Can you believe it when I tell you that one week from today (March 8) Daylight Saving Time begins?? About the time an early sun starts peeking into my bedroom window, the morning goes dark again, but I’m rewarded with an hour of more light in the evening. Angels, I may not have to join a Ketamine drug trial for depression, after all. Wait, don’t take me seriously. My secret for staving off depression is Zumba, yoga, and a healthy dose of B vitamins. Yes, Cupcakes, the mere thought of them while sipping a glass of wine and nibbling on chocolates lightens my mood 100 percent. All of this makes me wonder: which came first — the wine or the chocolate?
Here’s another good one. Which came first — ATRE radio show or Rey Post (Sotheby’s)? I know it’s hard to tell, Cupcakes, but Rey actually came first when he joined Sotheby’s, after which he came up with ATRE (All Things Real Estate radio, website, and blog) as a marketing tool. This year (ATRE’s 10th year in June) All Things Real Estate is one of 300 real estate professionals and organizations to receive RISmedia’s nationally recognized 2020 Real Estate Newsmakers award. RISmedia (real estate industry news and content, found online at rismedia.com) describes these Newsmakers as “a dynamic group of individuals making headlines as a result of their newsworthy contributions to the real estate industry, and their efforts to positively affect the consumers and communities they serve.” ATRE radio show is in the Trendsetters award category. Puppies, you can listen to our very own trendsetter, Rey, this afternoon on KTRC, when he talks with his guest, Mayor Alan Webber.
On the subject of trending, what do my dearest readers think of all the hemp-related businesses sprouting up around the state ever since Congress passed the 2018 Farm Bill legalizing hemp, which was followed last April by our governor signing NM House Bill 581, the Hemp Manufacturing Act? On a personal level (which is really the only level I like to operate on, if you must know the truth, Sugar Pops), I’m happy about hemp. It provided the vehicle to get my friend, David Hill (cofounder and chief quality officer of First Crop) to move here from Colorado.
While David is working with farmers on small farms scattered between Tesuque and Abiquiu, promoting regenerative agricultural practices and cultivating organic hemp crops for CBD products, his wife, Lisa Hill, is working on her own regenerative project. After moving here and setting up her studio, Lisa launched her new career, The Solution Based Mother/Daughter Empowerment and Re-Birth Coaching Program. March 14 is her next Mother/Daughter/SISTER Empowerment Workshop, if you happen to fall into one of those categories. Think about this, Honey Buns. Where is a more perfect spot for organic hemp farming and empowering workshops than the City Different?
Since I skipped out on you last month (mea maxima culpa, amicas) I didn’t get to mention two awardable February events that are now in the past, but still on my mind in the present. Both occurred on Valentine’s Day. The first is my own yearly award for Santa Fe’s Best Valentine Couple, who this year embodies all the romance and glamour I envision for myself in the mysterious world of love (so mysterious as to be elusive, but don’t cry for me, Buttercups). Scout (concierge, Four Seasons) and Jim (president, The Mortgage Place) Gay, a very STRAIGHT gay couple (not that there’s anything wrong with that), are the It Couple for 2020. As far as I can see, in my nearsighted state, they’re still crazy in love after all these years. And very glamorous, as you can see in their very glamorous photo.
Second, the Santa Fe Film Festival’s “Best Film Experience” award for Final Cutz, the feature film I saw at The Screen on Valentine’s Night (so much for roses and candlelit dinners, Sweethearts). A Zom Com of Academic Proportions, this satirical film about the closing of the Santa Fe University of Art and Design was written, produced and directed by Liam Lockhart (former chair of the film school at the now defunct SFUAD). Not only was it clever, entertaining and very professionally done, it was also a chance for me to see how my friend, Jim Clem (inventor, math tutor superb, grandfather extraordinaire, etc., etc., etc. and now budding actor in bit parts) would look as a priest. Pretty authentic, if you ask me, Butter Beans. Even though SFUAD is gone, I do hope Liam sticks around to bring us more fun in film.
Now, Dear Hearts, as I bid you farewell, I turn to my favorite section of today’s New Mexican, the obituaries. Actually, Kittens, who am I kidding, it’s my favorite every day. I can only hope that you enjoy as much as I do the creative writing showcased in our obituaries compared to the dry and fact-filled ones in most newspapers. There are many people whom I’ve never met, yet I feel shortchanged by that after reading about their lives in their obituaries. I called Philip Vander Wolk (Santa Fe Properties) after reading his father’s obituary to tell him how sorry I was that I’d never met his dad, Jefferson Vander Wolk. After getting a peek into Mr Vander Wolk’s life, I could see why Philip was voted Best Local Real Estate Broker by his clients and colleagues a few years ago in the Santa Fe Reporter (positive proof that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree). My favorite sentence describing Philip’s dad: “Mr. Vander Wolk, the Dancing Bear, made magic happen when most others said it wasn’t possible, and he routinely punched his ticket on what he referred to as ‘The Good Life Express’.” What a guy, Cream Puffs, what a life.
Another example was the obituary for Jane Scott, a person whom I did know and love. When her husband, Drew Scott, wrote her obituary, he described her so well that I could close my eyes and see her standing there in front of me: “She approached life with her eyes wide open, with a heart as big as the moon, and a smile — so warm — it could melt the largest of ice bergs… She could uplift any sad spirit with her smile.” Lord Byron would agree, Jane walked in beauty.
So long, Sweetpeas….Until next time, go ahead and punch your ticket on the Good Life Express,
