? It’s Friday, 5/20.
☀️ Today’s weather: Sunny skies and 94 degrees.
? Setting the mood: “Why Don’t You Write Me” by Simon and Garfunkel.
? Situational awareness: The Environmental Education Collaborative is holding an art contest and needs more submissions. This year’s theme is “Water and Water Justice,” and there are awards for both students and adults.
- Entries will be accepted until Wednesday, May 25. Awards will be announced on June 5, which is World Environment Day.
- Are you interested in learning more? Click here for guidelines and a link to the entry form.
Today’s newsletter is 771 words — a 3.5-minute read. Let’s go …
Leading off: Rare chance to buy rare books
A unique event is returning to Palm Springs after 20 years: The Rare Book Fair.
Driving the news: Today and tomorrow is your chance to peruse a selection of rare books, first editions, maps, manuscripts, and plenty more ephemera.
Why Palm Springs: The producers of the event say Palm Springs is a hub for art, culture, architecture, and history, making it the perfect place to host a rare book fair.
What they’re saying: “It will be like visiting 40 rare book shops at once, without traveling to New York, Salt Lake City or LA.” – Jen Johnson, co-producer of The Rare Book Fair.
Keep an eye out: To give you a taste of the caliber of books that will be up for sale, David Brass Rare Books will be showing some rare first editions, including Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Return of Sherlock Holmes (1905), and Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol (1844).
Bring your wallet: Prices range from $200 to $100,000 (some books go for less, others go for more).
- Even if you don’t have the cash for one of the exquisite rare books, the event gives you a chance to appreciate the fine art of binding or illuminated manuscripts, especially in the age of e-readers and phone screens.
Details: The Rare Book Fair will be at Hotel Zoso, located at 150 South Indian Canyon Dr. For more information about special events, tickets, and a list of exhibitors, please visit the Rare Books LA website at www.rarebooksla.com.
Dive deeper with Cat Makino’s complete story.
In brief: Downtown damage
A vandal, or vandals, struck businesses in Downtown Palm Springs last week, leaving police and business owners puzzled.
Driving the news: Police said that businesses along Palm Canyon Drive were hit by vandalism overnight late last week. There were initially eight reports, but police expect more. One local business owner said roughly a dozen shops were hit.
- While tagging with spray paint is a frequent occurrence, Lt. Gus Araiza said this time some chemical was used to damage windows and glass doors permanently. The cost is most likely in the thousands for the business owners.
The investigation: “The chemical was used to write some sort of phrase that we haven’t been able to decipher,” Araiza said, adding that police continue to review surveillance video in hopes of identifying the culprit or culprits.
- “We hope to have additional information as we sift through the footage collected.”
? AM Roundup: Grab a cup & catch up
? Dive Palm Springs sold for $5.15 million. At $468,000 per key, that makes it the highest recorded price in history for a hotel in the city. (Hotel News Resource)
? A College of the Desert lawyer is making accusations against a Palm Springs-based “watchdog group,” Jonathan Horwitz reports. (The Desert Sun)
? Two people were arrested on suspicion of package thefts and possession of firearms and narcotics. (NBC Palm Springs)
⚾ The Palm Springs Power will step into the batter’s box for a full season, starting in June. (KESQ)
? Your weekend
You can do your part to help clean your community on Saturday.
Details: The Tahquitz Creek Yacht Club will meet for its monthly cleanup at 8 a.m. near the pedestrian footbridge at South Camino Real and South Riverside Drive.
- It’s recommended that you bring your own sturdy garden gloves, but latex disposable gloves will be provided, as will trash bags, water and nourishment.
Win-win: You get to enjoy the outdoors before it’s too hot, and contribute to making the city a better place to live.
- Instead of a Saturday morning hike or bike ride, spend an hour meeting your neighbors and cleaning the creek bed.
? Our take: Think of how rewarding the post-cleanup brunch will be!
?️ Also this weekend:
- Palm Canyon Theatre presents Into The Woods with shows throughout the weekend.
- The American Cancer Society Desert Spirit is hosting Lip Sync For a Cure tonight at 6:30 p.m.
- The next REAF-PS House Party, benefitting the Cathedral City Senior Center, is planned for Saturday at 5 p.m.
- The Palm Springs Sunshine Sisters will attend an Acoustic & Unplugged show at Fantasy Springs Casino Saturday at 7 p.m.
- The American Legion holds its Karaoke night on Saturday at 7 p.m.
- The Palm Springs Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence hold their next bingo event Sunday at 7 p.m.
And finally …
Kudos to the city for upping its social media game this week to help residents be more informed about various engineering projects underway or about to begin.
Driving the news: Posts on Facebook and Twitter have announced upcoming traffic signal installation and shown activity at the site of a planned College of the Desert campus in the center of town.
- A new “signalized intersection” is going in at Avenida Caballeros and East San Rafael Drive. That project starts May 30 and should be complete by January 2023.
- There’s a similar project starting on May 30 at the intersection of Rosa Parks and Indian Canyon. Crews should finish it by December of this year.
Watch this space: “In response to resident interest in upcoming streets-related and other projects managed by our Engineering Department, we will post info about new projects that are coming online in the near future,” city staff wrote in posts on Facebook and Twitter.
? Our take: These postings make for a more informed citizenry, making for a better city. They also save us from pestering people at City Hall, which we do probably more often than they like.
? Kendall‘s dog is shedding, so that must mean the hot weather is here to stay.
? Mark works from home, so is not participating in Bike to Work Day. He hopes drivers give cyclists the space they’re legally obligated to today and every day.
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