February 24, 2026

New Acupuncturist in Borrego Springs

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Borrego Springs continues to expand its wellness community with the arrival of Mountain Healing Acupuncture, led by Lara Koljonen, a dedicated practitioner of holistic medicine since 2008.


Lara brings more than 15 years of experience in acupuncture and integrative care, focusing on empowering patients to better understand their bodies and take an active role in their health. Her philosophy centers on the idea that life is like a garden. The more we care for it, the more vibrant and resilient it becomes. Through education, treatment, and ongoing support, she helps patients cultivate long-term wellness.


Her approach blends eastern and western methods, bridging traditional acupuncture with modern health understanding. Treatments are designed to support pain relief, stress reduction, balance, and overall vitality in a safe and nurturing environment.


Mountain Healing Acupuncture emphasizes continued learning and integrating new therapies to best serve patients. Lara works to both heal and educate, encouraging clients to build sustainable habits that strengthen their physical and emotional well-being.


Contact:
Mountain Healing Acupuncture
619.980.0745


Borrego Springs continues to grow as a destination for wellness, and the addition of a long-practicing acupuncturist adds another valuable resource for those seeking holistic support close to home.




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By Department of Water Resources September 8, 2026
Specially-trained California Department of Water Resources staff members Vanessa Velasco (left) and Nicholas Burgos (right) support California Department of Fish and Wildlife staff member Sharon Keeney to set and collect traps for pupfish during a survey conducted by CDFW at a drain north of the Salton Sea in Riverside County
By Gabriel Wisdom, Ram Media Foundation September 5, 2026
The Future Sea Is Not Simply Disappearing. It Is Being Transformed Into Something Stranger
By Martha Deichler September 4, 2026
Please join the Civic Foundation for its annual Old Borego Days celebration No, Borrego is not misspelled in the title above. This is the way Borrego was spelled back in 1928, when the first post office opened in what is now called “Old Borego.” The site is located at 1580 Rango Way. Please join the Civic Foundation for its annual Old Borego Days celebration of the historic heart of the Borrego Valley on Sunday, November 8, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. The turnoff from Rango Way will be marked with a sign. Please note that no restrooms are available. Visitors will be able to enter the old post office and general store, originally run by Eslie Wynn, and view a fascinating video from the 1950s extolling the virtues of life in Borrego Springs. One of the first homes in Borrego Springs will also be open for public viewing, offering a nostalgic look back at life in the community’s earlier years. In addition, Borrego Springs Elementary School fourth graders, who study California history, will have their essays on display. Three students will receive awards for their writing on “Borego Now and Then.” Old Borego Days Sunday, November 8, 2026 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. 1580 Rango Way, Borrego Springs 
By Ram Media Foundation August 30, 2026
Investment advisor turned novelist Gabriel B. Wisdom delivers a pulse-pounding eco-thriller of murder, lithium mining, and desert survival. If you crave thrillers with brains and heart, Salton Sea Tales delivers.” — Paul Slansky Gabriel B. Wisdom , a veteran investment advisor and longtime broadcaster, announces the release of Salton Sea Tales , a gripping eco-thriller and speculative adventure set against the eerie, volatile landscape of Southern California’s Salton Sea. Blending ecological disaster, cartel intrigue, and high-stakes survival, the novel delivers propulsive suspense for readers drawn to eco-thrillers, crime sagas, and speculative fiction. In Salton Sea Tales, readers are transported to the sun-scorched heart of the desert, where the shimmering Salton Sea hides secrets, danger, and the lure of fortune. The story ignites with a mysterious plane crash that exposes a tangled web of murder, lithium mining, and cartel ambition. At the center of the chaos are Charles Horse, a cunning tribal leader with a shadowy past, and Dr. Geoff “Mahalo” Mulholland, a brilliant but haunted scientist whose quiet life is upended by violence and conspiracy. As alliances shift and the ground beneath them threatens to give way, these unforgettable characters must navigate a world where every choice could mean salvation or catastrophe. From underground caverns to anarchic desert outposts, and from cartel boardrooms to the unpredictable sea, Salton Sea Tales is a pulse-pounding journey through blurred lines of greed, justice, and survival. Wisdom’s background brings an unusual depth to the novel’s moral complexity and high-stakes terrain. He is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of American Money Management, LLC. Alongside finance, Wisdom built a long-running broadcast career at legendary rock stations KGB-FM San Diego and KMET-FM Los Angeles. He hosted Brainstorm, a nationally syndicated radio show sponsored by Omni Magazine, and provided market commentary for CBS radio, NPR, KNX Los Angeles (2003–2021), and Mottek on Money on KABC Los Angeles. Wisdom is also the author of Wisdom on Value Investing (published by John Wiley & Sons), which was translated into Chinese and distributed by China Citic Press. He holds an MA in Novel Writing and a PhD in Speculative Fiction from Middlesex University, London. With Salton Sea Tales, Wisdom challenges readers to question where fact ends and fiction begins, making this new release a timely, adrenaline-charged read for anyone drawn to stories of environmental peril, moral ambiguity, and relentless suspense. >> All proceeds benefit Ram Media Foundation. Book Information Title: Salton Sea Tales Author: Gabriel B. Wisdom Genre: Eco-Thriller / Speculative Adventure / Crime Suspense Setting: Southern California’s Salton Sea region Media Contact Liz Dubelman 310-770-8410 liz@vidlit.com Liz Dubelman The Write Kit 7708410 liz@thewritekit.com Learn More About Borrego Springs
By Matt Bosson, Borrego Springs Film Institute August 30, 2026
Two amazing movies are coming to BSPAC in September! On September 9 th , we have the winner of last year’s Cannes Film Festival’s Grand Prix, Sentimental Value. And on September 23 rd , it’s John Huston’s finest – The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, for which he won the Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay Oscars, starring Humphrey Bogart and Huston’s father, Walter Huston (who also won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor). It was the only time a father and son both won Academy Awards during the same ceremony! All screenings are held on Wednesday evenings at 7pm at the Borrego Springs Performing Arts Center, 590 Palm Canyon Drive, Borrego Springs, CA 92004. Our full schedule for 2026 is posted on the BSFI website: www.borregospringsfilminstitute.org . Please check the website for the most up to date information. Here are the movies coming to BSPAC in September: Wednesday, September 9, 2026 at 7pm – Sentimental Value – 2025 – Rated R – 2h 13m Sentimental Value (Norwegian: Affeksjonsverdi) is a 2025 Norwegian drama written and directed by Joachim Trier, the acclaimed Danish-Norwegian filmmaker known for The Worst Person in the World and Oslo, August 31st, in collaboration with his longtime writing partner Eskil Vogt. The film follows sisters Nora and Agnes as they reunite with their estranged father Gustav, a once-renowned director who offers stage actress Nora a role in what he hopes will be his comeback film. When she turns it down, he gives the part to an eager young Hollywood star, forcing both sisters to navigate their complicated relationship with their father while contending with an American outsider dropped into the middle of their family dynamics. The film stars Renate Reinsve and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas as the sisters, with Stellan Skarsgård as their charming but complicated father and Elle Fanning as the Hollywood star dropped into the middle of their world. Sentimental Value won the Grand Prix at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and went on to win the Oscar for Best International Feature Film at the 2026 Academy Awards — the first time Norway had ever won in that category. It also received nine Academy Award nominations in total, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, and Best Original Screenplay. In Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, and English with English subtitles. Wednesday, September 23, 2026 at 7pm – The Treasure of Sierra Madre – 1948 – Not Rated – 2h 6m The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is one of the towering achievements of American cinema, widely regarded as John Huston's masterwork and one of the greatest films ever made. Written and directed by Huston and based on B. Traven's 1927 novel of the same name, the film stars Humphrey Bogart, with Walter Huston (John Huston’s father), Tim Holt, and Bruce Bennett in support, along with Alfonso Bedoya as the menacing bandit Gold Hat. The story follows two hard-luck American drifters, Dobbs (Bogart) and Curtin (Holt), who team up with a wily old prospector named Howard (Walter Huston) and head into the Sierra Madre mountains of Mexico to mine for gold — only to find that the treasure they uncover unleashes suspicion, paranoia, and murderous greed. The film is notable for Bogart's extraordinary willingness to subvert his own star image, as his character diminishes steadily into madness and delusion. Huston insisted on filming in the harsh Mexican mountain terrain — making it one of the first Hollywood productions to shoot primarily on location outside the United States — and the rugged setting lends visceral authenticity to the tale. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre was a critical triumph: Pauline Kael called it "one of the strongest of all American films," praising its "powerful cumulative effect." At the Academy Awards, the film received four nominations and won three: Best Supporting Actor for Walter Huston, and both Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for John Huston — the only Oscars he ever won. Notably, Bogart was not nominated for Best Actor, a decision that modern critics and Academy members have since widely condemned. In his Oscar acceptance speech, Walter Huston said, "Many years ago I brought up a boy and said to him, 'Son, if you ever become a writer, try to write a good part for your old man sometime.' Well, by cracky, that's what he did!" And looking forward, here are the scheduled movies coming in October and November: Wednesday, October 7, 2026 at 7pm – Diabolique – 1955 – Not Rated – 1h 47m Directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot and set in a decrepit French boarding school, the film follows the wife (Véra Clouzot) and mistress (Simone Signoret) of a cruel, abusive headmaster (Paul Meurisse) who conspire to murder him — only to find his body mysteriously vanishes after the deed is done. Based on a novel by Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac — whose work would later provide the basis for Hitchcock's Vertigo — Clouzot expertly builds a feeling of mounting dread, culminating in a twist ending that pushes the film into the realm of nightmare. With its unprecedented narrative twists and outstanding performances, Diabolique is considered a benchmark in thriller filmmaking and one of the most influential films of its kind. In French with English subtitles. Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 7pm – Poor Things – 2023 – Rated R – 2h 21m Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos (The Favourite, The Lobster) and set in a whimsical version of Victorian England, the film follows Bella Baxter (Emma Stone), a young woman brought back to life by an eccentric scientist (Willem Dafoe) who implanted a baby's brain into her body — sending her on a globetrotting adventure of self-discovery with a sleazy lawyer played by Mark Ruffalo. Wildly imaginative and exhilaratingly over the top, the film is considered a bizarre, brilliant tour de force for both Lanthimos and Stone, and it announced itself immediately upon its debut at the Venice Film Festival, where it was awarded the prestigious Golden Lion. At the Academy Awards, Stone won Best Actress for her performance, while the film took home additional Oscars for Best Costume Design, Best Hair and Make-up, and Best Production Design — a sweep that cemented Poor Things as one of the most celebrated and visually inventive films of the decade. Wednesday, November 4, 2026 at 7pm – Babette’s Feast – 1987 – Rated G – 1h 42m Directed by Gabriel Axel and adapted from a short story by Isak Dinesen, the film tells the lovingly layered tale of a French housekeeper with a mysterious past who brings quiet revolution in the form of one exquisite meal to a circle of starkly pious villagers in late nineteenth-century Denmark. The title role of Babette is played by Stéphane Audran — with Birgitte Federspiel and Bodil Kjer as the two devout sisters into whose isolated lives Babette quietly, transformatively arrives. Babette’s Feast became the first Danish film ever to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Among its many admirers is Pope Francis, who named it his favorite film of all time. In French, Danish, and Swedish with English subtitles. Wednesday, November 18, 2026 at 7pm – The Daytrippers – 1997 – Rated R – 1h 27m Written and directed by Greg Mottola in his feature debut, the film follows the distraught Eliza (Hope Davis), who discovers a love letter written to her husband (Stanley Tucci) by an unknown woman and turns to her tight-knit Long Island family for help — sending the whole clan, including a strong-willed mom (Anne Meara), a taciturn dad (Pat McNamara), and a jaded sister (Parker Posey) with her pretentious boyfriend (Liev Schreiber) in tow, piling into a station wagon and heading into Manhattan to find out the truth. With its droll humor and bittersweet emotional heft, The Daytrippers announced the arrival of an unassumingly sharp-witted new talent on the 1990s indie film scene. Critics were largely enthusiastic: the Washington Post called it proof that "a great movie isn't a matter of dollars, so much as creativity," while Newsweek noted that "thanks to the superb cast and Mottola's deft touch, this modest-looking comedy proves quite memorable." This season’s BSFI movie screenings are being generously underwritten by the Borrego Valley Endowment Fund (BVEF). See you at the movies!
By By Gabriel Wisdom, Ram Media Foundation August 29, 2026
What happens at the Salton Sea over the next decade will very likely have a large effect on Borrego Springs, both environmentally and economically. The biggest immediate concern is air quality. The biggest potential opportunity is economic and tourism spillover from a transformed Salton Sea/Lithium Valley region. Clearly, the downside Borrego should take most seriously is air quality. This isn't hypothetical. San Diego County's own Borrego Springs Community Plan specifically instructs the community to monitor the Salton Sea because windblown sand and chemical particulates can reach the Borrego Valley. California's Water Resources Control Board (CARB) says the retreating shoreline creates public-health risks because dust can be emitted from soils containing decades of accumulated agricultural and wastewater material. CARB is now funding research specifically to determine how much Salton Sea dust reaches surrounding communities, what chemicals it contains, and how climate change could alter those exposures. That makes successful Salton Sea restoration directly beneficial to Borrego Springs. The new Salton Sea Conservancy , launched this year, is particularly important because it creates a permanent state institution charged with restoration, habitat management and air-quality improvement. California is also filling portions of the Species Conservation Habitat project with water and expanding dust-suppression work. If those efforts stabilize significant areas of exposed playa, Borrego could receive an environmental dividend without spending Borrego groundwater to obtain it. Conversely, if Colorado River cutbacks accelerate the Sea's decline faster than restoration can cover newly exposed playa, Borrego could experience worsening regional particulate pollution. Research modeling the shrinking Sea has projected significant increases in regional PM10 as additional playa is exposed. While the future is always unknown, here’s where things get interesting. Lithium Valley could change Borrego economically. The Salton Sea is no longer simply an environmental-restoration story. It is increasingly becoming an energy, minerals and infrastructure story. Controlled Thermal Resources (CTR) announced in March a $4.7 billion transaction intended to finance development of its Hell's Kitchen geothermal/lithium project. CTR is targeting 50 MW of electricity by 2028 and 25,000 metric tons of lithium annually by 2029. The technology still has to prove itself commercially, so those targets should not be treated as certain. Meanwhile, another part of the geothermal industry is looking increasingly toward supplying electricity to AI/data centers. If even a substantial portion of those plans materializes, southeastern California could develop something it has never really had before: a significant clean-energy/critical-minerals industrial cluster. Borrego could become the attractive western gateway to this emerging region. That potentially means more visitors, executives, investors, scientists, journalists, researchers, government officials and environmental organizations moving through the area. Some will want lodging, restaurants, meeting space and recreation without staying at the Salton Sea or an industrial operation. Borrego could offer precisely what the southern Salton Sea cannot: a beautiful, quiet desert destination next to a state park and protected landscape. Tourism could be the sleeper opportunity. There's another development that hasn't received nearly as much attention. California State Parks is developing a new long-term vision for recreation at the Salton Sea, potentially including more trails, camping, interpretation, wildlife viewing and other forms of public access. A draft general plan is expected in 2027. Combine that with Anza-Borrego and you could eventually have a much stronger regional tourism proposition. Imagine Borrego Springs, Gateway to the Salton Sea combining desert ecology, geology, energy technology, wildlife, water recreation, and dark skies. More to come as the Borrego Sun considers a number of plausible future scenarios. Read article #2: Borrego Valley & The Salton Sea – Ten Years From Now  References Borrego Springs CP Salton Sea Program What one company’s shift towards data centers says about Imperial County’s lithium industry | KPBS Public Media More hiking trails, campgrounds could come to the Salton Sea
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