US 62

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" height=120 BGCOLOR="#CCCC99" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="0ec8dfe1esnpes.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><B>Michael Czarnecki</B></FONT><B>     </B><B>|</B><B>     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Michael Czarnecki"><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id17.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Brief Bio"><U>Brief Bio</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id18.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Poet"><U>Poet</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id75.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Themed Programs"><U>Themed Programs</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id69.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Colleges"><U>Colleges</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id72.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Writing Workshops"><U>Writing Workshops</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id71.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="PoetintheSchools"><U>Poet-in-the-Schools</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Oral Memoirist"><U>Oral Memoirist</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id74.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Maine Coast Journey"><U>Maine Coast Journey</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id73.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Community Project"><U>Community Project</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Some of My Writing"><U>Some of My Writing</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id70.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Palm of the Hand Writing"><U>Palm of the Hand Writing</U></A>   |   <B>US 62</B>   |   <A HREF="id62.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="US 62 Journal"><U>US 62 Journal</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id22.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Schedule"><U>Schedule</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id76.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Fliers"><U>Fliers</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Books Available"><U>Books Available</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id26.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="References"><U>References</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id25.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contact Me"><U>Contact Me</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" height=360 BGCOLOR="#CCCC99" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="0ec8dfc3.jpg"> <div> <I>US 62</I></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I>U</I><I>S Route 62</I></div> <div> <I>Border to Border </I></div> <div> <I>Poetry Tour 2006!</I></div> <div> <A HREF="#first_reading_booked" TITLE="US 62"><U><I>(See schedule below)</I></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <I>Book of the journey will be published in 2007!</I></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id62.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="US 62 Journal"><U><I>US 62 Journal Notes From the Road</I></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="1b5b8630.jpg" border=0 width="440" height="355" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <bR> <div> "There's a place in your heart and you know from the start</div> <div> you can't be complete without a street.</div> <bR> <div> You keep moving on through the joy and the pain</div> <div> sometimes you got to look back to the street again."</div> <bR> <div> Van Morrison</div> <div> "The Street Only Knew Your Name"</div> <bR> <bR> <div> "Can you hear that engine, </div> <div> oh, can you hear that engine drone.</div> <div> Well, I'm out on the road again and I'm searching for, </div> <div> searching for the philosopher's stone."</div> <bR> <div> Van Morrison</div> <div> "The Philosopher's Stone"</div> <bR> <bR> <div> From the age of four until my mid-twenties, in 1974 when I left Buffalo, NY for life in the country, I never lived more than a half mile away from US 62, Bailey Avenue. As a youngster it was a boundary that signified some outer reaches beyond the close Polish neighborhood I lived in. Then, as I grew older, it became the street I took buses up and down - to the university, to work at Twin Fair. I met my first girl friend on the number 19 Bailey bus. Was given a ticket for hitchhiking on it a few blocks from the university. For two decades much of my life centered on Bailey Avenue. </div> <bR> <div> In early November 2005 I was driving in Oklahoma City when I noticed a sign for US 62. It couldn't be! The same US 62 that is Bailey Avenue? All the years in Buffalo, in close proximity to Bailey Avenue, and I never stopped to consider where US 62 started, where it went beyond the eight miles or so along Bailey. When I returned to my room at the Holiday Inn that evening I pulled out my maps and followed US 62. It starts in Niagara Falls near the Niagara River, traverses eastside Buffalo along Bailey Avenue, enters eight other states (PA, OH, KY, IL, MO, AR,OK, NM) and ends in El Paso, Texas at the bridge over the Rio Grande River. Border to border, northeast to southwest. A journey was born!</div> <bR> <div> This April, from the 11th through the 30th,  I will be driving US 62 from Niagara Falls to El Paso. I'm currently working on setting up poetry readings along the way. If you live on or near US 62 and can be of help in arranging a reading please drop me a note. As readings get booked I'll post the information on this page.</div> <bR> <div> On the following four pages are a series of 28 Mapquest maps that trace out the route from near the Niagara River to the Rio Grande. There are 7 to a page and they are SLOW to load on a phone modem connection.</div> <bR> <div> I'll also be sending our somewhat regular emails from the road, so if you'd like to receive them send me an email to request being added to the list.  <A HREF="mailto:poetguy@foothillspublishing.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:poetguy@foothillspublishing.com"><U>email</U></A></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div>  <A NAME="first_reading_booked"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A>9 Readings Booked!</div> <bR> <div> <I>Journey Kick-off Reading </I></div> <div> <I>the evening before the Tour starts!</I></div> <bR> <div> <B>Monday, April 10, 7 PM</B></div> <div> <B>Niagara Falls Public Library (NY)</B></div> <div> <B>1425 Main St.</B></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Day 1</B></I></div> <div> <B>Tuesday, April 11</B></div> <div> <B>Gowanda Free Library</B></div> <div> <B>56 West Main St.</B></div> <div> <B>Gowanda, NY</B></div> <div> <B>7:00 PM</B></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Day 2</B></I></div> <div> <B>Wednesday, April 12, 7 PM</B></div> <div> <B>Mercer Area Library</B></div> <div> <B>143 North Pitt St.</B></div> <div> <B>Mercer, PA</B></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Day 3</B></I></div> <div> <B>Thursday, April 13</B></div> <div> <B>Holmes County Public Library</B></div> <div> <B>Millersburg, OH</B></div> <div> <I><B>6:30 PM</B></I></div> <div> <B>at Goddard's Restaurant</B></div> <div> <I><B>88 East Jackson St.</B></I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Day 6</B></I></div> <div> <B>Sunday, April 16</B></div> <div> <B>Artcroft</B></div> <div> <B>Carlisle, KY</B></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <I><B>Day 11</B></I></div> <div> <B>Friday, April 21</B></div> <div> <B>Black River Technical College</B></div> <div> <B>Serendipity Group</B></div> <div> <B>Pocahontas, AR</B></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Day 15</B></I></div> <div> <B>Tuesday, April 25</B></div> <div> <B>Oklahoma City Community College</B></div> <div> <B>GEAR UP Poetry Event</B></div> <div> <B>Oklahoma City, OK</B></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Day 16</B></I></div> <div> <B>Wednesday, April 26</B></div> <div> <B>Coffee Cup Brunch 10 AM</B></div> <div> <B>Altus Public Library</B></div> <div> <B>421 North Hudson</B></div> <div> <B>Altus, OK</B></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>On the Return Home</B></I></div> <div> <B>Thursday, May 4</B></div> <div> <B>Western Nebraska Community College</B></div> <div> <B>Reading with Mary Jackson</B></div> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>