Elysium Map of Bygone Days

ElysiumMap

 

I was going through my hard copy map file and found several interesting items, including a USGS map of the Willow Springs region dating from the 1930’s. And this map, which a few of you may recognize.

 

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Backwards In Came I

“Writings of a Mrs.” is to blame for this. She provided an example on her blog. The assignment was to write a backwards poem of a sort. Is it here. I mean, here it is.

Upend the bucket I, and
from the grass swarms
water up, pink all.
It catch I the bucket in.

Inside go I, then, backing.
The bucket from
the sponge take I, and smear
the water pink the floor upon–

Red, all red now,
turns the floor,
And soon into him back
seeps the blood.

Stands he. Face unslackens his.
Down looks he the knife at,
Swiftly, it from him I pull.
Fearful grows his face.

The blade wave I and
angry so becomes he.
My knife away put I, and
“Here doing you are what?” asks he.

But too late it is? Doomed are we.

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Dreaming

I dreamt last night of a friend of many years ago. Lost in an unending labyrinth of offices like those we worked in once, I made my way to more familiar territory and looked for him among the people there. Some seemed like him, at first, but a closer view showed them to be strangers. As I searched, it came to me that I’d not seen him in a long while; hadn’t I heard that he was dead? No, that couldn’t be. Then I recalled this waking world where it was so. He’d died in a far off place a decade ago. As I left the maze, I found it hard to breathe. I wanted to find someone to help, to tell them of the great loss that had finally sunk deep into my heart.

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Gratitude List

1. Community college courses
2. JIH, instructor
3. Anne Wayman
4. Groxy, mentor
5. computers
6. puzzles
7. words
8. Peggy
9. Joe Tomasi
10. mysteries
11. libraries
12. librarians
13. movies
14. books
15. wood
16. my Saturn
17. my house
18. WRH’s house
19. swimming pools
20. Silver Sneakers
21. music
22. my high school
23. freedom
24. retirement
25. comics, esp. Dilbert
26. my 22″ monitor
27. my mom & dad
28. old photographs
29. the internet
30. my Panasonic shaver
31. Lois and what she created
32. Ojai
33. writing workshops
34. experience
35. polystyrene foam cups
36. car clocks that work
37. cheap cell phones
38. A morning at Summerland
39. hot water
40. SCNA
41. Open Office
42. anonymity
43. H3PO4 for my arthritis
44. writer friends
45. program friends
46. Wayfarer’s Chapel
47. St. Anthony’s Chapel
48. health
49. paper
50. magnets
51. mementos of my father
52. mementos of my mother
53. chess sets
54. grass
55. botanic gardens
56. tea
57. coffee houses
58. restaurants
59. plays
60. long reach stapler
61. nuts
62. dark chocolate
63. Christmas licorice
64. marzipan
65. See’s
66. Chinese food
67. my publisher
68. superglue
69. my Swiss Army knife
70. Xacto knives
71. my Mototool
72. massage
73. my doctors
74. letter openers
75. real letters
76. fudge
77. Celtic music
78. Celtic art
79. Art Nouveau
80. Maxfield Parrish prints
81. Salvador Dali
82. Frank Lloyd Wright designs
83. my paper cutter
84. acrylic paints
85. my color printer
86. flip flops
87. disposable paint brushes
88. cordless mouses
89. Skype
90. Digital photography
91. Incandescent lightbulbs
92. DVD players
93. astronomy
94. fireworks
95. art fairs
96. woodworking tools
97. pencils
98. Pepcid
99. fireplaces
100. patriots, old and new
101. interlibrary loan
102. spellcheck
103. free online dictionary
104. garage door openers
105. engineers
106. antibiotics
107. glass
108. JRR Tolkien

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