“Take to the Hills” by the Freewayblogger (AKA Patrick Randall)
Take to the Hills: Clothing the Sierra Madres is a new e-book by the Freewayblogger. He tells an inspiring story about the thinking that took him from grading papers at SDSU to driving hundreds of pounds of donated clothes into the Sierra Madres mountains.
Some may know the Freewayblogger (AKA Patrick Randall) from the thousands of signs he has posted on the freeways of California and elsewhere. The first one I remember was visible coming into OB from the I-8. An upside down American flag with ‘RIP 1776-2001’ very shortly after the Supreme Court decision in the Bush/Gore election. But before Bush and he death of American democracy the Freewayblogger was doing something else.
This is the story of one person’s commitment to direct action and making a difference. Taking warm clothes to cold people is a simple but powerful concept. But this story is about more than that. For me it’s about an equal exchange. The villagers in the Sierra Madres got a visitor with warm clothes. What the visitor got in return was insight into himself and our world. Which is worth at least as much.
This story is more than just a heart warming tale for the holidaze. It’s a call to action for those with the ears to hear it. Fear is a great motivator ‘they’ say. But inspiration is a greater one. Reading this story has inspired me to try and do more. In that spirit I join the OB Rag staff. The book sells for 99 cents. I encourage others to read it and see if it strikes a chord.
For the Amazon version, go here.
John Filthy is the nom de plume for a former OB activist.
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