ditch the politics, keep the people, americans both, but yes, they are different, things people say in tennessee but not in san francisco: i know some good fishing spots, have a blessed day, by the grace of god, bless your heart, thank you for your service, y’all gonna drive to the beach?, i remember that leann rimes’ album.., y’all gonna get some hot chicken?, y’all been reading your scripture?, you applying to UTK?, beat bama, she went back to the lord, but in tennessee no one ever says: i’ll order a waymo, he works for apple, google, genentech, fill in the tech blank, i’m buying a rivian, you surf?, my vinyasa class was SO hard, i went on a meditation retreat, i’m going to talk to my therapist about it, i’m going to LA for the weekend, do you want to get burritos?, its snowing in tahoe, the fog is in, people ask me to compare and contrast, and here’s what i might say: i like tennessee because people are more down to earth, even if someone is wealthy, it isn’t cool to act like you are above others, but in san francisco that isn’t always the case: i like san francisco because there aren’t any chiggers and straight-line wind storms looking to wreak havoc on your body/home, so to bring it back to christopher cross, i live in san francisco, but both places are home.
Tag: Tennessee
Card Stories: Dolly Parton
9 to 5 hit the airwaves in early 1981, & dolly parton entered my life for the first time, followed a couple of years later by islands in the stream with kenny rogers, then, for me, dolly disappeared, it really wasn’t until i moved to nashville in 2020 that i truly came to understand the power of dolly parton, i taught a three week course on women in country music, studying parton & her music, coat of many colors, i will always love you, jolene, these songs are peerless, not to mention her imagination library, which has donated over 100 million books to children all over world, her dollywood theme park, opened in 1981, employing over 4,000 people, from a one room cabin in sevier county, east tennessee, to dolly for president bumper stickers, she is the american dream incarnate.
This DOLLY PARTON card can be purchased here: https://www.ebay.com/itm/375325625121
Write What You Know
what if what you know is just a basement rug, ballgame on upstairs, crickets outside, september night, cool air, touch of smoke wafting in, forest fires north of here, is this enough? reading a random poem by nuala ní dhomhnaill, sounds irish to me, real irish, as in gaelic, depending on whether you’re english, not me, i’m american, as in, related to merica, tennessee talk, knew it, southern, sometimes reel southern, like fishing with words, deep accent, but here in california everything is different, mostly people ask me that, isn’t san francisco different? yes, and no, y’all still just people, politics a side, and who wants politics for a main course? not me
With General John Bradley
John is one of our Nashville friends. He is a great and kind man. To learn more about General Bradley and his nonprofit work in Afghanistan, please visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_A._Bradley & https://lamia.org/
Dinner at Husk
May 25th 2023 or Writing Exercise #1
Quarter of 7, up, make Hudson breakfast, drive to school, check for vultures that were feasting on two dead deer the day before, the deer are gone, strange. Anyway, Hudson’s last full day of school, so happy/sad, that pre-summer, pre-moving out of Tennessee feeling. Home, upload Alphabet poem onto my blog, check email. Fruit only breakfast, blueberries, bananas, apples, all cut up (not the blueberries), eaten with a spoon. Oolong tea, gift from a student, the perfect gift. Read a book on intuition, meditation, sitting, allowing the universe to guide you/me, by Echo Bodine. Talk with my wife, she’s in California driving, hear the road, 280, heading to San Francisco. Meditate for 16 minutes, why 16? Because, it’s one more than 15, bonus minute for me. Walk on treadmill, slowly, because of spondylolisthesis, old man Dan. Nostalgic for the summer of 1988, listen to sweet child o’ mine, treat people with kindness, see Harry Styles dancing, When In Rome, the promise, then sleepyhead, Passion Pit, details, details, details. Research Axl Rose, Wikipedia says he’s 61, abusive childhood, Lafayette, Indiana, home of Purdue, but bad times for Axl. Harry is 29, happy childhood in Redditch, Worcestershire, England, but I didn’t have to tell you the England part, you knew that, and he does seem kind, at least in the video. Suntan by the pool, 14 minutes, slow and steady wins the race, what race? I just like the ritual, hearing birds, watching the ants. Next, oh the excitement, a double pilates workout with Caroline Jordan, I watch her on a screen for 20 minutes, take a break, then another 30, floor based, again, spondylolisthesis, born with it. Salad, so healthy, broccoli, brussel sprouts, carrots, cabbage, olive oil, bit of salt and sunflower seeds, bubbly water, a must, now here to write.
Hudson Dancing
Tennessee in 10
- Grace, given and received
- Yes ma’am, no sir, y’all
- Sweet tea and grits
- Bronco, GMC, Jeep Wrangler, F-150
- Dolly Parton, who is Whitney Houston?
- Trader Joe’s empty, church on Sundays
- Vols, Titans, football, little else matters
- Nothing itches like chiggers, alive in your skin
- If prom is coming, spray tan
- Bless your heart, double-edged sword
Ode to Harpeth Hall
You students, you plaid, you dress uniforms
You Souby lawn grass, you magnolia shine
You red bricks, you Ann Scott Carell library
You Wallace, you Massey, you Bullard
You green hills, and rain, and snow sometimes
You cardinals darting from tree to tree
You middle school girls skipping and free
You AP scholars, you Harkness discussions
You United States history, your voices so bright
I sing your praise for days now past
Though some may say he’s a California lad
The truth is, he’s really quite sad
Harpeth Hall you have made your mark
And hark, you who I taught, I may be gone
but you still have my heart
Best Meatball Sub in Nashville: Little Hats Market
After a months long quest, we have discovered THE best meatball sub in all of Nashville! 2nd place was Bellagio Pizza & Subs. 3rd place was Nicoletto’s Italian Kitchen. The quality of ingredients (bread, meatballs, sauce, cheese), along with the proportional balance, made Little Hats Market the clear favorite. The secret ingredient of their sub? Pesto!
Daniel W. Polk 