Thursday, January 21, 2016

Desert Trail Column, January 21, 2016

A special community meeting will take place on Saturday, January 23 at our Wonder Valley Community Center, 80526 ½ Amboy Road at Blower Road, from 10 to noon. James Brakebill of the Copper Mountain College Fire Technology Program will show us what a local Paid Call Firefighter (volunteer) program might look like. He’ll also give us information on ambulance and paramedic services. If you’re interested in avoiding a fire tax increase, attending this meeting is a good first step.

Our regular community meeting will take place on Monday, January 25 from 9 to 11 am at our community center. Our Basinwide Municipal Advisory Council representative Teresa Sitz will take any of our concerns or questions to the Basinwide MAC meeting that’ll be held that night from 6:30 to 8:30 at the Joshua Tree Community Center on Sunburst Road. Please try to attend one or both of these informative meetings.

Karen’s Commentary:  Big thanks to cousin Annie French for lots of coupons, stamps and cards. Also, to Marilyn Boling for stamps. They’re all appreciated. Thought maybe you’d like an update as to how I’m doing with my little casino visits, although it pains me to tell you. At this moment, I am $106 in the red! Boo-hoo. I need to hit one of those $229 drawings to get my head above water again!

Darlene’s Commentary:  My sister Karen’s an animal lover extraordinaire, as many of you know. What some of you don’t know is that she sends birthday cards to each of my pets on their birthday! (Gee, I never get a birthday card – only kidding.) This morning I found a card in my mailbox addressed to The Parris Chickens. Karen is a little strange, but lovable.

The Glass Outhouse Art Gallery, located at 77575 29 Palms Highway at Thunder Road, is a real Wonder Valley treasure. It was lovingly created by Laurel Seidl, and she and Frank have been adding special touches to the property ever since!  Even if art is definitely not your thing, don’t despair – check out the darling little public Wayside Chapel in front of the gallery. It’s open 24/7, has plenty of room to park and is definitely worth a look. Frank did a fantastic job on this chapel, right down to the tiniest details. For information, call 760-367-3807.

Handy Hint:  When haggling over the price of a car, do express legitimate negative feelings – you may see a radical change in the dealer’s attitude, resulting in a better deal.

Thought for Today:  An anteater can grow to be six feet long, yet its mouth is only one inch wide.

Until next time . . . remember to take time to enjoy the WONDERs all around us.