dream segment (a couple of weeks old)...

I am riding in a car with my father, who is driving...he is driving on the incorrect side of the road, I tell him this and then calmly suggest that he pull over so that I may drive...he agrees to this, saying that he is tired...I get behind the wheel and take us toward our destination which was one of the places he worked when I was a child: Purceville, or the newspaper in The Plains...so I am turning left onto a road, and he is no longer in the car, I am talking with a woman on my cell phone about him, I am telling her about the driving mishap...she knows him, and sympathizes...as I drive this road I realize that I am very near her office, I pull into the parking lot, and go inside to introduce myself to her...we chat a bit, then I go on...

Amazing Visual Morning...

Driving to work this morning the sky was just amazing. I, of course, did not have my camera with me. Nor could I turn around and go get it! I was running late. The early morning sky was full of altocumulus clouds densely packed. The sun's rays were beaming out under each clump of cloud. Shining a small sundog at each puff. Luckily, I was on a road which did not have much traffic, so I could look as I slowly drove along. Beautiful beyond measure.

I give it a "10"...

And then some...Modest Mouse's new song "Dashboard" has to be one of the most dance-able songs ever!!! My hips get loose each time i hear it...yeah!!!

Here is my 1976 Gitane bicycle. I rode it to Nova Scotia and back when I graduated from high school. For a long time I didn't own a car, just rode my bike everywhere. It was originally bright yellow. One time I painted it silver, then red. I retired it in 1992. Recently, I've kept it in the front yard as an art installation. Many miles.

flow recall...

pen to paper this line of
brain-blood to heart
my ambit of words to thoughts
electric
sparks behind my eyes

wet snow...

oh
this coffee is perfect and
look
the window is fogged
i remember
i dreamed
of a red fox crossing the yard

Raptor Dichotomy.....

Early last Sunday morning we were driving up Rt. 50 heading toward Paris, VA. Chuck drew our attention to a large bird flying toward us. At first we think "hawk", then we think "vulture", but then as the large bird flies close over the car we all look up and see that this is a Golden Eagle. I turn and look behind us and watch the eagle fly a circle and then land in a tree at the edge of the field. We are amazed and delighted. With the Shenandoah River fairly close by (especially if you are an eagle) this does not seem out of place. What a beautiful bird. The excitement stays fresh with us for many miles.
When we get home from our trip, I find an article in the Washington Post which tells us of the Bush Administration's decision to remove the Bald Eagle from the endangered species list. This is to occur on February 16, 2007. The deputy director of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service attempts to assure us that this will NOT mean "open season" on the eagle. Here is the most outrageous thing: this decision has been brought about by the persistence of a 69 year old man in Minnesota. He is a Libertarian "property owner" who is miffed that he cannot subdivide and sell some pieces of his land as he wishes because there is a bald eagle nest on one area of his land. There is a rule that stands now where no building can occur within 330 feet of an eagle nest. He filed a federal lawsuit in 2005 which he won this past August. Even though the bald eagle population is estimated to be 7,000 nesting pairs at this time (up from 417 pairs in 1963, thanks to the pesticide DDT) , I still find this decision outrageous.

Dream Segment.....

I am going to see The Dead in concert after work. I am going with Dawn K., and others. I am trying to find somebody to pick Melian up from school, and take care of her while I am at the concert. The woman who I have set up to help cancels. I decide to take Melian with me, and we talk about this, feeling happy. We walk down the steps to find our seats. A guy going up the steps tells me to be careful. I tell him that I've been coming to this venue ever since it first opened, so I know about the steps. They are very worn and shabby. I think about missing Jerry Garcia. Talking with Dawn, we're both wearing tie-dye shirts. Mike gets angry and bossy with Dawn, and I ignore his bad attitude. Dawn & I laugh. A friend of mine takes his guitar up to the stage during intermission and talks with Bob Weir, trys to play a song, but forgets how. I think he's nervous.

August 2006...

Obviously it's nap time for Maggie & Ed. 

"I see this every day".....

My friend Derek has a number of photos, etc. with this quote as his commentary. I took inspiration from the quote to add this photo, with the same loving feeling that the quote evokes in me. It makes me think of one of my favorite Gertrude Stein pieces. She writes of repetition as a form of love.

11/28/06

my cathode-ray brain
will not let me sleep
causes my eyes to open
there, silhouette of the cactus
plate-glass window
sky lit by the
second quarter moon
galvanic jolt
get up!
time to write...

Human Stupidity & Greed, once again.....

The Washington Post reported last week this little snippet from Addis Ababa, Eithiopia: "Rare Abyssinian lion cubs are being poisoned at a zoo in Ethiopia and sold to taxidermists because there is not enough money to care for the animals, the facility's administrator said." It is estimated that there are only 1,000 of these lions left in "the wild". They are smaller than African lions, and have a black mane. First of all, I am not a fan of zoos. But let us just assume that the idea here is to protect an endangered species. By poisoning them to improve your bottom line? If your zoo cannot afford to take care of the animal, would not releasing them into the "wild" be more logical. Thus giving them at least a fighting chance for existence? Better than being stuffed and sold. Which reminds me, December 5th is the last day to call your Senator and back the bill to save wild horses from slaughter. It's S.1915: The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act. Congressional switchboard: (202)224-3121.

On Stage.....

When I am at work, I feel the weight of the security cameras. Scott could be watching, or he could be asleep, or doing something else. I know they both watch the monitor in the evening, but during the day? It's creepy. I make faces at the cameras, scratch myself, do pirouettes for them...I make broad gestures as if I were a blackjack dealer at Atlantic City...nothing up my sleeve!!!...I wonder how much of this might just be paranoia, and how much a strong sense of psychic awareness? I am used to security cameras, I used to work at "Giant" grocery store! We had them at "Super Fresh", too, but they were basically for show after A&P decided to pull the plug on any financial backing for our store...anyway! I was just thinking about how cute the front camera looks with its Festive Holiday tinsel all lovingly wrapped 'round it...

Mystery Pizza.....

I dream.....Jess and I are going around Boston...we are planning a trip to England together...one of our friends is amazed by this...we're meeting our kids, and heading back to our homes...as we come up to Jess' house, there are two pizzas on the concrete steps...we each think they are from someone different. ..I hold one of the pizzas in my hands, it is very tomato-y, i taste the sauce...as we go into her house, Jess thanks the guy who is there for ordering the pies...he says it was not him...

Pieces of a Dream.....

Ozzy Ozbourne has actually been Ian McShane all these years. Black Sabbath, fronted by Ian McShane. I am looking through a book which is filled with photographs and album cover art (done in the Frazzeta style, of course) showing Ian singing and hanging out with the band. I feel amazed by this revelation, and want to tell Chuck about it.....

dream segment (from July 2006).....

I have a pet herd of young elephants. Space is getting cramped in my house as they grow up. I ask one of my neighbors, a farmer, if I could use one of her fields as a place for the herd to roam. She gives her assent to the proposal. After moving them to the paddock, I stand by the fence and watch them play for a while. The herd is quite happy to be able to roam in the grassy place. I go over to the farmhouse and look around the living room. She has quite a lot of antiques and other interesting things there. One of the other neighbors comes over and confronts me in the living room as I am perusing, but I explain to this person that I have the farmer's permission to be there.

Deja-Vu.....

I am reading "Timequake" by Kurt Vonnegut, which he wrote in 1997. I recently bought this trade paperback copy. All the while I'm reading I keep thinking about how it's all so familiar, I've read this before, even though I didn't own a copy. Must have gotten it from the library. The main premise of this work of fiction is a" timequake" which occured, causing everybody to re-live ten years of their life. When the timequake ends, everbody has free will again. So last night while reading, and still pondering the familiarity of it all, the humorous irony of the situation sends up major flares and I just have to laugh at myself.

What I've been reading...

• "Democracy's Edge" by Frances Moore Lappe.....this book felt like a "feel-good" read until I hit the education chapter. Not that the stories weren't inspirational in that chapter, as the others had been. Real people doing real, effective things to make democracy live in this country (U.S.A) for themselves and others. But when I read the education section I completely stressed out. That means two things; 1. our educational system is askew and, 2. I need to do something about it, for my daughter's education, of course, but also because I believe in public education! By the way, Ms. Lappe's book "Diet For A Small Planet", along with Ellen Buchman Ewald's "Recipes for A Small Planet "were the two books which helped me, taught me the basic nutritional information I needed when I decided to stop eating animals back in 1974. I've also read Ms. Lappe's "Food First".
• "An Unreasonable Woman" by Diane Wilson.....beautifully written in a conversational style that is impossible to put down. A strong, interesting story of corporate/political pollution & crime fought by Ms. Wilson on her home turf. I am proud of her work. Visit her website, read this book! She helped found CODE-PINK!
  
• "Thank You Dr. Kevorkian" by Kurt Vonnegut.....this tiny volume is a collection of Mr. Vonnegut on WNYC radio, doing an interview with dead people thingie. Some pieces of this are also in "A Man Without A Country". I thought maybe I could pick my favorite vignette, but no...I find that there is a snippet from each of the small pieces which is gemlike. Just read everything by Vonnegut that you can get your paws on.
• "Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson.....this science fiction novel is just fucking cool. I heart cyberpunk!!!
• "The Secret Life of Bees"...by Sue Monk Kidd.... I thought that this was pretty good. I really dug the bee-keeping Sisters and their home. I thought my daughter would enjoy reading it also, so I shared it with her.
  

dream sequence...

I go into a arts & crafts country store...the shelving and walls are wood...I am looking for a particular weight of black yarn...I do not find it, so I ask one of the women working there where some might be, and she points to a section...I walk over to look, but do not find the exact yarn I need to complete my project, I find a similar weight, but it's a short piece which is black & white intertwined...I pick it up and tie it to the piece I brought in to match...then I walk around more , still looking for the yarn...everything is very colorful and interesting in this shop...

Blog against sexism day...

Pondering which of many subjects to write about for these past few days, I found that an incident inserted itself into my day that simply required a published opinion. The phone rang at 3:40 a.m., awakening me from a sound sleep. I fumbled for the phone and read the caller ID listed was "blocked number"...whatever! I thought as I hung the phone back up. Answering machine picked up, and I heard some random noise then someone (male) whispering, "I am coming to get you..." in a very theatrical voice. As I lay there thinking about all that for a few minutes, I thought; "Check this out! What if I was an easily frightened person!" What if this male wanted to frighten me specifically? What if he just wanted to frighten somebody randomly? Either way, it's all about patriarchy and how "The Man" has to keep women scared, to keep them in line. Imagine how some women are afraid to walk down the street. Any street. Any time. Not to mention night-time. Remember the "Take Back The Night" marches & gatherings? That's important stuff still. Because male-centric nutbags still want us to be afraid, at all times. So no, I walk proudly and unafraid, because this is my planet.