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Órale, the Caló word of this week is wango. It’s an adjective that means loose fitting, riven or reamed. It comes from the Spanish word for unsteady or clumsy, ñango. Wango can attach as much to a person as to a thing or situation. Somebody is wango if they prove too easy an opponent. A hat is wango if it’s too big on your head. A crowd or game is wango if it’s leaderless.

Órale, the Caló word of this week is cuatche. It means a best friend. It’s a portmanteau, or a word made up of two other words. The two words that make up cuatche are both Nahuatl words, mecoatl (cuate) and tlacuatche, which respectively mean twin and possum. The image presented by cuatche is that of a friend who’s so close they’re practically clinging to you. A cuate is buddy whom you treat then like a friend, A cuatche is a lifelong project whom you treat as if you will always want them around.

Órale, the Caló word of this episode is carilla. It’s also pronounced with a rolled r, as in carrilla. It means harassment or grief. There’s no comparable word in Spanish or English. A plausible root word for it in Romaní is carí, which means vehement, heated or arduous, as in a hard, heated or aggressive statement. In Caló, when somebody is casting caustic or sarcastic jokes at someone, it’s said that they are giving them carilla.

Órale, Caló this month is gonna about the “road of shame,” a street that runs parallel to and a short block away from the highway leading through town. The street got its name when the county government moved the jail from downtown to this highway just beyond the Southside, forcing many newly released detainees to undertake a long and public walk home. Until then, the raza who got out of jail walked home undistinguished from anybody else walking about in town. The north and east sides of town, where the higher valued homes sat, were never considered for the site of the new jail. The decision-makers quickly picked the Southside because they believed, as was said repeatedly in public hearings, “that’s where the jail’s customers come from.” What they didn’t think through was that, with the jail so close by, Southsiders didn’t have to walk far to get home, and the only ones who faced a long shameful walk home were non-Southsiders.Llevarse is the featured word this week. It’s Spanish for to take oneself, as in, “I take myself seriously.” In Caló, it means to grant or be granted permission to joke with somebody. Two individuals who tease each other—even to their limits—are said to be llevandose. And each would say that they se la llevan with the other.

Órale, the feature of this episode, is the expression hacer rancho. It means make ranch or space in modern Spanish. In Caló, hacer rancho describes a situation or person that has gotten so out of control they’ve taken over control. You invite a vato to stay at your chante, and he takes over the place as if it were his? He hizo (made) rancho.

Órale, the feature of this episode is the word nambe. It’s a contraction of the modern Spanish words, no and hombre, as in “no, hombre.” There’s an equal expression in English, “no, man.” In Caló, it’s used to emphasize a contradiction. You think she’s gonna win. Nambe¸ no chance.

Órale, the featured word of this episode is levantar. It’s a verb in modern Spanish that means to pick up. In Caló, it means pick up the pace or attract sexual attention, male or female. The general image behind both is the picking up of feet. A comparable expression in English is a “pick up.” A fifty-something prances through a dance hall and turns heads, and people will say she or he still las levanta. They’ll say this because they can both pick up their feet and people are attracted to them.

West Texas is rich in reptiles, and the western hognose snake is one of the region’s stars. Its calling card is its shovel-like face, but the snake – which poses no threat to humans – also has a host of fascinating behaviors and adaptations.

Órale, the featured word of this week of Caló is manchar. In modern Spanish it means to stain. In Caló, it means to denigrate, deprecated or slight oneself, which is an unsightly, possibly even traumatizing event to witness. People can put a mancha on themselves without intending it. They can be merely stupid or venal about it, maybe even think they got away with something. But the people who witness their act walk away, perhaps silently, thinking less of them. A vendor short-changes you: manchada. You forget your date’s name, manchada. Caught cheating or in a lie, manchada.

Órale, we’re gonna continue with the susto theme. The Calo word for this episode is a nuance of a term we introduced in the past, con safos. It’s a preemptive, protective susto, but it can also be a way to say that the bad wish directed at you isn’t having its intended effect.