Awake in Dreams Sleeping Death Away

Awake in Dreams Sleeping Death Away is a pun on the different states of consciousness, which is open to multifactorial answers. In reality, the observations in the poems leave the readers perhaps with more questions than answers.
The three states of consciousness—awakening, sleeping, and dreaming—hint at the fine line between life and death. The entire book can be seen as a dream.

Awake in Dreams Sleeping Death Away does not try to scientifically claim any truths, but it does attempt to question what we may hold as true. It is more important to experience the poems, rather than to actualize them in an objective manner. No doubt the meaning or truth in these poems, if any can be found, will be organic and morph with each new reader.   

As a Woman Thinketh

Mike Pauro, aka ‘Ajax Moon’ and his daughter, Morgan Deeble, aka ‘Bridey Moon’ remake the aphorism examined by James Allen for women. In this transposition of Allen’s classic, the authors revisit the impact of thought on health, purpose, achievement, ideas, and serenity from the female perspective. The work is accompanied by imagery from early 20th century postcards passed down for generations in their family. The images were selected to be contemporaneous of the era of James Allen (1864-1912).

Art and Poetry by Pollock

Life was smooth sailing and quite normal up until my mom Janis was killed in a car accident heading from Santa Cruz California to Carmel when I was 11 years old. After her death, life changed drastically from a nice gentle breeze to a category five tornado; an inferno of drugs, lies and alibis. Let’s just say… No more smooth sailing. When the dust began to settle at the age of 24, I enlisted in the United States Navy and set sail for a better life and once again it was smooth sailing.

Here are some of my experiences, thoughts, and photographs of my artwork which I use as a way to process my childhood traumas.

Processing as I stack stones and transfer the negative energy into a beautiful piece of work giving it life; it lives then eventually dies, taking the negative energy with it.

I hope you feel something from these pages within.

Ain't This a Bitch?

Permit me, if you will, to invite you to the land of plenty! Plenty of this, plenty of that. Plenty of ‘going to the mat’ for the cause célèbre du jour, or for something less. Plenty of ‘bullshit!’ Plenty of pet peeves and more. And plenty of moments where you’ll wonder, ‘Now, did that just happen?’

Ain’t This a Bitch? by J Sam takes you on a journey through the highs, lows, and in-betweens of navigating the all-too-common ‘isms’ that constantly challenge us. Indulge in every stanza and go beyond seeing yourself as a ‘victim.’ Let J Sam guide you, journey by journey, irony by irony, and smackdown by smackdown, through the ‘poetic justice’ of living in, and loving, America. This is the ‘land of the free’ where bravery about ‘difference’ meets its adversary: a beast, two-legged and ferocious, pandering to the irrelevant histories of less benevolent men.

Come one, come all, into this thrall, where complexity resides in the truths about the ‘socio-politics’ leading you to these pages. Pages that never fail to deliver, ‘on point!’ Pages that reject the notion of wallowing in the mud of ‘pretense,’ and instead, celebrate the beauty of the word in its magnificent expression!

This poet offers you contemporary and timeless literary excellence, not easily perceived by the eye (naked in its rush to judgment) nor the ear (given over to ‘the squeaky wheel’) in a nation under siege by the greasy freedoms of verse.

A Journey Within Us

Life is complicated. As you delve deeper into your emotions and confront your fears, a certain sense of understanding evolves, fostering personal growth. Adversity often breeds creativity and strength; you just need to be prepared to open your heart and soul to the truth.

In this book of poetry, I expose my deepest, most personal thoughts to anyone who decides to read. The main work evolved from waking during the night and contemplating the river, trees, and birds at the bottom of the property where I lived. I entered a realm in my mind that had developed from a young age, where the intricate details of life – people, animals, plants, ideas, creativity, questions – fascinated me.

Music has always been a great solace for my mind, heart, and soul. Listening to some of the classic songwriters, I have always been amazed by the craft of their lyrics. I often dreamed of being a songwriter, finding incredible freedom in expressing thoughts and feelings on a day-to-day journey.