Three Breaths

breathing for wits and breathing for steps
trying to find a bond so i can save my breath
unless you can take what's left and then
throw it into bed til dawn and when
sunlight reaches breath one i'll lay down again
i'll lay down again
lay down again

sleeping for tips and sleeping for drive
teaching all my self to keep up inside
to keep up and stay up and to forge my fire
to light it all to burn it up but keep it right
when fire reaches breath two i'll stay up all night
stay up all night
up all night

eating with lips and eating with fools
try and teach a twit to eat without drool
or pass it off and take off and save that food
for the stomach the soul the heart the dry one too
and when hunger reaches breath three i'll know what to do
know what to do
what to do

i'll live

I'll tread your trail with pride.

Song: "Epitaph" - Badly Drawn Boy

Please don't leave me wanting more
I hope you never die
There's no need to say why
Just promise that you'll try
-Badly Drawn Boy

Take Him Away

Song: "My Thoughts Take Me Away" - Big D And The Kids Table

Separate tracks can lead to the same truths:
Black or white, pink or blue;
I choose
The one with less stairs.

an elaboration of my procrastination

so.

this is technically my first post here on lyric & canvas. a little late, i admit. but better late than never. right? :)

anywho, to be honest i really shouldn't be posting at all. i should be studying, writing, and memorizing for my sociology test in the morning. but i'm not. not one bit. so in the mean time, i decided to look through a few old boxes of memories in search of some inspiration. let's just say...i found some. here's an extra credit assignment i did for my junior year english class. i won't give away any insight or other comments about it---you can just take it as it is. enjoy :)




"the stale, stagnant humidity hung in the lush jungle air of the island. we laughed and talked as the sun played peek-a-boo among our faces while taking a break from the exhausting hike up the powerful and seemingly unconquerable mountain. i lay back for a moment on my own to close my eyes and enjoy this peaceful yet lonely little world that the island seemed to envelope you in. the grass tickles my ears, the sound of the tide rushes in as a distant but fierce sounding bird calls out from just over the hill. i notice a ladybug resting in the hollow of my neck. her wings flap nervously as she flutters up, as if anticipating a deadly oncoming fate. i sigh and relieve her of this fear as she flits up and away. and i make a wish before she flies out of sight, reclosing my eyes before continuing our journey.

i wake just minutes later to find my companions gone. i jump up, my eyes darting all over the surrounding areas as i hear a rustle of leaves, and some close but jumbled sounds to my left. my fists clench and my heart races as i get ready for whatever makes its way out from the underbrush. i sigh with relief this time when the rustling turns out just to be my friends, coming back with armloads of tropical fruit and a canteen of cool, fresh water. joe hands me the canteen and i take a long refreshing gulp before passing it back. we decide to carry onward and upward after that delightful midday intermission.

after working our way up, we finally arrive at our destination about an hour later. the sweat runs free from our brows but at a time like this, we pay no attention to menial details like that. we fumble for our cameras and finally are able to capture the scenery, the detail, the beauty and simplicity of this place we have come to know so well. after a gratifying photo shoot atop the mountain, we exhale simultaneously and give each other a nod of affirmation that begins our journey back down. down, down, down we go, rushing the death of the day as the sun fades to none and we are soon left with a dark backlit canopy of stars; the constellations that tell the stories of our lives."

----------------
Now playing: Bob Dylan - I Want You
via FoxyTunes

Little Camera

Song: "I Turn My Camera On" - Rock Kills Kid (Cover of the very good Spoon song)

School is over and I'm nocturnal again,
sleeping all day and doing this all night.
I need to find myself some sun,
and perhaps a bigger camera.

Daft.

I can't tell you why I'm feeling so daft and petty,
sitting in this dark room all cold and scary,
waiting for a little light to shine and hold me,
whispering some little things to brighten and console me.

But am I really the one that needs this bright and shine
and 'wakey.' Wake me
Up from this makeshift low I'm feeling
Up and out too far from feeling 'nakey.' Naked,
raw, meaningful, stop we can't go 'takey.' Take me
down a notch, I can't just watch, I think I need some action.

So I can act and react to the loud commotion,
act and react to the show of emotion, the ocean.
It puts the notion on it's skin and watch
he'll rub it right on in and watch
him painting on a grin and as he paints his way to sin,
grimace.

How can I finish? I haven't witnessed
tragedy, oh fragile me, don't hide from me
I need to see this image.

------------

Randomly sparking up a conversation with an outcome from left field, I sat not knowing what was real, or how I felt, or how to react. So I took out my book and pen and started sketching out my words, thinking what I was feeling was completely absurd. Maybe it was a wrong reaction, but how am I supposed to know? I've never been in a situation like this. My life at home seems so tame at times. I feel left out of some of the more drastic things. Like I can't take it? I feel like I live too far away for them to be including. How am I supposed to cope with these kinds of things when I encounter one in my ballpark? I'll just sit there blankly staring and my emotions will flounder. Will I cry? Can I cry? The last time I did was for a cartoon dog. And so many things keep happening around me; I sometimes feel bogged down under all this weight and pressure I can't comprehend. There are some other things that I need to say but happenstance won't bend for me. This is what's making me feel so foolish and petty and cowardly. I need to find the guts and out and say, "I'm ready." I feel like I'm being too selfish in my thoughts and I can't think of how to help it.

Hokai.

So this is the deal. It's been almost a year since I updated this. Frankly, I forgot about it for a couple months there. I feel like this can be a really good, conveniently shared outlet for some of my own endeavors. I've actually got an idea running through my head. I saw a project similar to this idea, and I really want to bring in my best friend in the whole wide world, a little miss Samantha A. Russell IV.

The idea: An artistic, photographic, musical collaboration between she and I.

We couldn't be more alike and different at times. We'll go to the same places and photographic completely different objects, notice different things around us. We'll listen to some of the same music but of course have some distinct differences in taste. We'll write, albeit with different styles.

The idea, (expanded):

• We take turns with the entries. Me one day, her the other.
• The posts shall consist of one photograph (or other piece of artwork,) one song by whomever we choose (possibly inspiring or inspired by the artwork,) and perhaps (as in optional) a few words ,be it poetry, an explanation, or some random thoughts.
• We do this until we get bored or forget, and hopefully that's not any time soon.

So stay tuned!

-Joe