29 January 2008

redesign


I changed the colors around. I'm open to suggestions, so if anyone finds it hard to read -- or knows of a really cool way to incorporate the color pink -- let me know.

28 January 2008

Bilder


This is the star that hangs above my crumbling balcony. I'm not sure where we found it. Maybe it fell from the sky.


I think that this "see no evil/hear no evil/speak no evil" monkey totem pole, currently the pedestal for my burrito tail cactus (an ideal plant because it requires next to no water), should be expanded or renamed to include a "blog no evil" category. Though that would disrupt the magic number, you could also just rename the other two to something like "fwd no evil" or "comment no evil." Part of my decision to greatly reduce online activity in 2008 stems from a disgust with the user comments I see when I read the newspaper -- or other blogs -- online. Whether it's racist blame-games, vitriol over local sports teams or embarrassingly poor spelling and grammar, comments on the local Internets do not generally engender goodwill among neighbors.


This was the slab of ice we used to escape a frozen Flush Creek near the Troost Bridge. Not big enough to support our weight, it nonetheless kept our boots from complete submersion in the stream.

Longest Hair
What's up with this picture? I honestly don't know. It's part of Jenn's recent photo sets on jennybros.com and flickr, along with the rest of these shots shown here today. If you're willing to write a few sentences or more about what you think the story is with this picture, I'd be happy to post it here. I know there's some creative types out there reading this, and I want to give them a chance to shine.

If you came here looking for something intelligent to read, than I'm afraid I'll have to direct you elsewhere, like this story from the NY Times for example.

In the meantime, stay tuned for Giant Squid sightings and some more music-related stuff soon. A big hello to friends overseas, especially those in Swaziland.

cheers,

LW

23 January 2008

Pocket Sized Moon

January 27
Did anyone see the moon last night? It was nice. It looked a little bit like this.

This picture is one of Liz's 365 PSPs currently on display at the Love Garden for one more week. I'm actually cutting something out of the frame here, but to find out what it is, you'll have to click on the picture itself.

For those of you who can't make it out to the display, we've set up a little flickr site where you can view each one of the works of art along with the poem that goes with them (there are poems for about 1/3 of the pieces -- any more than that would have been a bit much).

The best way to view them is probably to click on the set for each month. A few dates are still missing, but that will be remedied soon.

You can see those at www.flickr.com/photos/popplepower.

Take care.

LDHW

17 January 2008

The End is the Beginning


I don't think I'll be posting much over the next few weeks. The internet around these parts is frozen, and it's too cold to do much except make a small fire in the living room and read library books.

Speaking of library books, I came across one of the finest rap songs ever written about the importance of reading, incidentally one of the first rap songs I ever heard. This is Run DMC in their 1986 Reading Rainbow appearance, which also featured Pete Seeger's performance of "Abiyoyo." (who could forget Abiyoyo?)

Anyway, it's probably about time I hopped off the blogcycle for a bit and got some exercise elsewhere.

I've got a little snail-mail campaign underway, and perhaps a few new projects to dive into soon. What exactly, I can't say, but I do know I plan to eat more soup.

I'll keep adding tracks to the online jukebox and I'll post something here before too long. As always, If anyone's got any ideas, feel free to throw one my way.

your friend,

Lucas Wetzel


Top photo taken by Peter at the rugby training fields in Stellenbosch, where several members of South Africa's world champion rugby team practiced. Above photo taken at Liz's Love Garden opening last week by Jenn, whose site has been redesigned. Also, happy birthday to Kyle the Seoulman and Big Baby T

15 January 2008

11 January 2008

A night at the Love Garden


If you're anywhere near Lawrence, Kansas tonight, you should stop by and check out Liz Gardner's "Pocket-Sized Pieces" art opening at the Love Garden. Art, wine and whores davores (that's a funetic spelling, I don't speak French) starting at 7 p.m. Ghosty plays at 8.

I contributed to the art pieces by writing short poems for about one third of the pieces, and they will be on display as well. Though my involvement is a small one, it's been lots of fun to assist Liz with this project, and just being able to say that my haiku line the walls of the Love Garden is kind of fun in itself. Maybe more so if you didn't know that the Love Garden is a record store at 936 1/2 Mass.

If you can't come to the opening, swing by the store anytime in the next month. They'll still be up.

Also, for you music fans, Ghosty will also be playing (as a 7-piece!) Saturday night at the Record Bar with opening bands Fourth of July and hometown hip-hop hero Miles Bonny.

To read the Lawrence.com article about Liz's art show, click here. For some recent local press about Ghosty, check out this from The Pitch and this from Lawrence.com.

Hope to see you out this weekend.

09 January 2008

Pots and pans

There was a giant pot bust in the West Bottoms last night. Lots and lots of marijuana has been "recovered." I'm not going to make any comment about this except to say that Ray's revelations won't come as easily now.

07 January 2008

Ice fountains and the closing of Corinthian Hall

Snowy Fountain
This weekend was like a bit of spring in the middle of winter. Although it was Saturday, we came across this icy wonder in a Kansas City park. If Shiva has deserted his traditional ice-phallus dwelling in the caves of Kashmir, then perhaps he's found a new home in KC's historic northeast.

We were in the neighborhood to visit the Kansas City Museum before it closed for renovations until 2010. And I'm very glad we did. I got to meditate in Indian huts, hunt a stuffed buffalo and watch a 40-year-old filmstrip about the wagon trains of the pioneers. In the 1910 soda fountain downstairs I drank two big chocolate phosphates.

I was also pleased to find that the museum was much less boring to me now than it was as a grade-schooler. Back then I was sick of hearing about covered wagons and Lewis and Clark and the hardships of the plains. I just wanted to play Oregon Trail, and I don't think I was the only student who felt that way.

I enjoyed getting a glimpse of Kansas City in the olden days, and I was glad to see that this town really hasn't changed all that much.

It's a shame this museum will be closing down for so long, but I think the exhibits were more than ready for some spiffing up. I just hope the Fairy Princess (a female alternative to Santa Claus who enthralls children at the museum every winter) finds a suitable local alternative to reside in the interim. She's more than welcome to crash at my place, but I'm afraid my digs might be a shade humble for royalty, at least that of the fairy variety.

Meanwhile, more info about the KC Museum here, and a few more shots of the weekend are up on Jenn's flickr site.


Parting shot: I'd already mentally written the first line of this post when I found an inscription on a bench near Brush Creek that sums it up even nicer: "In the depth of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer" -- Albert Camus.

Have a nice week and go easy on the hell-broth.

LW

update: there's a nice lil' video on the Star site today of some kids enjoying the museum yesterday. The aforementioned Indian hut and buffalo can be seen in the background. Which reminds me: there was a kid on Saturday who marched into the gift shop behind us shouting "Me like Buffaloes and Cows!" repeatedly. Rather than correct his grammar, the mom actually repeated the kid's words back to him, as if to encourage it. Oh well. It's her kid, I guess.

04 January 2008

Snowtime


Red is right. This has been one of the best winters on record. I've been out doing my best to give myself a cold, scouting out the pristine, Narnian grounds of the Nelson in the middle of a fresh snowfall, drinking wine in styrofoam cups, taking advantage of the holiday schedule to stay up as late as possible.

I tried writing a few blog posts in the snow, but it just kept getting covered up, and the only person there to appreciate it was the security guard, who kindly but firmly suggested I go home.

I've seen some funny things happen in the ice and snow, even a few events that border on the tragic. At the end of the semester, some art kids were wheeling home the makings of a giant sculpture from the studio. When they got to 43rd street they slipped on the ice and lost control of the wheelbarrow, which tumbled over and spilled the sculptural anatomy out into the intersection. One of the kids directed traffic around the wreckage while the others scrambled to toss the broken torso into the lawns on either side of the street. It's still sitting there right now.


There's also a giant head in the back parking lot, perched on a chair and partially frozen over. After the ice melted, I think it chipped away at the mouth a bit so that his expression is much sadder than it was just a week ago. I'm not sure if this is related to the shattered colossus of Warwickshire, but it, too, doesn't look like it's going anywhere soon. It reminds me of another bizarre Kansas City sculpture, seen here (below) on a warmer day.

In other news, I sold the minivan and don't have a car anymore, but I plan to be back on the streets as early as tomorrow morning.

2008 already and I'm not sure what the future holds for this here blog. I had plans to put it to sleep but might give it a reprieve until Groundhog Day, at which point we'll reassess the situation. For now I think I'll keep posting some pictures, words and songs a couple of times a week, though I think I'll lay off the lengthy essays and travelogues in favor of a few quick observations that won't drain my energy and eat up too much of your time.

I'm gearing up for Liz's art opening on Friday, so check the Lawrence Journal-World next week for some more information on that. All 356 of Liz's pocket-sized pieces will be on display with some of my accompanying poems.

Also, my sister Laura is playing a concert at the church on Sunday just after noon. If you'd like information, let me know.

If you'd like to hear some other great music, then head over to the lukebox, where I just posted about twenty new/old songs that you can stream or download to itunes.

winter photos, as usual, by Jenn