watch me applying tinted serum or wearing snake skin heels, i’m on the gram, insta, & luckily you pause to watch me, because i matter, this matters, my feet, my face, my expensive complexion, i look good, toes covered in dead reptiles, you make me happy with your likes & i make you happy as you ponder buying products to be like me, symbiotic, our relationship, me, wealthy, well-kept, well-dressed, you, trying to keep up, keep trying.
Tag: Happiness
Humpty Dumpty & Row Your Boat
humpty dumpty sat on a wall, you know the rest, but what does it mean? when you were a kid did you think humpty was an egg? a fat greedy person? a king? where was the wall? how high was it? why was humpty precariously perched up there? and why did mother goose share such things? then there is row, row, row your boat, gently down the stream, strive, work hard, but not too hard, be happy, life is but a dream, what do these nursery rhymes mean? in one, life is a risky disaster, the pieces will never fit back together again, the other demonstrates utopian optimism, combined they explain human existence.
Cold Water Swimming & Coyotes
swimming centers me, fallen japanese maple leaves sink in water, nestle between my toes, stick to shoulders, i am a leaf magnet, like the man feeding pigeons in central park, the tree likes me, i think, gifts from above, cold water thoughts, staring at stars, nameless constellations, pump arms and legs harder, keep the heart moving blood to numb fingers, i have a rock on pool’s ledge for coyotes, but i would never throw anything, maybe splash or yell, coyotes won’t visit, worries disappear, this is a good night.
Cold Water Swimming
thought about buying a wetsuit, but after research and experimentation i’ve come to learn that i can swim/tread water all winter in northern california without a wetsuit, my max so far is 20 minutes, i’m going to do at least that much into november, december, and beyond, after a full day of teaching, then helping my kids with homework, and cleaning dinner dishes, there is something cathartic about gazing at a full moon in the night sky, listening to an owl hooting, while gentle water undulates all around me, numbing my injured back, big breath in, big breath out, i feel my heart, alive, all of me.
I’m Writing To You
are you checking up on me? i hope so, that means i’m competitive, no, we both know i’m losing, instagram always wins, or tiktok, or, for a few outliers, maybe even facebook, or whatever elon musk calls his platform now, anyway, thanks for visiting the written word, i don’t have much to offer today, just black and white, nothing like that woman who moved to the italian countryside, the one who dated ryan seacrest, you know her, the one with lots of followers, anyway, you can imagine her, living the beautiful dream life, that’s why you scroll through her photos and videos, to catch a glimpse of something better, right? anyway, maybe you are in australia, or the united kingdom, or ghana, or topeka, kansas (loretta lynn reference), and maybe you don’t own any expensive products or travel on a yacht, maybe you are asking, is my life really that great if i don’t look amazing on instagram or go anywhere exotic? you heard it here first, yes, your life is great, the invariable mark of wisdom is to find the miraculous in the common, i didn’t say that, emerson did, but i agree, wherever you are, have a wonderful day, and by the way, i’m not saying you are common, what i really mean is that i hope you are at peace, i wish that for you.
Doo Wop
sing me on street corners under glowing lampposts, harmonizing vocals, black, white, race is no matter, sweet sound knows no color. sing me in philly, in brooklyn, in baltimore, i am your love, your longing, your heartbreak and your joy. a cappella, alive on 45’s and chevy stereos, cruising, because there’s a moon out tonight and life could be a dream. never-ending youth, ephemeral song. doo wop has died, but the music lives on.
20 One-Liners After Reading Joe Brainard
Winter
Ice is more likely than snow.
Summer
Sun, sand, and shore, what you thought.
Writing
Is only part of what I am thinking.
Today
Will be like tomorrow, but different.
In the country
Deer cross roads and sometimes die.
Recipe
One part chocolate, one part graham cracker, one part marshmallow, add flame first.
That feeling
When you just know.
Ecuador
The place where a cow fell on me but missed.
Happiness
Is a good Beatles song or a warm puppy.
Money
Do pennies really matter anymore?
Lake
Powell, Crater, Radnor, Tahoe, Champlain
The Sky
Isn’t falling, although it sometimes feels that way.
Carrots
Taste best with hummus.
Modern Times
Everyone has the answer, no one has the answer.
Real life
When your tooth is being extracted.
Loyalty
Is canceling all of your plans.
Something to think about
If you are really really quiet, you probably already know.
Virginia
I am always a young person here.
Human nature
To believe in the divine.
Stars
The phosphorescent paint in constellation stories.
when i used to dance
joy of not knowing which hip would move next, right, right, left, or invisible hula hoop, my whole waist doing circles, and the music, weezer, sia, or nelly, always while doing dishes, distraction, chore not a chore, but now no more, cue the sad music, mazzy star or the equivalent, daniel don’t dance, vertebrae can’t play with spontaneity
My Definitive Songs
Sh’Boom (1954), The Chords
Church Bells May Ring (1956), The Willows
Everyday (1958), Buddy Holly
Words of Love (1958), Buddy Holly
What’d I Say (1959), Ray Charles
Blue Moon (1961), The Marcels
Sherry (1962), The Four Seasons
Do You Want To Know A Secret (1963), The Beatles
A Quick One While He’s Away (1966), The Who
Different Drum (1967), Linda Ronstadt w/The Stone Poneys
Pata Pata (1967), Miriam Makeba
Heroin (1967), The Velvet Underground
Suite: Judy Blue Eyes (1969), Crosby, Stills, and Nash
Carry On (1970), Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young
Ventura Highway (1972), America
I Saw the Light (1972), Todd Rundgren
Satellite of Love (1972), Lou Reed
I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend (1976), The Ramones
Year of the Cat (1976), Al Stewart
Sentimental Lady (1977), Bob Welch
The Passenger (1977), Iggy Pop
Message To You Rudy (1979), The Specials
Cruel To Be Kind (1979), Nick Lowe
Once In A Lifetime (1980), Talking Heads
Ashes to Ashes (1980), David Bowie
Seven Year Ache (1981), Rosanne Cash
Come On Eileen (1982), Dexys Midnight Runners
This Must Be The Place (1983), Talking Heads
Harborcoat (1983), R.E.M.
Back to the Old House (1984), The Smiths
The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1984), The Smiths
What She Said (1985), The Smiths
The Headmaster Ritual (1985), The Smiths
Here Comes Your Man (1987), The Pixies
Birthday (1987), The Sugarcubes
Waiting Room (1989), Fugazi
Vanity Fair (1989), The Ocean Blue
Halah (1990), Mazzy Star
Silent All These Years (1991), Tori Amos
Don’t Panic (1999), Coldplay
Californication (1999), Red Hot Chili Peppers
Country Grammar (2000), Nelly
Island in the Sun (2001), Weezer
Girl Inform Me, (2001), The Shins
Here I Dreamt I Was An Architect (2002), The Decemberists
Saint Simon (2003), The Shins
Believe Me Natalie (2004), The Killers
Good People (2005), Jack Johnson
When You Were Young (2006), The Killers
The Funeral (2006), Band of Horses
Upside Down (2006), Jack Johnson
Riptide (2013), Vance Joy
A Sky Full of Stars (2014), Coldplay
No Tears Left To Cry (2018), Ariana Grande
everything i wanted (2019), Billie Eilish
MILLE (2021), Fedez, Achille Lauro, Orietta Berti
LA DOLCE VITA (2021), Fedez, Tananai, Mara Sattei
Dog Wisdom
some nights it
seems that our
dog ingrid has
it all figured
out, she understands
love and closeness
when to drink
water, and when
to sleep, she
doesn’t stay up
late on her
phone wondering about
the world, no
she lives in
minutes of joy
running, licking, waiting
for someone to
drop food on
the floor, this
has been said
before, but always
good to remember
that we are
animals too, and
it can all
be much more
simple, if we
let it be
Daniel W. Polk 