The Osbick Bird

Dodo Bird

2017-11-27T22:24:00.002-08:00

Doddling dodo, the Dutch don't know
The knot in your tail is quite apropos
A Portuguese Penguin? I don't think so
Not a pigeon but a dove from long ago
Earthbound avian, aerialless auger
Would leaving you alone have been such a bother
To walk on the earth with your wiggle and saunter
Man isn't content without reaching yonder
And plucking up this and squandering that
And calling a nuisance what he's pestered, in fact
But the murder of dodo has made us react
We're now a tad slower to commence the attack

Laughing Owl

2017-11-27T22:23:00.004-08:00

Just before it starts to rain

Laughing owl laughs again
On dark and lonely drizzly night
The laughing owl may take flight
His sound is like a barking dog
But on the rocks and in the fog
He loves to hear accordion's sound
But often thinks it's love he's found

One day man came and without a thought
Shot laughing owl on the spot
A pretty bird, so calm and gentle
He'd look handsome on my mantle!
When the clouds burst out in tears
The laughing owl had disappeared
Laughing owl, Kiwi bird
You no longer utter a single word

The Mechanical Boy

2017-02-25T10:19:00.001-08:00

This is an ode to a mechanical boy
Who hid from the world in the way he knew how
When flesh and bone could bring him no joy
And being a boy was too hard, too hard

Here he is standing in a room, and within
When no one is watching we see how he changes
Slowly the skin is no longer his skin
And where once there were fingers now a wire dangles

With each minute passing, his flesh growing tougher
It appears that his arms will no longer function
He watches and waits, with no desire to suffer
And so they come off with tubes to replace them

The doctors stand by with their mouths all agaping
They can't understand the boy's transformation
They can't see the heart now is no longer beating
For there in its place is a standard transmission

Each day observe how the boy turns to metal
And each night his organs transmute into parts
That work so that he doesn't feel but a little
And keep what is fragile from falling apart

In My Studio

2017-02-25T10:05:00.000-08:00

I gaze down the lip
Of an empty bottle
I guess I've learned
Something from this
But what is it...?
And I stare at his hands
So far away
Around her waist
And it's cold in here
In my studio

There is nothing
I wouldn't do
For him

So I play my guitar
And the words
Empty my soul
It's plain to me
What has happened
Mmmm...
But I still wait
And I still listen
For the telephone
And I hate to admit
I'm still crying over it.

There is nothing
I wouldn't give
To him

12/13/10

2017-02-25T10:01:00.000-08:00

Raising the Flag So High You Can't Reach It

He’s got me wrapped around his finger without even trying or caring to --his movements memorizing me as he walks about in his ways, with closeless closeness, standing nearby as he talks to me, always at arms length as I approach,

a tenderness that’s neither missing nor present, making me jealous when he’s away, causing me to question everything about myself, I drop everything for the smallest request, yet demanding nothing and imposing always, I will bend over backwards at his beck and call,

going into debt to feed him, waiting at night in case he comes calling, checking my phone for his texts during the day, trying to make plans and not be disappointed if he doesn’t come through, granting him every concession and expecting nothing of him

when he returns my favor it is the sweetest thing to me, the most honest and wonderful gift to be offered a ride or a bunch of bananas from the grocer, and still i am

impossibly situated between love, friendship, and hatred; he can’t love me and i can’t love him, because despite the time we have spent together at the courts or on the sofa I do not exist to him beyond being a cup of tea or a dvd or a stax record

yet I still rest my thoughts on him, smiling, laughing, thinking about his words, like when he follows me from room to room telling me stories as I get ready in the morning and I leave the house feeling completely elated, that nothing could go wrong for me

until i dread the inevitable time when we won’t have this, this, what we have, this friendship, this immaterial thing that is binding me to him and meaning nothing at all

am i flesh and blood or just a ghost helping him along, making him tea?

The Candy That Makes Kisses Sweet

2016-12-05T12:59:00.000-08:00

You're the rainstorm that makes this willow weep
You're the dancing that moves inside these feet
You're the love that makes my life complete
You are the song that I program to repeat
You are the dream that lures me off to sleep
You're the rhythm that causes every beat

And you're the candy makes kisses sweet

A Song I Wrote On the Banjo

2016-03-15T13:05:00.000-07:00

I see the sailor come
from my hillside sojourn
He bears just one pack
Carried on his shoulder

He is a handsome man
But I do not love him
He wants to carry me
Forward to the altar

He's come to marry me on a misty morning
He's come to marry me in the Month of May

Tell him that I'm not home
And I don't want to see him
Tell him my heart is broke
From when he chose to leave me

He's come to marry me on a misty morning
He's come to marry me in the Month of May

Tell him that my folks are gone
And he did not console me
Tell him that the landlord come
And put me out of my home

He's come to marry me on a misty morning
He's come to marry me in the Month of May

What is it

2014-08-21T19:43:00.000-07:00

What is it?
I can't tell
Like falling down a well
And sliding into hell
Is it me?
Or is it you?
That breaks this thing in two
That puts the past in view
Is it love?
Or is it lonliness?
It used to be our best
But now it's just indifference

I wrote this song for my banjo teacher, Rick Neeley, who passed away

2013-06-26T13:06:00.000-07:00

Last time I saw
you I was too
busy to talk
How many times
Did I pass you by
And not meet your eye
Now I will only
Frail like you taught me
I'll think of you
Where did it go?
I needed a chance
To say hello
Now it's too late
But I just learned
We are the same
End of the road
For some just the start
You left a song in my heart

2013-02-26T13:19:00.000-08:00

Walking real slow
I find you asleep in the meadow
Here is my head
It's right on my pillow asleep in my bed
Down on the path
There's nothing to hear but a laugh
Caught in my mouth
Against the things I am thinking about
Next to my room
I question the space of my tomb
What's for me here?
A skin left behind me as I disappear
How can I find
The very things I've left behind
Hidden from sight
And precious to those unaware of my flight
Simple to know
And hard to contain what the words do not show
How to compare
The beauty of wisdom with you standing there
Inside my room
I feel the cold walls of my tomb
What I am here
Resembles existence when I disappear

The Way You Made Me Feel on the Phone Last Week

2012-08-01T10:21:00.002-07:00

Floating into another area
I pause to check the time
Will nobody hear my plea?
I need a little break
My words go unnoticed
And are misconstrued to mean
A thing or two they aren't
Until drama begins
And all manner of logic is
Lost in the shuffle

I'm certain I'll be overcome
Or overtaken at the very least
By messengers with jagged souls
Who only want to pull my string
My frame to crash down to earth
Dissolving into the acidic world
Nobody can hold onto this dream,
These thoughts are consumed
By the fires of others nearby

Magazine Ad Fantasy

2012-07-06T13:00:00.000-07:00

all body and soul all body and soul
he captures me then lets me go
into a dream in magazines
of Ivy League Models throwing balls

and perfumed girls from another world
that's what I'll be if he tells me so
a paper abyss a scented mist
i'm heroine chic take a peek at me now

Now I'm stuck in a scene
Oh you look like a man in a magazine
Baby don't go with her
Choose me

in secret worlds in secret worlds
there's no one else we just let go
a perfume ad i'm feeling bad
when you're not on my arm like that couple
it's black and white the feeling's right
i'm chasing you with the wind in my hair
we're rolling in grass you're sneaking past
she's behind a tree coming to get you

Now I'm stuck in a scene
Oh you look like a man in a magazine
Baby don't go with her
Choose me

If I Could Be What You Wanted

2012-06-16T13:09:00.000-07:00

I was walking to his house last night
He stopped me in my tracks he said
You've got to give me space and then
He took me in his arms and kissed me
Well I tried to ignore his sweet caress
and the gifts he gave to me they weren't
gifts you give to your best friend they
meant so much more than that

if i could be what you wanted
if I could be what you need

Well he was dancing with her
and I had to look away even though
she is my best friend i don't think
that I have to stay here with them
Try as I may i haven't understood a word
because when he talks all he does is talk
and i look at his eyes and slide

i don't know what to do with him he
always drifts away and then he walks
into my bedroom and he jokes with me and
mesmerizes
I just can't complain about this
i don't want to lose him but i
can't seem to hold on when my own
mind just slips away and away and away

Some other girl

2012-05-06T13:04:00.000-07:00

My love is a sinner
But I am no saint
He takes all my money
But I have no complaint
'Cause he kisses me gently
With a look in his eyes
And yes I believe it
Though he isn't mine

And no, I can't have him
'Cause he loves
Some other girl

My love he ignores me
But I catch his eye
Sometimes when he's watching
And I'm walking by
He doesn't listen
But his words are so dear
And the sound of his silky voice
Bends my eager ear

And no, I can't have him
'Cause he loves
Some other girl

And I go a little crazy
When I see him
Talking to her

My love doesn't wonder
And he doesn't care
His heart doesn't leap for me
When he sees me standing there
I'm not sure why it is
That I love him so
But that doesn't matter
Because I'll never let him go

And no, I can't have him
'Cause he loves
Some other girl

Train

2010-12-02T10:23:00.000-08:00

The huge machine pushing forth
Its mass unmatched, its belly roaring
Coming to a halt with a squeal and a sigh
It would crush a body when given the chance
A man, sitting each night
Watching the trains, waiting his turn
When suffering becomes too much
He will hurl himself at the beast
And be completely pulverized
Every memory, every thought, even every song
Dashed into oblivion
Never to be realized fully
The impact not quite as severe as
His existence

Worries

2010-05-20T09:42:00.000-07:00

I went to bed with the saddest thoughts
And woke up again even sadder
Where once I felt entirely lost
Now it doesn't matter
The baby's been renamed, you see
We parked the car somehow safely
And I awoke from that sweet dream
To find things as they are

I spiked the lemonade last night
Because I couldn't cope
I would have accepted things alright
But you injected me with hope
This hope this hope this nasty drug
Pinched from my arms in a final hug
To be swept under proverbial rug
Till we revisit later

Yet one thing that I realize
We might not come back to it
You're such a sweet and tender guy
I'm sure that she'll see to it
To hold you tight as long as she can
She'll hold you up as her fine man
And I discover our failed plan
The killswitch in her hand

Travels

2010-02-20T09:24:00.000-08:00

And now I will from here on out write of my life and travels.

In a ditch

2007-07-12T14:52:00.000-07:00

Once there was love.
Where once there was love--
Now there is emptiness. And what do I care?
He gives me hope just as soon as he takes all my hope away.
A kiss sweeps my cheek; this is all we have left.
And when I ask him what he wants,
After I tried hard for his happiness
With no thought of me or mine,
He simply says,
"To be happy."
An argument ensues if I bring up
Our Problems.
I am a fool but I don't know what else to do
But wait and see
Out of boredom
And finally
Out of indifference.

karaoke

2007-04-05T13:35:00.001-07:00

you said you wouldn't but you did
did you
you said you wouldn't but you did
didn't you you said you wouldn't but you did
i think you did
i think you did it just for me

The Love Killer

2007-01-23T09:18:00.001-08:00

You've taken the precious gift
Somehow, not deliberately I hope
And cheapened it beyond all thrift
With narrow, jealous scope
There are no more lies to tell
There is not one excuse
For all the pieces of innocence
Have been turned into refuse

The Magical Day

2007-01-10T10:57:00.000-08:00

Oh the night is so beautiful
The river is all ours
We can stand forever looking at the stars

My how they are lovely
When you're next to me
I am only making inkblots out of trees

Do they wonder where we've gone
I'm not sure they know
That tonight is ours
Dear one
And I love it so

The swimmer

2006-12-20T10:09:00.000-08:00

So we come to this meeting place
And I throw myself in the lake
But you knew what I was about
Didn't you?
It's true that my hands are tied
Yet I still abide
In your heart forever, Darling
Because I'm

Comatose
And floating in a swimming pool
'cause I love to be rescued by you
No one can save me like you do

what it isn't

2006-11-24T13:27:00.000-08:00

sunburnt hearts on memory's shore
with little thoughts of yesterday
i filled a basket with your love
you found it; you snatched it away

my salt-stained apron bore the mark
where i had wiped off dirty hand
stood in my shanty, wind-blown hair
i closed the curtain to the sand

the storm -- it raged outside my home
i heard the roaring ocean near
and then i felt contentment come
he kissed my eyes and dried my tear

the angry rain and violent wind
became the sweetest sounds i heard
with gentle whispers, one meek soul
brought in his lips the song of birds

then all at once i did forget
the pain and of my one last thought
this new love, he gathered me
within his snare my heart was caught

Oh yes, let's.

2006-11-22T15:01:00.000-08:00

I'm pretending I don't care.
I'm pretending my heart is intact.
So lonely so lonely so lonely
I'm thinking about nothing
I don't think about you
You and her
Taking the time
Making the effort
Scheduling the plans
With the whole world of girls
Except the one

She is important to you
Her heart matters
Those feelings are real
She can't be forgotten
She is so far away
She was so close
She was this close

She did all the right things
At all the right times
Then what in your troubled heart
And what with your wild mind
Is pushing us is pushing us is pushing us
Away

Blankety blank, was that his name?

2006-11-21T11:37:00.000-08:00

Want a cool cat?

Oh, I can't find someone to love my cool cat. I am a cool cat, my cool cat loves me and I love my cool cat. Too bad we can't be together. My cool cat can easily love another, but I cannot love another cool cat. Anyone want to feed my cool cat, he will love you proportionally. Profoundly. Pedestrianly. Wait! He is rescued from the porch. From the critters that chewed up his ankles. Ow! Those abscessed ankles. I obsess over the abscesses. Nothing a little hydrogen peroxide can't cure. Or can it? Nothing can take away our Feline Leukemia. I hope we don't have it. What can we do, Dr., what can we do, but be put down?

Are you so far from turning 30? Ages and ages away. Let's never grow old. Let's never be responsible. Wait! You own a home, don't you! Schucks! Damn responsibility! I am going to run my soul into the ground. I am going to take nun-chucks to my heart so that I can stop these bewildering words that never stop and never stop. If only I still had a desire to blog! AARRGH, as they say. Is this a blog? My sadness, my soul, my addiction to words, my lip balm, my dented Les Paul, my abscessed ankle wounds, my broken bicycle, my busted-up Lambretta...

Now I am losing my mind in a blog. It's not even a real blog, funny thing.

None to be taken seriously. Just words. Words to waste your time and yours as well. I consider deleting it all with my palm gently hovering over the mouse...