this is where i work now, building far right

Late April Pogh-Hymns

Here are two pogh-hymns for Easter:

+++

1. “Wonder”
Thousands of times I’ve wondered:
What is making that noise?
Half a dozen times, I’ve found it to be
Myself.

+++

2. “Outside”
Outside the Seven Eleven
On the road that runs perpendicular
To Middlefield
Two bums are discussing the Royal Wedding
And forget
To ask me for change.

+++

Peas out.

graphics

Teeth (A Short Poghem)

Here is a short poghem for y'all. It was partially inspired by an article entitled "Traumatic Injuries of the Lips and Tongue" as featured on the Colgate Oral and Dental Health Resource Center. For some reason, a link to this appeared on Thought Catalog:

http://www.colgate.com/app/CP/US/EN/OC/Information/Articles/Oral-and-Dental-Health-Basics/Dental-Emergencies/Dental-Emergencies/article/Traumatic-Injuries-of-the-Lips-and-Tongue.cvsp

This ad appeared while I was reading the article "Requiem." I felt a bit bleak after reading that article, but since it was tagged "Cancer," "Death," "Life," "Retirement," and "Sadness," that's probably okay, right?

+++

“Teeth”

You told me it hadn’t worked well- I asked, of course,
and you implied it had made a mess. I think that
isn’t your fault- not your fault for failure, and not your fault
for the idea. I don’t remember if you told me it
was yours, but I’d bet it was. It’s not a terrible idea, to
brush the teeth of a man
who is perfectly capable of brushing his own
and who does, or did, or was in the habit of doing so.

You shouldn’t have faced him while doing it- that was
your mistake. Try standing
behind him instead, in front of a mirror, looking over
his head if you’re tall enough, or over
his shoulder otherwise, and brushing
his teeth that way. I can remember
tying a tie on a man who couldn’t tie his own, and I
would stand behind him, with us
in front of a mirror, and that worked
well.

I want you to try again,
standing behind him this time. I think
that will be more natural- you’ll be
able to use some of the muscle
memory
you’ve developed over the decades you’ve brushed
your own teeth. You wouldn’t have the feeling,
the feedback, you have
when brushing your own teeth- and perhaps
it would be rather like
brushing your own teeth when you’re numb
from a cocktail of pharmaceuticals
that renders you sloppy, stumbling, uncoordinated,
but preserves-
even intensifies-
your interest in personal hygiene.

Try again- just work slowly, and be
careful
not to hurt him- you won’t hurt him, I
trust you.

+++

Peas out.

web guyz

Berlin Photographs, Part 3

Berlin Photographs, Part 3

This is the third set.

Click an image to view larger.

+++


"Scarf Smiles"

+++


"No Shit Sherlock"

+++


"Man In Leather Jacket With Matching Hair"

+++


"High Lights"

+++


"MacBeth And Such"

+++


"Dimple"

+++


"Young Man With Tag"

+++


"Semiprecious" (Note: this is not a differently-edited version of "Very Few Things Besides Lip Balm Work As Well As Advertised" although the subject is the same.)

+++


"Woman With Reichstag Reflected"

+++


"For A Fraction"

+++

Berlin Photographs, Part 2

Berlin Photographs, Part 2

This is the next set.

Click on a photograph to see it larger.

+++


"Constructive"

+++


"Nickname"

+++


"Hartz Of Men"

+++


"In Living Memory Of Pirate Heme"

+++


"Cornrows"

+++


"Very Few Things Besides Lip Balm Work As Well As Advertised"

+++



"Turning Back"

+++


"If I Should Fall Behind"

+++


"What Is Justin Bieber?"

+++


"Martin Luther King Junior"

+++

Peas Out, V4L.

Berlin Photographs, Part 1

Berlin Photographs, Part 1

Recently, I spent four days limping through the streets of Berlin, Germany’s capitol.

There are certain challenges to street photography in Berlin. Germany has some of the weakest freedom-of-speech protections and some of the strictest privacy laws in the European Union, and in Germany (unlike in the United States), it is illegal to photograph strangers without their permission. However, my interpretation of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (particularly Article 19, but also Articles 13, 20, 22, and 27) is that I have the irrevocable right to photograph anyone and anything anywhere in the world, irrespective of a subject’s consent and for any purpose whatsoever.

Practically speaking, Berlin is in some respects a better place for street photography than the American cities (Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Jose) where I’ve shot street. This is because Berlin is very safe; like most European Union cities, it has a violent crime rate about one-tenth as high as a typical American city. Overall, violent acts by civilians are the second-largest threat to a street photographer; oppressive actions by the police are a distant third.
Perhaps you are wondering what the greatest threat is.

It’s getting run over by a taxi, trust me.

A second positive characteristic of Berlin is that it lacks the sharp racial divisions of American cities. I walked through every quarter of the city (covering 15 to 20 miles per day), and although there are certain areas with a relatively high proportion of people of African or Middle Eastern descent, there’s nowhere in Berlin where a White person would stand out on the street. I doubt if there is a single block of the city where White people are less than 30% of the population. I stand out a great deal in the predominantly-Hispanic parts of San Jose and the predominantly-Black parts of Oakland, but in Berlin, as long as I kept my mouth shut, I didn’t stand out anywhere.
This isn’t to say that Berlin is racially homogenous; it’s a very diverse city, and it’s common to hear English, French, Italian, Turkish, Arabic, Russian, Hindi, and Chinese in many places. Berlin is simply much less segregated along visible racial lines than American cities. Interracial couples and families are the norm.

During the four days I spent in the city, I photographed perhaps 100 people per day. As such, it’s taking me some time to process all of my photographs. Here are a few of the first. I will be posting more in the coming days, along with travel tips which I hope will be helpful to anyone traveling to Berlin (and which I hope will induce people to travel to this excellent city).

Click an image to view larger.

+++


"Plum Beret"

+++


"Not My Cup Of Tea"

+++


"Totally Would, Even If She Had Bad Teeth And/Or Bad Credit"

Detail:


+++


"Mary Poppins"

+++


"Brohemia"

+++


"Soldier In Cherry Beret"

+++


"Hot Bro With The Brandenburg Gate Reflected"

Detail:


+++


"His Eyes Were Watching Gosh"

+++


"Women In Silk Headscarves With Sheen"

+++


"Tungsten And Inert Gas"

Detail:


+++

PO4N (Peas Out For Now).

☺☺☺ SOCRAFT® KTV ☺☺☺