Libby Weber's Blog, page 7

December 8: All the Trimmings

A box of tchotchkes spans my whole existence-

Some catch the light, some catch the memory,

And with the added benefit of distance,

Popsicle sticks and yarn transcend the twee.

Worn velvet and sun-blanched construction papers

Seen through nostalgia-clouded oculi,

Will conjure thoughts of past tree-stealing capers,

Lengthy and chilly roadside standings by.

So why, if all the thoughts are cheerful ones

Appropriate to holiday tradition,

Does melancholy sit upon the fun

And try to force the joy into submissi...

December 7th: Make Shift

A universal irritant is that

Which doesn’t function when it is desired,

Especially when someone is left flat,

Bereft of services that are required.

Thus scrambling must commence to fill the need

To find a work-around that will augment

One’s assets and, with fortune, may succeed

So well the fix becomes quite permanent.

But failure of the old, familiar guard

Makes room for different thinking in the ranks,

And while the old’s not something to discard,

The new’s a thing for which one can give thanks.

The que...

December 6: Practice Practice Practice

It is a joy to let your body do

A task it has been well-conditioned to,

For even if it may have been a while

Since it was done, your brain is versatile-

A memory, once it has been created,

With others soon will be assimilated,

Though its specific time and place, in code,

Is permanently, perfectly bestowed.

When you encounter patterns that you know,

From mind to body will the memory flow

Without a conscious thought, and so a beat

Can prompt the singing voice or dancing feet.

And though one can’t take cred...

December 5: Nothing to See

Too much occurred today to fit it in

To fourteen lines, and so I’ll summarize:

Work wasn’t awesome, much to my chagrin,

But I excelled when left to improvise.

By contrast, in the evening I adhered

To notes and the notation on the page,

And friends were kind at times they might have sneered,

Which strengthened our musicianship onstage.

But still, I hate to sum up what I’ve done

Instead of writing something lyrical

About the way rehearsals have been run,

Or how a masterwork’s a miracle.

Next time, I hope t...

December 4: Stop

It started with displays of thoughtlessness,

Which then were amplified by length of day,

Sleep deprivation, and punctiliousness-

It might be good for you to stay away.

Then traffic kept me on the road so long

That I had insufficient time to eat,

And paltry meals serve only to prolong

An awful mood- you really should retreat,

Because if you do not, I will regret

The awful things that I could say to you.

I know what words are likely to upset,

Malicious, spiteful, cruel, but also true.

My thanks for being b...

December 3rd: Some Enchanted E-vening

You hear a pop and suddenly, a pope

Is seated on a log inside the loge,

The janitor with mop begins to mope

About the dog who’s suddenly a doge.

Below, they watch a stag upon the stage

While one man on his date’s nape takes a nap,

And since she’s on the rag, she’s filled with rage,

Her box-mates are agape and mind a gap.

It’s far too great a din for them to dine,

And though they’d like to bare all at the bar,

They would much rather win in terms of wine,

Though they will take great care to drive the car....

December 2nd: Overdressed

A pair of red galoshes for my feet,

An a-line skirt to ward off puddle splash,

With tights to help retain my bare knees’ heat

And extra shoes for when the boots I stash,

A cotton sweater to wick off the damp,

With matching scarf for my cold-roughened throat,

My dapper raincoat, belted like a champ

Combine to make a potent antidote

To hostile elements, and over all

I spread my monumental bumpershoot,

With which I may withstand the wildest squall

Until the hissing, thunderous skies fall mute,

The cataclysm...

Decmber 1: Words of Wisdom

If you think hemiola’s syncopation,

Inevitably you will enter late.

An audience can hear if there’s cessation

Of phrase within a rest. You should abate

Dynamic at the ends of lines Romantic,

In Classical, stay strong until the tonic.

And even if the tempo ends up frantic,

The singers must stay with the philharmonic.

Traditions going back to Bach and Handel,

Which Haydn pilfered, Beethoven purloined-

But such sublime homage is never scandal,

For through it different periods are joined.

And knowledge of wh...

November 30: The Eyes Have It

The eyes, they say, are windows to the soul,

And like them, can fall into disrepair-

The glass obscures and fails to play its role,

The sashes crack, the blinds and curtains tear,

And though such things are easily repaired,

Until the time that all the mending’s done,

One must contend with sight that is impaired,

Protected from the brightness of the sun.

For though the soul exists sans apeture

Allowing light to enter or to leave,

And is adulterated or as pure

As it would be to celebrate or grieve,

Through...

November 29: Under Cover

The film “All About Eve” skews our perception

Of understudies, shown as base connivers-

This melodrama is a misconception,

For understudies truly are survivors;

Eight shows a week they stand able and willing

To fill their usual role or jump into

The shoes of big names who receive top billing,

And will be met with sighs, not ballyhoos,

Which is the reason I am glad to see

The understudies give their parts their all

Be it in title role, or villainy,

On stage, or with us in the practice hall.

So may it be t...