
File an a-peel?
Remember back in 2015, when comedian Dave Chappelle came to the Lensic, and some dude in the audience threw a banana peel at him? Yeah, that was embarrassing for Santa Fe. Well, the dude, who has a name (Christian Englander), filed suit against the comedian, alleging that Chappelle's bodyguard struck him in the face after his "harmless" but ultimately unfunny "prank," and that Chappelle later intimidated him at the police station. He dropped the suit this week, however. No reason was given, but it just seems like everyone is kinda over it.
Acequia bypass
Water is nice, except when there's too much in too small a space. That's what happened in Nambé when an acequia wall collapsed ($) due to blockage; residents and the acequia's mayordomo say the debris was left there by contract workers hired by the utility company to trim trees. The Jemez Mountains Electric Co-op didn't admit to wrongdoing in the incident, saying debris often falls into acequias and walls often collapse, but the surrounding community says there was no debris there before the Asplundh Tree Expert Co. started its work.
ABQ cop-shooter sentenced
Davon Lymon of Albuquerque was sentenced to life without parole for the killing of an APD officer. In 2015, Lymon was riding a motorcycle when he was pulled over; he says that he couldn't properly hear the cop through his helmet and thought he heard officer Daniel Webster threaten his life, and believed he was firing in self-defense when he killed Webster. Webster's widow had some intense words for Lymon in the courtroom.
Solar drama
The New Mexico Supreme Court heard arguments yesterday about whether or not PNM rigged a bid for solar technology for the utility company as part of efforts to fulfill renewable energy benchmarks in the coming years. Solar activists contend that PNM's rules were restrictive to smaller companies; PNM's lawyer says the bidding process was indeed fair and the company chose the most affordable option.
Strut your stuff
A New Mexican wants to trek to the Grand Canyon, but knows a horse would run out of water. So what to do instead? Bring a dromedary, of course. (That means a camel.) This week SFR introduces you to Sunny Khalsa and her camel Mishach and gives a little history of humped animals in this region, both archaeologically and through the mid-1800's military experiment of the US Camel Corp.
Call off the hunt
Hunter Woods, the teen sought by Santa Fe police for more than a week, is in custody ($). Woods allegedly shot his mother's boyfriend on April 29 and absconded, and has been implicated in two additional shootings since (no one was injured in those).
Eat up
Goodness, there's just nothing but restaurant news lately, isn't there? Santarepa Cafe has opened on Johnson Street ($), bringing the taste of Venezuela to Santa Fe. The star of the menu is the titular arepa, a pupsa-like or pita-like or sopaipilla-like (maybe every culture has something like it) cornmeal cake that is stuffed with whatever savory goodness you want. Proprietress Isabel Mendoza says that arepas are Venezuelans' "daily bread."
Shocking
That rain yesterday really smelled like monsoons, and we're due for more wet and cool weather. There will be rain across the state this week, snow in higher elevations, and it should continue that way all month.
Thanks for reading! The Word is looking to take a staycation one day soon. What's your favorite?