George UpdateJune 17, 2005
Remember ole George at my old house/La's current house? Remember when Em met my pal?
And I told you how he's flowering, right?
Yo. Flowering ain't the word. You can't even see the top of it in this photo because of the brightness of the sky, but it towers over the roof of the house. (Lala's standing on a raised section of the neighbor's garden.)
And this is Oakland, people!
Crazy-pants.
Also crazy, but this is all mine: Last night a woman called, stating that there were miners drinking in front of her house. My brain just froze. Miners? All dirty and coal-scuffed, with pick-axes and bronchial coughs?
Jaysus. MINORS. As in juveniles. As in the type of call, word for word, that I get every night. Why my brain made it miners, I'll never know. Apparently I am ready to live in the 19th century. Spinning wheels and banjos, baybee.
That's not a flower you have there. Someone planted a magic bean, soon you'll be able to climb that stalk into the sky and visit with giants. Fee fi fo fum....
Posted by: Amy Boogie | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 04:49
All I can say is Whoa!!
Posted by: Stacie | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 06:01
I am totally in love with George. That is one incredible schwang!
Posted by: Norma | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 06:01
Dude. He's totally signalling the mother ship.
Posted by: Em | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 06:33
Now I need to know: what did you tell the lady with the minors in front of her house? I called our local police non-emergency number not too long ago because there were three men on bicycles in my driveway (off the back alley) looking over the fence into my and my neighbour's backyards and drinking beer out of their backpacks. And two of them were wearing WHITE GLOVES. In the same alley where our car got broken into, hello? The cop-lady YAWNED (I heard her) and said call again if they come back. I said, lady, they are wearing white gloves don't you think maybe they have been breaking into cars back there and she said call if they come back. Yeah, I'll call you back when they break into my house, thanks bitch. Jeez. I don't know if there's anything they could have done, but come on. I was pissed.
Posted by: jodi | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 07:02
Maybe it wasn't the miner forty-niner, but his daughter Clementine, who was doing the drinking!
Posted by: Christine | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 07:56
"Miners" and attendant description made me laugh out loud at my desk, luckily the office is mostly empty.
Thanks.
Posted by: Faith | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 08:00
The images of miners in Oakland is hilarious to me. I love that.
We had a row of plants like that in front of my house in Palo Alto growing up- then they start to bloom and get that asparagus thing, it is like a freakshow- that's some amazing nature, right?
Posted by: Mary-Heather | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 08:12
George is so cool! Plants are so amazing.
Posted by: monica | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 08:27
When I first read the sentence I thought the woman called to tell you there were miners DIGGING in her front lawn (guess my brain filled in with the most logical word).
Then when you said Minors, I totally understand why you might have problems making the distinction.
That is, until I read the first sentence again. Why the hell would kids be digging in her yard?
Posted by: Steph | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 09:33
I got skeerd for a second thinking she was seeing ghosts or something. Miners? LOL!!! I think I'll be laughing about that all day. GOLD RUSH!!!
Posted by: Christie | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 10:02
I thought this: http://www.lib.sfu.ca/~mcrouch/TxNMmegan/madrid_mineshaft_tavern.jpg
was in New Mexico, but perhaps you should see if it has moved to Oakland. Perhaps James (who is surely hiding in your giant bean stalk there) has something to do with it. You never know.
Love the malapropism incident. That's the right word for that right? Minor/Miner? It happens to me ALL the time.
Posted by: megan | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 10:09
OK. Seriously. What the heck kind of plant is that? Crazy!!
Posted by: Amanda | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 10:32
i love the picture of the new yorker eyeing george suspiciously.
ha!
Posted by: maryse | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 13:46
IIIIIiiiiiiiiiiiiii've been working on a railroad. OK, not miners (or minors) but my brain has been functioning solely on non sequitors for the last few days.
Posted by: Liz | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 16:13
I love dysleic moments. I have them all the time.
Of course everyones comments are just as great as your post.
Makes me feel that I am not losing my mind yet.
Hey, did you hear that SF never got the tsunami warning?
Good thing it didn't show up. I wouldn't be here. LOL
Posted by: Dympna | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 20:53
Yo, who you callin' dirty and coal scuffed?
Posted by: Ann | Friday, June 17, 2005 at 23:11
I LOVE the Ditty Bops!! Thank you thank you thank you for introducing them to me on Yarn a go go! Just when I was pissed off at the woild. I ordered 5 of their CDs I am going to give them to everybody!!!
Posted by: Juliette | Saturday, June 18, 2005 at 07:53
Miners! Too, too funny! I was laughing too hard to read out loud to the boyfriend!
Not since the '49ers have there been miners in that area -- and you know we're talking 1849!!
Posted by: Felicia | Saturday, June 18, 2005 at 20:24
I think it may be an agave plant! To find it I googled succulent plant "taller than the roof." Very cool!
Posted by: Cherie | Sunday, June 19, 2005 at 19:05
(ok, how cool is it that a "succulent" plant shoots up a sproinger like THAT one, eh my pretties?)
SERIOUSLY!?! It's awesome. Mothership's a comin', I agree!
Posted by: Dhi | Monday, June 20, 2005 at 13:06
*snort*
I'll bring the loom if you bring the butter churn, baybee.
I'm glad that I'm not the only one who gets some sort of bizarre audiofart from time to time.
Posted by: Rabbitch | Wednesday, June 22, 2005 at 03:04
I've heard of them referred to as sentry plants. Dunno if that's the real name or not. The miner story made me laugh--sort of Dali-esque.
Posted by: becky | Wednesday, June 22, 2005 at 14:36