He was the enemy of imagination,
you couldn't draw him,
or even imagine what he looked like.
Whenever you would try,
you just saw images like grey fog at twilight
and a foot disappearing behind a door.
-Jim DuBois
Dec 14, 2003
Friday, December 24, 2010
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Undercover
Under cover of
the wild birds
singing at dawn,
I can't ever be
who I used to be,
anymore.
-June 18, 2006
the wild birds
singing at dawn,
I can't ever be
who I used to be,
anymore.
-June 18, 2006
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Doubt
Waves of doubt wash over me
as I lie next to you
trying to sleep.
Will I ever show you
this poem?
-Jim DuBois
June 25, 2006
as I lie next to you
trying to sleep.
Will I ever show you
this poem?
-Jim DuBois
June 25, 2006
Monday, December 6, 2010
A Certain Peace
The first time I remember
walking down route 9
by St. John's church
in Northampton,
I had given up hope
and was carrying
a rolled up blanket
and looking for a place
to sleep.
I had given up hope
of finding people
of finding my way
of finding a home,
but there was a certain peace
that settled over me
in that moment
(maybe because
I had stopped trying)
and then Julian pulled up
on the street
(in Steve's british car
he was borrowing without asking)
and took me to stay
at the Cummington Community
for the Arts
for a few days.
I remember wandering around
up there,
going into the weird little cabins
(which I later learned were private),
sitting in a field
playing flute
which echoed back nicely
from the hills
and imagining
I was the long lost son
of a woman I imagined
lived in the little old house
nearby.
I remember eating a lot of carrots
and seeing Lauren's
circular art cabin,
with the hand-made walk,
nestled in the edge
of the woods.
Now it is nearly twenty years later
and I am sitting on State street
on the low stone wall
by Edwards church
and I am trying
not to try
and to give up hopes
I have of other people,
and even though
I've had insomnia recently
and my best friend's husband
died three months ago
and we (including her three
and a half year old son)
haven't found our bearings yet,
a certain peace
has settled over me again
and I am using it
to relax,
to remember,
and to write.
-Jim DuBois
Nov 13, 2010
walking down route 9
by St. John's church
in Northampton,
I had given up hope
and was carrying
a rolled up blanket
and looking for a place
to sleep.
I had given up hope
of finding people
of finding my way
of finding a home,
but there was a certain peace
that settled over me
in that moment
(maybe because
I had stopped trying)
and then Julian pulled up
on the street
(in Steve's british car
he was borrowing without asking)
and took me to stay
at the Cummington Community
for the Arts
for a few days.
I remember wandering around
up there,
going into the weird little cabins
(which I later learned were private),
sitting in a field
playing flute
which echoed back nicely
from the hills
and imagining
I was the long lost son
of a woman I imagined
lived in the little old house
nearby.
I remember eating a lot of carrots
and seeing Lauren's
circular art cabin,
with the hand-made walk,
nestled in the edge
of the woods.
Now it is nearly twenty years later
and I am sitting on State street
on the low stone wall
by Edwards church
and I am trying
not to try
and to give up hopes
I have of other people,
and even though
I've had insomnia recently
and my best friend's husband
died three months ago
and we (including her three
and a half year old son)
haven't found our bearings yet,
a certain peace
has settled over me again
and I am using it
to relax,
to remember,
and to write.
-Jim DuBois
Nov 13, 2010
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Insomniac Math
Let's see...
I couldn't fall asleep right away
so it was maybe 430 or 5
then there were those weird dreams that kept waking me up
plus those fing dogs barking in the morning
and now what the fuck was that?
I think mom or dad just came into the extra room I'm staying in
probably to get something she or he forgot
but possibly just to accidentally wake me
now it's 1146
so it adds up to probably 6 1/2 restless hours
if I was lucky
but it's more likely to equal
that I'm tired and irritated
and the day is screwed.
Sounds like my brother and nephew are here now though
and at least I'll get to eat a lot
plus I got more sleep than the 3 hours I kept fearing
so I'm probably not screwed as hard as I thought.
-Jim DuBois
Nov 25, 2010
I couldn't fall asleep right away
so it was maybe 430 or 5
then there were those weird dreams that kept waking me up
plus those fing dogs barking in the morning
and now what the fuck was that?
I think mom or dad just came into the extra room I'm staying in
probably to get something she or he forgot
but possibly just to accidentally wake me
now it's 1146
so it adds up to probably 6 1/2 restless hours
if I was lucky
but it's more likely to equal
that I'm tired and irritated
and the day is screwed.
Sounds like my brother and nephew are here now though
and at least I'll get to eat a lot
plus I got more sleep than the 3 hours I kept fearing
so I'm probably not screwed as hard as I thought.
-Jim DuBois
Nov 25, 2010
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Abstract Art Calendar
Last week I made these calendars for 2011, which feature paintings and collage I made.
Get a copy at RedBubble.
Get a copy at RedBubble.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Epic Tag-Sale Poem *
1.
Jenny, you're away
but tag-sale season started today.
I did what I had to do:
I went without you.
I didn't get as far
as we would've with your car.
I got some books and some games
but by myself it just wasn't the same.
2.
I remember --
last summer --
driving around to tag-sales
with you
hunting for bargains
and perfect satisfaction.
Now, even though
I've almost finished
the toothpaste
and gotten rid of
the weird literary magazines,
I think our hunt
succeeded.
3.
Coming back to town
late Saturday afternoon
I saw many signs
for huge tag-sales
with great bargains.
Neither you nor I
could go to them
since we were
separately
out-of-town.
-Jim DuBois
Pt 1 - April 29, 2006,
Pt 2 & 3 - June 19, 2006
* A Tag Sale means a Yard Sale or Garage Sale, which is where people put things they want to sell out in their yard or garage. I picked up the term "Tag Sale" from living in Western MA, and have not heard it elsewhere.
Jenny, you're away
but tag-sale season started today.
I did what I had to do:
I went without you.
I didn't get as far
as we would've with your car.
I got some books and some games
but by myself it just wasn't the same.
2.
I remember --
last summer --
driving around to tag-sales
with you
hunting for bargains
and perfect satisfaction.
Now, even though
I've almost finished
the toothpaste
and gotten rid of
the weird literary magazines,
I think our hunt
succeeded.
3.
Coming back to town
late Saturday afternoon
I saw many signs
for huge tag-sales
with great bargains.
Neither you nor I
could go to them
since we were
separately
out-of-town.
-Jim DuBois
Pt 1 - April 29, 2006,
Pt 2 & 3 - June 19, 2006
* A Tag Sale means a Yard Sale or Garage Sale, which is where people put things they want to sell out in their yard or garage. I picked up the term "Tag Sale" from living in Western MA, and have not heard it elsewhere.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Bus Stops
I like bus stops
because no-one
thinks it's weird
if you stand there
doing nothing
for a long time.
-Jim DuBois
Dec 15, 2002
because no-one
thinks it's weird
if you stand there
doing nothing
for a long time.
-Jim DuBois
Dec 15, 2002
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Backstage
Some days,
you are sitting backstage
from your life
relaxing, eating a bagel,
thinking of what to do next,
waiting for them to play the music
that's your cue
to walk on stage
-Jim DuBois
Oct 21, 2010
you are sitting backstage
from your life
relaxing, eating a bagel,
thinking of what to do next,
waiting for them to play the music
that's your cue
to walk on stage
-Jim DuBois
Oct 21, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Faded
I.I never thought
those times would
become faded
Or that my voice might be
the spectre of the past
calling out,
reminding you,
reminding me,
of something…
…something indistinct
but important,
locked away in memory,
in childhood,
in these faded photographs
of who we used to be
but can never be again.
II.I never thought
those times would
become faded,
but these photographs
tell the true story,
that we weren’t who we
thought we were,
and we still aren’t,
and it’s only by a trick
of the mind
and avoidance of the sight of our old bad
hair cuts
that we convince ourselves
that nothing’s changed.
III.Sometimes something
indistinct can tell us
more than something precise,
because what is essential
is dynamic and can’t be captured…
…we can only be reminded of it,
and experience it anew.
We have memories and feelings
about the past
but no more moments of it.
IV.I look out the window,
watching the grey weather
quietly drop snow onto Northampton
as I write down some thoughts
that came to me
after looking at these old pictures.
I know that one day,
this moment will also fade,
this ink will disappear and
the paper crumble.
Until then
I just want to say:
We still have time
to be who we’ve
always been.
-Jim DuBois
2005?
Monday, October 18, 2010
Momentary Ambition
Sometimes there's no guide
Sometimes there's no right or wrong,
only a momentary ambition
to climb into your eyes
Sometimes there's nothing to understand
Sometimes there's no rules,
only love
you didn't expect
-Jim DuBois
Dec 8, 1998
Sometimes there's no right or wrong,
only a momentary ambition
to climb into your eyes
Sometimes there's nothing to understand
Sometimes there's no rules,
only love
you didn't expect
-Jim DuBois
Dec 8, 1998
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
The Places I Think You Might Have Been
Walking by the places
I think you might have been.
Scratch off tickets
litter the sidewalk
that leads to the house
a friend of yours
might
have lived in.
Walking by the places
I saw you last.
Eight years ago
I met you briefly
behind the counter
at the Pleasant Street Theater.
Once at Bread and Circus
we talked for a moment,
but I can't remember
what we said.
Six months ago
we waved and said hello
in the parking lot
behind Thornes
I smiled and blushed
and fell in love.
Walking by you,
a few weeks ago
on main street,
I felt my stomach clenching
and I ducked behind a tree
even though I wanted
to be brave.
-Jim DuBois
June 27, 2005
I think you might have been.
Scratch off tickets
litter the sidewalk
that leads to the house
a friend of yours
might
have lived in.
Walking by the places
I saw you last.
Eight years ago
I met you briefly
behind the counter
at the Pleasant Street Theater.
Once at Bread and Circus
we talked for a moment,
but I can't remember
what we said.
Six months ago
we waved and said hello
in the parking lot
behind Thornes
I smiled and blushed
and fell in love.
Walking by you,
a few weeks ago
on main street,
I felt my stomach clenching
and I ducked behind a tree
even though I wanted
to be brave.
-Jim DuBois
June 27, 2005
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
"steel candy-cake perfume"
I remember that time
that you said
"steel candy-cake perfume"
and
Karl Marx
rose from the dead,
not came back to life,
just rose
straight up
UP
UP
into the air
and disapearred,
heading out
towards the
Oort cloud
and the horsehead
nebula
Well, that's the last time
I'll sing butterflies
of
supercluster cadences
-Jim DuBois
June 19, 2006
that you said
"steel candy-cake perfume"
and
Karl Marx
rose from the dead,
not came back to life,
just rose
straight up
UP
UP
into the air
and disapearred,
heading out
towards the
Oort cloud
and the horsehead
nebula
Well, that's the last time
I'll sing butterflies
of
supercluster cadences
-Jim DuBois
June 19, 2006
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Semi-sweet broken hearts
Semi-sweet
broken hearts
absorbing heat
from the landscape
of lost love
because somedays
the sun isn't enough
-Jim DuBois
Aug 27, 2008
broken hearts
absorbing heat
from the landscape
of lost love
because somedays
the sun isn't enough
-Jim DuBois
Aug 27, 2008
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Fox News, etc
Propaganda machines
of the conservative capitalist empire
running at full force
to cover the cracks
in the foundation,
to distract and anger
the people
from their chance
to help deal it
a death blow
-Jim DuBois
Sept 4, 2010
of the conservative capitalist empire
running at full force
to cover the cracks
in the foundation,
to distract and anger
the people
from their chance
to help deal it
a death blow
-Jim DuBois
Sept 4, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Old Working Class Women
Old working class women,
smoking in the little park near the parking garage,
gossiping about this guy
who lives in their building -
they can't let each other finish their sentences,
they are agitated, but talkative and friendly.
Sometimes they wish they could afford
a better place to live.
-Jim DuBois
August 19, 2010
smoking in the little park near the parking garage,
gossiping about this guy
who lives in their building -
they can't let each other finish their sentences,
they are agitated, but talkative and friendly.
Sometimes they wish they could afford
a better place to live.
-Jim DuBois
August 19, 2010
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Evolution of Existence
I went outside
to eat two bananas
and enjoy the shade
and breeze
Then I reflected
on the nature
of my existence
as people have done
since they were people
Then I typed in
some poems
on my telephone
which sent them
through radio-waves
to some distant
computer server
so I could retrieve them
later
-Jim DuBois
August 19, 2010
to eat two bananas
and enjoy the shade
and breeze
Then I reflected
on the nature
of my existence
as people have done
since they were people
Then I typed in
some poems
on my telephone
which sent them
through radio-waves
to some distant
computer server
so I could retrieve them
later
-Jim DuBois
August 19, 2010
Friday, September 3, 2010
Quark Dreams
I had this dream
that I was explaining to Robby
that when electrons jump from state to state,
they sometimes emit photons.
I woke up
and thought about
that living beings
are made of the same stuff,
like electrons and protons,
as other matter,
and that
all those weird quantum things
apply to the underpinnings
of our own selves.
Do we emit photons
every once in an improbable while?
do our protons ever decay?
do we have junk DNA and multiple back up RNA
to compensate for quantum randomness
that might disturb our
cellular reproduction?
I pictured us
as glowing collections
of subatomic particles,
heat, trapped and controlled
by elaborate methods,
like neurons and DNA.
-Jim DuBois
August 19, 2010
that I was explaining to Robby
that when electrons jump from state to state,
they sometimes emit photons.
I woke up
and thought about
that living beings
are made of the same stuff,
like electrons and protons,
as other matter,
and that
all those weird quantum things
apply to the underpinnings
of our own selves.
Do we emit photons
every once in an improbable while?
do our protons ever decay?
do we have junk DNA and multiple back up RNA
to compensate for quantum randomness
that might disturb our
cellular reproduction?
I pictured us
as glowing collections
of subatomic particles,
heat, trapped and controlled
by elaborate methods,
like neurons and DNA.
-Jim DuBois
August 19, 2010
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Lame Little Bird
Lame little bird,
leg stuck out sideways,
dragging across the ground,
hopping around like everything is normal,
you are made of
Quarks and Protons, too!
-Jim DuBois
August 19, 2010
leg stuck out sideways,
dragging across the ground,
hopping around like everything is normal,
you are made of
Quarks and Protons, too!
-Jim DuBois
August 19, 2010
Saturday, August 21, 2010
SItting on your couch
Sitting on your couch,
Wanting to be closer to you,
Wondering what I should do (if anything).
Maybe I'll show you this?
-Jim DuBois
Fall 2007
Wanting to be closer to you,
Wondering what I should do (if anything).
Maybe I'll show you this?
-Jim DuBois
Fall 2007
Sunday, August 15, 2010
American Spirit
I keep finding these
discarded American Spirit
cigarette boxes
and thinking it's ironic
(ha ha Indians are
back to nature, etc,
funny to see it here, etc)
but then I realized
tt wasn't, it was actually
a message from
the true American Corporate Spirit:
Kill people, take their image
idealize it to sell
addictive things
to help control
the population
and make a profit,
and leave trash
in the wilderness.
-Jim DuBois
April 25, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
Like the Sun - #17
To lead people well,
you must be one of them,
no better or worse,
no more or less deserving.
Don’t glorify your achievements,
don’t hide your difficulties.
Who you are will be enough.
Let others go before you,
let others come after.
When you are just another person,
with no selfish desires,
your leadership will last and be effective.
- Jim DuBois
[This is an excerpt from my book, Like The Sun, from the section about leadership. Get the whole book]
you must be one of them,
no better or worse,
no more or less deserving.
Don’t glorify your achievements,
don’t hide your difficulties.
Who you are will be enough.
Let others go before you,
let others come after.
When you are just another person,
with no selfish desires,
your leadership will last and be effective.
- Jim DuBois
[This is an excerpt from my book, Like The Sun, from the section about leadership. Get the whole book]
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Like the Sun - #66
Have you seen the great canyons,
carved hundreds of feet through stone
into the earth?
It was only flowing water and time
that achieved such a spectacular result.
But on any given day,
you won’t see much evidence
of this occurring.
It can be useful to picture your efforts
in life similarly.
Each day you put effort into
your work, a bit here and a bit there.
Most often there is no immediate drama as a result,
but sometimes you can see the canyon-like effect,
stretching backwards in time.
You don’t need to do more
than to be persistent in your efforts to achieve something.
Indeed, there is hardly a way
you could force all the effort
required for spectacular things
into one day.
-Jim DuBois
[This is an excerpt from my book, Like The Sun, from the section about getting stuff done. Get the whole book]
carved hundreds of feet through stone
into the earth?
It was only flowing water and time
that achieved such a spectacular result.
But on any given day,
you won’t see much evidence
of this occurring.
It can be useful to picture your efforts
in life similarly.
Each day you put effort into
your work, a bit here and a bit there.
Most often there is no immediate drama as a result,
but sometimes you can see the canyon-like effect,
stretching backwards in time.
You don’t need to do more
than to be persistent in your efforts to achieve something.
Indeed, there is hardly a way
you could force all the effort
required for spectacular things
into one day.
-Jim DuBois
[This is an excerpt from my book, Like The Sun, from the section about getting stuff done. Get the whole book]
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Like the Sun - #1
The sun!
Radiating warmth to everyone,
sustaining life on earth,
needing no credit,
exerting no extra credit.
You can be like that:
Doing work that comes easily and naturally to you,
improving the lives of those around you,
changing situations for the better with your presence.
- Jim DuBois
[This is an excerpt from my book, Like The Sun, from the section about relating to people. Get the whole book]
Radiating warmth to everyone,
sustaining life on earth,
needing no credit,
exerting no extra credit.
You can be like that:
Doing work that comes easily and naturally to you,
improving the lives of those around you,
changing situations for the better with your presence.
- Jim DuBois
[This is an excerpt from my book, Like The Sun, from the section about relating to people. Get the whole book]
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Sometimes (again)
Sometimes,
the food you pick out
is exactly as delicious
as you had hoped.
-Jim DuBois
July 18, 2010
the food you pick out
is exactly as delicious
as you had hoped.
-Jim DuBois
July 18, 2010
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Everlasting
Old guy, reading the paper
at Stop & Shop,
"I'm one of those
everlasting survivors."
-Jim DuBois
at Stop & Shop,
"I'm one of those
everlasting survivors."
-Jim DuBois
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Enough
Far enough
Wide enough
Long enough
enough
Expansive feeling of life
at the railroad bridge
over the Connecticut river
-Jim DuBois
April 14, 2010
Wide enough
Long enough
enough
Expansive feeling of life
at the railroad bridge
over the Connecticut river
-Jim DuBois
April 14, 2010
Friday, July 9, 2010
My Heart Has Always Been My Own
My heart has always been my own
with its own ways
and words
loving when it does
who it does
however it does
You might notice it,
you might not
- that is your business
-Jim DuBois
April 14, 2010
with its own ways
and words
loving when it does
who it does
however it does
You might notice it,
you might not
- that is your business
-Jim DuBois
April 14, 2010
Saturday, July 3, 2010
A Neuron Firing
A neuron firing,
An idea forming,
A muscle moving.
A letter!
A word!
A sentence, and a poem!
What next?
A person,
A planet,
A galaxy!
The forces of Gravity!
The speed of Light!
-Jim DuBois
c1998?
An idea forming,
A muscle moving.
A letter!
A word!
A sentence, and a poem!
What next?
A person,
A planet,
A galaxy!
The forces of Gravity!
The speed of Light!
-Jim DuBois
c1998?
Sunday, June 27, 2010
no time to wait
There is no time to wait, no new day coming with the promise of liberation.
There is no time to wait for the right words,
no time to wait for the world to be ready.
There is no time to wait for audiences or art
No time to wait for fear to go away
No time to consider whether your actions will be right or wrong
no time for things to be finished
no time to wait for someone else to approve or say I love you
No time to rehearse for tommorrow
no time but imperfect now
-Jim DuBois
c1994 (originally written on the inside of old raisin boxes)
There is no time to wait for the right words,
no time to wait for the world to be ready.
There is no time to wait for audiences or art
No time to wait for fear to go away
No time to consider whether your actions will be right or wrong
no time for things to be finished
no time to wait for someone else to approve or say I love you
No time to rehearse for tommorrow
no time but imperfect now
-Jim DuBois
c1994 (originally written on the inside of old raisin boxes)
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Like the Sun
I wrote a book of poetry philosophy, and will be putting up a few selections from it on this blog, but you can get a copy now:
Like the Sun
Saturday, June 12, 2010
We Will Remember You
We will remember you,
said the stars and the rain
We will remember you,
said the flames of the sun
We will remember you,
said the mass of humanity.
We will place you
in our collected memories
and pass you on
and on
and on
-Jim DuBois
June 12, 2010
said the stars and the rain
We will remember you,
said the flames of the sun
We will remember you,
said the mass of humanity.
We will place you
in our collected memories
and pass you on
and on
and on
-Jim DuBois
June 12, 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Somebody Else
He used to be somebody else,
but he rarely remembered who,
and even then
it was more of a feeling or a dream
than a clear memory.
-Jim DuBois
May 2009
but he rarely remembered who,
and even then
it was more of a feeling or a dream
than a clear memory.
-Jim DuBois
May 2009
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Friday, May 21, 2010
Adult Life
View 1
Breed work consume
Die
View 2
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
Die
-Jim DuBois
Sep 2005
Breed work consume
Die
View 2
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
work work work work
Die
-Jim DuBois
Sep 2005
Saturday, May 15, 2010
The World Didn't Stop Turning
The world didn't stop turning --
the moon rose,
the stars shifted --
but we were safe,
drifting through time
on our raft
of that long embrace,
for a while
really living,
just being there
at the center of things
caught up
in the trees and water around us
caught up
in the only moment there was.
-Jim DuBois
Sept 21, 2000
the moon rose,
the stars shifted --
but we were safe,
drifting through time
on our raft
of that long embrace,
for a while
really living,
just being there
at the center of things
caught up
in the trees and water around us
caught up
in the only moment there was.
-Jim DuBois
Sept 21, 2000
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Monday, May 3, 2010
Astronaut
I used to be
an astronaut,
floating out, way out,
somewhere between
the galaxies.
They sent me there
on some mission we all
forgot about,
but luckily I got rescued
by some aliens who brought
me home.
-Jim DuBois
2004
an astronaut,
floating out, way out,
somewhere between
the galaxies.
They sent me there
on some mission we all
forgot about,
but luckily I got rescued
by some aliens who brought
me home.
-Jim DuBois
2004
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Upon Opening My Kitchen Door
Upon opening my kitchen door
I see a strange chair
which startles me for a moment
and then I remember
in a rush
how we stole that chair
last night
on a date.
-Jim DuBois
July 15, 2007
I see a strange chair
which startles me for a moment
and then I remember
in a rush
how we stole that chair
last night
on a date.
-Jim DuBois
July 15, 2007
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
It Was A Good Day
Going to bed last night,
I suddenly remembered
you, barefoot,
calmly leading the Clydesdales*
out to the pasture,
while I ate mulberries
and watched
from up in the tree,
and later,
we ate red raspberries
off the vines
and talked about
how the world
keeps on giving.
-Jim DuBois
April 13, 2010
* a Clydesdale is a type of horse. They are very large and stocky.
Learn more about them
I suddenly remembered
you, barefoot,
calmly leading the Clydesdales*
out to the pasture,
while I ate mulberries
and watched
from up in the tree,
and later,
we ate red raspberries
off the vines
and talked about
how the world
keeps on giving.
-Jim DuBois
April 13, 2010
* a Clydesdale is a type of horse. They are very large and stocky.
Learn more about them
Thursday, April 15, 2010
It Rained So Hard
I'm staring
at this swamp
and remembering that time
when we were young
and it rained so hard
a pond formed
next to the junkyard
and we built a raft
from old tires
and the hood of a truck
and floated around
in the rain.
-Jim DuBois
April 12, 2010
at this swamp
and remembering that time
when we were young
and it rained so hard
a pond formed
next to the junkyard
and we built a raft
from old tires
and the hood of a truck
and floated around
in the rain.
-Jim DuBois
April 12, 2010
Friday, April 9, 2010
Genetic Astrology - video
I already published the text of this poem here, but now there's a video of me reading it.
-Jim DuBois
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Real Moment
At home,
new paintings, drying
under new drop-ceiling
next to new windows.
Outside,
me, wandering
catching the last of the light
almost aimlessly.
-Jim DuBois
March 25, 2010
new paintings, drying
under new drop-ceiling
next to new windows.
Outside,
me, wandering
catching the last of the light
almost aimlessly.
-Jim DuBois
March 25, 2010
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Away
My friends
are away
on a trip
but at least
I get
to be lonely
and clean up
cat puke.
-Jim DuBois
March 15, 2010
are away
on a trip
but at least
I get
to be lonely
and clean up
cat puke.
-Jim DuBois
March 15, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Not Really
You asked if anything
was bothering me
and I said no.
Are you sure?
Yes, I feel fine.
Really? Cause it seems like
something's bothering you.
Not really.
...
Are you sure
nothing's bothering you?
Well, these questions
are starting to get
on my nerves.
I knew something
was bothering you!
-Jim DuBois
March 5, 2010
was bothering me
and I said no.
Are you sure?
Yes, I feel fine.
Really? Cause it seems like
something's bothering you.
Not really.
...
Are you sure
nothing's bothering you?
Well, these questions
are starting to get
on my nerves.
I knew something
was bothering you!
-Jim DuBois
March 5, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
Lessons
I remember
playing piano
onstage with Trevor
at Fire & Water*.
I was reluctant because
I didn't know much
about playing piano.
People liked our song,
and afterwords
Trevor said,
"See, it didn't matter
how much you know,
you could still
entertain them."
I also remember
Attaboy** giving me
a drawing lesson.
I brought
my pen and paper
to the cafe,
and he said,
"Ok. Now draw, man,
draw!"
Another time
I saw
some modern sculpture
and said
to my artist friend,
"I don't get it,
I coulda done that,"
and he said,
"Sure, but
the difference between
you and this guy
is that you didn't."
A few weeks ago
when I was having
an open studio
to sell my art,
Kathy told me
what her brother says
about pricing his art:
"Keep raising the price
until you get nauseaus
and then sometimes
double it."
-Jim DuBois
Feb 23, 2010
* Fire & Water was a cafe in Northampton, MA
** Attaboy is the name of a friend of mine who used to live in Northampton
playing piano
onstage with Trevor
at Fire & Water*.
I was reluctant because
I didn't know much
about playing piano.
People liked our song,
and afterwords
Trevor said,
"See, it didn't matter
how much you know,
you could still
entertain them."
I also remember
Attaboy** giving me
a drawing lesson.
I brought
my pen and paper
to the cafe,
and he said,
"Ok. Now draw, man,
draw!"
Another time
I saw
some modern sculpture
and said
to my artist friend,
"I don't get it,
I coulda done that,"
and he said,
"Sure, but
the difference between
you and this guy
is that you didn't."
A few weeks ago
when I was having
an open studio
to sell my art,
Kathy told me
what her brother says
about pricing his art:
"Keep raising the price
until you get nauseaus
and then sometimes
double it."
-Jim DuBois
Feb 23, 2010
* Fire & Water was a cafe in Northampton, MA
** Attaboy is the name of a friend of mine who used to live in Northampton
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Old Cat
Look at the
O-L-D
cat lying in the sun
Look at the
green green grass
Look at the Cat
Look at the Sun
Sun
Sun
Sun
Cat
Cat
Cat
-Jim DuBois
Nov 21, 2003
O-L-D
cat lying in the sun
Look at the
green green grass
Look at the Cat
Look at the Sun
Sun
Sun
Sun
Cat
Cat
Cat
-Jim DuBois
Nov 21, 2003
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
Bone Memory Poet *
Bone Memory Poet
dwelling in the
blood marrow caves
telling the ancient stories
of the genetic ancestors,
the primates of days past.
These bones,
these caves,
were grown
so long ago
no one really remembers
but everyone knows
they go further back
than some find comfortable,
to rodents and bacteria,
mud and rocks,
strands of protein
from unknown shores
off the planet.
Bone memory leads us back
to the calcification
of our own skulls,
to the womb,
to the very first vertebra,
back further
to Africa
via our individual paths,
to tiny mammals,
an ice age
and the extinction
of the dinosaurs.
Speak, bone memory,
speak, bone memory,
speak!
Remind us of our
elemental nature,
of calcium and iron,
of our siblinghood
with water
and oxygen,
of our ability
to generate
electrical pulses
and create chemicals.
You've seen
all these things
and encoded them
in mysterious genetic runes
and protein alphabets.
Bone Memory Poet,
reminding us
of our foundations,
of our inner structure,
reminding us
that below
the cleverness and cognition
we are physical entities,
forces of nature.
-Jim DuBois
Jan 6, 2010
* title line from a friend of a friend
dwelling in the
blood marrow caves
telling the ancient stories
of the genetic ancestors,
the primates of days past.
These bones,
these caves,
were grown
so long ago
no one really remembers
but everyone knows
they go further back
than some find comfortable,
to rodents and bacteria,
mud and rocks,
strands of protein
from unknown shores
off the planet.
Bone memory leads us back
to the calcification
of our own skulls,
to the womb,
to the very first vertebra,
back further
to Africa
via our individual paths,
to tiny mammals,
an ice age
and the extinction
of the dinosaurs.
Speak, bone memory,
speak, bone memory,
speak!
Remind us of our
elemental nature,
of calcium and iron,
of our siblinghood
with water
and oxygen,
of our ability
to generate
electrical pulses
and create chemicals.
You've seen
all these things
and encoded them
in mysterious genetic runes
and protein alphabets.
Bone Memory Poet,
reminding us
of our foundations,
of our inner structure,
reminding us
that below
the cleverness and cognition
we are physical entities,
forces of nature.
-Jim DuBois
Jan 6, 2010
* title line from a friend of a friend
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Stars, and Ice
Walking back through the front field at night,
after feeding the cats at the barn,
we used to lay down and stare up at the stars
and feel the enormousness of their distance
and what it would be like
to just keep falling
up into the sky.
Sometimes when we came back that way
in the winter,
the whole hill would be covered
with ice-encrusted snow
and we used to lay down on our bellies
and slide slowly
all the way down.
Jim DuBois
Jan 1, 2010
after feeding the cats at the barn,
we used to lay down and stare up at the stars
and feel the enormousness of their distance
and what it would be like
to just keep falling
up into the sky.
Sometimes when we came back that way
in the winter,
the whole hill would be covered
with ice-encrusted snow
and we used to lay down on our bellies
and slide slowly
all the way down.
Jim DuBois
Jan 1, 2010
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Looking for Something
I remember many years ago
when I was browsing
in the consignment shop
down on Pleasant street.
It was grey and snowing outside,
and inside, me, one other browser
and the guy at the register
were the only ones there.
The other browser was a skinny guy
looking for some cheap boots or something.
I wanted some cool cheap shirts, probably,
and the guy at the register kept looking boredly out the window.
Then this girl came in
and we all felt a little happier,
because we were lonely
and our only way out was through girls.
She knew the guy at the register
and they talked for a little bit
and me and the other guy had to listen
because it was otherwise quiet in there.
She said she was having a lazy day,
a relaxed, lazy, snowy day,
and she had spent the morning in bed
playing Nintendo with her boyfriend.
And to me, and undoutedly to the other lonely fellows,
it was like the god we had always wished for,
but never believed in,
had sent a divine being,
a kind of benevolent angel,
to let us know that
somewhere, someone was happy
and not lonely
and that even though such a divine entity
was always going to be out of our reach
and we'd probably have hard struggles
with our separate desperations,
we should not give up hope.
-Jim DuBois
Jan 1, 2010
when I was browsing
in the consignment shop
down on Pleasant street.
It was grey and snowing outside,
and inside, me, one other browser
and the guy at the register
were the only ones there.
The other browser was a skinny guy
looking for some cheap boots or something.
I wanted some cool cheap shirts, probably,
and the guy at the register kept looking boredly out the window.
Then this girl came in
and we all felt a little happier,
because we were lonely
and our only way out was through girls.
She knew the guy at the register
and they talked for a little bit
and me and the other guy had to listen
because it was otherwise quiet in there.
She said she was having a lazy day,
a relaxed, lazy, snowy day,
and she had spent the morning in bed
playing Nintendo with her boyfriend.
And to me, and undoutedly to the other lonely fellows,
it was like the god we had always wished for,
but never believed in,
had sent a divine being,
a kind of benevolent angel,
to let us know that
somewhere, someone was happy
and not lonely
and that even though such a divine entity
was always going to be out of our reach
and we'd probably have hard struggles
with our separate desperations,
we should not give up hope.
-Jim DuBois
Jan 1, 2010
Monday, February 1, 2010
Computer Summary Poem #2
When I put my whole blog through the summary function of my word processer, this what it came up with:
Shirt,
40 Short Poems
This poem
Run
Run
Run!!!
a love poem
loving
running
- Jim DuBois + Computer
Dec 20, 2009
Shirt,
40 Short Poems
This poem
Run
Run
Run!!!
a love poem
loving
running
- Jim DuBois + Computer
Dec 20, 2009
Monday, January 25, 2010
Wandering in Other People's Memories
This broken twig,
that muddy footprint --
these show the paths they took
to become themselves.
Here is the campground of her fearful heart,
there is the happy hillside of his youth.
There is the pizza place that still serves
hot hope for the future,
here is where she buries her forgotten days.
This is the trash heap piled high with
unsent love letters.
that is the wasteground where time
spent waiting for things ends up,
and little yellow flowers grow.
-Jim DuBois
2004 ish
that muddy footprint --
these show the paths they took
to become themselves.
Here is the campground of her fearful heart,
there is the happy hillside of his youth.
There is the pizza place that still serves
hot hope for the future,
here is where she buries her forgotten days.
This is the trash heap piled high with
unsent love letters.
that is the wasteground where time
spent waiting for things ends up,
and little yellow flowers grow.
-Jim DuBois
2004 ish
Monday, January 18, 2010
Identity
This is where you live
On this sidewalk
In this chair
Among these people
Wherever it is you actually are
This is who you are
With these thoughts
Eating this burrito
Making these minute by minute decisions
Doing exactly whatever it is you are doing
This is what you are
Temporarily animated matter
Atoms somehow made conscious
Not separated by the boundaries you think you are
Not different from other atoms
Unique but not different from the other conscious beings that surround you
-Jim DuBois
Jan 16, 2010
On this sidewalk
In this chair
Among these people
Wherever it is you actually are
This is who you are
With these thoughts
Eating this burrito
Making these minute by minute decisions
Doing exactly whatever it is you are doing
This is what you are
Temporarily animated matter
Atoms somehow made conscious
Not separated by the boundaries you think you are
Not different from other atoms
Unique but not different from the other conscious beings that surround you
-Jim DuBois
Jan 16, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
That Long-Dead Dog
I keep dreaming about
that
dog
that
long-dead
dog.
Rushing to attack
the post officer,
in a strange ranch house,
struggling to escape
my restraining grasp.
He is like symbol,
or a message
that I don't understand.
Nobody liked him,
but I guess
I liked him
more than I thought.
-Jim DuBois
March 10, 2004
that
dog
that
long-dead
dog.
Rushing to attack
the post officer,
in a strange ranch house,
struggling to escape
my restraining grasp.
He is like symbol,
or a message
that I don't understand.
Nobody liked him,
but I guess
I liked him
more than I thought.
-Jim DuBois
March 10, 2004
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Let Tomorrow Come
Let tomorrow come
because I’ve polished today
and stashed it
in my trophy case,
with an engraved label
reading:
‘Yes!
Yes!
Yes!’
Let tomorrow come
because I’ve got my ear
to the ground
and the energy of life
is relaying your heartbeat
to me from wherever it is
you’ve gone.
-Jim DuBois
Oct 6, 2000
because I’ve polished today
and stashed it
in my trophy case,
with an engraved label
reading:
‘Yes!
Yes!
Yes!’
Let tomorrow come
because I’ve got my ear
to the ground
and the energy of life
is relaying your heartbeat
to me from wherever it is
you’ve gone.
-Jim DuBois
Oct 6, 2000
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