dress brightly color'd crossed quarters twix equal and solstice when seven sisters arise at dawn Maia dance of the Maypole this balance of Divine Feminine and Masculine in All wish'd as the jump of teine eigin flames upon Uisneach the lucky fire sacred wood Hawthorne adorns hair wet in Boaldyn dew bless thy garden as of old, under moon's shine bonded pair Flora to Jack in Green
A modern Celtic Troubadour..............John Martyn --- Couldn't Love You More
Playing the Foolish Sheep For Once
Current mood: Foolish
O.K., to confuse a cat, I will claim ownership to the truth of OZ...........
"You, my friend, are a victim of disorganized thinking. You are under the unfortunate impression that just because you run away you have no courage"
"As for you, my galvanized friend, you want a heart. You don’t know how lucky you are not to have one. Hearts will never be practical until they can be made unbreakable."
"A heart is not judged by how much you love; but by how much you are loved by others."
"Why, anybody can have a brain. That’s a very mediocre commodity. Every pusillanimous creature that crawls on the Earth or slinks through slimy seas has a brain."
"Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain."
"I am the great and powerful (stepping out from behind the curtain) Wizard of Oz."
"Do not arouse the wrath of the great and powerful Oz. I said come back tomorrow."
"The truth is out there" (O.K. Oz didn’t say that)
The end of summer last, the ripple cast me upon your shores.
Nine inch laughter at a friend’s and curiosity in the mind behind such heart’s expression, I glimpsed a garden’s beautiful riot behind walls to retain.
Chance….fate….ALL intervention?
For why I can not question, I found a friend.
I found a like soul whose words captivate.
I found I looked forward to seeing those words appear and the inspired exchange they would bring.
As days drift short and darkness fell, I was touched by your shine on black in white concern; pulling me from shadows cast by ill intentions, joy lost. You opened the gate to a kindness in the face of rebuff and a kindred that all lost can be found with hope. Through and in your eyes a star guided lost home.
Roots delve as we grew in laughter and a sharing emerald against cold January’s ill wind; a week’s dance digging out from under weather together. Stranded in a cabin’s fever I discovered the cabin stretched for miles and in a room on the other end you, as stranded. I have never enjoyed confinement more than in your company. I fell, into warmth, you caught with cautious care.
Though not there, you still enjoyed the landscape of virgin white against warm sun and I knew it did not matter save the giving, save for enriched life’s increasing.
There, we gained against doubt, with trust and cherished respect, more than either expected. There, a passion for maybe and if. There with three words know but uttered fear. All in against another’s tell, called bluff, and ignorance to heart’s stake. There we grew.
Each day a good morning arose from dream’s impart, each evening’s rest only upon reluctant good night. Between… songs I knew not existed, less my desire to sing in passion’s harmony. A journey anew to places unimagined, subjected thrall to majestic vistas dominating my perception of exactly who I thought I was; whispered breathless in release.
Time in the face of infinite eight has little meaning; I have waited here so long.Dream to action and damn the torpedoes, this dance will be complete with the care of fate and knowledge of gentle bridge connecting isle’s shores. We will dance in rain and under stars; on laughing strolls through markets and on warm benches as the sun paints clouds gold……..when carne-vale, across the sky forever to angel’s blush.
Super Phat Tuesday.....and Goodbye for 46 days
Category: News and Politics
Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day……the last day of Carnival….and it's "Super" –D- Duper.
Fitting that Super Tuesday is also Fat Tuesday….the culmination of Carnival…..The CIRCUS, the street parade and a grand ol' party of elephants and asses.
Bill and Monica float….
U.S. Army Corp of Engineers float….
Papa explains the war like this: "When the elephants dance, the chickens must be careful." -- When The Elephants Dance -- Tess Uriza Holthe
"Thanks for the question, you little jerk." – John McCain after being asked by a high school student if he was too old to be president.
"When we were in college we used to take a popcorn popper -- because that was the only thing they would let us have in the dorms -- and fry squirrels in the popcorn popper." -- Mike Huckabee
"I saw my father march with Martin Luther King." – Mitt Romney (Romney's campaign later admitted that they didn't march on the same day, or in the same city)
"You know, one of the hardest parts of my job is to connect Iraq to the war on terror." – George W. Bush interview with CBS News' Katie Couric, Sept. 6, 2006
You might have seen a housefly, maybe even a superfly, but I bet you ain't never seen a donkey fly! Ha, ha! - Eddie Murphy, Shrek
"We are going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good." --- Hillary Clinton
"In case you missed it, this week, there was a tragedy in Kansas. Ten thousand people died -- an entire town destroyed." – Barack Obama on a Kansas tornado that killed 12 people
"[T]here is a growing gap between the rich and the poor. If we were all rich, that would be very nice. If we were all poor, it would be too bad, but we would be the same." – Madelein Albright
The origin of the name "carnival" is questioned. Some say it has roots in "carne vale", Latin for "farewell to meat", meaning the last days when you could eat meat before Lent.
Others claim that it comes from the Latin carrus navalis, or "ship cart", referring to a cart in a religious parade....a float.
Still other theorize that the name comes from Italian "carne levare", meaning "to remove meat", since meat is prohibited during Lent.
Lent is a time to sacrifice something of meaning just as Jesus fasted in the desert for 40 days, tempted unmercifully by the devil……to make the ultimate sacrifice for mankind by allowing himself to be nailed to a tree.
I am Gnostic in nature….and don't ask me to explain myself for 46 days……I believe that "Jesus died for somebody's sins but not mine" (--Patti Smith)…..and I can spout drivel for hours…..but won't.
I choose, not because I am a Catholic or a Christian, to make a meaningful sacrifice for Lent……for me meat is an ehhh…..I can go (and have gone) without. A few years back I gave up beer (not a glass of wine now and then mind you, just beer ;) and I could not WAIT for Lent to end. The second time I tried it….eehhh, no problem. Chocolate….ehh, no problem.
So what to do this year?
About 8 months ago I discovered the beauty of the many souls here on myspace and I have enjoyed the people I have met immensely. I have voraciously read some of the best writing I have ever read….because it comes from the heart and not for a buck.
For me to give up myspace for the next 46 days WILL be a meaningful sacrifice and I hope you, my friends, will understand. I will choose to spend the time I would enjoy here for the betterment of self, loved ones, and the world around me….see you Easter Sunday…..morning….real early…..like 12:01 AM EST.
Namaste
PS – Because it is Super Phat Tuesday….and I cast my vote for Ron Paul…..the only real non-soul sold candidate still out there……I leave you with….not again Brad…..Ani DiFranco (at least this will be the last time for 46 days ;)
Next Bold Move – Ani DiFranco
Currently
reading
:
Civil Disobedience
By
Henry David Thoreau
Release date: 01 September, 2000
I quantify the insignificant on a regular basis and one day I will write of Zen and the art of measuring microns (75 of those little bad boys fit a straight and narrow line across a human hair)…..I breath and have to start over. A micron is one of the smallest measures man has been able to attain in the analog (we delve ever more minute riding the coat tails of natural forces). A dial indicator capable of such is very much akin to a fine Swiss watch.
No matter what unit we look to measure in space or time there is always an infinite of complexity below and infinite of simplicity above. Take the "concept" Earth as a cell, a unit of measure….a small blue and white ball spinning around a below average star dancing in a backwater arm of one of a million spiral galaxies in a local group racing to escape each other in an infinitely expanding universe. Total Zen for me to find insignificant Earth from that level…..but delve under that simple unit of quantity (Earth as a cell) and find an absolutely amazingly infinite complexity which includes you and I.
No matter how macro or micro you look though….there is always vast space between. I don't care how solid a unit appears there is a quantity of "nothing" separating the sub-components. The magic is in the forces (gravity, strong force, weak force…blah, blah...LOVE) that compel the simple complexities to bond across these huge but ultimately immeasurably insignificant gaps of "not" into the fractal spiral of all.
So, if measured in angstroms or light years there is always a complexity below and a simplicity above which is relative to the unit observed by the unit observing…..as it ALL swirls, whirling dervish, to the white noise of God's song.
As units assembled to be capable of observing the complex simplicity of self within the infinite surround, lay the essence of humanity.
Heavy write for Super Bowl Sunday……Go Pats/Giants………I am torn between a perfect season and a N.Y. team winning for a Bills fan's dislike of New EnglandJ
I would be all "Go Giants" this day if I did not fail with my "Insignificant, Infinitely Complex Self" and unknowingly dis a very, very dear friend whom I would have thoroughly enjoyed exchanging barbs and wagers with today. I am sorry, please forgive me.
"Coming Up" on elections
Current mood: insubordinate
Category: News and Politics
So I am on an Ani roll here folks………
While searching for yesterday's video I came across this amazing recital of Coming Up by her. I share it here and say to all of those candidates out to charm me with 30 second sound bites and slung mud…..I know who you sleep with, each and every one of you. Wake up and see the ground swell before it's too late. Show to me you understand these words and you have my vote……else I can only choose the lesser of evils.
I recently purchased Ani's book, Verses. For all of you readers of poetry out there, this book is a fresh echo of once in is.
For the political candidates (because I KNOW they all read my blog to feel the pulse of their constituents):
Coming Up – Ani DiFranco
Currently
reading
:
Ani Difranco: Verses
By
Ani Difranco
Release date: 01 September, 2007
Swan Dive (for a friend)
Current mood: hopeful
Category: Life
I know, I hear you saying "what has gotten into Brad".......doesn't he realize we have better things to do with our time.
A very good friend stands with fear on the rail for a swan dive and I wish only brilliant success.
Swan Dive -- Ani DiFranco
cradling the softest, warmest part of you in my hand feels like a little baby bird fallen from the nest i think that your body is something i understand i think that i'm happy, i think that i'm blessed
i've got a lack of inhibition i've got a loss of perspective i've had a little bit to drink and it's making me think that i can jump ship and swim that the ocean will hold me that there's got to be more than this boat i'm in
'cuz they can call me crazy if i fail all the chance that i need is one-in-a-million and they can call me brilliant if i succeed gravity is nothing to me, moving at the speed of sound i'm just going to get my feet wet until i drown
and i teeter between tired and really, really tired im wiped and im wired but i guess its just as well because i built my own empire out of car tires and chicken wire and i'm queen of my own compost heap and i'm getting used to the smell
and i've got a lack of information but i got a little revelation and i'm climbing up on the railing trying not to look down i'm going to do my best swan dive into shark-infested waters i'm gonna pull out my tampon and start splashing around
'cuz i don't care if they eat me alive i've got better things to do than survive i've got a memory of your warm skin in my hand and i've got a vision of blue sky and dry land
i'm cradling the hardest, heaviest part of me in my hand the ship is pitching and heaving, my limbs are bobbing and weaving and i think this is something i understand i just need a couple vaccinations for my far-away vacation i'm going to go ahead and go boldly because a little bird told me that jumping is easy, that falling is fun up until you hit the sidewalk, shivering and stunned
and they can call me crazy if i fail all the chance that i need is one-in-a-million and they can call me brilliant if i succeed gravity is nothing to me moving at the speed of sound i'm just gonna get my feet wet until i drown...
This clip is from the DVD "Trust"..... I highly recommend it to any Ani fan
I have disabled comments. Thank you for your understanding and patience, I now return you to your regularly scheduled myspace.
I attempted to repost this bulletin I received from Swamp Goddess (thank you) because I found it so fun……alas it disappeared into the myspace void……so now I will rewrite it as a blog, sorry folks.
Psychoanalyze Yourself; Don't read ahead, just answer the following questions with the first thought that comes to mind. Then read which each answer means at the end. (No cheating! )
1. You are walking in the woods. You are not alone. Who is with you?
I walk in the woods every Sunday in the presence of my image of my maker, alone. As this asks who I walk with I say….. besides this image, I walk with my three sons, my parents, my sisters, my Gigi in spirit, and someone I have yet to meet.
2. You are walking in the woods. You see an animal. What kind of animal?
True story……I see a red fox with a chipmunk dangling from her mouth on the trail about a hundred feet behind me.
3. What interaction takes place between you and the animal?
Continuation of true story……She tails me as I walk, keeping pace. I stop and turn, she halts and stares, I move on, she follows behind on her return to her den with breakfast for her young kits.
4. You walk deeper in the woods. You enter a clearing, and before you is your dream house, what is it like?
A log cabin built with love and the help of friends. Large enough for my needs; nestled on the shore of a small calm lake.
5. Is your dream house surrounded by a fence?
Are you kidding me!
6. You enter the house. You walk into the dining room and see the dining table what is on it?
The cabin has a great room, the dining area a part of it, a fire blazing in the fireplace. The table is set for 13 with a cornucopia of fresh produce from my garden. Today feels Mexican so fresh made salsa and chips and fajitas sizzling hot off the grill, fried ice cream awaiting. There is a centerpiece of fresh wildflowers gathered on the walk in the woods described above and the picture complete with warm laughter shared.
7. You exit the house and a cup is on the ground, what kind is it?
There are two, a beer mug and a wine glass on the deck next to two adirondack chairs overlooking the lake, left from the previous night's sunset shared with mind's eye image unmet. The mug with remains of a heady summer ale brewed the week previous, the wine glass with a trace of red from the Pinot Noir vintage three falls ago.
8. What do you do with the cup?
I bring them to the kitchen, wash and dry them. I place the mug in the freezer and the glass on the rack, waiting for this night's sunset.
9. You walk to the edge of the property where you find yourself standing at a pretty pond, how big is it?
A small lake bordered by a mountain, teaming with life awaiting my angling skills to share in my bountiful table tomorrow.
10. How will you cross the water?
Every morning when ice prevents it not, I swim across. Every evening permitted, I cross in a hand crafted cedar canoe with a line trolling behind to entice tomorrow's dinner to join me. Ahead, the image of love lit by the moon rising as night's sounds descend upon us.
After you copy and paste into a new bulletin, and answer ALL the questions above you can look down here. | | | |
The ANSWERS
1. The person who you are walking in the woods with is the most important to you.
My image of my maker is most important and a walk with, a joy.
My family sharing the path is equally important and as great a joy.
2. The size of the animal is representative of your perception of the size of your problems in your life.
If the only problem I face in life is a red headed fox tailing me…..I live a charmed one indeed ;)
3. The severity of the interaction you have with the animal is representative of how you deal with your problems.
There was no severity at all, it was a serene experience. If she were rabid, a chipmunk would likely not been dangling from mouth. This was more a journey shared (tolerated) as she patiently followed behind me to get to her home.
4. The size of your dream home is representative of the size of your ambition to solve your problems.
My cabin was constructed with love and friends' help, of sufficient size for needs.... in a clearing most carefully selected.
5. A lack of a fence is indicative of an open personality. People are welcome at all times. The presence of a fence indicates a closed personality. You'd prefer people not drop by unannounced.
I would never prevent the swirl of life from crossing my threshold.
6. If your answer did NOT include food, flowers, or people, then you are generally unhappy.
My answer included all three and a warm fire and laughter to boot…..I must be happy.
7. The durability of the material with the cup is made of is representative of the perceived durability of your relationship.
My selections were both durable and delicate, as they should be; Yin and Yang.
8. What you did with the cup is representative of your attitude.
I took care of them and placed them safely where I knew I could find them again.
9. The size of the body of water is representative of the size of your sexual desire.
BULL!!!! My sexual desire is no stinkin' pond, nor is it a small mountain lake! It is nothing shy of a vast uncharted ocean. Trick question.
10. The way you cross the water is representative to how easy or hard you expect your life to be.
I guess I expect it to be pleasant with effort. A morning's swim and an evening's silent glide; spring, summer, fall…….I think I should hone up my cross country skiing skills for winter ;)
So that is my best attempt to recount a bulletin lost to the winds of digital space. I hope you enjoyed my ramble and I leave you with a dichotomy of songs shared this morning that fit the above in each their way.
Dave Matthews BandEh Hee(thank you, Julie ~ Fan of DMB)
I so love this expansion into new he embarks upon. This song rocks!!!!
I especially love:
"Strange evolution how people have come to believe
That we are it's greatest achievement
We're barely, we're just a collection of cells
Overrating themselves"
Drop the devil to his knees with the many names of God for sure. Thank you for sharing Julie!
The sea of myspace is full of waves regarding the unfortunate, untimely death of Heath Ledger, contemplation of it possibly being suicide, and suicide.
I grieve for his loved ones, though I never really knew the man. This was a very unfortunate accident.
A very close childhood friend of mine committed suicide a few years ago. We met, kid you not, at 5 years of age in Camp Fire Girls. Our mothers were leaders and we were dragged along to meetings to goof around together while the girls did their stupid stuff ;) We had our G.I. Joes and Hot Wheels or who could skip a rock the most times across a pond.
Our families got together every Christmas eve for Santa to come (which when we were teens, or later, with young families of our own, started to get really funny in a weird way…..never too old to sit on Santa's lap). We went on picnics and vacations together.
He was in my wedding, I in his.
He rose to the rank of Lieutenant in our city's Fire Department and he was a star in the grueling competition of racing an opponent up flights of stairs with full gear on. Friendly, well liked, always a gregarious smile. Hundreds of people attended his services.
He was going through his second divorce when he hung himself. Leaving his 4 children, his parents, his sisters, and his friends asking why?
I was at the time in the beginning of my divorce…..and I can see why…..I was in the midst of all that I believed in crumbling around me….my future ex did not attend the services.
A few weeks after his funeral I dreamt a most vivid dream of him. I can remember clearly all that was in it. But what I hold close to is when I asked "Was it worth it?" and without hesitation he replied "No".
With the below I offer my thoughts as to why he said no.
(excerpt from)Undertow – Genesis
Better think awhile Or I may never think again. If this were the last day of your life, my friend, Tell me, what do you think you would do then?
Stand up to the blow that fate has struck upon you, Make the most of all you still have coming to you, [or] Lay down on the ground and let the tears run from you, Crying to the grass and trees and heaven finally on your knees
Let me live again, let life come find me wanting. Spring must strike again against the shield of winter. Let me feel once more the arms of love surround me, Telling me the danger's past, I need not fear the icy blast again.
This is what those words say to me: Take a breath and contemplate this Because this is a final decision If fate stepped in and told me that I was going to die today anyway…. So I should just let it happen natural, This need of mine fulfilled.
How would I spend this final day?
Would I squeeze every millisecond out with fervent gusto?
Or
Would I grieve for all the beauty experienced in my life that led to this day?
IN ANY WAY I look at how I would live this final day, therein lies the answer to why I might want to walk out of my pain into the light of tomorrow.
I can understand the thought of today being full of despair and a fear of the nightmare that six months from now will be no different…or worse…..but please, if you are ever at this place just spend today like it were your last, not working on making it so….for me? This is all I ask.
If tomorrow you feel you enjoyed yesterday, live tomorrow like it is your last….. Six months from now this world will be a very beautiful place for your presence in it.
Namaste
Currently
reading
:
Be Free Where You Are
By
Thich Nhat Hanh
Release date: 01 May, 2002
loved
contemplative
insubordinate
hopeful
blissful
determined
