It’s great to be here.
We’ll name our new military airport
after your most famous son,
the great mathematician
Muhammad al-Khwarizmi,
who lived in the ninth century
of the Christian era —
sorry, the Common Era.We’ll build Firebase Algorithm,
a word derived from his last name.
The book he wrote, Kitab Al-Jabr,
christened the field of algebra.
Whoops! We should have said
Al-Jabr was its basis.We’ll add a lot more bases.
Your social problems might multiply
as we search for X, then Y, then Z,
the unknown quantities,
the solutions to our problem,but we’re grateful for your support,
glad that al-Khwarizmi
developed the —calculus of two errors.—
It will help us differentiate
terror from infinite justice —
make that —enduring freedom.—We give thanks that al-Khwarizmi
launched the decimal system,
so we can keep easy body counts,
flash results on television,
and when the Great Game ends
post the scores in Arabic numerals:
Muslims, zero. Christians, zero.
Civilization, zero.
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New blog post: On Labor Day http://bit.ly/3m8eNF [deacon_jim]
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New blog post: I’m Keeping an Eye on You http://bit.ly/qruZD [deacon_jim]
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New blog post: St. Albertus Fest in Detroit http://bit.ly/14Fwbl [deacon_jim]
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New blog post: Call for Entries – 2009-2010 VSA arts International Young Soloists Award Program http://bit.ly/2hXvl [deacon_jim]
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New blog post: Attention Polonian Organizations http://bit.ly/1vwOVd [deacon_jim]
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Leaves are falling thickly;
Where once the tree grew free
Now there sits a wild bird
Calling by a grave.O, for ever and ever,
Poland’s fate is clouded;
Endeavours fade like dreams,
And the land is shrouded in sorrow.Cottages are burned;
Villages destroyed;
Women lament,
Homeless in the fields.Men have fled,
From family and friends;
Crops shrivel and die,
Untended.Young men gather to defend
The walls of Warsaw;
Poland begins to rise
From darkness.Fighting on through blizzard,
And summer heat,
Then came autumn
To thin our ranks.Now the war is over,
Our toil expended in vain.
The fields we once tilled
Remain empty.Some lie buried;
Some languish in prison;
Some wander in exile,
Homeless and hungry.Heaven has not helped us;
Mens’ heads hang down.
The unsown fields turn to waste,
And nature’s gifts are as nothing.Leaves are falling thickly;
And more leaves, thick and dark.
Dear cherished land,
See how your sons,
Driven for your sake,
Now suffer and die for you.With but a handful of Polish soil,
We can create a new land.
Freedom through force now seems impossible.
Traitors flourish and the people too good-hearted.
Translation unattributed
Leci liście z drzewa,
Со urosło wolne;
Nad mogiłą śpiewa
Jakieś ptaszę роlne:
Nie było, nie było
Polsko dobra tobie;
Wszystko się prześniło,
A twa dziatwa w groble.Popalone miasta,
Spustoszone sioła;
А w polu niewiasta
Zawodzi dokoła:
Wszyscy poszli z domu
Wzięli z sobą kosy;
Robić niema komu,
Giną w polu kłosy.Kiedy pod Warszawą
Dziatwa się zbierała,
Zdało się, że z sławą
Wróci Polska cała;
Bili zimę cała;
Вili się przez lato,
А w jesieni za to
I dziatwy nie stało.Skończyły się boje,
Аlе próżna praca,
Во w dziedziny swoje
Nikt z braci nie wraca;
Jednych ziemia gniecie,
A drudzy w niewoli —
А inni po świecie
Bez chaty, bez roli.Ni pomocy z nieba,
Ani ludzkiej ręki,
Pusto leży gleba,
Darmo kwiatów wdzięki.
О! biedna kraino!
Gdyby сi rodacy,
Cо za Ciebie giną,
Wzięli się do pracy.I po garstce ziemi
Z Ojczyzny zabrali,
Jużby dłońmi swemi
Polskę usypali;
Во, wybić się siła,
Ani daj nam, Boże!
Gdy wrogów przybyło,
А nikt nie pomoże.
PolOrg is part of the Polish American Congress’ newest attempt at uniting the Polish American Community throughout the United States.
In a recent meeting among the officers and directors of the Polish American Congress, the PAC agreed to make PolOrg a part of the Polish American Congress. By partnering together, PolOrg will become a stronger, more focused, and more efficient resource for the Polish American Community and all of those involved in the growing and unparalleled resourcefulness of the World Wide Web.
PolOrg will undergo a redesign, providing key updates to the website to make it more focal in local searches as well as nationally oriented in scheduling events and collaborations.
Polonian Parishes and Organization wishing to be part of the PolOrg project now spearheaded by the Polish American Congress should contact PolOrg via their contact form and provide their contact e-mail address, permanent address, phone number, and the name of a contact person who can be reached regarding changes to your organization’s contact information and event planning. Responding organizations will be added to the current database of over 1,700 Polish and Polonian organizations throughout the United States.
Having an organization like the Polish American Congress ensure maintenance and effectiveness of the PolOrg website can be extremely beneficial to all organizations involved and create unity among the many different Polish organization in the United States.
2009-2010 VSA arts International Young Soloists Award Program
Call for Entries:
Since 1984, the VSA arts International Young Soloists Program has been seeking to identify talented musicians who have a disability. The VSA arts International Young Soloists Award is given annually to four outstanding musicians, two from the United States and two from the international arena. The award provides an opportunity for these emerging musicians to each earn a $5,000 award and a performance in Washington, D.C.
Attention Applicants:
All VSA arts United States affiliates implement their own International Young Soloists Award programs. Applicants living in New York State must send their entry materials to:
The International Young Soloists Award Program: New York State
The New York State Alliance for Arts Education/VSAarts
P.O. Box 2217
Albany, NY 12220
The application deadline is November 16, 2009.
From Creative Gene: 5th Annual St. Albertus Fest
The Polish-American Historical Site Association Inc. (PAHSA) would like to announce the fifth annual St. Albertus Fest on the campus of the Registered National Historic Site, St Albertus Church, located at 4231 St. Aubin at E. Canfield, Detroit. This year’s fundraiser is taking place on Saturday, September 19, 2009, from 12:00 p.m. —“ 12:00 a.m. The outdoor music festival is $5 and features two covered stages filled with music throughout the day with a focus on Detroit’s finest local bands and musicians. Polish food, beer, wine and beverages will be for sale as well.
This year’s festival will feature a recital by the Oakland University Classical Guitar Ensemble. The recital will take place inside the Church auditorium as the opening of the festival at 1pm. Following the recital the music will begin on the two stages which will be setup outside the Church under tented areas.
The festival includes an amazing collection of bluegrass and folk influenced musicians throughout the day including Detroit based groups The Run-ins, 9 Volt Hammer and Catfish Mafia. This year we’re also excited to have local greats the The Planet D Nonet wsg Charles “Buddy” Smith for the first time. Our good friend Gretchen Wolff will be performing again this year, along with local rock bands Man Fransisco, Dr. Doctor, The Replicas, Pigeon, Eyer Department and Best Idea Ever. Also, Chicago based group Essex Channel are traveling to Detroit in support of St. Albertus
St. Albertus was the first Polish [Roman] Catholic Church in Detroit (est. 1872) and the Heart of the area once known as —POLETOWN—. After its closure by the Archdiocese in 1990, a group of former Parishioners, Historians, and Preservationists established a 501-C3 non-profit under the name PAHSA, and reopened St. Albertus as a museum of cultural history.
PAHSA holds the St. Albertus Fest to remind the Detroit community that St. Albertus not only still exists, but is as beautiful and impressive as ever. For the past four years we’ve had musicians from a variety of backgrounds dedicate their time and talent to the festival in support of our cause. Please join us for the fifth annual St. Albertus fest, if you love Art, History, Architecture, Music, Food or even Beer then you don’t want to miss the St. Albertus Fest.
Gates open at 12:00 p.m., rain or shine, and live performances will run straight through from 1pm until 11:00 p.m. Tickets are $5 at the door, 100% of the proceeds will go towards the Preservation of the St Albertus historic site. This event is all ages; beverages will be available for purchase, alcohol for those 21 and over. Traditional Polish food will be sold on the premises. Tours of the historic St. Albertus Church will be given throughout the day.
For further information and showtimes please visit their myspace page.
Arizona State University Art Museum presents I’m Keeping an Eye on You from Sept. 19 – Dec. 12, 2009.
Gallery Talk with Curator John Spiak:
Friday, Sept. 18 at 11am
Season Reception:
Friday, Oct. 9 from 7-9pm
Through personal, established relationships, casual encounters, forced institutional interactions, or contact from a safe distance, we often overstep our boundaries. Whether we are conscious or not of our boundary breaking, we are all guilty at one time or another of intruding into other people’s lives and space. What may pass as uneventful for one individual may be the cause of great anxiety and fear for another. I’m Keeping an Eye on You explores the broad and lasting effects of our curiosity and intrusions upon others.
Artists featured in I’m Keeping an Eye on You include: Mounira Al Solh (Amsterdam/Beirut), Rachel Garfield (London),
Charlotte Ginsborg (London), Pia Greschner (Berlin), Myung-Soo Kim (Tempe), Yaron Lapid (London), Jeff Luckey (New York/Berlin), Johnna MacArthur (Los Angeles), Michael Mohan (Los Angeles), Corinna Schnitt (Hamburg).
I’m Keeping an Eye on You premiered as a Video Project Space in December of 2008 at Aqua Art Miami, Wynwood
For more information please contact:
Arizona State University Art Museum
Tenth Street and Mill Avenue
Tempe, AZ 85287-2911
t. 480-965-2787
Poetry Out Loud is a national program through National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) that encourages high school students to learn about great poetry as they memorize and perform notable poems in a series of competitions that begin in the classroom and will culminate with national championships in Washington, D.C. in April 2010.
For complete details on how to bring this program to your school visit Poetry Out Loud.
The deadline to register schools to participate is November 6, 2009.
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New blog post: Daily Digest for September 9th http://bit.ly/34jVG [deacon_jim]
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Listened to 2 songs.
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A quiet moment comes after a storm,
Tulips blossom again after the snow,
After the dark night, the day takes its form,
A light beam comes back from night in full glow.
The heart oft rejoices after tears swarm
And the time comes that fortune swore to show,
Even if one lost his way in a maze,
He will at the end reach the destined place.The compass that keeps drawing on the board
Will be closed up and put into its case;
The king moving on a complex chessboard
Will come to checkmate, although not apace;
An unchecked runner will come to a stop,
One who’s lost in woods will reach open space,
After one turn, a star comes from the west,
The swallow flies again to make its nest.The flame, having burned ashes in its blaze
Will go its way for the highest sphere bound,
Water will visit its winding valleys
And fall into the sea, ending its round,
A glad pilgrim after long travel days
Is greeted at home. So all things around,
Even if they went as far as they might,
End up where they started, at their first site.
Translated by Michael J. Mikoś