October 21, 2011 – At Home in Atsinna

Have you ever gone to a new place that feels very familiar. A place you’ve never seen before, yet you feel you know it well. Maybe you have been there before, but not in your current lifetime.

It can happen when you’re by yourself. As you climb the trail to the top of the mesa at El Morro National Monument in New Mexico. You reach the top and catch your breath. It’s quiet and bright on top with that clear blue sky. A shade of blue that only happens in New Mexico. You start down the trail and all of a sudden, for just a minute, raindrops start to sprinkle down on you, just you. After that you have to sit down on a piece of sandstone. At first you might not even believe what just happened. After you compose yourself you wander around and see the ruins of the village now referred to as Atsinna. Only part of it is exposed and excavated on top of the mesa. It just feels all very familiar. You don’t try to explain it. You just end up coming back time and time again on every visit to New Mexico, the place you prefer to call The Holy Land.

October 3, 2011 – Travel Rules - Wupatki

If you like to travel, you might have your own a set of rules. The rules are yours and yours alone. It’s not about rules for everyone to follow but rather, you figure out what works best for you when you travel. One of my travel rules is always to look for places near popular destinations that often get overlooked. Some of my favorite places are often missed. Many people are looking to get somewhere else, somewhere more famous, etc.

One of those places is Wupatki National Monument. It’s just north of Flagstaff and most travelers drive right by on their way to the Grand Canyon. I am not complaining, I kind of like having the place to myself. I’ve photographed it, I’ve painted it, and I’ve visited the magic breathing hole. Yes, did I tell you about that? Over to the side of the pueblo ruins, there is a reconstructed Aztec-style ball court. Next to it is a small opening in the earth. When the temperature is warm, air comes rushing out of mysterious caverns somewhere below the earth. There is a sign explaining in National Park Service-speak that it is believed this site was held as sacred. Duh! The earth is breathing. Wupatki is one of the reasons I love road trips.

September 30, 2011 – Decline and Fall

When does it start? Did they look up one day in Ancient Egypt and say, “Hey, the nose fell off the Sphinx, we better do something about that.” When do things start turning to ruins? How do we tell the difference between Visigoths and Canadians? It’s a compelling question about many ancient empires left in ruins. When do you know?

With all that in mind, in case you haven’t heard yet, the Washington Monument took quite the beating in that recent earthquake centered in Virginia. Now, of course, the government will make every effort to repair and restore the Washington Monument. Or, will they? The American rightwing is determined to obstruct the workings of government at any costs. Will next year see the triumph of their campaign of polarization? Will the Red State/Blue State dichotomy become permanent?

They probably will repair the Washington Monument and we’ll all plod along. Or maybe we’ll look east from the California Republic as Sarahnewt Rick Bachmanromney fiddles while their country collapses around them. It might get interesting.