Falling Down

Dear People of the Past,

Your song for today comes in three fine versions: un, deux, trois.  I first heard this song as a very young girl and it has accompanied me for many years, as an ersatz anthem of feminism, and a declaration of individual will.  I hope it will come in handy for you in some way or another.

light and shade

 

The Ceiling.

Dear Dodo Gang,

The thing about the Dodo is that, well, it takes time to send you these little love notes, and sometimes Things Get Left Undone.  What things, you ask?  Well, we don't put off our watching the sky, or the creek, or the birds, but we do skip the dishes, the floors, the windows, and the yard.  It's alright, they do pretty well on their own, especially the yard.

Other times, the Dodo staff are working on something that needs doing while I type here.  Today, staff are painting the ceiling of the bathroom, so that I can send you this 'making of' film.'







May it inspire you to make a shadowed film of your own.  Or, maybe today you will paint the ceiling and Get Things Done.

not sorry socks

He told
me not
to say

"I'm sorry."

Women whispered to me:
he hates women
who say

"I'm sorry."

The obvious thing here is that I hate men who hate women who say
"I'm sorry."

But now is not the time for that.

Now
is the time
for how could I be not sorry?

If I wore, on my ankles, the socks I saw
last night in a shop
that said
"Not Sorry" on them,
if I wore them every day,
if I slept in them,
if I never took them off, and
every time I took a step I thought and read: not sorry, not sorry, not sorry, stepping out a
sorryless cadence all the livelong day,
would I be less sorry?

Because I am sorry, really sorry.
I am sorry I interrupted you,
I am sorry I was jealous,
sorry that I didn't listen.
sorry that I missed the boat,
sorry that I was too fearful,
sorry that I hurt you,
sorry that I only thought of myself,
sorry that I ignored you,
sorry I stopped talking to you,
sorry I didn't love you,
sorry I couldn't understand you
sorry that people suffer &
die.

I am not not sorry at all, and
if you think
that you can take the sorry from the girl,
and absolve yourself,
you are very wrong, mister,
and I am not
sorry
to inform you.

Highways

Dear Highway Goers,

A  beautiful song for you, for today.  Here's another little highway song, because here at the Dodo, we love the open road.

Here's a little film on how to be your own William Tyler.  Oooh, that Organizer box is the bomb!

For all the love in the world.

Dear Celebrants,

Here it is, your song for today.  You don't know it, because sometimes I am very shy about confessing my love for this or that cultural tidbit, but I adore this song, just adore it.  I love the whiny refrain, and the stair-stepping guitar chords behind it.  I love that thinking of what a love song isn't requires you also to think of what a love song is.  I also love that nearly all songs are love songs, and so if you think you have one that isn't, you might have to declare it outright.

I saw Public Image Limited once, in concert, and it was a bit of a sonic mess, because the wind grabbed a lot of the sound, and the keyboards seemed very thin and reedy.  I came home thinking that they needed a studio recording to corral the sounds so they'd be fit for hearing.  But now, I think, no, all outdoor music gets twisted and trampled by the air, and anyway, I am weary of perfection and clean sounding polish.

The call of the muezzin, the punk(-ish) lead vocalist, the opera singer, and maybe even the coyote's howl are all expressing the same passion.  Many happy returns of passion day to you!

Come here often?

Dear Readers, Viewers, Friends,

Here it is, the very first post, from seven years ago today.  Isn't that something?!  Happy Anniversary to us, and here's to the future and all its possibilities!

In readiness.

Dear Visitor,

These are a few of the odd items I am constructing these days.  I am getting ready to put them all into a small gallery in late March.  It should be a nicely crowded, maximalist sort of an exhibition.  I hope you will drop by to see it all!

Gather Momentum

 

 

Dear Ticketed Passengers,

It takes a lot to laugh but it takes a train to gather momentum.  The glory of the metaphor of the train is the gathering of momentum, and I offer you some songs to illustrate my point.  Use them to pick up speed, or to gather your forces.

 Station to Station

Kundalini Express

Trans Europa Express

Peace Train

Mystery Train

With a train the sound is also of going, the decreasing, dopplered -ainnnn sound; the sound of being gone.  You can use it to let them know you have left.

Love in Vain

It Takes a Lot to Laugh, it Takes a Train to Cry