Photograph by:
Jackie Solitske

In March of 1980, Lou Solitske memorized The Raven. He has recited it  every day since. Lou  embarked upon an eighteen-year career as a night driver with Sacramento Yellow Cab in 1987. This was a perfect job because it provided Lou with captive audiences for his poetic offerings. After over 10,500 recitations (mostly to himself but often to others and sometimes to the poor souls trapped in his taxi,) Lou has come to understand Edgar Allan Poe's iconic masterpiece in a way that few others have. Lou's long suffering wife, Jackie, says that Lou has turned the word raven into a verb. She maintains that he Ravens people and once they hear it, they are never quite the same.

In 2001 Lou published Taxi Tales a fact based collection of short stories recounting some of his more memorable adventures in Cabland.

Lou, photographer, videographer, author and poet moved to Half Moon Bay, California in 2005 where he has entered into a collaboration with artist Joyce Eakins .