The Long Drive

Some NaPo InSpo

(lol did you see what I did there)

"Workin' Hard" by Fujii Kaze

"Early Autumn" sung by Ella Fitzgerald



"Too Sweet" by Hozier



The Hudson River School



Enriq Miralles



...Might explain myself later. Might not. We'll see haha.

Warm-up Five | Goals you Can't Complete

Enspoilered for like... the barest of forbidden grape juice content.

Spoiler

Pile it all in the instant pot,
the carrots, the onions, the beef.
Set it. Forget it. Go off to work.
Come home and eat stew in relief.

Pile it all underneath my heart,
the worry, the goals, and the grief.
Set it. Regret it. Work way too hard.
Get tipsy on the aperitif.

Free Song Groove:



edit: lol was looking at this and realized those sixteenth rests in the treble clef should be eights. haha whoops.

Chao Mien Western Update

#1 No Ordinary Town Out West (includes snippets from Something Wrong, Seek Your Fortune)

“Western whistle” into a “trotting” banjo riff

COWBOY 1:
THIS IS NO ORDINARY TOWN OUT WEST
THE RIVER RUNS WIDE THROUGH THE VALLEYS AND CRESTS
THERE NEVER WAS MORE MAJESTIC SIGHT I CONFESS
THIS IS NO ORDINARY TOWN OUT WEST

(Cowboy gestures, and set pieces move in, people begin filling the stage, going about their days. Tempo picks up slightly.)

TOWNSPEOPLE 1 & 2:
THIS IS NO ORDINARY PLACE TO BE

SALOON GIRL:
(Spoken in time) I control your dreams.

RANCHER:
(Spoken in time) And I turn milk into cheese!

ALL SO FAR:
THE BARBER SEES YOUR BONES WHILE HE IS PULLING YOUR TEETH
WE’RE ALL MYSTERIOUS-

(Music drops out, freeze ensemble, spot on Mingzhu as she emerges from the crowd. Slow, at her tempo.)

MINGZHU:
EXCEPT FOR ME

(Speed up to a gallop, everyone back in motion, ensemble covers her up, at this point entire ensemble should be on stage singing. Also key change haha)

ENSEMBLE:
THIS IS NO ORDINARY TOWN AT ALL
THE CITIZENS ARE NOTHING SHORT OF MAGICAL
OUR POWERS GIVE US PRIDE TO RIDE THE WILDS STRONG AND TALL
IT’S QUITE AN EXTRA-ORDINARY TOWN FOR ALL

(Ensemble freezes, vamp as MINGZHU steps out again)

MINGZHU:
IS THERE SOMETHING WRONG WITH ME?
WHO LEFT ME HERE INSIDE THIS FANTASY?
I’M NOTHING MORE THAN NORMAL FAR AS I CAN SEE
SO PLEASE, SOMEONE COME TO TOWN AND SET ME FREE

(Mingzhu leaves stage)

RANCHER:
Who was that?

PROSPECTOR:
I reckon I’ve seen her before.

---

And then uhhhh a little more dialogue, another verse, and then into the "Seek Your Fortune" trio? Lol idk. Thoughts are welcome I have no idea what I'm doing.

Intro + Outro Lyrics:

The wind
brushes my skin,
and the fir trees sway.
I drive
along I-5
by the light of day.

---

A lot happens musically

---

The wind
brushes my skin,
and the corn fields sway.
I cry
tears of goodbye
as I'm on my way.

Wednesday Haiku 1: 04/03

What April showers?
Snowflakes fly flat as the plains
and bring May flooding.

Free song verse take one:

See the apple orchard from the highway
fruit so red and ripe it must be gourmet
Bite in through the skin and feel the juice spray
Time keeps driving forward wish I could stay
here
another year.
Dear
My roots grew deep I fear.

Spoiler

Listen to me sing it hahaha why do I do this

Free Song: Home Again Lyrics

The wind
kisses my skin,
and the fir trees sway.
I drive
along I-5
by the light of day.

See the apple orchard from the highway
fruit so red and ripe it must be gourmet
Bite in through the skin and feel the juice spray
Time keeps driving forward wish I could stay
here
another year.
Dear
my roots grew deep I fear.

(optional spot for instrumental + improv)

The plain
Midwest terrain
never called to me.
My mind
is left behind
as my heart runs free.

(modulate up to new key)

The wind
kisses my skin
as I fall again.
I rinse
I’m not convinced
that this cycle ends.

Never did I dream I’d love the flatness
of the rolling plains or know the vastness
of these people’s hearts. I’m such a hot mess,
didn’t think I’d repeat all that sadness
here
I drip with tears.
Dear
my roots grew deep I fear!

The wind
kisses my skin
and the corn fields sway.
I cry
tears of goodbye
as I drive away.

(cymbal wash and sigh)

I love it!
I also like songwriting

Love love love "things I know how to say" <3 Bi-lingual poetry is so interesting, and especially so when the subject is language itself. It feels like art + poetry together, and your writing is very beautiful. Love the variety of mediums and music you have included too. Certainly looking forward to following along this month Vent!

@alliyah Chinese poetry actually has a very long history of being a visual art! It was combined with calligraphy for so long that they are in some ways hard to separate in the culture. That and wordplay! I only wish I was good enough to include some of the many, many homophones that exist in Mandarin and other Sinitic languages.