Nina Simone, Make Love to Me

Feel this.

(Thanks, Phil, for the introduction.)

Running from the Pres(id)ent

The US government lied to us
Unreal
Literally

Are you shocked?
I'm not
More of the same
From a regime that has branded us
The mark of my generation
Distrust

You know who I trust?
Those crazy motherlovers who are running the Boston Marathon
I walked by all the tents in Copley Square this evening
The finish line
And it's glorious

When I moved back to Boston
One of my big goals was
To run the marathon
Not happening this year

Goals
They can really bring you down if you give em too much weight
The best way
I've found
Is to expect nothing
And work for everything

Tonight
Gonna be a fun one
I was working
And then I got cut
And cutting
Is a perfect way
To draw blood
So here's hoping
Tonight's gonna be a wet one

All I got for now
Why I feel the need to announce when I'm done
I do not know
I guess I'm not big on surprise endings
I like to see it coming
So that I can prepare the next step

And
With that
Goodnight

Hi Shredability

Awesome show on Viceland. Watch the Dane Reynolds episodes (scroll down the menu a bit) when you get a chance (11 min total). Craaaazy shit.

Get Ready to Cry

Whoopi Goldberg showed a quick clip of this on The View yesterday. Incidentally, Whoopi also wore a Passing Strange t-shirt on the show.

Meet Andrew Johnston, a young Brit with big talent.

Quote of the Day

I love people, because they're so darn funny sometimes.

This quote, from an anonymous poster on my badass cousin Matt's badass blog.

"Chris Matthews would play hardball and foam at dog droppings if it was in front of Hillary's house."

Working on the Puzzle

Here's how it works
(It being life)

Find passion
Stay passionate
Everything else comes second
Or third
Or sixty-first
After that
The pieces fall
And bam
You've finished the puzzle

In Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Brick talks about clicking
Waiting for the click
To take him to that place

I clicked recently
Glorious numbness
The only way to function
As an artist

Outside
Trees sprouting buds
The sun piggybacking on the breeze
The redneck months are here
And not a moment too soon
Boston summers
In case you don't know
Are a steam bath at the top of a mountain
A tease
A beautiful tease

Bobby
Cousin
Homeboy
Roommate
Is a photographer
Made to take pictures
Just wait
Until I show you what he got in Hawaii
Holy Annie Liebovitz
This is talent

A Poll, When You Get a Few Minutes

Watch the following Youtube clip. My good friend Jon introduced me to it.



Now. Do you think that this is reason enough to explore the impeachment of several high-ranking members of the Bush Administration?

Also, would this be reason enough for you not to vote a McCain/Rice ticket in the fall? Like, even if you aren't considering voting Republican, do you think that the information on the video disqualifies a person from serving the public?

Try to respond in any way by clicking here.

Numb

She'd like to think I was cruel
But she knows that's a lie for I would be
No more than a tool if I allowed her
To cry all over me
All my sorrow is real
Even though I can't change my plans
If she could see how I feel then I know that she'd understand
Or does she actually think
I'm to blame
Does she really believe that some word of mine
Could relieve all her pain
Can't she see that she grieves just because
She's been blindly deceived
By her shame
Or but maybe she just has to sing for
The sake of the song
And who do I think that I am to decide that
She's wrong

--Townes van Zandt

My Aunt
A serious artist
Asks
What is true art?
And quotes Mapplethorpe
"Fear no art."

Awesome
Thanks M

So I look up Mapplethorpe
Find more things he's said
Which all kill me
In different ways
So I have to share
Just a few

"One must ease the public into it - that's an art in itself."
"I don't use recreational drugs, except for cocaine, hallucinogens, and nitrates."
"I don't know why my pictures come out looking so good. I just don't get it."
"I am selfish, but that's an attribute that all artists possess."
"I always thought I was good. That's why it was so frustrating when other people didn't agree."
"Whenever you make love to someone, there should be three people involved - you, the other person, and the devil."
"This AIDS stuff is pretty scary. I hope I don't get it."

With art
Some people are just in it
All the time
They fascinate me
Stamina
Desire
Focus
The constant numb
Where nothing matters
Except what's happening
Inside

Some days
I'm there
Some days
Not so much
But close
And recently
No days where I'm in the next state
Or even a different area code

Robert Earle Keen said
Feels so good feelin' good again
Indeed

Poetry is
A songwriter with
A guitar
A voice
And something to say

Poetry is
A writer with
A pen
Paper
And something to discover

Poetry is
A painter with
A brush
A canvas
And something to show

True art
Isn't about the product
It's about the passion
Art is in the numbness
So get numb about something

Sonia Carrion
Makes me feel numb

Reading Suzan-Lori Parks
or Sam Shepard
or Eugene O'Neill

Listening to Mercedes Sosa
or Bruce Springsteen
or Regina Spektor

Observing Patti LuPone
or Alec Baldwin
or Meryl Streep

Watching an Albee
or a Sondheim
or an Odets

Numb Numb Numb
Numb Numb Numb
Numb Numb Numb
Numb Numb Numb

I'm feeling numb
Time to write

The 4th Reich

Don't Blink

Someone keeps shining a flashlight in your face
Saying
"Don't blink"

And then they stop
Just long enough for you to see clearly
Before the shining shit starts again

Again
"Don't blink"
"Don't blink"
"Don't blink"

You've had enough
And once the black spots fade
Between "don't blinks"
And you can sorta see
You grab the flashlight
Shine it in this person's eyes
And stand back
Confused
As they say
"Don't do that, my eyes are sensitive"

And you listen
And stop

Getting Ready to Go for a Run on a Beautiful Day...

... Produces the same excitement as sitting in a Broadway theater waiting for the curtain to rise.

Bullshitting

No wasted time, we're alive today
Churnin' up the past, there's no easier way
Time's been between us, a means to an end
God it's good to be here walkin' together my friend

--Stevie Ray Vaughn

Since I moved to Boston
Six months ago
(Wow)
Some of my favorite nights have involved
Hours and hours of
Bullshitting

You meet people you're supposed to meet
Like Pete
The comic who peed on my leg
But didn't tell me it was raining
Or Sonia
Whose inside and outside voices
Speak to something way down deep
And Phil
The man
Who knows about respect and the real

When I was living in Austin
Working at Enoteca
I thought I'd met the most creative people I'd ever meet
Like Frankie Lee
Or Marie Claire
Or Ian
Or Brian
Artists, songwriters, models, writers all

The move to Boston
I thought
Was about me
No one else
And here I am
Surrounded by so many great creators
And I realize
The best art
Is inspired by other people
But pours out of your soul

Everyone should make something
Cooking is art
Throwing a party is art
Decorating a house in art
Planning cities is art
Writing stream of consciousness is art
Editing stream of consciousness is art
Planting a garden is art
Maintaining a garden is art
Running is art
It's like taking a shit
Just gotta do it
Even if it stinks

.... And, side note, I remember once using this analogy with my old editor:
.... "Writing is like taking a shit for me. Like it or not, it's happening."
.... He was repulsed
.... But I made my point
.... And I stand by it

Ok, all this poo talk has made me realize I need to go the bathroom
Holler mixed greens!

Fire + Fire

How much do you believe in astrology?

Me, a lot.

This shit's explosive.