After filling our bellies with shrimp gumbo, red beans and rice, and a catfish sandwich respectively we had done little rock proud and took off for Memphis, "put on my blue suede shoes and we boarded the mini van, touch down in the land of the delta blues, in the middle of the pouring rain....now we're walking in Memphis..." home of Graceland and country music we had followed I-40 all the way from the Mojave desert to Elvis land. We thought we were just in for a treat of southern style Ethiopian food, which, with greens, beets, sweet potatoes, we felt even closer to home. But, Ethiopian wasn't the only treat on our oversized plates. The van started shaking so violently as rolled down Poplar st. we knew it couldn't just be Memphis's many pot holes, we remembered 2 years earlier, how we cruised off the highway in Dallas innocently looking for the Botanical Gardens and ended up coasting into the Dodge Dealership only to buy a new CV joint for our cracked axle. It felt like that, so we were worried, we also hoped we'd make it to the garage with all 4 wheels ON the van. We pulled in the parking lot and i look at the passenger wheel --- it is peeling apart,m flapping really, wire mesh all frayed and looking gnarly. MMMM. We're lucky in many way, but today it was because we made it to a tire shop without a blow out and that a tire was all we needed for now. All our relations.

We dipped south, through Tupelo, Mississippi ("Sean I'd say the best ones came form Tupelo, Mississippi," that's from the same album that song "I would walk 5,000 miles and I would walk 5,000 more just to be the man who walked a thousand miles to fall down at your door," was on, i cant remember who they are now, but they sang about Tupelo to my delight and continued musical performance.) Onto Alabama and on the track to Hotlanta, GA (where the girls wear them daisy dukes).

songs of freedom

where we're going, where we've been

we thought we'd never get out of California, no matter how many miles we put on the car, we were still in this sprawling land of promises. but we did finally pop out into Arizona somewhere on the other side of the mojave desert. we welcomed the sight of ocotillo and chaparral, the small fish hook cacti poking out ominously in between the shrubs. we braved the blizzard in flagstaff, took photo booth pictures, and collected the sticky winter buds of poplars in Beaver Creek. We stopped over in Albuquerque to eat bad food and watch the Oscars (the company was better than either). We messed with Texas and I sang Roger's and Hammerstein's musical all the way through "O-K-L-A-H-O-M-A, Oklahoma OK!" let me tell you "the wind comes right behind the rain" is a true statement here. we "slept" in a wal-mart parking lot and though we would blow away with the tumble weeds, i expected the car top to be gone in the morning, the whole van was a rockin'. Onto Arkansas, where the wind was slightly less hard core and I promptly began the next musical, songs from Big River: "Arkansas, Arkansas, i just love old Arkansas, i love my ma, i love my pa, but i just love old Arkansas" ... and "look out for me old muddy water, your mysteries are deep and wide," we scanned the mighty Mississippi but there were no signs of huck, jim or the nonesuch. We camped in the ozarks and knew we'd made it east at last: wild yam vines clasped smilax canes in the oak chuff. we hiked along the Piney river through the deciduous forest looking for fossils, surrounded by ferns.

Now we're on to little rock which makes me sing "i've got just one small problem in Little Rock (pause) without you, baby I'm not me...." I don't even know who sings that song, but i wish i would hear it on the radio.

NOTE: sararouse just informed me that the title and author i am looking for is Little Rock by Raye Collins

happy birthday gigi (and VERY belated micah)

www.gigandmic.blogspot.com
check out their travles in chile

herbal gurggle meets bumblebee crown king

so much snow in flagstaff!



rose, meghan, neilio and me
blog cross communication: www.bumblebeecrownking.blogspot.com

family sausage operation

kathy, amanda and amy with the little links


ron tries his hand at the pump

california bay

a huge bay tree, also called pepperwood trees here.



the fruit of the bay tree, looks like a baby avocado, it even has a flavor reminiscent of unripe avocado and a strong essential oil flavor. Not too bad if you were starving. Most of the bay leaves we use in cooking are imported from Eastern Europe, but there are bay trees everywhere here, begging to be thrown in your soup.

"i'm gonna miss you gulfwend." -taber dog

cutting up the deer

another serious bit of retroactive posting....

herb pressin' it.
reishi tincture trickling out of the press

happy birthday khandro

making dreams come true

went drift boating on the eel river and caught a 14 pound steelhead on roe. she just came from the ocean to lay her eggs. catch and release; safe and sound.


some call him crimedog

Got Bovine Growth Hormone?

Ahhh Fox News...Unbelieveable. What's in your milk?

happy 30th to alex vittum

look how much he's grown!

drop it like it's hot

through the bathroom window


douglas fir



tiimmmmmberrrrrrr

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