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Rounding up the summer's top horror releases

Lauren McDonald | August 12

Remakes, instant cult classics and great jump scares filled the 2019 summer with a lot of great horror films. One of the scariest horror films released this summer is from producer James Wan, Annabelle Comes Home, which came out on June 26th, 2019. Making $30 million in the first five days in theaters, it had a most eerie feel each time there was a paranormal encounter. Also, seeing the next chapter in Ed and Lorraine’s Conjuring Universe was fantastic. 

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Culture

Five and Why: Favorite Books with New UNM Provost James Holloway

Makayla Grijalva | August 11

Dr. James Holloway has officially been in the University of New Mexico provost position since July 1, 2019 and, so far, he is “thrilled” with the work he has seen go on at the University. “As Provost, my job is to help our students and our faculty be successful,” Holloway said. “The administration and the staff are here to support the intellectual and creative chaos that a community of scholars needs in order to develop new ideas and to take action to serve New Mexico and the world.” Although he is pleased with the work being done academically at UNM, Holloway said there are  challenges the university may face in the upcoming years. 

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News

UNM Athletics: No media deal sealed, yet

Justin Garcia | August 6

The University of New Mexico is one step closer to replacing its $4.4 million media-rights contract to broadcast games and images. However, the contracts value and when it can be signed remain unclear.  On Tuesday, the Board of Regents Finances and Facilities Committee approved an agreement between the University and Outfront Media Sports, Inc to hold the Athletics Department’s media rights . However, F&F committee chair Sandra Begay said the contract may have to be voted on by the full Board next month.  According to UNM Athletics Director Eddie Nuñez, the details of the contract are still being drafted. If the contract was not written up before the August 13 meeting, Begay and Nuñez said it would likely be voted on during the September 17 meeting. Nuñez said that UNM may end up using a temporary “bridge” contract while the Outfront deal is finalized and approved, but he declined to give specific details about what that might look like. 

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Sports

Meow Wolf Night at Isotpoes Park

Luisa Pennington | July 29

New Mexico United and Meow Wolf are taking their relationship to another level. The first-year soccer club will host "Meow Wolf Night" in collaboration with the Santa Fe-based art collective on August 3 at Isotopes Park. The event, a fusion of sport and art declared as unprecedented by club president and CEO Peter Trevisani, will kick off at 7:30 p.m. “We knew from the beginning that bringing together art and soccer specific stadium sport in this way was uncharted territory, but now we are putting it into practice and laying a roadmap for other teams to follow,”  Trevisani said in a press release. “Fans will have so much to take in on this night, it will be a truly unique experience.”

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Culture

Lavender in the village

Kristina Tanberg | July 27

Hundreds of people from across New Mexico gathered at the Agri-Nature Center of Los Ranchos this weekend to celebrate their love for lavender. Albuquerque’s Lavender in the Village festival is an annual event taking place on July 20-21, sponsored by Los Poblanos Inn and Farm. Los Poblanos is a historic property located in the heart of Rio Grande River Valley. It houses a Historic Inn, “Field to Fork” fine dining, and twenty five acres of lavender fields.  

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Culture

'My Body My Self' art show

Kristina Tanberg | July 16

The opening reception for art exhibition, “My Body Myself” was held from 6 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, July 11 at 5G Gallery. This exhibition addressed issues and ideas surrounding the human body through paintings, photographs, screen prints, and sculptures. The event was a collaboration between four artists: Eryn Bathke, Miranda Chun, Alec Goldberg and Brianna Sanderson.  Bathke is a recent University of New Mexico graduate, and she will soon be moving out of the state to pursue her career. She decided to create this installation as a way to showcase some of the last work she had done at UNM, before graduating. She had also contacted Chun, Goldberg and Sanderson as she felt their work would fit perfectly into the installation and help to get her message across.

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News

Disability resources at UNM

Beatrice Nisoli | July 15

The University’s most well-known disability asset for students is the Accessibility Resource Center (ARC). This organization is a department within UNM Student Services that has provided accommodations for students and employees with registered physical and intellectual disabilities for the past forty years. The center provides the 1,300 students that utilize its services with resources such as American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters, textbooks in Braille, private exam rooms and countless other accommodations necessary for these students to be able to attend the University.  Joan Green recently celebrated her fourteenth anniversary as director of the ARC. She said the mission of the ARC is to “ensure there is equal access on campus for not just students, but the public and any visitors or employees who are here.”  Though Green said she believes the ARC and the mission it represents have significantly improved over the years, she said there is still progress to be made on UNM’s campus in terms of accessibility of disability resources. However, she is actively working towards a solution. 

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Sports

Soccer: Saving soccer no longer his fight, Fishbein thankful and ready to move on

Robert Maler | July 15

Husband. Father. Coach. Jeremy Fishbein has worn a lot of hats in lifetime. And while he will likely continue doing so, the cherry Lobo lid that he wore so prominently on game day and media day as the University of New Mexico men's soccer coach probably won't be one of them. His tenure came to an end without much fanfare. No apparent press release from the university or its athletic department thanking him or recognizing the program for its accomplishments on the way out.

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News

Protest to 'close the camps' held in ABQ

Alyssa Martinez | July 15

Hundreds of New Mexicans from around New Mexico gathered for a vigil outside of the Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement building on Friday to demand lawmakers to “close the camps” under the nationwide Liberty of Lights movement.  The vigil was organized by the Three Sisters Collective, a grassroots organization of indigenous women in Santa Fe, co-founded by University of New Mexico alumni Dr. Christina M. Castro. The event was co-organized by the New Mexico Dream Team, the Medicine Drum Circle, and Remembering Ancestors Inspiring Community Empowering Self, RAICES. Planned Parenthood and the New Mexico Immigration Law Center were among the groups in attendance. The evening began by calling upon ancestors for protection, followed by a blessing of all four cardinal directions. The prayer was led by Tonita Gonzales, a medicine woman of RAICES. Gonzales mentioned the native tale of the Eagle and the Condor, which prophesied that one day, the people of the North and South will be united again.

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Culture

Five and Why: Jeff Younggren talks his five favorite presidents

Beatrice Nisoli | July 15

Jeffrey Younggren, the University of New Mexico’s first gentleman, has made an impact on campus, alongside his wife, UNM’s President Garnett Stokes. Younggren serves the University as a clinical professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences.  Originally, he was a forensic psychologist, as well as a retired Colonel in the U.S. Army. Perhaps for this reason, Younggren appropriately prefaced his Five and Why with a paragraph on what he believes constitutes successful leadership. “What makes a true leader is the ability to take on tasks and make difficult decisions, often unpopular decisions, at difficult times, because it is the right thing to do. The ability to do the latter is the true test of leadership,” Younggren said. He kept these guidelines in mind as he selected his five favorite U.S. presidents:

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Culture

ABQ Tattoo fiesta showcases artists

Lauren McDonald | July 15

The annual New Mexico Tattoo Fiesta was held this last weekend at Isleta Casino. The event featured many different tattoo shops in Albuquerque such as Archetype Tattoo, Factory Edge and Route 66, in addition to many more from other countries and states. Hosted by Cervena Fox, the fiesta exhibited different portfolios from artists all over the world. It also held contests for the artist with the best art and the best artwork.  During the festival, Isleta Casino was filled with people waiting to get tattoos, shopping and watching tattoos getting done. There were many vendors at the event, including Mindzai Apparel— a shop that is local to Austin, Texas, which sells rock-and-roll style clothes. 

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News

ABQ holds gun buyback

Justin Garcia | July 15

The Albuquerque Metro Crime Stoppers and the Albuquerque Police Department hosted a gun buyback event on Saturday afternoon, collecting a total of 415 guns.  “This is one part of our multi-pronged effort to reduce gun violence in Albuquerque,” Mayor Tim Keller said in a press release after the event. “As police work to keep people safe, we also need support from law-abiding citizens who are often targeted by thieves. This successful gun buyback event gave people a safe way to dispose of unwanted firearms while taking those guns out of circulation.” In the style of a fast-food drive-thru, hundreds of people showed up to turned over handguns, shotguns and rifles for $75 and assault rifles for $100. APD paid cash for the guns, which according Councilman Pat Daivs, district 2, will be turned into an art installation. Davis said the logistics of this project are still being developed, but added that the art installation would focus on gun violence. 

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News

SUB Solar panels may have installation issues

Colin Peña | July 15

The University of New Mexico project to install solar panels on the roof of the Student Union Building may have to change locations due to the roof of the SUB having more damage than previously thought.  The Associated Students of UNM Senate began the process of requesting money from the state for the solar panels about two years ago. Associate Director of Government Relations Matthew Muñoz said his office helped ASUMN students work with the Legislature to begin this project. “Solar Panels on the SUB is a student-led initiative,” Muñoz said, adding that. “(The Students) have to figure out what they want to do, if it will be funded by the bond, they have to work with legislators to get the funding and they have to work when they get the money.” 

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News

New VP shares her goals

Alyssa Martinez | July 15

As the new Associated Students of the University of New Mexico administration prepares for the upcoming fall semester, Vice President Madelyn Lucas is looking to address three main policy areas: enrollment, campus morale and accessibility. Lucas defined accessibility in two parts: first the University’s compliance with the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) , and second is undergraduates’ access to ASUNM. Lucas expressed that the ambiguity of what undergraduate accessibility would actually look like in legislation is a part of the challenge in achieving this goal.  Lucas’ most well-established role as Vice President is to oversee the senate by appointing chairs, facilitating discussion, setting the agenda and making sure all legislation is in place. Typically, senators are popularly elected for 2 terms based off of the results of the most recent election. For example, if a candidate won a seat in the most recent spring 2019 election, they would serve for the fall 2019 and spring 2020 sessions, at which point they can resign from the senate or run again. Since the most recent senate election in April, there have been shifts in who exactly will be in the senate. 

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News

Rio Grande roaring after heavy rains

Amanda Britt | July 15

Albuquerque’s ecosystem may benefit from this year’s heavy water flow and flooding in areas around the Middle Rio Grande. Although the water levels are past their peak for this year, the average discharge in the Rio Grande in Albuquerque rose to nearly 6,000 cubic feet per second in June. Last June the discharge rate rarely surpassed 1,000 cfs. On June 18 the discharge rate outside of Cochiti dam, an hour north of Albuquerque, was at its peak flow at a rate of 6,279 cubic feet per second, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at the Albuquerque District.  Areas surrounding the Rio Grande had good snowpack this year. Kim Eichhorst, an associate research professor of biology at UNM and co-director of Bosque Ecosystem Monitoring Program (BEMP), said the snowpack earlier this year melted, and sublimated – or evaporated straight from the snow. A dust layer on the snow also allowed the snow to evaporate faster.

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News

SUB closer to installing solar panels

Alyssa Martinez and Colin Peña | July 8

The University of New Mexico is inching closer to having solar panels installed on the roof of the Student Union Building (SUB) now that state funding was designated for the project. Talk of installing solar panels on the SUB has been brewing since Fall of 2017 when a resolution calling for the University to push towards 100% renewable energy sources was unanimously passed by the Associated Students of UNM Senate, the legislative body of undergraduate student government. The solar panel installation will be a collaborative project between ASUNM and Facilities Management, formally known as Project Plant Development.

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News

Four reportedly shot in downtown ABQ

Makayla Grijalva | July 8

Albuquerque police are investigating a shooting that occurred early Sunday morning in downtown Albuquerque.  Four people were reportedly shot outside of Tantra nightclub — formerly known as Lotus — and were taken to local hospitals. Albuquerque Police Department said their injuries are not life-threatening.  The identities of the victims have not been released. 

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Culture

Local Comic Book Store Celebrates 20th Anniversary

Luisa Pennington | July 8

Located on the corner of Central Avenue and Richmond Drive, Astro-Zombies has been a staple to the Nob Hill community for the past two decades. This month, the comic book, vinyl and toy store celebrated their twentieth year in business. To honor this event, the store is offering a different discount every week. According to owner Mike D’Elia, the idea for a comic book store came to mind while he was working at Bow Wow records. Initially, D’Elia and a coworker had planned on creating a vintage ’80s video game arcade, but after looking into it, he realized the store needs to carry more than just video games to be able to afford rent.  Astro-Zombies’ first location opened up in 1999 at a smaller shop across the street. It carried a plethora of toys and a handful of comics. It also rented out VHS tapes. According to D’Elia, there was a Pac-Man and a Centipede machine in the back of the store, as well.

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Culture

Local traditions for the Fourth

Beatrice Nisoli | July 8

On July 4, Los Alamos residents poured out of the laboratory and into the streets displaying vibrant colors of red, white and blue.  Independence Day in Los Alamos kicked off with its annual 5k Firecracker Fun Run. A few hours afterwards, the exhausted runners cleared the way for excited children parading down Central Avenue in the traditional Fourth of July Children’s Parade. Relatives of the paraders lined the sidewalks, marveling at the brightly decorated outfits, bicycles and scooters rolling past.  Bill Hamilton, who has been a Los Alamos resident for twenty-two years, said the Children’s Parade has been the holiday tradition for as long as he can remember. 

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Culture

"Midsommar:" new cult classic

Colin Peña | July 8

Ari Aster’s second venture in to directing and writing a full length horror film, “Midsommar,” is a slow burn, meditating on how we associate with others when set in the context of a secretive commune’s macabre rituals.  Aster’s first full project, “Hereditary,” came out in 2018 and it focused on a family experiencing trauma and loss while being manipulated by a satanist cult. Throughout the film, the relationships of the characters dissolve as they lose their trust in each other’s sanity and motivation.   In the same vein, “Midsommar” focuses on people and their interactions as the situation around them violently falls apart.