Goodnight, Tim - Wherever You Are

November 16 - Tim's birthday. 


My poem for his birthday on our old blog platform - it turned out to be his last birthday in 2006 - his 52nd.  He was, like his hero JFK, a fatalist who raged against the dimming of the light.  He always believed he would die young.  He did.

When you rob the cradle in your 40's
There's no need to worry about teething biscuits
There's lots to chew on with a political scientist
Who knows a thing or two
About philosopher kings and steppenwolves
And tenderness and mating the queen
And Yes and streetlights that go out
And synchronicity abounding all around
Impressionism met realism with a cubist twist.
He anticipates every hidden eddy of the river
And knows all my undercurrents too
My full moons are reserved for a lifetime
Happily.
 
Happy birthday, my Tim.

When I watch this YouTube I made as some kind of therapeutic exercise, I think of being on the other side of so many of the pictures in this video - I am thankful for the miracle of digital photography - both for its instant gratification and its not insignificant role in my delight in chronicling all our adventures.  I see now what I saw then through the lens.

It's still difficult to write about him.  I've tried.  It's still very raw.  But with pictures and music, I am soothed and remember through a sampler of our moments together how much I still love him.

Douche of the Decade

"The world is not fair, and often fools, cowards,

liars and the selfish hide in high places. "

~Bryant H. McGill

I sometimes wonder when someone is going to write the definitive book "When Good Things Happen to Bad People."  Karl Rove deserves his own chapter for an intelligence devoted to exploring the Dark Side of the American psyche.

Karl Rove is Watergate's Donald Segretti gone rabid.

Whether steering the American Titanic that was George W. Bush's political career or making out like a bandit as a paid Faux News pundit and chicken circuit speaker at GOP functions, Rove the cynical opportunist has found his version of the American dream.

Equinox

My favorite season is here at last. 
The early-now nights a little crisper,
The trees prepare to launch the pirouetting leaves,
Between sun and shade, the illusion comes
Nature's ironic wink - recycle and replenish

My illusions are more obvious
Solitude approaching holidays tumbling one after another

Is this a reminder of endings or beginnings
The conflicting colors of autumn
The greens yielding to reds and golds and then muted earthtones
Influence my dreams
I think of you.

This season of our birthdays
Of manic election years memories
Of drives beneath a glowing harvest moon
Removing the car top
The last hurrah tbefore the grey rains come to stay
Passion's last play before hiatus

Autumn, you are my favorite child.

Cris 9-22-10

 Earworm for today:  Tim's favorite autumn song by Justin Hayward of the Moody Blues - an oh so poignant memory of concerts and long talks and longer moonlit drives:  Forever Autumn

Blog Photo Credit:  Anthony Dunn, Photographer  - Bidwell Park in Autumn

Boomer Retirement Tuesday

Today we held a special lunch for a whole batch of newly minted retirees.  The traditional Chico bbq trailer  for the tri-tip was wheeled in along with barrels for roasting many chickens.  Veggie burgers had been prepared and huge bowls of salad and beans along with grilled garlic bread were spread out in a now vacant section of the building which is now used as a yoga center and workout space during off hours.

It was a perfect late summer day for lounging on the grass, visiting with old friends and contemplating endings.

Budget constraints, groaning workloads...all that was forgotten for a bit as our City family gathered to wish these compadres all the best.   There you would find the police chief, officers and dispatchers, the Mayor and a few Councilmembers, the street crews, the planners, the City Manager and Assistant, the engineers, the finance folk, the attorneys and legal staff, fire personnel, human resources and risk managers, housing and neighborhood services staff, building inspectors, code enforcement officers, the urban forester and park rangers and a few babies and toddlers mingling on the lawn, reminiscing or chasing balloons. 

The visionaries and the pragmatists who populate my work-world.  My second family.

I contented myself with snapping my camera madly and experiencing this day through a focused lens - it seems to help me deal with losses.

These retirees are irreplaceable, although their work remains and will be spread throughout the ranks.  Tough times in the public sector.  The need for public services remains, no matter how thin the staff.

After lunch, I prepared for a City Council meeting that evening.  So it goes.

To my comrades at arms about to embark on the next adventure, here is my video homage and my parting advice:

Happy Trails and Enjoy!

PS - I am so jealous.