what william is listening to…
The band, from left to right: Gene, Marita, Zach, Kathy & Billy
Photos by Billy
Sweet William is listening to his favorite band, Straight Punch to the Crotch, and not just because his dear old dad plays drums and keytar. Check out ‘Robot Baby’ (inspired by William IV, written by William III) and other tracks at www.myspace.com/straightpunchtothecrotch.
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Filed under writing | Comment (0)snowday
Photos by Criscentia
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Filed under writing | Comments (5)don’t look for (friend) love in the wintertime
Photos by Billy
Billy and I have been lamenting the loneliness of parenthood. Sure there are those parents out there who have other families over for barbecues and movie nights, their front door always opening and closing; but we seem to be a different sort. At seven, after we put William down, we sit and eat quietly and talk about hopes of getting a good night’s sleep.
Billy has Will during work hours, and he complains that the stay-at-home mom’s at the carver gym and the discovery museum look at him with suspicion; in the afternoons, I only manage to see maybe one friend distractedly per week. The truth is we once social butterflies haven’t invested much time or energy in our people since the boy came. We are too busy trying to juggle our responsibilities, our creative pursuits, our quest for rest.
We love each other, we love the man, but we still crave friend-love, which is so special because its totally voluntary, like a gift you didn’t expect. The poet Nikki Giovanni said don’t look for love in the wintertime. It’s dark and everyone worth having is already inside, by the fire, with the ones they choose in the summertime. This summer, when the days get long and warm, I know what I best be doing.
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Filed under writing | Comments (4)found objects
writing over Christmas break, photo by my dad
I’m reading Slaughter House Five again; it’s amazing– profound, funny, and tragic. It breaks all the rules of a story, but still lures you in, invites you turn the page. So what if time is circular and the reader knows that things will not end well?
Meanwhile I keep writing, often with my head spinning at the process of it: I start humbly enough with a simple idea, then my stories swell up into other things. Today I got inspired by Lauren Greenfield’s 2002 photo book, Girl Culture. On the cover a girl stands in a dressing room mirror, pushing up her cleavage, while he friend watches.
Lately writing feels like making a collage out of found objects, like the wedding quilt Sarah made us out of thrift store jackets: squares of gray and black wool–pieced together with patience and care.
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Filed under writing | Comment (1)peas in a pod
Photos by “Papa” Johnson
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