Dance Hall of the Dead (1973)

A vernacular expression that indicates a sudden, rapid, and radical change.

The term Pueblo refers to a diverse range of Native Americans living in pueblos in New Mexico and Arizona. These groups share similar world views and historically have participated in intensive agriculture, growing corn, beans, chile, and squash, yet each group is distinct and autonomous from the others. Generally, the Pueblos are divided into two groups: Western Pueblos, who live in canyon and mesa country along the Colorada Plateau, and the Eastern Pueblos, who live along the Rio Grande, a river running north-south through almost the entire length of New Mexico. There are four distinct linguistic stocks in the Pueblo community, including Tanoan, Keresan, Uto-Aztecan, and Zuni, which is a language isolate. These differences suggest that these groups have different origins.

A mind-altering substance that induces a state of heightened awareness and perception, often accompanied by hallucinations. Psychedelic plants such as peyote, which is native to Mexico and the southwestern U.S., were traditionally used in indigenous cultures as part of spiritual rituals, aiding in vision quests or healing ceremonies. LSD, also known as acid, one of the most commonly used synthetic psychedelic drugs, was developed in 1938 in Switzerland, and reached a height in popularity in the 1960s and '70s as the drug of choice of the hippie subculture in Europe and the U.S. A synthetic form of the active chemicals of the peyote cactus, LSD is exponentially more powerful than peyote or other plant-based psychedelics, and is considered a dangerous, illegal substance. Consequently, many other natural and synthetic substances that induce similar effects to LSD have been outlawed by association.

A reference to an outline of, for example, a person's face, or of information. In the second example, the information provided can take the form of a description, a general sketch, or a narrative of events in chronological order.

Traces or evidence in the form of fingerprints left behind at a crime scene.

A ponderosa pine is a large coniferous evergreen tree, with long pine needles, that can grows over 70 feet in height. Ponderosa are found throughout the western United States and in Canada. The tree is easily identifiable by its bark, which is often yellow or red with large plates separated by crevices, making ponderosa bark look kind of like puzzle pieces. Ponderosa pines are generally found in mountainous regions, and in the U.S. Southwest, ponderosa can be found in open, park-like stands above 6,000 feet in elevation.

A technique for shaping a stone edge by pressing, usually with a bone, from the blade edge in toward the "cheek," or the thicker part of the stone being sharpened. The pressure applied to the edge pops off small flakes of stone, narrowing and sharpening the cutting edge being created. The object being sharpened is then flipped over to work the same edge from the other side.

Pressure flaking is intended for refining, not beginning, a sharp edge in stone.

Prayer plumes are feathers that are attached to prayer sticks for a variety of rituals, ceremonies, and devotions specific to a number of pueblo and Southwestern tribes, including the Zuni and Hopi. These feathers are usually fastened with cotton string to a short stick, ranging between 6- and 12-inches in length, that is also painted with very specific patterns and colors depending upon the ritual or prayer being performed. The prayer sticks, decorated with their prayer plumes, can be placed to mark a sacred site, or are left as offerings and signs of appeasement. Sometimes, the term "prayer plume" is used interchangeably with the term "prayer stick" and its Hopi translation, "paho."

To think about or plan in advance, signifying conscious intent.

A degraded and eroded spot in the road caused by the combination of standing water and the friction of passing vehicles. Potholes develop in areas where the engineering of the road bed is faulty and permits water to accumulate on the surface or to seep into and collect under the road surface, softening the road and making it susceptible to damage from passing vehicles.