Welcome to jasoncrane.org!

Posted 13 December, 2011 in Random Musings

Hi there! Thanks for visiting jasoncrane.org. This post is always at the top of the site to help you find your way around.

This is primarily a poetry blog. You can scroll down for my latest poems, or select the My Poetry category to get ‘em all. Most of my poems have audio recordings, too, so you can hear as well as read them.

If you’d like a larger selection of performed poetry, please visit the Recorded Readings page, where you’ll find a collection of my featured readings from the past couple years.

Foothills Publishing was kind enough to publish my first book of poems in 2010, Unexpected Sunlight. Get your copy in the store. Makes a great gift, too, particularly for someone of whom you’re not all that fond.

Over on the top right of this page is a navigation menu. Farther down on the right side is a list of categories. Both of these menus will help you find specific content on the site.

I’m quite active on Twitter. You can follow me at @jasondcrane. And you’re always welcome to email me at jason@jasoncrane.org.

That’s it. Enjoy the site!

POEM: the common room

Posted 14 May, 2012 in My poems, Poetry

the common room
for LGD

the mountain was deserted
that’s why he’d come here
to this trail he loved to hike
letting the dog run on ahead

when they found his body
the dog was beside him
waiting for him to awaken
so they could both go home

the common room lies empty
his friends won’t go in it
because it reminds them
of what they have in common

14 May 2012
Brooklyn NY

POEM: sense of humor

Posted 10 May, 2012 in Brooklyn, My poems, Poetry

sense of humor

long parade of strollers
no child has the same
hair color as the woman
pushing the stroller
(all of the latter are texting
or listening with earbuds)

a boy has a rock in his shoe
then in the other shoe
one bench later, his twin sister
develops the same ailment

there’s an uneaten bagel
in a brown paper bag
on the time-worn bench

just when the sun gets too hot
to comfortably bear
a long, thick layer of clouds
passes between it and the
bench-sitters below

then, with a timing
that seems intentional
the warmth returns right when
the bench-sitters put on
their sweatshirts and jackets

funny

10 May 2012
Brooklyn NY

POEM: earthquake

Posted 7 May, 2012 in Brooklyn, My poems, Poetry

earthquake

in the morning, butterflies
using your white sweatshirt
as landing pad and launch site
while all the good dogs
pulled their owners through the park

then it was Coney Island
empire of the perfectly janky
you’re barefoot in the icy water
dressed like a color-blind superhero
BROOKLYN announced on your ass

by the time we reached Thai Tony’s
the ground had begun to tremble
shaking our glasses of iced tea
but it passed before it was even a story
leaving nothing but the feeling

that we might not be welcome
on this earth after all

6 May 2012
Brooklyn, NY

POEM: blackbird on the corner

Posted 3 May, 2012 in Jazz, Music, My poems, New York City, Poetry

Click the image for a larger version.

POEM: Mayday

Posted 1 May, 2012 in My poems, New York City, Poetry

Mayday

oh to be
in love
on a rock
in a pond
in Central Park
on a foggy
first of May

1 May 2012
Central Park
New York City

POEM: a Brooklyn fable

Posted 30 April, 2012 in Brooklyn, My poems, NaPoWriMo, Poetry

a Brooklyn fable

every short sharp shock is a gunshot in Brooklyn
even though it’s more likely, here in Windsor Terrace
to be a workman putting the finishing touches
on the new back deck of a banker’s brownstone
or two bloggers fencing their organic garden
but the back-of-the-brain memory of urban sounds
learned through a lifetime of movies and rumors
defeats the more recent research of the eyes
isn’t it dangerous there, ask the wide-eyed Ohioans
and we want to say yes to them, confirm their belief
because we came here for the danger, the adventure
not for fresh tofu and chai tea and strollers in the park
you’re more likely to be struck by a $5,000 bicycle
than by the steel-jacketed bullet with your name on it
but don’t worry, you can make up a scary story in the ER
and all your friends will believe it, because they need to

30 April 2012
Brooklyn NY

/ / /

It’s National Poetry Writing Month! A poem a day, each day in April. This is the final poem. I missed a few days, but I came up with some keepers, too. A fun month.