#1 emma

this is emma's work.
stellar sunset. caught it just right from the balcony.
i've seen this view.
its amazeballs. :)
oh and there is a pool too. ha. jealousy has set in.

emma is the first subject of my profiling series, social poets in motion

how does each poet take their license? how does each express themselves with beauty?
emma hefti is a girl. a very interesting girl. our friendship began over chinese food and vulgarity. and against your better judgement you must take on faith that it was not ME(i know it should be 'I', shut up) who was near feigning tourettes syndrome and shouting profanity, nor i, belittling my date into squeamish silence. it was glorious. it was hilarious. it was emma. my dearest emma. small - for petite is much too drab a word - and blonde! she is an avid photographer and a model, but no longer aspiring. she has spent the last few months in capetown, south africa(SA) working as a model on several projects - broadening her horizons.
i must tell you all, emma is a bit shy. she'll hate me. emma is a walking heart of gold. a part time nanny and full time friend, she is the kind of person who brings her poetry with her in her own unique style and perspective. it is in her ability to laugh at herself and most situations and people in a manner that makes the world smile that i find the continuing joy that is Emma Hefti.

paradigm shifts

they're all the new rage
from the mayan calendar and 2012
to the age of aquarius
to the year of the black water dragon
to the green revolution
we are up to our ears in how the world is going to change
but what everyone keeps forgetting is that the world doesnt changed. the world adapts. to our change. if we dont change the world just keeps going and eventually it will adapt us out of existence. WE have to change, and grow and EVOLVE. that is the word of the moment. not the year, or the times, or the day. NOW, right this second. cops are arresting bystanders for pointing out their indiscretions. its illegal to smoke a plant. people still cant marry their lifepartners bc a dogmatic sect that happens to pervade our culture is scared to death of anything not outlined in their little book of bedtime stories. and here we are worried about how the 'world' is going to change.
when are we going to stand up and shout for OURSELVES to change.
in our country we are experiencing all time lows in primary and secondary education levels of achievement, we are at an all time HIGH for cost of post-secondary - see 'college', if some of it can be called that - and yet you cannot even acquire many entry level jobs without selling your soul to the Lowest bidder in an auction that is subsidized by the federal government. here we are scraping to send our kids to college and by the time they are done, many have the equivalent of an upside down mortgage, with a capsized lifeboat for an education and a choice - or not - of jobs that wouldnt get them out of debt - just for their education - if they worked at it full time for 15 years.
what are we supposed to do with this?!?!?!? huh? please explain to me how indebting our children, indenturing our future, and incapacitating our education system is furthering our evolution.

this 'shift' is coming from the wrong direction. this shift is spoken of in the wrong terms. this shift is a mirage.

the paradigm we need to change is US. our entire social structure. i could reference any politician, or yogi, or economic guru, or techie geek and they would all tell you that changes are happening, that we are on the verge of this or that revolution, but the STATUS QUO isnt changing. we still have massive poverty, massive inequality, massive intolerance and not a fucking thing that leads me to believe anyone wants to change it.

if there is a god, he hates us all. he thinks us weak. he wonders what the fuck he was thinking wasting his time on such a worthless bunch of maggots. ok that may be a bit harsh, but come on guys.
we are spiritual beings having a human experience, and yet the vast majority of us have become so enthralled by the consumerist lifestyle, by the elitist rants, by the marketing schemes, that all we want is to rot away deciding if we have 'problems' that maybe the 'situation' would know how to handle. WTF people. how are two douche bags from jersey on a show about a place they arent even from making millions because the lot of us condone their ineptitude at life; while pining over every little action they take and foaming at the mouth wishing we could have their lives? riddle me this batman. explain to me why we all want to know more about some 'real housewives' than the things our own kids are doing in school. why are we parked in front of a tv instead of questioning why there are not at LEAST 3 days a week of school chock full of afternoon activities for our kids, or new plays for them to be involved in, or some new community program that maybe you could start if you would get off you pathetic ass and stop watching American Fucking Idol.

stop living vicariously through the 1%. start embracing the gift you have called a life. start remembering that you woke up breathing and that is the greatest opportunity you will ever have to make a difference. start acting like each breath is a blessing. show #GRATITUDE to the universe that the sun hasnt exploded taking the whole stinking lot of wastes of space that we are and engulfed us in a solar flare.

paradigm shifts.
they are replacing 'green' as the new black

the bright side of darkness

on the subway, im there alot
it takes up tons of time when you live here. what a strange place here is. this city. new york. NEW YORK.
it will eat you alive and spit you out and dare you to cry.
ok, so, on the subway, this guy comes on.
usual "i'm with the homeless sandwich guys, we feed hungry people". and he was. he had the sandwiches - ok, listen nyc is full of con artists, but these guys are the FEW who actually seem to do what they say

(besides those kids who straight up tell you, ' im sellin this candy so i got some loot and i aint stealin your kids lunch money' on the L train all the time in bushwick)

so anyways, ive seen these guys give away free sandwiches many times, and so i walk to give him some change after everyone ignores him.....a few people even mumble when i get up...and then this strange thing happens, he smiles and almost cries, cuz he is trying so hard, and the next thing you know several folks are handing it over...just a bit...and he speaks to 2 OBVIOUSLY socially challenged individuals on the train...hands them sandwiches, other food, and people start breaking out the bills......

it was a good moment. it just spoke to me. like the darkness of the LA backstreets so enamored bukowski, the moments of the humanity in this city of chaos have made me smile.
it feels good to feel, to know im alive

addition - 12/13/12

as the weeks and months have moved on to be a year and more, it strikes me that i am still walking around within this same feeling of revelry, of wonder....i am not scared of here, i am intriguided by here...this city, this new york is such a force, it has such an epic energy that just pulls you in.
and there is a depth of humanity here that is surprising

constantine

Ode to the Headband - Or dont be a tool with that sweatband on while you're working

you
are just not
nice

i dont
understand how people,
with any
clue
at all
could even wanna talk to
you

you're such
a
douche -
with
a capital BAG

oh and that
stupid silly ass
thing
that head-band
with the
stripe

NOT FUCKING COOL DUDE
just not!!!
and that silly little
thing
you do
that pretends its
dancing,
before you call some
nice girl a pig...
after
YOU
slept with her

Yeah that makes you
cool
or
not
so much, as so
little...like im sure
it
is

you can
use what small
imagination
you
have(or dont)
to
figure out what i'm
referring
to.

it all builds on itself

Like seeing the painting from its derivation
Recognizing depth for the first time
The background
The edges
The layers and texture
The contextual placements
The foreground and focal point

Its like using ba pedal to loop yourself and build a song from scratch
Layering
Baseline creates stability
Drums add rhythm and texture
Guitars, immediate stimuli
Harmonies built around one another with complimentary tones and overlay of beats, including syncopation as in jazz

this is the rhythmic coercion of the flow, melding into a cacophony of input, an overwhelming sensory experience.
each step we take is a step forward, through lessons and growth and consciousness. 
we are not here to be idle, or static. we are here to come together, to juxtapose human nature with spiritual nurture. 
to fuse love and light. 
to cultivate blessings through gratitude and grace. 
these are not religious contexts, these are the palpable reality of human existence. there is an inter-connectedness that we can feel, that we know is present, that we wonder at the defining of. the key is to cease attempting to limit it by definitions. to be enthralled. just by soaking it up. 
here now. in this moment. be present. be purposeful. be alive. Be.

we all know people who give something of themselves.
volunteers. teachers. firefighters. policemen. nurses. the list goes on and on.
within some of those people is a divine imprint. some are doing things that they cannot explain, and yet these things resonate clearly with our sense of higher purpose.
saul williams and his poetry and prose.
ken wilbur and his literature on integral psychology.
nancy lublin and the things she does in the non profit world.
artists, like alex grey.
caregivers, nannies, and doctors.

it is in this resonance that we find our purpose. we are told that to be happy is to do the things that you love, to have time, to have family and friends and love. 
how do we find these things? 
it is simple. do things that inspire you. give your gratitude back to the world. resubmit it into the energetic fabric that is our multi-verse. be a social poet. add to the cypher. 

through yoga, or meditation, or simply sitting still, we can find a vibration of this, but we all get there in our own way.

FIRST, we must understand that to get answers we must be asking the questions we need to know the answer TO.
what makes you happy?
what makes you feel good?
what can you do to be uplifting?
what do you have to give back?
how can you help?

what is your poetic style?
find it. forge it. flaunt it.
be it. 

social poetry defined

so·cial

   [soh-shuhl] Show IPA
adjective
1. pertaining to, devoted to, or characterized by friendly companionship or relations: a social club.
2. seeking or enjoying the companionship of others; friendly;sociable; gregarious.
3. of, pertaining to, connected with, or suited to polite or fashionable society: a social event.
4. living or disposed to live in companionship with others or in a community, rather than in isolation: People are social beings.
5. of or pertaining to human society, especially as a body divided into classes according to status: social rank.

po·et·ry

   [poh-i-tree] Show IPA
noun
1. the art of rhythmical composition, written or spoken, for exciting pleasure by   beautiful, imaginative, or elevated thoughts.
2. literary work in metrical form; verse.
3. prose with poetic  qualities.
4. poetic  qualities however manifested: the poetry of simple acts and things.
5. poetic  spirit or feeling: The pianist played the prelude with poetry.



there are a lot of ways that one could choose to put these two together. i do it like this - actions and intentions given to a dispersing of consciousness expansion, uplifting happiness and growth through the sharing of gratitude, joy and love.
that is social poetry; and much as with literary poetry, it is a difficult, if fun, entity to attempt to narrow down.
so i will do the opposite. i will expand it, because that is at the center of it all, is it not? growth. uplifting. expansion.
from running a hostel, to writing poetry, to running a nonprofit, to working with the music community, we find that we and those around us can usher our social poetry into existence in a myriad of different mediums and methods.
“...but i know we can’t all stay here forever, so i'm gonna write my words on the face of today...”
shannon hoon said those words in a well known blind melon song, 'Change', and they ring true just as much now as ever they might have.
are we writing our words on the face of today?!?
first we step up with occupy, then we step back as we allow rick perry and herman cain to dominate headlines, and congress to pass the NDAA...we are pouring our civil liberties and our basic rights out into the abyss of virtual disposal...what many of us are forgetting is that once we give these rights and liberties away, history has proven repeatedly that they are next to impossible to regain without a major upheaval.
maybe its what we need.
we are raping the land with corn, a crop that is carbon negative to such a degree as to be unconsionably detrimental, while it is next to impossible to get INDUSTRIAL hemp claused into legislature for commercial usage; despite hemps versatility, sustainability and carbon neutral potential, as well as its many health benefits and textile uses which are considerably more environmentally conscious that their alternatives, i.e., replacing wood and forest cutting to make paper, utilization in paints and other liquid textiles, fiber for rope and clothing fabrics, as well as the benefits of hemp oil and the broad array of nutritional properties of the plant and its seeds.
although there are ample technologies and materials available to expand solar energy and wind energy to mass continental levels, and electric and hydrogen batteries are currently already viable options, the petroleum industry continues to thwart attempts at ‘going planet green’
WAKE UP
oil men have KNOWN for years we were headed in this direction.
they are ringing every last gasp of pennies from us in order to extract whatever income they can before making the big jump and leaving the training pants behind.
when we as a society take the jump to global green, to symbiosis with gaia and mother earth, we will be taking a step towards happiness, towards god, towards grace.
this is our social poetry...so, tell me what is your poetic license????