Prepare to enter a world of both shadow and substance

Take a journey of body, mind and spirit where you'll encounter things you won't find anywhere else.

Saturday, August 8, 2020

Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe has always been one of my favorite writers.  You never knew what to expect next from his pen.  Macabre and alive, his writing just gets down into your gut and you can never forget it.  He's been an inspiration for my writing and I wrote this sonnet, just as he liked that form, in a similar vein to his love poetry.  Please enjoy it - after all, it's only 14 lines!

LXXVIII

How peacefully my lover sleeps,
her soft grey eyes, covered up tight,
shuttering out the deep, dark night,
and all the horror that time reaps.
Her lips, parched, begging for a kiss,
whisper to me, as I bend near,
to hear the things I want to hear.
Lengthy, dark hair, disarrayed bliss,
frames a face that cannot be sad.
Soft features outline, beauty shines,
coming from an angelic head.
Slender fingers whose purpose had
only to please, now show the lines
of lifelessness – my lover’s dead.


Written in 1987.

Sonnet

This is an old sonnet I wrote.  Please enjoy it!


LXVI

While stooping low, to rescue some ants,
the moon fell out of my pocket.
A selfish girl put it in a locket
so as to hide it from lovers’ wants.
The locket was shaped like a heart
but the metal was only gold-tone.
(Had it been silver, it would have shown.)
While dipping ice cream, the chain came apart
and she lost my precious little moon.
It rolled under the door and got away.
A band of pygmies, camped in her yard,
one day left altogether too soon.
I began to suspect something that day,
when I couldn’t find it, though I looked hard.


Written in 1987.

Poetry

Here's an old poem I wrote.  I hope you enjoy it!

The Mayor's Daughter

The Mayor’s daughter was an owl,
    she whoo’d from dusk till dawn;
her eyes were bright, like shining moons,
    tho’ mice and men were gone.

She flew away before the sun,
    and left us in a hurry;
the Mayor cries for his daughter,
    but me, I do not worry.


Written in 1987.

Sunday, July 5, 2020

The Fourth Of July


Now that the Fourth of July has passed us, I just wanted to say that I hope every one had a nice holiday yesterday.  Did everyone get to enjoy a fireworks display somewhere?  I saw the one they had in New York City on television and it was a patriotic splendor.  For those of you who missed out on the big bang, here are a few pictures of fireworks for you.  Aren't you in the patriotic spirit now?

My Dad, Mom and Brother waving Old Glory back on March 4th, 1991.

July 4th, 1978.

July 4th, 1979.

July 4th, 2010.

July 4th, 2011.

August 16th, 2013.

Saturday, July 4, 2020

Turko de Mayo XI

The titles of these Turko de Mayo celebrations are starting to feel like a Superbowl or the name of a Chicago album!  Anyhow,  This year's meal took place on May 31st, 2020 and I invited a friend over to enjoy the food with me.  As you can see from the image below, the same foods were represented and a good time was had by both of us, plus we got to reminisce with the past.  If you haven't cooked a turkey in May, I'm telling you - you don't know what you're missing!


Here's my table topped with the variety of goodies I cooked.  Taken with my second Minolta X-370 35mm camera.

Sunday, April 12, 2020

Fourteenth Annual Ten Commandments Post

I don't have much to say for this year, what with a corona virus running rampant all over the world.  But, I'm currently watching the version of The Ten Commandments I got for my birthday two years ago.  It is part of a four-disc set that also includes Ben Hur.  Now, I've had the movie on DVD for several years and always watched that copy.  This year I decided to finally watch the version I got from my sister for my birthday.  I'm onto disc 2 and so far, it seems exactly like the version found on my other DVD.  It appears to have the same extras on the discs, so now I know.  Just as a reminder, here's what the cover looks like:


I've had my ham for dinner during the early part of the movie and then for dessert, I baked some double chocolate chip cookies the other day and had those for my chocolate fix for the day.  The world outside might be crumbling down, but here at home - life is still sweet.  Stay safe out there, everybody, and have a great Easter!

Some additional information:
I finished watching The Ten Commandments and this version was restored by Paramount in 2010.  It did look pretty clean and bright, and I don't remember any parts missing, so they must have had a complete copy to work with.