San Roque hub: photo by John Wiley, 28 May 2010
Those bungalows of San Roque
so perfect yet oddly sad
(“a little wood & stucco
to keep the sun out”)
always remind me of
where the Nelson family lived
way back in the days of Hi Oz
Hi Pop Hi Rick Hi David.
so perfect yet oddly sad
(“a little wood & stucco
to keep the sun out”)
always remind me of
where the Nelson family lived
way back in the days of Hi Oz
Hi Pop Hi Rick Hi David.
Everybody in that family was Okay
every day for a whole decade.
And when Ricky turned out to be
a low rider, it was still okay.
And that’s the way it is today
among the petticoat palms
of Calle Noguera
and Puesta del Sol.
You can’t rain on the parade
of the petit bourgeois
because it doesn’t have one
except at Fiesta
when rain’s against the law.
every day for a whole decade.
And when Ricky turned out to be
a low rider, it was still okay.
And that’s the way it is today
among the petticoat palms
of Calle Noguera
and Puesta del Sol.
You can’t rain on the parade
of the petit bourgeois
because it doesn’t have one
except at Fiesta
when rain’s against the law.
Ricky, Harriet, David and Ozzie Nelson: photographer unknown, n.d. via lost in transmission
David, Ricky and Harriet Nelson: photographer unknown, n.d.
Lauro Canyon Reservoir and upper San Roque: photo by John Wiley, 18 April 2011
1 comment:
It's a broad comment, but I think your southern California poems are really terrific. They always remind me why I feel so strongly drawn to the area and also, I think, why we never chose to move there. In my life and my wife's, these are significant emotions that we've discussed a lot. More narrowly, in this case the small/large subject (the Nelsons) are perfectly matched with the large/small subject (southern California, what it means and implies). It's like a perfect box construction. No rain today here either, but cold. Curtis
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