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 |   My 2nd blog. My spot for sharing my life, music, and writing with my friends. |
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Hello, Hello. Fancy seeing you here. I'll work on making this nice and pretty later. *  I also have a poetry blog, for those who dig poetry:
AND I have a mental health group with a monthly challenge:
[Embed For Use By Upgraded+] Lay my hands on Heaven and the sun and the moon and the stars While the devil wants to fuck me in the back of his car ♡ * I will never make this pretty. |
| Favourite poets So many good poets... I'll include an example poem by each for good measure. 1. Buddy Wakefield. "Hurling Crowbirds At Mockingbars"  Buddy Wakefield makes me feel feelings I don't want to feel even I when I know I need to feel them.2. Tony Hoagland. "Don't Tell Anyone" If you were around for Pursue the Horizon, you were already expecting this one.3. Taylor Mali. "Love Hungry For Itself" Mali can be funny or serious, and they both work equally well.4. Allen Ginsberg. "A Supermarket In California" So good, always. One of my favorite Beat poets, if not my favorite.5. Charles Bukowski. "Cut While Shaving" Doesn't really need an explanation.6. Andrea Gibson. "Sleeping" Ridiculously good lines in every poem. I've never read an Andrea Gibson poem that didn't make me think wow at least once.7. T.S. Eliot. "Hysteria" His imagery is some of my favorite of all time.8. Frank O'Hara. "Augustus" Unlike Donald Trump, Frank O'Hara really does have the best words.9. Lawrence Ferlinghetti. "Underwear"  This is a good one.10. Sylvia Plath. "Face Lift" The list wouldn't be complete without her. I was stoked to see how many people used Plath poems during PtH.Your current playlist I always have a playlist I'm listening to more than others. Here's what I'm listening to right now. 1. The So So Glos - Lost Weekend . Probably not a super popular music style around these parts, but if you're into indie punk, I'd recommend them.2. Twenty One Pilots - Stressed Out. . I've been super into twenty one pilots for the last year or so. I think they're on every playlist I have in rotation right now.3. CHVRCHES - Leave A Trace. One of my favorite recent bands. Again, kind of depends on your taste in music, but if you like this genre, you've gotta like them.4. Warpaint - Disco//Very. Band of 4 hot girls. I love their style.5. The 1975 - UGH! . I'm super into The1975 right now. They remind me of Passion Pit a little bit. They have a good balance of electronic beats and instruments. Also, they get randomly '80s sometimes, which is always good.6. The XX - Intro . This band is just good sex music.7. Phantogram - When I'm Small . This is one of my homework bands. I listen to them a lot when I'm studying/writing papers.8. The Weeknd - Often . There's definitely a genre theme here, if that hasn't become clear yet.  9. Purity Ring - Obedear . I looooove Purity Ring. I think I've tried to get Canvas  into them a few times too because I know he'd like them.10. Glass Animals - Hazey Just more sex beats.Things that scare you I could definitely do more than ten here. 1. People. If you aren't afraid of people, you haven't met enough yet. I'm so jaded, but I'm so weary around people. I'm always watching my back and planning escape routes. 2. People dying. Not me dying, but everyone else dying. The people I care about just being... gone. Fuck all of that noise. 3. Deep ocean and space. There's just too much of it. 4. Failure. Everyone's afraid of this, right? Just completely fucking up everything you do. 5. Commitment. I'm not sure if this is really a fear of commitment or a fear of disappointing. They go hand-in-hand to me. 6. Abandonment. Those of you who know me well here would probably expect to see this one. If I think someone is abandoning me, I always do something stupid. It's like a mathematical rule. 7. Illness. No one wants to be ill. 8. Impulses. I'm not afraid of heights and I'm not afraid of driving, but I am afraid of that niggling voice that tells you to jump when you're looking at a 30-foot fall. 9. Losing freedom. Even if I'm not doing anything wrong, I'm afraid of being locked up some place like jail or a mental hospital. I wouldn't last in prison, and not because I'd have to give dudes head. I would kill myself if I had an even sort of long prison sentence. 10. Trypophobia. I didn't have a fear of this until I did. I saw it somewhere, googled it, and felt extremely uncomfortable. It sounds absurd, so there's no point in talking about it here. You can google it if you want to feel uncomfortable. |
| More lists, anyone? I have a busy day today because I'm going out to see my grandfather. I've not seen him much since my grandmother passed. It's hard to see him because, well, because he reminds me of her. But he gets excited when I go out to see him, so I need to make myself do it more often. I know it's not always gonna be an option, so I need to try to limit regrets as much as possible while I have time. Anyway, some lists... Movies you've rewatched multiples times Who doesn't like some good rewatch value? 1. Fight Club. I think I've seen this movie more times than any other movie. I've also read the book like 12 times, so I guess it makes sense that I've also been obsessed with the movie forever. I really love Edward Norton and he's amazing in the movie. Also, any Chuck Palahniuk book is going to be read at least twice. 2. The Shawshank Redemption. This has to make the cut because if I catch it on TV, I never change the channel. It's a long ass movie too. It's just good. 3. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Hunter S. Thompson is my other writing love and this movie just cracks me up every time I watch it. 4. Big Fish. Big Fish is just a BIG movie with tons of adventure and the like. It has this totally weird vibe to it too, like it's too bright or something and the humor is awesome. This is a good one to just go to sleep to. I think I usually fall asleep when it's on now. 5. Pulp Fiction. We've all seen it a million times, right? If not, go away and watch it right now. 6. Monty Python and the Holy Grail. The holy grail of rewatch value. 7. The Breakfast Club. I love everything about this movie. 8. Goodfellas. Best crime movie ever. Everyone says The Godfather, I say Goodfellas. 9. Trainspotting. This one might be specific to me, but this must have a lot of replay value for me at least because I watch it a few times a year and I have for years. If you don't like drug movies, don't watch it. That's my bit of advice. 10. Superbad. It just has to make my list. I laughed so hard when I first saw this movie in theater. It's my go-to "feel better" movie. If I just generally feel like shit and need a laugh, I watch Superbad. Pet peeves Everything annoys me.  1. Chewing with your mouth open. I know I've totally jumped on my soapbox before, but this is by far my greatest pet peeve. If I'm sitting across from someone and they're chewing with their mouth open/talking with food in their mouth, I literally lose my appetite. It probably sounds extreme, but I've not eaten anything at restaurants on several occasions because I just saw something that grossed me out. Like someone chewing spaghetti with their mouth open, spitting some on their shirt, picking it up with their grubby fingers and re-eating/licking it back off. Yeah, thanks for that, I probably won't eat for the rest of the day. I guess this is why I'm so underweight. 2. Driving annoyances. I'll put these all in one category because I could make a list of ten out of just these. I hate general bad driving behaviors. For example, going 15 MPH under the speed limit on a perfectly sunny day. Like, it's awesome that you have time to creep along the street, but not all of us have such luxury. Note: this is only for roads that don't have a lane to pass. Other things like not using turn signals, turning left after the light's turned red so the people coming the opposite way have to wait with a green light, blocking intersections, honking horns for no reason (it's traffic, we can't just plow through it), tailgaters... Can you tell I've lived in the city too long? 3. People talking to me when I'm writing/reading. As writers, we can surely all relate to this. Someone interrupts your reading or writing to say something totally unimportant, you acknowledge them and end the conversation, then they think of another trivial thing to say. Then another. Then another. Just stopppp. I'm busy. That's why I'm not fully engaging and still looking at what I'm doing instead of looking up at you. I do know this one sentence by heart though after reading it nine times in a row. 4. Gross public bathrooms. I don't wanna stand in piss while I piss. 5. Interrupters. There's nothing worse than having a conversation with someone who keeps interrupting you. I always start stuttering when this happens because I'm anticipating them interrupting me even as I'm talking. 6. Screaming kids. Sorry to the parents out there, but it's annoying af. Added pet peeve points if the parents seem completely oblivious to their children screaming in a store, throwing things, etc... 7. "Clever" people. This might make me sound like a dick, but I hate people who think they're clever or funny, when they're, um, not. Hear me out though. If you've ever worked retail, you know what I'm about to say. When someone comes up to your register and the bar code won't scan. "HA HA. Guess it's free!" Or, when they pay with a large bill and you check its legitimacy. "Oh, it's good. I just made it in my basement. HA HA." Please, I can only pretend to laugh so much. Pretty sure Fivesixer  can vouch for this one.8. Litterers. I'm sure I'm not the only one who gets really annoyed when someone throws something out their car window when you're behind them. Like, just tossing a fast food cup out their car window. Who the fuck do you think you are? Same when I'm smoking with someone and they drop their cig on the ground and just walk away when there's an ashtray waste bin right next to us. Just, why? 9. Animal cruelty. If I see someone being mean to an animal, I hate them immediately. Say you're walking down the street and someone kicks at a stray cat walking by. Why would you do that? If I see a friend being a pointless dick to animals, they're not my friend anymore. I guess this sort of goes for people too. Like if someone is just randomly picking on another person... We can't be friends. 10. Intolerance. Just.. general intolerance. Hating people because they have different beliefs, lifestyles, viewpoints... If you aren't hurting anyone else or being purposefully annoying, I don't really care what your political or religious status is. Books that made you cry I probably shouldn't admit that 10+ books have made me cry. Alright, so I took the liberty of using books that made me WANT to cry, because really I'm not a crying type with books/movies. But sometimes I feel like I'm going to, and sometimes I do.  1. A Child Called "It". I read this book at a super young age and it totally destroyed me. I have no idea why I wanted to read a non-fiction book about child abuse when I was like ten years old, but I'll definitely never read it again. After I finished, I gave it to my grandmother and she read it. There were other installments she read too, like one from when he was teenager and one as an adult. I couldn't force myself to read another one, which was dumb because things obviously got better for the dude, but instead I had him trapped forever in my head as this abused child. Just awful. 2. Hyperbole and a Half. This is a comic dealing with depression and anxiety. It's sad, it's funny and it'll probably tear you up. Especially if you have experience with mental health issues. 3. It's Kind of a Funny Story. The main character in this novel checks himself into a mental hospital after having suicidal thoughts. It's based on the author's own experiences in a mental hospital and it had some of the saddest lines in it, like: "I didn't want to wake up. I was having a much better time asleep. And that's really sad. It was almost like a reverse nightmare, like when you wake up from a nightmare you're so relieved. I woke up into a nightmare." The worse part by far though was when the author, Ned Vizzini killed himself 7 years later. That was the real kicker. 4. Revolutionary Road. This book made me feel empty and alone for a while. 5. Still Alice. They made a movie out of this book, like a lot of the books on this list so far, but I really recommend reading the book for this one. It's about this woman who is a super brilliant Harvard professor and suddenly develops early onset Alzheimer's. Anyone who has watched a family member go like that knows how awful it is to watch them fade away, but this book was incredibly honest and brutal. Oh god, when it's first happening and she has no idea what's going on. It's really heartbreaking. 6. The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter. This book sugarcoats nothing. 7. The Book Thief. We've probably all mostly read this book about an orphan during the Holocaust, but it has to be on the list because of the fact that you'll probably cry at some point while reading it. Just, trust me, tears will be shed. 8. Most Hemingway Books. Seriously... A Farewell to Arms, The Sun Also Rises... Hemingway makes me want to curl up in the fetal position and die. 9. The Time Teaveler's Wife. You have to give this book a chance. I know they made a movie about it and I heard it was pretty shitty. I refuse to watch it because the book was so amazing. I had someone laughing at me because they thought the book was the sequel to The Notebook. No... it's not. This book will totally ruin you and the more in love you are when you read it, the more you'll cry. Guaranteed. 10. Of Mice and Men. There's a certain part in this book that totally ruins me every time. I guess I won't spoil it in case someone hasn't read it, but if you haven't, you should go read it. |
| How did I get almost halfway through the month with only one list for "Invalid Item" ? Fivesixer is kicking ass at this. I need to get my shit together. I only have 4 more weeks of school this semester and then I have the entire summer off because I have to move and stuff. I only have like 4 weeks after school is out to find another place to move into for the next year. Go me! We've been at the same place for almost 2 years now, which.. is a record for us. Our moving location radius is like three hours wide in every direction, so I have no idea where we'll end up. It doesn't really matter, because we both sort of want to move after I'm done with school anyway. But still, I hate apartment searching and all the packing. Oh god, the horror. Seriously though, I totally miss blogging and all of my blogging friends. Stupid school always getting in the way of my good times.  I'm going to try to do a few lists within this entry just because, well, that's the only way I'll catch up. Don't worry, they won't all be music. Courses you've completed: This one should be easy, right? I mean, it fits right in with school. 1. Psychology. Somehow one of the most boring classes I've taken in college. Seriously, 10 chapters on the name of every part of your body and what they do and then 1 chapter on mental illnesses.  2. Financial Accounting. This was an alright class. It was my only night class though. It got out at like 10pm so I was fairly awake during it, being a night person and all. 3. College Algebra. Somehow one of the hardest math classes at my school. EVERYONE fails this class. 4. Finite Math. Super fun statistics and probability class. Definitely my favorite math class thus far. 5. College Studies. Do you know how to take notes? I do. 6. Public Speaking. I thought this class would be horrible. It was not. I forced people to listen to me read Hoagland poetry. 7. English Comp. The class that made me realize I hated academic writing.  8. Microcomputers. This class was just OK. 9. Business Introduction. There was some pretty interesting buzz words found in this course. 10. Business Law. Completely online class, even the final. So easy peas. I'm about to add several more to this list too in a few weeks. And this is all within the last 3 semesters. There are more, but I'm keeping the list to ten for brevity. These are the ones I remembered first off the top of my head, but now I'm remembering more like the first math class I took in college.  Songs you can't stand Oohh, this one I like. I love to hate songs, so strap in.1.Meghan Trainor - All About That Bass. I'm probably going to catch flack for this, but I fucking hate everything about this song. I hate the whole, "This is a body positive song!" thing when it's totally not. Like, "everybody's perfect, except skinny bitches... just kidding... maybe. " Such an awful song. Sorry.2. Justin Bieber - Baby. This song was hella popular one year while I was working retail. It's easily one of the worst songs I've ever heard 50 times a day for months on end. There aren't even any lyrics. 3. Rebecca Black - Friday. What even is this?4. Billy Ray Cyrus - Achy Breaky Heart. This song is so embarrassingly bad. It should have never happened.5. The Black Eyed Peas - My Humps. I could have used any Black Eyed Peas song, really. I've hated every song they've ever released. They're just truly awful.6. Nickelback - Photograph. Nickelback is a prime example of a band that takes itself too seriously. This song makes me cringe.7. Psy - Gangnam Style. It's truly a sign of the times when something like this gets popular. To make matters worse, I had no idea what this was until like two years after it came out, even though I'd heard of it. When I finally saw the video for it, I think I watched for like 20 seconds and then X'd out.8. Jimmy Buffet - Margaritaville. I think I've hated this song longer than I've hated any song. I don't even know why. I just remember hearing it as a kid on occasion and being like, "ew."9. Idina Menzel - Let It Go. I know you'll all hate me for this one, but that's okay because this song is incredibly annoying. I haven't even seen the movie Frozen and I've already heard this song enough times to not want to see it. My neighbor always listens to this song at maximum volume. Seriously, she's been listening to it for like 2 years straight. WTF.10. Nicki Minaj - Stupid Hoe. Nicki Minaj is like a terrible SNL sketch that never ends.Movies you've seen at the cinema I see so many movies in theater. I'll just do ten I've seen in the last year. 1. Deadpool. This movie was so good. I wasn't expecting much out of it, really. But it seriously cracked me up all the way through. 2. Mad Max: Fury Road. I know people are into the original and all that, but I have a HUGE thing for Tom Hardy. He's so fucking hot it's ridiculous. Oh, and this was a good movie. 3. Jurassic World. I pretty much didn't like this movie. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 4. The Revenant. Decent movie that I'll never see again. It was probably 45 minutes longer than it needed to be, BUT it had Tom Hardy in it, so... We all know how that goes. 5. Black Mass. I swear, Johnny Depp can transform into anyone. I kept forgetting that I was watching Johnny Depp when I saw this movie. He played a super good, creepy character. 6. Straight Outta Compton. Another decent movie that I'll never see again. I don't know why these movies need to be like 2 and a half hours long. So unnecessary. 7. Star Wars: The Force Awakens. This was the first Star Wars movie I ever saw and I only saw it because I was forcibly dragged to the theater. Needless to say, I was super confused the whole time and bored out of my mind. 8. Inside Out. Yep, I totally did. I thought this was a really cute movie and it was cool that it dealt with emotions so well. 9. The Gift. This was a pretty good thriller. I can't remember the twist in it, but I know there was a twist and I don't think I saw it coming. That's not saying much though... I never see the twist coming. 10. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. I saw this one just randomly without knowing anything about it. I actually ended up liking it quite a bit. It was sweet and sad af. |
Sup guys? I've been meaning to do Elle - on hiatus  's "Invalid Item" challenge this month and Fivesixer called on a bunch of us to take this iPod Shuffle Quiz. It's as good a place to start as any, I guess. I already read his, ~Minja~  's and Elle - on hiatus 's. I expect to read a lot more of them too.  I don't have all my music on iTunes though. I just use Spotify for everything now. I have a 1500+ song playlist though, so I'll use that to shuffle through for this. The iPod Shuffle Quiz Your favorite thing to say when drunk is... Song: Bang A Gong [Get It On] Artist: T. Rex Comment: This is actually an awesome party song, so I'll take it.  Your biggest fear…. Song: Crosstown Traffic Artist: Jimi Hendrix Comment: I guess crossing the street can be scary. Biggest fear? Nah.   Your deepest secret... Song: Semi-Charmed Life Artist: Third Eye Blind Comment: There's truth in there somewhere, considering what the song's about. Still not my deepest secret though. Your innermost desire... Song: Prince Charming Artist: Adam & the Ants Comment: I, uh.. no comment. The best thing about you is… Song: Take, Take, Take Artist: The White Stripes Comment: Eek, I hope not! Where would you rather be right now? Song: Comfortably Numb Artist: Pink Floyd Comment: It's always nice to be comfortable. I don't know about the numb part though. If you found yourself lost on a desert island, you'd yell... Song: What Katie Did Artist: The Libertines Comment: Fuck yeah, tattling on Katie now that no one can hear me. You are happiest when… Song: Holy Roller Artist: Mother Love Bone Comment: It's true. I am happiest when listening to this band.  One of your biggest regrets is…. Song: Mo Money Mo Problems Artist: The Notorious B.I.G. Comment: LOL. Yeah, I wish more money was my biggest regret. What couldn’t you live without? Song: Strange Times Artist: The Black Keys Comment: Who could live without the strange times? Right now, your feelings are... Song: Learning to Fly Artist: Tom Petty Comment: This could be relevant, maybe, for someone else. You scream during sex... Song: Enjoy the Silence Artist: Depeche Mode Comment: I'm not fun in bed. Everyone just be quiet.What best describes your personality? Song: In The Meantime Artist: Spacehog Comment: Makes no sense! What will be a big challenge in life for you?{/b| Song: Drive Blind Artist: Ride Comment: Riiight, that would be a challenge for anyone. The best advice you’ve ever gotten is… Song: Dust in the Wind Artist: Kansas Comment: I didn't even know this song was on the playlist.  It kinda works here though.What do you say when life gets tough? Song: Chinese Rocks Artist: Johnny Thunders Comment: Ouch, too many meanings. What do you avoid if possible? Song: You Artist: Candlebox Comment: Some of these could not work better. Will you ever become manically depressed in your life? Song: The Mollusk Artist: Ween Comment: And some couldn't work less. Your life's soundtrack should be…. Song: Common People Artist: Pulp Comment: I'm common people, right? Where will you be in 25 years? Song: Saint Joe on the School Bus Artist: Marcy Playground Comment: I better not be a bus driver when I'm 49. Too much schooling for that! Your farewell message to the readers of this: Song: Wonderwall Artist: Oasis Comment: Hmm, that's... sweet? |
| It's the last day of Pursue the Horizon and the best person to close out with is Tony Hoagland. I started with Buddy Wakefield and I'm ending with Hoagland... totally cool with that. I think I might've made some (maybe) Wakefield fans this months, and I know we got a couple more people reading Hoagland, which is awesome. I'm going to post a poem from Honda Dynasty because I got it in the mail a few days ago and have barely had time to pick it up yet. So here, Cinn , Fivesixer , Choconut  , and anyone else who can dig it. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** "Snowglobe" by Tony Hoagland In an alleyway beside a nightclub a miniature figure is vomiting: that's how you know this is no ordinary snowglobe. There are stockbrokers visible in tall office buildings staring at lit computer screens for the slippery secret of money. It is late; the babysitter turns up the volume on her headphones to Mach 5 while the kids go out on the balcony to play. Oh life! Are you even sober? Can you touch your index finger with the tip of your nose? While great corporations drag their shades across the land like giant cloud formations, sucking up pesos in one place, raining down yuan in another. Chopsticks and cancer and yellow cabs. The interstate buzzing with mechanical bees. The greasy haze on the city's shoulders. While in the park a flock of poodles escapes from the dogwalker's grip like a pack of balloons. At the bottom, a thickness that gathers, like leftover gravy; at the top, hope, like a pocket of air. But what would happen if right now it all turned upside down? This is just a random page I turned to and I'd not read the poem before, so I thought I'd post it. I love Hoagland because you can do that. You can just turn to a random poem and know it will be worth sharing. |
| “When You Are Old” by WB Yeats When you are old and grey and full of sleep, And nodding by the fire, take down this book, And slowly read, and dream of the soft look Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep; How many loved your moments of glad grace, And loved your beauty with love false or true, But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you, And loved the sorrows of your changing face; And bending down beside the glowing bars, Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled And paced upon the mountains overhead And hid his face amid a crowd of stars. Lookie, another traditional poem! I’m extremely picky with form poetry, so any of them that make my thirty-day list of poems have had a profound impact on me at some point in my life. WB Yeats is an example of a traditional poet that I love always. I think the reason that I chose this poem is because the topic is so… done. I mean, the entire idea of capturing what growing old is like and all that. When you’re young, you’re not going to “get” it the way I figure you would at an older and wiser age. I don’t know what reading these poems about aging is like when you’ve already aged a lot because I’m 24, but I imagine it might be something you can relate to with a different perspective at that point. But this poem does the topic so well. I don’t think I need to read any other poems about aging because I have this one to read. There is so much nostalgia in this piece. All the things that you’ve gone through at that age—I can only imagine the way it goes through a person’s mind. My favorite lines are: How many loved your moments of glad grace, And loved your beauty with love false or true, But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you Pilgrim soul. |
| "If You Forget Me" by Pablo Neruda I want you to know one thing. You know how this is: if I look at the crystal moon, at the red branch of the slow autumn at my window, if I touch near the fire the impalpable ash or the wrinkled body of the log, everything carries me to you, as if everything that exists, aromas, light, metals, were little boats that sail toward those isles of yours that wait for me. Well, now, if little by little you stop loving me I shall stop loving you little by little. If suddenly you forget me do not look for me, for I shall already have forgotten you. If you think it long and mad, the wind of banners that passes through my life, and you decide to leave me at the shore of the heart where I have roots, remember that on that day, at that hour, I shall lift my arms and my roots will set off to seek another land. But if each day, each hour, you feel that you are destined for me with implacable sweetness, if each day a flower climbs up to your lips to seek me, ah my love, ah my own, in me all that fire is repeated, in me nothing is extinguished or forgotten, my love feeds on your love, beloved, and as long as you live it will be in your arms without leaving mine I know ~Minja~ has posted a lot of Neruda this month, but I don’t think she has posted this one yet. Just trying to make sure we have all of our Neruda bases covered here. I think that Neruda’s love poems are some of the best ever written. He was such a die-hard romantic as a poet. Love is a theme in so much of his work and, damn, he does it well. This is a really good poem because no one wants to be forgotten. I think that might be one of the worst feelings, not when someone hates you, but when someone forgets you entirely. But, you know what they say, the opposite of love is not hate – it’s indifference. I definitely agree with that. Neruda’s imagery is so perfect in this poem. In that first full stanza with the crystal moon/red branch/slow autumn/impalpable ash/wrinkled body of log bit. It’s just, spot on. I really love the sentiment behind this poem, but I cannot get it right in my own life. I love the idea of not forcing relationships; just letting them play out the way they play out and forgetting someone when they forget you. Sounds simple. Guess it’s easier said than done… |
| ”Sweeney Erect” by T.S. Eliot And the trees about me, Let them be dry and leafless; let the rocks Groan with continual surges; and behind me, Make all a desolation. Look, look, wenches! PAINT me a cavernous waste shore Cast in the unstilled Cyclades, Paint me the bold anfractuous rocks Faced by the snarled and yelping seas. Display me Aeolus above 5 Reviewing the insurgent gales Which tangle Ariadne’s hair And swell with haste the perjured sails. Morning stirs the feet and hands (Nausicaa and Polypheme), 10 Gesture of orang-outang Rises from the sheets in steam. This withered root of knots of hair Slitted below and gashed with eyes, This oval O cropped out with teeth: 15 The sickle motion from the thighs Jackknifes upward at the knees Then straightens out from heel to hip Pushing the framework of the bed And clawing at the pillow slip. 20 Sweeney addressed full length to shave Broadbottomed, pink from nape to base, Knows the female temperament And wipes the suds around his face. (The lengthened shadow of a man 25 Is history, said Emerson Who had not seen the silhouette Of Sweeney straddled in the sun). Tests the razor on his leg Waiting until the shriek subsides. 30 The epileptic on the bed Curves backward, clutching at her sides. The ladies of the corridor Find themselves involved, disgraced, Call witness to their principles 35 And deprecate the lack of taste Observing that hysteria Might easily be misunderstood; Mrs. Turner intimates It does the house no sort of good. 40 But Doris, towelled from the bath, Enters padding on broad feet, Bringing sal volatile And a glass of brandy neat. A little T.S. Eliot never hurt anyone. Most people probably know him from The Wasteland or The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, which are both great, but I’m using this poem because I really love some of the lines in it in particular. To me, this poem is worth the read just for this stanza alone: Tests the razor on his leg Waiting until the shriek subsides. 30 The epileptic on the bed Curves backward, clutching at her sides. I don’t know if he’s talking about an actual epileptic or a prostitute getting off on the bed, but I love it all the same either way. Also, this stanza: This withered root of knots of hair Slitted below and gashed with eyes, This oval O cropped out with teeth: 15 The sickle motion from the thighs I don’t understand how someone could not love T.S. Eliot. Like, I can understand why someone wouldn’t love Walt Whitman, but T.S. Eliot? No way. You have to love him. |
| ”The Stranger” by Walt Whitman PASSING stranger! you do not know how longingly I look upon you, You must be he I was seeking, or she I was seeking, (it comes to me, as of a dream,) I have somewhere surely lived a life of joy with you, All is recall’d as we flit by each other, fluid, affectionate, chaste, matured, You grew up with me, were a boy with me, or a girl with me, I ate with you, and slept with you—your body has become not yours only, nor left my body mine only, You give me the pleasure of your eyes, face, flesh, as we pass—you take of my beard, breast, hands, in return, I am not to speak to you—I am to think of you when I sit alone, or wake at night alone, I am to wait—I do not doubt I am to meet you again, I am to see to it that I do not lose you. Well, I couldn’t be expected to finish the month without the father of free verse, could I? I have a love-love relationship with Walt Whitman and this is one of the first poems I read of his and enjoyed, so that’s why I chose it. I understand why some people don’t like Whitman though. He’s definitely not for everyone. I like this poem because I feel like we’ve all probably done this before, maybe not to as great of an extent, but sometimes you see someone and there’s this weird click in your brain, for whatever reason. I think it’s a really sweet way of thinking about a stranger, too. There’s so much random hate in the world for no reason, so I think it’s a little bit refreshing. I also like the gender ambiguity that Whitman uses, not only in this poem, but pretty much all of his poems. I know there’s some debate about his sexuality, but he’s usually referred to as being homosexual or bisexual. Either way, Whitman is a sexual motherfucker. I would. I like the last three lines of this poem the most, especially the last one: I am to see to it that I do not lose you. |
| ”Steps” by Frank O’Hara How funny you are today New York like Ginger Rogers in Swingtime and St. Bridget’s steeple leaning a little to the left here I have just jumped out of a bed full of V-days (I got tired of D-days) and blue you there still accepts me foolish and free all I want is a room up there and you in it and even the traffic halt so thick is a way for people to rub up against each other and when their surgical appliances lock they stay together for the rest of the day (what a day) I go by to check a slide and I say that painting’s not so blue where’s Lana Turner she’s out eating and Garbo’s backstage at the Met everyone’s taking their coat off so they can show a rib-cage to the rib-watchers and the park’s full of dancers with their tights and shoes in little bags who are often mistaken for worker-outers at the West Side Y why not the Pittsburgh Pirates shout because they won and in a sense we’re all winning we’re alive the apartment was vacated by a gay couple who moved to the country for fun they moved a day too soon even the stabbings are helping the population explosion though in the wrong country and all those liars have left the UN the Seagram Building’s no longer rivalled in interest not that we need liquor (we just like it) and the little box is out on the sidewalk next to the delicatessen so the old man can sit on it and drink beer and get knocked off it by his wife later in the day while the sun is still shining oh god it’s wonderful to get out of bed and drink too much coffee and smoke too many cigarettes and love you so much I really love Frank O’Hara’s poetry because I think he was a really smart writer. I also think it’s super accessible, even for people who don’t love poetry. I’ve known people who don’t read poetry, but they’ll love a Frank O’Hara poem. He just has that way about his writing that is approachable, or something. It’s not intimidating, I guess is what I’m saying—and that’s a good thing. “Steps” is a poem that I love all the way through. There isn’t any part that I’d toss out, which happens a lot with other poems. Like, I love a few lines or one stanza, but the whole thing overall is just OK. I really love observational poems like this though. My favorite parts are near the beginning and then the very end. I love: here I have just jumped out of a bed full of V-days (I got tired of D-days) and blue you there still accepts me foolish and free all I want is a room up there and you in it and even the traffic halt so thick is a way for people to rub up against each other I like the all I want is a room up there/and you in it part, especially. And the whole last stanza: oh god it’s wonderful to get out of bed and drink too much coffee and smoke too many cigarettes and love you so much I love love love that ending. |
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I'm still so confused. How did they get to senior-level finance with so little know-how. I don't get it. 
People definitely tend to jump straight to the worst conclusion when any problem arises, which is why you so frequently hear, "My computer is broken!" when there's really a simple fix. 
Just why. It's so gross. We need to get you some personal finance help! This is only tangentially related and not a statement on you, but one of the nonprofits I work with consists of me making budget plans for people who were recently homeless and have just gotten back on their feet. A lot of the people I work with have only been at their job for less than a month or been in an apartment for a week or two. My role is to gather all of their financial information and then consult with them on their bills, disposable income, purchases, and stuff like that. It's shocking to see the financial decisions people make after just being homeless. I'm like, dude, you were just homeless 2 weeks ago. 
I have seen so much of the disasters it has caused with some people. I have in the past been unconsciously roped into financial situations that were most unpleasant and having to make sensible plans to unravel them.