Beyond the mighty Humboldt
Where the Artemisia blooms,
The broken ribs of mountains
Lie tilted toward the sky.
‘Twas called a wretched wasteland
That Satan, himself, passed by;
Where no self-respecting bird
Would stay if it could fly.
Its rivers are pretenses,
Called navigable by law.
Thirsty dragonflies may wing
Thirty miles to find a spring.
Nature gave it acne skin,
Best summed by this report:
“A most paltry stretch of earth;
Ugliness of no import.”
Miners dug just short of Hell
In search of bonanza lodes;
And found the gold and silver
To fund Mister Lincoln’s war.
Battle born, the Silver State
Lent much to the Union cause.
The Union will pay its debt,
With Yucca Mount’s toxic load.
Living on mama’s dollar,
Living on papa’s dime,
Living in hard times,
Playing card games,
Paying no mind to squalor,
I get high on crime,
And when the pocketbook gets thin
I’m still a bawler,
Because I’m living on mama’s dollar
Living while papa’s doing time
In the 9 to 5
While I dispatch rhymes
And whine about paradigms
How do you expect me to survive,
When I’ve never been deprived
Humboldt State University, 2014
I Remember the night we met
Austin Texas. Halloween.
Neither of us in costumes.
Falling oh so quickly, oh so foolishly
Love sprouting , flowering jubilantly
A delicate dance of
Intertwining stems, soft leaves, silken petals
Me……...dread locks , patchwork pants
You…... long brown hair, unkempt auburn beard
You had that favorite tie dyed t- shirt you
liked to wear.
We married one year later
Halloween
I remember spiraling autumn leaves
dancing auspiciously
First day of spring,
tears falling from your eyes
new baby struggling to breathe
I remember her tiny hands, her olive skin
I remember Humboldt county where the redwoods kiss the Ocean
New baby strapped to back,
ferns reaching out over our heads
I remember West Yellowstone, camping in the snow.
Canvassing at Old faithful.
How many times do we watch it blow?
Three years unfolding …...
We birthed another baby .
Sweet rosy cheeks
A ray of sunlight in our forest of unknowing
Mostly I remember you midst the ferns,
where the redwoods kiss the shore.
And that tie dyed t- shirt you liked to wear.
On a blustery winter night my loved one comes to dine.
The table is set for two in front of a cheerful fire and
a candle flickers in delight beside one perfect yellow rose.
I greet my love with a kiss and a glass of Napa Ridge Sauvignon
Blanc. We sit for a while and enjoy fig and Humboldt Fog
goat cheese crostini, while we sip the sweet nectar of the grape.
Soon it is time for me to serve a salad of grilled romaine with bacon and
cherry tomato vinaigrette. We enjoy our quiet conversation while
listening to a compilation disc I made of some of his favorites…
Chopin piano sonatas, Billy Joel ‘s Uptown Girl, The Phantom Of The Opera
and a few selections from an old Beetles album.. Now the entre,
Lamb Chops with a garlic and mustard crust, haricort verts in browned
butter and potatoes gratin . With our entrée we splurge on a bottle
of Screaming Eagle Zinfindel..A bit later I bring out a huckleberry tart
with homemade vanilla bean ice cream.
It was an an evening of culinary delight, made truly special by being with
the one that keeps me safely in his heart.
leave me tomorrow,
kiss the door outside
take a flying Zebra for a Butterfly
why stayin together
in a crystal-clear Stupidity
with green and pink arrows
meant to create a Galaxy of Hope
somewhere
between two black cats
(obviously family)
leave me tomorrow
stay out of Africa
let it be
remove your yellow toothbrush
from My Eternity
face the Mockingbird better than Humboldt did:
(second confirmed nesting in country ever)
an Adult is just an altered Kid...
Majoring in school as a biology chemist
Melanie finds joy conducting experiments
Taking full time units at Butte College
Learning, studying, gaining knowledge
Not surprised if her thing for frogs and tortoise
Came from having to dissect them on purpose
Hours spent in the lab looking for an answer
Maybe one day she’ll find a cure for cancer
Her wit is dry, amusing to her friends
Joking about chemical smells on her hands
Her expressions, delivery, timing are superb
Her humor is unique like nothing ever heard
Friday night, band practice is heaven
Playing bass guitar with Dani and Kevin
Close friends on Sunday’s gather for lunch
Downtown café, champagne brunch
Go Green is her mantra, her life legacy
Earth conscious and clean is her tendency
Protect the environment, always recycle
Choose to not drive, ride a bicycle
At twenty two, she wants to have a voice
Humboldt State is her college of choice
She loves nature, living among the trees
The rain, the mountains, falling leaves
Her future looks nothing less than great
Able to work long hours and stay up late
Her gift is her humor, her mind, her resilience
She has what counts, wit and brilliance
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