Tucson Weekly Feb 03, 2022

CURRENTS: NEW BILL WOULD REQUIRE TEACHERS TO OUT LGBTQ STUDENTS TO PARENTS

FEBRUARY 3 - 9, 2022 • TUCSONWEEKLY.COM • FREE

BEARING DOWN AND BUILDING UP The Quick Rise of UA Women’s Basketball Under Coach Adia Barnes

By Jake Dean TUCSON SALVAGE: Homeless on the Streets of Tucson

TUCSON WEEDLY: Free Weed Prisoners Now!

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FEBRUARY 3, 2022

FEBRUARY 3, 2022 | VOL. 37, NO. 5

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STAFF

CONTENTS

SONORAN EXPLORIN’

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Liquidation Pros, Inc. offers steeply discounted furniture from high-end hotels and resorts

TUCSON SALVAGE

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Jeremy, portrait in cardboard and marker

FEATURE

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The quick rise of UA women’s basketball under coach Adia Barnes

MUSIC

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EDITOR’S NOTE

Capitol Crimes

THE ARIZONA LEGISLATURE IS LESS than a month into the 2022 session, but we’re already seeing plenty of terrible bills making their way through the process. In this week’s Currents section, we bring you an Arizona Mirror report about a bill that would require teachers to out LGBTQ kids to their parents.

We wish we lived in a world where kids didn’t have to keep secrets about their sexuality from their family, but while things are much better for LGBTQ community than they were even a generation ago, many kids still fear how their parents will react. They should be afforded some measure of privacy, be allowed to trust their teachers and not live in fear of being ratted out.

That’s just one of many bad bills under consideration. There’s a ban on even talking about gays and lesbians, along with other deranged education bills; there are disturbing election bills that would allow lawmakers to override election results, end mail-in ballots and press criminal charges against election workers who make clerical errors; and much more.

Two great ways to follow what’s happening up there: The aforementioned Arizona Mirror, a nonprofit online news agency; and the Arizona Agenda, a Substack project by occasional TW contributor Hank Stephenson and Rachel Leingang. Both are worthy of your attention and, if you have some bucks to spare, your support. Keeping an eye on our lawmakers’

ADMINISTRATION Steve T. Strickbine, Publisher Michael Hiatt, Vice President Jaime Hood, General Manager, jaime@tucsonlocalmedia.com Tyler Vondrak, Associate Publisher, tyler@tucsonlocalmedia.com

shenanigans is vital, especially these days.

On a lighter note, it’s just a joy to watch the UA women’s basketball team at work. Under Coach Adia Barnes, this is a team of champions; as of press time, the squad’s record was 15-3 and a post-season berth seems likely.

Jake Dean tells you why you should starting rooting for them now, if you aren’t already, in this week’s cover story.

Elsewhere in the issue: We welcome Tucson Salvage columnist Brian Smith back as he catches up with one of Tucson’s many homeless residents; Sonoran Explorin’ columnist Emily Dieckman finds out where you can find old hotel furniture if you’re looking to feel like you’re staying at the Hilton; UA School of Journalism intern Allison Fagan introduces you to folk singer Ellanora Dellerba, who has just released a new album; XOXO columnist Xavier Omar Otero tells you where to rock this week; staff reporter Alexandra Pere looks at efforts to support people who are behind bars for marijuana arrests; and there’s more scattered throughout the book, so turn the page and get busy.

Jim Nintzel Executive Editor Hear Nintz talk about things to do in our burg at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday mornings during the world-famous Frank Show on KLPX, 96.1 FM.

RANDOM SHOTS By Rand Carlson

Ellanora Dellerba traverses the music industry and youth on debut album

Claudine Sowards, Accounting, claudine@tucsonlocalmedia.com Sheryl Kocher, Receptionist, sheryl@tucsonlocalmedia.com EDITORIAL Jim Nintzel, Executive Editor, jimn@tucsonlocalmedia.com Jeff Gardner, Managing Editor, jeff@tucsonlocalmedia.com Alexandra Pere, Staff Reporter, apere@timespublications.com Nicole Feltman, Staff Reporter, nfeltman@timespublications.com Contributors: David Abbott, Rob Brezsny, Max Cannon, Rand Carlson, Tom Danehy, Emily Dieckman, Bob Grimm, Andy Mosier, Linda Ray, Margaret Regan, Will Shortz, Jen Sorensen, Clay Jones, Dan Savage PRODUCTION Courtney Oldham, Production Manager, tucsonproduction@timespublications.com Ryan Dyson, Graphic Designer, ryand@tucsonlocalmedia.com Emily Filener, Graphic Designer, emilyf@tucsonlocalmedia.com CIRCULATION Alex Carrasco, Circulation, alexc@tucsonlocalmedia.com ADVERTISING TLMSales@TucsonLocalMedia.com Gary Tackett, Account Executive, gtackett@tucsonlocalmedia.com Kristin Chester, Account Executive, kristin@tucsonlocalmedia.com Candace Murray, Account Executive, candace@tucsonlocalmedia.com NATIONAL ADVERTISING Zac Reynolds Director of National Advertising Zac@TimesPublications.com Tucson Weekly® is published every Thursday by Times Media Group at 7225 N. Mona Lisa Rd., Ste. 125, Tucson, Arizona. Address all editorial, business and production correspondence to: Tucson Weekly, 7225 N. Mona Lisa Rd., Ste. 125, Tucson, Arizona 85741. Phone: (520) 797-4384, FAX (520) 575-8891. Member of the Association of Alternative Newsmedia (AAN). The Tucson Weekly® and Best of Tucson® are registered trademarks of Times Media Group. Publisher has the right to refuse any advertisement at his or her discretion.

TUCSON WEEDLY

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Cheba Hut donates to effort dedicated to freeing prisoners of the War on Drugs

Cover image by Mike Mattina / Arizona Athletics

Copyright: The entire contents of Tucson Weekly are Copyright Times Media Group No portion may be reproduced in whole or part by any means without the express written permission of the Publisher, Tucson Weekly, 7225 N. Mona Lisa Rd., Ste. 125, Tucson, AZ 85741.

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SONORAN EXPLORIN’

THE FURNITURE OF YOUR (FEVER) DREAMS Liquidation Pros, Inc. offers steeply discounted furniture from high-end hotels and resorts for bargain-hunting businesses and individuals

interest was piqued. It had never occurred to me that I—a private individual! Regular ol’ me!—could buy furniture sourced from hotels and high-end resorts.

THE USED ALARM CLOCK IS Owner Crystal Murillo-Magallanes says blinking 9:10 p.m., but it’s really 10:42 on a the business has a broad customer base. It Saturday morning, and we’re at Liquidaruns the gamut between small businesses, tion Pros, Inc. Airbnbs and VRBOs that need to stock up I saw an ad for this business on Faceon furniture, and students or snowbirds book that made me feel like I was in a who need cheap, durable furniture for hotel during remodeling, or some other themselves. time when I’m not supposed to be there.

Murillo-Magallanes got into the biz in (I would say “in a hotel after hours,” but late 2017. She met someone who’d been that’s pretty much the prime time to be running a similar business for decades in a hotel.) This photo—multiple sets of tables and chairs from a hotel dining nook and thought it sounded interesting, but stacked atop each other—had me sold on what gave her the final push to do it was someone telling her she couldn’t. paying the place a visit.

“It lit a fire under my butt,” she says.

I can’t put my finger on how this furniIt turned out to be lucrative. Murillo-Mature immediately took me back to every gallanes walks me through the items in self-serve waffle and glass of juice I’ve a typical hotel room: bed set, nightstand, ever had at a continental breakfast. Was it the paleness of the wood? The unstain- dresser, mini fridge, TV, desk, desk chair, lamps, mirrors, artwork, armchair, coffee able upholstery on the chairs? But my

By Emily Dieckman tucsoneditor@tucsonlocalmedia.com

SORENSEN

PHOTO BY EMILY DIECKMAN

tables. The desks and desk chairs, she says, were always the last thing in the inventory to go. Until the pandemic, that is.

“When 2020 hit, we stayed open as a necessity, because everyone was working from home, and I was trying everywhere to find more tables and chairs,” she says.

Desks for both kids and adults were getting snatched up as quickly as they came in, and table lamps were flying off the shelves. The same was true for 32-inch TVs that, while small for watching TV, made nice, spacious monitors for people building work-from-home setups on a budget. One person’s bust, as they say, is another person’s boom.

Picture all of the furniture and furnishings of a hotel room, and then multiply each item by 10, by 20, by 100. We all know when we stay in a standard hotel room that our room isn’t one of a kind, but seeing objects grouped this way—like with like, rather than into by-room clusters—is wonderfully eerie. Sometimes, hotel furniture is unmistakably hotel furniture. There’s that polyester fabric on the couches, or those continental breakfast chairs and tables that first caught my eye.

There’s this one painting of four colorful quail walking in a row that I see dozens of throughout different rooms in the warehouse. It’s hard to imagine it anywhere other than here, or on the wall of a hotel or a dentist’s office.

But some of it, I’m realizing as I look at it in this strange and contextless place, could work well in a home. There are a few art-deco style chairs that I think would

be a classy touch to a den, and a lamp shaped like a birdhouse that I can picture in my grandmother’s spare room. A large framed black and white nature print which, if it’s not an Ansel Adams, might as well be, is only $5.

It has some of the delight you might get from walking through a flea market or yard sale, like when I find a decorative brass avocado, or an enormous bin of fancy hangers. But it’s also got the unmatched thrill of practicality, sort of like going to an IKEA. A granite-topped entertainment center/cabinet for under $200?

A sturdy lamp, bulb included, for just $15?

Near irresistible.

Liquidation Pros gets new inventory in at least twice a month, sometimes more often. Murillo-Magallanes and her team often don’t know exactly what’s in a load until the last minute. Sometimes it’s a standard set of hotel room furniture. Once, it included a near-life-size portrait of an Arizona socialite. Other times it’s a new piece of furniture for the house where Murillo-Magallanes lives with her husband and three kids—when they aren’t holding down the fort at the store.

“Sometimes it’s like, ‘Dang, I didn’t know we were going to get those coffee tables. Can we switch them out with the ones we just moved?’” she says. “It’s like Christmas when we get another truck in.” ■ Liquidation Pros, Inc. is located at 214 W. Grant Road.

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

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would ban any books that have “sexually explicit” content and that critics say would effectively make it illegal to teach about homosexuality.

Supporters of the bill said it was necessary to punish teachers in order to bring GOP bill would force teachers to tell parents about LGBTQ students transparency to schools, who they said have been asking “inappropriate questions.” Some said the $500 fine for school districts in the bill’s language was not large enough, a thought echoed by Rep. said, adding that he felt there was some

By Jerod MacDonald-Evoy John Fillmore, R-Apache Junction, who Arizona Mirror merit to schools surveying students. said that was a “drop in the bucket” for “This bill could’ve been done without this a school district and asked Kaiser if he’d inclusion or without the trivialization of agree to increase the amount.

ARIZONA REPUBLICANS LAST WEEK transgender children.”

Jeanne Casteen, the executive director lined up behind a measure that would Kaiser initially said the bill was creof the Arizona Secular Coalition and a fordiscipline teachers and open them up to ated via a “stakeholder group” and his mer teacher, worried about how the reportlawsuits if they don’t tell parents every“own inherent passion” for the issue. But ing function of the bill would impact child thing a student tells them—even if the when Hernandez pressed him on which abuse. Teachers are mandatory reporters, student confides that he or she is gay or stakeholders were involved in drafting the and Casteen said that every time she had transgender. bill, Kaiser admitted he didn’t work with to report child abuse, it was being inflicted The legislation, House Bill 2161, would education groups or teachers, but with anmake it illegal for a government employee ti-LGBTQ advocacy groups—chief among by a parent. Under Kaiser’s bill, she said, a teacher would also have to notify the to withhold information that is “relevant them the Center for Arizona Policy, a conparents—the likely abusers—that the child to the physical, emotional or mental servative Christian lobbying organization informed them of the abuse. health of the parent’s child,” and specifithat has pushed numerous controversial “I keep hearing about parental rights, cally prevents teachers from withholding and bigoted bills since forming in 1995. but what about the rights of these information about a student’s “purported CAP holds sway with most Republican students?”

Casteen said. gender identity” or a request to transition lawmakers and Gov. Doug Ducey, and is to a gender other than the “student’s widely considered one of the most powerbiological sex.” ful lobbying groups at the state Capitol.

The bill would allow parents to sue “I know you have a long-standing school districts if teachers don’t comply. (dislike) of that organization. I understand Rep. Steve Kaiser, R-Phoenix, the bill’s where the bait was in that question,” sponsor, argued in the House Education Kaiser told Hernandez, who is gay. “I’m Committee on Jan. 25 that the aim of the not sure what education group I’d go to, legislation is to reign in surveys sent out because they’d be against this.” by schools that have made headlines in a Another stakeholder that Kaiser number of states and locally. The bill also consulted is Family Watch International, aims to allow parents additional access to which the Southern Poverty Law Center certain medical records. has designated an anti-LGBTQ hate “I still feel this bill is not ready for prime group. That group also has its fingertime,” Rep. Daniel Hernandez, D-Tucson, prints on another piece of legislation that

CURRENTS

FORCED OUT

One of the speakers for the other side was Nicole Eidson with a parent group called “Moms for Liberty” known for frequenting Chandler Unified School District meetings and complaining about alleged racism education and training.

“I’ve been hearing a lot about that kids have rights, but in my household, I gotta say, it is a dictatorship,” Eidson said, adding that schools have “no right” to put forward what is “right” for her to do in her household.

Although the bill cleared the committee along party-lines with Republican support, Rep. Joel John, R-Arlington, acknowledged there may be situations where a student may be more comfortable confiding with their teacher than with a parent.

John said that Kaiser will need to seek changes to the bill, specifically the issues relating to outing students, if he wants his continued support. ■ This article originally appeared on Arizona Mirror, a non-profit news agency.

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Story & photos by Brian Smith

Jeremy, portrait in cardboard and marker I WAS LOOKING FOR THE WOMAN in the wheelchair and who plays the ukulele. Amputated legs, a Mary of Guadalupe crest on her bag, wedding band. Flies a sign that reads: “Husband died, need money for mobile home.” She lives out here somewhere. Her friend too, the one who busts out songs on acoustic guitar, all Woody Guthrie on street medians, hustling coin from cars in turn lanes. I spotted him at Swan Road and Speedway and by the time I got the car around and in the Circle K parking lot he was gone. They were gone. The affable guy with a reddish Rasputin beard and heavy gold loop earrings behind the K counter said he sees him too, “He’s homeless, comes and goes.”

Went looking the next day but it was rainy out, late-January chill, no sign flyers on the streets.

The following day, Sunday before noon, Church day, and you’d think givers might be out, but not really, so says this other guy, Jeremy Kimble. He’s got a guitar too, a three-quarter length purple thing you can’t hear over street squall.

First, I parked at Just Right Mattress and watched Jeremy for a good 20 minutes, figured some base morality divided me from him, and felt ashamed for thinking that. How easily that could’ve been me. Resignation and sadness, all there.

He is crouched atop his backpack in the thin tip of the median, the turn lane onto Speedway from northbound Craycroft Road, three-quarter guitar on his thighs, a thick radiator hose, and a cardboard placard with the scrawled words, “Hard Times, Anything Will Help.”

I walk across the busy street to the median and Jeremy offers a fist-bump.

Even on the skids, he is polite, in that way associated with dollar-store clerks and jewelry polishers, in that way which leaves you incapable of noticing any social pretense, the barker hustle of the panhandle notwithstanding.

I nod at the corner Circle K and ask if he could use something to eat. He collects his pack, that radiator hose and his ill-fitting mountain bike with the flat rear tire

that’s been leaning against a pole across the street, and we move to the Circle K. Says he’s tired, sleeps wherever in a sleeping bag that’s stashed nearby. “It gets fucking cold at night.”

We are in line at the K and I’m buying him a pack of Lucky Strikes, a multi-grain muffin and large coffee, what he calls it a humble survival kit, or something. He keeps an eye on his bike leaning against the store’s front window.

Jeremy stands a good three inches shorter than my 5’ 11,” is 40 years old. He looks older, that perceptible coagulate of street torment and a wall-less world where a musty sleeping bag guards against dark. Deepening facial crevices and sinking cheeks, hair short and splotchy. He’s somehow backdated, like a tough Harry Crews character able to hold his own in a drunken brawl with the local sheriff. His smoky blue eyes show tiny sparks of youth and optimism, something gentle, and I imagine they got him into better places in life.

He’s talking COVID (“I don’t worry out here. I’m vaxxed”) and prison.

“Yeah, Bushy Mountain Penitentiary, 155 years old, almost as old as Alcatraz,” he says. “On top of a mountain, a pink castle in the shape of a cross, beautiful landscaping, beautiful building—not so beautiful when you are inside looking at walls.” The prison is now a museum, he points out, turned tourist just after he was released.

He did time for robberies. “I was on the streets. One time I didn’t like the people who worked at this little store so I broke in and took their money. Went to prison.

Never do that shit again.”

We step out and hang in front of the Circle K, and he says, “We gotta move, they’ll kick us outta here.”

He collects his bike and continues the thought as we walk. “They all discriminate against homeless around here, everyone.

People are programmed to do the same thing, like being in prison.” Nice cars, peopled with well-dressed folk pass, Sunday churchgoers with salon hair.

Jeremy stoops to collect a shimmer in

the gravel, a road-squashed Mp3 player.

He plays with it a moment and tosses it back. “Ah, it doesn’t work. Too good to be true.” A simple thing would go lengths, some music, any music, or talk.

Some guy on a bike rolls up to us on the sidewalk and stops. Grave face, ’70’s stoner hair, push-tit hustle. He’s got shit to trade. Trade for what? It’s unclear. Jeremy doesn’t have anything, and anyway he ain’t interested. We keep moving. We cross the street and sit at a concrete table in front of Subway fast-food.

An outdoor speaker plays “Rocket Man” softly in the background, and Jeremy sings along and wolfs the muffin down in two gulps.

He points to a dark figure across the street, cattycorner from us in front of Walgreen’s. A sad stoop and shopping-cart effects. It’s a corner scene ubiquitous now in this town, so discounted as to become invisible.

“That’s Pops, that’s what I call him,” Jeremy says. “He’s probably in his 70s, legally blind. All he can see is blur, almost got hit by a car the other day. I’m kind of his caretaker, not legally, just helping out. He’s stubborn tho, man. Just like my grandfather. I gotta keep an eye on him.

He’ll go wherever, get into trouble.”

I ask about his life. He offers the faintest suggestion of a smile, signaling more disbelief than pleasure. He lights a smoke and works the coffee. I can sense the buzz of his mind, some isolated place he disappears to in recollection.

“Never met my dad,” he offers. “He was supposedly a biker, last I heard he was in Gary, Indiana, but I was born in Oakland,

California. I have other siblings, don’t know where they’re at. Haven’t seen my mom in years, don’t know if she’s even alive. I was living with her in a trailer in Rogersville, Tennessee but haven’t seen or heard from her in 12 years. That’s the Bible-belt, man, and the town had a post office, a store and five churches.

He continues. “Man, my mom had my baby sister murdered. That’s very true.

She was on the street and didn’t want to raise a child. She was biker trash, a ‘scooter tramp,’ they’d call her. A drug addict, would do any damn drug there was.

“And Grandpa hated my guts, I burned down his barn when I was a boy, it was an accident. He knows how to hold a grudge.

My grandma, she was a bad smoker, don’t know if she’s still alive. She was on oxygen last I saw her.” He pauses, “She was the only family I ever cared for.”

The action on his guitar is too high, and the thing won’t tune, he tries and gives up. He hands it to me across the table and I manage to get it about playable. I hand it back. He strums, sings, begins a song that sounds at first like some country ode but is really Poison’s “Every Rose Has Its Thorn.” In his grip the mixed-metaphor sap-fest takes on a peculiar sadness and depth, the Dumpster-won guitar, his bag at his feet, the broken bike, the stashed sleeping bag, the lost childhood. He finishes and says, proudly, “One of the first songs I ever learned how to play.”

“You write songs,” I say.

“One, about a wedding that went bad.”

“Ever been married?”

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“No,” he says. “No kids either. I’ve seen the bad things go worse. I like to get laid, sure, but that love stuff ain’t for me.”

He never really had a home. Grew up in and out of foster homes, group homes, where “they tossed me all over.” He lived everywhere mom went, mostly, Oklahoma, Oregon, Colorado, Tennessee, California, Ohio and more. “Mom did have partial custody,” he says. “She once kidnapped me from one group home. We got on a bus and went to Oregon.”

Talks of a time at the old Arizona Boys Ranch (now Canyon State Academy), the campus north of Tucson storied for inhumane treatment of boys, including deaths, run paramilitary style. There, at 13 or 14, Jeremy got all the kids out and torched it.

“Me and a friend Earl, we burned it, on purpose, it was very abusive, sexually abusive, the whole thing.”

He worked years in tobacco fields in the South. “It was dangerous as fuck. You have a row of tobacco in the field and then you got a line of people to go through that row, you take a Bowie knife and chop the stick and you hand it to the guy behind you and he has a stick with a spear on it and spears the tobacco, and so on. Farmers paid under-the-table, not that well, and people got hurt all the time.”

He supported himself building fences, painting houses and other things. “I do portraits now, too. Started when I was in prison, so I had years of practice. I draw people. That’s what I did in prison to make my money. Goddamn sure I wasn’t sucking dick, and I didn’t have nobody sending me money so I had to learn to hustle, and that was my hustle. People wanted pictures to send home to family and shit. I’d make cards and portraits, sometimes they have pictures of their family and I’d draw them and they’d send it back to their family.

That’s how I made my commissary money.

“I need supplies and paints,” he continues. “That and a sketch pad. I just been finding cardboard out of Dumpsters and drawing on that with markers, no good. I tried to boost a sketch pad the other day from Dollar General. They have good ones, and quite a good selection of art supplies considering they’re a dollar store.”

I wonder aloud, did he ever dream of things. Does he still?

“I used to. I get so depressed and tired of the shit. So I still do G [meth], to get out of it. I try not to. I guess it’s good it’s not around anymore. It’s all bad blue pills out here, now, fentanyl, I guess.” I try to envision sleepless days and nights on the

streets fried up on meth.

Jeremey recounts the miseries of a street existence with a blank expression, like he’s reciting boring transcriptions of bad dreams—flat monologues, indifferent—his only compensation is this: “people leave me alone.” Adds, “Most guys out here are pussies, like to beat on women and shit.”

Jeremy journeyed to Tucson for a woman, hitchhiked a few years ago from the South. (“It’s a bitch, no one picks you up”) The woman kicked him to the curb, knowing he had nowhere to go. Back on the streets.

After a long while Jeremy steps over his bike, flips it over, quick releases the back wheel. He produces that weathered radiator hose. He rifles through his backpack until he finds a pair of pliers. Things fall out, street life vestiges, hints of self-care and perseverance: a tooth brush, a steak knife, Jergens Ultra-Healing lotion, Old Spice deodorant, a flashlight.

“This bike belongs to a lady friend,” he says, squatting down, wrestling with the rear wheel. “She’s in a wheelchair now but knows it helps me get around and make money.” He pries the tire off.

Of course, everything gets stolen. “Ain’t gonna happen,” he says of the bike. “I sleep on the damn thing.”

He wrestles with the radiator hose and finally gets it over the rim of the wheel and inside the tire. He stretches the tire into the lip of the rim and inserts the wheel back onto the bike, adjusts the derailleur and chain, and it’s fixed. He flips the bike over.

I marvel at the ingenuity.

“Might have a bump in it,” he says with some pride. “Where the hose doesn’t quite meet inside the tire, but that’s alright.”

He looks toward the Walgreen’s corner for Pops, discovers he’d managed to cross the road for Circle K. The way street survivors’ cross streets with intrepid expertise, hyper darts around obstacles, cars and lights. Pops must be a bat, guided aurally, even with a bone ailment corrupting his gait. Jeremy shakes his head. “He knows better than to walk over there alone. Man, he’s stubborn.”

Then hops on the 12-speed and peddles, his knees rise too high to accommodate the small size. Heavy coat, big backpack, little guitar, the slight bump in the rear wheel. Maybe in the direction of Pops, but, really, who knows? Where do you go when a hunger in dreams no longer plays out?

Later, there was little through records to verify much of what Jeremy said, but on that day, in that moment, I believed him.

No reason to make this shit up, he told me.

And less reason to slip down into self-delusion. ■

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BEARING BEARING DOWN DOWN AND AND BUILDING BUILDING UP UP

The Quick Rise of UA Women’s Basketball Under Coach Adia Barnes PHOTO BY MIKE MATTINA / ARIZONA ATHLETICS

By Jake Dean tucsoneditor@tucsonlocalmedia.com BEFORE LAST SEASON, the University of Arizona Wildcats’ women’s basketball team had not made the NCAA tournament since before the iPhone had been released. George W. Bush was still president and Twitter was nothing more than the sound a bird makes. Following their Round of 32 loss to Louisiana State in 2005 until the time head coach Adia Barnes arrived for the 2016-2017 campaign, the team had put together just one winning season.

While the world changed around it, the Wildcats struggled to change the fortunes of their program. However, all droughts eventually come to an end. And last year, the 16-year absence of NCAA tournament berths came crashing down for the Wildcats.

In fact, Barnes and her squad did not just end the drought. Like a summer monsoon in Tucson, they drowned the remnants of it away in the desert sand with the roaring excitement of thunder.

In their return to the postseason, the team made an unprecedented run to the NCAA Division I Final Four in San Antonio with marquee wins over several top-tier opponents. As the third seed in the Mercado Regional, they resoundingly beat Texas A&M

and Indiana in the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight respectively to punch their ticket to the team’s first ever Final Four appearance.

Their opponent? A legendary women’s basketball program ranked number one in the nation, led by head coach Geno Auriemma, and featuring one of college hoops’ biggest stars in Paige Bueckers: the University of Connecticutt Huskies. Sure, the line favored the Huskies by 14 points. And sure, UConn was appearing in their record 13th consecutive Final Four to the Wildcats’ one.

However, you could not tell any of that when the ball was tipped.

Behind 26 points from Aari McDonald (who would go on to be the third pick in the 2021 WNBA draft), the Wildcats dispatched the Huskies by a 10-point margin to reach their first-ever national championship game.

To make the win that much more impressive for the pre-game underdogs, Arizona never even let Huskies lead.

For a program on the rise, it was a boisterous statement on the national stage. And while the team would later fall agonizingly short of a title—losing by just one point to conference foe Stanford after Aari McDonald’s last second heave bounced off the rim— the Wildcats let everybody know they are a force to be reckoned with. They also put the Pac-12 on notice: there is a new dog in the

fight for women’s hoop out West.

Wildcat fans certainly reveled in the blistering rise of the team, and they should continue to rejoice because this program is just getting started. While a loss to second-ranked Stanford last Sunday, Jan. 30, stings for the team, Tucson should not lose hope.

As head coach Adia Barnes noted after the UConn game last season, “We believed.

Our team believed. We were going to Bear Down and fight.” That is an apt description for a team that has played with that competitive mentality ever since Barnes’ arrival in Tucson.

Of course, Barnes is no stranger to success in Tucson. A former Wildcat player herself, she led the team in scoring across four consecutive seasons from 1995 to 1998 and still holds the program record for alltime scoring. Prior to McDonald winning the accolade last season, Barnes was the last Wildcat to earn Conference Player of the Year honors. Not to mention that the team had only seen one Sweet 16 appearance prior to last year: when Barnes scored 30 points to triumph against Virginia in the 1998 March classic.

Her college success translated to a long-lived professional career spanning more than a decade with teams including

the Minnesota Lynx and Seattle Storm of the WNBA and EuroLeague giant UMMC Ekaterinburg in Russia. After her playing career, it did not take long for her to return to the basketball spotlight. She began her coaching career as an assistant coach at the University of Washington, and then was announced as the new University of Arizona head coach in 2016.

The Wildcats previous coach, Niya Butts, struggled to gain much momentum during her tenure from 2008 to 2016. Butts finished with a 102-147 record overall, and just a .236 winning percentage in Pac-12 play. While Butts managed one winning season in 20102011, her Wildcats quickly lost in the first round of the Women’s National Invitational Tournament.

However, it seems Barnes has picked up her Arizona coaching career where her playing career ended at McKale: in elite fashion. While her first two seasons in Tucson resulted in losing seasons, that can hardly be blamed on her. Converting a program struggling in the bottom of the conference to a top-tier competitor does not happen overnight. What is for certain is that the program has quickly turned around, and Barnes deserves significant credit.

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BEARING DOWN AND BUILDING UP CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

During the 2018-2019 season the Wildcats posted a respectable 24-13 record overall, before making a postseason run that ended with a Women’s National Invitation Tournament championship. The Wildcats continued to improve as they finished with a 24-7 record in the 2019-2020 season, along with a 12-6 record in one of the toughest conferences across collegiate women’s basketball. While the postseason would be canceled due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, a winning culture had already emerged.

Maybe it was culture that had been missing those 16 sufferable years without a playoff performance. Between Barnes and newfound form on the court, the recruiting success of the program skyrocketed. First, Barnes pulled in the commitment of Sam Thomas in 2017—a four-star forward who chose the program over scholarship offers from Michigan, Northwestern and UNLV. The next year, the Wildcats landed 2018 top-15 recruit Cate Reese. Two years later?

Five-star recruit Lauren Ware.

It is impossible to overstate the signif-

icance of signing Reese and Ware; they gave coach Barnes the then two highest commits in program history in just a few short years.

It is obvious that a coach alone can not change a team’s trajectory. While they can diagram plays and push hoopers in practice, talent is a key ingredient for any athletic endeavor.

It also helped that the new recruits were ready to build a program. Reese said in 2018 that “Whenever I first came here, Adia said no one’s broken her records yet and that I would be the person to do that. I do have the potential if I work really hard, so I’m just really excited and it really is motivation to push yourself to do better.”

The top-notch recruiting and coaching has clearly paid off, especially with the magical run just a season ago. The Wildcats finished with a 21-6 overall record and placed second in the Pac-12 regular season standings. Plus, they beat their tournament opponents prior to the championship game by a combined score of 340-261.

With that championship appearance under their belt, the Wildcats added yet

another tool for their recruiting toolbox.

In fact, the incoming group of women are the best in the school’s history. Arizona’s Class of 2022 recruits include two McDonald’s All-Americans in guard Paris Clark and Top 10 forward Maya Nnaji.

Clark and Nnaji are also joined by Kailyn Gilbert, a four-star point guard ranked 31st in the nation by ESPN’s HoopGurlz recruiting rankings, and four-star guard Lemyah Hylton.

Barnes has gushed about the incoming class. She noted that Nnaji “is the total package…very versatile and can play a lot of positions and is just a beast on the court.” As for Gilbert? Barnes described her as “a dog…She can play the point or the off guard position, she can shoot the ball, she’s smart and she’s a great passer.”

Finally, Barnes complimented Canadian U19 player Hylton as a perfect fit for the program: “She’s a long, athletic slasher who can shoot the three so I think she fits in our system very well.” And there is no doubt Barnes was excited to reverse Clark’s verbal commitment to fellow Pac12 team UCLA in December.

So, while the program will miss seniors including leading scorer and rebound-

er Cate Reese, dynamic guard Shaina Pellington, fellow starter Bendu Yeaney, blocks leader Sam Thomas, and Alabama transfer Ariyah Copeland, the team is in good hands with a mix of existing and incoming talent. Assists and steals leader Helena Pueyo is a junior and Lauren Ware is just a sophomore. Both could prove to be great leaders for the Wildcats next season.

Back on the hardwood this season, the Wildcats have been hooping at the highest level. Despite starting the season ranked only number 22 in the country according to the AP, the Wildcats quickly proved they deserved more respect. In their second game of the season, they took on sixth-ranked Louisville and won an overtime thriller behind Reese’s 21 points and Ware’s 10 rebounds. Then the team went on to win their first 11 games, including a three-game run of dominance in the Paradise Jam tournament behind Jam most valuable player Reese.

In recent Pac-12 play, the Wildcats have been maintaining their intensity despite a few road bumps. On Jan. 23, the team battled back from a double-digit deficit in the first half against then Top 25

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

PHOTO BY MIKE MATTINA / ARIZONA ATHLETICS

Colorado Buffaloes for a blowout 75-56 victory. Shaina Pellington displayed every ounce of her athletic talent, scoring from all over the court—at the foul line, at the hoop, and from deep. Pellington went two for two from behind the arc and 10 for 13 overall for a game-leading 28 points.

Reese also contributed nine boards and a 23-point performance buoyed by an explosion in the second half on the offensive end. Arizona followed up that win with another double-digit victory, this time on the road at UCLA. Most recently, the Wildcats played Stanford in a rematch of the National Championship game from a year ago.

While Arizona tried to exact revenge for three of their six losses a season ago, their comeback attempt fell short in 6-point defeat.

Despite the loss, the Wildcats carry a 15-3 record into the final month of regular season play and currently sit in fourth place within the conference. They are still ranked inside the national Top 10, currently sitting at No. 8, according to the AP poll. Barring a total collapse, the team should be a serious competitor for the Pac-12 tournament title—not to mention a tough beat come NCAA tournament time in March amidst their quest for a second consecutive Final Four appearance.

Even Stanford knows that. After the game Sunday, Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer explained “That’s the kind of game that we’ve been playing with Tennessee and South Carolina. They’re a great team. We could be playing them again in the Pac-12 Tournament. We stay healthy, they get healthy, we’re both going to NCAA Tournament. We could be playing again.”

So, while Tucsonans flocked to McKale Center for the highly touted University of Arizona men’s basketball team’s game against the Arizona State Sun Devils last week, fans should be just as excited for the upcoming games at McKale for the women’s side over the next two weeks.

Honestly, they should also be excited for years to come in Tucson.

In short, this team deserves your support. If you want to bear down and catch some of the upcoming games, head to the McKale Center to help the Wildcats pack the house. The team plays Top 25 opponent Oregon this Friday at 8 p.m., with another Pac-12 battle against Oregon State at noon on Feb. 6. The week following, the Wildcats start a back-toback duel with bitter in-state rival Sun Devils. The first game will be on Friday, Feb. 11, in Tempe, before the second battle later that week at McKale on Feb. 13 with a noon gametime. ■

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Editor’s Note: While we are delighted to see Tucsonans once again gathering for fun events, we are also aware that variants are in widespread circulation.

Please consider getting vaccinated against COVID if you haven’t yet.

Tucson Art Walk. I’ve heard it said that Friday is pretty much the weekend, and Thursday evening is Friday Eve, so Thursday evening is more or less the weekend as well. And what better way to ease into the pseudo weekend than with a walk through an evening of art, live music and light refreshments? The Foothills Art District is holding this art walk on first Thursdays, featuring the Wilde Meyer Gallery, Jane Hamilton Fine Art, Sunset Interiors, Sanders Gallery, Settlers West Gallery and FoR Fine Art. Come on down and get your stroll on! 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 3.

Foothills Art District at Skyline and Campbell.

Riders on the Orphan Train. Do you know about the Orphan Train Movement? For 75 years before the start of organized foster care in the United States, these trains would relocate orphaned, abandoned or poor children from crowed Eastern citied to foster homes in the rural Midwest. It’s a fascinating chapter of American history, and this presentation at the Southern Arizona Transportation Museum is a chance to learn more about it. Novelist and humanities scholar Alison Moore presents this multimedia program, which also includes singer-songwriter Phil Lancaster. 6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 6.

Tucson Historic Depot, 414 N. Toole Ave. Free.

Spinosaurus: Lost Giant of the Cretaceous. The Spinosaurus is the largest predatory dinosaur yet discovered, with research estimating that it could be up to 52 feet long and weigh up to 7.5 metric tons. Bigger than a T. rex! In this presentation from National Geographic Live, Nat Geo’s touring speaker series, paleontologist Nizar Ibrahim will tell the story of how this prehistoric giant was almost lost to science during World War II, and of how Ibrahim himself helped uncover it

Sense of Place: Opening Reception at Philabaum Glass Gallery. The new exhibit at Southern Arizona’s only all-glass gallery features three exceptional and unique artists: Erika Parkin from Tucson, Richard Parrish from Bozeman, Montana, and Steffen Plistermann from Santa Fe, New Mexico. Parkin’s got an unmistakably Southwestern influence on much of her work. One area Parrish specializes in is really neat glasswork influenced by aerial photography. And Plistermann uses a technique of grinding colored glass down to a powder to achieve an array of textures. 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 5. Philabaum Glass Gallery, 711 S. Sixth Ave.

by Emily Dieckman Lauren Roth Plays Stravinsky. Tucson Symphony Orchestra conductor José Luis Gomez has high praise for violinist Lauren Roth: “There aren’t many concertmasters that are up to the challenge of the Stravinsky Violin Concerto! Working with our very own Lauren Roth will be one of the highlights of my year.” The challenging concerto is sandwiched between Chevalier de Saint-Georges’ Overture to The Anonymous Lover and Robert Schumann’s Symphony No. 1, “Spring.”

7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 5, and 2 p.m.

Sunday, Feb. 6, at Catalina Foothills High School, 4300 E. Sunrise Drive. $47 to $101.

Emergency. The next show in the Invisible Theatre’s 50th anniversary special programming is this play by Daniel Beaty, in which a slave ship emerges from the Hudson River in front of the Statue of Liberty, sending New York City into a tizzy. The show features acting by To-Ree-Nee Wolf, Richard Thompson and Myani Watson; original music by AmoChip Dabney and Rob Boone; and even masks and puppetry by Maryann Trombino and Lisa Sturz. WBUR Boston called it “an engrossing and empathetic look at the hearts and minds of Americans who have much more in common than they often think they do.” Runs Feb. 9-Feb. 20 at the Invisible Theatre, 1400 N. First Ave. $40, with discounts available for groups, seniors, active military and students.

again. 6:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 6. The Fox Theatre, 17 W. Congress St. $25 to $52.50 (see the Fox website for a special offer to get bundled tickets for this and two more upcoming NatGeo Live events).

My KIND of Happy Hour. Booze and crafts to support a good cause? Yes. In this evening hosted by Ben’s Bells, you can head over to Tap & Bottle North and personalize a special heart ornament. Give it to a partner, parent, friend or pup—or go ahead and keep it for yourself. You can design both sides of the heart ornament to your liking while you sip, and then send it off to the Ben’s Bells studio to be fired in the kiln. Swing by to pick it up later and use it to brighten someone’s day (even if that someone is you). 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 5. Tap & Bottle North, 7254 N. Oracle Road.

Tucson Metaphysics Fair. Are you interested in anything even remotely metaphysical? From tarot cards and astrology to gemstone divination, palmistry, dowsing and communicating with passed souls? This event will likely be up your alley. Meet all sorts of mediums, numerologists and psychics, while also checking out vendors selling jewelry, candles, essential oils and metaphysical supplies. This growing community holds this event the first and third Sunday of each month. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Sunday, Feb. 6. Spark Project Collective Events Center, 4349 E. Broadway Blvd.

February Santa Marana Farm Fair.

The Santa Marana Christmas Tree Ranch may not sell as many Christmas trees at this time of year, but they’re certainly not short on fun. This monthly market features vendors, food trucks, live music and even a petting zoo in a nice, open-air setting. This month, the live music is by Jay Faircloth, and there are two additions to the goat exhibit, named Prancer and Dancer. The event is free, parking is free and you can even bring friendly pets if you keep them on leashes. Nothing like getting out of the house on a Sunday morning. 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 6. Santa Marana Christmas Tree Ranch, 13645 W. Sagebrush Road. ■

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MUSIC

PHOTO COURTESY OF GLOBAL CHANGE MUSIC

DESERT DEBUT

Ellanora Dellerba traverses the music industry and her youth on debut album

By Allison Fagan tucsoneditor@tucsonlocalmedia.com SOUTHERN ARIZONA FOLK singer Ellanora Dellerba’s debut album is both a musical and personal journey more than eight years in the making.

Dellerba, 24, began writing Lost To A Coastline when she was only 15, and reflects the growth of the musician as well as life in the desert.

“It sums up all my heartaches and loves lost and lessons gained into one performance,” Dellerba said.

Being raised by musicians, Dellerba has lived and breathed music, from being involved in her father’s band to being a longtime performer at the Tucson Folk Festival and Tubac Festival of the Arts.

Because of her history, Dellerba has always loved music and been fascinated with how words can be used poetically to convey multiple meanings.

“These songs come out of struggle,” said TaliSeen JahRing, Dellerba’s assis-

tant producer and bandmate. “Music isn’t just playing your instrument, music is living your life and going through the struggles so that way when you get on that instrument or behind that microphone you can connect to who’s listening.”

The album combines rustic Americana instrumentals, Dellerba’s soulful vocals and bittersweet storytelling for a rich folk production.

“What she captures musically is there’s a simplicity in the words that can touch lots of people,” JahRing said.

“There’s a level of vulnerability. She doesn’t write music outside of herself, it is music written solely from within.”

Many of the songs are also imbued with natural sound, representing her connection to the Sonoran Desert.

“There’s something very adamant about the desert. It’s unwavering, unmoveable,” Dellerba said. “I feel like I’m a very absolute person and [the desert] is not very forgiving and that speaks to me.”

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By Xavier Omar Otero tucsoneditor@tucsonlocalmedia.com

This week: Camila, Jesse Cook, Agent Orange, Sullivan King, Gem & Jam Fest, Lauren Roth, Vampires Everywhere, y mucho mas.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS… THURSDAY, FEB. 3 Guitarist Jesse Cook grew up between France, Barcelona and Canada, so it’s no surprise his music merges worlds.

He’s come to love flamenco, world music, jazz, pop, Brazilian samba, and Persian music. His style is unique, a reflection of his many travels. He composed his first album, Tempest, in 1995. Part of the album’s initial buzz built up after the title track was looped for many months, by an Ontario cable TV operator, as background music for their channel listing, prompting viewers to call in and inquire. Recorded during the pandemic, Libre (2021), his latest release, was born of yearning for freedom. A drum machine — whose diverse sounds have come to define hip hop, reggaeton, pop, and trap — reinvigorated his imagination. Jesse Cook travels Beyond Borders. At Fox Tucson Theatre… In a tribute to the leading ladies of country music — Loretta Lynn, Shania Twain, Dolly

Parton, Reba McEntire, Trisha Yearwood, and more — Mamma Coal tells the stories of love, life, drinkin’, and hard-lessons-learned by these Queens of Country. At The Gaslight Music Hall (Oro Valley)… As a youth, in Cananea, Sonora, discontent with the socio-economic and political circumstances in his country this artist/ musician found a way to vent in art. “I sing my paintings and I paint my music.” With a guitar in hand, a harmonica around his neck and stomping box under foot, Mexican gypsy troubadour Salvador Duran serenades.

At Hotel Congress (plaza)... Followed by Blue Haven and Commoner. At Club Congress. With Mattsta Graham…

Obstinately crafting acoustic music for the sophisticated urban hillbilly, The Determined Luddites drag their hairy knuckles across washboards. At Tap & Bottle…

FRIDAY, FEB. 4 During a recording session, in 2005, Mexican producer Mario Domm met Samo (aka Samuel Parra Cruz), a classically trained opera singer moonlighting as a session vocalist. After the session wrapped, during a rehearsal accompanied by only a piano, the timbre of their distinct voices melding together in delicious harmony, they found kismet. Now, they needed a guitarist to bring their shared vision to light. The first to audition, Pablo Hurtado, was tapped on the spot and a new band was formed.

Before forming Camila, Domm had built a successful career producing and writing hits for Latin popstars: Alejandra Guzmán, Thalía, Sin Bandera, and others.

Based on Domm’s winning track record, Camila was signed to Sony/BMG without hesitation. Their ascent was meteoric. Camila’s airtight vocal harmonies, edgy guitars, and highly buffed and polished production style resonated with audiences in Latin America and the U.S. Todo Cambió (2006), their debut album, yielded six singles, was certified triple platinum in Mexico and hit No.1 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart. In effect, everything changed (todo cambió). Despite Samo’s departure (in 2013) to pursue a solo career, accolades and achievements aside, Domm and Hurtado continue to defend the romanticism of the power-pop ballad with Hacia Adentro (2019), their fourth LP. In keeping with their name—translated from Latin, loosely meaning “servant close to God”—Camila emanate Luz. At Rialto Theater…

STS9, Liquid Stranger, Claude VonStroke, Shpongle, Lotus, and Lab Group are the sparkling diamonds in a field of resplendent gemstones that cool and solidify to form a trippy and diverse lineup at Gem & Jam 2022.

Runs Feb. 4–6. At Pima County Fairgrounds… Over the course of his musical career, Homero Cerón has played drums, vibes, timpani and orchestral percussion with Tucson Symphony Orchestra, Tucson Pops, True Concorde and numerous touring shows. Accompanied by pianist Amilcar Guevara, bassist Mike Levy, and drummer Danny Brito, the Homero Cerón Latin Jazz Quartet perform originals and classics. At Hotel Congress (The

Century Room)… DJ Humblelianess presides over Tucson’s hottest Latin dance party, El Tambó. At Hotel Congress (plaza)… From Flathead, Montana, Kevin Van Dort effuses mountain soul. At Monterey Court. With Kevin Pakulis Band… The Alligators emerged from the swamps of Southern California, performing a time-tested repertoire of “high-octane, whiskey-soaked versions of the often-neglected Pigpen songs that are the bedrock foundation of the Grateful Dead,” according to their website. They say after their first show, audiences wanted to know where they would be playing next. “So, we rolled with it. The gas pedal has been pinned to the floor ever since.” The Alligators. With Legions of Mario. At The Hut…

SATURDAY, FEB. 5 Las Vegas-based horror rockers Vampires Everywhere— whose name came from a comic book used as a prop in Joel Schumacher’s The Lost Boys (1987)—emerge from their sunless crypt after a five-year hiatus with a new EP, The Awakening (2021). Their sound has previously been described as a blend of “goth, metalcore and pop.”

The new album is a departure from their usual style. All of the songs are based on electronic beats. Frontman Michael Orlando (aka Michael Vampire, who founded the band in 2009) says, “We wanted to stray far away from our last musical endeavor. Me and guitarist Craig Pirtle set out to write an album based on our love for the Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer, the emerging shift in rock culture and goth rock.” Reflecting on the first single, “Sudden Death,” Orlando says, “I wanted to tackle my love for the occult and relationship demons. This song is a hybrid of those elements.” On the second date of a headlining tour, From Hell With Love, Vampires Everywhere start their rampage. At The Rock. With special guests Young Medicine and City Of The Weak…

Set in Seville around the year 1830, with themes of love and jealousy running throughout, the opera Carmen features a score composed by Frenchman Georges Bizet that includes some of the most beloved works in all of opera. Arizona Opera and Tucson Desert Song Festival presents Carmen, featuring soprano Vanessa Vasquez and mezzo soprano Mahya Lahyani in the title role.

At Tucson Music Hall… Tucson Symphony Orchestra concertmaster and violinist Lauren Roth is featured in a program that highlights Igor Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto. “Working with Lauren Roth will be one of the highlights of my year” says conductor José Luis Gomez.

“To start the concert I’ve chosen music of the first known classical composer of African descent, Chevalier de Saint-Georges. And, we’ll close with Robert Schumann’s First Symphony, which he called ‘a longing for Spring.’”

In the first of three performances, Lauren Roth Plays Stravinsky. At Catalina Foothills High School… Struggling to choke down the “Last Gulp of Real?” Indie folksters Lucky Baby Daddy will help you catch a breath

that feels a tad fresher. With Fat Tony.

At Club Congress… Only in a deterministic universe where free will is a mere illusion is such a pairing possible. Sugar Stains and Control Freaks uphold the far-from-equilibrium chaos. At Saint Charles Tavern… DJs Bex & Halsero spin EDM. At Hotel Congress (plaza)… This quartet’s sound, although ever evolving, is rooted in Chicago blues—a style popularized by Muddy Waters, who fused the rural Mississippi Delta blues with the electric guitar to create a hard-charging sound developed in clubs out of necessity in order to cut through noisy crowds.

Whose Blues. At Westward Look Resort…

Gregory Morton & Donny Russell present a Bluegrass Extravaganza. At MotoSonora Brewing Company…

SUNDAY, FEB. 6 Forty-three years after Orange County punks formed the band Agent Orange, they’ve endured numerous lineup changes, the fickleness of music industry, the unforeseen vicissitudes of real life, and the deaths of founding member Steve Soto, former bassist James Levesque, and drummer Charlie Quintana. But American surf punks Agent Orange are still dispersing deadly toxins. At 191 Toole.

With Gutter Town… Fronted by powerhouse vocalist Anna Warr, Giant Blue put forth jazz-rock and blues propelled by a monster horn and rhythm section.

Congress Cookout. At Hotel Congress (plaza)… Conjunto Nopal perform Mexican folk music from the northern Sonoran borderlands. Tradiciones. At The Coronet…

MONDAY, FEB. 7 “I’ve Got A Plan,” sings Keaton Prescott (aka Sullivan King). And, apparently, it’s working. Equal parts disc jockey and heavy metal axe-wielding maniac, Prescott was first inspired by the wonky, bass-heavy wallop of EDM after spending countless hours online engaged in hardcore gameplay, where the music of Skrillex, Avicii, Rusko and Wolfgang Gartner comprised the soundtrack on global gaming platforms. Rock Sound (British music mag) has this to say about

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

Prescott. “Raised on a diet of as much post-hardcore as dubstep, he’s setting out to bring the rock and EDM communities together in a way that no-one has done before.” His latest effort, Loud (2021)—a relentless salvo of diabolic guitar riffs, screeching solos, pounding double-bass drums rhythms and shrieking vocals—is a head-on collision of balls-out death metal and dubstep (deathstep). Ultimately, Prescott doesn’t care what you call his music. Just as long as it’s played “loud as fuck.” Sullivan King. Loud & Reckless Tour. At Rialto Theater… Travel in time to Paris of the 1930s with Dutch gypsy jazz violin legend Tim Kliphuis and rising star guitarist Jimmy Grant as they celebrate the music of famed musical duo Stéphane Grappelli & Django Reinhardt.

Gypsy Jazz Duets. At Hotel Congress (The Century Room)…

TUESDAY, FEB. 8 Taco Techno Tuesdays. DJ Hart and friends spin. At Batch…

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 9 For those who feed off of the night. Last Night’s Makeup presents Crush: An evening of house and disco. At The Jackrabbit Lounge…

THURSDAY, FEB. 10 Recognized as one of the best steel drum programs in the nation. Inspiring and captivating audiences with the vibrant sound of the Caribbean. As part of the Oro Valley Second Thursdays Concert Series, the award-winning Jovert Steel Drum Band from Tucson High Magnet School will keep you dancing all night long. At Oro Valley Marketplace…

ON THE HORIZON Vox Urbana, Naïm Amor, and Freddy Parish perform on Friday, Feb. 11. Tucson Folk Festival Fundraiser. At Monterey Court…

Until next week, XOXO…

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Dellerba says her favorite songs are “Highway Grass” for its instrumentals, and “Lost To A Coastline” for its raw lyricism. The titular song was the last the team worked on for the album, with the chorus written in the studio as they were finishing production. “[At first] it was more of a metaphor representing the man that I was with, but just in writing I realized that it really reassembled myself that was lost to the coastline,” Dellerba said.

JahRing’s favorite off the album, “Starsong,” weaves various natural sounds of the desert. He recalls a monsoon-heavy night while recording the track.

“I’m laying down a full guitar track and all the lights go out. But the engineer is telling me to continue to play and there’s no lights really, just this thunder booming. And [after I finish] it turns out that the whole tape was still there, and that’s what made it on the album,” JahRing said.

Dellerba was born and raised in the

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Avalon Gardens EcoVillage in Tumacácori. Global Change Music, Dellerba’s recording label, was founded by her father TaliasVan. “The whole idea is to support artists outside of Hollywood music culture and really to find true artistry and to support it in a way that doesn’t destroy the artist,” JahRing said.

According to its website, Global Change Music seeks to lyrically and physically take action against injustices and systems of oppression.

“In order for music to be truly of eternal value, the artist must be truly of eternal value,” TaliasVan stated on the label’s website. “A musician who wants to make a difference on this planet needs to walk the walk.”

Looking to the future, Dellerba continues to expand her artistry through songwriting and photography, and hopes to perform more concerts.

“We are hoping to go on tour and we’ll see what the world has in store. ” Dellerba said. “But we are beholden to what is right for us.” ■ For more information, visit ellanora.org

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FEBRUARY 3, 2022

A TASTE OF JUSTICE

Cheba Hut donates to effort dedicated to freeing prisoners of the War on Drugs

By Alexandra Pere apere@tucsonlocalmedia.com CANNABIS-THEMED SANDWICH franchise Cheba Hut celebrated its 24th anniversary on Jan. 20 by donating $1 of every sandwich purchase to the non-profit organization Last Prisoner Project.

Cheba Hut renamed its anniversary, “Smoke Out Injustice Day” to commemorate its new relationship with the Last Prisoner Project (LPP), an organization dedicated to cannabis criminal justice reform.

General manager Chris Bereiter of Cheba Hut’s Tucson location, 446 N. Campbell Ave., said Cheba Hut sought out the fundraising collaboration with LPP. One of the franchises’ core values is paying it forward.

“It’s helping a homie out or helping our community and this just seemed like the perfect project to get behind,” Bereiter said.

Cheba Hut plans to continue the fundraising campaign for every brand anniversary in the future. The fundraising day has the potential to raise $45,000 in one day for LPP.

“Anyone that’s doing time for a weed-related, non-violent crime, it just doesn’t seem right nowadays, especially with how far cannabis has come,” Bereiter said.

Arizona is one of 18 states where recreational use of marijuana is legal under state law, although it remains illegal under federal law. (Many other states have medical marijuana programs.) But in many states, people remain incarcerated for low-level marijuana crimes.

According to the Last Prisoner Project website, they “are committed to freeing every last prisoner of the unjust war on drugs, starting with the estimated 40,000 individuals imprisoned for cannabis.”

LPP supports legislative actions to release non-violent cannabis offenders.

They recently partnered with the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers for the Cannabis Justice Initiative, an initiative that supports avenues for release, expungements, and reform.

Expungements can be life-changing for people convicted of nonviolent crimes, enhancing equity and reinstituting civil rights.

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PHOTO BY ALEXANDRA PERE

The American Civil Liberties Union published a report in 2020 showing six million arrests occurred between 2010 and 2018, and black people were 2 to 4 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than white people, CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

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A TASTE OF JUSTICE

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 17

depending on the state. States that legalized marijuana had fewer disparities but inequality between black and white marijuana arrests still existed.

This contributes to economic and civil inequality for black Americans. Nonviolent offenders are stripped of civil rights similar to violent offenders and a report from the Brennan Center for Justice showed that people who spent time in jail experience a 52% reduction in annual income.

Arizona’s Prop 207, the ballot initiative that allowed adult recreational use of cannabis, included language that allowed anyone accused or convicted of activities legalized in the proposition to petition for expungement. However, not every state that passed legalization included this language.

“We here at Cheba Hut, we are here for you and we want to help the community,” Bereiter said. ■

NEWS NUGGETS JOINT EFFORT SPEAKING OF EFFORTS TO FUND criminal justice reform on the cannabis front: Select recently released a new two-pack of pre-rolls, with 10% of sales going to organizations that work to help people who have been arrested on minor drug charges.

The pre-roll pack is dubbed the B Noble, after Bernie Noble, a Black man who was sentenced to 13 years in prison in Louisiana in 2011 after he was arrested while riding his bicycle for possession of what amounted to two joints worth of marijuana. Noble had several previous arrests for drug possession but had never been convicted of a violent crime.

Noble, a father of seven children, was

COURTESY PHOTO

eventually released in 2018 after serving seven years of his sentence after his case drew national attention, according to an article in the Huffington Post. He was 51 years old when he left jail.

“I cried a lot of times in prison silently because you can’t do it out loud in a treacherous place like that,” Noble told The Marshall Project after his release.

“But I always said, ‘One day it’s gonna get better.’”

The contribution of a portion of the B Noble sales is part of Curaleaf’s Rooted in Good program, which funds organizations that work to end unwarranted cannabis criminalization; support people who have a cannabis-related criminal record; and create pathways for post-incarceration future.

The 2-gram pack of pre-rolls sells for $15 at Curaleaf locations. ■

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

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AZ 420 Recreational: A Grower’s Paradise

TUCSON AREA DISPENSARIES Bloom Tucson. 4695 N. Oracle Road, Ste. 117 293-3315; bloomdispensary.com Open: Daily 9a.m. - 10p.m.

Botanica. 6205 N. Travel Center Drive 395-0230; botanica.us Open: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., daily Desert Bloom Re-Leaf Center. 8060 E. 22nd St., Ste. 108 886-1760; dbloomtucson.com Open: 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., daily Offering delivery

The Green Halo. 7710 S. Wilmot Road 664-2251; thegreenhalo.org Open: Sunday, Wednesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Monday, Tuesday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Hana Green Valley. 1732 W. Duval Commerce Point Place 289-8030 Open: Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Downtown Dispensary. 221 E. 6th St., Ste. 105 838-0492; thedowntowndispensary.com Open: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., daily

Harvest of Tucson . 2734 East Grant Road 314-9420; askme@harvestinc.com; Harvestofaz. com Open: 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., daily

D2 Dispensary. 7105 E 22nd St. 214-3232; d2dispensary.com/ Open: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., daily

Nature Med. 5390 W. Ina Road 620-9123; naturemedaz.com Open: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., daily

Earth’s Healing. Two locations: North: 78 W. River Road 253-7198 South: 2075 E. Benson Highway 373-5779 earthshealing.org Open: Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Sundays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

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The Prime Leaf Two locations: 4220 E. Speedway Blvd.

1525 N. Park Ave. 44-PRIME; theprimeleaf.com Open: Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Green Med Wellness Center. 6464 E. Tanque Verde Road 520-281-1587; facebook.com/GreenMedWellnessCenter Open: Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sunday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Southern Arizona Integrated Therapies. 112 S. Kolb Road 886-1003; medicalmarijuanaoftucson.com Open: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., daily

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SAVAGE LOVE FIRST TIME

By Dan Savage, mail@savagelove.net

Long time reader here, first-time writer.

I’m a bisexual woman. I’ve been married to a straight man for eight years. Our marriage and our sex life are amazing. We communicate well, and we have a lot of fun together. You probably think you know where this is going, Dan, but trust me this isn’t your typical bisexual-person-married-to-a-straight-person problem.

Here’s the thing: I would call myself a hetero-romantic bisexual. I love men. I love dick, and I love having sex with men.

Men turn me on. And I have always been interested in men romantically. I’ve also always been into women, but only sexually.

I can’t picture myself dating a woman.

Or being married to one. But I’ve never been able to get off from straight sex or straight porn. When I orgasm, I am either watching lesbian porn or gay male porn or I’m thinking about it. I am turned on by my husband. I find him attractive, and the idea of having sex with him gets me wet.

But when it comes time to get off, I go into my head and think about two women or two men. If I don’t do this, I can’t orgasm!

I’ve always been this way. My husband is satisfied, I’m getting off, and we both enjoy sex together. So, what’s the problem? I don’t want to have to leave the moment to get off!

I want to be able to get off while being fully present! I feel like I’m losing out on a ton of intimacy with my husband by not being in the moment with him while I’m trying to cum. I want to cum from straight sex!

Do you think there is a way I can achieve this? Is it fucked up that I have to think about something else to orgasm when I’m with a man? Help me! I haven’t told my husband this because it would crush me to learn he had to “dip out” to get off.

—Being In Moment In Straight Sex Is NoGo P.S. I fully explored the possibility of being a lesbian but I’m sure I’m not. I really, really like men. I like men a lot. I couldn’t live without them.

There’s a solution here, BIMISSING, one that would allow you to remain in the moment without sacrificing your orgasms.

Zooming out for a quick second, BIMISSING, first let’s put your problem in perspective. You married to a man you love, you have a great sex life, and you’re getting off. You’re winning. And you’re not the only person with this… well, I don’t wanna call it a “problem,” BIMISSING, because for some people fantasizing during partnered sex—the kind of dipping out you describe—is a solution. Lots of

people need to imagine a particular scenario and/or particular cast of characters to get themselves the point of “orgasmic inevitability,” to use one of my favorite phrases from the sex-research literature, and if entertaining go-to fantasies during partnered sex is the thing that gets them to that point, they shouldn’t hesitate to entertain those fantasies. In other words, BIMISSING, while I wanna offer you a fix, I don’t want you—or anyone like you—to think you’re broken. Or fucked up. Because you’re not.

Now, here’s the simple, easy, obvious fix—here’s the sex hack—that’ll keep you in the moment without derailing your orgasms: dirty talk.

A quick review of my tips for dirty talk beginners: tell ’em what you’re gonna do (“I’m going to fuck the shit out of you”), tell ’em what you’re doing (“I’m fucking the shit out of you”), tell ’em what you did (“I fucked the shit out of you”). You can also ask someone what they’re gonna do, what they’re doing, and what they did.

Now, if you’re already doing that kind of dirty talk, BIMISSING, great. If you’re not, start. Then, once you’ve mastered Gonna, Doing, Did (GDD) basics, you need to start mixing your basic GDD dirty talk together with dirty talk about your go-to fantasies.

But before you can do that, BIMISSING, you are gonna have to level with your husband about these fantasies and your reliance on them. Telling your husband that you’ve always had to think about gay sex to get to the point of orgasmic inevitability—while emphasizing that he makes your pussy wet, and you love having sex with him—is definitely a risk. He could have a bad reaction. If he has a problem with it, BIMISSING, tell him you’re like a woman who can’t come from vaginal intercourse alone, a.k.a., most women, only instead of needing to press a vibrator against your clit during intercourse to get off, you need to press a mental image of gay sex against your brain to get off.

So, yeah, your husband could have hurt feelings, and it could take some time to work through this. But think of the potential rewards! Instead of leaving your husband behind when you start fantasizing about men fucking men and women fucking women, you’ll get to take him along! (And I don’t want to tell on straight guys here, but some of them really like hearing about two women fucking. Your husband could be one of those guys.)

“BIMISSING can be fully present in her body and feel the great pleasure of

sex with her husband—and know that this is where her pleasure is coming from physically—while also be intentional about bringing this fantasy into her mind at the same time,” said Dr. Lori Brotto, a clinical psychologist and a sex researcher at the University of British Columbia and the author of Better Sex Through Mindfulness: How Women Can Cultivate Desire. “And if BIMISSING can share her fantasy out loud, she’ll be able to hear herself sharing the details of this fantasy, which is an auditory trigger that will keep her rooted in the here-and-now even more and intensify the pleasure. If her husband responds with his own sounds of pleasure,” or with fantasies of his own that build on yours, “that will further anchor BIMISSING in the present moment.”

Picture this, BIMISSING: You’re having hot straight sex with your hot straight husband. You start thinking about two hot fags or two hot dykes going at it. But now, instead of feeling guilty about these fantasies, you’ll be able to share them with your husband. And, yes, it’s a hard truth to share, BIMISSING, but for all you know your husband has some go-to fantasies of his own that he’d love to share—fantasies he may rely on when he needs a little help getting to the point of orgasmic inevitability. If you can successfully integrate your go-to fantasies (two women or two men fucking the shit out of each other) with your in-the-moment reality (your husband is fucking the shit out of you while you describe two women or two men fucking the shit out of each other), you won’t have to “dip out” to come.

P.S. I feel the exact same way—really like men, couldn’t live without men—and I’m not a lesbian either. Coincidence? I don’t

think so. There are no coincidences.

Follow Dr. Lori Brotto on Twitter @DrLoriBrotto. Dr. Brotto’s new book, Better Sex Through Mindfulness: The At-Home Guide, comes out soon.

This is my first time asking for your advice.

I’m a gay man in his early fifties, a bit heavy, but people tell me I’m handsome. I haven’t gotten close to a man, let alone had sex with one, in many years. I decided to try some dating apps. In the past week I’ve had two hook-ups, both safe, but neither was successful. The first went south very quickly, the second went better with the other guy getting off. While I very much enjoyed the physical closeness, I couldn’t get hard either time. I have no problems with that by itself. I tried relaxing and just getting into the experience, but I just couldn’t get aroused. Both guys were attractive, the second even more so, but I couldn’t get into it either time. Any thoughts on how I might be able to get past this block? I just feel like giving up on physical relationships for good.

—My First Time Take the pressure off yourself and your dick by telling your next partner that you wanna focus on his dick, not yours. And be honest about why: “I’ve been out of action for a few years and I’m easing back in to sex and right now it’s working better for me to focus on getting the other guy off.”

Then pop a Viagra, put on a cock ring, relax, and enjoy. If you wind up being able to get off with him, great. If you don’t but you liked the guy and he enjoyed being with you, suggest getting together again.

Then with those first-time-with-a-new-guy jitters out of the way, MFT, it’ll be easier to get out of your own way, get hard, and stay hard.

It’ll also help if you gave less weight to the one experience that went south quickly and more to the one that “went better.”

Start rounding that second experience up to a success instead of down to a defeat, okay?

P.S. Heavier guys can be handsome, and some men strongly prefer heavier guys.

So, believe those guys who tell you they think you’re handsome. Because as a general rule, MFT, when someone who’s actively trying to get in your pants tells you they find you hot or think you’re handsome, they’re probably not lying. mail@savagelove.net Follow Dan Savage on Twitter @FakeDanSavage.

The Savage Lovecast, books, merch and more are all at www.savage.love.

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY

By Rob Brezsny. Go to RealAstrology.com to check out Rob Brezsny’s EXPANDED WEEKLY HOROSCOPE 1-877-873-4888 or 1-900-950-7700 $1.99 per minute. 18 and over. Touchtone phone required.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries actor Bette Davis said that if you want to improve your work, you should “attempt the impossible.”

That’s perfect advice for you right now. I hope to see you hone your skills as you stretch yourself into the unknown. I will celebrate your forays into the frontiers, since doing so will make you even smarter than you already are. I will cheer you on as you transcend your expectations and exceed your limits, thereby enhancing your flair for self-love. Here’s your mantra: “I now have the power to turn the impossible into the possible and boost my health and fortunes in the process.”

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Ancient Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu wrote, “Opportunities multiply as they are seized.”

You’ll be wise to make that your motto during the next five months, Taurus. Life will conspire to bring you more and more benefits and invitations as you take full advantage of the benefits and invitations that life brings. The abundance gathering in your vicinity may even start to seem ridiculously extravagant. Envious people could accuse you of being greedy, when in fact, you’re simply harnessing a crucial rule in the game of life. To minimize envy and generate even more benefits and invitations, be generous in sharing your plenitude.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): “’Because there has been no one to stop me’ has been one of the principles of my life,” wrote Gemini author Joyce Carol Oates. “If I’d observed all the rules, I’d never have got anywhere,” said Gemini actor Marilyn Monroe. “Play the game. Never let the game play you.” So advised Gemini rapper and actor Tupac Shakur. “Who I really am keeps surprising me,” declared Gemini author Nikki Giovanni. I propose that we make the previous four quotes your wisdom teachings during the next four weeks.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Your animal symbol is usually the crab. But I propose we temporarily change it to the tardigrade.

It’s a tiny, eight-legged creature that’s among the most stalwart on planet Earth— able to live everywhere, from mountaintops to tropical rainforests to the deepest parts of the sea. In extreme temperatures, it thrives, as well as under extreme pressures.

Since it emerged as a species half a billion years ago, it has survived all five mass extinctions. I believe you will be as hardy and adaptable and resolute as a tardigrade in the coming months, Cancerian. You will specialize in grit and resilience and determination. PS: Tardigrades are regarded as a “pioneer species” because they take up residence in new and changed envi-

ronments, paving the way for the arrival of other species. They help create novel ecosystems. Metaphorically speaking, you could be like that.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): I regularly ask myself how I can become more open-minded.

Have I stopped being receptive in any way? What new developments and fresh ideas am I ignorant of? Have my strong opinions blinded me to possibilities that don’t fit my opinions? In accordance with astrological omens, Leo, I encourage you to adopt my attitude in the coming weeks. For inspiration, read these thoughts by philosopher Marc-Alain Ouaknin: “If things speak to us, it is because we are open to them, we perceive them, listen to them, and give them meaning. If things keep quiet, if they no longer speak to us, it is because we are closed.”

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Like all the rest of us, Virgo, you have limitations. And it’s important for you to identify them and take them into consideration. But I want to make sure you realize you also have fake limitations; you wrongly believe in the truth of some supposed limitations that are, in fact, mostly illusory or imaginary. Your job right now is to dismantle and dissolve those. For inspiration, here’s advice from author Mignon McLaughlin: “Learning too soon our limitations, we never learn our powers.”

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): “Develop enough courage so that you can stand up for yourself and then stand up for somebody else,” counseled poet and activist Maya Angelou. Author Toni Morrison said, “The function of freedom is to free someone else.” Author and activist Nikki Giovanni wrote, “Everybody that loves freedom loves Harriet Tubman because she was determined not only to be free, but to make free as many people as she could.” I hope the wisdom of these women will be among your guiding thoughts in the coming weeks. As your own power and freedom grow, you can supercharge them—render them even more potent—by using them to help others.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): “Man, sometimes it takes you a long time to sound like yourself,” testified Miles Davis, one of the most unique and talented jazz trumpeters and composers who ever lived. Popular and successful author Anne Lamott expressed a similar sentiment: “I’m here to be me, which is taking a great deal longer than I had hoped.” If those two geniuses found it a challenge to fully develop their special potentials, what chance do the rest of us have? I have good news in that regard,

Scorpio. I believe 2022 will be a very favorable time to home in on your deepest, truest self—to ascertain and express more of your soul’s code. And you’re entering a phase when your instinct for making that happen will be at a peak.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In the course of human history, three million ships have sunk to the bottom of the Earth’s seas. At one extreme have been huge vessels, like the Titanic and naval cruisers, while at the other extreme are small fishing boats. Many of these have carried money, gems, jewelry, gold, and other precious items. Some people have made it their job to search for those treasures. I believe there could and should be a metaphorical resemblance between you and them in the coming weeks, Sagittarius.

Now is a favorable time for you to hunt for valuable resources, ideas, memories, and yes, even treasures that may be tucked away in the depths, in hidden locations, and in dark places.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): “It is astonishing what force, purity, and wisdom it requires for a human being to keep clear of falsehoods,” wrote author Margaret Fuller.

That’s the bad news. The good news is that your capacity for exposing and resisting falsehoods is now at a peak. Furthermore, you have a robust ability to ward off delusions, pretense, nonsense, inauthenticity, and foolishness. Don’t be shy about using your superpowers, Capricorn. Everyone you know will benefit as you zero in and

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focus on what’s true and genuine. And you will benefit the most.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): “All things are inventions of holiness,” wrote poet Mary Oliver. “Some more rascally than others.”

I agree. And I’ll add that in the coming weeks, holiness is likely to be especially rascally as it crafts its inventions in your vicinity. Here are the shades of my meaning for the word “rascally”: unruly, experimental, mischievous, amusing, mercurial, buoyant, whimsical, and kaleidoscopic. But don’t forget that all of this will unfold under the guidance and influence of holiness. I suspect you’ll encounter some of the most amusing and entertaining outbreaks of divine intervention ever.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): The year 1905 is referred to as Albert Einstein’s “Year of Miracles.” The Piscean physicist, who was 26 years old, produced three scientific papers that transformed the nature of physics and the way we understand the universe. Among his revolutionary ideas were the theory of special relativity, the concept that light was composed of particles, and the iconic equation E = mc squared. With that information as a backdrop, I will make a bold prediction: that in 2022 you will experience your own personal version of a Year of Miracles. The process is already underway. Now it’s time to accelerate it.

Homework: What is the wisest foolishness you could carry out right now? Newsletter.

FreeWillAstrology.com

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EMPLOYMENT GENERAL

EMPLOYMENT GENERAL Total Ride is hiring Transit Bus and Sedan Drivers. For Pima County Bus and Dial a Ride are you interested in helping other people? Do you have an extraordinary customer service skills? Are you looking for full-time or part time work with health benefits, paid vacation, and personal time off.

Total ride is looking for team members to work with our family. With very good pay from $16.00 per hour to get started and up to $19.49. Includes paid training and flexible work schedules, you must have a strong desire to work, be over 21 years old, pass a criminal background check, pass a drug test, and, have very good communication skills with other people. Apply in person today at Total Ride 829 W Silverlake road, call for more details at 602-348-3240.

S T A Y W O K E

Firmware Designer, IBM Corporation, Tucson, AZ: Work as a member of a firmware development team on a robot related product. Review potential security vulnerabilities reported by customers and Linux team. Provide firmware solutions if the product is exposed to the reported vulnerability. Develop and debug firmware project following the software development lifecycle with a focus on operating system, network control, and motor control.

Perform Board bring-up including developing a customized bootloader in the next generation of the product.

Perform embedded Linux development with a focus on designing and developing specialized Linux OS for the specialized platform. Design and develop specialized Linux drivers. Design and implement protocols for system communications. Perform design, analysis, and verification testing of embedded software for new product designs. Advise Hardware Designer on machine characteristics that may impact the software system. Develop and debug script tools for various purposes during software development. Utilize Software Performance Analysis, Debugging and Testing using C, Agile methodologies, Embedded Interfaces and Protocol (Ethernet, I2C, CAN, UART), Embedded Linux Development and Driver Integration. Required: Bachelorʼs degree or equivalent in Computer Science or related and two (2) years of experience as a Hardware Designer or related. Two (2) years of experience must include utilizing Software Performance Analysis, Debugging and Testing using C, Agile methodologies, Embedded Interfaces and Protocol (Ethernet, I2C, CAN, UART), Embedded Linux Development and Driver Integration. Send resumes to recruitad@us.ibm.com. Applicants must reference Y442.

EMPLOYMENT GENERAL

Total Ride es contratar autobús de tránsito y conductores de sedan. Para el autobús del condado de pima y marcar un viaje ¿está interesado en ayudar a otras personas? ¿tiene habilidades extraordinarias de servicio al cliente? Está buscando trabajo de tiempo completo o tiempo parcial con benificios de salud, vacaciones pagadas y tiempo libre personal. Total ride está buscando miembros del equipo para trabajar con nuestra familia. Con muy buenos pagos desde $16.00 por hora para comenzar y hasta $19.49.

Incluye capacitación pagada y horarios de trabajo flexibles, debe tener un fuerte deseo de trabajar, ser mayor de 21 años, pasar una revisión de antecedentes penales, pasar una prueba de drogas y tener muy buenas destrezas de comunciación con otras personas. Total Ride 829 w silverlake road, llame para más detalles al 602-348-3240.

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For sale by owner: The Bambi Bar, 5050 E. Speedway Blvd, Tucson, AZ 84712.

Established 60 year old neighborhood bar with a #6 license. Lot is close to 7/10th acre with frontage on Speedway, Rosemont and 1st Streets, sold in “as-is” condition. All offers will be considered, looking for $1.6M and up. Please submit sealed proposals to the bar addressed to Dodie.

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

Edited by Will Shortz ACROSS

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“J to ___ L-O!” (Jennifer Lopez album) 14 Captain who cries “From hell’s heart I stab at thee” 15 What the 21st Amendment achieved 16 Conned 17 Tiny bit of information 18 They stay and bite 20 “No clue” 22 Propelled from a bench 23 Words declared before and after “what” 24 Product whose first commercial was notably narrated by Jeff Goldblum 26 ___-worthy 27 Emmy-winning comedy series of 2007, 2008 and 2009 30 Climate control system, in brief 32 “Certainly” 33 Goddess often depicted with wings 34 URL ending 35 Places people speak in whispers 38 Symbol for the starts of 18-, 27-, 46- and 58-Across 39 Sounder 41 Having everything one needs 42 Nintendo console 43 Part of many a ballroom dance 44 Beer topper 11

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flattery, informally Fire starters, for short 53 Idiosyncrasies 54 New Deal inits.

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Hutch occupant 2 Sarcastic “Is that so?”

3 Japanese mat 4 “Um, sure” 5 Awards won by presidents Carter, Clinton and Obama 6 Sunfish with colorful gill covers 7 Shopkeeper on “The Simpsons” 8 Joe Biden’s home: Abbr.

9 Down 10 Choir section 11 Classic poem set in “bleak December” 12 Virulent negativity, in modern parlance 13 Ritalin target, for short 19 Per 21 Web destinations 25 Popular bumper sticker of the 2000s 26 Stamps, maybe 1

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45 “The ___ Show”

(daytime TV staple beginning in 2009) 47 Gentleman from Genoa 48 Square 49 Traveling performers 50 Showing evidence of a beach holiday 52 Have because of 55 Life after death?

57 Public houses 59 Google result 60 Go (for) 61 Pac-12 Conference player

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