battleship
They're all in flames except for the destroyers. He hunts for mine, and I for his, across the war-torn grids.
exactitude
He's assigned an essay on the Battle of Gettysburg, and chooses to write it the length of the Gettysburg Address, 272 words. It reads naturally, without too many adjectives thrown in for padding.
insinuated
The cold rain has crawled into my socks.
nonconfrontational
We play to 100 points. As soon as we're both close, he lies on the floor, hands flailing, so that if I win, he can say that he let me.
prickles
The harpsichord music is fury and frayed nerves. Forked lightning kept in a crystal vial.
rote
For the sake of inefficiency, they invite us to an in-person orientation. We spend fifteen minutes signing in, finding our seats, and picking up a thin packet of information we could have received via email. Following a ten-minute PowerPoint presentation chock-full of information already contained in the packets, the Q&A session begins. Crickets chirp. We leave.
tenderness
Cuddling on the couch, because it can't already be time to say good night.
Showing posts with label instruments. Show all posts
Showing posts with label instruments. Show all posts
Friday, October 21, 2016
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Week in Seven Words #94
anew
With new determination I open up a Microsoft Word document that's been untouched for months, and I begin again.
concinnity
At the concert we sit closest to the violists and bass players. This way we're more aware of all the layers in the music, its rich harmonies, and the one moment where the lead bass player strikes a note out of tune. We're happy to hear all of it.
density
They sit around a table in the cafeteria pouring liquids of different densities into tall plastic containers - corn syrup, dish washing soap, vegetable oil, water, alcohol - and mostly they don't care about the bigger picture, only that it's fun to look at the liquid layers and see if their friends have made a mess. But from time to time they'll connect what they're doing to chemistry and to the properties of the world, before returning to the really important questions: will something spill? Or blow up?
interlude
On two different subway trips, a musical duo sing in Spanish and strum on guitars as they stroll from car to car.
low-key
The mild cold I come down with helps me mellow out a little.
origination
One school I visit reminds of a nest with birds huddled close beside a clutch of eggs. Another school reminds me of an airport terminal where litter blows across the clean bare floors.
ursine
At bedtime their parents slip out of the room for a short while to unwind, and I read them a story, then another one: The Berenstain Bears in their treehouse with the pink-trimmed windows poking out of the upper leaves. Brother and Sister Bear learn that if they watch too much TV or fight all day, they'll miss out on life.
With new determination I open up a Microsoft Word document that's been untouched for months, and I begin again.
concinnity
At the concert we sit closest to the violists and bass players. This way we're more aware of all the layers in the music, its rich harmonies, and the one moment where the lead bass player strikes a note out of tune. We're happy to hear all of it.
density
They sit around a table in the cafeteria pouring liquids of different densities into tall plastic containers - corn syrup, dish washing soap, vegetable oil, water, alcohol - and mostly they don't care about the bigger picture, only that it's fun to look at the liquid layers and see if their friends have made a mess. But from time to time they'll connect what they're doing to chemistry and to the properties of the world, before returning to the really important questions: will something spill? Or blow up?
interlude
On two different subway trips, a musical duo sing in Spanish and strum on guitars as they stroll from car to car.
low-key
The mild cold I come down with helps me mellow out a little.
origination
One school I visit reminds of a nest with birds huddled close beside a clutch of eggs. Another school reminds me of an airport terminal where litter blows across the clean bare floors.
ursine
At bedtime their parents slip out of the room for a short while to unwind, and I read them a story, then another one: The Berenstain Bears in their treehouse with the pink-trimmed windows poking out of the upper leaves. Brother and Sister Bear learn that if they watch too much TV or fight all day, they'll miss out on life.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Week in Seven Words #31
chalk
It's been a while since I've seen a blackboard in use for an entire lesson or talk. I've gotten used to Powerpoint slides, to projectors and overheads, to occasional equations on whiteboard with marker - but chalk and blackboard, in a funny way I've missed it: the clack of the chalk on the board, dust rising from the erasers, all kinds of hand-writing from large and legible to white loopy scrawls that make you squint and tilt your head to the side.
clamant
The week is full of relatively major obligations, and pushing up among them are minor ones as well, like weeds thrusting up between paving stones.
din
The children enjoy the plastic and metal instruments. The parents, not so much.
dissatisfied
A pink cupcake is an occasion for tears.
frothing
Weather reporters post themselves along the coast, against backdrops of agitated surf and twisting branches.
succulent
Mineola is tangy and bursts in the mouth. Sabra fruit has a sweet flesh and tiny hard seeds that try to burrow between the teeth.
timely
An item arrives in the mail earlier than expected. With some last-minute assistance, a project prints on schedule. I catch someone I need to speak to in a two-minute window after a meeting. Small slices of time fit neatly into the week, making the week's work more manageable.
It's been a while since I've seen a blackboard in use for an entire lesson or talk. I've gotten used to Powerpoint slides, to projectors and overheads, to occasional equations on whiteboard with marker - but chalk and blackboard, in a funny way I've missed it: the clack of the chalk on the board, dust rising from the erasers, all kinds of hand-writing from large and legible to white loopy scrawls that make you squint and tilt your head to the side.
clamant
The week is full of relatively major obligations, and pushing up among them are minor ones as well, like weeds thrusting up between paving stones.
din
The children enjoy the plastic and metal instruments. The parents, not so much.
dissatisfied
A pink cupcake is an occasion for tears.
frothing
Weather reporters post themselves along the coast, against backdrops of agitated surf and twisting branches.
succulent
Mineola is tangy and bursts in the mouth. Sabra fruit has a sweet flesh and tiny hard seeds that try to burrow between the teeth.
timely
An item arrives in the mail earlier than expected. With some last-minute assistance, a project prints on schedule. I catch someone I need to speak to in a two-minute window after a meeting. Small slices of time fit neatly into the week, making the week's work more manageable.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Week in Seven Words #19
bled
For a moment I think the cream-colored wall has shed blood. But it's a cardinal, swooping down from the roof in one liquid red glide.
blurry
It's an inarticulate day; rain is slurring down the windows.
marionettes
Out on the sunny lawn they grunt and kick high, their fists held close to their chests. Every few kicks they rotate a fraction, their legs jerking up.
poised
There it is, a suitcase by the door, a backpack beside it, both waiting for early morning.
rainstick
I imagine that the sound of wasted time, of hours pouring away with little to show for their passing, is that of a rainstick - a slippery, hollow sort of sound, mildly pleasant and lulling.
squirrels
It's an afternoon of squirrels. They rear up, vigilant and still, in patches of tall grass or clumps of broad green leaves. They drape themselves on the backs of benches or pick furiously at fast food and candy wrappers. One of them twitches in fright when a butterfly lands on its tail; it goes leaping across the grass, body bristling.
tectonic
Tectonic tensions underlie his life. On the one hand, he is rooted in and nourished by beliefs and practices that are centuries-old; on the other, he craves the latest thrills, wants to seek the newest trend-setting city or neighborhood and insinuate himself into its rhythm and life.
For a moment I think the cream-colored wall has shed blood. But it's a cardinal, swooping down from the roof in one liquid red glide.
blurry
It's an inarticulate day; rain is slurring down the windows.
marionettes
Out on the sunny lawn they grunt and kick high, their fists held close to their chests. Every few kicks they rotate a fraction, their legs jerking up.
poised
There it is, a suitcase by the door, a backpack beside it, both waiting for early morning.
rainstick
I imagine that the sound of wasted time, of hours pouring away with little to show for their passing, is that of a rainstick - a slippery, hollow sort of sound, mildly pleasant and lulling.
squirrels
It's an afternoon of squirrels. They rear up, vigilant and still, in patches of tall grass or clumps of broad green leaves. They drape themselves on the backs of benches or pick furiously at fast food and candy wrappers. One of them twitches in fright when a butterfly lands on its tail; it goes leaping across the grass, body bristling.
tectonic
Tectonic tensions underlie his life. On the one hand, he is rooted in and nourished by beliefs and practices that are centuries-old; on the other, he craves the latest thrills, wants to seek the newest trend-setting city or neighborhood and insinuate himself into its rhythm and life.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Week in Seven Words #13
bluebells
Flecked with silver rain.
dendrology
One approach to studying trees is to go out after a heavy rain and look down. The manhole cover has become a mirror; the unruffled puddle shows me sprays of green, a knit of branches, and gray-white skies beyond.
gnome
The oboe scampers from one note to another. It slips between the piano's crushing chords.
ignorance
To be dealt with despairingly or, I hope, determinedly.
roost
She settles here for a day, finding some rest for herself, and when she leaves I realize once again that she's helped make my home feel more like home.
smorgasbord
At lunch there's Pygmalion, post-modern art, and Prussia.
vise
A band of pressure throughout the week, beneath the heart.
Flecked with silver rain.
dendrology
One approach to studying trees is to go out after a heavy rain and look down. The manhole cover has become a mirror; the unruffled puddle shows me sprays of green, a knit of branches, and gray-white skies beyond.
gnome
The oboe scampers from one note to another. It slips between the piano's crushing chords.
ignorance
To be dealt with despairingly or, I hope, determinedly.
roost
She settles here for a day, finding some rest for herself, and when she leaves I realize once again that she's helped make my home feel more like home.
smorgasbord
At lunch there's Pygmalion, post-modern art, and Prussia.
vise
A band of pressure throughout the week, beneath the heart.
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