AFTER AN EVENING OF POETRY AND WINE

the clock falls back
one hour
Oct. 26
the year of our grace.
Black, yellow and green cars
turn a sharp corner
by one way sign
Stockton, Pacific.
Above,
Venus, an evening star,
appears first time
in 3,600 yrs
overlooking
The Age Of Aquarius.
I get off bus.  Climb a hill,
the moon,
windy evening.
The line between
commitment and obsession
is as invisible
as the truth of a
popular song.
Cala Foods is open 24 hrs
at California & Hyde.
Man, the keeper of animals
is a deeply felt thought
as I travel south
only to realize
by example

waiting for the bus
is a spiritual test
or an act of necessity
in my modern life.
Tough corner.
Dirty sidewalk.
89 cents for a cigarette lighter.
A young woman
in fake fur coat
suddenly isn't’t so young
when she rants against
fornication and injustice.
But at this time of night
a mother kisses her baby
on the ear
& exact change is very handy
when boarding a bus
without a transfer
in San Francisco.
Hotels and seniors
in white shirts
old godfather Tenderloin
and action videos cost 25 cents
where the driver
lets 92 cents go for a dollar
because of dignity
& an easy run
down the hill.
If happiness is in the moment
love is still
the central force
I see out the window
in the apogee
of a
Self Service Car Wash
South of Market

Bus.  Stoplight.
Bay Bridge, left turn.
We go
south
where I get off
but nearly forget
to ring
       the bell

I am so busy

writing this down.

© Tony Vaughan

APPROACHING DESIRE

The harp
of the world
begins its slow
part.
A pigeon
floats above
a trash can.
Sunlight
as gold as
a spontaneous
act of kindness
refuses to leave
not so high
above a confidence of trees,
North Beach,
Washington Square Park.

A galloping
red & brown dog
the big cathedral
across
stubborn
grass.

Mist arrives
as a flawless day
begins to break
away from
the world.
Song of an ocean meadow
by a pine tree where
another spirit
walks to the left, muttering
hands together.

Should we be so relaxed
in this democracy?

Black shoes.
Airplane.
An almost baby girl aspires
to ride
a tricycle
dodging
a fat man
who carries
a cane
and a smirk.

The night is crashing
into the
end of
a late afternoon.

Heart & synapse
don’t stop working.

The electricity of thought
leads to wonder.

Not even angels know
if they are
               themselves

all the time.

©  Tony Vaughan

"With brush, pen and guitar he captured the heart of the street, gallery and café, outwitting the Keystone Kops at every turn and proving that peace, love and mutual support are possible and indeed necessary to our survival in a world on the brink of - as another prominent poet has described it - a nervous breakthrough."... Jerry Ferraz

(photo © Sean O'Donnell)

Anthony 'Tony' Vaughan was born in New York city, grew up in Chicago and moved to San Francisco in the 1970s. After leaving for a few years to live in New York and work in graphic design for the Museum of Modern Art, Vaughan returned to San Francisco in the '80s to escape the New York art game (and) became one of the most original and lyrical voices of the present rejuvenation of the arts."

Tony Vaughan was one of the founders and leader of the Palace Monkeys Poet's Band, member of the original Goodman Building Collective, originator of XYLOPHONE Magazine–a communal art and word publication. Tony created delightful chapbooks, and his poetry, art and essays have appeared in many publications including the Haight Ashbury Literary Journal, the North Coast Review, North Beach Beat, Crash, and Co-Evolution Quarterly, Tropos, the literary annual for Lawrence University of Kansas, Eavesdropping On the Muse: Mission and North Beach poets- Luna Press, Oxygen, Go, journal of poetics- Calliope Press, Pome, Motive Magazine, Beatitudes, Poetry from the Exit- New Fillmore press, North Beach Aquarium, Crash.

Tony also completed several novels and a book of short stories. Over the years Tony Vaughan especially enjoyed showing his very collectible paintings in North Beach at the Live Worms Gallery group Art extravaganzas arranged and curated by fellow artist friends Ronald Sauer and Rebecca Peters ( fly by night productions).

On Saturday evening Sept 27, 2008 at 8:06 pm, Tony Vaughan passed away peacefully. Diagnosed with
stage4 Melanoma, he had been given just a few months to live. He battled his illness fiercely for over a
year and four months to complete his life's work on this earthly plane which he accomplished in his own
words with "great satisfaction".

Tony lives on in his art and in our hearts. Beloved by the community of artists poets
and musicians, he will be remembered for his courageous spirit and compassion for all living things.

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