new york day 1

i wore a spicy scent made up of floral notes with pepper, cade, and gardenia. i was reacting partly to the smells of garbage from yesterdays walk, and the cumin from carts i was passing.  i wanted something next to my skin that would provide a wall against some of the foulness of the streets

i saw a woman physically reacting to a momentarily wafting stench in our subway car of rotten grass and skunk from the afternoon's rain

one thing i did notice about the city today is the reticence to make eye contact, at least for extended periods of time. i'm much more used to connecting with the people i pass by, so that is an adaptation i'm having to undertake. that is also affecting my ability to hear conversation, as many people stop speaking when passing strangers

i chose to make my first prayer more of a poem, from a recording i did in the subway under 14th

as i researched some of the text transcribed from my recording, it turned out to be a list of panagrams, so i reworked them

 

 five frozen sphinx my 

boxing love of jackdaws wives

jump wizards quick chop