Motel Zero

Sun Dance

2012-01-30T06:15:00.000-07:00

sky river sings with
children of the large beaked bird
apsaalooke

Shining Through

2012-01-28T10:38:00.001-07:00

the plot unravels
red herrings are introduced
10 dollar ticket

Running Interference

2012-01-27T06:15:00.000-07:00

an afternoon of
american cinema
opening credits

Stalker

2012-01-24T12:18:00.001-07:00

communication
between disparate species
de-evolution

Crest

2012-01-23T09:48:00.000-07:00

footprints blown to scrim
as the old world vanishes
history lesson

A Simple Rime

2012-01-22T06:15:00.000-07:00

To whoever first thought of strapping two slick sticks to one’s feet on a snowy mountainside – thanks.

Grinnage

2012-01-21T10:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Crane. The snow drought is over.

R.I.P.

2012-01-20T06:15:00.000-07:00

take a last look at
the backside of history
sorry simon says

Messenger

2012-01-19T06:15:00.000-07:00

found in an old box
underneath the kitchen stair
uneasy voices

Fast, Furious

2012-01-18T11:25:00.000-07:00

four inches per hour
outside the kitchen window
hot rum and cocoa

Stagehand

2012-01-13T06:15:00.000-07:00

raising the standard
to keep the people clapping
election cycle

I’d Follow You Anywhere

2012-01-11T06:15:00.000-07:00

my morning commute
leaves everything to chance
reverse migration

Bill In A Boat

2012-01-10T06:15:00.000-07:00

plotting the odds of
rosencrantz and guildenstern
relativity

In the Garden

2012-01-09T06:15:00.000-07:00

believe and ye shall
overcome the evil one
- tebow 3:16

Re-ligion

2012-01-08T06:15:00.000-07:00

wrapped in love’s red tape
a man in a zuchetto
invents illusion

A Dream of Eden

2012-01-05T06:15:00.000-07:00

i’ve been sitting out
the zombie apocalypse
love truth and beauty

Moonwalk

2012-01-04T06:15:00.000-07:00

left without a map
walking in the maker’s tracks
city of refuge

Overview

2012-01-03T06:15:00.000-07:00

i used to chuckle
at area 51
flight to las vegas

First Turns

2012-01-02T06:15:00.000-07:00

first act of the year
behave like a polar bear
twenty-eight degrees

Blank Slate

2012-01-01T00:01:00.001-07:00

falling asleep to
fingernails on a chalkboard
lunatic planet

From Zero to One

2011-12-31T06:15:00.000-07:00

before cameras
before lies and chocolate
the first demiurge

Sleeping the Sleep

2011-12-30T06:15:00.000-07:00

she will one day wake
to remember her children
lilith’s bedchamber

Chase

2011-12-29T06:15:00.000-07:00

everybody craves
individuality
the devil’s bargain

Book of Days

2011-12-28T06:15:00.000-07:00

on the overleaf
our story takes a hard turn
forgotten author

Loaves and Fishes

2011-12-27T06:15:00.000-07:00

time bequeaths itself
in the eternal moment
walking on water

Away In A Manger

2011-12-25T23:13:00.000-07:00

The meanes therefore which unto us is lent,
Him to behold, is on his workes to looke,
Which he hath made in beauty excellent,
And in the same, as in a brasen booke,
To read enregistred in every nooke,
His goodnesse, which his beautie doth declare.
For all thats good, is beautifull and faire.

-Edmund Spenser, An Hymne of Heavenly Beautie

Noel

2011-12-24T12:01:00.000-07:00

Merry Christmas, everyone.

All I Want…

2011-12-22T11:12:00.000-07:00

…is a little snow. Is it too much to ask?

After Hours

2011-12-22T06:15:00.000-07:00

in and out of style
but everyone loves it
vince’s piano

Seasonal Disorder

2011-12-21T06:15:00.000-07:00

It’s breaking out all over, making it tough for grumpy old men to maintain their hard-earned reputations.

Once A Year

2011-12-20T06:15:00.000-07:00

happens.

Eye & I

2011-12-17T06:15:00.000-07:00

that’s what it looks like
he said from my point of view
(the one from above)

Five Kegs

2011-12-16T06:15:00.000-07:00

pale stout lambic and lager
pilsner ale and christmas bock
names of man’s best drink

Noir Translation

2011-12-15T06:15:00.000-07:00

under the black light
an alternative story
ultraviolence

Two By Two

2011-12-13T06:15:00.000-07:00

Nine by nine they drank the wine.

Pressure Test

2011-12-12T06:15:00.000-07:00

This is pretty much December in a nutshell.

Zeke’s Field

2011-12-11T06:15:00.000-07:00

Holy roller, a seven-wheel drive!

Restored Footage

2011-12-09T06:15:00.000-07:00

Yoda confronts ham solo.

Keep Your Head

2011-12-08T06:15:00.000-07:00

If…

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!

-Rudyard Kipling

CSI North Pole

2011-12-07T06:15:00.000-07:00

Santa’s Workshop, North Pole:

Early last evening Jingle, Santa’s head elf, was found slain after the annual pre-Christmas planning meeting. Gunshots were heard by several witnesses. Although no one professes to have seen the shooting, Jangle went missing shortly thereafter and remains a person of interest.

Christmas may be delayed this year due to the negative impact to toy production.

Kiss

2011-12-06T06:15:00.000-07:00

All you need is love (love is all you need).

Another Word from our Sponsor

2011-12-04T06:15:00.000-07:00

Cue the music.

Platitude, Interrupted

2011-12-01T17:17:00.000-07:00

ainlessness, ickbats
utality or omides?
ah, otherly love

Beautiful Machine

2011-11-30T06:15:00.000-07:00

fit form and function
focalize the four faces
candid camera

Fit For a Queen

2011-11-29T06:15:00.000-07:00

you probably think
this haiku is about you
sin in the garden

Holiday Table

2011-11-28T06:15:00.000-07:00

Just ask Alice. I think she’ll know.

Skywalkers

2011-11-26T06:15:00.000-07:00

visible at dusk
the sohu march on marsing
hopi kachina

Kitchen

2011-11-24T06:15:00.000-07:00

ingredients mixed
and marinating in wine
happy thanksgiving

IFO

2011-11-23T06:15:00.000-07:00

This universe mirrors the one next door, so some of the guys in white lab coats tell us. Still, I don’t think they’re quite right sometimes.

Grip

2011-11-22T06:15:00.001-07:00

of vine and branches
to reach the unseen alcove
behind the church wall

1%

2011-11-21T06:15:00.000-07:00

President "Bobby": Mr. Gardner, do you agree with Ben, or do you think that we can stimulate growth through temporary incentives?
[Long pause]
Chance the Gardener: As long as the roots are not severed, all is well. And all will be well in the garden.
President "Bobby": In the garden.
Chance the Gardener: Yes. In the garden, growth has it seasons. First comes spring and summer, but then we have fall and winter. And then we get spring and summer again.
President "Bobby": Spring and summer.
Chance the Gardener: Yes.
President "Bobby": Then fall and winter.
Chance the Gardener: Yes.
Benjamin Rand: I think what our insightful young friend is saying is that we welcome the inevitable seasons of nature, but we're upset by the seasons of our economy.
Chance the Gardener: Yes! There will be growth in the spring!
Benjamin Rand: Hmm!
Chance the Gardener: Hmm!
President "Bobby": Hm. Well, Mr. Gardner, I must admit that is one of the most refreshing and optimistic statements I've heard in a very, very long time.
[Benjamin Rand applauds]
President "Bobby": I admire your good, solid sense. That's precisely what we lack on Capitol Hill.

-from “Being There” by Jerzy Kosinski

Pane

2011-11-18T06:15:00.000-07:00

I'm looking through you, where did you go? I thought I knew you, what did I know? You don't look different but you have changed. I'm looking through you; you're not the same. - Beatles

Out and In

2011-11-17T06:15:00.000-07:00

the exit becomes
visible in one second
opportunity

Adore

2011-11-16T06:15:00.000-07:00

Sanctuary. Open from the inside.

Re-Cycling

2011-11-15T06:15:00.000-07:00

clark kent encounters
a parallel universe
taking out the trash

The .001%

2011-11-14T06:15:00.000-07:00

a cup of water
and a rock to rest upon
something from nothing

Class #2: Leading Lines

2011-11-13T06:15:00.000-07:00

Number two in the series.

At Rest

2011-11-12T06:15:00.000-07:00

Every day is a veteran’s day.

11.11.11

2011-11-11T11:11:00.000-07:00

Major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 with the German signing of the Armistice. - wikipedia

Fifteen million people were killed in World War I, the war to end all wars. Since then, 145 million more war dead have been added to the tally. The war genie is out of the bottle for good and there is no end in sight.

The crowning achievement of our collective human race is the inventive capacity to wipe each other off the face of the earth. As the stakes get higher with each generation, one of these days some evil genius may succeed in finishing the job.

And yet there are those that choose to stand in the face of this historically endless onslaught, those that understand the likely personal outcome. Each year on this day we mark our gratitude to those braver than us who have sacrificed their own lives to grant us the freedom to live our own. We do a lousy job of repaying our debt, yet others like them step in to defend us anyway.

These are our lights, our hope for our future generations. It’s not in our politicians and policymakers who flatter and fill the airwaves, but in our fallen who simply gave all without acclaim or thought of self. Their river of blood flowing from all battlefields to the common sea is the bright path we seek, the way out and the way in. It is our duty to follow it to the end, always remembering.

Overherd

2011-11-10T06:15:00.000-07:00

While shooting the falling barn, these two fellers came over to check us out. Caretakers, I suppose.

Third and Long

2011-11-08T06:15:00.000-07:00

time is ruthlessly
stumbling to the finish line
wind in the barbwire

Housing Crisis

2011-11-07T06:15:00.000-07:00

property values
are still sinking rapidly
home home on the range

To Sleep

2011-11-06T06:15:00.000-07:00

Autumn is winding down; trees are shaking off their summer finery and pulling out the snow blankets for a long winter’s nap.

Tweenlight

2011-11-05T06:15:00.000-06:00

opposing forces
at battle in the big wood
an old soldier’s scars

Highland Laddie

2011-11-04T07:34:00.000-06:00

down by the river
light skittering through the trees
an irish wedding

Gold and Silver

2011-11-03T06:15:00.000-06:00

Silver Creek, fly fishing Mecca.

Peacocks Among Us

2011-11-02T06:15:00.000-06:00

At times like this, you know everything’s going to be ok.

The Way

2011-11-01T06:15:00.000-06:00

even though i walk
through the valley of shadow
a psalm of david

Coda

2011-10-31T06:15:00.000-06:00

Sun Valley aspens (with a little help from their friends).

Release

2011-10-30T06:15:00.000-06:00

Sun Valley aspens, second movement.

Arise

2011-10-29T06:15:00.000-06:00

Sun Valley aspens, first movement.

Stand

2011-10-28T06:15:00.000-06:00

Sun Valley aspens, overture.

Corn Soldiers

2011-10-26T06:15:00.000-06:00

The art of warfare, as taught by common silage. Listen up.

Fire Fly

2011-10-25T06:15:00.000-06:00

How strange this fear of death is! We are never frightened at a sunset. – George MacDonald

Riddle

2011-10-24T06:15:00.000-06:00

Today’s walk through the hills had a few head scratching moments.

Filament

2011-10-22T06:15:00.000-06:00

reading a good book
by the light of a milkweed
edison’s daydream

Toolish Behavior

2011-10-19T13:00:00.000-06:00

It’s allergy season and my dependence on eye drops has increased. Not that it makes much difference.

Not Dead Yet

2011-10-11T06:15:00.000-06:00

flowers are dying
leaves are falling from the trees
in some other world

Eye Cue Test

2011-10-06T06:15:00.000-06:00

stare for ten seconds
and your little world becomes
a magic carpet

Off the Clock

2011-09-28T06:15:00.000-06:00

when everything
happens all at the same time
stars fall from the sky

First Day of School

2011-09-23T06:15:00.000-06:00

Class #1: The Rule of Thirds

The first of a series (maybe)…

Split

2011-09-21T06:15:00.000-06:00

once upon a time
the world was writ in symbols
prismatic colors

Silent

2011-09-20T06:15:00.000-06:00

from my vantage point
everything is quiet
city of blue souls

Megahertz

2011-09-19T06:15:00.000-06:00

the social network
grinding granite into sand
whistlers in the dark

Webmaster

2011-09-14T06:15:00.000-06:00

I’ve loved spider webs since I was a kid. I still can’t fathom how these little critters put them together so perfectly. This spider has been sitting in the center of her trap about as long as yesterday’s example – over a week now. I don’t see many other bugs in the garden and I think I have these two to thank.

She Dreams

2011-09-13T06:15:00.000-06:00

every creature
carries an image of god
garden guardian

Out of the Smoke

2011-09-12T06:15:00.000-06:00

in the mother tongue
the ten thousand names of god
are identical

Ten Years After

2011-09-11T04:15:00.000-06:00

There’s not a lot to say today that hasn’t already been said a million times. Even still, we need to hear the words, to keep hearing them, to be re-minded not only of the evil events that slowly unfolded that morning ten years ago, but of the myriad tales of selfless heroism and ultimate sacrifice. Some words matter more than others and here are some that ring hard and true, the kind that won’t fade away anytime soon.

It’s not a matter of ‘never forget’ because we can’t. It’s how we remember that’s important.

Eve of Destruction

2011-09-10T06:15:00.000-06:00

all god’s creatures stop
one evening for mourning
solitary dove

Geometry

2011-09-09T06:15:00.000-06:00

they came and they left
just before the stars came out
bicycle riders

Impact Zone

2011-09-08T06:15:00.000-06:00

flash gordon arrives
in his silver rocket ship
black and white tv

Systole

2011-09-07T06:15:00.000-06:00

what the barker said:
i’ve been waiting for music
like this all my life

One Ear Deserves Another

2011-09-05T06:15:00.000-06:00

playing peekaboo
with the unknown universe
life of a painter

River Kiss

2011-09-04T06:15:00.000-06:00

men in a bucket
sail off the edge of the world
verne and the wizard

Float

2011-09-03T06:15:00.000-06:00

Is there a dumber holiday than Labor Day? Who cares – it’s the last chance of the summer to play hooky and engage in serious slack. Let’s get to it.

Filth

2011-09-02T06:15:00.000-06:00

those stinking zombies
zombies zombies more zombies
just wanna have fun

Dirty Picture

2011-09-01T06:15:00.000-06:00

If you’re a runner and you want to have more fun than you’ve ever had in your life, sign up for one of the Dirty Dash races in the Northwest next time one comes your way. Besides providing opportunity for perfectly reasonable adults to behave like insane children, it’s a photographer’s dream event.

Orangefield

2011-08-31T06:15:00.000-06:00

rough god goes riding
in o in the country fair
in sweet summertime

Sky Pilots

2011-08-30T06:15:00.000-06:00

the world is on fire
entire cities are burning
three dollars a ride

Sidebar

2011-08-29T06:15:00.000-06:00

they’re not really here
the ones right in front of us
forbidden apple