Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Poem for Wednesday

Crush
By Ada Limón


Maybe my limbs are made
mostly for decoration,
like the way I feel about
persimmons. You can't
really eat them. Or you
wouldn't want to. If you grab
the soft skin with your fist
it somehow feels funny,
like you've been here
before and uncomfortable,
too, like you'd rather
squish it between your teeth
impatiently, before spitting
the soft parts back up
to linger on the tongue like
burnt sugar or guilt.
For starters, it was all
an accident, you cut
the right branch
and a sort of light
woke up underneath,
and the inedible fruit
grew dark and needy.
Think crucial hanging.
Think crayon orange.
There is one low, leaning
heart-shaped globe left
and dearest, can you
tell, I am trying
to love you less.

--------

From The New Yorker's fiction issue.

The awesome and delightful Gblvr made my day in every possible way. She came over while I was working on putting place cards in the holders and pretty much singlehandedly made a sign board for people to autograph at Adam's Bar Mitzvah, all while we were watching such Star Trek classics as "Amok Time," "Mirror, Mirror," "Bread and Circuses," and "The Empath." Plus we ate sushi. So I had a surprisingly nice, relaxing day, and since I finished the place cards, seating chart, and menu notes while she was working on my sign board, now the only major hurdle I have to complete is my speech. I'm still working on the Jewish penguin connection.


The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is home to the Jerome and Rita Gans Collection of English Silver.


This ewer and dish were made for the Reverend Sir William Lionel Darell, with his coat of arms impaling that of Sir Edward Tierney whose daughter he married.


Three salts made by Paul Storr of London around 1811.


An inkstand from 1739 marked by Paul de Lamerie.


A 1661 two-handled cup and cover, made in London by Robert Smythier.


A tray engraved with the arms of Harvey quartering Dycer, Williamson, and Parker and impaling those of Skynner quartering those of Remington, as borne by William Harvey. Clearly heraldry is a very complicated matter.


This fine silver, marked by silversmith Robert Garrard II and engraved with the arms of York impaling Lascelles for Richard York of Yorkshire and his wife Mary Anne, daughter of the Earl of Harewood, may have been a soup tureen...or it may have been a chamberpot. The museum is not certain.


Figural salts from around 1859, marked by the aforementioned Robert Garrard II.


Cidercupcakes shared with me the excellent news that Futurama is coming back as a weekly series, which makes Daniel as happy as it makes me. We watched the reruns of last night's Stewart and Colbert so the kids could see Jon lock his 500-person writing staff in a room to explain irony and Stephen get his head shaved on Obama's orders. And Adam would never forgive me if I did not add: GO PENGUINS!

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