Third Thursday Poetry Night, June 18

Where were the women poets? Only the guys showed up to read, even our featured poet's usual cheering section was stuck in Canada. But, hey, it was such an unusual night in yet another way (the stars must have been in Uranus), it was a 2 poem open mic (ha, ha -- you missed it)!

Our muse was the recently deceased Harold Norse. Then Alan Catlin read two poems based on works, a book & a movie, about Viet Nam; his poem called "Two of the Missing," like the book he was reading, was about Errol Flynn's son; another, just written, from the movie "Apocalypse Now." Michael Purcell likes to start his readings with a quote, this one from Buddha; the first poem "Identity Theft" on our true, & false, identities & how to recover it, the next written after the Tulip Fest, "Dance."

Bob Sharkey's "To Make Himself Interesting" was about a strange, laughing character often seen along the streets of Albany (& who has showed up on occasion at the third Thursday reading); his second poem was inspired by the spring fashions in Macy's, "Summer Styles." I jumped in on number 4 with only 1 poem, a process poem using works by Edna St. Vincent Millay, "Une Fleur du Millay." I've read poetry with Thomas Brinson at readings of veterans' poetry & was glad he finally made it up here; his poem "Pop Pop Pop Ka-boom!" was about a 4th of July setting, Americans blowing up everyone else & memories of Viet Nam, then a sexy poem on the city full of beautiful bodies & a "dirty old man". Shaun Baxter was back again, just wrote a haiku on "Apocalypse Now," then "The Last Temptation of Darwin."

W.D. Clarke is the author of Soldier Ballads and Other Tales (Infinity Publishing.com). Many of his poems are based on his own & others experience in the military, such as "The Circumcision," based on a true story by a World War II vet; "Dustoff Crews" is a tribute to medivac crews in Viet Nam who rescued wounded soldiers, while "The Night time Army" is about being haunted by memories of being on "senseless missions." "McGowan's" is based on his relationship with his Grandpa, but about veterans too. Other poems from the book were "A Different Breed," "The Outsider", "The Gunfight" (at the OK Corral). Also the "tongue-in-cheek" poems, "Cigars & Women" & "The Pirate's Wife." One of Wayne's more humorous sub-themes was represented by the Viet Nam war based "The Company Shit Burner" & a poem not in his book, a meditation on outhouse construction, "The 2-Holer." His poems have a pleasant, homey old-fashioned story-telling quality, in the spirit (& form) of Robert Service & Rudyard Kipling, but in our more modern idiom, humorous & touching.

Every third Thursday at the Social Justice Center, 33 Central Ave., Albany, NY, always with a featured poet, but don't expect to read 2 poems the next time.

Flag Day Celebration, June 14

I was pleased to be invited to be the featured poet at this event arranged by Connecticut poet & painter, Joan Pavlinsky, held at Studio 59 in Torrington, CT.  This is part of a regular series, the Studio 59 Poetry Circle, a poetry & music salon in the performance space that is also the home of pianist Timothy Alexandre Wallace in a renovated church.

We were an intimate group, sipping wine, talking about art in our various communities until it was time for the open mic, with Joan as the host.  Her husband Ed Stempel made his poetry reading debut (a virgin) with a reading of "In Flander's Field," written during World War I by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918) of the Canadian Army.

Victoria Munoz, who runs a poetry series in Waterbury, CT read her description of the food & music at a festival, "The 4th on the 5th of July," "Invasion 2009" on politics & cleaning up on New Year's day, & Billy Collins' "The Blues."  Poet & graphic artist Priscilla Newcomb didn't bring any of her own poems, so she read Joan's "The Miles Between Us," written for the "One Soldier, One Poem" project.

Our host, Timothy Wallace, improvised thinking about "the blue flag," a lush piece with classical allusions & blues scales.  A visit to his salon is worth it just to hear him play -- & to see the space.

My program was based on the "Flag Day" theme, so lots of politics, some humor & token love poems just to prove I can.A wonderful venue for poetry & music.

Wize Words, June 13

The contrasts in the 2 poetry readings I attended this night couldn't be more stark: Community open mic poets reading from hand-written notebooks (or reciting from memory) v. featured poets from academe reading from published books; black v. white; late start v. start on time; loud audience appreciation (sometimes in the middle of the poem) v. polite clapping only at the end of each set.

I didn't always get everyone's name but sure got the poems, the songs, the spirit. Our warm host, Bless, took us around through a couple of relaxed sets. The folks liked my sexy take on "Patriotism" better than the somber "John Lees" (I was trying out my "Flag Day" playlist). Penny read from her notebook, the first time with "Reality Tripping," telling us "writing is where I live"; her second piece was, believe me, "Poor Poor Pooky". Chris was glad to be in a better place now than he was when he was younger, his rap from memory (of course) written when he was 16; second time he talked about his "dream girl" -- he's all of 19. Shay talked about "Unity".

Kim was a singer, first with recorded music, then the second time around she teamed up with Bless in a free-style on brown skin, a crescendoing sex ride that was here & now it's gone. Bless his-self argued with god in "Could You Talk to Me," then a piece on why he writes but also what he doesn't do poetry for... Later he did his classic "Black Love." The last poet I saw was Storm, flipping through her notebook until she found "I Stand Alone."

Just 2 sides tonight of the multi-faceted gem of poetry in this fine, buzzing city -- come again on the 2nd Friday of each month at Simply Fish & Jazz, 147 South Pearl St. (just below Madison), Albany, NY, 9:00 (or later) start.

Yes, Reading! -- June 12

The "last" in the series for this semester/season, or maybe not, at the Social Justice Center. I've been corrected for characterizing this series in a previous Blog as "grad students" (actually, I said "academics-to-be"). However, the series does have a decidedly different flavor than most in the area -- it doesn't include an open mic, it draws a noticeably different crowd of younger, college-age folk, than the other events, & often the readers, well at least the 2 readers tonight, are well-published professors. & no one claps between the poems, saving their soft hands for the end.

Tonight our tag-team hosts Colie Collen & Douglas Rothschild introduced local favorite Matthew Klane to introduce Deborah Poe, who had read at the UAG back in February & March 2008 (see my Blog entries) when she had read from a manuscript, now published as Our Parenthetical Ontology (CustomWords 2008). She also read, as she had on her earlier visits, from her project, "Elements," a series of poems based on the periodic tables. Tonight she included "Sulfur" & "Gold" & a couple of the new elements that exist only in the laboratories of experimental scientists (which seems like a metaphor itself for other experimental activities). While I connected with the things & colors in her poems they were the kind of pieces that are difficult to grasp at one hearing.

Our hosts then introduced, as a new student to the area, James Bellflower, who introduced Laura Sims with what I experienced as an unintentional parody of the fellow-academic-gush intro style that Bob Boyers at Skidmore has turned into high art. Fence Books, where Colie Collen works as an Associate Editor, housed at the Writers Institute at the University at Albany, has just published Sims' book of poems, Stranger. She read a number of sections, run together without titles as if one long poem. The poems are a fragmentary narrative about the illness & death of her mother, which could not help but be moving. She also read from a manuscript she was having doubts about calling "My God is this a Man?" which are a series of murder poems -- the audience seemed to like the title. Other work included what sounded like a processed text (as were the murder poems), "Infinite Reward," that seemed to include concrete poetry, but hard to tell without seeing the text, just listening.

You can find samples of both Deborah Poe's & Laura Sim's poems in A Sing Economy (flim forum press, 2008), edited by Matthew Klane & Adam Golaski.

Live from the Living Room, June 10

Sometimes an open mic is more fun when it doesn't happen. Don Levy was locked out of the Capital District Gay & Lesbian Community Center on Hudson Ave. this night; there was no volunteer available to attend the cafe due to the other activities in town for Gay Pride Week. We hung out on the stoop, a pleasant Spring evening, until the featured poet, Alifair Skebe, arrived. Don arranged for Alifair to read in September & we adjourned to DeJohn's on Lark St.  [Photo shows Alifair Skebe reading at the Social Justice Center in July, 2008.]

Over coffee, tea, soda & beer we talked about poetry & writing. Don read a Frank O'Hara poem which prompted a discussion on narrative. Mimi Moriarty & Ed Rinaldi read a poem each, with Alifair complementing Ed on getting his poem going before the "I" jumped in.

Alifair Skebe is a fine poet, we are blessed to have her in the area, & I was pleased to spend some time in her company (beyond running into her & her family at the Flea Market). It was almost like hanging around the living room of the GLCC, except that I could have a beer.

So, as they say at the end of the Uncle Wiggly stories, if ice doesn't fall from the sky & freeze the locks & someone shows up with a key, we will gather on the next second Wednesday of the month at 7:30PM, at the GLCC, 332 Hudson Ave., Albany once again for "Live from the Living Room."

Reading & Book-signing, Theogony by Douglas RothschildTM, June 6

Some years ago, before Douglas Rothschild^TM settled in Albany, we exchanged some words about the Albany poetry scene on the pages of the Newsletter of the St. Mark's Poetry Project. He stood corrected & I sit where I stand. This day it was a distinct pleasure to be among Doug's friends & fans in the back room of the Lark Tavern on the anniversary of D-Day while outside folks were (f)Art(ing) on Lark.

I joked that I had always wanted to meet Hesiod, but this is a different Theogny (subpress). Having lived many years in New York City & worked in downtown Manhattan, I know whereof Rothschild speaks, so the title could be glossed as "Theo (god) Goes to New York." The poems are short, playful, New York wise-guy, some simply transcribed phone messages describing what was happening, more Frank O'Hara in his personal engagement with the City, as opposed to Chales Olson (invoked in one of the blurbs) & his historical/scholarly investigations. The poems are especially fun if you know downtown Manhattan, but fun just the same if you love any city.

Rothschild appeared in a grey zoot suit, complete with long waist chain & pearl-grey Cab Calloway hat, & in between poems tried to get us to help him roll quarters for his job at the laundromat, a Tom Sawyer trick. He did a series of short readings from the book, interspersed with breaks & readings by audience members. He had put out the word that he wanted "invasion" poems, so we got everything from Pierre Joris reading from poems that popped up when he did a computer search of 30+ years of his poems, Michael Peters doing scenes from "Saving Private Ryan" (better than the real thing), to Josh Potter reading from a story by Wells Towers, Colie Collen reading Juliana Spahr, to my "Baghdad/Albany," to the ulitimate invasion title for a poetry collection, Richard Brautigan's Rommel Drives on Deep into Egypt.

Find Douglas Rothschild^TM -- he's out & about at the Yes, Reading series, or at the Laundromat -- & buy his book.

Albany Poets Present!, June 2

(at Valentine's)

Beer, baseball & bull-shit -- beautiful!