Listening to Monk, Thelonius Himself

I started listening to jazz and now I can't stop.

I never wanted to be one of those people, one those dull snobs who announced, "This poem was composed while listening to jazz."

Yeah, like, here's my poem. I wrote it listening to The Village People.

But now I listen to jazz and going without Thelonius Monk seems a monk-like penance, the kind of unfruitful austerity the Buddha would warn against.

Jazz is an essential nutrient, like B12 or Italo Calvino.

Ladies and gentlemen, ask yourself, am I getting enough Thelonius Monk?