The Plight Of The Almost Big Man

                                            Roaming the streets of Dinosaur, Colorado

He was a large man…not especially in height - he was just under 6’1”, so he technically did not meet the standard for “tall”. However, he weighed almost 100 pounds more than the charts stated he should weigh for his height, and even though he was pushing a 38" waist, he was not thought of as fat - he was large, stout, a big man.

His physical appearance was imposing and he was always judged by it. Upon meeting him, most people thought, “I’d hate to get hit by him,” or something similar. 

The thing was, due to the fact that his height wasn't imposing and he did not have the build of a gym rat, it left the impression among a certain demographic that he was challengeable, that he could be taken in a fight if the opponent was a little faster or could get a lucky punch in.

Which meant he was frequently forced into situations that compelled him to resort to physical violence. And he abhorred physical violence.

It had been that way since he was a kid, always big for his age. Back then, on the schoolyard or in the neighborhood, some kid would size him up, decide he wasn't “that big”, and either challenge him or just launch an assault.

That pattern followed him all his life. His ears had heard the words, “You aren't that big, I could take you.” well over a hundred times. And well over a hundred times he had defended himself admirably.

However, those defenses were not without unfortunate consequences. Far from it. Beginning with the very first fight he was ever cornered into, until the last encounter he could remember that had become physical, whenever authority figures intervened he was inevitably singled out and deemed to be the aggressor.

And while on most occasions sufficient witnesses were eventually found who would clear him of any wrongdoing, it was also he who was initially detained, it was always he who was cuffed and put into the back seat of a squad car until “We can sort things out.”

Forty plus years of facing the prejudice of being the big man. Forty years of having to endure being punched in the arm by friends and family as if he was somehow impervious to pain or discomfort, forty years of acting like he actually was.

I knew his story before he actually shared it with me, as his experience mirrored my own. We shared an instant kinship.

His wife was sitting on the opposite side of him next to a friend, and hadn't seen who he had been talking with. When she got up and saw us sitting side by side at the bar she quipped, "You two could almost be twins!"

Just An Iota (Or Maybe Two)

She read, or intended to eventually 

F. Scott and an assortment of 

Other books by dead sots

                         Drove around in a 

                         Mitsubishi 3000GT

Red to match her hair

                         Imagined herself a Socialite                         

                         Like it was 1924

Living without a single regret

Liked to wear

Clothes to accentuate

Men would stare

Desiring to fornicate

She didn't care

Just wanted to stimulate

Make 'em swear

A laugh that could emasculate

Anyone who'd dare

Ask her on a date

                         I gave it a shot

                         One month

Was all I could manage            

                          

                         Impossible to measure

                         How little it meant

                       

                         

They've Taken Away The Fireworks Ma

                                                                 The contraband

They've taken away the fireworks, Ma
They've taken 'em all away
The police pulled up as a Purple Passion was exploding
Said celebrating with fireworks was again' the law
So they've taken 'em all away

It was a cool night, the 4th of July
Got a box of fireworks to shoot into the sky
A few sparklers and a Climbing Panda too
Even got one that sounds like a cannon
Going to set that off while playing the National Anthem

J.D. set off a Flaming Pip Squeak
A shower of sparks in twenty colors
Followed by a loud whistling shriek
A real "oooh" and "ahhh" generator

They've taken away the fireworks, Ma
They've taken 'em all away

They've taken away the fireworks, Ma
They've taken 'em all away

The police explained that the county allows them to be sold
But the city doesn't allow them to be set off
Might have been nice if we had been told
Before we had bought so many Skyrockets to blastoff

Said it was really in our best interest 
And we didn't get a ticket or face arrest
They just loaded up all the pyrotechnics in the cruiser
Told us we could see fireworks from Green Mountain Park
As we sat listening to the booms that made the dogs bark

They've taken away the fireworks, Ma
They've taken 'em all away
The police pulled up as a Purple Passion was exploding
Said celebrating with fireworks was again' the law
So they've taken 'em all away

Cloud City In Green Mountain Falls, Colorado

Green Mountain Falls welcomes you. Seriously, all 640 residents are glad you stopped by 

Approximately 11 miles west of Colorado Springs along Route 24 is the small (very small) town of Green Mountain Falls. This 704 acre town (give or take a few square feet) has, since 2009, hosted the GreenBox Arts Festival.

It's eerie. As I finished typing that I could actually hear voices proclaiming: "What the H-E double toothpicks is the GreenBox Arts Festival?"

 Driving into Green Mountain Falls...a no traffic light required town

I will tell you. The GreenBox Arts Festival is a celebration of new expressions in dance, music, and other creative arts in an idyllic environment surrounded on three sides by the Pike National Forest.

I made that up - but that's exactly what it is. It really is quite nice. 

 
    Split trees form a triangular bench in Mountain Road Corner in GMF

                                                       

                             Mountain Road Corner - look it up here: www.hgmff.org

The Lake Gazebo (built 1888) and the Gazebo Bridge (built 1990)

Green Mountain Falls is Hollywood central casting's dream of a small mountain town. The place is heavy with mountain town imagery - large trees line the lone main street which boasts count-them-on-one-hand storefronts complete with boardwalks; log cabins and Victorian-era homes dot the hills on both sides of the valley, and a couple of rustic lodges (with modern amenities) offer comfortable places to spend a few days while enjoying "The Gem of The Rockies."*

.

 
    The Green Mountain Falls Depot (in use from 1888 to 1923) 

Downtown Green Mountain Falls. 

Back to the GreenBox Arts Festival. I was a little late to that party, as it came to a close today. However, that does not mean my visit was for naught, as the main draw, the big ticket as they say, was still open and would be until July 13th.

                     

Someone who knows how to handle a chainsaw is working in GMF

                                                                                       

                             I can barely get a knife through butter, so this impresses me quite a bit

 Cloud City by Argentinian artist Tomas Saraceno. 

That would be Cloud City, a modular construction of steel, plexiglass, and reflective surfaces that spent nearly seven months on the roof of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York before being hauled to GMF for the GreenBox Arts Festival. 

Now, you may be wondering just why, and how, a town of 640 residents brought an elaborate construction (some reviewers are labeling it a constellation, but it looks much more like a molecule - I'll just call it a construction) almost 1,850 miles (over 2970km), and site-built a foundation for it's display (not to mention flying the original crew that set it up in NY out to set it up in GMF). 

    
                        The juxtaposition is Logan's Run-ish

The answer to that is simple. Christian Kirkpatrick Keesee. Patron of the Arts par excellance. And loaded to the gills. 

Mr. Keesee is chairman of a bank and an oil and gas company, as well as a few other business interests. He is also president and founder of GreenBox Arts...and he owns the Outlook Lodge, a five-star rated vacation destination in the heart of Green Mountain Falls. 

He has residences in Oklahoma and New York as well as GMF, and he appreciates the new and innovative in the arts like nobodies business.

 CRB enjoying the view from the top of the Cloud City

The GreenBox Arts Festival brought Cloud City to GMF because, as the flyers advertising the festival proclaim, "We LOVE Art." Which of course means Mr. Keesee really liked it.

Which is not only commendable, but incredible. This is the true measure of art appreciation. Not government- mandated 1% for art fascism, but a private, community-centered effort to showcase the talent of a creative spirit and give a small town (a really, really small town) a few months of fun and festivities.

To top it all off, it's free to explore - though you do have to sign a disclaimer if you want to walk through it.

 
The mirrors and multiple rooms (16) have a funhouse effect on your orientation            
  
                                                                    
                   Buckminster Fuller would be proud                                                                        

 
             Twenty thousand pounds of steel, glass, and plastic

                It's a jumble, and looks fragile, but it survived Hurricane Sandy on the roof of the MET      

Without a doubt one of the coolest jungle gyms ever 

Cameras and other personal items were not allowed inside the construction as it is easily possible to damage one of the highly reflective surfaces - you also have to put soft slipcovers over your shoes before you can enter.

I truly enjoyed my day in GMF and the remaining hours of the GreenBox Arts Festival. I highly recommend a visit to anyone who has the time and appreciates the environs of a small town with just a little bit of quirk.

GreenBox Workshops & Farm Stand

GreenBox Arts and the Historic Green Mountain Falls Foundation have a lot in the works for tiny GMF. The old GMF motel and the area immediately around it is being re-purposed as a community activities center, which will include an outdoor farm stand and rooms for art classes, community gatherings and art galleries. The final touches are being worked on now, and they include a public sculpture installation.   

Being as how GMF is an hour closer to me than any other mountain town with an active arts community, and is not on the dreaded I-70 corridor, I just might have to make this place my go to getaway.

That is, when I hit the lottery.

*Of all the towns declaring themselves the "Gem of The Rockies," this one is easily top ten.

Order In The Court

"Your Honor," Said the attorney to the incredulous judge
"My client would never dream of stalking his ex-wife
This man has never been able to hold a grudge"
The Jury turned as one to take a look at the accused
With a cast on one arm, his face battered and bruised

"The truth is that woman attacked him without provocation,
When he simply asked her to get out of his life
Does that face look like it is capable of intimidation?"
In the witness box the large woman sneered at the little man
Wishing to herself she had used a larger frying pan

Answering Questions

To Don in Los Angeles:

Yep, I take all the pics, except for the ones I'm in with friends - then I hand the camera off to anybody willing to take a picture

To Serena in Malaga:

I am not particularly smart

I just have a curiosity...about everything

And I love to read

(Because we didn't have a TV until I was 13 and I hung out in the public library all day)

Plus, I have a fairly decent memory (for the trivial)

I can speak a little Spanish, but no, I'm not fluent

To the anonymous Canadian guy:

Montreal and Vancouver are the only two Canadian cities I've ever spent significant amounts of time visiting.

To John in Lawrence, Kansas:

The older homes on Ward Parkway are amazing - I will definitely have to make a return trip to K.C. to get some pics 

To Mrs. L. in Sin City:

Jack Nicholson

To Sara in Boulder:

Yep, twice.

To Andrea in West Covina:

Sure, I like the Stones, The Who, The Kinks, the Beach Boys, - a lot of bands, actually. The Beatles and the Replacements are just the two that I like best and never get tired of listening to.

To Matt F. in Phoenix:

Never taken a steroid, or any PED's, ever. I may not take the best care of my body anymore, but I very much value my health, and always have. Guys who take steroids are killing themselves - vanity is an ugly thing

To Cindy K., somewhere in Canada:

Not in a plane, no...not yet, anyway

To Krista in Florida:

You are correct - I could stand to take a few college-level English courses

To Matt C. in New York:

No, I'm a flaming heterosexual. Yeah, I know everybody has a little bit of gay in them, but seriously, I know what I am.

To Joe somewhere in England:

I have watched European Footy - I have actually been to an Old Firm match - and yeah, it was awesome.

To Shizuko in Japan:

Your English is pretty good. Nope, never been to Japan, or anywhere across the Pacific. Hope to someday though.

To Ayda in Turkey: 

I am not a religious person, but I have no ill will towards those who are unless they use their religion to manipulate, control, or harm others.

Amulets & Omelettes

He liked to rub his fingers
Over the small tear-drop shaped pendant 
That hung from a thin leather strap
Around his neck

             He found it comforting
                  In times of unease
                  In times of stress
                  In times of doubt
                  In times of indecision
                  In times of no coffee

When he was 12 
He found the pendant in a box                   
In the lost and found at Sea World
When he was looking for his jacket

                                                             Discreetly

                                                                 He had palmed it 

                                                            For no reason

                                                             Other than

                                                   He thought it was 

                                                    Cool

A few weeks after it's acquisition

He discovered it screwed open

And small items, very small items

Could be stashed inside

                                     A glittery flake of mica

                                     One fang from a small snake
                                     A curl of a girl's pubic hair
                                     Scales from a fish
                                     The corner of a cancelled stamp
                                     Sand from a beach 

For 23 years he had worn the pendant
For 23 years he imagined it protected him
For 23 years he warded off the woes of the world
For 23 years he believed it kept him safe

             Then came the morning
             He sat down to breakfast
             A three egg cheese omelette
             Four pieces of bacon
             A note from his wife

             Goodbye

Was all she wrote






...P.S. I hate that stupid pendant you wear