Blog-azic

I'm so over work on the real. My last day was Friday. Goodbye to AmeriCorps! It was a pleasure serving you, America - eliminating poverty and the like - but I must be goin' now. Well I'm on my way. I don't know where I'm going. I'm taking my time but I don't know where. I awoke early this morning before the sun had risen. A faint glow could be seen in the eastern sky and only the most brightest stars were still alight in the sky. I walked off the porch (where I'd been sleeping) and looked for the moon, but the moon had sunk too far west and was blocked by the neighbor's house (the same neighbor who keeps complaining to the city that our chicken coop is on their property). Chris, me roomie, told me of a lunar eclipse, but because the moon wasn't in view, I went back to the couch on the porch and lay down watching the dawn get on. Later in the morning, after I'd been to the bank and the post office to arrange for my impending trip - oh, did I m...

I first heard of the impending rain from Art Gish, a farmer who sells at the market . Later, my housemate told me that it was a storm blowing in. Just as the storm began to break yesterday afternoon, I was on the porch working on a bicycle. The wind was blowing hard and the rain was falling in curtains. "That's worth a closer look," is what I told my friend who was with me on the porch, and I meant to walk out into the storm. I left my shirt on the porch. I walked down the river as casual as was possible. The large puddles that had formed along the sidewalks were as warm as bath water courtesy of sun-baked pavement. The lightening was ripping across the sky and striking the earth, and the deafening thunder that followed told that the storm was right above my head. The rain began to pelt me and sting my skin, so ran over the hill that buffers the river and threw myself onto the slope of the far side. I was now on the east side of the hill with my back to the river. The win...

It was a dark and humid night. Very humid and stiffling. But, even this previous afternoon, an August thunderstorm cooled off these lands. And I sat down by the river stalking ducks. I watched baby herons. Have you ever seen baby herons - two, siblings thinks I - the way they clutz around sometimes? They had just the most trouble trying to stick that landing. And once or twice I saw 'em stumble off the wire. Needless to say, I was amused. But they must've been too. Cause I was sneaking around (grass in my hair, coated in mud, wildflowers for cover) watching them and trying to be smooth. But eventually I just jumped up and left. I munched on Arrowroot Cooks - what a cute baby! - and I was consuming a large amount of one, whole, individually-wrapped - how convenient! - column - that's 15 of the 60 total servings - of vitamin B-enriched flour cookies, and what do I hear but the Oompa Loompas singing over on my neighbor's TV. And do you know what they're singing? What ...

Well, so much has happened since we've last talked. In the first part, I have lost my car, meaning I've no longer an easy way of long range transportation (talking over 15 miles here). I may not have told you this before, but I broke my bike. Yep. It's kind of embarassing to admit it, but I fell off my bike and it broke! I was riding down this real steep hill in Athens (Walnut Street, to be precise), and I was thinking, "Boy, how about that if I fell off this bike?" And I did fall off! I ran into the curb and my bike fell out from under me, and we both slip along the curb! Welll, I had these pretty thick pants on, which help up right well. But, my bike got hurt. It bent its fork, and that's not a pretty thing to happen. Well, the handle bars were all crooked (cause the fork was bent!), and I hobled that thing back to my house and didn't do a thing with it since about two months back. But then a couple mornings ago, my car brakes go out! And, I'm drivin...

Yesterday (and Saturday), I tanned a deer hide under the gaze of Quinn F. ( here ). A beautiful bit of buckskin. I watched the meteor shower from on top of "the Knob." I slept on sheep skin at Toad Hall. I awoke and drove my car down the road to work. On the way, the brake light pops on and I loose pedal pressure! I added brake fluid at the office (it was ghastly low). I'll take it in to have the lines flushed. I'll pray it's not expensive. I will sooner spend hundreds of dollars on a new bike than a costly car repair. Two days of vacation this week. Thursday, collecting materials for a tannic acid bath for a pig's head. Then, MC at the "Dog Gone Days of Summer Dog Show" in Stewart on Saturday. Questions? Comments? Concerns? .... Jokes?

Boy, I must like blogging late at night because here it is midnight and I'm on the computer typing away. Keeping my roommates awake; the rucus of nimble little fingers on a particularly clicky keyboard. But, it's not particularly the night time blogging keeping me awake. I've just been having such a good time in the late night. Last night, for example, I made a cape from an old wool army blanket. It's a pretty neat thing. It's semicircle in shape with another smaller semicircle cut out for the neck. I made the neckhole too big, alas. But, I believe it's beautiful all the same. And, a mighty fine cape. I'll put a hood on that thing, then I'll be ready for the woods. Got my poncho (see Lost and Found ). Got my backpack (see Oh, I've been in a place ... ). Got my sleeping bag (see 'H' is for 'hairy' man ... ). Now I got my cape. I also got bugs on me right now! Some multitude of litte creepers. They bite like fleas. I had fleas once in h...

On the weekend, Matt Presutti rocks hardcore, pouring Celtic flavored melodies from his guitar onto crowds of onlookers sticky with sweat and beer. During the week, he eats lunch at Subway. Matt and I went to the Glouster Subway. I ordered a kids meal, which came in a number 2 plastic bag. An advertisement for Disney's show about a teen pop star, Hannah Montana, filled one side of the bag. It featured a four question quiz to rate my 'pop star-ness.' Alas, I'm not yet a pop star, though Disney assures me 'stardom is just around the corner!' Question number two really did me in. I had to admit that I never wear sunglasses when a true pop star - like Hannah Montana - probably wears them all the time. Even in her sleep. Even when she's developing negatives in the dark room. Even in the Unending Night of Disney, Inc.'s secret, evil black heart . The bag went on to tell me how to pick my pop star name. 'Take the name of your best friend and follow it wit...

So, this past weekend I went up to Knox County, Ohio to get in some real 'dirt time.' Like honing my survival skills and stuff. I was learning about fire. We split cedar. Then, we used hot coals to burn the curve of a bowl in the wood. It is now a cedar bowl. I even ate cereal out of it today. Then, I went with my friend, Travis, to visit his family, mothers and fathers. I may have even met a niece. Those were wonderful visits! Gordy and Cindy were gracious hosts. Interesting people, too. And, they fed me well , which is worth a mention, and maybe more. I also made a bow-drill set from cedar. I've practiced it with more persistance than luck - if you see where I'm going. No coal yet. But, so much more sweet will it be when my luck pays off. And, why should I have to wait? Surely, if I desire fire to burst from my fireboard, by faith would it happen. After three days in the woods, sleeping with only a few blankets and a poncho, I think that I may buy a sleeping bag. Thos...