03 June 2007
How Quickly We Return...
So, after a
35 hour bus ride - I don't want to go into travel
now. It was a horrific experience. I got the
terrorist treatment, trying to get out of Poland - I
am now settled at Cat'Art. Some of my laundry
is still drying, but I resettled into village life
as though I'd never left the region. The center is
as beautiful and as tranquil as I could have
hoped. Last night, in bed, I wrote more than I had
in my last few weeks in Cracow. Photos will follow
shortly, once I have made the acquaintance of the
other artists in residency at the center. I've
already seen some of their work and I am truly
impressed at the talent with which I find myself
surrounded. I am enthusiastic about what I can
accomplish here.
I have aims for myself here. One of them, is to try to reinvent myself as a blogger, or a columnist, screenwriter (I have a script idea!) or travel writer of some sort. Poetry will always be central to my life; I cannot distance from words and language. Now, I must find a consistent way of supporting my work complementary to the way I like to live my life and which keeps me close to letters. Almost anyone reading this will probably understand that I am reluctant to be a poor(er) man.
For the first time in a very long time, I am happy. I'm smiling again and as my lungs fill with clean air, my mood has lifted and the memories of the past months slip away more quickly than I might have thought. This morning, I did yoga and went for a small run (all I can manage anymore. I'm hoping to build to longer ones, there are amazing paths. Feel free to leave running tips). I live in a small house with a fireplace (even in June, the nights can grow chilly here).
This blog is my sole internet indulgence. Any correspondence of import is to be addressed to me here, or will come from me in the form of a handwritten letter.
Poland, I have found aside from the occasional once-painful and now humorous anecdote, is not something I want to discuss. One of the Fulbrighters - someone born in Poland and whose family are members of the expatriate intelligentsia - who left her project told me that she wanted no part of and, if she did return, she would not speak Polish. Not being the country of my birth, my connection to the country could never have been so intimate as hers. However, I can empathize with her desire for distance. I will never again spell Cracow with it's "K"s, or pronounce its hard "w" ending. Poland, that city especially, is as foreign to me - perhaps moreso - and as alien and often repellant as it was my fellow Fulbrighter and to much of the West.
I have aims for myself here. One of them, is to try to reinvent myself as a blogger, or a columnist, screenwriter (I have a script idea!) or travel writer of some sort. Poetry will always be central to my life; I cannot distance from words and language. Now, I must find a consistent way of supporting my work complementary to the way I like to live my life and which keeps me close to letters. Almost anyone reading this will probably understand that I am reluctant to be a poor(er) man.
For the first time in a very long time, I am happy. I'm smiling again and as my lungs fill with clean air, my mood has lifted and the memories of the past months slip away more quickly than I might have thought. This morning, I did yoga and went for a small run (all I can manage anymore. I'm hoping to build to longer ones, there are amazing paths. Feel free to leave running tips). I live in a small house with a fireplace (even in June, the nights can grow chilly here).
This blog is my sole internet indulgence. Any correspondence of import is to be addressed to me here, or will come from me in the form of a handwritten letter.
Poland, I have found aside from the occasional once-painful and now humorous anecdote, is not something I want to discuss. One of the Fulbrighters - someone born in Poland and whose family are members of the expatriate intelligentsia - who left her project told me that she wanted no part of and, if she did return, she would not speak Polish. Not being the country of my birth, my connection to the country could never have been so intimate as hers. However, I can empathize with her desire for distance. I will never again spell Cracow with it's "K"s, or pronounce its hard "w" ending. Poland, that city especially, is as foreign to me - perhaps moreso - and as alien and often repellant as it was my fellow Fulbrighter and to much of the West.
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Shakedown
06/06/07 01:26 Permalink
For those
interested, I've made it to France. It was a long
trip, but I arrived safe and sound. When I saw La
Montagne Noire again, I nearly cried. Also, I will be
getting a French SIM card for my phone, so that
people will have a way to contact me. Luckily, I get
crappy reception. :) Bad reception = More work done.
I've decided that the blog portion of my website will probably work this way going forward: There will be 2-3 entries per week. One will be personal and the others will be reflections on the topics of my choice. I feel that this schedule will give me the opportunity to place the proper care and editing into expressing my points of view.
For this incarnation of my website, I've switched from Apple's iWeb to an application called RapidWeaver. Both applications have their bonuses and drawbacks. RapidWeaver is a little more open source and hands-on. As such, I haven't yet completely figured out how to work comments into this blog, although that should be coming soon.
I've decided that the blog portion of my website will probably work this way going forward: There will be 2-3 entries per week. One will be personal and the others will be reflections on the topics of my choice. I feel that this schedule will give me the opportunity to place the proper care and editing into expressing my points of view.
For this incarnation of my website, I've switched from Apple's iWeb to an application called RapidWeaver. Both applications have their bonuses and drawbacks. RapidWeaver is a little more open source and hands-on. As such, I haven't yet completely figured out how to work comments into this blog, although that should be coming soon.