Desert Lady Diaries

Jillian has lived in the desert since 1992. Her experiences have included family trips for hiking, camping and off-roading. With little development in the desert at that time, it was easy to see big horn sheep, desert foxes and a plethora of bird species – Jillian's continued love for the desert sprung from these experiences in nature. A self-described 'outdoor kid', Jillian shares remedies to the oft repeated refrain of 'there's nothing for kids to do in the desert'. She believes going to nature for activities instead of staying indoors opens kids up to new experiences and instills in them a greater appreciation of nature. Jillian shares her recollections of life in the Morongo Basin from the early 90's, including unpaved roads, minimal stop lights and a lot less people. With the influx of tourists and visitors, Jillian and her family have witnessed an increase in trash in the park and illegal dumping. In this episode, Jillian shares the reasons she believes the illegal dumping has become such an issue and what individuals can do to prevent it. She also explains the use of 'dump cards' and why that cheap dump run isn't always the best option. She also shares some of the work Desert Cleanse Project does and invites individuals and groups to come out to a clean-up when they start happening again. When Jillian isn't out enjoying nature or helping to beautify the desert, she is a mental health professional in Joshua Tree. Make donations to Desert Cleanse Project via Venmo: desertcleanseproject DM Desert Cleanse Project via social to arrange a donation or Donate at JT Country Kitchen, Joshua Tree Blanket Company, Cliffhanger Guides, and Soul Connection. Desert Cleanse Project on Facebook Desert Cleanse Project on Instagram

Alisha Moreno was nine years old when she experienced the desert for the first time. Her family moved from Orange County, CA, to a condominium in the hi-desert, owned by Alisha's grandmother. Alisha's father, a single dad to three children, was looking for a change and moving to the desert felt like the right move. Alisha says driving up the Yucca grade was like taking a step back in time. The town of Yucca Valley was basically just Highway 62 (Twentynine Palms Highway). But there was a big difference from how we know the highway today. There were no street signs, no traffic lights, no stop signs, no movie theatre, no Starbucks. There was a Walmart on the west end of town, as the super one hadn't yet been built. Alisha has lived in the Morongo Basin for over 25 years and says it's been quite something to watch the small quiet, sleepy town expand so tremendously. Alisha described the transition to a new school and meeting new friends as 'easy'. With her siblings close in age, they shared friends in common. And Alisha immediately found a great friend who lived two doors down – they are still friends today. With a lack of formal activities, Alisha describes what she and her friends and siblings did to entertain themselves in the desert. In this episode, she also shares a story about her first extremely memorable experience in the Monument, now know as Joshua Tree National Park. As Alisha approached her high school graduation, her thoughts turned to attending college back in Orange County. Having grown up in the desert, she found herself feeling a bit of culture shock at college. She worked two jobs to pay for school and rent and found it wasn't just the economics that were unreasonable, but she missed her friends, her family and the stars. After a year, Alisha returned to the desert. Currently, Alisha is wrapping up her senior year at the University of Redlands and applying to PA (Physician's assistant) programs. Alisha's interest in the medical field began at age 16, with a part time job as a receptionist for an oral surgeon. She also has a keen interest in helping people. Even with the demands of being a mom to a teenager, working, schooling, volunteering, Alisha has time to run her business, Soy Good Candles. What started as a little hobby kit to make candles for herself has turned into a full-blown business. You'll find Alisha's candles and air fresheners in a number of shops in the Morongo Basin – including Soul Connection. Or look for them on her social channels: Soy Good Candles on Facebook Soy Good Candles on Instagram

Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay area, Rose first experienced the desert on a camping trip w/friends. They tent camped in the Black Rock Campground in Joshua Tree National Park and she found it enchanting, beautiful, wild and fun. It was the first time she'd seen a coyote in the wild. Later, while living in Los Angeles, Rose would come out to the desert to produce photo shoots. She says of that first time back, "The wide open spaces really grabbed me". We talk about the harshness of mother nature with respect to weather and humans bumping up against the natural environment and witnessing the the circle of life happening up close and in person. Rose says her decision to move to the desert was two-fold, part of it was the enchantment with the desert and the other part was a personal challenge to see if she could live here. In this episode, Rose admits second guessing herself after the making the move. Ultimately, she ended up becoming inspired to pick up her camera again and make prints. Rose got her first camera at the age of seven and her first 'shoot' was at a zoo, capturing all the wild animals. The appeal was immediate and Rose found herself taking photography classes as electives in junior high and high school, along with graphic design. After attempting traditional junior college classes - with all the math, history and English - Rose left and attended the Academy of Art in San Francisco to study photography. A class project turned Rose on to the development of magazines, which she found very satisfying. Upon finishing school she took an internship at Detour Magazine and was eventually hired on full time. Rose continues to work in entertainment magazines - it's been 27 years. Prior to moving to the desert, Rose had begun to reacquaint herself with some photographic printing techniques and her medium of choice became the cyanotype (or some might know it as sun printing). Rose explains the process and if you're interested in learning, you can sign up for her classes from her website. The first summer here Rose's skin was so affected by the dry heat she wanted to find something natural to sooth and replenish her skin. Rose discovered how Native Americans used the beloved creosote plant to create healing balms and she began making her own hand balm. You can find the hand salve, body butter, candles and other treats created by Rose at her Etsy shop: Joshua Tree Desert Rose.

Born and raised in the East Coachella Valley, Lorraine Salas has a lifetime of experience in the desert. "When most folks hear 'Coachella', they think of the annual music festival, but Coachella has a rich history in the United Farm Workers Union." Lorraine is a special education teacher and like her grandmother and her father before her, she is also an environmental and social justice advocate. Her spirit for environmentalism started while spending time on her grandmothers ranch in Coachella. Lorraine remembers finding seashells, adoring the plant life, the coyotes, which left her with a feeling of amazement that still fills her today. Though her grandmother passed when Lorraine was only eight years old, Lorraine has heard about the work her grandmother did for the community. An initiator of one of the first Voter Leagues in the City of Coachella. grandmother was also a farm worker and a carpenter, participating in group builds, constructing homes for fellow farm workers in the East Valley. Grandmother was also involved with the United Farm Workers. In this episode, Lorraine talks about the changing economic and demographic landscape of the East Coachella Valley with it's new million dollar homes and 'beach clubs'. Lorraine's time in the hi-desert has mostly been for her advocate and activist work, attending rallies and protests for the environment and racial justice. Lorraine enjoys going to these type of events to see what's happening, pick up any literature and listen to the speakers. Lorraine feels the rally experiences are also educational and will sometimes change ones perspective on issues. One of her most memorable experiences has been attending meals and meetings of Food Not Bombs . Lorraine was one of twelve delegates elected to represent the 42nd District of the California Democratic Party and was a national delegate, voting for Bernie Sanders to receive the national endorsement at the Democratic National Convention in 2016 and 2020.

Blanca S. Villalobos is a freelance cultural worker living in the San Gorgonio Pass with ancestral roots in Mexico. Blanca is the eighth of nine children. Their parents and half of their siblings migrated to the United States in the 1970's, while the final four children of the family, including Blanca, were born here in the U.S. Blanca describes their family and culture as that of migrators, not so different from many living organisms on the earth. Blanca's first desert experiences were with immediate family, traveling through the Sonoran and Colorado deserts to visit relatives in Mexico. Blanca's experiences with the Mojave desert began with their siblings in Joshua Tree National Park to stargaze. Blanca explains they would typically enter the park after hours though, because the entry fee was a barrier to entry for their family and still is a barrier to a number of folks today. Like many others who have come to this area, economics was part of the decision. Blanca was able to find a home to rent that was within their means, but it wasn't easy. What was lucky was that the home is rented through a family friend who didn't require Blanca pay for credit checks or put down a large deposit. Blanca describes other discrimination that can happen when one just announces their name or explains their line of work. Blanca was also familiar with the Morongo Basin, having been employed in roles as an outdoor educator at some of the local desert preserves, but was not acquainted with any other BIPOC (Black Indigenous People of Color) before moving here. Blanca says, "That was a whole journey for me – is trying to find my people when I moved here." Having moved to the desert just before the pandemic, even though there aren't many live events happening, Blanca shares they were able to tap into their community by having access to the internet and to spaces there created by BIPOC for BIPOC. However, they note, many BIPOC still do not have access to the internet. In this episode Blanca explains what services they offer to organizations as a cultural worker. They also share what inspires them to do this work and the difficulties their family sometimes has understanding the work Blanca does and why. Dream work is also very close to Blanca's heart. Blanca believes we receive a great deal of wisdom from our ancestors and it is important for us to consider these messages and we make life choices. Blanca's Website Patreon.com/bsvillalobos

With a dad who was a Marine, Darlene Morris' family drove to and from many duty stations. The family would always make a stop in their home state of Nebraska to visit with friends and family if they could. Sometimes the drives took them through deserts and the only stops Darlene remembers making were for gas, food and Native American gift shops. Darlene's first true desert experience was moving to 29 Palms with her first husband, a Marine in 1967. They stayed for 18 months, leaving the area so he could go back to school to obtain a degree. Darlene found work locally as a bank teller. When her first husband got out of the Corps, they moved to Kansas for two years for him to finish his degree, moving back to San Diego to find work. The marriage dissolved shortly after that. About a year later, Darlene met her current husband, who was in the Navy – Darlene admits, "I just love those guys in uniform". Shortly after meeting, her new husband left the Navy, went back to college obtaining a degree in marriage, family and child counseling, becoming a civilian Marine counselor at Camp Pendleton. In 2005, Darlene's husband received an offer to work at the Marine Base in 29 Palms and Darlene was back ing the hi-desert. Darlene remembers it taking some time to get accustomed to the desert again - night time walks and star-filled skies became appealing. She recalls leaving windows and doors open all night in summer, letting the cool air in to let in with no concerns about windows and doors being unlocked – Darlene says, "It was just lovely". On her second round with this desert, Darlene got involved with the 29Palms art gallery – which keeps her very busy. Darlene knew art was going to be part of her life, but never thought she'd be a professional artist. Darlene says it was the art that kept her going through high school. She still has some of her early work, one of them a hand drawn map of Russia, made with India ink and watercolors. She remembers her teacher wanting to keep it, but Darlene says she couldn't leave it. In banking for 19 years, art was always a part of her life. She continued attending classes or workshops to learn new mediums and techniques. Even taking community college classes for banking, then for graphic design, which changed things career-wise. Darlene started in watercolors, but her favorite has become acrylics and her work has been selected to be in a number of juried shows. Darlene's Website Donate to the 29 Palms Art Gallery

ShaWanda's first experience with the desert was as a third-grader, moving with her military family to 29 Palms, after having already moved from Mississippi to Bridgeport, CA and Camp Lejune, NC. She had all of her 'firsts' in the desert, it was her foundation. ShaWanda and her family were active in church and their community came from church and school. ShaWanda says her family found they had everything they needed her in the desert in the 80's and reminisces about Foster Freeze, the Alamo Market and their holiday coloring contests. ShaWanda feels the desert was a good place to grow up and she has many fond memories of those times. In this episode, ShaWanda shares what downtown 29 Palms was like growing up and says that between the shops downtown and the ability to shop on base as a military family, they had everything the needed. Being a teen in the desert, ShaWanda says, "you see things on television and you want to see more." For ShaWanda, more was Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA, the complete opposite of the desert. After graduating, ShaWanda returned to the desert to start her family and begin work at Copper Mountain College. ShaWanda has made many moves in and out of the desert - for many reasons - and says 29 Palms feels different to her this time around. With military families being given more options than just traveling together from assignment to assignment, perhaps the city has less military families. ShaWanda is grateful for her leaves and returns to the desert, feeling they seem perfectly timed, allowing her to get quiet and she says, 'hear myself'. It's been a place of great growth - as has yoga. After her divorce, ShaWanda needed to something else in her life and she found yoga. This is where she can be completely herself and push and challenge herself to her personal edge. It is also where she found new members of her soul tribe. Yoga led to becoming the managing editor for the online publication, Untamed Voices, created by desert resident and podcaster, Emily Silver. The publication has been created to amplify the voices of marginalized communities. ShaWanda is also teaching at the Institute of Inquiry – a local enrichment program founded by desert resident Kimberly Sikora (Desert Lady Diaries EP 5) as an enhancement to home school, charter school or public school programs. ShaWanda lives in Yucca Valley with her son, Mateo and their miniature schnauzer, Dutchess. Find more about ShaWanda at her website.

Lauren Kane first experienced the desert as a kid, with family trips to the Pioneertown ranch of family friends. Growing up only an hour away from Joshua Tree there were also frequent family day trips to Joshua Tree Natioanl Park. Though there were also family trips to Los Angeles and Palm Springs, the hi – desert became home, a place Lauren felt drawn to. Lauren continued those trips with her then boyfriend/now husband, taking their first camping trip together in the national park almost 12 years ago. When they started looking for a place to make their own home, they knew the only way they'd be able to move to the hi-desert hinged on Lauren's husband finding a job in the low desert. As is sometimes does, desert magic took over and as soon as they began looking for a house a job opened up for him, making the move possible. Lauren's business, Precious Creature, involves a gentle, loving practice of preserving the memory of a beloved pet through the process of taxidermy. Lauren is no stranger to working in the death business. Just after high school, thinking she wanted to be an embalmer or funeral director, Lauren had an opportunity to work in a funeral home, While there she found herself subjected to some stodgy ideas and misogynistic attitudes which got her thinking, 'maybe this isn't what I want to do'. While volunteering at the San Bernardino County Natural History museum, Lauren became interested in taxidermy. A museum co-worker intimated she had preserved one of the owls on display. Lauren became completely entranced. She picked up a book to study taxidermy and began collecting the supplies required to get started. While the rest of her family wasn't so sure about the taxidermy route, Lauren is grateful to her grandfather for not only supporting her in this journey, but for offering his garage as a workshop and his freezer to store Lauren's first attempt: a bird. Through this process, Lauren remembered her favorite part of the funeral home job was helping the grieving families. With a sense that she wanted to work in death care, she had the idea that she could offer taxidermy as a service to grieving pet owners. In this episode, Lauren opens up about her anxiety around the mortality and the death experience and believes her lifelong fascination and interest in what comes after life has inspired her to do this work. If you're interested in taxidermy for your pet, Lauren offers information about how to prepare your pet for this process. And some comforting was to make the preparation easier on yourself. Lauren also walks us through a high-level description of the process that happens once a pet is delivered to Lauren through completed taxidermy. Visit Lauren's website for more information: http://www.preciouscreaturetaxidermy.com/ Or follow her on Instagram: @preciouscreature

Valcine Brown remembers trips to Las Vegas with her Aunt, Uncle and cousins as her first experience with desert. Valcine describes a recent drive through the Mojave Preserve and what it was like to witness the destruction of the 2020 summer wildfires up close and personal. Valcine moved to the lower desert in the 90's. While thinking about leaving Los Angeles county, her husband at the time received a timely promotion that brought them to the low desert. Some time after moving, the couple divorced and eventually Valcine came up to the hi-desert looking to purchase her next home, Having lived in both the low and hi-deserts, Valcine shares her perspective on the differences between the two places. Valcine didn't really know ­anyone when she moved here, but when you love to sing karaoke, it's easy to find friends in a place filled with musical talent. One night at karaoke, a woman who enjoyed Valcine singing approached her, gave Valcine her phone number and introduced her to Lisa Rae Black (Ep 95) who invited Valcine to join hi-desert band, The LP's. Valcine grew up singing, starting in her church choir at the age of 15 and participating in the opera theatre in college. Valcine says her perfect life would be teaching during the week and singing on the weekends. 6:22 Saloon – karaoke In this episode, Valcine talks about transitioning to teaching online during the pandemic and the challenges around building a rapport with new students when the school year began in the fall of 2020. A self-proclaimed nerd, Valcine has earned two MFA's, and is currently working toward her Doctorate. Valcine discusses her independent publishing company, La CrisaAnd Productions, and her inspiration for starting it.

Born and raised in Corvallis, Oregon, Susan headed for the Bay Area right after high school, picking up music gigs in clubs and hotel lounges and even going on the road alone doing solo gigs in places like Esconaba, Michigan. Eventually, Susan tired of playing alone and craved the company and camaraderie of playing with other musicians - She joined a band and began taking work as a musician on cruise ships. Her favorite port? Venice, Italy. During free time on the cruise ships, Susan started making jewelry for herself to wear on stage. When women in the audience approached her to inquire about where she got it, she realized she was onto something. To this day, she still creates commissioned pieces. After meeting her husband, Jesse - also a musician - they headed down to Lukeville, AZ - near the Mexico border - living in their road bus and recording their first record. Susan says of this first desert encounter, "What I definitely noticed was the serene, silence – which was scary and comforting." With their home in the lower desert feeling uncomfortable, Susan and her husband chose Joshua Tree to build their home, as they found the land reasonably priced and purchased a 'kit' home. They lived in their road bus for two years while they completed the house. In this episode we also talk about the how different downtown Joshua Tree was when Susan arrived 16 years ago. In addition to making jewelry, Susan also makes sculptures from kiln fired glass, rebar, recycled wine/beer bottles under her business, Earthloving Art. All of Susan's creations are available at her downtown Joshua Tree shop, Zannedelions Boutique and Gallery. Susan's Glass Scuptures - Earthloving Art Zannedelions Boutique - downtown Joshua Tree LeJazzane - Susan's Current Band