#752: Dayton, Ohio, 2026

There are drummers everywhere in Dayton, Ohio, behind the Target, in the parking lots of hotels, inside and outside churches, in the lots of abandoned shopping malls, in the lobby of the Hampton where we’re staying, and tomorrow morning, they will be at the free continental breakfast. There’s no escaping them. They’re like the beesContinue reading “#752: Dayton, Ohio, 2026”

#570: Drum Lessons

Ringo Starr, one of the greatest drummers in the world, has admittedto not being able to do a double-stroke roll. I’ve seen children in YouTubevideos who are better drummers thanI will ever be. I don’t like these drummers. My son is a better rudimental drummer than I will ever be. How come? He worked aContinue reading “#570: Drum Lessons”

#553: A History of Drumming

Today’s poem is very loosely a poem. It’s a little essay broken into lines so as to imitate a poem, a pretty standard technique of mine. I tend to be pretty liberal about what constitutes a poem and what does not. Like most discussions around genre and form, it’s really only interesting if one findsContinue reading “#553: A History of Drumming”

#548: Why I Am Not A Carpenter

It is not the poem I wanted to write today, but the prompt at NaPoWriMo was irresistible. Why I Am Not A Carpenter –after Frank O’Hara I am not a carpenter, I am a poetand a musician and a teacher. Why? I think I would ratherbe a carpenter, but I am not. Well, for instance,Continue reading “#548: Why I Am Not A Carpenter”

On the Twenty-fifth Day of 2025…

…I got so tired of pulling up my pants so they didn’t fall off my ass, I bought a belt today. It’s not like I haven’t had one all this time. I had one, all right, until my son stole it from me and moved to SoCal. And, while that might be a funny placeContinue reading “On the Twenty-fifth Day of 2025…”

Thank You, Neil

Somewhat unusually, I think, because it wasn’t a huge hit, the first album I heard from Rush was the debut, the only Rush record without a Neil Peart on the drums. My brother had it, and during those days, as young as I was, my brothers’ and my sister’s records just seemed to BE there.Continue reading “Thank You, Neil”

New Year Tradition? A New Way to Experience Music? 2020!

Section 1: A New Year Tradition? I hope this does not become a New Year’s Tradition, but two years in a row now, I have been ill going into New Year’s Eve and absolutely down for the count on the first day of the new year. Coupled with that has been a tradition that IContinue reading “New Year Tradition? A New Way to Experience Music? 2020!”

#217: Poem on the 26th of the Month of April

My head is empty of poems; instead it’s full of Shakespeare, trying to hold on to my lines even though the run is over. I found myself running some of them today for no other reason than to see if I could do it. My mind is full of The Flaming Lips because I’ve been listening toContinue reading “#217: Poem on the 26th of the Month of April”

#6: Drumsticks–A Valediction

Drumsticks: A Valediction Don’t worry; it’s only temporary. But because I’ve been drumming almost non-stop all weekend, I must now say farewell to you, my sticks, until next Friday, when I will take you up again and continue the drumming. Know, you must, that the drumming lately has been exceptional, in the way that fishingContinue reading “#6: Drumsticks–A Valediction”