wild hare

Tufts of hairy crabweed

sprout from my temples

like crazy hemp

in the rabbit hole

of an all day tea party.

I happen to descend

from a whole line

of fertile Mad Hatters,

resistant to most sanity.

My forebears flattened

theirs in Brylcreem

with results even Bonaparte

would envy.

The edges stuck out

from my father’s flattop

and grew to a hedge maze

that hid him from me,

like a mock turtle.

willow, 2010

doppelgänger

Poetikat used the delightful word doppelgänger in a wonderful haiku last week. I commented how much I liked the word and she quickly suggested I should post on the subject. After doing a bit of research, I found the word to be even more intriguing than I first thought.

dop·pel·gäng·er, noun

Etymology: German Doppelgänger,
from doppel- double + -gänger goer

Date: 1851

1 : a ghostly counterpart of a living person
2 a : double
2 b : alter ego
2 c : a person who has the same name as another

In the vernacular, the word doppelgänger has come to refer to any double or look-alike of a person. Well, you know, I couldn't let this pass without mentioning the Deppster and me. The jury is still out on whether we share the same Cherokee great-great-grandmother. We do, however, look quite a lot alike. I guess it's safe to say he and I, though we might not actually be cousins, we most definitely are doppelgängers.

The word is also used to describe the sensation of having glimpsed oneself in peripheral vision, in a position where there is no chance it could have been a reflection. In some traditions, a doppelgänger seen by a person's friends or relatives portends illness or danger, while seeing one's own doppelgänger is an omen of death. In Norse mythology, a vardøger is a ghostly double who precedes a living person and is seen performing their actions in advance.

Since I am a huge Lincoln buff, the story of the president seeing his own doppelgänger caught my attention. Here is an excerpt from Carl Sandburg's biography:


A dream or illusion had haunted Lincoln at times through the winter. On the evening of his election he had thrown himself on one of the haircloth sofas at home, just after the first telegrams of November 7 had told him he was elected President, and
looking into a bureau mirror across the room he saw himself full length, but with two faces.

It bothered him; he got up; the illusion vanished; but when he lay down again there in the glass again were two faces, one paler than the other. He got up again, mixed in the election
excitement, forgot about it; but it came back, and haunted him. He told his wife about it; she worried too.

A few days later he tried it once more and the illusion of the two faces again registered to his eyes. But that was the last; the ghost since then wouldn't come back, he told his wife, who said it was a sign he would be elected to a second term, and the death
pallor of one face meant he wouldn't live through his second term.


Spooky, huh? But, Lincoln was known to be superstitious, and old mirrors can be known to produce double images. Whether this Janus illusion can be counted as a doppelgänger is perhaps debatable. An alternate consideration, suggests that Lincoln suffered vertical strabismus in his left eye, a disorder which could induce visions of a vertically displaced image.

For the accounts of other famous reports of doppelgängers, including Percy Bysshe Shelley, John Donne, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, and Emilie Sagée click [HERE].

Theme Thursday - Limo

Depp and Me


Separated at birth
I am older
but it somehow works
fusing cheekbones, chin
piercing eyes

a long lost brother
he and I combine
to share a grandmother
from the same Irish kin
the same German ties
the same native tribe

we meld faces
drink the same wines
sport fine hats
devour strange places.

At night I dream
he takes me for a spin
in a white limousine
exploring our ancestral spaces.


willow, 2009


artwork: Self Portrait, 1923 by Romaine Brooks

Summer Movies, Depp and Me

I recently came to the conclusion that Johnny Depp and I could have

been separated at birth. Every time I look in the mirror, I see

Johnny. Someone please help me. I really do think I'm morphing into

him. Since he's been on my mind, as well as in my mirror, I've been

watching some of my favorite Depp movies. Here are two of his lesser

known films I've watched this past week.

.

If you are a fan of Depp, Dead Man, 1995, is not one to be missed.

Filmed in luminous black and white, it is the story of a timid
accountant, William Blake, played by Depp, who travels west with
the promise of a job. A few other notable actors in the film are
Gabriel Bryne, Robert Mitchum, Crispin Glover and Iggy Pop.
There's a slow, poetic quality to this film. It deals with the themes
of friendship and death, complete with a fabulous moody musical
score. This is like no other western you've seen. It's artistic. It's
brilliant.



The Ninth Gate, 1999, is a fun little quirky film by Roman Polanski,
in which Depp portrays Dean Corso, a rare book dealer, who is
hired to locate the last remaining copies of The Ninth Gate, an
ancient demonic manuscript that supposedly can summon the devil.
If you are looking for an action film, this is not it. There are no bloody
special effects in this slow moving, bookish film. It actually moves
along quite gracefully. I think you'll like it.

~~~

I appreciate all of you who participated in the lively discussion on

"comments" last night and today. You always inspire me with your
insightful, thoughtful comments and come together to make this a
great blogging community. Thank you. You're the best.

thoughts on summer

When our friends came on the 4th, the first thing one of them said
was, "It's COLD!" Now, I was happy as a lark, in what I considered,
the glorious 79 degree afternoon. The cooler temps and gentle breeze
was a delightful holiday gift from Mother Earth. HTM, (that's
"heavens to murgatroyd", in case you are new to the manor) I hate
to sweat.

Summer is good, but it's my least favorite of all the seasons. Don't get
me wrong; I adore the variety of seasonal changes. I would be totally
bored in a temperate climate. But, the heat and humidity of
midwestern summers make me sluggish and unmotivated. I'm not
one who relishes a long hot run on the sweltering pavement in the
90 degree temps. I was born in October, and I don't know whether
this has any bearing on the fact, but I am totally in my element in
the fall. The crisp cold air rolling down from the north, the vibrant

reds and golds awake my creative juices, and smack this hot,

dormant body into reality. I am already craving wool sweaters,
fireplaces and raking leaves.

Come to think of it, this person who was so cold last weekend, has a
summer birth date. She loves sun, heat and can't wait to retire in
Florida. I would be happy to retire right here at Willow Manor. But,
if I had to choose another spot in the wide, wide world, it would have
to be somewhere farther north.

It's good, but not my favorite.

Johnny Depp, Chocolat

photo: Icewater, by willow

Speaking of Johnny Depp...

I loved this movie! Public Enemies opened today and we sneaked
off to see a matinee this afternoon. Normally, I don't usually enjoy
watching a lot of violence, but this movie is one of my few exceptions.
Johnny Depp is a brilliant John Dillinger (did we expect anything
less?). J. Edgar Hoover (Billy Crudup) heads the FBI, led by
Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale). The luscious and talented Marion
Cotillard is excellent as Billie Frechette, Dillinger's love interest.

This is actually a very artistically shot film, with a plethora of
wonderful noir natural light scenes, interspersed with faded rosy
sepia, and the crisp HD fireworks of blazing Tommy guns woven
throughout. The attention to the details of sets and costumes were
spot on, lending a feel of splendid time travel. There were great
vintage cars, a dreamy steam engine scene and even shots of the
fabulous "Tin Goose", a 1929 Ford Tri-Motor airliner, used to
transport Dillinger to prison in Michigan City, Indiana. The music
through the film was exceptional, with bits of fancy guitar picking
and a nightclub scene with a cameo appearance of Diana Krall
singing a luminous rendition of "Bye Bye Blackbird".

So, there you have it, my bloggy friends. I thoroughly enjoyed this
movie and give it two "Willow Thumbs" up!

Ichabod, what a name...kind of odd, but nice just the same!

On mounting a rising ground, which brought the figure
of his fellow-traveller in relief against the sky, gigantic in
height, and muffled in a cloak, Ichabod was horror-struck
on perceiving that he was headless!--but his horror was still
more increased on observing that the head, which should
have rested on his shoulders, was carried before him on the
pommel of his saddle!

.
~Washington Irving, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Since so many of you showed up at the manor ball with Johnny Depp, I thought you might enjoy a post on Sleepy Hollow, 1999. Now, this isn't one of my top faves, but it is a classic Tim Burton artistic piece and well worth a watch. It is dark, but also full of comedy and I wouldn't really call it a horror film.

As you probably already know, it does veer from Irving's original
story, adding more thrill and mystery to the plot. Depp is absolutely adorable as a fearful Ichabod Crane, who portrays the role of a detective, rather than the lowly school teacher. Christina Ricci's cool portrayal of Katrina gives the character an other- worldly aura, which adds to Burton's palette. There's also some amazing prosthetic heads rolling and quirky Burtonesque gadgets used by Depp to solve the case. Michael Gambon, Jeffrey Jones, and a flamboyant Christopher Walken round out the cast. The film won an Oscar for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, which was indeed well deserved, especially for the fabulous Burton forest, which is actually one huge set. So, since it is the season for the willies, pop some more corn, kick up those woolly socks and enjoy this ghoulish tale!