When the Boy Made Me

When the Boy Made Me

by: M. MacMinn

We grew empty with careless concern
a buzz at night and searching

We walked to far, to far to return
tired and lost, tired and wandering

With a wayward stretch, singing dust in the wind

Learning the present, passing through days

Only to be
the man that I am, when the boy made me




www.markmacminn.com

Pound Upon Your Walls

Pound Upon Your Walls
by: M. MacMinn


I bid upon your will
to read behind my eyes
To agree by the path you walk
and the doors you close behind

Still open enough for me to enter
and pound upon your walls
Now it's I that reads behind your eyes
breathing freedom, chained in stalls

A silent pass, a gentle touch,
the frustrating sound of yes
A mystery so pressed upon
we'll never have to guess

Fiction builds inside my mind
making stories real
The stories that I tell myself
make me scared to feel.




www.markmacminn.com

luckiest.

Every eight to nine months I think about the blog I started many moons ago, and I vow to update it.  Maybe this time I'll get back on the train.

Lately I've been making some changes in my life.  Changes in choices and lifestyle.  There have been many reasons for these changes, like reflection, revision and age.  I can't deny that I'm getting a touch older.  I can't deny that sometimes things hurt for unknown reasons.  I cannot deny my own mortality, as I have watched too many friends fall.  But I know I'm a lucky one.
I haven't wound up where I thought I would be back when I was eighteen.  I have watched many friends succeed where I wished I had, and I am happy for them.  I am also old enough where jealousy isn't a factor.  I know that we all have our own path, and that we cannot compare our paths to the paths of others.  I know that mine is the way it is for whatever reason it is, and I'm ok with that, I know I'm a lucky one.
I've loved and I've lost, and I've loved and I've won, and I know right now I'm the lucky one.

I wake up everyday.  I have a comfortable home that I share with an amazing person.  I have talents I can use.  I have options, I am the lucky one.

Although today my mind is moving a little slow, much like an old motor puttering to start, I will get this going.  Now is my time to start again, for I have always been the lucky one.



www.markmacminn.com

Sunday breath.

And now is another time to write.  To share a little something about nothing on a lazy Sunday afternoon.  I am in love with this lazy Sunday afternoon.  I have absolutely no agenda.  I am not trying to get you to do anything.  I don't need you to listen to anything, look at anything, read anything.  I don't need you to give me anything or be anywhere with me.  I just need this.  This nothing.  This empty space.  This time where I don't need myself to do anything, be anywhere or complete anything for anybody else.  It's just me.  It's just Sunday.  The neighbor's children will play outside.  They aren't bothering me, I don't care.  Today I am not a grumpy old man.  You can sleep all day, I don't mind.  Take your time, feel better.  Take what you need, for today I need nothing from you.  Perhaps I'll join you.  A little dream nap couldn't hurt anything.  I am not tired though, not tired like that.

I am tired.  That is perhaps another reason that I love Sunday.  I can be tired.  Everyone accepts that today.

Take some time.  Take a breath.

man, the things you think about

So, I was intending to get back into the swing of the blog.  I was shooting for one a week.  A month has gone by!  Goodness, slap my hand and call me Sally.  Then look at me goofy with a squinty eye.  After you do that, you'll likely be considered creepy, or drunk, depending.
Now, off to the races.

I got some happenings!  I have a few shows lined up.

First.

February 2nd
Jade Lounge
2343 SE Ankeny St.
Portland, OR

February 21st
Firehouse Lounge
605 Brazos St.
Austin, TX

March 3rd
Hotel Cafe
1623 NE Cahuenga Blvd
Los Angeles, CA

As you can see, these are a little all over the map.  Crazy?  Yes.  Mini-goal accomplished? Yes.
I do hope to see some smiling faces that I haven't seen for too long.  I will have more information on these in the future.  But for ever current information follow my music page on FB: https://www.facebook.com/macminn
or follow me on twitter: https://twitter.com/mmacminn

And yes, I also have a tumblr page, but I should probably leave that for a future post.  PS I put cool stuff on it.

Now, In honor of movement, I will close with a racy poem.

Row Your Boats

the eyes they dance, they play, they bounce
they travel where hands can't go
to field you on this filthy floor, in thoughts not had before
to quench a thirst from cotton squeezed as it puddles down your thigh
to teach a lesson taught before, and seek where vultures lie
torment the mind with teasing fragrance, and sniff through the unknown
unknown is known as wetness parts in lands that cross to sow
mount you when the counters steam and silence fills the air
press you through mistaken moments, banished now, beware
cross your hearts and hope to die when secrets have been seen
you kid yourself, you know you do
this life is but a dream

My new insomnia.

Hello friends.

I have a new thing going on in my life.  I have stopped sleeping.  Well, I have stopped maintaining a normal pattern of sleep.  I do sleep, certainly, just not at the right hours.  Also, my sleep intervals have gotten smaller.  I'll sleep for 4 hours and wake, sometimes for the entire day.  It doesn't bother me too much, however it catches up and I pass out.

Enough about my sleep.  Happy Holidays!  I have coincidentally posted on Christmas day!  This seriously wasn't planned, I just woke up and thought, what the hell, I'll write a blog.  Merry Christmas!  Hours from now, many hours, the wife will wake and we'll open some presents under the tree.  Then we'll enjoy a nice lazy, rainy, Portland day together.  I'm really looking forward to it actually.  Doing nothing sounds amazing!  Not working sounds amazing!  Clocking out and playing cards, sounds amazing!  I hope everybody out there can enjoy some quality time with family and friends or both if your lucky enough for that today.  All those loved ones, that's what the holidays are about.

Not too soon after the holidays, I'll be performing a show.

Saturday. Dec. 29th. 9pm @ Backspace in Portland OR

http://www.facebook.com/events/202178829919589

I have taken a little time off performing, and only gotten back into the swing of it recently.  I played a show in November, and another in mid December, both shorter sets and starter shows.  Now on the 29th, I'll be bringing my swagger back.  I am looking forward to it.  I feel as though I found some element in performing in the past two shows that I never had before.  It's odd.  After performing so much in so many years, it's hard to think that something feels different about it, but something does.  Something positive and good.  Some sort of uninhibited drive.  So, here we go.  I'm ready.

I'm still making a tape.  I know I was talking about it in my previous blog, and it's still a plan in the works.  I think it'll just be a small limited run.  I'll keep you posted on that.

Enjoy your time and day my friends.

Cheers & Happy Holidays,

Mark

bringing blog back.

So, it's been about a year since I posted on this blog.  I created it twice as long ago with the intensions of writing weekly, even daily.  That seemed to fall away.  Of course I had a completely different perception on what this blog was and could be.  I will be taking a different approach.  I will still share some random wordiness, but I'll also just be keeping you up to date on music by : macminn.

I have a few new projects.  One of those is a band.  It's still my songs, but told through a different format, with a different voice.  I have four folks that are performing with me under the title, Bare the Butcher.

Online we only have a small facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/BaretheButcher

It has been a really good time playing with some musicians again.  I seem to have forgotten that brotherhood that can happen.  That connection is certainly what I have missed most about not having a band all these years.  I am really looking forward to seeing how far this project can go!  I just plan on letting it go and seeing what happens.  We have a show coming up in January in Portland, send us your positive thoughts!  If your in the area, please join us.

Sunday. Jan. 20th. Alberta Rose Theatre.
https://tickets.aftonshows.com/BaretheButcher

I have also crawled out from my hole and taken on some more solo shows.  I played for the first time in a while last month.  It was strange to take the stage and realize that I hadn't been on one for three to four months!  I was a little nervous because of the time lapse.  My fingers got a little shaky and stiff.  They didn't want to work with me for a few moments, but it all came together.  After about four songs, everything felt normal, as it always does.  Funny thing was, I was only suppose to perform four to five songs.  I ended up playing an entire set worth of material and was on stage for at least an hour!  It felt good.  So, now I'm back.  I have another show coming up.

Saturday. Dec. 29th. 9pm @ Backspace in Portland OR
http://www.facebook.com/events/202178829919589

This will be the first of many to come.  I finally found a friend to help with some booking!  So, I expect to get back up on that horse, and hopefully ride it into the sunset, or down the highway, or across state-lines.  First things first.

My other fun little music project on the brain, is making a cassette tape!  I haven't made one of those since I was in high school.  Back then I had an acoustic group called the Kool Kats.  I hustled a two song tape around school, sold 100 or so.  Quite a successful venture for me at that age.  In fact it was my first taste of musical success.  I thought it was all gonna be easy after that!  Silly children.
So, I want to make another tape.  This time I am considering either reissuing and older recording….

 "Mr. Brown's Darkside"
 https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/mr.-browns-darkside/id281871528

Or, recording some new material, and making a tape out of that.  I do have some new songs that I am proud of, and would love to share.  It will likely take sometime to record them, and get them ready to put out, so maybe the Mr. Brown's Darkside tape will come first.

Well, here I am.  I'm alive.  I'm well.  I'm bringing blog back (my blog that is, don't think blogging went away or anything).

Cheers,
M