Tonight was to
   be the night of flair of
pomp and extravagance and
  life and reason

Though months of late close their doors
    this transition is a welcome one
  to fresh fiery fall
         and associated mindsets

In the winter we will sleep
  Spring brings rabbit-like copulation
And our summer leads emotions to run rampant

But now, 40
     note-cards later
  no progress has found me this night

Sometimes
you feel so empty
and so full
to be confused
about what comes next

These days
        our days are not
               numbered
   not at all subject to the
     order we love to defy

I refuse to believe anything to
the contrary,
                      there is no judgment day
                          


impossible.

Early mornings
          with broken suns
   sloshing about in the sky

                  a good start.

tell me about
                     you

not that
hum drum shell like
fake western tourist traps

let me in

There was a boy named Jack
who wanted to be an artist
but his parents wouldn't hear it
past their deluded visions of grandeur
doctors, lawyers, businessmen
it was in the cards for Jack
had been since he was born
and the cards don't change

Jack made it through each bleary day
mixing paints from eggshells he found
outside the window in the hill
only he knew about
and when a smile flickered on
his face, it wasn't staying long
at least until once he's alone and he
can be himself, as if
it was in the cards for Jack
had been since he was born
and the cards don't change

and while he grew he came to see
Jack as is would never free his
life-long dreams from in this cage
so Jack soon lost his hope to anger
within the pleasant walls because
it was in the cards for Jack
had been since he was born
and the cards don't change

then the day Jack found a gun
lying on his pillow with a note
from an angel to let him know
he's holding up the party
and six minutes later the
walls were painted red with
Jack's new-found freedom in
joyous ******* slashed
diagonally across the
flower print
it was in the cards for Jack
had been since he was born
and the cards don't change

When we see each other again, if
the skies and waters should allow

I will not let you go for a second

learned as we think we are, only
let me take you in once more

******* these
   ******* words these
                      ******* words are
all I have
             what?
letters on a page, not even a real page anymore, you've made sure
of that always accessible and easier to be online with things
   digital and cold

What did I think talking could change I
        preach the power of words and let them fall short
  stumble over each other in a race to get out of my throat

We'll change the world, sure think of a way to do that tomorrow could
I get back to you then I don't want to think about the process let's please focus on
The end result that might not happen but who cares, what is happening really and what is
For that matter we all could be ants I'd really like to go to Mars and discover how we began the
Human mind why would we want to learn about that it's not like we'll live forever let's just make ourselves
Happy so we don't have to plan for the future and then we can go drift like seaweed, forever free and
Weightless

Crazy talk.

Blasted folklore.
Blasted rock.
Blasted candles.
                         ganged up and
blasted me.

Bold my words.
You may lose the sky but
Never stop trying

Help me
I'm afraid I've returned
to the place I wanted to leave far behind

But it's a part of me now
And I cannot forget

I'm heading down to the river
In the hopes that when I turn around
You will be there

Help me before I help myself.

walk a few steps
past where the other
footprints end and
sometimes you'll find a
wonderful secret place

cleared and pristine, white
sand against green forest against
cool river water

all that's missing is reading
these words as I sleep

Wait between the poles like fingers of forsaken blue accusing a painted sky
Lonely color cast aside to film across a water like light spread thin
The ink abandoned in lazy dribbles
Clouds riding muddled indigo

Wait for me there.

Pull yourself together
******* with scotch tape
Pieced back with rubber bands
Nothing whatsoever to do with paper clips

Caffeine in crosrodaires
Kicked the habit to the curb

we're done with all that

so get back up on your wall.

No.
It couldn't have been me.
I was out for a walk
Reading poetry by the sign
That warns "Enter at your own Risk"
I was dreaming of dreams
Wishing for wishes
Far too preoccupied for that
Sort of thing

Why do you ask?
Is it something I said?
A casual conversation misinterpreted?
You're scaring me.

Anyhow, it couldn't have been me
I'm simply too
too
too
distracted
by you?

Nothing is wrong when
               the trees remember to smile
               and birds have a place to
               roost for the winter

Nothing is wrong when
          life bubbles up and over lids
          of eyes well-versed in late-night
          conversation

Nothing is wrong when
                       she catches someone's gaze and
                       neither one of them feels the need
                       to look away

Nothing is wrong on hammocks set
    deep in the green


            But everything is wrong today

I'm almost at the point where I can
Forgive you for how badly you've hurt me, but
We can't I don't You
Can't pretend like it never happened


that's even worse.

Candy love
          neon colors bubbling up through
     pink cellophane quilts

                  Voices that
                                 despite all logic
             pledge allegiance to the sincerity beside
                                                            roma­nce

You say it's hard to run on nothing
                          but it's harder with a broken heart

Loads of people
milling about

like ants

food, water, money

do ants stop to consider each other?

maybe we should

let's go on adventures, it's
   the simplest things that stick in
       your mind and hold us together
              like a well-wrapped Christmas present

It's right you know, really
spot on when someone throws that
phrase out, there being "no words for this
moment, no suitable avenue for a memory"

see
all they forget is the part with "no
dreams like these living in that beautiful head of
yours, no mixed laughter quite as musical"

but each is
always to finish with a soft fizzle, a hot shower
of sparks and touches,

it's no
fireworks show these minutes in the dark, even as
my heart "oohs" and "aahs" all the
same in the kaleidoscope that
surrounds you

You know that moment
when you are certain
beyond reasonable doubt
that nothing could possibly
get any worse?

when you're stuck with work,
the heat's broken and you
just realize the bread for
your sandwich is green?

it passes.

I'm tired all the time now
Heart rate above average
Sometimes I could swear it is ready to stop beating
Strange arrhythmia waging war on me

And my clouded mind.

How do you **** an idea?

Find its weak point and
smother it with insincerities

It sputtered and coughed to life in my mind first
And I believe yours did the same
Worn paint, chipped and weathered
But fresh new wheels
Roaring down desert roads

Mind the way from Phoenix
As you begin in Santa Fe

The nights were the worst
Cold coyote howls
Lonesome worries

But soon another came into view
For you it was me and
For me it was you

Easing the brakes and turning the key
We smile and set up camp

Our system
        designed to hold open
                                                                                       any door
for 3.6 seconds before
    
   s
    w          ng
       i        i              shut with
         ng                                a resounding

               whisper

Insistent upon raised
hands, smoky glasses, drizzled
shards of affection every
now and again when it's
convenient to pipe in the
clean stuff from upstairs

is it diffi-
cult for the benefit of a
nonmaterial bruising, all
greens and gray-colored finger-
tips from a waiting man, you
"never jump where the
bottom rises to meet you", never
drink a road down before you
guess its name to be

satisfied is an abomi-
nation without progressi-
on the path to stagnant waters where
only the living float, belly-
up like dollar bills

"How quickly the clouds seem to move
When there's no space for thought"
A mantra once forgiven
I'm glad that I forgot

The air between these twisted words
Jumps straight up through the page
And stays with you, awaken to
A hollow earthly grave

We're at a ball, a masquerade
Hiding behind the shallow disguises that we ourselves have made
Out of the fear that we should ever be
Sub-par, unwanted fools who play the game by the wrong rules
Unknowing and intoxicated slugs

Away, the fear goes when you are near, love
And this song I hear, it can't be simpler to me
I am not who I want to be
Oh, no no no.

We're at a dance, the high school prom
Oh god, oh no, here comes your mom
With cameras blazing, intent on capturing each and every moment
Head's spinning all too much
Perhaps they really spiked the puch
Around, around, around, around
Inside

Away, the fear goes when you are near, love
And this song I hear, it can't be simpler to me
I am not who I want to be
Oh, no no no.

We're at a concert, music bash
Here comes the snare, here comes the crash to
Rouse us up when we've let go and follow up killer guitar solos
Head banging, purple lights, it's just another crazy night
We'll look back on in 20 years and laugh

Away, the fear goes when you are near, love
And this song I hear, it can't be simpler to me
I am not who I want to be
Oh, no no no.

filibuster to the end, my
     friend of real significance, we've
come this far hand in
             hand so the taste
          is only sweeter

My back is tight, knotted
I'm not entirely sure why
But I would trap a dozen
Eskimos for a massage, honestly

Enter the sad realization that, despite
Bruno's good intentions, he is unable to
Fulfill this request with paws
Oh, but that's alright

It's one of those half-hearted dreams
That drifts along in wispy bits
Every now and again
To whisper and invoke a peace
Within the cataclysm, but don't dare
Turn around, or it will be
Gone

Like the ghostly fingers untying me
One loop at a time because
They've lost the scissors

Once upon a time, there lived a mouse
And he went for the cheese.

*snap

My good friend Katie and I have entered the running for the show of a lifetime.

     I come to you wonderful people today to ask for your help.

We need to network via all the social media and amass as many "likes" and five-star ratings on the site as possible in order to open for Tyler Ward in Atlanta this winter.

Simply go to this web address: http://www.topblip.com/w/15262

       Listen to our song, click on the fifth star and connect through Facebook to give us a
STAR RATING (the vote number should instantly increase by five), "LIKE" our video, and SHARE IT with your friends, please!

                   You can give another STAR RATING ONCE A DAY for the remainder of the contest!
                       (if everyone reading this goes and does it, we will win.)

             Thank you so much for your support of this new creative jaunt of mine, I really
                         believe we can land the show with your help :)

(As some incentive, we're about to release a lovely CD, and I would be happy to send off the    tracks to helpful souls like yours!)


Banjo Song

Did you find what you were looking for
Did you walk across the golden shore
My dear, I wish the world for you and much much more
I hope you find what you've been looking for

Do you cry when the day is done
Did the strength you needed never come
When the world is turned against you and you're on the run
I hope you find the strength to carry on

Have you forgotten me, my friend
I love you know, I loved you then
While you were out there in the world without me

Do the city lights excite your soul
Do you walk the quiet country road
No matter where you choose to share your boots, somehow I know
That's the place I wanna go

So meet me by that old porch swing
Where we'll sit and talk and laugh and sing
There ain't no place in the whole **** world I'd rather be
Than right here with you next to me

All my love I'll send
Cause our crooked paths are sure to meet again

Do you hear me when I call your name
Do you choose to walk the other way
You said time ain't gonna break us, but I guess times changed
When you were out there in the world without me

What is it that we as humans lack
To make us question our existence
And seek a meaning to our lives?

The trees live and do so
Splendidly because
They do not worry about tomorrow
Or what they should be doing, and
All would benefit from such a carefree attitude

Behind the shed
Lies the single thought that
May save us all

Allow me to investigate.

a friend
      (to walk beside and ramble with
whose thumbs need warming while
      deciding upon the right path
comfortable to the point of a sweater
      in faintly recalled initial fluster
just in case you don't notice the cliff)
      everyone needs such
a friend

Hello!

      I mean

He
            Did you see the way she looked at him? That, that
            is either the craziest stare in the stars of our eyes or
            an indication of infatuation!
                      
                           I say, infatuation? Thought we'd done away with that long ago
                          
             It comes back in a different way however, with years of experience elsewhere
             when you end up realizing who your true friends are and how you've strayed
             from constructive friendships to chafing ones

llo!


I mean

           Hello!
           How are you?

Just look in her eyes
          she doesn't mean a thing

     you and I both should
                       pack up and get out
                               or we'll snap

It's a shame being
sensitive.
               wouldn't it be easier to
                 just be like everyone you
                 consider trapped between
                  their teenage years?

                no no NO
                no NO
                NO no !

                no thank
                you, where
                I think is
                far from
                perfect but
                it's mine.

I die a little bit inside each time
you offer an explanation for my
self,
   stubbed heart [popped out of sync]
   dips toward the ground and
   flutters to a silence

a still, empty blue presiding over
the world at large tonight, permeated
by plumes of white
(from the scrambled heads of dreamers)

nothing to hold against your
fiery facade, flaming formidable
fits of brilliance blazing before
my flustered eyes

and why do we cease to
contract, left ventricle?

to start up again and enjoy
it that much more (the second
time around)

This morning
I watched a bird
Ram itself into the glass
Beside my door
Infuriated at the intrusion
Of its reflection
Forever angered
Forever shaken
By the ordeal

Slid into base this morning
Are you safe? Am I?
What a terrible umpire when
I foresee a triple and you just
End up sick

Fly to the highest oceans and let's
Gel in the trophic zone

Upfront and personal
disclosure through windows, fingers,
twos and threes jumped outside, robbed
of their ingenuity, beaten for the sheer wonder of
sound, popular opinion tattooing
rhythm into their skulls

delight transforming destiny into
ranks of the destitute

there is no breath when
you join my world, only
snug bundles of air ******
in
   between smiles

one of these days, I'm
living here
             listen (for me) like
people once read and
found reasons to grow
another few inches

(and to know) you
are the (fire's silver)
heartbeat!

/

nobody is masterful
to the undoubtable "I
have a word for this", no
suggestion 
          someone should try

/

there is no breath, (no
pause) when you join my
world
              only a warped sense
of direction, a shift in gravity
joining, warming faces

do you feel me?
filled with verses, lost in words?

/

will we go together?

dream how the
days flame when you
join my world (and
    when you
            remember it)

writers block with
all you beautiful people

knowing what to say
and not wanting to say it

knowing is the worst

like bending an idea around my
head and getting hopelessly stuck

move along now

Power face
      Adrift between shadows

      oo
     l    m                   purple pedals
   B       s            

Split down the middle
                (Lemon wedge)
    Rhythm and knowledge and

                                    Humanity brought to a flower
                           So it wilts with the
                             weight of the world

A frivolous fire crept 'tween some toes
Climbed up a calf and met with a knee
Danced past a waist that nobody knows
Up through all that blind fingers see
It crawled its way over the length of the skin
And over full mountains of rib-cages when
It got to the heart
And found you there

Opportunity grows flowers

Given the crowded
state of our world, you'd
think we would have figured
out a way for one half to find its
other by now

/ seems we choose to
chase after money

/ can't buy me
love

Comfortable breach
together while the
trees listen

Names grant things identity
We lack the ability to determine this for ourselves
And so others assign it
For us to blissfully pour our ignorance
Into their molds

I'd like to paint
you in an atrium of colorful
echoes zinging past your
face like hummingbirds

add in a touch of forest green, the
murky-gray lake water, white triangles
sketched for carefree sails

burnished by unusually honest conversation,
only sky blue and gold for the looks thrown
in each direction and inexplicable smiles

a rainbow,
         a myriad for the future,

but you stand alongside me
      as breathtaking landscape

and no art could do that justice