haiku 29 Nov 2017

Seeing through one eye
Thought and memory flying
Sleipnir stamps stoutly

[ americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan ]

haiku 27 Nov 2017

By Nature’s decree
All things begin; all things end
Calmly embrace change

[ americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan ]

haiku 22 Nov 2017

Pizza sits heavy
Clogging up the inner works
Fat and carbs - yum

[ americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan ] 

haiku 20 Nov 2017

Bent, stooped, or injured
Nonetheless striving forward
Mankind perseveres

[ americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan ]

haiku 17 Nov 2017

Light incense at dawn
Sit quietly, empty mind
Rest in nothingness

[ americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan ]

haiku 15 Nov 2017

A light fog settles
Gathering gloomily now
Mystery abounds

[ americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan ]

haiku 13 Nov 2017

Green leaves fall frozen
Arctic winds sweeping southward
Deadly beautiful

[ americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan ]

haiku 10 Nov 2017

Knife and cutting board
Vegetables washed and ready
One false move - blood flows

americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan

on warmer feet

Following the recent onset of winter, and after relinquishing a blanket to its rightful owner, I noticed that my feet were getting and staying cold during my daily writing sessions. Previously, I would rest them on a bunched-up comforter; it did a good job of shielding my lower extremities against the uninsulated flooring panels that drag heat down into the frigid earthen cellar below.

In an attempt to mitigate my current discomfort, I threw down a single, thin sheet of cardboard, which provided little relief. Since today is recycling day, however, last night I walked repeatedly past a bin overflowing with cardboard. I took from it various sheets, cut them to size and taped them together at the ends (to keep out debris and bugs), making a block of cardboard roughly one inch thick upon which my feet now rest.

Unlike before, my feet are now far less likely to shed body heat into the linoleum tiles beneath them as I sit in an unheated room within an uninsulated house smithing lies, putting words on paper. And all it took was a pair of scissors, a few feet of tape, and a pile of rubbish.

americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan

haiku 06 Nov 2017

A moving canvas
Images etched into skin
Beautiful, self-so

americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan

haiku 03 Nov 2017

Distant shots ring out
Then, responding sirens wail
There be dragons, here

americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan​

on reducing stress

There’s a disc golf course in Montebello Park, Baltimore City, MD. I go there at 5pm, after a day’s work, to throw plastic. I find disc golf to be a cheap way to get exercise, hone my skills, challenge myself, and practice patience.

Until the past weekend, however, the path I took to bicycle there lead through gang-controlled neighborhoods and busy intersections. I’d arrive at the park agitated and stressed out from not only trying to avoid aggressive, distracted, and inconsiderate drivers but also worrying about drug-dealer hostility. Hence, my disc golf game suffered, and my peace of mind was compromised.

After consulting with a psychiatrist, I have decided to take a new route, one that skirts the rough areas and the hurtling, gasoline-powered, one-ton, steel battering rams driven by people ignoring their surroundings in favor of looking at their mobile phones. In terms of distance travelled, the new route is actually shorter than the old one, with fewer hills. Now, when I step up to tee off, my my anxiety levels low and I can disco stress-free, and contented.

americanifesto / 場黑麥 / jpr / urbanartopia / whorphan