I did a double take when I saw him walking toward me at Skidmore Fountain. Pockets is a dead ringer for his twin brother, Nolan, a faithful Street Books patron during the summer of 2011. It was good to get news of Nolan. Pockets checked out a western, just like his brother.
It's a classic by Cormac McCarthy.
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He asked why I didn't add a shelf to the inside of my bike, to carry more books. I said that weight was a consideration, since my street librarians and I cover a lot of miles in the city. He suggested I get a goat to pull the library, or better yet: a burro. We had a long conversation about the advantages of burros, (how they will lead you to water, which can be useful during end times), about mean people, about the original Thor movie, about ideas contained in Matthew 24 and the book of Daniel, and about how to separate the good from the bad in life. When the conversation got a little apocalyptic, I said "Leave me with something hopeful, Woody." He patted my shoulder and said everything was going to be okay. As he left, he said "Who wins? The guy with the water, that's who." And the way to water? A burro.
Ray requested A Conference of Birds, by Farid Ud-din Attar. He's a Persian Muslim poet who influenced Sufi poets like Rumi. The book is a kind of parable from the Sufi faith, and tells the story of a group of birds who go on a quest to find a king. Ray is from Iran, and came to the United States when he was 12. His father worked for the embassy in Iran during the revolution, and was actually one of those detained during the hostage crisis in 1979. Ray's family was able to come to the U.S. in the early 80s, and he has lived here since.
Raymond Carver's Where Water Comes Together With Other Water. She's a great fan of poetry.
The House of Spirits, by Isabel Allende, and Truman Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's.
Local poet Scott Poole's collection, Sliding Glass Door.
Mark was a faithful patron during summer 2011, and it was a pleasure to cross paths with him today. He checked out Tolkien and then watched the video (on my phone) of himself he'd never seen, in a feature the Oregonian did of Street Books. Mark talks about his favorite race horse - check it out here.
Of the Dog in the Night-Time
And Red Mist
