Triple degree temps – and the kids are back in school. The air-conditioning went out in the church, and a child fainted during the first school Mass. When I say the air went out, the truth is, the underground unit caved in, creating a situation that required renting a crane and quite a few men to fix. I didn’t mean to say we were renting men. I guess we kind of are, though.
We had eight weeks of Movies in the Park, but only made it through two movies due to the storms that blew through every Friday night. It was truly bizarre. I hate to focus on weather, but it isn’t such small talk when it looms large in the world around you. For example, the rain beat down so hard and fast the other night that my home flooded. It came in through the front door and windows and crept under the wall into the bedroom where my accordions were being stored. Thankfully, two out of three are in hard cases. The third – the Hohner – is stored in a soft gig bag that is light and easy to carry. The bag was instantly saturated. I air-dried the accordion immediately; the bellows had been tightly closed and absorbed no water, thankfully. The accordion has “legs” on the bass side Thankfully, the bass reeds are set back from the outer box of the accordion, and there are mesh-covered openings that allow for airflow. The accordion survived and sounds perfectly fine.
At work, gnats and horseflies are everywhere, like a sign of pestilence. (I reserve the right to be dramatic.) And yet, through it all, I published a book, visited my children in Albuquerque – where we went to Cochiti Lake. I spent time at a local carshow, at Roswell’s Galacticon, and listening to the army brass band at the 4th of July celebration. The dragonflies this year are like the weather, enormous!
It has been a crazy, stormy summer!
Cochiti LakeMovie in the Park With Sunset PeaceClassic Chevy SightingGorgeous Gold ImpalaGorgeous Blue ImpalaTrain at the Alien Fest
Galacticon
Army Band
Coming up, I’m going to give you a glimpse of some local books I purchased, memories of a past event, and exciting future events!
There are a myriad of reasons why I dropped social media as quickly as I picked it up again. The number one reason is a lack of energy. I’m currently taking iron, so I’m sure I’ll be fine someday regarding that. I also haven’t been to the laundromat in weeks. I didn’t have anything else to do while waiting for my laundry to wash and dry but tap out words on my phone, hence the uptick of blogposts. But the laundromat is an expensive luxury, and I try to find other ways of doing laundry. I still remember the days when I washed clothes in my bathtub and hung them to dry. That was years ago–thankfully, I haven’t had to resort to such drastic measures recently.
Anyway, I digress. The entire point of updating my Roswell Journals is to give you a link to my new book. The cover is beautiful, hits straight to the heart like the Los Tigres song Golpes en el Corazón, but it doesn’t wound unless beauty itself is painful.
The cover hits two out of three of my trifecta of beauty: classic trucks, dragonflies, and accordions. In this series, amateur detective Hector Ruedas drives a 78 Chevy Silverado. Yes, I do live vicariously through my characters. I want his truck in my fantasy world, but in reality drive a practical Suburu. Otherwise, I play my beautiful accordions and have therefore already reached the fantasy 4th dimension. That, and I regularly speak to dragonflies. Oh, my, they are large creatures this year! It’s the height of their season, and they hum through the air on glistening wings. No, they don’t speak back. I’m not actually crazy. I simply believe it’s best to speak to the natural world in a friendly or awe-filled voice, like the people who for no reason at all say thank-you to AI. Except not because God imbued his fingerprint in nature. By contrast, AI is an extension of man, who can only create by pale imitation of his creator.
I linked to the song above, and Spotify has continued to unroll for me my favorite songs to play on the accordion. I’m in rapture! I’ve reached the 4th dimension! Amen and amen!
The weekend began with a storm. It was the first of Roswell Night Skies’* Movie in the Park; we were showing Lilo & Stitch, and when I arrived on scene, the crew that had been enlisted to set up the screen were battling heavy winds. They were determined, however, and the nonprofit board’s president did not want to cancel the first event of the season. We made it about halfway through before the wind and slanting rain drove our audience away. It was fun while it lasted. To the positive, the venue this year is Roswell’s Cielo Grande Events Area, which has a natural slope that is perfect for an audience. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate this Friday, when we will be showing The Iron Giant. Be there at dusk and bring a blanket or lawn chairs. There will be concessions.
After the storm, my weekend never lost its turbulence. I had numerous stacked events on my schedule, including the Corpus Christi procession on Sunday. Corpus Christi is generally at the start of June, which is the hottest month in Roswell. The internet says it’s July, but the average high is the same. In my experience, it can top 100 on multiple days in June, but what do I know? The point being the Corpus Christi procession is a hot one, done at fake high noon**.
There are much longer and more elaborate processions around the world than ours; we have four altars to place the monstrance on around the parish campus, each with its own Bible reading and prayer. The choir chants, and the various groups carry their banners and wear their matching uniforms, and the altar servers carry the cross and incense. The priest carries Christ’s eucharistic presence in the monstrance.
As an Altar and Rosary member, I helped carry flowers from altar to altar. A few years ago, a priest that used to be with our parish asked us to scatter flower petals along the path; apparently that was what they did in his native land of Nigeria. The bookkeeper balked at the price of petals from the flowershop and asked why I didn’t pluck them from the rosebushes out front. For my part, I questioned if stripping the church roses of petals was part of my secretarial duties. Calling a flowershop, yes. I can pick up a phone. Making the elderly people cry over decimated rosebushes–not really part of my job description. Since then, we have carried red and white bouquets and skipped the petals.
How ever we decorate the altars, we have a fairly big campus and have never yet sought city approval to process up the street chanting, let alone scatrering petals–although, when I went to the grocery store near the a parish after this year’s procession, I could smell the incense that had drifted there on the wind. We didn’t get approval for that either!
My weekend ended with dessert and lemonade shared with a friend indoors, which was pleasant and cool. Thank God for these summer relief strategies.
Now that it’s Monday again, I’m wondering why life is so difficult. Not my job per se, although I do plan funerals as a regular course of events and sometimes step in to sing a capella in funerals, quinceañeras, or weddings when there are no musicians. Well, that is not quite true. Every time I’ve been asked to sing at these Masses a capella, I’ve found other people to sing with me. But, no, it’s not the difficulties of my job or the increasing busyness of the office that makes everything a tangle of problems, despite that I’m exhausted.
My friend was telling me yesterday, after we’d been talking for a few hours, that she had nothing to speak about except negative subjects. She’s experienced more than her fair share of trauma and recently went through a breakup, which has forced her to start life over.
Regarding having nothing else to speak about, I both agreed and disagreed with her. Trauma can put people in that position, where the nervous system is on edge. Talking through the negatives can help us heal. Sometimes, we need to talk through the negatives. Forcing positivity can be counterproductive to the nervous system just as ignoring clunking sounds in your car’s engine can cause further damage. There is no sense in whistling while your house is burning down, either. On the other hand, making small steps forward and acknowledging successes are also part of the process of healing, and there is always something to be proud of or grateful for, no matter how small. For my friend, she has a new place to live, a new job, and she loves artwork: creating it and looking at it. All positives.
My positives would include dragonflies and accordions, of course.
But no worries if your sight is clouded temporarily by how bad everything is. The storm we experienced while trying to run the movie on Friday seemed to dissipate after we’d packed up the equipment. We couldn’t see that while our screen was blowing down or the rain pelting the sound mixer. Nor was it wise to continue with the movie, not knowing what Roswell would throw at us next.
A last relevant point: in the Corpus Christi homily, our priest spoke about following Christ, how his presence has been given to us in the Eucharist–it is very real and personal. And the procession is an embodiment of this concept. When life gets difficult, sometimes all we have is the presence of Christ. That is no small thing. It is the biggest thing. It is vital.
*Roswell Night Skies is not a Catholic organization, despite that I talk about Catholicism in this post. I’m just writing about my life in Roswell.
**Under daylight savings time, high noon is actually 1 p.m. We’ve been distorted by a false sense of time!
I originally posted this on Facebook and did not get any non-comedic feedback. The truth is I don’t know how to finish the last line. No, really. It’s sad but true.
Help me finish the last line of my back cover copy:
When overworked PDex driver Hector Ruedas agrees to train his maybe girlfriend Arora’s son to deliver packages to the worst residences in Roswell, New Mexico, he expects a long day, not a murder at the PDex warehouse and a missing delivery driver. The long day turns into a long week of hacked security footage, a haunted meat factory, and a gang of breakdancers in the business of black-market gadgets. With Arora acting as his secretary and an entire team of unqualified detectives from the local Catholic church – including a priest – Hector is pulled into a bizarre investigation in which the clues are heralded by local ghosts and spiritual manifestations. Funny, fast-paced, and delightfully offbeat, Delivering 2nd Chances…
…delivers up a very special workplace comedy?
…will make you sing for joy?
…will love you better than a meth prostitute?
…gives our beloved delivery driver yet another opportunity to fix Roswell’s deep problems, even if he has to get beaten up in the process?
P.S. The book will be published as soon as the book cover is done.
I made four videos last week and failed to post any of them. Today, I put together clips of my videos and am still debating whether I should upload. My problem — and I am not alone — is that I would prefer to simply live my life without any kind of social media. I like writing books and driving people crazy with my daily accordion practice. Also, let it be said that I may not be a perfectionist, but I should adhere to a basic standard of video lighting and mics and maybe even video editing software before I continue.
I’m going to give a recap of important points I managed to elucidate in my videos, but first I’d Iike to highlight a bit of Roswell news:
For many years, Roswell has had a skating rink. Yes, it’s true. I was surprised, too. When my children were younger, they went with friends to the skating rink for birthday parties, or just fun nights at the rink. Such nostalgia for me! I loved going to my local skate rink when I was a child and teenager. It was one of the most exciting places to be because it was open late, the DJ spun dance tunes, the lights made you glow, and there was delicious concession stand food. Well, I thought it was delicious when I was young. Cotton candy. Nachos. Licorice whips. Chili dogs. Greasy pepperoni pizza. Sodas in those small waxy cups that don’t exist anymore because everything went supersized.
When we first moved to Roswell, the local rink was known as Cheap Skates. It is now known as the Nebula Arcade and Roller Rink. That’s the name they use on Facebook, so I assume the latter is the official name. The BIG news is that they have registered as a nonprofit, and they are looking for sponsors to keep skating free for children. I honestly hope they can make a go of it. For more info, go to their Facebook page.
And back to my regularly scheduled videos:
I have been keeping a “Dearest Diary” of my musical adventures on real paper that rustles when the wind blows. In one video, I read a not very exciting piece about playing polkas and keeping up on daily vocal exercises.
Real paper for everyone.
Then, I launched into my difficulty playing the accordion with thumbs, since I do not use thumbs often on my button accordions. I played a few scales using my right thumb as the starting finger and ruminated on how perfectionism will prevent many people from starting on a musical instrument in the first place. If you then stop doing stuff because you can’t live up to your perfectionistic expectations, the only perfect creation you’ll end up with will be the hole you dug for your own grave.
The face I make when I screw up but know there’s a bit of earth out back.
On another video, I discovered something very important:
There are 120 bass buttons. This one with the divot is the C anchor button so that you can find the other notes!
In another video, I discussed needing the kind of map I invented for my MapWriter stories, some of which made it in this book of shorts:
Grin like the mad scientist you are.
I would like to have a map because I don’t know the best route to reach my goals. How do I become a better accordionist than Frankie Yankovic or Javier Ríos? How do I become a successful author? My books are already amazing, but who will buy them? If only I had an interactive map, I might know if I should continue posting videos, or instead should focus on drinking tea.
Roswell just had its grand ribbon-cutting ceremony for the cultural plaza, which is just behind the county courthouse on Main Street. I was not able to go, due to other obligations, so you will have to settle for an image of the courthouse, which is clearly a sight to behold. I believe the green dome on the top is for astronomical purposes that eventually triggered the alien crash-landing, but it’s just a rumor and I have no scientific proof.
Part of the cultural plaza, found on Facebook
The new plaza is a gated venue complete with reatrooms, which means Roswell is really moving up in the world. I suspect they will host events with live music and food trucks, since that is what the ribbon-cutting event boasted. The music was provided by the Gruuv, which is a local band that has an accomplished accordion player, Alex Palomino (who also plays other instruments). I’m in awe of multi-talented people who can pick up new skills with ease.
The Old Antigua’s
Antigua’s restaurant is officially gone, and the new restaurant in there will be Geli’s. Geli’s used to be across town on Second Street, and I really enjoy their food. Antigua’s had a different vibe for Roswell, though, with a well-stocked bar and dishes that were a little more upscale than other local restaurants. They also often had live music, and people keep telling me one of the owners, Sal Aguilar, is a very accomplished accordion player, too. Well, it seems all my local news must involve an accordion player or two.
The Old Geli’s
My news: I have none! My book, Delivering 2nd Chances is in limbo, and I haven’t finished the sequel to Order of the PenTriagon. I did play El Chubasco on one of my accordions. I dearly love that song. Just type it in Google, and you will begin to understand. Regarding Roswell, school is at the tail end of its year, summer is almost upon us, and the UFO Fest happens around the 4th of July. The Roswell Astronomy Club will be keeping their eyes peeled. Actually, that’s a real club. Generally, they search the night for comets and other phenomena, but who knows?
I talk about my accordion adventures in this YouTube video: Adventures With the Accordion. If you want to learn about the accordions I’ve acquired over the years and hear the distinct sound each one has, you’ll want to listen to the video. I discuss how I came to purchase a piano accordion from Facebook Marketplace last week, even though I was only scrolling on Marketplace in search of the perfect classic truck. This is a regular habit of mine. Someday, I will have the classic truck of my dreams. Instead, I found an accordion and purchased it on a whim.
The part I wanted to focus on here is where I purchased it from. The seller on Facebook told me it was at the “music shop.” What did he mean? Roswell has a music store at the mall, but they do not sell vintage accordions. Rather, they sell standard new instruments like keyboards and guitars, along with equipment pertaining to playing and amplifying instruments. It turns out there’s a music store right next to Chero’s Boots.
Chero’s Boots in the old Payless building
Neo Music Exchange
It’s a consignment music store, and I believe the Facebook seller traded or outright purchased a different accordion from the shop and left the one I purchased there on consignment. But before you get excited about the possibility of finding an accordion for yourself, the shop, Neo Music Exchange, doesn’t regularly deal in accordions. It’s a rock music store with numerous guitars. It was still an adventure worth having, as I drove out there on my lunchbreak and had to drive really fast (going the exact speed limit, of course) to get back to work on time and in the process exchanged money for a heavy suitcase filled with musical delights. Adventures often involve going without the comforts of our usual tasty foods and cozy naps, which is what I normally enjoy on my lunch hour. Just as Bilbo had to leave his Hobbit hole and tankard of ale to fight a dragon, so I had to leave my cheeseburger and the dark shadowy reading room at the church to procure an old accordion that sounds like an organ.
My Three Accordions resembling Papa Bear, Mama Bear, and Baby Bear
On another day, I might have also popped in next door to gaze at the beautifully tooled boots I can’t afford. Have you been to Chero’s Boots? I have a couple of times. Once, to admire the goods, and another time to purchase tickets to see Los Huracanes at the fairgrounds.
For my weekend adventure, I went to the movie in the park that was put on by Main Street Roswell but operated by Roswell Night Skies. It was the first movie in the Park of the year — the official summer lineup will start the first Friday in June at Cielo Grande Park. Last summer, we played movies in Russ DeKay Soccer Complex, but the city no longer operates there and, therefore, we can’t get a permit to use it this year. Instead, NMMI (which owns the property) will now use it as their own soccer complex. Or whatever. I don’t know what their plans are.
Russ DeKay Park & the inflatable screen
Usually, it’s hot by May in Roswell. This last weekend was an exception. The movie in the park was as cold as the one we helped with during the Christmas Fair on Main Street. I had put on a jacket for the event and ended up running home for my coat, and I was still cold. While it only dipped to about 40 degrees that night and did not freeze, the temperature in the park was colder than the rest of town. This was owing to the heavy rain that saturated the earth and grass combined with the cold breeze. Nobody needs or wants a swamp cooler when temperatures are below sixty. The crowd was relatively small, about seventy-five people, but they stuck it out on their blankets, many wearing shorts and t-shirts.
My weekend adventures ended with Mass this morning. The songs were fun to sing today, and my priest gave a very important announcement: he will be leaving us to go to Illinois and have his own adventure at a Catholic parish and school. I will miss him, and it’s difficult not to cry. Actually, I have already cried. He is my boss and my spiritual mentor, and what if his replacement is lazy, passive-aggressive, or doesn’t want to have full-time staff? Priests are, after all, human beings with their own foibles and opinions. I guess that is an adventure not yet seen. This is why faith in God is paramount. I know God is with me and will take care of me, even as far as his kindnesses such as providing the means to purchase accordions and good health that allows me to be participate in nonprofits.
Oh, speaking of, another mini adventure was the Mass and Altar & Rosary Society meeting on Saturday morning. Yes, these are the types of adventures I have. Don’t judge my boring life. Anyway, I was voted in as secretary for the society. It is what it is. I will happily take the meeting notes starting in July.
May we all have adventures in the coming week. Blessings from Roswell!
Jill Domschot 