Monthly Archives: January 2026
snow music
Good news! This is the last of my nonsense mined from that nomenclature of colors book*. Yay!!
And in a surprising plot twist, today I’m moving from discussing shades of orange to talking about the dark pink part of this sign. Or, as the book would call it, Colour 92, Lake Red. It’s “the crimson red of Werner” and features “arterial blood red, with a portion of Berlin blue”. (Again with the arterial blood red though.) In another plot twist, our pal and book author** Mr. P. Syme does not list any animals that have this color, which is a bit of a disappointment, if I’m being honest; it is, though, a featured color of the Rose Officinalus.
the snow day series
Lubbock, Texas
photographed 1.24.2026
*I don’t know where I got this crazy nomenclature of colors book. But it resides on a shelf alongside a book called COLORSTROLOGY; What Your Birthday Color Says About You and the second edition (because duh) of A Dictionary of Symbols (which is obviously not to be confused with the Penguin reference edition of Dictionary of Symbols, which also lives nearby.***)
**If it’s spelled “colour” don’t you think “author” ought to be spelled “authour”?
***So if, at any point you may have thought I was normal, this bibliography probably helped you change your mind.
the string band got a cold gig
To save time, I’ve shortened the name of my new favorite book* to WNoCwaaaaaatrihutthAASpZBCMaMAtaesfwkitAVAMK. No need to thank me.
This is a lovely piece of public art, made by BC Gilbert, called the Friendly Cowboy Western String Band (or, if you want, TFCWSB.) The guy on the left is definitely Colour 76, Dutch Orange, which as you probably already know is “the orange yellow of Werner…gamboge yellow, with carmine.” It resembles, of course, the Seedpod of the Spindle-tree.
the snow day series
Lubbock, Texas
photographed 1.24.2026
*More commonly known as simply Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours, but it’s got one hell of a subtitle.
orange and blue and green
Now, then, about this book Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours…the full title has 44 words, which makes me realize how the title for my masters thesis fell far, far short of an impressive length.
I believe that the flower-painter* dude would agree that this shade is similar to Colour 78 – Orpiment Orange, described as “the characteristic color…about equal parts of gamboge yellow and arterial blood red.” That description raises a couple of questions:
- What is it characteristic OF?
- And gamboge yellow is what color?
- “Arterial blood red” – do what, now?
- And, the obvious question – what/who is an “orpiment”?
But I guess we can all agree that the book got it right when it says the color (“colour”) is similar to the “Belly of the Warty Newt.”
the snow day series
Lubbock, Texas
photographed 1.24.2026
*When my granddaughter Hannah was little, she aspired to be a flower-picker. She’s now in college studying international politics, which is practically the very same thing.
road ends
I have a book called Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours*. It was published in 1821, and written by Patrick Syme, who’s described as a flower-painter, which sounds like a pretty good job. If you like flowers. And can paint. And don’t need, you know, money or anything.
It snowed the other day so I went out to get some photos. The thing I noticed mostly was how much orange will stand out in a mostly-monochromatic field of colors; almost all of the photos have a spot of orange in them.
And this is where the book and the photos intersect: just for fun, I’m going to match the various oranges that I photographed with descriptions from the book.
This one seems to be most similar to Colour 77 – Buff Orange. The book says buff orange is sienna yellow, with a little Dutch Orange, and adds that is it similar to the “Streak from the Eye of the King Fisher.”
the snow day series
Lubbock, Texas
photographed 1.24.2026
*The full title is Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours, with additions, arranged so as to render it highly useful to the ARTS AND SCIENCES, particularly Zoology, Botany, Chemistry, Mineralogy, and Morbid Anatomy, annexed to which are examples selected from well-known objects in the ANIMAL, VEGETABLE, AND MINERAL KINGDOMS. Title just rolls right off your tongue. Eventually.
the peace-bringers
I appreciate an unlocked church. I like the silence and the way everything is still, as if waiting for something important to happen. I like seeing the simple things, like the stack of church newsletters on a table in the foyer or the place where the collection baskets are stored when they’re not needed. I like the statues and the saints, and the statues of saints. I like the lighting and the shadows. I like knowing that the place represents local traditions and beliefs, even when I don’t quite know what those may be.
And I mostly appreciate the trust of someone who decided to leave the church open, in case someone needed to be in it that day.
Presidio Chapel of San Elizario
San Elizario, Texas
photographed 12.15.2025
One Day | One Image 