The Missus and Willie and Me

There are two themes common to most all of the homemade CDs Kathy creates downloading music off of I-tunes. One is that almost all of them start with a song from Willie Nelson. (The one I'm listening to on the computer right now begins with "Shotgun Willie.") The other, perhaps more troubling commonality is they all contain songs about women leaving, cheating on or killing their husbands or boyfriends.

I'm not too concerned. In my house we tend to listen to both kinds of music: Country AND Western. So admittedly these are common themes.

However, they ARE the common themes. Hmmmmm. More on this as it develops.

Alone

Alone
Nobody here
The one person who wants to be with me cannot
And I've driven everyone else away

Alone
No job, no career, only words
No shared goals, no workers' camaraderie
The writer's task is solitary

Alone
I've never accomplished anything
But alone is how I accomplish everything
So my achievements feel pyrrhic

Alone
I wish I found more comfort in God
I wish I were closer to my family
I wish I knew better how to have friends

Alone
The world is still a grand place, full of possibilities
People are kind, fear is surmountable, hope is justified
I don't believe that God is dead though he seems lost to the world

Alone
My muscles contract and my back wrenches
My mind seizes on itself, devoured by fear and self-doubt
I cannot comfort myself, I can only be comforted, but I am

Alone

The New Mexican Tortilla Wars

Thanks to Cargill and other grain speculators, the price of tortillas in Mexico increased 738% since the advent of NAFTA, according to this insightful article tranlsated from La Jornada on the political economy of the new Mexican tortilla wars.