Several months ago, a fellow Streetlight editor wrote a Street Talk blog about her frustration with pestering and inappropriate advertising e-mails which show up on her screen by the zillions. Though I don’t have the same level of harassment, her words provoked me to contemplate the pervasiveness of advertising. One can hardly play a mind-exercising game on the iPad without constant interruption. Most intrusions try to persuade you to purchase more game downloads, but other products are promoted as well. Every online video is ‘sponsored’ by some advertiser. Thankfully, after a few seconds countdown, you … Continue reading It is Coming to Get Us by Fred Wilbur→
The other day, I was watching a TV program set during World War II. An American bomber group was about to drop leaflets over Nazi-occupied territory. The French text of the leaflet appeared briefly on screen, and I hit the pause button. I got the gist of the leaflet. Maybe eighty-percent. It was something like, “It has become necessary to bomb this town. Leave immediately.” This would be terrific except that I have studied French on and off for more than sixty years. I grew up with a father who spoke French. One of his … Continue reading Le Francais et Moi by Miles Fowler→
4:30 a.m. A barely audible humming wakes me from a deep sleep. It’s a faint yet unfamiliar sound. I am used to the quiet, to the ordinary sounds, so this new sound disturbs me. I am trying not to be worried, but I am and lie wide awake, listening. Yes, now I’m sure it’s not a sound I’ve heard before. My house is old, an 1854 farm house and wood may swell or shrink, a floorboard creak, a piece of furniture, a door. I know these sounds. The daytime sounds are recognizable—a tractor ploughing feed-corn … Continue reading A Winter’s Tale by Trudy Hale→
Streetlight: When and how were you introduced to art? Frankie Slaughter: When I was growing up, my mother, a modern dancer, art historian and arts enthusiast, and my father, a criminal trial lawyer and amateur magician, exposed my sisters and me to the arts in every form, practically on a daily basis—dance, art, magic, theatre. I engaged in many of these activities, such as painting, drawing, ceramics, tap, ballet, jazz, puppet making and set design. Streetlight: How did your work evolve? Slaughter: I started out with ceramics. I’ve always been interested in the materiality … Continue reading Frankie Slaughter Shows at Quirk Gallery→
During my growing up, I experimented with many media. I taught myself how to dig and process clay from local stream beds. I taught myself to weave. I saved money (from collecting return bottles and such) to buy painting materials and worked primarily in acrylics. I would wash down my canvases in the backyard for reuse. I also sold my mostly black and white optical art posters and hand-made drawing guides to classmates. But doing art is expensive . . . and over the years, I turned to creating images with … Continue reading The Drawings of Lorraine Caputo→
I’ve written previously about missing a sense of direction and thought an update might be warranted: It still sucks. Recently, when I was taking my ups driving my brother to chemo appointments in DC (where I haven’t lived since 1982) I asked which way to turn to get into the hospital parking lot. ‘I told you yesterday,’ he said. ‘And, what, you can only tell me once?’ He instructed me to take a left. Grudgingly. Then I’m pretty sure he called me ‘hazy’ under his breath. I stopped myself from reaching over and pinching him … Continue reading You Are Here by Erika Raskin→
On the first cold night since early last spring fog rolls onto the farm like a tide. I wake to a cloud buckling in the arena, around the barn, down the hill to where the horses eat their hay. It’s fog but my amygdala says smoke. Then, horses. Finally, fire. But they are safe, heads low as they draw strands of hay with their lips into their teeth. Jaws in circular meditation, as calming as yoga. The painted pony reaches to nose the crescent moon lying on its back along his barrel, a beacon of … Continue reading Remedy for an Excited Amygdala by Billie Hinton→
The Christmas story is full of haves and have-nots, those who are empty and those who are full, those who have shelter and those who lack. As with other biblical stories, it invites us to think about our inner poverties and riches, and how they lead us. Earlier, in the book of Genesis, humans choose their own individual will over sacred order and suffer the consequence of being forever separated from the garden. Exile and suffering mark the course of humanity until the gospels cast a star in the sky that hovers over a scene … Continue reading Advent by Sharon Ackerman→
Last Thursday, I attended a gathering of local writing friends where we ate food and gave out lots of hugs, along with cheers of “OMG! I haven’t seen you in so long!!” This was followed by a formal meeting where writers were invited to share updates on their projects. During many of these meetings, it’s exciting if one publication or big milestone is announced, but this time there were four. While they were all huge, one was particularly joyous for me. Author Jody Hobbs Hesler and I have spent years talking about the milestones, setbacks, rejections we’ve received … Continue reading Like your relationship with Creativity? If not, Julia Cameron can help you change it. by Lisa Cooper Ellison→
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