{"id":115,"date":"2017-02-02T20:34:40","date_gmt":"2017-02-02T20:34:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.charlesdermer.com\/wordpress\/?page_id=115"},"modified":"2026-02-27T10:56:59","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T15:56:59","slug":"literature","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.charlesdermer.com\/wordpress\/literature\/","title":{"rendered":"Literature"},"content":{"rendered":"

Poetry, Lyrics, and Literary Work<\/span><\/h1>\n

From Natural Philosophy of Death<\/em><\/strong> (2026):<\/span><\/h3>\n

Here we use the relation\u00a0dtau(age)\/dt(time) = 1<\/span>, perhaps the saddest equation in all of physics. Though vast sums are spent to arrest the effects of aging, we the living age at precisely the same rate at which time passes. Only two things can be done to stop aging: dying or violating causality, the former inevitable and the latter impossible.\u00a0 (p. 31)<\/span><\/p>\n

The coronavirus pandemic taught us many things. Americans will hastily abandon civil liberties and a free press when entertained with the fear of mass death from an infectious disease. They will submit to injections of a novel gene therapy in the hope of reducing their exposure to the virus without considering the risk\/reward tradeoff. They will not confront with the same vigor the far greater threats to American lives than the Corona virus. (p. 71)<\/span><\/p>\n

Arguments about whether Shakespeare had Catholic sympathies\u2014dangerous in the time of Queen Elizabeth I\u2014persist, but equally likely is that he was a uniquely talented playwright, an actor and skilled businessman who shrewdly navigated his perilous times by ambiguous meaning and mangled history in his plays that flattered his benefactors and the English audience. (p. 165)<\/span> <\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Poetry<\/a> (selections)<\/h2>\n
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Nothing worse<\/strong><\/em><\/h3>\n

When you think \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Take a drink<\/span>
\n That nothing can \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0And marvel at<\/span>
\n Ever get worse \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 The universe<\/span><\/p>\n

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RIP Ryan Grove<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

They are falling in the battlefield of life,<\/span>
\n They are falling one\u00a0<\/span>by one,<\/span>
\n At times by two, and by many, and by few.
\nFall they do, men at front, women beside,
\nAnd children behind, so Nature’s lied
\nThat false promise of eternal youth
\nLies bleeding next to bloody truth<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Lyrics<\/a> (selected)<\/h2>\n
\n

I Paved the Path\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I paved the path from\u00a0birth to death <\/span>
\n With a\u00a0trail of dollar\u00a0bills <\/span>
\n I sold my tears to the\u00a0highest bidder \u00a0 <\/span>
\n And my blood for the cheapest thrills \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For death will march around us<\/span>
\n M<\/i>ove on down the block\u00a0 <\/span>
\n And\u00a0life will be as it once was\u00a0 <\/span>
\n One less hour on the clock\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The seasons move on round and round \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>
\n The days they flash right by \u00a0 <\/span>
\n And life or what it\u2019s\u00a0meant to be \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>
\n Is just a glimpse in\u00a0tonight\u2019s sky\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And she who would make all things clear \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span>
\n shows up in a neon sign<\/span>
\n Nude review! This means you too! <\/span>
\n So go fetch your birthday suit<\/span><\/p>\n

Or tutu if you\u2019re\u00a0feeling blue<\/span>
\n And do be do, I say to\u00a0you<\/span><\/p>\n

I woke up once this morning<\/span>
\n And a second time just now \u00a0 <\/span>
\n let me show you how it\u2019s done<\/span>
\n before I\u2019ve got to run \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And beat the cars and beat the Sun<\/span>
\n To go home one more\u00a0time<\/span>
\n To reach home one last\u00a0time \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For \u00a0if it\u2019s you and <\/b>what to do <\/span>
\n And\u00a0if it\u2019s round and\u00a0round we go\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>
\n For\u00a0if it\u2019s me and\u00a0what to be <\/span>
\n And\u00a0if you find me\u00a0set me free\u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m <\/b>off to see the \u00a0show
\n<\/i>I\u2019m\u00a0off to sell the\u00a0show<\/span>
\n Where the dreams are made of<\/span><\/p>\n

Thought clouds in a sea of\u00a0snow<\/span>
\n Where the drums beat time for \u00a0 <\/span>
\n The band has got to go<\/span><\/p>\n

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Literary Work<\/span><\/h2>\n
\n

Wu Xinran, I am Sorry<\/a> (2023)<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

non-fiction short story<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

An American Lyric\u00a0(2002), unpublished<\/h3>\n

Excerpts:<\/p>\n

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nice, nice theorem, you\u2019re nice. Emmy. I wonder if she was nice? I bet she was! One of the commandments, brought down by Moses. Moses, oh Moses! Did God really mean that angular momentum is conserved, or was he just saying, you know, like \u201capproximately?\u201d It would make a big difference to us down here. Moses goes up the mountain and asks God, Elohim, the unknown name of Y_v_h. Some poor stooge accidentally utters it and God pops up and utterly destroys him for disturbing his slumber. There goes that knowledge. Drop him into a black hole, God. Bring him back. Violate causality. You\u2019re a tough dude, but can You do that? We\u2019re talking big God here. #1, Numero Uno, big Cahuna. Plays with me before He kills me. But He\u2019s nice with Moses. They\u2019re on a first name basis. Moses knows God\u2019s name, got Him on the cellphone, the 216 digit cosmic garage-key credit card number. Big Guy, what do you say?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

EXACTLY<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

and another<\/span><\/p>\n

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Massive black hole, starved for fuel, dead rock, journey to Nepal, tall mountain, resplendent splendour quiet peaceful Nature contemplation end of things, and sex!, and the disposition of one\u2019s bones. It never made any sense to me. None of it. Science answers questions of how and not why. I beg to differ, bullshit! The how folds into the why. Like they are separate categories, think again. The underlying monotony of being. Synchro-synoptic multi-wavelength multi-messenger metempsychosis metaphor for death, the end of time, frozen star, collapsed star, membrane paradigm, brane theory brain, the thinker thinks thoughtful thoughts. Very thoughtful of you, thank you very much for listening to our speculations.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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much much more but we’ll stop here:<\/span><\/p>\n

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I would like to take my family to Sicily. I\u2019ve decided I like it. Maury, please invite me back. And don\u2019t you dare…, you know, how should I say this without seeming or being disrespectful, well, look on the bright side, stay alive! Thank you for June in Sicily. And especially for what was not: no TV (except for the World Cup in espresso bars), no newspapers, every third day no water to take a shower. And for what was: soccer, science, football, physics, vino, fish with heads, foosball, statues, graduate students, futbol, veal, yes, vistas, yes, espressos, yes yes, I say yes, s\u00ed, s\u00ed Sicily.<\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Poetry, Lyrics, and Literary Work From Natural Philosophy of Death (2026): Here we use the relation\u00a0dtau(age)\/dt(time) = 1, perhaps the saddest equation in all of physics. Though vast sums are spent to arrest the effects of aging, we the living age at precisely the same rate at which time passes. Only two things can be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-115","page","type-page","status-publish","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.charlesdermer.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/115","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.charlesdermer.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.charlesdermer.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.charlesdermer.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.charlesdermer.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=115"}],"version-history":[{"count":65,"href":"https:\/\/www.charlesdermer.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/115\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4319,"href":"https:\/\/www.charlesdermer.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/115\/revisions\/4319"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.charlesdermer.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}