Parking Lot Slope: History Nerds Have Bicycle Coffee

-

New green grasses were covering every open hill, and the wind blew colder up there than I had expected it to when I left the house on a January Wednesday. But at a picnic table in the lee of the parking lot, I was treated to a cup of coffee brewed by an intrepid biker and fellow history nerd. 

Morgan Fletcher, who I met last year on a history walk, rides his bike like Joaquin Miller used to ride ranges. When he's resting and recovering, he searches old newspaper clippings and blogs about them on Fastest Slow Guy You Know. We've become good friends lately by dumping loads information into each other's email boxes, piecing together the stories of this spot on the hill. He unzips a bag that is shaped like, and suspended in, the triangle of space in his bike frame, and pulls out a small stove and a tiny coffee-making apparatus. He grinds the beans as he boils the water, and presses their fragrant spirit right into the Anchor Hocking cups I've brought in a tiny basket. 

He regales me with tales of his bike adventures, which smack a bit of the bandit suppers we tried to recreate last fall. He teaches me the secret of the Stroopwafel—it keeps coffee warm on a cold day.

Morgan has given me a precious little book for the Calfornia Writers Library, So Here Then is a Little Journey to the Home of Joaquin Miller by humorist philosopher and publisher Elbert Hubbard, part of his Little Journeys To the Homes of the Great series. Hubbard, remembered as "America's most celebrated eccentric and bohemian," founded the Roycroft Arts and Crafts community in New York, to which he invited Miller to join—but Joaquin had already built his own arts mecca right here. The book is delicate, bound in chamois leather, and very rare (though you can buy one yourself from $11 to $650). Morgan has a great voice and I'm urging him to record an audiobook... while we listen in! 

Who would like to join us this year for some Joaquin Miller storytime? 




Excerpt from Harry Kemp, the Last Bohemian by William Brevda:



Location: Joaquin Miller Park, 3300 Joaquin Miller Rd, Oakland, CA 94602, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sunset Trail: Thistle Warrior

-
Image
On Christmas Day, I met my brother for a sunset hike on Sunset Trail, and the view, of course, was spectacular.  On our way back we saw a figure tidying up the trail, who turned out to be none other than John Brega, who I usually see on a small screen in monthly Friends of Joaquin Miller Park board meetings. Somehow we got on the topic of thistles. My brother excused himself at that point, perhaps triggered by memories of our childhood thistle trauma. But I used this opportunity to put mine to use. "How do you get rid of them?" I asked John. "We used to have to walk around our property with a paper bag and clippers." We couldn't come back inside until the bag was full, no matter how cold it was, how bored we were, or how pricked and stabbed our little fingers were. It seemed an insurmountable task, protecting our garden and yard from their invasion. I remembered seeing them in the Park years ago, feeling crestfallen. But where were they now? The sunset-lit slope...
Read more

4/24 Joaquin Miller Reconsidered: A Closer Look at Oakland’s OG Poet

-
Image
Thursday, April 24 Joaquin Miller Reconsidered: A Closer Look at Oakland’s OG Poet Horse thief or humanist? Poet, playwright and author Joaquin Miller left his mark on the Bay Area, the West, America, and the World. Sliding Scale Donations - Get your ticket today! The "big personality" behind Oakland's largest green space is remembered by Oaklanders as a showman, a rascal, and a humbug, but history has forgotten the light this insightful genius brought to some very dark times in America. Kristen Caven, the California Writers Club Writer in Residence at Joaquin Miller Park, shares new information and revelations about the most iconic poet in the country at the turn of the last century. Learn how Miller shaped Oakland, the West, and the World at this engaging presentation, both through his prolific, progressive writing, his humor, his relationships, and his diverse literary and intentional community. You’ll also meet some fascinating historians and writers, and hear some to...
Read more

Live on Notion: Miller Light!

-
Image
I'm reposting this entry from Generous Muse last week; it's had 700 views and contains... a big announcement!  --------------- My talk this week about Joaquin Miller went well, but was far more difficult to pull together than I thought it would be. The more I learned, the more inspired I became, and the harder it became to fit his wide and deep story into an hour-long talk. I also think I may have cracked the mystery of why people in Oakland seem to hate him so much. Gertrude Farquharson Boyle Kanno modeling Miller’s bust. Truly I was grateful to have a mountain of information to sink my hands into, to wrap my head around, to anchor my spirit during election week, a deep historical dive that reminded me this country, this world, has survived harder times. What I couldn’t put into the talk I put into a wiki. I barely looked up from my laptop for a week. It was better than processing what was going on in the world and our crazy town. (So weird… feels like  we’ve been here alre...
Read more