7.23.2022 – people sat at home

people sat at home
doing nothing and they thought
do something instead

My Saturday morning reading started with an article in the Guardian about a trip to the Suffolk region of Great Britain.

The writer, Sarah Perry, author of the Serpent’s Tail books, was tasked with chronicling a “typical UK summer’s day” and she wrote about a visit to a World War 2 museum and a tea break at a local pub in Suffolk.

Ms. Perry names the pub, the Buck Inn at Flixton, but maddeningly, did not name the museum.

I guess travel columns are not her forte.

I will have to do some searching but I want to find this place about which Ms. Perry wrote, “We find ourselves in a place in which something strange or interesting occurs every few feet.”

At this unnamed museum, Ms. Perry encountered a volunteer, also unnamed. Maybe basic journalism is also not in her forte.

Ms. Perry identified the volunteer as “A man in a blue tabard. “

I had to do the google on tabard and it turns out to be a smock or one of those long, below the waist coveralls worn by church nursery workers across the United States.

Ms. Perry described the man as, “A man in a blue tabard reading ‘I CAN HELP’. ” 

Ms. Perry writes, “A man in a blue tabard reading “I CAN HELP” explains the pandemic was rather good for the museum, which is run by volunteers.“

I had to stop and think for a sec.

The pandemic was rather good for the museum.

Well, I thought, that’s one positive thing from covid.

It got volunteers to volunteer at the place in which something strange or interesting occurred every few feet.

Then Ms. Perry quotes the unnamed man in the blue tabard reading ‘I CAN HELP.’

“People just sat at home doing nothing,” he says, “and they thought, I could be doing something, instead.”

Now in the third summer of covid, malaise has set in.

I was down near the tourist center of my little oceanside community the other day and the lack of spark, the lack of vacation excitement, the lack of adult joy of being a little kid again, was overwhelming.

I can sit upon the ground and tell sad stories of the deaths of Kings.

Or I can think I could be doing something.

Beyond thinking is the doing of doing something.

I’ll better go to the beach.

Something.

7.22.2022 – artist inspired

artist inspired
creative challenge sung word
sew words in music

Inspired by an article on the career and life of one Gilberto Gil.

(UPDATE from the next day – there are some really good words here and I can do better – not fond of the haiku – we shall see what can be done to bring about a better arrangement – 7.23.2022 8AM)

According to Wikipedia, Gilberto Passos Gil Moreira, a Brazilian singer-songwriter and politician, known for both his musical innovation and political activism. From 2003 to 2008, he served as Brazil’s Minister of Culture in the administration of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Gil’s musical style incorporates an eclectic range of influences, including rock, Brazilian genres including samba, African music, and reggae.

The article, Gilberto Gil at 80: ‘Bolsonaro has a retrograde worldview, an opposition to any advance’ recounts the long life and career of the Brazilian singer who I don’t know much about but I will know more someday soon.

The last paragraph was worth reading all the other paragraphs.

The last paragraph was a quote.

Mr. Gil said, “The artist who is inspired by poetry and the creative challenge of the sung word has always something to say. And I like this embroidery – I like to sew words into the tissue of music. So, until the forces that provide this work disappear, I will keep on answering the request of that young singer who wants a collaboration, or that new author who asks for lyrics. As the saying goes: as long as there’s bamboo, there’s an arrow.”

I like that a lot.

The artist who is inspired by poetry and the creative challenge of the sung word has always something to say.

And I like this embroidery – I like to sew words into the tissue of music.

So, until the forces that provide this work disappear, I will keep on answering the request of that young singer who wants a collaboration, or that new author who asks for lyrics.

As the saying goes: as long as there’s bamboo, there’s an arrow.”

7.21.2022 – target of yourself

target of yourself
someone’s dubious morals
and your home address

From the article, Porch pirates have been stealing my online shopping, but now I have a secret weapon – and her name is Norma, by Arwa Mahdawi.

Ms. Mahdawi writes:

Another extremely bad idea for dealing with package thieves is trying to outwit them with fake packages containing dog poo or glitter. Mark Rober, a former Nasa engineer, has achieved mild internet fame with YouTube videos of booby-trapped packages loaded full of glitter that explode on the porch pirate. The videos are satisfying to watch but I wouldn’t try it at home unless you want to make yourself a target for someone with dubious morals and your address.

The videos are satisfying to watch but I wouldn’t try it at home unless you want to make yourself a target for someone with dubious morals and your address.

Boy HOWDY!

7.20.2022 – defying logic

defying logic
designed without plans obeying
only space, poetry

The romance, the magic, as it where, of the randomness of the thoughts and concepts expressed wonderfully is a single string of words is breath taking in a way.

Today’s haiku is adapted from the article, Folly or art? Catalonian town to buy labyrinthine Espai Corberó for €3m.

The article is about the house of Xavier Espai Corberó near Barcelona has a series of 12 patios linked by 300 arches and more.

Like a three-dimensional De Chirico painting or an Escher staircase to nowhere, the labyrinthine Espai Corberó near Barcelona defies architectural logic, being designed “without plans, obeying only space and poetry”.

Asked by a visitor what the point of it all was, Corberó replied: “I carry on making. It’s enough to imagine something and feel the need to make it visible. That’s how art should be, or something very like that.”

I love that.

I carry on making.

It’s enough to imagine something and feel the need to make it visible.

That’s how art should be, or something very like that.

Mr. Corberó then said, “This staircase goes somewhere and it does a good job of going there,” he added. “Who cares where it goes?”

Somehow some way this really made my day.

This staircase goes somewhere and it does a good job of going there.

Who cares where it goes?

That’s enough.

That is good enough.

That is good enough for any day.

Go forward today.

Defy logic.

Design without plans.

Obey only space and poetry.

7.19.2022 – rain starts today at

rain starts today at
one p.m. partly cloudy
expect thunderstorms

Woke up this morning in the traditional sense of the word to deep blue sky and sunshine here in the Low Country of South Carolina.

For new readers, its called the Low Country because itssssssssssssss low.

While I am in 3rd floor room, the ground floor is about 8 feet above sea level and the sea is less than a mile away.

My office is about 5 blocks from the ocean and a recent disaster assessment came back with the recommendation that having the corporate servers located in a basement room below sea level might not be the best idea.

The last two or three weeks, the Low Country has been stuck in a dismal weather pattern of overcast gray skies, 95% humidity and temps in the 90’s with thunderstorms possible at any time of day on short notice.

Understanding that living in the south and along the ocean, there are prices to pay.

But day after day after of this gray dismal swamp is starting to get to me.

SO it was with a ray of sunshine in my heart that my day was started by a ray of sunshine in my eyes.

Than I ruined it by picking up my dumb smart phone and checking the weather.

Rain by 1PM.

Hot.

Humid.

Expect thunderstorms.

CNBC’s annual ‘America’s Top States for Business’ study, which pays particular attention to quality of life, has recently ranked South Carolina as the fourth worst state in the nation to live in.

The report stated:

The ranking points to generalized, statewide issues bringing down the Palmetto State’s ranking regarding topics such as health care and resources, crime and voting rights.

With 2.19 hospital beds per 1,000 residents, according to Becker’s Hospital Review, South Carolina finished near the bottom for health care resources.

For the 2022 ‘Life, Health & Inclusion Score’, the state pulled in only 83 out of 325 points, scoring an “F” grade.

The study does provide some relief by listing air quality as a livability strength.

Weather otherwise was not included.

I haven’t lived here long enough to know if this is the norm or if this weather pattern is part of the world wide weather/climate patterns.

Problem is no one has lived here very long.

Population here is up to near 50,000 folks.

30 years ago, it was 900.

And those folks who you happen to meet who did grew up here don’t seem to be very much weather aware as you know, it’s just something that happens everyday.

I will say this is a resort community and has been for the last 50 years or so.

I find it difficult to accept that thousands upon thousands of folks would make the effort to spend a week here in July and August if, traditionally, it was all in an effort to spend a week under gloomy gray skies in hot humid conditions while waiting for it rain.

So its hot.

So its humid.

So its going to rain.

It isn’t snow.

And as I say to my friends who live in the land of Devil’s Dandruff, no one says you to live here.