%%USERNAME%%    %%ACCWORDS%% %%ONOFF%% |
 |
My thoughts released; a mind set free |
|
These pages contain my thoughts, from meandering ideas and persuasions to deep cerebrations and serious mentations. Why, for what purpose? To release my mind and set creativity free. Somewhere inside the constraints of my mind dwells a writer, a poet, an artist who paints with words. In here I release those constraints and set the artist free. Perhaps, lost somewhere in the depths of thought, is a story or a poem, waiting to be written. ** Image ID #1701066 Unavailable ** |
| I grew up in northern Minnesota in a little town on the Mesabi Iron Range about ten miles from Hibbing Minnesota, home of Bob Dylan (Robert Allen Zimmerman). Twenty miles in the opposite direction was Grand Rapids, birthplace of Judy Garland, you know, Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz. Although Judy was embarrassed by her birthplace, Dylan did acknowledge his hometown and even performed there a couple of times, one of which was an unscheduled concert at the high school in 1976. Our class was bussed over so we could enjoy the short concert he put on. The school tried to censor which of his songs he could perform, but Dylan wasn't about to be censored, he did agree to play the songs the school didn't think appropriate for younger students at the tail end of the concert, after a short break. Only seniors and older people were allowed to stay in the auditorium for the second half, the rest of us were filed outside to hang out and wait for the older kids to join us for the bus ride back home. A friend and I had slipped around the side of the building to smoke, and to our astonishment, there was the band! We stopped, but one of the band members signaled us over and asked what we were doing. Sheepishly we admitted our intentions, and to our surprise, he offered us a Marlboro and a light. We were in heaven getting to stand there and smoke with the band. Bob Dylan wasn't present, but shortly he opened the side door and called everyone back in. We stood in awe, staring until he said, "What the hell, I'm not going to hold this door open all day. And, if anyone asks how you kids got in, lie!" Without hesitation we ran in and found a spot close to the stage to sit and watch and hope like hell no one would notice us and chase us out. We enjoyed the rest of the concert and managed to be unnoticed until the middle of the last song, where we were herded out by one of our teachers tightly gripping an ear in each hand. We both got three days of suspension for sneaking back in, but after giving my reason, the principal added another two, stating I had a bad attitude. Dylan's final song was a new one he had only released the year before, and to this day it remains one of my favorites. I quoted a line from his song when I had to face the principle for our crimes. We tried to tell him we had stayed inside when everyone else left. After a pause to think about it, he asked, "Why didn't you exit with the rest of your class?" I smiled and sang out to the best of my ability, "I was tangled up in blue." |
| Today was a long day. I had to be up early to pick up my mother-in-law and drive her to her eye doctor (Ophthalmologists); she has to go in every six weeks and get an injection in her right eye. She lives about forty-five minutes away, but her eye doctor is another two hour drive from there, in the heart of Wait Park/St Cloud. She's ninety years old and has trouble walking, but gets around fairly well for her age. But this time of year there's snow and ice, so I have to assist her every step. I don't mind except when there are a lot of people who won't make way for us, and St. Cloud is always busy and it seems the people are rude, impatient, and unyielding. Her appointment was at twelve-thirty, so it was also the noon rush. I live in a rural area with small towns around, so I'm not used to city driving. The heavy, noon hour traffic makes it worse, and I had to take my wife's car, a little Chevy HHR. I would prefer to take my truck, it's big, heavy, and people tend to get out of the way, but in a little car they tend to push you right out of the way. But, my mother-in-law can't get in or out of the truck on her own; I have to pretty much lift her up into it or lift her down. With ice and snow it's just too likely her or I, or both with slip and I would feel horrible if she fell, so a little car in crazy traffic. To top it off, as I waited for her in the car, a guy walking around the parking lot decides to bust out a car window to steal a purse someone had left on the seat. This happened about four cars down from where I was parked, and I couldn't jut sit there and watch, so I dialed 911 as I stepped out and hustled over. He had opened the door but stopped when he saw me and heard me talking to dispatch. I stopped by the front of the car, a relatively safe distance from him, as I gave the address over the phone. He had a hunting knife in his had, I think he used the handle to bust the window, and pointed it at me! I put my free hand inside my unzipped jacket and told him he shouldn't bring a knife to a gunfight, even though I had no gun. He must have believed the bluff because he turned and ran off through the parking lot. A few minutes later a police car showed up and took down all the information I could give them then went into the building to find the owner of the car. I went back to my car and waited for my mother-in-law to text me when she was done, but I was ready to head back to my home in the woods and couldn't get out of there fast enough. I didn't say anything to her about the incident, no need to worry her, and after we were well out of the city I stopped in a smaller town and took her to lunch. After I took her home and helped her get settled in, then home to our dogs and relax. I lived in Wait Park for over a year before we moved here, it was rated the highest crime rate in Minnesota and I think it still is. If it wasn't for my mother-in-law, I would avoid that area like the plague! |
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
