bend of bay

I am the boy’s father.

The girl’s aunt -

The painter is not to be paid

for such monstrosity

Once upon a time there was this man and this man woke up in the morning and as it was warm outside he said: Oh Christ. It’s June. Where had the winter gone and where had the springtime gone. What had happened to the spring, his favorite time of the year, the time of year when he enjoyed nothing better than aerating the lawn and cleaning up the litter that had blown into his gardens to be subsequently covered in snow? What had happened to the springtime when he dug out his spreader from the garage in order to store his snow shovels in its space and then over seed the lawn and afterward change the oil, air filter and spark plug on the mower? Where had it gone, the last little mound of snow by the sidewalk, the remnant of a battlement he had built both to provide access to his driveway via the removal of snow from the drive to the battlement, and simultaneously provide enjoyment for his son and not a few of the other children in the neighborhood as well? Where had it gone? Was it possible he had slept through it? Or perhaps this was just a dream, these very experiences and recollections were all part of a dream that he was in the midst of. It may not, for example, be really very hot outside. It may not be really very hot at all. Probably he had forgotten to turn down the heat. Probably he had forgotten to turn down the heat and as he liked to sleep under lots of covers as it made him feel safe snug and warm though he would never, ever admit this to his young son no matter what as his young son sometimes frightened came clamoring into the bed alongside of him and the abundance of blanket and quilt provided his son with additional assurance and the man had to admit that having his own son there too made him feel much better as knowing as a result his son’s precise whereabouts gave him one less thing to worry about and thus one less thing to interrupt or disturb his sleep. But the heat. If he had failed to turn down the heat as he was saying or rather reasoning trying hard to remember now in his dream if it was in fact a dream if he had turned down the heat it was entirely possible that he had failed to turn down the heat and as a result he had become over-heated beneath the covers thus sparking the chain of events in his brain that caused him to dream that the month was now June and the final days of winter and the entire spring emergence he so dearly loved had passed him by.

The attack began Thursday AM local time. Tomahawk cruise missiles carrying conventional warheads were launched from U.S. Navy battleships.

Salt line. V-Speed. The two are similar. Fish can’t cross the salt line and survive. A pilot can’t abort takeoff after reaching V-Speed. V-Speed can be calculated. The salt line can be estimated. But not by fish.

Cornelius Cardew is making a small resurgence.  Richard Gott has contributed this lengthy review-essay in the the March 12, 2009 issue of The London Review of Books. The essay provides a very good summary of Cardew’s life and work, from his early improvisational works, through the Scratch Orchestra and on to his rather sad, late, Maoist period.  Cardew lived a rich and influential life, which, after reading Gott’s piece you can explore more fully in John Tilbury’s  biography, Cornelius Cardew: A Life Unfinished.   Then listen to mode records new release of The QUaX Ensemble’s 1967 Prague performance of Treatiseto round out your Cardew experience.

Visit bend of bay on scribd.com for a selection of eBooks by our contributors. These books can be read online or downloaded to your computer or portable device.  If there are items from our archive you would like to see added, please leave a comment on this page or complete this form.

“If you live without Shakespeare, Chaucer is some consolation.”

pursued by bears takes its name from a stage direction by William Shakespeare. See: The Winter’s Tale, Act III, Scene III. 

Visit pursued by bears…

John Cale was a guest on the game show, I’ve Got A Secret, in 1963. This predates the foundation of the The Velvet Underground by a couple of years. Cale’s secret was his participation in the first full length performance of Eric Satie’s Vexations on September 9, 1963. Appearing with Cale on the program was the only person who remained for the entire 18 hour, 40 minute show.

John Cage organized this concert and mentioned it in a number of interviews. Also appearing were David Tudor and others.

The clip includes Cale playing the three lines comprising the basis of Vexations

Then two remained with not much to say, with not much to say at all. They sat together, day after day, sometimes side by side and sometimes across from one another, day after day, with nothing much to say, nothing much to say at all. Still they spoke, spoke to one another, spoke day after day. It passed the time. Confirmed each to the other that the other was alive, each to the other. They sat together, and spoke, and heard. They sat and spoke and heard. They sat and spoke and heard and so are content.

Carlos Vilardebo’s  1961 film of Calder’s circus, featuring the master of wire sculpture and inventor of the mobile’s fully functional circus, is streamed in full below. More information on Calder.

Our page announcing an upcoming realization of Project Finnegans Wake has been updated. The date and time will be set when about forty people  express interest. Sign up now by leaving a comment on this post or visit the project page for more information.