Sunday wrap-up

Good weekend, but not without complications.

An excellent Thanksgiving dinner, as usual, with the Silvas. We were down a few people, but up some new ones. The politics talk was more mellow (thanks, P-E Obama) and it was good to be there.

Friday, Stu, Jacob, and Mel made it to the top of the Organs for our second ascent. Socked in by fog, so no view, but beautiful crystalline frost at the top on the east side. Clouds were roiling through the small gap we cross into the Tularosa Basin, and the wind was fierce.

Saturday Quincy played with the Band at LCHS's semi-final football game against Mayfield in a rematch of the big rivalry. Only 20K fans at this one, so smaller crowd than usual. Jake and I went shopping during the game (fewer people in stores). Oh, and LCHS will play next weekend in Albuquerque against Eldorado for state championship. Woot!

We toook Jake to El Paso this morning for his flight back to Willamette. And tomorrow Stu will go to the doc to see if he just has a kicker of a cold or something to be more concerned about.

Will post pix later...

Holiday

Thanksgiving has become my favorite holiday of the year.

Good friends gather a nearby house for good food, music, conversation. Each year we all have more gray hair, more wrinkles, but more stories to tell about how we got them. We started doing this when kids could still be carried to the car at the end of the day, and now we send them out for errands (but not yet to re-stock the wine stores).

And Jacob is about to start on his way home, so this year he will add stories about his travels and time away.

Peace.

Moment of morning Zen

A good morning ride gets me started with exercise, a chance for reflection, and on auspicious rides, a moment of Zen. In warm months, the moment comes when I ride under the interstate bridge and am greeted, on some days, by swallows catching the early bugs. Nesting season is sweet!

Then the swallows migrate away, and my Zen moments move to the duck pond. Although the pond is usually filled with hybrid waterfowl, I catch an occasional white-fronted goose, mallard, egret, or heron (a coot or two arrive in time for the afternoon ride).

But there are other moments, like the brief tunnel of trees that lead off the International Mall toward Milton Hall on the northwest side of Corbett Center. The picture above does not do justice to the brilliant colors: yellow on the bottom grades to orange in the middle and to flaming red on the top, with the occasional green holdout near the trunk. The colors glow under the vibrant New Mexico sky.

And on days when the moments of Zen elude, there is always the Daily Show!

Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Saturday news

Farmer's market regains much of its charm after missing a couple weeks. And I found locally made cheeses for Thanksgiving.

Saw the LCHS prodeuction of Beauty and the Beast -- the orchestra sounded great, kids on stage acted theis hearts out, and Stu's set looked great. But light cues were off (main light operator was out) and some sound problems gave the kids more hassles than they shoudl have had to deal with. Nonetheless, the audience loved it and lots of little girls dressed in Belle costumes adored the experience.

Big week next week. Jake will be home Wednesday. I expect he will eat and sleep and eat some more. Thanksgiving day will be celebrated once again at the Silva Leonardi's with long-standing friends.

And the day after Thanksgiving, BIG HIKE! The usual suspects are hiking again to the top of the Organs and I plan to be there.

Saturday will be another LCHS football game. The team is doing well, so the band keeps going until the football team loses. Can't get enough of afternoons and evenings selling concessions...

Guess where I am?

Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Pushing the season

But with great tone and spirit!
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Update on the Talavera Explosion

Investigation continues in Talavera house explosion

By Jose L. Medina/Sun-News reporter

Article Launched: 11/07/2008 12:00:00 AM MST

LAS CRUCES — On a day when the cause of last month's house explosion was expected to be revealed, investigators instead were back at the blast site armed with a search warrant.

The Oct. 23 explosion destroyed a 4,400-square-foot home valued at $723,000.

The homeowners, Kimberlee and Paul Hering Jr., have hired an attorney who said Thursday he doesn't understand why the warrant was obtained when his clients have been "totally cooperative."

Officials on Thursday disclosed they had asked for the warrant and returned to the scene of the blast at 4852 Deadwood Camp Court, east of Las Cruces in the upscale Talavera neighborhood.

"The search warrant in my opinion was unnecessary," Las Cruces attorney Lyle Wood said, "We've met the investigators out there, I have not personally, but the Herings have met them out there on several occasions and given them free reign to look at whatever they want to."

The Herings, on Wood's advice, have declined to take a polygraph test.

"I believe they are the victims, victims of an accident, an accidental destruction of the property," Wood said.

"They're victims, they have no reason to be treated as suspects or persons or interest, whatever they call them," he added.

The Herings were out of town at the time of the blast. No one was injured, although several adjacent homes sustained damage, officials said. Paul Hering is a former agent of the federal Drug Enforcement Agency.

Wood said the warrant, served Thursday, is the second obtained by investigators. He did not know what was contained in the first warrant, but the second warrant sought to examine the home's propane lines and the propane tank.

The home, which sits on 1.6 acres, had been up for sale for several months, according to Joe Martin-Howell, the listing agent with Steinborn GMAC Realty. In addition to the home, a large RV, valued at $350,000, was completely destroyed.

County officials were closed-mouth as to whether the Herings were now suspects in the blast and would not elaborate further beyond issuing a news release.

"The (news) release says everything that I'm allowed to say," county spokesman Jess Williams said.

Williams earlier said the cause of the blast could be revealed as early as Thursday. Since that didn't happen, the cause won't be disclosed until the latest evidence is processed.

The site still is considered a crime scene until foul play can be ruled out.

The Doña Ana County Sheriff's Department has been heading up the investigation, with assistance from several state and federal agencies, including the FBI.

Jose Medina can be reached at jmedina@lcsun-news.com; (575) 541-5447