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Anthony van Dyck, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Say yay for swales! They keep runoff from running away and conserve water for plants. Encountered a few recently while on walkies with the terrier behind assorted medical buildings and a hotel. (We were waiting for a certain person to get his eyes examined.) Green grass, richly full of dandelions, plus three ornamental fruit trees, the grass cut through with long troughs, one slightly filled with runoff. Plus, hidden away at the rear of one building, a small iris bed, all blooms lavender.

Recently noticing scary cars here and there, robustly painted and outfitted to resemble police vehicles yet owned by private security companies. Pondering why one in the area carried this sentence in large print over the rear window: “In God We Trust.”

Another Triumph for Corrales’ Ideum at Valle de Oro

Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge in the South Valley opened officially in May 2022. It is the first urban wildlife refuge in the Southwest, established in 2012. Visitors to the site can actually observe the efforts to support bird and plant life, and bring water tables back to the site, bit by bit and inch by inch. A viewable work in progress.

     The visitor center’s signage and entertaining interactive exhibits—even appearing via the mirrors in the bathrooms once the water comes on!—are the work of Corrales’ Ideum, a global story-telling tech wizard first established in California in 1999, now a long- time community stalwart in Corrales (ideum.com).

     The center itself was created and built by Formative Architecture, a company only six years old, located on Gold Ave. in ABQ and noted for its “micro-tenant” restaurants at Sawmill Market among other projects.

     "Established from the ground up through a grassroots community effort by the nonprofit Friends of Valle de Oro group," according to friendsofvalledeoro.org, the Refuge is already an award-winning entity, attracting between 300 and 500 visitors each month. It was built on the ancestral land of the Tiwa people, and was once part of the El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro historic trail. The 570 acres now comprising the Refuge were owned by Price’s Valley Gold Dairy Farm, an operation with origins in El Paso,Tex. After the farm closed in the late ‘90s its acres were farmed for alfalfa and it became a potential development site for a sewer plant, racetrack or housing/industrial development. friendsofvalledeoro.org

Are Ties A Dead Industry? What’s With all the Beards?

It seems the white or pale-blue shirt worn with a jacket but no tie is the new bland and boring business look for men of a certain age. A late 2022 Gallup poll apparently found that 67% of men never wear neckties at work.

     And what’s with so many guys with beards we Boomers and beyond used to call “Van Dykes?” Named after the 17th-century  Flemish painter Anthony van Dyck, spelling sometimes changed to “Vandyke” by Brits and Yankees alike, this type of hairiness was a mustache unconnected to the chin bit, with cheeks shaved. The chin bit is still called a “goatee”--adding a ”soul patch” is optional. See his many self portraits and portraits of Charles I for examples.

May is Too Much to Do Month in Corrales 

    Yes, we know about the Corrales Art Studio Tour, May 6-7,10am-5pm, with 93 artists and galleries to visit, entirely free!

     But also ¡Viva Corrales!, a Corrales MainStreet extravaganza May 13, purportedly to preview Vill activities and offerings. Details on this one thus far are sparse, though. “This day of fun is part of the process to attain our Arts and Cultural District Authorization through the State of New Mexico. We are required to create and host a signature event that represents our unique community, and we think you’ll find that this one does,” according to MainStreet Director Angela Gutierrez via press release.

     Plus May 13, Heritage Day at Casa San Ysidro, from 10am-4pm. Blacksmithing, weaving, aimlessly wandering the grounds, all free!  https://www.cabq.gov/artsculture/albuquerque-museum/events/heritage-day

    Corrales Historical Society is going all-equine as its contribution to Heritage Day, May 13, with a horsey exhibit at Old Church entitled “Heritage Day Roundup – Saddle Up and Celebrate the History of Horses in Corrales.” Free, baby, free. 

     And also on May 13, don’t forget this one. Local vet Diana DeBlanc, founder of the Rhino Veterinarian Fund which directly funds medical and veterinary needs of injured rhinos, is giving a lecture at 2pm at the Corrales Community Center. Yes, free, but donations are sorely needed.

      May 21 will bring a musical interpretation of Dona Maria Gertrudis Tules Barcelo, “The Gambling Queen of Santa Fe,” by performer Van Ann Moore. Free! 2pm at Old Church.

The Corrales Garden Tour is coming up, June 4

It will feature six gardens, including one with a pickle ball court, and possibly chickens. Chickens love scampering after pickles, right? This lovely event is not free, as it is a longstanding fundraiser for Corrales Main Street. For ticket cost and time, visit corrales-gardentour.com.

     For years, Tour funds supposedly were to pay for landscaping along the Pathway, renamed PAR (Pedestrian Access Route), a project stalled multiple times. Current status: unknown.

Teeth gnawing at you?

A shout out to Family Dental Center in Taylor Ranch, BTW, our longtime favorite, where pix of employee-owned dogs peer out of those little screens. Country western, rarely Bach, wafts out of speakers, but not too loudly, and dark glasses are offered for a retreat from the intense lighting. High techery, competent staffers, two maritally-connected dentists, teensy free bottles of water–and you can get a dental deal from the estimable dames at the payment desk.

Please do get in touch with News-y, and thanks to those who have! We want gossip. We want photos of wildlife and pictures of your pets. We have answers to questions such as “Must I love horses to live in Corrales?” Let us know about your upcoming events. Email Meredith@CorralesComment.com.