My visit to Gold and Silver Pawn, Home of Pawn Stars.

I love garage sales, antique shops, and flea markets. As such I enjoy watching shows like Antique Road Show, American Pickers, and my newest favorite Pawn Stars. Pawn Stars is a reality show (is there anything but reality shows on TV these days?) set in a pawn shop in Las Vegas Nevada. Pawn Stars is on the history channel and tells the story of a real family business which is owned and run by the patriarch Richard Harrison (“The Old Man”), his son Rick Harrison (“The Appraiser”) and Rick’s son Corey (“Big Hoss”). The dynamics of the show are great and every show includes either a history lesson or a lesson in antiques.

















You never know what people are going to bring into the pawn shop to try and sell or pawn. On the one hand the shop never pays much over fifty percent of what an item is worth and the people who need the money often take the offer. On the other hand many of the people have no idea what they have or what it is really worth. Often experts are brought in to appraise the items and the owners of the items usually learn the items are worth much more than they thought however as I said earlier they walk out with about half of what the item is worth. The amazing thing is how much money this pawn shop has. It is not uncommon for the shop to buy items for tens of thousands of dollars in a blink of an eye and its always "cash money" which in itself entices those who need it to take less.

The characters in the show are interesting and fun to watch which is really what makes this show a hip antiques road show. My favorites are Rick and his dad Richard who is just known as "the old man". When I had to be in Las Vegas last week Antoinette and I made a point of visiting the pawn shop and got to meet "the old man" and one of the employees who is often on the TV show who is known as "Chumlee".

Richard "the Old Man" and I

Chumlee and I

Chumlee is the comedic side kick of the stars and plays the Jerry Lewis to the Dean Martin cast. The shop is quite unimpressive in real life and camera shots and angles definitely make it look nicer on TV. On the other hand it is a pawn shop! The shop has the usual pawn items for sale, tools, dvd's, musical instruments, and jewelry. But it also has Wrestling belts, a Denver Bronco Superbowl Ring sitting next to a Patriots Superbowl ring which is for sale for a mere $100,000 dollars. Antique rifles worth thousands and paintings and sculptures also priced in the thousands.

















Included with all that pawn stuff is the obligatory t shirts, coffee mugs, shot glasses, and even a paw n star pet food bowl for the dog who likes to watch pawn stars on TV.

















There are often lines outside the store as in order to manage the crowds since the TV show became popular there is an armed man at the door keeping the crowd inside at a manageable level and only allowing people in as those inside leave. If you watch the show I can tell you that "the old man" is as grumpy in person as he is on the show. Chumlee seems uncomfortable with his new found stardom but is polite and gracious with fans who want a picture or just to meet him. Rick and Big Hoss were not out of the back room while I was there and I was unable to meet them. The retail portion of the shop has just been expanded and if the shows popularity continues I can see the shop growing even more. It was a fun trip and if you have not yet seen the show I highly recommend it.

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While Our Kids are Dying, Lets Legalize Drugs.

I have had many discussions with many people about legalizing drugs. If you have read my blog you have probably read how passionate I am on the issue. I even have a search label on this blog allowing you to read all the drug legalization posts I have made.

I have always said that the best thing about having drugs illegal is that the arrest by law enforcement is often the only way those addicted to drugs get help. It is often the wake up call that they need help. Most arrests are not for having a joint or a pot pipe, in fact those cases usually amount to nothing more than a citation to go to court and they are sent on their way. Most drug arrests are for selling, having large quantity's, or committing crimes to obtain money to pay for their drug habit. The court ordered treatment is often the first and only treatment an offender gets. I do believe that we need to spend more on treatment. As a law enforcement officer most would not expect to hear this from me but I do advocate spending less on enforcement or having future funding increases not go towards enforcement but rather go to treatment which is sorely lacking in New Mexico and across this country. I am not alone in this call either. A recent meeting of D.A.'s , Cops, Police Chiefs, and Sheriff's said the same thing in a recent summit held in the overdose capital of the U.S. , Espanola New Mexico.

Jeff Proctor of the Albuquerque Journal did an excellent article on teens dying from Heroin in Albuquerque. The story needs to be read by every parent in the United States so I a posting it in this blog post also. The same story can be written in Santa Fe and worse in Espanola and Chimayo. Our kids are dying a horrible, nasty meaningless death that does not have to happen. It is my heartfelt belief that legalization of even less lethal drugs like Marijuana will lead to more addictions and more deaths. After reading the story by Jeff Proctor copy it and email it to every parent you know. It is a story worth repeating.

Heroin Stalks City Teens

By Story Jeff Proctor
Copyright © 2010 Albuquerque Journal Of the Journal

Steve Paternoster watched his 16-year-old daughter, Haley, fight for her last few breaths in a hospital emergency room. In the end, the heroin won.
Craig Weatherfield got a knock on his door and stood quietly as a police chaplain and three other officers told him what he had known the moment he saw their faces and uniforms: that his 20-year-old son, Nathan, had lost his battle with heroin Nathan and Haley had struggled with drugs on and off. Both had tried to get clean.
Haley died April 9, around 3 a.m. Nathan died Monday morning.

"This is just a terrible, terrible thing," said Steve Paternoster, a well-known restaurateur who owns Scalo Northern Italian Grill and Brasserie La Provence in Nob Hill. "Nothing's going to bring her back." The two join a growing list of young people who have fallen into the clutches of black tar heroin, which has plagued New Mexico for generations, and paid with their lives. Many of the most recent casualties came from well-off families, had plenty of love and support at home and had every other advantage.

A local substance abuse counselor calls it an "epidemic."
Heroin overdose deaths among New Mexicans between 17 and 24 has climbed steadily the past few years, from two in 2006 to six in 2007 to 15 in 2008, the most recent year statistics are available through the state Department of Health.
Experts say some teens start using expensive pharmaceuticals and transition to the cheaper heroin, which they inject, smoke or snort.

"Most of the ones I see overdosing are between 19 and 22," said Bob Barnes, who runs a local counseling agency called Recovery Unlimited. "I've seen the percentage going up, increasing rapidly due to the availability of these chemicals, particularly heroin and Oxycontin. Even as someone who worked in the field 24 years, I've never seen anything like it."

Law enforcement confirms the growing trend.
In fact, federal agents are working cases that involve the heroin and pharmaceutical trade among young people at affluent high schools, said Edward Knoth, assistant special agent in charge of the local Drug Enforcement Administration office.
"We have made some arrests on people supplying pharmaceuticals," he said, referring to a probe that was launched last year into drug trafficking at Eldorado High School. "It's totally separate people who are supplying the heroin in that area. So we're tracking it from two separate angles and trying to keep up a citywide attack, especially as it concerns high school-aged kids."

Knoth provided more details of an emerging pattern the administration is tracking locally and nationally of the progression of addiction and the easy access young people have to street drugs. "DEA has seen an increase in heroin usage, and a lot of that is people starting in high school with pharmaceuticals," he said. "They get hooked on the pills, which are opioids like heroin, and those are very expensive. So a lot of kids go on to heroin, which is a lot cheaper and very much available. We're hearing about a lot of young kids overdosing on heroin — 17-, 18-year-old kids."

Lynn Pedraza, director of Health and Wellness at APS, said Eldorado has a full-time substance abuse counselor, partly because the principal asked for one.
"The principal talked to me last year and said there had been problems," Pedraza said. So the position was kept full-time instead of cut to part-time as planned.
Of Albuquerque's 13 high schools, nine have full-time drug counselors. La Cueva is one of the four that doesn't, which Pedraza said is a matter of resources. "Substance abuse in general, in our community, is not funded at the level we need funded," she said.

'The apple of my eye'
Steve Paternoster was in Roswell on April 8 for a meeting of the New Mexico Military Institute Board of Regents. He noticed on his BlackBerry that the daily credit card report for La Provence hadn't been finished, so he called home.
Haley, who had spent the previous night snuggling with her dad and watching a movie, answered the phone. She assured Steve that she would let his wife, Jane, who is Haley's stepmother, know about the credit card issue and call right back.
She did exactly that, then went downstairs to play with her two younger brothers: Jameson, 2, and 5-year-old Jackson.

A short time later, as Jane was leaving the house with the boys, she told Jameson to knock on Haley's door and "tell Sissy goodbye."
Haley didn't answer. So Jane knocked. Still no answer.
Jane entered the bedroom and discovered that the bathroom door was closed and locked. Jane ran downstairs, grabbed a butter knife and came back up to jimmy the door.

"Haley was on the floor," Steve said. "No pulse. No breathing. The paramedics were here immediately. It looked like she took the drug — it was heroin — in both wrists. They also found some Vicodin. The paramedics were able to get her heart started, but she never regained consciousness."

Haley was rushed to University of New Mexico Hospital. Steve left his meeting and did the same. She hung on for 17 hours, all the while her breathing becoming more labored, her heart rate dropping, her fever climbing, her lungs filling with fluid.
Haley received "complete and compassionate care" from the hospital staff, Steve said. Several times, they would restart her heart, plead with her to stay alive.
As the evening wore on, it started to become clear that Haley wasn't going to make it.
"I said that if they couldn't make it where Haley would still be Haley, that I couldn't do it," Steve said. "The priest had come and administered last rites, so I issued a (do not resuscitate) order. Then, she went into arrhythmia, and this is something no one should ever have to witness: She sat straight upright in the bed, and her eyes flashed open. Then, she fell back. It was horrifying, and it will haunt me for the rest of my life. I told her it was OK to go, and she did."

The tragedy of it all aside, Steve wants everyone to know that he isn't ashamed of his daughter — and that she didn't commit suicide. "She was still doing OK in school, she loved being pretty, she loved her friends, she loved doing things for other people, and we had plans to go skiing this weekend," he said. "Everybody was crazy about her. She had good family support. And she was a kid who was getting high like her friends were getting high, and that's what she chose to do. But I'm certainly not ashamed of her. I'm crazy about her. She was the apple of my eye."

Haley had struggled with substance abuse the past few years. Between 13 and 14, she went through a Youth Court program and had gotten things turned around.
She had been enrolled at La Cueva High School, but Steve said it wasn't suitable for her recovery. "She didn't feel comfortable there, with the whole drug culture there. It's out of control," he said. "We're seeing an explosion in drug use here, and these kids in public school don't have a chance. These kids are getting high, and they're not just drinking and smoking pot. In fact, they turn their noses up at drinking. Their drug of choice is heroin. They're doing heroin."

La Cueva High School principal Jo Ann Coffee could not be reached for comment late Friday. Pedraza of APS said her department has used grant money to set up awareness training and programs to help students with drug addiction. She added, though, that drugs are available throughout the city.
"I do believe that drug abuse is across the district and across all socioeconomic status," she said.

It was Haley's 16th birthday, Christmas Day 2009, when Steve started to become aware his daughter was using hard drugs. He had bought her a car and in fairly short order started to notice all the detritus of addiction: dented wheels from driving loaded into curbs, smashed-in windows, cigarette butts floating in cups in the center console and, on one occasion, a missing stereo that Haley said had been stolen.
"I'm pretty sure she sold it," Steve said. So ,one day, as he was driving her to school, he asked her: "You have a problem, don't you?" "She nodded her head, 'yes,' in a very small way," Steve said. "And I asked her if it was the problem I thought it was. She nodded her head again, and then we went to work on getting her better."

'The kid was so smart'
Craig Weatherfield had watched his son, Nathan, who was 20 when he died on Monday, walk the dark hallways of addiction for a few years.
So when the police chaplain, accompanied by three other officers, arrived on Craig's doorstep, he already knew what he was about to hear.
"As soon as I saw them, I just knew it had to be terrible news," he said.
Nathan had not been living with his parents.
"We went through the fights, the holes in the walls, and he and I were just having a terrible time getting along," Craig said. "One morning, there was a fight, and it turned into a domestic violence situation, and Nathan went to jail. A judge issued a no-contact order, and he moved out."

Nathan had struggled with marijuana and alcohol abuse since his teens, when he was a student at Eldorado High School. And he had tried to get clean.
"We were trying to deal with it," Craig said. "And there were definitely times when he seemed to be receiving counseling and other stuff well."
Nathan dropped out of Eldorado before his senior year. A self-starter, Nathan got his GED and, later, an associate's degree in computer science from Central New Mexico Community College.

"When he put his mind to something, you just couldn't stop him," Craig said. "The kid was so smart. He taught himself how to build computers, and he was always fixing everyone's computers. And he taught himself to play piano. He was really interested in music production. "I'll tell you something: He used to go on 50-mile hikes with the Boy Scouts, and he wasn't even a Scout. He just loved to be outside."
Nathan's parents had known their son was using heroin for about a year. They'd seen it before. His older brother started smoking heroin a few years ago, and within two weeks, he couldn't stop. He went to his parents with his problem and was able to turn his life around. "That just shows you how insidious this thing is," Craig said. "Boy, we could've lost two of them just like that." Nathan had been in counseling in recent months. His parents saw glimmers of hope. "But then the drugs took over again, and we just couldn't control him," Craig said.

Craig is alarmed at how easy it is for young people to get heroin and other street drugs. "These kids can send a text or make a call and have something at their front door in 15 minutes," he said. "And that's ... all over town. "I'm going to reach out to other parents. I've got to do something. If I can spread the word or help out — I just want to try to help in any way I can. No parent should ever have to live through this."

Journal Staff Writer Hailey Heinz contributed to this story
Signs of heroin or prescription drug abuse
• Nodding off during the day and sleeping a lot.
• Declining grades.
• Changes in friends or attitude.
• Frequently asking to see a doctor.
• Wearing long sleeves in the summer.
• Scratching frequently.
• Missing money or other valuable items.
• Burnt foil, bent spoons or other drug paraphernalia.
— Source: Bob Barnes, Recovery Unlimited
Resources for recovery
• Turquoise Lodge, inpatient rehab, 841-8978
• Metropolitan Assessment and Treatment Services (MATS), short-term
detox, 468-1555
• Endorphin Power Company, sober living facility, www.endorphinpower.org,
268-3372
• Casa Los Arboles, recovery home, www.abqhch.org/casa_los_arboles.htm,
766-5197
• Recovery Unlimited, outpatient counseling, 292-4849
• Lifestyle Recovery, outpatient counseling, 345-6801
• A New Awakening, outpatient counseling, www.anewawakening.com, 224-9124
• Narcotics Anonymous, 12-step recovery meetings, www.riograndena.org,
260-9889