One of the most beautiful and least known poetical flowerings of that outpouring of youth and art we call the 60’s was, arguably, a journey on foot around Mt Tamalpais, in Marin County north of San Francisco. This honoring of “the quiescent one,” this circumambulation, a walk completely around the mountain, following with our feetContinue reading “Walking around Mt Tam”
Category Archives: poets and poetry
How Yoko turned on John’s imagination
A charming piece via the BBC, drawn from a new book, reveals how Yoko’s idealism turned on John’s imagination and — pretty directly it seems — inspired the creation of his most iconic song: Imagine. Specifically, Yoko’s book Grapefruit. Lennon said: “There’s a lot of pieces in it saying like ‘imagine this’ or ‘imagine that’,”Continue reading “How Yoko turned on John’s imagination”
a poem from the late Paradise
Please Excuse the Smoke Awakenings [from a Paradise resident and poet named Krystalynn Martin] November 16, 2018 A poem I wrote the other night while grieving the loss of my hometown of Paradise: I’m sorry – Please excuse the smoke. It’s just the dreams and hopes of 27 thousand yesterdays. It’s just the minuscule evidence ofContinue reading “a poem from the late Paradise”
The New Dark Ages: the poetry of global warming
Poets have been thinking quite a lot about global warming in recent years: here’s a recent example worth remembering. Will post more as I find them. The New Dark Ages Thunderstorms stir me up— the stillness right before the first close tremor, the pond shivering at the height of summer, the field full-blown, going toContinue reading “The New Dark Ages: the poetry of global warming”
a traveling travel writer stops over in Ojai
At the Ojai’s Farmer’s Market today a friend encouraged me to talk to the “poet, travel writer, and embodied writing coach” afrose fatima ahmed. She was sitting at a table in the shade near the center of the little farmer’s market. So I did, and asked her for a poem. I asked her for a poem onContinue reading “a traveling travel writer stops over in Ojai”
“The fire had me fully terrified” — T.C. Boyle on the Thomas Fire (and more)
For the Ojai Quarterly [pdf], yours truly had the opportunity to talk to T.C. Boyle about the Thomas fire, debris flows, climate change, and other scary realities of the 21st Century. The interview also motivated me to catch up on some past works of Boyle’s, and boy was that worth the reading. Check it out:Continue reading ““The fire had me fully terrified” — T.C. Boyle on the Thomas Fire (and more)”
“Our reverenced god” — Moloch and The Gun
Four dead in NorCal — at least four. Another deranged gunman, armed for combat, targeting the innocent. This one tried to break into an elementary school and slaughter children but was foiled by a lockdown. Brian Flint told a group of reporters that a man staying in his house was one of those killed and that someContinue reading ““Our reverenced god” — Moloch and The Gun”
“Biology we haven’t discovered yet”
Ever stumble across something — even something you’ve not thought much about — and then suddenly see it everywhere around you? This strange stumbling-into-obsession has caught me in the last couple of weeks with the concept of consciousness. What the hell? What is it? When do we have it? When do we have too muchContinue reading ““Biology we haven’t discovered yet””
Thoreau: Craving Reality
The New York Review of Books posts in its entirety a spectacular essay from Robert Pogue Harrison, this time on Thoreau on his centennial birthday, and en or so books and exhibits about The True American. Thoreau (to my blinkered view) is that exceedingly rare writer/philosopher capable of seeing afresh the most fundamental elements ofContinue reading “Thoreau: Craving Reality”
Dear Sam Shepherd I miss you already
One of the most American of us all died yesterday. Sam Shepherd, I miss you today. In tribute, let me quote a short piece from his countless marvelous writings. This one happens to be about hisContinue reading “Dear Sam Shepherd I miss you already”
Kit Stolz 