Mistress, not wife, welcomes rescued miner

Johnny Barrios Rojas' rescue was among the most anticipated of the miners, if only to see who would be there to greet him.

No. 21 of the men pulled from the collapsed mine, Barrios gained notoriety as the man who had two women at Camp Hope: his wife of 28 years, Marta Salinas, and his mistress of four, Susana Valenzuela.

Salinas apparently knew nothing of the affair until the two women ran into each other amid the tents pitched by relatives holding vigil, and a public spat ensued.

Barrios, 50, looked around sheepishly Wednesday as he emerged from the rescue tube. Behind him, beaming and waiting for him to notice her, stood Valenzuela. When he didn't, the round-faced strawberry blonde walked around to face Barrios and gave him a long kiss and hug as he whispered into her ear.

Salinas was nowhere to be seen. "He has another companion," she told reporters, adding that she might wait for him at home. "I'm happy for him, and if he remakes his life, good for him."

Weeks earlier, Barrios' wife had ripped down a poster of her husband put up by his mistress, who taped the poster back up; beneath several poems and prayers she had dedicated to him, she signed it, "Your Wife."

Dubbed "el enfermero" — the nurse — Barrios served as the miners' medic during the ordeal, dispensing medication sent in by health officials, passing out nicotine patches and photographing wounds. He reportedly ended all his letters this way: "Get me out of this hole, dead or alive."

Oakley gets its

moment in the sun

The sometimes tear-filled eyes of rescued miners in Chile were shielded by a type of Oakley sunglasses designed to minimize heavy glare.

The single-lens shield is a wraparound style. Using the darkest lens with a gray base and black iridium coating should help the miners' eyes adjust to bright light after being dilated so long, the California company said in a statement.

The glasses, which were donated, are typically used for high-performance sports such as biking and skiing because they also minimize UV light.

The biggest eye concern for the miners as they reach the surface includes possible light damage to the retina, said Dr. Andrew Hartwick, assistant professor at the College of Optometry at The Ohio State University.

There is potential for solar retinopathy, in which the photoreceptors — the cells within the eye that capture light — can deteriorate, he said.

The Radar glasses typically retail for $180.

Elvis fan may be

going to Graceland

Edison Peña, one of the miners brought to safety Wednesday, is an Elvis Presley fanatic who led his fellow captive miners in sing-a-longs to pass the time and boost morale.

Elvis.com — self-described as the "official site of the King of Rock 'n' Roll" — and Elvis Presley Enterprises said Wednesday that word of Peña's passion reached Memphis, Tenn., and Graceland, Presley's former home, in mid-September.

Presley Enterprises spokesman Kevin Kern said after that, "we discreetly liaised with some folks in Chile and found out where we could send a box of Elvis goodies: some DVDs, CDs, a pair of Elvis sunglasses. Whatever could fit into the tube and provide some entertainment and comfort."

Presley Enterprises, in conjunction with the Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau, extended the miner and a loved one an invitation for an all-expenses paid trip to visit Graceland.

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