things the way they are

back up and out, find new music and make it too.
we got the who-man funk society laying down grooves.
I'll post em soon.
as well as the photos, videos, music and everything else that goes
with ten days of travel.
here is an adventure for your picking:
eugene, packed up, got a ride to edge of town
highway 126
1 ride with les to noti
and a ride with wes to walton
and a ride with spider and liz to florence, south jetty, hike into the dunes
no rain, just sun, hiking through the trees, finding a bed
of pine needles
and pine cones covered in lichen
hike into the dunes
two stories high sound of frogs chirping if you walk amongst them
and hold perfectly still
for five minutes
they begin to chirp down the line
first far away, then sweeping towards you
until they engulf you, all around you, below you
but you can't see them
and dinner of cooscoos, beans, onions, tortillas
cooked in our open air shelter
it rains at night, we stay warm and dry
hike out of dunes
ride with teo to north bend
hike through north bend
through coos bay
damnarewe tired
stop for coffee in north bend, no other stops
until we're south of coos bay
a run down, industrial coast town
that voted bush but shouldn't have voted at all
should have just done it
they'd be better off
no ride, needless tosay
still no ride, its dark and raining hard
so we hike into town, to the lazy j
a motel that burnt out a while ago
and has since been stripped of everything of value
with only one small mamageers apartment left unburnt
we find a room, with boarded up windows so we can turn on the light
cook up falafel and hummus, tortillas
chill out and play the guitar in our dry motel room that didn't cost a cent
only some common sense
if you want bread, ask for it
if they won't give you bread,
take it
the next morning, got some coffee and a donut
and fresh outlook on life
raining
coos bay sucks
two hours later
we get a ride in the back of a pickup
jack rides up front
dropped off at the side of the road south of bandon
slow going
we are getting dumped on, but we have good rain gear
cept jack didn't pack rain pants
woman pulls over
three seconds into the ride
she has medical and wants to share
a lot
fifteen miles later, port oroford, battle rock
we are deployed
baked
into a tempest
60-80 mph winds
rain
move, move, move, get to shelter
we are good at this
and we stay dry
fifteen minutes later we are back at the hitching game
hoping the sympathy factor will weigh in
nope
we decide to hike the eight miles up the road
to camp in a costal rain storm
and as we shoulder our packs
a car pulls up
tiny lady from New York
first time onthe west coast
rental car
how are people this good?
we drive with her to Ashland, but in crescent city
are forced to decide, continue south or go to ashland
hard choice
south equals redwoods
coast is slow going though
ashland equals i-5 and quick, maybe our only
access to Davis, the big CA, the great valley, SF and everywhere else
coast means redwoods
we go to ashland last minute because my phone doesn't have service
and I can't reach mickey to ask him
yeah, a fork in the road
in ashland, we find a hostel
dry room, washer, drier, bed, kitchen, dinner of wicked burritos
hike through town, drink a beer in the park and take photos at night
next morning, hike out of the hostel towards edge of town
a long long way
jodie and casey drive by in their red VW bus
they drive right past
holy shit, some friends we have
they come back
they are going back to eugene
too much rain
and they have a van
they drop us off at the south i-5 exit in A-town
a man who believes he is moses
with out a great nation
is going to shasta
read mount sianai
and trying to hitch a ride
he gives us an earful
explains why jesus is lord
and our morals are declining
doesn't believe in free speech
and doesn't like hip-hop
but speaks his mind
and doesn't get a ride
I bet they could tell
they'd get an earful
We wait and wait and wait get lots of empty cars with CA plates
nothing but smiles and waves
but an a-town man is southern bound
and he teaches drama in the highschools
loves shakespeare
and is going all the way to SF to visit his wife
we pile in, talk the tempest
and prosperos lot
when every chance he has to use his power
instead he sets people free
and forgives the greatest misdeeds
we pass mt shasta long before moses even gets a ride
and there is no such thing as a great nation, sorry 'god'
read father, only father, and four thousand years of wars
but I think you might have been wrong
and he drops us off on the UC Davis campus
we walk four blocks on auto pilot
right to 400 atriums way apt. 420
nobody there
we leave our bags and walk out
light on our feet
past the co-ops, into there gardens, meet eric
and get an invite to a potluck
we go to find food to bring
it is located in an empty meeting room several hours
after a catered event
damn fine breadsticks, and a whole shit ton of them
we return to co-ops, meet many good people
and eat a good meal
then mickey calls and we head to his place
the next day we explore the Davis, Coy visits
brings Home Work with him
the sequal to shelter
holy shit is it cool
also returns my glowing hack, fixed and better than new
I don't know where coy came from (well, actuall, the big CA)
but holy shit, I think he could be
bob crane
and he is buying his ticket for the burn next week
worried that there is no room for his bus
we reassure him, there is no space limit on the playa
remember
and his bus is coming
we talk about the camp
he wants to broadcast radio
pirate media theme
zine production, book binding, film screenings, radio station
oh yeah, and donuts and coffee
the next day we go dumpster diving
find reject papers from the davis paper
rainbow news
and we meet spoon
who went to highschool with us
but we didn't know her until we met on the street
in Davis, CA
Mickey finishes his final
we go out to a party with his physics friends
good peeps
we dig the times
walk home through an endlesss field
run through the mud and leave tracks forever
no frogs here
the great valley
the next day we check out the craft center, the physics building
learn that gravity and acceleration are impossible to distinguish
from eachother
in an elevator at least
unless the theory of general relativity applies
the next day we sit around and play video games
ahhhhh, spring break
then its off to SF at sunset
Jenny takes us all to her rents house and the sunset
over the bay and the bridge
we leave berkely on the bart, down to SF
we won;t fit on the cable car so we walk
for blocks and blocks
to the warf, past the maritime museum, past ghiradelli
to fort mason
the hostel jack recommends
its big, expensive, but we're sick of walking
free breackfast too
we cook a wicked dinner of falafel, hummus, asparagus
then walk to the golden gate bridge in the evening
this town is dead at night
and damn are these expensive looking houses
we are exhausted
we make it to the palace of fine arts
play my guitar in the dome
holy shit
walk back
the next morning we meet jenny and mickey in the afternoon
at the SF art institute
nice place on lombard
but ritzy neighborhood, ritzy school
not my thing, but damn cool
we are treated to a 1930 diego mural
the building of a city
and access to a collection of student hand made books
pretty damn sweet
then out the door, across town, down town
to SFMOMA
$6 bbut jack sneaks in
and we see all the works from class
johns, rauchenburg, oldenburg, judd, hess, gonzalez, bechel
and some new, unexpected and brilliant
mickey says they look miserable
I have to agree
if you don;t know where they are coming from
a museum is no more art than
the smithsonian is science
just a fancy display case
the real thing is much better
the museum is the pornography of the art world
and the gallery is the brothel
the street with the people and the air and the action
and the breath
and the reality, the access, the universal, stripping of hierarchy
is the tantric ecstasy of a lover
be here now
and then we get to berkely
meet Jenny's parents at the pyramid brewery
and have a good beer or two or three and fine food
holy shit, I can't believe these people exist
I was always told that strangers are dangerous, distrusting and best avoided
these ones fed us and gave us spirits
to hit the bart, head back to downtown SF
where dave is waiting with a ride into the sunset
we drop off our bags and then the car
its a long walk back to our bags
but we fill it by climbing trees, running through the neighborhood
staring at powerlines
and we don;t see anyone the entire time
not a single person
I can't believe this town
we check out Saint Ignacius College Prep
these children are definitely not left behind
they have a huge cross and a sphinx watching out over them
the next day is saturday
and the SF bay area anarchist bookfair in golden gate park
we get b-fast and walk down there
thanks for the meal mick
and the fair is bustling
lots of crusty punks
and little old ladies reading fighting for our lives
we meet Ward Churchhill
completely unexpected
a castle of a man, a fighter
with a deep voice and dark sunglasses
bill oriely ought to watch the fuck out
I wouldn;t want to be on Ward's shit list
and John Zerzan, the older guy with short grey hair, a thin build
a well-kept beard
who eats at sweet life all the time
with cute old ladies
who knew they were talking the ends of the world
I introduce myself as the roommate
of the guy who serves you coffee
and a fellow enjoyer of the sweet life
and to Ward
I'm sorry the university cancled your speech
another hint that maybe this is just the upper class
job training
rat race pit stop
he wasn;t surprised
and wouldn;t deliver the smae speecha s the one he
gave in golden gate
holy shit is he a good speaker
spoke of the law, and our need to enforce it
pretty brave to give to a bunch of anarchists
says its a crime that we are given tickets for running red lights
possession of less than an eigth
not wearing a seatbelt
riding a bike without a light
etc
when the federal government openly defies
laws that the whole world got together and agreed upon
like no pre-emptive strikes
or production of nuclear arms
or distributing weapons to third world countries
our fueling civil wars by providing the technology to dictators
or drug trafficking
or making biological weapons of mass destruction
read blankets of small pox, genocide
and nobody is arresting them/us
which laws do you think we should prioritize?
and at the end, we find a ride
the next day we will meet Joanna in Richmond
she'll pick us up at the bart and we'll help her drive
her pick-up back to Eugene
and pay some for gas
and damn ain't that fine
so that night we walk back to the sunset
stop for sushi
because we been walking for hours and we're famished
we see the menu number one
three dollar maki
that's cheap
we order from menu two
prices obscured
and order nine rolls
these don't look like no three dollar rolls
but we feast
the check comes
we accidently ate sixty bucks worth of sushi
we spend as much as we spent on a nights lodging
and it is well worth it
accidents happen and they make our lives
worth living
and then on to sunset
we're beat
we hit the sack
and in the morning we're up and out
to the l-line
to city center
to the bart
transfer at 12th ave in oakland
to berkely
downtown
walk to campus
anarchist conference, forums
we attend one, I speak up and feel good about it
we break into the berkely art dept through and open window on the second story
jack runs down and lets us in the door
we wander the halls
scope the program
not too inspiring
kelsey says the people matter most
I agree
but these facilities suck
out the door, back to hang out with the anarchists
fun people because they just do it
and we meet dave again
damn, this guy is rad
goes to the oregon country fair, works the spoken word stage
right by the front entrance
and sells water cress in berkely for 11 bucks a pound
drinks some english ale that is damn fine
tells many a story in one long breath that never stops
we are late, gotta split, but hey
first share this spliff
and take a pic
we run to the bart
transfer one time
miss one
call joanna
its fine, she can't find
the bart station anyways
when we arrive in richmond
the rain is pooring down
and she is in a minivan with her eighty year old parents
joanna, you told us you were giving a ride
to three good little jewish boys
not hippies
she lied
and her parents are great, they feed us a feast
entertain us
and send us on our way
in the ford ranger
the trip back is chill
joanna rides in the back seat
of the extended cab
works her way through four beers and gives jack and I the other two
jack rides in back and sleeps, thinks, chills
Joanna drives first, then cracks a beer and lets aaron take over
he pulls a long shift
we pull into grants pass
don fills the vehicle with gas
and then offers us a smoke of his medical
this old hippie found a loophole
and he's milking the shit out of it
wow, I love grants pass
my turn to drive
shit
I make it to roseburg
where we decide to make jack ride up front
for the last leg
I make him drive
we can;t believe we are approaching eugene
and we're in eugene
its early in the morning/late at night
we pull up to the casa
and brent welcomes us home
to a trashed house
who cares
we're home
and damn life is fine

home

generally seems to be an area of controlled circumstance
and predetermined variables
get a lot done? yeah
have a lot of fun? yeah
and a journey uncomparable
because we set course with the guidance of chance
home