George Michael falls in love

Well, not quite. But there's potentially room for me to fall in love again ... someday. For the scoop, and to learn a few awfully cool new words, please visit my re-activated blog over at Two of Words.

Thanks for the read.

Seventy-eight texts, two new words a day, one year

A lovely fellow named John Ballantrae caught this ol' blog of mine thanks to Google Alerts. He went above and beyond and contacted Nic Nac Nook to send me a very thoughtful message and I am excited to make friends with him soon.

Hello again, John. I promise to write you in a week, if I can't manage earlier. Quite looking forward to your blog.

It's very flattering that John went out of his way to contact me and he just started a new Tarot blog that sounds very interesting. I encourage you to check it out.

I've also begun a new blog, that I think word lovers and Tarot enthusiasts will enjoy. I'll be reading 78 texts in one year, sharing two new words, five days a week. Please let my blog Two of Words explain.

Thanks for the read.

Your masterpiece got roasted, man

Australia's got loads of cool stuff: Ayer's Rock, kangaroos, steak and eggs for breakfast, and ... latte art competitions.

This photo, courtesy tonx at Flickr, may make you consider the transitory nature of art, nature, coffee ... According to an article at coffeegeek.com, "pouring latte art requires that you do two things at the same time. Pour the milk at a consistent and even rate AND shake the pitcher side to side with the even tempo of a metronome."

The results are beautiful -- creamy-mocha designs framed by the lid of a hot cup of coffee.

I'm not a coffee drinker, but I might try to make some art out of the chocolate milk I love to imbibe in.

I learned about latte art this morning because of this article about latte art from The Herald Sun.

Related links:

Latte art photos
Wiki latte art article
Latte art guide from coffeegeek.com

Bob Dylan embraced by British schools

Here's a leap of assumption: not since the lyrics shared before the printing press, when a majority of poetry was shared publicly by minstrels, has someone with a talent for words and music been included in any English-language literary canon.

Why shouldn't musicians be included in English text books? A friend of mine in Britain alerted me to an article that hints that this trend could catch on -- Bob Dylan's lyrics will soon be taught in British schools.

My parents grew up in the 1960s, but the age of Dylan doesn't limit itself to their generation -- " The Times They are A-Changing" has been used in commercials and adopted by many balcony bards. It is hard for me not to hear it and think of my boyfriend playing it on guitar and singing Dylan's lyrics, or sitting at the dinner table, listening to it with his parents, the strength of my interpretation of the words enhanced by their experiences.

And " Blowin' in the Wind" will always remind me of my mother, who memorized the song on the piano and can play it at a whirling, wonderful speed -- I feel like I'm in a carnival of sound every time she treats us to her rendition.

The lyrics to both of those songs convey a sense of biblical psalm ("How many roads must a man walk down ..." or "the loser now may be later to win") while being directly political.

Though Dylan referred to himself as just a song and dance man, his words have impacted the lives of many, including Andrew Motion, Poet Laureate of England.

Motion wrote Regime Change, a poem protesting the recent invasion of Iraq and if you read it after listening to "The Times They are A-Changing," you may feel/hear Dylan's musical influence -- moments of comment on current affairs that seem at once simply obvious and timelessly eloquent.

How exciting that what students might study in English class may also echo in the soundtrack of their lives. The recordings of Sylvia Plath or Gertrude Stein aren't difficult to share in school, but their poetry never got the airplay Dylan's has. Both commercial and legendary, his work should get good reception in the classroom.

Tabitha Dial is an MFA poetry student at Colorado State University.

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Related Links:

Poet laureate writes Iraq lament (BBC News article)

No Direction, Period (a wonderful video parody of Bob Dylan and his influence on the top 40)
Blowin' in the Wind (Wiki article)
Blowin' in the Wind (video)
The Times They are A-Changing (Wiki article)
The Times They are A-Changing (video)
Bob Dylan (profile on poetry.org)
The Bob Dylan Fan Club

40 poems in one day

Last week, I came across a sleek idea to feed the poet in us all -- write 40 poems in one day. I tried it. I liked it.

For the structure of the concept and to read more, visit my blog here.

Thanks for the read.

Top Ten Colorado poet blogs

I've put together a list of my top ten Colorado poet blogs ... but honestly, only less than half of the folks on the list have blogs. The rest are poets who I wish had a blog.

Still, I figure I may as well encourage anyone wandering by this blog to check it out here.

Harry Potter never fluffed my cloak, if you know what I mean ...

I have a confession to make.

I've never really cared for Harry, but I am a huge fan of the books. I've enjoyed reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and have stopped at chapter 32 to resist giving away too much of the book and to write a review, available here:

I am hoping to break my record number of hits with this blog entry and hope you will help me out by following this link and sharing it with others through e-mail ... I have posted it to Digg and Newsvine already.

Ah, the power of the Internet in all of our hands!

Let me know if there are any blogs you would like me to pass along to my friends, too.

Thanks for the read and are you a little miffed at that particular scene between Ron and Hermione? You know, that inevitable matter of their first kiss ...