monuments
sometimes it's hard to explain the motivation behind some of the things i do. this is one of those things. i build monuments and dedicate them to living people.history
my slogan is “larz in charge.” it's not my creation. jason kephart dubbed me “larz” in response to me calling him “jakes.” consequently, dannyp wrote “larz in charge” on a cup sleeve at city brew (billings heights, mt). i took it outside, put it on the sidewalk, and coated it with epoxy. thus the first monument was born.we didn't know it at the time, but i would become increasingly comsumed with the idea of monuments. back in bozeman, in my backyard, i dug a hole and filled it with half a yard of concrete. i wrote “larz” in the concrete, and i covered it with a few inches of top soil.
this summer, i took a trip with johnnyg to portland and down us101/cal1 to sacramento. along the way i picked up a few bags of concrete mix and a bucket—i planned on building a monument on public land somewhere. we ended up on the south jette of a river—a thin slice of beach between the river and the ocean. there, on this beach, was the perfect spot. the land was owned by the u.s. army corps of architects (they maintained the jette) and right next to it was the beach owned by the state of oregon. but i couldn't bring myself to lay a yard of concrete in the sand. nor could i do it in u.s.f.s. land or state park land. i wasn't comfortable with the idea of vandalizing these areas. this could be the end.
i had the idea to create monuments and dedicate them to some of the amazing people in my life. i'd love to send someone a piece of paper that says “your monument is located here,” followed by the coordinates. i hope to build a few monuments for a few people before i'm done—and maybe one more “larz in charge” monument.