dedicated to anna

'it's no new year's resolution.  it's more than that'

i usually don't make new year's resolutions for a simple fact.  if i can't be bothered to change my life when i need to no artificially constructed set time of whatever numerical value we give a year will help in making that change.  

but this year is a little different.  i'm older now.  i have only so many years left.  so these are my resolutions:

     listen more

     shut up every now & again

     watch more movies

     read more poetry

     write like i have a limited amount of time left to me

     stop making sense

     stop giving a shit about shit i cannot change

     maybe take up pipe smoking

     eat more fudge

     eat the ice cream now for there will be none in heaven or hell

     tell those i love I LOVE YOU

     take more time off work for at the end the best times of life are not spent in the office

& i'll be almost successful in obtaining these goals & if not well there's always next year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone!  

peace & love

happy christmas!

 

this poem by zimbabwean poet john eppel is a one of my favorites.  & a good illustration of the ways the holidays are both magical & married to gritty realities.  so but i wish for you & your family a very happy christmas.  the world turns toward a new year, again.  2023 will soon be behind us.  but really whatever numerical value we give to the year, it could be year 1 or we could call it year 4000, we live in a continuous present that we must make of it our own.  i don't know what comes next but it will be strange, magical, horrible, lethal & life-giving.  it will be imposed upon us as we make it up too.  i wish you peace love & happiness.  as nick lowe asked of us, what's so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?  

& as the great jon 'bowzer' bauman of the early rock&roll revival group sha na na said, grease for peace!

that 10-yard stare of christmas

 

winter solstice 2023

dusk

walking home from work

my shadow chasing my shadow

not writing

i'm at that age - advanced! - not to freak out if i am not writing but of which i've done none for about a week which is a relatively long time for me but so what i'm always reading always thinking about poetry & i'm always watching something so let us turn our attention to this chilean milk commercial featuring the great antipoet nicanor parra broadcast in i think 2005?  at any rate the u.s. equivalent would be if allen ginsberg did one of those GOT MILK? tv commercials which would've been freaking cool!

roger corman sonnet: munchies [1987]

before we blame it all on dad who knew 

we were visited by an alien civilization

& got proof in peru in the form of little arnold

the mischievous who learned both spanish & english

in the space of two minutes who wanted only

earth things like corn chips & salsa & clark bars

or blame it on dad's twin brother who wanted to 

control his own little postage stamp sized of america

& did stop at nothing including kidnapping little

arnold the mischievous for whatever his diabolical desires

let's begin with cindy played by nadine van der velde

who might be the cutest woman in 1980s U.S. cinema

cuz my gawd! paul her boyfriend played by charles stratton 

was a complete dork even if we've come to the end of the world