Photo: Seagull

C.A. MacConnell

Moe, Argo.

Moses and Argo. My two best friends in the whole world. I also made friends with a goose at the park...she was off by herself in the woods, mourning b/c her mate died I think, and I talked to her one day. Then she talked back and followed me some. I hope she found a new mate, but sometimes geese don't. Anyway...

If only I could find a partner who loves me like these two dogs, ha. They live a few miles down the road. Argo is my muse for my young adult book. Look at the faces, the longing! :) Ha! I've created monsters. And to think that a few years ago, Argo wanted to tear my throat out. Amazing. Now he hops on top of the fence and licks my face all over. He hates having his pic taken though, so this is a rare shot.

Hey, if you see anyone abusing a dog in your travels, call 911 first, then the Humane Society. I just learned that it works best in that order...I saw someone being abusive to her puppy the other day, and they sent someone after her, thank god. It really tore me up.

Everything changes, but Love. Always. Wins. Hope your day is full of love and light! Being alive is a gift, a precious gift. Two people I know overdosed in the past week. One died. That's just this week. Man. This shit is real. I am blessed to be here.
C.A. MacConnell

Proof of Life. The House of Anchor. :)

Here's me, right in the moment, lookin' shiny and tired, ha. I am! But I'm happy. Just printed out this monster. Almost done! To give you an idea of how much work has gone into this, the original version was written on 3 subject notebooks, all grey, back in 1996-7. Then a book version was written for my master's thesis in 1998. Gheesh. Now it's almost to the stage where I can format it and turn it into a real-looking book! Feels like a big accomplishment. Just wanted to share the moment.

Hope you have a good day. If you visit here, thanks for your support. And remember, Griffin Farm is on Amazon. Please buy a copy! Also, please leave feedback.

And most importantly, have a blessed day. Love you,
C.A. MacConnell

Wet Hooky, and Note to You.

I had to change my profile pic right now at 5am. Haha. This new one is more like me, my real personality. That last one I had on here was one of the worst fucking pictures I've ever seen of myself, hahahaha, dayum. It was depressing me. Ha ha, I think things are funny when no one else does, oh well, like I laughed all the way through The Great Wall last night. I did like the hot air balloons, though. If you saw it, you know what I mean. I was going to see Lion, but it was sold out, bummer. My favorite movies as of late are:  Manchester by the Sea and Moonlight. I loved them equally. Loved them! I get so excited by great film. It isn't normal how excited I get.

Anyway, I've been working like a dog, getting my second novel done, which is rad. I got rid of my glasses; they were annoying. Now I wear $10 readers when I write. Go figure.

Hey, here's a poem. A repost, but with some reworking, I think it'd make a great song. I like the "Blood in the Cut" song. I think this poem would do well with that kinda beat. My favorite tune as of late:  "Cissy Strut" by The Meters. I love it...it's genius.

Wet Hooky

Go ahead. Come
down
softly.
Go ahead. Change your mind
and spit.
I have no say
in the way the sky
leaks.
Soak me heavy.
Send bullet-hail. Weigh
my brown hair down.
Darken all the light things –
everything alive, below,
exposed.
Whatever the season,
I'll still open
my mouth, letting my lower lip
hang loose, like an old horse.
I'll still let you touch
my tongue.
I'll still wait for you
to slide over me, over everything,
turning the world
clean or nasty.
I see your wet, wide work.
I see you water
this and that ground.
Some drops dance
for a penny-living.
Some drops
wear tap shoes -
sporadic, uncertain, polluted,
pausing for thunder,
no more than damp,
distant fingertips
pressing down dirty rooftops,
making gutter music.
Some hammer it home,
making surface skin sweat,
and the people hours become
all about the weather.
Go ahead. Come down
softly. Go ahead, change
your mind.
You are employed by the sky
I've found, and up there,
that’s where I’ll look for you --
in each, full moment
when the clouds spread.
You pour,
I sip.
We play hooky
in the lightning.

C.A. MacConnell

COMING SOON!

COMING SOON! C.A.'s novel #2! No, this is not what the actual cover will look like. Not sure what that will turn out like yet. Mulling over some things. Fine tuning, formatting, all that. Getting CLOSER! I'm getting SO excited. I'm extremely proud of this work. Stay tuned.

Love to you,

C.A. MacConnell

Photo: Heart of It.

Heart of It

Happy Valentine's Day. Love, in all forms, means a lot to me every day. Truth:  what I wouldn't give for a soul mate. :) I still believe. Many people don't, but I do. I never stopped believing.

C.A. MacConnell

Photo: Hawk Row

Hawk Row

C.A. MacConnell

The Longest Shot

She sees what she wants to see

in the game of Pig (or Horse
for some) -- not the warmup,
but the real thing. She can make
the three-pointer, or the ridiculous,
off-court porch shot and every time,
the others hear her delicate Swish,
but her greatest weakness rests
in anything close, when strangely,
she always misses. One by one,
the neighbor boys shout, keeping
track, and the letters come to her,
and then she sees one small, red
face, and the truth is there, smack
in his squint, in his eyes, and the laugh,
and the loss, and the truth isn’t near
to what she ever, for one moment,
thought would happen and at first,
she kicks her own ankle bone, leaving
a scrape, because she believed in more
than what the driveway delivered,
but then the watchers begin to scatter,
until all that's left are two -- her,
and the tallest player from down
the block, the one who raises
his arms and says, You can make
the longest shot. Want to see my rock
collection?

C.A. MacConnell

P.S. Hope you like the poem. Got my work done for now. Going to the ballet today! Haven't done that in about twenty years. What a treat. So stoked. I hope I don't have to dress up. Uh oh.

Flashback Friday

Here's a picture of me in a recording studio in 1998. That wasn't my guitar actually. I was messing around on one that was sitting there. I had an Ibanez acoustic at the time, which I'd like to have now. So I was in a band, and we won a contest, and we won some recording time, which was fun. I sang, and I played guitar too.

Actually, I used to play out solo a lot -- in Seattle, in Virginia, and all over the Midwest. I like playing piano these days...I sneak into churches and such and make up songs. I like the sound there, and I like the feel of sanctuaries. I don't have a guitar right now, but I'd like to get one again. Yeah, just for fun. I like writing songs. I actually still have some of my CDs around here somewhere.

Later in life, I was a music writer, and that was fun too! Got to do a lot of interviews and meet some fantastic people. I had a few favorites too, I admit. My work was mostly for CityBeat Magazine. If you go to the site and search "C.A. MacConnell," all of my articles pop up. Rad. Hey, I won some writing awards for this stuff -- two years in a row, I won the Ohio Society of Professional Journalists Award for Rock and Roll Feature Writing. Rad.

One time, I was doing an interview, and I asked the guys who their opening band was, and they responded, "You are." I laughed, thinking they were kidding, but they were serious, so I ended up doing it. It was funny.

Just saying hello and sharing a snapshot of my life. I had fun with the guys in my band. I miss them all the time.

Whoever's reading, I hope your day is full of love and light!!!!
Back to work.😃💕💃💃

C.A. MacConnell

Poem: Volcano, Haiku Version

Volcano, Haiku Version

On Streaming Lava
The Only Constant On This
Volcano Is Change

-- C.A. MacConnell

*Inspired by a quote from today's New York Times article entitled, "Streaming Lava, Collapsing Cliffs and a Hawaii Volcano’s Spectacular Show."

Photos: Dark Horse

I can't remember who wrote this, but I first saw it in Robert Vavra's book of photography, and it's one of my favorites....maybe someone can enlighten me...it came to mind this morning.

Fear is not the contagion of sorrow
As evening falls
And sunset stains with blood
The muddy seashore,
The lands and sky,
Until these isles are swallowed up in shade...
Fear is the dread that he might go
And leave me here alone.

Now back to working on my book, THE HOUSE OF ANCHOR. One page at a time. Revise, revise, revise. I wish you all the love in the universe.

Also, lunch.
C.A. MacConnell

Note to You, Reader

Just hanging out. :) XO.

Thank you to recent readers of my first novel, GRIFFIN FARM, which you can purchase here. I've gotten some awesome feedback lately. Overall, the most common comment is this:  "I can't put it down."

Hells yeah.

Sorry about the recent lack of blogging. I've been obsessively working on my second novel, THE HOUSE OF ANCHOR, as well as some other writings, so it's keeping me busy. Great to have focus!

I hope you are happy! I hope you feel loved. I saw three hawks today, wow. There's this row of trees next to a walking path that I frequent, and the hawks seem to like to hang out there around late afternoon. I believe the nests are close by. Or maybe it's my spirit calling out to my totem animal, who's coming to me and saying this:  No worries. We've got your back. We love you. That's how I see it.

Today, I looked at the forest, and I said this out loud:  "It's magic."
C.A. MacConnell