NEW MEXICO - ZIA

THE NEW MEXICO ZIA

On our trip, I bought a hat with this design.  The Zia is on the New Mexico State flag and on the NM license plates, which I believe are the only US plates that actually have USA printed on them.  The Zia Indians of New Mexico regard the Sun as a sacred symbol. Their symbol, a red circle with groups of rays pointing in four directions, is painted on ceremonial vases, drawn on the ground around campfires, and used to introduce newborns to the Sun. Four is the sacred number of the Zia and can be found repeated in the four points radiating from the circle. The number four is embodied in:

* the four points of the compass (north, south, east, and west);

* the four seasons of the year (spring, summer, autumn and winter);

* the four periods of each day (morning, noon, evening and night);

* the four seasons of life (childhood, youth, middle years and old age); and

* the four sacred obligations one must develop (a strong body, a clear mind, a pure spirit, and a devotion to the welfare of others).  

[Wikipedia]

MLK NON-VIOLENCE PLEDGE

MARTIN LUTHER KING' JR.'S NON-VIOLENCE PLEDGE

Meditate on the life and teachings of Jesus.

Remember the nonviolent movement seeks justice and reconciliation -- not victory.

Walk and talk in the manner of love; for God is love.

Pray daily to be used by God that all men and women might be free.

Sacrifice personal wishes that all might be free.

Observe with friends and foes the ordinary rules of courtesy.

Perform regular service for others and the world.

Refrain from violence of fist, tongue, and heart.

Strive to be in good spiritual and bodily health.

NEW MEXICO - TAOS

Nuestra familia vivió en Nuevo México desde 1974 hasta 1980.  Nuestro segundo hijo y nuestra hija nació en Los Álamos.  Disfrutamos volver al norte de Nuevo México para visitar el campo, los pueblos y nuestros amigos.  Aquí hay algunas fotos de nuestra visita en octubre.

The Dream Catcher

We took the "long way" to Taos.  After a nice breakfast buffet in Castle Rock, we headed south on I-25 to Colorado Springs and then west on US 24 toward Buena Vista.  There was a bridge out near Florissant, and the detour to the south was quite lovely.  After getting back on US 24 west, we soon headed south on US 285 through Poncha Springs, and then south of Villa Grove, we took CO 17 [the Gunbarrel Highway - straight as an arrow] into Alamosa.  There, CO 17 rejoins US 285 and continues south into New Mexico.  At Tres Piedras, US 64 heads east, crosses the Rio Grande Gorge, passes the funky Earthship community, and joins NM 522 south into Taos.  We quickly found the Dream Catcher Bed and Breakfast which is about a 10 minute walk to the plaza, but it is very much a quiet, country-type of place.

Rhonda and Jake

It seems like most everywhere we go, Rhonda finds a canine friend!  Some of you may remember Rhonda and Chueco in Argentina  [see the blog about Estancia Los Patos on September 5, 2006].  Jake is an excellent B&B dog, greeting new guests, hanging out on the patio, hopping onto laps if invited, and appearing to be depressed when folks departed.

Jake the Cavachon - a Bichon/King Charles Cavalier Spaniel

On Sunday evening, we headed to the Adobe Bar - we heard there would be live music, and on arrival, we got quite lucky and found a good table.  We sampled some of the appetizers, and when we asked about the evening's music, our waitress said that it is hard to describe, but that we would enjoy it.  And indeed we did - the group was the Taos Gospel Choir.  This youtube video is not recent, but it gives a taste of the style - lots of swinging a capella, and now and then, a bit of keyboard and electric guitar.  The director/keyboardist is the only professional in the group; everyone else sings for the joy.

BOOKS

I will be the first to admit that I have never been an avid book reader.  Rhonda reads more books in a month than I read in a decade.  My rationalization for this is that to be a good teacher and a competent research investigator, a lot of technical reading is required - textbooks, journals, conference proceedings, etc.  Since I have retired from full-time work, there is now a bit more time for non-professional reading activities.  In the last few months, I have actually finished three books! 

The first one is Yearning Wild:  Exploring the Last Frontier and the Landscape of the Heart by R. Glendon Brunk.  I knew Dick from our younger days in Goshen, Indiana.  Dick was a bit older than me, and we younger fellows at College Mennonite Church thought that he was pretty cool, and the girls did also because he was quite handsome.  Another of my long-time friends encouraged me to read the book, and I found it engaging and enjoyable.  Interestingly, later in life, Dick decided he no longer wanted to be a "Dick" and changed over to his middle name, Glendon.  Dick passed away on May 13, 2007, in Santa Fe, NM.  Here is a blurb from Publishers Weekly:

"This engaging memoir by a professor of creative writing and environmental studies at Prescott College tells the story of a young man growing up and a land becoming tamed. Brunk, who drove west the moment his high school graduation ceremony ended, eventually arrives in the wilds of Alaska in 1968. Newly married and ready to be a "real" man, he lives his "Jack London notion of life": hunting, fishing, building his own log cabin and beginning to race sled dogs. Over the next 12 years, Brunk becomes one of the world's top sled dog racers; he experiences fatherhood and later divorce. But after winning the world championship of sled dog racing in 1980, Brunk sells his dog team and leaves Alaska's shrinking wilderness behind, heeding a voice that "kept prodding, kept insisting that something else needed doing." The nomadic Brunk then embarks on a seven-year odyssey around Africa, South America and Asia. He thrives on the "open, reckless engagement with the world," spends his 40th birthday camped out in the Serengeti, "in love with life, with the myriad possibilities of it all," and eventually comes to embrace simplicity and challenge Western notions of success. Finally, largely in response to a plea from his daughter, Brunk decides to return to North America and "life without bears," and to commit himself to protecting the Alaskan wilderness he loves. Although occasionally unpolished, at its best Brunk's prose is direct and heartfelt. This is a stirring memoir from one man who heard the call of the wild and answered it."

The second book is also by a long-time friend, Clair Miller.  We attended Goshen College together in the 60's and when drafted, headed different ways - Clair to Vietnam and me to Civilian Public Service in Denver.  Clair's book is Forgotten Brother, a fictional but realistic account of a Vietnam POW and his quest for freedom.  Once the plot is set, I found it to be a real page-turner.

The third book is The Naked Anabaptist: The Bare Essentials for a Radical Faith by Stuart Murray.  It is a thoughtful, enlightening and challenging look at Christendom and anabaptists past, present and future.  Here is what Shane Clairborne has to say:

"The Anabaptists are beginning to make more and more sense to a world that is increasingly aware of the emptiness of materialism and the ugliness of militarism. Anabaptist logic is rooted in the wisdom of the cross of Jesus, which Scripture says confounds the wisdom of this world. It seems the world is poised for a new Anabaptist movement, and The Naked Anabaptist may well be the spark that lights the fire."

I found all three books to be worth the time.

FAMOUS FOLKS

A good friend and colleague at Pepperdine, Lee Kats, keeps a list of 'famous' people he has met [not just seen] and at a minimum, exchanged greetings and a few words.  Although Lee has a couple of US Presidents on his list, I took his suggestion to compile my own list.  Even though it is a fairly meaningless exercise, not to mention determining what constitutes 'famous' - here it is, with apologies to those I know who consider themselves famous and are not on the list ;-)

Francois Jacob, Nobel Prize, Physiology and Medicine

James Watson, Nobel Prize, Physiology and Medicine
Tom Cech, Nobel Prize, Chemistry
Paul Krugman, Nobel Prize, Economics
Wallace and Joe Coulter, Coulter Principle; Coulter Electronics
Jared Diamond, Pulitzer Prize; National Academy of Science
Ed Larson* Pulitzer Prize; Author
Jonathan Weiner, Pulitzer Prize; Author
Peter Arnett, Pulitzer Prize; Journalist; Author
John Kaplan, Pulitzer Prize; Photographer
Amy Goldstein, Pulitzer Prize; Journalist
Mei Fong, Pulitzer Prize; Journalist
Steve Stecklow Pulitzer Prize; Journalist
John Polkinghorne, Templeton Prize; KBE; Author
Christopher Parkening* Grammy; Classical Guitarist
Glen Campbell, Grammy; Musician; Television Host
Flea, Grammy; Bass Player, Red Hot Chili Peppers
Arnold Schwartzenegger, California Governor; Actor
Edward G. Rendell, Pennsylvania Governor
Francis Collins* National Academy of Science; Head, Genome Project/NIH
Roger Beachy* National Academy of Science; Virology
Beatrice Mintz* National Academy of Science; Genetics
Clement Markert* National Academy of Science; Biochemistry
David Talmage * National Academy of Science; Immunology
Harold Agnew, National Academy of Science; Enola Gay Chase Plane
Stephen Gould, National Academy of Science; Author
Hilary Kaprowski, National Academy of Science; Virology
Lee Hood, National Academy of Science; Molecular Biology
Ted Puck, National Academy of Science; Genetics
Gail Martin, National Academy of Science; Developmental Biology
Larry Gold, National Academy of Science; Molecular Biology
Norm Pace, National Academy of Science; Microbiology
Neal Lane* Presidential Science Advisor; Head of NSF
Bill Brinkley* Institute of Medicine; Cell Biology
Ron Sega* Space Shuttle Astronaut
Ken Starr* Judge, Solicitor General, Independent Prosecutor
Doug Kmiec* Reagan and Bush White House; Constitutional Law
Bruce Herschensohn* Nixon White House
Gordon Gee* President, Ohio State, Vanderbilt, Colorado, Brown
Darrel Falk* President, The BioLogos Foundation
Victor Davis Hanson, Author; Syndicated Columnist
Alan Lesher, President, AAAS
Susan Love, Author, Breast Cancer Research Advocate
Chris Matthews, Television Host; Author
Gwen Ifill, Television Host
Bill Ayers, Former Weatherman
Mike Ditka, Pro Football Player; Coach; Commentator
Reggie Miller, Pro Basketball Player; Commentator
Paul Westphal* Pro Basketball Player; Coach
Marv Dunphy* Volleyball Coach; National; Olympic
Robert Turner, Harlem Globe Trotters
Victor Ortiz, Professional Boxer
Jefferson Wagner* Zuma Jay; Marlboro Man; Malibu Mayor
Martin Sheen, Actor
David Duchovny, Actor
Taye Diggs, Actor
Dick Van Dyke, Actor
Gary Busey, Actor; Musician
Gavin McLeod, Actor
Jake Busey, Actor
Jeremy Piven, Actor
Scotty Brown* Million Dollar Listing; Realtor; Musician
Monty Moran* CEO, Chipotle
Michael Hammer, Rich Guy
Steve Hilton, Rich Guy

*Denotes a first-name acquaintance

US Ambassador to Argentina
British Ambassador to Hong Kong
Argentina Ambassador to Hong Kong
Mexican Ambassador to Hong Kong
Saudi Arabia Ambassador to Hong Kong
Hungarian Ambassador to Hong Kong

BACK HOME AGAIN IN INDIANA

I just returned from a trip to Indiana - the fourth Saturday of September is the day for the Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Central Committee Relief Sale at the Goshen Fairgrounds, and the weekend has become a traditional time for a gathering of the Sam and Anna Plank Aschliman clan, my mother's side of the family.  With eleven children and who-knows how many cousins, grand-children, great-grand-children, in-laws and outlaws, it can be a big crowd.  I believe that this year's head count was 75.  I flew in on Wednesday, and left on Tuesday, and as they say, "I spent a month in Goshen last week."  Ha!  It was actually quite pleasant.

Probably the main event of such visits is eating - had broasted chicken at New Paris; cinnamon rolls, ham salad, fresh tomatoes and sausage at Ed & Mary's; cinnamon roll, pulled pork sandwich, eggs and sausage, and strawberry-rhubarb pie with homemade ice cream at the fairgrounds; Slugger's barbeque chicken, ham, and many, many desserts at the Aschliman gathering; and no doubt gained weight!  This should make you hungry:

Slugger's BBQ Chicken

My parents are 94 and 92 and are doing remarkably well, all things considered - still get around fairly well, drive themselves locally, reasonably sharp, etc.  Here is a picture from their 70th wedding anniversary:

Mary & Ed

On the return trip, I drove a small U-Haul truck with some furniture from Rhonda's late parents, Abe & Ruth Willems.  I did not have my camera to take pictures of interesting signs, so I will just give the context and text:

Large official interstate sign at an exit in the middle of Illinois: ATTRACTIONS [it was blank]

Sign on fence at a desolate-looking farm:  Oil Leases Available - Call 800-Dry-Hole