"Pushed into an unlighted room,
the door banged (shut) and locked for ever;
I shall then have to light a lamp
of aggressive voltage in my mind,
to keep at bay the night."
Wyndham Lewis
from "The Solitary Outlaw"
by B.W.Powe
"But, the winds of power routinely snuff out such egoism. Differences and dissent, tolerated in theory, pose a threat to those, who want to shape opinion. Lewis' independent flame, which he believed resembled a blow torch, was almost blown out.
Risking the powers allied against you: this is the code of awareness. Lewis demonstrated that freedom of speech is a matter of who manages the media, who controls access to the public. He dramatized throughout his cantankerous career that debate matters; and, that if you talk truly to others as individuals, those who overhear will, however briefly, be powerless. He stated again that the worst crime for a citizen is to be unobservant, petty, asleep. He tested the limits of the intellectual's liberty, in the post-war west.
Now, the problems he spotlighted are more insidious. The drama of the word plays to an empty house. The solitary outlaw is both the writer and the reader. They are engaged in a strange exchange that is clandestine, even subversive; not at all in the best interest of an impulse-driven society, suspicious of privacy!"
B.W.Powe
SPIRIT WARRIORS
by Stephen McPhail (inspired by Black Elk)
FROM THE CENTRE OF THE WORLD
CLEARLY SEE THAT WHAT WE DO...
IS LIKE A SHADOW ON THE GROUND
WHILE OUR VISION IS WHAT'S TRUE...
OH GREAT SPIRIT, HELP US TO SWAY
AS BLOOMING BLOSSOMS ON YOUR TREE...
WE PERFORM OUR DANCE OF POWER
NOURISHED BY LIFE'S MYSTERY...
SEASONS RAIN FOR CRYING THINGS
HELP THEM GROW TO STAND UP TALL...
SPIRIT WARRIORS LAUGH AT THOSE
WHO KEEP TRYING TO MAKE US SMALL...
FROM THE CENTRE OF THE WORLD
GROWS AN ETERNAL FLOWERING TREE...
FULL OF LEAVES & SINGING BIRDS
IT'S THE SOUL OF BEING FREE...
Friday, December 21, 2007
Thursday, December 20, 2007
SPIRITUAL TREASURES
Using only a hoe and a large glass of water, I once single-handedly defended a small village in the Amazon Basin, from a horde of ferocious army ants. I play bluegrass cello; I was scouted by the Mets; I am the subject of numerous documentaries. When I’m bored, I build large suspension bridges in my yard. I enjoy urban hang gliding. On Wednesdays, after school, I repair electrical appliances free of charge. I am an abstract artist, a concrete analyst; and, a ruthless bookie. Critics, worldwide, swoon over my original line of corduroy evening wear. I don’t perspire. I am a private citizen; yet, I receive fan mail. I have been caller number nine and have won the weekend passes. Last summer, I toured New Jersey with a travelling centrifugal-force demonstration. I bat 400. My deft floral arrangements have earned me fame in international botany circles. Children trust me.
I can hurl tennis rackets at small moving objects with deadly accuracy. I once read “Paradise Lost”, “Moby Dick”, and “David Copperfield” in one day; and, still had time to refurbish an entire dining room that evening. I know the exact location of every food item in the supermarket. I have performed several covert operations with the C.I.A. I sleep once a week; when I do sleep, I sleep in a chair. While on vacation in New Zealand, I successfully negotiated with a group of terrorists, who had seized a small bakery. The laws of physics do not apply to me!
But, as my mum love's to say: "If you're so smart; how-cum yr not rich?"
"It's all for the spiritual treasures, mother dearest!"
I have volunteered, off and on, since 1998 (they pay me when they can) working as a project coordinator; with a non-profit Aboriginal organization, called Frontiers Foundation Inc. Part of the earlier years was spent in Northern Canada, working with rural folk, who got Frontiers' "Operation Beaver", new construction or home improvement grants. Then, I was involved with the development of Frontiers' first urban (supportive) affordable housing complex, called "Project Amik", here in Toronto, on Coxwell Avenue; where Frontiers now has its head office. (http://www.frontiersfoundation.ca).
Despite having been under-funded and under-marketed, Frontiers Foundation has persisted in challenging the government, to address the affordable housing crisis in Canada (The Planet?). Though housing is number one on Frontiers' agenda; they also find volunteer teachers for northern communities. Before there was "Habitat for Humanity"; for 45 years, there has been Canada's own "Frontiers Foundation".
Today, was the staff Christmas party, like many happening this week. It was a fabulous feast; which, as usual, prompted a good turnout. Congrats to Frontiers' fearless leader, Charles Catto, for following his good wife, Barbara's able directions and producing her famous chili; supplementing Marilyn's fabulous turkey and ham, with all the many fixings & trimmings. A tip of the hat to office manager, Pat, for her remarkable punch. ("Really, I just threw in whatever was at hand!") Roland, the super at Project Amik, circulated with his digital camera; getting evidence on all the usual suspects. Thank you, Santa; for all the gifts to the Project Amik children.
I can hurl tennis rackets at small moving objects with deadly accuracy. I once read “Paradise Lost”, “Moby Dick”, and “David Copperfield” in one day; and, still had time to refurbish an entire dining room that evening. I know the exact location of every food item in the supermarket. I have performed several covert operations with the C.I.A. I sleep once a week; when I do sleep, I sleep in a chair. While on vacation in New Zealand, I successfully negotiated with a group of terrorists, who had seized a small bakery. The laws of physics do not apply to me!
But, as my mum love's to say: "If you're so smart; how-cum yr not rich?"
"It's all for the spiritual treasures, mother dearest!"
I have volunteered, off and on, since 1998 (they pay me when they can) working as a project coordinator; with a non-profit Aboriginal organization, called Frontiers Foundation Inc. Part of the earlier years was spent in Northern Canada, working with rural folk, who got Frontiers' "Operation Beaver", new construction or home improvement grants. Then, I was involved with the development of Frontiers' first urban (supportive) affordable housing complex, called "Project Amik", here in Toronto, on Coxwell Avenue; where Frontiers now has its head office. (http://www.frontiersfoundation.ca).
Despite having been under-funded and under-marketed, Frontiers Foundation has persisted in challenging the government, to address the affordable housing crisis in Canada (The Planet?). Though housing is number one on Frontiers' agenda; they also find volunteer teachers for northern communities. Before there was "Habitat for Humanity"; for 45 years, there has been Canada's own "Frontiers Foundation".
Today, was the staff Christmas party, like many happening this week. It was a fabulous feast; which, as usual, prompted a good turnout. Congrats to Frontiers' fearless leader, Charles Catto, for following his good wife, Barbara's able directions and producing her famous chili; supplementing Marilyn's fabulous turkey and ham, with all the many fixings & trimmings. A tip of the hat to office manager, Pat, for her remarkable punch. ("Really, I just threw in whatever was at hand!") Roland, the super at Project Amik, circulated with his digital camera; getting evidence on all the usual suspects. Thank you, Santa; for all the gifts to the Project Amik children.
Sunday, December 16, 2007
THE SOLITARY OUTLAW
When once asked about my political viewpoint, I thoughtfully responded:
"I am partly communist and partly fascist, with a distinct streak of monarchism in my marxism; but, at bottom anarchist, with a healthy passion for order!" Wyndham Lewis, from "The Solitary Outlaw" by B.W.Powe
"His thinking tried to balance opposites in a rational equilibrium, without resorting to an ideological hard line."
B.W.Powe
"Laughter is the Wild Body's Song of Triumph. Laughter is the bark of delight of a gregarious animal, at the proximity of its kind. Bless the Solitude of Laughter." W. Lewis
"Lest we forget, Lewis was drunk with the laughing gas of the abyss. Against the Magnetic City, he advocated wit. The Lost Generation became the Beat Generation, which became the Me Generation, which became the Pepsi Generation. This New Wave may be the first truly Sound Generation; raised without a context of literacy." B.W.Powe
"The education system that I myself went through virtually discouraged books. I grew up out of balance, with amplified guitars, radios, records and a TV addiction. The musical milieu I knew has produced passionate voices; dance, theatre & film are truly the arts of our time. Nevertheless, our society now seems to urge us not to think, to be submissive and self-absorbed, to go with the flow of consumerism. Concentration is constantly shattered; the word is processed; and, ours may already be the anti-book world that Lewis anticipated."
B.W.Powe
"He who opens his eyes wide enough, will always find himself alone." W.Lewis
"Lewis strained to snatch back, from the ephemeral and the dictatorial, a critical identity, a singular wit; the solitary outwit! However, a sense of humour may not be enough to outwit political domination; laughter cannot overthrow the tyranny of inarticulation. A good nature will not relieve the realities of privation and pain. But, Lewis thought that wit was the flash of spirit, a rebellion against the iron bars of the powerhouse. His writings have too often suffered from those, who do not share his savage smile. He said: 'I have never been to a funeral; but, a desire to laugh is supposed to obsess people on such ocassions. It seems so terribly absurd; or, so absurdly terrible.' Wit is permanently out of place: it is your first offense and your last line of defense. Wit understands that the inability to play is surely a sign of madness. Wit is the centre of character that keeps you in balance; when you set out to put others off balance." B.W.Powe
"I am partly communist and partly fascist, with a distinct streak of monarchism in my marxism; but, at bottom anarchist, with a healthy passion for order!" Wyndham Lewis, from "The Solitary Outlaw" by B.W.Powe
"His thinking tried to balance opposites in a rational equilibrium, without resorting to an ideological hard line."
B.W.Powe
"Laughter is the Wild Body's Song of Triumph. Laughter is the bark of delight of a gregarious animal, at the proximity of its kind. Bless the Solitude of Laughter." W. Lewis
"Lest we forget, Lewis was drunk with the laughing gas of the abyss. Against the Magnetic City, he advocated wit. The Lost Generation became the Beat Generation, which became the Me Generation, which became the Pepsi Generation. This New Wave may be the first truly Sound Generation; raised without a context of literacy." B.W.Powe
"The education system that I myself went through virtually discouraged books. I grew up out of balance, with amplified guitars, radios, records and a TV addiction. The musical milieu I knew has produced passionate voices; dance, theatre & film are truly the arts of our time. Nevertheless, our society now seems to urge us not to think, to be submissive and self-absorbed, to go with the flow of consumerism. Concentration is constantly shattered; the word is processed; and, ours may already be the anti-book world that Lewis anticipated."
B.W.Powe
"He who opens his eyes wide enough, will always find himself alone." W.Lewis
"Lewis strained to snatch back, from the ephemeral and the dictatorial, a critical identity, a singular wit; the solitary outwit! However, a sense of humour may not be enough to outwit political domination; laughter cannot overthrow the tyranny of inarticulation. A good nature will not relieve the realities of privation and pain. But, Lewis thought that wit was the flash of spirit, a rebellion against the iron bars of the powerhouse. His writings have too often suffered from those, who do not share his savage smile. He said: 'I have never been to a funeral; but, a desire to laugh is supposed to obsess people on such ocassions. It seems so terribly absurd; or, so absurdly terrible.' Wit is permanently out of place: it is your first offense and your last line of defense. Wit understands that the inability to play is surely a sign of madness. Wit is the centre of character that keeps you in balance; when you set out to put others off balance." B.W.Powe
Friday, December 14, 2007
GET BLOGGED w/ Steve McP
I am a dynamic figure, often seen scaling walls and crushing ice. I have been known to remodel train stations on my lunch break, making them more efficient in the area of heat retention. I translate ethnic slurs for Cuban refugees; I write award-winning operas; I manage time efficiently. Occasionally, I tread water for three days in a row. I woo women with my sensuous and godlike trombone playing. I can pilot bicycles up severe inclines with unflagging speed; and, I cook Thirty Minute Brownies in twenty minutes. I am an expert in stucco, a veteran in love; and, an outlaw in Peru.
But, as my mum love's to say: "If you're so smart; how-cum yr not rich?"
Don't answer that!
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