Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Local calendar. Names and figures.


The school-year's about a month-old down here...
and as usual, by now kids are coming to school with late-summer colds and runny noses...
and eventually the teachers catch it as well.

So I'm at home this morning, sitting here with a faithful box of kleenex at my side...

Before the school-year started, one day we drove by Saguaro National Park's eastern district, which edges up to our part of Tucson. Their newsletter included the native calendar--how the local tribe, the Tohono O'Odham people, call the months.

Here we go, then...I'll start with now.

September
Wasai Gakidaj Masad
(month of dry grass)
avg. high temp.: 94 degrees; avg. low temp.: 67 degrees
Bats and hummingbirds preparing for early October migration; activity increases.
First-year juveniles must gain strength for first long flights to wintering grounds to the south...


October
Al Ju:big Masad
(month of planting frost-hardy squash)
avg. high: 84; avg. low: 57
Cactus wrens begin to build winter nests in cholla cactus...

November
S-ke:g S-he pjig Masad
(month of pleasant cold)
avg high: 73; avg low: 45
Ocotillos produce new leaves within five days of winter rainfall...

December
Ge'e S-he:pjig Masad
(month of big cold)
65/39
Desert mistletoe bearing fruit...

January
Gakimdag Masad Masad
(month of depending on stored foods)
64/38
Succulent plants filling up with winter moisture...

February
U: walig Masad
(month of mating deer)
68/40
If the winter has been rainy, desert wildflowers, such as Mexican gold poppies, begin blooming...
This is also the month of "Festival de los Vaqueros,"
or 'rodeo'-time. Tucson schedules one of its school-vacations for this long-weekend...

March
Ce:dagi Masad
(month of new plants coming up)
72/44
Brittlebush blooming; beetles appearing...


April
Uam Masad
(month of desert in bloom)
81/50
Gambel's quail begin mating; snakes active if the winter has been quiet...

May
U'us Wihogdag Masad
(bean-gathering month, time of hunger)
89/57
Nocturnally-flowering cacti in bloom, including saguaro and night-blooming cereus...

June
Ha:san Bak Masad
(saguaro-fruit-gathering-month)
99/67
New saguaro-fruit ripening, falling to ground--harvested to eat and make wine...

July
Jukiabig Masad
(month of rain)
98/74
Desert toads croak at night to attract mates...

August
Sopol Esabig Masad
(month of short planting)
97/72
Barrel cacti, asters, morning glories, devil's claw, trailing four-o'clock all blooming

...
And now for a few more, non-calendar, figures...
Demographics gleaned from this morning's paper:

One in five Arizona adults was born in another country.
Hmm....I wonder where--
The Census Bureau really had to spend lots of data-crunching time
to figure out that 2/3 of these come from Mexico?
Borderlands...
About 1/3 of Arizonans classify themselves as Hispanic.
Statewide, however, only 25% of the population says they speak Spanish.
Among the foreign-born AZ residents, (who number about 900,000) 85% speak Spanish,
and only 157,000 of them say they speak English very well.

2.2 million AZ adults were born in the state. 3 million were born in a different state. 70,000 born outside the country but born as citizens. 273,000 foreign-born, but naturalized US citizens. 655,000 non-citizens.

"Locals" are a minority.

I saw a bumper sticker the other day--it read "Leaving Tucson? Take a friend with you."

Nice. The driver of the vehicle, though, wasn't looking too 'native'...




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