The Muse Goes On...

Boots, photographed by my fellow soprano Mary Reynolds

2/17/16
Boots
The Cathedral Cat
Snoozing in the
Sun
In front of the
Narthex door
To the cloister
Her cloister,
it often seems.
For that is where
She waits
To greet us
Every Wednesday
For rehearsal
And on Sundays
Before the crowds
Arrive
Boots has her favorites
Mostly among the choir
For cats
And good music
Just seem
To go together
-C,K. Armistead Feb 17,2016

2/17/16
(Bukowski On Cats reading)
"They are asleep across the top of my feet.
I can feel the gentle weight of them
the touch of fur
I am aware of their breathing:
good things happen often, remember that
as the Bombs trundle out in their
magnificent dumbness
these
at my feet
know more
are
more,
and instants of the moment explode
larger
and a lucky past
can never be
killed." - Bukowski

Cats, indeed any animals, can be a reminder of the stubbornness of joy in life.
Oh, many of us ignore joy, or lose it for a LONG time, but joy lies in wait
Like a cat in the shadows
Under the table of life
To spring on us again
And catch us
In those thrilling
If slightly painful claws
For most joy has a tinge
Of sorrow
Or guilt with it-
We humans know how lousy
We can be
How undeserving of joy
But joy deigns still
To pounce on us
Once in a while
In unexpected places
Just like a cat
At play with our souls.


2/18/16

"I live with a lady and four cats
and some days we all get
along.
some days I trouble with
one of the
cats
other days I have trouble with
two of the
cats.
other days,
three.
Some days I have trouble with
all four of the
cats
and the
lady
ten eyes looking at me
as if I were a dog.
- Bukowski

This poem perfectly depicts the feeling you get from an unhappy cat.  They look at you with this odd combination of disgust, disappointment, and pity.
I suppose we ladies DO look upon our men that way sometimes.
Times when they've behaved
Like a very rambunctious
and undisciplined puppy
Or a grouchy, growly
Old dog.
But I hope I look at
You with more
Understanding
Because I always understood
That the dog
Just couldn't help it.

2/19/16

"It's 11:45 pm and
I'm drunk...
listen, relax, you've read
worse
poems than
this...
and I've written
them." - Bukowski

Very encouraging to know that I am not alone in feeling that I've written some awful drivel, and also some not so bad.
Written a few things that truly shine and make me proud of myself.
Just hard to realize that others feel the same about their own work
Hey, this one's not great
But it's not garbage, either.

Skye admiring herself