huracà

no walls can keep me protected
no sleep, nothing in between me and the rain
and you can't save me now,
i'm in the grip of a hurricane
i'm gonna blow myself away

no home, i don't want your shelter
no calm, nothing to keep me from the storm
and you can't hold me down
'cuz i belong to the hurricane
it's gonna blow us all away

i hope that you see me,
'cuz i'm staring at you
but when you look over,
you look right through
then you lean and kiss her on the head
and i never felt so alive,
and so dead

i'm going out,
i'm gonna drink myself to death
and in the crowd,
i see you with someone else
i brace myself,
'cuz i know it's going to hurt
but i like to think at least things can't get any worse

repost

i posted this on my other blog
but i figured i'd throw the link up here, too
cuz i dunno how many of you schmucks read the other one

at any rate,
after putting it off for the better part of 18 months,
i finally went through my hard drive
and put my photos from russia online
i had no real reason for doing it now,
other than i was INSANELY bored on the train ride back
and i needed something to do,
so i went through and edited all the photos on my computer
[and i do mean all of them]

so, here for your viewing pleasure
[along with my photos from new york/chicago/dc]
are my photos from russia
enjoy

picasaweb.google.com/nuyorussia
[in case it isn't clear,
'vg' stands for volgograd
'sp' is saint petersburg
'msc' is moscow]

rossinyol

ríu, ríu, chíu
la guarda ribera:
dios guardó del lobo
a nuestra cordera

el lobo rabioso
la quiso morder,
mas dios poderoso
la supo defender;
quisola hacer
que no pudiese pecar,
ni aun original
esta virgen no tuviera

este que es nacido
es el gran monarca,
cristo patriarca
de carne vestido;
hanos redimido
con se hacer chiquito
aunque era infinito,
finito se hiciera

muchas profecías
lo han profetizado,
y aun en nuestros días
lo hemos alcanzado.
a dios humanado
vemos en el suelo,
y al hombre en el cielo
porque el le quisiera

yo vi mil garzones
que andaban cantando,
por aquí volando
haciendo mil sones,
diciendo a gascones:
"gloria sea en el cielo
y paz en el suelo,
pues jesús naciera"

yltäkylläinen

щедрик щедрик, щедрiвочка,
прилeтiла ластiвочка,

стала собi щебетати,
господаря викликати:
"вийди, вийди, господарю,
подивися на кошару,

там овечки покотились,
а ягнички народились.
в тебе товар весь хороший,
будеш мати мiрку грошей,

в тебе товар весь хороший,
будеш мати мiрку грошей,
хоч не грошi, то полова:
в тебе жiнка чорноброва."

щедрик щедрик, щедрiвочка,
прилeтiла ластiвочка.

madwar

i call you my friend
and that's all that i do
why do i have to pretend
to find ways to be around you?

you've been there all along,
holding my hand like you do
why do i feel that it's wrong
to love to be around you?

do you feel what i feel?
well? do you feel this way too?
that every wound seems to heal
when i am around you

and i think i'm losing my mind,
maybe i've been hopelessly blind
to your beauty
and you have a sweet, sinful smile
i'm in trouble
cuz you turn me upside down
and around and around

and i must be losing my mind,
maybe you have a sweet, sinful smile
i'm in trouble
cuz you turn me upside down
and around and around

my feet don't touch the ground
when i'm around you

hladový

rien de dormier cette nuit
je veux de toi
jusqu'à ce que je sois sec
mais nos corps sont tout mouillés
complètement couvert de sueur
nous nous noyons dans la marée
je n'ais aucun désir
tu as ravagé mon cœur
et moi j'ai bu ton sang

tout le monde est à moi
je l'ai gagné dans un jeu de cartes
et maintenant je m'en fous
c'était gagné trop facilement
ça y est alors ma belle traîtresse
il faut que je brûle de jalousie
tu as ravagé mon cœur
et moi j'ai bu ton sang

mais non pouvons faire ce que nous voulons
j'aurais toujours faim de toi

no matter what i do,
i'm still hungry for you

över

you better crawl on your knees
and the next time you say that you love me,
fall on your knees
cuz this time i won't be so kind
can't you see that this is life, and life
is killing me?
is it yours? is it mine?
our sky fell down tonight,
to wash away our pain

you better see how evil you can be
when you see my evil smile
it's the one that you'll remember
when i am not so kind
can't you see that this is death, and death
is saving me
i say burn all of your bridges
while you still have control of the flame
i know it's hard, but you

tell me, over and over and over and over and over again
it never was the time for us,
it never was the time to let me in
show me, over and over and over and over and over again
the time for us,
it never was the time to let me in

you're hard and to the point,
so hard and to the point

the new movement

i'm writing this post on the bus to my hometown
where i'll be spending thanksgiving with my family
[and hopefully some of the few friends i still keep in touch with]
i don't think i've ever been on a bus ride this smooth before
cuz we all know how fucked up the roads are in michigan
and the ones in new york are just as bad, if not worse

also, it seems i have a new favorite cramped sleeping position
sitting, with my backpack in my lap
one foot on the footrest, the other curled underneath me
arms crossed over my bag, face down in my arms
and my head squarely pushing on the seat in front of me
that's how i've fallen asleep on every single trip i've taken this year
it seems to be developing into habit,
and i'm not sure if that's a good thing or not
at least i've managed to find a non–painful position
every other time i've fallen asleep on transit,
my neck always ends up in excruciating pain for a day or two

at any rate,
if anyone needs to get a hold of me,
i'm gonna be off the grid until monday at some point
which feels like a fucking treat after living in new york
fucking everyone's always wired into the system
no wonder they try to get away from it so often

speaking of getting away
i love coming back to places i haven't seen in years
it always gives me such a visceral reaction
tons of memories come flooding back,
and i get to see places i haven't seen in too long
fuck i missed connecticut

रोग

i awoke, only to find my lungs empty
through the night, so it seems i'm not breathing
and now my dreams are nothing like they were meant to be
and i'm breaking down,
i think i'm breaking down

and i'm afraid to sleep because of what haunts me,
such as living with the uncertainty
that i'll never never find the words to say,
which would completely explain
just how i'm breaking down

i've become the simple souvenir of someone's kill
like the sea, i'm constantly changing from calm to ill
madness fills my heart and soul,
as if the great divide could swallow me whole
oh, how i'm breaking down

someone come and, someone come and save my life
maybe i'll sleep when i am dead,
but now it's like the night is taking sides
with all the worries that occupy the back of my mind,
could it be this misery will suffice?

ţară

'twas halloween and the ghosts were out,
and everywhere they'd go, they'd shout,
and though i covered my eyes i knew
they'd go away

but fear's the only thing i saw,
and three days later, was clear to all
that nothing is as scary as
election day

but the day after is darker,
and darker and darker it goes,
who knows, maybe the plans will change,
who knows, maybe he's not deranged

the news men know what they know, but they
know even less than what they say,
and i don't know who i can trust,
for come what may

'cause we believed in our candidate,
but even more, it's the one we hate,
i needed someone i could shake
on election day

but the day after is darker,
and deeper and deeper we go,
who knows, maybe it's all a dream
who knows if i'll wake up and scream

i love the things that you've given me,
i cherish you, my dear country,
but sometimes i don't understand
the way we play

i love the things that you've given me,
and most of all that i am free
to have a song that i can sing
on election day

maimonides

i did my civic duty today
yup. i voted.
this was the second time i've done it by absentee ballot
[i did in 2008 too]
it seems to be developing into a trend
in my three years as a registered voter,
i've yet to step foot in an actual voting booth
granted, there were a couple local elections i missed
mostly cuz i never know when the fuck they are, but still
maybe someday i'll actually vote where i live

also speaking of absentee ballots
i have a bone to pick with the gub'ment about them:
it gets sent to us very quickly, quicker than normal mail]
you provide three envelopes with it
[the one it comes it, the return envelope, and the privacy sleeve]
you have the actual printed paper ballot,
which, by the way, is pretty long and always double sided
you give us all these instructions to fill them out and send them back
and yet, when i go to mail it back in the envelopes provided,
why in the hell do i have to pay the postage?
seriously, you go through all the trouble of mailing this shit to me
and you pay for it to get mailed to me, but not back?
the hell is that?
is it really that hard to pay the 61¢ postage?
our tax dollars at work, apparently

also, since we're on the subject of politics,
words can't describe how out of place i feel here
everyone goes on and on about the city and state officials
bloomberg this, albany that, holy christ it's paladino,
d'you hear what cuomo said yesterday,
and hot damn about that there working families party
they could be talking about scandinavian bear wrestling for all i know
i like to think i'm moderately informed about politics,
but i have enough problems keeping up with michigan politics
[which, by the way, nearly gives me a stroke to think about]
and trying to keep up with what connecticut does these days?
it's a wonder i even know who's running
but damn, even trying to understand new york politics gives me a headache
bullshit nonsense is what it is

bcsucks

hey, people who like msu football:
we cracked the top five in the BCS this week
how bout that?

i gotta say,
watching them play this year is doing good things for me
i actually enjoy watching the games, for one
[cuz i sure as hell didn't last year,
not after that whole cmu debacle]
they've got some shades of the 2008 season going,
what with actually having a good run game and all
it's given me something to do on saturdays, too
instead of going broke trying to afford this city
i approve on all counts

as much as i kinda sorta want to
i'm not going to play the prediction game
not for the bcs standings, not for bowl games
and sure as shit not for the big ten standing
not because i'm afraid of cursing the team,
or because i don't want to be wrong
why?
it's way too fucking insane, that's why
seriously
there are WAY too many possibilities for how the season ends
there's different scenarios depending on who wins out,
how tie breakers affect the big ten champ,
who'll jump over who in the bcs rankings
who gets what bowl game depending on who loses when/which team
it's enough to give anyone a nosebleed

i'll leave the predictions for the fans with nothing better to do
and/or people who get paid to give them
i'll leave you with this sentiment, though:
this year's college season, along with this year's professional season,
is some of the most entertaining football i've seen in a long time
and i do mean that
teams are losing games they shouldn't and winning games they shouldn't
the polls are all fucked up beyond compare
standings are completely up in the air
it's a total free–for–all among every single team in the league
and we're waiting anxiously to see who's gonna make it through unscathed
it's fucking awesome,
and i love it

samolot

сколько в моей жизни было этих самолётов
никогда не угадаешь где же он не приземлится
я плачу за эти буковки и цифры
улечу на этом кресле прямо в новости
давай, я позвоню тебе ещё раз
помолчим, поулыбаемся друг другу

я пытаюсь справиться с обрушившимся небом
я никак не слабачок, но тут такие перестрелки
я молчу, белеет парус одиноко
яурачок, он ничего не понимает
корабли имеют сердце и возможность выбирать
и погибая улыбаться

мы с тобой ещё немного и взорвёмся

жаль, но я никак не научусь остановиться
разгоняюсь–загоняюсь как отпущенная птица
хорошо, я буду сдержанной и взрослой
снег пошёл и значит что–то поменялось
я люблю твои запутанные волосы
давай, я позвоню тебе ещё раз, помолчим
люблю твои запутанные волосы
давай, я позвоню тебе ещё раз, помолчим
люблю...
люблю...

berlayar

i’m working on a sound
i’m walking through the city
feeling like the city
is feeling like a sound

i’m dreaming around 11
and i’m thinking of a friend
i’m feeling for the card
and feeling in the air

fabryka

oh, here in the shop the machines roar so wildly,
that oft, unaware that i am, or have been,
i sink and am lost in the terrible tumult;
and void is my soul... i am but a machine.
i work and i work and i work, never ceasing;
create and create things from morning till e'en;
for what?—and for whom—oh, i know not! oh, ask not!
who has ever heard of a conscious machine?

no, here is no feeling, no thought and no reason;
this life–crushing labor has ever supprest
the noblest and the finest, the truest and richest,
the deepest, the highest and humanly best.
the seconds, the minutes, they pass out forever,
they vanish, swift fleeting like straws in a gale.
i drive the wheel madly as tho' to o'ertake them,—
give chase without wisdom, or wit, or avail.

the clock in the workshop,—it rests not a moment;
it points on, and ticks on: eternity—time;
and once someone told me the clock had a meaning,—
its pointing and ticking had reason and rhyme.
and this too he told me,—or had i been dreaming,—
the clocked wakened life in one, forces unseen,
and something besides;... i forget what; oh, ask not!
i know not, i know not, i am a machine.

at times, when i listen, i hear the clock plainly;—
the reason of old—the old meaning—is gone!
the maddening pendulum urges me forward
to labor and labor and still labor on.
the tick of the clock is the boss in his anger!
the face of the clock has the eyes of a foe;
the clock—oh, i shudder—dost hear how it drives me?
it calls me "machine!"—and it cries to me "sew!"

at noon, when about me the wild tumult ceases,
and gone is the master, and i sit apart,
and the dawn in my brain is beginning to glimmer,
that would comes agape at the core of my heart;
and tears, bitter tears flow; ay, tears that are scalding;
they moisten my dinner—my dry crust of bread;
they choke me,—i cannot eat;—no, no, i cannot!
oh, horrible toil i born of need and dread.

the sweatshop at mid–day—i'll draw you the picture:
a battlefield bloody;the conflict at rest;
around and about me the corpses are lying;
the blood cries aloud from the earth's gory breast.
a moment... and hark! the loud signal is sounded,
the dead rise again and renewed is the fight...
they struggle, these corpses; for strangers, for strangers!
they struggle, they fall, and they sink into night.

i gaze on the battle in bitterest anger,
and pain, hellish pain wakes the rebel in me!
the clock—now i hear it aright!—it is crying:
"an end to this bondage! an end there must be!"
it quickens my reason, each feeling within me;
it shows me how precious the moments that fly.
oh, worthless my life if i longer am silent,
and lost to the world if in silence i die.

the man in me sleeping begins to awaken;
the thing that was slave into slumber has passed:
now; up with the man in me! up and be doing!
no misery more! here is freedom at last!
when sudden: a whistle!—the boss—an alarum!—
i sink in the slime of the stagnant routine;—
there's tumult, they struggle, oh, lost is my ego;—
i know not, i care not, i am a machine!...