money, what happened

it didn't use to be money
not when i was a kid
oh, money was the thing for some
not as widely pursued as now

the mothers stayed home
the fathers went to work

we had other things
we had love and family
and stuff we liked to do
other than watching the tv

and the golden rule
you remember that don't you?
do on to others
as you want them to do unto you

old folks kept us in line with a glance
and we respected them
that's how we were taught

and it wasn't bad
we got along
we used to be in this thing
together
hey, i'm just saying

menu

she is worried about my cognitive ability
because i can’t read a menu

i haven’t been able to read a menu for thirty years
ever since john belushi on saturday night live
did that hamburger, cheeseburger, pepsi skit

when i get a menu i want one choice
take it or leave it
i don’t want to sit and read atlas shrugged

if i want something special
i’ll ask for it
“could you give my onions to the cat, please?”

the kiss principle- keep it simple, stupid
let’s remember that
i go to restaurants to eat
when i want to read i’ll go to the library

pope

What is the pope doing playing politics? I understand politics within the church to get elected, but end it there. He’s not a politician on the international scene. In the U.S. there is some kind of division between church and state and I think it should be that way.

Captain Z. is a sea captain, but he doesn’t make hints to Tiger Woods how to putt the ball.

This blob was going to be all poetry and i am crossing the line. Until I get a firm direction I will continue to wander. I am thinking about another blog site for poems, one for art and one for tips on wiping your butt. What am I doing here?

z, on the road

z & company on the road
is quite a show
now you’ve been told

picked us up in bari
took us back to monopoli
a little town on the adriatic

our apartment building was very old
just down the street from z and iwona
the ceilings i estimate as eighteen feet high
tall windows and period furniture were the highlight

narrow stone streets
great vegetables in the outdoor market
the old port was one alley over
quiet as it should be

and full of the local fishing boats
of all kinds and shapes
the italian monterrey was among them
most boats were painted the
traditional blue and white

the nice stone walk around the port
was flat and smooth as the rest of the town
this place has been cared for
we saw it with the locals still there
before the money speculators arrived

friday evening before a big religious ceremony
i stopped at a market
though we are 98 percent vegetarian i
broke our food tradition
bought a ham and cheese sandwich

a chance to enjoy the local cuisine
and was eating it when z. and company arrived
they reminded me it was good friday

as we walked toward the cathedral
to see the local event of the season
i stayed in the back of the group
and ate quickly
stuffing it with both hand
like a squirrel eating a nut

meri walked up front with the group
acting like the sandwich was all my idea
thus assuring her place in the good heaven
i licked my fingers only to rid mayonnaise traces

paint

i'd open a window
but it's cold, better wait
anyway, on a scale from one to whatever
paint is an eight

I like painting
i was painting the walls
i am, can you smell it

i am a paintist
i will march with the painters
and become a member of the paintist party

i belive in paintiscism
holy mother of paint
paint with us painters
now and at the hour our can is dry

it has a fragrant bouquet
i wonder if paint
is safe to eat
and they are just not telling us

jelly fine advice

meri always says
"quit licking your fingers"
but she is not the one with honey
dripping all over

let me clear that up
not all over really
just all over my fingers

and for this
i think my hand is lickable
the soonerable, the betterable
or the honey will be floorable

so, jellylovers
my advice is this
like it or not
lick it or else

i have to be careful now
cause that one i wrote yesterday
had a line that sounded like it came from hallmark
and i almost puked

see i wrote them for a job once forty years ago
wanted to be their poet
they wrote back and said they had one already
must have been the guys mother

(and don’t comment to this blog
that jellylovers is two words and not one
cause i like it that way or i’ll to put
you on my list to)

buona pasqua - happy easter

captain z. and iwona are in italy
drove 20 hours from poland
then called tuesday from bari
where filip’s in school

we made hasty plans, tried to call back
his phone out of range, end of that tact
after i emailed both he and his son
nothing happened, were we done?

then to the termini
found the trains full
flights too expensive
bus seats were nil

easter week came early this year
we thought we’d spend time
near the adriatic sea, but it fell through
that idea is not going to float

plans mean more than good intentions
this we again learned, again the hard way
meri checked now and found a lower flight fare
made arrangements to leave in the morning by air

so these daily lines i create will pause
be assured it’s for a very good cause
for friends may come, friends may go
it’s better when you see them though

when you get to heaven

when you get to heaven
you’ll never wait in line
smiles greet you everywhere
all you do is fine

you’ll dress in style, lead the pack
score the winning mark
the family will be filled with amazing joy
always sunday in the park

you can sleep in every morning
of that there is do doubt
mealtime means seconds of everything
and they don’t have sour kraut

(be sure to thank god for that)

coffee or tea

whle i was talking on the phone
meri made me a hot drink in a large cup
i thought it was tea

terrible tea
too strong
lousy taste

after the phone call finished
i got up to put honey in it
she said, “don’t” it was coffee, not tea

ninety percent of the time we drink italian coffee
this was american style coffee
hey, the cup was big and it looked dark
just like strong tea

what a revelation
how powerfully the mind imagines
it was the worst, strongest tea ever
but it was fine coffee

from a thermos
i had it again ten hours later
and it was still good coffee

mind set is stronger than i knew
how can i be old and still be learning?
now i'll learned to pay attention to her
while i'm talking on the phone to someone else

our dear planet

the trash is piling up
it's floating in the sea

clean fresh water is running out
we need clean water to drink

the world population has
doubled in my lifetime

are the classrooms doing the job
do we care about our children

media doesn't speak all of the truths
money is leading globalization

we think what is lost
depends what it costs

rome marathon

nearly 15,000 participants are in roma
to run the cobblestones in marathon 2008
an estimated 50,000 will be in a 4k fun run

the weather is close to perfect
the runners say it’s a great way to see the city
non-stop tv coverage for the three hour event
features spectacular helicopter views

we go out to yell encouragement to the runners
then watch the rest on tv

the day before we saw roma our favorite way
on a bus ride, and while passing piazza del popolo
crowds of kilted scotch fans were walking along
drinking beer in preparation for a big rugby match

as we crossed a bridge over the tevere i mentioned,
"I've been here on my motorino."
there was a pause
my dear one was surprised and perplexed

"What? You've been hearing your motorino?
In your sleep, or can you hear it now?
Like a ringing in your ears?”

that was a frightening thought
since i had gotten rid of my motorino a few years ago
"No, I said, I've been here, on my motorino."

two old ladies

today from the bus in the rain
while pulling into the termini
i saw the two old ladies, older than most
who live on the corner by the train station

i walked over to the disheveled pair to learn of them
though they ask for nothing
pulling out a ten, it was i with the question
who handles the money?

both wore dresses, blankets and many sweaters
one took the bill, one stayed aloof
by showing an interest in their lives
the one who took the money began speaking

she said it was tougher now, life was rougher
twenty years they've been on that exposed corner
with their belongings in two shopping carts
when it's cold and rainy they sleep in the station

not to impose, i didn't ask much
are they too old and crazy to teach us anything?
what they say, what they know
did old greeks say 3000 years ago

brushing teeth, mine

i fell asleep brushing my teeth
thinking how my grandmother used to like
saturday tv with the midgets wrestling

Your mother's mother? she asked
"Yes," I said.
"That figures."

now what was that supposed to mean?
i gave her a sharp look, i did
you should have seen it

anyway i didn't really fall asleep
zoned out into brushing land
more like it

a mild trance state
perfectly normal
it happens, right?

the information future

make a hole, duck and cover
things
are happening so fast
more than anyone can grasp
you can't keep up

try as you might
it's blurring out
beyond sight
at record breaking speed
much more than we need

keep out of the way
they've pulled out the stops
let it roar on, roll on
'til it drops, or is drained
the seams are all strained
it's a runaway

wish the best to the future
wish it the very best
it is humming ignited
and flying nearsighted
exponentially

the hurrier it gets, the faster it grows
the larger it gets, the faster it goes

dim & sons

physicists say eleven dimensions
are going on here at the same time

they certainly must be observant
i wonder what channel they're watching

now, with eleven dimensions all in this space,
i know why you can stand alone and sill feel
crowded in your kitchen

'52 chevy

years ago the termini
(that's the rail station in roma)
had a '52 chevy pickup truck on display in the lobby
it was surprising to see it there
you don't see american vehicles in italy

well the termini and the times have changed
but i was thinking about my '52 chevy pickup today

i'm not sure when i saw the one in rome
or when i had mine
both were a while ago
1990 or so

mine was sweet
some young woman sold it to me
it was her x-boyfriends, he left it at her place
i guess she was upset with him
she sold it for three hundred bucks

it needed about a hundred dollars worth of work
by cousin don, a real pro and old vehicle lover
made my truck tick like an old singer sewing machine

cousin don wasn't my cousin before i met him
i found him through an add in a newspaper
but he remained a dear cousin and kept my truck tuned
until the day he died

how very dear that old truck was
original everything
even had a san francisco giants sticker from the fifties
on the rear window
a white billiard cue ball on the floor gear shift

the interior i had redone in original leather style
it had a visor over the windshield
some old dents, not too many
i did a green and black two-tone paint job
with a brush and matt finish
it looked factory done and aged by time

how sweet, it ran with such a tick, tick, tick
and i rode the old classic
everywhere in and around san francisco
so many time we crossed the golden gate

alas, we moved away and i sold it
where has it gone
like watching my children who have grown
like seeing all turn into the past

we love life
endure it
do the best we can
and the big wheel keeps on turning, tick, tick, tick

once in a while
we look back and recall
still keeping our heads up
as we move on into the future

too many

i don't know what happened to sunday
it started
there was the outdoor market down the street
meri picked up some good vegetables
i slept

we had coos coos and artichokes that meri made
i had negative contribution

after lunch
we went out and it was cool, but nice in the sun
from campo dei fiori full of tourists
we took a 62 bus as far as san silvestro

some how we wandered into the galleria
named for the beloved actor alberto sordi
a great old building converted into a mall
a fifty foot high stained glass ceiling and beautiful rose marble arches and niches in the well-sculptured structure
built about a hundred fifty years ago
they don't do this quality now

we were going to have a coffee and little half sandwich called a tramezzino, but prices were too high
2.50 to sit down with coffee
2.40 for a tramezzino that are usually 1.30
that 2.50 euro is 3.85 in u.s. dollars
coffee used to cost fifty cents
when italy first went to the euro prices immediately doubled
they haven't slowed
weekly news stories bemoan excelerating food prices

out the side door at a pizza place we bought a slice each
meri noted that when we were first in roma eighteen years ago
the pizza was always made on sight
now it is shipped in and re-heated in a microwave
fast food has arrived
romans are noticeably heavier

around the corner was trevi fountain
we wound through the crushing crowd and i took Meri to the photo
exhibition that i saw last week at the Igovernment printing lab

outside was jammed. inside there was no one and four rooms of historic photos in this free exhibit
no advertising. no crowd.
photos of old Roma dated from 1845 to about 1870

we noted the differences from a hundred fifty years ago
then there were empty fields, now in that same area are city streets and apartment buildings
it has changed from few people to full of people

we have seen so much change in our lifetime
i first flew in a Ford Tri-motor prop plane before crowds
and before jets were the common airliner

a couple of years ago i was getting off a packed bus at chiesa nuova, a crazy italian guy who had been talking all along the way, got off at the same stop and said to me
"there's too many of us."
"what are you saying" i asked. i understood his words in italian, but wanted clarification about what he'd said
"people. i am talking about the earth's population. there are too many of us."
i nodded, said something in agreement and went on my way

about two months later Meri and I were in San Diego, California walking down a busy street. in the group coming our way was a crazy guy talking to everyone. just as he passed us he turned back and said directly to me, "there are too many of us."
it shocked me, but i kept walking. it was the same guy.
it took me about a second to remember the other time and when i turned back to him i said
"hey, you just told me that two weeks ago." but he was already gone, invisible in the crowd

two dancers

two dancers
set up in front of Feltrinelli book store
when we were there

they had black and white outfits
one had stripes on her skirt, the other checks
a small sound system and taps on their shoes

their music began - it was anything goes
look at them tap, tap, tap, tap, shuffle, ball-change
the second song was put the blame on mame

this was at the bus stop across from largo argentina
some people paid attention
the girls had a routine and danced away

after a few more numbers
they took their collection basket and
music system and evaporated to across the street

enjoying it, taking what coins they earned
something to do dancers, helping us all
with their tap, tap, tap,tap, shuffle, ball-change

hear me

i’m at the age
where I begin to understand
why a man not primarily an author wrote so many books
there is always more to do

and have burnt my thumb enough
to know why church boys use
long brass stick-things to light deep candles
it pays to be careful

and i know why i’m not
like a seven year old
that pops up in the morning
and starts hopping and running around
kids can do that

i’ve done circles
and pop in the morning
so i get up sounding like someone eating
breakfast cereal out of a box

noise

nearly gone are creaking man-pulled carts

amid narrow stone alleys
the tired depths of old roma
nearly quiet
well after midnight
a woman's clicking heels on pavement stones
tap sharp
rhythmic echoing clicks
small, light hammers on an anvil
like voices from those passing on the street
that scale the walls to windows above
and to the roof tops

then, early
in silent dawn
a small delivery truck
the size of a golf cart
starts its engine

roars, barks and sparks
loud without a muffler
limping from a storage area
under the arch, heading the other way
toward the outdoor market in piazza campo dei fiori

here, thirty yards from the arch
the sound like a chainsaw gone mad rattles our windows
people who live the way he passes
those people
those poor sleep interrupted people
i pity every market day
for roma has no ordinance
against noise

some country mile

on a rolling back road slowdown
not quite lost
we paused our car just off to the side
the air was still and nearly warm
we sat looking, talking a while
"let's get out and walk,"
she said and i nodded

enjoying the quiet woods on foot
once by a pattering stream
where sun glinted on
the tapestry of life
this dramatic natural scene

i thought
to stroll with her is always new
now and then we'd hold hands
it seemed we'd gone quite far
you are my everything,
dear partner, all the things you are

interrupting my reverie
calling me back from afar
tenderly she whimpered into my ear
"honey, where'd you park the car?

to divulge sad facts

meri thinks i have obsessive compulsive behavior
because i take the milk off the stove before it boils

we drink italian coffee and our small apparatus makes the equivalent of two half-cups at a time
at first i used cold milk, but then meri started heating it
but we have to watch it
milk practically explodes when it boils

now i guard against that and attempt to take the milk off the stove early. meri thinks i remove it too quickly.

"i am being prudent," i explain.

"you're like jack lalanne.".

"why jack lalanne?" i asked.

"because he ties his feet to the side of the pool and does
and hour of swimming the breaststroke - everyday," she said.

i see

"it boiled one time and i wanted to prevent it from happening again."

"that's obsessive compulsive behavior!" she declared.

i call it the difference between boys and girls.
tea anyone?

our apartment

one apartment over
one floor up
across our tiny street
is a million dollar apartment
i can practically see in the window

only fifty feet from me and happiness

we have friends in the states who
proudly proclaimed they have a home that was never previously lived in
i bet while they built it the workers used to pee in the corner

our lousy apartment on a former worst street in roma
is over five hundred years old
back then they used to throw crap out the window
(that is a euphemism of course, i don't know what they threw, but they didn't have indoor plumbing, and the romans aren't known for their consideration)

michaelangelo, cellini and bernini could have been here in our building
and if they were, they were probably drunk
this is a former spot for gambling, drinking and a whorehouse
forty years ago even the police wouldn't walk down this street

a hundred paces away is campo dei fiori, the former execution ground
giordorno bruno was burnt at the stake by the church there
because he contradicted the church when he said the earth was not the center of our universe
that bastard

hey, sun goes up, sun goes down
and our crappy, dark, tiny apartment is still here
now on million euro row.

prospero

"hello, hello, where are you from?"
he calls to the tourists to bring them closer
in english, french or german
a smattering of languages

near the center of campo dei fiori
by the statue of bruno
at times in the sun
sometime in shade
a simple long table
covered with a cloth
is set with demo vegetables for cutting into curly shapes and spires

prospero he is called
who sells small plastic novelty, yet practical cutters for vegetables
does it from a chair at his table
not from behind the table
but outside, alongside his audience

the jovial old roman
with a look of alert kindness about him
lived thirty years in the ghetto
always did laborer work
now for seven years he has been here

as i pass near i hear tourists chuckle when he blows bubbles
and puts on his entertaining presentation for them
making them laugh
he laughs with them
and enjoys the work
clean and simple
this is retirement done well

a way

the hard part is the thing
between winter and spring
when i need to check twice
to see which coat to bring

the heavy one has a hood
and the day i removed it i started alternating
my light jacket with the hood-less heavy one
depending on how cold it is

depending on the weather
i change all my stuff from one jacket to the chosen other
bam-slam two-fisted organization is the key!
okay, so i kinda got the organization idea from meri
but then, hey, i figured it out my way!

everything gets a certain pocket
so i know where to reach for it
i get my money, coins in one pocket and folded money
i bring my phone - hopefully charged, a pen
my keys and any notes, my id, just the essentials
my bus ticket, cigarettes and lighter
then bam

out the door
on my way
i forgot my keys
what can i say

what do you mean no keys?
i'm locked out!

i was just going to the corner to get a loaf of bread
takes about a minute
meri will be coming out in three to six hours maybe
and i'm locked all the way, way out

this is worse than a couple of months ago
when i came home and didn't have my keys
and heard a voice yelling my name
it was my friend with a shop down the street

i had stopped and sat on the coach and talked a while
my keys fell out of my pocket and she saw them before i reached my locked door

this time i forgot my phone cause i just was going to the corner
meri was home on the third floor in the back room
the door buzzer for the building is broken
but i got the loaf of bread

there was no rock to throw at the window
i tried that once when i was a kid
and broke a neighbors second-story kitchen window
with a mudball that landed in my neighbor's grandmother's pie

thank god my current neighbor on the first floor looked out
saw me and let me in

this time, no problem
i got in
so when all seems lost
don't give in and don't toss rocks

button fix

you talk about a heart ache
when all we do is wake up
to find another thing that doesn't work
another nail in the board of pain
something simple, to be sure
god, i hope it doesn't rain

we can't heat the water
the indicator won't light
despite pushing repeatedly
results were out of sight

the water heater button's broken
of that there's no doubt
finally, the fourth store i checked had another
we're half way to being fixed

i got a card of an electrician from the electrical store
cause we seemed to have an excess of wires
this guys has been working at the italian senate building for twelve years so he must be good
or somebody's cousin
he said he'll show up in three hours
we'll just patiently wait
hot water will be ours

practically easy
nothing is lost
we'll wait and see
how much it will cost

all we need is resolution
to keep to the road until the end
it just seems harder when your older
things take longer to mend

three hours pass and i call the guy again
his phone isn't on, but he calls back in a few minutes
he delays his arrival time and add two more hours to his estimate
so i sit down and wonder and wait, will we really have hot water

he calls and is near, i give final directions and he comes
i'm out on the street when this guy is walking down
i see him and he sees me, there is something about
the way were both looking around that we identify each other

this guy looks like a messy carpet stuffer with a coat on
i don't know what carpet stuffers look like either
but marcello fits the description
and he talks romano which is a street slang, and that gets me worried
who did i hire to do the work here in our home?

i bring him in, marcello asks my name
two minutes later when we're talking he calls me jack
and this is a big leap, cause most italians either can't say my name
or can't remember it

there are problems and he works around them
we talk and get along well
a second switch has to be changed and he does it
he improvises and easily makes things better

what a pleasant adventure to meet a new guy who is sympathetic, normal, and competent.

everything is neat
when i asked the price he said twenty. i gave him thirty and we both are satisfied.
i made a friend and so did he

autogrill

as you drive along the autostrada
ahead is a covered bridge that spans the highway
with a parking area on the right and on the left
look! it's not a bridge
it's auto grill
everyone is saved

half way to anywhere in forty countries
you'll find the multinational food and retail conglomerate
at airports and on highways
serves food to drivers
has clean restrooms

and if you go when it is not meal time in italy
it will be nearly empty
at meal time it will be packed

you pull off and park
go up two floors by stairs or an elevator
and the restaurant and store part spans the highway
nice view

want a postcard, chocolate or a small sandwich, t-shirt and coffee
you've got it
(cd's and perfume also available)

fontana di trevi

i came out of the bank and walked left
down the street, just behind trevi fountain
pointing to the closed doors on the opposite side when i
asked a shop keeper why the engraving museum isn't open
he shrugged and said it's one block over

at the fountain i walked around the front
in 19 b.c. romans built the acqueduct
that brings water from the hills 8 miles out of roma
it actually travels 14 miles before it gets here
even water gets the run-around

in 1953 roman holiday with audrey hepburn and cary grant
brought the fountain to our attention

i had walked nearly all the way around before i looked at the fountain
after a hundred times in that square i didn't have to look right away
watching where i was going through the many tourists
kept me occupied

the middle point around i was at the church
the point of the three roads intersecting
tre vie, three roads, trevi

years ago i sat on those church steps opposite the fountain
drawing it for an hour or two
passing tour groups woke me to realize
more buses than i could recall
had entered the piazza one at a time
unloaded and reloaded and left

i looked toward the waters again
no wonder they all come
it's such a pretty fountain

john and bill

we went to the post office at san silvestro
to pay the fine we got yesterday
for not paying the exit toll at the autostrada,
because the machine was broken

the post office was like a fifteenth century
first class lounge with fifty service windows
we paid the one euro fine instead of
waiting for them to increase the fine
and repossess everything we own,
i don't know about jail time

then we walked next door
to the church san silvestro in capite
meri took a picture of the head of john the baptist

about five places around the world
claim to have his head,
the place i doubt is
disneyworld in orlando - come on!

then we walked around the corner
to the cafe greco at the foot of the spanish steps
and saw a photo of buffalo bill cody
taken when he was there in 1903

here it is one hundred five years later
not only is the bar still there
but the furniture is the same
point that out to your wife the next time
she wants to do some redecorating at home

just your average day in the dis-average roma

bus drivers in roma

wwhat’s the big hurry with the bus drivers?
did mommy or daddy chase them with a bus?

some of them can drive ok but don’t stop well
bad, let’s say the truth - they stop like hell

the passengers get jerked all around.
those standing spin like pole dancers

did they really pass a driving test?
who gave it to them, their girlfriend?

what's the bus man's rush all about anyway?
they have to work their shift, don't they?

if it was the number of circuits they had to make
they’d get someone to lie for them about how many

then they'd knock off early
which could be best for all

some drive well, this i must admit, and some
are kind and considerate to their passengers

there are exceptions to every rule
still others curse and drive and drool

obelisks

i knew what obelisks were all of my life
but until i walked in the shadow of one
and saw the intricate inscriptions that i cannot read
did i feel their strength and splender

there are 30 in the world, all from egypt
13 in roma, in egypt only seven, four standing
the ones in london and new york
used to be in roma

san giovanni's in roma
is the tallest in the world, 105 feet,
originally 140 feet
and the oldest - 15 century b.c.

a true obelisk is made from one piece of stone
so they say
washington monument is 555 feet tall
many pieces, but obelisk enough for me

in roma obelisks are impossible to avoid
easy to glance at from afar
worth seeking out
magnificent to examine

artists dinner

saturday all of us met for dinner
at marina's house in the country

eight robust artist types
drank wine and laughed

bread, fruit, cheese, and one oven cooked chicken
we ate and ate, enjoyed talking, and then ate more

then when we were finished
all completely well satisfied

we noticed there was chicken left over
no drugs, no miracle, how could it be?

anzio

we took a train an hour south to anzio
a thousand others had the same idea

had a fine seafood lunch at the lovely port
so did the thousand others

our seafood anti-pasta for two
came on fifteen different large plates

how can there still be fish in the sea?
we sure are eating a lot of it

note that everything at the anzio station is broken
and covered with more graffiti than we've seen anywhere else

the day was sunny and warm
and full of people

it's not yet spring, the tourists haven't even arrived
and they will

just checking

today we rented a car, were returning it
and were ten feet from the entrance to the car rental place
on a busy street, turn signal on

twenty feet farther a group of police stood
one flagged us to pull ahead, i told meri to just turn
i waved no to the cop, we're turning in here, be sensible
"no , this is police work, drive forward and stop"

meri did what they said.
while the first cop was asking her for documents etc.
i got out of the car and asked another cop, "who's the boss?"
he was the boss

"why stop us, we were turning back there?"
"it's a car check"
"there are plenty of cars for you to check." i pointed
indeed, many others were speeding by

"where are you from?, he asked
not answering his question, i responded, "i'm a citizen of roma"
that stopped him. he didn't expect me to yell at him in italian.
and that citizen of roma stuff always works

"you know this is ridiculous," i said.
"well, this is how things are done in italy," he replied.
i said, "i know."

and that is the whole truth, your honor

the pantheon

marcus agrippa is credited for first building this ancient shrine
destroyed by fire in 80 a.d., built again in 125 a.d.
the oldest standing domed structure in rome
perhaps the best preserved building of its age in the world

erected, destroyed, rebuilt again, it's original purpose unknown
a circular building, a temple dedicated to all the gods
and for the people, who have always come to this place

the interior a perfect circle, the diameter and height are 43 meters
inside, to the center, below the circular vaulted roof opening, called the great eye, the oculus, over 8 meters in diameter
we paused to enjoy and appreciate

meri, looking through that eye to the sky, saw a lone bird fly over
and asked how i was at reading auguri, omens, signs from the heavens
i held her and smiled

a step at a time, i have no insight into what may be
we do the best we can with what we have
slowly it keeps changing, we'll wait and see

outside to the base of a pillar on the sunny side
we sat to watch for a while
with no particular purpose in mind
two small local boys played as children have for ages
on their marble slab home turf of the pantheon

taking in the bright day
amid the quiet well-ordered mirth
still aware for whatever it's worth
that these precious moments are joys
for our brief time on earth

weather roma

on a map for italy's weather there were
eighteen suns over lazio, the region of roma

oh, look at venezia, how many suns
count 'em up, there's almost twenty

i found a four percent chance of precipitation
on a clear day, repeated every hour

the amount of winds, negligible
but mentioned frequently

a chart of projections for the day
updated in two hour increments

complete - not completely
no mention of temperature

figlio di putanna, isn't the amount of clouds
and eighteen suns over roma enough for you?

unless we tell you otherwise
weather will continue as usual

iced over

a door is opened a crack
and on the back
of my neck
a cold wind pushes me
to recollect a day walking, walking
in the snow with my hands in my pockets
with my head low and nose cold
walking in the wind, in the snow
long ago

to or from somewhere
saw some friends
going to the corner store

city-old maples
fat and icy
tap their limbs upon windows
no one can let them in

puddles on the curb
round the corner
on the curve
iced over

run down the street
feet and ice meet
slide on the sheet
iced over
in the wind, in the snow
long ago

house

our house is your home
would you move out please
we just bought it

we made an offer on a house
in the country, an hour out of roma
the house needs attention
it’s all there, but not how we’d do it

what do we want? something else.
how do we want it? easy.
will we know it when we see it?
maybe, but don't bet on it.

globalization will do away with choice
one burger, one car, one house
why should we complain?
it’s less expensive to make it all the same

and why should it stop? with stem cell technology
one dog: part cat, part fish, part chicken
when you’re done playing with it
you can eat it

quick say

down at the vineria, the wine shop
from thirty feet away
i saw the waiter who has seen me several times
sitting, taking coffee with roberto at mid-day

our eyes met, he paused
recognition appeared
i raised my chin and squinted in question
he thought again and peered

he gave a quick shake no
we exchanged a few slight, rapid tilts of head and shoulders
and nods of confirmation
all was well in order

then both shrugged, turned, went about our way
this was a solid bit of communication
absolute and complete in eight seconds
here's what we had to say

i said, "hey, i know you ."
"i know you also," came his first.
"how are you doing, have you seen roberto?"
"i'm fine," he answered, "but, no, i haven't seen robert. he hasn't been around."
"okay," I said, "let him know i was looking for him if you see him."
"Will do," he answered.
"i'll be back, it was good to see you."
" yeah, you to."
"ciao."
"ciao."

colossus

after a long bus ride out to laurentina, the suburbs
near the grande raccordo annulare, the great highway ring around roma
we relented and returned on the swift metro line b

under the pyramid,
under the old chariot race site circus maximus
below the old forum to our stop

we walked and escalatored up several flights
to encounter saturday night at fiori imperiale,
mussolini's contribution in the 1930s, a boulevard
that cuts through the forum to the center of roma

the ruins of nero's home, domus aurea on the rise behind us
before, the colosseum

behold - grandiose, invincible master of ages
modern marker of the bygone empire

tall and black against the chill of february sky
that has withstood two millenia
of wind, rain, scorching heat and cold
paraded in and shouted over

blood and prayers, beasts and gladiator
lie dormant in the sands beneath

now buses pass closely by
i saw a jet liner flying toward fiumicino airport
photos are snapped and promises have been made
under the shadow of the giant

and in the twentieth century they dug
a metro line tunnel under everything

today - no problem

we bought tickets for the train
it should have been easy
but train was canceled

things happen
an hour later caught a train
that went part way

stopped, waited for the next train
found a little place to eat
lunch was good, music loud

six people in the place
music enough for forty-five
did they want us to eat or dance

enjoyed the food, ate well
prices reasonable
ears sill ringing

caught our train to the country
a fine day
came back without incident
on the bus

Meri told me the ugly old
man in the silk stockings
was a woman
almost missed our stop

just another day
no problem

most all asleep

when the city sleeps it can't hear me
creeping about in my pajamas
when standing by the window
i listen for it

only the clock moves
in absolute defiance
to the silence of the night

an appliance
and electrical wires
hum on for me
forever a subtext

a lone plane passes over
a car door closes
a voice down the street

fractions of the day
still awake
complete
even the cats are asleep

clerks quirks

why do the grocery store clerks always ask for exact change
when the cashiers at our bread store never do?

also at the grocery store if the amount is three-ninety eight
they keep two cents and start counting back change at four

if my bill comes to nine fifty-six
the cashier will pause
look slowly into the cash drawer
wiggle around in there with her fingers five or ten minutes

talk to another employee for a while
then look up with eyes glazed and dead pan face
and ask if I have fifty-six cents
every time

i notice that if i don't move at the speed of lightening
like an old west gun slinger in the movies
she is already back in the drawer making change
the question to me was just something required by law
means nothing

if this were a movie, the director would yell cut
"ok, jack, step aside. we're bringing in a stunt man to go for the exact change. this guy is really fast, incredible."

by the time i have a few coins out to help
she is handing me change
not counting it out, just putting it on the
special plastic place that was built for change
along with my receipt

the bread store rounds off one or two cents
or loads me up with one and two cent pieces
that i carry home and put in a jar
until it's too heavy to lift

i’ve never seen an italian coin wrapper
i think they use buckets and scales
where are the oxen pulling wagons on the street
and big guys riding shot gun

ever since that guy invented the
drop ceilings that are sold all over the world
everyone is looking for another thing that can make a billion bucks and be used everywhere
that's what those change holders are at checkout counters

i expect to see those grocery clerks in their spare time
on the corner asking for change
just to keep in practice

via cappellari

 

our little apartment building dates from 1500
the arch was erected about 1300
my source is an architectural historian
from john cabot here in roma

on the wall under the arch
is a sign on the wall inscribed in Latin on a marble slab
dated 1733

it says not to discard refuse under the arch
offenders risk monetary fine
and corporeal punishment

the city of Roma now puts
our refuse cans under the arch

abramo & zakaria

abramo is one of the waiters
he's served us several times
back by the wood oven is zakaria the older egyptian cook
i asked his name a year or two ago
complimenting him for the pizza he makes so well

both have biblical names
here in italy it used to be the law
you had to name your child after a saint
my god, now they are putting chips in people

roma is tough, they endure with patience
what desires have they for the twilight called tomorrow
we greet them, chat little, must not slow them down
they work long hours not getting wealthy

i respect these friendly fellows of another world
here colliding asteroids in city space, bump and go
we eat and go, countless tourists hardly see them
they are but a necessary convenience

zakaria said hi to me the other day at the hardware store
i didn't recognize him out place, without his cooking whites
his little hat. his pizzas are the best you know
why are egyptian cooks often the best for italian pizza

abramo is youthful, slight and quick
he will bend in the winds of time, see many changes
possessed with good spirit and force
god bless his energy

we don't look over, around or through these two
they, as we, are seeking acceptance

mickey rooney

we didn't buy tickets right away
we heard he was going to be at
the state theater in sandusky, ohio

big deal, who cares, he's old
then we read it was his birthday
and we started talking about it

the night of the performance
we were pumped
went there and bought
last-minute, top balcony back, the last seats

and we knew it would happen
just as we said, the last thing in the performance
they wheeled out cake and the music began
we stood, leaned back our head, smiled

and loudly joined with everyone in the theater
and it bounced off the ceiling
filled up each row and ran down the street
that's why we went, and what we got

how many times in your life do you
get to do that?
we always will remember the night
we sang happy birthday mickey rooney

porta blu

Alberto leads the game
He’s the core, The master who created the space
sets the rules and the pace at
his school for art

press the button, enter the place
all those seeking to climb to new lights in abstraction
gather amid music and fine company to treasure black chalk lines
or brush a bit of paint as they work
styled just right
under white light
below the streets of roma

an artist’s life is lived in experiment, chance and betterment
it only appears as chaos
until one gets the hang of it
and learns to cope with what you’ve got

time-out comes with tea and cookies
a diversion for the learned still learning new ways
among contented faces

then back to work
forgetting time until it calls
to wrap the lion heart of the artist in silence deep
where it aches to get back out
the next time
here under the street
at Porta Blu

coincidence saves time

i didn’t make it snow
he could have told me no
didn’t drive it very far
when i wrecked my brother’s car

i need someone to blame
the car will never be the same
it was easy what I did
i braked on ice and slid

it could have been a garbage can
but no, I slid into his insurance man
not just the man, he was in his car
you know how coincidences are

meri's idea

print it on clothes, on your car and on your cat
“The world needs more”

line ‘em up and fill it to overflow
look below and get the rest of it

no need counting anything
just take it all, keep loading

when you’re pumping gas – don’t stop
don’t save anything, use it all
why do you think there are super-stores?

fill me, thrill me, bill me later
high speed loop de loop
counterfeit the brand names
withdraw it all

several credit cards will help
jam it, damn it
limits are made to be broken
what are records for?

market analysis

holy catfish the markets diving
and won’t come up for air
all your trouble is like a bubble
when it pops sit back and stare

no need to hurry if you want to worry
you’ve got the time to spare
but hold that frown, cause it’s going down
every stinking where

some history

first the sumerians began to write
then envelopes with glue came about after they found
a dead horse stuck to the sidewalk

then the post office made stamps
more horses turned up missing

when mail started getting lost
they blamed it on the pony express
and raised the price of stamps

they tried morse code, radio, town criers, tv and computers
not in that order
but letters and envelopes wouldn’t go away
hallmark was happy
and the price of stamps went up

bulk rates for advertisers were invented
and immediately the rates went down
dit-dit-dit,dah-dah-dah.dit-dit-dit

when you wash socks

when you wash socks
be sure to count them
pair them up
do not count them in the dirty laundry
it is not advised

but you damn well better line up your ducks
excuse me, socks, when you take them out of the dryer
and try not to stare at the dryer spinning

you heard about crazy kids climbing into dryers
and getting spun nuts – well I want to warn you
the same thing is true
about staring at spinning dryers
it can spin you nuts, bro!

so the moral of this is to pair up your socks
immediately after taking them out of the dryer.
Or else

meri drove

It rained and thundered on and off in the early morning. First we’d call it off, then it’d quit raining and it was on again. We had rented a car on line, just for the day, and finally decided to take a bus to the Termini and get our car.

Fine. We showed up at the Termini and they had no knowledge of our reservation. No trace, no how, no car, no way, no shit!

At the next counter, three inches away a polite girl for another company had a car and a good price. We were on our way. Meri drove us around Sabina.
More about Sabina at another time.

When we got the car back, we went down to the office, Meri used the bathroom while I had to go back up to the fourth floor of the parking lot and drop off the car keys, put them in a slot in a box. I thought it was a good trick just finding the box and figuring out that was where the keys are dropped.

When I came back down, I nodded toward the bathroom and the guy behind the glass slipped me a metal door handle with a square block on it that fit where the door handle goes. I have taken a few door handles apart so I knew what the thing he gave me was for. How do others do it?

Later, on the way out, I asked the guy behind the glass if tourists had difficulties. Yes, with the door handle, but finding a gas station and getting the car back to the rental place also. He said the Italians have trouble. Even the people that work there have trouble getting to work. Nothing is easy for anybody, ever.

“Yeah, but Roma is bella,” I told him. We laughed.

writing

writing’s a bit
like digging a pit
you have to know
how deep to go

and what do you do
when that work is through?
You cover that lover
and start on another

This morning
forty years later
I’m walking around humming hey jude
I’m humming it like it was yesterday
You know what I mean

humming right along
it just surprised me, that’s all
those four mop-heads got old
well, two of them got old
and look what happened to you and me

balls

We just got another ball off the Vatican christmas tree. It’s the fourth time we happened by when they were taking down the tree and we got one of the balls.
The balls get weathered, so they just give them away.
Easter must be early because they usually don’t take down the tree until after valentines day.

The first time we got a ball, in 2000, we were going to the post office at the Vatican. It was February and they were taking down the tree that day.
Meri said, “why don’t you go get one of the balls, they’re giving them away.”
"You want a gold one or a silver?" I asked.
"Gold," she said.
"We're a little late, you know."
"Just get one. I'm going in the post office."

I looked at the crowd and thought it was impossible, but started walking over to the tree in the center of the Vatican piazza. Hundreds of people surrounded the tree. Surely we were too late. About half way across the piazza from out of the mass of people an older couple walked toward me. The woman was happily holding a large gleaming sphere in each hand.
They stopped directly in from of me and the lady said, “We got two balls, but can’t pack them both. Which one do you want?” She held out a large gold and a large silver. Surprised and pleased the quest was over as quickly as it had begun, I took the gold one, and she seemed pleased with my choice.

after getting the christmas ball today
we were beyond piazza cavour
sitting down on a bench and
our friend bruce who we haven't seen for a few years
walks up and finds us

it’s another one of those roma coincidences
were you see someone you don’t expect in
another part of the city

nico

 

Nico’s ninety-four, can hardly see me
waves his hands and says
i’m like a big shadow
he’s not very tall

used to be a dancer acrobat
traveled europe with his pretty partner
i’ve seen photos of him holding her
above his head with one hand

he lives alone in the small third floor apartment
where his grandmother lived in the 1860s
where his mother was born
and so was he

about once a month or so
he cooks another pot of vegetable soup
that’s all he eats, and some nuts
that’s all he desires

much younger than a man of his years
he keeps talking - hopping about
overflowing energy, enthusiasm, and joy
with good wishes to all he encounters

roma - italian senate archive/library

 

italy’s senate is on
corso del rinascimento,
meaning street of the renaissance

next door is the senate library – the state archive
with great double doors framed in grey heavy stone
and a pointy roof like a birdhouse
an entranceway eighteen feet tall

from the bus stop directly across the street
I could see a couple of tourists, dark silhouettes
just inside the open doors looking
beyond the sun-lit interior courtyard
over the pillars of the building on the back side
and then above to the decorative white, spired
belltower of the church behind the library

an acquaintance, roberto, had been
the senate librarian
for a lifetime
now retired, another takes his place
while the usefulness of this centuries old building
goes on

coincidences

the other day meri saw some guy from the 19 tram
that morning she saw him at roccos breakfast place
in another part of the city

many times I have seen familiar faces
on the other side of town
on the same day

a few days ago I had the idea to call ambra from the train
she already was at the next stop
waiting to board our train

she got on at the tiburtina stop
we had a nice talk for a half-hour or so
then she was on her way

there are two and a half million people here, but
I’ve noticed, and so have friends, that you see people
when you don't expect to.

roma is like that

sunday in roma

With no particular destination in mind we left home this morning and took a bus a few blocks to Piazza Venezia, the historical center of Roma.

We crossed in front where the well uniformed Carbinieri stand watch at the national monument, then walked around the side.
An art show of works by Paul Gauguin was underway at the Veneziana. There was quite a line.

On the side of the monument we started down the walk on the old crude pavement stones. Years ago we were there when tour group was coming up the hill and heard the guide call instructions to his group. Then a a few moments later a member of the group repeated the call to some stragglers “This is a part of the original Roman road, we have two minutes to get on the bus.”

Near the back side of the building we descended a staircase to the old jail where it is said that both Peter and Paul were prisoners and miraculously escaped. There are no signs to indicate this, and as with much of old Rome, you have to know what and where things are.

Then on the back side of the monument we stood over the old Roman Forum that stretches several hundred yards and two thousand years to the Arch of Constantine and the Colosseum. These Forum ruins are what is left of the Rome of the Ceasars. The worn buildings have been stripped and tumbled for centuries and recycled, in part to provide material to build the current old building of Rome.

Much of old Rome remains in the Forum, and today the tourists were about as plentiful as the residents and merchants on a market day of old. Oddly, the population of Rome is about the same as it was two thousand years ago, two and a half million.

Then we walked up and around to the Campidoglio, saw the statue of Marcus Aurelius on horseback and the square that Michelangelo designed to show it off. Today a wedding was taking place at the popular spot for civil weddings.

Then around and up again to a breathtaking terrace view over rome.

“Where’s the camera?” I asked reaching out for it.
”Didn’t you bring it? You were going to bring it.” She said.
“I thought you were bringing it,” I said.
“I charged the batteries, you were going to bring the camera. That’s the last thing you said,” she reminded.
“I asked if you were going to bring the camera.”
“And, you said you were going to bring it,” she said.

Then down, across the street and through the ghetto. A ceremony was going on as we passed. The president of the Hebrew community was speaking for the day of remembrance. The Nazis of World war II will not be forgotten.

We boarded the tram across the Tiber to Trastevere. We tried two different tables at a crowded Italian restaurant that was filled to overflowing with deaf people this day, so we opted to return another day, left and had Chinese food at our nearby regular Sunday restaurant.

Our friend maria met us, and said next week she’d take us to an old Roman eatery nearby.
We had coffee, talked and then returned home at dark. It was a fine day in Roma.

the blog has

the blog has become a wall to confront
some is italy and some is me
i wake up swimming in it
sea to si'

which poetic voice to use
something old or something new
what do you want?
what to do?

a friend wants to know a good place to eat
and all of roma pops up in front of me
i’ll come up with an answer when I see him
but for now it’s business as usual

meri and i went to lunch at Pasquali’s
sat the common table for the locals,
the citizens of roma, the head count.
how good can lunch at a family hole in the wall be?

saturday and the cook knows us
red pasta and a half liter of red
as good as it gets
then an electric bus home

presto, that's italian
that sounds like it means

i entered

i entered the windowless garage;
then gave attention to a sun-fraction
that gleamed on my eye as i stood
stolen from a somewhere frozen january dream

falling attentive to the intense stream
that poured into this darkened space,
my mind made mention to air dust
rising liquid white-tinted in the beam

from an up-high hole in the wall
came the length of light shooting,
blowing across my winter illusion
smokey air that swirled like snows

i took a prism from lying around
to hold the glass in the white falling
this caught-broken beam, interrupter of dream,
sans sound, played a colorful serenade scene.

since man's

since man’s meager time on earth
a period quite concise
we’ve sought to find our collective worth
and never are precise

it seems that none who’ve suffered birth
have been able to entice
knowledge to enter at full girth
or, to take one’s own advice

cell phones

leaping to a fast first
the italians took off with cell phones
use and abuse
they were hooked
everyone had one

and used them all the time
everywhere they’d go
in restaurants, stores, on the buses, in their cars
wandering in trances on foot up and down the street

crowding in groups of three or five or six
they’re all on the phone
or stopping one at a time on the sidewalk
waving hands and explaining something
it looked crazy, a mania

and for all the talking
all the talking
everyone talking
you’d think the world would change

and perhaps it has
italians have achieved the highest cell phone rates
in europe

realizing it
as suddenly as it began
they are now talking less

the buffalo

some rainy, foggy, chilly midweek
when secretaries call in sick
and postmen wear goulashes
go to the zoo and take in what’s left

splash along the water-covered concrete
past occasional trees bent, looking away
from the wind’s lick

see the muddy, mucky, peanut-shelled patch
where there stands the buffalo
knee-deep, with dirty, unkempt, matted hair
his eyelids closing out the drizzle
shoulders that held up america

clothed the indians in a montana mountain snow
fed starving wagoneers not quite to the promised land
mark of the plains
symbol of an era

it is fitting that he be visited
for his eyelids are closing now, america

lost him in the sun

he wrote the songs
played and sang them
with incredible american spirit

I’m grateful for
brief contact and
hold longstanding admiration
for all this great artist of our time has given

thank you, john stewart

i had the good fortune to speak briefly with john in ’65
at the north hollywood’s palomino in ’77
and the in the early 90’s in mill valley
where i didn’t know, but she told me,
it was buffy’s mom I gave a ride home in my ‘52 chevy truck

john, it was influential to have heard
your songs calling out to me

the lonesome picker has died
long live his memory
where the chilly winds don't blow
for every daydream believer

to home

with motorinos parked on both sides

and a lot of people, young and old, about on the narrow street

i began walking the few blocks home

i didn't hear the car come up behind me

or turn to look

as it sped past inches away

at Corso Del Rinacimento near the Senate

cabs, buses and four or five motorcyles

rocketed by as I crossed near the crosswalk

through the confusion

looking straight ahead

noise, movement

life in the city

everyone has their space

and uses every inch of it

another train

again to Orte, an hour north of roma

this time to look at a house the church is selling

two apartments, one each floor

and a basement, 500 meters squared

not your typical home

ancient, interesting, particular

the basement goes down three levels

with a dozen winding caves, wine press, a well and tunnels

all dug by hand into the rock

dating back 2600 years

by the etruscans

when there was lire

some times i want to write and sometimes i just want to add something nice to look at. i was going through photos and found this. i painted this before the euro, but i don't have the picture in front of me and i can't tell you when - about '98. it's oil on canvas. about 24x24.

at sea

at sea we sleep

with the rocking

tilting lapping waters

the hum of recirculated air

the turn of the screws

a ship-moving vibration

that dulls all senses

and becomes dream

are you now, or have you ever

one of the great things about night

is that it gets dark

think about it.

it even cools down at night

it’s like a time out

let’s keep it that way

back in ’02 vienna, austria was the first place in the world

to pass a law about light pollution.

the people who passed the law must have bitched as much as i do.

have you seen a photo of earth from space?

it’s lit up like a christmas tree

don’t get me wrong, I like free light. It’s great to have your house lit up and not have to pay for it.

but not with a street light shining in at all hours

who wants to be able to read the small print in the phone book in bed with the lights off?

so I wake up early - four or so

bad guys should do that

then sit quietly alone

they’d cause less trouble

and quit going to meetings where there are flags, banners or emblems

and don’t take any oaths

i like to sit in the dark.

when a light is on do the cops drive by

and wonder what’s going on in there?

“jack, there’s six guys in military fatigues and flack jackets in your laboratory taking all the lids off your paint cans.”

i heard that old people got up at night

but I’ve always done it

trouble sleeping?

no trouble at all

i like getting up when it’s quiet

even the dogs are asleep

the good thing about kitties is that they don’t bark

ever

and you don’t have to follow them around

with a plastic bag

we have a neighbor dog that gets up to pee

at two in the morning and then barks once to be let in

that’s cute

unless I’m sleeping with the window open

one bark and I’m up

light pollution and dog pollution

I like animals that are vegetarians

And totally biodegradable

headache, neuritus, neuralgia?

Where have all the flowers gone?

sunday in trastevere

giacomo canceled and couldn't meet us for coffee
he lives just up the street on san francisco ripa but
it started raining and he can't carry an umbrella
on crutches
someone opened a car door in front of his
motorcycle a month ago
he broke a leg

to get out of the rain
instead of going into the restaurant
we waited inside santa maria in trestevere
for our friend maria
then had chinese food
when she arrived
and passed a good time

http://www.sacred-destinations.com/italy/rome-santa-maria-in-trastevere.htm

orte

we rode an hour north by train to grey, stone Orte

built high atop a hill in 1300 and still intact

on quiet turning, odd angled streets the gentle bus man

told us of a restaurant just off the main piazza

each step revealed a scene to paint or photograph

the eating spot was quiet, provincial and well appointed

in a tired, sophisticated country way

we each had different tasty local pastas with red wine

after, coffee at a traditional bar, filled with locals

then took refuge in a somber old shelter built in a wall

and awaited ten minutes for the local bus

then caught a train in the rain back to roma

aquaforte engraving

another plate engraving or etching
this is my sixth year of doing them

this one, called "the builders",
was done on a zinc plate about five by seven inches

if you make an error it shows
you can't erase

a wax coating is applied, then scratched off the plate
then dipped in a 75% solution of nitric acid, cleaned,
inked and printed on paper that has been soaked
in water

it is a slow process of planning, preparation and execution
one at a time is printed

click on the photo to enlarge

a snowy day

here is a tiny a village in the alps near bessans, france.
click on the photo to enlarge. the alps are beautiful.

tram ride

Four young italians on tram 8

were laughing and taking photos

of the back of a mans head

riding on the tram.

(not just the head –

the whole man was riding on the tram)

The elderly balding man

had a five cent piece

stuck on the back of his head.

toward home

turning toward home

i walk collar up, huddled in random, quiet thought

amid the turmoil of cobblestoned old roma

tempered by the ages

of michelangelo, bernini,

shelly, keats,

and fellini

“oh, marcello” laments sophia

these weary streets are covered by now silent footsteps

put down through the ages

between some dusted grey buildings

nearly black, unattended

or vulgared in dashes by modern signage

how swiftly leaps time

day and night swing over

venders, thieves, beggars

in alleys

swarmed with map-clad tourists

while around thunder large buses and sirens

and all passersby suck exhaust

above are broken shutters, some missing

weather worn graffiti scratched in stone

potted plants on high-railed private terraces face the sky so as to look away from it all

core of me

the dentist says my tooth has a crack in

So its going to happen

extraction

another tooth is goin’ away

i’ve lost a few already

like someone who loses a limb and still has feelings in it

could this tooth be the core of me

maybe they’re all wrong and my brains are in it

the very core of me

yank it and I’ll be gone

wait and see

the last to know

okay
so i have a bit of disability
but i thought it impaired only my disposition
(i never read the instructions)

with confidence, courage and meri
we went to a week long ski place in the alps of bessans, france

it was more like Curly, Larry and Meri
(i was Curly)

and it was not actually a "week long" ski place
because it was still there when we left

should i start over?

okay
so we went to this place where
i dug, ground and pushed my face into the snow and ice
more than necessary

but it was fun, of a sort

my friend Max, one of the ski instructors
took me out of the beginners class in the first minute
and put me into the "absolute beginners" class

so i'll tell you -
those frenchies ski a lot.
we saw this kid about five doing a down hill
then fall flat backwards
AND THEN HE BENT UPWARD AND KEPT GOING!
he was down about one second

i saw a friend fall and got up in about three seconds

when i fell
i laid there a while and thought about things
like - what time is lunch?
where was i? the place looked familiar
in a white and snowy sort of way

i had long wooden stick-things tied onto my feet
how could i position them to stand up?

it took about five minutes to get up, everytime
sometimes i had help
sometimes i took the help down with me

wanna help?

i don't know if they will let me come back
i think i am on a list somewhere

engraving

An engraving looks like a pen and ink drawing, but from start to finsh the metal pate etching is an involved process. Part of the art is to make it look simple.

the true cross

constantio teotedesco of romania/transylvania

was applying guma laca to an old piece of furniture

and making it shine like a collector’s garage-kept ’57 buick

this other guy was making in-laid wooden clothes hangers

and i asked why

he said he was doing it for the fun of it

cause no one buys them

i asked his name

and he said Cruccia

the italian word for clothes hanger

i asked if he was joking

he thought i wanted the name of the thing he was making

and i finally got his real name, eugenio

i wasn’t sure if he was kidding

because it sounds like the italian word for genius

but is eugene

it’s tough being a foreigner

passing through, among friends

in a little workshop in roma

a plate engraving (incisione)

half a haze
half a sun
the early morning fisherman

secret love

i love clocks

they keep on ticking

and isn’t it amazing

time doesn’t exist

oh, time is here, we made it so

and you’d better not be late

cause that’s bad,

I know, I know

despite universal laws and regulations

I like clocks anyway

every time, anytime

cause they keep ticking and ticking

wealth revealed

today i went through my sock drawer

the strays and stragglers were gathered

my wife put them together

she is good to me

of course, i could have done the deed

but she is so much more skilled.

it is her lot in life

to be thorough until, at last, there is completion

i now have seventeen pair of clean socks

and more in the dirty clothes

you may as well know me now as i am

the john paul getty of socks

laboratorio

the painting is of my lab in ohio.
from my lab, looking out.
that's our 12 year old geo in the reflection
50 miles to the gallon
good ole geoie

below your will find the objects from the bessans photo blown up. if i could run picassa any better they'd be big as a house, but i couldn't transfer them larger. take it from me, they don't look like smudges on the camera lens. they are three cornered things put together to form different shapes.
smudge my butt, that's what i meant to say to my contact with expert credentials.

back to the painting. it's acrylic on canvas.
i'm putting together a web site. let's say several of us are.
not to sell art or poetry, but to put it out there, cause i think it is time for the world to enjoy things, to appreciate the beauty in the world.

i live in rome most of the year
even here the new age has overrun the beauty of the ages
i have hope the wheel keeps turning
and like a wave there are highs and lows

give all to love
patiently trod
smile when you can
do the best you can

sun goes up
sun goes down
the good times
will come around

so now a guy calls - just now
he found my name in the rome phone book
because he found a telecomando, or a device to open a gate
it had my last name and the first three numbers of my voip phone on it

but it is a device to open a gate and i don't have a gate
and my last name is the only one like it, of the six million names in roma
he found me, but it wasn't my thing he found
my last name is Sender and it could mean the device was a sender

the numbers?
incomplete, but they almost meant something to me

like the story of roma
incomplete
and i'm not sure what it means to me
maybe that's why i'm still here