Category Archives: Poetry
The Lowest Form of Poetry
A limerick is a strictly structured device used to deliver the most appealing nonsense and the most amazing precision. It has been called, without hostility, the lowest form of poetry. Edward Lear, a master of the limerick, had great influence … Continue reading
Posted in Poetry, Thoughts on writing, Uncategorized, Writing by others, Writing tips
Tagged Carroll, Huxley, Kipling, Lear, limericks
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I Hurled My Youth Into A Grave
Robert W. Service was a little like Kipling (internal link). They were contemporaries, although continents apart. Both adventurers, they lived the life they wrote about. Although Jack London is most associated with the Far North and the Yukon Gold Rush, … Continue reading
Posted in Poetry, Thoughts on writing, Uncategorized
Tagged gold, Poetry, prospecting, Robert Service, The Far North, The Yukon
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The Waste Land Read By Obi-Wan Kenobi
Okay. Sir Alec Guinness. If you’ve struggled with this poem, as I think we all have, an excellent way to approach it is by listening to a good reading. Guinness does a wonderful job. He brings out nuances not easily … Continue reading
Posted in Poetry, Thoughts on writing, video, Writing by others
Tagged Alec Guinness, Obi Wan Kenobi, Poetry, T.S. Eliot, The Wasteland, YouTube video
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” . . . the ship usually sailed backwards”
To follow Lewis Carroll’s Preface in The Hunting of the Snark (internal link) you must know what a bowsprit and a rudder are. The latter’s form and function is common knowledge, the bowsprit less so. According to the good folks … Continue reading
Posted in books, Poetry, Uncategorized
Tagged bowsprit, Lewis Carroll, nonsense poetry, rudder, Snark, The Hunting of the Snark
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Reflections on Haiku From a Non-Scholar
When I lived in Isleton, a small town in the California Delta, I made friends with the editor of the local weekly newspaper. It was called The River News Herald and Isleton Journal and his name was Michael Duffett. Duffett … Continue reading
Posted in Poetry, Thoughts on writing, Uncategorized, Writing by others, Writing tips
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Where Do You Get Your Inspiration?
Perhaps from a beating? On October 4, 1986, CBS anchorman and journalist Dan Rather was attacked on the streets of New York while walking to his apartment. According to Rather, the assailant kept saying, “Kenneth, what’s the frequency?” The attacker … Continue reading
Posted in music, Poetry, Uncategorized
Tagged inspiration, mental floss, Michael Stipe, Poetry, R.E.M.
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