Tag Archives: question

make way for the answer.

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when you

arrive at work in the dark

leave work in the light

go to get in your car

noticing that you’ve parked

in front of a cool old rusty thing and a bone 

and you wonder what the story is.

 

“to respect a mystery is to make way for the answer.”
― criss jami

an answer.

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THE NIGHT TRAVELER

Passing by, he could be anybody:

A thief, a tradesman, a doctor

On his way to a worried house.

But when he stops at your gate,

Under the room where you lie half-asleep,

You know it is not just anyone—

It is the Night Traveler.

You lean your arms on the sill

And stare down. But all you can see

Are bits of wilderness attached to him—

Twigs, loam and leaves,

Vines and blossoms. Among these

You feel his eyes, and his hands

Lifting something in the air.

He has a gift for you, but it has no name.

It is windy and woolly.

He holds it in the moonlight, and it sings

Like a newborn beast,

Like a child at Christmas,

Like your own heart as it tumbles

In love’s green bed.

You take it, and he is gone.

All night—and all your life, if you are willing—

It will nuzzle your face, cold-nosed,

Like a small white wolf;

It will curl in your palm

Like a hard blue stone;

It will liquefy into a cold pool

Which, when you dive into it,

Will hold you like a mossy jaw.

A bath of light. An answer.

 

 

credits: poem from Twelve Moons, 1979 by Mary Oliver, painting – google images

to park or not to park? that is the question.

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i am endlessly amused by conversations that happen on my local nextdoor site.

here is one of my recent favs.

 someone is reaching out for parking advice about the sign above

and gets a whole lot of answers (100+),  yet no one knows for sure.

below is a sampling of responses for your reading pleasure:

The original question: What does this sign mean? Can you park for 15 min without being ticketed?

No Parking alone means no parking (like bottom sign to left of the signpost) No parking with frame below it describes the “no parking conditions” within the red frame the added tow threat makes it more confusing.

I just wouldn’t park there🤣

15 minute parking allowed from the sign back. The parking enforcement, when they come around, will take photos of your cars location and of a tire and it’s valve stem location. They come back 15 minutes later and issue ticket if not moved. If it’s one of the really crabby patrol people they will come back 15 minutes later and issue a second ticket.

 BEWARE THE KING CRAB!

every 14 minutes jack up ur car+ spin wheel to put valve in diff spot (see above)

Just like NYC – hand over your keys to a car jockey to move your car to the alternate side of the street on Tuesdays!

There was a sign just like this outside the old Kiwanis building, and for a long time that space was left empty because people didn’t realize they could park… 

The wording of the sign pointing to the right is inconsistent. I did not find an interpretation of the sign in the Uniform Vehicle Code. Like, “Are you going to walk to school or…

Why is it inconsistent? As I see it, the sign says, “to the right of this sign you can park for 15 minutes between the hours of 6 am and 6 pm; you will be towed…

It means exactly what it says “no parking”

Could be a fund raising effort for a parking garage.

It means don’t park there regardless

“Can you park for 15 mins without being ticketed?”  The answer is yes, if the question means whether it’s possible.

I’d trust the bottom line. See the tow truck picking up the vehicle 😂

My interpretation is that it really does mean no parking 6AM-6PM. The 15 minute limit is for standing (driver remains in vehicle). In practice, it is effectively a 15 minute limit…

I think the key is that the arrows on the signs point in different directions.  So  no parking at all from the sign  and then to the left.   The 15 minute no parking sign points to the right  so the limited parking is  from the sign  and to the right.

Well, just visit – https://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/ , a mere 862 pages! I think the first rule is read from top to bottom. Then execute like a computer interpreting code; don’t try…

Seems perfectly logical! Good to know. Thank you!

You can not park there unless you have a loading zone (commercial) plate, and then only for 15 minutes. Most loading zones have unlimited parking for those with loading zone… 

I disagree. The sign in this post does not say anything about commercial permits or plates.

My interpretation of the originally posted sign is it’s basically a no parking zone, but they will let you park for 15 minutes during business hours. I’ve gotten away with parking…

But you can park for longer on Sunday?

Don’t think you can park there on Sunday

The sign is basically offering you an opportunity to bet; the city is betting you a parking space against a $25 ticket that you can’t figure out and execute what they meant…

This looks like East U adjacent to the business school. Isn’t it a bit cryptic? Appears to mark two zones, one to the left of the sign (see the arrow) in which there is no parking… 

I love how everyone says it means something different and is 100% confident about it.

The last comment, from the original question poser:  Being part of “everyone” I am not 100% confident.

 

‘nine out of ten americans believe that out of ten people, one person will always disagree with the other nine.’

-colin mochrie 

coconut.

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 when walking downtown

this just sitting on a corner

no palm trees to be found

i wonder

if you are missing your coconut

did you leave it behind

 did you lose it

and not notice?

“in the garden of gentle sanity, may you be bombarded by coconuts of wakefulness.”

-chogyam trungpa

it changes every day.

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(a highly-compensated re-enactor above,

showing my expression and hair at sign-in)

while signing-in at the salon

i asked the receptionist

what the date was

to which she replied, 

“oh, let me look. it changes every day. this keeps happening.”

(not ironically)

i nodded in agreement and finished signing in. 

‘drawing on my fine command of the english language, i said nothing.”

-robert benchley

 

 

image credit: vintage postcard, pinterest