Only a month away from the re-inaugural issue of GV Magazine!

Wow, so much progress since the last time I blogged about the GV comeback!

Our offices are perfect for us and I love working there every day! We finally have phones and internet, and the temperature is finally close to comfortable in there. And we have a real sign on the door! We still have a ways to go when it comes to furnishings, but we're getting there.

Our test/sample issues for web, iPad, Kindle, and Android tablets have been uploaded to our digital vendor and they are busy getting them optimized.

Most of the stories for the re-inaugural November issue have been assigned. The GV Style photo shoot is complete and the feature will be beautiful!

The special re-introductory offer to advertisers have been sent out and we're already getting a great response!

Our ad agency, RSW Partners, is busy working on our new website at GrandValleyMagazine.com. Had a fabulous meeting with ad agency Cobb & Associates the other day and really looking forward to working with them too!

Am excited about getting the subscriber letters out next...

My last regular column for the Daily Sentinel and the return of Grand Valley Magazine

This post was published as my last regular column in the Daily Sentinel Sunday, September 16, 2012.

This is my last regular commentary with the Daily Sentinel. Writing a weekly column and publishing a high-quality magazine at the same time is, well, quite unrealistic. Yes, it’s time to bring back Grand Valley Magazine.

I’ve worked in media, directly and indirectly, since high school.

Our cheerleading squad did a fund-raising promotion at a local radio station one weekend, and by the end of it, I practically begged the station manager to hire me. I was fascinated. He gave in, and for more than a year I twisted knobs and pushed buttons for the weekly Top 40 and Denver Bronco football games.

From radio, I moved on to ad agencies, then newspapers, books and magazines. That’s where I discovered the ink in my blood. The in-depth features, rush of a breaking story, ...

Too big to fail; too small to matter

The official reasons for not including third-party candidates in national and local political debates are based solely on those parties’ small size. This idea of too-small-to-matter has become too much of a cliché these days (and not just in politics either).

I, for one, am curious about what these smaller third parties have to say. Do they have platforms? How are their goals and objectives different than the too-big-to-fail parties? Are their ideas in common with or opposed to the big party machines? Might they have solutions to problems that the big machines have been unable or unwilling to solve? Is it possible that those candidates have something worthwhile to say?

It’s bad enough that the voices of the small are drowned out by the boisterous shouting of the giants, but to deny the smaller parties a seat at the political roundtable in a government by the people seems, well, a bit authoritarian.

Perhaps if the other political parties were given the same opportunity to tell their stories and share their ideas as the two behemoths, they...

World-renowned innovator has roots in Mesa County; and I got to interview him!

The opportunity to gain firsthand insight from a world-renowned innovator is honor enough, but to find out that innovator got his start at Colorado Mesa University (then Mesa College) is downright exciting.

Thomas W. Osborn, a virtual rock star in the world of innovators as featured in a new book from Stanford University Press titled Serial Innovators: How Individuals Create and Deliver Breakthrough Innovations, entered Mesa College as a struggling student with attention deficit disorder back in the 1960s.

“The quality of Mesa’s undergraduate education gave me a very good base,” Osborn told me. The encouragement from and “the influence of professors like Drs. Lenc and Putnam and Mr. Perry” helped him build a strong foundation for his scientific interests.

From Mesa, Osborn went to Colorado State University, then on to Oregon State University where he earned a Ph.D. in chemistry and studied the chemical evolution...

Ancient aliens or unfettered human ingenuity?

A series of TV programs aired recently on History's H2 channel called "Ancient Aliens." I listened as countless self-proclaimed alien experts pointed to all kinds of ancient artifacts that defy their idea of our ancestors' capabilities, and most concluded that they must therefore be the work of advanced extraterrestrial visitors. Entertaining thought it was, there was no doubt in my mind that the marvels they pointed to were the work of humans.

 

Contemplate, if you will, the laser-machined precision of the intricate block cuts of Puma Punku at 12,000 feet in the mountains of Bolivia, the Nazca lines stretching 50 miles across the top of a high plateau in Peru, 2,000-year-old writings describing Vimana flying machines in India, the monolithic statues on Easter Island in the South Pacific, the light bulb-looking Dendera wall carvings and Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, Stonehenge in southern England, and the Antikythera Mechanism with its 29 finely tuned interlocking gears found in an ancient shipwreck off the coast of Crete. The list of mysterious marvels from antiquity is seemingly endless.

Not counting the effects of sleep deprivation, junk food and pharmaceuticals on our modern brains, the brains of our ancestors were probably little if any different than our own. We can never know of all the extraordinary...

I highly recommend the film "Beasts of the Southern Wild"

Wow, just home from seeing the film "Beasts of the Southern Wild" at the Avalon Theatre in downtown Grand Junction. I really loved this film. There was absolutely nothing predictable or formulaic about it -- nothing at all.

A Sundance Film Festival winner, I hope to see it on the Oscars list. Truly brilliant, timely, and touching. I highly recommend this film.

Cars, refrigerators, TV sets and nuclear warheads

I intended to write a light piece on how we live in the context of the times, beginning with the industrial complex of the 1930s and World War II, which set the stage for the military-industrial complex of the 1950s that spawned the financial, medical, educational and entertainment complexes of the 1980s that led to the interdependent web of today’s global economy. Whew!

For example, in the 1950s, the automobile, refrigerator and television were key consumer products that supersized our economy and secured a large, robust middle class.

In 1955, nearly 90 percent of the cars on our nation’s roads were American-made, with more than 8 million new cars sold that year. From 1945 to 1985, we paved 42,798 miles of interstate highway and bought 300 million cars. As a result, car-related businesses — from petroleum to drive-through restaurants to tourism — sprang up from coast to coast, while refrigerators redefined domestic life.

“A few years ago it took the housewife 5-1/2 hours to prepare daily meals for a family of four,” Time magazine reported in 1959. “Today she can do it in 90 minutes or less — and still produce meals fit for a king or a finicky husband.”

In a nation of 150 million in the 1950s, there seemed no end to...

Extraordinary rush: Singing with the symphony orchestra!

Wow, what an extraordinary experience! I sang two songs with the Grand Junction Symphony Orchestra during their annual Wells Fargo Evening Under the Stars free concert in Lincoln Park in Grand Junction Saturday evening. I'm still pinching myself to make sure it wasn't a dream.

The symphony kicks off each season with the free pops-type concert. Lucky for me, they included some vintage swing arrangements this year, and invited me to sing with them!

There is nothing like being surrounded by strings, brass, woodwinds, percussion played by wonderful musicians and friends. I still can't believe I got to sing with them!

We are so blessed to have such dedicated musicians who come together as a symphony orchestra in our community. I'm looking forward to the upcoming symphony season! The first concert is in September! Here is a link to the Grand Junction Symphony's website:

http://gjsymphony.org/

The double-edged sword of Colorado's Gallagher Amendment

I never understood that old saying, “All politics are local,” until recently, when one innocent quest for office space brought it to light — a glaring bright light.

I thought with all this empty commercial space around the valley, finding a smokin’ deal on just the right office would be a piece of cake. Not only did I discover that’s not the case, but I got an instant education on something called the Gallagher Amendment in our state constitution.

“At that rate per square foot, the building owner barely covers his taxes,” said Bray commercial real estate agent Sam Suplizio in response to my offer to lease space in a building that’s been vacant for nearly a year. For all the talk about needing to be business-friendly in a tough economy, that sure sounded like a whole lot of...

GV Magazine "brick" at Colorado Mesa University

What a treat! About two years ago we (Grand Valley Magazine) "purchased a brick" as part of a Colorado Mesa University Foundation fundraiser. Because we were the first corporate sponsor of the school's budding women's rugby club, we chose to acknowledge that support on our "brick."

Yesterday was the official unveiling of the brick walkway in front of the CMU Foundation office. Great timing as we are only a few months away from re-launching the magazine!

What is really cool, is that our once budding Women's Rugby Club now has a full-time coach and is an official team of the university! (Our corporate sponsorship purchased their first team jerseys, which were top of the line pro-quality, of course!) We featured the original team of tenacious women in the January 2010 issue of the magazine as photographed by the fabulous Ken Redding.

As we gear up for the re-launch of GV Magazine, we're wishing the CMU Women's Rugby Club much success in their upcoming season!

Leading indicator for our nation's economic recovery? Chicken

The whole Chick-fil-A kerfuffle last month was downright inspiring. All that passion from consumers ready to support or not support a business based solely on what that business stands for! That could be the spark needed to rebuild our stagnant economy. No government assistance needed.

What if all businesses actively touted the causes and values they stand for so that customers and prospective customers could make informed choices to spend their dollars with companies aligned with their own causes and values?

Don’t like socialism? Don’t buy from businesses that sell products manufactured in socialist nations.

Want to support American jobs? Buy only made-in-America products from businesses that sell only made-in-America products.

Want to see small local businesses thrive in our community? Don’t spend your dollars in big-box chain stores that crush the mom and pops with their low, low, low prices.

We have the right to do business when, where, and...

I've gone alcohol ink crazy!

"Chili Glut"

I made five more pieces using the alcohol inks over the past few weeks! I still can't believe how much I'm lovin' this!

Yesterday was the monthly get together of the Grand Valley Art Students League at the Art Center. I went in with a blank piece of yupo paper and my little box of inks and, admittedly, I mostly visited with the other artists and looked at the "wood" exhibit throughout the gallery for the first hour, then stared at my blank yupo for another 15 minutes before put ink to paper.

This is the piece I made, starting with chilis. I'd been hankering to use the black ink, so decided the jar had to be black.

The silver circle is an orange juice bottle top that I painted half black. I'm learning!

It was so great to have Sara Oakley and Faye Timmerman-Traudt there to answer questions! They are so terrific! We all had such fun!

This month's "practicum" was taught by Daphna Russell, who was in a particularly chipper mood because she'd just made a major sale!

"Dreaming"

My mother and I took Daphna's one-day workshop on clay sculpture back in June, so it was fun to hear her again -- she is so funny!

Overall, as always, I love the league's monthly sessions!

I painted the little tree with the purple metallic circle in it late the ohter night; I was just feeling purple and painted the underside of a Pelligrino foil top.

Then thought, hmmm, what to do? So I created the sky and tree for that little purple circle and voila!

I created the butterfly piece while praying for my daughter Melody, sending her love and strength for her continued journey through a challenging transition.

"Reaching Melody"

The butterfly was created on a separate piece of yupo, then I cut it out and added it to the background, then painted a large yogurt top purple and added that.

I call this one, "Reaching Melody."

The tryptic (three side-by-side related pieces) was created a little at a time over the past two weeks while watching the Olympics -- I couldn't help but want to paint with a sense of celebration! Celebration, energy, and lots and lots of medals of course!

"Celebration"

I call it "Celebration," but what else could it possibly be called?

We're watching the closing ceremony of the Olympics as I post this. I am so going to miss the Olympics, sigh; its been such a beautiful world peace break from all the political hostility. Sigh.

The adobe house is the result of trying to paint an adobe house. I just couldn't get the color right! I tried blending orange and latte, but the orange completely overwhelmed the latte!

"Adobe"

Wendy Videlock, who is an amazing artist who specializes in alcohol inks, told me that each ink color will behave differently. And she was so right about that!

I think that covers my latest pieces!

I don't know how much time I'm going to have to make art over the next few months, but am determined to make time as I can! There is just something so incredibly fulfilling in the creative process! Gotta do it!

Our community doesn't care about education? Hogwash.

I’ve heard several people say the same thing recently: “This community just doesn’t care about education.” And why? Because last November a majority of voters elected not to support a mil levy override for District 51 funding. I bristled the first time I heard that remark the day after the election, and it still bugs me to hear it nine months later.

First of all, the population of Mesa County is about 147,000 and has about 102,000 registered voters. A mere 21,951 voted against the override while 14,415 for it. And just because 21,951 voted against the override doesn’t mean they don’t care about education.

Of the many different reasons those folks have said they voted against it, not a single one of those was “I just don’t care about education.”

There is simply no evidence to support the claim that “this community just doesn’t care about education.” In fact, the preponderance of the evidence indicates that our community cares deeply and actively about education.

During (and despite) the rough economy, Mesa State College became Colorado Mesa University last summer. That happened only because...

The Olympic Games: Moments of peace in troubled times

I love the Olympics. Summer. Winter. Doesn’t matter. I love the games as a celebration of our shared humanity. The grace, the balance, the beauty, the rhythm and precision, the teamwork, the intensity expressed on human faces — unique faces from all over the world. It’s a showcase for the best of the best in human performance. It’s a time when I can imagine that even the birds in the sky stop pitying our wingless disability long enough to actually grant us a little respect as a species.

There are 205 nations with athletes competing in this year’s Olympic Games. In trials and rivalries ranging from individual competitions to team events, the world comes together to compete — honorably and respectfully. The Olympics give us those incredible moments when people around the world cheer together, putting aside geopolitical differences even if only for a few minutes (or for mere nano-seconds at the finish line) to complete contest after contest, awarding medal after medal.

The first Olympic Games date back to 776 BC. According to...

GV Mag Arts Leadership Team official

I'm thrilled about adding an arts leadership team for selecting the featured artists in each issue of the new Grand Valley Magazine.

Kay Crane, Sara Alyn Oakley, Terry Shepherd, and Steve Traudt will coordinate efforts in selecting the featured artists, as well as emerging artists for each issue.

All four are respected artists, teachers, and gallery managers and have a very real sense of the who-is-who and doing-what in the arts in our greater community.

Kay Crane, artist and photographer, manages the Blue Pig Gallery in Palisade and teaches classes at the Art Center in Grand Junction. Kay was part of the original GV Magazine core team as photo editor, writer and photographer. Having had the honor and pleasure to work with her for several years, Kay was first on my list! Not only is she talented, but she is wonderful to work with and an amazing team player.

Sara Alyn Oakley, artist and teacher, owns the Oakley Gallery downtown Grand Junction. She also runs the Artists' Colony and is founder of the Grand Valley Art Students League. I got to know Sara through the Students League and was completely blown away by her talent, leadership, and commitment to the arts in our community.

Terry Shepherd, artist-in-residence at the Art Center in Grand Junction is all about clay. He also teaches and has the patience of a saint when it comes to helping budding art students. I feel that Terry is the quintessential representative of the clay arts in our community.

Steve Traudt, photographer and teacher, has a reputation not only for exquisite photography, but for his approachable style. Steve taught at Colorado Mesa University (when it was Mesa State College) for 18 years. I became familiar with Steve's work when we featured him in GV Magazine. And have since learned of his friendly disposition and love of teaching.

I am so excited about this team's collaboration for selecting the featured artists/photographers and emerging artists/photographers for each issue of the new GV Magazine. We will introduce them and their signature pieces in the relaunch issue of the magazine this November. It is such an honor to have them on the team in this capacity!

Artist surprise trade and beautiful moment!

I had the most amazing thing happen Saturday! I went to the Art Center to pick up my art from the Instructor-Student exhibit and while walking through the back in the clay area, there were several clay artists working at a table, chatting. I stopped because a beautiful platter caught my eye.

Platter by Caroline McDaniel

"This is beautiful," I said to no one in particular.

"Oh thank you," the woman at the end of the table responded.

"Did you create this?" I asked, lightly touching the platter. "I love the blue in the center and all the imprints around it."

"Wow, thank you," the woman smiled, then asked, "do you want it?"

I quickly pulled my hand back from the platter. "What?"

She smiled, "do you want it?"

Tears immediately filled my eyes. "Seriously?"

"Yes, no one has ever cried over one of my pieces before; I would love for you to have it."

I just stood there in stunned silence, not knowing what to do or say.

"I would be honored," I said, picking it up carefully. "Um, I'm new at this whole art-making thing, but can I make something for you? I am learning how to work with alcohol inks; what colors do you like?"

"Purple. Purple and green," she said, pointing to her purple and green plaid hat.

We exchanged contact information, and she went back to her clay and I left the Art Center with this lovely platter and completely overwhelmed by the whole incident.

"Caroline's Treehouse" by Krystyn Hartman. Alcohol ink on yupo

Her name is Caroline McDaniel. She is so cool! I worked on this piece for her over the past few days, starting of course with purple. Its similar to the "Treehouse" piece I did, which I really enjoyed doing so thought I'd try a similar piece for Caroline.

My mother and her artist friend visiting from Texas dropped by while I was working on it and her friend suggested I try painting the silver metallic circles wiht the inks, which had not occurred to me! So, I painted the circle with the orange to give a shiny sun-like effect.

I stuck a red feather over the top of the chili ristra too, to give it more texture. I do love texture! So, I'm calling this piece, "Caroline's Treehouse," and can't wait to give it to her. I hope she likes it!

Homeless people with mental illness and substance addiction are homeless by their own volition? Really?

I was so stunned by claims in the Daily Sentinel's editorial "Homelessness and Vagrancy" this morning that I had to write this post.

Here is the part of the editorial that so shocked me: "One group, we believe, are the true homeless. They are families and individuals who may have lost jobs, gone through home foreclosure or lost their homes by other means. They are actively trying to improve their lot in hopes they will soon leave the ranks of the homeless.

"The other group is largely homeless by their own volition. They reject the conventions of society — although they accept its services when it suits them. Many have addictions to alcohol or drugs, or suffer from mental illness, or both. We have chosen to refer to this second group as vagrants."

Really? Addiction is a choice? Mental illness is a choice? First of all, it is obvious that...

Recent national political attention on Mesa County; what's that about?

How is it that Mesa County continues to garner so much national attention? From the nation’s number-one ranking in quality healthcare at the lowest cost to world-class outdoor recreation to a steady stream of presidential candidates, Mesa County is of obvious national importance. In the past four years alone, we’ve had visits from Barack Obama, John McCain, Sarah Palin, Kathleen Sibelius and Mitt Romney, to name a few.

But when I learned that three of the top four political TV ad markets in the nation were in Colorado in July, with Grand Junction at number two (Colorado Springs at number one, Denver at four), curiosity got the best of me.

After an afternoon of phone calls, I learned that Colorado is...

Collared lizard: Ancient secrets, dreaming and foresight

The colorful collared lizard or Crotaphytus collaris auriceps is a common sight in the Western Colorado landscape, and yet it excites us to see them.

The name auriceps comes from aurum (gold) and ceps, which means head. Our most common collared lizard auriceps has a golden-yellow head and vibrant blue-green body, with a long, round tail.

Our rocks and canyons are ideal habitat for collared lizards. They burrow under big rocks to sleep and lay their eggs, then venture out in search of insects (but they’ll settle for an occasional side salad). The lizards do stalk their prey, but they’ll adjust to whatever’s available at the time.

Most Native American lore associates the lizards with ancient secrets, dreaming, and foresight. Maybe that’s why an encounter with auriceps so often produces a sense of awe, surprise, and reflection.

As a child, I always thought of the collared lizard as larger, with long sweeping wings, offering sage advice. Blue dragons, I called them. Little blue dragons. From high in the sky to shadows of the red rock, they see and sense what’s been, what is, and what could be. Ah, the imagination of a little girl.

So the next time you’re out hiking in the canyons and rocks around the Valley (or in your yard if it has big rocks), watch for Western Slope auriceps and have your camera ready. (I’m usually so taken with delight when I see one that I wait too long. Yet sometimes, once they realize I’ve seen them, they’ll stop just long enough for a quick photo op.) Then, as you continue your hike, let your imagination wander as you reflect on the auriceps encounter. Ancient secrets, dreaming, and foresight. Not bad for a little lizard.

Technical Notes
Family: Iguanidae
Genus: Crotaphytus
Species: Crotaphytus collaris

This post is excerpted from a story I wrote in the July 2009 issue of Grand Valley Magazine. Because I've always had a soft spot for the collared lizard, I wanted it here on my blog.

Making art while writing ... in my head

"Amber" by Krystyn Hartman.

Ended up doing two pieces today while writing my column for this week. Again, I am hooked on working with these alcohol inks on yupo paper. Can't get enough, apparently.

I made this one, a very green tree with a big silver circle in the center, which I call "Amber."

The circle is the shiny top from a Jello snack pack that I brought back from Nebraska a few weeks ago. I included it in this piece because the Jello was shared among family when we were in Nebraska and I wanted as many family elements in this piece as possible. Of course, a very leafy tree is also very representative of family. It was important to include a lot of family elements in this piece.

I made this one for my friend who is moving to a new city to begin a new life. She's nervous right now; this is a challenging transition for her, but I know she will do well. She is strong, smart, beautiful and, well, she's just fabulous.

I also felt the need to make a piece featuring a lemon tree. As with the other piece, this one has a family connection for me.

"That Lemon Tree" by Krystyn Hartman.

I actually wrote most of my column today (in my head of course) while painting the lemon tree. (I still need to get the column out of my head and onto paper, but that should go pretty quick now that I know what I'm writing.)

Lemonade is the name of the yellow ink I used for the lemons. I didn't realize that was the name of the color; I just grabbed the bright yellow. When I'd finished and was putting the inks back in the tin, the label caught my eye. How appropriate!

I started to add more to the piece, but there was something about the simplicity of it that just felt right and stayed my brush.

Overall, had a very nice day painting family trees and writing (in my head)!  Okay, better get my column to paper already!