Through the Opera Glasses - 34 - October Art Show - Spooky

Just in time for Halloween, I draw your attention to the October show I've featured in my Sidebar Art Gallery.

This collection is called Spooky.




















Flying Dutchman illustration - Unknown artist
















Notre Dames gargoyle - Victor-Joseph Pyanet
















Duel after the Masquerade Ball - Jean Leon Gerome




















The Gashlycrumb Tinies - Edward Gorey














The Apotheosis of War - Vasily Vereshchagin




















From Paradise Lost - Gustav Dore



















Macbeth, The Meeting with the Witches on the Heath - Joseph Kronheim

















The Ride of the Valkyries - William T. Maud





















Asmorod - Zdzislaw Beksinski


Happy Haunting...














On Nov. 5th I'm taking part in the Blogblast For Peace. Won't you join me?

"Here in this wondrous way we keep
These haunts of ancient peace.
Let us go there again
When we need some relief
Oh, when I can’t find my feet
When I need rest and sleep."

- Van Morrison

Shelley Munro says I like the one of the Valkyries.

2009 Blog Improvement Project - 14 - Highlighting Best Blog Content Through Sneeze Pages

For Week 14 of the Blog Improvement Project, Kim steers us toward creating a Sneeze Page:

"Create a Sneeze Page: This was Day 18 in the Build a Better Blog Challenge at ProBlogger. Basically, it suggests making pages with posts that will help drive people deeper into your blog. He also suggests not just making the page a list of links — give people context for why the link is interesting and useful for them.

8 Post Types to Expand and Highlight Your Blog’s Content: This post shows a lot of different kinds of posts that can highlight different parts of your blog. Only a couple apply to this task, but other ones might make great post ideas if you’re stumped.

Feel free to do this in any way you want. Write a new post highlighting past posts then put a link to that post in your sidebar, add highlighted posts to your About Me page, add a section to your sidebar with highlighted posts, or do something else I haven’t thought of." - Kim

I've already created Archives blogs that hold featured content from A Piece of My Mind, and are linked over in my sidebar.

If you've never visited my archives, here's what's on the shelves:


For book reviews, browse through my My Book Reviews.















For paintings, illustration and sculpture, stroll through My Cyber Gallery.















In addition to the Cyber Gallery, I have my Sidebar Gallery which features nine pieces every month. A new show goes up at the beginning of each month, and the show for August is Roses. An added feature of the Sidebar Gallery is a link to biographical information on each artist, which is accessible by clicking on the piece of art.





For samples of my fiction writing, flip through My Fiction Excerpt Archives.














For original poetry, wander over to My Poetry Archives.





For a collection of my arts industry posts, settle in at Through the Opera Glasses Archives.


For a taste of something different, try out my collected posts from my group blog at My Popculturedivas Archives.


And a little more variety at the earlier incarnation of the same group blog - My Missmakeamovie Archives.


Travis says I did this with some original fiction I posted on my blog.

Kim says I like how you explained what each one was.

Poetry Train Monday - 90 - Take One More With Him

Welcome to the Poetry Train and to my March exhibit for my Sidebar Art Gallery. This month I'm featuring the works of:



Charles Burton Barber
Alex Colville
Frank Dicksee
Hokusai
Edward Robert Hughes
Michelangelo
Alphonse Mucha
Briton Riviere
Frederick Judd Waugh

For today's Poetry Train, I'm continuing my found poetry series, and returning to the character I introduced last week. We find Jock MacKeigan fighting in the Battle of Culloden, near Inverness in Scotland, April, 1746:








Take One More With Him


The horse and rider
Bore down on Jock like phantoms
THROUGH CHOKE OF POWDER
Bore down on Jock like phantoms
The horse and rider

Sword over head, swung
Down in a murderous arc
HIS BLADE SLICED SWIFTLY
Down in a murderous arc
Sword over head, swung

His blade sliced the arm
The dragoon's arm so swiftly
HAND STILL CLUTCHED SABRE
The dragoon's arm so swiftly
His blade sliced the arm

Clutching the sabre
The arm fell on battlefield
JOCK PANTED FOR AIR
The arm fell on battlefield
Clutching the sabre

Blinking back the sweat
How long, in the thick of it?
BLUE SMOKE ARTILLERY
How long, in the thick of it?
Blinking back the sweat

He felt the killing
Frenzy begin to lift off
FOCUS GOT HIM THROUGH
Frenzy begin to lift off
He felt the killing

Blocked out everything
All but weapons aimed at him
GOT HIM THROUGH IT ALL
All but weapons aimed at him
Blocked out everything

He heard it now - groans
Shouts. Rasp of steel. Musket fire.
NOW THE PAIN SET IN
Shouts. Rasp of steel. Musket fire.
He heard it now - groans

Always - frenzy's lift
Meant the danger was past. But -
NOT THIS EXHAUSTED
Meant the danger was past. But -
Always - frenzy's lift

Movement caught his eye
He turned. But it was too late.
BOUNCING FOUR-POUND SHOT
He turned. But it was too late.
Movement caught his eye

Hit a clump of grass
And veered up into the air
STRIKING JOCK'S ANKLE
And veered up into the air
Hit a clump of grass

He lay and writhed there
Screams all knotted up inside
SCREAMS FOUGHT PAST HIS LIPS
Screams all knotted up inside
He lay and writhed there

The sky above him
Was hazy with cloud and smoke
CHORUS OF WOUNDED
Was hazy with cloud and smoke
The sky above him

Heard tramping of feet
Cries of men rose up in pitch
ENGLISH STABBED SURVIVORS
Cries of men rose up in pitch
Heard tramping of feet

Bayonets would take
What foot and horse left behind
SCREAMS WERE GETTING CLOSE
What foot and horse left behind
Bayonets would take

It was clear to Jock
Before he took leave of life
TAKE ONE MORE WITH HIM
Before he took leave of life
It was clear to Jock

His fingers wrapped round
Handle of the dirk. No fear.
SOLDIER ENTERED SIGHTS
Handle of the dirk. No fear.
His fingers wrapped round

Sat up. Grabbed handful
Scarlet coat. Held fast. Thrust hard.
HIS CRY NO DIFFERENT
Scarlet coat. Held fast. Thrust hard.
Sat up. Grabbed handful

Jock's head rocked forward
Hit from behind. Took more blows.
NO STRENGTH LEFT. LAY STILL.
Hit from behind. Took more blows.
Jock's head rocked forward

This was it. Eyes shut
Prayed. Lord, I commend to you -
"GO TO BLOODY HELL!"
Prayed. Lord, I commend to you -
This was it. Eyes shut

- Julia Smith - 2009


I did The Naisaiku Challenge for this poem. Check it out!