Top ten reasons to live in La Sal

NORTHERN NEWS
by Maxine Deeter
1. Friends – old and new. 
I was speaking to a new friend this week – one I had just then met – who moved to Old La Sal a couple of years ago from Salt Lake City.  She and her partner love it here. 
I said, people either really love La Sal, or they don’t.  I’m one who felt it was home immediately upon first gazing into the valley from the east side some 42 years ago.  She felt the same. 
Then there have been those who try to make a go of it here but just can’t and leave for greener pastures and bigger city life.  
And there are some who would love to stay but can’t make a go of it here (like most of my kids who now dwell in the city but yearn for country life).
2. We take care of our own. 
When hard times or minor setbacks occur, our village rallies to help.  We don’t have the big city amenities, so friends and neighbors jump in to help whomever is in need. 
For years, we had a “spare” submersible pump which made the rounds whenever someone’s water suddenly no longer ran freely from the faucet. 
Nothing like getting up or coming home to find that not a drip is running.  It takes several strong hands to pull a pump from a well. 
Then you have to rake together the funds if it is necessary to buy a new one.  We mostly all have individual wells in our village.
3. Mud. 
No, wait, maybe that belongs on another list. 
Again, speaking to a friend this week, I stated that whenever the mud is about dried up as it was a few days ago, another soaking will come to produce more mud.  That it did last weekend.
But mud means we have received much-needed moisture.  In January, we received 2.12 inches of water.  
A friend living at Hang Dog says they got eight inches of snow from the last storm and that The Mountain was slammed!  That’s good news.  Water to drink next summer.
4. The Mountain. 
I make no secret about the love La Salians have for The Mountain.  Our homes are set so our view of The Mountain is not obstructed. 
It is easy access for summer fun or winter snowmobiling.  We love our mountain and actually are a little possessive of it.
5. Best Back Yard In the World. 
Besides easy access and view to The Mountain, we also can look to the west and see the mesas and canyons.  There is easy access to both mountain vistas and high desert red rocked country right from your own yard if you live in La Sal proper.
6. Commuting. 
Yes, La Sal is a little ways from “town”, and many of us have or do have to commute to work.  But, I’ll go out on a limb and say I don’t know where you’ll ever experience as beautiful a commute as from La Sal, whether you are going north, south or east. 
Traffic congestion?  Well, you do have to watch for deer, elk, eagles, coyotes, bears and other such critters that are sometimes in the road.  Isn’t it great!?
7. Food. 
There is rarely an event in our town that does not come accompanied with food.  We love to eat.
8. Tuesday night book club. 
Once a month the La Sal Library Guild or the ladies reading and eating club (reference #7 above) meets to discuss their latest read. 
The next meeting is scheduled for February 17 at 6 p.m. 
This is to announce that another mostly ladies, but we are not excluding menfolk, organization is attempting for form.  Starting February 10, at 10 a.m. at the Community Center, there will be a quilting club forming. 
This is open to anyone who wants to talk quilting, show off latest projects, finish up old projects or learn new skills. 
Other handcrafts can be brought along as well.  Food could be nice as well.  We plan on meeting every other Tuesday.  Look for posters around town.
9. Santa loves us best. 
We are sure of that each Christmas, as he makes his rounds to all the good little boys and girls of Sierra La Sal accompanied by is elves from the La Sal Volunteer Fire Department. 
These folks – some of our greatest unsung heroes – keep up with their skills and training and are Johnny on the Spot when a fire or other disaster occurs.
10. Sierra La Sal Senior Center, Community Center and Satellite Library.
Having lived here for over forty years, it seems to me that we have not a few senior citizens in our village.  How did that happen!? 
We have a beautiful new building to house activities for these folks, including two hot meals a week and lots of visiting.  
There is one ginger-haired friendly lady here in town who gets most of the credit for pushing this Senior Center into being.  You know who she is. 
We also have a great Community Center and Satellite Library, which get a lot of use.  When it is cold outside, the kiddos from La Sal E. spend recess in the gym. 
The library is open two afternoons a week and has a lot of visitation.  There is also a weekly story hour on Tuesday afternoons for the preschoolers. 
As stated above, we have book club and now a quilting group using the CC.
There are a lot of other things that make our community great, but this is a list of just a few.  Maybe I’ll list more at another time. 
For now, why don’t you come out and visit us some time.