Word of the Day - July 6, 2009

Your Word of the Day is filigree, which previously was filigrain. A filigree is mainly a delicate, lace-like ornamental work of intertwined gold or silver.

Verse: Picnic

The sun
was making
its excuses
as we climbed
the stairs
to the roof

We could see
the angular
elastic bodies
of bronzed boys
bathed in sweat
playing basketball
across the street
in the schoolyard
invincible, almost eternal
in the waning light

the sky
an icy ocean
suddenly illuminated
by thousands of
impatient stars
we skimmed stones
across its surface
until our trembling
distorted reflections
resembled carnival
mirrors

We picked moonfruit
and sat upon
a nearby cloud
to enjoy our modest meal
you dared me
to eat a star
so cold
it tore
the roof
of my mouth

Resting
your head
in my lap
I spoke
in unrehearsed
verse for a while
and you said
'If you were
to disappear
leave me just
one tenderness
a smile
a whisper
a kiss
I'll wear it
like a ring
it's just
an impulse thing.'

And we sat
very quiet
very still
for a very
long time
waiting only
for sleep
to come and
to hold us
in his fragrant embrace

Song of the Day - July 3, 2009

With so many celebrities having passed away over the past few days, many of whom I haven't talked of here, it occurred to me to offer this as Song of the Day: People Who Died by the Jim Carroll Band. A punk poet, portrayed by Leonard DiCaprio in Basketball Diaries, says farewell to some people he knew who died of various causes. The punk approach may seem offhanded to you, but has always struck me as appropriate if you think about the whole 'rage against the light' thing. In that way, it becomes a very fitting tribute because it is so full of life. It was probably the first punk song I ever heard, and one of the few that many of my tragically unhip friends knew. Great to pogo to, or just contemplate, it remains one of my favorites to this day.

Word of the Day - July 3, 2009

Word of the Day is cordate, which is heart-shaped. Gossamer, the monster from the Bugs Bunny cartoons is kind of cordate.

Verse: What I want

Unlimited inspiration
that flows fast
like a waterfall
just one word
one phrase
that someone
somewhere will recall

To travel the world
unfettered seeing all
the storied places
I have never been
Paris, Rome, London
the Louvre and the Sistine

Cool evenings in summer
and a real and vibrant spring
winters that are gentle
to the touch
and autumns colorful
and conquering

Mellow candles
that persist
even when the night
begins to yawn
the plainsong of
the chickadees
to ring in the dawn

An evening on the town
that is rich
in bold discovery
A morning in
a small cafe
where the air is
is thick with coffee

Something to believe in
that never raises
cause to doubt
the light that resides
in your emerald eyes
to never peter out

Moments for reflection
love that binds us
to the core
memories between us
and the promise
of many more

Verse: Washing of the Dreams

And I walk
through the thick
marram grass
to the shore
with a basket
of dreams
to wash them off
and dry them
in the sun

You have to be careful
to separate them
wash like ones
together
or the colors run

all along the water
so many other dreamers
scrubbing their dreams
like an assembly line

I rinse them carefully
to get the detergent out
slap them against
the granite rocks
and place them back
in the basket

Back home
I hang them on the line
and hope they dry
before the day is done
flapping like flags
they look so threadbare
in the sun but
I'm loathe to replace them
you can't get them
in that size or shape
anymore

Not-so-close shave with Remington

Like most people, I'm impetuous. If I have a bad brand experience, I typically take my money elsewhere.

Like today. A few weeks ago, my trusted Philips electric razor lost its will to live after many years of faithful service. Disappointed, I gave it a decent burial and headed out to a bargain behemoth to purchase a new one. I know, I get what I deserve for being cheap when it comes to my pretty face, but these are tough times. Pennies will be pinched.

So, I buy a Remington razor, bring it home, charge it and the next morning I eagerly apply it to face after a gentle wash. I stretch the skin, apply both blades, do a little circular motion. Yet despite my best efforts, it's not giving me a nice, smooth even shave. There are stubborn little patches all along my neck and around my jaw that prove impervious to the double row of blades.

The booklet says to give it about three weeks, but I wasn't noticing any improvement. I constantly had to take a trimmer and run it all over my neck and face to clear out the many stragglers. So I decide to call Remington to voice my concern about the product's performance. I explain what I bought, that I'd been using it for about three weeks and that I hadn't encountered such an ineffective electric razor before. That was that. The person on the other end, huffy, shut down the call by telling me to take it back to the store where I bought it if I was unhappy. And that was that.

Despite my disappointment with the razor, I was willing to hear out Remington to see if they had suggestions to get better results, if there had been problems with that product, anything to address my experience or concerns. No dice. And they made no attempt to ask any questions about the product or how I used it. In short, the company acted like it didn't care that I had a negative experience and wanted to be done with me.

Now, you may see nothing wrong with what Remington did. I was an unhappy customer and they told me to return the product. Which I concede I could have done. But I figured they'd want to know if someone was unhappy with their product and have a chance to do something about it. Instead, I'm sharing my experience with you and a few hundred people on Twitter, and telling you I won't be buying Remington products again.

It comes down to this: if you care about and stand behind your products or services, then you do so when someone isn't happy with them. You make an attempt to uphold their brand integrity, or set things right. You work to please that customer with an eye to ensuring he or she remains a loyal customer. You hear out his or her concerns. You make some effort to address them. It creates a positive association. The customer feels better about the situation and may be willing to work with you to a resolution. Do it right and you not only retain a customer, you enjoy positive word of mouth.

But if you shrug and dismiss concerns, you lose that opportunity to engage a customer, to transform a negative experience and to avoid poor word of mouth. Word of mouth that, I might add, spreads further and faster than ever thanks to the world wide web and its wonderful social media tools. Word of mouth that damages your brand.

So now several hundred people know my experience with Remington. Will it influence their purchasing decisions? Who knows. But why take that risk if you don't have to. Make the effort; show you care about your products and customers. It's one way to ensure your reputation remains blemish-free and looking good.

Song of the Day - July 1, 2009

Being that it is Canada Day, today's Song of the Day is the best Canadian song ever and should be our National Anthem. Wayne McGhie & The Sounds of Joy's Dirty Funk. Select #5 when you go through the link to hear a snippet!

This is what I blogged about the album on my now-dead previous blog:

Okay, so I'm late to the party on this, but I'm not the only one. Even Wayne McGhie's original record label barely bothered to RSVP, to judge by the liner notes that accompany Light in the Attic's loving reissue of McGhie's one and only self/untitled album with The Sounds of Joy. I have to be honest, the notion of a rediscovered funk and R&B and Rock Steady platter from my Soviet Canuckistan stomping grounds, featuring covers of songs like Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye and Take a Letter Maria didn't exactly inspire confidence when I first heard about it. So a friend set me straight, and I'm glad he did. This one is a real charmer, and as addictive as as a Crackberry. The band is tight, but the feel is open and relaxed, like a casual session where a bunch of friends got together to run through a few songs, old and new. That casual aspect is reflected in the production - songs seem to end or fade at odd junctures; it's as if the band had to keep pumping the studio with government funded quarters to keep cranking out its tunes.

Speaking of which, the surprise here is that the four covers are actually quite good. I love how he turns Take a Letter Maria into a ragged but right stuttering West Indies groove, and how McGhie sometimes elides the 'f' sound on 'wife' so it sounds like he's singing 'address it to my wi-ah' or 'wire.' He wrings Blood, Sweat and Tears out of the Friends of Distinction's Going in Circles, fortunately taking his lead from Al Kooper's version of the band, not blowhard David Clayton Thomas. And Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Good Bye recasts it as a funky pop classic you didn't know was a classic. And if his By the Time I Get to Phoenix is a briefer journey than Isaac Hayes, it's no less pleasurable. But the best songs are two originals that sound as familiar as his covers. Dirty Funk could easily have been a Meters 45, opening with a solid break beat by Everton Paul strong enough to win the hearts of loop diggers everywhere. And I'm pretty certain that Fire (She Need Water) hails from the same neighborhood as, maybe, James Brown's Bring it Up (Hipster's Avenue). But whatever neighborhood it's from, The Ohio Players must found inspiration in the fire truck siren that opens the cut, and it may be the location of the confounded bridge that Led Zeppelin were looking for when they did The Crunge. That it fell between the cracks suggests that, when it comes to rhythm, the Canadian music industry, and many music fans here, often have two left feet. They get Bruce Cockburn, Gordon Lightfoot, Anne Murray, but they don't often get music like this. But you should. As Mel Mounds used to sorta say, it's righteous and outta sight-eous.

Word of the Day - July 1, 2009

Today's Word is prevaricate, which is to speak falsely or misleadingly, which I have been doing all day on Twitter. If you'd like to know, or why, follow me @MrWordsWorth

Verse: Fragment of a Rainy Season

Billie, you exclaimed
and a smile of recognition
crept across your face
as For All We Know
played softly
that misty afternoon
while we ate
in the lonesome
crowded cafe

Here's what I know
you said
it gets darker
as you go along
you tend to
repeat yourself
and harbour dark thoughts
about what you've done
what you've become

You love awhile
sometimes, it's lonely
you take your comforts
where you can
a glass of wine
a familiar song
late night conversations
with ghosts
and you wonder
what did it amount to
what did I accomplish
what difference
did it make
and who will remember
me when I am consigned
to memories

Years spent living
with myself, with others
you'd think, by now
I would know
who I am
but it changes
like seasons
like fashions
a child
a mother
a sister
a lover
it's all associations
you lose yourself
in proximities
like chalk marks
in the rain
it's just temporary

and the traffic
moves like a funeral procession
and this moment
lingers like
eternity
like an insect
in amber
it imprisons me
the malingering mist
with its quiet apathy
afflicts me
but what does anyone
know, anyway, Billie
so much I might have done
so little time, like anyone
I just want to know
that I can get something
of value done
that I can stop arriving
and be present
and genuine
and be someone