"Gardening: Cool Season Crops" continues Oct. 4 at Cheyenne Botanic Gardens

Saw this on Nancy Sindelar's excellent e-mail newsletter: 

"Gardening: Cool Season Crops."  Grow crops for harvest in the hoop house.  Learn to take advantage of the end of the season, to continue the harvest.  Fifth of a seven-week series. At 4 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 4, Cheyenne Botanic Gardens, 710 South Lions Park Dr.  Info & RSVP:  637-6458, www.botanic.org, info@botanic.org.  Cost: $5 for the entire series. 

MoveOn petition asks: Sen. Barrasso, why did you vote to block veterans' jobs bill?

Wyoming MoveOn member Josh Kronberg sent this:

Dear Wyoming MoveOn member,

All over Wyoming we see public support for our troops overseas, but just because their tours of duty might end doesn't mean that the debt owed them by their country ends with them. 

Nonetheless, our troops are coming home to Wyoming and finding it even harder than non-vets to find jobs, housing, and support. We can wave all the banners we want and paste all the bumper stickers we can find but that doesn't put paychecks in veterans' hands or roofs over their heads.

Recently, Senator John Barrasso voted to block a billion-dollar veteran jobs program, and it's time we in Wyoming did more to support our troops than put bumper stickers on our cars and repost pictures on Facebook. 

That's why I created a petition on SignOn.org to Sen. Barrasso, which says:

Senator Barrasso, stop blocking programs to employ our vets, and start showing them the support they have earned. Reverse your decision on preventing the billion-dollar veteran jobs program from going through; put our money where our mouth is.

Click here to add your name to this petition, and then pass it along to your friends.

Thanks!

–Josh Kronberg

This petition was created on SignOn.org, the progressive, nonprofit petition site. SignOn.org is sponsored by MoveOn Civic Action, which is not responsible for the contents of this or other petitions posted on the site. Josh Kronberg didn't pay us to send this email—we never rent or sell the MoveOn.org list.

Debate watch party on the agenda for Oct. 3

Democrats are holding a debate watch party on Wednesday, Oct. 3, 6:30-8:30 p.m. I saw the details on the Obama for America web site. It has a special relevance for those of us in Cheyenne who witnessed Obama's nomination and acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Denver in 2008. This debate comes to us from the University of Denver campus.

It wasn't mentioned, but I wonder if there is a drinking game involved? You have to chug a beer when Mitt mentions socialism? When President Obama mentions Osama bin Laden? When Mitt can't remember the time that he told the Detroit auto industry to go to hell? When President Obama mentions that he's The Savior of Detroit? When the moderators lob a softball question at either candidate?

We'll be drunk by 6:35.

Get more info here.

Sam Western explores the future of AML funding in Wyoming w/update

Sam Western, Sheridan author and correspondent for London's The Economist, spoke last night at the Roosevelt-Kennedy dinner held by the Wyoming Democratic Party.

In a bit of kismet, a column by Sam appeared this morning in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle. In it, he explores the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Trust Fund (AML) legislation, how it's helped and hurt Wyoming.

AML legislation was first passed in 1977 and mandated that a percentage of each ton of coal was designated to clean up abandoned mines. Strip mines of the West, like those in Wyoming's Powder River Basin, were taxed at $.35 per ton while underground mines of the East were taxed at $.15 per ton. Since most of the reclaimed mines were in the East, most of the $3 billion in taxes on Wyoming coal (the largest amount from any state) should have gone elsewhere. But the law also mandated that 50 percent of the taxes collected in a state would go back to that state. So it did. But since Wyoming had so few abandoned mines to reclaim, that money went to new ag facilities at Sheridan College and new classrooms at UW, facilities that normally would be paid for by its citizens.

That darn federal gubment.

In Republican Paul Ryan's Draconian budget plan, all that coal tax money would disappear. Remember, the GOP doesn't like taxes on wealthy corporations or people. The budget failed, but not before Wyoming's entire Congressional delegation, Republicans all, voted for it. Meanwhile, the 50 percent rate of return for AML funding has dropped to 48 percent, which means Wyoming loses out on millions every year. Our Congressional delegation now is backpedaling as fast as it can to save the AML funding.

Thus, this isn't a story about the AML. It's about the the reluctance of Wyoming to accept a new reality: Revenue from minerals, such as AML money, is easy to snatch, and Congress will probably use it for whatever it pleases.

The dilemma also reveals Wyoming's one-dimensional sense of entitlement. It's our money, we yelp, and we want it back. Now.

The reality is that over the years, Wyoming has received tens of billions of non-mineral-related money from taxpayers who don't live in the Cowboy State. In the trade-off department, Wyoming has gotten an awfully good deal.

The old era is fading. What were once Wyoming plums are now low-hanging fruit for a cash-strapped Congress to pluck for other purposes.

The matter is complicated by the unwillingness of Republicans to work across the aisle to reach a compromise on issues which would benefit the state. The doctrinaire thick-headedness of Barrasso, Enzi and Lummis, only make it inevitable that Wyoming will continue to lose federal funds. Not only will they not compromise with Democrats, they also finds compromise tough with members of their own party running for vice president.

What a dilemma.

And Wyoming will be the loser.

This is a summary of an excellent article loaded with details. I recommend that you read it. I would send you to the WTE web site to read the entire column, but it's a terrible web site and Sam is nowhere to be found. If you get the paper, read it on the op-ed pages. If not, try the library.

You can read more of Sam's excellent work (journalism, essays and fiction) at www.samuelwestern.com

10/1/12 UPDATE: Sam's column is on wyofile. Go to http://wyofile.com/2012/09/feds-can-restrict-flow-of-mineral-revenue-to-wyoming/  

Nov. 10 Cheyenne conference outlines steps to getting your novel published

Joanne Kennedy's new novel

Some of my local writing pals are staging a one-day conference "designed to help you navigate the next steps toward the publication of your novel." It will be held on Saturday, Nov. 10, 10:15 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Laramie County Public Library, 2200 Pioneer Ave., Cheyenne.

Presenters include members of my writing group, Mary Gillgannon and Liz Roadifer, and an emeritus member of the group, Joanne Kennedy. Mary writes historical novels, as well as Celtic and Regency romances. Liz writes mysteries and sci-fi fantasy. Joanne is the well-known author of cowboy romances set in Wyoming.

Also presenting are Amanda Cabot, a Cheyenne author of Christian romances; teen novelist and library board member Tina Ann Forkner; "Saucy Lucy" series mystery novelist Cindy Keen Reynders; and memoirist and sci-fi writer Marjie Smith.

That's one heck of a line-up. I attended a recent presentation by Mary, in which she outlined the steps to getting your work published as e-books. I learned a lot and took lots of notes (see my blog about it here).

The workshop is free. The day includes a lunch-hour book signing, with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the Laramie County Library Foundation. You can brown-bag it, or get a delicious lunch at the library cafe (I eat there often).

FMI: 307-634-3561.

Cheyenne Vineyard Church's "Cotton Patch Gospel" has roots in Christian social justice

My former work colleague Randy Oestman left state employment to serve as a minister for the Cheyenne Vineyard Church, 1506 Thomes Ave. Vineyard services are very musical, I am told, which is not surprising, considering Randy's theatre background. Randy and his Vineyard colleagues take the New Testament's social justice message seriously. They minister to Cheyenne's homeless and collect leftover foodstuffs from farmers' markets to distribute to needy families. I buy my eggs from Randy, whose chickens lay the darndest-colored eggs. Randy even practices his theatrical skills in the chicken coop.

In October, the Vineyard Church is producing the "Cotton Patch Gospel," based on a book by Tom Key and Russell Treyz, with music by Harry Chapin, written just before he died in a 1981 traffic accident. Anything with music by Harry Chapin has to be good.

Here is a description of the play from Wikipedia:

Cotton Patch Gospel is a musical by Tom Key and Russell Treyz with music and lyrics written by Harry Chapin just before his death in 1981. Based on the book The Cotton Patch Version of Matthew and John by Clarence Jordan, the story retells the life of Jesus as if in modern day, rural Georgia.

Using a southern reinterpretation of the gospel story, the musical is often performed in a one-man show format with an accompanying quartet of bluegrass musicians, although a larger cast can also be used. A video recording of the play was released in 1988 with Tom Key as the leading actor.

Interesting to note that Clarence Jordan was the founder of the Koinonia Farm,  a ground-breaking Christian social justice community that infuriated its white Georgia neighbors by practicing and preaching equality for all, including African-Americans. During the Civil Rights struggles of the 1950s and '60s, Koinonia was the target of a local economic boycott and several bombings. It was able to survive by shipping all of its goods through the U.S. Postal Service because, as we all know, "the mail must go through." Jordan also was instrumental in the founding of Habitat for Humanity, another revolutionary Georgia organization. Koinonia and Habitat had a big influence on one of its neighbors, Jimmy Carter of Plains. Clarence Jordan's nephew, Hamilton, was President Carter's chief of staff.

"Cotton Patch Gospel" will be performed at the Cheyenne Vineyard Church Oct. 5-6. 12-13 and 19-20 at 7 p.m. Admission is free but please bring grocery gift cards or non-perishable food for the needy. Call for tickets: 307-638-8700.

It's Enzi and Barrasso who deserve jeers for their votes against veterans' jobs bill

WyoDems Communications Director and long-time Wyoming reporter and editor Brodie Farquhar posted this on Facebook:

Today's Casper Star-Tribune properly "Cheered" a recent jobs fair for veterans with their weekly Cheers/Jeers column. Yet so far, aside from one letter to the editor, the CST has been entirely silent about the fact that Enzi and Barrasso voted against a veterans jobs bill. That in itself deserves a "Jeer."

Launchtoberfest in Fort Collins promotes Biodiesel for Bands initiative

Launchtoberfest in Fort Collins on Oct. 6 looks like a great time and a good opportunity to find out more about this initiative to trim traveling costs for regional bands.

The real quandary for the depressed: you often are too depressed to take action

Marjorie Morrison is the author of the recently published "The Inside Battle: Our Military Mental Health Crisis" (Military Psychology Press, $8.99 ebook). Yesterday, she wrote a great column for the Huffington Post. Here are some excerpts:

From 2005 to 2010, service members took their own lives at a rate of about one every 36 hours. There are currently more deaths in the military by suicide then killed in combat. Suicides in the US Army increased 80% in 2004 to 2008. 

This is the excerpt that rang true for me:

A service member who seeks help has significant barriers to overcome. Almost all of us can look back at a time when we felt depressed. Typically, it isn't until after you get through it that you realize how distressed you were. It's difficult enough to ask for help, but considerably harder when one feels hopeless.

This is the problem, isn't it? People who suffer from clinical depression often cannot reach out of that big black hole to get help. In other words, we are too depressed to know we are depressed and too depressed to get the help we need. It often takes someone close to us to urge us on. Unfortunately, we may be too depressed to act. We may pretend that we know better. We may pretend that we are fine.

I am not a veteran. I do come from a long line of veterans who suffered from depression and PTSD. I know what depression feels like. I know how hard it is to reach out to get help.

I was first diagnosed with depression in 1990, when I was 40. I have been on and off antidepressants ever since. More than one psychiatrist has told me this: "Stay on antidepressants. You have clinical depression."

Did I listen? Of course not.

Here is the danger. Antidepressants may seek to work effectively over time. If we are seeing clinicians on a regular basis, they may discover this and switch our meds. If we are not seeing clinicians on a regular basis, who's to know? We may just decide to quit taking Prozac or Zoloft or Mertazapine or Effexor or Wellbutrin or any of the other drugs that help to ward off the hopgoblins.

Big mistake.    

We should pause here to entertain objections from those who think that antidepressants are the work of the devil, or a means to mind control. Any Scientologists in the room? I can see why objections may arise. Many of those who commit suicide are taking antidepressants. It's easy to assume that antidepressants lead to suicide.

When I was embarking on my latest antidepressant regimen, I came across an article about a young Iraq veteran who had committed suicide. Tip for the depressed: never read about suicide when in the throes of depression. The photo in the story showed the vet's bedroom. Near his bed were myriad bottles of pills. One read "Mirtazapine." Thing is, I'd been taking the very same drug at the very same dosage for two weeks. Nothing was happening. I was feeling a bit desperate. Was I ready to kill myself? No. But I was depressed as hell. It would be months and months before that med and several others finally combined to give me some relief.

Now that I am no longer depressed, I realize how depressed I really was. And I am amazed that I am front of you right now, that I am typing on this keyboard and entering fairly sensible words on the screen. Amazed.

I was lucky. I had an understanding wife. I had understanding colleagues at work. I have friends. I have health insurance. I am en ex-jock who knew that exercise can be a way to the other side. I am a writer who believes in journaling. I have an extra dose of Irish cussedness in me -- it keeps me going when things look blackest. I have some wisdom endowed by six decades on the planet. I know how to pray.

What if I was 21, just back from a terrible war? Would I know what to do? I've never had to face that. But thousands of others have to face that every day.

Be kind. That's what combat veteran and ex-POW Kurt Vonnegut used to say. Be kind. He knew that little acts of kindness can go a long way. If nothing else, that's something we can all give to one another.

Be kind.

And take your freakin' meds, ya dimwit!

That's me talking to myself. When I'm feeling right. When I'm not, well, I say nothing.

Winter forecast: WY mild and wet, FL cold and dry

The Old Farmer's Almanac predicts a mild and wet winter for my part of the world in southeastern Wyoming. Meanwhile, my homeplace of Florida will be cold and dry. What's wrong with this picture?

Wyoming Equality holds a Halloween bash Oct. 27 at Suite 1901 in Cheyenne

You heard it here first (or maybe second or third):

Wyoming Equality is sponsoring a Halloween bash on Saturday, Oct. 27, in the Casablanca Room at Suite 1901 in Cheyenne. Suite 1901 is under new management.

Costume prizes for "Best Super Hero," Best Horror or (Whorer)" and "Best Original," will be handed out.

Cost is $5 for members and $10 for non-members

FMI: http://www.facebook.com/events/286956541419329/?notif_t=plan_user_invited

Beet Street wants you to help spread the word about the Arts Incubator of the Rockies

My arts pals at Beet Street south of the border in Fort Collins, Colo., are looking for some savvy online types to spread the word about the Arts Incubator of the Rockies (AIR). I wasn't shocked to learn that there are some 280,000 artists and creatives in the Intermountain West. In fact, that number seems a bit low to me, as I sometimes feel that there are 280,000 creatives in Wyoming alone and they are all trying to call us at the Arts Council on the same day!

I manage the Wyoming Arts Council presence on AIR and I also signed up as Mike Shay, writer. I encourage you to sign up too and, if you're willing, to sign on as a catalyst for the AIR site. The web site, a collaboration between FoCo-based communications company Rocket Jones and marketers One Tribe Creative, is user-friendly. I already tried to break it and didn't succeed!

Here's what Beet Street has to say:

Now that we've launched the amazing AIR website, we need to activate the 280,000 artists and creatives who live in the Intermountain West. Help us build a strong regional arts community by spreading the word about all the AIR programs and website tools. If you love talking to people, we need you!

Help show that our region loves to collaborate and learn together! We need 25 volunteers to help reach out to both local and regional artists, creative businesses, and cultural organizations. To really get our community engaged, we want to get 1,000 free and 300 paid members signed up before the end of the year.

An information and orientation meeting will be held on Thursday, October 4 from 5:30-7 p.m. at the Beet Street office (200 W. Mountain Ave., Suite A). Please RSVP by October 1 to Kerry Miller at kmiller@beetstreet.org and please describe to us in a few sentences your experience/skills and why you'd like to volunteer for this project.

Researchers/authors Peter and Rosemary Grant speak about the "Evolution of Darwin's Finches" at UW

This will drive the fundies crazy (from a UW press release):

Two of the world’s leading evolutionary researchers, Peter and Rosemary Grant, will speak at 4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 27, in the University of Wyoming Berry Center auditorium.

They will discuss “Evolution of Darwin’s Finches.” UW Zoology Professor Craig Benkman will host their presentation as part of the L. Floyd Clarke Memorial Lecture Series.

The Grants’ research on evolution in the Galapagos Islands, where they have spent six months of every year since 1973, is well-known. Capturing, tagging and taking blood samples of the finches on the island of Daphne Major, the two Princeton University emeritus professors continue the evolutionary work of Charles Darwin in the place that inspired his theory of evolution.

"The Grants' three-year study of the evolution of Galapagos Island finches and their adaptive responses to environmental change is one of the classic studies in biology,” says Scott Seville, zoologist and UW Outreach School associate dean. “Their work has been featured in many documentaries and was the focus of the Pulitzer prize-winning book ‘Beak of the Finch’ by Jonathan Wiener."

In 2008, the Grants were among 13 recipients of the prestigious Darwin-Wallace Medal, which is bestowed every 50 years by the Linnean Society of London. They received the Kyoto Prize in basic sciences, an international award honoring significant contributions to scientific, cultural and spiritual betterment of mankind. They have written numerous articles and books on their discoveries.

For more information, call (307) 766-5627.

Roger Ludwig speaks about innovative PTSD treatment Sept. 30 in Cheyenne

Cheyenne psychotherapist Roger Ludwig will talk about an innovative treatment for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) on Sunday, Sept. 30, 6 p.m., at St. Peter's Church, 252 Dell Range Blvd., Cheyenne.

Ludwig recently returned from Africa as a member of an elite team teaching the Thought Field Therapy (TFT) approach to PTSD among people who have suffered through the seemingly endless wars raging on the continent.

St. Peter's Church is located across from the Wyoming Air National Guard. The presentation is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

Then out spake brave Horatius: Get thee some therapy, soldier!

Then out spake brave Horatius,
The Captain of the Gate:
"To every man upon this earth
Death cometh soon or late.
And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
And the temples of his gods?"

From Horatius, by Thomas Babington McCauley

Luis Carlos Montalvan first came across these lines while reading a biography of Winston Churchill. Montalvan was 13, a voracious reader, memorizing McCauley and Poe and Neruda and any other verse that struck his fancy.

"It really fueled my passion for life," Montalvan said. "It also led to a love affair with those teachers who taught me in school."

Luis Montalvan and Tuesday

His parents were well-educated. His father fled Castro's Cuba. His mother emigrated from Puerto Rico. They were well-read and liked to argue about politics.

"My father was a Republican and my mother, a Democrat," he said. "We had lots of discussions. I tended to wear my opinions on my sleeve. At school, kids looked at me, said, 'here's a spirited guy' and beat me up. But I became a warrior and they didn't beat me up any more."

Montalvan's dream was to be a soldier. He grew up in the Reagan era when "the Evil Empire was a true-blue threat." He joined the Army at 17, receiving his parent's consent because he was under-age. He started boot camp in June 1990 just as Operation Desert Shield got started in Kuwait. Desert Storm followed. By the time Montalvan was a trained soldier the following April, the war was over and he wasn't deployed.

But over the course of the next 17 years, he worked his way from the enlisted to the officer ranks and was deployed many times, eventually earning the rank of captain. An explosion knocked him out of action in Iraq. He walks with a cane now, and is aided by a helper dog, a Golden Retriever named Tuesday. But Tuesday helps his master as much with his Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as he does with the physical wounds.

Montalvan joined Iraq War veteran Brian Turner and Desert Shield/Desert Storm veteran Patrick Amelotte at a panel discussion entitled "Active Duty, Active Voices" at the Equality State Book Festival Sept. 14-15 in Casper. Montalvan's book (co-written with Bret Witter) is Until Tuesday: The Story of a Wounded Warrior and the Golden Retriever Who Saved Him. In it, he relates the long journey toward healing his physical and emotional wounds.

As he spoke about his experiences, Montalvan began to recite the McCauley quote above. He stumbled after a few lines. This is caused by an aphasia that stems from his TBI. As Turner and Amelotte took turns speaking, Montalvan brought out a sheet of paper and wrote out the lines of Horatius that he had memorized as a 13-year-old. When it was his turn to speak, he read McCauley's lines.

"I sometimes forget words," said Montalvan. "It's disturbing."

Montalvan has received years of physical and psychological counseling for his wounds.

"I believe in the importance of facing trauma head-on," Montalvan said. "Trauma causes the five stages of grief. It causes physical and psychological suffering. It's impossible to get past trauma by internalizing it."

He encourages every veteran he meets to get counseling. He encouraged everyone in the book festival audience to get counseling.

"When I talk about the value of therapy, that's not learned until one does it," he said. "Here you are in a safe place. What you say is confidential. If your therapist is good, he is there to facilitate you talking about your issues.

"It causes stress to express your journey through pain. It is a release of negative energy. It doesn't really solve anything, but it gets it off of your chest. You sometimes stutter and stammer through these things. But there is a value in what you're forced to do."

Montalvan acknowledged that there is a difference between individual therapy and group therapy. "In group therapy, there's a different dynamic," he said. "Camaraderie builds. There were times when I was in the throes of PTSD and I imagined a whole platoon of friends were behind me. That would give me strength."

The retired Army Captain, who also holds a master's degree in journalism,  notes that writing and speaking have aided in his recovery. He also extols the benefits of journaling, of getting thoughts down on paper. "There's a healing to that."

Mt. Sinai Synagogue sponsors "Jews from Eastern Europe" exhibit, Jewish cuisine and a post-show talk Sept. 29 at "Fiddler on the Roof"

The most powerful musical theatre has origins in human misery. "Les Miserables" centers around survival on the mean streets of Paris and the struggle for freedom by the disenfranchised masses. "West Side Story" is about New York City street gangs and immigration. "Fiddler on the Roof" is about pogroms targeting Eastern European and Russian Jews. Lurking in the background of "Fiddler" is the eventual extermination of The Six Million. 

The Cheyenne Little Theatre Players will open its production of "Fiddler on the Roof" on Friday, September 28. The show will run for 10 performances: September 28, 29, 30 & October 4, 5, 6, 7, 12, 14, 15. Tickets are going fast so call the Box Office at (307) 638-6543 today or order online at www.cheyennelittletheatre.org.

There are several special events/activities associated with "Fiddler on the Roof." One of them is sponsored by the Mt. Sinai Synagogue. Several members of the Mt. Sinai congregation are in the cast. The Synagogue will present an exhibit of local Jews with families from Eastern Europe, compiled by Mt. Sinai Librarian and Historian Dorothy Feldman. The exhibit will be on display in the lobby of the Mary Godfrey Playhouse at Pershing and Windmill throughout the run of the show. It opens September 28.

On Saturday, September 29, Mt Sinai Sisterhood will offer Jewish treats (Hamantashen, Rugelach, and other baked goods) at 6:30 P.M. before the 7:30 P.M. show. Donations will be accepted which will benefit the Cheyenne Little Theatre. Then, after that show, a free "Talk Back" session will be presented by the cast and Mt Sinai's Rabbi, Harley Karz-Wagman.

Help wanted: Executive Director for Arts Cheyenne

Here's a great job for some hard-charging arts administrator out there:

Arts Cheyenne announces its search for an executive director:

Do you like getting in on the ground floor of exciting developments?  This may be the job for you.

The primary responsibility of the person in this position will be to work collaboratively with the Arts Cheyenne Transitional Board, staff and volunteers to ensure the success of the organization.  As the first person to serve as Executive Director for this merged organization, the person hired will help mold the position.  Review the Executive Director Job Description and Executive Director Fact Sheet to learn more.

Application deadline is noon, Friday, October 5, 2012.

In the future, Wyoming travelers may yearn to be stranded at Denver's revamped airport

I happened upon Fast Company's Co.Exist (and Co-Create and Co.Design) during my perambulations around the Internet. All three are great places to waste (I mean, "spend") some time exploring new inventions and trends and ideas and foodways. Next time I'm in Copenhagen, I'm going to try to get a table at Noma for a plate of ants and blueberries, or barbecue carrots with sorrel sauce and hay ash. There is a hidden beauty to suburban sprawl -- and an array of stunning photos is offered in evidence. We are wasting our time harnessing wind at ground level -- we should be tethering high-flying wind-generating kites at 10 kilometers. Lots of them.

And airports aren't just for passing through any more. Munich's new airport offers an entire Oktoberfest experience, Hong Kong International offers an outdoor nine-hole golf course and a 350-seat IMAX theatre, Lagos's new airport will feature a duty-free shop with bargain-basement prices on kitchen appliances, and Changi International in Singapore features a Balinese-themed swimming pool. The airport was built on the site of one of Japan's most notorious World War II POW camps, the setting for James Clavell's compelling novel, "King Rat." Wonder if you can buy the book at the airport?

And here's what co.Exist had to say about Denver's soon-to-be-renovated DIA:

Architect's rendering of the new DIA

The Denver International Airport is getting more “Colorado.” It’s being expanded and transformed into a quasi city center, connected both physically and emotionally to downtown Denver and the region. A Westin hotel and conference center (with a dynamite rooftop pool and views of the Rockies) is part of the expansion program along with an outdoor public plaza for staging community events and a new fast rail line (and station) that will whisk travelers and Denver residents alike to/from downtown Denver.

Cheyenne can't compete with that. However, our new airport terminal may help airlines do a much better job shuttling us to DIA for the ambience that surrounds a Thanksgiving flight to Aunt Martha's or a business trip to D.C. Heck, Wyoming travelers may soon yearn to be stranded at DIA due to a holiday blizzard.

It's interesting to note that the new DIA will connect people "physically and emotionally to downtown Denver and the region." It may soon be easier to fly than drive from Cheyenne to Denver for a football weekend or for a weekend of shopping and entertainment. While Cheyenne long ago ceded Front Range leadership to Denver, this new transportation complex could make that reality permanent. But Cheyenne can hop on this bandwagon, making sure that we're a primary feeder hub to DIA and Denver. We haven't done a very good job of that in the past. By enhancing those things that make us great, we'll be a player in the region.

That doesn't mean making Cheyenne a mini-Denver. It means making Cheyenne more Cheyenne. As Mayor Kaysen has said time and again, one of our priorities has to be the revitalization of downtown. Keep at it, Cheyenne. Make Cheyenne more Cheyenne by saving its historic central business district. Nobody makes a destination of a place that excels in strip malls or Wal-Marts. They do want to travel to a place that has character. That's what Cheyenne Frontier Days is all about -- "Live the Legend!" It's the Old West meeting the New West. The Old West is rodeo and cowboys and country-western music. The New West means a vibrant downtown with brewpubs and restaurants and rock concerts and art galleries and western clothing stores mixed with funky boutiques. The distinctive music and art that's offered at these places should come from local and regional musicians and artists and artisans. The restaurant food should come from Southern Wyoming (SoWy) and Northern Colorado (NoCo) farms and ranches. Some of it can be grown on rooftop gardens and greenhouses. What a thriving place downtown Cheyenne will be. Denverites may want to hop on a plane at DIA and fly north to Cheyenne because there's no place like it on earth. Imagine that.

Architect's rendering of new Cheyenne airport terminal.

Introducing the brave new (and often perplexing) world of e-publishing

As I mentioned yesterday, my writing pal Mary Gillgannon conducted a program about publishing and e-publishing tonight at the library.

We heard about Mary's path from traditional publishing (and early success) to kind of a publishing black hole that coincided with the corporatization of the publishing world, and then the advent of digital publishing. 

About a year ago, she decided to transform her backlist titles into e-books. Most were not in electronic form, so she had to pay to get them scanned and formatted, and then new covers created. She tackled the "painstaking editing process" which included some revision as "after 15 years, you want to change some things," presumably because you're a better writer.

She then launched the books into the digital world. 

She promotes them on her own web site and through organizations such as Romance Writers of America and Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers. Since many of her titles are either "Celtic Romance" or "Regency Romance," she often wears period costumes when she reads and signs her books. The colorful green dress she wore Thursday night she bought at the Renaissance Festival in Colorado.

She spent an entire year entering the e-book realm.

"I didn't have time to write," she said. "I became a publisher instead of a writer."

She is back to writing now and now has a new self-published book to her credit. It's called "The Silver Wheel: A Novel of Celtic Britain." It was a book that she tried to sell to traditional publishers. Editors and agents told her that it didn't fit neatly into any category. It was too long. The ending was too depressing (lots of people died). They thought that her heroine was weak.

So she went back to the drawing board. She changed the working title to "Sirona," the name of her heroine. She got rid of the lead male character. As a result, the book became more Sirona's book than anyone else's. 

Still, it didn't sell.

"I decided to put things back in that I took out," she said. "Then I had the book I wanted."

She was selling copies of "The Silver Wheel" Thursday night. It's a beautiful book. I bought a copy for my wife, Chris. I'd read it in a previous incarnation as a member of our shared critique group. It had changed, but because I know the quality of Mary's writing and storytelling skills, I told Chris she would like it. 

Among our critique group members, Mary is leading the charge into this new technology. She's selling books, too, but not the ones she thought would be hot properties. 

"My Regency Romances are selling at a faster rate than the other books," Mary said. She's sold up to 200 titles of one of her Regency titles, while the other romances limp along in single-digit sales figures.

But she's in it for the long haul. She's spent quite a bit of time and money in this pursuit. She's beginning to make that money back, slowly but surely. 

She's discovered a few surprises along the way. When you get your book on Amazon, it's offered five days for free. As it sells, it moves up the "free list." People notice the author's name and book title and also figure that the book is worthwhile so they "take a chance" on it. Often they will actually buy the next title in the series. And they may refer their friends to the series and those people may buy both titles. 

"It's a bizarre marketing technique, but it works, " she said.

Mary has noticed that the promotion of her books is a never-ending task. Of the half-million books on Amazon, 13,000 are historical romances. 

"To be noticed, you have to have a presence on the web," she said, noting that she's upgraded her web site and provides direct links on it to her books on Amazon. At this point, she doesn't sell directly from her web site.

Meanwhile, the hunt continues for traditional publishers.

"I still have a couple books that I'm trying to sell to publishers. But even if they decide to publish them, they will expect me to heavily promote them. Authors can't just sit in their offices and write any more."

She has eight more finished books that she could put out as e-books. She also has more than a dozen book proposals at various stages of completion. 

"My challenge is to live long enough to do all this," she concluded.

Question for Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso: Why did you vote to block jobs bill for military veterans?

Wyoming Sen./Dr. John Barrasso, running for re-election, voted today to block a jobs bill for military veterans. He was joined in the naysayers' column by Wyoming Sen. Mike Enzi. The $1 billion veterans' job bill needed 60 votes to proceed. It was blocked 58-40. All no votes were by Republicans.

Senate Veterans' Affairs Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said the cost of the bill, $1 billion over five years, is offset. She noted that a vote to block the measure is tantamount to saying the nation has done enough for veterans.

"A vote to support this point of order says that despite the fact that we have paid for this bill, despite the fact that one in four young veterans are out of work, despite the fact that veterans suicides are outpacing combat deaths, and despite the fact that more and more veterans are coming home, we are not going to invest in these challenges," Murray said.

The nation owes veterans "more than just a pat on the back for their service," she continued. "We owe them more than bumper stickers and platitudes. We owe them more than procedural roadblocks that will impede our ability to provide help now and into the future. We owe them action."

Murray continued: "We owe them real investments that will help get them back to work. And that's what this bill does."

I'm voting for Democrat Tim Chesnut in the Wyoming U.S. Senate race. Maybe he will vote for benefits for our military veterans. On Sunday, Sept. 23, Tim will host a barbecue and fund-raiser from noon until 3 p.m. at the picnic shelter in Holliday Park in Cheyenne. Get more info by calling Barbara Guilford at 307-634-0309 or Michael Crump at 307-631-9569.

In Randy Newman's new satiric song, the narrator dreams about a white man for president

Nonesuch Records is offering a free download of Randy Newman's new song, "I'm Dreaming." I've always been a fan of Newman's songs is which an unidentified narrator is singing about a controversial topic. In "Sail Away," the narrator (a slave trader?) is urging black Africans to go to America:

In America, you get food to eat  
Won't have to run through the jungle and scuff up your feet 
You just sing about Jesus, drink wine all day  
It's great to be an American
 
Ain't no lions or tigers, ain't no mamba snake  
Just the sweet watermelon and the buckwheat cake 
Everybody is as happy as a man can be  
Climb aboard little wog, sail away with me

In "Short People," short people are singled out for ridicule by someone who may or may not be serious. In "Political Science," the right-wing Bircher narrator urges us to "drop the big one now" and "Boom goes London, boom Paree." In "Louisiana 1927," the rich and powerful are shown as oblivious to the plight of victims of natural disasters. This song received lots of airplay after Hurricane Katrina:

Louisiana, Louisiana
They're tryin' to wash us away
They're tryin' to wash us away
Louisiana, Louisiana
They're tryin' to wash us away
They're tryin' to wash us away

President Coolidge came down in a railroad train
With a little fat man with a note-pad in his hand
The President say, "Little fat man isn't it a shame what the river has done
To this poor crackers land."

"I'm Dreaming" is also one of Newman's "character" songs. Here's an interview with him on the Nonesuch site (thanks to Meg Lanker-Simons in Laramie for the tip):

Randy Newman’s new song, “I’m Dreaming,” is available as a free download below, where you can also watch the accompanying video. With lyrics from the viewpoint of a voter who casts his ballot solely based on skin color, the song draws attention to something Newman has noticed and written about for 40 years: racism in America. (The complete lyrics are below as well.) While the song, which Newman performs solo at the piano, is free, anyone wishing to contribute is encouraged to donate to the United Negro College Fund at www.uncf.org.

Newman explains, “No other Western industrialized nation would’ve elected a black president. I’m proud of this country for having elected Obama in 2008. But from the beginning of his term, I noticed a particular heat to conversations that wouldn’t ordinarily generate that kind of passion: The budget, appointments, health care.” He continues, “I think there are a lot of people who find it jarring to have a black man in the White House and they want him out. They just can’t believe that there’s not a more qualified white man. You won’t get anyone, and I do mean anyone, to admit it.

“I often write songs in character. You can’t always trust or believe the narrators in my songs. So why listen? Good question.

“Anyway the guy in this song may exist somewhere. Let’s hope not. Vote in November.”

Author Mary Gillgannon talks about publishing and e-publishing Sept. 20 at the library

My writing pal, Mary Gillgannon, is conducting a program at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 20, at the Laramie County Public Library in Cheyenne. She'll be talking about the strange world of publishing and the even stranger world of e-publishing. She will be answering questions and sharing her experiences in those odd realms. I also hear that she is making her delicious chocolate chip cookies for treats for the people who show up. So show up.

Let's pause for an unpaid commercial announcement:

The Silver Wheel, a novel of Celtic Britain, available now at
http://marygillgannon.com

I read an early version of The Silver Wheel at our critique group. It is terrific, made even better by the revision process. 

Zombiefest in Cheyenne looks frightfully good

Rich guy Mitt Romney trashes the rest of us in recent speech

See the secretly-recorded video, and read Mitt Romney's remarks to his rich donors, in David Corn's piece in Monday's Mother Jones. Here's a sampler of how Romney really feels about the rest of us:

There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what…These are people who pay no income tax.

What a schmuck!

Democrats walk neighborhoods for progressive candidates this weekend

On Saturday, Sept. 22, Democrats will be walking the mid-town Cheyenne neighborhoods for one of the few women in the Wyoming State Legislature, Mary Throne of HD 11. We will be meeting at Mary's house, 720 E. 19th St., at 1 p.m. Mary is running against Republican Jerry Zellars, who hasn't been seen on the stump too often -- maybe he's lying low, waiting for a last-minute surge. Or maybe he thinks that having that (R) next to his name is all that he needs to beat Mary, the incumbent (D).

Weird, isn't it, that women are a scant minority in the legislature of The Equality State? Keep Mary in the mix!

Lee Filer is a Democrat running in House District 12. He's also hitting the streets this weekend, and could use some help. Lee is a hard-working family man -- he's a railroader and a member of the Air National Guard -- and he's fired up to take on his Republican contender. He's only 32, which makes him another minority as he is several decades younger than the average Wyoming House member. As a Dem and a Gen Y guy, he would automatically add to the diversity of the Legislature.

Tim Chesnut has a battle on his hands, running against Republican John Barrasso for one of Wyoming's U.S. Senate seats. Tim is a former Albany County Commissioner. He has a lot of guts going up against the entrenched Barrasso, who has oodles of money and name recognition on his side. On Sunday, Sept. 23, Tim will host a barbecue and fund-raiser from noon until 3 p.m. at the picnic shelter in Holliday Park in Cheyenne. Get more info by calling Barbara Guilford at 307-634-0309 or Michael Crump at 307-631-9569.

During a long weekend, veteran suicides wipe out an entire platoon

This is not right.

From an AP wire service story:

So far this year the number of suicides in the military has surged beyond expectations, given that the pace of combat deployments has begun to slow. The Defense Department closely tracks suicides throughout the military but releases its figures only once a year. The Associated Press in June obtained an internal Defense Department document that revealed that there had been 154 suicides in the first 155 days of the year, though June 3. That marked the fastest pace of active-duty military suicides in the nation's decade of war.

This is not right.

This past weekend at the Equality State Book Festival in Casper, Wyo., we heard from a panel of veterans who also are writers. Brian Turner served seven years in the U.S. Army, with deployments in Bosnia-Herzegovinia (1999-2000) and Iraq (2003-2004). Luis Carlos Montalvan served 17 years in the U.S. Army, with a deployment in Iraq that earned him a Purple Heart and a lifelong limp and a case of TBI -- Traumatic Brain Injury. Patrick Amelotte was a U.S. Marine Corps Reservist who was deployed during Desert Shield/Desert Storm in 1991. They all spoke during a panel entitled "Active Duty, Active Voices."

One of the most haunting quotes came from Brian Turner. He noted that 18 veterans or active duty troops commit suicide daily. That includes veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as all of the other conflicts the U.S. has been engaged in during my lifetime: Korea, Vietnam, Cold War, Vietnam (including Cambodia and Laos), Grenada, Central America, Desert Shield/Desert Storm (Iraq and Kuwait), Bosnia, Somalia, and other hotspots too numerous to mention. It seems odd to include The Good War in these stats but, yes, there are aging WWII vets who sometimes choose the gun or rope over the long march into the darkness caused by cancer, heart disease, diabetes, etc.

Eighteen per day. At least one of those suicides is by a member if our active duty forces. You know, some 19-year-old kid who used to live next door to you and joined the Army to pay for college or a trade school or to gain citizenship.

Here's how Brian put it:

"There are 18 suicides today, 18 tomorrow and 18 on Sunday when I fly back out. By the time I get back to Orlando, my platoon is gone."

Every three days, we lose a platoon to suicide.

This is not right.

So what are you going to do about it?

I leave you with a Brian Turner poem on the subject (from Here, Bullet). Brian read this poem at the book festival:

Eulogy

It happens on a Monday, at 11:20 A.M.,
as tower guards eat sandwiches
and seagulls drift by on the Tigris River.
Prisoners tilt their heads to the west
though burlap sacks and duct tape blind them.
The sound reverberates down concertina coils
the way piano wire thrums when given slack.
And it happens like this, on a blue day of sun,
when Private Miller pulls the trigger
to take brass and fire into his mouth:
the sound lifts the birds up off the water,
a mongoose pauses under the orange trees,
and nothing can stop it now, no matter what
blur of motion surrounds him, no matter what voices
crackle over the radio in static confusion,
because if only for this moment the earth is stilled,
and Private Miller has found what low hush there is
down in the eucalyptus shade, there by the river.

PFC B. Miller
(1980-March 22, 2004)

Sam Western will deliver keynote at Wyoming Democrats' annual Roosevelt-Kennedy dinner

President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Social security Act on Aug. 14, 1935. Social Security is one of the many government programs that Democrats (Barack Obama and Joe Biden) work to protect and Republicans (Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan) want to eliminate and/or privatize, which is essentially the same thing.

Janel Korhonen-Goff, compliance director of the Wyoming Democratic Party, sends this info:

What: Central Committee Meeting and Roosevelt-Kennedy Dinner (formerly Jefferson-Jackson) with keynote address from noted author and Economist magazine and wyofile correspondent Sam Western, author of Pushed Off the Mountain, Sold Down the River: Wyoming's Search for its Soul. 

When: September 29, 2012

Central Committee Meeting 2-4 pm Cocktail Reception 6 pm Dinner 7 pm

Where: Riverton Holiday Inn Convention Center; 900 E. Sunset Blvd., Riverton, WY 82501, 800-315-2621

Cocktail Reception-$25
Dinner-$75
Combined-$90

Discounted room rates are available both Friday and Saturday nights by calling the 800 number above. Reservations can be made online at: http://www.wyodems.org/event/state-central-committee-meeting-roosevelt-kennedy-dinner

For those who would prefer to pay-at-the-door, we've created a convenient form, which allows us to keep track of reservations (click to go to link): 2012 Roosevelt-Kennedy Dinner

Please feel free to call the office at (307) 514-5282, Robin at (307) 213-9633, or Janel at (307) 277-1228 with any questions, comments or concerns.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Henry Rollins rides the spoken-word choo choo into Cheyenne on Sept. 20

Spoken word artist and musician and Cable TV personality Henry Rollins in Cheyenne?

You've got to be kidding.
NOT!

He will be at the Cheyenne Depot Museum on Thursday, Sept. 20, 7 p.m.

For more info and tix, go to http://www.facebook.com/events/343239682432805/

Countdown to the Equality State Book Festival

The Equality State Book Festival starts this Friday morning with a craft talk by David Romtvedt, poet and musician. David, who was Wyoming Poet Laureate for eight years, will speak about "Invisible Craft, Ordinary Language." I'll be introducing him in my role as Wyoming Arts Council literature guy. I'll also be sticking around to learn some things, as poets have much to teach us prose writers about craft and language.

Rebecca O'Connor

It will be an action-packed two days in Casper. Most of the events will be held in Casper College's shiny new Gateway Building. I urge you to attend for the many reasons spelled out in this line-up of events. Current Poet Laureate Pat Frolander will discuss revising, Rebecca O'Connor conducts a craft talk about "Finding your writing through blogging and journaling, and Renee d'Auost explores writing and dance.

Readings by Romtvedt and Linda Hasselstrom enliven the afternoon. Things get started with a 1 p.m. reading by the Wyoming Arts Council's poetry fellowship winners Matt Daly and Claudia Mauro of Jackson and W. Dale Nelson of Laramie. They'll be joined by soldier-poet and fellowship judge Brian Turner, author of "Here, Bullet" and "Phantom Noise."

The happenings head downtown that evening with a reception at The Corridor Gallery, a reading by Frolander at 7:30 at Metro Coffee Company followed by a poetry slam at 8:30. The slam is always the highlight of the bookfest as you never know who's going to show up. It's been rumored that there will be music as well as poetry.

Saturday is panel discussion day. Two biggies go head-to-head at 10 a.m. "Active Duty, Active Voices" features Iraq War veterans and writers Brian Turner and Luis Carlos Montalván talking about writing and war. The panel will be moderated by Casper College Professor and miltary veteran Patrick Amelotte.If you write children's books (or are thinking about it), you'll want to catch the publishing panel with Cat Urbigkit, Zak Pullen, Karla Oceanak and Kendra Spanjer.

Alyson Hagy

Fiction writer and UW Creative Writing Program Professor Alyson Hagy will be the luncheon speaker -- this is the only event that has a fee.The afternoon features a number of readings. At 3:30 p.m., there is a panel discussion, "Writing Nature, Writing Self," with four writers who know both subjects well: Frolander, Hasselstrom, O’Connor and Urbigkit. The events wrap up with a 5 p.m. book signing.

This is the fourth edition of Wyoming's statewide book festival, held each even year. It's a fantastic event with something for everyone who loves books. 

AIR's goal is to connect the creative community in the Rocky Mountain region

Beet Street, just down the road in Fort Collins, has announced that its new Arts Incubator of the Rockies (AIR) web site is up and running. As part of my job at the Wyoming Arts Council, I was involved in the planning stages for AIR. I invite you to check out the web site -- and to become a part of this innovative effort to "bring the Intermountain West creative community together in an exciting new way." I enrolled in the site at the Wyoming Arts Council when it was in the beta stage. Today I signed up as a writer. Check it out at www.airArtsIncubator.org. 

To get the most out of the AIR web site, become a member today! Free and paid memberships give you access to: 

• The Knowledge Center - home to the newest, best, and coolest resources available to help you in your creative endeavors. You can search by topic, discipline, file type, or just type in keywords. You can also help out the entire AIR community by uploading the articles, videos, podcasts, and blogs that you love too

• The Opportunity Center - where you'll find job listings and internships, calls for artists, details on auditions, funding, and much more. This is also the place to find or post a great opportunity in the Intermountain West. There are powerful search filters for you to locate specific opportunity types, disciplines, state specific information, and application due dates. Paid members get access to more details about each opportunity and reduced rates to feature a listing

• AIR Share - accessible to paid members - allows you to receive feedback on your work in progress, help someone solve a problem, and get to know your AIR community. You can also comment, recommend, bookmark, and upload as many files as you want. This is truly a collaborative tool. Just imagine the possibilities it will open up for you in creating new markets for your work, networking opportunities for collaboration, and so much more  

• The Member Directory - use your membership page as a new marketing tool to tell your story and share your creative prowess. You can find other creatives throughout the Intermountain West, connect with new people and places, be inspired by other's work, and display your own. Paid members can upload unlimited audio, video, and files of work           

The regional calendar - find a workshop, performance, or community event in your town or throughout the Intermountain West region. You can search by event category, date, state, or keyword. Paid members get discounted rates to feature events, but all members can submit events. The regional calendar can be your guide to all things art in the Intermountain West region. You can also market your amazing arts and culture events throughout the region by using the calendar.

On election day, Marguerite Herman will be MyLaramieCountyCommissioner

Linda Stowers of the Laramie County Democrats sends this invitation. The choice is very clear in this county commission race. She is the best person for the job, here in The Equality State.

Dear Friends and Fellow Democrats:

Please join us at a Meet & Greet mixer for Marguerite Herman. She is running for a two-year seat as a Laramie County Commissioner. 

It will be held at 711 Warren Avenue (Old Johnson Jr. High), Cheyenne. Use 7th St. Entrance.

Thursday, September 13, 2012, from 6-7:30 p.m.

Marguerite will serve dinner and talk to constituents. Supporters can learn how they can help her campaign. The event will also inaugurate her website at www.MyLaramieCountyCommissioner.com 

For more information, contact Marguerite at: 307-638-1468 or 307-630-8095. 

Depression Lies!

This is one of the posters designed by Laramie's Felicia Follum to mark World Suicide Prevention Day (today) and Suicide Awareness Week. She had this to say about this this poster: "Depression Lies: This poster is in response to the negatives we believe about ourselves. Sometimes we need tough love and someone to tell us that we are worthy of the best. The TRUTH is you are special; to believe you are anything less than beautiful and wonderful is to believe a lie." To this, I add that depression does lie and that very often, it doesn't respond to tough talk or even kindness alone. Those can help, depending on the person, but don't forget that depression is a physical illness that responds to antidepressant medication, although they take weeks and often months to work. So, my advice to my fellow sufferers of melancholia, is this: TALK, EXERCISE AND TAKE YOUR MEDS!

Jeran Artery posts in Out in Wyoming about his experiences as a DNC delegate

My fellow Wyoming prog-blogger Jeran Artery at Out in Wyoming will be posting this week about his experiences as a delegate at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte. His first post was on Sunday. Look for more in the days to come. He promises lots of photos!

"He had arrived at a cliff, with an abyss before him and a fire behind him"

Meredith Melnick writes in Time Magazine Online today about World Suicide Prevention Day, which will take place on Monday, Sept. 10 (tomorrow):

Every day 3,000 people end their own lives, and for every person who dies, there are 20 more people who unsuccessfully attempt a suicide, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). In the United States alone, that amounts to one death by suicide every 16 minutes, says the National Council for Suicide Prevention (NCSP).

It’s a bit tricky to figure out how to honor World Suicide Prevention Day and so the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) and the WHO have collaborated on a list of activities for organizations to consider as a way to help support the cause. But what about individuals?

The NCSP launched a “Take 5 to Save Lives” campaign that summarizes how we can all help prevent suicide — simple steps like learning the signs of suicidal behavior, raising awareness by telling other people about the World Suicide Prevention Day, and asking for help if you are concerned about your own thoughts and behavior.

Some suggested activities include holding a press conference, writing an article for your local paper, distributing information about depression, posting the WSPD banner on your blog or web site, lobbying politicians about mental health issues and other activities. Seems to me that "spreading the word" is one of the most helpful things anyone can do, since the stigma surrounding depression and suicide seems to be the strongest barrier to prevention.

Cheyenne author Edith Cook wrote movingly in the Sept. 5 Wyoming Tribune-Eagle about her brother's and niece's suicides. The Sunday Denver Post carried a front-page story about the aftermath of the December 2011 suicide of one of the city's foremost philanthropists, Noel Cunningham. He hung himself in his basement. His wife, Tammy, found his body when she arrived home from work that evening:

"It was really difficult, because all I could see for the next couple weeks was Noel, and the way I found him."

Suicide is especially difficult on those loved ones left behind, especially if it arrives as a ghastly surprise, as it did with Mrs. Cunningham. While she tried to get her husband to open up about his inner pain, he never did.

The most moving and poetic quote from the Post article came from an unexpected place -- former Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter's eulogy at the 62-year-old Cunningham's memorial service. He said that Cunningham's manic level of service to his community and to international hunger relief had a "dark brother:"

"Call it depression, or despondency, or despair, but it is real, and it has to be dealt with in this eulogy."

--clip--

"Like many of us in this life," Noel had arrived at a cliff, with an abyss before him and a fire behind him, Ritter said.

"He did not see us, he could not see us, on the other side of the fire, pleading with him, telling him we love him, telling him that we will do anything, anything in the world for him, if he would just let us help him put out the fire, and bring him back from the cliff," Ritter said.

The final powerful lesson that Noel gave us all, Ritter said, "is that self-care matters too, even for the selfless."

Not bad for a politician known more for fiscal austerity than metaphor.

How many people in Wyoming are at this cliff today? Too many. Teens and aging white males are especially vulnerable, or so say the statistics. Wyoming's rapidly greying population has many of the latter group, and they tend to kill themselves in dramatically Western ways -- by gun and by rope.

So spread the word: "You don't have to face the abyss and the fire alone. I am your friend. I can help."

Flobots at Gryphon Theatre in Laramie Nov. 2

Get your tix now

Remembering candidate Barack Obama's acceptance speech in Denver four years ago

It was too bad that many thousands of Democratic Party volunteers and supporters didn't get to hear President Obama's acceptance speech Thursday night at the Charlotte Panthers football stadium. Threats of thunderstorms forced the speech indoors. I was able to see and hear candidate Obama's first acceptance speech in 2008 at Denver's Invesco Field at Mile High Stadium on a warm August night. Wyoming Dem delegate Lori Millin took this photo that night. It makes me look like the party standard bearer when in reality I was merely an embedded blogger. Still, it was a heady night for this lifelong Dem who had never been to a convention and may never get there again. Read a nifty article by Patty Calhoun about the lingering effects that the convention had on Denver and its image in last week's Westword. Especially illuminating in the interview with then-Mayor John Hickenlooper and now Colorado Governor Hickenlooper who delivered a memorable speech in Charlotte. He remembers being very nervous about security and traffic and all of the thousand-and-one details that make up a national gathering of this magnitude. He was nervous right up to the closing-night party at his Wynkoop Brewpub in Lodo. Especially illuminating are the details of his decision to let a Rage Against the Machine-led peace march go from the Denver Coliseum to the convention at the Pepsi Center. Instead of having the police stop the march, he ordered the DPD to escort the marchers through town, a decision that probably meant the difference between a peaceful protest to one of mass arrests and violence. That Hick is one smart cookie. He's going places...

"Encore careers" seems to be the new buzzword for Baby Boomers

An AP article by personal finance writer Dave Carpenter was reprinted Friday in the NYT's Business Day section. It was all about us perpetually annoying Baby Boomers and a new trend for us to find "encore careers" that combine "personal meaning with social purpose."

As many as 9 million people ages 44 to 70 already are in such careers as the second or third acts of their working lives, according to nonprofit think tank Encore.org. 

But that number is poised to multiply as many boomers and others take steps to combine making a living with making a difference. Another 31 million older workers are interested in finding encore careers, based on a 2011 survey by the nonprofit. 

A mixture of longer lifespans, layoffs, shifting cultural attitudes and financial realities is causing this growing urge among over-50s to seek out more purposeful work. Sometimes it's just an itch to do something more purposeful in retirements that can now last for three decades, while still pulling in needed income. 

The demographics of 78 million baby boomers should ensure that this careers shift accelerates, says Encore.org vice president Marci Alboher. 

"This trend has the potential to be a new social norm much the way that the dream of the golden years, of a leisure-based retirement, was an aspiration for the generation before," she says. 

Alboher is the author of the soon-to-be-released "The Encore Career Handbook," is an invaluable resource for older workers looking for purposeful career alternatives.

"Purposeful career alternatives." Kind of a clunky term but it's a handy way to describe what many Baby Boomers are trying to do with their retirement (or per-retirement). For awhile now, retirement has become less of a "leisure-based" lifestyle than one that combines do-gooderism with a little bit of freedom to travel, visit grandkids and recuperative time following the usual knee or hip replacement. 

I grew up in Florida, capital of leisure-based retirement. As a beach town, Daytona had more than its share of retirees. You saw them moseying down the beach, playing shuffleboard at City Island Park, and driving 10 m.p.h. down A1A. Half of our beachside neighborhood was made up of snowbirds, Michiganders or New Yorkers or Ohioans who spent most of their year in Daytona but who migrated north to visit family and friends during the hellish Florida summers. Many were widows, still-vital women who had moved to Florida with their retired autoworker husband only to find themselves alone after their spouse expired after a couple years due to golf ennui or shuffleboard overdose. This used to be one of the hazards of retirement, especially for hard-working men. They had nothing to sustain them outside of work. No hobbies. No creative pursuits. Nothing. So they just fade away, like General McArthur's "old soldiers."

We Baby Boomers have different attitudes and, to be fair, worked different sorts of jobs than our parents. I've reinvented myself several times during my life, as has my wife Chris. We're both surprised that I've been at my job more than 21 years and she's been at hers more than 10 years. We even have retirement plans that haven't been gutted by corporate raiders (like Bain Capital) or right-wing, Tea Party legislators.

We also both work in careers that combine "personal meaning with social purpose." Chris is a supervisor at the Cheyenne Family YMCA. Most people know the Y for its exercise classes and swimming pool, but it also offers daycare, summer camps, a myriad of classes and workshops for seniors, and scholarships for people with limited incomes. The VA Hospital uses the swimming pool for patient rehab. The Y "does good" on a daily basis. 

I'm a state employee that works in the arts. My road to this carer took me through jobs as newspaper reporter, newspaper editor, magazine writer, corporate publications editor and community college teacher. My two decades as an arts administrator has been interspersed with intense bouts of fiction writing which, occasionally, lead to publishing, as well as stints on various boards of directors for nonprofit organizations. I've served on the Wyoming Governor's Mental Health Advisory Council. I served on the first Laramie County Habitat for Humanity board and have been a board member for local social service nonprofit UPLIFT for 12 years. I've been an officer for the county Democratic Party. 

Every so often, Chris and my efforts intersect, as when we both served on the YMCA's Writer's Voice committee that brought professional writers and poets to the Y for classes and workshops. 

Our encore carers seem to be happening before our very eyes. We will retire in the near future. We will not go silently into that good night, as if any Baby Boomer could do that. We are loud and we are proud. Especially loud.

So what will these retirees do? I can retire in four years but Chris has a few more years past that -- she's younger than I am. I plan to spend time writing and travelling and volunteering and/or working for my local arts organization, wherever that may be. Chris isn't a writer, but she loves to travel and volunteer, which she may do for our local Y, wherever that may be.

Where will that be? Ironically enough, that may be in Florida. Almost all of my relatives live there -- eight brothers and sisters and their many offspring. Chris's only sister lives there. Chris and I both went to high school in Florida and I graduated from the University of Florida. We have salt water in our veins from the many hundreds of hours spent on the beach. 

Still, we've lived on the Front Range of Colorado and Wyoming for 34 years, with two years off in Washington, D.C., for bad behavior (a temporary work assignment). We have lots of friends in Cheyenne, Fort Collins and Denver. Fort Collins is one of the region's most happening arts towns. Denver is my birthplace and where I spent ten years of working life, where our son was born.

Who knows? I have four years to figure this out. Four whole years! It won't go fast, will it?

Will it?