Above All

David Stark Wilson, photographer, has captured the essence of the Sierras in his remarkable book. The photos highlight the Sierra's fourteeners, those peaks above 14,000 feet (as well as Mt. Shasta and White Mountain Peak). The photos are shot in crepuscular light, meaning the peaks appear etched, stark, unreal, yet strangely approachable.

The book sits on my nightstand along with some old Charlie Brown comics, reading glasses I'm supposed to wear but don't, 3 by 5 cards with a nearby pen, a book about St. Francis, and a radio alarm clock which is set 11 minutes ahead (thereby allowing me to sleep 11 extra minutes every night).

The book's glossy pages smell really nice. The smell reminds me of the Barnes and Noble down in Emeryville. I like going there and saying to the salesperson, "Excuse me, where is the travel section?" The salesperson then directs me accordingly. I say, "Thank you very much," as I ride upstairs on the escalator. On the way to the travel section, however, some book always distracts me, like The Idiots Guide to Dog Training or Learn to Speak Klingon.

Before long, I have developed Saturday afternoon bookstore legs, (not to be confused with fabric store legs, which often leads to coma). I slip into a delicious lassitude as I stumble around the book shelves. I find the nearest couch, and under the dull hum of the fluorescent lights in the Business and Finance section, I fall asleep.