Poems of Life by Ronnie Lee (Ijustfinished.com)

Ronnie Lee’s Poems of Life: Inspirational Knowledge for Life is a thick book physically (667 pages) and ideologically.  It is not a book one breezes through in a couple of sittings drinking a good cup of coffee.  If you’re wondering why, Lee gives a hint in his subtitle- “Philosophy Teachings: Work, Happiness, Love, Morality and Existentialism.”  This is not light reading.
Lee expounds on these topics in his own free-verse style of poetry and logic, but I wouldn’t call these “poems” in the usually sense of the word.  Existential philosophy and logic drive the book, and poetry, as a form, is simply a means to an end. I think the poetic form presents Lee’s rather heavy ideas in a format that is inviting to the common reader.
I took one philosophy class in college, and we focused on Socrates and Plato. I taught a unit on Existentialism when my students read Richard Wright’s Black Boy and Hemingway’s Old Man and the Sea; however, I am by no means an expert on the subject.  Lee mixes Existential thought and classic logic to address the big questions and problems in life.   He writes:

Logic is not just the end product,
But the process of our whole existence,
And the cause of our existence,
And it is the foundation,
And the fundamental wisdom,
That gives us the understanding of life,
And thus the worthiness to live…

These poems do have a soothing effect, and Lee deals with everything you could thing of: work and success, politics, God, the state of nature, character and value, corruption, et cetera.  Almost all of the topics are viewed from the perspectives or Existentialism or logic.  I would suggest that Lee include a Table of Contents to make looking up specific topics easier in the next printing.
When I taught my unit on Existentialism, the students always had difficulty understanding how one could be a Christian, or religious, and also be an Existentialist.  Lee devotes a whole chapter to topics relating to God. I found Lee’s thoughts on  God interesting:

Nothingness does not exist,
Thus has no power,
Therefore existence does exist,
And has power.

This power,
Of existence must be controlled,
And operated,
And we have God,
The environment,
And souls to operate this power…

Again, this is not light reading.  I admit many of Lee’s ideas went over my head.  For instance, in the poem “the minimum mind,” Lee includes a process map to chart the thinking process- I think? In “Existentialism and traveling,” He writes, “Nothingness does not travel, / Therefore existence travels. / Nothingness is never attached, / Therefore existence is always attached. / Thus existence travels together, / Within laws of unity.”  Yea, I’m not sure I get that one, but it sounds good.
If you’re looking for philosophical wisdom on everyday subjects, Ronnie Lee serves it up in these bite-size poems. He dedicates the book “To all those who have truly suffered,” and he offers his book in hope that it will help people and enrich lives.

ijustfinished

Tree of Smoke – Denis Johnson

I just finished Denis Johnson’s Tree of Smoke.  It won the National Book Award in 2007, so a lot has already been written about the book.  I’m including links to proper reviews at the end here. I’ll keep this short and say I think the book is perhaps the first masterpiece of the new century.  Many agree and disagree with me.  Evidently it is a book that people either love or hate.

The book is generally about Vietnam, which is odd because it manages to be highly original even though it deals with a topic that has been ridden into the ground.  The novel loosely follows the tale of a CIA maverick’s secret psy-ops against the Vietcong and how it affects various characters with highly different backgrounds and paths in life.

I enjoyed Johnson’s earlier collection of short stories,  Jesus’ Son. I like his style, diction, and dark topics; but again that seems to be something people either love or hate.  Personally, I liked the book enough that it made me want to read everything else Johnson has written.  Enough said.

Links to proper reviews:

Jim Lewis’ NYT review

David Ignatius’ Washington Post review

Cross Ion Review

The Cross Ion gel pen was my absolute favorite for a long time, and it still would be if the ink cartridges were reliable. As a teacher who is constantly moving around the room, I wanted a pen I could stick in my front pocket and not notice it was there.  I also wanted a gel pen that laid down a nice, smooth, and dark line.  The Ion was perfect.  There is even a red ink cartridge that lays down a nice bright red ink.

The pen has a triangular ergonomic grip.  It feels very natural in my hand, but it is a unique feel.  A coworker used it once to sign something and didn’t like the way it felt.  He said it didn’t feel like a “real pen,” which I took to mean it wasn’t skinny and long.   Although, people have always been impressed when I pulled it out of my pocket to use it. The pens I have came with lanyards and a clip that attaches to the tip of the pen.

I was so impressed with these pens I bought several and a bulk lot of the ink cartridges in different colors.  Once my original cartridges ran out, I quickly found that the replacement cartridges were not reliable.  It is difficult to get the ink to flow in the cartridges.  I have to scribble for what seems like an eternity to get the ink to start.  Some fade in and out unexplainably.  The ink stops flowing in others when the cartridge is half full.  I thought maybe I got a bad batch, so I bought some individual replacement cartridges and had the same problems. I can’t stand it when I need a pen and it doesn’t work.

Bottom line: I love everything about the pen, but the unreliable ink cartridges ruin it for me.  Cross does not makes these any more, but they still make the replacement ink cartridges.  If anyone knows of a cartridge that will work in these, I would greatly appreciate you letting me know.