A rough estimate, rounding things up and over to the nearest one thousand as it slowly gets dark.
Out Back
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Tag Archives: Merced California
Improvisational Blueprint
No live music here at the 17th Street Public House, but this image occurred to me nonetheless…#greenflashblackIPAthemore.
A Prayer by Rumi to Commemorate Cowboy’s New Dog Door
First of all, that’s the rear end of a Belgian Tervuren named Cowboy going through his very own, brand new dog door. It took him around six cheese-assisted tries before he got the swing of it independently; it took me about five hours to install the door…with additional help from Ann!
It was well worth the effort! Cowboy now has direct and immediate access to the fenced-in, outside world, but because of the dog door, he can also take air-conditioned refuge from the Central Valley summertime heat. This is an appropriate development for a dog, who before our move to Merced, California, lived in an upper-floor, downtown Des Moines, Iowa loft! Three times a day, at least, for almost two and a half years, season after season, Cowboy would suit up, walk down the hall, get into and out of the elevator, walk through the lobby, out the front door, and continue for another 50 yards before he could finally get down to business! And he never complained once!!
This prayer goes out to Cowboy and all the other love dogs who teach us how to pray: (Link to YouTube Love Dogs by Rumi…or see it embedded below from my YouTube channel, plongeaux.)
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Ample Parking at Yang’s Strawberry and Produce Stand, Merced, CA
For a little longer than a month we’ve been treating ourselves to the freshest, largest, most delicious, and least expensive strawberries I’ve ever come across. But that’s not all! There are many other kinds of berries, tons of produce, and herbs galore…all very reasonably priced.
When it comes to strawberries, I typically whip up some maple syrup infused cream and slather away, but I think it’s time to branch out into some new directions!
There are no marketing gimmicks, no distractions whatsoever in and around this stand on McKee and E. Alexander in Merced, CA; only friendly service, locally grown and just-picked fruits and vegetables, best prices in town, and plenty of free parking!
Old Ford @ K & 26th in Merced, CA
This beauty catches my eye every time I ride or drive by. I couldn’t resist the urge to photograph it last night on the way to the 17th Street Public House so that I could render it today.
Anyone know what year it might be? (thanks for the clue Jim; it’s a 1950.)
Another Look at 17th Street Public House in Merced, CA
Yesterday afternoon I rode my bike down to the 17th Street Public House and had two beers, a Payback Porter by Speakeasy Ales & Lagers and a Belgian Style Double IPA Homework Series Batch No. 2. from Ballast Point (I think, at least that’s what the sticky note said). Delicious and potent both!
On the way out I took an iPhone photo of the exterior and rendered this rough drawing in Paper 53 from it earlier today in two sittings.
[Note: Due to technical difficulties, I’ve deleted and reposted this. Sorry for any inconvenience or confusion.]
House by the Tracks
While riding my bike to the 17th Street Public House the other day, I noticed this house, and it’s stuck in my mind. I should redraw this house now and then.
Context: Beer (inter alia)
On our very first visit to Merced, CA in January of this year, while Ann was interviewing and being interviewed, I was engaged in a contextual research project. That’s when I first stumbled into the 17th Street Public House; and, that’s when I began imagining our own potential immersion, our own possible intertwinement in this new context, to honor the texture of this metaphor. Fast forward, and we’re here in Merced, and I’m already making comparisons between my initial research findings and those related to a similar investigation that I conducted at El Bait Shop in Des Moines, Iowa four years ago. At any rate, I’m pleased that we’ll be able to take part in the Great Beer Movement that’s happening here and throughout the country. Kinda’ makes me feel at home.
Precious Water
As we move from the Hartford of the West (Des Moines, IA) to the Gateway to Yosemite (Merced, CA), from the nation’s breadbasket to not far from its salad bowl, we’ll have to keep an eye on water like never before. Water is a finite and precious resource practically everywhere, and this is especially true in the San Joaquin Valley.
City of Merced, Gateway to Yosemite
portfoliolongo 
