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Core sample

Smart phone in amber

Some last thoughts

and remaining image captures

from the Museum of Capitalism

Installed in a temporary art gallery

in Jack London Square it is

on view until 20 August

All boundaries and maps
all flags

cities and wasteland

Addictive capitalist commodities

found along the route

Fifteen cigarettes

on a dead man's chest

Even included
 matches

Note the so-phony

nature theme
not a mention
of disposal of toxic butts

Clever packaging

design

 

The road to hell

is paved with

good marketing

 There was a good swig left

I tried it and felt OK
I of course didn't smoke
any of the cigarettes,
Would I cause more
or less suffering
if I gave them
to a street person?

The Potomac revs up

for another cruise,

Hard to believe it

was once junked

sunk and later resurrected

I listened to the band warm up

but didn't remain in earshot

past a dilapidated

Beatles song

Red white and blue

locked and loaded

ready for action

Love to have the energy

to attempt fishing from such a craft,

I mentioned at my age

you find the guy's boat

going around in circles

and the old geezer missing,

This just happened at Tomales Bay

an old oyster farmer

who skipped the life-jacket,

The young employees laughed

and they were interested but

completely uninformed

about the nearby Museum

of Capitalism,

The older guy behind

the conversation did not seem

to dig the drift of our conversation,

I nonchalantly shoved off

Into the salt water

you go

Kayak samurai

psyches himself up

Off he goes

as seen from my bench

Nativist

capitalism

Location of

the Museum of Capitalism,

Up that red flight

of stairs

Boats go by

boats go by

God blesses America

The National Mall

with white denims

 are in this Summer

The flag seems

to follow you

Generations of inhabitants

of earth

never imagined

how its resources

 would be

better managed

When the Drumpf says

 "jobs"

it sounds like he's saying

"jabs"

Here's your planet

back

blackened

and extracted

The wealth-creators

express their

appreciation

Jewel box with

miniature coffin

Bible

 and carpet

on a wooden floor

Bankster noir

Surveillance technology

is making rapid strides

toward singularity,

Since God doesn't exist,

man has had

to re-invent Him

Artificial Intelligence

cometh with the cloud

Attractive and

informative

take-away lit

A flag hangs

before its mirror image

in a photo

from Standing Rock

Frontline in

 the struggle against the

petroleum-security complex

Police

muscle truck

Total security

provides us

with the feeling

of security

July 2017

28 July Part Two

Starting out at the far point

of my midsummer wander

Down by the Estuary

a journey through forbidden Chinatown

After my siesta

on the lush luxuriant lawn

I leave the massive trees

heading homeward

After an hour at the main Library

where I put up

a wang-dang post,

I explored the eldritch Chinese

district entering as it were

though the back door

Tiger Mom laundry

she has a skull

in her teeth

Chinese people believe

that the ghosts of ancestors

watch over the living

When you are young

and alive you

play it to the hilt

Dig the super-bold "WE"

Only in Chinatown

But then think of the frenzy

of members of the wedding

My life thus far

has been a voyage

of discovery

Better to travel hopefully

than to arrive

A substantial psychedelic

aesthetic spiritual trip

and it's not in conclusion yet

There may be dragons

One assumes the risk

Flags over the old fire house

A type of patriotism prevails here

one that resisted melting

in the melting pot

A glimpse of Oakland

as it was

old house big tree

In California

magnificent trees

The years leave

sinister markings

on its bark

Batman and the rest

Roots like hallucinatory

hands and feet

Fence around a schoolyard

Owl-face witch rides a broom

The Chinese chicken

a savory delicacy

Garage door, like

Wow

Ginseng shop

bring your bankbook

We were Ginseng fans in the seventies,

Met a fellow in Vermont

with grass on his roof

and two oxen who gathered it wild,

I offered some of his stash to Bob Dylan

in Springfield, Massachusetts

on his Rolling Thunder review

I must admit I don't miss

the Ginseng

Chines longevity

no doubt due more

to fresh vegetables and fruits,

Mine as well

Vigorous work

is also a must

Delivering endless supplies

of styro-foam clam shells

as we lose the

calcium-shelled varities

Capitalism

 marches on

Throw in a

 dash of glitzy

ersatz Buddhism

Add

over-weening

child development

and you've got

a successful lifestyle

Where other kids go giddy

the Chinese kid stoically

enacts his pleasure

for the hovering adults

The great wall

of tradition

imprisons

while it excludes

Happy birthday to me

Celebration continues

After a hearty meal

of brown basmati rice

lentils and stewed tomatoes

all organic naturally

Always dug the name

CHEVROLET

it's French you know,

Laissez bon temps roulet

It's out again,

I hop a ride on a

classic green vehicle

Down to old Jack London Square

Our token

socialist saint

The sun of my nativity

 setting in  all its glory

I happened upon a smart phone

cracked and abandoned

Yet it still turned on

So did I

I took it by

the Museum of Capitalism

an artifact of commerce

worth exhibiting

There was a thing tonight

fun and games a sizable turn-out

The man in charge took the phone

and started endeavoring

to reach its owner

I had an informative

if somewhat know-it-all

and slightly annoying

chat with another curator

before moving on

When I reached this point

a frantic voice called  to me

It was the young lady

whose phone it was

The Museum must have

pointed me out to her

Thank you, she kept repeating,

Should have solicited a hug

Weeds by the water

the last rays of the sun

Beautiful but far too chilly

way out on the estuary

I drink it all in

and head back for my

blues radio program,

some THC-infused brandy,

dreams that money can't buy

Next year

the New Jerusalem

the Lion and the

lamb of God

As I drifted away

branches of seaweed

scratching at the window

All images 28 July 2017