No Escape. (This morning going to work.)
Drifting out of the fog and onto the median
a thin woman draped in a red blanket,
wearing baby blue tights,
eyeliner and mascara running in black streaks down her face.
Lost looking, dazed, she crosses the street,
circles slowly in place in a gas station.
The light turns green, I pull away, craning my head
to catch one last glimpse
of her simply standing there.
A sign on a beauty shop next to a liquor store
boasts 100% natural Indian hair
and I wonder about an Indian woman
who shaved her head, perhaps her daughter’s head,
standing in a marketplace, a kitchen, maybe a field,
fresh white scalps and deep brown skin.
Recent Clay.
Dimpled Bottles. Glazed stoneware, cone 5, wheel thrown. 5″ height.
Dimpled Bottles, detail.
Squared Bowls. Glazed stoneware, cone 5, wheel thrown. 10″ diameter.
Water Bottles. Glazed stoneware, cone 5, wheel thrown. 8″ height.
Big Head, detail. Glazed stoneware, cone 5, coil built. 39″ height.
Morning.
Awakened to hints of smoke and morning stirrings-
the clinking of pots, water pouring, coffee being prepared,
cypress branches drooping beneath an overcast sky.
I stretch, expand lungs,
greeting the morning light
from my bed on the forest floor.
Dive Board
Exiting the water after a one hour shore dive, I’m halfway back in when I hear a boat approaching. Turning around and treading water, an over 30′ boat comes tearing through the kelp beds that I was spearing in only 10 minutes ago. That could’ve been bad.
Time for a dive flag and float. I’m really impressed with the Banks Board, but it’s essentially a $200 boogey board float. So rigged this up:
I glued in some threaded PVC for the flag mount, zip tied a cargo net on, and connected my catch bag. I flipped the leash plug so the rope is on the bottom and connected a clamp to the leash for a kelp clip. I haven’t been anywhere that I couldn’t use a kelp clip as an anchor so I’m not worried about carrying a weight just yet. It holds all of my gear for the approach and I’ve rigged a set of backpack straps for climbing/long walks.
I like the added security of having this as a float, especially when going solo. At least I’ll have a sort of “home base” in the event of cramping, tiring, etc.
And I have a flag so I don’t get run over.
Sweeping the Garden 