Huckleberries: While the poet rode his circuit, his fair lady played for suppers

Huckleberries Wednesday:

While Roger Dunsmore rode his utility pole circuit Monday, his wife, Jenni, played for others’ supper.

Roger, as you may recall (Huckleberries, April 24), is a retired University of Montana professor and top-notch poet who delivers poetry to the Coeur d’Alene masses in an unorthodox manner. He nails about 50 copies of a selected poem of the month to telephone poles

The poem du jour for June is Quan Yin’s “Prayer for the Abuser.”

While Roger peddled his bike and stapled poems on his circuit ride, his poet/musician/artist wife Jenni Fallein was playing her guitar with Dale Young near The Art Spirit Gallery on Sherman Avenue. They and other musicians were participating in the 4th annual Street Music Week fundraiser in Coeur d’Alene.

The money for the Second Harvest food bank was slow in coming in Monday. “Maybe I should push the bucket into the middle of the sidewalk,” Dale joked, nudging the red bucket farther into the pedestrian space. “After all,” he said, “we’re doing this to feed people.”

Musician Doug Porter, in front of Christmas at the Lake, wasn’t attracting many donations either. At the corner of Second and Sherman, however, the Coeur d’Alene Youth Marimba musicians were a hit. Huckleberries didn’t check to see how much money was in the marimba bucket.

Coeur d’Alene still has a chance to take part in this terrific fundraiser started 15 years ago in Spokane by S-R columnist Doug Clark. The Coeur d’Alene musicians will perform at noon on Sherman Avenue for the rest of the week/ DFO . More here.