On my morning constitutional, I was jolted from my podmatic slumbers by the furious diddling of guitars in Yes’ everlasting ‘Roundabout’. I took out one earpiece just to be sure...and yep, ‘Yes’.
Those fidgety riffs were bouncing over 35th street from a CDOT truck where part of a crew of city workers sat, enjoying. As the contemplative vocals came back in, bathing the whole street in placid wonder, I could've sworn they were singing along, “In-n around da lake!”
I think they eventually noticed me staring with what must have looked like the hangiest-of-dog expressions on my face, and so I crossed the street, a bit up the block.
And, you know, this moment of precaution wound up workin for me, pretty good, because this further civic distance proved to be an excellent vantage, from which, considering Merkley’s considerable work on ‘vantageness’ and Brown’s classic approach to the concept of ‘saison-alitie’ of course all wrapped up in the distinction, discretion and discipline of la jetee un non pour coupee la gerontioneeeee—— urbain planning-ness…to watch them install high-beam light fixtures under the viaduct.
Later, one of them was walking towards me with the old fixture and yelled, “Hey!” jolting me for a second time this young morning.
“Do you want this?” The hulking metal fixture dangling from his hand.
“Oh, no!” I yelled back.
“Lotta scrappers! Out here looking for deez things!” as he put it off to the side.
“I was just curious, what you guys were doin. Replacing the lights?”
“Yeah. Ok have a good one buddy.”
“U2,” I said.
“Dats next on the playlist!” he replied, hunkering down and biting his lip as he made to diddle the air.