My Own Private Monticello

We were packed into our rental car, blazing through Monticello, Ga. when we passed this sign. And I'm not sure why, but it kicked off this train of thought in my head about how, being human, you're always that babe in the woods. Clueless. The instant you think you have anything figured out, you plunge deeper into the labyrinth. You look around - everyone's trying to figure out the basic questions of existence and coming up short. So damn many have desperation in their eyes. And among the most desperate are those claiming to know some kind of magical way out of the predicament. Only a few seem at peace. And what's their angle, anyway? Do they know? Are they resigned? Faking it? Are they stoned? The whole thing is fragile and quaking...and then north of Monticello it started to rain cats & dogs.

Running Sap

Since Holiday was born, I've become more of a reader than a writer. Less of a song & dance man, if you know what I mean. Sometimes I look out my window and the clouds are spilling lightning bolts all over earth. Other times, I go out and everything's a dewy hydrangea.

Pine Mountain

Last week we - all four of us - traveled to Georgia, where we bedded down in this quasi-mystical Pine Mountain cabin for a few nights and visited with family before heading to the upper Piedmont, playing Highway 61 Revisited the whole way. Not visible in this foto: The Japanese magnolias erupting hyperbolic purple. And the climbing wisteria. And daffodils-a-go-go. Even some burning azeleas, too.

It was good to be back home.

March Self-Portrait II

The classroom I teach in on Monday nights has a very fancy overhead projection system. This is me goofing around with it after all the students have left for the night.

March Self-Portrait

This is me trying out my tunnel vision simulators. With these on, it's easy to not see The Big Picture. Useful applications? None that I can think of.

Bluebird

Avocado Juice

A couple weeks ago, Eleanor & I combined sweetened condensed milk with fresh avocado - a recipe for "avocado juice" my man Roger brought back from Thailand. The results were surreal.

Snow Bollocks

A few weeks ago, during my morning walk to work, I happened upon this anatomically correct (and disproportionately endowed) life-sized snowman in the park. I laughed about it, then went and gave counsel to my fellow man.