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Friday, January 06, 2006

Adding to the Sum of the Universe

"A good poem is a contribution to reality. The world is never the same once a good poem has been added to it. A good poem helps to change the shape of the universe, helps to extend everyone's knowledge of himself and the world around him." ~ Dylan Thomas


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Thursday, January 05, 2006

We Missed

An ivory cup,
With remnants of black coffee
And a rich brown ring,
Sat alone,
Stone cold,
To say
You came,
Stayed,
Then left.
I’m sorry.



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Friends Of The CU Libraries To Host Information Day Jan. 12 | News Center | University of Colorado at Boulder

Friends Of The CU Libraries To Host Information Day Jan. 12 News Center University of Colorado at Boulder


Among other things - participents at this free event will get to see letters written by Anne Sexton, Emily Dickinson, Mark Twain and Langston Hughes that are housed there.


Add a cup of imagination

Not all of what Emily Dickinson wrote was exactly straight forward. But how much more straight forward could you get then the:

"The Possible's slow fuse is lit
By the Imagination."~Emily Dickinson
This has to speak to the heart of every artist - not just poets or writers. Starting with a blank page staring back at you or a canvas... It is truly the imagination that lights that fuse of the possible. It is a necessary ingredient in the recipe of success for artists.
I am becoming more aware that my imagination has to be nurtured along and fed. It helps to be opened up to an environment that invites it to flourish. A scenic walk or drive, the right music, sometimes a quiet spot but other times not. Busy people on a crowded street can just a s well spark the fuse. My mind can be receptive even in a hectic environment if I allow myself to get into the mood. Free of a lot of the other mental process that normally goes on.
Imagination and persistence, I believe, are perhaps the two biggest ingredients of creative successes.

Wednesday, January 04, 2006

Choices

Approaching the cashier I’m asked, "paper or plastic?"
I’m a baby boomer- I’ve grown up liking choices.
I love Baskin-Robbins, the whole 31-flavor thing
Though I always get the same thing. I just like the choice.
Choices are good. Though sometimes confusing.
I struggle weighing the loss of trees with the use of synthetics.
When all the consternation is over, I’m a paper person
And say so. I’m careful to recycle and if worst happens
I can always write poems on the paper bags.
But what I don’t understand is what part of "paper please"
Says put everything in paper but the eggs. Or the milk.
It’s like they offer me a choice just so they can only partially
Grant my wish. Nine paper sacks later the guy asks,
"Did you want your eggs in plastic?"
You offer me a choice, I’m gonna be a man about it
And let you know what I want. I can handle it.
Don’t wimp out on me.

Independent Online Edition > Media

Independent Online Edition > Media

Good Lord do I need to learn some patience. This guy spends more than 40 years working on this piece of epic poetry work.

Journaling & Blogging

As I was journaling very early this morning I suddenly thought about journaling verses blogging. It occurred to me in the first instance that my journal could likely be the cause of death by boredom. Sometimes I suspect there are tid-bits that someone might find interesting. And I do these days, mix my journaling with many of my poetry first drafts, but it is likely the boredom would set in long before one found an interesting tid-bit.

Granted, I don't journal for the benefit of others. But blogging on the other hand has to be interesting or no one comes back a second or third or fourth time.

There are occasions when I may have a parallel theme running from a blog post and a journal entry but that is more often than not, the exception. So I am wondering about others who both blog and journal - and how they feel the two differ or not, as the case may be. Do you specifically have a different approach to your journaling and blogging? And what other characteristics are found in your journaling? Do you journal in first person? Always? How much self discovery do you find in journaling?

I know, I'm just about as bad as a toddler with all the questions today, but this is really bugging me.