audi in the rain

hmmm...

exit through the gift shop

recently found on the side of an industrial building.

boston

You found a girl you like.
Love her madly, as long as you are able.

eggshells

last night's sleep
fragmented
yesterday's conversation
scrambled
colorful
tidbits
dreams
cobbled together
in a pile
that used to be
Life

image courtesy google image search

may

Thy love be not a burden. But if it shall be, let me endure it as the sweet spring earth that bears the weight of a million souls, yet delights to support them with the bounty of her favors.


image courtesy celebrations.com

the wall

I walked a thousand miles

To feel the friction
Of your shadow
Graze my cheek
As we kissed hello

Inhale the scent of your body
Leaning in to touch

To hear
our lust
For words
Fulfilled

Now I'll walk
A thousand miles

You left me at the wall.

Image (c) Jian Shuo Wang, Red Wall at Night, http://home.wangjianshuo.com

expecting

At 4am this morning I choked on a sharp intake of breath as my eyes flashed open to fixate on the contrast of a pale ceiling and a darkened skylight.

29, beautiful, and good doesn't mean healthy.
Being in love doesn't mean you wake up next to each other.
Play Hurt isn't a sufficient plan.

My mind starts to chant in the Sondheim rhythm... "One midnight gone. One midnight gone..."
Go back to sleep, love.
There will be more revised expectations in the morning.

nude doorway

This afternoon I went to the Museum of Modern Art in New York to see the special exhibition of Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present (additional information available at http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/exhibitions/965 ). Commentary on artwork below (spoiler warning).

One of the interesting pieces was a live demonstration of 2 models posed face-to-face in a doorway between exhibit halls, so that the museum attendees squeezed between them to get to the next exhibit. There was a second doorway about 60' away, so it was possible to get to the next exhibit without walking between them, but after watching a few people slide between them and into the next room, it seemed strange to walk around. One model was female and the other was male, both in good physical condition. The most interesting aspects were that 1) when you walked between them, it turned out that there was an unorchestrated crowd gathered on the other side to watch your reaction as you did so - you, as the walker, became part of the art for the audience, 2) there was a video playing on the other side of the doorway showing people walking through a similar live-nude-doorway at a prior exhibition, so it felt a bit like you were part of a movie, and 3) all of the people who walked through the doorway (both male and female) turned to face the female model as they did so. Are we as a society just more comfortable with nude women? I didn't consciously consider which way I faced as I walked through, but my charming male companion absolutely considered it and decided he'd rather look at a nude woman than a man. As it turned out, I looked at the exhibit hall ahead and tried not to bump either model with my bag, and he looked at his feet because he became concerned about stepping on their bare toes. Image courtesy of NYpost.com

There was also an interesting piece that had a live nude woman on a ledge at about table height, lying on her back with a faux skeleton lying on top of her, facing up. As she breathed the skeleton moved up and down. The commentary on the piece explained that Abramović thought the piece brought the model closer to understanding of and comfort with her own death. I'd buy that. It was a very intriguing mix of morbidity and sensuality; limbs entwined but bare of flesh, the model's youth and softness contrasted with the bone, and the entire sculpture moving together. The model was both smothered by and embracing the skeleton, and it was beautiful. Abramović's commentary on the impact on the model resonated with me because in the art that I have created with Blair where we draw the poems onto the model's body, I have tried to be careful with how the model is impacted by the process. I have found greater artistic success when the writing resonates with the model, and greater personal reward when the model feels enriched by the experience. I haven't tried many poems for that project that aren't sensual or playful - forcing a model to confront or embrace death may be a little extreme at this point, but it would be interesting to emotionally stretch the art a bit and see where it leads. My recent work has been heavier and longer than previous writing, so it may be a ripe opportunity for that.

Finally, Abramović herself was part of the exhibit. This was not surprising, since the exhibit was a chronology focusing on her expression, body, experiences, values, etc. She seems to have done a lot of pushing-physical-limits and exhibitionism for the sake of (under the guise of?) artwork. In the piece at MOMA she sits motionless at a table in the center of a hall under bright lights, and audience members can join her at the table, and also sit motionless and stare back at her. The people we saw participate in the art were all young women. Granted, we weren't there watching consistently, but we wondered what the %s look like.

C'est tout for now. I'm learning 2-minute italian in the car: arrivederchi.

walking

A soulmate?
There are only
those who love you
The cavernous consummation
of deeply loving them back
Foundation
of the flawed perfection
That catches your breath
Again

new publications!

Blair and I just got our issue of the Redivider in the mail! We're published in a book! Bound and everything. Swooning.



Tell the story again
Of when you fell in love with me
(c) 2009

www.redividerjournal.org

prom

The only girl at the dance

In a short dress

clarity unobscured

Don't be afraid of the brights

Find someone who loves the light

image courtesy portwallpaper.com

another day

God sometimes you just don't come through
Do you need a woman to look after you?
God sometimes you just don't come through
Will you even tell her

if you decide to make the sky fall?
- Tori Amos

finders keepers

There is irony
In keeping things
While throwing out people

stories

the excitement
shimmies up my belly
fruitful thinking
to share
but i can't engage
unearth you
so i pose in my chair
i wiggle my ankles
eagerly
bounce
crafting the story
awaiting your return

image courtesy wikipedia, "EKG"

today

If the universe and heavens
Work the way
I believe they do
The love of angels
Strength of a tiger
Stand with you

taffy thoughts

Love like taffy
Sticky
Sweet
Messy
Delicious
Never quite lets go

workout

Sweaty hair
Piled high
Haphazard bun
A wisp loosens free
trails down the back of her neck
lightly brushes
she shivers
reminded of your breath

image courtesy beaut.ie

the kisses

Kiss 1
Restorative
Soulful
Devouring

Kiss 2
Charming
Comforting
Constant
Soft
Encouraging
Connection

image courtesy gelinassiding.com

planning

You look happy.
(It's because I'm wearing a bright color. Your eyes just think I look happy.)
You do. That's a different smile. Tell me.
(How many times have I said that?)
Details?
Sometimes I tell my love that I have a plan, but the plan is something like, "Make the dinner reservation later." He's not sure that counts as a plan.
But it feels like you.
Yes. Because I know the intent and timeframe, and I can execute.
What does the plan involve?
Understanding my baseline.
Sounds scientific, and worthwhile.
Then?
Conscious choices.
Good. At some point, you need to embrace your needs. Value your complexity.
It's okay to need.
Maybe we'll tackle that tomorrow.

heh

Screw you people and your big, indignant, self-righteous boots stomping unnecessarily on my carefully cultivated relationships.

image courtesy of www.krunk4ever.net

links

Love aside shadow
bridge between us
forbids forget
Why I came

photography by Blair Morad, 2010

less pretty

blood and fur
mingle together
at the bathtub drain
swirling beneath shampoo foam
melodramatic kitten morning
easier done with 2.

evening

I dressed up for you tonight
On an early date with a girlfriend
New earrings?
Yes
No, you're right, you haven't seen them before.
They're nice.
Thanks.
For noticing.
Eyes and lips
Tracing the light

first painting

It's been a day. Welcome to my foray into painting. Oils on wood veneer. Untitled, but suggestions welcome.

Painted to Pink's "Please Don't Leave Me," Beastie Boys, "Intergalactic", Rihanna, "Shut Up and Drive," Cake, "It's Coming Down," and Jay-Z, "Empire State of Mind," on repeat.

dancer

whimsical
dinner dancer
paralleling conversation

warmth

Has there ever been
a more beautiful day than this?
Walk through it with me
Together





Image courtesy accuweather.com

the lady visits

She'll bring a car
And an overnight bag
And she'll use either
Or both
As needed

image courtesy of celebritycarsblog.com

travel

Distraction of a kind
That only production
Provides
Tired minds
Sleep

walking

Hold my hand
as we walk down the street
Feel the curve of our hips
Sway together in time
drawing eyes
soft hands
comforting
playful
electric connection
they will know us
the secret sharers

image courtesy bbc.co.uk

easter

roll a rock aside
see what you thought you knew
do you have what you wanted?
or is it simply
Empty

image courtesy redmagicmedia.com

spring

Excuse to wear dresses
Tickles a lady's pretty pink toes
Wiggle in the sunshine
And dance for the love of you

image courtesy of http://www.chictopia.com/oceanfragrances

saturday

Mornings alone in bed
A lonely luxury

resurrection

The bunny cares
How much cash you spent

hi

Would it make you
uncomfortable
If I tell you
how much I want you
Or do you already know
By the heat in my breath
And my lingering eyes

image courtesy of google knol

tonight

there is no poetry
there is only cat on a yoga mat

rain

Malevolent 5am rains
Pounding
Assailing
To drown the wings
You brought to earth for me





image courtesy of checkoutmyink.com

Publications!

Blair and I made it into the Rochester Insider! Found it completely by accident. It's our first official publication!

We'll also be featured in the Spring 2010 issue of the Emerson College Redivider (www.redividerjournal.org), which should be released in April.

place

How right is it to be with you
To always know I have a place

staring at the wall

Fire hydrant hat
Elevates a sunken morning

pianist

I feel you
With me
Pressing into me
Accompaniment

Exhibit update

The Rochester art exhibit is very good. The pieces look fantastic, and the other art on display is, for the most part, impressive. I think we're in good company.

One of the artists that I thought had some beautiful nudes was actually there as a vendor:
http://www.moonrisingnyc.com/

This concept is also quite clever and very well done (pic chosen for kosher imagery, better landscape scenes on his website):

http://bodyscapes.com/








The image below is a shot of our display. We're next to a display of beautifully-shot but somewhat disturbing rope bondage photography. I think we may be a "softening" element.

the pit of my stomach

Gnawing hunger
Without appetite
Settles
As my companion
In your absence

station

sharp echo
rapid heels
on hard tiled floor
enter a gilded
Swirling masquerade ball
busy driven shaken umbrellas
Pause

Scanning
for warm
welcoming
lover's mask
She catches him
Waiting
as he does
Before he sees her

her body lightens
at the sight
Her patient watch checker
Gloved hands sliding coat cuffs aside
Fleeting moment
Almost a doubt
Upward glance

She loves the moment
When their eyes meet
His posture relaxing
Hers inviting








imagery courtesy of radisson.com

Fear

shower
perfume
lingerie
sleep

Art Exhibit

Second exhibit this weekend. The pieces are gorgeous.

Thick ropes entwine skin
Tracing the path of your thoughts
Over her body

Thoughts of S&M
Pondered through dinner courses
Inappropriate?

Love me like I'm new.