vision/revision

my calendar fills
itself: gigs, rehearsals,
phone calls both
foreign and domestic

home in cellar
basement, underground dwelling
drawing more attention
takes more strength

like

treading cold water
shallow dead breaths
chatter teeth blue
black ocean gray

horizon slow and
distant, moving away
the earth moves
the water sways

there could never
be; this could
never be; holding
hands becomes a

dream, to feel
skin on skin.
a grasp, the
reassurance of safety.

grimm

returned

good morning folks
david and i
returned back north
here to type
the progress status
check for completeness
completed under caffinated
conditions. springing adjectives
vetted stories without
revealing too many
personal opinions that
may seem negative.
virginia, you're weird.
period exclamation point.

crowd was large
they love music
we slow, emotive
you polite, obligated
us mediocre performance
you mediocre response
venue quite classy
staff so friendly
food love affair
hackensaw boys great
fast and faster
end of night
scary by wiry
psychopath communing between
here and darkness
snappy snap fingers

north carolina becomes
home again, the
cave as shelter
as friend and
welcoming gentle arms
crowd, you are
wonderful, responsive, happy
us: on our
game for certain
and certainly pleased
performance peppy, light
retold psychopath story
of yester virginia
laughs and smiles
night goes fast
money in hand
slaps on backs
encouraging words exchanged
goodbyes and laters
return engagement imminent

grimm

pulling no punches

so i've listened to the demos
found some old music worth mining
constructing lyrics now...

slicking up the drills
break through the crust
the the first layer will give
dry weeds and dust

water hides deep
beneath any secret
we will ever keep
silent as bodies at rest

guided by guessing
anything so random
speaking of blessings
and nearly undone

by way of retreat
back into the earth
plausible belief
nothing is deserved

wary of the water
tired of the dirt
sound grows longer
dying of thirst

mud turns clay
cold, thick
bones will decay
feet and fists


practice makes prefect

grimm

where do i sign up?

This morning, the humidifier and i are having a conversation...


Andrew. Click clack clickety
Humidifier. glug whirrrr glug
A. Click click Click.
H. Gurgle whirr glug.
A. CLICK CLIick clack plink plink
H. WHIRRRRrrrrrRRRrrrRRrrRrrr
A. Plink tap tap click clack tap tap tap
H. Beep glug glug whirrrrrr beep
A. Sip click beep clack
H. whirrrrr glug glug glug


So as you can see I have a very close relationship with
my humidifier... although we are allowed to see other appliances
I keep coming back to the old Holmes Humidifier... you should
see the size of its water tank.

Grimm

for tenth time

my basement...
my workshop...
my dungeon...
my world...
my escape...
my fortress...
my downfall...

listening to demos
for future june star albums...

what to pick... what to do...
over thirty songs in all...
more... to record...

words slowly percolate
patient, i'm picking
them up on
my song radar...

signal to tape
digital tape, certainly...

bytes and jots
stored on cpu...

maybe i'll watch
tron...

grimm

things in boxes

this morning i am rooting through boxes
in my basement. deep twinges of "holding on"
spark and a sort of sadness bubbles up. i've
come to love the dry dusty smell of these boxes...
sitting in the dark for three or four years at stretch.

quiet because they are patient... memories anxious
to be held or just seen, again. today i will have to
say goodbye to some things... other memories and
items i will merely say to myself, "not yet."

grimm

the scramble begins

some day my
body will come
to rest, gently.

it will roll,
tumble, twist,
and slide. by

some slight chance,
maybe a patch
of green tufts

will act as
a cushion to
my still form.

wholly unexpected and
truly grateful for
its simple existence,

i will acknowledge
the gods whom
i had ignored.


silly poetry out of the way at this morning... coffee... subbing... 2 hour delay... another hour... more time spent booking and researching the internets for places to play! exciting times they are! whoooo... hoooooo... i can't help but feel a bit unorganized... maybe that something i should work on...

these receipts go here.
these folders go there.
this drink goes here.
that pork bbq goes here.

speaking of pork... we're heading back to Chapel Hill soon! Huzzah for us... good times abound when head back down to that land of simmering pig.

grimm

searching and scratching

just a quick note for today... rehearsing for tours... booking tours... eeks... saturday at the iota is shaping up to be a fun night... without a doubt... oh iota... you fanciful little thing...

other stupid stuff i got to do... clean things... laundry... find paying bar gigs... ick... mailing list... play some music... humidify guitar... the list is seemingly endless... i suppose.

meh.

grimm

worst case scenario

i snore.

there's no getting around it. my nasal passages become inflamed, the flap dividing my sinuses from my throat loosens, my mouth agape, these conditions attribute to the rumbling wheezing guttural gagging freight train noise my wife attempts to sleep next to, every night.

i feel bad for her.

i take muicnex d
i use breathe right strips
i use breath right snore films
i use a netti pot

i still snore.

on rare occasion though, i sleep... a deep intense sleep. for four hours. then i wake up suddenly, very alert. my dreams on these nights are vivid. last night my dream was an combination of many issues... disconnection from my childhood home, past students i had taught, relationship issues, and zombies.

usually i'd say zombies frighten me more than most things... but in the mix of all that other stuff, i find myself extraordinarily unnerved.

i was standing in my brother's room at my childhood home... out back i was watching several men kill zombies in various manners, but they were taking their time, in no hurry... as they were feeling successful... i could see the white picket fence posts next door being knocked down by more zombies.

side note: okay... so white picket fences... i get it... american dream being destroyed by the empty shells of people who strove for the same thing... we had a split rail fence in reality...

the men in the backyard were not quite concerned about the on coming zombies.

now i'm in a bed, i'm not sure whose... but i am there in... in the backyard, the backyard is now my brother's room, the men are doing somethings but it sounds like they are trying to sleep... on my back, i can feel pressure, like someone pressing with thin fingers... in an a different context the pressure would be called, tickling; in this case, however, it is terror. i am laying on my stomach, i slowly turn to see a dog? a doberman... but the doberman is a zombie and i must destroy its brain. i slide small metal cylinders into the temples of the dog's head and it leaves... i now have a flashlight... i am able to turn it on... i am aware, as we all are, that zombies retain a scant sense of who they were, my light shines on Tony... Anthony... I cannot remember his last name... i taught him at Francis Scott Key High School 1996 or 97... he drove a sports car... although now, in my dream, he has lost that hair and put on some weight... he is wearing a tuxedo... blue shirt... yes, ruffles. he announces his plans to marry a zombie, she is not a full zombie yet, but she's getting there. I see them kiss.

i wake up... unable to return to sleep... my nasal passages jammed up...

grimm

the top to bottom

awareness allows for few mistakes
a simple thought
funny how folks tend to move, shake,
drawn by bad decisions. imperceptible
lines of energy lock and drag them, like
a magnet.

no words, no advice, no diagram,
no role playing, no flags, no code
can ever redirect their path

i suppose

the grit underneath our skin, in our
bones, that will get us by.

but getting by does not mean
success or even happiness.

getting by suggests survival
suggests the bare minimum
suggests life support
suggests basic

at some point the grit moves us
to elevate, to work, to envision,
to believe (again), to refine, to engage,
to fire, to shape, to produce.

grimm

Midwest Tour Day Four and Five 12/14 and 12/15

as late as this may seem... my functions are in order again... my fingers
know the way. the tiny, impossible bursts of electricity form words
from gray salty matter to clicks on the keyboard have found purpose.

the coffee is ready.

st. louis

anticipation heightened in nearing the gateway to the west.
out of nowhere, all of a sudden, shazam... it stood there, a big
ol' arch. none of us had seen it before. for the first time i could
say that some giant structure really "loomed" above.

the arch seemed impossible too.

the drive itself did not present issues or problems, save for one
moment where we almost smacked into a center divide... safely
navigating that... we drove into an industrial park...

dave was navigatin'... and at first looked like it was going to suck. big time...
there was nothing around... nothing at all... scary, if you ask me... what if
east st. louis somehow organizes itself to beat the shit out of st. louis... we were
near the border!

anyhow, as i was planning my apologies to the band, for booking such
a place, we turned a corner, in both the literal and figurative, and ended up
on an ice covered residential street, at the end of the block sat Pop's Blue Moon
Saloon.

Capacity 75.
In House PA.
Mics and cables available.
First beer is free.
Set Times 9pm-12am

Terry, behind the bar, was a large mid-western man who appeared
to have seen much... stoic to strangers at first. I introduced myself as
part of the band... the ice began to melt, a little.

He shook my hand and gave me the run down on what was happening.
Terry's interest in keeping a well oiled bar was evident.
We loaded in... checked out the PA and began setting up...

check one
check two

hello st. louis...

Andy Herrin from One Lone Car came out and brought us
a kick pedal for the drums! What a swell guy... looking forward to
playing with them again! for certain.

As the crowd started coming in we met several nice folks... probably about
15 people came in... in such a small place you start to feel loved.

At the end... we packed up... the bar paid our tab and Terry gave us
$60... more than I know paid at the door. Times like this, I love America...


Columbus, OH

7.5 hour drive to Columbus... we started our trip at a diner...
chicken fried steak with white gravy... my heart persevered somehow...
good times though. the drive was easy, no bad weather... lots of coffee
and truck stop here or there.

we get to columbus, and following the directions, we found ourselves in another industrial
park. i kid you not.... but this time... there are no houses... I began preparing my apologies
again... "sorry fellahs... really i am." we find the treehouse... and no one is in sight... we sit
in the van... heat on... watching a mystery science theater on my iphone... funny!

the joint opens... we go in... labyrinthine nightmare! it is a cool place... but i was kind of
reminded of "masque of the red death" by poe... the twists and turns create a maze where you
cannot see what is in the next room until you are in it... yup... same thing...

the room the bands play in has an enormous tree growin' out the ground and through the roof...

no shit.

pretty neato,for certain.

Chris the bartender lays it out for us:

First Drink is Free
In house PA
Mics and Cables available
Set time: 10pm-11pm
Set Order: Swimsuit Edition, June Star, Wussy

Swimsuit edition showed up... set up... they were great! I really enjoyed their set... energy and
quirkiness! front man was pretty funny...

our set was solid... 40-50 crammed into the room to see us... they clapped at all the appropriate
times... lots of fun... excitement... we were really happy to play... sold more cd's than normal... 17.
mailing list... all filled up... we felt good about ourselves... really happy to have so many people
listening... people we didn't know... the end of the night we had a 14 dollar tab... and we received
$100 from the door...

Thank you Columbus! Seriously...

Grimm