Thursday, November 12, 2020
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Volume 67 | Number 11
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CELEBRATING THE RESIDENTIAL PARK COMMUNITIES FOR 65 YEARS
Do the Loop at Indio Hills
New trail opens featuring rare views looking into Coachella Valley
In This Issue
Senior News.........................................2 “Light It Up” Holiday Campaign..............3 Dezart’s Free Virtual Series..................4 Spanish Chorizo Stew..........................5
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he five mile loop trail was a joint undertaking of the Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy (CVMC), Friends of the Desert Mountains (FODM), City of Indio, Indio Water Authority (IWA) and the Bureau of Land Management. The project included new parking, fencing, access and safety improvements at the trailhead. Funding was provided primarily by the Conservancy, the City and IWA. Volunteers from FODM and local hiking clubs scouted the trail route, built new sections and cleaned up the area alongside it. Although the trail unofficially opened to the public in the spring, formal recognition of the project was delayed due to COVID-19. For those reasons, attendance by public officials at the ribbon cutting on November 20 will be kept to a minimum, masks are required, and social distancing will be enforced. Individual hikes by participants at a later time will be encouraged, in lieu of the traditional inaugural group hike. “This is the first trail to open in the eastern Coachella Valley in recent memory,” said Jim Karpiak, Executive Director of the Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy. “Although we imagined a grand celebration to mark the occasion, we realize that could be
• Deceased scientists and researchers who have contributed to the study of Mars will, in a sense, live forever on the red planet: Craters larger than 37 miles are named in their honor. • The blue whale is earth’s largest living creature, surpassing even
1. GEOGRAPHY: The country of Equitorial Guinea lies on which continent? 2. MOVIES: Which 1989 movie contains the line, “Have you ever danced with the devil by the pale moonlight?”? 3. U.S. STATES: Which state’s official flower is the Rocky Mountain Columbine?
Photo courtesy of City of Indio
some time away. Because of that, we didn’t want to let another season pass by without recognizing at least in this small way, the collaborative effort it took to make the Indio Hills Trail happen.” The trailhead is adjacent to the Coachella Valley Canal and future site of Indio’s Posse Park. The trail winds through canyons and leads up to the crest of the mud hills that feature rare views looking into the Coachella Valley and at its surrounding mountain ranges. The new trail in the Indio Hills is also commonly referred to as the Indio Hills Badlands Trail, the East Indio Hills Trail, and the Golf Center Trail. It is the second of four trail projects spearheaded by the Conservancy and FODM to
most dinosaurs. Not only can it reach over 100 feet in length and weigh more than 100 tons, but its heart can tip the scale at 1,300 pounds and is the size of a small car, while its arteries are big enough for a full-grown human to swim through -- not that we recommend you go for a swim and attempt it. • People with autism are less likely to catch yawns. • In 2007, Iran claimed 14 squirrels found near the nation’s borders were actually spies.
4. LITERATURE: Which 17th century Spanish novel includes the line, “Wit and humor do not reside in slow minds”? 5. HISTORY: How many crewed moon landings has the United States made so far?
expand recreational options on public lands in areas underserved by outdoor amenities. The project will also improve conditions for wildlife and plants through bulk cleanup activities, and by blocking unofficial “social trails” and roads to reduce damaging human impacts, such as off-road vehicle use. Dogs and non-motorized bikes are allowed.
• Hans Steininger, who is said to have had the longest beard in the world, died in 1567 from tripping over that beard while running from a fire. • The record for most times being hit by a baseball pitch -- a whopping 287 -- belongs to Hughie Jennings, who finally got smart and retired in 1918. (c) 2020 King Features Synd., Inc.
6. TELEVISION: Which 1980s sitcom features a character named Al Bundy? 7. LANGUAGE: What action is described in the term nephelococcygia? 8. GENERAL KNOWLEDGE: What color is cyan? 9. MUSIC: Which group had the 1989 hit “Love Shack”? 10. ANATOMY: What is a goiter? © 2020 King Features Synd., Inc. ANSWER TO TRIVIA ON PAGE 6
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WORD SEARCH Act Now to Change Your Medicare Plan
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Serving 110 Mobile Manufactured Home and RV Parks in the Coachella, Morongo and Yucca Valley for 65 years. The Mobile Home News is a household tradition for the 55+ manufactured home park and RV Park population. Available at clubhouses and racks in manufactured home parks. Also available in many area businesses and senior centers. Businesses or private parties interested in advertising to the 55+ community please call 760-365-3315. Published Thursdays by Hi-Desert Publishing Company. News, photos or editorial submissions or story ideas should be sent to news@desertmobilehomenews.com All delivery issues should be directed to Ahkto Distribution at distribution@ahkto.com or call 760-459-4204
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Have you finished making your decisions about your Medicare plan for 2021? If you’re going to make a change, you have only a short time to pick a new one. The deadline is December 7. There are so many options: Medicare Advantage, a supplemental plan or the traditional Medicare. And there are many things to consider within those options -- the drugs we currently take, eye exams, hearing aids, annual preventive tests and more. The place to start is with your current plan. By now you should have received your Medicare Annual Notice of Change Letter if you have an Advantage or Part D plan. (You won’t get one for a Supplemental plan.) The letter will itemize any changes to your 2021 plan, including price. Compare your current plan with any changes in your plan for next year. Have your needs changed this year? Are there new drugs you’re taking? Is your doctor included
in your network? What about the pharmacy you like to use? Are you likely to need a procedure in 2021? What else are you likely to need in the next year? Look at your Medicare & You 2021 book that came in the mail. Check inside the front cover for information on lowering insulin costs, acupuncture for back pain, telehealth visits and more. (If you can’t find your copy, go online to medicare.gov/Pubs/pdf/10050Medicare-and-You.pdf.) If you want to consider making a change, go online to Medicare.gov and look at plans for your area. For any changes to a supplemental plan, call that plan directly. Don’t try to do this all in one day. Give yourself time to consider what you need, and ask questions. Get personalized help at State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) at shiptacenter.org if you need it. Click on SHIP Locator for listings by state, or call them at 877-839-2675. (c) 2020 King Features Synd., Inc
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Agua Caliente Casinos and KESQ launch inspirational ‘Light It Up’ holiday campaign In celebration of the lighting of the marquee, the Agua Caliente Casino Cathedral City along with TV partner, KESQ Channel 3 News, also announced the launch of the “Light it Up” holiday campaigns which will be conducted throughout the holiday season. “This year, along with our partner KESQ, we want to encourage people to join us in making this particularly unique holiday season special for someone you want to thank, someone you admire, or even a complete stranger,” said Brian Bork, Senior Director of Marketing for Agua Caliente Casinos. A portion of the “Light it Up” campaigns encourages Valley residents (21 years of age and over) to nominate someone they feel deserves a special experience such as a spa package at the Forbes FiveStar Sunstone Spa, or even an exquisite dinner at the Forbes FourStar, The Steakhouse. Nominators may even win the grand prize of a hotel stay at the Forbes Four-Star Agua Caliente Resort Casino Spa Rancho Mirage, including dinner
for two if their nominee is chosen for one of the Light it Up packages. This portion of the “Light it Up” campaign will run from throug December 23, 2020. The second part of the Light it Up campaign, the “Light it Up” Holiday Décor Contest, invites the community to show off their holiday light displays and their creative holiday spirit. The Light it Up home or business decorating promotion will run from November 23, 2020 until December 23, 2020, and the winner will receive a $200 gift card from Agua Caliente Casinos. To nominate someone for the “Light it Up” spa and steakhouse giveaway, go to www.kesq.com, and complete the nomination form for someone you want to pamper this holiday season. To enter the “Light it Up” Holiday Décor Contest, contestants need to enter online and provide a photo of their holiday display(s) at kesq.com beginning November 23. For complete details and rules for the “Light it Up” campaigns, please visit kesq.com.
A whale tale Jonah was swallowed by a whale, but Julie McSorley and Liz Cottriel managed to avoid a similar fate recently when they went kayaking off the coast of California at Avila Beach, reports the Association of Mature American Citizens. They went whale watching and had a very close encounter with a humpback whale. Video footage shows just
how close they came to a not so happy ending to their outing. Their kayak actually wound up in the whale’s mouth but Julie and Liz were dumped in the water and surfaced safely. The Association of Mature American Citizens [www.amac.us] provides the Filler Files as a service on issues of concern to Americans over 50.
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CROSSWORD
ANSWER TO PUZZLE ON PAGE 6
ACROSS 1. Cold War player 5. Flat-bottomed sailboat 10. Jamaican tangelo 14. Debauched man 15. Less covered 16. Require to live 17. Patrick and Aykroyd are two 18. Mixes 19. Insurance claim expenses 20. Tries to persuade 22. Equal (prefix) 23. Czech name for Prague 24. London soccer team 27. Greek letter 30. Small Eurasian deer 31. Swiss river 32. Miller beer 35. Less appealing
37. 8th month (abbr.) 38. __ Alto, California city 39. Grandmothers 40. American time 41. NW Chinese people 42. “Westworld” actress __ Rachel Wood 43. Northeastern US university 44. Poplar trees (Spanish) 45. Hip hop legend Kool Moe __ 46. Not or 47. Corpuscle count (abbr.) 48. Comedienne Gasteyer 49. Fonts 52. Female cattle mammary gland 55. Down time
56. Spiritual leader 60. Small brown and gray American rail 61. Trimmed by cutting 63. NY Giants owner 64. A long narrative poem 65. Old World lizard 66. Product for sale 67. Shut Your Pie Hole (abbr.) 68. Pacific Island country 69. Whale ship captain
DOWN 1. Language 2. Fly high in the air 3. Made musical sounds 4. Organized again 5. TV channel
6. Unable to fly 7. Get up 8. Air traveler 9. Married woman 10. Take weapons from 11. Sicilian city 12. Actress Remini 13. Thought 21. Infections 23. Golf score 25. Hill or rocky peak 26. Witch 27. Adjusted 28. Succulent plant 29. Forearm bones 32. Hot fluid in the earth’s crust 33. Subatomic particle 34. Part of an organism 36. 007’s creator 37. Burned material residue 38. Brain layer: __ mater 40. Unable to partake 41. Lesion 43. Historic railroad company (abbr.) 44. Basics 46. Scottish port 47. Flower cluster 49. Instruct 50. Untamed 51. Moth genus 52. Utilizes 53. Foolish 54. Fall in small drops 57. A place to get clean 58. La __ Tar Pits 59. Metrical foot 61. Semiliquid food 62. Small crow
SUDOKU
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Dezart Performs announces free virtual series, ‘Creating for the Stage’ In pre-COVID times, theatres talked about “taking it on the road.” For the remainder of 2020 Dezart Performs will be taking it online. Every Wednesday from through December 2 at 5:30 p.m., the award-winning Palm Springs ensemble presents a special free virtual series, “Creating for the Stage: Discussions with the People that Make Shows Happen.” Featuring actors, designers, creatives, playwrights and directors from their sold out 2019-20 season, the free online series is optimistic proof of the group’s mission this year: Still Here … and Dreaming.
Details of the series are as follows:
To access the weekly series, go to dezartperforms.org.
Series is moderated by local author and former TV host David Perry.
Wednesday, November 18 Meet the Cast Members with Hand to God actors Eddie Vona, Yo Younger and Danny Gomez. Wednesday, November 25 Meet the Director and Cast Members with SWEAT actors Desireé Clarke and Cortez Johnson and director Michael Shaw. Wednesday, December 2 Meet the Design Team with Hand to God set designer Tom Valach, lighting designer Derrick McDaniel and props master Cecilia Orosco.
Gotcha! The hardships of the COVID lockdown can lead some to do the strangest things to break the tedium of self-isolation, says the Association of Mature American Citizens. In the Czech Republic, which has imposed a 9 p.m. curfew as a result of the global pandemic, police are apparently quite serious about apprehending anyone who ignores the curfew. In one town, recently, a coronavirus patrol team stopped a man out for a walk after nine. He claimed he was walking his dog, which is allowed, and sure enough
he was holding a leash at the end of which was his dog—a stuffed toy dog. Caught red handed, the man explained it was just a joke. He was released on his own recognizance. The Association of Mature American Citizens [www.amac.us] provides the Filler Files as a service on issues of concern to Americans over 50.
ANSWER TO SUDOKU ON PAGE6
Brain Teaser Guess the next three letters in the series GTNTL. See Answer on page 6
ANSWER ON PAGE 6
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Spanish Chorizo Stew Spicy stew makes the perfect warming fall meal. • 4 ounces Spanish chorizo • 2 large carrots, chopped • 1 medium onion, finely chopped • 1 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil • 1 can (15 ounces) lower-sodium chickpeas, undrained • 2 cup lower-sodium chicken broth • 1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes • 12 ounces spinach, torn • Crusty bread
1. In an 8-quart saucepot on medium, cook chorizo, thinly sliced into half-moons, carrots and onion in olive oil for 5 minutes or until onion begins to soften. 2. Add chickpeas and chicken broth. Heat to simmering on high; simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in crushed tomatoes and spinach. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring. Serve with crusty bread. Makes 4 servings. Each serving: 375 calories, 18g total fat (5g saturated), 21 g protein, 40g carbohydrate, 11g dietary fiber, 940g sodium (c) 2020 Hearst Communications, Inc. All rights reserved
This election went to the dogs Nothing describes the competitive nature of an election as the term “dog eat dog,” but the town of Rabbit Hash, KY apparently figured out some time ago how to keep things civil when election time comes around. The main qualification for mayoral candidates is that they must be dogs-- real dogs, according to the Association of Mature American Citizens. This year Wilbur, a French bulldog, defeated the incumbent Mayor Brynneth Pawltro, a pit bull, who had held the office since her election in 2017. The practice of having dogs serve as mayors goes back to 1988 when the Rabbit Hash Historical Society, which owns the town, decided it would be a great way to raise funds. There are no restrictions on who can vote. You don’t
even have to be a citizen. Anyone, anywhere in the world can cast a ballot, which must be accompanied by a dollar bill. This year the town raised $22,985, the biggest take since Goofy Borneman-Calhoun, a mixed-breed dog, won the town’s first mayoral race. The Association of Mature American Citizens [www.amac.us] provides the Filler Files as a service on issues of concern to Americans over 50.
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WordSearch Answer
Stickelers Answer Bill had four coins in his pocket — one penny, one nickle, one dime and one quarter.
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November 12, 2020
Crossword Answer
CryptoQuote Answer The nun asked to leave the convent, but she found it difficult to shake the habit.
Inspirational Quote “I think holidays create so much pressure because people feel they should be having a good time. But you shouldn’t. ”
Sudoku Answer
Craig Ferguson
Go Figure Answer
Trivia Answers 1. Africa 2. “Batman” (The Joker) 3. Colorado 4. “Don Quixote” 5. Six 6. “Married ... With Children”
7. Finding shapes in clouds 8. Greenish blue 9. The B-52’s 10. Enlargement of the thyroid gland
Hitori Answer
(c) 2020 King Features Synd., Inc.
Brain Teaser Answer
I, T, S. The complete sequence is the first letter of every word in the sentence.
Letters Reach Out to Troubled Vets We’ve been in a stressful period for many long months, and now here come the holidays. It’s going to be different this year: fewer (or no) family get-togethers, no parties, little shopping at stores ... in other words, a potentially lonely time for many veterans who are sad or anxious or who have PTSD. The Department of Veterans Affairs has done a randomized evaluation of its Caring Letters Program to test the effects of sending a writ-
ten letter every month to veterans who have called the Veteran Crisis Line. One result was that when asked, 85% of psychiatric patient veterans agreed or strongly agreed that they would like to receive caring communication through the mail, and the period of time was monthly for one year. (This rated higher than receiving email or text messages.) Granted, given the setting, most of them said that contact with a mental health counselor or physician was preferred, but I expect that a message from a friend or acquaintance or another veteran would likely be just as welcome. At this point, the Veteran Crisis Line has sent letters to 90,000 veterans over the past year. What can you do? You can reach out to a veteran you suspect might be struggling, whether it’s with suicidal thoughts or just loneliness. Monthly cards or let-
ters in the mail to say hello are small things that can be huge to receive when someone is alone and struggling. Keep the communication brief, but caring. If you honestly don’t know any veterans who might be struggling right now, make a call to the chaplain of your local American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars and ask if there’s anyone they’re worried about. If you’re going to do this, make a commitment to yourself right now that you’ll do this monthly for a minimum of one year. The impact of your effort might be greater than you’ll ever know. (c) 2020 King Features Synd., Inc.
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