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Órale, the feature this week is the word machín. It comes from the English word, machine. It means to act or do something very well, impressively. Somebody who’s machín is relentless, strong, self-assured, invulnerable to impediments and distractions. A machin is well, machine-like...superhuman.

Órale, the featured word this week on Caló is borlo. It’s one of the words suggested by that carnal from Marfa who also contributed two of the Caló words we used last month, tirilongo and clecha. It comes from the Mexican regional Spanish word, likely of Nahuatl or Aztec orgin, borlote. It means fuss, melee, uproar, commotion, or tumult. It’s a noun, but it can also be used as an adjective, as in "he's very borlotero", someone who’s always causing a fuss or uproar. Depending on the context, borlo can also have an almost neutral meaning, as in a big dance or event that may be drawing a lot of attention or visitors.

Órale, this of Caló episode features another iconic word, cholo. It comes from the Nahuatl, or Aztec, word for dog. It entered the Mexican lexicon during the Spanish colonial period as a pejorative for Natives.

Our region's vistas are iconic, but its desert scent — especially after a rain — is just as distinctive. Renowned writer Gary Nabhan will speak on the fragrances of the Chihuahua desert at Marfa's Crowley theater.

As the state parks system marks its centennial, a new book chronicles its history and showcases the visionary Texans who birthed one of the state's most beloved institutions.

In November, Texans will vote on the Centennial Parks Conservation Fund, a billion dollars to buy new state parklands. It would be a victory for a long fight for state-park funding.

Órale, this episode’s about the word placoso(a). It’s a noun that comes from the English and Spanish word, plaque or placa. In Caló today, a placa is commonly understood to be a tattoo. It’s also an adjective—really a pejorative— that generally means gaudy, and it applies as much to someone’s behavior as to an object and tattoo. The image the term placoso evokes is that of somebody with a lot of shiny placas strung—or tattooed— on their neck intended to project importance, success and, perhaps more importantly, high class tastes. The moniker fits influencers who use bling to draw attention to themselves via social media for the purpose of driving their viewers to buy their sponsors’ products. While the products they hawk may be gaudy, that alone doesn’t earn them the label of a placoso(a). Their behavior has to be pretentious and exaggerated, as well as gaudy, to earn that dubious distinction.

Órale, in this episode the featured word is labia. It means gibberish, nonsensical talk. It comes from the latin root word, labium, or lip. In Spanish, the corresponding word is labio. The image it invokes in Caló is that of lips moving with no real or meaningful words coming out.

Big Bend National Park has a singular fossil record, spanning 130 million years. In "Dinosaurs and Other Ancient Animals of Big Bend,” that epic story is told, bringing vanished creatures, and vanished worlds, to life.

The West Texas sky island mountains sustain wondrous biodiversity, but there's one particularly graceful being concealed here: Populus tremuloides, the trembling aspen. New research into West Texas aspens could shed light on their history, and on the continent-wide story of this iconic species.