August 26, 2009 Wordless Wednesday Okay, any of you who know me, know that I can't have a wordless anything! But, here are photos from around our area with a few words attached.   This is a photo from the trails near the Arrastra site, just north of Silver City, NM.     This area is Cattle Country!     The backyard at Santa Rita Street in downtown Silver City, New Mexico. Like it? It's for sale!     08/26/2009

August 25, 2009 Bill Evans Lake is located in north-central Grant County. Take New Mexico Highway 180 to the community of Riverside. Look for a road sign identifying the paved road to the lake. Bill Evans Lake is an interesting body of water: It's a lake 300 feet above the river that fills it. Water from the Gila River is pumped up a high mesa to where a sparkling lake is impounded. The lake is suited to both trout and warmwater fish species, and is a great year-round place to watch birds and wildlife. Bill Evans provides a great view of surrounding mountain ranges. The lake is surrounded by a gravel road, providing access to much of the shoreline. The gravel road can be uneven and may require a high ground clearance vehicle in some areas - but the lake is relatively small and all of th... 08/25/2009

August 24, 2009 Real Estate Term: Private Mortgage InsuranceDefinition: (PMI) A type of mortgage insurance available to conventional lenders on the first, high risk portion of a loan guarantying payment. Linda's commentary: I strongly feel that a Buyer should put a large down payment when buying a home. There are a few reasons: 1. Your monthly payment is less because your loan is less, 2. Your interest rate is less because your Loan-to Value is less, 3. You don't have to pay PMI insurance, 4. You can access your equity with a 2nd mortgage or Home Equity Line, 5. You can weather dips in the market (like this one!). Discussion: Edited from Wikipedia: Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI), also known as Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) in the US, is insurance to offset losses in the case where ... 08/24/2009

August 21, 2009 Over the years I've read a bunch of books about the Silver City area. Most of these are available through Highlonesome Books or Amazon. If you're interested in our area, you may want to check some of these out! Madam Millie: Bordellos From Silver City to Ketchikan (Max Evans) Built to Last. An Architectural History of Silver City, New Mexico (Susan Berry) Six-Guns and Single-Jacks: A History of Silver City and Southwestern New Mexico (Bob Alexander) Southwest Traveler: Parks and Monuments of New Mexico (American Traveler) Dangerous Dan Tucker-New Mexico's Deadly Lawman (Bob Alexander) Country Sports, The Rabid Pursuits of a Redneck Environmentalist. (Dutch Salmon) Gila Descending. A Southwestern Journey. ( Dutch Salmon) Tracks Across New Mexico.  (Homer Pickens) Pistols,... 08/21/2009

August 20, 2009   Real Estate Term: Prepayment ClauseDefinition: A clause in a loan contract that gives a borrower the right to make loan payments that are greater than the amount due or in advance of the due date. Discussion: From: www.michaelbluejay.com: Prepaying your mortgage On our page about mortgage interest, we saw that a 15-year loan saves you a bundle of interest vs. a 30-year loan. But maybe you're stuck with a 30-year loan because that's all the bank will give you, or because you already bought a house with a 30-year loan. In that case, you can still save on interest by making prepayments on your mortgage. That means paying a little extra each month so that you pay off the whole loan faster. Actually, you don't have to pay extra each month -- you can pay extra only in the mo... 08/20/2009

 August 19, 2009   CATWALK OF WHITEWATER CANYON  The Catwalk is a trail that winds up Whitewater Canyon often hanging over the rushing water with metal walkways. It is a stunning spot to enjoy the ruggedness of nature as you walk up through high rock walls, rushing waters, tall trees and such. Toward the end of the Catwalk is a extension bridge that wobbles and sways over the river. The trail continues up past the rivine for those so inclined.  For more information, check out this website: http://www.desertusa.com/mag01/mar/stories/carwalk.html From the Answer Book - Silver City Daily Press: "Visitors take U.S. 180 to the town of Glenwood, and go east on the Whitewater Canyon road 5 miles for a perfect picnic spot and nature hike. Originally the Catwalk was wooden and supported a pipeli... 08/19/2009

August 18,2 009 Real Estate Term: Offer to PurchaseDefinition: A presentation of a set of terms made by a potential Buyer to a property owner to purchase his or her property. Discussion: Most commonly, a person confuses an Offer with a Contract. An Offer is when a Buyer puts in writing the terms of the proposed Contract. The Agent will assist the Buyer in writing an Offer. It becomes a Contract when both the Seller and Buyer agree to all of the terms. (I've even heard Realtors use this term incorrectly. A Realtor may call and say "I'm bringing you a contract". No, you're bringing me an Offer. When my Seller signs it, we have a Contract.) An Offer should outline all of the terms including, price, closing date, financing terms, property description, what's included in the sale, what inspe... 08/18/2009

August 17, 2009 This week-end I hiked up near the "Arrastra" Site just north of Pinos Altos. Arrastra: rock-lined ore-grinding pit.  This is one of some 75 arrastras that the miners built in the Pinos Altos vicinity; it offers an insight into the hardship that prospectors would endure in their compulsive pursuit of gold.  Powered by a mule or a horse, "Large dragstones were pulled over a mixture of crushed ore and water," according to the U. S. Forest Service marker at the arrastra site.  Once a heavy mud formed, the operator added mercury [which, in concentration, can cause severe damage to the nervous system and kidneys] to the mixture.  "The mercury adhered to gold and formed an 'amalgam' that settled to the floor of the arrastra pit.  Amalgam was processed through a 'sluice' (washin... 08/17/2009

August 13, 2009    Here are a few photographs of what southwest living means to me. Below, adobe walls and wooden fences.     What would living in the dessert be without cactus. Below is a Barrel Cactus.     Kiva Fireplace - what would a southwest style home be without a kiva?       08/13/2009

August 12, 2009   CITY OF ROCKS STATE PARK Greatly appreciated by rock hounds, the City of Rocks State Park has an abundance of fantastic shapes and sizes, many that look bizarre. Originally the rocks were formed by volcanic upheavals. Wind and sandstorms have eroded and carved the stones over the centuries into the fascinating, contoured fantasy shapes we enjoy looking at today.       At least fifty thousand people a year visit southeast New Mexico's City of Rocks State Park, located about mid-way between Deming and Silver City. The exotic collection of volcanic "art," set in the middle of a grama grass plain, was formed by a huge explosion called the Kneeling Nun eruption about thirty four million nine hundred thousand years ago.Located in the Mimbres Valley at the northeastern edge o... 08/12/2009

August 11, 2009   Real Estate Term: Multiple Listing ServiceDefinition: (MLS) An association of real estate licensees that provides for a pooling of listings and the sharing of commissions on a specified basis. Discussion: The MLS is the computer program that the Realtors use to show listed properties. When your Realtor meets you at a house to show you a property, they will probably give you an MLS Sheet which has house information on it. The Realtor can search the MLS System to find houses that fit your needs. There is a ton of reports and analysis that can be retrieved from the system. When someone wants a Market Analysis on their home, the Realtor uses the MLS system to find comparables. Most MLS systems have a way for the Realtor to automatically email Buyers and Sellers when a simi... 08/11/2009

August 6, 2009 LAKE ROBERTS About a one-hour drive from Silver City, the lake lies nestled among the high pines in the Upper Mimbres Valley, within the boundaries of the Gila National Forest. Since its opening in 1963, Lake Roberts has been a popular destination for campers, picnickers, hikers and fishermen.   08/06/2009

August 5, 2009   Just some photos from the Silver City, NM area ....... enjoy!   This photo was taken at the Gila Cliff Dwellings last week-end. Those walls were built more than 750 years ago!   This is my cousin, Debbie handling the rifle with ease. She had only 2 misses!!       Yet another beautiful sunset in Silver City, NM.         08/05/2009

July 30, 2009 PINOS ALTOS The name stands for "Tall Pines,' and the town was once the county seat. The discovery of gold by a group of 49'ers in 1859 began the settlement. Now, reconstruction of the Santa Rita Del Cobre Fort and Trading Post is worth a visit, as are the old Hearst Church, Pinos Altos Museum, First Courthouse and cemetery.     07/30/2009

July 28, 2009 Here are a few more photographs of "Cowboy Days" held in Silver City, NM this week-end.   This is a Cowboy Poet who sang and read poetry. He was great!     This Marine looked so good in uniform, I had to take a picture - - and thank him for his service to our country!     Dressed in the costumes of the early west.       Smokey the Bear visits Silver City often - - we are in the Gila Wilderness, after all!             07/28/2009

July 27, 2009 Silver City, NM celebrated our deep roots in cowboy history with "Cowboy Days" this week-end. It was a lot of fun in Gough Park with dutch oven cooking, blacksmithing, square dancing, cowboy poets, entertainment, horseshoe pitching tournament, roping demonstrations, gunslinger shootouts and a cowboy fashion show. Lots of vendors selling western wares and food too! Here are a few photographs from the events......                                         07/27/2009

July 23, 2009   New Mexico set up a new website about "Billy The Kid". Check out the Silver City references:  http://newmexico.org/billythekid/billypages/travel_guide.php   Then you can make plans to come for a visit! 07/23/2009

  July 15, 2009   Here is a photo of an Egyptian Mural located on Juniper St in Silver City, NM.   This mural is located on a business wall on the corner of Bullard and College St. in Silver City, NM.   The above mural is located in Gough Park in downtown, Silver City, NM.   The colorful mural above is located at the corner of Pope and College St. and is painted on the SWSH (South West Special Handicap) building. It's a beauty!   And this last one is on the side of the Silver City Food Co-op building on Bullard St. in Silver City, NM. I'm realizing that Silver City has a colorful downtown!!!!                           07/15/2009

July 13, 2009 The local SASS group, The Gila Rangers" held their annual 3-day shoot at Fowler's Ranch in the Mimbres Valley near Silver City this week-end. If you enjoy shooting sports, you may want to check it out at: www.gilarangers.com . Their 3-day shoot is called Border Dispute. We all had a great time with side matches on Friday and the actual competition on Saturday and Sunday. Here are a few photos from the event: Friday's side matches included this Clay Shooting event.         At the loading table waiting for their turn to shoot some lead downrange!                   This shooter is in the Black Powder category - the Black Powder makes for a great photo!           07/13/2009

July 10, 2009 This is the second story: In other accounts, tales of a mis­sionary nun, Sister Maria Ester, from San Luis Potos', who had come into Old Santa Rita to help with a church program among the families are told.Sister Mar'a Ester was very beautiful and people loved to see her just so they could gaze at her face. She was also beautiful in Christian character and was always helping the families and the poor.At the time, a handsome young Spanish sergeant fell in love with the beautiful nun. She could not accept his love because of her religious vows and the sergeant became very depressed over this. Shortly afterwards, he was found dead not too far from the path where he used to keep vigil on the passings of Sister Mar'a.When the news of the death of the sergeant was known, many ba... 07/10/2009