kali jones. jazz fest. drum circle.

kali jones e io take a bus half an hour out of town for the free jazz concert in a small inland town. four africans and one white boy in funny african costume strap on giant drums and beat them like animals with their strong fists. i watch the largest one as he smiles with huge pearly bright white teeth and a pink tongue and sweat glistens in a stream down 85% cacao skin. his arms are as big as a horse. he sings loud and clear and smiles so wide his head might fall off like humpty dumpty when the corners of the mouth meet at the back of the head. he beats on the drum so hard so loud i was ready for bed ten seconds ago and now all i want to do is move dance sing yell.

i am reminded of wisdom and how he said in africa there were no longer any native religions, only christianity and muslim. i implored them to use their nigerian name with me. onchiwoh and onyekachi. i thought it sad and stupid they called english their first language and never usedtheir nigerian names with white people.
dying culture. what is more sad?

kali jones found a small scorpion, dead on the street this week. it was perfectly preserved, one claw open, little legs sticking out and moved all together like a beaded necklace, not like a stiff dead beetle or anything else i've ever seen dead. it was a dark reddish color and seemed almost unreal. i told her it was an amazing omen of good luck.

the sea has a voice and i hear the breath sighing as it falls against the rocks.

i laughed out loud as i ate ricotta cheese in my own apartment for the first time last week. i had found an apartment, let alone gotten my own ass to italy, successfully bought amazing cheese in the market, and had made myself a ridiculously marvelous salad and the taste of this cheese was so nourishing in my mouth i couldnt help but laugh out loud. so good for me.


the other day when i moved into to aldo's apartment, i found kali jones on the terrazza, in the hot sun, with her little sun hat, steve zissou sunglasses and a knife digging meat around the bone of a whale tail. technically, a sword fish but god it was big and looked just like a whale tail to me! i took photos, as i couldnt help it. her wavy hair sticking out in puffy wisps around the hat and this huge black tail, the knife, the bloody meat, it was beautiful.

she wants to make me her mermaid and use it in photos. her photographs are bloody astounding, amazing. they have been printed in aldo's magazine and i see them around her house. for the past two days i slept on the couch in her room next to her giant paintings, the 'empty' ones and a huge roll of paper on the floor with the image of her nude body, pressed against the ground with glue, then covered in black powder of some sort.
she gave me a book to read. stories. i am always laughing at her because of her stories and how humurously eternally dark they are. always the punchline is right in the gut.