PALMDALE MAN LEADS INCISIVE LIFE.Byline: Bettie Rencoret Senior columninst LANCASTER - Dnnis Quiroz is many things: wood carver, master of artistic design, animal lover, Harley-Davidson rider, Vietnam paratroops veteran and Lockheed retiree. But his light shines best as a wood carver. Once, for a friend, he carved an owl with a three-foot wing span. It took 186 hours. He carved an Indian-dominated table centerpiece for his wife, Melveen, and a cabochon-style talisman from ivory. For a minister he created a biblical shepherd's staff: a crook of padded leather with a jewel-centered cross hanging from leather thongs, carved with delicate angels' heads and other iconic symbols. His latest focus is on walking sticks. Each is distinctive. Some feature beaded hand grips of soft elk's hide and minutely detailed designs spiraling down the column. There might be the antlered head of a moose, a mountain lion mountain lion: see puma. , a white tailed deer, a big horn Big Horn is a tall peak in the Cascade Range in Washington, USA. At 2438+ meters (8,000 feet) in elevation, it is the highest point in Lewis County, Washington.[1] Big Horn, one of the Goat Rocks, is the second highest point on the ridge west of Mt. sheep, a bear's claw fetish fetish (fĕt`ĭsh), inanimate object believed to possess some magical power. The fetish may be a natural thing, such as a stone, a feather, a shell, or the claw of an animal, or it may be artificial, such as carvings in wood. , and inlaid in·laid v. Past tense and past participle of inlay. adj. 1. Set into a surface in a decorative pattern: a mahogany dresser with an inlaid teak design. 2. buffalo nickels all on the same stick. Even the eye of a carved eagle's head looks authentic. Each individual feather on an Indian ceremonial head dress stands out. Meticulous carvings the entire length of a stick tell a complete story. ``I like to think carving is a gift from God,'' said Quiroz, ``but it also is an avocation for me.'' All of his myriad works are for sale under the business name Nostalgic Enterprises Unlimited. Quiroz learned to carve as a child from his uncle. ``We lived in railroad shacks all over the country,'' he recalled. ``My mom was always working, but she did the best she could by me and I had a marvelous childhood. I learned a lot.'' Of American Indian American Indian or Native American or Amerindian or indigenous American Any member of the various aboriginal peoples of the Western Hemisphere, with the exception of the Eskimos (Inuit) and the Aleuts. and Irish descent, Quiroz reflects in most of his work a melding of American Indian cultures, which he studied on his travels with Melveen. ``In the early days of the California lottery, I won three times,'' Melveen explained. ``We bought a motor home with some of the money and we went to see all of the tribal territories.'' ``They were wonderful trips,'' Quiroz said. ``That's where I got a lot of my carving ideas.'' The Quirozes live in what was once an ordinary tract house in an older neighborhood on the east side of Lancaster. It's not ordinary anymore. Quiroz has transformed their home and yards into an eclectic version of an early Western town, complete with a carved wood and leather bar inside, and a bawdy bawd·y adj. bawd·i·er, bawd·i·est 1. Humorously coarse; risqué. 2. Vulgar; lewd. bawd  i·ly adv. house outside in the back. His creativity shows everywhere, even on the patio. There a decorated refrigerator stands next to a similarly embellished old range. When Quiroz barbecues for guests, they can watch him wield well-used old iron utensils from his collection that hangs on the wooden stove splash he built. In the front yard stands a small but operational windmill and a wishing well. Blue jigsawed fascia fascia (făsh`ēə), fibrous tissue network located between the skin and the underlying structure of muscle and bone. Fascia is composed of two layers, a superficial layer and a deep layer. boards adorn the roof line and add even moredistinction to the overall effect. ``We think it's the best-looking house on the block,'' Quiroz said. Menus for the week at senior life nutrition sites in Lancaster, Palmdale and South Valley have been announced. All meals include bread, margarine and coffee, tea or milk for a donation of $2. Monday: Chili, corn bread, corn, tossed salad, grape juice, ice cream. Tuesday: Roast beef, mashed potatoes, green beans, carrot raisin salad, Jell-O with peaches. Wednesday: Sweet and sour sweet and sour adj → agridulce chicken, rice pilaf, spinach, coleslaw cole·slaw also cole slaw n. A salad of finely shredded raw cabbage and sometimes shredded carrots, dressed with mayonnaise or a vinaigrette. , banana. Thursday: Baked fish fillet fillet /fil·let/ (fil´et) 1. a loop, as of cord or tape, for making traction on the fetus. 2. in the nervous system, a long band of nerve fibers. fil·let n. 1. , au gratin potatoes, pea salad, marinated beets, apple juice, fruit cocktail. Friday: Roast turkey, bread dressing, mixed vegetables, tossed salad, pineapple juice cheesecake. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Lockheed retiree Dennis Quiroz holds one of the distinctive walking sticks he carves, this one with a Skunk skunk, name for several related New World mammals of the weasel family, characterized by their conspicuous black and white markings and use of a strong, highly offensive odor for defense. Works mascot. Bettie Rencoret/Special to the Daily News |
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