Sagebrush Sally: Tecopa’s Reputation Is Everyone’s Business

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by

Sagebrush Sally
in

Dear Sagebrush Sally,

Some of us in town are worried that certain local businesses aren’t treating customers well—and that it’s driving visitors away from Tecopa for good. On top of that, there’s concern that a few of these places might be cutting corners to keep operating, which could put their customers at risk.

If the county isn’t regularly or thoroughly inspecting these businesses, how can we be sure they’re safe? And what can residents do to protect both our community’s reputation and the people who come here?

— Concerned for Customers

Dear Concerned for Customers,

You’ve put your finger on something that’s more than just a Tecopa problem—it’s a small-town problem the world over. A business’s reputation can be built in years and wrecked in minutes, especially out here where every visitor counts and word travels faster than a dust devil. If someone leaves town with a bad taste in their mouth (and not from the mineral water), they might not come back—and they might make sure their friends don’t, either.

Kindness isn’t just good manners; it’s good business. A smile, a fair deal, and a little hospitality are worth more than a slick ad campaign. In a place like ours, the customer isn’t just a transaction—they’re part of the lifeblood that keeps Tecopa breathing. Run them off with rudeness or indifference, and it’s not just your bottom line that suffers—it’s the whole town’s.

Now, about cutting corners. Out here, we’ve all learned to make do—but there’s a big difference between resourcefulness and recklessness. Skimping on safety, cleanliness, or legal requirements might save a buck today, but it can cost lives, reputations, and the future of a business tomorrow. If the county isn’t inspecting regularly—or thoroughly—it doesn’t mean standards don’t exist. It just means the responsibility falls more heavily on all of us to pay attention.

So, what can you do?

  • Ask questions. Whether you’re a customer or a neighbor, you have every right to know if a place is following health and safety guidelines.
  • Report concerns. If you suspect unsafe practices, contact the county health department or code enforcement. Paper trails matter.
  • Vote with your wallet. Spend your money where you see care, integrity, and pride in the work. Reward the businesses doing it right.
  • Lead by example. Treat visitors the way you’d want to be treated if you were discovering Tecopa for the first time.

Remember, a community’s reputation is a shared inheritance. Every business owner, resident, and worker has a hand in shaping it. If we let bad behavior or unsafe practices slide because “that’s just how they are,” we’re not protecting our neighbors—we’re gambling with the future of our town.

A healthy Tecopa isn’t just about hot springs and wide skies—it’s about trust. Let’s make sure we’re worthy of it.

— Sagebrush Sally

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3 responses to “Sagebrush Sally: Tecopa’s Reputation Is Everyone’s Business”

  1. Raymond Reed Avatar
    Raymond Reed

    I find it ironic, the question about inspections for local businesses ( probably directed to our park by the shadow writers) is along side a picture of the “pee and poop” pond. The “pee and poop” pond is publicized locally – not only in this article – but also on you tube as the “natural” borehole spring. The picture shows numerous cars (7 plus a rv) at the entry to the “pee and poop pond. Are the concerned citizens concerned there are no regulators inspecting this water ? Ironic the author prints “this picture” of the most contaminated “soaking” source in Tecopa, and yet is concerned about all the other businesses ruining Tecopa’s reputation. The very definition of Ironic. I spent $800 and had the “bore hole” water sampled – how about the author doing the same ? Or, the concerned citizen ? Is it because each of you would have to publicize your findings ? Dig out your $800.00 and get er done. It is pathetic that honesty and integerity has sailed away in the whispering winds of Tecopa. It is pathetic that nothing is stated that BLM knows this water is contaminated due to fecal matter, urine and other numerous bacteria. ( There is an ongoing lawsuit publicized in the articles on this tabloid stating the borehole is contaminated). People, little kids and their dogs see this as a party bonanza They do not know of the possibility of contacting an infectious disease. Isn’t it the responsibility of a credible news reporting outlet to report what could harm people ? NO – not here in Tecopa town. Certainly no bactericide in this “hole”. A bad “hole” No regulators regulating its use. Right ? But not a single concern from the concerned citizens addressing the aforeto question. Why, no regulators testing this water ?

    Why isn’t the question directed to the BLM since the picture shown is of the contaminated “pee and poop pond” on their property ? Could it be because the local you tubers wouldn’t be cashing in on the clicks if they “honesty” informed the public that this “natural” pool is definitely made up of alot of “natural”. The “pee and poop” pond is due to drilling – not a free flowing – ground breaking spring. Nothing natura forming about it, unless urine or fecal matter from an animal, kids, or adult is considered natural. By law a child has to be 14 accompanied by a guarding to go into a hot pool. Probably a swim suit should be worn. At Tecopa Palms Therapeutic Hot Springs Resort, I started with this concept. I didn’t know better. I discovered that some of the kids did not know their guardians. You know a 45 year old man with a 14 year old girl or boy. I took some of the kids aside and asked if the adult with them was their mamma, daddy or grandpa. The “older men” were her for their perverted reasons with the young kids. Once, I saw – what I could not believe I was seeing- I stopped that practice. To eliminate body “produced” bacteria in bathing suits we do not permit bathing suits in our pools. I find the question of the concerned citizen very Ironic – reminds me of the Titanic. No one locally publicizes the truthful contamination with possible infections. But pictures of this nasty “pee and poop” pond are plastered with the question. The gossipers want to write what was written under the premise of “concerned citizen” in this haze of mis direction pointing fingers away from the “sewer pond” to other reputable businesses such as the 3 mineral hot pools who are inspected frequently, local eateries, and Ross’s mines. Just pathetic. But – that appears to be the norm for this gossip centered “ghost” town. Keep posting the “pee and poop” pond on the you tube sites, taking the money to your bank, bring more people here and their little kids and their dogs – but whatever you do as concerned citizens do “nothing” to inform mom and dads they, their kids and dogs could have a contagious disease, and to be sure to leave the “natural” behind in the water for others to rub on their bodies.

    Reply
    1. Sagebrush Sally Avatar
      Sagebrush Sally

      Raymond,
      You raise a fair point about the risks of unregulated soaking sites like the Borehole, and you’re right to highlight that water quality and public health deserve attention. No one benefits when residents or visitors unknowingly expose themselves—or their children and pets—to contaminated water. If you’ve already invested in testing, that’s an important piece of the picture, and it helps underline the need for broader awareness.
      That said, the original letter and my response weren’t meant to let one issue cancel out another. Concern about unsafe or poorly run businesses doesn’t mean we can ignore problems on public lands, and concern about the Borehole doesn’t mean we shouldn’t hold businesses accountable for treating customers well and operating responsibly. Both matter, because both shape Tecopa’s reputation and the safety of people who spend time here.
      As for inspections: the Borehole sits on BLM land, so yes, questions about its oversight belong with them. But when the topic is businesses—restaurants, campgrounds, bathhouses—then responsibility sits with the county, the operators, and the community to ensure standards are followed. Pointing at one danger doesn’t erase another.
      The larger truth is this: honesty and integrity matter everywhere, whether we’re talking about a concessionaire under contract, a hot springs operator, or a “wild” pool on federal land. Protecting Tecopa’s reputation means shining a light on all risks—without deflection, without misdirection, and without personal attacks. TecopaCabana will happily cover this story, provided there is documentation to support the claims, so the community has clear facts to work with. If we can hold each other to that, then we’ve already begun the work of keeping this community safer and stronger.

      Reply
  2. Raymond Reed Avatar
    Raymond Reed

    Excellent comments. There seems to be alot of “concerned citizens” in small town Tecopa USA with probably no more than 40 to 50 full time residents here. Or is one person who points fingers at others because they are full of hate. I suggest next time the “concerned citizen” shows concern for negligence in safe practices for a business or businesses then do not print the picture of the borehole, with 6 or 7 vehicles with possibly as many as 7 to 15 people enjoying the bacterial fecal matter infested pee and poop pond – show the picture of the business where the “concerned citizen” has concern that warrants their concern. Truthfully, I only know of one business in Tecopa that has no regulatory agencies inspecting it – the mines. If that business, which has no inspections or regulators, is the concern then show a picture of the mines not the pee and poop pond. If the “concerned citizen” is “concerned” about Tecopa Palms Therapeutic Hot Springs Resort then show a picture of this resort – not the “pee and poop” pond. Is likened unto throwing “a ston” at a horse and telling everyone it was a fly. As an example, a manufacturing business “Hyundai” employing 500 + illegal Korean workers should have a picture of the Hyundai building – not a picture of a ford manufacturing company. Print the picture of the business the “concerned citizen” is concerned about with safety issues, rather than a non business polluted pee and poop pond.

    Little babies, little kids, and dogs do alot of depositing in the pee and poop pond. That is where they go.

    Incidentally, when people ( mostly females) come here that have blood issues, ( time of the month) I share that no one is permitted in Gods Water From The Great Deep that have open wounds, or blood issues. Immediately Yvonne and I are asked for the local “natural” hot springs that is on you tube. It appears you tube speaks more truth than Christ in his gospels. Every one of these folks ( 100%) ask me where “the natural” pool is located they saw on you tube. It really makes me despise the ones doing the talking( you tube) but not the directing. I despise having to tell them. Not because of money but because of the potential of a death causing infectious virus or bacterial infection that I would have to own. I even put up 2 signs on the frontal of our resort in my attempt to “warn” of the contaminated water in the “pee and poop” pond AKA borehole. Then, I get ostracized for doing this in the local tabloids.

    Truth in Tecopa is obscured by fantasy and drug hallucination. Truth is likened unto saying there is no bacteria, no fugal, no e-coli and no total coli formin the bore hole when there is little else. I share that the water at the “pee and poop” pond is contaminated from what 100’s and 100’s of people, including little babies, little kids, and adults with their dogs have deposited in the water that they NOW are going to go immerse themselves in. Just sad.

    Any one reading my comment herein knows this to be true and can see the cars, brought here by the money making you tubers by the gate every time one drives by. Is the “concerned citizen” concerned about the “lack of regulations” for the you tubers in promoting the “pee and poop” pond. Sometimes, more is not better. Yet, thanks to the you tube video’s “more people” arrive at the “pee and poop” pond every day. More and more and more are coming. Every day!

    In terms of inspections ( as remarked by the constant letters of concern by the “concerned citizen” – and as a result of the many calls from all the “concerned citizens” to Inyo Environmental Health, and from all the inspections that followed and are coming – Gods Water From The Great Deep has the safest non contaminated water in Inyo County. Thank you for your concern. Now, I expect to see your car, skate board, bicycle, at the “pee and poop” pond. So much for concern.

    Reply

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