dyslexic begonias

You know, having recently acquire a pair of tickets so stardances and I could go see Paul McCartney on his latest tour of the US got me to thinking about how long, exactly, I have been influenced by the Beatles, as a Musician, as a person. When I was 6 or 7, my cousin (who at four years older was a complete Beatle freak, and owned EVERYTHING they ever produced, be it singles, EPs, lunch boxes, etc.) made two eight track tapes for me for Christmas of the Beatle albums Love Songs, Live at the Hollywood Bowl, Rock and Roll Music and most of the 45s. For a period of about five years, these were the only records I listened to, other than the occasional Elvis and Johnny Cash. I learned how to play guitar, bass, piano and organ from Beatles songbooks and records. Moreso than any other Musician, Paul McCartney influenced the bass player I am today. The funny thing is, up until about two days ago (perhaps when I bought the tickets), I typically would answer John when asked which was my “favorite” Beatle. You know, it always was Paul. It was always the melody that drew me in, that and the fact that I could actually sing like Paul - John was another matter altogether.

BTW, Paul McCartney was the FIRST person under the age of 30 EVER quoted in Life magazine. Of course, he said some inane things, like “if we gave all the world leaders LSD, this would be better planet” but THINK ABOUT IT. Before Paul McCartney, no one under 30 was considered to have an opinion worth circulating in mainstream print media. He also was one of the producers of the Monterey Pop Festival, co-introduced Indian religion to the west, has been a strong advocate of vegetarianism, and so on. He was also one of the first pop stars to get busted for drugs and have it enhance his reputation (LOL).

I know Paul has done some smarmy things (like suggesting to Michael Jackson that he go into the Music publishing business, and then letting himself get outbid for his own song collection - oh, why didn't he and Yoko bid together on that one?), but consider this: without Paul, the Beatles probably never would have advanced beyond a teen audience, and would never have received as much mainstream airplay.

Yesterday is one of the most covered songs of all time, and was voted by VH1 viewers last year as the “greatest rock song of all time” (of course, they are VH1 viewers ... their opinion should be considered in whatever light you view that sort of folk).

Some of the Paul songs that changed my life?

Helter Skelter
Oh Darling
Let It Be
Got to Get You Into My Life
All Together Now
Eleanor Rigby
Blackbird
Maybe I'm Amazed
Hey Jude
Why Don't We Do It In the Road? ...

Does anyone remember that Beatles song (penned by Lennon), The Word - I think it was on Rubber Soul ... it went “Say the word, and be like me, say the word, and you'll be free, say the word I'm thinking of, and you know the word is love ...” and so on? I was just thinking about writing that kind of hook into a song, you know, the repetitive beginning and ending line (each verse begins with the same phrase, and each chorus ends with those same words, which of course is one of the standard Irish bardic patterns, although I'm not sure that John Lennon knew that explicitly - some things make their way into pop culture on the sly, despite all the established discouragement)...

Anyway, I came up with this new lyric to match that sort of pattern.

Time 10.19.2002

I've got time to let the good things come as they will
I've got time to listen to the fool on the hill
I've got time to watch the empty glass start to fill
You won't catch me trying to keep the second hand still

I've got time to let the grass grow under my feet
I've got time to taste of kisses warm and so sweet
I've got time to separate the chaff from the wheat
You won't find me out in the rushed and bustling street

Used to be I was so worried and stressed
Trying to rush out and find happiness
Now I just wait and the waiting is fine
I'm in no hurry, cause I've got time

I've got time to sit and talk with lovers and friends
I've got time to look beyond all the latest trends
I've got time to see more than beginnings and ends
You won't catch me at the last minute making amends

Used to be I was concerned with the date
Trying to make sure I wouldn't be late
Now I just relax and things work out fine
I'm in no hurry...cause I've got time

I've got time to just enjoy what comes 'til it goes
I've got time to watch the river as it just flows
I've got time to figure out what I've got to know
You won't find me out trying to race the wind as it blows

I haven't written a song for stardances in quite a while, and this one kind of crept up on me this evening. Perhaps its more of that Beatleish mood I've been in ... the last one was a John-like thing, and this one seems more like a George.

There's something in your eyes that makes me happy
I think it's what you see when you see me
Behind my sad disguise I find you looking
To find the truth inside and set it free

There's something in your smile that makes me want you
I think it's how you know just where I stand
Inside my secret self I find you laughing
It makes me glad to know that I'm your man

And when you tell me that you love me
I realize that it is real
There is no pretense or confusion
And no question of the way I feel

There's something in your touch that feels like sunshine
I think it's your connection to the light
That sends a spark to deep inside my shadows
To burn away the darkness of my nights

There's something in your laugh that makes me love you
I think it's that you share your heart with me
And take from me the best I have to offer
Knowing that the best is yet to be

And when you tell me that you love me
I understand that it is so
There is no pretense or confusion
I don't need to question it to know

There's something in your eyes that makes me happy
I think it's what you see when you see me
And there I am reflected in your vision,
The person that I know that I can be.

-- For the TSL :)

Here's a silly song for ... well, maybe not so silly after all.

You could be anything in the world that you want to be
You could have anything you want and that's no lie
You could ask anyone for love and you would get it
So why are do want to be here at my side?

You could get anywhere that you want to go when you want to go
You could live anyplace that you like and that's so true
You could open your heart to so much more than I will ever be
So how did I become the one for you?

I don't pretend to understand your motivation
It is a mystery to me the way it stands
I don't believe that you would choose me for no reason
So now I have to prove I'm good enough
To be your loving man...

You could love anyone, your options are open-ended
You could get anything you needed, yes indeed
You could turn any head that you thought was the right one
So how did you decide that it was me?

I don't pretend to comprehend your heart's selection
It is a mystery that I don't understand
I don't believe that you would opt for imperfection
So now I have to prove I'm good enough
To be your loving man...

You could be anything in the world you want to be
You could have anything that you want, and that's no line
You could never belong to anyone that wasn't everything you want
So I still can't believe you wanted to be mine

Here's a song I wrote earlier this year that I particularly like - it seems to fit into my current frame of mind :)

Seeds of Revolution 01.14.2002

You thought you'd just take a look, find it in forbidden books
And when the old foundation shook you'd learn
Maybe secrets you would find unlock the power of your mind
and change the fate of all mankind in turn
But the seeds of revolution don't just grow
You can't wave your hand imagining it is so

You made it a test of will now the abyss is waiting still
And adding your life doesn't fill it in
Maybe on the other side somewhere beyond greed and pride
The path is there, you must decide, begin
For the seeds of revolution must be sown
If want to call the thoughts you have your own

You imagine worlds of light where truth and lies are black and white
And with the gift of second sight you'll rule
Maybe change the universe, make it sane or even worse
behind ambition madness lurks, and fools
For the seeds of revolution are within
And there isn't any prize to lose or win

In the grasp of your desire
Can you see the way is not to just have what you want
It's about love, and being part of everything
As your passion burns with fire

Can you see that things are only here and then they're gone
The wheel is song, and you need only start to sing
You thought in a grain of sand hidden was the master plan
And finding it, alone you'd stand and know

Maybe teach the world to grow based on your informed say so
And change the very way the river flows
But the seeds of revolution are in your mind
And the harvest isn't something you can find
And the seeds of revolution cannot grow
If you don't release their power, let them go

For the seeds of revolution are in you
And the flower find its roots in what you do.

Maybe I'm getting all my recent Lyrics together with a view to recording the ones I like the best...here's another one, from late last year :)

Invitation 1 NOV 2001

Everybody's got a right to disagree with your position
Everybody's got a vision of their own ideal condition
And sometimes it's something you don't understand
and things don't turn out exactly like you planned

Everybody's got a different take on their own situation
Everybody's got their unique expression of sensation
And it doesn't always make you feel all right
or it keeps you up all hours of the night

There's a world that you can't see
And all I really know is me and my own mind
But I'll gladly let you in
share the places that I've been and what I find

Everybody's got a way that they just like to do things
Everybody knows a secret song by heart nobody else sings
And sometimes it may not have too many words
and at certain times may sound a bit absurd

Everybody's got their own interpretation of the seasons
Everybody's got a different definition of good reasons
And they don't always make that much sense to me
and it causes us to sometimes disagree

There's a world outside my wall
and sometimes I can't fit it all in what I know
But I'll surely give you time
to match your edges up with mine and we'll both grow

We're both puzzle pieces of the same whole
We've both got a leading part in our own role

Everybody's got a handle on a different plan of action
Everybody has interpretation of self satisfaction
And it's not like they can't both be right and wrong
and be altered if a new one comes along

Everybody's got their own ideal of what defines perfection
Everybody's got to make an individual connection
And it's not like it won't happen anytime
or be quite the road you thought that you might find

There's a world where can stand,
Co-exist in land that's undivided
And we'll gladly meet as friends
You just have to tell me when you've decided

Because you're invited.

And another really old one (from two years ago) ...

Blues in Maybe Major 09.16.2000

Maybe the world will end tomorrow or maybe the sun will shine
Maybe the worst is yet to happen or maybe it's left behind
Maybe today we'll learn the answer or maybe there's none to find
Maybe there's really no one listening or maybe it's I don't mind

Maybe outside we'll find religion or maybe it's there inside
Maybe because will serve our purpose or maybe the prophets lied
Maybe enough will come to reason or maybe we all decide
Maybe there's really nothing out there or maybe it's on our side

Maybe the truth is not a sentence and maybe the question why
Maybe the goal is not the lesson and maybe the ways you try
Maybe the sky will rain tomorrow and maybe the sun will shine
Maybe the best things never happen and maybe it's always fine
Maybe today we'll start to listen and maybe become divine
Maybe there's really nothing to it and maybe it just takes time

Maybe belief will turn to action and maybe its time will come
Maybe until will be our language and maybe we'll be struck dumb
Maybe enough will start to listen and maybe the voice will numb
Maybe there's life inside the many and maybe it's only one
Maybe the truth is not the answer and maybe the question why
Maybe the way is in the journey and maybe you learn to fly

I think this is the end of the oldies ... LOL

Cosmos Significant Blues 7.7.2000

If I could be anywhere in the big wide world I'd want to be right where I am
I'd rather be on the outside on a natural mystic than pretending that i don't give a damn
not into breakdown confusion or some mad delusion thinking I'm in control of some plan
or trying to show anybody the one grain of truth that's somehow separate from the rest of the sand

me and you...ain't nothing better to do
yes it's true...cosmo-significant blues

if i could have anything in the whole damn store I'd want to keep everything that i own
i'd rather have just a little that means something to me than be a get more junkie or clone
not into keep up appearances and miss the experience thinking there's nothing left to be shown
or trying to prove anything to the disbelievers that prey on you when you get alone

me and you...ain't nothing better, it's true
the sum of two...cosmo-significant blues

there can be life ever after in the here and now when there is more than the surface to see
there can be revolution in the smallest of thoughts when there's a chance you can truly be free

me and you...ain't nothing left to get through
yes it's true...cosmo-significant blues

if i could meet anyone in this mixed up crowd I'd want to find out whose keeping it real
I'd rather burn with the witches who aren't living a lie than survive by proposing a deal
not into representation of a bad situation thinking it's better just not to feel
or trying to talk without walking down the road less traveled just waiting round for the turn of the wheel

me and you...ain't nothing better to do
yes it's true...cosmos significant blues
me and you...ain't nothing else that I'd choose
want those true...cosmos significant blues

Well, my friends, I have just been informed that one of my poems is to be included in a published anthology.
The Pagan's Muse: Poems of Ritual and Inspiration, by Jane Raeburn.

The poem to be included is called As We Are But Travelers Here, which was a poem/song that I composed while dabbling with the Dedicant Program for the ADF, to demonstrate my understanding of the Nine Noble Virtues - those being the tenets of ADF's version of Druid life: Wisdom, Piety, Vision, Courage, Integrity, Perseverance, Hospitality, Moderation, and Fertility.

Here is the poem:

As We Are But Travelers Here

10.07.1999

As we are but travelers here, beneath this canopy of sky
and rooted to this mount of earth, step gently as your path goes by.

Remember that beyond the sight that links us all as kin,
and thankful, lift your voice in praise to gods without, divine within.

Tho’ we may walk for many miles, the journey is itself an end;
so, when you pause to rest, reflect, and when you can, assist a friend.

Give caution to stray thought of might and careful tend the fire;
for once unloosed, the thoughtless flame knows not between the rose and briar.

Your word is but your only wealth, and as the coin, the source;
spend wisely, know that your needs are few, and oft a want may lead to force.

And walk ye proud, but not in spite, resist the urge to shun;
for who among us truly knows when paths are ended, or begun?

Seek out the truth, where it is found, and finding it, rejoice;
and when the darkness hides that truth, give light with steady voice.

Again, give thanks for gifts received, as chance has made them yours;
for when the gift reflects the giver, that is its reward.

As we are but travelers here, take heed to tread a gentle way;
for each step shows a different path where wondrous journeys lay.  

And here, if you are interested, is a link the the RealAudio demo version:
As We Are But Travelers Here

Bright Blessings, ya'll...

Okay, okay, so it's another throwaway song. Maybe it will work as the theme song for NORML ... LOL

4:20 Blues

Out on a limb, you've got to sink or swim
And either one is a political act
There on a whim, it's much to late to begin
To separate what you have learned from the facts

Poised on the brink, your neck in the drink
You've got to improvise the skill that you lack
After a while, you start to fake it with style
And then there's not much chance to turn back

Nothing left to lose, maybe then you'll choose
The 4:20 blues

Out on the lamb, it's hard to give a good damn
Beyond the next turnaround of the wheel
If you're in on the plan, you fall for the scam
Or figure out the safest way you can deal

Poised on the ledge, or stuck in the hedge
You've got to subliminate the way that you feel
After a while, you start to take it and smile
And then there's not much hope for appeal

Nothing left to lose, how can you refuse
The 4:20 blues

Out on the line, you start to thinking it's fine
And then the tug starts reeling you in
If you've got enough rope, you may think you can cope
Until the hook pulls under your chin

Poised in the net, you start to feel a regret
But it's a little late for struggling then
After a while, your bones will be on the pile
And you can start all over again

Nothing left to lose, might as well break through
The 4:20 blues

I can't believe I wrote this song in 1985 ... that actually makes me quite sad.

Wake up America and face the facts
Your roads are built on broken backs
And there's no way that you can track
The hypocrisy that against you stacks

There are storm clouds in those spacious skies
of which you sing, but do you realize
Your purple mountains and amber grain
Will disappear in the acid rain

Of time, there's no time, and the time is now
To turn our hawk-like swords into plows
And reap the seed that we have sown
The apathy that has destroyed our home

Wake up America and face the truth
There is no one standing in your voting booths
And the people in this country who run your lives
Are free to find your back with their forks and knives

You stammer, and you whine, complain that there is nothing you can do
But you and I know that this is not true
You've focused your attention on the world outside
Now it's time to take the board out of your own damn eye

Oh sleeping giant it's time to rise
And wipe the sleep out from in your eyes
You've enslaved your brothers to promote your creed
But you don't know what it is, because you can't read

And your huddled masses yearning to be free
Are as tired and poor as they used to be
They're dying of AIDS, selling, or trying to score
Wake up, the future is right next door

Around the world we act so proud
Americans, yes, and we say it loud
We rub our freedoms in everybody's faces
But we let the media run the presidential races

If we stood for equality, life and truth
Then the flag we fly would be fire-proof
It's our claim to fame, and our greatest shame
And we're running out of fingers pointing out the blame
If you're so proud, proud as you claim
Pick up the pieces ... and use your brain.

I pledge allegiance to the flag
of the United States of America
and to the Republic for which it stands
one nation, indivisible
with liberty
and justice
for All.

Wake up America, and read your history
So many have died for this democracy
The facts are clear and can't be ignored
There are strip mines where once eagles soared

It's time we started listening to “Yankee go home”
And went through our problems with a fine-tooth comb
Remember, just like Patrick Henry said,
Without liberty, we might as well be dead.

My friends, I'm debating with myself whether Live Journal is the best place for me to continue my meanderings, thoughts and occasional Poetry. With this in mind, I would appreciate your response to this little survey.
Thanks.

With the Yule season rapidly approaching, I thought it might be nice pull out a paean to the original jolly old elf, the host of yuletime present, the Green Man :) I wrote this about a year ago.

May your Yule log fire never die.

Song for the Green Man

08.01.2001

Now, sit yourself down and relax for a time
And sup as the daylight begins to decline;
The weather is warm and the company's fine
For the Green Man's providing the wine

Partake of the bounty that's laid out this night
For those that are hungry, the fire's are alight
And all of your worries will be put to flight
For the Green Man is doing it right

So drink of the cider and whiskey and wine,
The scotch and lager brought in while you dine,
And toast to your unending pleasure and mine,
For the Green Man is treating you fine

Ye ladies and gentlemen, give out a cheer
For He that is born again year after year
Bringing the wildness of life ever near
Yes, the Green Man is buying the beer

So dance and be merry, and drink ye your fill
And let not tomorrow give pause to think ill
But trust in the Goddess and live for Her will,
For the Green Man is paying the bill

A toast to this company, to one and all
Your health in this summer, and on until fall
And listen to Nature's unhesitant call
For the Green Man believes in you all

So, what will you have, for to drink or to eat?
We've all nature's bounty, her fruit and her meat
Brought right to your doorstep, no don't leave your seat
For the Green Man will serve you complete

So hither ye ladies, and gentlemen too,
And sing out the merriment all the night through
And make ye a friend from a stranger or two
For the Green Man is counting on you

Yes, give him your blessing and energy bright,
Believe in the wonders of love and of light;
There's much that can happen, and most of it right,
For the Green Man is King here tonight.

Just in case anyone is interested, I've just completed a major update to my website. The goal is to eventually include everything I have ever written, recorded or otherwise created. Obviously, it is a significant work in progress. Much of my earlier work is lost or requires a serious amount of data entry. So it will never be absolutely authoritative; but perhaps it will be the next best thing.
The URL is radicaldruid.com. Let me know what you think.

or why that stupid song gets stuck in your head...a very interesting bit of new research from Dartmouth College: Music, Memory and the Brain
In other news, we have a wonderful little (5-1/2') Scotch Pine tree now nestled in the corner of the living room. It is filling the house with its piney good scent, and tomorrow will be festively decorated for the impeding Yule celebration. In addition, many wonderful gifties were purchased at Barnes & Noble, including a reprint of the 1865 first edition of Walt Whitman's “Leaves of Grass” ... which unfortunately, I have to wait a week to peruse. Digital pictures, I am sure, will be forthcoming either here or in journal.
a mall haiku
bustling crowded mall
filled with last minute shoppers:
retail paradise
milling, frantic souls
accumulate more receipts
and shopping bags
is it insanity
that drives them here to visit
these over-priced stores?
why did we come here?
we should have purchased stuff on-line,
and had it gift-wrapped.
in the parking lot
it is easier to breathe;
finally finished.

Well, this week I'm off to California with and the Troll Queen for a visit with my relatives out there. Unlikely to have internet access, so the POTD will be on hold until I get back. I'm sure there will be much to write about.
Have a good week, everyone :)

If any of you are interested, and particularly for my dear friend , I have put together a chapbook of some of my sonnets for you to download and enjoy.
It is in PDF format (I know, it makes for a bigger file, but I wanted it to look nice and be somewhat secure), and is available at the following link:
A Song for the Day
I hope you all find it entertaining and good reading.
BTW, , how much do you think it would cost to print up something like this?
Bright Blessings to all :)

For anyone who is interested in offering their opinion, I just updated my LJ style. What I was going for was a newspaper type feel. Hope that comes across.
Cheers :)

Ok, so maybe it's a VERY strange question...but does anyone but me think that a re-interpretation of 1984, as a play written in entirely in iambic pentameter (much like Shakespeare's retelling of the Tragedie of Hamlett King of Demarke) sounds REALLY cool?
Any thoughts?
Thirteen o’clock and all the world is well;
Beyond the reach of the tempest makers,
Where thought and reason still may sway the mind,
And the conscience of a nation feeds not
On unfounded rumors of threat and fear
But seeks for truth behind innuendo
And shadow agendas for armed conflict,
Recognizing that in the doublespeak
Asserting the need to take firm action,
To rail against an unseen enemy
is but a diversion to cloak from view
the clandestine interests of the few,
so that they may be pursued without pause
and bankrupt the soul of a proud country.
Of course, it's a good bit of work.

And you might want further proof that I could do such a thing. Well, I have written another play in iambic pentameter, and here's a small sample.
From The Trial of Nesorna, Nesorna's Monologue, Act I, Scene 4
I can not say I feel as if reborn -
and yet, there is a newness about me;
a cleanliness of spirit that springs forth
from a new source, unknown and without name.
What words I choose can only dent the veil
of this deliverer that spawns such hope -
mere words cannot define this flash of light
that now illuminates my sorrowed pain.
Yes, pain, that wracking, scream of agony
which celebrates itself in birth and life,
I feel it not, but in its place I find
An agony of quite a deeper sort.
The pangs of transformation I now bear
bring me aware to planes of solid thought,
and in that heightened state they bid me stay,
to question of my place and of my fate.
‘Tis true, that once I sought an early death,
as a small child might, innocent, seek change
in this too often monstrous, hateful world;
my simple wish to end all pain for good.
I offered prayer and harkened to the Gods,
beseeching them to show themselves to me -
and wished that to their presence I could fly
or that they soon would take me from this place.
But whimpering days of longing are no more,
and with its cloak of cold and glorious bliss
this night has brought with it a wind of change,
and I am more resolved to live than die.
This wind, more like a gale, has brought me life,
and set me on a pinnacle of hope -
here, tempest-swept, I stand, my spirit strong
and am renewed and ready for this day.
But where to start in this great future land,
this new discovered world of strength and truth?
The starting is the easy part, I know -
as for the finish, therein lies the test.
The glow of reason may not light this quest,
this enterprise that, virgin, waits untried;
and treachery is sure to find me, too,
yet I must follow out into this wind.
For be it so, or perhaps not to be,
it is not mine to yea, or nay, command;
It matters not if heaven is the goal,
nor if to hell’s doorway the breezes blow.
If strength or folly, whether good or ill,
this changeling spirit offers more to me,
more promise to my dark-encumbered soul
than any specter from my past has done.
Therefore, I must now gird myself anew,
and into time’s wide chasm throw my lot -
not backward, where my spirit found its root,
but into the un-named and unknown now.
I am resolved to hesitate no more,
but follow that which beckons from beyond;
and move into what learned men have called
the history and quest of all mankind.
But quiet now, the dawn approaches soon,
and it will prove me wise man, or buffoon.
and so on and so forth ...

... to say that one small voice can make a difference. And perhaps it's not such a big deal, but about four months ago I suggested to David Crosby that his new band CPR would be a perfect addition to the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival ... and lo and behold, he is now playing on two different days this year ... and CSNY, CSN and Crosby NEVER very rarely play the south ...

That I seem to be skipping around a bit in my responses to the Poetry on Demand requests. This is not because I am overlooking anyone, but simply because some topics resonate more quickly than others. For some the inspiration is immediate, while for others, the waters of the well being sounded create small ripples that build more slowly. Rest assured, each poem on its way ...
Thank you everyone for your wonderful inspiration. I hope you are enjoying the results.

BTW, I'm in the process of changing my journal style. Any thoughts?

Test Results

Having borrowed a phrase from this earlier work for the POTD, I thought I pull it out of the archive.
Another World
You never told me that you'd tried to change
All of this time I just thought that you were strange
You never said those magic words
That turned our hearts from rocks to birds
You never tried to understand
All I wanted was the promised land
You never saw those tears I cried
When the phonograph broke down and died
Ah, you're living in another world
Ah, is it easy to laugh at me, girl?
Have you found the things that make it all worthwhile?
Have you touched the sky, or seen an angel smile?
Is it better to have substance, or have style?

You never reached inside and felt around
While you were floating high above me on the ground
You never stopped to cut the strings
That tied me to your rhinestone wings
You never promised me the stars
But drove me, often, all around, in fancy cars
To visit lost and lonely souls
Who lived in broken, plastic bowls
You've lived your life in another world
Is that anything to be proud of?
Is it easy to imagine that you're anywhere
When the circus of your life comes around?
You told me that you never learned to dance
What is anything worth if you don't take a chance?
If you never learn to look around,
How can anything that's lost be found?
1986

And here's the recorded version, with the Moondogs:
Another World

An interview meme, in which I am asked five questions by :
1: Is there any particular song (or songs) that you feel is (are) so amazing that you wish to kill or severely maim anyone who interrupts you while you're listening to it (them)? If so, what? If not, what song(s) come closest to this sentiment?
Strange, but this and many of the other questions I would have answered so differently just five years ago. Not that even then I would consider killing or severely maiming, but definitely getting hot under the collar and irate ... usually it's the long songs that one gets into the mood of ... like Ravi Shankar's performance at the Monterey Pop Festival, or Pink Floyd's “Echoes” ... those would come close. When you have kids, though, you get so used to being interrupted in the middle of anything that if that were to cause thoughts of murder, there wouldn't be any future generations. A whole song? LOL...you must be joking.
2: Tom Waits once said, “Don't you know there ain't no devil, that's just god when he's drunk.” What do you feel is god's (or fate's, or fortune's or mother nature's or whatever your belief may be) most cruel or creative (your choice) joke played on the world? What about the most cruel/creative joke played on mankind?
Ah, Tom Waits - so gifted and yet so bitter. I think it is possible that Tom Waits has a Bukowski complex, if there is such a thing. But at least the question is straight-forward. I think the cruelest (and also most creative) joke played on the world was the introduction of the human species. By whatever means it was accomplished. I think the most cruel/creative joke played on mankind was the ability to use intellect and compassion separately. That possibility for the separation of church and state has resulted in both evil genius and ineffective sentimentalists.
3: Define “reality” in your own terms.
The world as it is. Not as it should be, or was, or will be. Travelling at the speed of now. Energy borrowed, energy returned. Not what you see, because there are so many words in language that relate to the lies of the eyes. What you hear the world to be. The song you have to learn, or be mute.
4: Name the character in a book, poem, song, or movie that you would most like to be. What about the one you'd least like to be?
Strange question, in a way. The problem with choosing a character from a work of Fiction is you already know how their life is going to end. You'd have to give up that mystery to switch with them. Don't know if I've ever really considered that a worthwhile proposition. But, when I was a kid, I wanted to be Remo Williams in the series the Destroyer. Because, frankly, I thought it would great to have an ancient oriental guru. LOL. But I think it is probably closer to my reality now that I would choose Siddhartha or Magister Ludi (both from Herman Hesse). I guess I'd least like to be Mr. Potter (the banker from “It's a Wonderful Life”).
5: If were offered the ability to, just by thinking it, cause anyone you wish to die instantly, would you accept it? If so, who would be on your shit list? If not, why not?
Of course, that's assuming that we each don't have the ability already ... No. I would not accept it, nor if I had it, would I use it. The responsibility is too great, and life is too precious. I am not in a position to judge ANYONE. Besides, people that get on my “shit list” eventually clean up - after all, it IS water soluble. There are a lot of people that I have a great deal of compassion for ... and worry about ... and wish would get their lives together ... and recognize their own potential (whatever that may be, not up to me to say) ... but nobody's been on my shit-list for probably 10 years.
NOW, THE RULES:
1 -- Leave a comment, saying you want to be interviewed.
2 -- I will respond; I'll ask you five questions.
3 -- You'll update your journal with my five questions, and your five answers.
4
-- You'll include this explanation.
5 -- You'll ask other people five questions when they want to be interviewed.
6 -- Also, come back here and post the link to where you post yrs.

Hello everyone :)
I have just started a new LJ community ... at least for now, it is on-line; it may be real-life in the future:

We must be the change we wish to see. -- M. K. Gandhi
This is not a community about finding problems, but seeking solutions. This is NOT the place to air your grievances about how horrible those who seek to destroy the world are, but rather to focus on those who are actively looking for ways to build peace, and with their positive actions are changing the environment of entire societies - by changing themselves first.
DO NOT POST:
Commentary ridiculing your enemies, links to articles berating military leaders, praise of aggression or violence in any form, things that divide us and separate into “us” and “them”
DO POST:
Thoughts on how to increase peace, inspirational quotes, links to sites or articles that suggest positive changes, stories on acts of compassion and kindness, things that unify and reinforce our shared humanity
If you are interested, please consider joining...

If you've visit my site, you might see a change in the navigation. For my convenience only, I have divided up my friends into four groups: Acquaintances, Core Friends, Fringe Groups, and Core Communities. I don't filter any posts so that members of each group cannot see everything (you're either my friend or you're not), but I did split things up so I could more easily read through the myriad of posts that come my way. Fringe groups and core communities are the easiest - core communities are those that I either maintain, read diligently every day or post to on a regular basis. Fringe groups are all other communities. Core friends represent a select group of individuals that I have developed a longer term relationship with, that comment more or less regularly in my journal, and whose lives I feel a part of. Acquaintances represent everyone else. Now, if you feel slighted in that you are grouped somewhere you don't belong (i.e., you think you're a core friend but I've got you as an acquaintance), don't get all up in arms, please. I probably just miscategorized you, which can be easily fixed. Or it might be that I just haven't known you all that long - in which case, know that the core group will change over time. Don't worry, everybody gets read. It's just that sometimes I need to focus on a few bright souls that always tend to make me feel better about the world, or that hold a special place in my heart. That's what core friends are for, right?
Anyway, if of course this doesn't matter to you in the slightest ... as you were. I'll be in the area all day (LOL).
Namaste, ya'll.

In case you missed it, probably the last Poetry by request I've done (as recorded at ),
Requested from ,
Topic: Battles
Words: Unsure, middle of the road, hawks, doves, rhetoric, both sides spinning, peace, war, love, hate, help
Feelings about Topic: Unsure
And here's the poem I came up with:
Choosing Your Battles

When the middle of the road is muddy slick
So that the vehicles of truth get mired
'Tis then the vultures gather there to pick
Among the helpless and the uninspired
The wheels of progress spin but cannot grab
or gain a purchase 'gainst the tide of war,
but spout mere rhetoric and useless gab
until the words don't matter anymore.
And love? It is subsumed in mindless hate,
the doves of peace set on by hungry hawks
who speak of “help” but would decide our fate
while the whole world still argues and just gawks.
The future in such times is so unsure -
for who's to judge whose motives are more pure?
21 JUN 2003

OK.
I have a request to make of those who consider me an LJ friend.
Share something beautiful with me. It can be a quote, a photograph, a work of art, a book recommendation, a thought, something you've written, a phrase that strikes your fancy ... anything at all. But it must be beautiful to you. There are no other prerequisites or requirements. It can be a fragment from your past, a snapshot of your present, or your vision for the future. Because true beauty is timeless, the chronology of its presentation is meaningless. You may say, well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. You, GB, might not think it so beautiful. Well, I am not asking you to present me with things based on my interpretation of beauty. You are the beholder. Use your own criteria.
I'd like to see 114 responses to this post. Because each of you has experienced beauty, and if you think about it, beauty is a thing to be shared. I try to regularly share some of the beauty I find in the world with all of you. So share some of yours with me, and with the other 114 people who will read this. Everyone's day will be a little brighter for it, I promise.
Thank you.

John Litzenberg (AKA Greybeard Dances) is a poet and Musician who moonlights as a technology director for a Seattle-based information technology and project management consulting firm by day. Born in 1965 in Royal Oak, Michigan, he has lived in rural Ohio, suburban southern California, Boston's Back Bay (where he attended Berklee College of Music), Midtown Memphis, and Seattle's Capitol and First Hills. John currently lives with his true love, soulmate and best friend, Starlight Dances (a painter and herbalist), her daughter and their cat Lydia, in the Gentilly area of New Orleans, Louisiana.

John's work has been featured on-line at the following websites:
Comrades Press (http://www.poemoftheweek.org.uk)
Candle and Cauldron (http://www.candleandcauldron.com)
The Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD) (http://www.druidry.org)
And is included in the following published works:
The Pagan's Muse: Poems of Ritual and Inspiration (http://www.janeraeburn.com)

For further information, and for more examples of John's Poetry, Music and other writings, please visit:
Space Between Breath: The Daily Journal of John Litzenberg (http://www.livejournal.com/users/gbdances)
Radical Druid: The Collected Writings of John Litzenberg (http://www.radicaldruid.com)

Thinking about my last post made me think of another blues I wrote late last year. For those who are not familiar with the expression, 4:20 is in some stoner circles the penultimate time at which to spark a doobie (there are urban legends that link it to, for example, the San Francisco Police Department's call-sign for a “marijuana use in progress”, among other things). Ultimately, for me, it pokes fun at those who create an anti-establishment establishment, and use any roadblock or setback as an excuse to alter their reality. One must bear in mind that the tune, a lilting sort of country-blues thing, is supposed to sound a lot like the Grateful Dead. Some day soon I'll have to transfer it from tape to MP3.
4:20 Blues
Out on a limb, you've got to sink or swim
And either one is a political act
There on a whim, it's much to late to begin
To separate what you have learned from the facts
Poised on the brink, your neck in the drink
You've got to improvise the skill that you lack
After a while, you start to fake it with style
And then there's not much chance to turn back
Nothing left to lose, maybe then you'll choose
The 4:20 blues
Out on the lam, it's hard to give a good damn
Beyond the next turnaround of the wheel
You're either in on the plan, or fall for the scam
Or figure out the safest way you can deal
Poised on the ledge, or stuck in the hedge
You've got to subliminate the way that you feel
After a while, you start to take it and smile
And then there's not much hope for appeal
Nothing left to lose, how can you refuse
The 4:20 blues
Out on the line, you start to thinking it's fine
And then the tug starts reeling you in
If you've got enough rope, you may think you can cope
Until the hook pulls under your chin
Poised in the net, you start to feel a regret
But it's a little late for struggling then
After a while, your bones will be on the pile
And you can start all over again
Nothing left to lose, might as well break through
The 4:20 blues
22 NOV 2002

After this post, all entries in this journal will be FRIENDS ONLY.
For reasons known clearly to myself (and best kept that way), I am changing this journal in effect to “friends only”.

Impact on New Friends: If you would like to be added by me as a friend (and are not listed as one already), you need to respond to this message to let me know. You might also, give an indication of whether or not you simply wish to read my journal, or you also would like me to read yours. Also, I'm not changing any of my public posts from the past to private or protected, so feel free to read what has happened before. That should be the basis on which you decide whether or not to inquire about being befriended, anyway.


Impact on Old Friends: None, really. However, if you are NOT interested in reading what I have to say, please drop me from your friends list and I will reciprocate. Likewise, if you enjoy or appreciate what you read, and have the feeling that I enjoy reading you, it might also be nice to mention that in response to this post. There are a lot of people who read this journal who do not think it necessary to ever say anything. While that is NOT any kind of friendship, communication or dialogue, I can understand and appreciate your position. I hope you understand mine - if you don't appear to be interested in what I have to say, don't be surprised if I am likewise not all that interested in your life or point of view. At this juncture, I don't think its necessary to differentiate (in terms of what they can and can't read) those on my friends list - but obviously, should that become necessary (in my opinion, of course, the only one that ultimately matters concerning how I run my journal) those who have responded (recently, regularly, occasionally or EVER) will be privy to more posts than those who do not. If you've got too many friends to keep track of me, that's understandable. But not necessarily acceptable. There are of course, exceptions - some people I enjoy reading whether they give a damn about me or not. But those cases are rare. Take this as you will, with as many grains of salt as required to adequately affect the sodium levels of your diet. It is NOT meant to offend. If it does, you're probably in the wrong place, anyway. I realize that many of you are on my friends list because I, in a misguided attempt to widen my area of involvement or perhaps to widen my perspective, probably added you and you as a kindness added me back. If this is the case, and you have found no real reason to maintain interest in my journal, please go ahead and unfriend me. I will not be offended - and if it worries me and I would really like you back as a friend, I will let you know.

And so it goes. I “hope” this looks like the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

A few years back, when I was living out on 89 acres in middle-of-nowhere Ohio, I decided that I needed to write a series of songs that clung together in the same way as Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska. As is the case with any venture of that magnitude, some of 'em worked, and some of 'em didn't. The point was to capture the essence of that population 8,900 small town that was 12 miles down the state route, where 20 years prior I'd gone to elementary and junior high schools, riding the school bus for over an hour each way through endless fields on concrete, then blacktop, then stone-tar, then gravel and finally dirt roads. My cousins still lived there; so did a lot of peopl