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Show I llltf Page A6 (Timf-3nhfpmbf- Thursday, September 19, 2002 nt OUR. TOWN 0URf.Hil.DRPt ASK THE OARNEST QQtsnons Many Trails by Adrien F. Taylor Months of planning are coming to fruition this week. with a now Grand County Fair On behalf of the Fair Boa'd I would like to extend tfie invitation to everyone to conie out to tfie Spanish Trail Arena Friday afternoon and Saturday and sample tfie tun, the food tfie interesting booths, and community spint you will find there Do you have old Aunt Nan s wedding gown, or Grandma s shawl? (Or maybe Grandad s old shaving Cup') Consider bunging them m to share m Ginny Leech s Heritage Corner The rule here is the items must te at least SO years old In tact, grab last week s 2002 Grand County Fair News insert, and look around to see what you may have to enter into the various categories While the bkxim is definitely off tfie spring garden produce, tomatoes, potatoes, squash, gourds, corn, peppers and till fruits are still coming on strong Gather some and bung them out Thursday evening (rather Friday morning tor the fresh licked things, and especially flower displays) The Delicate Stitchers Quilting Guild will have a demonstration table on Saturday, for those who aie interested m knowing how a quilt goes together And you can be sure there will be a nice array of the beautiful work these ladies do throughout the year Theie will be several types of rides for the kiddies outside the Arena, as well as a chance to try your hand at driving oxen Shades of the pioneers' The petting zoo will include a variety ot nice ordinary type pets, plus a few equally nice and mannerly exotics Booths of all kinds abound this year. You will be able to visit personally with many of those people wtio are running for political office, and then there will also be lots ot tood and other goodies for sale A highlight of the fair has been, and I am sure will continue to be the Great Outfitters Chili Cook-OWhen the chili is done, spectators can purchase a bowl and a spoon for $1 , and sample away to their hearts' content Speaking of samples. I've only included a few here In order to experience all the fun of the fair you really need to plan to be there. See other information elsewhere in this issue! fl aft We have been hearing some negative comment about changing the date of the Grand County Fair to September, atler the Utah State Fair Let me just say that the heat in August out at the arena, has really kept visitation down, because it was so uncomfortable Temperatures this week should be lovely We regret that our fair conflicts with Green River s Melon Days this year, and we promise to not let that happen again As to entering items m the State Fair, it is not necessary tor them to have been shown hist at the County Fair AU m alt, it seemed that the reasons to move our lair to a later date seems to greatly outweigh any reasons to keep I n August I suppose we will see aft I was last week away staying with my Mother while my sister drove down to Santa Fe for a few days of R&R We had a good drenching of rain m the Denver area, as well as here in Moab. I am thankful again tor living m a rural area, as one of the major freeways flooded out, stranding hundreds of motorists Since there was no possibility ot turning those three-traile- r semis around, they just had to wait until the roadway was cleared, eight or ten hours later in some cases. I had a flat on one of my new (yes, still under warranty) tires and was greatly relieved to be sent to a garage pretty much out m the boondocks, rather than tn downtown Denver But while I was in Colorado disaster struck in the sheep pen in the torm ot a cougar and bear. In the period of three nights, alt nine of my lovely sheep were killed I was just getting ready to take some of the spring lambs to the packing house, more's the you can't blame the wildlife. There is no feed on the mountain to speak of, and our place lies at the juncture of Pack Creek and Mill Creek, those watery paths down from the high country And sheep don't have the sense to try to fight back Once down they figure they're dead, and so they soon Well . . are We built a prison tor the chickens, after having lost an entire flock a couple of years go. Even one of them turned up dead Probably frightened to death. Chickens and sheep share the same lack of brain jxiwer. At this point, I am going to wart and see what inclinations spring brings in terms of more livestock. We were just glad to get the mare and her filly moved back up the valley to Sena's .The three adult horses now in the pasture stay together, and they stay up higher m the pasture, away from the creek bottoms The dog and cats stay in at night I will carry a flashlight and whistle a happy tune on my evening walks 30-ye- 1 . 10-ac- re r the property, though, we decided against the investment after seeing flood debris in the trees that dotted the property. We went on over Lizard Head Pass, toured what was left of Ophir and wound up in Tellunde. The place was nearly a ghost town. We peered into the dusty windows of the old newspaper office and saw a little bit of the old equipment we were very familiar with. And the four of us had steaks some of the best we had ever eaten in the old hotel, one of the last businesses still open. After the ski resort came along, we returned often. The smal resort was user friendly, particularly (or kids. Our chddren learned to ski at Tellunde, and operators of the bottom lift didnt mind stopping the thing to help kids on and off. We (eft comfortable leaving the kids on the bottom run while we explored the higher country We knew they would be we cared lor there. Best of al, was just a bttie over two hours from Moab We found we could drive there, buy passes, and have a lot of fun before returning home the same day. Tellunde today is unbelievable. A new Village has been built cm the mountain above the histone town, and free gondola transportation has been established between the Mountain Village and histone town in the valley below, ft's now almost too rich for us to enjoy. But we could see it coming Wad unt the world discovers Tellunde we said many times. We, that has happened. Happy birthday, Tellunde. Eryoy your 30th anniversary Please, though, dont forget the old e mining days. Your community bears a proud that should be remembered and preserved. And 4 s over a hundred years old. ful After walking press packet received by us this week announced. "Tellunde turns 30 this year" It was, of course, talking about the "new" Tellunde. Actually, the beautiful mountain community goes back a lot farther than 1972. It was, in fact, settled long before Moab, where we are now celebrating our 100th anniversary of incorporation in December of 1902, after the community was first settled in the late 1870s Tellunde's mining history started in the 19th century, and tfie community, along with its neighbors Ophir, Place rville and Old Ophir flourished lor many years before the bottom dropped out of the mining industry The anniversary party now being promoted is referencing the opening of the Tellunde ski industry m 1972, when five chairlifts opened the community s ski industry, which has now blossomed We think we have seen a lot of change m Moab the past 0 to 20 years, and we have. Hanksville friend Barbara Ekker sent me a column I wrote in 1 992. bemoaning the fact that we didnt have enough motet rooms here to satisfy the growing need Wei, those rooms are now here, and t appears that more will be coming But we havent changed to the same degree Tellunde has. Adnen and I visited Teiunde lor the first time m the early 1 960s, along with close friends We had taken a Saturday tnp to the area to look at some acreage (or sale between the towns of Dolores and Rco That, we thought, would be a great place lor a summer getaway Located along the Dolores River, tfie plots were beauti cEljr M half-da- y hen-tag- (EuurS'3!nbrjjrnbrnt ISSN ) UPS) Entered as Second class Matter at the Post Office at Moab. Utah under the Add March 3, 1897. Second class postage paid at Moab, Utah 64532. Ottoal City and County Newspaper. Published each Thursday at: 35 East Center Street, Moab. Grand County. Utah 64532 address: editor 8 moabtimes .com Postmaster. Send changes of address to: The P.Q Box 129, Moab. UT 64532 or FAX 1538-183- 8 ail Tmes-lndepende- 435-259-75- Member ipjjflf' rt, 435-259-77- NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION ,J V Sometimes I am tempted to lie. I mean, most stories would be so much better with a bit of embellishment Alas, I have this firm commitment to lie truthful which often makes my stones second rate. There is a serious downside to after-the-fa- Dorothy Anderson Valerie Brown. Jed Taylor, Ron Drake Fkm George Ol'ver Hams Jose Cburampi ct stretching and embellishing the truth, though. Sooner or later you will be found out and, suddenly, all of your stones become susjiect. Also, I hate to be made a fool of and when I discover that I have been lied to, and that 1 believed the story, I feel like such a sucker So, w hen I think of a snappy comeback way too late to make it, I groan and wibh 1 had said it in the first place. It's just that I am mostly too For example, I participated in a discussion of employment services. The man that was directing the discussion had one jierson stand up, representing an unemployed person. The rest of us were invited to closely surround him in an attitude of support. The discussion leader asked each of us what we did for a living, making the point that each of us had some exjiertise that could help another find employslow-witte- ment. When he asked me what I did for a living, I told him I was retired. He asked what I did before I retired. I told him. He explained how my experience could help another and then asked me why I wasnt on a mission. In the context of this discussion his question meant why wasnt I out somewhere in the world rendering service of one sort or another. He knew that 1 was retired so I must have the time. He assumed that I had the means and that apparently my health w as good enough. I resented it even though it was a legitimate question. I personally know several couples who are or have been on missions. They've been to Africa, LaUn America, the Balkans. New York City, the Philippines, and oilier parts of the world. You can go look Jose Santana.-Backsb- op .Castle Valiey columnist .Columnist .Columnist .Distribution long-dorma- Writers on the Range Ranchers are down, but don't count us out By Peggy Sanders ranchers and farmers taring through this terrible drought? Will we quit farming and ranching voluntarily? Not on your life. F or some, unfortunately, it will be their last year. Reading the advertisements for livestock auctions tells the story: Selling due to the drought." Ranchers almost never sell herds of mother cows, just a few here and there w hen some cows become less proHow are ductive. Other ranchers are spending the money and buying enough hay to keep going through this fall and winter. What's available in our ares of South Dakota is good quality alfalfa raised on farms w ith continuing irrigation water, though it sports a premium price to go with the quality. Blessed are the farmers who irrigate farms and also ranch; for they can usually feed their cows. For ranchers who have spent several years building herd numbers, and more importantly, herd genetics, selling out is heartbreaking. Sale barns are having more dispersions each week as the drought progresses. When a drought as severe and geographically far reaching as this one occurs, hitting Wyoming, Nebraska. North and South Dakota, Utah, Colorado and Montana, good cattle that might have otherwise been purchased by another randier are instead turned into hamburger. It is the future generations of calves that will be missed and mourned. Once the mammas are gone, there will be no more babies, and do more income. Calling it quits on the land has a devastating tnckle-doweffect As summer ended, it seems a kit of farm and ranch kids got their, back --to --school clothes at second-han- d stores. The agricultural comis the adage, make do, or do withmunity hiring out" .Ma Floom Supervisor on the church bulletin board w here youll find a blue publication listing the need for missionary couples. The needs range from management of a potato farming ojieration in Albania, to medical service in Manchuria. Some of the needs are described as urgent. My favorite, so far, has been the request for a missionary couple to write a weekly newsletter somewhere in Hawaii. I anticipated that when I retired, Barbara and I would join this missionary corps. I even went so far as to take great pains to keep my Spanish fluent in case we were sent to Spanishspeaking jieople. Well, I gave the man my reason which was acceptable to him even though it was none of his business. It wasnt until after a slow awakening of brain matter that a better reason occurred to me and I wished I had told him that I wasnt on a mission because "my wife's pregnant." It wouldnt have been the truth but when I imagine the looks on all of those faces, it sure is funny. There was one time, though, that I actually uttered the snappy comeback and it was as satisfying as it was rare. 1 was one of several chaperones accompanying a large group of young women to a conference in Flagstaff, Ariz. On our way home we stopped in Kayenta for a potty break. Since there were something like a hundred girls, I explained that I would go into the mens restroom to make sure that it was empty and then the girls could use both facilities. I walked up to the mens room and discovered that the door was open and a woman, not part of our group, was standing at the sink, filling a water bottle. When she turned to come out she seemed startled to see me standing there. She glanced past me at the crushing throng of girls waiting to use the mens room, turned back to me and murmured, "Jesus." I smiled at her and said, Oh, no, no. I'm just the bishop." It only added to her confusion but I always get a smile when I think about it. High Country News n and UTAH PRESS ASSOCIATION Samuel J. and Adrien F.Trykx, Publishers Sena T. Flanders, Editor Tom Taylor Circulation Manager. T4 Maps Zane Taylor .Press, Production Manager Fton Flanders Systems Manager Staff Writer Use Church. Janet Lowe Jeff Richanis Contributing WHe Sadie Warner Office ManagerSaiesOesign mm The snappy comeback -- 6309-2000- i .. . by Sam Taylor Happy birthday, Telluride! by Ollie Harris 1 pity Community Comments A Idle Thoughts from Mt. Waas Crops are bad so it won't matter that the combine needs repairs; it wort get used anyway. A decision net to harvest, however, afiects the implement dealer, the fuel supplier and on down the line in ru- ral areas. What really hurts is the scandal around ConAgra shipping tarn ted beet There were king delays in notifying the public, and by the time the recall expanded in July to include nearly 19 million pounds of beef, Exoli in the meat had made at least 47 people sick in 23 states. While ConAgra and the UJ. Department of Agriculture have taken most of the heat, ranchers fear they have also been tainted. Ot course it didn't help when a Colorado prison fed some of the spoiled meat to inmates after apparently misplacing the message warning prison officials of the contamination. The damning publicity continued when ConAgra announced at least 68,000 pounds of the tainted beef would likely be put into ready-to-ebeef meals such as canned chili and meat spaghetti sauce. Because of the high temperatures in cooking and canning the products, any ooli residue would be killed. Farmers and ranchers know that, but the people who shop in supermarkets probably duct. On the other hand, the government has helped out by allowing Conservation Reserve Program acres to be harvested or grazed. The program pays farmers not to plant farm crops, so fields get planted to a permanent grass, usually a mixture of alfalfa and gras seed. In the tradition of the West, ranchers and farmers have been eager to share their bounties. Retired fanner Jerry Pietroo of Larimore, NB, donated his 2,000 uncut acres to other farmers in both South and North Dakota. Those farmers in turn, harvested the grass and took the feed home tor their starving cattle. Matt Janowiak from Colorado and his bnKher, Stan, a Wisconsin farmer, created the Wiscotisin-Coiored- o Kayhft after Stan mentioned that he and his neighbors had more clover and alfalfa Lay than they could possibly use. Farmers in Klamath Basin, Oregon have also not forgotten how it feels to be without water; theyve lined up hay to send to Trinidad, Colo. Ranchers and farmers like to tell themselves that they are a tough lot who do their best work when left to their own resources. We help our own because it's the way we were raised. But as the year 2002 winds down, we are all having to be tougher than anyone thought possible for a long, kng time. Peggy Sander u m fourth generation rancher in Oral, South Dakota, as well as a freelance u nier. Her latest project is a book about uhat people need to kruju before moving to the country. at -- fPOOIl ? 4 & |