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Showing posts from June, 2015

Frozen 'Let it Go' in Turkish: Karlar Ülkesi 'Aldırma'

verbs ağlamak = to cry aldırmak = to mind çizmek =to draw denemek = to try denemek = to try doğmak = to rise dondurmak = to freeze durdurmak = to stop engel olmak = to stop erişemek = to access fark etmek = to notice gelişmek = to develop geri dönmek = to return görmek = to see görünmek = to appear kaplamak = to cover pırılmak = to twinkle sanmak = to think silinmek = to erase sürmek = to continue ulumak = to howl uzaklaşmak = to get away üzmek = to trouble yönetmek = to manage nouns cisimler = objects daireler = compartments fırtına = storm gök = sky hisler = feelings izler = traces kar taneler = snowflakes krallık = kingdom kural = rule ört = cover ruhu = soul rüzgar = wind sel = flood sınırlar = limits yapı = structure adjectives coşan = gushing kusursuz = flawless soyutlanm ış = isolated Karlar Ülkesi Frozen Aldırma Let it go Pırıldıyor kar taneleri

Kackar Mountains

The alpine forests, waterfalls, rivers, hot springs, and snow-capped Kackar Mountains beckon trekkers to the coastal Black Sea region of northeastern Turkey. The lower slopes are accessible from mid-May to mid-September, and the upper slopes starting in July. In the second week of June the Camlihemsin Ayder Festival celebrates Hemsin culture, food, and dance. For treks and camping, bring a good tent, stove, sleeping bag, walking boots, and warm clothes, even in the summer. One possible way to get there is to first fly to the Trabzon Airport, take a bus to the Rize Otogar, a minibus from Pazar to Aydersen, and then finally an infrequent minibus to the villages of Camlihemsin and Ayder in the Firtina Valley. Firtina means storm in Turkish. Check with the locals for the exact schedules of public transport. At the edge of the coastal zone at 300m, Camlihemsin village has the only ATM in the Kackar Mountains. Shops have supplies for treks. In the Firtina Valley, winch wires lift goo

June 2007

our backs become our beds, too,   our backs become the soft springbox mattress that gives a little to mass and shape but gives it all back again.    our backs become the hard wooden slat that latches on the metal frame beneath and catches bones falling into gravity.   our backs become the thin foamy mat that collects the red soil beneath and absorbs the warm salty sweat above.   our backs become our beds, too, giving latching catching collecting absorbing our dreams.

February 2007

i rolled out of bed this morning groggy but ready to go but i felt something was missing some important shape below i looked down upon my navel expecting to see a linty indent but instead a small gaping hole presented itself instead: the hole passes all the way through-- a pencil could slide from front to back. something dreadful has happened: it appears i have lost my center, but what must I do? i can search high and low for my center, have you lost yours, too? i looked inside my prayer book, and although i enjoyed the poetry, my tummy would not go to rest. i looked in my suit and shoes, even putting them for the interview, and although i enjoyed the professionalism, my tummy would not go to rest. meanwhile, the hole had grown larger, until my inside skin could fit a sphere. my center is gone. everything natural and normal melts away. i could not find my confidence, calm, or peace of mind today. people began to toss mail into my tummy hole instead of my mail cubby hole. mail about int

Dallas December 2006

Grey.  Grey skies.  Grey clouds.  Grey concrete roads.  Just grey.  I contemplate the golden soybean oil floating in the thai ginger soup.  Nice to drink hot spicy soup on a rainy day.  When it rains in Dallas, it pours.  The rain drops bounce off the grey roads.  Bouncing in all directions.  Like my brothers.  They bounce in all directions.  Down the path that separates the living family space from the bedroom space in the house. The layout of the neighborhood is a sea of roads with islands of houses.  The water pours off the roofs of the houses down the gutters down the slopes of the lawn down the sidewalks down the drains down the sewers. Down the alleys.  Down the creeks, too.  Yesterday Dad surprised us all with a tour of the neighborhood.  Luckily, us includes Bubba and Grandpa are in town.  Walk down sidewalks, crossing the main streets, until we find the entrance to an alleyway.  There are probably as many alleyways as there are roads.  Alleyways line the backs of houses.  Main

Sprinkles

A big cupcake with white frosting regally awaits the birthday girl.  A tall pink candle squishes into the frosting.  Mommy lights the candle, asks her baby to blow it out and makes a wish.  The girl does not know how to make a wish.  Daddy explains, a wish is something you really want to happen today.  Okay daddy, she contemplates, I wish to swim in sprinkles. She dreams, jumps into a cup of fresh water.  Water tastes like wax.  Must be residue of the Dixie Cup.  Then she jumps into a bucket of sprinkles.  The colorful balls stick to her skin.  She carefully moves to avoid losing the sprinkles.  Stick to me, she whispers.  Some sprinkles let go.  Flick off into the breeze.  She steps gingerly.  The first footprint has the most sprinkles.  The second fewer.  Sprinkles remain along the rim of her foot. Sprinkles line the rims of her lips, eyes, and nostrils.  She smiles, rubs her nose against her left elbow.  A smudge of skin reveals itself against the sprinkles.  She licks her elbow.  T