You may have seen him around town. I mean, he tends to stand out from the crowd, perhaps not as much as some other eccentrics like, say, the Wizard, but he’s definitely a unique presence.

For one thing, he has long, unruly, wiry eyebrows that look like they’ve been zapped by an electric current. He’s as bald as I am, but doesn’t shave his head because he simply doesn’t have time to pursue such vain grooming practices. His clothing is also a bit unusual; that is, he prefers loose, cotton attire and has never felt comfortable in jeans, especially fashionably tight, faded jeans. He didn’t even wear jeans in high school or during his undergraduate days at Washington State University, where I first met him.

His name is Ron Jorgensen and he’s one of the oldest friends I have. After we graduated from Cougarville, I went in the Army but Ron continued his studies at Harvard, where he met some fascinating professors who had a profound influence on him. Still, he abandoned the peaceful, hallowed, Ivy League air for the rebellion festering in the polluted streets of New York’s Greenwich Village. After that, one thing led to another and he ended up in India, where he spent eight years on a Pondicherry ashram studying the works and disciplines of Sri Aurobinda’s yoga.

Ron might well be the most gifted linguist I’ve ever met. His command of the English language, whether scripted or verbal, simply blows me away.

That being the case, it’s not surprising to learn that he writes poetry. Though I don’t think Ron is nearly as good as Pound, Eliot or Ginsberg – nor is he, respectively, as savage, as depressing, or as stoned – I still suspect he’s a really fine poet.

For approximately 45 years, Ron has taught tai chi and yoga and his classes have proven popular enough to earn him a decent living – and any time you earn a living doing what you love, half the battle is won. He promotes tai chi to relieve stress and cultivate a “cosmic harmony” and yoga to integrate all aspects of your being and achieve your “full potential, beyond being just human.” (Sounds like good stuff, huh?)

He teaches the “Jorgensen” style of tai chi, which is not, in the least, meant to be sarcastic. His condensed routine has fewer moves and different moves than other styles and yet it accomplishes much more. He’s recently innovated certain back-bending forms that eventually – once they become a bit more popular – might revolutionize the entire field.

If you’re like to take one of his classes or learn more about the subject, contact him at ronald@foxinternet.net or phone him at 360-825-3413.