Tag Archives: language

Diametric ‘Scape States

Posted on February 16, 2023 by JMN

“He’s showing us in the natural world our own inner landscape,” said [collector Bernard] Lumpkin, who owns four Gavin canvases. “When you’re inhabiting a painting by Cy, you’re inhabiting a world which is simultaneously strange and familiar; real and surreal; … Continue reading →

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Verse from Two Directions

Posted on February 15, 2023 by JMN

“I tire of being made to feel smart rather than pleased.”(Peter Schjeldahl) 1. Online One finds lineated speech flowing freely, touching on themes of love, nostalgia, rage, nature, disillusionment, mortality and healing. There’s earnestness, the odd hard edge, whiffs of … Continue reading →

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‘Cucumber Sandwiches. Season with Pepper Apparently’

Posted on February 13, 2023 by JMN

My title is, in full, a text message received from a correspondent in early morning with no context. I read it silently then more attentively aloud. With growing alarm I realized it was a perfect dactylic pentameter. Rubbing sleep from … Continue reading →

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The French Are Okay with Being ‘The French’

Posted on February 11, 2023 by JMN

“We recommend avoiding general and often dehumanizing ‘the’ labels such as the poor, the mentally ill, the French, the disabled, the college educated.” (Tweet from The Associated Press Stylebook) How “the French” constitutes a “label” left many French people mystified. … Continue reading →

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The United State of the Whole Damn Nation

Posted on February 9, 2023 by JMN

When I presume to wax oracular& prophesy immaculate vernacular,thund’ring from on high abominationat nucular & realator & joolery,remind me I’m not holier than thee. In the matter of what crosses our lipsunsaid it goes that each one of us sipsfrom … Continue reading →

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Five Quotes About …

Posted on February 5, 2023 by JMN

“What I teach you is nothing. What you learn by doing over and over is where the learning begins.” (Simon Michael) “Writing poetry is much easier … Five Quotes About …

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Something Memorable in the Way of Verse

Posted on January 30, 2023 by JMN

The Poets There he sat among them(his old friends) a walking ashthat knows how to smile.And he still dreamed of a styleso clear it could wash a faceor make a dry mouth sing.But they laughed, having foundthemselves more astonishing. They … Continue reading →

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The Reader Makes the Poem

Posted on January 27, 2023 by JMN

A turn of phrase can unsettle when the poet goads words beyond their commonly agreed boundaries. When the impertinence works, the reader experiences a shocked flash of assent. Ah yes! I see why you write that she “whirls” her hoe. … Continue reading →

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A Good Clinician Knows Communication Fosters Wellness

Posted on January 23, 2023 by JMN

My pendant whatnots had a fiery itch. I bashfully exposed them to the Dermatologist. “It’s excruciating,” I said. She cast her glance and looked up brightly. “Ah yes, I see what you mean,” she said. I pressed for amplification. “It’s … Continue reading →

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Who’s Getting Laid in This Picture?*

Posted on January 21, 2023 by JMN

“Organised chronologically, Matisse in the 1930s begins with a look at the Nice period, exemplified by his voluptuous Odalisque with Grey Trousers (1927). A seductive model in harem pants lays on a green bedroll, surrounded by brilliant red and yellow … Continue reading →

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