8-word poem

At last—
I've become
The person
I feared.

8-word poem

Beginning to see
Poetry
As the great
Destroyer.

8-word poem

This city
Is unforgiving;
Exactly what
We deserve.

8-word poem

Saddest two-word combo
Of all time:
Christian rock.

8-word poem

Do you
Want this
Or
Do you
Not?

8-word poem

We're no kids
And this is
No game.

iTuneage - recent baker's dozen

1. "King of Beers" - Too Much Joy
2. "Unbreakable" - Todd Snider
3. "Golden Years" - David Bowie
4. "Both Ends Burning" - Roxy Music
5. "See No Evil" - Television
6. "Take, 5 D." - The Minutemen
7. "What is Life" - George Harrison
8. "Sugar Kane" - Sonic Youth
9. "It's Alive!" - Soundtrack from Oldboy
10. "Crazy Feeling" - Lou Reed
11. "The Throne of Agony" - Scraping Foetus Off the Wheel
12. "Guitar and Pen" - The Who
13. "Phaedra" - Tangerine Dream

8-word poem

Question for
The general public:
Aren't people
Cunts?

8-word poem

September Song:
Nobody
Writes them
Like that
Anymore.

8-word poem

Is there
Any hope?
That's all
There is.

Random Observations on The Who World Tour - Madison Square Garden 09/18/2006

Spotted: entire "Who families," i.e. Mom, Dad, and kids all sporting brand-new Who World Tour T-shirts (which went for $35 a pop). Whose generation?

The guy doing continuous Townshend-esque air guitar windmills as he traipsed along the walkway on the 300 section.

The Wayne and Garth guys slightly behind and to our left. These rabid fans stood and sang along to almost every song with a passionate gusto that nearly had me weeping with admiration (and hilarity). The way they punctuated each line with either a pumped fist or authoritative index finger point was its own mini-show. Bravo, boys!

The band backing up Townshend and Daltrey was incredibly solid throughout, yet was introduced in a fairly rushed manner - twice. I found this quite odd, but then again it must be hard to look at the band and have to acknowledge that two founding members are no longer present - or living. Pino Paladino wisely chose not to replicate John Entwistle's bass solo on "My Generation," but still acquitted himself well on the tune. Zak Starkey is a fine drummer, but I wonder why Kenney Jones is no longer with the band, after being named a full member in the 1980s. The vocal harmonies, I suspect courtesy of Pete's brother Simon Tonwshend (who also played guitar), were outstanding.

8-word poem

"Wanna feel
The baby
Kick?"

"No,
Not really."

Department of Zero Shame

Official "I'm sorry I bet on baseball" ball autographed by Pete Rose.








Coming soon?

The Huh?

Providence struck recently in the form of a couple of tickets to everyone's favorite farewell tour band, The Who. We witnessed them perform last night to a mostly sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden. This marked the fourth time I've seen the band live in concert.

The fact that the band has been reduced to two of its original founding members, Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey, isn't nearly as odd as this statistic: in each of the four performances I have attended, a different drummer has been present!

Never mind Spinal Tap's John "Stumpy" Pepys, Eric "Stumpy Joe" Childs, Mick Shrimpton, and Joe "Mama" Besser. This is real life, folks, and the list goes: Keith Moon, Kenney Jones, Simon Phillips, and Zak Starkey. Thankfully, our seats weren't close enough that we were ever in danger of being struck by the errant effluvium of a spontaneously exploding Mr. Starkey (yes, Ringo's son - and no, he didn't spontaneously explode, either).

It is hard to believe a) that these guys can still rock (and can they ever!), and b) that it was thirty years ago when I first saw The Who, also at the Garden; I was a mere -1 years old (no need to do the math: I'm 29). It was a thundering performance, back in the era of Pete Townshend's gravity-defying leaps, and Daltrey's big golden hair and fringed suede vest. John Entwistle and Moon were polar opposites in terms of the energies they expended: the former remaining stark still save for his kinetic fretwork, the latter barely able to remain seated behind a massive drum kit that looked more like a stack of platinum oil drums riveted together.

What a band, then and now.


Different drummers (left to right: Keith Moon, Kenney Jones, Simon Phillips, Zak Starkey)

8-word poem: THE WHO CONCERT STORY

Why is
No one
Coming by
With candy?

8-word poem

I will
Sob
Most assuredly
For him
Later.

8-word poem

There's more
To life
Than getting
Fucked up.

8-word poem

If you see
Something,
Consider
Your choices
Carefully.

8-word poem

Subway couple:
Reading twin
Unofficial guides
To Disneyworld.

8-word poem

"Did you
Get healed?"

"No,
Did you?"

"No."

8-word poem: THE HULKING INTIMIDATOR ON THE A TRAIN WHO TRIED THE OLD "I'M GONNA SPREAD MY LEGS & INVADE YOUR PERSONAL SPACE" ROUTINE STORY

You didn't get
Me
To back down,
Bitch!

* * *

Me: 1, Hulking Intimidator: 0.

8-word poem

I've nothing
But admiration
For your
Skidmarked soul.

8-word poem

Sorry
Seems to be
The most frequent
Word.

Hockey Haiku

The Espositos—
Phil won 2 Cups, Tony: none.
Brother, I'm sorry.

Haiku

Something about Fall:
When it announces itself,
I feel a great calm.

8-word poem: THE CAPTAIN WILLARD STORY II

Bloody, drunken,
Sobbing—
Jesus Christ,
That was me.

8-word poem

Somewhere between
Shit and Syphillis
You'll find
Sympathy.

* * *

Overheard in Times Square, New York.

8-word poem

So tired
My enthusiasm
Needs to be
Subpoenaed.

8-word poem

Fung Wah Bus
Crash:
Roaches, chickens
Among casualties.

8-word poem: THE CAPTAIN WILLARD STORY

I'm unaware
Of any such
Activity
Or operation.

8-word poem

The world
Isn't
A safe place.

Surprise, surprise.

8-word poem

Lost and found:
Still missing
What's not there.

8-word poem

The prettiest girl
I ever saw
Hates clowns.

8-word poem

Teasing it all
Out;
Arriving at eight
Words.

8-word poem

Camus'
Car crash
Created continuing
Crises
Concerning conveyance.