Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

Tucson

News Editor at Yuma Sun

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yumasun.com

Articles

First Take: How to handle a chilly reception

Jan 19, 2025 | yumasun.com | Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

With below-freezing temperat-ures expected today in Washing-ton, President-elect Donald Trump decided to move his inauguration indoors. According to the Associated Press, the last time an indoor presidential inauguration was held was on Jan. 21, 1985, when Ronald Reagan was sworn into office. “There was high-level medical and military consultation and it was just a very serious problem for health and safety,” White House press secretary Larry Speakes is quoted as saying in archived transcripts.
First Take: Still thankful even after a devastating loss

Dec 1, 2024 | yumasun.com | Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

My friend Marc was on my mind this Thanks-giving. His mom died in September and this is his first holiday season without her. I texted him and told him that he was in my prayers and that I was sure he would feel his mother’s spirit around him. He said he invited all his cousins over to her place and they were going to prepare all her favorite dishes to honor her because she was the matriarch of the extended family and was loved by many.
Editor's Notebook: Battling perceptions of bias during election season

Oct 29, 2024 | yumasun.com | Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

We have recently received a spate of angry phone calls and emails accusing the Yuma Sun of being pro-Democrat and anti-Donald Trump and anti-Republican. I imagine it is because we have run front-page stories about the recent, separate campaign stops here by First Lady Dr. Jill Biden and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, both Democrats. It’s not often that such notable dignitaries of the U.S. government visit Yuma, so the events were quite newsworthy. The coverage of their visits was not based on bias.
First Take: Texting gone wild!

Oct 24, 2024 | yumasun.com | Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

I turned off auto-correct on my phone because it kept trying to change my Spanglish. As a result, some amusing and embarrassing words have made it into my texts. Here are some of the gems followed in parentheses by the words my fat finger was trying to type. “She has a new botfriend (boyfriend).” Same difference in many cases today. “Have you tried On the Sir (Air)?” My reply when someone asked what time the game was on TV.
First Take: Experiencing 'Yuma nice' firsthand

Oct 17, 2024 | yumasun.com | Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

I recently heard the term “Minnesota nice” and had to look it up. It’s based on a stereotype that most people from Minnesota are friendly, kind, polite and helpful. After a recent experience at a local business, I think we could apply that term to people here and call it “Yuma nice.” A couple of weeks ago I took my truck in to an auto repair shop. I arrived late, so I had to leave the vehicle overnight. The woman at the counter asked if I needed a ride.
First Take: Keep on truckin'

Oct 10, 2024 | yumasun.com | Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

Junebug and I ended our 5-year-relationship this week. We had lots of fun adventures together but the time had come to upgrade to a newer model. For the uninitiated, Junebug is my 2012 green pickup truck. The thing I think I will miss most is Junie’s CD player. Yes, I know compact discs are outdated tech, but I had such a blast cranking up the volume on my homemade CD mixes as I flew to work on the highway.
First Take: Panic buying is back

Oct 3, 2024 | yumasun.com | Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

In case you haven’t noticed, panic shopping is back. People are posting photos online of empty store shelves where the toilet paper and bottled water would go. This is apparently in response to the (now suspended) strike by dockworkers at the nation’s East and Gulf Coast ports. These shoppers are assuming that deliveries of toilet paper and water will be held up, thereby creating a shortage of these supplies at area stores.
First Take: Will public shaming deter school shooting threats?

Sep 26, 2024 | yumasun.com | Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

The 11-year-old student arrested in connection to a school shooting threat in San Luis last week should be happy he does not live in Florida’s Volusia County. If he did, the sheriff there would have plastered the kid’s mugshot all over social media, which he did to an 11-year-old boy arrested there for the same reason as the San Luis student. Later that week, two older teens also were arrested there in a separate case involving school threats.
First Take: Dealing with the summer SADs

Sep 19, 2024 | yumasun.com | Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

The weather is finally starting to cool! This is good news for a friend of mine who suffers from summer depression, a form of seasonal affective disorder (SAD). The hotter the weather, the more depressed she gets. When she first told me about her condition, I thought she was being a drama queen. But then I remembered hearing someone say that all the gray, cloudy and rainy days in the Seattle area also caused depression in some people.
First Take: Why 9/11 is doubly tragic for me

Sep 12, 2024 | yumasun.com | Rogelio Yubeta Olivas

Wednes-day, Sept. 11, was the 10-year anniversary of my father’s death. Each year when 9/11 rolls around, not only am I painfully reminded of the terrorist attacks on our nation, I also have to relive the day our beloved dad left us. My phone was going crazy Wednesday morning, with my siblings group-texting photos and memories of our dad. This is something they now do every Sept. 11. I’ve never joined them because I don’t like remembering the day he died. That is a very sad occasion for me.