Monday, January 28, 2013

a rut

"...It is the habit of having habits, of turning a trail into a rut, that must be incessantly fought against if one is to remain alive."

Good thinking, Edith Wharton. After almost 1100 posts, I think it's time to find a fresh trail for this blog. Or maybe I just need a break. We'll see...

A deep bow of gratitude to those of you who have hung in here with me. Hopefully, we'll join up together again down the road...

Friday, January 25, 2013

try haiku

TRY HAIKU IN YOUR HOME
RISK FREE FOR 90 DAYS

. . . . . . 

That's from an ad for the Big Ass Fan Company, which has a model called haiku. 

I couldn't make this up.

Thursday, January 24, 2013

resist not

resist not
an ordinary Revelation

if Diamonds yield...

. . . . . .

The OED word of the day is 'pistillation,' which means pounding with a pestle.

Here is last week's sketch turned into a watercolor painting.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

innovation

concentrating content
a potent
ground-breaking
innovation began
to hold sway

. . . . .


The OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'Eisbock.'
Frozen beer. Go figure.

Monday, January 21, 2013

scribblemania

this Scribblemania
is proving Folly

Words must be Poetical,
change the clumsy
so that it sparkles

bring a life-preserver with you

 . . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'neddy,' which,depending on your century and location within the UK, is either an ass, an idiot, a horse or a club.

This sketch was done of a view from a restaurant. The "house crayons" refers to the blue color in left window panes, done with a very waxy crayon on the table. Collage bits added after the fact.

Sunday, January 20, 2013

mid-January
looking at the blue sky with
something like awe

awe

mid-January —
looking up at blue sky
with something like awe

. . . . . .

Hard to remember what 90 degrees and humidity was like just two short months ago...

Saturday, January 19, 2013

tango

the tango —
even in a suburban food court
it stirs you

Friday, January 18, 2013

competition

competition cannot preserve value

treat the problem

the driving force behind the competition

. . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'oligopoly.'

Thursday, January 17, 2013

B.I.G.

Kid's World
Talk is B.I.G.
All Hip-hop 
& a pair of Nikes

. . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure poem | commentary is 'benji.' That would be slang for a hundred dollar bill & not to be confused with a little movie dog.

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

sample

in Paris,
Art is the long standing right
to Sample perfect color, taste, smell
in the market

. . . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'galactometer,' the tool you need if you want to measure the fat in milk.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

ghostly music

A murmurous laughter of wind
arose, rustled on, and died away…
ghostly music

. . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure poem is 'psithurisma,' which means whispering.

Nobody does onomatopoeia like the Greeks.

Monday, January 14, 2013

gate

oh, it's delightful
Life

every day
a Gate
to conscious Thought

. . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'niminy-piminy.'


Sunday, January 13, 2013

walk

cloud shortened walk
The moon gave no light

. . . . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure poem is 'walk,' which I figured would have about 14 pages of citations. But no, this is the alternate sense of the noun, with only two Old English citations, meaning 'clouds,' as in "the moon is under walk." Glad that one got left in the dust; too much "wiðerweardnesse" as King Alfred wrote in the 9th century.

Saturday, January 12, 2013

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires -
passion & pride in appearance
whilst entertaining real worry
. . . . . . .

I cracked up when I saw that the OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'Porteño,' an inhabitant of Buenos Aires.

This was more great street art in the San Telmo neighborhood of BA. I loved the keyboard painted on the gate. That is a real man standing by it, while the tango figures are oversized on the wall.

Friday, January 11, 2013

the poet's sphere

the wanderings
and transformations
of the soul
are the poet's sphere,
in which wholeness is linked to
love and creativity

. . . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'psychopomp.' The definitions aren't what I expected: a conductor of souls to the place of the dead, and later a Jungian term for the link between the ego and unconscious. It would be a lot more fun to play around with an event's psychopomp and ceremony, or a Psychopomp and Circumstance march.

I was psyched and pumped when I saw that La Biela's little napkins took watercolor pretty darn well.

Thursday, January 10, 2013

daily work

a Meaningful Future
is Daily work

. . . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'adhocracy.'

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

travellin'

a Flash of New
the pure invigorating breeze of travellin'

I'm off.

. . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure poem | commentary is 'monkery,' the way of life of a tramp. Even the Oxford lads can't figure out where that word came from.

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

crossword puzzles

A person who loves
dictionaries
couldn't cheat
on crossword puzzles
and be unashamed

. . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'nemophilist,' a person who loves woods or forests.

It's always cool to find a new self-descriptive word.

Monday, January 7, 2013

freesia

bright yellow freesia
kicks up the thermostat
ten degrees

Sunday, January 6, 2013

banks

People will stand anything
so it is little wonder
that banks have grown fat
and worst of all is
It's too late to change things

. . . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'sheeple,' which is people acting like sheep.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

delight

the Best words
dusted off and brought out
when we wish to announce
particular delight

. . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure poem | commentary is 'zhoosh,' meaning to make more stylish.

Thursday, January 3, 2013

assumption

bringing to consciousness
a forgotten assumption -

real. change.

. . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure commentary is 'abreaction,' which is a psychiatric term dealing with remembering past traumas - and NOT what happens when you do crunches.

Always cool when you can see Mt. Baker, shimmering in the distance, from West Seattle.

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

January

January —
a daily victory over
growing temptation

. . . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure poem | commentary is 'gasconade,' to boast or brag.

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

observe

A New Year's gift;
give More to Life
Observe...

. . . . . .

The OED word of the day for the erasure poem | commentary is 'étrenne,' a New Year's gift. 

Mine was getting to see the fireworks at the Space Needle for the first time, with friends Ann and Mary.