Old Melodrama

I remember the exact moment I lost all interest in life. Film 301. November, 1989. Theresa was late for class. When she arrived I smiled and waved her to a seat next to myself. She frowned and sat elsewhere. The light drained from my system like air leaking from a punctured tire. Quickly and soundlessly. Metaphoric death. I felt it. I feel it still. I knew right then and there that my brief flirtation with happiness was over and probably wouldn't be making a return appearance. Why I decided to sojourn on, I have no idea. We sustain ourselves on the memory of sunlight, I guess. Or maybe I just have optimistic genes. . .

Language

Language doesn't express emotion very well. As essentially a word person, this is hard to admit, yet I know it's true. No poem or prose passage ever written is as eloquent or as truthful as a kiss, a hug, a hand on the shoulder, or the locking of eyes in love or sympathy. When it comes to expressing an idea or a concept or a fact, language is supreme, yet time and time again, feelings evade its steely grasp. Maybe that’s why we try to combine it with other modes of expression. We add music to words and creative love songs. We add movement to words and create drama. Although language is largely a human construct, it is frequently unable to communicate the things that make us most human. I struggle for these words, knowing that whichever ones I choose, they will probably fall ridiculously short of what I wanted to communicate. I used to think language could change the world. I used to think any enemy could be defeated or any problem could be solved just by placing the right sounds next to each other in a sentence. Now I see my error. Belief in language is the ultimate folly.

Manifesto

According to Emily Dickinson, hope is the thing with feathers. If this is true, my personal plumage must look something like that of this poor fellow:

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In terms of my outlook on life, I am as hopeless as a naked penguin. This does not mean, however, that I have given up on the idea of acquiring feathers sometime in the future; only that I think the scenario somewhat unlikely.

Most of the things that will follow, at least for the next month or two, will be items that have been previously posted on other sites (mostly LiveJournal, Facebook, and Twitter). Eventually, new writings will appear. Be patient.