Loose Leaf Notes

It looks like a scene from Where’s Waldo, Keith. I think it was the biggest crowd yet for the Dogtown Roadhouse annual community Thanksgiving. It took three Dogtown turkeys – BBQ, Hawaiian and Cajun –  to feed the crowd, and they went fast. First come, first self-served. There was plenty of gravy and rows of […]

1. “I used to tell students…the difference between poetry and you is that you look in the mirror and say, “I am getting old,” but Shakespeare looks in the mirror and says, “Devouring Time, blunt thou thy lion’s paws.” —Jim Harrison 2. Two red sheds. 3. They go well with a self-portrait of me in […]

October 14, 2024 – It was a strange game played with my friend Chris. We unknowingly played with an upside-down board (read the letter score squares) until it was noticed sometime mid-game. At the end of the game neither of us could go out, so we forfeited our last plays. The game ended, and this […]

1. About or a bout? 2. I’m an optimistic pessimist 3. Parody and reality are too close for comfort these days. 4. Sometimes you feel like you’ve lived too long / Days drip slowly on the page / You catch yourself / Pacing the cage  -Bruce Cockburn 5. It’s been a long time. I was […]

“Don’t make any exaggerated movements” my neurologist said But I see what needs straightening and feel the fear of disappearing It could be said that to be in constant motion is to be a moving target and being still is a sitting duck I don’t look down or up I walk a crooked path I […]

1. My mantra today is ‘Just Live.’ 2. Stick or shtick? 3. Hanging by a thread or hanging in a web? 4. THIS is the soundtrack to this post. My sister Sherry and I saw them in concert in the ‘70s and I saw Jessie at the Harvester more recently. This song remains one of […]

There are two distinct languages: “There is the verbal, which separates people… and there is the visual that is understood by everybody.”  Yaacov Agam  In times of trouble make art, or at least view it. So, Katherine, Jody and I headed down the mountain to the Taubman Museum to see Eternally New: The Art Nouveau […]

You don’t stand a chance against my prayers You don’t stand a chance against my love They outlawed the Ghost Dance But we shall live again… Robbie Robertson The bombs are silent They land inside my body They burn down my trust in what makes sense drop destruction on my faith in humanity I look […]

1. Well… My friend Erika described Trump as an archetype, America’s Shadow. I responded that I sometimes see our story as myth, and we are all on the hero’s journey where there is always going to be monster giants around the corner, as well as magical amulets and potions with good power to be gifted […]

-The following first appeared in The Floyd Press on October 31, 2024- Downtown Floyd was abuzz with activity during Floyd Americana Fest, an annual grassroots festival that celebrates local music, art and community. Five stages at different downtown venues showcased a variety of local musical talent on Saturday, October 19. Arts and craft vendors lined […]