tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883979841111173610.post9120648639124663584..comments2024-02-05T00:16:13.698-05:00Comments on Banjo52: Janet Loxley Lewis, "Austerity"Banjo52http://www.blogger.com/profile/04342397136888422440noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883979841111173610.post-88864043651323138472013-11-27T12:36:31.639-05:002013-11-27T12:36:31.639-05:00P.S. The fact that people will not let her in &quo...P.S. The fact that people will not let her in "to their warm gardens" is another wonderful complication, I think. We can't be entirely sure about who's rejected whom the most, or first, at least in the speaker's mind. <br />Banjo52https://www.blogger.com/profile/04342397136888422440noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883979841111173610.post-57433326347207253872013-11-27T12:29:47.358-05:002013-11-27T12:29:47.358-05:00Jean and Rune, that photo is a couple of years old...Jean and Rune, that photo is a couple of years old, so I don't remember how much I intended to include the swan. I do think the swan adds interest. <br /><br />And Rune, oh my, yes, bees are filthy, rotten, hen-pecked Sodomites, porn stars from way back. You're a man of the world, so I thought you knew . . . <br /><br />AH and Stickup, I wonder if she is to some extent trying to convince herself that she's "solitary and complete." But I tend to believe her, which for me adds impact to the poem. "A gathering of people just so much buzzing and annoying background noise"--I've certainly been to several too many gatherings that fit that description. She sounds like a much more genuine, hardcore recluse than I ever have been, but I have a streak of it, which again adds interest for me. <br /><br />Stickup, thanks for the compliment and the info about your photos. Digitalization offers so many options . . . I really like the way you used it last time (and maybe other times I didn't recognize it).<br /><br />Kelly and STickup, great. I felt that cold and isolation too. When I dislike or am indifferent about a poem, it's often because I don't trust the poet's honesty or urgency or investment in it. Lewis sounds thoroughly authentic to me, which of course just adds to the "cold and isolation"--maybe a little scarily so.<br /><br />Tucked up Canada Geese aren't a typical sight for me--when it's cold enough, I usually hit the treadmill or the mall (an uncomfortable confession), so the geese were a kick for me. And maybe I've said before that wildlife impresses me more and more with its ways to survive. These birds that stay all winter . . . such a basic thing, but holy cow. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Banjo52https://www.blogger.com/profile/04342397136888422440noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883979841111173610.post-24712302851180489212013-11-26T08:25:54.184-05:002013-11-26T08:25:54.184-05:00Beautiful poem. I can feel the cold and isolation....Beautiful poem. I can feel the cold and isolation. It affected me the same way...surprise at the flipped imagery ("high monotony of starry skies"). Made me go back and take a several more looks. <br /><br />Love the sight of the Canada Geese tucked up and resting on the ice.<br /><br />Happy Thanksgiving!Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02263405659108175434noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883979841111173610.post-17253676868756851482013-11-25T19:59:21.438-05:002013-11-25T19:59:21.438-05:00I can relate. Time spent alone in the solitude of ...I can relate. Time spent alone in the solitude of clean, vast, powerful spaces does make the day-to-day concerns and activities of society seem strange and remote. I love the poem and of course, the photos.<br /><br />(I did sharpen that last set of images. Usually, I think trees look better without any sharpening, but this time I made an exception and was happy with the result).<br /><br />Have a great Thanksgiving!Stickup Artisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00028394186285973772noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883979841111173610.post-74016565796315851332013-11-24T22:08:41.304-05:002013-11-24T22:08:41.304-05:00"People will not let me in
To their warm gard..."People will not let me in<br />To their warm gardens<br />Full of bees."<br /><br />I don't know, the poem confuses me. She is solitary and complete? And a gathering of people just so much buzzing and annoying background noise? Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883979841111173610.post-1186677537021024542013-11-24T13:48:51.033-05:002013-11-24T13:48:51.033-05:00Beautiful photos. The swan with ducks does look l...Beautiful photos. The swan with ducks does look like it belongs to the fairy tale.<br /><br />I like the poem. Cold, remote.Jean Spitzerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13520415864511680025noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883979841111173610.post-4006645096563538372013-11-23T11:36:18.053-05:002013-11-23T11:36:18.053-05:00First a compliment on the photos and a question: W...First a compliment on the photos and a question: Was it intentional to include that single swan with all the ducks? It made me think of H.C. Andersen, and I somehow connected it with the poem.<br /><br />I didn't know that bees were pornographic, but I know there are those who still regard "the birds and the bees" in that light :-)<br /><br />Personally I have lived almost all my life on the coast - except for a short period when I lived deep in the mountain forest. I think I get that part of the feeling, at least. I would perish without the sea.Rune Eidehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01008247272056395901noreply@blogger.com