Someday My Bus Will Come (from 2007)

I thought I’d catch the bus today
To travel out to Lyall Bay
And to hear the band Fat Freddy’s Drop
So I walked up to the stop.

I saw no bus and looked around
Unhappiness was what I found.
The schedule said, “Yes,”
But the facts said, “No.”
Walking was the way to go.

I wonder sev’ral times a week,
“Should I apply a new technique
Or keep buying a monthly card
Knowing buses my trip will retard?”

My stance is pro-environment
Good citizens I represent
When I travel by bus or train

Flushing timeliness down the drain.

Jealousy (based on Billy Joel's Honesty)

Coveting affection
That isn't mine to get
Could be quite an unrewarding aim
But when I change direction
I see without regret
That this guy will never feel the same


Jealousy inhibits the sublime
And makes me a dependent pawn
Jealousy is such a waste of time
It holds me back from moving on

When I'm unproductive,
Feeling uninspired
I try to find a reason for the mood
And since it's not constructive
To hang around this tired
I'll drop my detrimental attitude

Jealousy inhibits the sublime
And makes me a dependent pawn
Jealousy is such a waste of time
It holds me back from moving on

Bassists' Bane (from 2007)

Could you lend me a hand?
I just have one request
My recital will be SO amazing.
Students singing along, teachers praising
So, would you play in my band?
I'm only askin' the best!

I've arranged 'My Romance'
It's mostly in 3/4
Next I thought that you could
'Take the A Train'
'Cry Me a River' and then
Travel through 'Spain'
'Fever'-ish with a glance
I'll 'Wave' to you from the shore!

-Oh, and 'Au Privave' by "Bird"
I sing it in B (at 260)
Also, 'Summertime'
Man, what a classic!
"Different era," you say?
What's "Jurassic"?
Well, if you can make the 3rd
Let's start rehearsing at 3...

Half the battle (Couplets written in 2001 for Jonno K)

"Love bites, love bleeds

It's bringin' me to my knees

Love lives, love dies

It's no surprise" -- Def Leppard

With a penchant for jocks
she happily grapples

To avoid mental blocks
she hangs out in chapels

A playful paradox

a pair of ducks dapples

She tears open a box

of bright orange apples

My current insecurity grows from what Robert Fulghum beautifully describes as the ability to see two contradictory points of view quite clearly and the lack of ability to figure out whether everything or nothing I do matters. I could be both too young and too old, too good and too mediocre, too well-off and too broke, too happy by myself and too lonely, too intellectual and too creative, too selfless and too selfish. I know I like skating, dancing, singing and blogging; my doing them doesn't seem to hurt anyone. I may have to let that be enough for now. After all, Robert also says it's humor that helps him break through the inertia when he's feeling stuck.

Heaven forbid I compose anything new!

I feel so exposed, so unprepared. OK, yeah, I can edit as I go (and I have, already).

I'm totally jazzed by this blogging world. I can't believe it's taken me this long to become a part of it!

Truth be told, I was prompted to action by a kid who inspired me with his intelligent and insightful writing. Effortless. That's his whole style, as far as I can tell. Now, three short days later, I'm behind on sleep and wondering how long I can keep this up with any consistency. While I'm speculating, I'll also throw out that I'd love to know when I might not care as much about trying to be that kid's friend, somehow. Tomorrow? Next month? 2011?

Quiero practicar mi Español. Pienso que podría hacer algo que ayudaría mucha gente si pudiera hablar más fluentemente, pero yo no sé que es, todavía. Me gustaría estar lista.

I wouldn't complain one bit if my spending this time venting to the World Wide Web sparked the flame that powered my next leap of faith, though.

Arohanui ki a koutou, WWW. I guess I'd like to speak better Māori, too.

Go well, Loser

If you can let yourself go

Couldn't you let yourself stay?

It isn't easy, I know

Temptation gets in the way

But if you let yourself stop

Before things get too bad

You'd find the courage to drop

The negative habits you had.

If you took a look about, you would soon figure out

That you're far from alone in this pursuit

As you travel through each day, many options you weigh

Can leave you feeling obtuse or looking acute.

See ev'ry choice as a game

You win each time you say,

"I could let myself go

But I think I'll let myself stay."

Ode to "Princess Syd" (from 2008)

[Can be sung to the tune of The Beverly Hillbillies]

Let me tell you a story ‘bout a squid I know
Where she likes to live is in the sea below.
No person yet has seen her swimmin’ free
But to sperm whales she is a predatee.
(-Meal, that is. They slurp her up, beak and all!)

Now, if she were to sense a sperm whale’s glare
She could do a trick to get away from there.
She’d fill up her mantle with water from the sea
And send it out her funnel to shoot backward, rapidly.
(-Quick, that is! Off she’d go, in a flash.)

[And to the tune of Rocky Top]

Here are a few more Colossal facts:
She has tentacles, too.
Hooks sink into each fish she attacks
With her beak she bites through.

Special organs in her eyes
-Headlights in disguise!
Good ole’ Princess Syd
Our Colossal Squid
She’s Te Papa’s big squid.

To My Friends & Family

You get it.

You get me.

You help me through my struggles

And you improve my life significantly.

I shudder to think where I'd be

Without you - lost at sea.

I mean it.

I mean you.

In every situation

When I've had a problem, you have always come through.

I'm honored and humbled each time that you stop

On a dime

Just to be there

For me.

Lyrics from 2005

The year was '63

In protest we marched on Birmingham and DC

The words of Dr. King

Moving us to let freedom ring!

No choice but to succeed

He stood on those steps and gave a voice to our need

Redeem and integrate every single school, every state.

We yearned for suffrage, expression by a vote

And equity in the workplace

Our lives we could promote

One day to look past the color of our skin

To character and our content within, the way it should have been.

On this we could agree

Above other needs we wanted NOW to be free

We marched from far and wide

Under Dr. King, unified.

Languished in the corners

We felt

Exiled

In our land

So we had to make a stand!

(Although I wasn't around when this happened, I studied Dr. King's famous address to gain a fraction of understanding and an appreciation for the passion that moved these people to work together.)

Off my chest

I feel frustrated by my current circumstances and impatient with myself for not being able to accept them.
Compared to many people (probably hundreds of thousands, at least) I have a pretty fantastic life. I support myself, and I have time to participate in live theatre projects on the side. I get to work with amazingly creative people in a really stable business.
Somehow that's not good enough for me. For one thing, I have identified a bad habit of seeking companionship from unavailable people. Secondly, logic tells me that comparing myself to others is fruitless, at best. Nonetheless, I do.
Fortunately (and unfortunately), I grew up in an incredibly caring family. It's only unfortunate in the sense that I haven't seemed to be able to drop the high standards of respect I learned. Out in the "real world" I find that many people (probably hundreds of thousands, at least) don't treat each other so well.
Therefore, I seek to trade loneliness for solitude, sometimes. Tomorrow's a new chance to find some more patterns that fit.

Just Keep Climbing, from November 2007

Windy weather blowin' choices around my head
I need a sign to know which way to go - so easily misled
Undecided, I think I go left or right
But suddenly the answer's clear, when sun cuts through the night.

The only way out is up
I'm reaching for the rock
I will be held accountable
I'm separate from the flock.
The only way out is up
I'm steady as I climb
No height seems insurmountable
One step at a time.
The only way out is up.

Resolution
For once I'm on solid ground
But my awareness of its transcience disturbs the peace I've found.
Blissful stillness, momentarily struggle free
I hope I can remember this when conflict threatens me.

The only way out is up.

Mission statement

Good day! Thanks for visiting me. With this blog I'm hoping to smooth out a few things in my career path and personal journey and gain some technical skills in the process, perhaps. I learn best by trial and error.