Punxsutawney Phil has seen his shadow, so expect 6 more weeks of winter. Meanwhile, we’ve enjoyed some warm days this week, bringing thoughts of seed catalogs and spring.
The Road Runner Waste Service bill arrived this week. Inside you will find an insert about Village services, including helpful phone numbers. Consider putting it on your fridge. Thanks. For those of you reading this, our best source of communication is our website, especially in this time of pandemic (https://www.corrales-nm.org).
NM seems to be pulling ahead in the fight against COVID. After a 4-month sustained surge, our cases and hospitalizations are falling. NM is vaccinating 9,000 folks a day but averaging just 584 cases per week so Dr. Scrase says, “it’s like a “4th quarter come-back.” In conjunction with NMDOH, Sandoval is in the final stages of acquiring another vaccination site for Sandoval County here in Corrales. The registration protocol will be the same (go to https://cvvaccine.nmhealth.org/), but it will give Sandoval another site. Special thanks go to Emergency Manager Tanya Lattin and to Village employees Lynn Siverts, Brynn Cole, Benito Gonzales and Aaron Gjullin. With the release of new metrics next week, more counties will go to yellow. Keep your fingers crossed Sandoval is among them. However, we have all have seen how quickly this can go bad, so STAY THE COURSE and continue to use COVID-safe practices.
Meanwhile, seems we are suffering from a malaise identified by fifth century monks called acedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acedia). We didn’t choose a monastic life in 2020 and 2021, but the symptoms (listlessness, inability to think clearly) certainly seem familiar.
The New Mexico Legislature is in session. If you want to listen or participate in Legislative meetings, visit https://www.nmlegis.gov and click on “What’s Happening.” For House committees, click on the PDF of the House committee schedule. Follow the link to join or call the phone number if you don’t want to zoom. For the Senate, click on the Senate Committee Schedule. If they are accepting public comment, you should see an email and a date by which to register. Send a message to the email to get the Zoom login information. Generally, public comment is at the discretion of the Chair. You may be asked to raise your digital hand and wait to be recognized. Time is usually limited to one or 2 minutes, so best prepare.
The Village has issued all $255,600 of the small business CARES monies to local businesses. Again we thank Commander Lattin, Aaron Gjullin, Cynthia Gomez and Lynn Siverts in their efforts to review applications, issue grants and finally get the much needed checks into the hands of our businesses. We will be on the lookout for more CARES money if and when it comes around.
February is Black History Month, a federally recognized celebration of African American contributions to our country and a time to reflect on the continued struggle for racial justice. BHM is also observed in Canada, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. Check out the fabulous graphic designed by Stat Phillips below of a woman health care worker of color, a tribute to the many underrepresented folks fighting the battle against COVID.
Music in Corrales is offering online video concerts featuring artists originally scheduled to perform at the Old San Ysidro Church. The next concert, a guitar and cello duo, will be available on-demand anytime from Saturday, February 20 thru Sunday, February 28. Tickets at https://www.musicincorrales.org/concert/boyd-meets-girl-concert/
Aaron, owner of C3’s Bistro, delivered some delicious ribs to our Corrales Police Department. Thank you, Aaron! I will bet there were NO leftovers.
The next Corrales Village Council Meeting is Tuesday, February 9 at 6:30. As always, look for the Agenda and Public Packet on our website, along with directions about how to zoom into the meeting. https://www.corrales-nm.org/villagecouncil/page/regular-council-meeting…
This weekend it is supposed to be cloud-free sunshine. Sounds like a terrific time to be out and about on our trails. On Sunday February 7, visit the Corrales Growers Market from 11-1. Then take your fresh produce home and prepare for the Super Bowl, with its fabulous ads and snack excesses (beware: there’s a chicken wings shortage). Whatever you do, stay safe and enjoy yourselves, Corrales-style.
Jo Anne Roake
Mayor of Corrales
