Philosophy
Billy Collins [William James Collins]...Poet Laureate of the United States from 2001 to 2003.
Face it, it will happen to all of us.
Billy Collins [Poetry Foundation]
Billy Collins [Poets.org]
Billy Collins [Wikipedia]
- James Brown, Rip
The Godfather of soul, the hardest working man in show business, soul brother number 1, the one and only Jaaaaaaames Brown has left us. In addition to his own magnificent works, he had a lasting effect on popular music. Brown's work putting the accent...
- Bobbie Gentry Turns 66 Today
Bobbie Gentry July 27th, 1944 A laid back tale from the South. Sort of a one hit wonder but still a thoughtful tune. Ode to Billie Joe 1967 Ode to Billie Joe It was the third of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day I was out choppin' cotton and...
- Willard Wigan And The Small
This is not new...making works of art in the miniature...but this is realllllllllly small. Willard Wigan is making works of art seen by a microscope only. His art reminds me of an episode of X Minus One [episode 90 aired February 27th, 1957] entitled...
- Apollo 11 Crew...doing "what" Now
Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr. "Where are they now? Apollo 11 crew" July 19th, 2009 Associated Press CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.---- In the 40 years since Apollo 11, some of the key players, most notably Neil Armstrong, have steered...
- Not Chicago, Not New York But Ancient "sin Cities": Sodom And Gomorrah
"Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven; and he overthrew those cities, and all of the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground." Okay, that's the mythical Biblical...
Philosophy
We are getting older
Billy Collins [William James Collins]...Poet Laureate of the United States from 2001 to 2003.Face it, it will happen to all of us.
Forgetfulness
Forgetfulness
The name of the author is the first to go
followed obediently by the title, the plot,
the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel
which suddenly becomes one you have never read,
never even heard of,
as if, one by one, the memories you used to harbor
decided to retire to the southern hemisphere of the brain,
to a little fishing village where there are no phones.
Long ago you kissed the names of the nine Muses goodbye
and watched the quadratic equation pack its bag,
and even now as you memorize the order of the planets,
something else is slipping away, a state flower perhaps,
the address of an uncle, the capital of Paraguay.
Whatever it is you are struggling to remember,
it is not poised on the tip of your tongue,
not even lurking in some obscure corner of your spleen.
It has floated away down a dark mythological river
whose name begins with an L as far as you can recall,
well on your own way to oblivion where you will join those
who have even forgotten how to swim and how to ride a bicycle.
No wonder you rise in the middle of the night
to look up the date of a famous battle in a book on war.
No wonder the moon in the window seems to have drifted
out of a love poem that you used to know by heart.
The name of the author is the first to go
followed obediently by the title, the plot,
the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel
which suddenly becomes one you have never read,
never even heard of,
as if, one by one, the memories you used to harbor
decided to retire to the southern hemisphere of the brain,
to a little fishing village where there are no phones.
Long ago you kissed the names of the nine Muses goodbye
and watched the quadratic equation pack its bag,
and even now as you memorize the order of the planets,
something else is slipping away, a state flower perhaps,
the address of an uncle, the capital of Paraguay.
Whatever it is you are struggling to remember,
it is not poised on the tip of your tongue,
not even lurking in some obscure corner of your spleen.
It has floated away down a dark mythological river
whose name begins with an L as far as you can recall,
well on your own way to oblivion where you will join those
who have even forgotten how to swim and how to ride a bicycle.
No wonder you rise in the middle of the night
to look up the date of a famous battle in a book on war.
No wonder the moon in the window seems to have drifted
out of a love poem that you used to know by heart.
Billy Collins [Poetry Foundation]
Billy Collins [Poets.org]
Billy Collins [Wikipedia]
- James Brown, Rip
The Godfather of soul, the hardest working man in show business, soul brother number 1, the one and only Jaaaaaaames Brown has left us. In addition to his own magnificent works, he had a lasting effect on popular music. Brown's work putting the accent...
- Bobbie Gentry Turns 66 Today
Bobbie Gentry July 27th, 1944 A laid back tale from the South. Sort of a one hit wonder but still a thoughtful tune. Ode to Billie Joe 1967 Ode to Billie Joe It was the third of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day I was out choppin' cotton and...
- Willard Wigan And The Small
This is not new...making works of art in the miniature...but this is realllllllllly small. Willard Wigan is making works of art seen by a microscope only. His art reminds me of an episode of X Minus One [episode 90 aired February 27th, 1957] entitled...
- Apollo 11 Crew...doing "what" Now
Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr. "Where are they now? Apollo 11 crew" July 19th, 2009 Associated Press CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.---- In the 40 years since Apollo 11, some of the key players, most notably Neil Armstrong, have steered...
- Not Chicago, Not New York But Ancient "sin Cities": Sodom And Gomorrah
"Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven; and he overthrew those cities, and all of the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground." Okay, that's the mythical Biblical...