The End of an Era

Yesterday marked the last day at my place of employ for the man pictured to the right, Jake Duffy. For almost exactly two years we sat side by side, sharing a cubicle, MFAs in writing (his is in fiction), and all varieties of culture.

A dull day was never had in the place unless Jake was on vacation, which was hardly ever. His knowledge of film, literature and music were unusually well-developed as compared with the average person, and head and shoulders above practically everyone else at the job.

One of the first things I overheard upon arriving for work my first day was a debate raging among my colleagues as to which constituted the greatest film of all time: Braveheart or Gladiator. I had barely managed to contain the look of horror that surely must have crossed my face when I saw Jake's similarly aghast look.

Instant bond.

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But like
All good popsicles—
Eventually it's gone.

* * *

For Jake Duffy.

8-word poem: THE JUNK MAIL VARIATIONS

It's Sherry again—
Will you
Ever
Contact me?

8-word poem: THE JUNK MAIL VARIATIONS

acrid heartbreaking
appetite control
for hours
on end

iTuneage - recent baker's dozen

1. "How to Rent a Room" - Silver Jews
2. "Hunter" - Dido
3. "No Mercy" - Nils Lofgren
4. "The Secret Life of Arabia" - David Bowie
5. "Memory Motel" - The Rolling Stones
6. "King's Call" - Phillip Lynott
7. "Roadworn and Weary" - The Supersuckers
8. "Be My Lover" - Alice Cooper
9. "Bang A Gong (Get It On)" - T. Rex
10. "Donna" - The David Johansen Group
11. "Yoga Means Union" - Ambulance Limited
12. "Heart and Soul" - The Cleftones
13. "Hushabye" - The Mystics

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If there is
A God,
What's he
Drinking?

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Some people
Can't do
What they like.
Ever.

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Some people
Can do
What they like.
Always.

Slipshod Sonnet #1

Centerfold navel staples electric
eye tiptoeing visiting
delicious keeping the living area
at bay hit and saunter
simple realizations verse, what’s
worse? some see flaws
so easily often taking little notice
you can’t win like that
not with a lampshade serenade
hothouse cancer has
the most legs crossed ankles that
prophecy again pardon my
trespass wavering I meant to stay
out

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Someday
The past
Will remain
In the past.

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I hope
You don't break
Your leg
Dancing.

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People like
To talk,
Especially
Instead of
Listening.

Global Warming - Real Or Fake? You Decide!

Originally posted (in slightly modified form) at Ecotality.com on June 20, 2007.

Top Ten Ways You Can Tell Global Warming is Real

1. Linen napkin sales skyrocket.
2. Michael Bloomberg dumps GOP affiliation, intending to run for President as an independent candidate.
3. Curious lack of concern among incensed Tennesseans regarding Al Gore's solar panels.
4. Carpooling suddenly seen as hip.
5. Polar bears observed body surfing toward the Jersey shore.
6. Christmas trees now have coconuts.
7. President Bush seen readying Air Force One escape pod to Alpha Centauri.
8. American flag colors changed to red, white and green.
9. Fox News taken over by federal government and turned into world's most powerful wind farm.
10. Two words: peak oil.

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Her heart's
Been broken
Just like yours
Has.

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What the world
Needs now
Is more
Pie.

Celsias

Those of you who care about the environment should head over to Celsias.com, another blog where I am posting about all things green. It's a great group of folks who are trying to keep the world intact for the generations that will follow us.

Feel free to add your two cents' worth to any topic I or anyone else there is writing about. Remember: we're all in this together!

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Someone
Caked your rain
Out in the
Left.

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Blame it on
Gravity—
That's my story
Today.

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Doesn't
Mean anything
That it doesn't
Mean anything.

WHEN I SAID MY WORLD, MY RULES I MEANT TO SAY YOUR WORLD, YOUR RULES

All or nothing posture
Clashing with cash gifts
A daily reckoning
With the fine print
Weekly updates like clockwork
Devil Dog aesthetic
And rightly so
$1,000 gets you
The rest of your life
Lacquered tears
Might yet come in handy
Generosity ruined in the womb
Fresh out of crematorium
Gift certificates
When I said
My world, my rules
I meant to say
Your world, your rules
Thinking this is easy
Lord you’re right
Saw you passing
Notes through turquoise bars
Cracked envious
Wishing my gate
Would swing similarly

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I saw
Something
But didn't do
Jack shit.

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No:
From the Latin for
"Go fuck yourself."

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Now
That I
have found her—

Now what?

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Sorry
I missed
The anniversary
Of your death.

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Receipts
Are like
Scars:
They show
You've lived.

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Leave them
The world:
The young,
The promising.

KICKING LUNCH (DON’T TELL FRANK O’HARA!)

Checking the pricetags
at Duane Reade

where they don't seem
to discount the Cheetos.

Fuck me—
I could eat them all,
then orange up everything

I touch—including you—
so let's share.

Brand name batteries
(the only ones I trust),

guava flavored gum,
keychain shaped like a foot,
skull & crossbones lighter—

Who exactly
did Phil Spector kill, again?

No, I don't have a penny—
Do you?

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Some questions
You don't ask,
Just live with.

Sports Illustrated Calls On Al Gore To Help Make The Stanley Cup Finals Greener

Originally posted at Ecotality.com on May 30, 2007.

Sports Illustrated's Michael Farber has written an open letter to Al Gore, pleading with the former Vice President to help green up the National Hockey League’s Stanley Cup finals format.

Farber is concerned with the NHL’s current 2-2-1-1-1 system, wherein two games of the best-of-seven final series are played on one team’s home ice, followed by two games on their opponent’s home ice, returning back to the first team’s home ice, then to the opponent’s again, and finally – if seven games are required – one final game in the rink where the whole thing started. Confused? Perfect! Consider yourself a hockey fan.

Farber is seeking a more environment-friendly configuration:

You see, a 2-3-2 final would be a blessing for the environment. The NHL would be doing its patriotic best to be green -- beyond its recycling of Anaheim Ducks defenseman Sean O'Donnell.Read more »

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Ticket taker:
Please
Punch me
Into
Perfect being.

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Learn
To let
Inspiration in
When it
Knocks.

What would life be like if it never changed? Installment 7

More thoughts on my Top Ten Life-Changing Albums. Thanks to Eek for beginning the thread that led me to this list.

(Note: Italics indicate my initial response to Eek's challenge; the rest constitutes my further thoughts on the subject).

7. Chelsea Girl, Nico. Poor Nico; love her or hate her, she was one sad person. I am never sure why one person’s sadness turned into art has the ability to uplift another, but that’s pretty much the story here. Hearing this album may have been my first look into true empathy.

Though Nico would go on to fashion a unique brand of Gothic music, something about the sheer folkiness of this debut remains innocently engaging, while managing to telegraph the darker stylings to come.

In collaboration with Velvet Underground alumni Lou Reed and John Cale, as well as Jackson Browne, among others, Nico delivers the goods with her typical chilling Germanic vocals. Set atop fingerpicked acoustic guitars and baroque strings (think: "Eleanor Rigby"), the effect should be off-putting but is instead disarming.

The songs "The Fairest of the Season," "Little Sister," and "These Days" are achingly sad and full of yearning. "These Days," in particular is full of haunted, broken feelings and confessional lyrics that Nico interprets with a detached heartbreak that is devastating, though beautiful:

"Please don't confront me with my failures,
I have not forgotten them."

The title cut (which is actually called "Chelsea Girls," plural) is vaguely disquieting, clearly bearing the stamp of Lou Reed, and sounding like a minor key first draft of "Walk on the Wild Side." An eerie, questioning flute embroiders the melody throughout.

Nico probably made better and more influential records (covering The Doors' "The End," and making it her own on the album of the same name, for example). Her legacy is more firmly rooted in the creepier, dirgy songs she produced later in her career. But something was captured on Chelsea Girl that set the tone: her world-weariness is already in place on this disc of quiet, thoughtful songs, and for newcomers to the Nico experience, this is a great place to begin.

It's impossible to hear these songs and not feel the sorrow that was the daily stuff of Nico's life. If you're willing to make the journey, chances are you'll return with a renewed appreciation for your own feelings, and be the better for it.