Month: March 2021

La La La La Llorona

Timothy Price70 Comments

I presented my paper Quinientos años de lágrimas: The persistence of La Llorona — 16th Century to Present at The 52nd Annual Convention of the Northeast Modern Language Association this afternoon. The convention was scheduled to be held in Philadelphia, PA, but like so many things in our world of covid cooties, the organizers decided it was best to do a virtual conference. That was a wise decision, but it certainly changes the dynamics of a conference. I thought it was fitting to add the above parody I posted last year.

The last warning sliver moon in March.Sasha: “Do you like my La Llorona eyes?”

Marble: “No Sasha! This is how you make La Lorona eyes!”

Neither of you has it right. You need to be crying. Sasha & Marble: “Cats don’t cry! Stupid La Llorona!”

Silver: “La Llorona? Meh!”

Spunk: “No stinking La Llorona will get to me behind these bars!”

Glenda: “What’s that you say?”

“La la la La Llorona?”

Loki: “I’m not impressed!”

“Talk to the paws and claws La Llorona!”

Gwendolyn: “Yeah! Talk to the paws!”

Daddy Owl: “I don’t see no stinking La Llorona! What’s that you say? La Llorona can shapeshift into an owl? Ha ha ho ho hoo who. That’s a Hoot!”

On the Verizon

Timothy Price36 Comments

The hole and sono tube that will go into the hole in front of Model Shoe Shine Parlor.

A Verizon cell tower is on the horizon where a streetlight used to stand in front of Model Shoe Shine Parlor two doors west of our office in downtown Albuquerque. Contractors removed the streetlight, pulled up the bricks in the sidewalk, dug a deep hole, put a 36 inch by about 12 feet long sono tube (concrete form) into the hole with rebar and conduit for wiring, and filled the sono tube with concrete. I did not have time to go out and get photos of the sono tube filled with concrete. One worker told me it took three yards of concrete to fill the sono tube. It takes a deep foundation to support a cell tower.

Sono tube in the ground with a lot of conduit for wiring.

A peek deep into the soon tube full of rebar, wires, and conduit ready to be filled with concrete.

A look Back

Timothy Price51 Comments

What was left of my Yamaha 250cc Enduro after I crashed doing an Evel Knievel type jump in 1973.

While I was looking for some photos I had sneaked in the Sistine Chapel many years ago and did not find, I found the above photo I had been looking for for many years of my motorcycle after I had a spectacular crash doing high jumps. I thought the photo was lost. What happened is that after flying about 15 feet in the air, I landed on the front wheel first. Surprisingly the impact didn’t bend the front wheel, but it did torque the front forks, broke the frame under the gas tank, and bent the downtube on the frame by the engine. If I had collision insurance on it back then it would have been considered a total loss. What was even more surprising is that I was relatively unhurt by the incident. If I remember correctly, the impact split my helmet, which would have been my head if I wasn’t wearing a helmet. My friend, Mike Rhoades, who was watching from another vantage point rode his motorcycle over and said: “That was cool. I want to see you do that again!” There was no replay, as we had to find a few strands of baling wire to twist together so he could tow me home.

One of the first stories Joel Lewis will tell people about us is how I rode up the dunes with Joel on the back of my motorcycle at full throttle (about 70 mph) and how we flew through the air like madmen. The first story Mike would tell people was about my spectacular crash, also. My wild motorcycle riding gave people lasting memories.

After the crash, I took the motorcycle to Mr. Haagenson’s shop and he helped me bend the frame back into shape, line it up, and weld it back together. Then I took the engine apart, rebuilt it, souped it up, painted it black, got a tuned exhaust, a desert tank, new fenders, and made it into a really fast and cool-looking dirtbike for the time. It wasn’t long after that Yamaha introduced motocross bikes with mono shocks that we taller, faster, and much better at high jumping. A few years later I got a Yamaha 500cc Enduro and then graduated to a 750cc street bike.

The same motorcycle after I got the frame straightened out, and rebuilt it with new hardware.

I also found this self-portrait from 1979. I had a lot of muscle in those days.

Nora, the mama owl to the north, still sitting on her eggs, which should be hatching out soon. I did not see Osric, daddy owl to the north.

Moma Owl showing the top of her head and her ear tufts this morning.

Daddy Owl giving me a one-eyed look this evening.

Dumpster Burn

Timothy Price35 Comments

There was a dumpster burning when I walked to my car to head home.

The fireman aimed the water gun at the burning dumpster.

The water would not fire on the fire.

Down to a dribble. I sympathize with the poor old pumper.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the firetruck, the other firemen had hooked up a hose to a hydrant and started whizzing on the blaze.

Smoke billowed from the dumpster as the whizzing water doused the flames.

Policemen checked out the progress of the dumpster burn.

Dusk View

Timothy Price42 Comments

There are fewer cranes as they are starting to head north.

pTerodactyl at dusk.

More hangers-on

Daddy Owl is not perching for long at dusk. He is flying off in search of food for Mama Owl.

The pTerodactyl looking beautifully blue-gray in the twilight.

Are you there in the darkness Mama Owl?

Yes, she is there sitting on her eggs.

Through The Humidifier Stripely

Timothy Price59 Comments

Spunk: “It looks like Beaker got a new humidifier.”

Beaker: “I’m looking through it all stripely.”

Gwendolyn: “Quick change Spunk! Ha! Ha! Ha!”

Beaker: “Thanks for the new humidifier! I can breathe again.”

Spunk: “How did you do that you little brat?” Gwendolyn: “Ah ah ah ah…”

Gwendolyn: “Magic!”

Spunk: “I look great reflecting on the phone.” Gwendolyn: “I’m outta here.”

Beaker’s old humidifier started leaking, so I got him a new one. No sooner had I taken the humidifier out of the box, than Spunk jumped in it followed by Gwendolyn. Beaker gets his own private humidifier to help him breathe better. It’s so dry here that Beaker wheezes without the humidifier.