Spotlight EP News Jan 8, 2010 No. 308

www.spotlightepnews.com

Published by E.P. MASS MEDIA ADVERTISING INC. Vol. X No. 308 January 8th., 2010

SPOTLIGHT #308. JANUARY 8,2010.e$S:SPOTLIGHT EP NEWS#305. DEC 18.2009 1/7/10 10:33 AM Page 1

SPOTLIGHT EP NEWS JANUARY 08, 2010 PAGE 2

El Paso politics and politicians continue tocreate a laughable miasma, befogged by the efforts ofsome politicians to outdo each other, to politically killan opponent and to render the other side disabled insuch a way that he or she will never again attempt to goagainst the machine. So what else is new?

I wasn’t here to see it, but, historian Mario T.Garcia says in his books that in the olden days, thingsweren’t much different than they are today. In fact, theymight even have been worse, as Chicanos were out andout paid for their vote in the form of the $2 poll taxwhich was paid for them, that is, if they voted the rightway.

The right way was to vote for whicheverAnglo politico gave the best party. When I ran forMayor in 1985, one elderly gent told me that he likedwhat he heard from me, but, that he was going to votefor the late Jon Rogers. “Do you know why?” he askedme. I answered no. “Because he throws some great par-ties.”

I was astounded that this green-eyed elderlyChicano, who sounded just like any other vato from thebarrio, would throw away his vote simply because of abeer. “Listen, sir, if our votes can still be bought with atamale and a beer, well, good luck to you.” And, youknow, he was serious about voting for Rogers becausehe had the money for huge parties.

Can you imagine, however, going back in timeto early-day El Paso, when Mexicans were the majorityin numbers only but had no political power to speak of?Can you imagine the number of violations that existedback then, when Chicanos had no recourse but to acceptwhatever was handed down to them? Can you imaginethe cheating and the abuses that were being perpetratedby Anglo politicians, using Mexicanos and Chicanos tofurther their own interests So, what else is new? Onlynow, it seems that the Chicanos themselves are doingthe coercing, doing the cheating. Or so it would seem.

You get my drift, don’t you? Now that Chi-canos are the majority in El Paso in every sense of theword, now, we’re being accused of being corrupt and ofworse traits. Back then, when Anglos were in power ex-clusively, I wonder why nobody was investigating the il-legal practice of purchasing poll tax receipts forMexican voters? Nobody was investigating the corrup-tion back then, were they?

Only now, when more Chicanos are beingelected to office, has the FBI entered the picture to pun-ish those who may have been corrupted by sinister ele-ments. Only now, are investigations being conducted inefforts to find wrong doing.

It’s interesting, isn’t it, that now that we Chi-canos are presumably in power politically, we’re makingthe same mistakes that others made against us when wehad no power. El Paso politics: It boggles the mind! But,what can I say? I love El Paso, politics or no politics. Sin Fin

El Paso politics: It boggles the mind

By Joe Olvera ©, 2010

The Stanford football team visitedThe Children's Hospital at Providence onMonday, December 28th. It's a tradition forthe Sun Bowl teams to make the yearlyvisit to our hospital. The players broughtcheer to the patients and staff as theypassed out autographed t -shirts, caps andother memorabilia to approximately 80kids that were hospitalized.

The Stanford football team visited The Children's Hospital

at Providence

www.spotlightepnews.com24/7



Vietnam

War Hero Rafael Hernando

III says working with young

children has helped

him overcome some

of the nightmares

which he still attrib-

utes to his military

service during that

war – a war in which

he lost his leg when

he stepped on a mine.

As his body flew in

one direction, he

could see his leg fly-

ing off in the oppo-

site direction.

Although he’s one of

the co-founders of

the Socorro ISD’s

After School Athletic

Program, he’s had to

pull out temporarily

due to his Post Trau-

matic Stress Disorder.

“I’m not with the program

right now because I had a

visit from the war,” Hernando

said in an interview “I had

problems with myself, prob-

lems with PTSD, but, I plan

to rejoin that program in the

Spring. I’m getting better.”Hernando, who had

a school in the Socorro ISDnamed for him, said he isproud and honored to be men-tioned in conjunction with ed-

ucational pursuits because hewants every young El Pasoanto graduate from high schooland go on to college. “Theathletic program is all aboutgetting kids and parents in-volved. When the kids see

their parents participat-ing with them, they getmore excited aboutschool.”

Hernando said themiddle school wasnamed after him onMay 12, 2005. “Theboard was looking toname an elementaryschool and a middleschool. My name didnot come up until afterthe elementary wasnamed. As far as Iknow one of the boardmembers, Willie Gan-dara, asked about a vet-eran that was helpingJoe Hernandez with theAfterschool program.That was me.”

Hernando said hefeels especially proud when-ever some youngster whom

he mentored in the past, ap-proaches and thanks him forhelping him or her become acollege graduate. “Some ofthese kids didn’t have any in-clination to stay in school,they were all for droppingout because they felt thatnothing was being donefor them. When Joe Her-nandez and I started theAfter School Program,we gave these studentsan impetus, a reasonto continue in school.Many of them turnedout to be successfulpeople.”

Her-nando, who suf-fered his debilitating injuryin Vietnam, today gets aroundmainly in his electric wheel-chair. Being disabled has notcurbed his enthusiasm forworking with children. On thecontrary, he wants them to seehim as he truly is, injured anddisabled, but, still working tohelp youngsters reach their

most cherished goals. “Wefollow them through theirschool years, and we see themdo some great things. Someof them go on to college,then, when they graduate,

they come to

us tothank us for steeringthem through the most diffi-cult years.”

As a veteran, Her-nando was awarded theBronze Star, and the BronzeStar with Oak Leaf Cluster

for Meritorious Service. Healso received a Purple Heartfor injuries received in com-bat. His community service inbehalf of veterans include or-ganizing the Paralyzed Veter-ans of America in El Paso in1980; organized wheel chair

sports organiza-tion forViet NamVeterans inEl Paso in1980, andstarted vol-unteering inSocorroschools in Au-gust, 2000.“Children dobetter in schoolwhen their par-ents are in-volved,”Hernando said.

“That’s why we encourageevery parent to get involvedin their children’s education.That’s the greatest thing thatcan happen to any child.”

AmericanWar hero becomes an El Paso hero as wellBy Joe Olvera ©, 2010



Question:My parents are getting olderand our physician is consider-ing home health for them.What should we look for in agood home health agency?

Answer:There are quite a few

home health agencies, and itis always your choice to de-cide which one you want. You

can ask your friends, family, physician and dischargeplanner who has a good reputation in the home healthfield. When narrowing down your choice, ask aboutthe quality of the care givers they employ, and whatdesignated programs they have to fit your specificneeds, definitely interview several agencies beforemaking your choice.

Ask the expert

Ann Rodriguez-McConnell

On January 1st,

most people were relaxing

from the previous night's

celebration. My staff and I

were hard at work preparing

for my annual Pachanga

which took place that day at

2:00PM. An hour before the

event was to begin, over

three hundred people were

lined up outside the Mission

Valley Ballroom waiting for

the event.

Just before 2PM,

we were graced by the visit

of perhaps our next Texas

governor. Bill White, for-

mer mayor of Houston, flew

out to attend and to greet the

many guests. He was ac-

companied by Senator Mario

and Mrs. Gallegos and by

County Commissioner

Sylvia Garcia from Houston.

Our special guests and I

stood at the entrance wel-

coming the people as they

walked in. White, Gallegos

and Garcia were all aston-

ished at the number of peo-

ple who continued to enter

for over an hour.

The Pachanga was

a great success. We served

to a minimum of 1200 resi-

dents from District 75. In

addition to the honor of hav-

ing Mayor White, many can-

didates attended and visited

with the attendees. Many of

the candidates were also as-

tounded at the turnout.

This years event

was truly the kickoff to the

political season this year.

Just three days later, January

4th, the deadline for filing to

run for office this year

closed the process for filing.

As it turned out, no one filed

to oppose me in the primary

or the general election. That

means that I will be re-

elected as your State Repre-

sentative and to attend the

82nd Legislative Session

that convenes in January of

2011.

I am very grateful

to the voters of District 75

for their support and for let-

ting potential opponents

know that I and my staff

have earned the right to rep-

resent the district. We had

heard rumbling about possi-

ble individuals who were

thinking about filing. All of

them were discouraged from

going forward.

You might think

that we are going to work

the period between now and

the next session at a slower

pace. You would be wrong.

Prior to the new year, my of-

fice had already established

legislative issues that we

wanted to start working on

from the very beginning of

the year.

One of those is-

sues has to do with the mas-

sive tire dump that my office

discovered in East El Paso

County. The complaint to

the Texas Commission of

Environmental Quality was

filed by my office. We also

requested that a newly cre-

ated office for statewide

criminal prosecutions of

dumping look into the possi-

bility of becoming involved.

One of the things

we are going to strongly re-

search is the environmental

fee that consumers pay with

each tire purchase. As it

stands now, the fee fails to

guarantee that thousands of

tires are disposed of prop-

erly. We may consider hav-

ing the fee redirected in a

manner that truly disposes of

the tires properly instead of

dumping in the desert and

enriching dishonest individ-

uals. If that doesn’t work,

we may work to abolish the

fee altogether. I don’t think

El Paso consumers should

pay a fee that does not pro-

duce the intended results.

Chente QuintanillaState Representative

New Year and the Election





2009 is now in the weather record books. Here

are the finalized weather statistics of this past year in El

Paso:

Coldest Day: January 11 – 20 degrees

Hottest Day: July, 14 and 15 – 105 degrees

Most Rainfall (24 hours): June 28 – 1.85”

Total 100 + days: 21

Windiest Day: December 8 – 68 mph at the airport

Snowiest Day: December 1: 3 inches

Total Snowfall: 8.3”

2009 was also the first year since 2003 that we ended up below normal for the year in total

precipitation. Here are the past 25 years with total precipitation for El Paso.

Note: El Paso averages about 9.50” of rainfall per year.

2009 – 8.69 – Below Normal

2008 – 9.88

2007 – 10.14

2006 – 17.51

2005 – 13.60

2004 – 12.10




2000 – 7.41 – Below Norma







1993 – 9.63

1992 – 11.40

1991 – 12.38

1990 – 12.85


1988 – 11.06

1987 – 10.94

1986 – 12.17

1985 – 8.16 - Below Normal

El Paso’s Weather for 2009

By: “Doppler” Dave Speelman

WEATHER 101

Wheater Trivia:

Answer: December

What month of year does el paso typically receive the mostsnowfall:

“Doppler" Dave Speelman is the chief meteorologist at KVIA-TV in El Paso. You canwatch his forecasts at 4, 5, 6 and 10 pm on ABC-7 (channel 6 cable). If you would likeDoppler Dave to address (explain) any weather issues you can email him at [email protected].

A. NovemberB. December

C. JanuaryD. February



The classic leather jacket,like this bomber style fromBanana Republic, is theperfect foundation of awinter getaway wardrobe.Photo courtesy of BananaRepublic.

Sharon Mosley

Whether you're headed for a few days of lounging

on a tropical beach or skiing down the mountain slopes, look-ing good when you arrive at your destination is a fine art, saysAndy Paige, style expert and author of "Style on a Shoestring"(McGraw Hill, $16.95, 2009).

"Packing your bag is just like building your wardrobe," saysPaige, who is also the star of TLC's "Ten Years Younger." Shesuggests starting with your wardrobe basics, and then addingtops and accessories that will do double duty when combinedwith your key pieces.

Here are some of Paige's style tips on packing for a three-daygetaway for fun in the sun:

— Choose a color story, such as white/khaki, black/red,turquoise/brown or gray/yellow, for all of your garments, soeverything will coordinate and you can pack fewer shoes andaccessories.

— Fabrics should be wash-and-wear, wrinkle-free options thatcan be hand- washed with a little baby shampoo if need be.

— Every garment packed should serve a dual purpose or beable to be dressed up and dressed down. For example, a flirtyskirt should function as a casual skirt with a tank and flip-flopsfor souvenir shopping as well as a dressier dinner option withheels and a sexy top. A colorful wrap should serve as a sarongfor your bathing suit, a nighttime wrap for sun-kissed shoul-ders and a blankie on the plane. Bermuda shorts should beworn with walking shoes and tanks for sightseeing, then laterwith strappy heels and a flirty top for a night out.

— Allow yourself three pairs of shoes max. You should travelin a modern feminine walking shoe; pack a strappy heel fornight and a sophisticated non-rubber flip- flop for relaxingdaytime activities.

— Pack hair accessories, such as a modern headband and/orscarf, to maintain an easy, stylish look that will limit primptime and optimize playtime.

— Choose a refined tankini swimsuit, so you can wear the topwith coordinating cropped pants or a skirt.

— Choose strategic accessories like a statement watch, hoopearrings, sunglasses and a coordinating tote bag that will dic-tate the mood of your outfit.

For a winter getaway, Paige has the following style tips:

— A fitted leather jacket is the foundation of this wardrobe.Choose a feminine style that is sexy, tough, fashionable andfunctional.

— Choose a solid-color heavy wrap that looks great on top ofyour jacket. This will add another layer of warmth, and youcan also use it on the plane.

— Committing to a color story is a great timesaver. Winterscarves are a good place to start when choosing your getawaywardrobe colors, because they are the perfect fashion topperfor all of your weekend looks.

— Choose lightweight layering tops, as opposed to a sack ofbulky sweaters. Body-hugging, long-sleeved tees with scoopnecklines and thin body-loving turtlenecks offer more warmthand femininity when layered rather than one big sweater.

— Sophisticated jeans play a big part in a wintertime getaway.Choose a dark boot-cut jean that can be dressed up with high-heeled boots and tucked into casual boots for day.

— A button-up cardigan, hoodie or versatile sweater jacketthat zips is essential. These pieces are much better for layeringthan a pullover sweater.

— A slinky, matte jersey dress that falls above the knee is theperfect choice for a wrinkle-free evening out when added toopaque tights, sexy knee-high boots and long, layered neck-laces. The shorter length then makes the dress a fun, fashion-able statement when worn over a paper-thin turtleneck withheavy leggings and casual boots for day.

— Don't forget the lace! A lace cami with warm leggings givesyou something nice and cozy to sleep in, allowing you to layerunder your nighttime looks.

— Choose a great beret or cute knit hat to add more style.Then round out your accessories with statement earrings, acolor-complementing watch, a larger evening clutch and long,layering necklaces.

Sharon Mosley is a former fashion editor of the ArkansasGazette in Little Rock and executive director of the FashionEditors and Reporters Association. To find out more about

Sharon Mosley and read features by other Creators Syndicatewriters and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at

www.creators.com.

COPYRIGHT 2010 CREATORS.COM

Winter Getaways



DEAR ABBY by Abigail Van Buren

BOYS DREAD TWO MOREYEARS OF HIGH SCHOOL HARASSMENT

El Paso, Texas—January 5th, 2010 – Local photographer, April Melton of El Paso Portraits,is participating in the 2010 International Charity Model Search to select North America’sCutest Family and to raise funds for the non-profit Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep Founda-tion (NILMDTS.org). Last year’s competition featured 2,000 model’s images and raised$164,775 for the NILMDTS organization.

Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep (NILMDTS), is a 501(C)(3) non-profit organization commit-ted to assisting parents and families going through the difficult time when they experience anearly infant loss. NILMDTS connects families with volunteer photographers and providesthem with a reproducible CD of the images of their baby at no cost to the family. For furtherinformation on NILMDTS, visit their website at www.nowilaymedowntosleep.org.

Participating photographers submit portraits of local families for online voting. Finalists willbe determined by online votes. Each vote is $1, and all proceeds from votes benefit Now ILay Me Down To Sleep (NILMDTS.org).

The grand prize international winner will be determined from the 52 city finalists. Many ex-citing prizes will be awarded, and the grand prize winner receives a new car. The winnerswill be selected from the finalist gallery by photography and modeling industry experts. Thewinning family also receives a session with the renowned portrait artist Sandy Puc’ and in-ternational recognition.

Sandy Puc', Model Search sponsor, has long believed charitable work is the backbone of thecommunity. She created this contest to highlight excellence in the portrait photography in-dustry as well as raise funds for NILMDTS, the organization she co-founded in 2005.

People who want to enter their families in the contest may do so bycalling El Paso Portraits at 915-820-87716. The contest is open to

residents of the US and Canada. For more information, visithttp://sandypucmodels.com/.

April Melton has been a professional photographer practicing in the El Paso area since 2008.

DEAR ABBY: I am a short,

5-foot-5-inch high school sophomore. I am

small-boned and my voice is high-pitched.

I'm terrible at sports, and physical education

class is a nightmare. I have become friends

with another guy, "Rick," who is much like

me, and it helps to have someone who has

similar problems. Because Rick and I hang

out together, some of the macho guys have

started a rumor that we're gay, and now

everyone in the school thinks it's true. Our

PE teacher has even made comments to this

effect, which compounds the problem. Rick

and I are shunned and have even been physi-

cally attacked because of this. We are not

gay. We are just good friends who share

common problems. We are interested in

girls, but they aren't interested in us. When I

try to say I'm not gay, they say, "Then who

is your girlfriend?" When I tell them I don't

have one, they laugh at me. Rick and I are

both "A" students. We keep telling ourselves

that we will succeed where some of the

macho guys who are obvious losers will not,

and we'll have the last laugh. However, this

is still a terrible situation for us, and we can't

stand the thought of another two years like

this. Please help. -- SOPHOMORE IN

SACRAMENTO DEAR SOPHOMORE:

If you and your friend haven't already told

your parents what's going on, do so immedi-

ately. Then you and your parents should pay

a visit to the school principal to report that

you have been attacked by other students

and misidentified as gay not only by your

peers, but also by a member of the staff.

It appears that both staff and student body in

your school need to be educated about the

fact that discrimination, assault and hate

crimes are illegal. And if the harassment is

not stopped immediately, your families

should take this matter to a lawyer.

** **

DEAR ABBY: My 38-year-old married

daughter's house is filthy. Her youngest is

now in the hospital with pneumonia, and her

two other kids are sick all the time. They are

constantly

coughing,

have runny

noses, fever

and ear infec-

tions. I have

tried talking to

her regarding

her house-

keeping but

she doesn't

want to hear

anything I

have to say.

Her husband has convinced her that they

have "more important things to be con-

cerned with" than a

clean house. He

says they have

love, and a clean

house doesn't

matter. The old-

est girl is 11,

and she tells me

she's embarrassed

to have anyone

visit her. She has no friends (nor does my

daughter) and I am afraid her life will go

down along with my daughter's. Can you

help me to help them? -- GRANDMA IN

SOUTH CAROLINA

DEAR GRANDMA: My first suggestion

is to hire someone to clean your daughter's

house once a month, if that's doable. The

second is to discuss your very real concerns

with the doctor who is treating your grand-

child for pneumonia. While your son-in-law

may think that a house filled with love does-

n't have to be clean, if it's so dirty it is haz-

ardous to the health of the children who live

there, he is seriously mistaken.

**

DEAR ABBY: I have an etiquette question

my friends and I are wondering about. What

is an appropriate response when you find out

someone is expecting but she doesn't want to

be? "Congratulations" doesn't seem right,

but neither does, "You have my sympathy." I

feel lost when this situation comes up. Do

you have any ideas? -- MELISSA IN

KANSAS

DEAR MELISSA: How about, "I heard

the news. If there is anything you need,

please let me know."

** **

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren,

also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was

founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips.

Write Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or

P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

** **

To receive a collection of Abby's most mem-

orable -- and most frequently requested --

poems and essays, send a business-sized,

self-addressed envelope, plus check or

money order for $6 (U.S. funds) to: Dear

Abby -- Keepers Booklet, P.O. Box 447,

Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Postage is

included in the price.)

COPYRIGHT 2010 UNIVERSAL

Dear AbbyLocal Photographer Participatesin International Model Search

sustainable Living

Shawn Dell Joyce

Most of us are sur-

veying the damages rightnow. All the packages are un-wrapped and scattered underthe tree; the credit cards aremaxed out; we're exhausted.Now we have to decidewhere to put all the newstuff, especially those new

gadgets for which we waitedin line during the wee hoursafter Thanksgiving becausewe just had to have them.

"Less than 1 percent of allthe consumer goods boughtand sold during the holidayseason will be in use sixmonths from now," saysAnnie Leonard in "The Storyof Stuff," a short film pro-

duced by Free Range Studiosand available for free athttp://www.StoryOfStuff.com.

"The Story of Stuff" chroni-cles the life of consumergoods from the "cradle to thegrave" and offers an alterna-tive vision to our consumeristculture. Continues on page 10

Too Much 'Stuff'



Décor score

Rose Bennett Gilbert

Q: We are adding a second

story to our modern home andcan't find good ideas for stair-cases in the right mood.Everything is traditional, withturned balusters and the like,or industrial, all exposed andbare. Any suggestions onwhere to look for somethingcontemporary and beautiful?

A: I give you the totally

cool — some would say awe-some — staircase that archi-tect Ann Fougeron designedfor what has to be one of themost contemporary entrancehalls in town. Icy white andblack, it's like elegant callig-raphy that sweeps a visitor'seyes instantly up the stairs.

And who's coming down?Author Michael Lassell justmight envision Audrey Hep-burn. In his new book,"Glamour — Making It Mod-ern" (Filipacchi Publishing),he waxes rhapsodic about thestar's dramatic entrance in themovie "Funny Face," flyingdown the staircase of the Lou-vre, trailing a swirl of chiffon.

In the same chapter of "Glam-our," designer Benjamin Nor-iega-Ortiz agrees, "Staircasesshould always be grand."Meant for much more thanmere transportation betweenupper and lower floors, stair-cases can make for grand en-trances, and not just forvisitors. Glamorous womenhave long loved gliding downthem before the admiringeyes from below.

Old John D. Rockefeller,strict Baptist that he was,wasn't having such ostenta-tion in Kykuit, the classicalrevival mansion he built in1913, overlooking the Hud-son River in upstate NewYork. As today's tour guidesare amused to point out,Rockefeller insisted that thearchitects locate the staircase

discreetly behind a wall.

Happily, this lyrical stair is al-lowed center stage in the en-tryway. Crafted of blackenedhot-rolled steel with taperedtreads and open risers, itsstark and stunning silhouetteis accented by the stair-step-ping display of black-and-white art and the perfectlysimple black sculpture on itswhite plinth below. This iscontemporary minimalism atits maximum best.

Q: But what if minimalism

leaves you cold?

A: Then relax and feel free

to immerse yourself in your"things," advises WarrenBerger, author of "Glimmer"(The Penguin Press), an in-triguing book that offers awhole new way of looking atdesign and the way we deco-rate our environments.

Berger is a journalist who be-came fascinated with theglobal ideas of Toronto de-signer Bruce Mau (Institutewithout Boundaries). By"Glimmer," he means thatfirst flash of inspiration that

can lead to innovations withprofound impact on people'slives. The book's subtitleneeds no translation: "HowDesign Can Transform YourLife, and Maybe Even theWorld."

Among the thought-provok-ing "transformations," he of-fers a program designed tocurb teen smoking and a bicy-cle designed to purify wateras it's pedaled.

Closer to home, Berger be-lieves that design can makeyou happy. So can the rightthings. "Most people arehappy and comfortable whentheir home is filled withthings associated with memo-ries and experiences, as op-posed to things that havemerely been bought," Bergersays. For example, BruceMau once decorated entirelyin photographs.

"Home should be rich andcomplex, like life itself," hesays. "Life is not simple,clean and streamlined." Hisown home in Mount Kisco,N.Y., not far outside Manhat-tan, is very personal, Bergerreports. Every room is painteda different color; furnishingsinclude acquisitions fromtravels with his wife, espe-cially in the Caribbean.

It aptly reflects the author'sattitude toward decorating.He says, "A home should tellrich stories about who you areand where you have been."

Rose Bennett Gilbert is theco-author of "ManhattanStyle," "Hampton Style," andfive other books on interiordesign.

COPYRIGHT 2010CREATORS.COM.

Go on and Let Your Staircase Make aGrand Entrance

Stairway to heaven? For a minimalist, this is an entryway to die

for. Photo by John Coolidge, courtesy of Filipacchi Publishing.

Bruce Mau



energy express

Marilynn Preston

I met a guy at a

holiday party last week whohad recently lost a lot ofweight. A lot. I was meetinghim for the first time, so I hadno idea, but those in the roomwho knew him were amazed,impressed, jealous. How didhe do it? Weight Watchers?Stomach stapling? Cabbagesoup?

I cornered him, curious abouthis story. How did he do it?He quit smoking. That's whathe said, and this guy is ascholar, an academic with ahugely functioning brain.When he quit smoking, hiswhole metabolism turnedaround.

But wait! Isn't quitting smok-ing supposed to make yougain weight? Yes, that's true,too. Some people who quitsmoking will gain weight,and others will lose weight,and if you can't wait to get tothe punch line, here it is:

Every body is different.

As the year comes to an end,I hope you will see yourselfas the unique bundle of unex-pressed energy that you are.Make a resolution, then envi-sion and expect success. Youwon't know until you give ityour all. And giving it yourall — when it comes to mak-ing lasting healthy lifestylechanges — makes all thingspossible.

What else is helpful when itcomes to creating lastingchange in 2010? Now you'retalking. There's a whole sci-ence behind behavior change,and this is a good time ofyear to begin a review ofsome basics:

YOU'VE GOTTA BE-

LIEVE. I'm a big believer innew beginnings. If you're not,you might as well stop read-ing right now. Nothing I say

will sway you if, deep down,you see yourself carved instone, basically unchange-able, a fixed cog in the com-plicated wheel of life.

If, instead, you believe inyour ability to evolve, thenthe end of the year is the per-fect time to stop and askyourself: What would ahealthier lifestyle look like?Would you walk for 30 min-utes a day? Ride your bike towork? Sign up for a yogaclass? Would you drink lessalcohol? Spend more timewith family and friends? Turnoff your cell phone for hoursat a time?

Before you can do any ofthis, you've got to recognizehow fluid your brain really is.It's called neoplasticity. Yourbirth chart may be fixed, butyour reality is something youmake up every day. Believingin your own personal growthcreates the space to let it hap-pen. Don't ask how. Do youknow how your TV works?

WANT IT BADLY. Makesure your 2010 New Year'sResolution is something youreally, really want for your-self and not something youare doing to please yourspouse, partner, parent, childor even your doctor. Be hon-est with yourself, or you arewasting your time.

CHANGE ISN'T LINEAR.

Please take this on board. It'soften two steps forward, onestep back. No problem. Be-havior experts talk about aspiral of change, moving to-ward your goal in fits andstarts even if it means startingover three or four times. Thekey is resiliency, the drivingforce behind never giving up.

LESS IS MORE. Changecomes more easily if you setrealistic achievable goals.Something grandiose like "I'lllose 20 pounds by Valentine'sDay" sets you up to fail. Apound or two a week is

plenty. Rapid weight loss —from fasting, goofy diets, bigbets with pals — isn't sustain-able because it doesn't creategood habits, which is whatyour body needs, long term,to sustain your health and en-ergy. Breakfast, for instance.Fresh real food, for instance.Nuts.

REWARD YOURSELF.

Once you set a realistic goalfor yourself — consider ityour homework assignmentfor next week — write itdown. Keep a daily journal ofthe whole process. Don't skipthis part. Journal-keeping isknown to be a powerful allyin your quest for lastingchange. And when you getwhere you want to go — a10k by summer, a handstandin yoga, an easy fit into yourhigh school jeans — rewardyourself with something big.Rewards work.

Next week: More aboutchange ... and what the yogissay.

ENERGY EXPRESS-O!LOL

“New Year's Resolu-tion: To tolerate

fools more gladly,provided this does

not encourage themto take up more of

my time.” — James Agate

Marilynn Preston — fitnessexpert, personal trainer andspeaker on healthy lifestyleissues — is the creator of En-ergy Express, the longest-run-ning syndicated fitnesscolumn in the country. Shehas a website, http://marilyn-npreston.com and welcomesreader questions, which canbe sent to [email protected].

COPYRIGHT 2010 ENERGY EXPRESS, LTD.

Happy Healthy 2010! LiveIt, Love It, Begin Again

sustainable Living

Continued from page 8

Leonard points out that wehave lost our identities asmothers, farmers, firemen,teachers, etc.; we have be-come consumers.

Indeed, we are defined bywhat we consume and are tar-geted demographically bystuff peddlers from infancy toold age. In our culture, wefeel awkward if we don't have"the right stuff" — fashion-able clothes, flashy "bling"and the newest techno-gad-gets. What we often don't seeare the consequences of ournational addiction to stuff.

Many of us see more adver-tisements in one year than ourgrandparents did in theirwhole lifetimes. We consumetwice as much as they did as aresult. Our houses are twiceas big; our waistlines are big-ger; and our savings accountsare considerably smaller. TheU.S. has 5 percent of theworld's population but con-sumes 30 percent of theworld's resources and creates30 percent of the world'swaste, according to "TheStory of Stuff." We alreadyhave used one-third of theworld's natural resources andquickly are chewing our waythrough the rest.

Melissa Everett, executive di-rector of Sustainable HudsonValley, defines "sustainableliving" as "not filling a spiri-tual need with a materialthing." People buy stuff formany reasons, but for a sub-stantial segment of our popu-

lation, shopping isan addiction.

"Compulsiveshoppingorspend-ingcan

be a seasonal balm for the de-pression, anxiety and loneli-ness during the Decemberholiday season," says profes-sor Ruth Engs of Indiana Uni-versity.

If living more simply is oneof your New Year's resolu-tions, here are a few sugges-tions:

—Author and therapist AprilLane Benson, who wrote "IShop, Therefore I Am," rec-ommends that before you

make an impulse purchase,ask yourself: Why am I here?

How do I feel? Do Ineed this? Whatif I wait? Howwill I pay for it?

Where will I putit?

—Buy used orborrow things

from friendsand neigh-

bors beforebuying new

things.

—Repair and mendrather than replace; up-

grade computers instead ofbuying new ones.

—Develop habits of zerowaste. Use both sides ofpaper; carry your own mugsand shopping bags; get printercartridges refilled instead ofreplaced; compost foodscraps; avoid bottled waterand other over-packagedproducts.

—"The average person in theU.S. watches TV for morethan four hours a day," notes"The Story of Stuff." "Fourhours each day are filled withmessages about stuff weshould buy. Those are fourhours that could be spent withfamily, friends and in ourcommunity."

Shawn Dell Joyce is anaward-winning columnist andfounder of the Wallkill RiverSchool in Orange County,N.Y. You can contact her [email protected].

COPYRIGHT 2010CREATORS.COM

Too Much 'Stuff'

"Less than 1 percent of

all the consumer goods

bought and sold during

the holiday season will be

in use six months from

now," says Annie

Leonard in "The Story of

Stuff," a short film pro-

duced by Free Range

Studios and available for

free at

http://www.StoryOf-

Stuff.com.



For Kids of All Ages 1 to 100 Years OldFOCUs ON the FAMILY with Dr. James Dobson

PARENTS MUST MAKE TIME FOR THEIR REBELLIOUS TEENS Question: Teenage rebel-lion has hit our home at last.My 15-year-old son's rottenattitude just went from bad toworse! How do I get himthrough the "rapids" of ado-lescence without rocking theboat any more than absolutelynecessary?

DR. DOBSON: First ofall, you need to recognize thatthe trial you're facing is"common to man." Adoles-cent revolt is hormonallydriven and occurs in the bestof families. When hostilityand rebellion begin to appear,how do you keep your boys(and girls) from blowing upand doing something stupid? I've addressed that subject inthe past, but let me offer a re-cent finding that I haven'tshared before. The NationalLongitudinal Study of Ado-lescent Health surveyed11,572 teenagers to determinewhich factors were most help-ful in preventing harmful be-havior, such as violence,suicide, substance abuse,early sexual behavior andteen pregnancy. Here's

what the researchers found:The presence of parents isbeneficial at four key times ofthe day –– early morning,after school, dinnertime andbedtime. When that regularcontact is combined withother shared activities be-tween parents and kids, themost positive outcome isachieved. The researchersalso observed that adolescentswho felt a sense of connectionwith their parents (feelings ofwarmth, love and caring)were least likely to engage inharmful behavior. Some ofmy readers might be asking,"How can I be with myteenagers morning, noon andnight? I have altogether toomuch work to do." Well, yousimply have to decide what ismost important to you at thistime. It won't matter as mucha few years down the road,but your availability rightnow could make the differ-ence for your child betweensurviving or plunging off thecliff.

**

QUESTION: I havegreat fear that my baby willdie when I put her in her crib.What is known now aboutsudden infant death syndrome(SIDS)? Have researchers fig-ured out what causes thesetragic cases where seeminglyhealthy babies die whilesleeping?

DR. DOBSON: Suddeninfant death syndrome is stilla major concern, killing about

2,500 babies each year in theUnited States alone. We doknow more, however, aboutthe circumstances that areoften associated with this ter-rible event. A study was con-ducted by the U.S. ConsumerProduct Safety Commissionwith the collaboration of re-searchers at the University ofMaryland and the WashingtonUniversity School of Medi-cine in St. Louis, Mo. The re-sults were presented at a

meeting of the Society for Pe-diatric Research in 1996. The epidemiologist who di-rected the investigation, Dr.N.J. Scheers, said, "We havenot found a cause of SIDS,but our results show that spe-cific items of bedding used inthe U.S., such as comfortersand pillows, were associatedwith an increased risk fordeath to prone-sleeping in-fants whose faces becamecovered, compared to infantson their sides or backs with-out soft bedding under them."

It was concludedthat babies placed on theirstomachs in soft bedding aremore likely to re-breathe theirown carbon dioxide that istrapped in the blankets andpillows around them. In about30 percent of the 206 SIDSdeaths in the research project,babies were found with bed-ding pressed against theirnoses and mouths. Most ofthem were under four monthsold and could not extricatethemselves. The ad-vice now being offered bydoctors is that parents placetheir infants on their backs,

not on their stomachs, andthat a minimum amount ofloose bedding be kept in thecrib. Experts also recommendthat pregnant women avoidsmoking for a host of reasons;one of them being that prena-tal smoking is a major riskfactor for SIDS. In addition,secondhand smoke may alsoput infants at risk for SIDS.For a number of reasons asidefrom the danger of SIDS,children should not be ex-posed to smoke. Followingthis advice won't eliminate allcases of SIDS, but it couldsave thousands of lives everyyear.

**Dr. Dobson is founder andChairman Emeritus of thenonprofit organization Focuson the Family, ColoradoSprings, Colo. 80995(www.focusonthefamily.org).Questions and answers areexcerpted from "CompleteMarriage and Family HomeReference Guide" and "Bring-ing Up Boys," both publishedby Tyndale House.

COPYRIGHT 2010

JAMES DOBSON INC.



Video Game reviews

Jeb Haught

DEVELOPER: Traveller'sTales

PUBLISHER: LucasArts

SYSTEM: Sony PlayStation 3(Xbox 360, PC, Wii)

PRICE: $49.99

ESRB RATING: Everyone

REVIEW RATING: 3.5 stars(out of 5)

The spunky spelunker withthe classy brown fedora isback to tackle all four moviesin "LEGO Indiana Jones 2:The Adventure Continues."Developer Traveller's Taleshas managed to build uponthe original by stacking an in-depth level creator on top ofthe exciting adventure as wellas adding new abilities tomany of the playable charac-ters.

Instead of having one "hub"for the entire game like itspredecessor, this title offersone for each movie that eachcontain their own puzzles anditems to collect. This letsplayers launch into any moviescenario with minimal effortand also adds a bit morelength to the game. If some-one gets stuck on a level, theycan always move to a differ-

ent one and come back later,which is an option manyyoungsters will appreciate.

This title features differentlevels from the trilogy thanthe first game, but the originalhad the most exciting ones!Fortunately, the emphasis ison the "Kingdom of the Crys-tal Skull" movie, and thegame plays much better thanthe movie. One fun new ele-ment is fighting against giantboss enemies and watchingyour little LEGOs scurryaround trying to survive.

With a heavy emphasis oncombat, "LEGO Indy 2" of-fers new abilities to mostcharacters, but I still preferplaying as Indy himself. Noother character can targetitems and solve puzzles witha whip or grab enemies andtoss them around. Still, com-bat gets rather repetitive aftera while due to the simplisticnature. It's like playing ahack-and-slash game withoutthe hacking and slashing.

One area that received a huge

makeover is the cooperativegame play. With drop in/dropout play, a second LEGO en-thusiast can join in and leavethe game at any time. What isreally cool, though, is the factthat players are no longer"tethered" to their teammate,meaning they can travel wher-ever they want. If a teammategets far away enough to"walk off-screen," the gamesimply switches to a split-screen mode instead, which issimply brilliant.

Despite some flaws, "LEGOIndiana Jones 2: The Adven-ture Continues" is a wonder-ful family game that offersmore entertainment than allfour Indiana Jones moviescombined.

'Dragon Ball:

Raging Blast'

Won't

Reinvigorate

Franchise

DEVELOPER: SPIKE

PUBLISHER: Namco Bandai

SYSTEM: Sony PlayStation 3(Xbox 360)

PRICE: $59.99

ESRB RATING: Teen

REVIEW RATING: 3 stars(out of 5)

Anyone familiar with theDragon Ball franchise knowsit packs the most powerfulpint-sized pugilists in the uni-verse who regularly duke itout in epic, planet-destroyingbattles. "Dragon Ball: RagingBlast" features effects-riddenmelee fighting that looks justlike the anime it's based upon,but bad camera angles makecombat very disorienting.

Over 70 characters from theDragon Ball universe makean appearance in this giganticgame, including favorites likeGohan, Frieza, Vegeta andCell. There are also SuperSaiyan versions of some char-acters as well as fusions oftwo into one, and they all fea-ture some of their signaturemoves. "Some" being the keyword here because mostmoves for each character aregeneric punch/kick combosand dodge/teleports.

I'm not saying these movesare lame, just that many of thecharacters play the same de-

spite their unique styles ofmartial arts. However, it iscool to fire off super attackswith a simple flick of theright analog stick. This letsplayers map up to four supermoves that are accessible dur-ing each fight. Unfortunately,the ultimate move requiresplayers to push in the rightanalog stick, which usuallyleads to accidentally trigger-ing a super move instead.

If constantly changing cameraangles don't make playersdizzy, they can play throughmany modes like Super BattleTrial, Online Battle, WorldTournament and Dragon Bat-tle Collection. The last modeincludes many classic sagasfrom the anime and an inter-esting "what if" saga that ex-plores several possible battlesthat never happened in the se-ries. Sadly, any hope of un-derstanding what's going onin any saga is shot down bybrief intros and boring textback-story.

"Dragon Ball: Raging Blast"is true to the anime, but theflawed combat system won'tdraw any new fans.

REVIEW SCORING

SYSTEM

5 stars = Must Have4 stars = Very Good3 stars = Above Average2 stars = Bargain Bin1 star = Don't Bother

RATINGS KEY

Entertainment Software Rat-ing Board (ESRB)

E: (Everyone)

E10-plus: (Everyone 10 andolder)

T: Teen (13 and older)

M: Mature (17 and older)

COPYRIGHT 2010 CREATORS.COM.

'LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues' Favors Quantity over Quality



NorthPole

Look at the picture of the Earth. The arrowsshow how it spins. The lower view shows how light behaves from way above the North Pole, looking toward Earth.

It’s sunrise in Hawaii, noon in Cincinnati andsunset in England. Sunlight has to go through more air in the morning and evening. The sky is blue in Cincinnati. But it's also red or orange in Hawaii and England.

Cincinnati, Ohio

Beakman or Jax1130 Walnut Street

Kansas City, MO 64106Question & your city, state/province

Dear Emma,It’s tough to talk about about “why.” Why is called philosophy (fil-OS-o-fee). Why is up to you alone. Let’s talk about how or what, instead – OK?

Or, better yet, let’s do and not just talk. You might have heard that talk is cheap.

So be active and make a blue sky and even a sunset right on your kitchen table.

You just made a model of the sky. Light from above turned thewater light blue – OK, a very light blue. From the side, the water was red and orange. The milk acted like the air andscattered out the blue light.

Wait until it’s way Fill the bowl with water and 10 to 15 drops of milk.

Shine your flashlight down from the top. Now shine the light from the side

and look straight at it from the other side

of the bowl.complete

St. Louis

San Francisco New York

What looks like white light is really all colors

mixed together. When the sun is straight up, the air scatters some of the blue light.

That is what we

see – scattered blue light, and it makes the sky look blue.Afternoon in San Francisco is sunset in New York, where the light has to travel through more air to get to the ground. That much air scatters out all the colors in the sunlight except reds and oranges – which are the colors in a sunset that reach your eyes.





THE SCOOP

By DR. MARTY BECKERand GINA SPADAFORIUniversal Uclick

We’re not sure thatcats miss the litter box more in

the winter, but we do seemto hear about the problemsmore at this time of year.

While diseases such as di-abetes (which increasesurine production) often fac-tor into litter box problems,when the weather is cold,it’s a cat’s arthritis that maybe worsened. Veterinariansknow that arthritis is under-diagnosed in cats, largely because owners write off thesymptoms as “just old age.”And onthe human side, we suspectthat when the weather turnscolder and houses close upfor warmth, every little thingstarts to annoy us — like thesmell of the litter box, or(worse) the smell of a catwho’s not using the litter

box at all. No matter what, though:

Don’t blame the cat for theproblem. Put your detectivehat on and get to problem-solving, with the help of yourveterinarian. And don’t delay:The failure to use a litter box isthe top behavior complaint ofcat lovers, sending countlesscats to shelters every year.

The first step in solving

such a problem is to make sureit’s not a medical condition —and that means a trip to yourveterinarian for a completeworkup. You cannot hope toget your cat using the boxagain until any health issueshave been resolved. Even old-age stiffness can be treated oraccommodated, with your veterinarian’s help.

Continues on next page

Cold weather messes

Most kittens take naturally to using a litter box,but as cats age, health and behavior issues maycause problems.

Litter boxproblemscan seemworse inthe winter

The fourth book in the popular“Ultimate” series for animal lovers is arriving at retailers this month. “TheUltimate Bird Lover” (HCI, $15) follows books on horses, cats and dogs,and is the latest in the collaboration ofthe Pet Connection’s Dr. Marty Beckerand Gina Spadafori, along with MikkelBecker Shannon.

“The Ultimate Bird Lover” continuesthe tradition of its predecessors, combining true stories and stunning full-color photography from gifted contributors with “Must Know” information from the top experts in birdcare and birding. Unlike the previous

books,“Bird Lover”isn’t just aboutpets: Peoplewho appreciatewild birdswill love it,too.

You candownloada freesamplerof anyof the “Ultimate”pet books at PetConnection.com.

New from the Pet Connection team

Little dogs can

have big

problems

While no one can say how manysmall dogs there are, any casual observerwill notice shoe-button eyes peering outfrom more shoulder bags these days.

Small breeds such as Yorkshire terriershave boomed in popu larity, according topurebred dog registries. But that doesn’ttake into account popular mixes such asYorkipoos (Yorkie-poodle crosses) andMaltipoos (Maltese-poodle crosses).And Chihuahuas have become so over-ly popular that the best place to adoptone is at a shelter!

But small dogs require special care.The list of things that can go wrongwith tiny dogs is a long one, and veterinarians see it all: Defec tiveknees, hips and shoulders. Heart andliver problems. Collapsing cartilagein the neck. Troublesome teeth.Overall fragility, including easilybroken bones.

Some problems can be prevented throughethical breeding practices such as screeningfor genetic defects or with more careful handling to prevent injury. But many medicalissues just come with being little.

The most vulnerable of these dogs are thesmallest ones. Health problems don’t stop theunscrupulous from breeding, but they shouldstop dog owners from buying. Pet lovers willdo best by avoiding those who sell the tiniestof the tiny, or sell any small dog too young.Reputable breeders usually won’t let small-breed puppies go until they’re 12 weeks old,

sinceyounger puppies can die ifnot fed every four hours.

Tiny dogs can also be hard to house-train,since they have small bladders and need to gooutside more often.

That doesn’t mean they’re not wonderfulpets — they are! — but it does mean that own-ing a small dog means learning about theirspecial needs so they can stay healthy andhappy.

— Dr. Marty Becker

Little dogs need special care to stayhealthy.




If your cat checks out fine,you need to start working tomake sure that everythingabout the box is to your cat’sliking. The second rule of solv-ing a litter box problem: If thecat isn’t happy, no one will behappy. Here’s what tolook for.

• Cleanliness. Cats are fas-tidious animals, and if the litterbox is dirty, they’ll look else-where for a place to go. Cleanthe box frequently — twice aday at least — andmake sure it’s com-pletely scrubbedclean and aired outon a weekly basis.Having an additionallitter box may help,too. (Multiple litterboxes are recom-mended for multicathouseholds, sincemany cats simplywill not share.)

• Box type andfiller. Many choices peoplemake to suit their own tastesconflict with the cat’s sense ofwhat’s agreeable. A coveredbox may seem more pleasing toyou, but your cat may think it’spretty rank inside or scary.Likewise, scented litters maymake you think the box smells

fine, but your cat may disagree— not only is the box dirty, hereasons, but it also has thisextra “clean” odor he can’tabide. Start with the basics: alarge box with un scented,clumping-style litter.

• Location. Your cat’s boxshould be away from his foodand water, in a place he can getto easily and feel safe in.Consider a location from a cat’spoint of view: Choose a quietspot where he can see what’scoming at him. Acat doesn’t want any surprises

while he’s inthe box.

Make the area where yourcat has had mistakes less attrac-tive by cleaning it thoroughlywith a pet-odor neutralizer(available from pet-supplyretailers). Discourage reuse bycovering the area with foil,

plastic sheeting or plastic car-pet runners with the points up.

If changing things arounddoesn’t clear up the problem ina healthy cat, you may need toretrain him by keeping your petin a small area such as a guestbathroom for a couple ofweeks.

Make sure the area youchoose has no good options be-sides the litter box — no car-pet, no pile of dirty laundry.Block off the bathtub or keepan inch of water in it to dis-courage its use as a place to go.

After your cat is reli-ably using the litterbox, let him slowly ex-pand his terri toryagain. As long as youkeep up your end ofthe bargain and keepthe litter box clean andsafe, you have a goodchance the good be-havior will becomepermanent.

If you just can’tseem to get the prob-

lem resolved, ask yourveterinarian for a referralto a veterinary behaviorist.These veterinarians are skilledin behavioral problem-solvingand are able to prescribe med-ications thatmay make the difference dur-ing the retraining period.

Cold weather messes

• Dogs are the key to ex-ercise motivation. A surveyfrom the United Kingdomfound that 3,000 dog own-ers spent an average ofeight hours and 11minutes weeklyexercisingtheir pets.The surveyalso looked at2,000 pet-less peopleandfoundtheir

average weekly exercise atonly one hour and 20 min-utes. Even more, 86 percentof pet owners said they enjoyed walking their dogs.Dog owners were also lesslikely to come up withexcuses not to exercisethan those who don’t owndogs. Only 16 percent ofpeople said they en-

joyed working out inthe gym.

• The world recordfor the most tennisballs held in the mouthof a dog is five, arecord held by Augie, agolden retriever fromDallas who success-fully gathered and

held five regula-tion-sizedtennis balls.

• A horse’swhinny not

only providesinformation on sex, heightand weight, but also plays

an important social role.According to a study in thejournal Animal Cognition,the whinny is more important than visual cues to horses. Whinnies vary infrequency according to sex,with stallions having lower-pitched frequencies, andmares and geldings havinga higher frequency. Horseswere also able to identifythe social status of thehorse neighing, whether ornot the study horse knewthe neighing horse. Horsesrecognize their equinefriends as long as they arewithin hearing distance.

• Egyptians revered catsfor their relation to their catgoddess, Bastet. Whenevera cat would die, ancientEgyptians were said toshave their eyebrows inmourning. — Dr. MartyBecker and MikkelBecker Shannon

Exercise isfor the dogs

Dogs arethe bestexercisepartners, andthey makepeople want toget moving.

If you had to choose only onecompanion if stranded on adeserted island, what would itbe? According to a survey of petlovers, the highest number wouldchoose a person over a particularkind of pet — but if you tally allpets together, people lose. Theresults:

BY THE NUMBERS

Source: American Animal Hospital Association

I’d rather have a pet, thanks!

People first, but not by much

Human. . . . . . 47 percent

Dog. . . . . . . . . 40 percent

Cat . . . . . . . . . 10 percent

Other . . . . . . . 2 percent

None. . . . . . . . 1 percent


George Varga

If the praise of his fellow guitarists

could be converted into gold, England's AllanHoldsworth would be a wealthy man. Makethat a very wealthy man, since his gushing ad-mirers include John McLaughlin, Eddie VanHalen, Jennifer Batten and nearly every jazz,rock and heavy-metal guitarist of note over thepast 30 years.

"The dialect Allan has created on the guitar isincredible," said guitar ace Peter Sprague, whocounts Chick Corea and Sonny Rollins amonghis past collaborators. "A lot of people havebeen influenced by Allan, but I don't thinkthere was anyone playing like him before hecame along."

Those sentiments are seconded by guitar starand former Frank Zappa band member MikeKeneally, who performed in San Diego in2007 on a double-bill with Holdsworth.

"Allan's vocabulary and technique are sounique to him that it comes across as a com-pletely new approach to the instrument and tomusic," Keneally said.

"I've seen incredibly gifted and technically ca-pable guitarists have the life drawn from theirfaces as they watch Allan's hands and try tofigure out what he does. It's completely aston-ishing and absolutely beautiful."

That it is, as befits a tireless innovator whocombines endlessly inventive jazz improvisa-tions...Continues on page 19

Guitar legend AllanHoldsworth willsoon be playing andentertaining audi-ences on a 10-cityWest Coast tour.



CINEMARK CIELO VISTA

Gateway West Blvd/Cielo Vista Mall

CINEMARK 14 - EL PASOWest side of El Paso at Mesa & I-10

*NO PASSES-NO SUPERSAVERS

Las Palmas i-10 @ Zaragosa

*NO PASSES-NO SUPERSAVERS

ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS:THE SQUEAKQUEL (PG) 11:35am

12:25pm 1:10pm 2:05pm 2:50pm 4:25pm

5:20pm 6:15pm 7:10pm 7:55pm 9:35pm

10:25pm

AVATAR - 2D (PG-13) 12:05pm 2:00pm

3:45pm 5:35pm 7:25pm

AVATAR 3D (PG-13) 1:00pm 4:40pm

8:25pm

AVATAR 3D XD (PG-13) 11:15am 2:55pm

6:35pm 10:15pm

BLIND SIDE, THE (PG-13) 12:00pm

3:30pm 7:00pm 10:10pm

*DAYBREAKERS (R) 12:10pm 1:30pm

2:45pm 4:00pm 5:15pm 6:30pm 7:45pm

9:00pm 10:25pm

DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THE MOR-GANS? (PG-13) 3:35pm 8:45pm

INVICTUS (PG-13) 12:45pm

IT'S COMPLICATED (R) 11:15am 12:25pm

2:05pm 3:25pm

4:55pm 6:10pm 7:40pm 9:05pm 10:30pm

*LEAP YEAR (PG) 11:30am 2:00pm

4:30pm 7:05pm 9:30pm

NINE (PG-13) 9:25pm

PRINCESS AND THE FROG, THE (G)

11:25am 1:50pm 4:15pm 6:50pm 9:20pm

SHERLOCK HOLMES (PG-13) 11:30am

11:55am 2:25pm 3:05pm 3:50pm 5:25pm

6:20pm 6:55pm 8:20pm 9:50pm

*SHERLOCK HOLMES - DIGITAL (PG-13)

1:40pm 4:35pm 7:35pm 10:30pm

TWILIGHT SAGA, THE: NEW MOON (PG-13) 9:15pm

UP IN THE AIR (R) 11:20am 2:10pm

4:50pm 7:30pm 10:15pm

*YOUTH IN REVOLT (R) 11:55am 2:20pm

5:00pm 7:20pm 10:00pm

Schedule good for Friday January 8th., 2010DAYBREAKERS*(R)11:50am 2:25pm5:00pm 7:35pm 10:10pm LEAP YEAR*(PG)11:30am 2:05pm4:40pm 7:15pm 9:50pm 2012(PG-13)2:45pm 8:50pm ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: THESQUEAKQUEL(PG)11:40am 12:00pm12:30pm 2:10pm 3:00pm 4:35pm5:30pm 6:20pm 7:10pm 8:00pm9:40pm 10:30pm IT'S COMPLICATED(R)11:55am1:20pm 2:50pm 4:20pm 5:50pm7:20pm 8:55pm 10:15pm

NINE - CinéArts(PG-13)1:10pm 4:05pm7:00pm 9:55pm PRECIOUS - CinéArts(R)1:55pm4:45pm 7:25pm 10:20pm SHERLOCK HOLMES(PG-13)11:45am 3:10pm 6:25pm 9:45pm SHERLOCK HOLMES - DIGITAL(PG-13)1:00pm 2:00pm 4:10pm5:20pm 7:30pm 8:35pm THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG(G)1:45pm 4:15pm 6:55pm 9:30pm UP IN THE AIR (R)1:35pm 4:25pm7:05pm 10:00pm

Tinseltown

IMAGINARIUM OF DR. PARNASSUS*- CinéArts(PG-13) 10:45am 1:45pm4:45pm 7:45pm 10:35pm LEAP YEAR*(PG) 10:00am 12:25pm2:50pm 5:15pm 7:40pm 10:05pm ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: THESQUEAKQUEL(PG) 10:30am 11:45am12:45pm 2:00pm 3:00pm 4:15pm5:15pm 6:30pm 7:30pm 8:45pm AVATAR - 2D (PG-13)10:00am11:00am 1:30pm 2:30pm 5:00pm6:00pm 8:30pm 9:30pm AVATAR - REAL D 3D(PG-13)12:30pm 4:00pm 7:30pm DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THE MOR-GANS? (PG-13)9:45pm

INVICTUS(PG-13)1:40pm 7:30pm IT'S COMPLICATED (R)9:55am12:25pm 3:10pm 5:55pm 8:40pm SHERLOCK HOLMES(PG-13)10:50am 12:30pm 3:25pm 4:40pm 6:20pm 9:15pm 10:25pm SHERLOCK HOLMES - DIGITAL(PG-13)11:20am 2:15pm 5:10pm8:05pm THE BLIND SIDE(PG-13)10:35am1:35pm 4:40pm 7:35pm THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG(G)10:10am 12:20pm 2:40pm 5:10pm 7:25pm 9:55pm UP IN THE AIR - CinéArts(R)11:55am2:35pm 5:05pm 7:40pm 10:15pm

*AVATAR 3D- DIGITAL (PG-13)

10:00a 10:30a 11:20a 2:00p 2:30p 3:50p

6:30p 7:30p 8:30p

*DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THE MORGANS?- DIGITAL (PG-

13)10:35a 1:35p 4:20p 7:00p 9:45p

*PLANET 51- DIGITAL (PG) 11:15a

1:50p 4:20p 7:00p 9:35p

*THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS- 35 (PG-

13)10:00a 1:00p 4:00p 7:00p 10:00p

*THE YOUNG VICTORIA- DIGITAL

(PG)10:10a 12:50p 3:30p 6:15p 9:00p

*YOUTH IN REVOLT- (R)10:00a 12:20p

2:40p 5:05p 7:30p 10:00p

BROTHERS- DIGITAL (R)

10:15a 1:05p 4:00p 6:55p 9:40p

EVERYBODY'S FINE-

DIGITAL (PG-13)11:00a 1:35p 4:35p

7:05p 9:35p

INVICTUS- DIGITAL (PG-13)11:05a

2:25p 6:15p 9:30p

OLD DOGS- DIGITAL (PG)10:05a

11:05a 12:25p 1:30p 2:45p 3:55p 5:05p

6:15p 7:25p 8:35p 9:45p

THE BLIND SIDE- DIGITAL (PG-

13)10:25a 11:20a 1:40p 2:40p 4:55p

6:05p 8:05p 9:05p

THE FOURTH KIND- DIGITAL (PG-

13)10:55a 1:35p 4:20p 7:10p 9:40p

THE ROAD- DIGITAL (R)10:20a 1:05p

3:55p 6:40p 9:25p

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON- DIGITAL (PG-13)

10:50a 2:30p 6:10p 9:25p

* -- denotes Pass Restricted features

Premiere Cinemas 6101 Gateway West S.15

ASTRO BOY (PG) 12:35 | 2:50 | 7:25 CIRQUE DU FREAK: THE VAMPIRE'S AS-SISTANT (PG-13) 12:20 | 2:45 | 7:05 CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEAT-BALLS (PG) 12:00 | 1:00 | 2:30 | 3:30 | 4:305:30 | 6:30 | 7:30 | 8:30 | 9:30 COUPLES RETREAT (PG-13) 12:25 | 2:40 |4:55 | 7:15 | 9:35 FANTASTIC MR. FOX (PG) 12:10 2:25 |4:50 LAW ABIDING CITIZEN (R) 12:00 | 2:20 |4:45 | 7:20 | 9:50

LOVE HAPPENS (PG-13) 7:35 | 9:55 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY (R) 12:30 | 2:55 |4:40 | 7:10 | 9:00 THE BOX (PG-13) 5:05 | 9:40 MEN WHO STARED AT GOATS (R) 12:05 | 2:35 | 4:35 | 7:00 | 9:05 THE STEPFATHER (PG-13) 12:40 3:00 5:257:40 9:45 WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE (PG) 12:15 | 1:15 | 2:15 | 3:15 | 4:15 5:15 | 6:15 |7:15 | 8:15 | 9:15 ZOMBIELAND (R) 5:00 | 9:20

EAST POINTE MOVIES 12I-10 & Lee Trevino Schedule good for 01/08 - 01/14/10

Schedule good for Friday January 8th., 2010

Schedule good for Friday January 8th., 2010

Schedule good for 01-08-10

Three stars

Anna ..... Amy AdamsDeclan ... Matthew GoodeJeremy ... Adam ScottJack ..... John Lithgow

Universal presents afilm directed by AnandTucker. Screenplay by Debo-rah Kaplan and Harry Elfont.Running time: 97 minutes.MPAA rating: PG (for sensu-ality and language).

**Amy Adams and MatthewGoode have the charm neces-sary to float a romantic com-edy like "Leap Year," and thisis a story that needs theirbuoyancy. A sort of conspir-acy forms between the audi-ence and the screen: We knowwhat has to happen, and themovie knows what has tohappen, and the point is tokeep us amused. "Leap Year"did better than that: It mademe care. It did that by notbeing too obvious about whatit was obviously trying to do.

Let's start off on thesame page. A sweet but over-organized young womannamed Anna (Amy Adams)has been dating a high-pow-

ered heart surgeon named Je-remy (Adam Scott) for fouryears. He's pleasant, attentive,presentable, and shares hergoal of buying a condo in thebest building in Boston. Hedoes nothing, absolutely noth-ing wrong. For veteran film-goers, he has one fatal flaw:He has a healthy head of hair,and every strand is perfectlyin place. No modern moviehero can have his haircombed.

When, oh when,will Jeremy ask Anna tomarry her? After dashing her

hopes yet once again, he hur-ries off to Dublin for a cardi-ologists' convention becauseas we all know it's a profes-sional necessity for cardiolo-gists to meet in farawayplaces. Anna is told that inIreland on Leap Day, everyfour years, a woman can ask aman to marry her. Anna dou-ble-checks on the Web, some-how not discovering that thisis believed nearly every-where, and if a man in Den-mark turned her down, hewould have to buy her a pairof gloves.

Anna flies off toIreland. The flight lasts onlylong enough for her to sur-vive severe turbulence. Theplane is diverted to Cardiff. Isthere ANYONE in the theatersurprised that she didn't arrivein Dublin on schedule? De-spite canceled ferry boats, shemakes her way to Ireland byhiring a tugboat. The skippersays they can't land at Corkbut must head for Dingle.Dingle in Ireland is more orless as far as you can get fromWales (or Dublin), but nevermind.

We know what'scoming. Anna must meet herco-star, Declan, played byMatthew Goode as the ownerof the local pub. I suspectbusiness has fallen off thereever since Robert Mitchumleft after filming "Ryan'sDaughter" in 1969. Anna isnow wet and tired, but stillplucky. In the pub, she asksDeclan how she can get toDublin. Turns out Declan isnot only the publican but the

taxi driver and runs the localhotel. They get a good smileout of this, but wouldn't yoube asking yourself why nei-ther one mentions "LocalHero"?

OK, enough foolingwith the plot. Let's agree itstays firmly on course, andthat Anna and Declan argueall the way to Dublin throughadventures that, by law, mustinclude getting all muddy andbeing forced to share a bed-room together. Therefore, thesuccess of the film dependson the acting and direction.

Amy Adams andMatthew Goode sell it withgreat negative chemistry andappeal. Adams has an abilityto make things seem freshand new; everything seems tobe happening to her for thefirst time, and she has a par-ticularly innocent sinceritythat's convincing. (Who wasit said if you can fake sincer-ity, you can fake anything?)Goode is wisely not made toohandsome. Oh, you couldshoot him as handsome; he'sgood-looking, let's face it.But the director, AnandTucker, shoots him as an-noyed, rude and scruffy. Hairnot too well combed.

Then take anotherlook at Jeremy (Adam Scott).I'm not going to say he's toohandsome. All I have to say isthat in a silent movie he couldsimply walk on the screenand you'd know he's notgoing to get the girl. Themovie carefully avoids mak-ing him a heavy. It's ratherclever: He smoothly doesmore or less exactly whatshe's trained him to do, andwhat he doesn't understand isthat she no longer believes inthat version of himself.

Bottom line: This isa full-bore, PG-rated, sweetromantic comedy. It sticks tothe track, makes all the sched-uled stops, and bears us tri-umphantly to the station. Andit is populated by colorfulcharacters, but then, whenwas the last time you saw aboring Irishman in a movie?

**COPYRIGHT 2009

THE EBERT CO.

ROGER EBERT by Roger Ebert

“LEAP YEAR”

It's ComplicatedNow ShowingRated: RGenre: Romantic Comedy

Jane is the mother of threegrown kids, owns a thrivingSanta Barbara bakery/restau-rant and has -- after a decadeof divorce -- an amicable rela-tionship with her ex-husband,attorney Jake. But when Janeand Jake find themselves outof town for their son's collegegraduation, things start to getcomplicated. An innocent mealtogether turns into the unimaginable -- an affair. WithJake remarried to the much younger Agness, Jane isnow, of all things, the other woman. Caught in the mid-dle of their renewed romance is Adam, an architecthired to remodel Jane's kitchen. Healing from a di-vorce of his own, Adam starts to fall for Jane, but soonrealizes he's become part of a love triangle. ShouldJane and Jake move on with their lives, or is love trulylovelier the second time around? It's -- complicated.

Starring: Meryl Streep, Steve Martin, Alec Baldwin,Robert Adamson, Blanchard Ryan



LEAP YEAR (PG)11:00-1:30-4:15-7:05-9:30(11:50PM ON FRIDAY AND SATURDAY ONLY)YOUTH IN REVOLT (R)10:50-1:05-4:30-7:15-9:40(12:00 A.M. ON FRIDAY AND SATURDAY ONLY)DAYBREAKER (R)11:10-1:45-4:30-7:15-9:40(12:05AM FRIDAY AND SATURDAY ONLY)ALVIN AND THE CHIP-MUNKS (PG)THESQUEAKQUEL 11:00-12:30-1:30-2:40 3:10-3:40-4:50-5:20-5:50 7:00-7:30-8:00-9:40-10:10(11:30PM AND 12:00AMand 12:10 A.M.FRIDAYAND SATURDAY ONLY)SHERLOCK HOLMES(PG) 11:00-1:00-2:00-4:00-5:00 7:00-8:00 10:00(11:00PM ON FRIDAY ANDSATURDAY ONLY)THE PRINCESS AND THEFROG (G)12:35-2:50-5:05-7:20-9:35(12:00AM ONFRIDAY AND SATURDAYONLY)

IT'S COMPLICATED(R)1:20-4:35-7:20-10:00AVATAR 3D (PG-13)10:50-12:00-1:00-2:15-3:304:30-5:55-7:00-8:00-9:3010:30 (11:30PM FRIDAYAND SATURDAY ONLY)THE BLIND SIDE (PG-13)1:25-4:20-7:10-10:00DID YOU HEAR ABOUTTHE MORGANS (PG-13)11:00-1:45-4:35-7:10-9:45 (12:15AM ON FRIDAYSAND SATURDAY ONLY)(ON 01-04-10 there willNOT be a 4:35-7:10 AND9:45 show for this movie)PRECIOUS (R)10:50-1:20-3:50-7:15-9:45 (12:15AMFRIDAY AND SATURDAYONLY)NEW MOON (PG-13)9:10FALSESTAFF (N/A)Falsestaff will play on 01-14-10 at 7:00 P.M. only

NO SHOWS WILL PLAYBEFORE 12:30PM ON

01/11/2010 to 01/14/2010

Schedule good for Friday Jan.08- Thursday January 14th., 2010

PREMIERE MONTWOOD 7

2200 N. YarbroughSchedule good for

1/08/10 - 1/14/10

ASTRO BOY (PG) 2:45p 7:00p

CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF M

(PG) 12:15p 2:20p 4:40p 7:10p

9:15p

COUPLES RETREAT (PG-13)

12:00p 2:25p 4:45p 7:15p 9:40p

LAW ABIDING CITIZEN (R)

12:05p 2:40p 5:00p 7:20p 9:40p

MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS

(R)12:15p 2:30p 4:50p 7:00p

9:20p

THE FANTASTIC MR. FOX (PG)

12:00p 2:15p 4:35p 7:00p 9:25p

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

(PG) 12:20p 4:55p 9:20p

Continued from page 17...

...with the sonic power ofrock and a classically in-spired approach to melody,harmony and rhythm that heattributes to his passion forsuch iconic composers asBartok, Ravel and Debussy.

"Their music still kills meevery time I hear it,"Holdsworth said. "I can't lis-ten to them too often, be-cause I'd need too manytissues. I kind of lose it if Ijust think about the notes in(Debussy's) 'Claire de Lune.'It's the same with Ravel'sstring quartets."

Andhow doesthis vet-eran guitargreat andnotoriousperfectionistregard beingheld in suchhigh esteem byhis fellow musi-cians?

"That's a toughquestion — it does-n't make me play anybetter," said Holdsworth, 63,who resides in San JuanCapistrano, Calif.

"Of course, it's very flatter-ing, but I can't take it seri-ously. I mean, I take itseriously, inasmuch as I ap-preciate the people who havesort of liked something I did,which is great to know. Atthe same time, deep inside, Idon't know that I pay thatmuch attention to it."

Other guitarists with his sin-gular vision, dazzling skilland track record of jaw-drop-ping live and recorded per-formances would be happy torest on such formidable lau-rels.

But not Holdsworth, whoseinnovative, instantly distinc-tive guitar work has gracedalbums by rock legends (ex-Cream bassist Jack Bruce,ex-Yes drummer Bill Bru-ford), fusion-jazz greats(Jean-Luc Ponty, StanleyClarke) and a slew ofacclaimed

prog-rockbands (UK, Gong,

Soft Machine).

"I just try to keep fishing intothe guitar and see if I canfind (new) things," he said.

"As soon as I figured out Ididn't know anything aboutmusic, I was OK. It's when Ithought I could learn some-thing that I was in trouble.It's a never-ending story, butwe all know that. The moreyou learn, the more you learnyou don't know."

Holdsworth, who was born inBradford, England, took upguitar as a boy because hisfamily couldn't afford to gethim a saxophone. Jazz washis first love, and he soonbegan developing a sax-likesound and attack on electricguitar. It was the birth of hisquicksilver legato style,unique voicings and the intri-cate chordal approach thathas since amazed, and con-founded, so many other gui-tarists.

Holdsworth has beenin a league of his ownsince at least 1975,when his remarkablyresourceful andfleet playing wasfeatured on thelandmark album"Believe It!" bythe New TonyWilliams' Life-time.

While hehas made

dozens ofmemorable recordings

since then, both with otherartists and under his ownname, he has in recent yearsperiodically revisited some ofhis work with former MilesDavis drum dynamoWilliams, who died in 1997.The results can be heard onthe recent concert DVD"Allan Holdsworth and AlanPasqua, Live at Yoshi's,"which was recorded in 2007and features revamped ver-sions of three songs from"Believe It!" by a band thatre-teams Holdsworth withformer Lifetime keyboardistAlan Pasqua.Continues on next page

Guitar hero



Calendar of upcoming events for El Paso/ Southern New Mexico are from January 8th thru January 14th. 2010If you want your upcoming event listed in SPOTLIGHT’S Out & About section, please send all your relevant data by e-mail to: [email protected]

NORTHEAST/

CENTRAL I’m Not Rappaport’– El Paso Playhouse, 2501Montana, present the hit HerbGardner dramedy Jan. 8-30.

Two old men — one Jewish,one black — spend their dayson a New York Central Parkbench. Contains adult lan-guage. Directed by ChetFrame. Showtimes are 8 p.m.Friday and Saturday and 2p.m. Sunday. Tickets: $10 ($8seniors, $7 military/students).Information: 532-1317, elpa-soplayhouse.com.

Pax Christi Film Se-

ries presents “Peace

Is Every Step,”an intimate portrait of Bud-dhist monk Thich Nhat HanhSunday, January 10, 2010Time: 3 p.m. Pax Christi'sfilm for January is an intimateportrait of Thich Nhat Hanh, amonk who has lived through

war and fought back with

love and grace. “Peace IsEvery Step” illustrates howsimple practices and insightsdrawn from Buddhist andother traditions can helpchange conditions. The film isnarrated by Ben Kingsley andincludes rare archival footagefrom Vietnam in the 1960s. .Showtime is 3:00 p.m., Sun-day, January 10, at the MotherTeresa Center, 2400 East Yan-dell Drive (between Piedrasand Cotton streets). Admis-sion is free.

LOWER

VALLEYEl Maida Shrine Cir-

cus — The 58th annual

high-spirited circus featuringthree rings of wild animalacts, clowns, aerial artistry

and other amazing acts is Jan.

7-10 at the El Paso CountyColiseum, 4100 Paisano.Show times are 4:30 and 8p.m. Thursday; 10 a.m. and 8p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. and 3p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. 3p.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday. Tick-ets: $12 ($10 kids; $14 boxseats). Information: 562-1444.

‘Confessions of

Women of East L.A.’— Los Actores bilingual the-atre company presents theplay that looks at contempo-rary issues regarding Hispanicwomen 7:30 p.m. Friday andSaturday, Jan. 8-9, atChamizal National Memorial,800 S. San Marcial. Admis-sion: $8 ($6 seniors and stu-dents; $5 each groups of 10 ormore). Information: 740-4165or 240-6128.

El Paso Rhinos — El

Paso’s JuniorLeague icehockey teamhome gamesare at theSierra Provi-dence Events Center, next tothe Coliseum, 4100 E.Paisano. Regular games timesare 7:30 p.m. Friday and Sat-urday, and 5:30 p.m. Sunday.Ticket information: 479-PUCK (7825) or elpasorhi-nos.com. Upcoming games: •Jan. 8-10 — Boulder Bison

California Sea Lion

TrainingFriday, Jan 8 10:45aat El Paso Zoo, El Paso, TXOur California sea lions arefed every day at 11am. Weoffer educational presenta-

tions prior to the feedings at10:45am. All presentationsare free and visitors are en-couraged to find a seat early.

EASTSIDELive Salsa in El PasoSaturday, Jan 9 9:00p Enjoy afree class of salsa a band fromCuba and Krlito DJ in theonly place with live salsa inEl Paso and Las Cruces....... only place were you can havea romanticdinnerand a

dance with a live band.. Do-minic's 6901 Montana Ave.

Gateway Toastmas-

ters.Monday, Jan 11 12:30p

to 1:30p at Gateway Toast-masters, El Paso, TXCome join us to perfect yourcommunication and presenta-tion skills. This group of pro-fessionals are there to supporteach other to become a confi-dent and effective communi-cator. 6400 Gateway EEl Paso, TX 79905 (915) 494-0228

El Paso Humane So-

ciety's Saturday Pet Adop-

tionsSaturday, January 9, 2010Time: 11 a.m. and 4 p.m.El Paso Humane Society'sSaturday Pet Adoptions everyweek inside ofEl Paso Saddleblanket (11am- 4 pm) 6926 Gateway East(across Cielo Vista Mall)For more info. call 544-1000

WESTSIDE/

DOWNTOWNCash'd Out Sunday,

January 10, 2010 Time: 8pm Cash'd Out (Johnny Cash

Tribute band) with Hot RodBoogie Type: Music/Arts –Concert Start Time: Sunday,

January 10, 2010 at8:00pm Location: TakeTwo Street: 6315 N.Mesa

eWomen-

Net-

work"Accel-

er-

ated Networking" LuncheonTuesday, January 12, 2010Time: 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.This is the Year for Womenand the Reasons Why - 2010A New Decade! Lookingahead and learning from thepast. How this wil be thedecade for women to explode.At this powerful event you'lllearn: 2009 is over and why itwas such a tough year · 2010 -What it is going to bringWomen Seizing the mo-ment/Opportunities AvailableSue Malone, Sue is a providerof the SBA Community Ex-

press Loan Program. Her in-volvement began with theprogram's inception in 2002.Sue is the number one lenderto women in the country. Hergoal is to fund 100,000 smallbusinesses. She travels the na-tion meeting, promoting andfunding small business own-ers. She is fueled by her pas-sion to help small businessowners pursue their dreams.Sue's community involvementis extensive. She spearheadedthe nation's first for-profit andnot-for-profit ice cream parlorin Oakland, California, whichtrained inner city teenagers tooperate a business. Tuesday,January 12, 2010 Time 11:30AM - 1:30 PM (Doors openand informal networking be-gins at 11:00 AM) Cafe Cen-tral 109 N. Oregon St.

El Paso Chamber

Music Festival – El

Paso Pro-Musica’s 20th an-nual festival presents world-

class chamber musicians Jan.6-31. Concerts, recitals andother special events will beoffered at various venues:UTEP’s Fox Fine Arts RecitalHall, Trinity First UnitedMethodist Church, WesternHills United MethodistChurch, El Paso Museum ofArt, First Baptist Church,2900 Kitchen and NMSU’sAtkinson Recital Hall. Ticketprices to be announced; freefor Bach’s lunch events andfilm series. Information: 833-9400 or eppm.org.

Aly Tadros — The eclec-

tic folk-rock musician per-forms with Douglas Jay Boyd..Continues on next page


Guitar Hero"Standing and playing next to Tony Williams was prettyamazing," Holdsworth said. "One of the things I learnedabout being a band leader from Tony was that he wouldnever, ever tell me what to play or do. He'd say: 'There areno rules. This is the tune, play it how you want to.' So,that's what I do with my band members. I find guys I likeand I let them interpret the music the way they hear it. Ithink that's one reason they enjoy it."

Holdsworth will soon embark on a 10-city West Coast tourwith another former Zappa drummer, Terry Bozzio, in aband completed by two recent members of the art-rockband King Crimson, bassist and Chapman stick playerTony Levin and drummer Pat Mastelotto.

COPYRIGHT 2010 CREATORS.COM



John Leguizamo por partida doblePor Pablo Pietro

Prometiendo un año repleto de acción Maya HomeEntertainment comienza el 2010 con el lanzamientoen DVD y Blu-ray de la película “The Ministers”, lacual cuenta con un elenco de primera encabezadopor John Leguizamo, Harvey Keitel, Florencia Lozanoy Wanda de Jesús y dirigida por Franc Reyes, quientambién fue guionista de la misma.

“The Ministers” ofrece una mirada critica de las impre-vistas ramificaciones de religión, raza, venganza ypolítica étnica, en un filme que gira en torno a CelesteSanta (Florencia Lozano), una detective del departa-mento de policías de Nueva York cuyo padre fuere ulti-mado en cumplimiento del deber siendo la única pistadejada por el asesino fue un panfleto sobre un miste-rioso grupo religioso únicamente conocido como TheMinister. Trece años después de la muerto de supadre, el grupo The Ministers ha comenzado a as-esinar nuevamente. Mientras Celeste busca desesper-adamente venganza, es retirada del caso y se leordena mantenerse lejos de la investigación. Sin em-bargo, sin saberlo, se encuentra involucrada románti-camente con un miembro del grupo. Ahora su vidapersonal y profesional comienza a cruzarse peligrosa-mente.

Combinando suspenso con drama “The Ministers” de-muestra el gran talento de John Leguizamo a la horade interpretar a los gemelos Dante y Perfecto Men-doza, en una demostración de las muchas caras de-trás del actor colombiano-americano. Junto aLeguizamo se encuentra el majestuoso Harvey Keitelcomo el veterano detective Joe Bruno.

“The Ministers” estará disponible a la venta a partirdel 5 de enero en formato DVD al precio sugerido alpublico de $24.98 y en disco Blu-ray por $29.98.Clasificada “R” por escenas de violencia intensa y unlenguaje inapropiado.

Continued from page 19...

Aly Tadros...at 8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 9, atThe Percolator, 217 N. Stan-

ton. Tadros, based in Austin,is touring in support of newdebut album, “Things WorthKeeping.” Admission is $3.Information: 351-4377.

UTEP Men’s Basket-

ball - Home games are at

the Don Haskins Center.Game time is 7:05 p.m. ex-cept as indicated.Tickets: $9-$25.Information:747-5234 orutepathlet-ics.com. • Saturday,Jan. 9 —BYU

UTEP

Women’s

Basketball — All

home games are at the DonHaskins Center. Tickets: $7($3 youth). Information: 747-5234 or utepathletics.com. •Friday, Jan. 8 — Rice, 7:05p.m. • Sunday, Jan. 10 —Houston, 2:05 p.m.

Sunland Park Race-

track & Casino — The

2009-2010 live horse racingseason runs through April

20. Race days are Tuesdays,Fridays, Saturdays and Sun-

days (and Wednesday, Feb.17). First post is 12:25 p.m.each race day. General admis-sion is free to the track andcasino. First post time is12:25 p.m. Turf Club seatingis $7. Simulcast racing be-gins at 10 a.m. everyday.General admission and park-ing are free. Information:(575) 874-5200. • Saturday,Jan. 9 — Winsham LadHandicap. 3-year-olds andup. One Mile.

Documentary Series:

Impressionism in

Print Saturday, January 9,

2010 Associated documentaryfilms will be shown continu-ally in the Ginger FrancisSeminar Room during normalMuseum operating hours 9:00AM to 5:00 PM Tuesday –Saturday, extended hours 5:00PM – 9:00 PM Thursdayevenings, and 12:00 PM –

5:00 PM Sundays.

Clay Cre-

ations Satur-

day, January

9, 2010 Time:9:30 am -12:30 pm In-

structor:Michelle Murphy

Cost: $54.00 for Mu-seum Members/$68.00

for non-members For children9 to 12 years old. Studentswill explore the imaginativepossibilities of clay usingtechniques such as pinch, slaband coil. Pieces to take homewill include bowls, creatures,cups, wind chimes and more.Please call (915) 532-1707 x27 for more information.www.elpasoartmuseum.org.

Club LatinitasMonday, Jan 11 4:30p at El Paso Main Library, El

Paso, TX. Latinitas is kickingoff a series of weekly after-school clubs where girls cangather to build confidenceand find creative ways to ex-press themselves. In this girl-friendly place, Latinitas inmiddle and high school willexplore visual art, photogra-phy, poetry radio production,writing, journalism and filmmaking

Elvis’ 75th birthday

Tribute - Lancer's West-

side. Friday, January 8, 2010Time: 8 p.m. It’s Elvis’ 75thbirthday and in his honor, wewanted to pay tribute to the

king by offering a tribute tohim featuring Mr. Aquilio Ro-jero! Aquilio is more than justa pretty face! He can sing!Re-live the attitude and spiritthat defined a generation andtake a stroll down memorylane, as he performs themusic that defined an era!Also performing will be LuisRio.

SOUTHERN

NEW MExICO‘Bravo Broadway’ –The Las Cruces Symphonypresents its 5th annual Popsperformance at 7:30 p.m. Sat-urday and 3 p.m. Sunday,Jan. 9-10, at NMSU’s Atkin-

son Recital Hall. Tickets: $35,$45 and $50. Information:(575) 646-3709 or

lascrucessymphony.com. Guests Anne Runolfsson,Doug Labrecque and DebbieGravitte will join the orches-tra in a gala performance cel-ebrating Broadway classicsfrom “Gypsy,” “Phantom ofthe Opera,” “My Fair Lady,”“West Side Story,” “MamaMia,” “Wicked,” “Chicago”and “Funny Girl.” Continues on next page



PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). In the past, there were certainhabits you wanted to break and changes you wanted to makethat seemed impossible to conquer. So you dropped the futileeffort, and wisely so. This is a new decade and a fresh chanceto succeed. Pick one of the changes, and work on it once more.You'll progress quickly.

Though much of the week will be smooth sailing, it's safeto expect that a few technical glitches and practical errorswill be thrown into the mix. When you know they're part ofthe game, you can relax and be patient. It all works out.Thursday's new moon in Capricorn is a fresh start in regardsto finance and professional projects. Friday, Mercury returnsto its direct course, ironing out the little kinks in the lines ofcommunication.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). The legalities of an issue will af-fect you. Gather as much knowledge as you can about your caseand similar ones. It may be worth the expense to hire an expert.When you know more, you can avoid a long battle over whatis rightfully yours. Instead, you will simply ask for the rightthing in the right way and get it.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Your cheerful handling of stress-ful situations will attract lovely scenarios. People will open upto you. They'll see you as someone they can trust. Your lead-ership will net financial and professional opportunities. Estab-lish healthy boundaries. You will serve others best by teachingthem to serve themselves.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). You are more intuitive than youoften give yourself credit for, and you'll do well to lean on thatstrength this week. There is too much information to weedthrough and intellectually process. Just because an argumentmakes sense doesn't make it right. Look beyond the logic ofthings to try to feel the truth.

CANCER (June 22-July 22). It's not always apparent what youmust do in order to grow. It's likely that your childish ideas arecloser to the answer than your mature ones. So embrace silli-ness, and believe the wisdom of seemingly random events. Ad-vancement may feel at first like a lateral move. But make nomistake, you're moving up in the world.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Wherever you go, a loyal partner willaccompany you, one who has looked out for you for years.That person is you. The company can be inconsistent — you'rea part-time cheerful supporter and a part-time cynical and re-luctant traveler. But this week your relentless encouragementensures a pleasant journey.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). If you throw yourself completelyinto an endeavor, there will be no one left behind to witness,judge and impartially assess. That's the point. You don't needto apply critical thought to every process, especially not whenthe activity is a labor of love. Be fearless. Trade your sense ofreason for a fuller experience.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). You are constantly reacting to yourenvironment. This week you will have keen insights about howyou can better motivate yourself to succeed. Become an ob-server of your senses. You'll home in on one thing that makesyou feel sluggish and reticent, and also on one thing that makesyou feel excited to move forward.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Don't get too comfortable. Riskis a necessary element in a fulfilled life. There are those whowill try to convince you that your plans are too ambitious.They're probably right. Then again, they don't know whatyou're capable of. And neither will you unless you throw your-self at the big plan and try to make it work.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). A little bit of spice willmake this week delicious as long as you keep it all in the correctproportion. So go ahead and indulge in a zesty diversion or aguilty pleasure. But do recognize when you've had enough.Make the activities that give you soulful sustenance your maindish.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Because of your ambitiousnature, you often find yourself single-handedly pushing the ac-tion along. You may wonder, if you weren't the one nudging aproject forward, would anything happen at all? Maybe not. Butthis week you'll do well to back off. Trust that everything willhappen at the perfect time, and it will.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Build a few treats into yourweek — not just good ones, either; make it something juicy!Trying to be too disciplined will backfire. There's a child insideyou who won't feel like getting with the program. When yourealize that your behavior will be powerfully shaped by imme-diate rewards, you make this work for you.

ACrOss1 Civil War org.4 St. Louis’ team8 “Back in Black” rockgroup12 Biblical food14 Study for finals15 Actress ___ FlynnBoyle16 Director who won threeOscars18 Composer Khacha-turian19 Wool, or its source20 Swiss river21 Lunch orders, briefly22 Means of comm.23 Unhappy25 TV listings27 Fake pillow cover?29 Seed container32 Talker’s gift35 Disconcert38 Comic-strip Viking39 Oklahoma city40 “Black Magic Woman”singer42 Physicians’ org.43 Clothes45 State of NE India46 Arrest47 It rides the rails49 Russian ruler51 Capital of Yemen52 Lobbying org.53 Circle part56 Trail58 Sound from 4 Across?60 Capital of Eritrea63 Criticize severely64 Cowinner of 1978Nobel Peace Prize66 Taj Mahal site67 Singer k.d.68 Conform 69 Mountain lake70 Helper71 ___ longa, vita bre-vis

DOWN1 Rhea’s role on“Cheers”

2 Fasteners or cookies3 Records4 NBC’s parent company5 Hungarian monarchyfounder6 NPR’s Liasson7 Intelligence8 Mobile’s state9 Host of TV’s “Cosmos”10 Undeleted expletive11 Machinery parts12 Museum-curator’s deg.13 Pedigree org.17 Muskmelon24 Iowa commune26 Grand ___ Island28 King of Morocco30 Incarnation of Vishnu31 Native of 51 Across32 Dotty33 Bede or Arkin34 Hall-of-Fame quarter-back36 They cross aves.37 ___ la vista, baby41 Winston Cup org.44 Hindu caste48 Occult religious philos-ophy50 Hotel chain52 Chess pieces54 Airport equipment55 Gambling game56 Sophomore’s exam.57 Seaweed59 Collections of anec-dotes61 Medicare org.62 Lawyer: abbr.65 Rep.

Flickinger Center for Performing Arts —

1110 New York Ave. Alamogordo. All performances at 7:30p.m. Tickets are $10, $18 and $25. Information: (575) 437-

2202 or flickingercenter.com. Upcoming shows: • Trio

Solisti — Friday, Jan. 8. The piano-violin-cello trio has

earned a national reputation for its passionate and adventur-ous performances.

Antique and Col-

lectible Show — The

23rd annual winter nostalgiashow and sale is 10 a.m. to 5p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 9-10, atSt. Genevieve’s Parish Hall,1025 E. Las Cruces Ave. inLas Cruces. Free appraisalsoffered and food will beserved. Admission: $2 (goodfor both days). Information:

(575) 526-8624.

Inn of the Mountain Gods Resort and

Casino — Mescalero, N.M. Age 21 and older admitted.

(Ticketmaster) Information:1-877-277-5677 or innofthe-mountaingods.com. •

Blake Shelton — The

popular country musicianperforms at 8 p.m. Thursday,Jan. 14. His first single“Austin” spent five weeks atnumber one. Since his debut,Shelton has charted 16 sin-gles on the country charts,including five No. 1 hits.

Tickets: $25-$75.

‘A Journey of the Heart’ — Friends of the

Thomas Branigan Memorial Library present Chautauquaperformer Van Ann Moore as Mamie Bier Bernard Aguirre,a Southern Belle from the Old West, at 6:30 p.m. Thursday,Jan. 14, at Good Samaritan Auditorium, 3011 Buena VidaCircle in Las Cruces. Admission is free. Information: (575)382-5070 or vanann.com



THE RECIPES by Susan Nicholson

ROCCOLI-GOAT

CHEESE TARTMakes 6 servings Preparation time: 10 minutes Cooking time: 40 minutes;cooling time: 20 minutes 1 refrigerated pie crust (from a 15-ounce package) 4 whole eggs 4 egg whites 1 cup fat-free half-and-half 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder,divided 1 (10-ounce) package frozenchopped broccoli (thawedand squeezed dry) 6 ounces garlic and herb orregular flavored goat cheese 4 sun-dried tomatoes in oil,drained and chopped Heat oven to 400 degrees.Place a baking sheet on thelower rack of the oven. Un-roll piecrust and press outseams; fit into bottom and upsides of a 9-inch deep dishpie plate. In a large bowl,

blend eggs and whites, half-and-half and half of the garlicpowder. Scatter broccoli overbottom of piecrust and seasonwith remaining garlic powder.Crumble the goat cheese overthe top; evenly sprinkle toma-toes over cheese. Pour eggmixture into pie plate. Place

pie plate on heated bakingsheet and bake 40 minutes oruntil knife inserted in centercomes out clean. Cool onwire rack 20 minutes. Servewarm or at room temperature.(Adapted from Family Circlemagazine.) Per serv-ing: 328 calories, 17 grams

protein, 19 grams fat (51 per-cent calories from fat), 9.2grams saturated fat, 25 gramscarbohydrate, 158 milligramscholesterol, 435 milligramssodium, 2 grams fiber.

**Continues on next page

Creamy Curried Chicken. Photo courtesy of McCormick andCo.

Flav rsSPOTLIGHT #308. JANUARY 8,2010.e$S:SPOTLIGHT EP NEWS#305. DEC 18.2009 1/7/10 10:36 AM Page 23


PULLED PORK

Makes 8 servings Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 7 to 8 hours onlow 1 tablespoon smoked paprika 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder 2 tablespoons packed darkbrown sugar, divided 1/4 teaspoon salt, divided 2 teaspoons pepper, divided 2 1/2 to 3 pounds trimmedpork shoulder roast (porkbutt) 1/2 cup cider vinegar 1/4 cup ketchup 1 teaspoon crushed red pep-per 1 cup water 1 tablespoon reduced-fat

mayonnaise 1 (10- to 14-ounce) packagecoleslaw mix

In a small bowl, combine pa-prika, mustard powder, 1 ta-blespoon brown sugar, 1/8teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon pep-per. Rub over surfaces ofpork. Arrange pork in a 4-quart or larger slow cooker. Inmedium bowl, combine cidervinegar, ketchup, red pepper,and remaining brown sugar,salt and pepper. Pour half thesauce into a large bowl; coverand refrigerate. Pour waterand remaining sauce intocooker. Cover and cook 7 to 8hours on low. Transfer meatto large bowl; remove fat andskin and discard. Using twoforks, shred meat. Carefullypour sauce into fat separator.Pour half de-fatted sauce overmeat and remaining sauceinto another bowl. When ready to serve, removereserved sauce from refrigera-tor. Whisk in mayonnaise.Add coleslaw mix and toss tocoat. Serve coleslaw withpork and reserved sauce onthe side. (Adapted from GoodHousekeeping magazine.) Per serving: 242 calories, 29

grams protein, 9 grams fat(36 percent calories from fat),3.1 grams saturated fat, 9grams carbohydrate, 93 mil-ligrams cholesterol, 303 mil-ligrams sodium, 1 gram fiber.

**

CREAMY CURRIEDCHICKEN

Makes 4 servings Prepara-tion time: 15 minutes Cooking time: about 20 min-utes 1 pound boneless, skinlesschicken breasts cut into 1-inch cubes 1 tablespoon flour 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 large chopped onion 1 tablespoon curry powder 1 teaspoon coarse salt 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon pepper 3/4 cup fat-free chicken broth1/2 cup plain nonfat or Greekyogurt 1/4 cup toasted slivered al-monds, finely chopped 1 tablespoon chopped freshcilantro Coat chicken with flour; setaside. Heat oil in a large non-

stick skillet on medium. Addonion; cook and stir 6 to 7minutes or until softened. Stirin curry powder, salt, cinna-mon, garlic powder and pep-per. Cook 1 minute. Addchicken; cook and stir onmedium-high 3 to 5 minutesor until no longer pink. Stir inbroth. Reduce heat to low;simmer 8 minutes or untilchicken is cooked throughand the sauce has thickened,stirring occasionally. Removefrom heat. Gently stir in yo-gurt until well-blended andsmooth. Sprinkle with al-monds and cilantro. Per serving: 248 calories, 31grams protein, 9 grams fat(31 percent calories from fat),1.2 grams saturated fat, 12grams carbohydrate, 66 mil-ligrams cholesterol, 653 mil-ligrams sodium, 3 gramsfiber.

**

Susan Nicholson is an At-lanta-based cookbook authorand registered dietitian. Shecan be reached by e-mail:menuplanner(at)mindspring.com. The Menu Planner is alsoaccessible at www.7day-menuplanner.com.

COPYRIGHT 2010 UNIVERSAL UCLICK



IT’S GOOD FOR YOUR GAME

Let’s face it — the average golfer ismuch more accurate

with the putter than a wedge,so when you’re just off thegreen, why wouldn’t you reduce your risk of chunkingor blading by simply rollingthe ball toward the hole withyour putter?

The answer is pretty simple: If you’re like the majority of golfers, youwatch the pros on TV chipfrom off the green. Theymust know something thatthe average golfer doesn’t,right? They sure do: Theyknow how to play theirwedges with almost unerringconsistency.

So unless you’re a great

chipper, you need to keep theball on the ground anytimeyou can.

This is not to say youshouldn’t work on your chip-ping, but not while you play.As Ben Hogan said, “Nevertry a shot on the course youhaven’t practiced on therange.”

So until you’ve gotthose shots under control, besmart. Unless yourpath to the hole is blocked bya hazard or someother ob stacle, roll theball up there.

If you decide to putt itfrom off the green, there are afew adjustments you need tomake.

Continues on page 27

PUTTwheneveryou can

If this chiplooksscary toyou, thendon’t attemptit. Use yourputter.



GOLF BY THE NUMBERS

A lot of golfers are puzzled by pin sheets, but they’re tooembarrassed to ask for an explanation. The purpose of a pinsheet is to tell you where the pin is located.

Most yardages from sprinkler heads, 150-yard markers andthe like are measured to the middle of the green, but the pin isnot always in the middle. This means you have to do somearithmetic.

There are three key numbers on a pin sheet for each hole:1. How far from the nearest edge of the green the pin is set.

In our example, it’s 6 yards. The number is placed on the near-est side in the diagram — the right.

2. How long the green is from back to front. In our example,it’'s 40 yards deep.

3. How far the pin is from the front of the green. In our ex-ample, it’s 10 yards from the front edge.

Your first step is to figure out how far it is to the center ofthe green. Let’s say your ball is 140 yards out. Since the greenis 40 yards deep, the middle of the green is 20 yards from thefront. The pin sheet tells you the pin is 10 yards from the frontedge, so 140 – 10 = 130 yards to the pin.

The pin sheet also tells you that the pin is cut 6 yards fromthe right side, so the pin is front-right.

How to use a pin sheet

10

6

40

BIRDIES AND BOGIES

Next week, the USGA will begin enforc-ing its changes in the groove rules. Tourpros must switch to clubs with the newgrooves beginning Jan. 1, but most golfersdon’t have to switch until 2024.

Here is what Frank Thomas, formertechnical director for the USGA, thinksabout having two sets of rules — one forthe pros and one for everyone else:

“If we expect golfers to abide by therules, the rules must make intuitive sense.

This one doesn’t. I’ve got hundreds of letters from people who say they are notgoing to contribute to the USGA anymore.The USGA made this change completelywithout the consent of the governed.”

Actually, it’s worse than that. Thereare three sets of rules: As of Jan. 1, 2014,the new rules governing grooves will be extended to cover golfers taking part intop-level amateur competitions (e.g.,USGA championships).

Three sets of rules?



Underwood Golf Complexat Fort Bliss is open to

Federal employees, veteransand their guests!

Dr. T.J. Tomasiis a teachingprofessional inPort St. Lucie,Fla. Visit hisWeb site attjtomasi.com.

ABOUT THE WRITER

...whenever you canContinued from page 25

Stand a little closer to the ball than for your normalputting stroke to make your posture more upright. Thisraises the bottom of your swing arc off the ground soyou’re sureto put overspin on theball to keep it rolling smoothly over bumpy terrain.

Once you’ve adjusted your setup, make a couple ofpractice strokes to ensure that the putter head bottoms outwhere you want it to: at the equator of the ball. You wantonly putter-to-ball contact on this shot. The putter headshould not contact anypart of the grass.

Lee Westwood,winner of this

year’s Dubai WorldChampionship,

putts every chancehe gets. Here he’s

standing a little bittaller to apply top

spin that will keep atrue roll on the ball

as it travels throughthe longer grass.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“I don’t think the era of the ’80sand ’90s will ever return … it’s

just not going to happen. … We’llget back to good days. We are notgoing to get back to making a lot,

a lot of money.”— Greg Norman

on the future of the golf industry

DON’T MISS IT

For a useful and entertaining guide to the Rules of Golf,

Don’t Miss “The Rules of Golf in Plain English.” Lawyers and

avid golfers Jeffrey Kuhn and Bryan Garner teamed

up, with the blessing of the USGA, to clear up the sometimes

tortured language in the official Rules. What started in 1744

as a 338-word set of rules has grown to a monstrous 40,000

words over the last 2 1/2 centuries. Kuhn and Garner make it

readable. It’s $12 from The University of Chicago Press

(www.press.uchicago.edu).

A hard read made easy



“Bracing” is a reflex reaction your body has when youperceive that you’re under threat. Your brain issues a code-red alarm creating a number of protections, including abody-wide muscle tension that usually occurs below thelevel of conscious awareness, i.e., you don’t know you’redoing it.

Bracing works well as part of your short-term protectionsystem, but it can be ruinous for your golf game if you bracecontinuously for a five-hour round. Just ask 2005 U.S.Amateur champ and now professional player EdoardoMolinari, who suffered from debilitating tendinitis in his leftwrist. When nothing else worked, he tried an unusual inter-vention: a mouth guard.

Like a lot of people under stress who brace, whenMolinari clinched his jaw, all his muscles tightened up, andthe tendon in his left wrist suffered the most. Since hecouldn’t close his mouth with the rubber guard as a cushion,the tension in his “bite” went away, and so did the inflam-mation in his wrist.

In 2009, Molinari and his brother Francesco, playing forItaly, became the first brother combination to win theWorld Cup.

Open-mouthpolicy

BIRDIES AND BOGIES

Q: Which type of putter is best?I’m just starting off and I’m a lit-tle confused. — Barb P.

A: The good news is that theavalancheof putter sizes and styles currentlyon the market makes it extremelyeasy for the average golfer to pickup a comfortable, super-cheapmodel (say, $10 on eBay) anduse it for the next 20 years or, ofcourse, throw it away the secondday.

There are two primary types ofputter heads: blade and mallet.Putters that have the shaft in thecenter of the head are generallybetter if your stroke is straightback and through the ball, whilethose with the shaft at the heel aremore amenable to a putting strokethat opens and closes.

Shaft length is another factor inchoosing a putter. Your choice de-pends on your putting posture. Ifyou like to crouch like Jack

Nicklaus, get a shorter putter thatswings like a pendulum (andwatch those back problems!). Ifyou’re more comfortable standingupright when you putt like TigerWoods, you’re better off with alonger shaft and a heel-shaftedputter that opens and closes.

Really long putters like thebelly putter look funny but theyhelp take the wrists out of thestroke. If you decide to go to oneof the longer models, be aware

that your feel for longputts can suffer.

Barb, whatever specsyou decide on, one thing isfor certain: To be anygood, introduce your newputter to the practicegreen.

(To Ask the Pro a ques-tion about golf,e-mail him at:[email protected].)

Choose the best putter for your strokeASK THE PRO

TEEING OFF

Just as a com-plete diagnosis ofan enlarged heartat some pointneeds an X-ray,so too at somepoint, a golf in-structor and student needtechnological assistance tocorrect errors.

TrackMan is atechnology that isa modern exten-sion ofthe human eye, using radar to measure the flight of the ball.Research shows that the clubface accounts for approximately85 percent of the flight pattern while the clubhead path con-tributes 15 percent.

The angle of the clubhead as it approaches the ball, aka theangle of attack, is an important variable controlling ball flight,far more than formerly supposed. And the angle of attack pro-ducing the best ball flight changes depending on the club.

TrackMan measurements also show that where you makecontact on the face influences not only the spin or curve of theball, but also the amount of curve.

The point here for those trying to make their swing better isthat if all you use is the human eye, ball flight is an unreliableteacher. How does the eye that just saw a slice come off theclubface know exactly what caused it? It could be that theclubface was open to the path, it could be that the ball was

struck on the heel ofthe club, and it couldbe a combination ofthe two.

Researcher FredrikTuxen, inventor of theTrackMan system,sums it up as follows:

“The ball flight isprimarily determinedby four things only:

“1. Clubhead direc-tion at impact (attackangle and club path);

“2. Clubhead orien-tation at impact (dynamic loft and face angle);

“3. Impact location on the clubface;“4. Club speed.“Since various combinations of the above can produce the

same launch conditions and thereby the same ball flight, it isnot possible to derive from the ball flight alone what causedthe ball flight. Some additional information is needed. In par-ticular, ambiguity exists in whether the clubface is closed,square or open relative to the club path versus whether the ballis impacted toward the heel, center or toe.”

And to make reading ball flight even more complicated, thefit of the club, atmospheric conditions, the quality and fit ofthe ball and substances like grass or water in the grooves allaffect ball flight.

So teachers who deride the value of new technology withthe dismissive “bells and whistles” need to listen up. To para-phrase John Donne, “The bells and whistles toll for you.”

Don’t believe your eyes

THE GOLF DOCTOR Pin in or out?Should you leave the pin in when

you’re just off the green? Researchproves the answer is yes.

If you’ve got a slick downhill putt orchip, by all means keep the flagstick in because in these situations you’re usingthe pin as a little bit of insurance. That

thin fiberglass rodis often the only thing standing betweenyour ball and a 50-foot comebackerfrom the other side of the green, orworse.

For your other chips, pitches andputts from just off the green, it’s also

wise to keep the pin in. Two studies (byDave Pelz and Golf Magazine) showthat the flag helps. But make sure youcheck the position of the flagstick in thehole. A flag that is tilting toward you somuch that there is no room for the balldoes more harm than good.

Edoardo Molinari



By RICK MINTER / Cox Newspapers

DAYtONA 2010 sCheDULe: Daytona shootout, Feb. 6 (Fox); Daytona Duels, Feb. 11 (speeD); Daytona 500,Feb. 14 (Fox)

Points that would have separated Cup cham-pion Jimmie Johnson from runner-up Jeff Gordon (left), had the championship beendetermined by the old season-long points formula

66

As the 2010 NASCAR season approaches,one of the stories to watch will be the per-formance of David Ragan and his No. 6

Ford team at Roush Fenway Racing. After nearlymaking the Chase in 2008 and showing tons ofpromise, Ragan started the 2009 season with a solidsixth-place finish in the season-opening Daytona500, then dropped like a rock, finally finishing 27thin the points standings with just two top-10 finishes(the other a seventh at California in the fall) andfour laps led.

And when one’s driving one of the premier carsfor one of the sport’s premier owners, that’s notgood for the long-term employment prospects.

But Ragan says he’s used to that kind of pressureand ready to go to work to right his team’s listingship. His dedication to racing was evident in hisNew Year’s Day schedule. At an hour when mostwere sleeping off a night of revelry, Ragan was athis personal shop, working on a Late Model car thathe plans to race in his home state of Georgia atLanier National Speedway on Saturday and Sunday.

Still, his primary focus is on his Cup efforts, so hetook the time to grant an interview about hisNASCAR efforts while his friends and cousins con-tinued work on the car.

With impact wrenches hammering away in thebackground, Ragan talked about the upcoming sea-son.

He said he’s optimistic, based on some recentconversations, that his new crew chief, DonnieWingo, can help him achieve the success hecouldn’t find in ’09 with his former pit boss JimmyFennig.

“It’ll be good for our team to have Donnie andme working together,” Ragan said. “We’ve talkedsome, and we’re thinking along the same directionon a lot of things …

“It’ll be a lot of fun to go to Daytona with a newgroup and a good attitude.”

Ragan said his preseason goals are pretty muchthe same as the ones he had this time last year —make the Chase and win some races. He said that atthis point, he doesn’t consider himself, or his team,championship material.

“I don’t know that any team is except the 48 [Jim-mie Johnson’s team],” he said. “We just need to beconsistent, and not have a lot of failures.”

He pointed out that last season started good

enough, but he soon was struck with a series of mis-fortunes. He was 17th in the second race of the sea-son, at California, and was eighth in points heading tothe third race, at Las Vegas. He blew an engine therethen lost another one in the seventh race of the sea-son, at Texas. He left there 29th in points.

“We never were able to dig ourselves out of thehole,” he said, adding that he hopes history doesn’trepeat itself.

“We just can’t afford any DNFs [Did Not Finish] inthe first five or six races. If we’re in the top 15 inpoints through Atlanta, Bristol will be good.”

When Ragan laid out the road map for success in2010, it seemed pretty straightforward and simple,but it’ll have to be followed with the burden of pres-sure that comes with the territory.

But Ragan said he’s ready for that too. Continues on next page

With new crew chief, No. 6 driver excited about 2010 season

David Ragan:

Looking forward

NASCAR

David ragan is cautiously optimistic about his team’s prospects in 2010.

Uncer-tainty remainsoverShootoutrules

There are new rules for the2010 Budweiser Shootout atDaytona, but there’s still someuncertainty about which driv-ers will enter the Feb. 6 raceand in which cars.

Last year, the starting spotsfor the non-points race wereallotted based on how a driverperformed relative to otherdrivers running similar makesof car. This year the eligibilityrules open the event up to the12 drivers who made theChase last year plus pastSprint Cup champions, pastShootout winners, past Day-tona 500 and Coke Zero 400winners and the reigning Cuprookie of the year, for a total of28 drivers.

That means starting spotsfor drivers who haven’t wonCup races in a while like BillElliott, Kevin Harvick,Michael Waltrip, BobbyLabonte, John Andretti, Der-rike Cope, Geoff Bodine,Terry Labonte, Ken Schraderand Sterling Marlin.

It’s unclear which cars someof the eligible drivers will runand whether they’ll participate.

There is also a spot for DaleEarnhardt Jr., a former winnerof the Daytona 500, Coke Zero400 and the Shootout.

Robin Pemberton,NASCAR’s vice president ofcompetition, had this to sayabout the selection criteria in arelease announcing thechanges: “In our discussionswith the track, we thought byplacing an additional emphasison the drivers who had per-formed well at Daytona overthe years would create an evenmore compelling element for...Continues on next page



David Ragan...Continued from page 29

“I’ve always raced like I had theheat on me,” he said. “It’s been likethat since I was 12 and driving formy father. When I got out of highschool and was trying to get a ride, Ihad heat on me.”

He said that’s a better approachthan to be overly sure of himself,like some drivers who have moreconfidence than their on-track results justify. And he has othersto think about too.

“I need to perform for my fans, for [sponsor] UPS, for my fa-ther, for everyone,” he said. “And I feel confident that I can doit.”

A lot of that confidence comes from two major victories in theNationwide Series last year — at Talladega and Bristol. Theywere his first two in a major NASCAR series, and they also werethe first for his then-crew chief Mike Kelley and for most of thepeople on his team. But with the departure of sponsor DiscountTire, Ragan currently has no Nationwide races on his schedule.That’s something he’d like to change.

“I want to run some Nationwide races, but I want to run themfor Roush,” he said. “Hopefully something will happen so I canrun a limited schedule, but my primary focus is on getting theCup program going.”

And his work with his Late Model car is a first step of the yearin that direction. With limited opportunities for testing in his Cupcar due to NASCAR’s restrictions on testing, he’ll use his timebehind the wheel to sharpen his skills for the upcoming season.

“Any time you can get in a race car helps you,” he said. “Youget to use muscles you haven’t used in a couple of months, andyou get to do some restarts and run two-wide.”

And maybe get that boost that comes from being first to thecheckered flag.

Continued from page 29...the fans to get excited about at the beginning of

the season.”The race distance still will be 75 laps (187.5 miles),

broken into segments of 25 and 50 laps. Green-flaglaps and yellow-flag laps will count, and there will bea 10-minute pit stop between segments, during whichteams can change tires, add fuel and make normalchassis adjustments. There will be no changing ofsprings, shock absorbers or rear-ends.

Starting positions, as in the past, will be determinedby a drawing. Harvick is the defending race winner.

Barnes wins Polar Bear 150again

Rockingham Speedway, the former NASCARtrack now enjoying a new lease on life thanks to newowner Andy Hillenburg, welcomed the new year withthe second annual Polar Bear 150 on New Year’s Day.

And for the second straight time, the first racingwinner of the year was Chuck Barnes Sr., but this timehe had to work even harder for it.

Runner-up Brett Hudson, who suffered a blown en-gine last year, challenged Barnes for the win in a spir-ited battle over the final four laps before Barnes tookthe win by less than a car length.

The race, for street stock-type cars, saw 18 officiallead changes, with 12 caution periods and two redflags.

Jimmy Elledge, whose day job is crew chief forScott Speed’s No. 82 Toyota on the Sprint Cup circuit,dropped out after a Lap 60 crash.

“It’s my fault, I was being stupid and driving mycar way too hard and it was way too loose,” Elledgetold reporters at the track. “... Nobody’s fault butmine.”

Kvapil to run full Cup scheduleIt looks as if former Camping World Truck Series

champion and one-time Sprint Cup driver Travis Kva-pil will be returning to the Cup circuit next season.

Kvapil told a Sirius NASCAR radio audience lastweek that he plans to run the full 2010 schedule in acar fielded by Front Row Motorsports and that StevenLane will be his crew chief.

Sirius also is reporting that Mark McArdle, formerdirector of competition at Richard Petty Motorsports,is set to take a similar position with the No. 78 teamof Regan Smith at Furniture Row Racing.

Johnson wins another awardThe awards keep piling up for four-time Cup

champ Jimmie Johnson. The Eastern MotorsportsPress Association has named Johnson the winner ofits Al Holbert Memorial Award. The EMPA is madeup of journalists, photographers and broadcasters whocover motorsports on a regular basis.

Uncertainty...

About the best thingone could say aboutGreg Biffle’s 2009 sea-son on the Sprint Cupcircuit is that he wasbest in class, at leastpoints-wise.

The driver of the No.16 Ford for Roush Fen-way Racing finishedseventh in the standings,tops among the Fordcontingent. Although hewound up winless, hedid post 10 top-five and16 top-10 finishes.

In a recent interviewwith Ford representa-tives, he pointed out thathis season, while some-what disappointing, was-n’t a disaster either.

“I’m going to say wehad an average year,” hesaid. “We came close towinning several times,and that’s one positivething about our season. We came veryclose at Kansas, California and a fewothers like Texas and Michigan, so

that’s good that we were runningcompetitive enough to get into Vic-tory Lane. The unfortunate part is weweren’t competitive enough all sea-son.”

Indeed his best finishes werethirds, at the first Texas race where heled 93 laps, at Dover and at Kansas,where he led 113 of 267 laps. He alsoled 117 laps at Darlington, where hetypically shines, before fading toeighth at the finish.

He did make the Chase and madean appearance at the annual AwardsBanquet, even though he came shortof his goal of finishing in the top fivein the standings.

“At one point at Homestead wewere in fifth, but with Tony [Stewart]coming back a little bit and Denny[Hamlin] winning the race, we lostthose two spots and ended up sev-enth,” he said. “Overall, it was a satis-factory year. Making the Chase isimportant, but we want to win racesand we want to compete for the title.”

Continues on next page

Biffle tries to build onpositives of ‘average’year

NASCAR

Greg Biffle, seen here visiting Fen-way Park with his wife, Nicole, lastyear, finished seventh in the stand-ings, best for a Ford driver.



I have to say, the

last time I was this excitedabout a Buick, it was the mid-dle of the 1980’s, RonaldReagan was President, TopGun was the hot movie, theBangles were walking likeEgyptians and the all-blackBuick Regal Grand Nationalwas the fastest American-built car on the road. But forthe last twenty years, Buickhas been plagued with theimage that its cars are bestsuited for the retirement com-munity, leaving car buffs withnothing to get excited about.

That’s all changing with the2010 Buick LaCrosse – thefirst “new Buick” from the“new GM.”

Buick has reinvented, re-shaped and redone everythingfor the 2010 LaCrosse. To-tally forget last year’s model(easy to do) and take a look atthe new LaCrosse. Firstthing that you will notice isthat it is shaper and edgier –and very attractive. In fact, itmay be the best-lookingsedan that has come out ofGM in recent years. Morethan once I was asked if mywhite LaCrosse test car was aLexus. I’m sure Buick willtake that as a huge compli-ment.

As most people will like thestyling of the new LaCrosse,some of the vehicle’s best as-sets can be found inside. Theinterior is elegant and con-temporary that will impresseveryone – even those used tomuch higher priced luxuryvehicles. The dashboardflows gracefully from door todoor with wood accents andthe center stack, although a

bit busy flows along nicely.At night, it gets even betterwith ambient lighting done ina soothing blue – matchingthe gauges in front of thedriver.

GM has learned you can’thave form without function,and the interior of theLaCrosse functions well. Theseats are comfortable andvery supportive, and the inte-rior is library quiet, thanks toacoustic laminate glass, tripledoor seals and liquid applieddeadening material.

Pop the hood and you may bedisappointed to find no V8option on the new LaCrosse.Most models will come stan-dard with a 3.0 liter V6 that

makes 255 horsepower. Laterin the model year, the baseengine will be a 2.4 liter four-cylinder that will make 182horsepower. If you really

miss that V8 power, a 3.6 literV6 that makes 280 horse-power will do its best to helpin your loss. Every LaCrosseuses a six-speed automatictransmission and is front-

wheel drive, although whenequipped with the 3.0 V6, all-wheel drive is available.

Buick offers the LaCrosse inthree trim levels: CX, CXL,and CXS. The base CX isperfect for those that lovedBuicks prior to this year. It’ssimple without unnecessarygadgets or complex systems.It comes with 17-inch wheels,cloth interior and good old-fashion buttons and knobs.A/C is standard on the CXwith a dual-zone climate con-trol being available as an op-tion.

Move up to the mid rangeCXL and the LaCrosse reallystarts looking good. Wheelsize is increased to 18 inchesand the car gets foglamps, in-tegrated turn signals, leatherinterior and heated seats,along with more modern inte-rior controls. Options for theCXL include rear-parkingsensors, a power rear sun-shade, keyless ignition, andan 11-speaker Harman-Kar-don sound system. TheLaCrosse CXL is the modelBuick plans to sell the mostof.

The big-daddy LaCrosse isthe CXS which gets evenlarger wheels (19-inchers),heated and cooled seats, andthe larger 3.6 liter V6 engine.

Adjustable shocks are avail-able as an option on the CXS.A navigation system with arearview camara, a rear-enter-tainment system with dualheadrest displays, blind spotalerts and a heads up displayare options available on boththeCXLand theCXS.

My testcar wasa nicelyop-tionedCXL with the 3.0 V6 engine.Most of my driving was intown, where the LaCrosseperformed flawlessly. Theengine delivered adequatepower (0-60 mph in about 8seconds) and was quiet andsmooth. The steering was thebest I ever experienced in aBuick – no slop whatsoever,and even felt somewhat Euro-pean. And best of all, thatfloaty, old-school big-Ameri-can-car handling was no

where to be found in the newLaCrosse.

And the LaCrosse generatedlots of conversation whereverI drove it - and mainly fromyoung people, proving thatBuick has focused in on a

youngergenera-tion withtheLaCrosse.

CanBuick re-captureits glory

days of the late-1930s to mid-1950s with the newLaCrosse? I doubt it. But theLaCrosse is a huge step inthat direction. Best of all, thenew LaCrosse can help Buickshake that whole old-folksimage thing. And that alonewould make the LaCrosse asuccess.

-- Christopher A.

Randazzo


Biffle said he’s looked back at the raceshe didn’t win, and tried to think what couldhave been done differently to improve theoutcome. Mostly what he determined wasthat it’s the little things that make a differ-ence.

“At California, we slid deep in the pitbox and I kind of got the guys off beat a lit-tle bit,” he said. “I was still in the pit box,but we were in really deep, and it cost ussome time. You look at those things and

say, ‘OK, I need to be a little bit better, a lit-tle bit different.’

“We ran out of gas by half-a-lap, so Ineeded to run a little bitslower at Michigan. Youpick up little bits andpieces and try to perfect it,and sometimes you hopeit will win you a race.”

For the next fewweeks, he won’t be in his

race car, but he’ll still be busy enjoying thefruits of his past labors.

“I have some mountain property in themountains of North Carolina and enjoyspending time up there,” he said. “I just re-cently bought a piece of land in West Vir-ginia, kind of recreation land, so I enjoydoing that.

“I go fishing a little bit. I love to off-shore fish, so I’m looking at getting an op-portunity to do that. I might check out KeyWest this year because they said it’s reallygood fishing down there.”

394

8Drivers in the top 20 in Cup pointswhose finishing position would havebeen the same under the old season-long format and under the Chase (Jim-mie Johnson, first; Greg Biffle,seventh; Juan Pablo Montoya, eighth;Carl Edwards, 11th; Jeff Burton, 17th;Marcos Ambrose, 18th; Kevin Harvick,19th and Joey Logano, 20th)

BY THE NUMBERSPoints that would have sepa-rated Mark Martin (below) andJohnson under the old season-long format (Martin would havebeen fifth)

NASCAR

7DNFs (Did Not Finish) by JimmieJohnson in the past four Sprint Cupseasons

Biffle

Not your dad’s Buick – the 2010 LaCrosse

By The Numbers:

2010 Buick LaCrosse CXL FWD

Base Price: $29,645.00Price as Tested: $32,245.00Layout: front-engine / front-wheel driveEngine: 3.0 liter DOHC V6Transmission: six-speed automaticHorsepower: 255 hpTorque: 217 lb/ftEPA Fuel Economy:17 city / 26 highway mpg

[Questions/Comments/Feedback can be sent via email [email protected]]


Good Neighbors. Great Care.3280 Joe Battle Boulevard at Edgemere

(915) 577-SPHN (7746)SPHN.com

When it comes to broken bones or any other emergency situation, Sierra Providence East Medical Center supports its ER services with an impressive list of capabilities. Our services are backed by some of the finest, most experienced physicians and staff in the region.

Whenever you need emergency care, call 911. Then ask for Sierra Providence East Medical Center.We’re here, 24/7, ready to help.

We’re proud to be East El Paso’sneighborhood ER.


Documents

Spotlight EP News Jan 8, 2010 No. 308