Life On A B-I7

72 Poets

Along the lines of six books a month, here is a list of 72 poets. If I were to read all of these poets in one year, that would be six poets per month. That’s not my plan. I would simply like to collect a few poems from each of these poets — from time to time. Having this list puts me on the road to fulfilling that ambition someday. Here’s hoping…

Dick Allen
A.R. Ammons
Matsuo Basho
Ellen Bass
Elizabeth Bishop
Shido Bunan
Yosa Buson
Chuang-Tzu
Billy Collins
Eihei Dogen
Robert Frost
Jack Gilbert
Han Shan
Jane Hirshfield
Andrea Hollander
Kobayashi Issa
Anna Kamienska
Jack Kerouac
Bill Knott
Yusef Komienska
Marilyn Kryst
Philip Larkin
D.H. Lawrence
Denise Levertov
Li Po
Bronislaw Maj
Czesław Milosz
Marianne Moore
Pablo Neruda
Frank O’Hara
Alicia Ostriker
Ron Padgett
Lucia Perillo
Fernando Pessoa
Paulamin Petersen
Po Chu-i
Ezra Pound
Jacques Prevert
Kenneth Rexroth
Yannis Ritsos
Kay Ryan
Ryokan
Saigyo
James Schuyler
William Shakespeare
Old Shoju
Tracy K. Smith
Gary Snyder
Ikkyu Sojun
William Stafford
Wallace Stevens
Ruth Stone
Su Tung P’o
Anna Sir
Wislawa Szymborska
Tomas Transformer
Tu Fu
Wei Ying-Wu
Walt Whitman
William Carlos Williams
William Wordsworth
James Wright
William Butler Yeats
Adam Zagajewski

If you were to add these up, you may have noticed that it does not total 72. That’s okay, I thought I would give myself some room to add a few more — not that I really need to…

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My 2024 Goals

Okay, I have some 2024 goals. I’m going to lay them out here, because, well, a goal not stated is not a goal, right?

My First goal is to read six books a month. I checked that box in January (with a few days to spare too). I’ll chat about the “January 6” in a follow-on entry. It turned out not to be as difficult as I thought to knock out six books in a month, it was fun too.

My second goal is to exercise daily. When I say daily, I would seriously like to make this a daily activity. I expect this will be harder than reading six books a month, but we’ll see. What I have in mind is not that difficult. A little rowing, a little balancing, a little stretching for the back and legs, and probably the most important exercise, walking. When I’m here in Seattle I can walk up Queen Anne Hill (it’s a steep one). You’ll see the point of all this as we get into the rest of my goals for 2024.

With that, here they are. I would like to hike a couple hundred miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, bicycle from Missoula MT to Florence Beach OR, ride a portion of the Oregon BDR on my motorcycle, and the one I’m most excited about, print and hand bind my poetry, three copies, one for each child. That last one will take some skills that I don’t have. I’m referring here of course to hand bookbinding, but that also applies to writing poetry.

If I can pull off this list, it will be a good year for sure. I just need to keep the following tips in mind:

1. Start slow and small.
2. Build a routine.
3. Track results.
4. Cut yourself some slack.
5. Keep going.

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Turn on the Bearm

It’s raining in the mountains again. I’ve had one week of good skiing this winter. I’m not complaining. Wait, yes I am…

Don’t use the top.
Don’t use the trough.
Turn on the bearm.

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Foraging Path

I discovered this while walking through the Seattle Center fountain courtyard. I would never have known what this was unless I had seen a mouse scamper along this trail, never veering off the path…

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Five Habits for the New Year

“Always start slow and small.”

Pick small goals that are stepping stones to your larger goals. Celebrate each small step. Pace yourself. The adage “It’s not a race, it’s a marathon,” is the key to all success.

“Build a routine.”

Someone recently asked me, “How do you have the discipline to write every day?” You don’t start with discipline, you start by finding enjoyment in what you are doing. Once that enjoyment reaches critical mass, you want that feeling every day. Discipline is just the urge to seek that enjoyment.

“Track your results.”

Using a journal to record progress (and setbacks) is a strong incentive and support. It does not have to be fancy. It provides you the opportunity to look back and correct, as well as look ahead and plan.

“Cut yourself some slack.”

Be gracious to yourself, there are going to be good days and bad days. In the greater scheme of things bad days are nothing more than opportunities to examine what isn’t working and avoid those things going forward. We are not perfect. I know that about myself, but that doesn’t stop me from trying to get better. I’m not worried about reaching perfection.

“Keep going.”

If you don’t feel like pursuing your goal today, that’s okay, but take a step anyway. The result might be shit but that doesn’t matter, what matters is that you took the step. Even if the result is less than satisfactory, you will still feel rewarded by the attempt. There is reward in the doing. The product will take care of itself.

Inspiration for this entry came from an online article I found on the Lochby website.

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Happy New Year

“Beginning today, treat everyone you meet as if they were going to be dead by midnight. Extend them all the care, kindness, and understanding you can muster. Your life will never be the same again. “
—Og Mandino

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