Slainte Oakland

Christmas Tree Triage
some midnight miscreant rolled up on a bike

and torched it using a can of accelerant

 

Prologue

 

 

 

I had chanced upon a ceremony of carols

at the magnificent tree Saturday afternoon

A local pilgrimage fondly undertaken by many

every year at Yuletide

On Monday news broke about the arson

It had happened at around one that morning

The Fire Station at the Port is directly across a pedestrian plaza

 from the tree only a very blocks distant

They got there in time to limit the burn scar to

ten or twelve percent of the tree

 according to the news reports

 

So on Wednesday I set out to see the damage myself 

 

 

 Christmas tree in one of the many nondescript buildings

in the vicinity resembling a combination of office work-spaces

and a parking structure

 

 

 

The streets were even more deserted than usual

as a light rain fell 

Now a thing of the past this was formerly an amusing

heavy metal wrestling performance art bar place

Previously noted in this blog for its bizarre posters

After boning up

on a mighty tree-way combo blunt

I approached

the heart of Jack London Square

 

The towering palms vibrated under a low overcast

The gargantuan Flag displayed its subdued moods

Odd job

 

 

Wrapping glow worms in the clouds

 

 

 

 

 

Another crew worked nearby

amputating burned limbs

 

 

 

Brave young hero eschews the crane at hand

to climb the raw tree bareback as it were

 

 

 

Won a tree climbing contest in Hebron, New Hampshire

when I was 17 light lithe and spry

I really enjoyed being up a tree myself 

The burnt branches end up in a bin

In my day the empty cave of space were the fire was 

would have been converted into a Creche

Here and now that would summon a hue and cry

 

 

A strange intersection in American History 

 

 

An alien inscription on a sidewalk nearby

A blue mood

 

 

 

 

A Spot of Cheer

 

 

 

 

 

Blessing of the Saint to You 

(Saint Patrick)

 

 

 A swell of the ocean

all the way from Eire

Looks tempting

 

 

Och and the fireplace is going!

 

 

 

 

I'm going in then 

 

 

 

And it's the James Joyce memorial hearth as well

 

 

 

 

A warm welcome it is too 

 

 

Anything you want we got it right here in the USA

I ordered a real Irish Guinness draft

from the friendly and chatty bar staff 

 

 

Guinness dartboard cupboards?

We got 'em

 

 

 

 

 There's Ronan having the craic

just like in days gone by

 

 

 

I stopped short of the whiskey menu

tantalizing as it is

maybe next time

 

 So glad I happened upon this place today

 

 

 

There's old Uncle Oscar 

sort of a second patron saint 

I can say I have visited Wilde's tomb in Paris

And I did say

 

 

 

The place as charmingly bookish veneer

 

 

Slainte to the whole wide world

Indeed 

 

 

Back out into the microscopic mist

Feeling revivified

 

 

 

 

The sidewalk now looked to me

 more like a Jackson Pollock painting

 

 

 

Came home, not far away

and I had my nap

while visions of sugar plums danced in me head

Epilogue

 

As I set out today the top story in the news was 

that the artificial tree structure at FOX News headquarters in NYC

 had been torched approximately 24 hours after our Jack London tree arson

In a stunning video-taped sequence that one burns to the round

For propaganda and perhaps insurance purposes

Fox claims it was a half-million dollar spectacle

and of course proceeded to blame the "Left" 

So I suppose there is some rough justice in this world

 

 

 

Slainte!

 

 

 

 

 

 

8 December 2021