Blog Archives
discomforting
For some reason, I have the idea that these fishnets would be particularly uncomfortable in the, uh, southern region. It’d only cost a buck and a half to find out, but I think I’ll save some money and just go with my initial assumption.
El Paso, Texas
photographed 12.14.2025
dial tone
Just next to this pay phone there was a sign that said BEWARE OF DOG. The sign was wired to a chain-link fence that had sheet metal panels part of the way up. There was also a dog who was not the least bit happy to see me: he barked and snarled and hurled himself into the sheet metal with such force that I thought for a minute he was going to break right through them. He didn’t do that, but he was able to look over the top of them glare/snarl at me.
Anyway, if I’d gotten in trouble* the pay phone would not have helped me one bit: there was no dial tone, possibly because the dog had gnawed through the cable as part of his dental hygiene process for keeping his teeth nice and sharp.
Fabens, Texas
photographed 12.16.2025
*When I see dogs that I don’t know, I will always assume their Short Range Plan(s) include eating one or more of my legs for a snack. Not that I’m overly dramatic or anything…
faded glory
I really like the way the various shades of red have faded into the same pink shade; red’s sort of a fade-y color (as anyone who’s had a red car can tell you) and is certainly no match for the intense desert sun.
Clint, Texas
photographed 12.15.2025
joel died at the border wall
My friend Don and I went to see the border wall. It was emotional and difficult, more so than we’d expected.
So today, on Christmas, I would ask that you spend some time with this image, some time thinking Joel Gonzales and his family, some time thinking about how those of Christian faith are specifically called to feed the hungry, to give water to the thirsty, to provide shelter to the homeless, to give clothes to the unclothed. And then reflect on this powerful sentence from the book of Matthew: “Truly, I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.”
San Elizario, Texas
photographed 12.15.2025
PS: You might want to read this post.
for lo, the days are hastening
Christmas Eve. It’s Christmas Eve.
I won’t lie: this time of the year is hard for me to get through. I struggle to hear vapid music without making comments (You: that damn drummer boy. I am looking RIGHT AT YOU when I bring this up.) (As an example of a comment that I’d like to make.) I am still not over the exact mathematical allotment of Festive Holiday Minutes™ per family that my in-laws tracked (and were so, so kind let us know when we were deficient.). I miss my mom, who died 20 years ago next week. The days are short which makes me feel bleak.
But. I have a million good memories of my mom and I have a loving family. No one (so far as I am aware) tracks my time allocation. We’re past the winter solstice so the days are already getting longer. And these verses from “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear” help me see the beauty of the season even through all the things that don’t feel happy or kind or joyful.
Yet with the woes of sin and strife
The world has suffered long
Beneath the angel-strain have rolled
two thousand years of wrong
And man at war with man hears not
The love song which they bring
O hush the noise ye men of strife
And hear the angels sing
And ye, beneath life’s crushing load,
Whose forms are bending low
Who toil along the climbing way
With painful steps and slow
Take heart for comfort, love, and hope
Come swiftly on the wing
O rest beside the weary road
And hear the angels sing
So today I will take heart for comfort, love, and hope; rest beside that weary road when I need to; and will listen for the angels singing (hopefully with a drum accompaniment).
San Elizario, Texas
photographed 12.15.2025
One Day | One Image 