Thursday, December 31, 2009

a new year is near...

Spirit,
a New Year is near
there are water droplets in the trees
rain
and
yellow birds in the birdfeeders
and
cars splashing on the streets
some
trip
from
You,
eh! Spirit?
700 years?
Jazz
and
Bourbon Street
too?
But,
Spirit,
You and I are a lot alike
I
know

a far walk...

Wide walk
We cross the wide walk
In
Word & song

Wide smile

No rails & ropes
No time to guise

A far walk
On the long boulevards
Shoppes
&
Cafes
Spaghetti
&
Trays

A wide walk
Circles
&
Time
Winds
&
Chime

Time

Thin smile

A far walk
Like
Wide
Like
Time

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

writing...

Good morning, Spirit,
My
writing is very freeing to Me
I
try every morning
before
tea,
Spirit,
I use a red pen with black ink
a
small
pad
of
yellow-lined
paper
and out winks far walks and wide circles
like Time,
Spirit,
like Time
yes, Spirit,
We've got to keep what We've got
like
writing
every morning
of
far walks and wide circles
yes,
Spirit

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

the journey jazz for jean...

Spirit,
The journey gardens & rain
Moonlight & fro
Beaches
Canyons
Coasts & rum -
Jazz,
Spirit,
The journey jazz
Sun & storms
Seas
&
Mountains
&
She, Spirit, she
The flower... the flower

Saturday, December 26, 2009

heart 2...

Spirit,
there will be readings tonight
at
The Chocolate Cafe
Heart,
Chi,
and
Mood
will be reading new poetry,
Spirit,
did you see the astounding lights last night?
and
Song
the wreathes and long red ribbons
on
the
streetlamps
and
trees?
Oh, Spirit,
Heart will be reading Her new poem:
The Muse The Sea The Heart
tonight
I'm told
if
You are disposed?

Friday, December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas...


Wednesday, December 23, 2009

so i stayed in california...

So I stayed in California,
Spirit,
taking joy
in
the Joshua Tree
Sequoias
Methuselahs
Picassos
Diegos & Fridas.
Isn't it wonderful,
Spirit,
to be in the company
of
such
Majesty
these Grand Trees?
Yes.
So stay in California,
Spirit, -
join me
for tea at the Vanilla Cafe
won't
You?
- -
We'll
celebrate!

Monday, December 21, 2009

ten rooms of tables and tea...

Spirit,
from
on the hill and the sea
We
walk
to La Paz
cantinas and bullfights
sand
beaches and little barrooms
stucco
and
rust
following the lavender moon there
sitting
You,
Spirit,
and
I
and then we walk again
to
the
Ten Rooms of Tables and Tea
You, Spirit, are eating toast;
would the World have been upside down

Sunday, December 20, 2009

all of you?...

Hafiz,
Spirit,
God,
Jazz,
which one of You brought this snow this morning?
All of You?
Thank You,
it is quite Beautiful
Peaceful
really quite Lovely.
But in two hours I will have to go out and battle
using my shovels
but
thank You again,
all of You?
It is Magnificent
this
Snow

Friday, December 18, 2009

in the moonlight too watercolor...


melody...

Extraordinary orange,
Spirit,
the
sunlight
on the blinds
&
in the branches
like
a
sonata
a
cantata
a
fugue
like
a
melody,
Spirit,
like jazz!
in
the
moonlight
too

Thursday, December 17, 2009

it's jazz...

Charlie Parker,
I saw a sunrise breeze
this
morning
a
purple
cloud
last night
It's jazz,
Hafiz,
It's jazz!
a glorious Willow at the riverside
You know

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

song 2 french crayon...


leonard cohen french crayon...


song 1 french crayon...


Monday, December 14, 2009

a painting i dreamed...

A painting I dreamed
Green trees
Chocolate mornings
candy gold wrapped & glistening
Purple waters
Ocean's beaches orange & peach
a
walk
on snow shores & sighs
with
you,
Spirit,
remembering Christmases
remembering her songs

the real poets...

The real poets are the troubadours
Boxcars & rumble seats
Guitars & djangos
The real poets speak up of Peace
Hemingway was a poet
Jim Morrison
Dalai Lama
Joan Baez
Dylan
Lennon
&
While those ridiculed and railed against them
& at the same time collected deferments from war
These poets
Did
Not
They sung up of Peace under heavy bombardment
Bravely - -
I do not pretend to be one of these real poets
I have not sung up of Peace nearly enough

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

i've been thinking...

I've been thinking

Of a cove in the Elizabeth Islands
A fire on the beach under a moon & a star
& a schooner anchored

&
How quiet it is listening to music
Especially piano
Turn out the stars
Bill Evans

Slow motion
The smells
The tears
I heard a lot about war last night

Sunday, November 29, 2009

i am...

I am
inspired
Spirit
beautiful love played on the piano
on the North River
cold blue
but
Sun
you are there
on the water
on the windows
your
shine
Sun
on the boats in the moon
then
Spirit
you don't know what love is
sung
like
Chet Baker
but
Spirit
you do know what love is
I am
inspired
clocks and chords and doo dads
All
Jazz
in the piano room

Thursday, November 26, 2009

are hafiz...

Hafiz
Are
books of Old Poets
&
new dances
paintsongs
&
smiles
of
Spirit
&
Love
Are
Hafiz

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

judd acrylic...


Friday, November 20, 2009

Thursday, November 19, 2009

songs hafiz-like...

Songs
on a 1930s tin table
Steve Kuhn playing piano on the Bose
Song
sit
while I paint you
Rainy night neon sky
a splash of white under your eye
Song
stays
Lavender blushes and burgundy brow
Song
Poet (Hafiz-like) sang yesterday
in the world fearlessly
and
painted
you
And
Sun
Blue sketches and canvases all around

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

sunlight on the blinds...


Monday, November 16, 2009

easels...


easels shadowed in the sun...

Easels shadowed in the sun
Chasing
The air the light
The night
Sunrises & sunsets
Harbors & sail bridges & bays
Oranges
&
Purples
Spans & stays

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Friday, November 13, 2009

great miles the back cover?...


Tuesday, November 10, 2009

maya...

Maya
Poet
There will always be springs
Again
Births
Your coral leaves speak to benches & seas
Colors on this canvas
Together the sun & the moon
&
Antelopes
&
Children
Sing to the animals & the coral leaves
Of
You
Maya Angelou

Monday, November 9, 2009

maya angelou french crayon...


just before noon...

Stars fell
Yesterday morning
On the piano room on the river
Painting rhythm changes - -
Bah
Bah
Boom
Boom
Brrrrip
Brrrrip
- -
Just before noon

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Friday, November 6, 2009

incivility...

Incivility,
the moon and the creek
reject you
the tall pines the fast running gazelles
reject you
and
Buddha
too -
so,
if you will,
swim toward the blue birches and God
and become sane again

untitled...


Thursday, November 5, 2009

my friend Nick Proffitt (1943-2006)...


question...

Friend,
did you make the frost this morning
the dust on the Jazz Road
?
the All
?
the rugged way to Newfoundland
and
fiction
writing
?
Friend,
question
?

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

are you Our Heart...

Jazz,
are you this autumn sun this morning
the glint on the seas
are you
Friend are you Poetry are you
All
Jazz, are you Song
are you this autumn breeze
are
you -
are you
Our Heart?

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Monday, November 2, 2009

crayon this morning...


Sunday, November 1, 2009

for thelonious monk...

Leaves glisten outside the window
His eyes smile sun & gold
At the sun
A sigh eyes

Books of the world in the shelves beneath the Galileo telescope
Nestled away
A sigh for being in a warm place

Let the chord wring out
Like a question mark
At the end of the blues progression the blue crayon
Dots it!

Saturday, October 31, 2009

isn't fiction the nuts...

Probably not much noticed
He began scribbling "this is not for publication"
He looked out the window
Pondered
He remembered
He did this in one hour in one afternoon at a wobbly yellow table
In a yellow brick room waving a magic wand
Over a brief part of his life
He thought
"Isn't fiction the nuts"

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

winds bend winds flutter...

Winds
Bend the sea grass
Flutter the gull
Purples & gold
A breath on her a breath
On
A
U
T
U
M
N

from lady on the narrows (c) 2005...

Jack Stevens told me
Monk played notes that were not there
sort of a haiku

Monday, October 26, 2009

blue monk thelonious monk french crayon...


in the autumn sun...

In the autumn sun
On the window glass
Dreams in the piano room this morning
Fly Me to the Moon
Obsessively making the point
Over & over
- -
A memory sings to me
- -
Like Thelonious Monk
&
Yesterdays

Saturday, October 24, 2009

jazz is...

Harmonies
Hallelujahs
Bay views
&
Bongos
Jazz is
But remember the melody
- -
Don't
Forget
The
Song

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

tonight...


last night...


Sunday, October 18, 2009

quiet flowers in october acrylic...


quiet flowers in october...

Quiet flowers in October
& no waves in the sea
Red
&
Orange
&
Bright yellow
& he did not sleep this morning

Saturday, October 17, 2009

our town in oils by jean...


john o. acrylic...


Friday, October 16, 2009

portrait of kimberly acrylic...


pablo's letter...

Pablo's letter
A portrait on the table
Not
Finished
His color his list his try
Pablo's letter
A song to the orchids
A
Song
To she

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

the sky tonight...


Tuesday, October 13, 2009

a fine rain...

A fine rain
& Tony Bennett songs
In French
In jazz
In California
& poetry too!

Monday, October 12, 2009

yesterday...

Yesterday
Songs -
This morning Rosa Rugosa berries in a breeze
Cold orange in the African tree
A boat circling its buoy
Its bowline dancing
A
Samba

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Thursday, October 8, 2009

song of a cello...

Burgundy strings play on a river
In summer
A boat
Clouds & sails
Green & blue red & peach
Song of a cello
This morning
Sunflowers sway
A light on the street
& over the house
A grey cold & a note on the door
Song of a cello

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Monday, October 5, 2009

procrastination...

A thousand words
A thousand paints
Still it is dark
In
Moonlight
Poems to write
&
Paintings to paint
After coffee
Black coffee

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Friday, October 2, 2009

the only song...

The
Only
Song
The dark at 5 in the morning
&
The Picasso trees are stacked

Thursday, October 1, 2009

like a sinatra song...

The slightest moon is still out
In the fog
In the coming winter
Quiet
Like last night
Calm
Like a Sinatra song

garage window in oils by jean...


green boat...

Green boat
Home
Calm
14 boats quiet on the buoys
Bow lines
S
L
A
C
K
Balmy last night
Masts down
Locked on boats
Locked on the sides of buildings
Calm last night
- -
Green boats
Home

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

green boat in oils by jean...


on the sea...

On the sea
A
Lemon
&
White
Sky
&
A bird jumps on a fence
- -
This morning

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

camera...

Camera
The song is better
Than
A blue crayon too
&
Suddenly!
Suddenly!
Onions & orchids
- -
For you

*inspired by Rod McKuen's poem, Camera

Friday, September 25, 2009

house (reworked) in oils by jean...


mountain ash in oils by jean...


& the sea...

Beaches -
The night is lighted by the moon
& the sea

joe bay acrylic...


Thursday, September 24, 2009

rod mckuen acrylic...


Tuesday, September 22, 2009

autumn...

Autumn
Words & song from another time
Colors
Shades of gray
Cool reposes
Dew on the grass;
Writing
Their
Breath
&
Breath;
Driving their boats to Lowell

Sunday, September 20, 2009

great miles the cover?...


Saturday, September 19, 2009

& cellos...

Red
& cellos -
A ride to the show

Friday, September 18, 2009

mcginley acrylic...


Thursday, September 17, 2009

an improvisation of light...

An improvisation of light
&
Early morning
Staying
Never going away never dreaming
Too much
There
Vegetable soups salads orange sherbets
&
Chocolate
Pies
&
Hope
Like playing a lick in jazz

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

luncheon on the rocks acrylic...


Sunday, September 13, 2009

april is...

Hold
The Willow's song deep
Deep
A circle off the bay
September
A flower smooth
Firewood cut & stacked
By
The
Church
In Ireland
Winter is coming
But
Not
Tonight
April is

Thursday, September 10, 2009

great miles...

Great miles
To the red house the blue barn
At the edge of the wood the water the winter
The gold sky
Of Sara Teasdale's Autumn on the Beaches
& Moon's Ending
&
McKuen's Stanyan Street
Great
Miles
Of blue cool on the water of the rain & the bay
A
Walk
On
The
Stony
Lane
There are no steeples
&
No treatises
Over
The beds of purple on the Flower Path

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

the song of a crow going on...

The song of a crow going on
Coffee is cooking
The moon is still
There

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

down the alley in oils by jean...


Monday, September 7, 2009

sherry's beach in oils by jean inspired by a sherry ciaramella photograph of ogunquit beach taken from marginal way...


out the window...

Out the window
Not yet light
In the window
A lighted window across the street
&
A red dahlia in a bowl
In front of the French door
Under a fixture brass color & frosted glass
The sky is not yet light
But the moon was
Full & peach
In the water in a line broken & straight
Like stars
In the movie house where the movies play
At night
Each day
A red dahlia in a bowl
&
The moon
Full & peach

the band...


Friday, September 4, 2009

writing at a round table...

Writing at a round table
On the narrows beneath the lattice & twine
Pictures being taken of birds & songs & sunsets
A harbor
A creaking dock
The floorboards in a 17-foot Herreshoff
Profiles
Wisps
Clanks on the old piano
A cello plunks
'til
Dawn

window oil painting by jean inspired by connie hayes...


Thursday, September 3, 2009

5...

5
The outside light is on on the movie house
In the parking lot too
A cat is snoring & the coffee is percolating
It is quiet just before light
The flag is quiet
I am writing
A perfect time to
On my paper images on my lines
&
Close to the crows
&
A fine morning
Coming
I reach for a coffee cup
Icing
&
Cake
- -
5

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

purple village in oils by jean...


Tuesday, September 1, 2009

two chords...

Two chords
A Woody Guthrie song
Bad
Times
Poetry

Sunday, August 30, 2009

the cloudy grey...

The cloudy grey
& the light
See
It's 6 o' clock
The movie house is drying out
There are beads of wet on the porch chairs
It rained
Now
The roses quiver in a tiny
Warm
Breeze
The yellow birds come
I
Read
The movie house
Still
Drying
Out
Oh! &
The town's outside lights go off
&
The flag is drenched

Saturday, August 29, 2009

at the performance class... & annabell's gig...

at the performance class...

I wanna be a cellist
Viola violins
Piano
Chopin's leap
Sunflowers & dahlias by the altar
Gold
&
White
& red
I jus' wanna be a New York cello player


annabell's gig...

Pale blue Christmas lights
Frame a purple door
A window a beer sign 4th of July flags
& green neon
Frame the band
Summ-errrr time
&
Pah toom pah toom the bass
Piano solo
Comp
Clank
Guffaws & serious jazz talk
Bells
&
Judds
The guitar player sings
Get your kicks
Summ-errrr time flyin' high
How the moon?
It's 10:45

Friday, August 28, 2009

"jazz" sherry's photos...


Thursday, August 27, 2009

last night's concert...

Viola
Pianodrops on August
Night
Snowdrops
Under slow quiet fans
&
The moon jumping on the movie house
A breeze
A wind
- -
Song
In
Her
Heart

Monday, August 24, 2009

far...

A sigh on my mouth
Far
Muse
Steering the boats
Her face a poem
Rolling
Prettily
On the horizon

Saturday, August 22, 2009

saxophone player acrylic...


in a garden of evenings & mornings...

In a garden of evenings & mornings
Dew
&
Dahlias
Lettuces & grape
Soft brushes
Sienna
Peach
&
Pink
A click a gulp
In a garden of winters & summers
&
April

Thursday, August 20, 2009

boat acrylic...


Wednesday, August 19, 2009

spinning trees...

Mauve
Turns to orange & pink & grey
A far off trumpet sings loudly
In the wind
In the morning
In the flowers
&
The spinning trees
In
My
House <>

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

crow acrylic...


Monday, August 17, 2009

down the hill last night...


Thursday, August 13, 2009

concert...

Concert
Ceiling fans
Slowly
Quietly
Whir
Chili con carne & dangerous curves
Tamps
&
Damps
Taps & chili
Ratta tat tat
Streams & passages clear & stately
- -
Stating
The
Theme

Friday, August 7, 2009

33 circus haiku...

In big swoops
in paint & plum -
A flower

Flowers
spinning -
In candy & soul

Little movies
on the mind -
Eureka!

Fast horses
& antelopes -
I jus' wanna be a New York sideman

Birds & flutes -
Wings
in the wind

Balloons fly
laugh & cry -
It's the circus!

Ducks on parade -
Pop,
pop pop!

Calliope
songs -
Memories & maestros

The road show -
Sawdust & sandals
at the Coral Cafe

Parasols
& tiger lilies -
At the front of the parade

Two for Chopin's Garden, please -
The lark
sang

Balancing high -
Chills
& thrills

Castanets & Calypso Bill -
Cha cha
cha!

Stakes & poles
sheets & canvas -
Tie down the wind

Throwing knives & theater tickets
what's next? -
K2, Sir

Pelting
seas -
The show must go on

Floppy hat blue -
A flower
serene

Circus
Land -
Ferris wheels & the meadow sea

On the Midway -
Show tunes & tap
at the Shine Cafe

I see
a flying fiddler & oooo!
an apricot almond pie

The Lieutenant sleeps -
Comedie
& pouts

Skip to my Lou
softly -
Through the fire

Blue
& cellos -
A ride to the big top

A rolling ball & a Baby Grand -
Play
Penny oh! Penny Lane

Paint
crayon glint & rouge -
Sparkle

Neon
sights -
A Sideshow World

Swings loops
& ribbons -
A fan of color

Bicycles & cherry pie -
Old shoes
smiling

Build a tent -
Raise a wall a roof
& the music

Pastel rain
in the air -
Blue tangerines

Diamonds & birdsongs
imagine -
Family of Saltimbanques

Car washes
& trumpets -
Pin on the circus life

Blue tear -
Castaway
& crepes

Thursday, August 6, 2009

shawn acrylic...