Blog — New Voodou

Picture-Perfect Weekend

After all the recent rains, the the Santa Ynez Valley never looked more beautiful.

place, identityNancy EganApril 15, 2024Central Coast California, Santa Ynez Valley, Solvang, Los Olivos, Buellton, Mission Santa Ines, Ventura CA, Santa Barbara, wine country, vineyards, tasting rooms, California poppies, wisteria, Sunday drives Comments

The Girls

My great aunts Marion and Kathryn left their home and family in Butte, Montana to move to Los Angeles in 1928. A radical relocation in those days and yet they remained in the city for more than 40 years

identity, placeNancy EganMarch 20, 2024Nolan Sisters, Butte Montana, Los Angeles California, Red Car System, MacArthur Park, Westlake Avenue, St. Andrew's Place, Helen Pettibone, Della Liss, John Nolan, Mary Nolan, Butte Park Royal, Palos Verdes Comments

Surrounded by Love

I don’t need a valentine to remind me that I am loved.

identity + narrativeNancy EganFebruary 13, 2024Valentine's Day, love, hearts, family, Ojo Caliente, Houston, Chimayo, heart of stone, love locks, Pont des Arts, Paris, milgro Comments

Station Wagons and Me

After I moved back to Southern California from New York City, I took a quiz that said that my ideal car was a station wagon. Ridiculous, I thought—I was driving a racy red BMW sedan

Uncle Eddy and the Gift of Family

Like Santa he would always come at Christmas.

Wonderland

Like Alice falling through the looking glass, we arrive in a mysterious space.

place, cultureNancy EganNovember 24, 2023Ra Paulette, Ojo Caliente, Northern New Mexico, Cave sculptures, sandstone, Nosa Inn Comments

Archie's Anxiety: Summer 2021

We have a guest blogger here at Practical Voodou. Archie Waters is finally ready to share his story of the stressful summer of 2021.

identityNancy EganOctober 14, 2023folk art, cavapoo, summer 2021, pandemic, climate change Comments

The Boys From Butte

Waiting for the "It's a Small World" ride at Disneyland a young man approached us. "You're Nancy Egan, aren't you?" I had no idea who he was.

place, identityNancy EganSeptember 15, 2023Butte Montana, Ventura California, Disneyland, Grad Night, family, Vietnam war Comment

Becoming Emeritus

At the gala celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the founding of the Society for Marketing Professional Services, our group of longtime members sat laughing and talking like children at the kids table on Thanksgiving.

identityNancy EganAugust 20, 2023Society for Marketing Professional Services, SMPS, 50th Anniversary, AmplifyAEC, Janey Aubry, Howard Wolff, Laurin McCracken, Randy Pollock, Houston Comments

The Garden at Dusk

Slowly the sun slips behind the hill beyond the arroyo.

placeNancy EganJuly 23, 2023Dusk, evening light, garden, reflection, shadows, Santa Fe, summer Comments

Introducing Books

Please visit the new Books page and discover more.

Nancy EganJuly 12, 2023Comment

Everywhere Guadalupe

I have been spending a lot of time with the Guadalupe over the last few months.

culture, place, identityNancy EganJune 17, 2023Our Lady of Guadalupe, Guadalupe, Murals, Santuario of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, red handprint, Tonantzin, Nancy, The Art of Noticing, Rob Walker, @whereslupita, syncretism, Mexico City, Lupitia Comments

Missing Ocean Park

Last May when we returned to Santa Monica for a visit, we were greeted by the same weather that had welcomed me when I moved to Ocean Park 20 years ago.

Della's Decision

Della became a widow on her 35th wedding anniversary. At 58 she was not sure what she would do.

identity, placeNancy EganApril 15, 2023Grandmother, Della Nolan Liss, Tom Liss, Butte Montana, Mary Kay Liss, Jim Egan, Echo Lake, Los Angeles, Barstow, Union Pacific, Chicago World's Fair, Civilan Conservation Corps Comments

Storytellers

My Grandmother would entertain us with her stories. Some evenings, at our urging, she would recite
The Spell of the Yukon by Robert Service, the sad improbable tales of Sam McGee and Dan McGrew.
There were lessons in the lyrics.

The Golden Rollin' Belly

The Golden Rollin' Belly, a pub with British pretensions and waitresses in wench costumes, had opened that summer just in time for the race season at the Del Mar track.

culture, placeNancy EganFebruary 14, 2023Burt Bacharach, Angie Dickinson, Del Mar California, Del Mar Track, horse racing, The Golden Rollin Belly, waitress, jockeys, John Stewart Comments

The Last Invoice

Last December was the first month in over 30 years I did not send an invoice to a client.

identityNancy EganJanuary 18, 2023Consulting, Work, Architecture, Design, Accounting Comments

Hemingway, the Photographer, and the Cheesemonger

As I puzzled over the wide selection at Murray’s Cheese, the cheesemonger asked what I was reading. I said Hemingway's The Dangerous Summer. "Ah, a mahon," he recommended

culture, placeNancy EganNovember 19, 2022Ernest Hemingway, Tony Triolo, Murray's Cheese, New York City, Spain, bullfighting, mano a mano, Sports Illustrated, sports photography, Guy Clark, Hemingway's Whiskey, The Dangerous Summer Comments

Indigenous Peoples Day

While I am not of the culture, I am listening, paying honest attention.

Monsoon Summer

Here in the high desert they say the sky is our ocean.

placeNancy EganSeptember 19, 2022monsoon, rain, high desert, summer, golden crownbeards, santa fe, New Mexico, poplars Comments