092503

 

Arcata, CA

Thursday September 25, 2003

     9:45am  I just woke up in the barn and everybody is here. I want to get a group picture when everybody is awake. I'll show you all the people who crash at the barn.

                   I took the group picture at 10:16am.  

     11:11am  We are walking to The Endeavor. It was badass. I had a little story time at the barn. I told my story this morning to people who really, really wanted to listen to me. This girl Randi and this black dude who just got into town yesterday, Jonathan. Hehe, Jonathan has an afro and looks like Buckwheat. Man, it was awesome having my little story time in the morning. I had an audience and it was great. I got the idea that we should have a new person or groups of people crash in the barn and we'll tell them, "Hey, there will be story time in the morning." Awesome.

     12:00pm  It's noon. The sirens just went off. I had a good lunch. Chicken soup with all this rice and a big muffin. This girl gave me some of her cake, too. I'm going to come out here and see if I can bum me up a cigarette.

     12:04pm  Seven just hooked me up with a cigarette. I appreciate it, brother.

     12:49pm  Ian, me and some other dude were walking over behind the bank and we saw this big hippie bus getting busted by the cops. They're going to search them.

                     About the kids in the bus. The cop said he smelled marijuana and another cop showed up with a drug-sniffing dog. They found an eighth of weed and told them, "Oh, that's all you got?" They just gave it back.

     1:05pm  At the Endeavor Ian came up to me and asked me, "Hey, you want to go smoke a joint?" I told him sure and we walked down the street towards 7th street, on the other side of the highway to smoke a joint.

     1:34pm  I just took a picture of Brian and Ian. 

 We just smoked some marijuana on the other side of the highway. We are going back to town now. I deserve a donut, hehe.

                  While we were walking back up towards the plaza I pass Brandon at that bus and I ask him to repeat the story into my recorder. Brandon: "The cops show up. They were being dicks because they smelled a little marijuana being smoked. So they checked everybody's pockets. They found an eighth here and an eighth there in people's pockets. They gave it back to them saying it wasn't worth busting them with. So then they send in the search dog thinking they were going to get a pound or something. They found a pipe with a brand new bowl in it. Fresh-packed. He puts it in his pocket, comes out and asks, "Anybody got 215(medical marijuana)?" One of them did, so he hands the loaded pipe to the dude and we just smoked it here in front of the cop shop. I talked to the cop and told him, "Bro, if we had pounds of pot in this bus, it wouldn't look like this(all rainbow colored)."

     1:45pm  I told Katie my platform and she gave me her email.

                   This guy is giving me directions to a gathering: "The Quicking-Aspen camp right past Camp Nelson in the Sequoia National Forest. If you go East on Route 198 off of 5, it should take you right to the road that goes to Camp Nelson. You go past it, to the next one. There will be people all around to tell you where to go."

     1:50pm  I just realized that it sucks that I lost a whole week of history because I didn't have my recorder, but it serves as my chance to catch up on my typing, finally. It just gave me a little boost to catch up. Now, great things are happening to me because I am working on it some more. I'm being rewarded.

     2:03pm  I'm at the donut shop again and this idiot just walked by. I asked him for change and he said, "Excuse me," and stood closer. I asked him if he could spare some change for a donut and he said, "Oh, I don't give money out." I told him, "It doesn't hurt to ask. Thanks anyway."

                   That sucks. I didn't realize that tape had run out and it wasn't recording anymore. Last time I made an entry was like 2:03pm. Let me try and recap. I decided I was going to hitchhike to Eureka to go to Northern Mountain Supply to price some new boots. I walked over to the on-ramp, over by Porter Street BBQ and U-Haul. I stood out there for like half an hour and finally this hippie van drove by. I had my thumb out until he got close then I gave him the peace sign, "Thanks anyway." He pulled over and I got in with my stuff. The dude all lived in his van. He spilled some coffee while he was driving and had me squirt some water into his hands to clean it. He dropped me off in Eureka.
                   I walked around asking people for the Northern Mountain Supply store. I got there and talked to the young girl at the cashier. She was really helpful. I showed her my boots and told her I was trying to replace them. She recommended I try Picky Picky Picky, the army surplus store in Eureka. She looked in the phone book for the address, 600 E Street. I walked over to Picky Picky Picky and spent a long ass time in that store. I love army surplus stores. They didn't have my Brahma boots and the cheapest ones I would actually wear were sixty dollars. But, I've come to the conclusion that I don't want to get new boots yet. Even though the sole of my left boot is almost broken and not waterproof anymore, I'm going to try to make it back to San Antonio with these same boots. Then, I'll go work my ass off at the telemarketing place in San Antonio and buy me some new ones. And, I want to get the exact same kind of boots I have now. Brahma is the brand, the model is Commander IV. I'm going to try to do that. I changed my mind about boots. I mean, I could spange up the sixty dollars. I was going to go to The Endeavor and asked Rosendo how much they could help me out with towards new boots, but I changed my mind about that, too. I can still keep going on these ones.
                   I walked all the way up to The Raven House hoping they would be open. I forgot they close on Thursdays and Saturdays. So I went to the usual hitching spot right before the Northbound ramp to 101. All the cars were backed up, it was like rush-hour traffic. I stood there for like thirty seconds before this dude pulled over and let me in. It sucks that I don't have their names anymore. This time it was some young dude. I told him my whole platform on the way up here. He asked me if he could bum a cigarette.
                   Oh yeah, right before I walked to The Raven House, while I was walking towards The Raven House, I saw some guy not even smoking a cigarette in a parked car. I walked by and asked him if he, by any chance, could spare any tobacco. He said sure and hooked me up with three Camel Wides. I told him what I was going to do and he scooted over in his car and told me to sit down. He was going to listen to me. I started telling him my stuff and his wife showed up. I cut it short and asked him if he had an email address. He gave me his sons and I'm going to follow up on that. Then I walked all the way up to The Raven House. It was closed so I walked to the place where I hitchhike and before I knew it I got a ride from this guy. He took me back to Arcata. I told him about what I planned on doing and he was all, "Too bad I don't have a bowl to smoke with you." When he dropped me off in the plaza he told me, "If when I swing back by I have a bowl to smoke, I'll smoke you out."
                   I still hadn't taken a shit all day, so I came up to the bathroom on the third floor in the Jacoby's Storehouse and I'm taking a shit right now recording myself. I just patched up that gap of lost time. It really happened. I hope you guys believe me. Alright, I'm going to finish taking a shit and see what happens next. I'm going to get another donut, hehe.

     5:49pm  Charmaine has been generous enough to give me some change for a donut. I appreciate it, sister. Shweet. Charmaine gave me $1.20!

     6:21pm  I'm reading my Third Wave book here at the donut shop. On page 359 at top it says,

                   "What we cannot find is "the" cause of the Third Wave in the sense of a single independent variable or link that pulls the chain. Indeed, to ask what "the" cause is may be the wrong way of phrasing the question or even the wrong question altogether. "What is the cause of the Third Wave?" may be a Second Wave question.
                   To say this is not to discount causation but to recognize its complexity. Nor does it suggest historical inevitability. Second Wave civilization may be shattered and unworkable, but that does not mean that the Third Wave civilization pictured here must necessarily take form. Any number of forces could radically change the outlook. War, economic collapse, ecological catastrophe come immediately to mind. While no one can stop the latest historical wave of change, necessity and chance are both at work. This, however, does not mean we cannot influence its course. If what I have said about positive feedback is correct, often a little "kick" to the system can bring about large-scale changes(I'm going to kick the shit out of the system, hehe).
                   The decisions we take today, as individuals, groups, over governments, can deflect, divert, or channel the racing currents of change. Each people will react differently to the challenges posed by the super-struggle that pits advocates of the Second Wave against those of the Third. Russians will respond one way, Americans another, Japanese, Germans, French, or Norwegians in still other ways, and countries are likely to grow more different from one another rather than more alike.
                   Within countries the same is true. Little changes can trigger large consequences - in corporations, schools, churches, hospitals and neighborhoods. And this is why, despite everything, people - even individuals - still count.
                   This is especially true because the changes that lie ahead are the consequences of conflict, not automatic progression. Thus in every one of the technologically advanced nations, backward regions struggle to complete their industrialization. They attempt to protect their Second Wave factories and the jobs based on them. This places them in frontal conflict with regions that are already far advanced in building the technological base for Third Wave operations. Such battles tear society apart, but they also open many opportunities for effective political and social action."

                   Later on, on page 361 it says,

                   "We are left with only one option. We must be willing to reshape ourselves and our institutions to deal with the new realities. For that is the price of admission to a workable and decently humane future. To make the necessary changes, however, we must take a totally fresh and imaginative look at two blazing issues. Both are crucial to our survival, yet all but ignored in public discussion: the future of personality and the politics of the future.

                   To which we now turn..."

                   After page 361, I am already on the Conclusion to this book.

                   Page 366 says,

                   "There is a harassed, knife-edge quality to daily life. Nerves are ragged, and - as the scuffles and shootings in subways or on gas queues suggest - tempers are barely under hair-trigger control. Millions of people are terminally fed up.

                   They are, moreover, increasingly hassled by an apparently swelling army of heavy breathers, kooks, flakes, weirdos, and psychos whose antisocial behavior is frequently glamorized by the media. In the West at least, we see a pernicious romanticization of insanity, a glorification of the "cuckoo nest" inmate. Best-sellers proclaim that madness is a myth, and a literary journal springs up in Berkeley dedicated to the notion that "Madness, Genius and Sainthood all lie in the same realm," and should be given the same name and prestige.

                   Meanwhile, millions of individuals search frantically for their own identities or for some magic therapy to re-integrate their personalities, provide instant intimacy or ecstasy, or lead them to "higher" states of consciousness."

                   On page 370 it says,

                   "Families should be encouraged to take a larger - not smaller - role in the education of the young. Parents willing to teach their own children at home should be aided by the schools, not regarded as freaks or lawbreakers. And parents should have more, not less, influence on the schools.
                   At the same time much could be done by the schools themselves to create a sense of belonging. Instead of grading students purely on individual performance, some part of each student's grade could be made dependent on the performance of the class as a whole or some team within it. This would give early and overt support to the idea that each of us has responsibility for others. With a bit of encouragement, imaginative educators could come up with many other, better ways to promote a sense of community."

                   I stopped on page 373. This book is getting really, really good. I'm getting excited, because I'm reading all this stuff that I will hopefully trigger. Like I've said, the instructions have been here for a long ass time. When will we ever learn?

     7:15pm  I walked over to the use the phone at Round Table Pizza by the Safeway. I'm going to call Issa. I just saw Mark again. He told me there was some band playing at The Alibi around ten. It's some local band. I might go check it out. Mark is a guy I met walking back from Freshwater. He was stopped on the road and I told him my stuff. I had just broken my tape recorder, so I didn't log it. I'm going to use the phone. After I smoke a cigarette.

     7:22pm  Geba came up to me in the plaza and said, "Oh, so you're going back to San Antonio soon?" He asked me if he could go with me. I told him sure, if he wants. He said, "Will you be my road-dawg?" I told him I wasn't sure, that I keep thinking that I have to do this by myself, but I wouldn't mind some company, I guess. Anyway, we are walking to find Kirby. We walked past Round Table Pizza, where I have a phone at my disposal. I called Issa. She told me she had just broken up with her boyfriend and had been crying her eyes out. I told her if she needed a shoulder to cry on, that I was there for her. I told her about how I have a cool barn to sleep in and she said she wanted to check it out one night and crash there sometime. She told me to call her Sunday night and we might have a big sleepover at the barn. I asked her if she was going back to Berkeley anytime soon and she said, "I don't know. Maybe afterwards." So, I might be getting a ride back to San Francisco after Sunday. So, I have some plans. I have some short-term goals. This is awesome. I'm loving every bit of this.

     8:10pm  Scott just gave me some change for beer. I appreciate it, brother. Everybody gets credit in my game.

     8:11pm  I got the strangest wanting for a beer, I don't know. I just want to shoot one down real quick. I'm going to stand outside the donut shop and spange for a beer.

                  Got fifty seven cents so far.

     8:17pm  Gigi has been gracious enough to hook me up with some change. I appreciate it, Gigi.

                   Shweet, Gigi gave me $2.60. I'm going to go get a beer.

     9:11pm  I went and bought me some alcoholic apple juice(Hornsby's Draft Cider). I'm all drunk from my one Hornsby's. I barely drink at all. I just got smoked out by these guys. They were new to Arcata and I took them over by that place by the Co-op where we smoked yesterday. They got a motel room in Arcata and I told them about the barn. Home sweet home. Afro Jonathan is chilling with us, too. Now, I'm going to go smoke this cigarette on the sidewalk by the bars and see who I talk to.

     9:25pm  I'm walking to the barn.

     9:40pm  I'm at at the barn. I don't think anyone's home. I'm going to open up the Community Chest 

and get my poncho out. Cool.

                   Holy shit. I just realized I lost my pocket calendar! I had so many new email addresses in there that I didn't log. Damnit, this sucks. I need to get that back. What the hell did I do today? Damnit, it's because I drank that alcohol, shit.

     9:45pm  I, I gotta go back into town. It's still early. I need to backtrack where I've been tonight. I just listened to my recording. I took those kids over to the place by the Co-op to smoke weed. After that I got a . . umm, I don't know if I got a donut or not. I think I just came to the barn. So, it might be where we smoked out at.

     11:00pm  Let's see. I had just left the railroad tracks on the way to town to try and find my pocket calendar. All of a sudden, I saw Benson and Hannah. I don't know, I had been meaning to ask them when they had gotten together. Because the first couple of days Hannah had been squatting with Flip. Then it seemed like Benson and Hannah were together, like they hugged and kissed and stuff. Oh yeah, I saw them and they had some other girl with them, Allie. Allie is really cute. I told Hannah and Benson about how I lost my pocket calendar and had to go look for it right then. Benson told me, "Well, we were about to smoke a joint by the railroad tracks." I looked at my watch and it was like 10:30pm. I told them, "Okay, the night's still young. If my pocket calendar is out there, it should still be there after we smoke. Let's go."
                    We went to the railroad track, sat down and smoked some weed. Hannah had told Allie about everything I was doing and Allie gave me a great big hug for my efforts. I was pretty stoked. Allie is hot. I'm playing with the idea of asking this girl if she wants to help me write history.

     11:15pm  Victory is mine!! I got my pocket calendar back!! It was at the place where we smoked weed earlier, by the Co-op. I knew I came back out here for a reason. I almost didn't, because I wanted to go hang out and talk with that girl, but something pulled me back out here. It was there waiting for me. Thank you, Love.

                     You have no idea how good it feels to find something that's been lost when you're blind as a bat like me, without any glasses. Oh man, that's awesome. Whoa shit. That's a rush. Well, I'm going to go log my new addresses at the school tomorrow. That was the sign for that.

                    When I finally walked back to the barn everyone was crashed out, but I walked in and said, "Found it!" anyway. Ahh, I'm going to sleep great.

Next day..