DON’T MISS IT

Writing the journey

Reading and conversation with Katherine E. Standefer and Alden Jones Friday (May 21) 5:30-7 p.m., in a free online event, Katherine Standefer and Alden Jones discuss structuring journey narratives, building honest, compelling narrators on the page and teasing the meaning out of past experiences so a book builds rather than plods.

Standefer’s debut memoir, “Lightning Flowers: My Journey to Uncover the Cost of Saving a Life,” tells the story of her troubled relationship to her own implanted cardiac defibrillator, following her harrowing journey through the American medical system and her global quest to understand what it takes to save one life.

Standefer‘s “Lightning Flowers” was a NYT Book Review Editor’s Choice/Staff Pick. Named one of Oprah Magazine’s Best Books of Fall 2020, “Lightning Flowers” was also shortlisted for the J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Prize from Columbia Graduate School of Journalism; received a starred Kirkus review; was featured in People Magazine; on NPR’s Fresh Air; and on the goop podcast. Her writing appeared in The Best American Essays 2016. Standefer earned her MFA at the University of Arizona. She lives on a piñon- and juniper-studded mesa in New Mexico with her chickens.

Jones’ new book, “The Wanting Was A Wilderness,” combines a critical look at Cheryl Strayed’s “Wild” with Jones’ own experiences on the trail. Jones’ story collection, “Unaccompanied Minors” won the New American Fiction Prize and was a finalist for a Publishing Triangle Award and a Lambda Literary Award; and her memoir “The Blind Masseuse” was named a notable travel book by National Geographic, Publishers Weekly, PEN America, and the Huffington Post. Her stories and essays have appeared in New York Magazine, Agni, The Rumpus, and Best American Travel Writing. She is core faculty in the Newport MFA, and also teaches creative writing and cultural studies at Emerson College in Boston.

Via zoom.us/j/5757580081?pwd=SnZncXlvUUZPY3F3OEhyOXM3TnVxQT09 by SOMOS, 108 Civic Plaza Drive, Taos. For info, call 575-758-0081.

Watch and interact online!

“Musical History of Our Villages,” Friday (May 21) 7-8:30 p.m., is free music and research from project director Chris Arellano’s interviews with elders who carry the traditions from the cultural heritage of Questa and the surrounding villages of Costilla, Cerro, Amalia, surrounding villages, and Southern Colorado. Traditions such as Los Penitentes hymns, Los Dias New Year celebration, and more.

The “Northern New Mexico Music Past & Present” is a Questa Creative Council project, funded in part by New Mexico Arts. Go to Facebook LIVE (@ QuestaCreativeCouncil) to join in. Virtual event URL: questacreative.org/ music-history-of-our-villages. For more, contact Martha Shepp, sheppmartha@ gmail.com or 575-776-7579.

CALENDAR Thursday, May 20

Daily | Online Art Auction View and bid on fabulous artwork offered by Taos Estate Sales with Taos Habitat for Humanity, The Taos Community Foundation and more for Taos Arts and Artifacts Auction. Bidding is ongoing now. Contact Ron Usherwood, 575-613-0998 or service@taosestatesales. com.

Daily | The Man Who Sold His Skin. Three-day rental. TCA Big Screen @ Home; See tcataos.org/calendar.

Daily | Another Round Academy award winner Best International Feature Film; 3-day rental. TCA Big Screen @ Home. See tcataos.org/calendar.

Friday, May 21

5:30-7 p.m. | Online Reading Katherine Standefer and Alden Jones. SOMOS, 108 Civic Plaza Drive, Taos. For info, call 575-758-0081. Via zoom.us/j/575758008 1?pwd=SnZncXlvUUZPY3F3OEhyOXM3Tn VxQT09

7-8:30 p.m. | Musical History of Our Villages, with Chris Arellano, on FBLive (@QuestaCreativeCouncil). Virtual URL questacreative.org/music-history-of-ourvillages. Free.

Daily | The Man Who Sold His Skin. Three-day rental. TCA Big Screen @ Home; See tcataos.org/calendar.

Saturday, May 22

8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Farmers Market Know the food, you’ll know the place, support stewardship of beautiful Northern New Mexico farm lands. See the website for whats in season! Through Oct. 30, Saturdays 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Fall hours the first three Saturdays in November, 9 a.m.-noon (get all your Thanksgiving meal locally!); taosfarmersmarket.org.

Daily | Another Round Academy award winner Best International Feature Film; 3-day rental. TCA Big Screen @ Home; See tcataos.org/calendar.

Sunday, May 23

Daily | Another Round Academy award winner Best International Feature Film; 3-day rental. TCA Big Screen @ Home; See tcataos.org/calendar. 10-11:30 a.m. | Unity of Taos Go to Zoom. com, click “Join a meeting” and type 82969056513 in the empty box. Passcode is 460184. For all other info, call 575-7511452.

11 a.m.-noon | Unfriending Fear Let’s talk about our fears. UU Sharing Circle, Unitarian Congregation of Taos. If new, fill out contact form at uutaos.org/ contact. Free.

Monday, May 24

Daily | TCA Members Open ‘Emergence, Cultivation, Growth.’ Virtual viewing and also in-gallery Thursdays-Saturdays, 2-5 p.m. See tcataos.org/calendar. Tuesday, May 25

7 p.m. | Live Art Auction Taos Estate Sales is partnering with Taos Habitat for Humanity, The Taos Community Foundation and local estates for a spring Taos Arts and Artifacts Auction. (See complete story on page B8). Bidding is ongoing now. Contact Ron Usherwood, 575-613-0998 or service@taosestatesales. com.

Wednesday, May 26

Four screenings | Great Art Onscreen At-home livestream of “Hermitage – The Power of Art.” Spectacular documentary tours St. Petersburg’s State Hermitage Museum’s largest collection of paintings in the world. Not rated. Cost $10. See tcataos. org/calendar.