Bad Painting and Fake Artists

So, I painted today (as seen above). I am not a painter at all but have been writing a lot lately and needed a break but still wanted to let out some creative energy so I took some kids washable paints and made a pretty ordinary and generic painting, but hey I was happy with it. :) While I was painting I started thinking and getting angry. My housemate Heather is a painter, and she is VERY talented and my housemate Justin is a really good musician and I was thinking how as much as technology has opened up so many new fields and doors for artists its also allowed pretty talentless people to get credit for creating 'art'. Music is a huge example. With music mixing software you don't really have to know how to play anything if you know what sounds good you can use the computer to create the sounds of an 8 piece band while in your pj's picking your nose. With digital photography you can make most any picture cropped, colored, and focused to perfection. You don't have to know how to sing to sound good on a cd ect. I am not saying these things aren't useful or that all people who use technology to create these types of art are all talentless but if amazing musicians, painters, photographers were creating beauty without technology years before are we really all that good if we need technology to reach those heights?

P.S "How Hemingway Went" short,short by me will be up later tonight.

Bad Painting
Originally uploaded by aqueousillusion

Twitter is a bad bad thing...

Hey all sorry its been a few days. Nothing has been getting much of my attention in way of writing except homework and, oh it hurts to say, Twitter. I know, I know, I just can't help it. I am addicted to Twitter. I think everyone likes being a little bit nosy and knowing what people are doing all day long, as well as telling others...well it grows on you. Isn't that why Myspace, Facebook, even blogging is addicting? Or at least part of it? I do plan on writing more and getting some parts of my short, short up shortly (ha ha) but I haven't finished it this week.

In better news, I got my Shins tickets on Friday and am excited to drive up to WWU to see them. I have Cold War Kids on Wednesday as well, so fun times. I also bought my plane tickets to go home in ABQ and visit the fam who I miss SO much. All in All good week. Especially Justin making Groucho faces with the Dickydoo that Heather won at a bachelorette party. Penis' with think black mustaches, nothing more appealing!

Writing Heavily

My new short, short story is in progress. I am excited about it and have been writing pretty heavily these past three days. Surely I will have at least part of the story for you shortly. Of course it's a type of love story about many different people and how they all change one another's lives. Some of my highlighted characters are a painter, a musician, a pedophile, a widower, a divorcée, a student, and a sociopath who all pretty much fall in love with someone or something, or are ruined by someone else's love basically. It's actually a tragic love story but that's me I guess. I am having weird NIN and Animal Collective urges. I cannot stop listening. I think it may be the anxiety of getting to see them both in concert fairly soon. Speaking of concerts I passed on X on Saturday night. I wouldn't have gotten my $80.00 back by going so I slept in and daydreamt which was just fine with me. Off to do some college homework for my intro to rock class. G'night.

Spiders are my Friends

So today I cleaned out our crazy gross garage to try and make space in our spare room. It was cold and dusty but I made some new multi-legged friends. They came from EVERYWHERE to greet me with multiple eyes and hungry bellies I am sure of it. Along with the dust bunnies and bubble foam it was a regular parrrtaaayyyy! But its cleaner now and my poor friends have went back to their homes in the crevices of our garage wall. In better news, X is tonight at Showbox Market and I'm going so that should be buckets of fun...I hope anyway. I will try to take pictures and think of glorious words to explain the event at a later time.

anyways, here are the new words for an old story that I would like to share with you.

who recalls what falls beneathe the autumn leaves
left underneathe the railroad station dock
drip drops of rain patter on the tip of his hat
drenched trench coat lay heavy on his shoulder
fire smolders in his ashen eyes as he waves goodbye
to his one last chance to redeem his life.

© Valerie Long

I know,I know

I know its been awhile, I'm sorry. I just got my computer yesterday but the Internet wouldn't work so that was a shindig but now its working and I can blog regularly as well as work on my website valerielongwriting.com and continue on my volume of poetry currently titled " The Abandoned Words and Tales of their Mourning" but is likely to change. I will posting the remaining of the Cabin Dreams poem and probably excerpts of my current short story soon but in the mean time have a wonderful day and continue to stay beautiful. Here is a poem for you


A Run Down House

It was a dilapidated abode with the stained white paint peeling off
in long crinkled strips.
The glass that was once framed shattered on the veranda beneath.
The dusted mattress lay out on the field outside,
a snap shot of a childhood.

© Valerie Long

Unfinished Dreams

Cabin Dreams (unfinished)

Never remember times long gone dry
iced lips
chapped and chattered teeth
in a winter's cabin holding you beneath the snow
love flows from wood ring
to sing song sounds of birds in trees overhead
snow melting on the patio
stillness down below where the water drips lightly
echoing the cold
hands wrap gloves around faces curvature
kissing lips under mother natures blankets
as the sunlight awakes the Earths patrons below
and this is how we'll go....

© Valerie Long

If it's yellow let it mellow...

So last night our water pipe under the sink completely exploded while Melissa was standing right in front of it placing her Tomato Pesto Pizza into our oven. Her yelp as the kitchen cabinet exploded with water flooding the kitchen floor brought all five of us in at once. Needless to say the water was turned off so we had no water at all to use. 3 people left the house not ready to take baths with washcloths and jugs of Arrowhead Bottled Water so Heather and I roughed it out a night but we should be back in business today.

Good news, MSI on Monday ROCKED. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get pictures for the show like I have been this year but pictures wouldn't do justice anyway. I was smooshed sardine style between so many people at different points, soaked with sweat, spit and god knows what else. If you ever get a chance to go to a show the entire band is charismatic in the most negative and vulgar style. One of the most entertaining shows I have been too. The opening bands left something to be desired but weren't altogether bad. At least the keyboardist was hot, and I know that has nothing to do with music. :) Some more writing for you...

Your eyes were like waterfalls
mixed sadness and songs
hidden here behind the trees all along

when I found you, you weren't more than broken dreams and oxygen
hanging around outside looking in for a way to join the living

and now holding your hand,
seeing through the eyes of a better man
I know we're going to get there in the end
Oh I know we'll get there in the end

© Valerie Long