I haven't spent much time adjusting back to life in the U.S. since I've been too busy. Part of 'adjusting" means "unpacking" but that is taking a back seat to everything else going on.

I spent several days driving around Appalachia taking pictures, then spent over a week doing research at the National Archives. That was taking pictures too, since the fastest and cheapest way to copy the documents is to photograph them.

Its been a whirlwind, which is the main reason that Nunal has not inched forward.

I've been taking pictures of the Latino re-creation of social space in Appalachian communities. I found some great images, and, nor unimportantly, got to eat some great food on the way. I think the best taco I had in Virginia so far is at the La Mexicana taqueria in Rocky Mount, which is a little town south of Roanoke. A close second was a taco truck parked in a strip mall in Manasass. The best tamale by far was from Taqueira Gonzalaz in Asheville, NC.

Here is a photo I think perfectly captures what is going on in the South today: Taqueria y Tienda El Rosario, painted in the colors of the Mexican flag, sharing a strip mall in Collinsville, VA with Southern Gun, Inc.



Here is a great Mexican graphic in Winston-Salem. NC




Here are some fake snakehead boots for sale at a tienda in Martinsville, Virginia



And this was interesting to see in Roanoke--a combination Pentecostal church and auto mechanic's shop.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
Americans don't get riled up to protest. Give away billions in taxpayer money to financial fatcats with no accountability--no worries. Refuse to punish war criminal torturers--no problem. The battle cry is...moo. Koreans, on the other hand, live in a vibrant democracy and their political action is a bit more direct. Here is a striking photo of union protesters in Daejeon using sharpened bamboo spears to attack riot police. (an article about the current state of rioting in Korea, quoting a Sogang professor, is here )
Read more

CHAOS WASHING MACHINES

My apartment comes with a washing machine called, imposingly, a Goldstar Chaos Hi Tech Washing Machine. I thought it was a dryer too but that doesn't seem to be the case. Korean apartments have these alleys between the living areas and the outside wall in which clothes are dried. There are sliding doors between the apartment and the alley, and large windows between the bedrooms and the alley. I thought I wouldn't have to use it but if the washing machine is also a "hi tech" drier I sure can't find the right combination of buttons. Not that I haven't looked. I tried to decipher everything with the help of my dictionary and limited knowledge of the hangul alphabet (which includes only a dim understanding of the actual letter order--still working on that). The word pronounced (I think) "saw" is a simple two letter word. But according to my dictionary, it means, "a cow, a bull, an ox" or "dressing, stuffing," "little, few, ...
Read more
Image
In case you didn't see that county map indicating increased Republican voting between 2004 and 2008 before they took it off of the NYTimes page, here is an image of it: This is a fascinating document that I think will be the focus of many studies. Explaining increases only in these areas in the entire country could be very instructive. Andrew Sullivan notes dryly: "Ah, yes, Appalachia and Arkansas. Obviously concerned about marginal tax rates for those earning over $250,000 a year, I suppose."
Read more