tone poem

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?

Or fester like a sore--
And then run?

Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

Langston Hughes (1 february 1902 - 1967) poet, writer, social activist

today is the birthday of langston hughes - a major figure of the harlem renaissance. today is also the first day of black history month - and here on the mouse it is also wall wednesday.

today's post weaves bits and pieces of all that (and more).

today's wall is from a wander a couple years ago i went on in harlem specifically looking for interesting street art. the portrait isn't of langston but of another great african-american dreamer - martin luther king jr. langston huges lived in harlem - beginning in 1920 when he moved to new york city to attend columbia university and then on and off for the rest of his life. although he was an very good student he left columbia in 1922 because of racial prejudice. after leaving columbia, he became increasingly involved in the art and activism of harlem from the early 1920s until his death in 1965. his ashes are interred at the schomburg center for research in black culture in harlem.

you would think that somewhere in my cache of snaps i would have a mural or some street art - from harlem or even cleveland - with a portrait of hughes, but if i do i have yet to find it. one of these days i really have to get all my photos organized. oh yeah!

tone poem by jazz musician charles lloyd performed by charles lloyd (tenor sax), michel petrucciani (piano), cecil mcbee (bass), jack dejohnette (drums).

i had hoped to find a vid of lloyd performing a tune from his album dream weaver but couldn't find any of the tunes on youtube. but that's cool, the tune i did find - tone poem is short and sweet and the title is pitch perfect.

the enchantment

Non-violence is not a garment to be put on and off at will. Its seat is in the heart, and it must be an inseparable part of our being.

Mahatma Gandhi (1869 - 30 january 1948) lawyer, activist and teacher

today is the anniversary of the death of gandhi - a tireless activist and advocate of non-violence who died at the hands of an assassin. mohandas gandhi, who is known as mahatma, which means great soul, was shot at point blank range on this date in 1948 moments before a prayer meeting was to begin. this was the sixth known attempt on his life since the mid 1930s. two days prior to his murder, gandhi reputedly had a premonition and remarked:

If I am to die by the bullet of a mad man, I must do so smiling. There must be no anger within me. God must be in my heart and on my lips.

gandhi developed a theory of non-violent activism which he called satyagraha - the theory of non-violent civil resistance. since the early 1900s when attorney ganhdi developed this technique to fight for the civil rights of indian residents in south africa, satayagraha has been, and still is, embraced and used by activists throughout the world, in the struggle for freedom, civil rights, and social justice.



the enchantment from sheilia chandra's 1992 album weaving my ancestors voices. this album was my introduction to chandra - her voice is truly enchanting.



photo: indian garden in the cleveland cultural gardens - the indian garden was dedicated in 2005 and the ten foot tall bronze statue of mahatma gandhi was added to the garden in 2007. photo taken 26 december 2011

float on

may the sun bring you new energy by day,
may the moon softly restore you by night,
may the rain wash away your worries,
may the breeze blow new strength into your being,
may you walk gently through the world and know it's beauty all the days of your life.

Apache blessing

i thought i'd share a few images from a winter walk in a park near casa mouse. i love hiking in the winter - i find there are many things made visible that go unnoticed other times of year. perhaps if more people got out and walked in the woods during winter, more people would appreciate winter.

the track of a mouse is so cute - it even looks like a mouse! hmmmm, makes me wonder, onomatopoeia is a kind of word from a sound associated with what is named - i wonder if there is a name for a track that looks like the animal which leaves it?

squirrel tracks - can't say they look like a squirrel!

i expect these are the tracks of an off lease dog - or maybe it is something more exciting like a coyote!

alas no snaps of the rabbit or deer tracks i crossed, but here's are a couple more pics i particularly like.

snow settling on a vine shows the spirit face of this tree - oh yeah


an icy waterfall runs down shale cliffs into an iced up river. when the water runs more openly one generally see lots of different types of water fowl in this part of the river- geese, grebes, mergansers, and ducks. this past weekend i saw none - i did see tracks of aforementioned birds - but alas didn't capture any snaps of the tracks - my mind and eye was elsewhere i suppose. i miss the birds.



our weather roller coaster continues - today started out nice and snowy, but the day progressed so did the temperatures - by noon we were above freezing. everything now is wet and drippy; the forecast calls for more of the same. the january thaw has been coming and going all month long. it will be interesting to see what february brings.

i'll probably skip the nature hike this weekend and try and catch up on movies. there are only a few weeks left before the academy awards. a few years ago i started a tradition of visiting my (fellow movie loving) mom for oscar weekend so can watch the academy award show together. the program a great deal more fun if i've seen the movies that are nominated - and i try and get in as many films nominated as possible, at least in the big categories like best picture, best actor, and best actress. my mom is doing really well this year, there are only two of the nine films nominated for best picture that she hasn't seen. i on the other hand, have only seen three of the nine - my goal this weekend is to try and get in two films. in case you are curious, the three i've seen are: the artist (which i loved, loved, loved - too bad there's not a category for best animal in a leadinhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifg role - uggie (who plays jack the dog) would have that award paws down! midnight in paris (again two enthusiastic thumbs up!) and moneyball (which i enjoyed).


i couldn't think (or find) a song about animal tracks, specifically mouse tracks - instead how about a song by modest mouse - float on from their 2004 album good news for people who love bad news



photos: rocky river reservation, cleveland january 2012

burns night

Contented wi' little and cantie wi' mair,
Whene'er I forgather wi' Sorrow and Care,
I gie them a skelp, as they're creepin alang,
Wi' a cog o' guid swats and an auld Scottish sang.

standard english translation:
Contented with little and jolly with more,
Whenever I forgather with Sorrow and Care,
I gave them a slap, as they are creeping along,
With a dish of good new ale and an old Scottish song.

Robert Burns (25 january 1759-1796)
above 1st verse of Contented Wi' Little and Cantie Wi' Mair

tonight is burns night - a night of celebrating the life, poetry and songs of scottish bard robert burns, also known as robbie or rabbie burns. according to this reference, the first burns night was organized by burns' friends few years after he died - and the tradition has been fairly continuous ever since.

to celebrate burns night the mouse presents three vids of songs/poems which were presented during a 2007 bbc broadcast of an audience with burns hosted by gordon kennedy - thank goodness for youtube.

as an aside, speaking of youtube, last night on npr there was a story which reported that for every second of every day, an hour of video is uploaded onto youtube - according to a youtube spokesperson a century of video is posted every ten days! crazy!

okay back to rabbie - enjoy!!




eddi reader singing burns song the banks o doon



roddy woomble singing the lea rig



i was delighted to see the program included my favorite burns poem, to a mouse performed by actor dawn steele.


want more? here's burns ode to scotch performed by actor gary lewis and reader and friends singing burns best known song auld lang syne

photo: as it is wall wednesday and i didn't have anything in my photo files specific to robert burns or scotland (that i can think of) i thought this snap which shows a detail from reed thomason's mural gives a wee nod toward burns poem to a mouse, lakewood public library

cold haily rainy night

Every day one should at least hear one little song, read one good poem, see one fine painting and -- if at all possible -- speak a few sensible words.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) writer & polymath

such wonderful mouse medicine from goethe! so far i think i'm three for four....

i absolutely adore the imagined village - as its currently a cold rainy night (with more than a promise of hail) here on the north coast, i offer as today's song the musical collective's version of the folk song cold haily rainy night - which i first heard many years back by the great martin carthy - who by the way is one of the ever revolving members of the imagined village!



photo: cleveland 22 january 2012

act naturally

Experience is what you get while looking for something else.

Federico Fellini (20 january 1920 - 1993) filmmaker

act naturally - written by country singer-songwriter johnny russell and voni morrison was first recorded by buck owens and the buckaroos in 1963 and quickly made its way to the top of the country charts.

in 1965 the beatles covered the song, it has the unique feature that unlike most songs beatles songs, the lead singer for act naturally was ringo starr. according to the list in the portal, ringo is listed as lead vocals on 16 songs compared to john, 146; paul, 146, and george 52.



photo: view of lake erie, 20 january 2012

it's your thing

Your sacred space is where you can find yourself again and again.

Joseph Campbell (1904 - 1987) mythologist, writer, lecturer

today's tattoo tuesday features a triptych of sorts where people create sacred space through their body art.

the top photo is a tat of the egyptian eye of horus - the eye is personified in the goddess wadjet and is used as a symbol of protection, power, and good health.

the second tat is a fairly intense image of a jesus wearing a crown of thorns framed with what looks like a rosary with a background of the cross - underneath is written god bless my family on an open book topped by an angel.

the third of the series a buddha sitting on a lotus - in buddhism the lotus represents the true nature of being.





here's a flash to the past! the isley brothers performing their hit song it's your thing on the sonny and cher comedy hour. the isley brothers recorded the song for buddha records in 1969.



photos: top - albuquerque new mexico, october 2011; middle - nyc, june 2010; bottom; bellingham, washington, april 2010