Small Things

Fall in the air. A little squall line ran through, this afternoon, and the temps dropped noticeably. The breeze is cooler, rather than that stifling blast of hot air that makes it so hard to breathe when it's 95 degrees or above. Found an unlikely but genuine source of excellent firewood today. Had to go pick up the keys for D's rental so he could leave early tomorrow to pick up art in Cincy, and drove by our board chairman's headquarters outside of town. Plumbing, wholesale and retail in three states, and they have a side yard that is filling with pallets. Some of these, that commercial heating and air units come on, are eight feet long, with two inch slats of hardwood. Firewood you can cut with a circular saw is much safer. I had seen these before, but never knew where they came from. The bottom members, to which the slats are attached, are 4x4 oak. This could be good. I have enough Osage Orange, bone dry now, to split out maybe a hundred pieces, two each for the fifty nights I need to bank a fire through the night. It's still so hot I ran the air-conditioner for a hour when I got home today, and I'm starting to obsess about firewood. I have a small library of recipes that I've book-marked for next winter, though I won't follow the actual recipe, just the idea of the thing, whatever dish it was, interests me. I must make a trip to Columbus, because I need some things. Lemon grass and squid, some seaweed, a couple of other things, in a language I can't understand. Shopping is a pain in the ass. I need an assistant shopper, because I'm terrible at this. Establish meaning. A cloud with black lace lining. Casandra Wilson, "Shall We Dance", or whatever turns your crank. Bill Evans or Bob Dylan. Bach. Steely Dan late at night. The way a strained voice cuts through the ether. Music is weird, the way it makes sense. Calls sense into question. Just saying. You have Buddy Holly on one hand and Mozart on the other. If I had my way. Dan Bern, "Estelle". The best friend I ever had was a dog. Sometimes the world is upside down. All night long. Make up for lost time. The world is upside down. The rhythm of my soul, you know what I mean, deep water, what I thought I was saying.