Flux Bikes LA

Who knew that on Emily’s birthday weekend in 2010, half of the six pack would convene in Los Angeles California? Martin, along with Adam and Shawn Wille drove down from Lake Tahoe for a few days to visit and help build a compost pile for Emily and Erik. Of course a group bike ride was in order, and I used the opportunity to create a musical video for a “Cycling and the Arts” exhibit in Chicago. Emily and Colleen shot it, and here it is, the second “Flux Ride.”

Paying homage to the Fluxus “Happenings,” FLUX BIKES rides, led by Rob Frye, invite group participation for an exploration of both the sonic possibilities of bicycles and a physical space.

With pre-recorded Flux Bikes loops emanating from Rob’s portable speaker, the group took off to explore Highland Park and jam along the Arroyo Seco and Rio de Los Angeles bike paths. Using contact mics, looping techniques, chimes, bongos, bells and honkers, the riders filled the city with bicycle music. Another stop was made at the Bike Oven, a local non-profit bicycle Co-op that provided materials for the wind chimes.

Video/Photos by Emily Frye and Colleen Rafferty
Edited by Rob Frye

Postcards from Happy – 7 The Happy Wanderer

For months even before the surgery the group home where my sister lives has been planning a trip to New York City for a week.  It is a special trip for the 8 housemates and they are celebrating the 25th anniversary of the home.  When it was opened, six of the current eight residents moved in.  They have lived together and have become like a close knit family.  The idea of missing the trip would be devestating, so on our early appointments with the surgeon I had mentioned this goal.  I was assured that she would be well enough to go.  Several discussions with the PT and OT as well as the physician now focused on this goal.  She was making great progress at home.  Almost immediately she made the transition to using a straight cane.  She is still wearing the brace and it was decided that  now was not the time to wean down from wearing it.  An old stationary bike from my work was donated for her to use to build her endurance.  The trip started with a train ride from St. Louis to Union Station Chicago. 

 She called later from the train and left me a voice mail…”Hi Ellen…I’m doing alright…Having lot of fun…Tell Steve hi…I love you Ellen…Have a great day.”   Next stop, Penn Station.

Summer with the Utah Conservation Corps

Well I know I have already started a new position, but I have been wanting to share some pictures from my summer job to give everyone a better idea of the kind of work we did.

I had a really good time hanging out with members of my crew. They all surprised me with their ability to learn new skills and get work done while still having a good time. I had to catch up on my Mexican slang in order to not “get clowned.” The English/Spanish split was probably about 70/30, with Spanish being used mostly for informal stuff and joking, although this varied from week to week.

Over the summer I led two different 5-person crews for 5 weeks each. Both crews spent two weeks at Golden Spike National Monument, which is due north of the Great Salt Lake, at the historic location of Promontory, Utah. Nothing is left of the original Promontory except an old one room school house, which will likely fall down this year. At Golden Spike, we cleared large rocks off of the original railroad grades, which have now been converted into the two main attractions at the park: two 5-ish mile automobile scenic tour loops that go through impressive cuts in the rock as well as over large fills. We also spent a lot of time spreading new gravel on some of the interpretive walks and clearing sage brush and rabbit brush, which in some places were beginning to encroach on the trails. Other tasks included clearing vegetation from culverts that were built in the early 20th Century so that a wood sealant could be applied, splitting wood for the Jupiter 19 (one of two replica steam engines at the Park), and weeding the train tracks. It was a challenging work environment, but the folks at the Park were really nice and made sure we had ice, Gatorade mix, and an air-conditioned lunch room.

The landscape at Golden Spike was fascinating to me, however it took some time to convince the kids that this was a cool place. It was pretty much just an arid mountain range in the middle of nowhere. Still, the next door neighbors are ATK, a company that builds and tests rocketry and other space and aeronautic equipment (including the O-rings on the Challenger). So there are wild things to learn about in the area. We took a trip down to the Spiral Jetty, an art installation that was done in the 1970s, after the north shore oil drilling operations ended and the area was left with industrial waste and tar seeps. Also, the views of the Salt Lake from Promontory are stunning; you get a sense of the scale of the entire basin, and can see entire mountains emerging from the middle of the lake. I was amazed at the flora and fauna, which were characteristic of the sage-steppe or desert-steppe environment. We saw jack rabbits, scorpions, black widows, Great Basin gopher snakes, rattlesnakes, american prong-horned antelope, coyotes (well, only a dead one), and all kinds of birds like western meadow larks, rock wrens, chukars, horned larks, turkey vultures, swainson’s hawks, red-tailed hawks, White pelicans, ibis, black necked stilts, american avocets, cormorants, coots–it’s impossible to name them all without a list.

Another place we worked was along the Bear River in Cache Valley, on a piece of land owned by the power company but managed by the Audubon Society. On this property, we created about a mile of new fence, built to wildlife specifications, as the objective was to keep the cows out of the river while allowing deer through. I really enjoyed fencing because there are hundreds of details and tricks. The kids were really good at stretching fence, pounding posts, etc. and enjoyed that project very much. My friends from school, Will and Brenda, came out to visit and helped us with the fence project.

The other place of worthy mention we worked was at the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, near Golden Spike. Our work there was dull, but on one day we were taken out onto the marsh in airboats, in order to pound in boundary markers. The marsh is like thirty miles across, and reminiscent of the Dead Swamps in the Lord of the Rings. It ranges from ankle to waist deep of stinking mud and aquatic weeds. Because none of the kids wanted to, it became my job to hop into the water and steady the boat while someone pounded in a marker. This day was my personal favorite of the entire summer because it ended up I got to drive one of the boats when no one was around!

I already miss many of the AmeriCorps folks from Utah.  Logan is a weird little town with lots of things to do and a small enclave of great people.  It was a fun place to spend the summer.

clearing the grade

One of the more celebrated desert flowers. It has a wonderful sticky texture and fragrance.

Jupiter 19

Splitting wood for the Jupiter 19

improving a trail

This is what’s left of Promontory, Utah, the boom town which sprang up where the transcontinental railroad was joined.

unrolling barbed wire

Will and I twisting wire

speeding in the boats

All of crew session at the Willard Bay causeway

pounding in the boundary markers

This feature, called Chinese Rock, is located along one of the railroad grades we worked on. No Chinese worked on the railroad in this area of Utah–it was all mormons and irish.

standing in the muck

Postcards from Happy – 6 Happy Days are Here Again

About nine and a half weeks have gone by and it was finally time to say so long to all the people at the skilled nursing facility who helped my sister along the way.  She seemed to know everyone there and almost appeared to not want to go home.  We promise that one day we will come back for a visit.  As we walk together down the hall, she greets each worker by name and says good-by.  She is walking only with the aid of a wheeled walker.  She will still have home care physical and occupational therapy for the next two weeks.

 Here is Happy celebrating the removal of her hospital bracelet.