Merry Christmas

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Christmas. Dale and I are freezing up in Spokane but having a great time. Love to all.

Justin

Jerusalem Chanukkiyah

I promised Gene's mother I would post a picture of my Jerusalem Chanukkiyah. Enjoy

At the Einfrank's Festival of Lights...

...last night, we were all greeted by this heavenly display which set the tone perfectly for the beautiful evening of fellowship and latkes that ensued. We basked in the warmth of the Einfrank's hospitality and good cheer, which clearly arose from the heart and soul of Hanukkah.

This was a perfect way for our community to celebrate not only the season's joys, but also the joy and pleasure we can take, throughout the year, to be in each other's company. Among the many things we all have to be thankful for, that surely sits near the top.

So thank you, Gene and Melissa (et al.), for sharing such a special gift with your community—the pleasure of which, like all those latkes, will sustain us throughout the year.

Wearing the colors

Proudly wearing the neighborhood jerseys on El Tour.

Sick Sycamores Update

I spoke with some folks at Silverbelle Nursery and showed them a few leaves with insects. Their take was that the very hot, windy and dry summer has stressed everything, us included (well, you guys anyway). Even if the trees had ample water, their leaves would have looked bad. The stress then allows insects to take hold, like the mites our trees have, further stressing them. They suggest doing nothing now as the trees will go dormant (if it ever gets cool) and lose their leaves; but come spring, be vigilant about watering and watch for the critters and if they show, take action by spraying with soapy water followed by a rinse. Repeat as necessary. The ground's crew had found and fixed a drip valve that was hampering water delivery, so that should be less of an issue, but I think ancillary, deep hand watering, as it becomes hot and dry, will help them get established, finding their way down to more reliable water and so become much healthier trees.

Garden Treasury Report

Our wildly productive garden (wink/smile) has new membership. The Walz family has joined, bringing our treasury pot to $200. You can see the original roster on a May 16 posting.

The pot is draining, slowly.

• $50 on soil testing at Turner Labs
• $100 for compost from Arbico
• $13.22 to the Lunds for two months of water usage.
• And pending, the cost of Dave's magnificent plumbing job

If I've left any expenses out that need to be accounted for, please let me know via email.

VP

Dia de los Muertos

Our Dia de los Muertos was a killer community event. No one was harmed in the making of these photos. Moon over Tucson at our celebration.

We had beautiful shrines, beautiful food, beautiful people and a beautiful moon. This year didn't disappoint. I hope this grows over the years.

Thanks to all you Mercadoans who took part!

BLESSING OF PADRE KINO SHRINE @ MISSION GARDENS

Come and Join us for this Truly Special Ceremony! Blessing of Padre Kino Shrine Saturday, November 7, 2009 ~ 9:00 to 10:30 am At: 930 W. Mission Lane O’Odham Blessing by Chairman Austin Nunez San Xavier District, Tohono O’Odham Nation ♦ Jesuit Blessing by Fr. Chris Corbally, S.J. Vatican Observatory ♦ Welcoming Remarks by Vice Mayor Regina Romero City of Tucson, Council Member Ward One ♦ Story of First Shrine by Steve Leal City of Tucson, Council Member Ward Five ♦ Future of the Mission Garden by Diana Hadley Ethnohistorian at Arizona State Museum ♦ Sponsors : Friends of Tucson’s Birthplace, Kino Heritage Society, Neighborhood Associations

Some more Halloween. Great costumes!

Halloween at the Mercado

I know Roger has more photos, of course! Fun evening.

The Walk Street

Tom Wuelpern just sent me this. I think we can all be excited by the beautiful next phase of Mercado District. Cheers to Tom.

Adopt-a-Park is now official!

Thanks to Mercado neighbors, Tucson is cleaner and more beautiful!

Hi All - Do we have any formal plans going for Halloween in the plaza? I know there was initial interest. If we want to plan something concrete, I can do a flier that we can provide to our guests, and it gives us an "in" for the new neighbors in the apartments to join the festivities. Thoughts?

One more reason why Mercado ROCKS!

Visitors to our Community Garden

Just this morning. They were actually EATING the pumpkins until I opened the gate to the field next door and HERDED them out. We call them "big mice" around here.

Celebration of Memory

DIA DE LOS MUERTOS

November 2nd, 2009 at Mercado San Agustin

Please join us for a celebration, blessing and potluck dinner. It has been a tradition for us to hold a day of the dead celebration each year. This year we are doing it in the Mercado. All are welcome, it's a beautiful event. We build shrines in the afternoon, have a candle lighting and blessing at sunset and then a casual potluck dinner after. We hope you'll choose to participate.

SHRINE BUILDING 3pm to Sunset

CANDLE LIGHTING & BLESSING Sunset - 30 minutes

THE FEAST Following blessing

The most fun part of the day is the shrine building. We bring photos of our loved ones we've lost over the years and a few of the things that they enjoyed in their lives and create multiple shrines to celebrate their lives.

To participate in the shrine building, please contact Jose Duran.

email: godduran63@msn.com

To participate in the pot luck dinner, please contact Ann Vargas.

email: atvinc@live.com

If you have other questions, please contact Justin Dixon.

email: jjdixonaz@mac.com

We really hope to see you all there!

On location at the Mercado

Over the weekend, Roaman's Fashion Catalog used our charming plaza as a background for their photo shoot. The crew was very friendly and loved the location!

Cody has mentioned several time he wants to plant an apple tree. We have convinced him that a) he won't get to eat an apple before he goes off to college, and b) apple trees aren't the best choice for our Tucson climate. After Gene's suggestion, we have convinced Cody that a pomegranate tree is a good second option. Anyone opposed to us planting a pomegranate tree in some of the available garden space? I need to research best time of year to plant, but thought I would wait until we knew it was a go.

Hola, Neighbors! Rick and I were just chatting and decided that it would be really good to have a neighborhood directory. Many times, I look to call someone only to realize I have no way to do so. If you are interested in being included, please forward full names (don't need middle, although you are welcome to add them), phone numbers - please indicate what kind, and email addresses. I can log everything into one document and send it to you via email. Thanks! Send information to: azjones5@cox.net

MERCADO OPEN HOUSE AND PARTY

By a vote of 5-0 (commenters and the Halls) it appears that SUNDAY NOV 15 is the preferred date for the open house and party. Please mark your calendars. Hopefully our builders and Kiera will read this and the Mercado vendors will participate. We all need to make an effort to think of and invite people who we think might have a serious interest in joining our special neighborhood.

Since Gordon and Jane are not here should we make then in charge??!!

Phil