el paso daily photo blog by chacal la chaise

Second verse, same as the first! [Flickr]

2009-11-29T13:09:43-08:00

chacal la chaise posted a photo:

Grader warmer. he's right next to me and keeping me toasty. [Flickr]

2009-11-29T13:07:46-08:00

chacal la chaise posted a photo:

Taking a break from grading. FBing and chatting to The Judge [Flickr]

2009-11-28T20:22:34-08:00

chacal la chaise posted a photo:

Argh...the wonder that is the American wholesale to public marketplace. [Flickr]

2009-11-22T14:03:33-08:00

chacal la chaise posted a photo:

The weekend before Thanksgiving. recession? what recession?

Marvelous latillas and stars at La Posta [Flickr]

2009-11-21T11:57:10-08:00

chacal la chaise posted a photo:

Yesterday was a fine day for touring on Shadow Mountain Drive.

2009-11-19T18:04:00.003-07:00

Yesterday was a fine day for touring on Shadow Mountain Drive.
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

It isn't often I get the opportunity or the time to drive-by shoot images these days. Yet this drive-by was too good to pass up. On the way to class, I caught up to this antique Bentley (possibly from the mid- to late- 1930s) near Mesa Street on Shadow Mountain Drive. I photographed two images while we were stopped at the light. We started up again and It turned left, as did I. Although I tried to get another shot of the beast from my rear view door mirror, I soon lost it in traffic.

I've always thought Bentley's were supposed to be too "cool" for a hood ornament. I also heard a Bentley was a Rolls-Royce without the hood ornament. (These are myths because in the case of this beauty, it had the Bentley marque on the rear near the license and a winged "B ornament on the bonnet. In any case, it was a delight to see on such a beautiful day.

Yesterday was a fine day for touring on Shadow Mountain Drive. [Flickr]

2009-11-19T13:02:32-08:00

chacal la chaise posted a photo:

You'd think it was Camelback Road

It was a fine day for touring on shadow mountain yesterday. [Flickr]

2009-11-19T13:01:49-08:00

chacal la chaise posted a photo:

You'd think it was Camelback Road

All done. listening to Castaways and Cutouts by The Decemberists [Flickr]

2009-11-15T16:26:31-08:00

chacal la chaise posted a photo:

Three bags full and about 1/2 more 2go. just gotta stop trimming! >;-> [Flickr]

2009-11-15T15:24:32-08:00

chacal la chaise posted a photo:

Break! Lemon grass/chili noodles and shrimp...nom nom [Flickr]

2009-11-15T13:20:02-08:00

chacal la chaise posted a photo:

A moleskine page from The Judge's freshman year at MSU

2009-09-13T13:27:00.004-06:00

MSU :: My notes for the "wants/needs" list
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

Given FB cannot publish "notes" from more than one blog, I thought I would republish this entry originally posted to a new Moleskiners blog. To me, Moleskiners throws too much in its interface of multiple horizontal menus with a heinous orange and green default color scheme.

That said, it did make me go and collect my thoughts and write about something that occurred recently. And although not specifically about El Paso nor was the image taken in El Paso, it was created by someone from here; it also tacitly covers issues concerned with education and parenting.

We've been told that The Judge is not the only student from here who currently attends Michigan State, but sometimes it seems she is. However, there are many more students who do leave home every year to attend college away from El Paso. This is something from one parent with one student who has left home for the past four years.

Fall 2009 marked the first year I was unable to go with MJ to take The Judge back to Michigan State University.

The reason was simple. The schedule for MSU differed from that of UTEP as MSU’s fall semester began a week before UTEP; and so, I did not want to miss the first week of graduate school classes and teaching my crucial first week of freshman composition.

The Judge’s freshman year was 2006, a year when both schools had the same schedule outcomes (a week difference when beginning classes.) For that one year, I had been able to pull it off, but this year was a no go. However, with cell phones available for all, it was almost as if I was there with them—almost. Granted, the calls were not as intimate as when I have virtually walked her back from a frat party or accompanied her from the library at 2:00 a.m. EST (midnight here.) I love walking/talking with her this way. The Judge finds herself to be on the phone with one of us a comfort when walking at night. I don’t blame her at all. She believes that if she is on a cell, she is not alone. She feels safe when we talk/walk together like that.

But back to the first move-in chaos of her freshman year. I loved seeing and watching the cars unload the students, their pillows, stuffed animals, their stuff. The frantic, chaotic mess that only occurs when the luggage, t-shirts, jeans, and other priority/ephemeral details of life collides with all other priority/ephemeral details of “the New Roommate.” Not only are the small rooms awash in clothing contained in the luggage bought, there are also boxes, personal items, microwaves, refrigerators, books, iPods, TVs, speakers, and hundreds of tiny girl T-shirts. That year it was all a blurr to me and probably MJ and The Judge; her things seemed to float around and land all over the room and hallway. Now, multiply that by two. And, I know all this sounds terribly bourgeois, and having nothing (at first) to do with studying for a profession, but it is fun and stressful and most of all sad. You are about to leave your kid at school. But this is the fact of it all—least for us each fall in East Lansing, Michigan, those first few days each fall.

Now, I cannot tarry too long with this initial blog post. I must begin posting other things for my classes. However, what I wanted to share was a moleskine page from way back in Fall 2006. It is a list I made of the items we needed to purchase for The Judge before we left her in Michigan and MJ and I returned (as a couple for the first time in decades) to El Paso, Texas. That first year she lived in the high-rise chaos that is Hubbard Hall.

Two rediscovered Ukrainian Easter eggs

2009-07-20T21:04:00.004-06:00

Two rediscovered Ukrainian Easter eggs i made over 20 years ago.
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

This picture is of two Ukrainian Easter eggs I made over 20 years ago. I found them while hunting for some beeswax for the Judge. She wanted to dye a pair of shorts black and wanted a way for a few small areas of the garment to resist the dye. I found the beeswax and with it over 12 hollow hen eggs in a carton and two duck eggs ready for pysanky dying, along with special the dyes needed to color them all.

I became fascinated with this art form when it was featured in a story in the April 1972 National Geographic Magazine. Titled Easter Greetings from the Ukrainians, it told of the Orthodox Easter customs in both Ukraine and here in the Minneapolis area. I still have my copy, but have never scanned the article. However, this web page includes several images from that article and provides all information on how to make them. If memory serves, the article referred to the Ukrainian Gift Shop in Roseville, MN, a Minneapolis suburb that has a large Ukrainian immigrant population. Two women owned the shop, published books about the eggs, and sold all the supplies needed to create them. I was hooked and promised myself that one day, I would learn how to create those eggs. Around 1983, I got my wish when we drove from Santa Fe, NM to Minneapolis, MN one summer to visit my sister-in-law and her sons. We located the shop; I bought an egg made by the owners, their books, dyes, and other supplies. I could not wait to get home and start making Ukrainian Easter eggs in June.

True eggs dyed in the Ukrainian fashion are actually whole to allow for the best coverage of the dyes. Over time, the contents of the whole eggs should eventually dry and turn to dust. However, until that happens, do not crack or break the egg because the house will smell of rotten eggs! Once I tried dying the whole egg. It was red with accent colors of green, orange, yellow, and white. I think I either gave or sold the egg to a woman who was my supervisor. It sat on her desk for several months; it was very similar in design to the egg on the left. However, one day, something slipped and toppled the egg over off its special stand. Consequently, we had to keep the back door open to our work area for a while. The egg had become sufficiently ripe and gooey.

These eggs in this box could have started out wholly died, and been just fine all these years. With no cracks and kept in the dark they are perfect. For years, they remained in a box in the hall closet along with all hollowed chicken and goose eggs and dyes, patterns, and beeswax needed to transform their white surface. Perhaps I will finish those eggs one of these days. In the meantime, the LearnPysanky site also provides more information and offers all the supplies needed to make Ukrainian Easter eggs.

Mockingbird feeding time

2009-06-24T14:30:00.008-06:00

Mockingbird feeding time
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

In the case of this blog, change is always good. However, sometimes it takes a while to move towards that change, whether writing about something, thinking about writing, or having something you think would produce joy in the world by writing about it and presenting a particular picture about your town. In this case, I found a perfect image that sings joy for me. The birds work hard and entertain me greatly.

This poor mockingbird mom (?) and one of her two fledglings hang around our backyard. These two babies can now fly, but cannot yet feed themselves. Instead, they sit on the fence, fly around the yard, and generally run their mother ragged with their constant begging for food. She brings them red ants, which is something I’d never thought of as bird food. Mimus polyglottos, or the Northern Mockingbird, according to both Peterson's Bird Guide of the Western U.S. and the Cornell Bird Lab, note that the state pajaro de Tejas eats insects and berries. We have—ants, scorpions, and all sorts of beetles, as well as, pyracanthea berries, and mulberry fruits. This year, the family has chosen to nest in a forest of orange trumpet vines (very attractive to ants), desert sage, and another bushy desert plant that grows way too fast for me to keep it cropped and suburban presentable. In other words, we have an unkempt forest of greenery to shelter birds, but is fairly choking my roses.

In years past, parent Mockingbirds would pitch royal fits when Pumpkin no Tail was outside and sleeping on a patio chair. I guess the birds didn't know that this domesticated feline eats only dry cat food. When Inky was in her prime, the yard was fairly littered with Mockingbird feathers. However, now that she is 15-6 years old, she rarely goes outside to hunt; instead, she chooses to watch the Mockingbird action from our bedroom window.

The funniest result of all this songbird opera is that when Buddy II is outside on the patio, the birds don't seem to mind. Evidently, they believe he can neither hunt nor hurt them. (Or, they see the scars on his face and know he cannot fight worth a damn.

Frankie's grocery as created by dumpr.net

2009-03-08T14:44:00.002-06:00

Modern Art Museum by dumpr.net

ASARCO will not reopen plant; facility to be demolished

2009-02-03T18:03:00.005-07:00

Faces Against Asarco Photo Event
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

I cannot tell you how happy I was when I read the news that ASARCO will not reopen its El Paso plant. Yet, I am melancholy at the same time knowing its parent company will tear down the facility. No doubt the razing of the red and white tower will become a big media event. In fact it already has. Posing questions, wondering who is rejoicing, who is not. This whole situation signals a final erasure to come for the physicality and space that once held a tiny culture and community that stood beneath the stacks. It was called Smeltertown--a place where my mother's family lived that will soon disappear forever. My abuelo and several of his sons, my tios, and a couple of cousins worked for the company and it was because of ASARCO that the family immigrated from Aguas Calientes, Mx, the site of another ASARCO plant.

Smeltertown was a "company town" and had a life embodied in the families. Well over 7,000 people were born, lived, and died within the tiny hamlet. Inside their home, my grandmother gave birth to 13 children of which 12 survived to adulthood. The burned twice and was rebuilt each time. Several years ago, a distant cousin wrote her dissertation about this community, which was once just as attached to the plant, as families and friends were to one another.

My parents were married at Cristo Rey, the Smeltertown's tiny Catholic Church, and in there, I crowned the statue of Mary for a May crowning when I was about six years old. I have stood inside the red, white striped tower while it was constructed, and my father took the elevator to the top when the last of the continuous pouring of cement was complete.

Now all in this community with connections to this place can start a new chapter of in the history of this city, this land. Yet while the tower may disappear, the stories of the lives and events enacted there will remain embodied in the stories and the ancient photographs we share with the world. I think I am no longer attached, but I remember.

smell the fresh tortillas as they
cook on the fire

feel the hot silt sand that
scorched my summer tanned feet.

see tiny rivulets of tears on my cousins’
silt-covered faces or juice cans
marcy buried in the ground
to practice his birdies and eagles.

taste the acrid sulphur that once
burned my lungs when we played outside.

hear the hollow and forlorn
sound of whistles that
signal the 2:00 a.m. shift

they said it was
la llorona coming for us.

Sin and Saints: Elm Street Guadalupe

2009-01-17T17:53:00.010-07:00

Sin and Saints: Elm Street Guadalupe
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

Several weeks ago, (or, as the silly always say, way back last year) Jim Tolbert posted a lovely photo of the Elm Street Guadalupe on his blog. And as I am in the business of seeking and photographing all things OL Guadalupe here in the land of the lost, the Judge and I went to locate this Guadalupe so that I too could photograph it. We wound our way around the central El Paso neighborhood until we discovered this gem. I particularly love how the artist used metallic paint for her aura/hallowedness and that the wrought-iron fencing is painted to match her and the background.

Now, I will be the first to admit that I am not the best at writing on a daily/weekly basis. In fact, after I publish I continue to edit my blog entries. However, I can explain what I have been ruminating about recently, which is about how several iconic mural/graffiti images in El Paso were destroyed in 2008, which happens to adjoin what Jim has been blogging about lately (tagging.)

Now, I am a fence sitter on the subject of tagging/graffiti/street/urban art. But I have read enough by sociologists, urban archeologists, and rhetoricians to know that blanket statements such as, "all taggers are gang members" (of a more troubling criminal kind) is incorrect and too black and white. And while I do not like seeing slap dashed tags scrawled by "gangs" of ego-centric energetic "kids," I will say that this is something that happens in urban environments. It also happens in small towns, covered bridges in Madison County, and hidden caves in France. Nor, is this activity specifically an ethnic, gender, or age thing. Suffice it to say, graffiti is an act of writing, an act of opportunity, an act of rebellion, and above all, an act of communication.

Tags, just as billboards, have an audience, with their messages arranged in a particular way for a particular reason. They exist to persuade (mostly anti-establishment, anti-status quo.) Its delivery method, while silent, screams, "Listen to me! I exist! I have purpose and I am here." This is not really so different from the Elm Street Guadalupe, except of course, that a tag is written without permission. Tags are a form of unsanctioned speech where permission to exist was not first given. And as a tangential audience to these speech acts, we may not believe, and we may not approve. We may become angry that a wall supports scrawled utterances. Nevertheless, one or many people exist behind such statements on silent rock and plastered walls. Are we ready to listen to what they have to say?

Selected bibliography on the Visual Rhetoric and Rhetoric of Graffiti

Barack Obama is a work of art [Television broadcast]. (2008, November 5).
Denver: Columbia Broadcast System. Retrieved December 5, 2008, from
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4385596n%3f

Bearman, J. (2008, October). Street cred. Modern Painters, 20(9), 68-73.

Benjamin, Walter. "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction."
Marxists.org. Feb. 2005. 25 June 2007.

Chia, Adeline. "Spray paint art." The Straits Times [Singapore] 21 June 2007. 12
July 2007.

"Critical Mass." Visual Resistance. Visual Resistance. 25 Apr. 2007.

Currid, E. (2007). The Warhol economy: How fashion art & music drive New York
City. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

D'Amico, Daniel J., and Walter Block. "A Legal and Economic Analysis of
Graffiti." Austrian Student Scholar’s Conference. Grove City College, Grove
City, PA. 5 Nov. 2004. Art Crimes. 11 Apr. 2007.

D'Angelo, Frank J. "Sacred Cows Make Great Hamburgers: The Rhetoric of
Graffiti." College Composition and Communication 25.2 (May 1974): 173-180.

"Ghost Bikes." Visual Resistance. Visual Resistance. 22 Apr. 2007.

Hermer, Joe, and Alan Hunt. "Official Graffiti of the Everyday." Law & Society
Review 30.3 (1996): 455-480.

Drapes, Carolyn Rhea. "The City :: Urban art, stickers, stencils, murals, and
painted building texts." Flickr. 26 Apr. 2007. 26 Apr. 2007.

MacGillivray, L., & Curwen, M. S. (2007, February). Tagging as a social literacy
practice. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 50(5), 354-69.

Lachmann, Richard. "Graffiti as Career and Ideology." The American Journal of
Sociology 94.2 (Sept. 1988): 229-250.

McLuhan, M., & Fiore, Q. (1967). The medium is the massage. New York: Bantam.

Montoya, Isaiah. "Graf in Hush Tones." The Border Observer [El Paso] 6 Apr.
2007, sec. American Sprit—Fine Arts: 26-27.

Rafferty, Pat. "Discourse on Difference: Street Art/Graffiti Youth." Visual
Anthropology Review 7.2 (Fall 1991): 77-84.

Schlecht, Neil E. "Resistance and appropriation in Brazil." Studies in Latin
American Popular Culture 14 (1995): 37-68.

Shannon, Joshua A. "Claes Oldenburg's The Street and Urban Renewal in Greenwich
Village." Art Bulletin 86.1 (Mar. 2004): 136-161.

Walker, William. "The Lessons of Guernica." Toronto Star [Toronto] 9 Feb. 2003,
sec. Business: B01.

Many thanks to Jim Tolbert

2008-12-11T12:31:00.003-07:00

Pedro from Lee's book, Loverboy
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

Occasionally, cyberspace hooks up with the "real world" (as if cyberspace is not real) to connect people living in one neighborhood with someone living in another from across town or across the world. Recently, through the "miracle" of the Internets and some extra added spice of old-fashioned face-to-face networking, such a connection recently happened to me.

A few weeks ago, Michael and I went to a party at the home of Lee and Bobby Byrd for the artist, Luis Villegas. Afterward, I posted the pictures I took to Flickr and wrote a blog entry. The next interesting thing that happened was that Bobby introduced me to Jim Tolbert. Jim writes a blog that covers events and people living in the Newman Park neighborhood. Jim's blog provides a lot of information--and, not just about his neighborhood. It also contains links to agencies and city departments that are useful for all El Pasoans. By reading Jim's blog, you are able to understand that the issues important to Newman Park residents are about the same as with all of us living here: more art, better schools, government, and representation. Jim gives credit where credit is due, and that is a good thing these days.

Recently, Jim posted pictures of Luis' party and gives insight into how others are striving to make El Paso a better place to live. For me, one of the ways to do this is to write a blog that focuses on your area of town, that covers the positive aspects of your neighborhood, your family, your schools, teachers, and businesses that positively impact your life. If you run into a problem with the city and found a way to solve it, or a particular person helped you, write about it. That is the beauty of the Internet: Communication and community at the personal level. When Jim and I write our entries, it is not just for us. We want to help get the word out that El Paso, with its wild beauty, has a fascinating history, and has wonderful people who live in it today. They work hard, and try to make this town a better place to live, which is not any different from what others try to do when they write blog entries from the perspective of where they live.

Thank you Jim. And, many thanks to Bobby and Lee, and especially Luis, who all work to make El Paso a more beautiful city, one blog, one book, one porch, one Garr fish at a time.

Neon study hall at Kinley's House Coffee & Teas

2008-12-08T18:07:00.008-07:00

Neon studyhall
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

Although I took this image a couple of weeks ago, I thought I would post it to signal the start of finals week at UTEP. Kinley's Coffee Shop, a favorite with the medical, business, and student communities, and of course, coffee and tea drinkers, and hungry people everywhere, provides free Wi-Fi for its customers, along with a wide screen TV that seems to shows either Mexican and other Latin American team soccer matches, or CNN. Thank goodness not the usual alternative, which I must endure at my pharmacy or doctor’s office.

The evening I took this picture was a particularly ~~slow~~ quiet evening; the afternoon rush having long since departed, and I was catching up on my reading grids for Composition Studies and about ready to leave for my 6:00 P.M. Visual Rhetoric class.

Sometimes it takes writing a blog entry to discover that one of your favorite local businesses has a...(cue Wall-E's little voice)

TA DA!...A web site. Kinley's House Coffee & Teas

As far as their coffees, sandwiches, and frozen yogurt, Kinley's is the best. Usually, I must get an extra shot of espresso for Starbuck lattes, but at Kinley's they are just fine. My favorite "George's Turkey" sandwich is absolutely fresh and tasty, and their yogurt is actually tart and not overly sweet. It tastes like yogurt because it is!

While parking is tricky (the Newman Center next door will tow--how Chris....oh, well never mind,) you can always use the drive-through, which when I last looked, that merited at 20% discount. Then you can away your lunch and have a picnic at Kern Place's Madeline Park.

next : pinot noir and wine label for non-synesthetes

2008-11-17T00:43:00.011-07:00

next : pinot noir
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

While this is not truly an image of an El Paso landmark or scenic view, it is something that tangentially says something interesting about El Paso and her people: Na zdrowie! L'Chaim! Salut! Prost! Cheerio! To Your Health! Cheers!

Yes, the season of light, of life, of new beginnings is almost upon us, and Black Friday (the good kind, of course) is hopefully around the corner. But first, back to two things about this wine label that set it apart from others I have enjoyed.

First, I am a graphics freak, especially labels--from Depression-era California fruit box labels to wine labels. I love the graphics and use of text, their typography, colors, embossing, printing--it all adds up to what the producer/sellers try to say or invent about their products--wrapped up especially for its wine-drinking audience (and typography freaks.)

Secondly, by including this image here, I am not saying that an El Pasoness means that we here exclusively drink wine or any other alcoholic beverage (although many do). No. The image was taken at Sun Harvest Sunday afternoon; and, I had never seen this wine. And that makes the finding fun. It was something new, reminded me of things I am interested in (graphic, typography, and rhetoric) and finding trendy things on-the-fly. How many times can you say you had fun while shopping these days?

I saw this bottle because I was looking for a cheap (yes, cheap--not affordable nor amusing nor any other euphemistic word for a headache producing bottle of cheap) white wine for roasting a 40 clove of garlic chicken tomorrow night. And next: pino noir, apart from being a red wine, was so out of my budget for cooking 40 clove roast chicken. But not so much for drinking. Well, OK. Festive drinking. Perhaps I will get a bottle when I go back for Beaujolais Nouveau, aka the newborn of reds, when it comes out next week.

In any event, I love this label. It is deceptively and overtly simple. Here, an old typewritten style (Courier), all mono-spaced and clear, with another, a handwritten styled typeface litters words about the wine's name--scattered descriptives that impart your sensations and experiences should you drink this wine. The label just straight up propagandizes, attempts to sell, and display it all at the same time. Nicely subversive and different. It is as if it were a dramatization of how a synesthete might see (or not) the descriptive, if they tasted the wine for the first, second, or twenty-second time.

Speaking of which, and this is probably more for my memory than what you may want to know about, but I heard the best explanation and description of just that neuro-sensory condition (that people "'enjoy," according to the show's host) on the NPR Now show broadcast on the sat rad. While I had hoped to find a free podcast link, (you must purchase this show,) the link does provide a good overview of the show and what synesthesia is and what it means to those who experience it.

In any event, happy shopping and enjoy the season! That is all we truly have control over, right. Of course, right! L'Chaim! And Salud!

Arg! Apologies for ~~adding~~ sticking this at the end of a post, which is something I've never done, but want to do now. Here, finally, is a link to a friend's blog--City Representative Susie Byrd's Notes from District 2. And while I'd love to be a constituent of her district (we live in District 1,) her blog does merit a note of appreciation and link.

Luis Villegas

2008-11-09T20:33:00.003-07:00

Luis Villegas
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

This afternoon, MJ and I went to a party given in honor of Luis. Working for Lee and Bobby Byrd of Cinco Puntos Press for many years, Luis has crafted art to embellish and burnish the Byrd's home until it lives up to its style: Arts and Crafts Bungalow. Sitting in the middle of what Susie Byrd terms west-central El Paso, the Byrd’s home is a hub of creative activity most days. However, today they out did themselves as they invited their friends in to see all the wonderful art Luis created for them. From a porch mural underfoot with a 45-pound gar (northern pike) sculpted fish hanging nearby, Luis worked magic in unassuming places. From the first step, through the home, baths, bedroom, and finally to the backyard, Luis never stops working. We are happy to have seen all our old and new friends today with Lee, Bobby, and the man of the hour, Luis.

Lincoln Park Murals :: Comandanta Ramona

2008-11-07T00:58:00.008-07:00

Lincoln Park Murals :: Comandanta Ramona
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

Sometimes you just have to get away, steal a moment of solitude with just your thoughts and your camera. I put off photography using excuses like I must 1) read, 2) summarize, 3) work, 4) read more, 5) summarize more, and finally 6) sleep. But today, I said enough was enough. Perhaps it was a post-election ebbing elation; maybe it was the idea that I could get rid of whatever this flu/allergy is that I had by getting outside for a few minutes. Whatever the reason to leave the confines of campus, I knew I must go to Lincoln Park. The park lies beneath I-10 east, and is quite close to Thomason Hospital (and future new children’s hospital), Evergreen, Concordia and B’nai Zion cemeteries, and Jefferson-Silva High Schools. )

Lincoln Park contains a beautiful collection of small murals, painted on the freeway concrete supporting uprights. Originally an art project for students from Bowie High School, they have stood for many years. While some murals have small tags identifying a gang’s territory, the murals generally stand unmarked, in their colourful glory. When I arrived around 4:00 pm, it was quiet and cool with a slight breeze, with a brilliant Morenci turquoise blue sky over my head.

Fortunately, as I left the park, I drove to the area where the last (and most political and social activist) murals were. There I saw this beautiful and bright mural of the late Comandanta Ramona of the Clandestine Indigenous Revolutionary Committee (CGRI) and the leadership body of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN). Beautiful and petite, she sadly died of cancer after battling it for many years.

Unfortunately, I do not know who painted her image, but it is an inspiring and uplifting addition to the murals at this central El Paso Park that lies beneath the spaghetti bowl and I-10.

Election Day: Obama Sticker Hunt

2008-11-04T21:03:00.008-07:00

Hardly ever are there any signs of student discourse beyond the conversations of those walking to and from class. Neither do we see written nor visual discourse not vetted first by the administration of this university. Yet today, I photographed a group of small Obama stickers installed in and around the Geology Building, Leech Grove and onward, to the Political Science building.

Of course, I do not expect them to stay long because the grounds of the campus never really speak for the silenced. In any event, it was a great thing to see today--a little bit of action, a little bit of change. Moreover, after eight years, these tiny images of smiling faces helped show that we are near the end of this sad, sordid ride.

Tomorrow is another day, and it does appear that We Have Overcome.

Starbucks graffiti: Jose

2008-11-03T11:29:00.005-07:00

Starbucks graffiti: Joe the barista
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

This little sign inside the Kirby Starbucks got me thinking about all the Red team's political speechifying and how it refers to people by only their first name and their day job title as presumed last name. What are we now? A legion of the "guy you call when your toilet backs up" and nothing else? I find it manipulative, condescending, and idiotic. I do not know about where you live, but here in El Paso we call each other the normal way, like Jose, Rosie, Chuy, Maria, Susan, Mark, and Rita.

People in their daily lives do not refer to one another as Jose the Barista, Rosie the nurse, Chuy the CPA, Maria the teacher, Susan the lawyer, Mark the restaurateur, and Rita the piano teacher. It would take forever to have a simple conversation. People! It is not normal. It is condescending. And while I know it's just political speak, those people need to understand that our identities are not exclusively tied to how we make money--It is only the portion that allows us to do what we really like--painting, writing, Freestyle and croquet playing, and even talking to our friends.

If the Republican Party can only see us as moneymaking robots, concerned with only coin, then they do not see us as individuals with souls, families, lovers, children, and interests outside the act of earning a buck. Instead, they see us as easily frightened rabbits—afraid of change, ready to follow orders, ready for them to make our decisions for us. Moreover, if we as a country elect someone who thinks of us in this manner, then I guess we will get what we deserve. To but monetize us, see nothing but dollar bills standing at the ready to pay for their past recklessness, hubris, and failed domestic and foreign policies, is perhaps the saddest thing that I will take from this election season. And it was done before. It was called U.S.S.R.

I am glad all the speeches begging and scaring us for votes ends tomorrow. Because I want and need change, which I hope we get soon. Like tomorrow night.

Doniphan graffiti

2008-11-02T22:22:00.013-07:00

Strangely, a wonderful collection of local (and regional) graffiti artwork hides within a chain linked used car lot on Doniphan Drive near the Artcraft bridge. Years ago, I was able to take a few pictures of this collection when it was just an empty lot. Back then the street art was vivid and bright; I snapped pictures with my new toy--a leaky plastic Chinese-made Holga, a medium format film "toy" camera.

Friday, I had a few extra minutes to drive down to the lot, and ask the men minding the cars if I could take pictures of the graffiti. They looked at me like I was nuts and asked me in Spanish why I couldn't speak the language.

Funny. It's always smart-ass Mexican men who look at me and ask in an accusatory manner. Whatever.

I can only explain my heritage so many times. I told them no--who did they think they were talking to anyway? My dad is Anglo, speaks only English and my mother chose not to teach me Spanish. End of story.

However, that does not mean I cannot draw like a Mexican, look like a Mexican, and at times get angry like a...smarty pants American mutt.

Neon and lights at 02

2008-10-13T14:51:00.005-06:00

Neon and lights at 02
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

A week ago Saturday, mj and i went to his class reunion dinner with the men who graduated with him from Cathedral High School, El Paso's Christian Brothers school. After a wonderful dinner at Bella Napoli, we adjourned to Club 02. Club 02, prosaically named, is in the 79902 zip code and located at the corner of Cincinnati and Mesa Street (way back in the day it was known originally as the Campus Queen.) This picture was taken in their patio on the Cincinnati side so the guys could have a group "smoker" with cigars provided by Adjy.

RIP Coach Haskins

2008-09-07T20:58:00.004-06:00

RIP Coach Haskins
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

Today, we received sad news. Don Haskins, NCAA Basketball championship coach of the 1966 TWC Miner team, died today. He was 78.

According to an early AP report on the New York Times website, "Haskins was an old-time coach who believed in hard work and was known for his gruff demeanor. That attitude was portrayed in the 2006 movie ''Glory Road,'' the Disney film that chronicled Haskins' improbable rise to national fame in the 1966 championship game against Kentucky. The movie, which was preceded by a book of the same title, also sparked renewed interest in Haskins' career."

The photograph posted here was one I took while at UTEP when I happened to wander into the bookstore, looking for a composition notebook. It was there that I (and many other students) saw Coach Haskins being interviewed by long-time sports journalist Ray Salazar. The interview was taped for television and broadcast live for radio and occurred close to the premier of the film, "Glory Road," a fictionalized account Haskins and his early tenure as coach of the Texas Western College basketball team. According to the AP report, Haskins led the "Miners" to the "1966 NCAA championship game, then making the controversial decision to start five blacks against all-white, heavily favored Kentucky, coached by Adolph Rupp. The Miners won, and shortly after that many schools began recruiting black players."

I know I write for those from and living in El Paso by saying that he will be greatly missed. He loved TWC (UTEP), its athletes, El Paso and its citizens, and in turn, we loved him back.

Definition: Concentration

2008-07-18T14:09:00.004-06:00

Definition: Concentration
Originally uploaded by chacal la chaise.

Can you tell it's summer yet? Usually Kinley's is full of college aged students working singly or in groups, and "grown-up" business types grabbing a quick (or longer) lunch. Or me, the "grown-up" student, off for the summer, grabbing a quick lunch while reading the RSS feeds, and surveying all from behind my MacBook.

Fire :: Via Aventura arroyo

2008-07-06T23:09:00.005-06:00

About 8:35 p.m., a 911 call reporting fires in the arroyo behind our home. Many of us went out with hoses to help put out the fires until the fire trucks arrived. All was over in about 30 minutes, but there still is a lot of dry brush in the arroyo; this could happen again until the monsoon begins in earnest. Thanks to EPFD for its fast response.

Update: 07/07/2007. Believe it or not the monsoon season began the very next day. For a while, the season was a decent rival to the floods of 2005, but towards the end, it just petered to a small series of afternoon sprinkles. However, because it was a rather long lasting rainy season, the mountains and this arroyo were very green.

Brighter Planet\'s 350 Challenge

2008-07-06T17:36:00.002-06:00

Brighter Planet's 350 Challenge

Posted using ShareThis

A flag for the Fourth

2008-07-04T20:46:00.004-06:00

A lot my flag images were usually captured at the Fort Bliss National Cemetery on Memorial Day. However, there are a couple of flags I discovered while driving around or walking in the Sunset Heights neighborhood near UTEP. I first found this window covering over ten years ago when I used to volunteer for the El Paso County Historical Society. Walking around the multi-layered yard, I finally made it to the back rock wall and peered over to see this flag. On this day I had my Holga and quickly snapped the picture. I'm glad I did because the next time I looked over the fence, it was gone. Perhaps patriotic window coverings last as long as like a sun shower in this town. Or maybe the owner found a better crib.

Chalk the Block

2008-06-24T01:56:00.002-06:00

While I had fun taking the pictures (and also preparing a group of the images for Flickr), a lot of what I saw was truly worked "inside the box." Those artists who chose "color" outside their blocks were truly the most interesting.

Belated Father's Day Picture

2008-06-17T13:44:00.010-06:00

First, and this is way late for Fathers Day, is a picture my grandmother, Ruby Ione Jackson, took of my dad, Terrel Alison Jackson (Alison comes from his uncle Al.) I believe he was already working at today's subject when she took the picture using his camera. It's one of those few times where the photographer was photographed. And while this is late, and perhaps a rerun of a previously posted image (it was either explained here, on Vox, or on the Flickr page, I love it. Love ya dad. Love ya mom.

Today, the El Paso Times blog entry from their "morgue" is about the company where my parents worked and later retired. And while the archivist blogger invariably works a poor metaphor to death, she does cover many interesting and valuable historical topics that could be covered if the El Paso Historical (Hysteria) Society ever had a blog. And I don't see that coming anytime soon. But I digress.

Although my parents went to El Paso High, they didn't know one another until they met at the Popular. I guess I owe the Schwartz's a debt of gratitude for enabling our city's myriad of classes and ethnicities to meet, shop, and work together beneath the umbrella of their wonderful emporium. ;)

ANYWAY, the Times' history blog should, in general, be required reading for anyone moving here--the land of "Sun, Salsa, and Soldiers"--as the city now proclaims itself. (bleah!) And on the topic of buzz phrases to sell this pile of sand, I guess the "Capital of the Border" campaign is now caput. Also, here is a good wrap up of this topic by Barry Popik.

Overall, adding his picture here also reminds of how much I enjoy using Flickr. Here I am, away from the source of my photos, but having an archive parked within this ever (usually) reliable web application. To me, this is what makes the Internets so special--accessibility and communication and storytelling opportunities.

L and J Cafe

2008-06-07T14:01:00.004-06:00

Ahh. A great place for a Mexican dinner is always the L & J Cafe near the Concordia Cemetery, located near the I-10/US54 interchange (aka the Spaghetti Bowl.)

Once you get past the noisy revelers at the bar, decorated with every beer neon sign known to man, the tiny landmark boasts one of the best Mexican cafes in the city. As usual, MJ had red enchiladas with onions while I tried the chiles rellenos for a change. Recently, the restaurant was transitioning their menus--photocopies of their previous menu with new slightly higher prices. But last night, new and beautiful menus were given to us which complemented the friendly and historic atmosphere, as well as their food--chile hot and delicious. And the bar…was just as noisy, crowded, with groups of friends and coworkers, glad to be together on a Friday after work.

Memorial Day 2008

2008-05-26T23:39:00.003-06:00

On Saturday, mj and I went to the Fort Bliss National cemetery in advance of Monday's ceremonies. While routinely go to visit and check on the condition of both the graves of my uncle and in-laws and the entire cemetery, we went Saturday in order to see if the various civic groups were able to plant the tens of thousands of American flags into the now hard and gravel crusted ground--Memorial Day patriotic salute to those buried at the cemetery. What we saw was an attempt at something that had obviously outlived its environment as a high percentage of the flags stuck in the ground early Saturday morning had fallen onto the dust by that afternoon. Maybe stands could be made for them next year.

Overall, the flags' wooden dowels are no longer suitable for the cemetery's new "xeriscaped" environment. Perhaps the Boy Scouts or other civil minded groups will fashion stands for the flags so they don't immediately fall onto the dust and rocks next year. Overall, however, those flags standing were interesting and pleasant sounding as they waved in the wind. Together we spent about 45 minutes attempting to stick/bury/stand fallen flags into the ground again, and saw how easily the flags had once been placed into what had once been a grassy ground cover. Dirt on the flag's masts showed how far into the ground they had once been placed, which was between 3-5 inches; whereas now, we were lucky to get them an inch into the ground.

Sadly, we also saw many more large spaces had been prepared for more graves. It does not seem to end.