Wildlife West Music Festivals

  Wildfire West Music Festival is close to home and is packed with great bands that your family will love.  Children's admission is free, and parking is also free of charge for the weekend.  Bands perform every two hours with activities and contests continuing during the festival.

Wildlife West is just 20 minutes east of Albuquerque in nearby Edgewood, New Mexico, and parking is always free! Free weekend camping (dry camping) is provided. Children under 12 are admitted free. No alcohol or open fires are permitted at the festivals.

10th Annual Wildlife Music Festival July 20-22, 2012

This summer's festival will feature the Quebe Sisters Band and The Byron Berline Band.
Friday kicks off at the Historic Bean Barn with a Country Barn Dance with South by Southwest.
The following contests are scheduled: Fiddle Contest, Banjo Contest, Sunday, July 22 at 4pm.
Saturday & Sunday begins at 11am with

The Quebe Sisters Band

When Grace, Sophia and Hulda Quebe (pronounced Kway-bee) raise their fiddles and play, audiences marvel. When the girls sing their vintage style three-part harmony, audiences are blown away. Add the extraordinary rhythm guitar of Joey McKenzie and the swinging upright bass of Drew Phelps and the Quebe Sisters Band becomes a force of nature. The QSB's unique brand of music has taken the Americana music scene by storm. They perform a refreshing blend of western swing, vintage country, bluegrass, jazz & swing standards, and Texas style fiddling.
The band has been awarded the 2007 Crescendo Award by the Western Music Association and winner of the 2008 Western Swing Album of the Year from the
Academy of Western Artists,

The Byron Berline Band

Members: Byron Berline, John Hickman, Jim Fish, Richard Sharp, Greg Burgess and Steve Short
Byron Berline is a three-time National Fiddle Champion who turned to a musical career after earning a B. A. in Physical Education at the University of Oklahoma. Originally from Oklahoma where he began playing the fiddle at age 5, Byron lived and worked in Los Angeles for 26 years before returning to his home state in 1995.
Byron's professional career reads like Who's Who in the music business as he has performed with or recorded with so many notables. He has led or been a member of the following bands : Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys, 1966 - 67; Dillard & Clark, 1969-1970; Dillard Expedition, 1970-71; Country Gazette, 1971-75; Sundance, 1975-85; Berline, Crary & Hickman, 1978-90; L. A. Fiddle Band, 1978-93; California, 1990-96; Byron Berline Band, 1996- Present
Also appearing at the 10th Annual Festival will be:

• Holy Water & Whiskey
• The Squash Blossom Boys
• Muddy River String Band
• Lost Howling Coyotes
• Kitty Jo Creek Band
• Hot Club of Santa Fe
• Zoltan Orkestar
• Breaking Blue
• Gary Reynolds & the Southwest Wind Band
• Coyote Crossing
• Cheap Shots
• Jimmy Abraham
and more

Bands change every hour on two stages.

We kick off the weekend with the Friday Barn Dance, 7pm July 20 featuring South by Southwest. Saturday and Sunday feature a dozen bands on two covered stages. The Quebe Sisters and Byron Berline are staying over to play Sunday, and with the new dance floor in the amphitheater there will lots of boot-scootin’ to some terrific fiddlin’.

Workshops in songwriting, banjo and fiddle, Jam Sessions and camaraderie, plus the non-releasable wild animals in this 122 acre nature park make for a great weekend. There's always free camping and parking and remember - it’s cooler in Edgewood.

For more information on the festival head to the Wildlife West Website.

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Vacation Tips to Keep Your Packing Light

Are you going on vacation this summer?  Whether you are running out of room in your car or want to avoid the extra rates on the plane, packing light is essential.  Here are some great tips on how to avoid those extra rates, and still bring everything you need on the trip.

Start early: For a trip that's a week or longer, I typically get my suitcase out two or three days before I'm leaving. It helps me get into travel mode early, which means I'll have time to think of things like laundry and outfits.

Make a list: My mom recently brought up that when my brother and I were little, she made a point of teaching us how to pack our own bags. List-making was always the first step to doing it efficiently.

Stick to a few versatile pieces of clothing and pairs of shoes: Choose colors and patterns that will mix and match easily so that you'll be able to wear each piece more than once. This forethought reduces how much you'll pack and can make getting dressed easier. For women, dresses are pretty foolproof. Include things that can transition from casual to dressier; for shoes, think loafers for men or ballet flats for women. (And I never pack more than three pairs.)

Think about outfits: Similarly, you'll end up bringing less stuff if you spend a few minutes planning outfits. By having incorporated versatile tops and bottoms, you'll still have options to choose from depending on your mood when you're traveling. Women can include a few staple pieces of jewelry, which won't take up much space but can change a look.

Dress your heaviest onboard: I travel wearing my bulkier items, which for airplanes in the summer includes pants and the only cardigan I'm bringing.

Learn what you don't have to pack: To save suitcase space you can easily forgo many items, particularly hair dryers and most toiletries. Hotels and hosts typically will oblige, and, if need be, you can pick up toiletries at a drugstore. And in general remember that when it comes down to it, very few things (e.g. prescriptions and contacts) are essential.
 
Go for light reading: I love to read while traveling and try to stick to paperbacks under 300 pages or else magazines.

For more vacation tips check out Apartment Therapy.

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Beating the Heat

This heat wave has taken over the country. Temperatures are well into the upper 90s and past 100 degrees, and everyone is looking for a way to stay cool.  Here are some great tips on how to beat the heat, but still have a great summer.

The National Weather Service said the record-breaking heat that has baked the nation's midsection for several days was slowly moving into the mid-Atlantic states and Northeast. Excessive-heat warnings remained in place Friday for all of Iowa, Indiana and Illinois as well as much of Wisconsin, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio and Kentucky.


St. Louis hit a record high of 105 on Wednesday and a record low of 83. In Wisconsin, the coolest Milwaukee and Madison got was 81 in the early morning, beating previous low records by 2 and 4 degrees respectively. Temperatures didn't fall below 79 in Chicago, 78 in Grand Rapids, Mich., and 75 in Indianapolis.

"When a day starts out that warm, it doesn't take as much time to reach high temperatures in the low 100s," said Marcia Cronce, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. "You know it'll be a warm day when you start out at 80 degrees."

For people in other parts of the country who aren't used to hearing the weather man say, "It'll be cooling down to 105 tomorrow," here are a few unique tips from the Valley of the Sun:

1. Keep your ride cool. Those cumbersome windshield reflectors are your new best friend. And if you have young children, buy an extra one to strap over a car seat to keep metal clasps from heating up in the sun as your car sits in the parking lot. You might even throw an ice pack or frozen water bottle in the seat to keep it cool for little ones while you shop.

2. Get creative about sleeping arrangements. Set up beds on a porch or back yard. Or just sleep in the shade, during the heat of the day.

3. Avoid the sun. Sure, sunscreen helps. But you can avoid it altogether by waking up and doing yard work before sunrise or going for your daily run at midnight.

4. Think before you touch. Any surface that sits in the sun could be hot enough to burn. There's no shame in using pot holders to open doors. Also, carry a towel to put on hot seats, and keep curtains pulled tight to block out the rays.

5. Water is your friend. Drink it. Swim in it. Spray it on your face. In Phoenix, shopping centers and cafes greet visitors by showering them with a fine, cool mist. You can get the same effect by filling a spray bottle with water.
And if all this talk about smoldering temperatures is getting you down, look on the bright side. You can always bake cookies on the dashboard of your car. We really do that.

For more information check out the Christian Science Monitor.

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Happy Fourth of July!

Everyone wants to watch the fireworks this Fourth of July!  Here is your Albuquerque information on where to watch the fireworks and all the other exciting events that are happening that day.

Join us July Fourth to celebrate our nation's  independence. Enjoy live music, family entertainment, food vendors, and much more!

The main stage will feature local musicians throughout the day, with country superstars Diamond Rio to close out the show. At 9:15pm get ready for one of the state's largest fireworks displays.

There will also be a Youth stage, sponsored by our friends at Warehouse 508.

Other activities to include a car show, balloon glow, kids' activities, and free face painting.

The Fire Cracker Café features a covered area with private tables and a premier vantage point. Treat your family, friends or employees to the "red carpet" experience. BBQ and other delicious edibles will be part of the package. Prices are $30.00 per person, or $200.00 for a table of eight. Kids 12 and under are half-price. The package includes VIP access route and parking, table with seating, shade, a BBQ Dinner, soft drink coupon and cash bar. Call 821-1000 for tickets.

Park & Ride will be available from St. Pius High School and Coronado Mall. For more information visit ABQ Ride. Onsite parking is $10.

For more information see ItsATrip website.

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River Development Project Takes First Steps

The Bosque and Rio Grande river are being put up to vote on whether or not to develop these areas.  Mayor RJ Berr wants to develop these rivers into recreation areas for kayaking, swimming, and other outdoor activities.  The Mayor explains that there is not a ton of activities to do in Albuquerque, and he wants to give residents more place for outdoor recreation.

The first step in Albuquerque Mayor RJ Berry's plan to transform parts of the Bosque and Rio Grande is up for a vote at Monday's city council meeting, but not everyone is diving in.

The Rio Grande is one of the state's greatest treasures, but in the city it's rarely used for recreation and Mayor Berry wants to change that.

The Mayor wants to open the river up for kayaking, canoeing and even swimming. He believes if the city puts in the infrastructure, businesses and private developers will set up shop near the water, creating jobs and luring in tourists.

"There's not a whole lot of things to do in Albuquerque," said Jonathan Rodriguez. "I think this new plan they're doing now by the river is going to be comforting for people to come in and just have a blast together."

"We have one of the largest urban parks in America running right through the city of Albuquerque. We have a wonderful asset with the Rio Grande, and we have people that haven't been near the river in years because access is difficult," said Mayor Berry while explaining how he wants to build board walks and trails closer to the water.

But others aren't so sure, expressing concern about the river.  "It's very important. We go down there sometimes, and we love to fish. If there's a lot of people down there, there will be no more fish for the birds of prey," said Mikayla Salgado who thinks planners need to be very careful about protecting the river's ecosystem.

Monday the city council will vote on whether to approve a $150 contract for a planner to come in and create a game plan for the 10 mile stretch of the Bosque that's up for development from I-40 north to Alameda. Planners will collect public input, survey the area to generate cots and assess the wildlife.

The Mayor expects the contract to pass.


Read more through KRQE.

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Different Worlds Come Together

Walking a day in someone's shoes in a different culture would be an amazing opportunity for anyone.  Here is New Mexico, this opportunity is created with the Green Village Schools' Advanced Education Center.  

It is a project that is helping bring together students from two very different worlds; one in war ravaged Afghanistan and the other right here in New Mexico. And because of the project, hundreds of Afghans are getting the education they never dreamed possible.

 

Blake Batten is part of an Albuquerque 
organization that helps fund and support Green Village Schools' Advanced Education Center, an Afghan initiative.   

But his organization is just one of three. He said most people who learn about the program are surprised or apprehensive of the partnership.

 

"Sometimes you get questions like, why are you trying to work there? That's just a completely hopeless situation." Batten said he could not disagree more with that thinking, and said his latest trip to Helmand Province in Afghanistan is only proof of progress.

 

The main reason for Batten's trip was to attend graduation ceremonies for the school.  More than 200 boys and girls, men and women,  became certified in English and computer literacy and will now go on to further their education and enter the workforce. 

 

For Batten, the ceremonies were personal.  He not only does office work to help keep the school running, he has also developed strong relationships with the students, which until this trip, were based strictly on letters and Skype.

During his visit, Batten also spent time with elders from a nearby village.

He said they had one message. "They told me, take this message back to the American people, that we're tired of war and what we want is education for our children."

Education is key in Helmand and New Mexico. One of the organizations involved leads a pen pal program out of Los Alamos High School.  The letters initially act as an English lesson, but Batten said the take away on both sides is far more valuable.

This is the first time youth over there have really had the opportunity to directly connect with youth here in the U.S....ultimately, what we want here, is just for youth to try and understand one another and go beyond the typical images they might see in the media.

For more information go to KOB4.

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New Baby on the way for the Albuquerque Zoo

The newest addition to the Albuquerque zoo is only about a year and a half away.  The first glimpse of the new baby elephant from the Albuquerque Zoo was seen thanks to a very clear ultrasound.  The baby is expected to be born in November 2013. 

Today’s ultrasound of Rozie the elephant revealed a striking image of her calf, due in November 2013 at the ABQ BioPark Zoo. The image shows a healthy calf about the size of a fist.  Over the next 18 months, the calf will gain 200-250 pounds. 

Reproductive experts, Dr. Thomas Hildebrandt and Dr. Frank Goeritz, from the Berlin Institute for Zoo Biology and Wildlife Research, worked with Zoo animal care staff to assess the progress of Rozie’s pregnancy. The consultants also performed reproductive assessments on the other two female elephants, Alice and Irene, and two rhinoceroses, Lulu and Bernie.

“It’s been a whirlwind of activity as we hustle to get as much done as possible while we have this expertise,” said Rhonda Saiers, Elephant Barn Manager. “We have a long standing relationship with this team—they did the artificial insemination that resulted in Rozie’s first baby, Daizy. They have seen it all, and our animals and staff really benefit from their experience and knowledge.”

Zookeepers and veterinarians work year-round to do proactive training for health care procedures like the ultrasounds performed this week. The elephants and rhinos are rewarded for volunteer participation with goodies like Fruit Loops, hay and peanut butter.

The information gained during this week’s assessments will be used to manage Rozie’s pregnancy and to keep an eye on the reproductive systems of the other female elephants as they age. Keepers will also be working on future breeding possibilities for the rhino pair.

For more information on the ABQ Bio Park Zoo or Rozie's Baby check out the City of ABQ website.

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