by William Skink

I recently put an old poem to new music and it’s got me thinking about the good old days of 2003-2007. I had just polished off my BA in creative writing at UM in 2003, so naturally I applied that higher learning to a kitchen job at Food for Thought because that’s how artists in Missoula roll, right?

During that time I worked with a lot of really great people. One guy who I talked geopolitics with (because he actually knew a few things) now runs a business on the hip-strip. Another guy got a stab at Top Chef and will soon be opening his own spot in Portland.

I worked with the Missoula Rabble photographer, an iron-woman triathlete, and many other talented people I’m sure are kicking ass and taking names.

The work, at the time, was far from glamorous. I started washing dishes and ended my tenure as a weekend breakfast omelet ninja responsible for delivering massive omelets to hungover college students as fast as possible. I was good, but also relieved when the job was over. The food industry is a difficult environment to sustain, as anyone grinding away within it can attest.

Now that nostalgia has taken hold, I go back to those years and think how much simpler the world was. George Bush was president, the economy had yet to collapse, and people knew where they stood with wars of occupation.

Taking a poem written back then and applying it to my limited musical abilities and video production skills has been fun.

So here it is, Putting Shoes On: