Day 35: Swiss Colony Apartments

Egg on the loose: Pale pink, in the bushes by the Swiss Colony. Seek and ye (might) find. Poet/hider: Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco.

Day 34: Purple

Egg alert! Merced Union High School District East Campus Center at the flag pole on G & 19th. Color: unknown. Poets: the young and talented Jacob & Evie Mumford.

Day 33: Courthouse Museum

Highly inventive, playful poem by Jeremy Mumford, hidden in a blue egg in front of the Courthouse Museum. Find!

Day 32: Bagel Tyme

Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco has written another amazing poem, put it in a yellow egg, and hidden it in front of Bagel Tyme on Olive. Good luck with the hunt!

Day 31

Byron Webb, poet and egg-hider says, "It's a green egg, just under the sign at Mission Gardens Residential Care at 1450 E. 27th Street (Near 27th and Green, next to that Catholic school)." Seek and ye shall ------

Day 30: The Closed Mercy Hospital, 13th Street

Egg: Purple. Poet: Dawn Trook. Location: the closed Mercy Hospital, near the red Family Care sign, on 13th Street. Happy hunting!

Day 29: Purple

Elizabeth McMunn Tetangco has written a poem and hidden it in a purple egg and left it somewhere in the park on White Dove & Dunn Streets. . . .happy hunting !

The REAL Day 28: green egg, with apologies for no ham

The REAL 28th day! Near the sign on Yosemite that says, "Pray for Peace, Remember our fallen." (Hint: between G & M street.) Green egg (no ham--sorry). Courtesy poet Dawn Trook

Day 27: Bright Pink, Beachwood neighborhood

‎27 Days of Eggs: Dawn Trook put a poem she wrote into a bright pink egg and left in in a bush just outside the gate of the Santa Fe Pet Hospital in the Beachwood neighborhood. Happy hunting!

Day 26: Orange egg, courtesy Byron Webb

Day 26: Orange egg, filled with a lovely poem by Byron Webb, which he hid near a fire hydrant at the Northwest corner of Yosemite and San Jose in front of Village Landing Apartments. Find!

Egg on the loose: Alameda, CA

A found a stowaway egg when I arrived in Alameda. My egg-passenger asked to be dropped off at Alameda Beach, was craving an ocean view, so I set the green egg on a fencepost at the beach entrance on Shoreline Drive, where Shell Gate Road deadends at the beach.

Day 25. Pale Pink. Plus an egg on the loose.

Day 25: pale orange, corner of Olive and R, near Chevron parking lot. This poem is astonishing, by Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco. Also, there's a stowaway egg in a van on the way to Alameda. Stay tuned for the location of where it will be kicked out!

Day 24: Green Egg

After 9:30 PM, you can find the egg in the parking lot of the Millenium Sports Club on Yosemite. Poem and hiding place courtesy Dawn Trook. Tomorrow night, egg-spectacular by Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco.

Great Egg Hunt, Day 23; Egg, bright pink

Poetry by wonderful Evie Mumford. I'm about to go hide it in the Childs Avenue Starbucks parking lot. Seekers, seekers everywhere, come and search!

Blue: Center of Merced Mall, near See's Candy

Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco has offered another of her gems to the hunt--stuffing it in a blue egg and placing it inside the Merced Mall. Avid egg-hunter James Collins went after it, only to find that a little girl had found it a moment before.

From James, who found the little girl who had found the egg: "Thanks for coming up with such a fun way to hide something creative! I read your posting on Facebook and the description of where I might find it the egg poem. Before I even started looking I seen a blue egg being rolled around by a very young girl, her dad was sitting right next to her while she was playing. I naturally asked him if he knew there was a poem inside? "Hay una poema adentro del huevo?" He didn't know what I was talking about until he opened it, and I asked if I could take a picture. I didn't know how to explain to him that it was an egg hunt with poems inside hidden around Merced. =-("

Day 21: Yellow Egg, "The Middle of Me and What Lodges There," a poem by Dawn Trook

This egg was hidden by the Van Bebber family near a statue at the Merced County Office of Education on 13th Street between M & N Streets.

Here's the poem in preview:

The Middle of Me and What Lodges There

When the shine is stripped away,

I’m rough and wrong,

wanting comfort from faultlines.

The box of lies

kept in a box by my bed,

the backs of each pretty

pictures they hide behind.

This one’s a bird,

this one a song. It weaves between

my mean places, making me

not all bad, not all need.

I’m song and bird, star and varnish,

soap bubbles in a child’s eyes—

I’m all this, and the ensuing break.

I’m not all bad,

and I’m not all please.

My heart’s full of bird chatter—full of gift

and fears. My heart’s a jar of stars,

hoarding light, making night shadows.

My heart’s stuffed with soap and breathe.

Purple Egg, near entrance to Merced Zoo

Day 19: Bright Yellow, Byron Webb

Byron Webb has written a powerful poem, stowed it in a bright yellow egg, and placed it near the sign for the Strawberry Stand on McKee @ Alexander. Find egg, read poetry, post here, eat local produce. Mmmm.

Hiding the eggs: Two videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBu2SQN5hc0&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLCrFhw7WHc&feature=related

Day 18: Mint Green: There in the party downtown

Hey, Egg-seekers! Tonight's egg's mint green, filled with a poem by Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco, and hidden somewhere across from the old Deangelos on Main Street. Find like you've never found before. Tomorrow's egg shenanigans and poetry will come to you courtesy of Byron Webb.

Day 17: Rancho San Miguel Market

The egg was written and hidden by Dawn Trook. Later found by James, a worker at the market who was hunted down by Rick McMillion, or most avid searcher. Here's the poem:

The Homemade Piñata

I toppled--always too soon,

a hollow thud where the heart had been held.

A vital organ carted away, accidentally

mixed in with the recycling. I tried

fashioning myself a new

heart from old newspapers, a hole-punch,

and yarn scraps, wore it dangling

around my neck with a macramé chain

(knotted from a ball of twine

my mother left behind).

And there it was, waiting and obvious,

saying, "Here is the news:

She's ready." Must've looked so clumsy,

bicycle-commuting with that floppy

necklace batting back and forth.

What a dope. So I hung it on my wall--

pretended it was only art. On some random

visit, he admired the heart and I waved it off,

saying, "Oh, I'm through with it."

And then, unhooking it from above its place,

held it in my open palms, and, moving toward him, said,

"Why, do you want it?"

Day 16: Orange: Merced County Library front entrance

A two-for-one evening--two beautiful poems by two beautiful young poets, Evie and Jacob Mumford, slipped inside an orange egg. Please let us know if you find these treasures.

Day 15: Pale Pink

Tonight's egg's pale pink, hidden in the trees outside of Merced High School, near the soccer field. The poem and placement are courtesy Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco.

Reflections on the hunt

Some evenings, when I'm at the spa at Millenium Health Club, Rick McMillion will come over and try to pry me for clues as to where I might be hiding the egg that night.

"Where's the egg?" he'll ask.

"It's in the car," I answer, soaking deeper into the warm water under the Spring night sky.

"Where are you hiding it?" he asks again.

"I don't know yet," I say, which is an honest answer.

Most nights we drive around, not sure where we are going until we get there, egg in tow, feeling like middle school kids in the summer on bicycles during years when things were more innocent. If I worry about where to hide the egg, it's mostly because I'm conscious that there's so many places I haven't hidden it yet--so many neighborhoods where eggs have yet to tread. . .

***************

This morning, I woke up to a text message saying, "Had an early morning dentist appointment with Malcolm. We're heading to the Rose Garden." Followed later by a, "Yay! Found it!" and a lovely photo of young Malcolm with the egg in hand.

****************

Journalist and poet and lovely person, Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco, wrote this article on the Great Egg Hunt for our local newspaper's online version: http://www.mercedsunstar.com/2011/05/06/1881652/great-egg-hunt-brings-poetry-to.html

****************

Thanks for all the interest!

Day 14: In the Rose Garden

a poem by Jeremy Mumford in an egg, nestled somewhere in the Merced Rose Garden (in Applegate Park), hiding courtesy Rick McMillion

Day 13: The Baker's Dozen

Orange egg, hidden this evening somewhere in Merced, filled with a poem by Dawn Trook. Hope you post about your search.

The Dozenth Egg!

Day the 12! A beautiful poem and hiding place courtesy of Byron Webb. Pet Smart on Olive Avenue parking lot. It's all yours!

Day 11: in the display outside of Raley's

Day 11 poem written and hid courtesy of Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco. Tomorrow, newest team member Byron Webb adds his talents to the mix.

Day 10: Dueling Eggs

Tonight, we hid two eggs--one hot pink in Bob Hart Square stuffed with a poem by Elizabeth McMunn Tetangco, one blue and yellow, hidden in the Partisan and filled with a poem by Dawn Trook. Seek!

On the 9th day of Egg Hiding

Today, the eggs start multiplying: 1 was hidden near the movie theater on Main Street with a lovely poem inside written my one of our egg-poets, Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco. 1 was hidden near the new Northside Mercy Hospital entrance on G street. Our newest and thus-far youngest egg-poet members Jacob and Evie Mumford wrote the poems and did the hiding. Let us know if you find!

Live Egg Hide at Farmdale Elementary!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLCrFhw7WHc

The Eggs Multiply on Day the 9th!

Day 9: Egg(s): Yellow egg near the Fairgrounds stuffed with a poem by the wonderful Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco, Blue egg near the entrance to the new Mercy Hospital in North Merced, with poems by the young poets Jacob and Evie Mumford. The eggs are multiplying!

8th Egg: Main Street, near movie theater

Seek! Egg the eighth just hidden near movie theater on Main Street Merced. Egg filled with a poem by Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco. Hurry!

Egg 7: Green: Farmdale School, Merced

Tonight's egg contains a poem co-written by Dawn Trook & Jeremy Mumford and is hidden at Farmdale Elementary School. It's all yours! Tomorrow, we get a treat--a poem written and hidden by Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco.

Egg 6: Purple: Merced Dog Park

After 10:30 tonight, look in or around the Merced Dog Park for a purple egg. Let us know if you find it! Another collaborative poem by Jeremy Mumford & Dawn Trook. Next week, more lovely gems by Elizabeth McGunn-Tetangco.