Ode to the Bumper Sticker Brigade
5/26/2005
In the promised land
dry leaves turn like yellow pages
Natives languish in their lust
to ignite the songs of their being
because once the songs were real
A hope in desperate hearts
seeking inspiration, Praying
for good weather
While so few meet a fitting end
Given eyes to see
the bargain of promise and dream
Posed on the river for love or money
A city bulging with empty hope
The truth of their end
is clearly seen
in the reflection
And secretly they scheme
half-hypnotized, bedazzled
to revolutionize the machine
with their charming lives
to release another borrowed love
another borrowed dream
But the song ran out
like outlaws skipping town
The rusty engine idles
And no one is alive
to turn it off.
posted by novachild @ Thursday, May 26, 2005,
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Awwww... (my sad addiction revealed)
I never watch reality TV. I especially don't like top 40, RnB, Country music or Southern Rock, the musical staples of the modern age. But I did get hooked on American Idol this year, if only because that's what's on the telly when I visit my in-laws every week. As unlikely as it seems for a guy like me, I was hooked in like so many others. It's easy. The first hit's always free.
At first, I was rooting for Anwar, because he beamed ferver and confidence and clear tonality. But the public voted him down, so I changed my home team and rooted for Constantine. Because he was different, unique, because he didn't try to sing RnB or nasal Country CRAP! Then of course he was axed, and everyone was terribly shocked about it. At that point, I knew Carrie would win. Not because she was the best of the bunch. Not because she was unique. Carrie would win because her voice and style exemplified the halfhearted mediocrity that I've grown to expect from modern popular music.
I was always a little bit prejudiced against Carrie, anyway. Country singers are a dime a dozen, and her performances never struck me as particularly good. Talented, yes, but dull. Put a guitar in her hand and I might be convinced otherwise, but the voice and the looks and the personality alone all exude something utterly reproducible by any stray newcomer with a pretty face and a nice ass.
And I hate to see Oklahoma once again exemplified by a genre I loathe. So of course I'm going to go with the adversary.
But I know I'm being harsh. I can't help it (I'm already hypnotized). Because in my mind she never stood a chance against Bo. He had the stage presence, the voice, the originality, the energy and fire of a star, while Carrie just stands there unmoving through every performance, shaky, without a unique richness and density to her vocals. Also, the nasal sound of country vocals always gives me the creeps. Makes me embarrased to be human, and I can't really explain why.
So... now it's over and I can get on with things. Best of luck to both of them. In 3-4 years, none of it will have made any difference anyhow. Except to them, and to the execs who made millions from their talents.
posted by novachild @ Thursday, May 26, 2005,
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Perspectives
5/23/2005
I spend, on average, about 13 hours EACH DAY (except for Saturdays) behind a computer. Right around four Dog Days. But hey, it's a long journey to the end, right?
That means I have about 4 hours of awake time away from the computer. And that awayness is just that. It isn't actually being engaged in meatspace; it's in running away from the thing that both drives me to divine inspiration and drives me mad at the same time.
I think a friend of mine called it "shrimping," or turning into a Sea Monkey, because of the position your body takes after practicing this behaviour for a long period of time. Yes, it's taking a toll on my health in small but accumulative ways: muscles getting flabby, eye fatigue, constant headaches, wrist and neck trouble, back problems, stress. That and I have absolutely no social life (not that I really need one). Some days, all of this mortal stress is worth the inconvenience, while other days I just feel fucking miserable.
I've decided to get away from my home computer more often and concentrate more on my poetry. If anything, I will be able to come back to the machine with fresher ideas, instead of fiddling around without any sort of life as inspiration. I also want to get my guitar cleaned up, replace the nut, get some strings, and build my callouses back up. Really invest in that mind/body connection for awhile. Of course, I still intend to keep my journal.
I'm also suffering from a mild depression triggered by the sheer lack of CD sales. I get just under 5,000 sessions a month on my web site, and I haven't sold more than 15 CDs since November. I've given all but 5 of the remaining CDs away, and because of my lifestyle and my poor decision to spend so much time behind the computer, I haven't had any real inspirational force guiding me to take the risks I need to take in order to get 'my name' out there. I'm too much of an artist and not enough of an ego to push that side of the envelope. I could use an agent, but I can't afford one. It all comes back to me, of course. But I can only do so much and right now I could really use a recharge (my mind wanders off to Castlevania, whacking candlesticks with my chain whip, turning them into hearts and eating them up).
So I've met a few creative spirits locally, quite by accident. They aren't computer musicians, though one DOES use a computer for '3d audio' mixing. He is an audio producer for a sound effects company in Burbank, CA, and the other has been writing songs on his six-string for about 20-30 years. These are the guys I've been performing my poetry with (not simultaneously). I met them at the coffee shop, and we have sort of magnetized each other. It seems that wherever one of us goes, the other two follow with their instruments, though it's never planned that way. Just kind of happens.
This weekend, I performed my poetry and played LOTS of djembe at the Blue Dome Arts Festival here in Tulsa (it's a neat local arts fair downtown - probably the coolest thing I've ever seen in Tulsa). I helped to run an ongoing "Open Stage" sponsored by Seeker's Gallery - it was for anyone with a guitar or a poem or a banjo or whatever. Some really amazing things happened there that I still haven't had time to digest. Got rather sunbaked and hot, but it was worth the sacrifice. We all suffered for our art this weekend, because it was a hot motherfucker outside. All of us were real troopers.
No real plan, but things are happening. Not sure where they are taking me, but I am starting to understand the advantage of getting together with other creative minds in the same room and encouraging each other.
I'm sure I'll slink back into my comfortable space behind the computer studio soon, but I just need a little time in meatspace. To reconnect my brain with my body and explore my immediate environment for a little while, esp. before it gets to HOT to enjoy being outside. I haven't been doing a lot of 'living' lately. Mostly just getting shit done and being frustrated most of the time. Maybe a little time away from my little corner where the blue glow always emanates will clear the cobwebs.
And it's probably evident; I sorted out my posting problems. For now. Let's hope blogger continues to actually work.
posted by novachild @ Monday, May 23, 2005,
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Interview Meme
Kjersti offered up these interview questions. I know, I'm a little slow getting around to it, but they don't call me the meme-killer for nothing. Heh.
1. If you knew you would get away with it, what would you have done?
Easy. I would throw the entire Bush Administration in the slammer and throw away the key. Then, I would force feed them all b-complex vitamins and anything to give their brains a kickstart. Then I would leave them there with enough food to keep them going and fivebooks to read: Emerson's Essays, A Tale of Two Cities , Siddartha (Herman Hesse), Crime and Punishment and Kenneth Patchen: Selected Poems.
After a few years alone with these books, they might actually start to acquire a thought process bordering on rational. Then I'd toss in transcripts of every press conference they ever held and a rusty knife (kidding).
2. What makes you angry?
People not being respectful to one another makes me angry. Also, people who intentionally cause pain or death to animals makes me angry. Euthanasia and medical necessity are the only exceptions.
Slaughterhouses make me angry, and I think they should all have glass walls (Just as Paul McCartney said so many years ago) so everybody can see what terribly places they are.
Micromanagers make me angry. People who would rather lie than be wrong make me angry. People who think that everything is black and white make me angry. People in general make me angry, and that's something I'm really working on.
3. When are you at your happiest?
I'm happiest when I'm curling up for bedtime, or sitting in a cafe' far from home sipping on Earl Gray, watching total strangers carrying on their charming lives all around and enjoying a different scenery.
I'm happiest of all when I'm 'in the zone,' making music. Or freshly spent after ravenous, exciting lovemaking (with maybe some Art Blakey or early Weather Report running in the background).
4. Is there something you simply can't resist?
I can't resist chocolate. Or ice cream. Or a free ticket to the movies. Or indian food.
5. What is, in your opinion, the most important book anyone can read, and a book that has to be read for a person to be a complete human?
What a challenging question! Unfortunately, I can't really think of one all-encompassing work that is the guidebook for being a human. The Science of Mind by Ernest Holmes is a good starting point for any journey, however. And in my opinion one of the most thoughtful works of spiritual/philosophical insight of the 20th Century.
If you want ME to interview you, follow these steps:
MEME RULES
1/ Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2/ I will respond by asking you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3/ You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4/ You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5/ When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.
posted by novachild @ Monday, May 23, 2005,
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Very Brief review of Star Wars Ep III
5/21/2005
More horrible, wooden acting from everyone involved (except for Kenobi and Yoda).
More 20 minute CGI commercials for Lucas's SFX department that failed to excite me.
More awful love scenes. Chemistry would be good about now.
And more ridiculous plot holes and bad storytelling than I've seeen since Ed Wood's Bride of the Monster.
The whole prequel trilogy is a waste of time as far as I'm concerned. It's sad that people will flock to make this a record-breaking series of films while so many gems go by unnoticed.
Ugh.
posted by novachild @ Saturday, May 21, 2005,
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Five Things I Want to Do
5/19/2005
1/ Learn Sign Language
No, I don't actually know anyone who is deaf, but I find it fascinating that a person can communicate so distinctly with hand movements. It's almost an alien language - advanced body language. And that really intrigues me.
It's also very hypnotic. I used to sit in church as a kid just watching the little blue-hair lady translating the hymns and the sermons into complex hand gestures.
2/ Lose about 30 pounds (what I gained when I quit smoking).
I never dreamed I'd hit (and surpass) 200 lbs. Of course, muscle weighs more than fat, but beneath my belly blubber my martial marts muscles are slowly disappearing. Turning 30 also took its toll, as the mysterious Father Time pushed my clutch in and downshifted me a gear.
3/ Return all my overdue library books and pay the fees.
It's not that I mean to be irresponsible about library check-outs. I just keep putting it off, and putting it off, because it's never as important as the thing I'm doing RIGHT NOW. So it just doesn't get done. I feel so bad about it, and eventually I know it will be such a big fat burden that I'll have to put aside my all-important work to get it out of the way. Much like tax time.
4/ Finish our Home Business Web Site.
A plumber's house is never plumbed. Of course, I'm not a plumber and MY house isn't plumbed, either (exaggerating a bit, mind you).
5/ Get a poem published.
This has been a little dream of mine for a long time. But I don't handle rejection very well, so I haven't bothered to send my poems to publishers. Also, life has been throwing so much mundane crap my way to eat all my time, so I haven't really invested in my dreams much. Sad, I know. But true.
posted by Edward Svengali @ Thursday, May 19, 2005,
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The Evil that We Do
5/18/2005
1) Spc. Sabrina Harman
Compare these quotes with the image of abuse that you see on the bottom of this page.
"I felt very strongly in Sabrina Harman," (Defense Lawyer) Spinner said. "I
feel she's a very naive, very innocent person … She didn't know how to react to
that experience (at Abu Ghraib)."
"She presented a very positive image, a very caring image," (Master Sgt.)
Lipinski testified. "They were a country very much in need and she filled some
of the gaps."
2) Newsweek Was Right
An informative, documented column by The Nation's Ari Berman.
I also might add the following: The news is wrong or misleading nearly all of the time. Are we going to start blaming every riot, every bombing, every bad thing on news stories, or are we going to promote a healthier public debate over what is happening in the world? Wouldn't that be nice. Imagine the public actually crying out for legitimate news and journalism, rather than the harshly biased bullshit that spews forth from all angles.
posted by Edward Svengali @ Wednesday, May 18, 2005,
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Blue Dome Info
(reposted from the Arts & Humanities Council Tulsa Web Site)
Blue Dome Festival 2005
Event Chair: Virginia Harrison
Subject: Blue Dome Festival
Dates:
Friday, May 20, 6:00 PM til 9:00 PM
Saturday, May 21st, 10:00 AM til 8:00 PM
Sunday, May 22, 11:00 AM til 5:00 PM
Location:
Blue Dome District
2nd Street and Elgin
Walking distance from Mayfest
Admission: Free to the public!
Tulsa area artists are pleased to announce the Second Annual Blue Dome Festival, a complement to Mayfest, Many worthy Tulsa artists are denied jury to the highly-competitive national/international Mayfest event. Tulsa patrons and collectors want to support Tulsa artists, and now they can, in one convenient location!
Michael Sager, of Blue Dome LLC, has graciously donated the Blue Dome district for this 2nd annual event, 2st Street and Elgin. The five-lane street will be closed to local traffic and opened to Tulsa artists and guests during Mayfest.
Various media presented include, ceramic, painting, glass, wood, metal, soaps, herbs, and textiles. T shirts and posters are now available for purchase.
On opening night, May 20, from 6:00 PM till 9:00 PM, exhibiting artists and sponsors will provide wine and munchies for Blue Dome Festival guests.
posted by Edward Svengali @ Wednesday, May 18, 2005,
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Live Performance
5/17/2005
Ok, get out the calendars. If anyone out there is in or around Tulsa and wants to see me perform my poetry, here are two chances:
1) (tentative) Feature Poet - Gypsy Coffeehouse - July 12, 2005 (be there around 8:30-8:45)
2) Blue Dome Festival - THIS SATURDAY - Seeker's Free Stage - Time unknown. Somewhere between 3 PM and 9 PM, maybe even twice.
So come out, freaks and geeks, and see what little ol' me can do on the MIKE-ruh-PHONE.
It will be especially great to shout down the great Moloch, in tribute to the poets of old.
Cheers!
posted by Edward Svengali @ Tuesday, May 17, 2005,
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Red White and Blue
(or "So You wonder Why Some Apes Stayed Behind")
Quite A long way from Eden
The serpent finds a home
in hearts cold as nails
in beggar's coffins.
in Veins full of black, sweet oil,
and eyes wide with righteous fever.
In the foggy blackness
Does Satan unfurl her
steamy RED branches
To embrace or embody
our war-torn stratosphere
Tangled with Unintelligent Design
in glorious WHITE plumes
from death's burning reverence
Merely to sneak a circus
of fantastic skeletons
into the deep BLUE folds
of desert earth?
Quite a long way from Eden
Greedy, pious goblins
Scheme to evoke a fitting end
to sabotage what humankind
Pieced together from the entrails
of a hasty resume'
What a grand performance!
Fictitious structures!
Layers and layers of invented wonder
waiting to be unearthed by
meager human hands!
The sun is setting,
On the ground the cities glow
like baby universes
colliding and retracting
Men and women flood the streets
feeling and retreating from
the pain of living
Quite a long way from Eden
The serpent finds a home
where the ice caps melted
where the city was erected
where the tribes were scattered
where the people stopped living
and settled instead
on dying
a little bit
every day
posted by Edward Svengali @ Tuesday, May 17, 2005,
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My Home State: One Step Closer to Hitler's Dream
5/16/2005
I can look up at the sky and tell if it's an Oklahoma sky, an Oklahoma moon. That's how long I've lived here.
Oklahoma is a beautiful State. Not the prettiest, but probably the most consistently pleasing. We have nice countryside, friendly people (generally), good weather (except for the tornados and the pollen count), and enough to do to keep most of us from going insane. I was born and pretty much raised here, and I'm proud of the land, the heritage, and the relative road-friendliness of the folks. But that's changing, inevitably.
Oklahoma has an overwhelming rural community, which tend to side with the 'morals' of the Republican party - and therefore with the right-wing ultraconservatives I consider to be no better than Nazis - secretly taking over what once might have been considered a respectable Party, redefining corruption and breeding a slow, degenerating sickness of anti-intellectualism in order to turn the clock back.
I could just assume to be talking about traditional Republicans. Except I know they aren't all like that.
Call me paranoid, but someone needs to explain why it is important to 'hide' gay-themed books in the Public Library system. Explain to me why the leaders of a 'free' society want to promote an Anti-gay policy for libraries? And use my tax money to do it? Do these people deserve my State Tax? Or the Federal funds that are filtered from my Federal Tax? I don't think so.
UPDATE: They've done it. Rep. Sally Kern, Hitler would be so very proud of you and your efforts. So would David Duke. You should pat yourself on the back, along with the constituents who supported your efforts.
At this point, deep in a dreaded fear of the sort of fascist bullshit that these people are shoving down our throats, I am wondering what they will tackle next..... How about non-Christian books? Atheist books? Books on evolution, science that does not acknowledge God as creator? Works written by homosexuals (after all, sexual orientation contributes to the whole of a person, not merely to what they do with their clothes off). Are we going to start hanging witches again? Woo hoo! That'll just be darn'-tootin' fun.
Something is very wrong here. And it's time to do something about it.
posted by Edward Svengali @ Monday, May 16, 2005,
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Carnivale Axed
5/14/2005
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=televisionNews&storyID=8455148
http://www.contactmusic.com/new/xmlfeed.nsf/mndwebpages/carnivale%20axed%20after%20two%20series
I am now officially the saddest and most angry person in the world. This was my absolute favorite series. No other show has been graced with the amount of talent and originality that Carnivale had. And now it's gone, before the story could even be finished.
What really pisses me off is that when the series began, HBO execs fawned over the 'fact' that they didn't have to depend on good ratings the way network stations did, that because they get all their money from subscriptions, they could afford to be a little more creative, daring and engaging. Seems they've changed their tune. And it's a huge slap in the face of the cast, the crew, and the fans: everybody involved in the show.
Fuck HBO. Fuck Caroly Strauss. And to hell with everyone involved in making the decision to cancel this much-loved, AWARD-WINNING series. You ought to be ashamed of yourselves.
"We now interrupt this engaging, important work of art to bring you back to mediocrity, to another period piece where people say 'fuck' way too fucking much."
Boycott HBO. Bloggers unite!
posted by novachild @ Saturday, May 14, 2005,
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Shameless: I NEED MONEY!
5/12/2005
This is my one feeble attempt to tap into the generous and adventurous hearts of everyone out there. I need money.
No, I don't have cancer. I don't have a dying grandmother in need of surgery (all my grandparents are dead). No, I'm not raising funds for tsunami relief or unicef. Nothing as globally important as all that.
I'm trying to make a picture come true, a picture that is burning in my heart, mind, soul. A picture of something I can do with all this creativity that's positive, effective, downright profound. A music/word/art project that would transcend genre and expectation and maybe inspire a few people to do something ten times more amazing.
I want to start a live meme. And for that I need gear. About $7,000 worth to start. Midi controllers, microphones (at least 3), backup drive, video projector, 2 32" TVs, 3 DVD players, some white sheets, bulbs for 3-4 16mm film projectors, amp, PA, EQ, analog effects processor, limiter, cords and lights.
I'm going to make this picture happen. And I need money to do that. One generous person with money to toss around could make all the difference, or a thousand regular joes like me could buy a CD.
Did I mention that I also have a leaky roof, 2 broken teeth and a wife who needs her wisdom teeth cut out? Between all that and piling bills and debts, it's kind of tough to make dreams come true right now. And I don't want to wait until I'm 50, too old to really give it my all. Hence the desparation.
Though I am pretty sure this will go unnoticed and is probably a big waste of time, at least now I can't say I didn't try, right? :-) My next step is to start playing country music backwards (you know, you get your wife back, your truck back, your dog back...)
posted by novachild @ Thursday, May 12, 2005,
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Cynical Things
5/10/2005
I present to my readers yet another reason to loathe the Bush Administration: Appeals Court Sides With Cheney in Lawsuit (PDF) . This is the suit that the Sierra Club and Judicial Watch filed in order to try and force the secrets behind our current energy policy to be made public. Personally, I think it's a shame that so much time and money has to be wasted to try and force the issue. This is the sort of shady under-the-table crap that keeps most Americans in the dark about what's really going on. And it's sad that the judges are too chickenshit to give the public their due.
But there's good news, sort of. Microsoft reverses its neutral stance on Washington's Gay Rights Bill (HB 1515). They now support the bill again (they don't support bigotry and oppression, after all), but only after public outcry and employee rallying. Althought it's inspiring to hear that this section of the public was successful in influencing Microsoft's decision, like the previous paragraph in this post, I think it's a shame that so much time and energy and money has to be wasted just to keep the voice of rationality from being taped shut.
Believers in Creationism, take heed. If it weren't for these constant battles to simply maintain common dignity around here, you would see evolution all around you. As it stands, people with brains have to work twice as hard to keep the human race from walking backwards into the dark ages. What once was a struggle for basic, instinctual survival has now become a battle between intelligence vs. complete non-intellectual absurdity.
Recipe for Taking Over the Human Race:
1/ With money comes power.
2/ Controlling information is ultimate power.
3/ Enslaving humanity is easy if you control the information and have the money.
4/ Hypnotize humans so that when you start bringing the cattle home, they won't mind a bit. They'll think that the loud sound of your airgun further up the queue is actually a smash rock and roll beat.
And the band played on, while I popped my last tranquilizer to keep the evil nasties at bay. Am I cynical today or what?
posted by Edward Svengali @ Tuesday, May 10, 2005,
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I Will Admit...
5/08/2005
I will admit to two things tonight, and I expect all of my readers to do the same (comment away):
1. I occasionally read rotten.com.
Yes, the sick, unbelievably twisted underbelly of the lowest, most baseless human indignities is at least a bimonthly infotainment session for me. That said, I dug up a couple of stories from rotten.com that might interest the average TFI reader (speaking as if I'm some sort of regular rag for rabid fans of a hardworkin' everyman like myself).
Story #1: Eat your fucking heart out, Adolf Hitler, before the US FDA digs you up to bronze it for their flagpole. FDA wants sperm banks to bar donors who've had gay sex. Come on.
Story #2: Live maggots found inside M&M candy bars bought at Boca gas station. Think about that next time you go reaching for a movietime snack.
2. I'm Occasionally an Asshole.
Just ask my mother, my wife, my high school sweetheart, and a few dozen other people that have known me for awhile. I admit that I'm occasionally a knee-jerk quick-to-judge type of guy, but usually I'm just trying to be funny and my occasionally dark and twisted sense of humor just doesn't go over well with others. Which is why I tend to stay indoors a lot and away from social settings. But this week the minister at Church asked the congregation to spend the next week nurturing ourselves. So I no longer wish to be judged for my hot-headedness. I'm in the here and now, a divine expression of the cosmos. And that's the way it's going to be.
Nevertheless, this unfortunate bloke received the wrath of my ass-hole-ishness tonight (go ahead; it's probably an entertaining and enlightening read). Not that I regret anything I say, but I probably could have been a little cheekier and less testosterone. But what can I say? Nobody's perfect.
That's all I got 2nite. It's Mother's day, and though I missed the opportunity to actually talk to my mother (got an answering machine), there's a nice fire and some cold drinks waiting for me at the in-law's house down the street. It was a nearly purrrrfect day (with a 'cat' theme, I might add), and I'm happy.
I wish I had time to post a review of the latest episode of DW, but I just don't. And it's likely that I won't be posting much in the days to come because this week is insanely busy at work.
Another satisfying spring weekend in the can. Cheers.
posted by novachild @ Sunday, May 08, 2005,
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Woo Fucking Hoo
5/05/2005
This really bothers me.
I suppose I should rephrase my frustration. Declaring a mistrial on a defendant's response to just one of the multiple counts seems a bit ridiculous to me. But I'm not an expert on these matters.
I agree that you can't have a 'one-person conspiracy,' but I also think that anybody willing to smile and pose while a picture is taken of naked iraqi prisoners stacked in a pyramid should be severely punished. She didn't know this was illegal? Come on, what a crock of bullshit. You look at it and tell me she was just following orders:
England, her cohorts, and anybody that knew about the mistreatment and torture without taking appropriate action need some serious sorting out. Not a mistrial.
I remember the day I first saw those pictures. It was a day that will exist forever in my mind, the day that I realized how truly disgusting and hypocritical human beings can be (now I'm not so naive). The insanity didn't stop at the pictures; it spilled over into world around me, in people I knew, standing around water coolers and laughing about it, trying to justify it against the violence of the terrorists. I just couldn't believe it, and I still can't.
Where is the public outrage? Where is the accountability? Where is the common sense to repair the damage? Was it all crammed down the toilet along with our civil liberties, our sense of responsibility, our sanity? Why do people pretend that it's all ok, that we're still the good guys, that this is the sort of thing good people do?
Following orders or not, sexual humiliation is only fun when it's consentual. It's rape and exploitation when it is not. And the face of Lynddie England is burned forever in my mind as the face of America's shame. Humanity's disgrace.
A little bit of hope would be a good thing about now. And seeing as how today is the National Day of Prayer, I've really got a lot to pray about. I pray for fairness, justice, and right action. I pray that people who create suffering open up to the understanding of what they do. I pray that the people who sit idly by awaken to the true state of things and feel it within their hearts to make things better . I pray that all Americans realize the courage and the conviction to hold these criminals accountable for their actions. And ultimately, I pray for some kind of enlightenment to happen, because the human race could really benefit from a mass awakening of consciousness right now.
posted by Edward Svengali @ Thursday, May 05, 2005,
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When I'm Dead
5/04/2005
Someday I will be
Rotting in a Crypt
or blowing with dust mites
across a prairie in late July
While in the sphere of sight
endless wheat fields shine
Glorious patches of waving gold
The wind blows old volkswagons off I-70
and straight into the ditch
Have you read the welcome mat
on Death's door?
Rolling up like a tumbleweed
poor, dried-up soul?
Have you understood the gleam
in your lover's eye?
Are you too dead to die?
Will you be just
Another stooge in the wall
Sealed up with marble
and a pretty plaque?
Will some aging beauty
bring you flowers every day?
Will a legion of hippies
dance naked on your grave?
When I'm dead
I'll know my work is done
when preachers and priests
from around the world
try as they might
to rid the earth
of my rotting corpse
Amen
posted by Edward Svengali @ Wednesday, May 04, 2005,
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Oompah Loompah
5/03/2005
Perusing through my favorites, I visitid the National Cynical Network web site for the first time in ages (since they released The Needle in the Red or thereabouts). I'm a sucker for hacked media, audio collage, and reactionary art in general. When this picture caught my eye, I just about fell out of my seat!
Check this out:
He sure fits right in, doesn't he? The esteemed leader of the oompa-loompas, and the man behind the big red button of doom.
If you enjoyed that, and you don't mind a little noise in your diet, check out their web site, download some sounds, and give them money. I'm not affiliated with them in any way, only showing my luvvvvv for what they do in the only way that I can.
One More Thing: Jump Back! Happy 72nd Birthday to the Godfather of Soul, James Brown. The man who proved that you could be a genuine hoot (even before Frank Zappa hit the scene) and still sell millions of albums.
posted by Edward Svengali @ Tuesday, May 03, 2005,
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HitchHiker's Guide #1? Wow.
5/02/2005
I'm really not sure how to take this:
"Hitchhiker's Guide" Blasts Off at Number One
On one hand, it would be nice to see the next book made into a movie (which is probably inevitable at this point). On the other hand, I really didn't enjoy the movie very much. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good. One could still feel the spirit of Douglas Adams woven into the film, but the bottom sort of drops out about halfway through - and is only saved by Bill Nighy's much anticipated appearance. DNA's witticisms are mostly 'dumbed down' for the US audience, and important scenarios left unfinished (& don't get me started on how horrible I thought Mos Def was).
All in all, the film was nothing new. I enjoyed the look of the Vogons, and the new Marvin costume, and the several nods to the fans (esp the Eagles song and the appearance of the original Marvin). But in the end, that's all I felt the movie was. Just a big wave to the fans and a watered down version of the story dragging behind all the fanwank.
All in all, I still prefer the low low budget television miniseries to this film. But if there is a sequel, I'll have to go see it. Much in the same way that I have to see all the Star Wars movies in the theater, regardless of how amazingly horrible they can be.
posted by Edward Svengali @ Monday, May 02, 2005,
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Pray Hard!
This Thursday, May 5, is the National Day of Prayer. I'm not normally a praying kind of guy, but things are getting dark in the dawn of the 21st Century.
Just when I thought the human race might be ready to take the next step, we slip right back into the primordial soup and go further backwards each and every day. Or at least that's how it appears. Defeat after defeat of common sense and human dignity on a societal scale has left me a little more than cynical over the past few years. As I'm trying to clean out the attic, so to speak, my prayer this year will be for myself.
Yes, I'm going to be treating my own affliction on the Day of Prayer. I'm tired of seeing the world fall apart around me. I'm finished with allowing what is happening on a macroscopic level directly influence my personal life. My creativity. My time. My inspiration. My relationships. The world can take its monstrous regiments, its pathetic leadership, its hatred and indignity and cram it all up their respective asses. Because this is my prayer, my life, my song. And I'm going to clear out the cobwebs for at least one day and hope that I have a little bit of faith and hope left to make a difference in (at least) my own life. I'm going to try and feel connected again. Because it's easy to disconnect when absolutely nothing is sane or functional in the world. It's easier to feel isolated and apart than it is to feel like I'm actually a part of this stinking, godforsaken planet.If you can't change the world, change yourself.
And if you can't change yourself, then change the world.
- The The, Lonely Planet - (from Dusk)
(BTW, Dusk is perhaps the greatest album ever made, so if you don't have it, get it.)
posted by Edward Svengali @ Monday, May 02, 2005,
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