2nd Sunday @ 2: Poetry + Prose, September 14

At Collar Works on a Sunday afternoon, nice to see regulars, old friends returning & folks new to us. Nancy Klepsch & I are the hosts for the open mic.

John was signed up first & read his poems from his cellphone, a poem about recent rain & tears titled “Break,” then an untitled piece beginning “Title undecided…” written in a cemetery. As he finished reading, his “fan club” came in, a group of family & friends who had been searching for parking, so we asked John to repeat his reading which he did.

I did a rare thing for me, I read my handwritten poems from my poetry workbook, the first a reaction to hearing the insipid song “On Eagles’ Wings” at a recent funeral, & a poem about my cat Balthus, “Cat’s Porn.”

Kate Laity was back for a visit from across the pond (as they say) with a mini-course on a Dutch Medieval play about a woman, Mary, who sold her soul to the Devil so that she could learn the Seven Liberal Arts — as opposed to the more familiar German tale of Faustus who sold his soul for power.

Nancy Klepsch read her powerful poem on school shootings, “Learning Targets,” the one for her dear friend Eddie, “Letter from a Live Teacher to a Dead Teacher.” She also showed off her new tattoo of a paw print of her gone dog Eli.

Sally Rhoades read from her book of poems, Taking Time (The Troy Book Makers, 2025) the poem “Non Pareil” about her father, then from her phone about friendship, a trip to Oklahoma & brunch with her friend (& mine too) Katy.

2nd Sunday @ 2: Poetry + Prose is at Collar Works, 50 4th St., Troy, NY — read 2 poems or 5 minutes of prose — Free!