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Ear to the ground:
“The barista opened the window and started slapping her butt … Coffee shops with tinted windows give me PTSD now.”
– Durango transplant after “accidentally” going to a “bikini café” drive-thru in Portland, where he was greeted by a thong-wearing barista
Going to the dogs
On the cover
A row of push bikes makes for a colorful change of pace from the usual two-wheeled fare at the Horse Gulch trailhead./ Photo by Missy Votel
tributed in the finest and most
Tired of the same old kibble? Pagosa Springs resident Holly Mazur has just what the “dogtor” ordered. Mazur recently published “Healthy Cooking for Your Dog: Wholesome Recipes for a Long, Happy Life.” Written in conjunction with a veterinarian, the 116-page, glossy hardback features recipes for everything from Banana Peanut Butter Ice Cream and Peanut Butter and Oatmeal Cookies to a Mexican Taco Bowl and Turkey and Vegetable Meatloaf. Not only will your dog be psyched, but proceeds from book sales will go to help animals in need through Mazur’s nonprofit Lew Dog Gives. Mazur founded the 100% volunteer-run nonprofit as a way to give back and honor her beloved goldendoodle “soul-dog,” Lewis, who recently passed over the rainbow bridge.
“Lewie’s unconditional love showed me that compassion for animals can ripple outward,” Mazur said. “If we learn to treat animals with care, maybe we’ll treat each other with more kindness too. That’s the heart of Lew Dog Gives.”
The nonprofit will donates 100% of net proceeds from book sales to shelters, sanctuaries and caregivers who provide food, medical care and homes to animals in need. Mazur said her mission is to help animals thrive and create a world where every animal, especially those who have faced hardship, “feel the warmth of a caring heart.”
“Every act of kindness matters,” Mazur adds. “When a small community like Pagosa Springs comes together, it can spark change far beyond its borders.”
For more information, to donate, purchase a cookbook or nominate a shelter or sanctuary in need of support, go to: www.LewDogGives.org.
LaVidaLocal opinion A DIY pilgrimage
At last, I understand the deep spiritual impact of going on a pilgrimage. I may not yet have walked to Chimayó or flown to Spain to walk a month in that other famous pilgrimage. But I have, finally, in a moment of personal crisis, paid my first visit to IKEA and there found fulfillment and meaning. Or at least a couch, which is precisely what I went there for and is more or less the same thing.
Important to note is that no IKEA has taken root here. I have never lived any place with an IKEA. IKEA, to me, has always been on par with the Library of Alexandria or the Super Bowl: I’m more likely to drink from a coffee mug from there than to actually go there myself.
So this was a somewhat unanticipated pilgrimage. But I was temporarily couchless, which was indeed a personal crisis. In a moment of spontaneity and riding a sugar high, three of us decided to jump in my car together and drive to this place of legend and wonder: me, my beloved, and our good friend – let’s call her Lauren Thirdwheel.
To the best of our knowledge, the nearest IKEA was in Centennial, which anyone not from Denver would call “Denver.” All I knew to suspect from the experience was stereotype. Screws missing from the assemble-it-yourself furniture kits. High odds I would be single before emerging back into the sunlight. Swedish meatballs.
Nothing prepared me for my first impression of the actual building. It appeared larger than most municipal airports, including runways. But unlike most airports, the parking was less than $20 a day.
the demo couch lives in a demo room not five minutes from the entrance – and you in fact like the couch and agree to purchase it with money—you can’t.
Rather, you must complete the ENTIRE PILGRIMAGE, past many couches you like less and many fabricated living and dining spaces, each one accented, for some reason, by the same set of Swedish-designed ceramic cactuses. Only then are you able sit and eat meatballs with peas and lingonberry jam that keep you from getting hangry enough to quit everything.
We got through security just fine and made our first IKEA stop at the bathroom. This turned out to be wise for two main reasons:
1) I thought the pilgrimage took place TO the store. I was wrong. It takes place THROUGH the store.
2) Along this pilgrimage, the vast majority of the bathrooms are for demonstration only and – probably for this reason, at least in the U.S. – lack toilets. Immediately after using the legitimate bathroom, my senses were overwhelmed by the magnitude of this mecca.
If you, like me, have not yet been to an IKEA, you may not realize that this place doesn’t work like other warehouse retailers. For starters, there were no free food samples. You also preserve the sensation of browsing while in truth you follow a prescribed path through comfortable showrooms designed, no doubt, by ruthless and well-compensated psychologists.
This setup means that if you, like me, enter IKEA knowing almost certainly which couch you are buying because your beloved looked it up online for you –and all you need to do is sit on the couch to make sure your dog will like it – and
Thumbin’It
The two-wheeled love fest that was last Friday’s bike parade, party and film screening honoring Durango’s hometown cycling heroes and storied cycling legacy. We’re not crying, you’re crying.
Could it be that we’re actually ... agreeing with Lauren Boebert? The Colorado Republican is one of only four of her party’s congressional members to demand the release of the Epstein files.
By this point, I imagine our friend Lauren Thirdwheel was wondering why she had sacrificed the first half of her week to watch my beloved and me make eyes at each other over ottomans with built-in storage. But I’m glad she did. She is our eyewitness. She could vouch, under oath, that our relationship defied stereotype and grew stronger while my beloved tried sitting criss-cross applesauce in every chair available in Denver. She could further vouch that it was my beloved who suggested we also order macaroni and cheese like real adults before my blood sugar tanked even harder.
Eventually, lost in time without windows, we reached the final gauntlet. There, we could start collecting all the cactuses and other carryable items we’d been admiring on our trek. The psychologists make certain that numbers by this point hold no meaning. A $5 throw pillow seems as sensible as a $4,000 vanity mirror. Without access to accountants and bank accounts, or measuring tapes and actual dimensions of the car you drove in, numbers become Scandinavian abstract art.
We checked out with a few accessories and a pallet of lingonberry jam. The couch, disassembled in its box, would be waiting for us at a loading dock, which was a clue none of us picked up on. I being my beloved’s beloved, carried the awkwardly L-shaped box with her chair in it through the parking garage to the car. The car was right where we’d left it. But it was … smaller than any of us remembered.
This is a photograph of the couch in its box. Please remember that I do not drive a semi-truck and have some compassion for me.
Luckily, IKEA is a less evil corporation than it could be. They do not charge more for shipping after customer reevaluate their automotive dimensions than they charge beforehand. Fulfillment and meaning: my order was fulfilled, which meant a lot to me.
And since I was springing for delivery anyway, we decided I should go ahead and order a desk and some bookshelves. By which I mean, Lauren and I decided that. My beloved opted to wait in the car with her new chair. She knew my meatballs were wearing off, and some spiritual pilgrimages benefit from knowing when to call it quits.
– Zach Hively
SignoftheDownfall:
We lost one of the good ones this week. Jane Goodall, the conservationist renowned for her groundbreaking chimpanzee research and environmental advocacy, died Wednesday at 91.
The federal government has shut down yet again. But given how dysfunctional things have been as of late, we’re not sure if it we’ll notice much or not
Tacos Bells & Whistles
The big news from DIA this week was not shorter TSA lines or cheaper parking but the return of Taco Bell. Passengers can soon make a run for Terminal A and scarf down a bean burrito with extra diablo sauce before boarding a packed flight for Bean Town, or anywhere else. Apparently this was big enough news to merit a story in the Denver Post, which bemoaned that the Bell hasn’t rung in DIA since 2018. And in case you’re the type who likes to actually eat inside a Taco Bell instead of cramming it in your face in the drive thru, this one will be a zhuzhed-up cantina, with “elevated interiors” and boozy frozen drinks. We shiver to think what shade of blue these will be, but you can be sure they’ll go great with turbulence.
Fool’s errand
Stop pointless roadless rule rodeo and focus on forest restoration instead
by Ben Long
The Roadless Rule that the Trump Administration wants to eliminate has not been controversial for 24 years because it is grounded in common sense. Stirring up needless fights over public lands is more about smoke and mirrors than wise management.
The Forest Service manages about 194 million acres. About 58 million acres of national forest are relatively undeveloped. These lands are remote, rocky and rugged, defined by what they don’t have – roads. They’re mostly accessed by trail.
Since the Clinton Administration, these roadless lands have largely been left alone under the policy called the Roadless Rule. No one has complained, as there is plenty of work to do elsewhere. Leeway for management was written into the Roadless Rule, allowing the U.S. Forest Service to manage roadless areas where conditions merit. So why is the current administration so eager to rehash pointless battles?
I’m scratching my head. Perhaps this and other moves take our attention away from the current purges, budget and staff cuts that have left the agency in shambles. Perhaps the political appointees at the head of the Forest Service are themselves stuck in the past, trying to drive forward by looking in the rearview mirror. In any case, there is a wiser way forward.
That is: Stop creating controversy where none exists. This September, the public was given just 21 days to weigh in on repealing the rule. The response demonstrated that no one is asking for the changes the Administration is pushing. More than 99 percent of the 183,000 comments submitted argued against removing the public land protection for roadless lands, according to the Center for Western Priorities, which evaluated the responses.
The many conservationists who defend roadless areas tend to do so because these often-remote areas of our national forest are fine as they are and need to be left alone. They provide world-class wildlife habitat, havens for recreation and clean water.
During the Clinton Administration of the 1990s, the Forest Service created an administrative rule that basically said it would no longer build new roads into pristine forests, focusing instead on maintaining its existing backlog of 370,000 miles of roads. Any frequent visitor to our national forests will tell you that too
many of these roads are fraught with ruts, deadfall and washouts.
High elevation roadless areas never had roads built through them for the simple reason that it’s grossly impractical to build roads there. To do so would require massive government subsidies – first to build the roads and then to maintain them after floods, wildfire or freezing wipes them away.
The administration’s attempt to rescind the Roadless Rule of 2001 is basically a distraction. It takes us away from dealing with the long and time-sensitive “to do” list that hangs over the Forest Service: managing wildfires, clearing trails, fighting weeds and fixing access roads.
Likewise, the extensive trail system of the Forest Service badly needs tender loving care, as do its campgrounds and other infrastructure. Foresters will tell you that many of our national forests have become overgrown because of generations of fire suppression. They need selective logging. But the practical place to begin addressing that expensive but crucial need is at the interface of wildlands and developed lands.
Idaho, a Republican state with more roadless lands
than just about any other state, decided to do its own analysis of roadless lands during the 1990s. Idaho found it was fiscal folly to build roads on 99 percent of Idaho’s roadless lands. For context, the review revealed that Idaho roadless areas support some of the state’s best big game hunting, while also providing cold, clear water that native trout, salmon and steelhead need to spawn.
The roadless lands also tended to be poor at growing trees. Idaho’s review even called for stricter protections of some of its roadless lands than what was provided by the Clinton Administration.
Most Americans want our national forests to be well managed and open for people to enjoy. Roads are an important part of that. But pushing to build new roads in our most rugged areas is a fool’s errand. Let’s restore the national forests, trails and access roads that for too long we’ve allowed to deteriorate.
Ben Long is an outdoorsman, conservationist and longtime contributor to Writers on the Range, writersontherange.org, an independent nonprofit dedicated to spurring lively conversation about the West. He lives in Kalispell, Mont ■
The Roadless Rule, a decades old policy restricting new roads on Forest Service land, is at the risk of being rescinded, potentially affecting open spaces including areas such as Hermosa Creek Roadless Area near Durango. / Photo courtesy Bertrand Poitier.
SoapBox
Meet AG Phil Weiser on Oct. 9
What the heck does the Colorado attorney general do, anyway? Why is Governor Polis stepping down in 2026? Why is the current Attorney General Phil Weiser running for governor, and what makes him think he’s competent?
Come find out! Weiser is holding a community celebration of entrepreneurs and democracy at Esoterra Aboretum on Florida Mesa on Thur., Oct. 9 at 6 p.m., immediately following a talk with the enthusiastic innovators and business folk who will be in Durango learning how to grow their ideas. Esoterra Arboretum is also a new business – a huge planting of heritage apple trees plus a huge new events center offering wine and cider tastings and family fun. Bring friends and enjoy an autumn evening and hear how AGs and governors both can keep us sane and whole, even in our current America.
– Anne Markward, Durango
Re-elect 9-R board incumbents
Schools are incredibly important, as places where our kids learn about the world and develop their abilities and knowledge base. But they’re also where students get a clear idea of just who they are, and how they want to go through life. Based in large part on their school experience, our children mature as social
beings; depending on the skill and philosophy of teachers and administration, students learn respect, tolerance and care for others, instead of violence and selfishness. So it’s vital that every community think carefully about school board elections, to choose policy directions consistent with harmonious, productive community life.
How are our schools doing, as our School Board elections approach? To learn details, I urge you to read Karen Cheser’s Op-Ed in the Durango Herald on Sept. 21, which outlines some of our district’s accomplishments under her leadership. I am grateful we have a nationally renowned leader like Cheser as superintendent of Durango 9-R School District.
Our School Board is currently staffed by five gifted and dedicated public servants, with three running for re-election – vote for them please when ballots arrive Oct. 14. All three are also well-renowned, as recipients of the McGuffey Award for exceptional board leadership from the Colorado Association of School Boards (CASB). They bring a wealth of experience, integrity and commitment to 9-R.
Andrea Parmenter has more than 15 years of district service (PTO, SAC, DAAC, and our Board) and serves on the City’s Urban Renewal Planning Committee. Andrea helped develop and leads a new 9-R program copied by other Colorado districts that includes students (our future leaders) as board members. Erika Brown, Board Vice President for almost six years and currently the Board’s legislative representative at CASB)
has worked directly to make school campus infrastructure more sustainable with solar power and water conservation. Rick Peterson, Board Treasurer for four years, has done vital work ensuring sustainable funds for staff pay increases, thereby addressing the exodus of Colorado teachers to New Mexico. He also helped develop a 50-year plan for facilities (construction, renewal, maintenance), as a member of the Long Range Planning Committee. Rick is a long-term Scout leader. We need these experienced, committed individuals guiding our public school system through today’s rough waters of tight budgets and ideological clashes. Their willingness to nearly donate their time and dedication speaks volumes about their values. Join me in voting for Rick Petersen, Erika Brown and Andrea Parmenter for the Durango 9-R School Board!
– Kirby MacLaurin, Durango
Gerrymandering & democracy
The League of Women Voters is dedicated to empowering voters and defending democracy, and we are deeply concerned by the gerrymandering efforts currently undermining fair representation – a strategy used by both political parties, making it a bipartisan crisis.
In the era of big data, the tools available for redrawing electoral districts are more powerful and precise than ever, in order to maximize political representa-
tion. Advanced software can sort voters with pinpoint accuracy – by race, income, neighborhood, education level, even by how long someone spent engaging with political content on social media. This new reality gives those in charge of drawing electoral maps extraordinary power to tilt the playing field, giving gerrymandering an even greater capacity to pre-determine election outcomes.
The U.S. House of Representatives has 435 members, with each seat representing an average of 760,000 people. Every 10 years, as populations change, the national census determines the number of seats each state receives, and the states redraw their district maps.
One of the most troubling aspects of gerrymandering is how it overturns a basic principle of democratic representation: that voters choose their representatives. When politicians manipulate district lines to benefit their party, it becomes the politicians who are choosing their voters.
For instance, after the 2010 census, Republicans in Wisconsin used sophisticated software and detailed voting information to create maps that disproportionately favored their party. As a result, by 2018, although the Democrats won 53% of the statewide vote, they secured only a minority of state assembly seats – 36 out of 99 – as reported by Wisconsin Conservation Voters. Also in 2010, the Brennan Center noted that Maryland Democrats used gerrymandering to their advantage, successfully flipping a long-held Republican congressional seat.
In both examples, gerrymandering by both political parties wasn’t about reflecting the will of the people,
but about cementing power that can last for decades. When the lines are drawn to protect political parties, voter choices are narrowed, and accountability erodes. Instead of answering to the public, legislators become insulated from their constituents.
A healthy democracy relies on competition with the best ideas rising through a genuine contest of vision and values. Gerrymandering undermines competitive elections by creating “safe” districts, where one party is virtually guaranteed victory. When competition disappears, the critical contest shifts to primary elections – races dominated by the most ideologically extreme voters. This dynamic forces candidates to cater to the fringes rather than the broad center, ultimately promoting polarization and discouraging moderation. Introducing reforms such as open primaries and ranked choice voting can incentivize candidates to appeal to a broader spectrum, helping to restore healthy competition.
Recently, Texas Republicans passed a new redistricting plan that gerrymandered five additional congressional districts. This intentional lack of competition leads to further polarization and makes governing harder, as compromise becomes a political liability rather than a virtue. In response, California fast-tracked a legislative package and a proposed state constitutional amendment allowing voters to approve new districts countering Texas’ changes.
California and Texas are locked in a showdown, each advancing aggressive redistricting schemes that could reshape Congress. Missouri recently entered the fray when its Legislature passed a new congressional map, meant to secure an additional Republican House
seat, further eroding the core principles of democracy. With gerrymandering, elections become a charade. If politicians “stack the deck,” the fundamental premise of a people-powered government is compromised. A recent Supreme Court decision, Rucho v. Common Cause, ruled that partisan gerrymandering is a political question beyond the reach of federal courts, unless it involves explicit racial discrimination. This hands-off approach has only emboldened those seeking to draw maps
Gerrymandering should be recognized as a form of corruption: entrenching political power, stifling competition, shielding incumbents from accountability and warping the democratic process.
A real democracy depends on vibrant contests, meaningful choice and leaders who answer to the people. When these ingredients are missing, the “government of, by and for the people” fades, replaced by cynicism, apathy and polarization. To protect democracy, we must demand that Congress pass a federal law requiring independent, nonpartisan redistricting commissions nationwide.
To get involved, attend “Action is the Antidote for Anxiety,” on Sat., Oct. 4, from 3-5 p.m. at the Durango Public Library. Speakers will cover League policies, including health care, immigration, the environment and voter rights, and will offer tangible actions.
Additionally, the League will host a Durango School District Board Candidate Forum on Oct. 12, from 3:305:15 p.m. at the VFW Hall. For more details, visit lwvlaplata.org.
– Wendy Pollak, Siggy Palmer and Jan Phillips, League of Women Voters La Plata
by Missy Votel
IThrill of the hunt
Velvet Coyote wants to make getting dressed thrifty and fun again
f you’re a thrifter, you know the feeling: After hours of fruitless flipping through every thrift store rack within hundreds of miles, the stars align, the universe stands still and … There. It. Is. The proverbial Neiman Marcus in the Old Navy haystack. Or maybe it’s the perfect pearl snap Western shirt for your next river adventure or a divine gold lamé ski onesie straight out of 1985. Score. What’s that you say? You don’t have time for hours, maybe days, of laborious scrutinizing? Well, you’re in luck, because Velvet Coyote is bringing that winning thrift feeling to you.
Velvet Coyote is actually made up of three vixens (technically a female fox, but let’s go with it), longtime friends Joy Martin, Sloan Gingg and Sarah McCloskey.
“We’ve been friends for over a decade and all of us have been shopping for ourselves forever, and we always find stuff that’s super cool that either doesn’t fit us or we don’t need it,” Martin, the group’s self-proclaimed disco queen, said.
Martin said growing up in the ’90s in Colorado Springs, thrifting was her "happy place.” She still remembers her first thrift store magic: a pair of faded, high-waisted, ’70s bell bottoms. “I pulled them off the mannequin, and the lady in the store said, ‘These have just been here forever waiting for the perfect person,’” she recalled. “And that is kind of the theme of what we do.”
Martin said the goal of Velvet Coyote is to bring a carefully hand-picked, secondhand (or third or fourth) experience to local shoppers, sourced from thrift and consignment stores from throughout the area. “It’s what we deem as a curated col-
lection of cool. Verified cool, according to us,” Martin said.
The three came up with the idea for Velvet Coyote last spring after comparing notes (a spreadsheet actually) on their various thrift store scores over the years. That’s when they realized they were maybe onto something with this whole thrifting thing.
“Not everyone wants to do the treasure hunting,” Martin said. “We just really love sharing that stoke for these fun finds. We don’t want to keep these to ourselves. We don’t want to leave them on the rack, what if nobody ever finds them?”
A sourcing trip along the San Juan Skyway was planned – using a divide-andconquer strategy using three sets of eyes – to hit up 12 thrift and consignment stores in just a few days.
“We ended up getting more than 300
items,” said Martin. “On that drive, we brainstormed a name. We were dancing around the idea of disco desert vibes –gritty, glamorous, nature … that classic Southwestern style we’ve all gravitated toward. We came up with the Velvet Coyote – our logo is a coyote howling at a disco ball in the desert.”
From that first trip, the women – who all have “real” jobs and kids, mind you –planned their first pop-up thrift sale, which was held in June in the 81301 Coffee parking lot. “It was such a good turn out. We sold over half our inventory and got a really great reception from everybody,” said Martin.
She thinks the secret to their success was that they each brought something different to the, uh, sale table. “The cool thing is, we’re three people with three different styles,” said Martin. For example,
From left, Joy Martin, Sloan Gingg and Sarah McCloskey with some of their most recent thrift and consignment scores sourced from throughout Southwest Colorado and Northern New Mexico. The three friends formed Velvet Coyote last spring to bring the joy of funky and functional finds to local shoppers./ Courtesy photo
McCloskey, who is from New Mexico, brings the river tripping, rockstar, Southwestern spice while Ginng is the fashionista, style guru and fashion scholar.
“She could tell you the shade of chocolate brown that is in season this year,” Martin said, adding that she, herself, gravitates toward the sparkly, weird and one of a kind – usually without any labels at all. “The three of us bring together something that’s functional and also funky,” Martin said.
But even more so than helping the town that will never live down its “worstdressed” moniker look cool, Velvet Coyote also has a more altruistic goal: keeping clothes out of the landfill.
“We want to help shed some light on the fact that there are so many clothes out in the world already. You don’t need to go out and buy new stuff or get online and order,” Martin said. “We try to stay away from fast fashion – we’re really picky.”
She also said Velvet Coyote, which is hosting its second pop-up event this Fri., Oct. 3, on the corner of E. 2nd Avenue and College Drive – is not meant to compete with local thrift and consignment stores so much as complement them.
“We’re all big supporters of any of the consignment stores or thrift shops in town, and our tag line is ‘slow fashion, sourced locally,’” said Martin.
Velvet Coyote just wants to spark joy and #makegettingdressedfunagain.
“We want to show people the fun side of this mundane task that we all have to do every single day, which is, wake up and put clothes on our body,” Martin said. “All of these things are expressions of who you are. Some people can’t figure out why they feel grumpy. Sometimes a good outfit is all you need. It’s like, drink water and wear something you’re excited about, and you’ll be happier.”
Ahead of their upcoming pop-up, the three recently returned from another sourcing trip, this time to Taos and the San Luis Valley (where Monte Vista is rumored to have the most kick-ass consignment shop of all.) Martin said the fall installment will offer items for the season, including sweaters, coats, jackets, boots, pants, hats and all things cozy for all people. There will also be art, jewelry, some costumes (it is almost Halloween, after all) and maybe a stray disco ball or two. And in a nod to its diversity of styles, the event takes place in the walkway between the 2nd Deli, Wild Horse Saloon and Bookcase & Barber (11 a.m. - 6 p.m., cash or Venmo only.)
“It just started as this little passion project. We thought, ‘Let’s just sell these clothes and try to make enough to pay ourselves back and do it again.’ But it’s turned into a platform for community,
Velvet Coyote will be hosting its second “slow fashion” pop-up this Fri., Oct. 3, featuring seasonal items for fall and winter./ Courtesy photo
creativity and joy, really,” Martin said. Because, at its most basic, clothing is one of the simplest things that we all have in common – even if we don’t always agree on what it should look like.
Martin recounts a story about a coat they found on a recent trip that had a matchbook in the pocket with an address to a restaurant on the Isle of Capri written on it. “It had been in there since people wrote addresses down,” Martin marvelled. “Clothing has stories. We’re building connections in a world that needs more connection.” ■
BetweentheBeats
Musical gold rush
October brings roots, funk, folk and 30 years of the Schoolhouse
by Stephen Sellers
Greetings, dear readers! October has finally arrived in Durango, and with it comes the gold rush of fall colors, cooler evenings and an absolutely stacked calendar of live music. I was DJing a wedding in Placerville last Saturday and saw the snow with my own eyes. Winter is coming! Whether you’re chasing new sounds in our listening rooms, heading out to the Schoolhouse for some PBR-fueled fun, or gearing up for a funky Halloween blowout at the Animas City Theatre, this month’s offerings are sure to keep you warm and moving. As always, check the Telegraph or KDUR’s concert calendar for the full run-down, and mark your planners accordingly. See you on the dancefloor!
• Garrett LeBeau, Lightbox at Stillwater Music, Fri., Oct. 3, 6:30 p.m. – A rare chance to catch the soulful stylings of Garrett LeBeau in Stillwater’s intimate Lightbox venue. The Austin, Tex.-based, artist’s roots-driven blend of blues, soul and desert vibes makes for a perfect autumn night soundtrack.
• Maddy O’Neal & Homemade Spaceship, Animas City Theatre, Fri., Oct. 3, 7 p.m. – Longtime Durango favorite Maddy O’Neal has been burning up festival stages with her future bass and funk-inspired beats. Add Denver’s Homemade Spaceship to the mix, and ACT turns into a late-night dance temple, yet again.
• People We Know, Horseshirt & Shallow Eddys, Olde Schoolhouse, Sat., Oct. 4, 5 p.m. – Can you believe it? The Olde Schoolhouse celebrates 30 years with a stacked local lineup. Expect pizza, beer, bluegrass and rock & roll in true North County fashion as three bands take over our legendary mountain haunt. Plan ahead to make sure you’ve got a sober ride to and from this epic party you won’t want to miss.
• Nu Bass Theory, iNDIGO Room at iAM Music, Sat., Oct. 11, 8 p.m. –If you’ve been craving a fix of grooveheavy jams, look no further. Nu Bass Theory brings its dazzling blend of soulful, funky, downtempo electronica into high definition at the iNDIGO Room. It’s worth pointing out that when you sup-
port shows at iAM, you’re supporting all of the incredible work they do to help local youth find creative expression through music. Good on you, iAM fam!
• Riddy Arman & Nathan Schmidt, Toast Records, Tues., Oct. 14, 6 p.m. – Singer-songwriter Riddy Arman delivers stories straight from the American West with grit and grace. Paired with the heavy-hitting talent of Nathan Schmidt in the cozy confines of Toast Records, this is one for the folk lovers. If the last several shows have been any indication, you’ll want to hop over to Toast and snag a spot on the RSVP list ahead of time. These shows are selling out well before the performance date, which makes me wonder if we’ll ever see Toast take a stab at a larger local show!
• Cardinal Bloom, Animas City Theatre, Thurs., Oct. 16, 7 p.m. – Rising indie rock outfit Cardinal Bloom out of SLC makes a Durango stop, bringing sharp hooks and some good, old-fashioned rock and roll to the ACT stage. Local indie favorites Ragged Oak are up first. Remember, if you see a midweek show at the ACT, it’s always worth checking out these rising talents who are crisscrossing to larger markets on the weekend. See them before they blow up!
• Frank ‘n’ Stein Music Festival, Joe Stephenson Park (Bayfield), Sat., Oct. 18, 12 noon – Stillwater Music and the Be Frank Foundation team up for an afternoon of family fun,
hot dogs and student orchestra magic from Bayfield and Durango. It should be a feel-good day of community and music to celebrate and support local youth who want to make music.
• Afrobeatniks & BluePhunk, Animas City Theatre, Fri., Oct. 24, 7 p.m. – Mancos-based world rhythm masters Afrobeatniks meet local funk heroes in a night made for dancing. Both will keep you grooving well into the autumn night.
• Squeaky Feet & Desiderata, Animas City Theatre, Fri., Oct. 31, 7 p.m. – Halloween in Durango means costumes, confetti and jam bands. The last several years have featured EDM acts, but this year marks a return to some of the best bands to grace the ACT stage. Denver jam band Squeaky Feet teams up with former Durango-based Desiderata for a high-energy double bill guaranteed to turn ACT into a funky, spooky, groove factory.
• ORA, Fort Lewis College Chapel (on Rim Drive), Sat., Nov. 1, 5 p.m. – I’d be remiss if I didn’t let you know that ORA (a band I play in) is making its return to Durango after a short hiatus for frontwoman Annie Brooks to welcome her new son to the world. Close out Halloween weekend with an ethereal All Saints Day performance from ORA in one of the most atmospheric venues in town: the chapel on Rim Drive. ■
Denver’s Squeaky Feet plays the ACT’s Halloween bash.
MurderInk
The shape of something great
Fall the perfect time to revisit the first in Camilleri’s classic Montalbano series
by Jeffrey Mannix
The brisk, wet, facsimile of a muscular winter to come sent me to my bookshelves for a Camilleri. Sounds like an after-dinner cocktail, but it’s not, although the heady effects are kindred.
Born in 1925 in Sicily, Andrea Camilleri became a noted playwright, screen writer and film director, maintaining a professorship of film direction for 20 years at the Academia Nazionale d’Arte Drammatica in Rome.
Sporting electrified white hair and a face of exaggerated expressions under a penumbra of cigarette smoke, Camilleri was one of only a few genuine geniuses in their professions. However, he flopped with a couple of novels until he hit upon a fictitious Chief Inspector Salvo Montalbano in the fictitious Sicilian seaside town of Vigata.
Montalbano and Sicily upgraded Camilleri’s previous theatrical work, and the world of “literary” crime fiction immediately saw a style of a police procedural falling headlong into comedy.
The first of Camilleri’s Montalbano novels, “The Shape of Water,” was published in Italy in 1994 and translated into English in 2002. Here, we were first introduced to Montalbano of the Polizia di Vigata after a prominent engineer and politico is found dead in a most undistinguished state in his luxury car with his pants down to his ankles. That he would be with a woman other than his wife is overlooked, but to die in such lowly circumstances is scandalous. While “natural causes” is the official and politically correct decree, this is too mortifying not to look further into the messy circumstances. Quite a mystery ensues, which is adroitly solved in between meals never missed.
Before his death in 2019, Camilleri wrote 28 Montalbano novels, all brilliantly translated into English by New York University’s Stephen Sartarelli. Camilleri referred to Montalbano as a “serial killer of characters” –meaning Montalbano developed a life of his own, de-
manding great attention from his author to the demise of other potential books. Camil leri added that he wrote a Montalbano novel every so often just so the character would be appeased, and he could work on other stories.
“The Shape of Water” isn’t where you have to start reading the genius of Andrea Camilleri, but after you read one Camilleri book, you’ll want to read another. So you might as well start at the beginning. These are bedtime stories. They’re sweet, sublimely humorous, soothing and relaxing in the unique way Sicilians relax. Montalbano is such a superb characterization, he’s lovable. You’ll want to have him to your dinner parties and introduce him to your father –but not your mother or sister. He is at once brilliant, charming and spirited and coy and devious.
If Sicily is like its reputation, or even a scintilla of the way Camilleri portrays it, graft is endemic in everyday life. Being a police inspector in a Sicilian fife is dicey business. Montalbano knows the rules: throw the little fish back, don’t sweat the small corruptions and revenge killings, get down with the money and let the big
sharks set their own nets in which to get caught.
The plots of Camilleri’s Montalbano mysteries are beside the point. Camilleri weaves precious Sicilian mysteries one after another, luxuriating in a Sicily painted vivid by a blunt No. 2 pencil from behind the ear of a crafty old man.
I own all of Camilleri’s books – in paperback, unfortunately, as that is how they arrive in translation –and if my house were to burn, I would save other books but mourn the loss of Montalbano and the poetic writing of Camilleri. And I’d replace every book. Start with “The Shape of Water” just because it’s Camilleri’s first Montalbano book, and you’ll be back for more of these small, nicely bound $17 books of 200-some pages. You’ll be proud of yourself to have taken my advice.
But you’ll have to ask Maria’s Bookshop to order this, or any of Camilleri’s books; they’re for true literary readers only. ■
Thursday02
Craft and Connect, 3-5 p.m., Fort Lewis Mesa Library, 11274 HWY 140
Ross Douglas plays, 5-7 p.m., Lola’s Place, 725 E. 2nd Ave.
Open Mic Night, 5:30 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Dr.
Spanish Conversation Hour, 5:30-6:30 p.m., Durango Public Library, 1900 E. 3rd Ave.
Happy Hour Trail Work, 5:30-7:30 p.m., location TBD, sign up at www.durangotrails.org
Adam Swanson plays, 5:30-9 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.
The Original Vypers plays, 6-9 p.m., 11th St. Station, 1101 Main Ave.
Andrew Schuhmann plays, 6-9:30 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.
Kirtan Chanting, 6:30-8 p.m., Unitarian Universalist Church, 419 San Juan Drive
Trivia Night on the Plaza, 6:30-8:30 p.m., The Powerhouse, 1333 Camino Del Rio
Durango Cowboy Gathering with Jon Chandler, 7-9:30 p.m., Doubletree Hotel
Paula Poundstone performs, 7:30 p.m., Community Concert Hall at FLC
Friday03
Durango Cowboy Gathering, 9 a.m.-9:30 p.m., Doubletree Hotel
The Velvet Coyote pop-up thrift shop, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., 601 E. 2nd Ave.
Hall of Heroes presented by the Blue Star Moms of Durango,, 12 noon-8 p.m., VFW, 1550 Main Ave.
Durango First Friday art walk, 4-7 p.m., various locations Downtown Durango
Karen Clarkson “Manifesting Perspectives” opening reception, 5-7 p.m., Blue Rain Gallery Durango, 934 Main Ave., Unit B
The Black Velvet duo with Nina Sasaki & Larry Carver, plays, 5-7 p.m., Lola’s Place, 725 E. 2nd Ave.
10th Anniversary Harvest Festival, 5-8 p.m., ELHI Community Center, 115 Ute St., Ignacio
Matt Clark “From a Different Lens,” opening reception, 5-8 p.m., The Recess Gallery at Studio &, 1027 Main Ave.
First Friday Artist Social, 5:30 p.m., The ArtRoom Collective, Smiley Building, 1309 E. 3rd Ave.
Adam Swanson plays ragtime, 5:30 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.
Ann Salviazul and Lissa Lee art opening, 6-8 p.m., Dancing Spirit Center of the Arts, 465 Goddard Ave., Ignacio
Dustin Burley plays, 6-9 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.
San Juan Circus Student Showcase, 6:30-7:30 p.m., San Juan Circus, 1600 Florida Rd.
The Robin Davis Duo plays, 7-10 p.m., 11th St. Station, 1101 Main Ave.
Garrett LeBeau plays, 7 p.m., Light Box at Stillwater Music, 1316 Main Ave., Ste. C
Merely Players presents “Hamlet,” 7-10 p.m., Merely Underground, 789 Tech Center Dr.
“Villains of Broadway Cabaret,” presented by FLC Theatre, 7:30 p.m., FLC Mainstage Theatre
Anna Ashe and Malena Cadiz play, 8-10 p.m., the iNDIGO Room,1315 Main Ave.
Saturday04
Chuckwagon Breakfast, 8-10:30 a.m., 5th St. and Main Ave.
Hall of Heroes presented by the Blue Star Moms of Durango, 8 a.m.-12 noon, VFW, 1550 Main Ave.
Animas Palooza “When Pigs Fly,” 8 a.m.-9 p.m., Animas Air Park, 163 Flight Line Rd
Durango Farmers Market, 8 a.m.-12 noon, TBK bank parking lot
Shawn Ahkeah “Art in the Box” opening reception with live music by Batucada Pan Handlers, 68 p.m., The Light Box, 1316 Main Ave., Ste C
Adam Swanson plays, 6-9 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.
Matt Rupnow plays, 6-9 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.
Pete Giuliani plays, 6-9 p.m., Fenceline Cider, 141 S. Main St., Mancos
Vanbuskirks play, 6-9 p.m., 11th Street Station, 1101 Main Ave.
Merely Players presents “Hamlet,” 7-10 p.m., Merely Underground, 789 Tech Center Dr.
“Tromba Mundi and Pines of Rome,” presented by San Juan Symphony, 7:30 p.m., Community Concert Hall at FLC
“Villains of Broadway Cabaret,” presented by FLC Theatre, 7:30 p.m., FLC Mainstage Theatre
Maddy O’Neal with Homemade Spaceship, 8 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E College Dr.
Sunday05
Hall of Heroes, presented by the Blue Star Moms of Durango, 8 a.m.-8 p.m., VFW, 1550 Main Ave.
Durango Cowboy Gathering, 9 a.m.-9:30 p.m., Doubletree Hotel, 501 Camino del Rio
Eli Cartwright plays, 10 a.m.-12 noon, Lola’s Place, 725 E. 2nd Ave.
TJ the DJ plays, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., 11th Street Station, 1101 Main Ave.
Toy Run Before Christmas, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., start Durango Harley-Davidson end at Bar D Chuckwagon, 8080 CR 250
Lost Goat Market Days, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Lost Goat Tavern, 39848 HWY 160, Bayfield
AskRachel Shipping sham, premature holidaytion and balancing act
Interesting fact: Oktoberfest began as a celebration of a royal wedding between King Ludwig I and Princess Therese. Sadly, we fail to remember that they are the reason for the season.
Dear Rachel,
Why do we all fall for marketing ploys like free shipping? Don’t we know that nothing is free, and we’re just paying for shipping in the price of the things we buy? One way or another, those companies are gonna get theirs. And they ain’t giving us jack except reasons to hook ourselves on their products. Yet this keeps working. Why do we think we’re getting a good deal?
Dear Smart Shopper,
– Door Busted
It’s all psychology. We’re just rats with cheese in the big maze of the 21st century. Did you know we’re each exposed to something like 10,000 ads a
“Villains of Broadway Cabaret,” presented by FLC Theatre, 2 p.m., FLC Mainstage Theatre
Merely Players presents “Hamlet,” 2-5 p.m., Merely Underground, 789 Tech Center Dr.
FLC Symphonic Band Concert, 3 p.m., Community Concert Hall at FLC
Blue Moon Ramblers play, 6-9 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.
Ben Gibson plays, 6-9 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.
Monday06
West Slope Startup Week, 8:30 a.m., Main Mall, 835 Main Ave.
Meditation and Dharma Talk, 5:30 p.m., Durango Dharma Center, 1800 E. 3rd Ave., Ste. 109 or online at www.durangodharmacenter.org
American Sign Language Learners Group, 5:30-6:30 p.m., Sunnyside Library, 75 CR 218
Adam Swanson plays ragtime, 5:30-10 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.
day? You have to be very selective with what you give your attention to, or the bastards will grind you down. That’s why the only ads you should succumb to are those in the Telegraph. Our sponsors ensure you get a 100% discount on each week’s paper! Plus, free delivery to that place you like to go to!
– Limited time offer, Rachel
Dear Frauline Rachel, Why is Oktoberfest held in September? Did the Germans start drinking and lose time and go into October? I’ll drink to that … How about you? Do you have a farm and a harvest in October? Prost.
– Polka Dolly
Dear Braumeister, Big mistake, mein Freund! Oktoberfest isn’t a harvest festival at all. Plus, you think farmers can take two weeks off right before the Halloween pumpkin rush? Nein! It’s actually a chance for the German economy to take mas-
Terry Rickard plays, 6-9 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.
Tuesday07
West Slope Startup Week 2025, 8:30 a.m., Main Mall, 835 Main Ave.
Arc Flash Safety Demonstration, 12 noon-1 p.m., La Plata Electric Association, 45 Stewart St.
Durango Real Estate Investing Meetup, 5:30-7:30 p.m., Union Social House, 3062 Main Ave.
“Protect Your Peace” Building
Healthy Relationship Dynamics, 5:307:30 p.m., Pine River Library, 395 Bayfield Center Dr., Bayfield
Rural Creative Collective Night Market, 5:30-7:30 p.m., The Powerhouse, 1333 Camino Del Rio
Adam Swanson plays, 5:30-10 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.
La Plata County Treasurer Moni Gruskin speaks to Rotary Club of Durango about the sales tax referendum, 6-7 p.m., Strater Hotel, 699 Main Ave.
sive advantage of drunk tourists who buy lederhosen and dirndls. As for why it’s in September – we start celebrating Christmas in September, too. September is just a good month for premature holidaytion.
– Lass uns gehen, Rachel
Dear Rachel, I keep getting ads for credit card balance transfers. They always have some great deal like 0% INTEREST FOR 12 MONTHS. This got me thinking, what’s to stop me from opening up three or four credit cards and constantly transferring the balances? Couldn’t I basically take a free vacation that way? Or eat free for a year? It all goes away once I’m dead anyway, right? So I just have to keep the jig going that long. – Shell Game
Dear Juggler, You want to talk 0% interest? That’s how much interest I have in trying to
Book Club “It Lasts Forever and Then It’s Over” by Anne de Marcken, 6-7:30 p.m., Durango Public Library, 1900 E. Third Ave.
Gary Watkins plays, 6-9 p.m., Office Spiritorium, 699 Main Ave.
Merely Players presents “Hamlet,” 7-10 p.m., Merely Underground, 789 Tech Center Dr.
Wednesday08
West Slope Startup Week 2025, 8:30 a.m., Main Mall, 835 Main Ave.
Writers & Scribblers Writing Group, 6-8 p.m., Durango Public Library, 1900 E. 3rd Ave.
Money Talks, 5:30-6:30 p.m., 11th Street Station, 1101 Main Ave.
Adam Swanson plays ragtime, 5:30-10 p.m., Diamond Belle Saloon, 699 Main Ave.
San Juan Basin Archaeological Society meeting and presentation by
Email Rachel at telegraph@durango telegraph.com
rig the system. You wanna know why? The house always wins. I might think I’m getting ahead, but then some small print will bite me in the butt. Next thing you know, I’m remortgaging a house, and I don’t even OWN a house. It gets complicated. But if they throw in free shipping, I’ll bite.
– Sleight of hand, Rachel
Kaitlyn Elizabeth Davis, 7-8:30 p.m., Fort Lewis College Lyceum Room
Ongoing
“Spaces, Locations and Imagined Places” art show, thru Oct. 14, FLC Art Gallery
“Nature’s Tapestry in Plein Air,” juried exhibit thru Oct. 25, Durango Arts Center, 802 E. 2nd Ave.
Matt Clark “From a Different Lens” exhibit, thru October, The Recess Gallery at Studio &, 1027 Main Ave.
Barbershop chorus tryouts every Tuesday, 6:30 p.m., Christ the King Lutheran Church
Upcoming
“The Road to Everywhere Road Show,” film screening and performance by Robert Mirabal, Thurs., Oct. 9, 7:30 p.m., Community Concert Hall at FLC
Mojo Birds play, Fri., Oct. 10, 7 p.m., Light Box, 1316 Main Ave., Ste. C
Apple Days Festival, Sat., Oct. 11, 9 a.m.-12 noon, Buckley Park Oct. 2, 2025 n 13
FreeWillAstrology
by Rob Brezsny
ARIES (March 21-April 19): No relationship is like any other. The way we bond with another has a distinctive identity that embodies the idiosyncratic chemistry between us. So in my view, it’s wrong to compare any partnership to a supposedly ideal template. Fortunately, you Aries are in a phase when you can summon extra wisdom about this and other relaxing truths concerning togetherness. I recommend you devote your full creativity and ingenuity to helping your key bonds ripen and deepen.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Poet Rainer Maria Rilke advised, “Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves.” These days, that’s your power move: to stay in conversation with mystery without forcing premature answers. Not everything needs to be fixed or finalized. Your gift is to be a custodian of unfolding processes: to cherish and nourish what’s ripening. Trust that your questions are already generating the early blooms of a thorough healing.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): I am an admirer of Bart Simpson, the fictional character on “The Simpsons.” He is a constant source of unruly affirmations that we could all benefit from. Since I think you’re in such a phase now, I am offering a batch of Bart-style gems. Use them to free yourself from the daily routine. 1. “I will not invent a new religion based on bubble gum.” 2. “I will not sell bottled ‘invisible water.’” 3. “I will not try to hypnotize my friends, and I will not tell co-workers they are holograms.” 4. “I will not claim to be a licensed pyrotechnician.” 5. “I will not use the Pythagorean theorem to summon demons.” 6. “I will not declare war on Thursdays.”
CANCER (June 21-July 22): During its entire life, the desert plant Welwitschia mirabilis grows just two leaves. They never wither or fall off but continually grow, twist, split and tatter for hundreds of years. They keep thriving even as their ends are worn or shredded by wind and sand. I love how wild and vigorous they look, and I love how their wildness is the result of their unfailing persistence and resilience. Make Welwitschia mirabilis your inspirational symbol in the coming weeks. May it motivate you to nurture the quiet, enduring power in your depths that enables you to express yourself with maximum uniqueness and authenticity.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Have you been to Morocco? I love that so many houses there are built around spacious courtyards with intricate tilework and lush gardens. Sooner or later, of course, the gorgeous mosaic-like floors need renovations. The artisans who do the work honor the previous artistry. “In rebuilding,” one told me, “our goal is to create new magnificence that remembers the old splendor.” I hope you pursue an approach like that in coming weeks. The mending and healing you undertake should nourish the soulfulness you have cultivated, even as you polish and refine.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Virgo novelist Agatha Christie often planned her elaborate plots while cleaning her house or washing dishes. She said such repetitive, physical tasks unlocked her creativity, allowing ideas to emerge. Draw inspiration from her method in coming weeks. Seek your own form of productive distraction. Instead of wrestling with a problem in a heroic death match, lose yourself in simple, grounding actions that free your mind to wander. I am pretty sure that your most brilliant and lasting solutions will emerge when you’re not trying hard to come up with brilliant and lasting solutions.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Libra architect Christopher Alexander developed a sixth sense about why some spaces feel comfortable while others are alienating. What was the source of his genius? He avoided abstract principles and studied how people actually used spaces. His best architecture soulfully coordinated indoor and outdoor areas, private and public zones, and individual needs and community functions. I hope you access your own natural gift for curating relationships and cultivating balance. Your solutions should serve multiple needs. Elegant approaches will arise as you focus on connections rather than isolated parts.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Some medieval mystics claimed that angels spoke in paradoxes because the truth was too rich for simple logic. These days, I believe you are extra fluent in paradox. You are raw yet powerful, aching and grateful, confounded but utterly clear. You are both dying and being reborn. My advice: Don’t try to resolve the contradictions. Immerse yourself in them, bask in them, and allow them to teach you all they have to teach. This may entail you sitting with your sadness as you laugh and letting your desire and doubt interweave. The contradictions you face with open-heartedness will gift you with sublime potency and authority.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): The ancient city of Petra, built in sandstone cliffs in what’s now Jordan, was mostly hidden from the outside world for centuries. In 1812, Sagittarian Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt rediscovered it by disguising himself as a pilgrim. He trained extensively in Islamic culture and local customs so he could travel incognito. You Sagittarians can benefit from a similar strategy in coming weeks. Life will conspire to bring you wonders if you thoroughly educate yourself about the people and situations you would like to influence. I invite you to hike your empathy up to a higher octave, cultivate respect for what’s unfamiliar, and make yourself extra available for exotic and inspiring treasures.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): During the 1800s, countless inventors chased the impossible dream of perpetual-motion machines: contraptions that would run endlessly without any fuel source. Every attempt failed; such devices bucked the fundamental laws of physics. But here’s good news: You are close to cracking the code on a metaphorical version of perpetual motion. You are cultivating habits and rhythms that could keep you steady and vital for a long time to come. I predict the energy you’re generating will be self-sustaining.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Octopuses have three hearts and blue blood. They taste with their skin, solve puzzles and squeeze their entire bodies through coinsized holes. No wonder they are referred to as the aliens of Earth, just as you Aquarians are the aliens of the zodiac. According to my analysis, now is a perfect time for you to embrace your inner octopus. I authorize you to let your strangeness lead the way. You have the right and duty to fully activate your multidimensional mind. Yes, you may be misunderstood by some. But your suppleness, radical empathy and nonlinear genius will be exactly what’s needed. Be the one who sees escape routes and paths to freedom that no one else perceives. Make the impossible look natural.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Dear Pisces, it’s like you’re in one of those dreams when you’re exploring the attic or basement of your home and discover secret rooms you didn’t realize existed. This is good! It means you are finding uncharted frontiers in what you assumed was familiar territory. It suggests you are ready to see truths you weren’t ready for before. Congrats! Keep wandering and wondering, and you will discover what you didn’t even know you needed to know.
classifieds
Deadline for Telegraph classified ads is Tuesday at noon.
Ads are a bargain at 10 cents a character with a $5 minimum
Even better, ads can now be placed online: durangotelegraph.com Prepayment is required via cash, credit card or check. (Sorry, no refunds or substitutions.)
Ads can be submitted via: n classifieds@durango telegraph.com n 970-259-0133
Announcements
Notice of Public Sale
to enforce self-service storage facility lien Publication Dates: 10/2/25 & 10/16/25. “Personal Property,” stored at Unit E09 of The Animas Mini Storage at 20995 Highway 160, Durango, CO, 81301, described as: vinyl LPs, baby grand piano, upright piano, boxes of misc., which are stored under a Rental Agreement between The Animas Mini Storage and Mike Silvester, will be sold to the highest cash bidder unless all rents and fees are paid in full prior to the auction. Date and time of Sale: October 17, 2025, at 9:30 AM Terms of Sale: CASH Place of Sale: The Animas Mini Storage, 20995 Highway 160, Durango, CO. All bidders must present a valid state-issued picture ID to place bids
ForRent
Furnished Corner Office for Rent
360 sq feet, perfect for therapist, bodyworker, etc. with free parking @1911 Main Ave. Available part time now: $225/month, Full time starting 11/21/25—5/5/26: $375/month, includes utilities. Text Russ (970) 375-7777.
Book Your October Beach Vacation
today! Rent our 2 BR, 2.5 bath, top floor, sea view apartment in Curacao, a tropical island near Aruba. https://vacationrentalbluebay.com/ For more information text Russ@ (970) 375-7777
Professional Office Downtown near Main Ave, sunlit patio with Buckley Park views. All utilities included. Lease terms negotiable. 970.247.1233
Lost/Found
Help Cid Come Home
Last seen in Durango, July 21, 2024, by St. Columba Church. He is chipped, missing left canine tooth, white, big black spots, green eyes. Reward $2000. 970-403-6192.
Classes/Workshops
Yoga Teacher Training & Immersion
Begins October 24. Anu Yoga School · 100–300 hours · YA certified in our 8th year – A path to embodied joy, creatively alive, lineage-rooted anuyogaschool.com
All Levels Yoga
Thursdays 10am, Smiley Room 32. Props provided. Accessible class for continuing beginners who want to focus on functional movement and fundamental actions within standing, seated, twisting, forward and backward bending postures. www.k-lea.com (303) 819-9076
West Coast Swing
Ready to dance? Join our 3-week West Coast Swing Basics series for beginners! It’s fun, social, and easy to learn—no partner or experience needed. A new series starts every few weeks, so join us for the next one! We also offer a weekly social dance – a fun drop-in option or included with your series registration! Sign up at: www.westslopewesties.com
ForSale
Reruns Home Furnishings
Patio sets, bistros and yard art. Also looking to consign smaller furniture pieces. 572 E. 6th Ave. Open Mon.-Sat.
Wanted
Books Wanted at White Rabbit
Donate/Trade/Sell 970 259-2213
BodyWork
Massage by Meg Bush LMT, 30, 60 & 90 min., 970-759-0199.
Services
Boiler Service - Water Heater
Serving Durango over 30 years. Brad, 970-759-2869. Master Plbg Lic #179917
Can we please agree that there’s no need for any more showgirl movies?
– Lainie Maxson
Chapman Electric
Specializing in remodels, repairs, and additions both big and small. Local and reliable. Colorado Licensed Master Electrician. Mike 970-403-6670
CommunityService
The Durango Area Association of Realtors is accepting grant funding requests from local nonprofit organizations. Qualifying organizations must be in La Plata or San Juan County, Colo. Preference will be given to housing and family support organizations. Deadline for submission is Oct. 20. For information, call 970-247-9604.
The Good Food Collective is on a mission to pick apples for the Apple Days Festival on Oct. 11. Come shake trees and bring your friends! For dates, info. or to sign up, go to: www.goodfoodcollective .org/apple-days
by thousands of discerning eyeballs every week. (*And a few that just look at the pictures.)
