Yesterday was Whitetail’s last day for the season. Blame it on Mother Nature. She has been warm the entire winter. We hadn’t had a snowstorm. If the weather stays this way Liberty and Roundtop will be shutting down soon as well.

I took Đạo and Xuân to Liberty yesterday to test out my new Rome United bindings, which I found a good deal on Amazon for $100. The price has gone back up to $160. Since I bought the Capita board that came with the step-in Flow bindings, I just went with it. I liked the convenience of the step-in style, but the way they strapped the top of my feet made me excruciatingly uncomfortable when I turned, particularly on my toe side.

The cause for the pain was not just the old bindings but also the way I turned. I tended to initiate my turns way too late. I pivoted my back foot too much to control my speed on my toe side. As a result, I slowed myself down and burned my legs. I need to fix this habit.

The Rome United bindings only strapped my toes and ankles; therefore, they were more tolerable. I still felt a bit of a pain when I pivoted, but it was not as bad as before. I am keeping the Rome United bindings. I hope I still have a chance to continue to hone my skills before the season’s over.

Mama, my son moans when he dreams again that I’m gone.
His hand on my finger curves into a lock when I stand.

I remember my mother’s shape in the darkness
like a pattern, sew it to the quilt, dip the stitch, pull.

Not her smell nor her actual voice when she said she was leaving. Long ago rustle of now.

And he’s sleeping the whole lit known night long,
my fur-feather baby, lobe and lung,
You know I can’t stay, you know

I’ll be here forever. It was a dream is what I say
when he tells me I left and that the house
became bigger and trapped him inside his room.

Nameless rainmaker, pattern of drops, and all we remember
the story we tell of it after.

The dead in the ground are the dark good shapes,
here by the bed to stay just a little while longer.
His warm one lock of a hand.

Hold harder, oh pure constellation.

How do we die, my son asks one night without context while we’re choosing his five bedtime books.

Taije Silverman

A few weeks ago, my brother-in-law gave me 24-pack Rockstar. While I am not a fan of energy drink, I do like mixing it with liquor. I tried half Rockstar with half Bombay Sapphire over ice and the combination was quite a kick. My energy was boosted for sure. Since I couldn’t finish all 24 cans of Rockstar myself, I brought them to our cabin camping trip.

I whipped them up for a few of my drinking buddies. They didn’t seem to like them at first, but they kept asking for more. We killed the bottle of gin much quicker than I had expected. I had to run to the liquor store to get another bottle.

The night before, we drank beer and bourbon until one in the morning. The men were snoring like crazy and I couldn’t sleep. Rockstar and Bombay gave me much more energy than I had expected. I felt great, but I knew this combo could be dangerous. I needed to take it easy.

A lovely collection from a Korean-American poet who received an MFA and PhD in poetry. I like the way she incorporates Korean characters into English even though I don’t know the words. My favorite pieces includes “The Symmetry of Fish,” “My Bed Shakes and I Assume the Ghosts Are Finally Getting Me,” and of course, “Remember This When You’re Hungry.”

when it come back around
The purpose is in the lessons we learnin’ now
Sacrifice personal gain over everything
Just to see the next generation better than ours
I wasn’t perfect, the skin I was in had truly suffered
Temptation, impatience, everything that the body nurtures
I felt the good, I felt the bad, and I felt the worry
But all-in-all, my productivity had stayed urgent
Face your fears, always knew that I would make it here
Where the energy is magnified and persevered
Consciousness is synchronized and crystal-clear
Euphoria is glorified and made His
Reflectin’ on my life and what I’ve done
Paid dues, made rules, change outta love
Them same views made schools change curriculums
But didn’t change me starin’ down the barrel of the gun
Should I feel resentful I didn’t see my full potential?
Should I feel regret about the good that I was into?
Everything is everything, this ain’t coincidental
I woke up that morning with more heart to give you
As I bleed through the speakers, feel my presence
To my brother, to my kids, I’m in Heaven
To my mother, to my sis’, I’m in Heaven
To my father, to my wife, I am serious, this is Heaven
To my friends, make sure you countin’ them blessings
To my fans, make sure you make them investments
And to the killer that sped up my demise
I forgive you, just know your soul’s in question
I seen the pain in your pupil when that trigger had squeezed
And though you did me gruesome, I was surely relieved
I completed my mission, wasn’t ready to leave
But fulfilled my days, my Creator was pleased
I can’t stress how I love y’all
I don’t need to be in flesh just to hug y’all
The memories recollect just because y’all
Celebrate me with respect
The unity we protect is above all
And Sam, I’ll be watchin’ over you
Make sure my kids watch all my interviews
Make sure you live out our dreams we produced
Keep that genius in your brain on the move
And to my neighborhood, let the good prevail
Make sure them babies and the leaders outta jail
Look for salvation when troubles get real
’Cause you can’t help the world until you help yourself
And I can’t blame the hood the day that I was killed
Y’all had to see it, that’s the only way to feel
And though my physical won’t reap the benefits
The energy that carry on emits still
I want you

Kendrick Lamar (Excerpt from “The Heart Part 5”)

The people of Ukraine are putting their lives on the line to defend their country, freedom, and democracy. You are sitting here stressed out about your damn mundane life. Get a grip, motherfucker.

I used to rock CK & DKNY. These days I rock AE (Amazon Essentials).

The day I chose humanity over religion
The family got closer, it was all forgiven
I said them F-bombs, I ain’t know any better
Mistakenly, I ain’t think that you’d know any different
See, I was taught words was nothing more than a sound
If ever they was pronounced without any intentions
The very second you challenged the shit I was kicking
Reminded me about a show I did out the city
That time I brung a fan on stage to rap
But disapproved the word that she couldn’t say with me
You said, “Kendrick, ain’t no room for contradiction
To truly understand love, switch position
’Faggot, faggot, faggot,’ we can say it together
But only if you let a white girl say ‘Nigga’”

Kendrick Lamar (Excerpt from “Auntie Diaries”)

I am a lazy-ass poetry reader. I want the poems to come to me rather I come to the poems. I read Colm Tóibín’s collection almost to the end before I started to pick his style and content. Maybe he writes about places I have no clue, such as Dublin and Wexford. Of course I could pick up the political scene “In Washington DC” and “In the White House.” The pieces I enjoy have simple structures such as “Canal Water” and “Prayer to St Agnes.” My favorite piece is “Eve.” It is just hilarious.

Rất hiếm mới được thưởng thức một album Việt jazz trọn vẹn từ đầu đến cuối. Ngọc Linh đã thành công trong lĩnh vực này với album Tự tình. Với chất giọng ấm áp nồng nàn, Ngọc Linh chuyên trở dòng nhạc tình đầy cảm xúc và lãng mạn. Tuy nhiên, Tự tình được nâng cao nhờ phần hòa âm và phối khí đặc sắc của Phan Cường, Hữu Hiệp, và Thiện Trần. Dĩ nhiên không thiếu sự cống hiến quan trọng của các nhạc sĩ chơi nhạc cụ.

Đã nghe qua một số nam ca sĩ trình bài nhạc phẩm “Vì đó là em” (Diệu Hương) và cách hát của Tuấn Ngọc thì đỉnh rồi nhưng phần hòa âm cho anh không đạt so với âm hưởng blues trong version cho Ngọc Linh. Từ bài pop ballad mà phối lại với blues jazz nghe hơi bị phê.

“Thành phố buồn nằm nghe khói tỏa / Người lưa thưa chìm dưới sương mù”, nghe Ngọc Linh hát câu này với tiếng jazz khiến cho người nghe có thể cảm nhận được cái “Thành phố buồn” của nhạc sĩ Lam Phương. Chắc tại “Tôi đưa em sang sông” (Y Vũ và Nhật Ngân) mà đi tửng tửng theo điệu funk nên “Hôm nao em sang ngang, bằng xe hoa thay con thuyền?” mà cũng chẳng biết.

Dường như bài hoà âm nào cho “Ảo ảnh” (Y Vân) cũng theo điệu bossa nova nhưng version cho Ngọc Linh được hương vị Latin đậm đà. Tình khúc lãng mạn, “Tình tự mùa xuân” (Từ Công Phụng), được pha một chút blues jazz vào cho thêm phần thấm thía.

Tự tình là một album tôi sẽ nghe đi nghe lại nhiều lần trong năm 2023.