El Paso: Upson Rooms for Men

Upson Rooms for Men, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

 

May 2017


When I walk downtown from my place in Sunset Heights, I usually take the route that carries me past the Upson Rooms for Men.

Upson Rooms for Men, El Paso, Texas. May 2017.

It sits on prime downtown real estate, on Prospect, just behind the Scottish Rite building and adjacent to a vacant lot.

I'm sure someone is waiting for the right moment to capitalize on the property.

In the meantime, I'm happy there is affordable housing for some folks in such a grand location.

An optimistic resident planted a garden in front of the building.

Upson Rooms for Men, El Paso, Texas. May 2017.

Upson Rooms for Men, El Paso, Texas. May 2017.

"Is It Worth Going to ...."?

A most excellent day in Gardabani, near Rustavi, Caucasus Georgia. March 2012. Photo courtesy of Eva K, who was part of that remarkable day.

On travel forums, I cringe when people ask if a place is "worth" going to.

Vakhtangisi, how many km to Rustavi, Caucasus Georgia. March 2012.

And on the other side of such a question is the response from self-appointed experts who rush to reply that, no, a place is not worth going to.

Music venue in the Lupus Garage, Lupus, Missouri. October 2013.

Or worse, when they offer such advice, unsolicited, to an individual expressing interest in a particular destination.

Antelope Wells, New Mexico. March 2013.

For example, touring the historic Route 66 (the Mother Road) in the U.S. is a popular draw for foreign tourists. But invariably, when these folks announce their Route 66 itinerary plans on a popular travel forum, a passel of Americans jump up to gleefully proclaim it's not "worth" doing the Mother Road because "there's nothing there." Which is false, of course.


Obviously, if you seek something very specific, it makes sense to know if the size and caliber of your specific something exists in a potential destination.

Columbus, New Mexico. April 2013.

But if you are:

• Looking for generally good travel experiences;
• Open to adventure;
• Observant; and 
• Flexible ....

... then just about everywhere is worth going to.

Cemetery in east El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

Like these:

• Gardabani, Part 2: Men in Black
• Lupus, Missouri: The Chili Fest, Part 3: Before You Die
• Columbus, New Mexico, Part 1: You Mean There's More Than One Part? Are You Kidding?
• Keshalo: A Tiny Adventure

El Paso: Black History Parade

El Paso Black History Parade, El Paso, Texas. February 2017.

February 25, 2017


The sky was a blue that spoke of Delft candles, blue plate specials, true blue.

It was the day of El Paso's Black History Parade. The link to the left has better photos than I do. Take a look there.

El Paso Black History Parade, El Paso, Texas. February 2017.

Wiggly-waggly china berries distracted me on the way to the parade.


A gentleman bore a magnificent cane.

El Paso Black History Parade, El Paso, Texas. February 2017.

Princesses and queens presided over things, waving to appreciative subjects along the sidelines. A tender quote from a pageant contestant, Desiree Anderson, via KVIA: "This is a great opportunity to love ourselves."

I saw a number of Junior ROTC units.

El Paso Black History Parade, El Paso, Texas. February 2017.

El Paso Black History Parade, El Paso, Texas. February 2017.

In fact, there was such a strong presence of military youth units, it provoked questions about recruiting disproportionately low-income students of color as cannon fodder.

But is that necessarily true?

2014: The Poverty Draft? Exploring the Role of Socioeconomic Status in U.S. Military Recruitment of Hispanic Students. A small study that focuses on high school students in the Rio Grande Valley. Authors: Jessica Lavariega Monforti and Adam McGlynn.

2013: Uncle Sam Wants Who? From Foreign Policy. Author: Rosa Brooks.


Also, El Paso has several military bases around it, therefore, a large military population that includes active, inactive, and retired folks.

So maybe it's logical that there'd be such a large visual presence of Junior ROTC units at the Black History Parade.

But just to be contrarian, I did also notice that the majority of the girls in the student military units didn't carry guns; gun-carrying fell almost exclusively to the boys.

I even asked one of the Junior ROTC advisors, in effect, "Why do so few girls carry guns"?

His first response was to correct me on my use of the word "guns" and to use "rifles" instead. And then he added something about how, well, they're working on that, or something.


A slide show below:

Juárez: Fourth Date: Dancers and Photographers

Dancing in Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico. February 2017.

February 2017


All of my dates with Juárez here. 


I tapped my toes to the tunes of the dancers in the zoot suits of the 1940s, pachucos.

Dancing in Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico. February 2017.

Dancing in Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico. February 2017.

You come, too:

Then from another era, another dancer:

Dancing in Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico. February 2017.

A continuation of my visit to the Museum of the Revolution on the Border

Museum of the Revolution on the Border, Chihuahua, Mexico. February 2017.

The museum devotes a room to photographers, both professional and amateur. When I use the word "amateur," I don't mean trifling; I mean a person who is serious about their photography, but does not derive their livelihood from it.

Museum of the Revolution on the Border, Chihuahua, Mexico. February 2017.

I like that the museum curators included a photojournalist who was a woman. 

Museum of the Revolution on the Border, Chihuahua, Mexico. February 2017.

Museum of the Revolution on the Border, Chihuahua, Mexico. February 2017.

A very young photographer also received recognition:

Museum of the Revolution on the Border, Chihuahua, Mexico. February 2017.

When you look at the bent heads of the photographers, their focus intent on a screen below them, does it remind you of any behavior in our current times?

El Paso: Sunset Heights on Prospect and Yandell

Entrance to Sunset Heights via Yandell, El Paso, Texas. October 2016.

October 2016

One October day, I struck out for a visit to Segundo Barrio. On my way there and on my way back, I catalogued some of the architectural sweets on Prospect and Yandell Streets in my neighborhood, Sunset Heights.

On my way down in the morning, I took Prospect Street.

On Yandell Street, Sunset Heights, El Paso, Texas. October 2016.

Oh, how I love the building above. Its low-to-the-ground profile pleases me, its brick-red color cheers and warms me, like thick chili with beans in the fall. The taupe highlights satisfy. The park benches, the sculptured trees soften angles. This is a human abode. It is a place that recognizes the spirit in us.

On Prospect Street, Sunset Heights, El Paso, Texas. October 2016.

On the way back home in the afternoon, I came up Prospect.

On Prospect Street, Sunset Heights, El Paso, Texas. October 2016.

There are houses that impose. 

On Prospect Street, Sunset Heights, El Paso, Texas. October 2016.

They are handsome.

I love them, too.

A slide show below of Sunset Heights. 

All of my posts related to Sunset Heights here.

El Paso: Sunset Heights: Yellow Bird of Paradise

Yellow bid of paradise, Sunset Heights, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

April 2017

Around the corner from my place is a low-slung, butterscotch adobe house that's easy to walk by without noticing, but when you do notice it, you think, "Gosh, that's a pretty house."

I pass it most days when I go to continuing ed classes at UTEP. 

Yellow bid of paradise, Sunset Heights, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

One late April day, the flashy yellow and red tree in the house's side yard called me over to say, "Hey, I am one good-looking tree, am I not?" And I said, "Oh yeah, you are a handsome one. Can I take your picture"? And like a Georgian, he said, "But of course!"

Yellow bid of paradise, Sunset Heights, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

Yellow bid of paradise, Sunset Heights, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

Yellow bid of paradise, Sunset Heights, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

El Paso: UTEP: Sun and Grace

UTEP campus, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

April 2017

I've been taking continuing ed courses at UTEP for a time. The campus is only a couple of blocks from my place.

My route includes a walk through of the Chihuahuan Desert Gardens, which delight. Below are other views of what I see along my walk to classes:

UTEP campus, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

UTEP campus, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

UTEP campus, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

UTEP campus, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

UTEP campus, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

I love how the architectural promontory above makes direct eye contact with El Paso's sister city, Júarez. It's a recognition of the blood we share, our intertwining histories, cultures, economic health, love, tragedies, joys, griefs. It is a namaste.

UTEP campus, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

UTEP campus, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

El Paso: Remember. Reflect. Respond.

Temple Mount Sinai, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

April 2017

Places and numbers

Poland: 17
Slovenia: 12
Hungary: 11
Germany: 18
Burma: 1
Czech: 1
Belgium: 4
Austria: 6
Lithuania: 5
France: 1

The nations and numbers above represent women and men with bone and sinew, love and grief, and refuge and loss, and mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, daughters and sons, dear friends, homes, and ways of life gone and recreated.

They are the survivors who made new homes in El Paso during and after the Holocaust, and who died since. 

Temple Mount Sinai, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

Sunday, April 23, 2017, was about: Remember. Reflect.Respond.

Temple Mount Sinai, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

Temple Mount Sinai hosted the remembrance.

I know the numbers and the nations that I cited at the top of this post because there was a slide show that commemorated each Holocaust survivor who made their home in El Paso, but who has died since moving here. I counted the nations.

Temple Mount Sinai, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

Bystanders and Upstanders

In looking for some of the references noted during the remembrance (such as the book, If This Is a Man, by Primo Levi), I found this 17-lesson course offered by Facing History and Ourselves.

The course title is Decision-Making in Times of Injustice.

The explanations of 'bystanders' and 'upstanders' grabbed my attention immediately:

" ... bystanders play a far more critical role in society than people realize: “Bystanders, people who witness but are not directly affected by the actions of perpetrators, help shape society by their reactions....Bystanders can exert powerful influences. They can define the meaning of events and move others toward empathy or indifference. They can promote values and norms of caring, or by their passivity of participation in the system, they can affirm the perpetrators.

"... Facing History uses the term “upstander” to describe individuals, groups, or nations who, when bearing witness to injustice, decide to do something to stop or prevent these acts from continuing."

View from Temple Mount Sinai, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

There is a Holocaust Museum in El Paso. It includes a page that introduces us to some Holocaust survivors who made El Paso their new homes. You can watch some of their stories online.

Temple Mount Sinai, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

The congregation chose a most magnificent site to build Mount Sinai Temple. Atop a hill, when you stand outside, you can look across the basin, to the mountains, to the horizon, to eternity.

View from Temple Mount Sinai, El Paso, Texas. April 2017.

What kind of bystander am I to be? Will I be an upstander?