Chaos as an art form

Have you ever thought of chaos as an art form? I mean there are people who thrive within it and others who cannot handle it at all.

There are times when I've tried to get my shit together so to speak and found that the attempts to organize simply lead to more chaos.

For a number of years, I've carried a Franklin Planner. Back before PDAs were like the gold standard in organizing your business and personal lives. My work life became dependent upon one. Still, utilizing the proper method of indexing and what-not adds a whole extra layer of chaos into your day. I'm not saying it's unnecessary, I'm saying it requires more steps, more detail, more time, etc.

For a long time I saw myself as one who could not give up the hard copy of notations for the electronic benefits of a PDA. Then I got a smart phone (a telephone with enough options at your fingertips to launch a war) and I settled into the idea of using the PDA aspect of it. It was nice to free myself of some of the paperwork, but alas, I found that I was not able to maintain enough detail (in work related projects) to rely strictly on the PDA. So now, I do both. More layers of work in what is already a chaotic work day.

My chaos is however not limited to my day-to-day work. No, my writing is also well amerced in chaos. I have drafts and poems on a desktop at home. I have drafts in journals with heavy emphasis on the "s" and I have them on a flash drive. Some are in folders and some are not. Now I have a laptop in which I am attempting to establish greater order. It seems like such a daunting task that when I think of achieving greater order, my mental picture is something akin to world order and that seems unattainable.

So, am I blessed with the "gift" of chaos? Or did I simply work hard in my earlier life to build on sound principals of chaos till I have achieved near perfection of the art?

Then I ask myself, are there some people who are predisposed to chaos? Are right brained people stronger in chaotic traits? How about Capricorns? People with ADD? Blondes? People who love baseball? First born children? Where does it come from?

Olympics over sleep....

Watching Olympics, just got in from a poetry society meeting tonight and I'm trying to catch on the events of the day. I've never been as big on the summer games as I am the winter, but I have enjoyed quite a few events this time. I've especially enjoyed the volleyball, badminton,
field hockey, gymnastics. I'm not a big fan of swimming but I've followed the exploits of the U.S. team none the less. The men's relay was awesome the other night.

I did not see it but I understand the U.S. women's softball team had a good day. The softball and baseball I'm very interested in. I couldn't care less about basketball. Skeet shooting- thumbs down. I am disappointed that I did not see the fencing.

Anyway, tonight's meeting was good. Had a new draft of a poem that I read and got good feedback on. I am feeling upbeat about my work this past week. I have four pieces now that are strong and need a little tweaking.

Enough for now. Back to the games.

Unconscious Mutterings Week 289

Unconscious Mutterings ~ link
Word & Thought Associations

here's mine:

• Month to month :: Rental
• Adjusted :: well
• Prank :: call
• Mop :: handle
• Clarity :: humor (don't ask me why that was the first thing that came to my mind)
• Parenting :: good
• Glenn :: John
• Fingerprint :: Dillinger
• Pineapple :: Cake
• Attorney :: General

Poetry In the News 8-10-08

• Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish died Saturday in Houston - NPR AFP
• ‘Sort of Gone’ should be hit with poetry and baseball fans -daily gazette
• Whether sweeping or concise, narrative poetry always powerful -Norwich Bulletin
• 'Mad Men' using Frank O'Hara's 'Meditations in an Emergency' boosts sales -LA Times
• Poetry at the 2012 Olympic Games? - The Times Online

Jon Voight Acting Up

Actor Jon Voight has apparently had an epiphany of sorts. It seems he now considers his opposition to the war in Vietnam as somewhat of an "indiscretion of his youth" and he has seen the light in the current presidential race.

Voight calls Obama, "...a God-like figure in a man who falls short in every way." Well of course he will Jon, but we aren't electing a God we already have someone in the White House who believes he's one. We are electing a president. Something we haven't really had in a while.

But Voight goes on, "There's not a cell in my body that can accept the idea that Mr. Obama can keep us safe from the terrorists around the world, and from Iran, which is making great strides toward getting the atomic bomb." Voight concludes, " If, God forbid, we live to see Mr. Obama president, we will live through a socialist era that America has not seen before, and our country will be weakened in every way."

Pretty caustic stuff. I'm however, most baffled by his opposition the the Vietnam war as being a youthful indiscretion. I mean we know more today then we did back then about the real story behind the Gulf of Tonkin incident and how Johnson manipulated our full scale entry into the conflict. There is far less reason to justify the Vietnam war today then there was back then. Besides, Remember the old domino theory? That happened Right?

I'm thinking he's confusing youthful indiscretion of yesterday with early onset senility today?

Unconscious Mutteerings Week 288

Unconscious Mutterings ~ link
Word & Thought Associations

here's mine:

• Crankiness :: old man
• Backpack :: books
• Clone :: sheep
• High ground :: ethics
• Dreams :: fantasy
• Lovingly :: kind
• Mistake :: accidental
• Carson :: Kit
• Errand :: Boy
• Dozen :: Dirty

A Summer of Discontent?

As the Beijing Olympics opens to all it's anticipated fanfare, what will be the storyline that emerges around the world?
Will it be one of a China that is developing into a more modern society with tremendous economic growth, or will it be one of a nation that in spite of a globalizing influence, remains backwards and determined to suppress civil dissent?

I will be anxious to see how free reporters and bloggers are to bring us the story of these Olympic games. Historically coverage has been as much about the culture of the host people as it has about the athletic competition. There is a strong national pride that is evident among the Chinese people connected with these games. I'm sure China wants use to these games the enhance their world image, but will the world see a picture of China that is real or one that is filtered through the only lens that the government allows us to view?