Parking Signs to Power Lines

Last month, I took an afternoon class at Richard Hugo House with Shin Yu Pai called "Maps for a Narrative Atlas" to, as it were, tickle my psychogeographic fancy. After some discussion of Denis Wood's Everything Sings and Rebecca Solnit's Infinite City, Shin sent us out into Capitol Hill to map some specific, observable aspect of the neighborhood and then try to transcribe what we found into text. I decided to focus on everything visible between parking signs and power lines, plus any sounds. I ended up with a catalogue of mostly tags and graffiti animals, an "urban bestiary" as one of the workshop participants noted (incidentally, this is a topic for another post I've been meaning to write as well as the title of a fascinating forthcoming book).Here's that catalogue.E. Olive Street, from 11th Avenue to 12th Avenueshoescrowspropeller affixed to pole, swayingcrowsparking sign: Hellawasted, Action for Animals, sad ghostbright yellow bits of a torn fliercrowsfuzzy green tree budsZ overlaying UNasty Nate Comfyfaded blue outline of a skeletonLost Cat: Adult Male Mostly Black with a White Belly. Will Give Generous Reward if Found and Returned to Owner. Contact Arlene.bright yellow flier, intact: Our Neighborhoods Under Attack! scary black towers descending upon single family homes with crash-pow comic book burstsNotice of Public Meetingfuzzy green tree budspolice car siren12th Avenueshoescrowsguttural other-bird song; rattle and click11th Avenue from Howell Street to E Olivecrowsparking sign: Hello My Name Is Nick Nack Records4 hour parking sing: No Big Deal, smiling prehistoric fish with wings, Nasty Nate Comfy, Blinkchildren squealingstick man with a briefcase and devil horns apparently going to hell4 hour parking Valid Here: love birdsnight owl with steaming cup of somethingshoes