Hawaiian Girl

by Elizabeth Parashis
copyright 2008
acrylic on board
note: click picture to see a larger version

IF I WERE

by Bea Garth
copyright 2008

If I were me
and you were you
what would we do?
Would we laugh and cry
give each other our hearts
and swear not to die,
if I were me
and you were you?

Instead we pace and stumble
being ever so humble
never learning to trust,
laughing at our disgust.
I hold myself in a huff,
stamp my feet
and let my heart rust
locking up the need
to laugh and cry.

Instead I realize
I am me
and you are you
and there is nothing
each other can do
while the cats meow
and the sparrows titter
hopping and pecking,
all stamping
and seeming to say
“That is that!”
as each flies, runs away.

Megane: Kintaro's Eyeglasses

by Erik Kaye
copyright 2008
watercolor
note: click picture to see a larger version


Here's what Erik has to say about the above painting:
"Megane: Kintaro's Eyeglasses, that's pronounced Meh-gah-neh, which is the word prominently spelled in reverse in the upper left-hand corner of the windows, and means eyeglasses. The cartoony head beside the big word is Kintaro-- Golden Taro or Golden Boy-- a folk legend who is the mascot for "Megane Do-rah-gu* (Megane Drugs Incorporated).

Please note this is a work-in-progress. Most of the details are in place, but it needs a lot of tweaking to give the plane of reflective mirror-glass the sheen that was the goal when I began this painting. "
-----Erik Kaye

ODE TO WOLFMAN GREGGIE

by Greg Hall
copyright 2008

When I was bom my father wore a lab coat
The first words audible were
"it's alive, it's al-l-l-l-ive ... "
Igor stood by and told the old man
"I'm glad your first child is a masculine child"
I ran with the wolves until I was seventeen
The villagers came with torches and burned the castle
But it was empty
It had always been empty
When the moon got full
My face broke out in fur
My teeth felt sharp and I had tons of energy
I became obsessed with Hank Williams
I was ready for love
I was drowning in love
And had no voice
No way to speak to another
Of the vast seas which were navigating me
I hid inside the rain
I hid inside the sunlight
I could only be seen under starlight
Seen
But
Not
Heard
I was the howling child
Muted by history
This went on for a long time
But one day this blonde girl
Looking to get out of the rain
Crawled under a boat propped up on the beach
And she taught me to write
My name in the sand
And then taught me to speak
One letter at a time
And then to weave the letters into a word
The words into sentences
And then
To Sing
She kissed me and bade me farewell
Now after this I wove a shirt made up completely of words
In my shirt I can go anywhere and pass for human
When I meet people I say "Spanish Lace"
or "Flamenco Oranges Impersonate My Tears"
Its only in the middle of three A.M.
I wake up trembling and remember my life
As the Monster's Son
Though still after writing a poem
I must admit
My teeth
Feel
Sharper

Flamenco Dancers

by Elizabeth Parashis
copyright 2008
acrylic on board
note: click picture to see a larger version