Pay attention! The great dichotomy is subtly explained and eventually resolved
as The Stoic becomes more and more dominant. (Je suis L'Homme Solitaire.) 🧙🏻♂️
"Eros and Lethe: Always the conflict between
the desire to reveal and the desire to conceal."
L'Homme Solitaire
English poems with foreign titles:
Buscadors de el Tesoro Escondido (2005: Spanish for "Seekers of the Hidden Treasure")
Jamais Plus (2014: French for "Never Again")
Il Cuore Vuole (2015: Italian for "The Heart Wants")
Quand La Solitude Est Trop Forte (2015: French for "When The Loneliness Is Too Strong")
Hikikomori (2016: Japanese term for social withdrawal)
Solamente Uno (2019: Spanish for "Only One")
La Vie Sans Rêves (2023: French for "Life Without Dreams")
Poems written in a foreign language:
Uno Sueño Que Importa (2012: Spanish for "One Dream That Matters")
Ataraxia (2012: Greek for "Equanimity")
Mon Désespoir (2013: French for "My Despair")
Parfois, Mais Jamais Plus (2015: French for "Sometimes, But Never Again")
L'Amour Compte Plus (2018: French for "Love Matters More")
Personne (2021: French for "Nobody")
Duxu's Resp Jest (2023: My own language for "Bozo's Last Gasp")
Poems that mix multiple languages:
Soliloquy (2012: English title)
Eros and Lethe (2013: Greek for "Love and Oblivion")
Apatheia (2018: Greek for "Without Passion")
The Rest of The Story:
In the Spring of 2011 I participated in some jam sessions with guitarist Jan Jewell.
(He calls himself Subdued Blue on ReverbNation.)
We played one song he’d written but everything else was pure improvisation.
Some of what we played is posted on my ReverbNation page and his Subdued Blue page.
We considered starting a band or maybe playing an open mic show sometime, but I ended up working
seven days a week on a big project during the summer of 2011, and gave up on the idea.
Around 2012-2013 I started feeling like a misunderstood misfit, like I didn’t really belong anywhere.
I started going to fewer music shows, and to feel less and less comfortable on Facebook.
I decided that 2013 would be my “Year Of The Hermit”, and I’d leave Facebook and the nightlife behind.
But, at the end of January, a good friend (Gary Flanagan) passed away, and it made me change my mind
for a while. I returned to Facebook and started going to shows again.
But I still didn’t feel comfortable on Facebook. I still didn’t feel like I belonged anymore.
Over the next few years I pulled away more and more, and I eventually decided to become a recluse again,
beginning in 2016.
In March 2013 I was invited to a Travelling Mercies “Motel” recording session at Curtis Grubb’s recording studio.
(I’m one of several people who shout “Gotta get this show on the road!” in the song “Travelling Preacher”.)
After the session I sat down and started playing the piano there.
(It used to be I couldn’t be around a piano without being tempted to play it.)
I was surprised then, when Curtis offered to record me. And we recorded two of my songs that day.
We recorded a pretty good version of a song I’d been playing called “Never Again”.
(I finished that song the night before Gary Flanagan’s funeral.)
And we recorded a really sloppy version of my “Generic Ethnic Music In G Minor”, which I consider to be the
best song I’ve ever written. But I had no idea I would be recording it that day and I hadn’t practiced it for a while.
I have both songs posted on ReverbNation, and “Never Again” is used in both my “Never Again” and
“Christmas with The Sebrings” videos.
Of all the piano pieces I’ve written, they are the only ones that were ever recorded.
In July 2013 I had the pleasure of singing “Five Dollar Bill” with Travelling Mercies at their “Motel” CD release show
at The Waiting Room.
Also in July 2013, Sue’s father moved in with us, and he spent the last five months of his life here.
Unfortunately, when he moved in we inherited his furniture, and my music room became a bedroom.
My drums have been in pieces ever since. I no longer have a place to set them up.
I haven't touched my piano in almost as long. (Hope is the enemy. Desire leads to disappointment.)
At this point I've forgotten almost all the songs I’ve written.
No one will ever hear "Sorta Pop Rag" again, and no one cares.
"Now all them dreams that seemed so important.
Well Mister, they vanished right into the air.
Now I just act like I don't remember.
And there ain't noone else who cares."
Dreams die. Life goes on. Accept things as they are.
In 2013, as I found myself stumbling reluctantly into Stoicism, I started writing a series of esoteric poems on
desire, despair, and resignation, beginning with “Eρως και Λήθη" (Eros and Lethe).
In late 2015 I wrote an essay entitled “απάθεια: Vita pergit. Accipere res ut sunt.” in which I tried to explain myself
and the things I was thinking, before I became a recluse again. I’m not sure if I accomplished what I'd intended.
Go to "Things I've Written - Part 4" for "The End of The Story".
📘 The Story of My Life
My AuthorsDen website began as a simple collection of my songs, poems, short stories, and essays,
but I've gradually transformed it into a NON-LINEAR BOOK which is a combination of autobiography
and commentary on human nature. Influenced by William Faulkner's "The Sound And The Fury" and
"Choose Your Own Adventure" books, I decided to try to create something new and make my story
both non-chronological (like "The Sound And The Fury") and non-linear (unlike typical physical books).
I did this by making each of my songs, poems, stories, etc. a chapter of my story, and connecting them
by making each chapter contain links to several other chapters (giving the reader multiple choices),
so if you follow the links from chapter to chapter, you will find there are numerous paths from the
beginning to the end of the story. (Some paths and chapters are easier to find than others.) Though
there are many paths, there is a definite beginning to my story (my AuthorsDen front page) and a
definite ending. You would probably recognize the end if you found it, but whether you understood it
or not could depend on which path you took and how well you understood the various chapters along
the way. (My commentaries in the review sections of my pages are an important part of the story.
They explain a lot. The videos at the bottom of the pages are often helpful as well.)
"His full story is a combination of autobiography, commentary on human nature,
and suicide note. (The note was as far as he could get.)" - Kimber Garns
(Kimber Garns is one of several pseudonyms I use that are anagrams of my name.)
"This is the story of the hundred billion bottles washed up on the shore.
It is not just about me. My character represents many people in the world
who are like me." - Mark A. Sebring (L'Homme Solitaire)
"Walked out this mornin'. Don't believe what I saw.
Hundred billion bottles washed up on the shore.
Seems I'm not alone in bein' alone.
Hundred billion castaways lookin' for a home."
The Police (Message In A Bottle)
Destiny's Daughter by Frances Altman highlights events in the life of Mary Edwards Walker, maverick suffragist, Civil War doctor and only woman Medal of Honor recipient.
This book has been eight years in the making. It is mostly a jumble of thoughts written down in old spiral notebooks and hidden in the bottom drawer underneath various manuals for software packages and hardware long since turned obsolete.
A book for every Muslim and everyone wishing to know about their way of life. The Diary of the Camp Manager at Mundihar following the South Asian Earthquake - October 2005. An account of life after the Earthquake in one of the largest of the 161 camp
as The Stoic becomes more and more dominant. (Je suis L'Homme Solitaire.) 🧙🏻♂️
"Eros and Lethe: Always the conflict between
the desire to reveal and the desire to conceal."
L'Homme Solitaire
English poems with foreign titles:
Buscadors de el Tesoro Escondido (2005: Spanish for "Seekers of the Hidden Treasure")
Jamais Plus (2014: French for "Never Again")
Il Cuore Vuole (2015: Italian for "The Heart Wants")
Quand La Solitude Est Trop Forte (2015: French for "When The Loneliness Is Too Strong")
Hikikomori (2016: Japanese term for social withdrawal)
Solamente Uno (2019: Spanish for "Only One")
La Vie Sans Rêves (2023: French for "Life Without Dreams")
Poems written in a foreign language:
Uno Sueño Que Importa (2012: Spanish for "One Dream That Matters")
Ataraxia (2012: Greek for "Equanimity")
Mon Désespoir (2013: French for "My Despair")
Parfois, Mais Jamais Plus (2015: French for "Sometimes, But Never Again")
L'Amour Compte Plus (2018: French for "Love Matters More")
Personne (2021: French for "Nobody")
Duxu's Resp Jest (2023: My own language for "Bozo's Last Gasp")
Poems that mix multiple languages:
Soliloquy (2012: English title)
Eros and Lethe (2013: Greek for "Love and Oblivion")
Apatheia (2018: Greek for "Without Passion")
The Rest of The Story:
In the Spring of 2011 I participated in some jam sessions with guitarist Jan Jewell.
(He calls himself Subdued Blue on ReverbNation.)
We played one song he’d written but everything else was pure improvisation.
Some of what we played is posted on my ReverbNation page and his Subdued Blue page.
We considered starting a band or maybe playing an open mic show sometime, but I ended up working
seven days a week on a big project during the summer of 2011, and gave up on the idea.
Around 2012-2013 I started feeling like a misunderstood misfit, like I didn’t really belong anywhere.
I started going to fewer music shows, and to feel less and less comfortable on Facebook.
I decided that 2013 would be my “Year Of The Hermit”, and I’d leave Facebook and the nightlife behind.
But, at the end of January, a good friend (Gary Flanagan) passed away, and it made me change my mind
for a while. I returned to Facebook and started going to shows again.
But I still didn’t feel comfortable on Facebook. I still didn’t feel like I belonged anymore.
Over the next few years I pulled away more and more, and I eventually decided to become a recluse again,
beginning in 2016.
In March 2013 I was invited to a Travelling Mercies “Motel” recording session at Curtis Grubb’s recording studio.
(I’m one of several people who shout “Gotta get this show on the road!” in the song “Travelling Preacher”.)
After the session I sat down and started playing the piano there.
(It used to be I couldn’t be around a piano without being tempted to play it.)
I was surprised then, when Curtis offered to record me. And we recorded two of my songs that day.
We recorded a pretty good version of a song I’d been playing called “Never Again”.
(I finished that song the night before Gary Flanagan’s funeral.)
And we recorded a really sloppy version of my “Generic Ethnic Music In G Minor”, which I consider to be the
best song I’ve ever written. But I had no idea I would be recording it that day and I hadn’t practiced it for a while.
I have both songs posted on ReverbNation, and “Never Again” is used in both my “Never Again” and
“Christmas with The Sebrings” videos.
Of all the piano pieces I’ve written, they are the only ones that were ever recorded.
In July 2013 I had the pleasure of singing “Five Dollar Bill” with Travelling Mercies at their “Motel” CD release show
at The Waiting Room.
Also in July 2013, Sue’s father moved in with us, and he spent the last five months of his life here.
Unfortunately, when he moved in we inherited his furniture, and my music room became a bedroom.
My drums have been in pieces ever since. I no longer have a place to set them up.
I haven't touched my piano in almost as long. (Hope is the enemy. Desire leads to disappointment.)
At this point I've forgotten almost all the songs I’ve written.
No one will ever hear "Sorta Pop Rag" again, and no one cares.
"Now all them dreams that seemed so important.
Well Mister, they vanished right into the air.
Now I just act like I don't remember.
And there ain't noone else who cares."
Dreams die. Life goes on. Accept things as they are.
In 2013, as I found myself stumbling reluctantly into Stoicism, I started writing a series of esoteric poems on
desire, despair, and resignation, beginning with “Eρως και Λήθη" (Eros and Lethe).
In late 2015 I wrote an essay entitled “απάθεια: Vita pergit. Accipere res ut sunt.” in which I tried to explain myself
and the things I was thinking, before I became a recluse again. I’m not sure if I accomplished what I'd intended.
Go to "Things I've Written - Part 4" for "The End of The Story".
📘 The Story of My Life
My AuthorsDen website began as a simple collection of my songs, poems, short stories, and essays,
but I've gradually transformed it into a NON-LINEAR BOOK which is a combination of autobiography
and commentary on human nature. Influenced by William Faulkner's "The Sound And The Fury" and
"Choose Your Own Adventure" books, I decided to try to create something new and make my story
both non-chronological (like "The Sound And The Fury") and non-linear (unlike typical physical books).
I did this by making each of my songs, poems, stories, etc. a chapter of my story, and connecting them
by making each chapter contain links to several other chapters (giving the reader multiple choices),
so if you follow the links from chapter to chapter, you will find there are numerous paths from the
beginning to the end of the story. (Some paths and chapters are easier to find than others.) Though
there are many paths, there is a definite beginning to my story (my AuthorsDen front page) and a
definite ending. You would probably recognize the end if you found it, but whether you understood it
or not could depend on which path you took and how well you understood the various chapters along
the way. (My commentaries in the review sections of my pages are an important part of the story.
They explain a lot. The videos at the bottom of the pages are often helpful as well.)
"His full story is a combination of autobiography, commentary on human nature,
and suicide note. (The note was as far as he could get.)" - Kimber Garns
(Kimber Garns is one of several pseudonyms I use that are anagrams of my name.)
"This is the story of the hundred billion bottles washed up on the shore.
It is not just about me. My character represents many people in the world
who are like me." - Mark A. Sebring (L'Homme Solitaire)
"Walked out this mornin'. Don't believe what I saw.
Hundred billion bottles washed up on the shore.
Seems I'm not alone in bein' alone.
Hundred billion castaways lookin' for a home."
The Police (Message In A Bottle)