Since I was 19 years old I’ve been passionate about ending prohibition of drugs. This book is the result of three years of living in Nimbin where the effects of the drug was and prohibition are obvious and shoved in your face daily.
Poetry to End Prohibition Nimbin Mardi Grass 2017
These effects caused by the systemic violence of the antiquated policy of drug prohibition include state violence, violence in the streets and massive amounts of self abuse and denial because of “fear of truth” and lack of harm reduction policy and programs.
So, if you want a free book to read on one of the most important health policy changes that can be implemented this year in 2020 then you need to read this and send a copy to every politician that you know because it is FREE and we need to make a change.
To celebrate 420 day.
I am giving away FREE my 3rd poetry book in the “Love and Lust in Nimbin” series for you
To celebrate the release of “Love in Nimbin Edition 2” I am giving it away for FREE as an ebook for 5 days from 13th of March 2020 to the 17th of March 2020.
It started on a Friday in a land not far away and the idea spread like wildfire and they began anew that day.
He stood up in a market place and read out his idea
“Lets Unify the Whole Planet and make all borders disappear”
“Let’s eliminate all scarcity and ensure a more than a basic wage”
“Let’s have a single Global Currency for Living, commerce and trade”
“Let’s eliminate all Nations, Passports, Visas, Border Walls”
“Let’s close all the armies, navies, airforces too and have no weapons at all”
And as he planted seeds his crowd it grew and grew
until the Whole World was listening not just one or two
He said, Everyone can have free energy, renewable and then we all will thrive
“When we end all governments will be a great day to be alive”
“Do no harm and nurture all and simplify all laws”
“Support and love all people and lift up all the poor”
Have a governance of things based on compassion and doing no harm
Then all people can live in love without fear, in security, without alarm”
Let’s make all food organic, all medicine for free,
free public transport, free schools and homes and life will be easy
“All people just want love, security, happiness and compassion
To create a life of love where all can thrive and live in passion
One Friday afternoon the man stood up and said
He told them his Ideas and world wide they spread
The following poetry was written by James Arthur Warren AKA Thundercloud in memory of Daniel Walmsley, victim of prohibition. Early one morning, the day before the Nimbin Mardi Grass cannabis law reform protestival I walked outside in the dark as the first light was coming. I heard the tawny frogmouth and listened. Then I went inside and wrote down what came to mind. This happened two more times and now I present the words of the wise owl to you.
There is an indigenous belief that tawny frogmouths are messengers of the dead. This spirit bird crowed three times, before the roosters and the kookaburra early in the morning. When the cock crows three times the truth is told.
The Tawny Frogmouth On Prohibition
The tawny frogmouth came to me very late last night
It was very early morning and it spoke very quiet
“I’ve something important to say and this is my position
Humans will not be free until you END PROHIBITION
I’m a tawny frogmouth owl and I see your frustration
With the punitive justice drug war of incarceration
77,000 non criminal users each year locked and jailed
And crime rates have risen the drug war has failed
80 percent of the injustice system is wasted each year
Locking up people for flowers you people are queer
It is obvious to all that prohibition has failed
When you can harm minimise and empty half the jails
Make access safe and clean drugs a right
Save billions of taxpayers dollars overnight
The police could focus on violent crime
Harm minimisation means there’s less people dying
Harm minimisation means that you support the abusers
Educate and rehabilitate the hard drug abusers
Less Overdoses and violent crime gangs will fade away
Grow herbs freely at home, juice cannabis each day
It is obvious to us that you must End Prohibition
Call all politicians today is your mission
And explain all the benefits of ending the war
On drugs, children, the sick, elderly and poor
Write emails, make videos, protest and shout
End prohibition, let the prisoners out
Time to end prohibition and the drug war
On the socially vulnerable, sick, black and poor
It makes me so mad I’m usually so quiet
Said the tawny frogmouth, I want to sleep now it’s light
The Tawny Frogmouth part 2
The tawny frogmouth came to me early in the morning
As the clouds turned red, as the sun was dawning
The wise old owl hooted and the words he spoke were true
“I’m a tawny frogmouth owl, this is what you need to do”
“Write down what I tell you, what I have to say,
It’s time you humans ended all drug prohibition today
Us tawny frogmouth owls are spirits of the dead
Who died from overdoses and systemic violence” he said
“I know you find it weird and difficult to believe
But tawny frogmouth owls are loved ones that you grieve”
“That is why I’m here with my message for you
Ending Prohibition will save loved ones lives it’s true
I’m a tawny frogmouth owl and I really give a hoot
Prohibition harms but harm minimization is beaut”
I stood there quietly listening to what the wise owl said
“End all prohibition and harm minimization instead
When you end all prohibition everything will be alright
Maybe then” the tawny frogmouth said, “I’ll get some sleep at night”
A kookaburra came in the light of early morning
“Listen to the tawny frogmouth, listen to his warning”
“To end all prohibition and empty half the jails
Change your outdated laws because prohibition has failed”
The kookaburra flew off laughing “Prohibition is a failure”
End all prohibition, hurry up Australia”
The Tawny Frogmouth part 3
The tawny frogmouth owl came to me again
Said, “I’ve got a very important message for you my friend
I’ve come to visit you early in the morning
Because you are the one who will sound my warning
We wise owls think you humans are very strange
You seem so conservative and reluctant to embrace change
Your outdated laws are causing much frustration
Time to End Prohibition and change this situation
It isn’t rocket science in fact is plain to see
That your prohibition laws take people’s rights to be
Healthy, free and happy and lock them in a prison
Jails full of poor and black, incarceration rates have risen
Mummy went to jail, Nana went there too
All because of the herbal cannabis they grew
Prohibition is an attack on human rights
It is such an injustice, I have trouble sleeping at night
Humans do you get it? I do I’m an owl
Adopt harm minimization and end prohibition now
Prohibition is social manipulation, slavery in disguise
Prohibition causes violent crime to rise
When prohibition exists people live in fear
Of truth and being caught, imprisoned for a year
Please call your politicians the tawny frogmouth said
When you harm minimise, I can go to bed
Please reconsider your perspective on prohibition of drugs
Free the plants and herbs and undercut the thugs
When you end prohibition there will be a reduction in crime
With harm minimization, there will be less parents crying
When you end prohibition billions of dollars will be saved
Less cops, prisons, lawyers, deaths, more health and happiness every day
I have nearly finished, I’ll try to have a sleep
But I find it very difficult because I often weep
For the victims of the drug war, those overdosed and dead
Brothers, sisters, children’s deaths preventable he said
I’m a tawny frogmouth owl and there is something you must do
Harm minimise, end prohibition now what I’m saying is true
Everyone can see prohibition is a failure
End prohibition now change is good Australia
There is one more thing, you cannot waste your vote
Put a 1 next to the HEMP PARTY in the Senate when you vote.”
#auspol #EndProhibition #MinimiseHarm #Vote1HEMP
Thundercloud’s book End Prohibition Poetry Nimbin
has been updated and added to in this
2020
This poem and many more are available in my newest book Poetry to End Prohibition 420 2020 edition which I am currently crowd funding to print and release the book by the 20th of April 2020 in time for the 420 international day of protest against prohibition.
James Arthur Warren (BSc AES, GCTSL, MTESOL)
AKA Thundercloud Repairian
email:1english1@gmail.com
Writer, poet, performer and finalist in the 2019 Banjo Paterson Australian Poetry Competition
Photo: Tawny Frogmouth in front of Atlantis by James Arthur Warren https://www.instagram.com/1english1video/
Read on to find out about my newest book End Prohibition Poetry Nimbin Mardi Grass 2019 released especially for the cannabis law reform rally in Nimbin, New South Wales, Australia,
I arrived in Nimbin in early May 2017 for Mardi Grass and met another newcomer to Nimbin by the name of Daniel Walmsley. Daniel was a kind young man in his mid twenties and talented artist who had just received an arts grant. He was excited to be able to do what he loved and be paid for it. Unfortunately for Daniel he overdosed and choked in his vomit early one Saturday morning. I happened to be going for an early morning walk when I came across a nurse trying to resuscitate Daniel and gave assistance
The following poem is dedicated to the memory of Daniel and all the victims of the “War on drugs” which is really a war on people who were not able to get safe doses when they were self medicating because of the punitive justice system which puts “users” in to “fear of truth”, hiding their addictions and unable to get assistance in recovery. Daniel Walmsley
It started on a cold Friday
The drumming circle, dance and play
All the families gathered around
Barefoot on the cold hard ground
Drummers drumming having fun
Stomping feet down goes the sun
Fires burning in the parks
Shooting stars and burning sparks
Rhythmic hands all beat it out
The drumming circle dance about
Nimbin on a Friday night
Drum and dance by fire light
They bring their drums out to the street
Where dancing feet move to the beat
Dreadlocks smokes it clean and green
He beats his blue drum with the team
Down by the fire at the Oasis
There’s lots of friends and friendly faces
Try this hit, it won’t hurt you
He overdoses and starts to spew
Starts the walk to hospital
“I’m OhDee-ing” He starts to call
Falls down to the cold hard ground
In his vomit starts to drown
Nurse and passers by all thump
On his heart they start to pump
“Call an ambulance” they cry
“Daniel, Daniel, please don’t die
CPR the people start
Giving breath and pumping heart
Police and ambulance arrived
For forty five minutes we all tried
Sun comes up cold Saturday
Daniel’s soul flies away
Leaving behind broken hearts
Drawing and paintings of Daniel’s arts
Overdosed on cold concrete
Laying dead with cold bare feet
End prohibition right now, today
Harm minimisation saves lives we say
Laying on the cold hard ground
His heart stopped and just shut down
His life might be a memory
End prohibition for safety
Thundercloud’s new book End Prohibition Poetry Nimbin Mardi Grass 2019
Dedicated to the memory of Daniel Walmsley
Specially produced for Mardi Grass, I have copies of my new book now available, End Prohibition Poetry Nimbin Mardi Grass 2019 for $10+$2.50 postage in Australia.
It’s only available directly from me so send me an email 1english1@gmail.com if you would like a copy or pop in to fantAsian Eatery Nimbin to pick up a copy.
Sample
If you were the parent of a child who was sick would you give cannabis to your son named Rick?
If you were a wife of a man with cancer would you give cannabis as a life enhancer?
If you were a doctor and you knew a cure, pharmaceutical poisons or a herb that’s pure?
If a harmless herb can heal many people why is it registered, licensed, illegal?
The Banjo Paterson Bush Poetry Festival in Orange, New South Wales begins on the 17th of February. There are a number of events happening throughout Orange and the surrounding district until the 24th of February 2019.
Events include The Banjo Paterson Bush Poetry Competition which I am entering a poem titled “Our Darling is Dying”. There is also Rotary Brekky and Poetry on the Pavers as well as Poetry in the Pub featuring the Poet’s Brawl. In the poets brawl, poets have one minute to deliver any original poem, bush, slam, rhyming, non-rhyming but must use both the words “Banjo” and “Orange”.
“Andy Banjo Player” is the poem I have written for the “poets brawl”, tell me what you think in the comments.
Andy played a banjo with an orange and he played it very bad
It made a juicy squishy sound and it drove his mother mad
Orange juice went everywhere and pith and peel too
The ants came by the millions and the fruit flies flew
He played with so much gusto and a lot of zeal
Grated it and juiced, he was left with orange peel
Only when he ran out of juice did Andy’s playing stop
So he ran out to a fruit stall and bought a kilo from the shop
Playing “Orange Crush”, the song from REM
Played every single orange till he’d juiced all of them
Bottled it and marketed it and only told the truth
Under the trade make of Andy’s Banjo Orange Juice
Copyright 2019
If you like this poetry and want to read more please follow me or you can also find me on Youtube at 1english1video
Listening to a podcast last week I found self affirmation in the statement that, “the opposite of courage is conformity.”
I have always been fiercely individualistic but at the same time community minded as a shepherd with a flock. I never played team sports like football and if the music is playing I’ll dance alone. It only takes one jump to break the ice and when one person is enjoying the water they soon get joined by another. Then pretty quickly every one wants a part of the action.
Most people face the elevator doors, either as it’s “the done thing” and this is conformity. Enter the full elevator, face the back, smile and look everyone in the eye. By the time you get out of the elevator everyone will be smiling. My point is that in general, we are a global society of conformists following arbitrary rules, laws and social norms without even questioning the origin of the “norm”
I had a cat called “Norm.” I never wanted a cat but my friend died and I reluctantly took Norm and fed him the best food that I could afford, kangaroo meat and fish. Norm was fiercely individualistic but Norm was also everyone’s friend and would comfort many of my friends from overseas and all around the world during parties around fires. Norm would rub against their legs and they pat and scratch his chin. Norm would sit on their laps and keep my friends warm and Norm would comfort them in their loneliness.
There is confort in what we get used to and there is comfort to be found in the norm. However there is one constant in the universe and that constant is “change” and it takes courage to be a nonconformist and to embrace change. It’s through change that we grow, drop old habits that don’t serve us and in the process become better people.
Over the past 10 years some of the no serving habit that I have dropped include, smoking tobacco 9 years ago, drinking alcohol 6 years ago, and in the past months I have stopped eating meat and replaced it with nuts, seeds and mushrooms for a source of protein. However the one thing that I have stopped, I was not physically addicted to, I had developed a repeative pattern of behavioral cannabis smoking and for 35 years had smoked cannabis, eaten it and even rubbed cannabis oil on my skin. I had developed an extreme tolerance to the THC in cannabis and no matter how much I smoked, I didn’t get high and I could fully function in society. It’s now 10 weeks that I haven’t consumed any cannabis and I now get “high” from my daily breathwork, yoga and exercise regime which releases endorphins like oxytocin and human growth hormone, metabolites T3 and T4. I feel strong , fit, fast and most importantly I feel that I am a positive role model for my three sons and my community.
I just got off the bus and thanked the driver Scott. He said, “I didn’t recognize you without the hair.”
I’ve just recently cut my dreadlocks and beard off after seven years of growth, I replied, “most people haven’t.”
He said half joking and half serious, “You look smarter without it”.
My point is that conformity is so pervasive that some people find it difficult to accept anyone that’s different to the norms of society so they wear the latest fashion, get married, stay in abusive relationships, go to school, “get a haircut and get a real JOB”, put their fork in the let hand and knife in the right and all the time they are compromising their ideals and all the while they can’t even clean their bedroom and make their bed in the morning, metaphorically speaking.
In 2014, I took a Nazarite Vow from the book of Numbers, chapter 6. Many people passed judgement and made assumptions about me because of how I looked with long dreadlocks and an uncut beard. The Nazarite Vow is a vow of separating oneself unto “the Lord.” It was taken by Samson, Samuel, John the Baptist, James the Brother of Jesus and Jesus Himself. This Nazarite Vow say that my knowledge of the Spirit inside all of Us is strong, unwavering and true. It’s the spirit of no judgement and not eating of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
After I first took the Nazarite Vow, broke it by drinking wine, eating grapes, sultanas and by approaching a dead body of a friend who had died in the street in an attempt to resuscitate him. His Spirit/Soul had left and I failed my test but I let my hair grow due to my vanity. In my meditations I came to the realization that I had broken my Vow and seven days after on the morning of the full moon before Easter, I took of my hair, burnt it and reaffirmed my Nazarite Vow.
I am not my hair, nor am I my wardrobe. I am a biochemical quantum physics meat antennae full bacteria and I am a vibrating community of living organisms absorbing and emitting light through my DNA. Most of all, I am that I am, and I am a Soul, a Spirit, a tiny piece of the All Pervasive Energy of Source and You are too and when you open to your Higher Self, you can become anything you dream. Please enjoy my accompanying poetry.
You don’t have to be a poet to enjoy poetry You don’t have to be a bird to love sitting in a tree You don’t have to be famous to wear fancy pants Or Young beautiful and sexy to enjoy a dance
You don’t have to be young to listen to hip hop Who’s business is it if you only eat the muffin top And abundance or not, it’s fine for you to share Some of the best people that I’ve met never brushed their hair
You don’t have to be young to enjoy a Doof or rave It’s nobody’s business whether or not you shave You can enjoy your life with no husband or wife The inportant thing is that you live your own life
You can’t be a bully and be a gentle man Immerse yourself in love and you’ll be the best you can Every cat can become friends with a dog And enjoy the sunset sitting on a log
When there is no fear nobody feels forced You don’t have to whip a horse running round a race course Every one know that you are what you eat Mushrooms and nuts are protein and we don’t need meat
You can get a tan by sitting in the sunlight Not only sunscreen companies sell products by fright In a darkened room you make no vitamin Dee When you do your research this is what you’ll see
Pharmaceutical companies manipulate your fear You can go to a pub and drink water, not beer When you are uncomfortable you can change your position Processed and fried food have very little nutrition
You don’t have to be a genius to question marketing Coke doesn’t “add life” and is not “the real thing” To be well change your diet to alkaline from acid Lack of sleep makes your balls small and dick flacid
If you want to grow your hair take B17 You can still be fit and strong after you’re a teen And if you decide you can live 200 years When a loved one dies you don’t have to shed tears
Every one can shine and every one can be a poet By making your words rhyme and rhythm flow it You don’t have to love football just to be a man If you do what you love you’ll become the best you can
If you have wind, it’s ok to fart Cancer can be cured, so can a broken heart Anyone can learn to dance, anyone can sing When you chase your dreams you can become anything.
Recently, I have had 40 days and nights of deep self-reflection and introspection. In this time I rediscovered my faith in Spirit and Source and have grown immensely as a human in both strength, patience and spirit.
In November 2014, I came home from my employment as an English as a Second Language teacher. I had stopped at the green grocer to buy two big boxes of fruit and vegetables for my family when the storm hit and fist size hail smashed my car. I went and picked up and my young son from child care and it was also smashed up. I arrived home and I called to my older sons to come and help me carry up the fruit and vegetables that I had bought and as they came down to greet me they said, “Dad, the roof blew off.’
I replied, “thats a good chance for a change.”
That was the last day I shaved and the last day that I cut my hair. I took a Nazarite vow from the book of Numbers in the Old Testament and began to grow my hair to affirm my faith as a Rastafarian and Nazarite. On reflection, I believed this gave me the right to smoke cannabis too. I was wrong. I was vain. The Nazarite vow requires that I don’t touch a dead body, don’t cut my hair and don’t drink wine, alcohol or eat grapes from a vine or raisins. I stopped drinking alcohol in 2015. I bought a double decker bus and created the Free Blue Library, giving away donated books as I travelled. However in 2017 I arrived in Nimbin for the Mardi Grass Help End Marijuana Prohibition Rally and met a talented young artist named Daniel. Six weeks later I was going for my morning run when I came across Daniel dead in the street from and overdose of something as he’d chocked in his vomit. I selflessly began resuscitation and his cold blue bare feet began turning pink, but after 30 minutes the police and ambulance arrives and they tried too before he was pronounced dead.
According to my Nazarite vow I should have cut my hair off seven days after that. I didn’t. I was vain. I was selfish. In my recent self reflection, I realise that I had lost my self respect and integrity. I had lost respect for the law and although there may be things in this world that we not agree with, it is still important to offer respect of all things, all people, and all situations and this means to be without judgment and ego.
One important word that I learnt while living in Nimbin was a Bundjalung word, “Gurrimah” meaning: to care for and nurture, to have respect, no judgement and no jealousy. I have embraced this word in my life.
While I was in my deep self-reflection I wrote the following piece of poetry titled “Respect” and I would like to take this opportunity to share it with you as this is a time when we can all benefit from more respect of all living things, and people as respect is a right of all and thus by default it is also a responsibility of all.
It begins with self respect and respecting this sacred vessel of light that Our Spirit and Our Source incarnated into so that we can experience life in this Paradise, This Garden of Eden we call Earth where our temptation is “to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” This fruit is named “Judgement” and with respect, there is no judgement. We all make mistakes. I know I did, and I know I have made many mistakes. So in keeping my integrity and in keeping respect of my faith and my Nazarite vow, I shall be cutting off all the hair from my head, reaffirming my Nazarite vow and being born once more as a child of Source and Spirit YHWH הוה
777
Respect
Respect begins with respect of self, when we nurture our bodies into health
Respect has many elements of compassion that we may never know how another’s life was fashioned
Respect of others has no judgement. Respect of all is like ointment
Respect of women and of men, as the bee, the flower and the rooster, the hen
Respect acknowledges other’s pain, as farmers and fishers respect wind and rain
Respect ancestors, grandfathers and mothers, babes in arms, cousins, sisters, brothers
Respect sees that we are all different and each life incarnate is heaven sent
With respect we all are free to grow and learn, let others be
Respect acknowledges cause and effect, if we disrespect others, others disrespect
With disrespect we fall from grace as disrespect is a loss of face
Respect acknowledges another’s grief, suffering, trauma and belief
Respect is when we quietly listen and learn from others and are not dis-ing
Disrespect is speaking to others bad, makes ourselves look bad and others sad
Disrespect is when we decide to laugh at others and deride someone else’s truth and way of being, disrespect is judgement that we are seeing
Disrespect denies another’s truth, disrespect is judgement and abuse
With respect we learn and know, Respect is how we learn and grow
Respect the guest and the host. Respect accepts and does not boast
Respect others and they will respect you. Humility grows respect in you.
When you make mistakes apologise as it builds respect in other’s eyes
We can’t know everything, all can learn, with respect we are humble and then respect is earned
With respect we self reflect, drop ego and we self direct
As disrespect leads to hurt and pain, grief, loss suffering and is no one’s gain
As sure as Thunderclouds bring us rain, respect leaves rainbows after pain
Respect the rich and the poor, welcome both at your front door
There is no judgement with respect and to judge another is disrespect
Respect is when we listen quiet but disrespect can cause a fight
Respect is free from arrogance and is to walk in another’s shoes and pants.
Copyright 2021 Thundercloud Repairian aka James Arthur Warren aka Mooganaar
“Writing only happens when thoughts are written down” Herb Wharton
Are you a writer with writer’s block?
There is a solution to writer’s block and it is easy.
Write and give yourself opportunities to write. This can be done anywhere, anyhow, anytime? Carry a notepad and pen with you and when you get a smell moment scribble your thoughts down.
Why? Because writing is about transferring the inner talk of the mind’s thoughts into written words on a page, whether it be a paper page or digital file. It doesn’t matter as long as you write and it doesn’t even matter what you write about.
You may be two thirds through writing a potentially award winning book and get writer’s block. Then it’s best to stop and write something else or just step away. It could be any style or topic but what matters is that you continue the practice of writing your thoughts because when you get your next big idea for your novel could come at anytime and if you aren’t ready then you may miss the opportunity being presented.
So right now I sat down at my computer and thought, “I ought to write something… but Ive got nothing to write about sooooo….. I’ll write about writers block”
And now, here we are standing in water up to our knees.
As a creative, I don’t just write. I draw, sing, dance and play music and if I don’t have the inspiration to write then there are many other creative outlets. I guess this is why as a single man, I don’t get bored with my own company. Instead of using other people’s creative content to entertain myself, which is not super productive, I would rather create something in which the process of creation brings me joy but which I can also sell as an artist to enable me to keep creating and doing what I love.
I also enjoy drawing and exercise as well as writing poetry but there are times when I might not draw for months and other times where I will draw for weeks. However when I am not drawing, I don’t consider myself as having artist’s block because I will be creating something else like a poster, piece of furniture, T-shirt design, publishing a book or organising an event.
Back to topic….. In 2019 there were days where I would write 3 or more poems everyday but now I might only write one every day or so. But I don’t consider it as writers block. because I am doing other things.
If any thing, I suffer from procrastination as well as poor planning and execution which is the current focus of my personal development. That’s what I am working on and I’ll let you know how it is going in another blog post titled something like:
“Stop scrolling and get to work.”
The other option that I like to use in addressing writers block is the recording app on my phone. This is especially useful in a car driving and you can dictate what you want to write and then use a transcription voice to text app to put your spoken word into written form at a later time.
(It’s now 4 hours later) I got writers block writing about writers block so I got up went for a walk, had some dinner, chatted with friends, generally took myself far away from the computer. I went did something else totally different, fully trusting that when I came back to write that I would know what to write.
I recently read a great little book by the English comedian John Cleese “creativity: A short and cheerful guide” in which he wrote about trusting your subconscious to foment the words and thoughts in your down time. I find for me it is when my thoughts become unfocused away from what I am writing, especially when I am tired, then it is the best time to step away. Some days stepping away involves walking outside and standing in the sun for 10 minutes, then I will stretch a little and return to the task. Other days I will go on a longer break then sit down and continue.
The main reason that I love writing poetry is that it enables a deftness and succinctness in that it can express profound ideas with a variety of vocabulary , syntax and form. Plus it can often be written in one sitting and finished. However editing is often required to make a good poem fantastic.
Last week I wrote a quick poem of six lines and it was only the next day when I decided to publish it as an 8 page children’s book that I added the final two lines. That poem is titled: Johno the Cool Cat and was originally written on a piece of paper with a calligraphy pen and ink. I then took the poem, made a collage and printed it. (Each A3 coloured sheet cost me $1 to print and I sell them for $3 of which $1 profit comes to me and $1 profit goes to the Thundercloud Repairian Forest Fund to assist in forest regeneration and everyone benefits)
This is why I began the post by suggesting giving yourself opportunities to write. An opportunity to write can be a desk top, laptop, phone, notepad, or a piece of plain paper with a pencil or the back of a toilet door and photographed and posted on instagram. The point is, just write your thoughts down as Herb Wharton said in the quote at the top of this post.
I became a writer by writing and allowing the words in my head to flow out my hands and that’s pretty much it so being able to publish and sell my writing helps me to be able to continue writing.
I like writing because my writing makes me smile just like my dancing and playing music makes me smile and that also make other people smile. In my opinion there should be more smiling in the world, with dancing and giggles and tickles and wiggles and hugs.
One last thing. This blog post was not written in one go. It was written and honed in 6 different sessions over a period of one an a half days and Johno the Cool Cat was written over two days and the book took another day so in total there are about 12 hours of work to get this blog post to completion. I began Johno on Wednesday and will hit the publish button on Sunday……. Here goes (and I just reedited it for spelling and punctuation once again)
Johno the cool cat
Johno was a cool cat who like to have fun.
In the middle of the night he’d go for a run,
All around town, on the fences, in the parks.
Johno was a cool cat who loved wearing Clarks,
Desert boots and shorts with cool Hawaiian shirts.
5:30am I wake up, meditate, do yoga, walk down stairs and listen to the inner voice.
7:30 walk down stairs, pee, breakfast banana, mandarine, and orange juice I ask myself, “who is Effin the Geffin and Niffle the Whiffle?” In that moment, that instant of inspiration, I know there is something to be written and shared. I grab my phone and begin to write.
Stanza one finished, makes little sense, so the decision is made to write the second stanza using the same “nouns” mixed in a different way to bring about completion of an idea, a scene, a description of some imaginary far away land. Invent new verbs, and add to poem.
8:30 am Having completed two stanzas, I begin to think, “what the actual fuck have I just written?” and “I think this needs a drawing to put it into context.” A quick search comes up with a long piece of paper, pen and watercolours.
Begin to draw. Efin the Geffin with very big feet and Niffle the Whiffle, tall and thin, road, Spifle Wople Woden tree, dick. WTF? Dicks are are funny, especially with an animal head and caterpillar legs. Kunts with big feet are funny too. Mountain range, watercolours splashed on quickly. 8:50 new employee arrives early for work, text message please give me 10 minutes to complete this art work.
8:58am BOOM Publish. What the Actual Fuck is this?
Dittle Tiddle Ditch by Thundercloud Repairian
Effin the Geffin loved Niffle the Whiffle,
Where the Spifle Wople Woden grew in Dittle Tiddle Ditch
They danced about the Foddle Frop
,and the learning of the Derms,
while Mafle Bapple Twadle Po swilshed in Fardle Berms
Niffle the Whiffle said to Effin the Geffin,
The Fardle Berms are hilshy wadleshop the knowdle Derms
The Foddle Frop hashbo titch wop
Mafle Bapple Twadle Po
In Dittle Tiddle Ditch where Spifle Wople Woden Grow
