Happy Halloween

It is time for children to dress up in costumes that they can't see very well out of and run around without watching where they are going. Please watch out for them.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

In Honor of Halloween

Here is one person's top ten list of scary movies:

http://www.livescience.com/culture/top-10-scariest-movies-1.html

"Photo Finish" A new poster to the Bosque Farms Blog had this to say:

I don't know if any one else has noticed this, but I don't recognize any of the police officers in our Village any more. Did we lose a bunch to outside agencies?Maybe something to place on the to do list:Fire the current adminsitration so we can keep our officers.

http://bfgovernment.blogspot.com/2008/10/old-to-do-list.html

According to our favorite Private Investigator Blog there is a reason Bosque Farms has lost officers. Here is just a snippet from that blog. Be sure to visit the site to read all about it.

• BFPD officers being forced to check on Legit Security guards while on and off duty as a condition of their continued employment.
• BFPD officers being exposed to corrupt practices of "Chief" Joe Stidham
• Stidham making Gil Baca a Reserve BFPD officer and letting him participate in law enforcement activities while carrying a BFPD issued badge and gun. Baca plead guilty to felony charges.
• Stidham's BFPD budget is said to be directly tied to traffic citations issued
• Stidham's practice of offering new equipment to officers for more traffic citations
• Captain Jones ordering officers to arrest for offenses that they didn't witness (violation of the warrentless arrest Act)

http://callsummit.typepad.com/summit_security_investiga/2008/10/bosque-farms-nm-police-department-is-having-trouble-keeping-good-officers.html

Another Funny Website

The link is long and this author has yet to figure out how post small links that are embedded in the text. It simply is not high on the list of things are important.

But this website is worth visiting, even if you have to do the old cut and paste routine to visit it. Walt Handelsmans is a political cartoonist that has now developed short animations. The ones with Hillary are even funnier so it is worth visiting this site and spending some time watching the animations, even the old ones. This link will take you to the '08 cartoon animations.

ttp://weblogs.newsday.com/news/opinion/walthandelsman/blog/2008/01/walt_handelsmans_animations_20_2.html

Resting on Her Laurels

This website is a blog by Mr. Warden. This is one of the ways he uses to get his name out there to sell homes. But as you can see, every so often he sticks in a political note, very typical of his long rambling letters he sends out at election time.

http://activerain.com/blogsview/93684/Keeping-Bosque-Farms-Rural

While this author recognizes that Councilor Wallace is not the one who wrote this; isn't it interesting that the only thing Mr. Warden can come up with that Councilor Wallace has done is insert the Right to Farm Act in our local laws.

Not much else has she accomplished.

What is interesting is even when she was fighting to allow and voting for the senior apartments that would stack people on a lot six deep (just an expression) Mr. Warden defends Councilor Wallace as trying to keep Bosque Farms rural.

This author is not going to vote for Councilor Wallace.

The Old To Do List

Here we are again. It is time for an election and Councilor Wallace is running. This time she's running for another level of government so she can have double the say, double the control over those of us who live in Bosque Farms.

The good news is, if she is elected, not much will be accomplished. What do you think?
Take a good look at this to do list. It is the same one that this author dusts off every so often. Some of these items are just ideas from this author (but they are good ones) and some of these are ideas that have been batted around here on the blog and some are from the Council themselves.

What has been done? You decide. Then you decide if you want Councilor Wallace in a County Commission chair.

--- An emergency evacuation plan needs to be developed. And remember, Sept.was National Preparedness Month so now is a good time to get prepared.

--- The library needs to be open more: longer hours, later nights, weekends. They don't have to pay the librarians more, just rework their schedule a bit.

--- A plan for animals in case of emergency needs to be developed. Again, another September planning prepared item. Where will all these horses go? Author note: This one came directly from Councilor Wallace one time talking about taking care of the horses in an emergency. Where will they go? Who will feed them if we have to evacuate? It doesn't take much to make a plan and it hopefully won't be used. But if we need it, there is no plan.

--- The take home car policy needs to be evaluated and the numbers and facts need to be considered before continuing this program. Author's Note: This is one that comes from this Author has never been mentioned in meetings. It makes sense though. And what is a shame is that not one person on the Council agrees. They think things are just fine. And maybe this author needs to erase this to do item before everyone on the Council extends the take home car policy and allows everyone to drive police cars on vacations to NYC.

--- A Master Calendar needs to be developed and important dates need to be noted and planned for ahead of time. (for National Night Out, Yearly Garage Sale Day..)

--- The park bathrooms need to be available and vandalism limiting methods considered.

--- The Community Center needs to be used for everyone in the community- ALL year long.(Credit for the Council for budgeting for and keeping it going a limited summer recreation program. This needs to be improved and expanded.)

--- The Horse Path Committee is doing what? The public needs to be updated. Author's Note: For those who are going to vote: Who is in charge of this? Councilor Wallace.

--- Arsenic needs to be taken out of our water. Done by a fluke of testing it seems.

--- The levees need to be evaluated. The Corp. of Engineers, the MRGCD, and the Village need to work together to make this occur and to possibly prevent flooding. This is doubly important since we have watched Belen and surrounding areas flooding just recently.

--- An adopt a road or adopt a neighborhood program needs to be developed.

--- The Property Law needs to be completed and passed.

--- FEMA needs to be petitioned to take Bosque Farms OUT of the flood plain.

--- The Current hiring and background check policy needs to be rewritten and clarified.

--- The Fireworks Ordinance needs to be considered now (Not in July!)

--- 911 Service needs to be considered and some method of insuring that those calling from cell phones will get service as soon as possible. And they need to ensure that people who work at 911 know basic landmarks so they can better direct police, fire fighters etc. And yes, while that might be a county run program; Bosque Farms pays for the service so it should be good for those of us who live here and it really isn't that great right now.

--- A policy needs to be developed about who can use this Community Center for free or fee and when. (Such as 4H getting free use for picking up trash, why can't other groups?)

--- The results of the pay comparison have been turned in, now a pay raise policy needs to be developed. This is back to black. The pay comparison is finished but the employees need to see the results and a policy needs to be developed. (Author note: This one has been there for years. Shame. )

--- The librarian needs to be told to not bring her dog to the library. The general public would not be allowed to do the same, it is not a seeing or hearing helping dog so it needs to be out.

--- The Economic Development Committee needs to start developing economics and they need to start talking to people who want to talk to them.

--- WiFi needs to provided. Free. A program like Los Lunas. It is a nation wide trend and it makes a lot of sense and it ties directly into the goal above of economic development.

--- A balanced budget needs to be developed with incentives to employees to save money (by providing ideas for saving water, energy etc), to work within their department budget, and to write grants for other funds.

What did she mean???

From Councilor Wallace's mailing ...' businesses and citizens have assurety."

Did you know that if you do a search for the word 'assurety' there is no word, no definition that this author can find?

Did you know that even in Microsoft Word if you type in 'assurety' it underlines it in red and tries to replace it with a different word completely. There is no word 'assurety'.

She wants us to elect her when she can't even use real words?

You can look up surety.
A rough definition of surety is this is a pledge or a bond to back an individual's behavior or job performance. But that is not what she is promising. She's not promising she has a bond on her performance.

Maybe she meant assure, assurance?
This means a positive statement meaning to give confidence to someone. So if you look at her last statement ... and businesses and citizens have assurety.
It sounds likes she's promising she'll give statements of confidence.

That sounds about right. She's able to make positive statements and not do much else.

Assurety. Try Dictionary.com No definition. Try the websters dictionary. No word, no definition.

Funny and Confused Councilor Wallace

Several items stand out about her new mailing. Enough so that it is worth pointing them out here.

1. NOT once does she point out what she has done on the Council of Bosque Farms. Not once has she said 'look, I did this and that and the other and I'll do it for the County too'. Why? Because she hasn't done anything.

2. No where does she promise to do anything. Well, not quite. She promises to bring back basic values to the Commission (more about this next) but she doesn't promise to improve roads, fix the sherrif's dept. or hire better employees. Not one real promise. Why? Because she won't do anything.

3. She talks about how the County is a place were hard work, dedication etc are valued and then she says 'we need to return to the ethics that have made our nation and county such a great place to live and work.' And then it says again "Dolly Wallace will work to ring these basic beliefs back to the County Commission".

In reading how it is worded it seems that she believes the County (and the nation) need to return to the ethics of hard work, dedication, honesty. Does that mean we left those values sometime and we have ethics of lies, lazing around, and no dedication? Does that mean that she and only she can bring all of us back to the straight and narrow path? Hmm..

Would those be the same ethics that allow her to vote for her 'good old boy' Bob James so he can sell his property? Seems like it.

Councilor Wallace's Mailing

Did anyone else get the mailing from Councilor Wallace.

Oh look, here is some news for you- Bob James is the treasurer of her committee to elect Dolly Wallace.

Wait?! That name sounds familiar.
Hmmm. Let's think, can anyone remember where it came from?

"The Flash" reminds us

She doe NOT understand the concept of personal ethics..."Oh, I've known Bob James for decades, he provides me with a portion of my income,I train and show his horses, but I can look past those things to re-zone his place to sell for more money and be objective doing it!"

The second line says "We need to return to the ethics that have made our nation and county such a great place to live and work" and she intends to do this by continuing to sit on the council hearing the Beehive pitch and remain objective?....Dolly...look up ethics in the dictionary and see if you can find any mention of personal gain. She will also "fight for fiscal responsibility" and "a government that serves and does not hinder". Oh yeah? Starting when and where? I remain mightily confused

http://bfgovernment.blogspot.com/2008/10/and-look-who-was-missing.html

The Budget?!

http://www.news-bulletin.com/news/84003-10-18-08.html

Good for Councilor Proctor - Sorta.

Councilor Virgil Proctor suggested that the position be part-time after Stanley leaves to save the village money. He told the council during the regular meeting on Thursday that hiring another full-time director would cost the village more than $10,000 in health insurance, a benefit that Stanley has opted out of.

"Presently, with the salary and benefits, I come up with $31,000 in total for the position," Proctor said. "If we run with this as it presently is with a 40-hour-a-week position, including the health insurance, it would really up the cost of our expense on the community center."

Does this blog need to revive the Confused Councilor Posts again?

This author doesn't get it.
Good for Councilor Proctor for thinking of the budget For Once. Yeah.
But
Why not cut costs where the costs really are right now?

Reader's of this blog can probably point out several areas that the budget can be cut.
Reader's of this blog can probably point out several ways the funds the Village does have can be used for more impact.

Take home car policy? An expanded take home car policy?
Large raises for some employees regardless of how long they have been working here?

Come On readers. If Councilor Proctor wants to save money let's give him some ways to do so.

Early Voting

This author is going to go vote early. And no, this author is not going to vote often.
But you can go vote early and avoid the long lines later at voting day.

Starting tomorrow you can vote early.
Valencia County Court House 866-2080
Satudays and Tuesday through Friday 12-5pm

Here you go, some information for you:

http://www.co.valencia.nm.us/Election%20more%20info!/Bureaufo_elections_votinginfo.html

And Look Who Was Missing

http://www.news-bulletin.com/news/84003-10-18-08.html

Councilor Wallace.

She's running for the County Office yet she can't find time in her busy schedule to take care of the three important items at the Village level.

Oh please say more people see this than just this author. Please.

Remember, you can vote and not vote for her. She will never know who didn't vote for her. So even if you know her you don't have to vote for her.

Oh boy the Council was busy.

Three items worth reporting in the paper.

They discussed the Community Center Director and her retirement and replacement.
They discussed some road issues that the state will be paying for mind you.
They discussed old police records.

They are getting things done. Shred those papers.

The Guide

One of the favorite places this author visits when examining the issues, preparing to vote and making some decisions about election topics is the League of Women Voters.

They put out a guide for elections that is very helpful. It doesn't take sides so much as it gives the candidates a chance to answer a few questions in their own words. It also lists out the ammendments to the constitution and other voting on topics.

This author has seen the guide around in various businesses in Albuquerque and it is a big bunch of worthwhile reading. But if you can' get your hands on it in a paper format, try this:

http://www.lwvnm.org/VGuide2008/index.html

From An Attorney

This email was forwarded through a few people before it got to one of the authors of this blog. And now it appears someone has put that in the

This author can confirm that Mr. Jarmie is no longer with us as Village Attorney. This author will not confirm that this is a real Mr. Jarmie letter, but based on what this author saw of Mr. Jarmie this author will say it seems to be a real Mr. Jarmie letter.

Dear Friends:

As you may be aware, I concluded my service as your Village Attorney last month. I wanted to take a moment to thank you all for the many courtesies which you extended to me over the six years I was privileged to serve you. I am particularly grateful that I am able to call so many of you my friends.

Bosque Farms is a wonderful community, and its greatest strength may be its people. Your civic participation and genuine concern for your community could serve as a model for those of us living in larger communities.

I sincerely enjoyed the time I was able to spend with you each month. Trust me, my Thursday evenings are nowhere near as much fun as they used to be.

To each of you, and to the Village, I extend my thanks, my prayers, and my best wishes.

Sincerely,

Mark D. Jarmie
Jarmie & Associates

A Pool

Of course, this author hasn't forgotten the need to mention the recent news article. Did anyone else see it?

Los Lunas School District is going to build a new pool.
Did you see how much they think it is going to cost? How much they are planning to spend to build a new pool?

More than the amount Councilor Knowlton mentioned at a Council meeting early in his first term. More than the amoung Councilor Knowlton mentioned at a Council meeting later in his term.

Maybe everyone will think about that at the next election? He wants to raise water rates, sewer rates and GRT rates. He wants to raise all these taxes and rates JUST TO COVER THE BUDGET AS IT STANDS NOW.

How much do you think it will take to build a pool? How much more will he raise taxes and rates to cover this expense?

A local business

http://www.localharvest.org/farms/M17440

Sunshine Farms has this to say on the localharvest.org site:

We now have grade A raw cow's milk and raw goat's mlk for sale. Remember, this is the real stuff – un-pasteurized and non-homogenized with the cream rising to the top. A gallon of cow’s milk may have 1 to 11/2 cups of cream. Since the milk is not pasteurized or homogenized, the cream can be skimmed to make butter. The milk can be cultured to make cheese. Or just enjoy it as a treat, cold from the refrigerator. Goat milk has a higher fat content, but less of the fat rises to the top. The taste is different from cow milk, but equally delicious. Please call for directions. Mapquest is misleading, and you might have trouble finding us.

Good for them for advertising online. Good for them and even though they have been in business for a while, this author hopes they do well.

The Budget

So it is time again to start harping on the Council. Unfortunately, it is those of us who live here who have to pay the price for their spending. The Council likes to spend OPM. "Other People's Money". They don't give much of a thought to a balanced budget with a savings plan for future expenses.

It is amazing when you look at how little has been done around the Village with how large the budget is currently. Really. Have you seen a new fire truck? Have you seen so much as a new sign greeting everyone who comes to Bosque Farms? Have you even see a complete road repaired?

The funds we pay in property tax, Gross Reciept taxes, and every other type of tax and bills goes toward what?

Oh wait: We have done some things in this Village. The water towers were painted and refurbished, using state funds.

It is time for the Village Councilors and Mayor and Clerk to work on a budget that is conservative rather than a spending budget. This author hopes they start now working on the budget. This author hopes they sit down the dept. heads and say 'look for fluff'.

A thought for the Council

If you don't make mistakes,

you're not working on hard enough problems.

And that's a big mistake.

Frank Wilczek

Worth reading again.

Too bad about Tinsley

This author was about to vote for Tinsley but look at that; his sign has shown up in a place that screams 'do not vote for me'.

Take a drive down the main street and take a gander at the former Mayor's property. Mayor Baldwin is supporting Tinsley. This author will not vote for anyone who has a fence up on Baldwin's fence.

Too bad.

This author is spending some time on the phone calling and trying to help Holliday get elected.

The Budget

Between gas prices, the falling market, the unstable economy and everything else, this author is cutting back on spending. Anyone else?

This author hopes that the Council will use their brains, hold a session to revisit the budget and see what it looks like.

Wannna take a bet? They won't.

Wanna take a bet on what they would see if they did? Not much income and a lot of out put.

What does this mean to us? Well, it means that the roads won't be fixed, or they will be partly fixed. It means that all of the money paid to the Village through your taxes will be spent only on pay for employees and on upkeep, repair and so on.

It could mean that your taxes will increase. Big shocker there huh? OF course not, not after we all saw Councilor Knowlton run on a stand of "I'll raise your water rates".

It could also mean that if the Council doesn't get in the type of money they expect, yet the departments spend as they are budgeted to spend it means that the Village could be out of compliance. There is a state law that says some percentage of the funds the Village is slated to spend must be in the bank in cash. So, the Village could be breaking the law if they are not careful. Of course, this author doesn't expect that to happen.

And the Council does nothing

This author doesn't know exactly what the council should do since what Stidham does at his own business he runs on his own time is his own business.

But does he do this only on his own time? How would he run a business when he's busy being chief. Having relatives that own a company that hires more than ten employees this author can tell you, even with a partner owning a business, running a business is full time work.

I guess at a minimum the authors would like to see the Council verbally distance themself from the chief and at least pretend and say 'we've looked into it, he's not doing work for the company 'legit' on Village time.' This author would like to hear them say "we're saddened by this and we expect that none of these rumors are true.' Anything.

http://www.freewebs.com/christopherstanl/index.htm

Overdue Books- post or not?

Wow. Isn't that interesting?

This author recieved a letter one day about an overdue book. (And that was after this author spoke wth the librarian behind the desk about the book.) The letter was very threatening and did include language about going to court regarding the book.



Isn't that interesting? While it might not have happened here in Bosque Farms, beware! The librarian does send out letters threatening to send you to court for and overdue book. And this author will tell you, it doesn't take very long before you get those letters.



Thank goodness that this librarian hasn't carried it to the end result yet. Let's hope she continues to exhibit friendly, neighborly attitude.



What makes this even more interesting to this author is this little tidbit that you might not know. The state has mandated some set of funds be provided by the community for every person using the library. Which is why the librarian won't purge users that haven't been in the library for a year, there is funding in that card.



So those who live in the Village have to put up with a dog in the library. The people who live here have to put up with threatening letters if you are overdue. And the librarian, she gets money in her budget.



http://www.gmtoday.com/news/local_stories/2008/Aug_08/08212008_02.asp

A Special Month

Once again, the librarian needs to jump up and fill the void left by the Council. The Council has not taken advantage of these special monthly days and weeks and events. The Council has overlooked the many opportunities available to bring outside money into Bosque Farms, to develop economically and to provide a fun environment for those of us who live here.

Why the librarian? Well, as everyone knows she brings her dog to work and look at this month:

National Adopt a Shelter Dog Month.
Children Magazine's Month
Everyone should be encouraged to bring a dog they adopted at the shelter to a day at the library for fun and games. Maybe children could be encouraged to read their magazines to the dogs that come to the library.

Other special days and weeks and month long events that the librarian could celebrate would be: National Dyslexia Day.
Health Literacy Month
National Reading Group Month
Teen Read Week from the 12-18

If nothing else, maybe the Council could have a business fair to celebrate National Small business and home business week from the 16-22. This is particularly important for Bosque Farms as most of our GRT comes from home businesses.

Other Special Days
http://www.friendshipandgoodwill.org/observances.html