Christmas Mood

Christmas Mood by Juraj Collinásy. Google Art Project.

It's Christmas Eve afternoon here in Virginia. Family is napping while football is on. None of our creatures are stirring. We're looking forward to the holiday with family tomorrow. I'm taking a break, looking over photos from the past year and past posts to mark the season.

A little over a year ago, I had some talks in Vienna, Warsaw and Bratislava. I was able to see the Christmas market in Vienna and experience some wonderful hospitality in Warsaw. It was a great trip and I was able capture some nice photos of Europe in winter.

In previous Decembers I have shared historic Christmas cards, art from the Library of Congress, photos from Christmas at the White House, holiday lights from the 9:30 Club in DC, and a first snowman. The rain here in Alexandria appears to have passed and I can see a few crazy squirrels try to knock a bird feeder to the ground again, looking for snacks.

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!

Murals in Venice, California

Photo by Patrick Jones. Mural by Jonas Never, Venice, California.

Rainy winter weather in Virginia has me thinking of California. Soon enough, I'll be back out there in January once again. Here is another selection of street art shots taken during our September trip. I previously posted photos from Mar Vista, Venice Boulevard and Santa Monica back in September. The photos in this set were taken during the same day, as part of a long walk. The first four photos in this set are large murals by Jonas Never.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Mural by Jonas Never. Venice, California.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Mural by Jonas Never. Venice, California.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Mural by Jonas Never. Z Boys, Playa Vista.

The fourth photo above technically isn't in Venice, but shows the legendary Z Boys of Venice. Their story can be seen in the documentary Dogtown and Z Boys and film The Lords of Dogtown.

The next photos in this set are murals by artist Rip Cronk. His homage to Van Gogh's Starry Night was painted in 1990 at Venice Beach.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Mural by Rip Cronk. Homage to Starry Night.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Mural by Rip Cronk. Venice Kinesis.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Mural by Rip Cronk. Venice Kinesis.

There's so much detail in Rip Cronk's Venice Kinesis mural. In the center of the mural he's taken Botticelli's "The Birth of Venus" as a reimagined California girl at Venice Beach.

A Blacksmith in Tucson

El Fronterizo, 22 Sep 1888. Tucson, Arizona.

I am returning to the research trail on the family of Ignacia Terrazas. In my earlier post, I had found some news articles based on interviews with Ignacia and family, recalling their arrival by covered wagon around 1870. Her parents, Ignacio Terrazas and Brigida Calles Herrera, were from Hermosillo. These two are interesting, as it looks like their parents have a connection to my Mexican roots in Hermosillo.

Ignacio's parents were Miguel Terrazas and Rosalia Flores. Brigida's parents were Jesus Herrera and Angela Calles. Flores and Calles were the family names of my 5th-great-grandparents from Hermosillo, Joseph Manuel Calles and Manuela Flores. So maybe we're close to a link on the AncestryDNA trail.

Ignacio

Ignacio (also spelled Ygnacio in some documents) was born about April 1842/3 in Hermosillo. He and Bridiga moved to Tucson around 1870. Ignacio set up a blacksmith shop in Tucson. They appear in the US Census in 1880.

1880 US Census, Pima County, Arizona.

Ignacio appears in a publication of taxes for Pima County on 3 August 1883, along with some other familiar names, Jose Salazar, Leonardo Suastegui and Antonio Urias.

El Fronterizo, 3 Aug 1883.

The 1900 US Census entry provides approximate birth dates for Ignacio and family.

1900 US Census, Pima County, Arizona.

Ignacio and Brigida had at least the following children:
- Miguel Terrazas, Feb 1872-24 Mar 1929
- Guadelupe Terrazas, 2 Dec 1876-1 Jun 1955
- Ignacia Terrazas, 31 July 1878-10 Jan 1975
- Antonio Brigido Terrazas, 8 Oct 1880-3 May 1961
- Angelita Terrazas, May 1883-6 Jun 1953
- Sara Terrazas, 17 Sep 1885-
- Francisco Terrazas, 14 Jan 1888-
- Altagracia Terrazas, Apr 1890-

Ignacio died on 20 April 1902 in Tucson.

Happy Holidays 2016

It has been quite a year. Here's our holiday card for 2016. For comparison, last year's card can be seen here. Have a safe and Merry Christmas!

Wat Pho, 1969 and 2016

Photos by Keith D. Jones, 1969.

Back in May, I posted photos from my walk through the Buddhist temple at Wat Pho, Bangkok, Thailand. My Dad had his own visit to Wat Pho in 1969, while stationed in Thailand during the Vietnam War.

His black and white photos captured fascinating scenes from Thailand, often focusing on people more than places. I contrast this with my own photos, which often tend to be places or street art rather than people. An example is below, where my Dad captured a performance during a street festival in Bangkok.

Photo by Keith D. Jones. Bangkok, 1969.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Wat Pho, 22 Apr 2016.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Wat Pho, 22 Apr 2016.