have a hyphenated holiday. But we do have a holiday for Dr. King, just like the rest of the states.

Liz Byrd has deeper Wyoming roots than most of us. She went away to college and returned to find that teaching jobs with the Laramie County School District were closed to blacks. So she taught the children at F.E. Warren AFB. Remember that Republican Pres. Dwight D. Eisenhower oversaw the end of segregation in the armed forces (and its schools). Sen. Byrd could enter the gates of our local military base and find a job. Not acceptance from everyone, but her value as a human being and a teacher were duly noted by the U.S. Government.

It’s gratifying to see that Sen. Byrd’s contributions are being celebrated by the University of Wyoming this week. UW’s African American and Diaspora Studies office has created the Harriet Elizabeth "Liz" Byrd Speaker Series.

Here’s info from a UW press release:

To recognize her many contributions to Wyoming, both as an educator and legislator, UW . AADS is working to raise $25,000 to endow the series, which will bring minority educators and speakers to UW and serve to honor the woman who sponsored legislation that, in 1990, established Martin Luther King, Jr./Wyoming Equality Day as a state holiday. 

"I can't think of a better person to represent the University of Wyoming," says AADS Director Tracey O. Patton. "She's emblematic of what we all hope to accomplish in life. I think every person on this planet would like to affect positive change for the world. Very few of us get to do that but she did. She has made lives better in the state of Wyoming."

Find out more about Liz Byrd at http://www.uwyo.edu/profiles/extras/liz-byrd.html

Cheyenne Mayor Rick Kaysen speaks at the State Capitol Building on Martin Luther King, Jr./WY Equality Day.

Nellie Tayloe Ross dinner March 3 in Cheyenne

More Arizona craziness: Tucson schools ban books by Chicano and Native-American authors

Can you imagine a school district anywhere banning the writing of Sherman Alexie, Leslie Marmon Silko, William Shakespeare, Roberto Rodriguez, Jimmy Santiago Baca, Sandra Cisneros and Henry David Thoreau?

This is what the Unified Tucson School District board did when it ordered the removal of "Rethinking Columbus" and other books from the curriculum. This was in response to the Arizona State Legislature's banning of ethnic studies classes in all public schools.

The Know Nothings in the Arizona Legislature are an international embarrassment. They have the upper hand now, but it won't last forever. The voices of these talented authors will outlast the barking of the bigots. Authors such as Alexie and Silko and Baca and Rodriguez and Cisneros are writers of the West. They write about the struggles that go on every day in Wyoming and Utah and New Mexico and Arizona. Their voices are loud and clear. Too loud and too clear and too popular for close-minded bigots in state legislatures across the West.

Read more here: Tucson schools bans books by Chicano and Native American authors | the narcosphere

P.S.: When the Arizona Legislature was first considering banning ethnic studies classes in May 2010, I penned a modest satire on the subject, "Ethnic Studies 212: The Superiority of the Irish." The post has received thousands of hits in the past 18 months and remains one of the most popular pieces on Hummingbirdminds. Read it at http://hummingbirdminds.blogspot.com/2010/05/ethnic-studies-212-superiority-of-irish.html

Code of the West: "Remember that some things are not for sale"

I was wondering when someone was going to make the link between Wyoming's official "Code of the West" and the rise of corporate personhood. Great column by Dave Throgmorton writing in the Rawlins Daily Times. Go to Rawlins Times opinion columns

Amazon.com releases "Easy to Love but Hard to Raise" anthology

Amazon.com has just released the anthology “Easy to Love but Hard to Raise: Real Parents, Challenging Kids, True Stories" from DRT Press. Order your copy here. 

Here’s the book blurb:

If there's anything the 32 parent-writers and 15 experts of Easy to Love but Hard to Raise want you to know, it's this: 

YOU ARE NOT ALONE. We've been there. We've done that. We've navigated the system. Some of us succeeded. Some failed. We've been judged by friends, teachers, family, & strangers. We've gotten the phone calls & the looks. We've done things we never thought we'd do, good & bad. We've been up nights, cried in our pillows, and screamed in frustration. We've doubted ourselves, our children, & our partners. We've had to educate everyone, including our children's doctors. We are parents of children with alphabet soup diagnoses, invisible special needs, behavioral problems.Our children are easy to love, but oh, so hard to raise. 

Easy to Love but Hard to Raise is an anthology of personal essays written by parents of children with ADD, ADHD, OCD, PDD, ASDs, SPD, PBD and/or other alphabet soup diagnoses that takes the already difficult job of parenting and adds to the challenge. 

These essays focus on honest feelings, lessons learned, epiphanies, commonplace and extraordinary experiences. They are written by parents of toddlers, young children, teens, and adult children; those who are in the parenting trenches now, and those looking back on their parenting experiences. 

Topics include : how children came to be diagnosed, the experience of dealing with problem behaviors in various contexts and settings, experiences with/feelings about treatment (therapies, medications, alternative treatments), school (and other advocacy) experiences, children's social interactions/friends, and the effect of parenting a difficult child on a parent's emotional and physical health, marriage, and other relationships.

I’m one of these 32 parent-writers. My essay is entitled “The Great Third Grade AIDS Scare.” Buy the book. Read the essays. You’ll have a much better idea about the challenges faced by kids with ADHD, OCD, PBD, etc. – and their parents.

I’ve written a number of hummingbirdminds' posts about the struggles our children have had with ADHD, ADD, learning disabilities, addiction and mental illness. You can look them up!

"Easy to Love but Hard to Raise" has a Facebook fan page. Check it out here.

UW hosts first poetry slam of the semester Jan. 25 in Laramie

University of Wyoming Poetry Slam
Wednesday, January 25, 8:00 pm
UW Union Gardens

Those wishing to compete can sign up at either the Student Activities Council event table on Wednesdays in the Union Breezeway, or in the Campus Activities Center in the basement of the Union.  Limited to 25 contestants, so competition spots will be given on a first-come, first-served basis.