A.G.E's Joint

I like to hike. Let me rephrase that: I like to hike the unusual places. To find the little pockets of heaven stuck in the pits of hell. They are out there. All you have to do is look. A good example is the  South Peachtree Creek Trail . Tucked between two busy roads near Emory University, it runs in a old growth oak forest that makes you forget the world. I recently did another trail fitting this description:  Doll's Head Trail . It is located in Constitution Lakes Park, created from some abandoned industrial land in a somewhat desolate area of Southeast Atlanta. The park itself is a mix of low wetlands and fairly new growth forest tucked along 1/4 mile of railroad. The Doll's Head Loop is part of a longer trail called Rail Ridge. It is an art project begun in 2011, using discarded toys and building materials to make you stop and think. As the sign says, there is poison ivy and other nasty invasive plants here, so bushwhack at your peril. Most of the display...

Fly north, Little Bird Out of these backwoods Far from the sheltering arms Of family and friends To the cold, dark city Where they don't care. Stripping the good intentions From your very soul. It was what you wanted It was what you needed And now it's gone Broken on the sidewalk  Never to rise again. 

I live in the suburbs along with the rest of the corporate sheep.  We put up with our bosses and hold our anger at the ineptitude and stupidity. Then we are released at the end of the week to hustle, bustle and consume the fractional distillates of our corporate culture.We hit the bars, wishing we were on Mars and away from the madding crowd. But we have been trained by the masters to worship things over people.  And this is what we get: Mall Madness My favorite description of Hell is from Dave Berg. He was a freelance writer best known for his strip "The Lighter Side" in MAD magazine. In one of his books, he describes a room with a banquet table that stretches as far as the eye can see.  It is sumptuously laid out with the best food and drink available in all the world. The guest are all gaily dressed and starving.You see, their arms are locked in a right angle, making impossible to feed themselves.The only way they can eat is to feed their neighbors and they are too...