Poets, clog dancers, birds--apparently we all want to be heard, observed, witnessed. That's five of Mrs. Boat Tailed Grackle on the top shelf, while Mister squawks below.
I wonder how the guy in the following video compares to the American mockingbird:
YouTube - Amazing! Bird sounds from the lyre bird - David Attenborough - BBC wildlife
Or, here's another glimpse of the poetic process at work (I'm sort of serious, but ever so metaphorical):
YouTube - Monty Python's best sketch ever
Or, here's another actual poem by Thomas Lux. It's at least somewhat about small towns.
The People of the Other Village by Thomas Lux : The Poetry Foundation [poem] : Find Poems and Poets. Discover Poetry.
This Lux poem is MAJOR depressing! I think of nation vs. nation... like Venezuela vs US, etc. I consider that humans are the only higher thinkers who do this. Birds don't, dogs and cats don't... just us guys!
ReplyDeleteEvokes Charles Simic a bit, maybe b/c I was just reading an essay of his descrying the real-life version of such pettiness in Serbia.
ReplyDeleteI fear this is how we view Haiti--and a hundred other countries--most of the time. Except we prob. think about them less.
Is that bird for real?!
"Funniest Monty Python sketch ever" is an extremely high bar, but this is one of my faves, hilarious physical comedy with a subtly serious message:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqhlQfXUk7w
Always up for MP. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLDSlYsje80
ReplyDeleteBrenda, I've wondered the same thing, re: war among the mammals.
ReplyDeleteBarbaro, you're not the first to ask about legitimacy of the bird. Answer: I don't know.
Re: Haiti and others, your comment reminds me of the documentary Hearts and Minds, about Vietnam--wrenching scene of a Vietnamese mother or wife wailing over the body of her loved one, as a voice-over has Westmoreland (or some high-up) saying something like, "Those people don't have the same feelings about death that Americans do."
One of my favorite topics for definition essays was "they." Or the slightly more sophisticated, "The Other."
AH and Barbaro, those are indeed great MPs. Thanks. I haven't watched 'em for years, so this has been a welcome trip.
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