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The Pecos County dinosaur prints are the most prominent in our region. But there are more than 50 such sites in Texas, from the Hill Country north to Fort Worth, and Dinosaur Valley State Park.

Órale, Caló’s going romantic. For the rest of the year, all the episodes will be romantic anecdotes, although the words and expressions themselves may not necessarily be romantic. The hope is that talking about this subtle and nuanced dimension of human existence will deepen your exposure to Caló.Although Caló’s a dialect of a language spoken around the world, its expression along the Rio Grande reflects the unique experience of life in the barrios in that long valley. How does romance occur in that reality? The only distinction from other cultures is that romance is considered a susto (spell). In other words, it’s a caused outcome, not a destined or natural one, where parents, other kin, strangers, and even passing spirits can cast spells, as well as the romantic partners. Then once set loose, the susto takes its own course, and the outcome is uncertain.The word of this episode is borrado(a). In modern Spanish, it means erased. In Caló, it means someone with light eyes—except blue. It’s not a pejorative. The moniker merely points out a class of people who stand out because of the color or their eyes. For there are desirable and undesirable borrados (as).

Exposed in rugged outcrops in Big Bend National Park, rocks known as the Black Peaks and Hannold Hill formations preserve the fossils of ancient primates and their primate-like predecessors.

Órale, the Caló word of the week is soca. In modern Spanish, it means a bud or sprout, as in the first sprouts of a rice planting. In Caló, it means nothing, empty, or scant, as in what you would see on a desert floor after many months of no rain. It’s usually used to say someone knows nothing or has nothing. Someone who speaks no Caló is said to not know even soca of it. Likewise someone who is penniless is said to have not even soca of feria.

Órale, the Caló word of this week is trujir. It’s a verb that means to grab or drag. It comes from the Romani word for the same, trujirpar. Apart from dropping the last syllable of the original word, Caló has turned it into a regular verb that competes with the modern Spanish, traer (to bring).

Ocotillos are iconic Southwestern plants. With spiny, twisting limbs that can rise 20 feet, and vivid red flowers that bloom in even the driest spring, they distill the desert’s thorny allure.

Ecologist James Cornett is using “repeat photography” to reveal environmental changes across the Southwest.

Órale, the Caló word of this episode is churchillo. It means someone with holier-than-thou or moralizing personality. It comes from the English word, church. Every culture has churchillos. Caló is no exception. Their main strength is persistence. You see, they wanna save you whether you need it or not.

Órale, the onda of this week is the word, tutú. It means a diminutive religious character or idol. It’s shorthand for the name, Jesús, but it’s not specific to any religion or creed. It’s also non-value laden. It simply means junior or baby idol. What’s intended to be conveyed with tutú is the image of a miniature statue of a religious character, like a saint or other religious icon. Perhaps the best example of a tutú is the statuette you’ll often find on the dashboard of a lowrider, typically the image of San Martin de Porres, a 1600th century Afro-Peruvian saint.

Órale, the Caló word of this episode is Praire. It means someone with a priest-like personality or otherwise very given to praying and moralizing. It’s a word made up of two other words, prayor (supplicant) and friar, which in Spanish is pronounced fraile. A praire does not necessarily have to be Christian or, for that matter, a follower of any particular religion. They’re not unique to any culture, class or geographic region. They’re people who simply see it necessary and obvious to invoke the spirits to resolve worldly problems. While some people see gravity and the laws of physics controlling reality, they see providential intervention in everything. So why not go ahead and ask the spirits to intervene when you can’t solve a problem or predict an outcome?