micheal papaianni, writer/poet

1945 - 2020

Sad to announce they'll be no more words from micheal.
Until we meet again my friend, John Ranger & Art Jackson.

1945 – 1963 - my gram kelly, (my mother’s family), was from county mayo, ireland. she told me i had a way with the words ever since i could talk. my grampa papaianni, (my father’s family,) was from calabria (testa dura), italy. he told me on my 12th birthday – "you are a man now - for better or for worse – – drink the wine.” 1963 – 1974 - …all the while i was developing, i had an affinity for poetry, art, music, and anything which translates emotions into sensations, so, in 1963, i joined the air force where i attended russian language school, sang folk songs in an old converted speakeasy, bugged my 1st sgt to go to viet nam, and wrote poetry on napkins so as never to be in awe of my own genius. i never got to nam, my 1st sgt threw my butt out of his office with a 3 year tour to spain. like some punishment…so i made love instead of war. no regrets there – and while making love, i discovered love in the form of a military dependent raised in cleburne, texas. the poetry flowed – we committed ourselves to each other in 1966. by 1973, far away, a terrible war was slowly ending. somewhere close by, a more terrible war was slowly beginning, but by then, i had 8 years of perfection, 6 years of being outside the military (i got out of the air force in '68 to go to college). four years of university and two sons. who are still the greatest blessings from the gods yet to be…and then it was 1974. 1974 – there is no room here for 1974. 1975 – 1992 - i returned to the military (the army) as a pfc with a degree in psychology and philosophy. I was an interrogator/ linguist, or linguist/ interrogator, depending on the mission. nam was over, but the drug wars were to become more devastating and infinitely longer. like the civil war – everybody was against everybody else. i was trained in the U.S. and worked in europe, panama, el salvador, costa rica, honduras, guatemala, one sunday afternoon in belize, and half of a very bad day when we "weren’t" in nicaragua. i picked up a masters in international relations, another ½ ms in psychology, a sense of justice, like voltaire, and a sense of humor like desade. the poetry took some interesting turns during this time. between 1984 and 1992, i successfully extricated myself from military service with the help of friends, and sometimes otf's (other than friends). i retired with 23 years of service. 1992 - ? - in 1992, i wanted to have a job where i could continue to hone my sense of humor no matter how old or cynical i became. so, i got my k-12 credentials in english and became a language arts teacher for the arizona department of corrections, where teaching is as inspired as poetry, alive as pain, and poets are abundant on both sides of the wall. …if you’re going to read my words – you should know where my mind has been – so, for better or worse … drink the wine.

Last words: 2020

John Ranger, Artist

Creative by nature and formally trained in the arts at the Portland Museum Art School (now Pacific Northwest College of the Arts). JohnRanger loves to create images in all mediums and styles. He uses art to move people’s hearts and minds and works in oil paint on canvas, pastels, and pen and ink with his favorite 1915 quill tip dip pens, watercolor, acrylic paint, and more. Subjects range from the dark emotions to inspirational ... from realism to abtract expressionism. You can view a full range of John's fine artwork at ArtForSaleUSA.com or johnrangerartist.com

Art Jackson, Artist

Contemporary Phoenix artist that merges new technology materials, stylized photo images, with abstract spray paint on canvas, display boards, and other found materials. He has been creating non traditional concepts and imagery for more than 30 years.