tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post114145497493159798..comments2024-03-27T11:26:52.574-04:00Comments on Litbrit: There's Got To Be A Morning AfterDeborah Newellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02527317477388626268noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141774557235191942006-03-07T18:35:00.000-05:002006-03-07T18:35:00.000-05:00Thank you for that unspeakably beautiful poem, Ste...Thank you for that unspeakably beautiful poem, Stephen. Thomas is another favorite.<BR/><BR/>You're right, I have been feeling really down, what with all the swirling and sad memories--mine, and those of everyone who, in good faith, contributed stories and thoughts in an effort to make some sense of things.<BR/><BR/>I'm not relgious, only spiritual in a nebulous sort of way. For example, I hear Mozart and think, okay, I guess there is a God. Somewhere.<BR/><BR/>You've reminded me that art is all the evidence we need of that God, or god, whomever he or she is. Wherever he or she may be.Deborah Newellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02527317477388626268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141770900158461332006-03-07T17:35:00.000-05:002006-03-07T17:35:00.000-05:00don't let the trolls chase you luv. rather than r...don't let the trolls chase you luv. rather than rational thought and argument, you might take a more outrageous or silly tack. i prefer to go flying spaghetti monster with creationists because the fact that they're creationists means facts won't touch them. <BR/> <BR/>with the rape defenders, it's hard. without being a rape victim they can't know what's really at stake. being a rape victim, you can't wish it on anyone else, even those vile shitheads. so there we are. <BR/> <BR/>your voice is needed out in this wilderness. there are poems to discuss, recipes to share, giants (only the dysfunctionally rational call them windmills) to fight.<BR/> <BR/>lick your wounds and come back when they've scabbed over. <BR/> <BR/>speaking of poems, here's one of my favorites, i'm sure you know it. it says better than i ever could why i became a musician before i sold out of course.<BR/> <BR/>Dylan Thomas<BR/><BR/>In My Craft or Sullen Art<BR/> <BR/>In my craft or sullen art<BR/>Exercised in the still night<BR/>When only the moon rages<BR/>And the lovers lie abed<BR/>With all their griefs in their arms,<BR/>I labour by singing light<BR/>Not for ambition or bread<BR/>Or the strut and trade of charms<BR/>On the ivory stages<BR/>But for the common wages<BR/>Of their most secret heart.<BR/>Not for the proud man apart<BR/>From the raging moon I write<BR/>On these spindrift pages<BR/>Nor for the towering dead<BR/>With their nightingales and psalms<BR/>But for the lovers, their arms<BR/>Round the griefs of the ages,<BR/>Who pay no praise or wages<BR/>Nor heed my craft or art. <BR/> <BR/> <BR/>have a better day. . .hug your kids, kiss your husband, love yourself.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141533517946819362006-03-04T23:38:00.000-05:002006-03-04T23:38:00.000-05:00Thanks, Blogenfreude. I appreciate your trekking ...Thanks, Blogenfreude. I appreciate your trekking over here to comment!<BR/><BR/>Hope your weekend is going extraordinarily well.<BR/><BR/>Cheers,<BR/>litbritDeborah Newellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02527317477388626268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141494631370011972006-03-04T12:50:00.000-05:002006-03-04T12:50:00.000-05:00I agree with you about the right-things-for-the-wr...I agree with you about the right-things-for-the-wrong-reason philosophy. We all beat ourselves up so much--and for things that we often can't control--over whether we did something with noble intentions or simply because it made sense (or was convenient, cheaper, etc.) I shopped at Wal-Mart sometimes because, truth be told, there wasn't anywhere else that didn't require an hour-long drive. And as a mother of three, convenience can be a very bright flame to an exhausted, time-crunched moth(er).<BR/><BR/>That said, I try to support small, independent shops as much as possible. Small bookstores, one-shop coffee houses as opposed to Starbucks, that sort of thing. I don't think Florida will ever have the idyllic European market sensibility you describe (I wish), but there is a definite trend, in <I>some</I> areas anyway, toward village-style master planning with living spaces built over street-side shops, nice landscaping, and everything being within walking distance so people use their cars a lot less and interact with each other a lot more.<BR/><BR/>Of course, the prevailing mentality here is to rip out all the trees, splatter a huge development of poorly-built cookie-cutter houses all over the place, and line the main drag with superstores like Wal-Mart. It's encouraging to see communities come together to fight the construction of yet another Wal-Mart--that says a lot about people's awareness, as well as their appreciation for independent, Mom-&-Pop businesses. And that gives me hope (hey, I'll take hope whenever I can find a shred of it to cling to).Deborah Newellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02527317477388626268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141493491170616672006-03-04T12:31:00.000-05:002006-03-04T12:31:00.000-05:00one of my finer memories is when i lived in brusse...one of my finer memories is when i lived in brussels for 15 months. i would spend my afternoons, having coffee with friends, while strolling home i would stop at the various stores/stalls/carts (each one an independant specialty) to purchase the needed items for dinner (with or without company). each vendor knew his stuff and would often hail me from a distance because something was exceptional. the wine guy knew what the other guys had and would gently steer my selection, sometimes not so gently, sometimes he'd just tell me what i wanted. most of the time he was spot on. or the butcher would, upon seeing me enter, say, "you must try these. . ." it was so much more than mere shopping. i miss that. i fear it's gone forever. i still haunt the farmer's market (sometimes i even sell my chocolate truffles), but even that is becoming more corporate and faceless and less mom and pop. but much as i hate the whole wal-martification, i can't see spending the extra bucks for a lot of the stuff they sell. if the marketplace forces them to make a moral decision, fine. i have been expecting a christian scientist to graduate pharmacy college and then refuse to fill anything. i don't subscribe to "doing the right thing for the wrong reasons" at all. if you're doing the right thing, cool. the example i use is when i quit smoking in the house. it wasn't because i cared about those who lived with me. it was because i had some expensive paintings. the bottom line was, my kids lived in a healthier house.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com