The Pulling

Pull me out from inside
The secret hopes
The secret dreams
Now I see what God means...

Two beasts living together
The heart of 'fight'
The wings of 'flight'
I try for the former with all my might

Oh the beauty of this thing we've created
Look at it's shine
Look at it's lustre
Why do I resist it with all I can muster

And I want to live
And I want to feel
And I want to cry
And I want
I want

I just want


You

Weary

Here I sit
Wondering
Wondering how even the very rain can decide to lash out against me
Wondering what I've done to deserve this deluge
This hydrous onslaught
And just as I adjust to the feeling... it changes
It falls harder
It falls faster
It starts to cut through my skin
It enters my blood and begins to burn
The burning hurts
Yet is oddly familiar
And then it hits me
I have the blood of the phoenix coursing through my veins
Now if I can just learn to fly high above the rainclouds

Zen and the Art of Blogging

I have found myself thinking quite a lot about art as of late. This has always been one of my favorite subjects to ponder, but it seems to have been stepped up as of late. I know that this is due to the fact that I'm trying to create a piece of art myself right now and am searching to find meaning in it's creation. What makes good art? What makes bad art? What makes...art, for that matter? I've also been fascinated by the concept of process vs. results. In creating this piece of art I've tried to strike a balance between what I feel expresses what I need to express and expressing it in a way that people would enjoy. Should art be about the journey or the destination? The creating or the creation? I know that once this piece is finished people will enjoy it and be entertained by what they see. However, I will take pleasure and entertainment in knowing the process it took to arrive at the finished product. I'll be aware of the countless hours of thoughtful reflection as well as the years spent developing the necessary skills needed to achieve this expression.

I often think about a conversation I had with a co-worker a number of years ago. He played in a punk band that frequently played at dive bars. We were speaking of art on a short break we had from the menial job we were forced to take when entertainment gigs were scarce. Or so I thought. On this particular occasion we were speaking of making our art our occupation. I've always thought that the ultimate career achievement was to be able to make a living doing what you would normally do for free because you loved it so much. On this particular day a new idea would explode in my brain compliments of my friend Jaime as he cooly smoked his cheap cigarettes. He explained that he wouldn't want his band to be his only means of support because he used his art as therapy. His art was where he escaped to when he had a bad day at work. If he made his living at it it would cease to be art. I've thought about those few sentences more times than he could possibly have imagined. However, I do feel that you must have a balance. I do believe it's possible to make a living from your art. The challenge lies in not letting fiscal motivations dictate the direction of your art. I'm sure I'll have more posts on this and similar subjects, but I'd love to know your thoughts on art. I'll keep the coffee on.

Senate Renews Patriot Act

Undoubtedly one of the worst pieces of legislation I've ever.............(message interrrupted)..........