What Is Essential Is Invisible to the Eye

Or, It's Right In Front of You

Marcel Duchamp
Enjoying what's right in front of, and all around, him.
The Rock
July 2007

•••

I guess I'd say I've been on vacation. (Or, a total slacker.)

No, I'll say vacation.

•••

The Sea
(Buy: Morcheeba: Big Calm)

Perfect Day
(Buy: Lou Reed: Trainspotting [Original Soundtrack])

Sun Lips
(Buy: Black Moth Super Rainbow: Dandelion Gum)

Island In The Sun
(Buy: Weezer: Green Album)

Its A Sunshine Day
(Buy: The Brady Bunch: Nick at Nite: Beach Blanket Bash)

Blinded By The Light
(Buy: Bruce Springsteen With The Sessions Band: Live In Dublin)

· · · — — — · · · Same Old Shite (Or, iPick-A-Little, iTalk-A-Little Less)

"Yes, I'm just rowing up to the dock (in my floppy 'I'm on vacation, and I don't care how stupid I look on a cell phone rowing a boat' hat on) now. Where are you? Oh, yeah, I can see you from here."

Nauti-call Lymie
Rockland Harbor
June 29, 2007

•••

I'm not sure if you've heard anything about this yet but, apparently, Apple has come out with some type of new 'phone' thingie, and people (which so far includes, the media, anybody owning stocks in Apple, and maybe that tool in the picture above, although my guess would be that he is PC all the way) are pretty darn giddy.

So, here's the deals, as I think I understand them. The iPhone itself, is only about $500. to $600. depending on how much money you have, and how much memory you require. (But, orders are limited to two per customer, so please, don't get greedy!)

You'll also be required to sign up for a two-year AT&T service agreement and an activation fee (and are subject to AT&T credit approval). The minimum plan prices out at $59.99 per month (or, $1,439.76 over the two-year required contract), not including any service charges (and, being AT&T, you know there will be plenty), which will only 450 minutes (which is only 7.5 hours. But who talks more than that on the phone in a month?) of talk time a month.

Intrigued yet?

Well, if you're coming out to The Rock, don't be — because your iPhone (or, cellphone for that matter) won't work here. (That would be another one of those great things about living out on The Rock.)

•••

Connection
(Buy: Elastica: Elastica)

Telephone Line
(Buy: Electric Light Orchestra: A New World Record)

Call Me
(Buy: Nancy Wilson: Cocktail Mix, Vol. 2: Martini Madness)

The Call Up
(Buy: The Clash: Clash On Broadway [Disc 3])

Pick-A-Little, Talk-A-Little
(Buy: Hermione Gingold & The Biddys: The Music Man [Original Soundtrack])

Isle au, Hey, Haut

Life like an Eric Hopkins painting.

Isle au Haut
On top of some rocky hill.
June 10, 2007

•••

About ten of us took a glorious trip out to the beautiful island of Isle au Haut (Pronounced AISLE-a-hoe — not EEL-a-hoe, not EEL-a-who, just AISLE-a-hoe — and if you say it any other way, you're saying it wrong!) yesterday. You could not have asked for nicer weather, which made for an even nicer day. Hiking, picnic, and, in the end (of a I don't know how far a hike), everyone was laden with plastic bottles, bouys, and miscellaneous flotsam and jetsam which we dumped into the back of a (fortunately parked) park ranger truck at the end of our trip.

Two of the Best Quotes of the Day:
When one of the two 5th graders who came on the hike with us, picked up a L-shaped piece of driftwood, held it under his arm like a machine gun, and said,

"Say 'Hello' to my little friend!"

(It is unclear, if he has actually ever seen 'Scarface', or just picked up on which is now, a classic line. Either way, his father was thoroughly teased about it.)

The same child, a mile or two later, was walking with myself, another adult, and a classmate of his, when they were noticing some of the bigger tree roots crossing the path. His friend made a comment, which I missed, when 'Lil' Scarface' said,

"If you don't keep moving, you'll root like those trees."

True enough, brother. Keep it moving.

(Eric Hopkins beautiful island paintings can be seen in just about every house on The Rock. For many, who have known him for years, they got his work quite inexpensively when he was just starting out. For others (summer folk), they paid for it well, as his work became a symbol of their connectedness to the islands. For the late-comers, who still love his work, but can't afford it any more, there are posters and prints, or the wonderful selection of packages of organic soils and fertilizers from Coast of Maine Organic Products, Inc.)

•••

In The Garden Of Earthly Delights
(Buy: Combustible Edison: The Impossible World)

Mr E's Beautiful Blues
(Buy: Eels (pronounced EELS, not AISLES): Road Trip Soundtrack)

Mr. Blue Sky
(Buy: Electric Light Orchestra: Out Of The Blue)

Rock The Boat
(Buy: Hues Corporation: Soul Hits of the 70s: Didn't It Blow Your Mind)

The Horror. The Horror. (The Horoscopes, That Is.)

Well, it's a good thing I only have one.

Fortune cookies (above) and canned personality generalizations — that's what makes life worth living.

'There is a burning restlessness inside you that is activated because you don't feel as if you are fulfilling your life's destiny. You may have a sudden insight that you have a much greater purpose in this lifetime than what you are currently doing. Explore this idea, and see what you can do to move toward this great desire that comes from deep within. This is the perfect time to put large, long-term goals into action.'
(My horoscope for some day in April, when, really, I was really feeling this way. Oh, wait, I felt that way yesterday, also. And, a bit like that today. Oh, man, I don't see tomorrow looking much different.)

Oh, wait!

Today is the first day of the rest of you life! (Sure, I know that that's a bit cliche, but it sure beats the last fortune I received, which read, "You will get some clothes." (Jevus! What? Do they save up all the shite fortunes for the island take-out orders? Or, has the whole fortune cookie business just given up on creativity and inspiration?)

Oh, wait! I have one.

Tomorrow is the first day of the rest of your life!

•••

I Want Everything
(Buy: Cracker: Kerosene Hat)

Tristeza {Goodbye Sadness}
(Buy: Astrud Gilberto: Rhythm Of The Tropics Volume 2)

(Who needs cookies? At a minute-thirty, Walter Wanderley brings more joy then any cookie could deliver — just give it a listen!)

All Good? [Can 7 Supermarket Remix]
(Buy: De La Soul Featuring Chaka Khan : Stereo Sushi 2 [Disc 2])

Go N-eiri An Bothar Leat!

Willie Doherty, Incident, 1993

May the road rise to meet you!
Old Irish saying.
March 17, 2006

"Mr Leopold Bloom ate with relish the inner organs of beasts and fowls. He liked thick giblet soup, nutty gizzards, a stuffed roast heart, liver slices fried with crust crumbs, fried hencods' roes. Most of all he liked grilled mutton kidneys which gave to his palate a fine tang of faintly scented urine."
Ulysses, James (Augustine Aloysius) Joyce

•••

Donegal Express
(Buy: Shane MacGowan & The Popes: The Snake)

Rehab
(Buy: Amy Winehouse: Back To Black)

The Rock Island Dog

Marcel Duchamp
The Rock
March 5, 2006

What else do I have to say?

•••

We're Going To Be Friends
(Buy: The White Stripes: White Blood Cells)

The Heavens Open Up To Cover The Rock With A Beautiful White Blanket Of Snow (And Kick The Arse of Wall Street)

Photograph © Alex Kraus/Bloomberg News

Tao Jones'n
Wall Street
February 28, 2007

An old, miserable guy goes down to the banks of the river. He raises his arms to the heavens. He beseeches the angels. He calls on them to make things better for him. They show up, but their mood is ugly. They tell him he has a scrawny neck, that they're tired of guys like him. When he complains, they knock him down. They beat him with their thick fists. They roll him into the river. They walk off stolidly through the mists, not saying anything, breathing hard. Under their robes their shoulders are big and violent, under the great horns of their wings.

Angels, from A Man Jumps Out of an Airplane by Barry Yourgrau.


(Oh, and Wall Street, if you're reading this — Get a friggin grip!)

•••

Angels
(Buy: Robbie Williams: Life Thru A Lens)

He Needs Me
(Buy: Harry Nilsson & Shelley Duvall: Punch-Drunk Love Original Soundtrack)

Thank You For Sending Me An Angel
(Buy: Talking Heads: More Songs About Buildings and Food)

Shambala
(Buy: Three Dog Night: The Complete Hit Singles)

Dwell(ing) On Top Of The Rock

Rocktop Real Estate
The Rock
January 2007

And some build their houses with the materials discarded by others.

If this home were built with new materials — you'd be reading about it in dwell.

•••

Funky Nuts
My Feet Can't Fail Me Now
(Buy: The Dirty Dozen: Ears to the Wall)

Little Boxes

Squirrel Shack
The Rock
November 2006

Little boxes on the hillside,
Little boxes made of ticky tacky,
Little boxes on the hillside,
Little boxes all the same.
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one,
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.

And the people in the houses
All went to the university,
Where they were put in boxes
And they came out all the same,
And there's doctors and lawyers,
And business executives,
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.

And they all play on the golf course
And drink their martinis dry,
And they all have pretty children
And the children go to school,
And the children go to summer camp
And then to the university,
Where they are put in boxes
And they come out all the same.

And the boys go into business
And marry and raise a family
In boxes made of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one,
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.

Words and music by Malvina Reynolds.
©1962 Schroder Music Company, renewed 1990.

•••

Malvina Reynolds: Little Boxes
(Buy: Malvina Reynolds: Ear To The Ground)

Riders In Rapture

Friday Evening Ferry
November 17, 2006

Red sky at night, blah, blah, blah.

My cold is (mostly) gone and I'm just glad it stopped raining. By the look of the clouds above — tomorrow looks like it might be a psychelectrodelica type of day. But, I'd just settle for a little sun.

•••

Go Home Productions: Psychelectrodelica(2003)
(Download: Go Home Productions: Psychelectrodelica(2003))

Go Home Productions: Rapture Riders (Blondie vs. The Doors)
(Buy: Go Home Productions: Rapture Riders)

You Are A Winner

Our (if you live on a rock-like island in Maine, that is) 2006 Winners!
The day after Election Day
November 8, 2006

I was in the local store the other day when someone stepped up to the counter and handed the clerk one of their lottery tickets. 'You are a winner', the machine spoke out, in its best Steven Hawking imitation computer voice. I thought that maybe everybody should hear that same response as they walked through the door. I know I'd dig it.

Well, these fine people (above, from left to right) can dig it. They are, US Senate, United States Senator, Olympia J. Snowe (R); Governor John E. Baldacci (D); US Representative, 1st District, Thomas H. Allen (D); US Representative, 2ND District, Michael H. Michaud (D); and House District 36, Hannah M. Pingree (D).

Now, I was thinking that, with the new influx of (D)'s in the win category this year, that maybe the first thing they could do is to take a vote and take the elephant for their mascot. I mean, it is a lot cooler then that donkey (or if you have a better idea, you just let me know). After that — do what you do people — I voted for you. I trust you.

•••

Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble: The House Is Rockin'
(Buy: Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble: Greatest Hits)

U2: Elevation (Tomb Raider Mix)
(Buy: U2: Elevation EP

Well, Blow Me Down

Windy Old Weather
The Rock
October 29, 2006

At least it's not raining (like it was last night). Windy old weather aside, today could not have been a more beautiful day. I hope tomorrow is just as sunny — the last boat to run off The Rock left at 8:45 yesterday morning — and from the looks of it, tomorrow may be a (gale) forced (wind) holiday. At least that's what the marine forecast says.

COASTAL WATERS FROM EASTPORT ME TO STONINGTON ME OUT 25 NM-
835 PM EST SUN OCT 29 2006

... GALE WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT THROUGH MONDAY AFTERNOON ...

OVERNIGHT... W WINDS 30 TO 35 KT WITH A FEW GUSTS TO 45 KT...DECREASING TO 25 TO 35 KT LATE. SEAS 17 TO 22 FT...SUBSIDING TO 12 TO 17 FT BY DAYBREAK. VSBY LOCALLY 1 TO 3 NM IN BLOWING SPRAY.

MON... W WINDS 25 TO 35 KT WITH A FEW GUSTS UP TO 45 KT. SEAS 10 TO 15 FT...SUBSIDING TO 7 TO 10 FT IN THE AFTERNOON.

MON NIGHT... NW WINDS 25 TO 30 KT...DECREASING TO 20 TO 25 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. SEAS 5 TO 8 FT...SUBSIDING TO 4 TO 6 FT AFTER MIDNIGHT.

(Information via MaineHarbors.com)

Oh, well, hopefully Tuesday's seas will still have a little punch to them too — because, quite honestly, it adds a little more excitement to the morning commute.

Dan Zanes: Windy Old Weather (Buy Dan Zanes: Sea Music)

Deerhoof Season

'World Premiere' of Deerhoof's Milk Man: A Ballet
Waterman's Community Center, North Haven, Maine
October 23, 2006

'I'll take you to my dream land
Now you're mine
I'll take you to our dream land'
'Milk Man' lyrics, ©Deerhoof

The final performance of 'Milk Man: A Ballet' takes place tonight (October 24 at 7:30 PM) at Waterman's Community Center. Tickets are $5 adults/$3 students and seniors, and can be reserved by calling 207.867.2100 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. The event is sponsored by North Haven Community School and North Haven Arts & Enrichment. The last ferry for North Haven leaves the Rockland Ferry Terminal at 5:15 PM. Be on it. You will never again be so entertained and awestruck for 5 dollars. (And, I'm telling you, you'll regret it if you miss it.)

Deerhoof: Milking (Buy It!)

Tomb With A View

Cemetery overlooking Carver's Pond, The Rock
August 2006

Laurie Anderson: Pieces And Parts (Buy It!)
Laurie Anderson: Here With You (Buy It!)

It's A Mighty Fine Ride

My Rock Island (Ferry) Ride
December, 2005

Leadbelly: Rock Island Line (Buy It!)

I've Got a Bike, You Can Ride It If You Like

Rock Island Road
Summer 2005

Queen: Bicycle Race (Buy It!)
Pink Floyd: Bike (Buy It!)

Slipping Through the Air

Ferry ride.
Date: June 24, 2006

She had a most beautiful voice -- velvet -- and when she walked it was as if she slipped through the air, so that you could not take your eyes off her. Every now and again, for no reason, she liked to run along the corridors, toward who knows what, on those awful white carpets, she stopped being the shadow she was and ran, but only seldom, and in a way that some people, in those moments, when they saw her, were heard to whisper . . .

- Excerpted from 'Ocean Sea' by Alessandro Baricco

Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66: After Sunrise (Buy It!)

Flat-Arsed Calm

Date: June 18, 2006